Fairy King's Wood
The Fairy King's Wood is the undisputed domain of the Fairy Kingdom, a place more riddled with magic and mystery than any other in the vast world of Isekai that provides a home for thousands of variations of Fey creatures, some ancient and some more recent but there presence is concentrated in this part of the world. The weather here is stranger, more wonderful and sometimes deadlier than other places because of how closely it is connected to the Feywild; whereas most places are separated from other realms by a great divide the Feywild is only separated by a thin curtain in the Fairy King's Wood. These woods have a Northern border marked by the Feyline river which separates the world of Elves and Fairies as it flows west touch a Deadzone that was once known as the Mystic Jungle but is now a vast desert that marks the western edge of the Fairy King's Wood. This domain reaches south and touches the coast of the Northern Continent where the rocky shores and high cliffs prove difficult to navigate and almost impossible for ships to land but even with this obstacle coastal towns called "Pulley Docks" have sprung up and made themselves a welcome sight for sailors and trade from across the sea. The eastern border of this kingdom reaches up to touch Lake Idryl, the Great Plains and the Little Greenwood.
Roads here are only that of the beaten path, wildlife from that of nature and the descendants of Fey are more common than any other race. Strict guidance is given to travelers from the more friendly races of the land (Fairies, Centaurs and other humanoid Fey descendants) to stick strictly to paths and roads or the unwary may find out exactly how easy it is to stumble from one side of the curtain to other and leave the physical realm of Isekai. The Feywild is connected to the Fairy King's Wood through an unknown and seemingly infinite number of passages that can be as simple to find as a ring of flowers, a dead tree that has fallen and left a walkway resembling an arch or even tumbling down a hole that looked like a shadow. This wouldn't be such a problem if the way back was as simple, the Fey that rule the Feywild see no use for markings or maps and most of them have little interest in directing lost travelers back to their own world. An adventurer lost in the Feywild may find themselves at the mercy of illogical rules and happenstance based upon emotion, magic and the whims of whatever creatures inhabit the area that they find themselves in. The Fairy King's Wood will seem to be larger than what a standard map would show because of the passages and chasms that connect it to the realm of emotion, for that reason maps here are double-sided and attempt to reflect both realms but passages between them are often temporary and change with the passing seasons.
The climate here lends itself to being warm and lush throughout most of the year, passing into winter in all but the most southern portions with mild snow and little wind. Seasons here present no real danger due to temperatures but the weather itself is wild and powerful, with heavy rains and frequent lightning that doesn't dare to strike the trees. In the southern portions of the Wood, it begins to resemble a tropical area but despite how frequent and powerful the rains are and how often lightning strikes the trees do not fall. This is thought to be one of the older forests of the world, despite not having the claim of the oldest living tree in the world the Fairy King's Wood sports trees that have lived for thousands of years to grow taller and thicker than those of the Elven Forest. Many theorize that their roots grow into the realm of the Ancient Fey and cannot be felled so easily and to support this many creatures prefer to make their homes around nature, even more so than the Elven Forest, not cutting wood down to be used as timber but creating their homes inside the still-living trees. It is because of this environment and understanding that the denizens of the Fairy Kingdom have lived peacefully alongside the Fey for the most part but it is far from a safe place, adventurers that tread here know to be wary of their every step because even the more innocent-looking creatures and plants can prove dangerous.
Geography
The Fairy King's Wood is a dense forest that ranges from coniferous trees in the north near Lake Idryl to plentiful deciduous trees in the south, both of them grow to amazing heights that give perspective to the massive strength of nature in contrast to the rest of the world. Trees here often grow hundreds of feet tall and thick enough to be mistaken for towers, they are some of the longest-lived in the world and seem to be incredibly resistant to things like fire, lightning, wind, and water as if the elements cannot contest their strength. However, the crown jewel of the forest is the palace of the Fairy King, a massive Oak Tree that stands up above the rest of the woods like a beacon that can be seen from miles away. This tree is said to be one of the largest and strongest plants in the world, only being smaller than the tree that houses the Unending Scroll, legends say that it was planted by Lycanna long before the Ancient Fey were created by stealing a seed from the god Ygg and bringing it to the material realm to be planted. It has long been known as the seat of power for Fey that lives in the physical realm of Isekai, this tree has roots that connect to every plant and corner of the Fairy King's Wood and through them, he can see all that transpires within his realm.
