Hermit's Wood was a large forest in southern Cormyr, lying southwest of Wheloon and east of the Wyvernflow.[1][2][3]
History[]
During the life of King Azoun II (1001–1056 DR), a hermit was the first person to dwell in the forest, giving it its name.[1][2]
By 1372 DR the Hullack Forest, the King's Forest, and Hermit's Wood were almost all that remained of the southern reaches of Cormanthor in Cormyr, having been pushed back significantly during the prosperous reign of Azoun IV.[4]
Industries[]
Local Cormyreans often foraged, hunted, and logged at the fringes of Hermit's Wood in the 14th century DR. Game was plentiful here, and it had been heavily cut for timber.[1][2][3]
Inhabitants[]
Bar visiting humans, no sentient beings actually lived within the forest.[1][2]
The village of Blustich lay at the edge of Hermit's Wood, on the western bank of the Wyvernflow. The villagers hunted and foraged in the forest.[5]
The settlement of Ongul's Water lay in a wooded valley on the northwest side of the wood. Some of the braver folk hunted in Hermit's Wood, and worked as guides to visitors, but knew much less about the forest than they let on.[5]
Ecology[]
Hickory trees grew in the forest. The nuts were gathered by the inhabitants of Blustich.[5] Meanwhile, blueleaf trees grew in large groves on the northern side of Hermit's Wood.[6]
Hermit berries found growing around the wood could be used to ward off kelpies.[7][8]
A breed of toad found near Hermit's Wood had the power to see invisible creatures.[8]
Rumors[]
The ghost of a gray-cloaked or gray-robed old man with a lantern that shone with an unnatural blue- or azure-colored light was said to haunt the wood, appearing at night under a full moon. However, it was hard to find anyone who claimed to have seen it with their own eyes, despite the regular human presence there.[1][2][3] Many wondered at the ghost's origin, and whether it even existed or not. The most popular story was that the ghost was of the hermit, who supposedly met some dreadful and unnatural end there, and that the cause might yet lie somewhere in the wood. Some attributed the lack of habitation to this, claiming non-humans had the good sense or instinct not to live there. Again, no actual incidents were ever recorded. Skeptics said it was all fiction, or the sighting of will-o'-the-wisps.[1][2]
Appendix[]
Appearances[]
- Adventures
- Novels
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Eric Haddock (1994). Cormyr. (TSR, Inc), pp. 7, map. ISBN 1-56076-818-5.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Ed Greenwood, Julia Martin, Jeff Grubb (1993). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 2nd edition (revised), A Grand Tour of the Realms. (TSR, Inc), p. 50. ISBN 1-5607-6617-4.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Richard Baker, Bruce R. Cordell, David Noonan, Matthew Sernett, James Wyatt (March 2007). Cormyr: The Tearing of the Weave. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 151, 152. ISBN 978-0-7869-4119-3.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood, Sean K. Reynolds, Skip Williams, Rob Heinsoo (June 2001). Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 111. ISBN 0-7869-1836-5.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Ed Greenwood (July 1995). Volo's Guide to Cormyr. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 78. ISBN 0-7869-0151-9.
- ↑ James Butler, Elizabeth T. Danforth, Jean Rabe (September 1994). “The Settled Lands”. In Karen S. Boomgarden ed. Elminster's Ecologies (TSR, Inc), p. 12. ISBN 1-5607-6917-3.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (July 1995). Volo's Guide to Cormyr. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 79. ISBN 0-7869-0151-9.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 James Butler, Elizabeth T. Danforth, Jean Rabe (September 1994). “Coastal Aquatic Lands: The Sea of Fallen Stars”. In Karen S. Boomgarden ed. Elminster's Ecologies (TSR, Inc), pp. 11–12. ISBN 1-5607-6917-3.
