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sticksandbonesThis is Mizuki!
I know it has been a while. I have seen some new people around, and decided that maybe one of Mr. Silverash’s colleagues should take over the town halls he used to host.
If you are interested, anyone is invited to a town hall today at the Archives. I will be doing my best to shorthand the notes from prior meetings.
[ Arriving at the Archives, you will be met with a large chalkboard with an overwhelming amount of writing. Apologies in advance. ]
[ You are handed a pamphlet with “Start Here” written on it. ]
Welcome to the Grove! You have lived a previous life here that you know little details about! Yay! 🪼🪼 Do not worry! You are not alone! The rest of us have also have past lives here! Mister Heimr and Miss Ydalir, both respectively reside at the General Store (go meet them if you haven’t!!!) tried preserving our souls, which has led to us living our “current” lives.
If this makes you uncomfortable, you are free to come talk about this in your downtime with Heimr! He is sure to help ease some of your worries! Or, your local (unlicensed) therapist, Mizuki! (〃＾▽＾〃)
Information on Mister The Forest
It is recommended not to learn too much about our captor, as magic in this world works on belief and knowledge. Hence the more we know, the stronger he gets. (Like infohazards!) (Very bad!)
As such, read at your own discretion here. I will only be sharing the vital information and keeping most things to a minimum, but if you are truly curious, you can come speak with me directly. I cannot guarantee I can answer all your questions, but I have been here for nearly two years at this point, so I’ve picked up on a few things. This will stay a bullet list for convenience!
* He feeds on our misery.
* He has the ability to “corrupt” most of us. It causes to become more plant-like and lose control of yourselves/be possessed in the worst outcome. You may speak with Elsword (with the white hair, not the red!) or Zahliya if you have more questions about that.
* He has been given a “name”, but learning it would give him power. Common names used tend to just refer to him as the forest as a whole, or things like “the creature” or “the entity” or what have you.
* He is afraid of the ocean.
* He can take your name. Do not give it to him.
* Beiwe mentions rejecting him, turning sadness into resolve, and continuing to call him rude names is a way to fight back against him.
* Enciodes Silverash led a group to fight him in the forest. Many lives were lost, but some things were learned.
— Dying feeds him, and as such, even if we “come back”, we both lose something from ourselves, and also make him stronger.
— Calisto learned healing magic hurts him.
— Bombs are effective against him, and magic fueled by emotions.
— He uses illusion magic that feeds on our fears.
* You may speak with a fragment of Mister the Forest’s “old self” in the portal-y library
* Mister Shadow Milk Cookie discovered this place has magical leylines that Mister the Forest has… attached himself to? Or something of that nature. Hurting them seems to hurt him.
* He is the entity who got us here from our home worlds. (Unconfirmed and speculation, but likely.)
* He isn’t open to reasoning (according to Beiwe)
The residents here
Heimr and Ydalir, or the Shopkeeper and the Trader, both lost their previous names to the Forest. Heimr recently regained it back along with his humanity, but Heimr still prefers his new name.
Nene resides here at the Grove, and had previously been corrupted and held by the Forest for centuries. She is daughter to Grace, a doctor that used to reside here in the Grove. Her mother had a hand in the Garden, and is the reason when we die, we do not stay dead.
Callisto, the merchant who had a hand in releasing the Forest from the temple it had once been confined in, also resides here. Please be kind to her. She used to be fuel for the Forest for centuries, and has been through enough.
Renard has been rescued from the forest and resides in town. He had previously tried hiding the sun and moon shards — fragments of the Goddess’ power — from Mister the Forest.
The Guardians are demi-deities, in a sense. Treat them with respect and give them offerings if you require assistance from them.
Moder, the Forest Guardian, is the moose-like creature! She is very kind, and the forest pre-corruption was her domain. She is willing to take people thought the forest safely, if needed, and usually makes trips to the Garden when Nene cannot. She was previously corrupted, but then I ate her, and now she’s all better! :) She likes to eat flowers and fruits and do big steppies around the Grove!
Zahliya is one of the two gargoyles you will find. He has a green flame around him generally, and is able to cleanse people of corruption if needed. I am pretty sure this process hurts though, so… y’know… avoid doing that! If you are unsure if you are corrupted or not, see Mister Ezell. Mister Zahliya probably can also sense it, but likely will not tell you and simply hunt you down to purify you. Do with that what you will!
Sinann, the River Guardian, resides in the river usually in its form as a glowing blue fish. It also has a humanoid form that it uses to walk/talk freely. Shells and bones can be taken from the river to be used as currency at the shops. Sinann also watches over the Seaborn that still reside within the river. I ask that you be kind to them, too. They are my kin. While they are edible, and we personally would not be upset of our consumption, I personally do not recommend it, as Seaborn corruption may occur if you do. Just something to keep in mind! :) If you are ever unsure if a critter is safe to eat or not, you can always ask~!
Callan, the Lake Guardian, is the shapeshifter you likely seen around town. He is very silly, and though may come off as a bit capricious sometimes, is not malicious. The Behemoth is his daughter, and is the giant crocodile-like creature. She is not a Guardian, but still powerful in her own right. Be kind to her, and if you wish to speak with her, you will need the bone ring from Heimr’s store.
The Cosmic Serpent (I call them “Hoshibi” which roughly translates to “star snake”!) is in the ocean. They sleep a lot of the time, but I go and read them books monthly. They are not opposed to helping us, but can only offer so much, and will likely be annoyed if we seek assistance too much. They became what they are today by feasting on fallen stars.
