The Burrow

Standing amidst a small copse of deadened trees, you find yourself staring into lush greenery. The sky overhead threatens to storm and for one who knows the region well, being caught out in bad weather could mean certain death. You're far away from the village of dust and the nearby Glass City outpost isn't a place one would call welcoming. All you need is a night amongst the trees, protected from the glass shards that will surely be raining down at any moment.
Stepping past the dead trees and into fine greenery, almost cocooned and protected under a shell of thick branches and leaves, you see it: the Burrow. Amongst the forest you now walk in, the Burrow hasn't always had the most inviting reputation. Hardly known as a place of death, the Burrow instead earned its reputation of being incredibly fertile, even against the raining glass. The forest provides food, shelter and the water from the nearby mountains quenches your thirst, but even just when walking for a few moments, you get the intense feeling that there are eyes upon you.
Though the Burrow is fertile and the forest is protected against the glass storms, you can't help but feel like going to the outpost was the better choice.

Geography

The Burrow is specifically a pair of hills set within a forest directly north of Dust and northeast of Glass. Rivers from the Glass Storm Mountains to the north flow through the forest, allowing for creeks, ponds, and small lakes to form. The forest itself is beautiful to behold as the green color of it almost seems to shimmer and glow with arcane energy, to the point of convincing any given traveler that the entire thing might be covered in moss. The glow can be fairly overwhelming to those who are not expecting it.
Within the forest itself are the two hills of the Burrow. Close to the entrance is a rather large hill formation with a cave opening shown prominently on any map worth buying. Within the forest, this cave entrance is not so easily discovered as it sometimes gets grown over with actual moss, vines, and the actual stubborn tree branch and root. Within the Burrow are a series of winding tunnels and caves that lead out into various parts of the forest. Both major hills are connected by this tunnel structure, allowing for a great source of protection from the glass storms that threaten the area, almost as if that were the Burrow's main purpose.

Fauna & Flora

As the only living forest left in the region, nearly all manner of forest creature can be found within the Burrow and its surrounding forest. From the smallest squirrel to the most dire of bears and wolves, many animals use the Burrow as their primary source of shelter from the glass storms. Because of this, rare forms of life might be found within the Burrow, such as the rare albino woodpecker, various families of bugbears, and the odd traveler who finds themselves at peace amongst nature.
As a source of such fertility and safety, many different forms of flora manage to grow in the area, especially the main components used by alchemists to create potions. Though the area is densely packed, it does provide an area dedicated to providing resources to those who need them and have the ability to gather them safely. The Burrow is also home to various plant based beings, such as dryads or even Earth Genasi, who protect the area as best they can against those who might actively harm the Burrow.

Natural Resources

Unlike other forests, the Burrow remains untouched by civilization in the traditional sense. Long ago, when resources were needed, the forest was cut down for timber and mined for ores. Eventually, when the threat of the glass storms died down and a monarch had been selected to rule the Kingdom of Wind, the fertility of the Burrow was discovered in full. Trees that were planted within the Burrow grew at an alarming place, allowing for the careful cultivation of fast growing tree farms. Over the centuries, the Kingdom of Wind managed to learn about the process, almost as a science, realizing that the arcane energy of the area was either blessed by a God of nature or was the result of something entirely magical. Whatever the cause of the Burrow's fertility, the kingdom decided to not harvest too far into the wooded sanctuary that it was. The glass storms still threatened from time to time, but the residents of the kingdom knew better than to mess with a good thing.
The timber that comes from the area is incredibly sturdy, almost to the point of being difficult to build with. A boat or building built with this timber would be able to last centuries, so long as the owner still kept it maintained as best as possible.
While mining in the area halted centuries ago, the Burrow is still known for its incredible ores and gemstones. Individuals might be able to find small fortunes within the Burrow, as well as generous veins, should they be willing to travel deeper underground.
Beyond this, the Burrow also provides much in the way of magical components. The Kingdom of Wind makes a fair bit of money from the Burrow's natural magical resources, even managing to still supply other countries with incredible amounts of material components, despite the rapidly declining population of the country. On top of materials such as these, gatherers, in conjunction with trained hunters, use the Burrow to hunt for meat as well as farm some tree fruit, at least on the outskirts near Dust.

Maps

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  Coastal Region of the Kingdom of Wind

Type

Forest