The Northern Wilds Codex

[Chronicle]

Created by Fable

Surrounding the various cities of the Free Cities of the North are the wide-stretching forests and plains of the Northern Wilds. From the wet, swampy marshlands in the west to the dry, cold deserts of the east, the Northern Wilds offer wondrous sights and open skies. But not all is sunshine and rainbows. The wilds have been known to be unforgiving to the ill prepared, and not all who wander return home.

M A P

History

Legend's say this is the forest where Aedrin, Dragon God of Nature, forged the first flora, fauna and other elemental forces of the world. But centuries have gone by, and throughout history these vast regions of Karnor harbor some of the worlds most wonderful, terrifying creatures that surround the smaller settlements and larger cities. And along with those creatures come tales of civilizations past, of people once thriving that were wiped out by some mysterious force of nature or horror that made its way to the physical plane only to wreak havoc on the first people it came across. Most of these stories are written in children's books, or told by firelight as scary stories by groups of travelers looking to spook their friends.

But all stories are rooted in truth. And it is in the WildKing's Forge that those great truths and greater mysteries are waiting to be rediscovered and uncovered- should one be brave enough, that is.


About the Regional Wilds

Northern Karnor

• Crystal Forest
• Lovers Pit
• Enchanted Bog
• Nasiim's Tower

Eastern Karnor

• Eastern Ruins
• The Obelisk
• Burning Tunnels

Southern Karnor

• Cavendish Mines
• Serpent of the Sands

Western Karnor:

• Hills of Deception
• Kami-No-Megumi
• The Old Church

[Fable]

About

The Crystal Forest; one of Karnor's most sought after date locations & a farm of sugar crystals. A romantic trip through the pathways carved by the locals reminds one of the true beauties of the world. Between the crystals themselves, fauna, and flora, the travelers, visitors, and collectors alike all find something wondrous about this forest.

Crystals of varying sizes and types grow in clusters around the landscape. Most are simply large, beautifully grown sugar crystals inlaid with aether that speeds their growth and gives them an aetheric glow- though how such aether mingled with the growing crystals is kept secret by The Bulwark.

The Crystal Forest is also where much of the exotic sugars of the free cities are mined from, though due to the neutral nature of the Settlements they do not directly trade nor make deals with any governments or cities. Instead, they invite individual travelers to mine what they need. After all, without their mining the forest would become overgrown and set off the balance of the ecosystem contained there. Their closeness to Kalzasi and Shemask means travelers and chefs often venture out in search of new strains of sugar. Due to the aetheric properties of the crystals, rain nor snow melt these sugar clusters, and instead harden and compact them. The larger, more clear a crystal is the more dense it's sugar and the more potent it's flavor.

It is recommended that any sugar one mines from the crystal forests is thoroughly washed- after all who knows who might have licked it?


The Bulwark
Protectors of the forest, guides to the lost, and keepers of secrets, the Bulwark is a group of about fifty people from the Crystal Settlements. Their main job is to protect the crystals from those who may be too greedy, and steer any wishing harm upon their forests away with illusion magic or force if necessary.

Second to the protection of their people and the crystals, is the keeping of secrets. The large amount of free flowing aether around the ecosystem means every so often something new and strange comes to light, and while some things are harmless and perhaps beneficial- not all are so. Trees have moved seemingly on their own. Pathways shifted. Even the plants seem to change in shape and type every few years. But more than that are the deepest secrets of the forest. Should they come to light, the Bulwark believe it may put not just their own forest but the world at large at risk.

The Crystal Settlements
The locals of the forest. Compromised mostly of Siltori and Fae'ethalan, they are a simple people who have an unyielding faith in each of the Greater Gods- twelve settlements are scattered throughout the forests each with a small family dedicated to praying to their families chosen god and upholding the balance of the forest. With the gods as their guides, they seek to impart wisdom and the knowledge of their forests to all who come.

Generally friendly, they welcome outsiders with open arms and different sweet delicacies to partake in. Though, they are a vegetarian people, and prefer not to eat the fauna that preside around them and instead share their meatless dishes with new friends from other cities.