Towns and settlements in this area are almost indistinguishable from the forest because those that live in this forest have chosen to make their homes in the trees, whether it be their branches or within their trunks. When doors and windows are shut it is hard to distinguish a town from another part of the forest, for this reason, Druidic communities are plentiful here as people do not dictate to nature but rather they live as a part of it. Large cities are almost unheard of instead, small communities will group around distinct features of the forest whether it be the river, the Spine of Kallex or the coast. The largest settlements surround the Fairy King's Tree and make it a place of incredible life, music, and art that baffles the outside world due to how carefree the Fairies live while under the boughs of the king's tree. The magical is the norm here and the mundane is considered rare, because of this many creatures that live within the wood are resistant to weak spells and demand that adventurers are well versed in magic or that they are skilled in martial disciplines.
The terrain is dense, thick and many would suppose it impossible to navigate in most areas. With the trees reaching so far into the sky it is easy for merchants and travelers to lose their way, which led to the establishment of the King's Road a beaten path that the forest knows not to encroach upon. This forest has varied geography to include mountains, lakes, swamps, waterfalls, and the southern portions contain cliffs that overlook the ocean. Some areas are flat and the larger trees give wake to meadows and glades while other areas have the trees so tightly grown together that they resemble a large, disapproving wall that forbids the entrance of most creatures. The most current knowledge of the wood dictates that the northern areas are flatter while the southern areas give way to rolling hills, hidden valleys, and lakes but the terrain is said to change depending on events that take place within the Feywild which makes accurate map-making a constant process.
The regions around the Spine of Kallex are especially treacherous because they are the home to a variety of elementals. Some small, some large enough to be mistaken for the geography, it is said that these were the reason that the Giants left the Fairy King's wood many thousands of years ago. Earth elementals will lay along the ground or merge into the faces of cliffsides for years, sometimes being turned into a path until they stir and move and air elementals will dive through the mountain passes and canyons with reckless abandon making travel dangerous for the inexperienced. Yet even here the King's Road persists and marks the safest way through the mountains but the winding nature of the spine creates false paths, dead ends, and avalanches that make trade routes difficult to establish but not impossible. Rather the more dangerous part of the mountains is not the dangerous paths or the roaming elementals but the creatures that can come up from the depths of the Underdark, often moving after the sun dips down they will scurry out from caves and venture out into the woods to see what prey they may find before scurrying back out of the woods. For this reason, the Fairies choose to settle farther from the mountains, leaving them to the creatures that roam and the adventurers brave enough to traverse them.
The coastal areas are home to a strange type of settle called "Pulley Docks" which are settlements directly at the top of or built into the face of rocky cliffs along the edge of the forest. They have created extravagant systems of ropes using the branches of trees that reach out over the ocean to make it possible for goods to be hoisted hundreds of feet from the deck of a ship to the town up above, a few of them have even grown brave enough to create buildings suspended from vast rope systems that hang out over the ocean. The buildings, while dangerous have become popular among races that can naturally fly and serve to be premiere establishments that boast the best of both worlds to include all the food and drink native to the Fairy King's Wood along with what comes from the passing ships. Ports like these have made it possible to establish trade with the islands south of the continent and beyond that was previously all but impossible, this has opened up new travel routes in out of the forest as well that would have taken much longer due to the natural barrier of the cliffs.
