Hauntwood

The whitewoods, blighted areas of Jhembaz where the trees and other foliage are undead, are usually avoided by the living, and for good reason; there is nothing there to subsist on, and the whitewoods hold many dangers. However, there are some resources to be harvested from these ghostly places, and one of the most prized is hauntwood: heartwood of undead trees that has been strengthened and fortified by its magical nature.

Not all lumber from trees of the whitewoods is hauntwood. Most, in fact, is not; most of the wood of the undead trees is brittle and useless for any sort of construction, though it may have other uses—much of it can be employed, for instance, as an alchemical reagent. Hauntwood seems to occur most commonly near the center of whitewoods, though the exact processes bringing it about remain not entirely certain—many scholars believe that hauntwood arises from the undead trees that have themselves been possessed or inhabited by other, immaterial undead. While visually similar to other undead wood, hauntwood can readily be distinguished by touch; untreated hauntwood is slightly cold to the touch, and causes subtle feelings of vertigo and displacement.

Hauntwood is especially common within the boundaries of the Ivory Empire, but this is of little use since only the most foolhardy would dare venture into the hostile empire just to harvest the wood.

Before it is used in construction or for other purposes, hauntwood must be "cured"—dipped in a mixture of water and (very dilute) blood upon which have been placed certain enchantments. Once thus treated, hauntwood no longer has the disquieting effects that untreated hauntwood has on those who touch it, but more importantly it removes the risk of hauntwood leading to literal haunting; when uncured hauntwood is used in construction it may attract or release various ghostly phenomena nearby. Properly curing the wood apparently either traps whatever spirits it holds within it, or stops the emanations that make it draw ghosts from elsewhere, or perhaps both. Cured hauntwood loses its whiteness and becomes transparent, but is usually painted after it is used in construction, although some prefer its "natural" glassy appearance. @@ Despite the difficulties and dangers of acquiring it, hauntwood offers several advantages over regular wood. For one thing, it is much lighter; hauntwood has about the density of balsa wood without its softness. Furthermore, after being cured, hauntwood gradually becomes harder and more durable; after a week or two it is much stronger than regular wood, while weighing significantly less. This means that the more time that passes between the curing and the working of the wood, the more difficult the hauntwood is to carve or to drive nails into. For this reason, hauntwood is not usually cured until just before it is used—despite the hazards of transporting uncured wood. Wagons and caravans carrying uncured hauntwood often employ necromancers or other specialists to deal with any ghosts or similar problems that may arise.

Aside from its light weight and durability, hauntwood is useful for the fact that it is unusually easy to enchant—at least for certain types of enchantments. Artificers and enchanters of wooden objects therefore prize hauntwood for the fact that they can use them to make some enchanted items for a much smaller expenditure of magical energy than other woods. This, however, is not without its complications. When hauntwood is enchanted, it often spontaneously manifests an additional enchantment, different from the one that is placed on it. This additional enchantment is often useful, increasing the value of the resultant item—but it sometimes results in an inconvenient side effect that makes the item less desirable.