Elderfen Forest

Description

A vast, ancient forest where the canopy grows so thick that daylight barely reaches the floor. The trees are enormous — gnarled trunks wider than houses, roots that twist above the earth like the bones of something buried long ago. The air is heavy, still, and smells of moss, wet bark, and something older. Sounds carry strangely here. Birdsong stops without warning. Branches creak when there is no wind.

The Road to Drosmere

A well-traveled road cuts through the western edge of the Elderfen, connecting the forest to the nearby town of Drosmere. Along this stretch, the woods are noticeably thinner — generations of logging by the people of Drosmere have opened up the canopy and widened the path into a proper trade road. Sunlight reaches the ground here, and the undergrowth is scrubby rather than wild.

Most travelers stick to this road and don’t stray from it. The deeper forest — where the trees close in and the light fails — is another matter entirely.

Notable Features

• The Drosmere Path — the thinned western corridor, well-traveled and relatively safe
• Abandoned campsites — scattered through the outer forest, left by hunters or travelers who didn’t stay long

What’s Known

The Elderfen is known by name across eastern Restrend. Hunters and woodcutters from Drosmere work its edges, but few venture deep. The forest has a reputation — people who go too far in don’t always come back, and those who do speak of paths that seem to shift, sounds with no source, and a persistent feeling of being watched.

Whether the danger is real or exaggerated depends on who you ask. The people of Drosmere believe it absolutely.