Fauna & Flora
The primary flora that permeates the Fairy King's Wood is a shared trait rather than a specific type of plant. All trees within the forest seem to live much longer than their counterparts in the majority of the world and show that they are nearly impervious to natural elements to include fire, electricity, vast amounts of water and cold temperatures. Whether they are coniferous or deciduous they will grow to incredible heights and widths, reaching up to create vast canopies that leave the world bathed in a green light that intensifies as the sun climbs higher into the sky. This shared mutation across species is considered to be a by-product of how closely tied this area is to the Feywild, scholars agree that the root systems of most if not all plants could easily partake of both the physical realm of Isekai and that of the Feywild without the need for extraneous effort and this would allow them to inherit the traits that are exhibited in the Feywild; namely the will to thrive.
While most plants share this mutation or trait the forest is not without an abundance of plant life that can only be found within the borders of the Fairy King's Wood. A notable specimen from this area is called the Dryad's Rose, a yellow flower with a bloom that is the size of a standard lettuce head. This flower grows from a low hanging vine, or ivy that wraps about the trunks of trees in the southern regions of the forest, it is part of a family of roses that grow and bloom at different heights and at different regions. The Dryad's Rose is of particular interest because it will bloom only once every hundred years when it does the flower will sing in the ancient language of plants that is seldom spoken except through the use of magic and even that is a poor imitation. This song is said to cure all diseases, lift curses and grant those that hear it an especially long life free from the pains of aging. Because of these attributes the occasion of the rose blooming is coveted event though few things can predict it, some will bloom on the first of the year despite the colder temperatures, others choose to bloom on the warmest day of the year under a noon sun and other still will bloom in the dead of night under the darkness of a full moon.
Fauna in this area are incredibly diverse, most of them being descendants of the ancient fey though perhaps the most delightful and interesting of these creatures are the Fairie Dragons. Small creatures that take the form of dragons, no bigger than a large cat in most instances, that have no actual relation to dragons in the slightest. These are intelligent creatures that have a love of adventure, treasure, and pranks that would just as soon serve as a guide or a source of help to an adventuring party as lead them into the Feywild or trick them into thinking the power has left their magic items. While troublesome and mischievious the Fairie Dragon will seldom try to harm another creature purposefully and they can be easily bribed with treasure or magic, sharing a love of these things with the creatures that they imitate. The life cycle of a Fairie Dragon dictates that it changes color over the course of its life but it will never cease to act mischevious or playful, they have often been prized as pets or companions for beastmasters. Though unconfirmed it is thought that these creatures can naturally sense passageways from the physical realm to the feywild which would make them incredible navigators and sources of hope for those that have become lost.
Natural Resources
The plants and animals are the greatest resource of the Fairy King's Wood but the trees, in particular, are useful for a variety of building materials and spell casting focuses. The harvesting of these trees are strictly supervised because of their status as living creatures. Often timber cannot be harvested outright, instead of fallen branches and wreckages from the boughs during storms are harvested as building materials because of their size which is often comparable to standard tree trunks. This wood retains some of its properties and resistances even after being turned into building materials but it is especially known for its strength and resistance to rot in harsh weather.
Many of the plants, flowers, and mosses are useful for their attributes as components in potions and rituals. Many medicines are made from barks and flowers that grow close to the forest floor and several regional drinks involve harvesting seeds, leaves, and flowers that grow high up in the canopies of the giant trees. A notable entry in this catalog would be the Silent Clover that grows in the northern regions of the wood and only appears during Spring's Morning atop the highest trees near the Spine of Kallex. This red, five leafed clover can create a potion of silence that can permeate an area when thrown or render the actions, words and even the aura of a creature to be completely unnoticeable by most creatures.
Metals can be mined in the mountain areas and canyons, also in the rocky cliff areas with some ingenuity and fortitude of will. The mystical metals that can be mined in this area include: Sickly Steel (very abundant), Boom Steel (moderately abundant), Moon Steel (rare) along the area that touches Lake Idryl.
Alternative Name(s)
Feystep
Type
Forest
Location under
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