Forest of Loren
From Lexicanum
The Forest of Loren or Athel Loren as it is commonly known is technically a part of the kingdom of Bretonnia, but in fact hides the kingdom of the Wood Elves. To the north and north-east the forest is bordered by the Grey Mountains and to the south and south-east by the Vaults. The south-east corner of the forest is a dark and dangerous place known as The Wildwood.
Athel Loren is the oldest Forest in the Old World. It is a magical, but dark and haunted place where malicious spirits roam through the twisted undergrowth and tiny darting shapes flit between the trees on the edge of vision. The Forest itself is like a single consciousness and is aware of all that occurs within its boundaries. It is perfectly willing to crush any that enter its borders, whether they have evil intentions or not.
The Forest itself is self-aware, at the dawn of time the trees began to think in ways trees are not meant to and it learned of feelings such as anger and hate, it became aware of the mortal races crawling upon the world and was not pleased with their intentions. Whether it was the Old Ones themselves that granted life to these woods or if it was the coming of Chaos which awoke the Trees none can say.
Athel Loren defies the natural laws of the world and time does not flow normally within its boundaries. Individuals may find themselves lost within the forest for decades and return to find that only mere minutes have passed in the outside world. equally one might wander through the wood for a couple of hours and find that the outside world is unrecognisable as centuries could have passed since he emerged in the forest. the Wood Elves themselves are therefore forced to not measure time as other mortals do, to them there are only three times; the time before Ariel and Orion (the past), the rule of Ariel (the present), and the death of the forest (the future).
