The Derkwuds: Forest of Eternal Mist
The Derkwuds are a permanently mist-wreathed forest filling the valley between the Draktun Pass and the Aranthaes Fields. Dense pine, perpetual shadow and unnatural silence swallow whole stretches of the valley, while at its lightless heart yawns the Derkwuds Tear – a long, narrow chasm filled with black water said to be bottomless.
Scattered through the reachable groves stand glass-smooth structures from prehistory, untouched by age and belonging to no civilisation anyone can name.
Setting & First Impressions
The Derkwuds seem to begin before a traveller actually enters them. Mist creeps across the surrounding ground, the road darkens beneath ever-thickening pine, and familiar sounds gradually fall away.
Beneath the canopy, daylight becomes a grey-green twilight. Fog clings to roots and hangs between the trunks, distorting distance and making even well-known paths difficult to judge. Sound behaves strangely: a whisper may carry astonishingly far, while footsteps disappear entirely. Lanterns gutter without wind. Ravens call from somewhere unseen. Travellers claim to hear movement keeping pace with them beyond the trees.
Approaching from the Draktun side, the valley appears almost to swallow the road whole.
The sensation of being watched is common enough that even hardened travellers eventually stop joking about it.
The Derkwuds Tear
The greatest known feature of the forest is the Derkwuds Tear, a long black rift cutting through its heart like an ancient wound.
Its waters reflect almost nothing. Stones thrown from the bank disappear without a visible bottom, and attempts to measure its depth have produced contradictory results. Some claim ropes return wet far beyond the length that should have reached the floor. Others insist weighted lines simply cease to descend, hanging impossibly in the darkness below.
At night, the Tear is sometimes said to hum – a low tone which becomes louder if adventurers approach its banks.
Pale lights have been seen moving above its surface, and there are persistent stories of voices rising from below – occasionally calling travellers by name.
One summer, generations ago, the entire Tear froze. The weather remained warm across the surrounding valley, yet thick black ice formed from bank to bank. Contemporary accounts disagree on exactly how long it lasted, and stranger stories claim shapes could be seen far beneath the frozen surface. No accepted explanation was ever found.
Secrets of the Black Structures
Scattered through the deeper forest are structures unlike anything else known on Aranthaes.
Some are monoliths. Others resemble walls, platforms, broken chambers or enormous blocks sunk at impossible angles beneath root and soil. Their surfaces are jet-black and glass-smooth, showing no seams, carving or tool marks. They appear untouched by weather despite being older than any recorded civilisation on the island. Several toppled structures lie partly submerged within the Derkwuds Tear like great black teeth.
Metal held close to them becomes painfully cold. Other eerie effects include ink beading and sliding from their surfaces, dogs and horses refusing to approach them, and travellers who sleep nearby reporting vivid dreams, fragments of unfamiliar voices and the disturbing certainty that something is aware of their presence.
Scholars disagree over their origin. Some have attempted to connect them to the earliest legends of the Mother, while the majority believe they predate even those stories.
Those who know the Derkwuds best offer little encouragement to either theory.
Those Who Live Within
Despite its reputation, the Derkwuds are not entirely uninhabited.
Far from the recognised roads lie small hidden settlements, temporary camps and root-covered sanctuaries belonging to people who have lived within or beside the forest for generations. Few outsiders know where they are, and fewer still could find them twice.
Among these people are the mysterious Derkwuds Guardians – druids, wardens and guides whose traditions appear to be almost as old as local memory. Around Draktun they may be called mist-guides, raven folk or keepers of the old paths, although most travellers will never knowingly meet one.
The Guardians do not claim ownership of the Derkwuds nor make any attempt to tame it. Instead, they have learned to read its moods: the gathering of mist, the silence of wolves, the warning cries of ravens and the subtle changes that suggest a path should no longer be followed.
Their hidden paths and settlements are guarded closely. Respectful travellers lost in the woods have occasionally been guided back to safety by strangers who vanish again into the fog. Those entering with axes, excavation tools or an unhealthy interest in the black structures may discover that every path somehow leads away from what they seek.
The Guardians believe there is something beneath the Derkwuds that must never be disturbed.
Hazards of the Woods
The forest itself remains the greatest danger. Pale lights drift between the trees after dusk, sometimes drawing travellers toward cliffs, bogs or the banks of the Tear. Paths seem to change when retraced. Fog may descend within minutes, turning familiar landmarks into featureless silhouettes.
Wild animals behave unpredictably. Wolves sometimes follow travellers for hours without attacking. Ravens gather silently above certain clearings. Other stretches of forest become so completely still that experienced guides immediately turn back.