Fauna & Flora

The Crystal Forest is one of magic and sweetness, that is for sure. But there is so much more to this place than just it's crystals. The Mid-Day sun sprinkles through the treetops and casts it's light upon the far reaching vines of this forest. Sometimes it's hard to tell where one vine ends and another begins, but most seem to grow in patterns that lead travellers through the pathways defined by the locals. Whether it be some strange cognitive power of the plants or simply the vines desires to avoid direct sunlight, their rough tendrils stray from the ground and are rarely seen touching the earth itself. Countless wildflowers that grow at the base of trees or in bright, tall bushes are sure to enchant visitors to pick and prune their petals and present them to loved ones. After all, where else would you find a bioluminescent rosebush?

Aside from the smaller fauna and flora, there are two main culprits to the Forests fame. The Pebbys, and the Sugar-puff Trees.

Pebbys

Much like bees, the Pebbys are pixie-like creatures who pick pollen from the high sugarcane flowers atop the trees and grow sugar crystals for their own consumption and breeding. Different species of Pebbys produce different flavors of sugar, and with the help of freely flowing aether are mass producing the sugar crystals of the forest. The more crystals, the more pebbys. The more pebbys, the more crystals.
They are a docile creature, and tend to make the largest crystals their homes. The male of the species will fly high up into trees, picking small lumps of sugar and beginning to grow them over time into large crystals of varying shapes and designs. The larger and more creative the crystal, the more of a chance a male pebby has at attracting a mate. Often female pebbys will watch multiple males build the crystals and in the end, chooses the one that fits her desires. Once chosen, they will both begin eating through to the center of the crystal to produce offspring. It only takes a month to produce offspring, of which there are usually four to five at a time. After a span of two months, the adolescent Pebby will have grown to 'adulthood' and leave the nest to create it's own crystal and family. Pebbys generally only live for up to twelve months, and once they do their bodies decompose into the sugar they sustained themselves on throughout their lives and fill in the gaps inside the crystal originally made by them. For this reason, it is considered unethical to mine any crystals with nests still open.

Sugar-Puff Trees
Much like sugar-cane stalks, these trees product sugarcane. But then again, they're not truly trees. Instead they are some of the worlds largest flowers and classified as trees only due to their size and trunk. However, unlike their smaller cousins, these trees reach nearly fifty feet tall or higher. Their branches start high up acting as canopies that intertwine with one another and only let small sprinklings of sun into their depths. This creates a humid, sweet ecosystem below that smells of sugars and herbs as the plants and fauna below suck in the sugar in the air. Pollen is taken from the flowers atop it's branches and brought down to create the sugar crystals below. Make no mistake though, just because it's flowers are sweet does not mean it's trunk is.

The Caves
Not much is known about the caves, only that the unlucky few who have ventured into them have never returned, and the entrance is constantly changing location. Some believe treasure to lie beyond its depths, while others believe it to be a portal to the after life. Whatever it is, should someone come across it they are advised to always stray far from it. No matter what they may hear coming from inside...

Quick-Sugar Marsh
Much like the Sugar-Puff trees, the ground of the forests have been littered with puffballs of sugar. Wafting through the wind, they spread their seeds across a beautiful clearing in the forest. However, unlike the crystals, these sugar flowers are susceptible to the rain. Upon rain storms, thousands of sugarpuff flowers will melt into deep pools of melted sugar. Heavy, sticky, but sweet, these quick-sand like swamps are created only in the heaviest of rain storms and trap everything from butterfly to brute. For this reason it's recommended not to travel during or directly after a rainstorm. However, in the drier months of Searing headed towards Ash, the flowers bloom from their own melted corpses and once more produce beautifully blooming sugar puff-ball flowers that are often munched on by child and fauna alike.

[Fable]

About
Trust the locals when they say not to visit Lover’s Pit. It is not named after romantic notions like it would suggest, but instead after a Half-Mortallen murderer known as Krigog Lover. Centuries ago, Lover was a brutal mercenary. Equally revered and feared, hundreds of people were slain by the cursed blade of his sword and the grip of his mighty hands.

No one alive today knows why he had such a penchant for killing, but when he was finally caught he was thrown into the pit- alive. Legend says that you can still hear the screams of his tortured soul coming from the bottom of the pit if you get close enough.

Those who visit the pit are told that should they desire to get rid of old burdens, to scream their worries and hatred into the pit so that Lover’s spirit will take them down with him and resolve the angered of their emotions.