Freyr (or informally “Aurora”) is the Sky Guardian. She had been recently dead, with efforts from some of those in the Grove prior to reviving her. She is a phoenix that changes her size. Her feathers can serve to revive those recently deceased.
The Goddesses — Beiwe, the Sun Goddess, and Ourania, the Moon Goddess — are the current overseers. According to Moder, they are very weak and may need our help to regaining their strength through prayer and acts of devotion. It is very likely that the people outside of the Grove (those from cities outside where we are currently stuck), either do not worship, or outright forgot about the Goddesses entirely. You can speak with them directly by praying at their respective statues, though be warned they may not always answer.
Sehul, Beiwe’s dragon mount, has been revived from their previous death to Mister the Forest. They can be seen around Beiwe’s church.
All natural phenomena have a correlating spirit of some kind. For example, Morrigan, who is Death. And the Lord of the Mountain, who is stuck where he is due to Mister the Forest.
Zonari is Mister the Forest’s gargoyle. She doesn’t reside in the Grove, but can be seen occasionally visiting. She is likely keeping tabs on us for Mister the Forest, but she is not an active threat. She has some sort of memory magic?? I don’t know how it works, personally. She likes gifts, though. More material ones, but I like to give her hugs!!
Magic of this world
As stated prior, believing in something gives it power. Use the Guardian’s names and the Goddess’ names where you can for this reason. Song also seems to have power in its own right. You can sing songs to Mister Zahliya while he purifies things, or for songs of protection if you intend to do something dangerous.
The sun and moon (and star!) shards have been seen around the Grove, which hold powers from the Goddesses and the stars. Mister the Forest wants them destroyed.
The seasons are controlled by spirits, likely on equal ground to the Guardians. They lose control of their magic every hundred years and need some sort of “sacrifice” to stabilize them. We’ve just passed the hundred year mark for the winter spirit, but it is unclear if the other three seasons require the same treatment at some point. Be aware of this.
There are baby dragons in the Grove that are able to give blessings to the residents. Those who are blessed seem to have immunity — or at least extreme resistance to being corrupted by the forest.
Places of Interest
Aldric’s manor is inaccessible now, though Heimr’s kids have been rescued from it. Previously, they had kept themselves locked inside to keep the protective barrier up around the Grove. This role has been taken up by Sehul now.
There is a stretch of trees that look like people — some may look familiar to you as friends or family from home. This place is currently covered with a flesh-y blue substance called the “Nethersea Brand” that acts as a nest for the Seaborn who don’t reside in the river. Do not go into it, as it will shut down your motor functions and cause neurological distress if you try touching it for too long. If there’s something you absolutely need, let Mizuki know.
The Garden is where you’ll end up if you “die”, as mentioned prior. Nene or Moder will bring you back from this place, but it is important to… not die! Ideally!
The River is the… well, the river. It is Sinann’s domain, so follow its rules and no littering!
The well at the center-ish of the Grove is always clean. Don’t dump trash in it regardless. It is also bottomless, or at least illusory to the point it seems that way. There was something pushing back when I attempted to dive deeper into it.
The lake, Callan’s domain, is filled with bones at the bottom and an unideal place to go looking for shells. Terho’s cabin resides nearby.
North Aldric’s Grove used to be a part of the Grove that stayed in a perpetual burning state. It has since been cleaned up and fixed, and now has places like the Archive and the Pine’s house, and things like that.
The Church in the Forest — Nene’s previous holding when the Forest had it, and Beiwe’s previous church before the Forest claimed it. Beiwe has a new church in the Northern Grove.
The Temple was Mister the Forest’s previous “cage”. He stayed there temporarily, but abandoned it when Enciodes led the attack against him. We do not know where he is currently residing, but he mentioned being happy with his new location. Zahliya previously had been the statue guarding this place, before being the gargoyle we know now.
The Lighthouse on the beach has a man named Adrian guarding it. Zahliya has purified him from his corruption, so it is safe to go around here, but Adrian prefers to be alone. There is a statue of Ourania carved into the cliffside nearby.
The beach is accessible now, thanks to Moder. You can head there without the golden glasses from Heimr — just follow the bridge of fallen trees. The ocean does have dangerous creatures, however, so be mindful. Dipper has also found Mister the Forest’s original church under the water.
There are star shrines scattered in the Forest. They can provide you a brief respite, if needed. Some still have the star spirits in them, while others are likely corrupted. Hoku, a star spirit with the appearance of a lion, is the leader of these stars, but is corrupted himself. Their corruption spreads through telepathy, and until he is cured directly, all the other stars will stay at risk.
There’s an expansive library that you may take a portal to get to, found by the inn. The library has creatures known as Bibcoons who act as its keepers. The cannot leave, but the library itself has every form of knowledge that’s been written down throughout the history of the Grove and outlying territories. It is likely Mister the Forest’s domain, but refrain from vandalism all the same.
There’s mountains to the north where the lord of the mountains reside, with crystals that trap dreams and memories. Zonari likes this place.
Roseroot is a town past the mountains that once likely had life, and used to be an affluent town. It doesn’t seem to be real anymore, and now exists as a psychological horror scape. It’s fun if you’re into that sort of thing!!!
There are other places within the forest. I have a map if anyone would like to see it.
Keep in mind that if you intend to venture into the forest, you need to bring a pair of golden glasses from Heimr’s shop to stay safer than you would without.
