Frozen Forest

The Frozen Forest was a vast coniferous expanse, that was so named for the glittering ice that sheathed the needles and boughs of its close-standing trees.

Geography
At the forest edges, most of the trees were heavily bowed from the accumulated weight of the ice, but deeper within towards the heart of the wood, the trees stood too closely together to bend, and their uppermost boughs became welded together with ice. The forest had very few natural clearings, and no human-cut roads or trails.

Geographical Features
Ground fogs were ever-present below the low forest canopy; close to the ground there was an unnatural warmth radiating up from underground magma, which supported the trees and wildlife. Abundant rabbits, squirrels, and grouse fed lynxes and owls (including a few of the giant varieties) as well as foxes, voles, and other small animals.

Along the verges of the forest moose, elk, and rothé foraged, constantly moving to where they could find green shoots, and they used the lee of the forest for protection when the fierce storms of northern Faerun hit. Caribou wintered in the forest, while deep within the forest there were dark fey who had no love for sentient intruders of any sort.

History
At various times over the ages, humans tried to settle within the forest, but persistent hobgoblin attacks decimated their settlements and numbers and forced survivors to flee to the south. They reported finding strange ruins and foundations in the forest from previous settlements, from which enchanted weapons and other treasures had been recovered. They also claimed that fell monsters roamed in the depths below these ruins.

Rumors & Legends
The wizard Elminster has noted that unknown powers actively prevented dwarves and gnomes from living or mining directly under the forest.

Notable Locations
The Remorhaz Run trail of the gnolls ran through the far eastern part of the forest, close to the Great Glacier.

The icy Alaphaer Run river ran northwards from the Abbey Mountains and into the forest, leading almost directly to the fabled Monument of the Ancients.

References