The Locals
The local tribe lives only a mile from Lover's Pit. Comprised of mostly mortallen and half-mortallen folk, they keep watch over the pit and send all their rotted food, their deceased, as well as their prisoners with a death sentence to the pit for execution. They are protective of their people and their home, hating most who visit but doing their best to be as accommodating as legally required by Karnor. This means that most who visit are turned away unless they have mortallen lineage, or are vouched for by someone in the town.

Inside the Pit
While not impossible to get inside the pit, the bottom is nearly a mile down. Throughout the centuries, treasure hunters have excavated a narrow pathway along the edges of the pit starting at the north wall and spiraling downwards. Not many see need to travel, and should one find themselves at the bottom of the pit they will be walking on the tops of old corpses. There is more to discover here, though, should one be brave enough to tread into the many tunnels of it's depths.

Creatures
Giant spiders, dire snakes, and poisonous lizards all make their homes inside the pits. Feeding on the bodies and rotted food that are thrown down, the creatures among the darkness here have become deformed, corrupted, and some have even grown to unimaginable sizes for their species. Travel down here is not for the faint of heart, nor the ill-prepared.

[Fable]

(Created by Hyoga)

About
Kami-No-Megumi was founded several years after the Free Cities of the North settled into the region of Karnor. The temple was originally founded as a place of worship and enlightenment for followers of the Dragon Gods. It takes its name from the golden forest of trees that surround it, shimmering in ambient radiance in the sunlight like a deific figure, its name translating to “Divine Grace”
Since its creation it has become a place of neutral ground, holding no affiliation to either Zaichaer or Kalzasi. This holy place has become the middle ground for peace.
As a place revered for beauty believed to be made of the gods, Kami-No-Megumi is a temple complex that has become a refuge for those under religious persecution in the current Age of Steel. Most of these refugees come seeking asylum from the religiously stifling Zaichaer, but it has also seen refugees or exiles from other lands as well.
Though not all who come seeking religious freedom are refugees as most who have come to maintain the temple are fervent worshipers of the Dragon Gods, often becoming priests and shrine maidens.
Given that the complex sits on a road between some of the Free Cities of the North, it is known to be well-traveled. Many come from far and wide to see its beauty or to pay an offering for safe travel. Given the importance of the complex as a place, it has come to receive patronage from those that can manage it. Over the years the settlements and farms along the way have come to offer supplies being that the complex is out of the way from the larger cities.
The complex is broken up into several different temples, each one connected to its respective God. At the center of the complex is the Radiant Pagoda dedicated to the Dragon King himself, Eikaen. The temple of the north is dedicated to Raella, to the west for Keela, to the south for Etaiss, and to the east for Nuenna.


Radiant Pagoda
Sitting at the heart of the complex is the Radiant Pagoda, a marvel in its own design and construction. This Pagoda is where many from far and wide come to pay tribute and pray to the King of Dragons wishing to basque in the radiant light of Eikaen. It is here that many come to see it as it is known for its beauty.

Temple of Raella
A temple in appearance, this building dedicated to the Dragon Goddess of Life serves another purpose. Most of the healers of the temple can be found here. Raella’s temple serves as a hospital for the ailing and sick, as it is believed that the monks that serve her temple are wielders of Mendicus, and it is even rumored that Ioniri herself can be seen here, but that is simply pure speculation.

Temple of Keela
Scholars from all over come to this temple to seek wisdom from the Dragon Goddess. This temple appears as a place of learning, a small library can be found here, a collection that has built from the donations given to the complex over the years from grateful travelers and merchants. It is also a place one comes to seek enlightenment through meditation.

Temple of Etaissv
Dedicated to the Dragon Goddess of Family, Agriculture, Autumn many farmers from nearby settlements make the pilgrimage to the temple in order to leave offerings to the goddess. Of all the temples this one sees the most traffic as many come to pray to Etaiss for their families, or a bountiful harvest, or so that nothing harms their crops. The temple also allows from some of the local farmers to set up a stall in order to sell their freshly grown crops to travelers.

Temple of Nuenna
The Goddess of Roads, Travel, Stories has the most following in this area due to the fact that no one comes in or out of Kami-No-Megumi without first stopping within Nuenna’s temple. Many pray for safe travel along the roads, but this temple is favorable from the sense of comradery and peace it instills. The temple has a gathering space where many come to congregate and share experiences with others. It has become a tradition that one must offer a story to the statue of the Dragon Goddess for good luck before leaving the temple.