A rough road has been hacked through one of the thinner stretches of the Derkwuds, providing a dangerous shortcut between Lantear and Aranthaes Port. Caravans use it when time or profit outweigh caution, although few guides will enter after sunset.
Those who agree to do so charge accordingly.
Notable Places
The Derkwuds Tear: A vast chasm filled with lightless black water, reputedly bottomless and sometimes heard humming after dark.
The Derk Road: A rough shortcut through the forest linking Lantear with Aranthaes Port, notorious for disappearances and strange encounters after dusk.
The Black Monoliths: Glass-smooth prehistoric structures scattered through the forest, showing no visible erosion, construction marks or known purpose.
The Whispering Glade: A clearing where voices carry impossibly well and visitors sometimes hear words that nobody present remembers speaking.
The Hidden Paths: Routes known only to those who have spent years within the Derkwuds. Some appear on no map and seem impossible to rediscover without a guide.
The Guardian Sanctuaries: Rumoured camps and tiny settlements concealed beneath trees, roots and mist. Few outsiders have knowingly seen one.
Rhythms & Customs
Communities around the Derkwuds have accumulated generations of small rituals for dealing with the forest.
Knotted twine is tied to branches at its margins to “hold back the mist.” Travellers may cast a stone into running water before entering or leave bread beneath a raven-marked tree. Guides often refuse to continue when birds become suddenly silent, regardless of how clear the road ahead appears.
Some traditions may be nothing more than superstition, while others bear an uncomfortable resemblance to practices associated with the hidden Guardians.
Even the hardiest of the Red Cloaks treat the deeper forest with caution. More than one patrol has returned with fewer members than it began with, and there are stories of experienced trackers emerging days later unable to explain where they have been.
The most sensible custom remains the simplest: If someone who knows the Derkwuds tells you not to take a path, do not take it.
For the Storyteller
The Derkwuds provide a natural setting for wilderness mystery, exploration and creeping horror.
The forest can contain ordinary dangers – beasts, bandits, smugglers and Red Cloak patrols – while constantly hinting at something older beneath them. The Derkwuds Tear and the black structures offer anchors for pre-history, ancient magic and discoveries that may connect to mysteries far beyond the forest itself.
The Guardians add another layer. They may become guides, rescuers, obstacles or reluctant allies without ever explaining everything they know. Adventurers might follow raven-marked signs for days before realising someone has been directing their route, or discover that the mysterious traveller who saved them from the mist belongs to a settlement no map records.
Most importantly, the Derkwuds should never feel entirely understood.
The Guardians have lived here for generations and even they do not believe they command the forest. They simply know enough to be afraid of the right things.
Encounters
When traveling in the Derkwuds, roll d10 for possible encounters…
- 2 (1d4) Red Cloaks moving quietly through the mist, intent on ambushing smugglers.
Red Cloaks: AC 14, HP 22, scimitar (1d6+2), leather armor. - A pale light drifts between the trees. Following it leads toward a sheer drop into the Tear. DC 14 Perception to recognise the danger before reaching the edge.
- 3 (1d4+1) giant wolves emerge silently from the fog. They do not immediately attack, instead watching the party as though deciding whether they belong here.
Giant Wolves: AC 13, HP 26, bite (2d6+2), pack tactics. - A ruined grove contains a half-buried black monolith. Lingering nearby causes 1d4 psychic damage per hour as fragmented whispers begin filling the mind.
- 4 bandits posing as lost travellers.
Bandits: AC 12, HP 11, shortsword (1d6), leather armor. - A caravan of smugglers taking the Derk Road, nervous and quick to draw blades.
Smugglers: AC 12, HP 14, dagger (1d4+2), leather armor. - A swarm of ravens erupts from the canopy before abruptly wheeling away. Characters succeeding on a DC 13 Survival or Insight check realise the birds appear to be warning them away from the path ahead.
Swarm: AC 12, HP 22, multiattack (1d4+1), no armor. - A scholar and two guards are examining a black structure. A hooded stranger watches them silently from the trees before disappearing into the mist if approached.
Scholar: AC 10, HP 9, dagger (1d4). Guards: AC 14, HP 12, longsword (1d8), chain mail. - A black bear prowls near the Tear, agitated and territorial. Strange black residue stains the fur around one paw.
Bear: AC 11, HP 34, multiattack (claw/bite, 1d6+2 / 1d8+2). - An unnatural silence falls across the forest. All creatures must make DC 13 Wisdom saves or become frightened for 1 minute, convinced that unseen footsteps are closing in. Characters who succeed notice a small raven-mark cut into a nearby tree – apparently very recently.