The Corpsewood

Alien from nature, rich in Old World wealth.

A strange and haunted forest that engulfs the ruins of a large city. Malignant and strange, it is a place where the natural cycles of decay and rebirth are absent.

Geography

The Corpsewood is located in and around the ruins of Spokane, Washington; Bisected by the Spokane River, the area is characterized by the vast and overgrown downtown where pre-Return buildings lie pierced in myriad places by the infamous Corpsetrees.
Decay seems to be halted in the Corpsewood, but so is birth and creation. The cadavers hanging from the Corpsetrees are fresh as the second they perished, four hundred years after their untimely demise. Aside from the strange beasts that roam the ruin, the Corpsewood is absolutely empty of animals or flora other than the Corpsetrees and beasts. Those who enter the cursed forest speak of an unnatural, uneasy sensation and a variety of strange effects, notably a suppression of appetite and the disappearance of the breathing cycle and heartbeat. It seems as if within the Corpsewood all natural cycles - from drawing breath to decay or growth - are halted.
Fae and most especially Elder Fae , who have an essential connection to nature's cycles, are pained and harmed by the strange energies of the Corpsewood. Those foolish few who have attempted to venture within have almost invariably been pushed to the point of near-madness, speaking of a horrible, engulfing sensation of emptiness.

Fauna & Flora

The Corpsewood is characterized by the Corpsetrees: strange, trees resembling a leafless elm, many with still-fresh corpses impaled on their branches. At the moment of the Return, the Corpsetrees sprang up from underneath people, growing rapidly in the space of seconds. Their spreading branches homed in living hearts, killing almost the whole population of Spokane via spears to the chest. As this happened during the moments of the Return, most of these victims were in the process of transformation from human to Reborn, leaving most of these hanging corpses misshapen and half-transformed, their Rebirth interrupted by a tree branch to the chest.
Strange and monstrous beasts, mostly dog-like in form, dwell within the Corpsewood, stalking and hunting all who enter. However, these beasts do not seem to consume their victims; those few that have been captured seem pained at the approach of living creatures, tortured by the presence of regular life. Attempts to bring these snarling creatures outside of the Corpsewood have never been successful; the creatures go still upon leaving the Wood, before dying rapidly of suffocation. Scholars theorize, as breathing is alien to the Corpsewood, these creatures have long ago forgotten how to draw breath.

Natural Resources

The Corpsewood lacks any natural resources. Corpsetree wood is brittle and dry, almost useless for any constuctive application, but maintains an alien aura that slows decay and is harmful to fae. However, the real wealth of the Corpsewood is in the ancient pre-Return artifacts that litter the area. As decay is halted, the Corpsewood is full of supplies, weapons, knowledge, all untouched by the ravages of time. Sayasak bands are the most regular groups to attempt expeditions into the wood, although such trips are a risky business.

Type

Forest, Temperate (Seasonal)

Location under

Aydah