High Forest

The High Forest was a remnant of the days of old, when all of Faerûn was covered in green and elves, giants and dragons ruled the world. The forest was a vast region of old forest growth bounded by the Nether Mountains in the north and the High Moor to the south. To the west was found the Evermoors and to the east the vast desert of Anauroch. The eastern border of the High Forest lay against Delimbiyr Vale through which flows the Delimbiyr River.

What lay within this deep forest was somewhat of a mystery, and few traveled there to explore its depths. The more notable locations in the forest included the majestic Star Mounts&mdash;providing the headwaters of the Unicorn Run and the Heartblood River; the Lost Peaks in the northwest that form the headwaters of the Dessarin River; the fabled Grandfather Tree; the Dire Wood in the east; as well as many dungeons, ruins, abandoned settlements, and mysterious locales.

The southern slopes of the legendary Star Mounts contained the Endless Caverns, which were said to be home to dragons and passageways that connected to the Underdark. To the south of the caverns was the Stronghold of the Nine, an abandoned dwarven site now apparently claimed by elves.

Description
East of the mounts and south of the Heartblood River, was the ruined Netherese city of Karse. The region of forest within the wide bend of the Heartblood River was called the Dire Wood, where a great massacre once took place. Strange supernatural phenomena originated from this place, and was was home to two liches, both by the name of Wulgreth.

At the northern end of the High Forest was an area called Turlang's Wood, a place where the forest was continuing to expand thanks to the tending of a band of treants. At the northeast tip of the forest, their efforts have sealed off Hellgate Keep, the site of a deadly battle with a powerful demon named Kanyrr Vhok.

Inhabitants
Among the known inhabitants of the woods were the aarakocra among the Star Mountains, centaurs, dragons, drow, a few elves and humans, gnomes, korreds, gnolls, orcs, pegasi, pixies, satyrs, treants, and unicorns. The few humans who dwelt there were generally rangers, druids, or adventurers used to surviving in wild environments. Trade with the outside world was infrequent, as the forest was self-sufficient and had plentiful resources for its inhabitants.

The forest was not ruled by any one group, but instead contains many forces and groups, including Fey'ri, Uthgardt barbarians, nature-worshiping druids, often in competition with one another. The most powerful of these were the treants led by the elderlyTurlang.

Age of the Proud Peoples
Long ago, when the elves truly ruled Faerûn, the High Forest was occupied by the Aryvandaar kingdom, though they would leave the woods following the Fifth Crown War in -9000 DR. Several hundred years later, a few sun elves returned and founded the realm of Siluvanede. They continued to erect a mythal around the city of Adofhaeranede, renaming it to Myth Adofhaer.

Around the year -4800 DR, demon-blooded elves from House Dlardrageth undermined several sun elf houses began an interbreeding program between the elves and demons, creating the fiendish Fey'ri, who would hide their heritage from the true Tel-quessir. Over the next few hundred years, select nobles from Sharrven established the kingdom of Eaerlann, in an effort to restrict the growing power of the ambitious Siluvanedenn, complete with their tree-top capital of Teuveamanthaar in -4550 DR.

For over three centuries, the unified elves of Eaerlann, Sharrven and Arcorar would fight against the Siluvanedenn daemonfey, led by House Dlardrageth, in a series of battles known as the Seven Citadels' War. At the war's end, Eaerlann annexed Siluvanede while the remaining untainted elves of the Realm placed the city of Myth Adofhaer in magical stasis. While most of the fey'ri were imprisoned within the Nameless Dungeon, a few managed to escape capture and scattered across Faerûn in hiding.

Age of Humanity
In the year the surviving fey'ri of the Seven Citadel's War unleashed a horde of monsters upon the southern reaches of the High Forest.

Eaerlann fell in 882 DR when Ascalhorn became Hellgate Keep.

In 1344 DR the elves began to slip away from the High Forest, embarking on their Retreat.

During the mid-14 cenuty, wood elves were growing in numbers and sought to reestablish the kingdom of Eaerlann. Standing in their way, however, were the innumerable tribes of orcs, gnolls, and an alliance of demon-spawned elves from Hellgate Keep.

Mountains

 * Star Mounts: These impressive and forbidding peaks were located in the center of the High Forest. On clear days their snow covered summits, which were higher than even those of the Spine of the World could be seen from beyond the Forest's borders, as far away as the Stone Bridge, or the mountains around the Shining Falls, north of Loudwater. This put the Star Mounts among the highest, if not the highest, of Faerûn's mountain ranges, only rivaled by the Yehimal range, which themselves may not have strictly been considered a part of the continent of Faerûn.


 * Lost Peaks: A pair of small mountain ranges, home to many fey creatures, that contained the the Fountains of Memory.

Rivers

 * Dessarin River: Flowing from the Dancing Falls from the Lost Peaks to the Sea of Swords to the southwest, this particularly frigid river was a major route for the conveyance of commercial goods that moved between Silverymoon and Waterdeep.


 * Heartblood River:This tributary of the Delimbiyr found its source on the north face of the Star Mounts and wound its way east and south through the Dire Wood. It gots its name from the red tinge its waters took on as it passed the ruined city of Karse. By the time it joined the Delimbiyr, its waters have returned once more to a normal hue. It was said that drinking from the waters when they still flow red, granted an increase to magical powers, or staved off adverse magical effects. The red color has been attributed simply to soil deposits picked up as the river passes through the Dire Wood. However, other sources mentioned contamination from the blood of the still beating heart of the dead, ascended Netherese arcanist Karsus.


 * Unicorn Run: This river was known for its numerous waterfalls, fey communities and rare appearances of unicorns. The source of the river housed a holy site to the faiths of the nature deities, known as the Glade of Life.

Forests

 * Turlang's Wood: This region was one place where the forest was continuing to expand due to the efforts of a band of treants.
 * Dire Wood: A forest-with-a-forest, encircled by pale oak trees, this woodland was remarkable due to the prevalent arcane energy, caused by the fall of Karsus

Notable locations

 * Grandfather Tree: This massive, spectacularly monumental oak, was actually an ancient arakhor treant, planted by the elves of Aryvandaar during the First Flowering to guard the Hall of Mists.


 * Hellgate Keep: Although it had since been contained by the Turlang and the treants, this grim fortress was once ruled by the Netherese wizard Wulgreth.


 * Karse: This settlement was built around the location where Karsus fell to Toril, following his brief ascension to godhood in -339 DR.


 * Shadowtop Cathedral: A closely packed stand of towering shadowtop trees rested in the High Forest. The dark canopies of the trees formed a high roof that allowed only hints of sunlight to touch the ground beneath. Shadowtop Cathedral wass an important meeting place for the Emerald Enclave during the 15 century.


 * Nordahaeril: A small elven stronghold that was about a hundred strong in the 14 century DR.