Forest of Autumn

My parents always told me not to rush first head to visit the Forest of Autumn. I reckon they did not want my flamy character to sink deep into the soul, wanted me to calm a bit while I grow up.

Wait, your mother too? I thoug...

Oh, no! Mom took me there for a walk whenever dad wasn't looking.

— Scathach and Hithean while walking towards the Forest of Autumn

Location

The Forest of Autumn is located in the Cymru region, almost touching the mountain range that cuts through the Sáveni land and reaches the northern part of Gáláwá.

Description

The very first thing that is seen is the abundence of trees with colourful leaves, and not just in fall but throughout the entire year. Most of the trees are broadleaves, like beech, elm, hornbeam... Deeper, where the Ghlan river spreads wide, it is mostly ash, alder and willows mixed with maple and bird cherries. Some say that strange and atypical trees and shrubs grow on the small islands in the central part of the forest, but that is only speculation. No person is known to have ventured into the central part.

Myth or truth?

Because of the great similarity with the mythical Forest of Autumn, the central part is thought to be inhabited by Àncéarmâr — the Stag of Autumn. It is said that deep within lies his lair, a strange place connecting submergence and emergence of concepts. Which ideas, though? That remains a mystery.

Connection to Ædeos

The forest has a very strong connection to the Autumn path of Ædeos, which symbolizes submergence to the unconscious. A consequence of this is that those, who venture it have their thoughts, feelings and memories sink deep until they begin their new life showing in the manner of speech, gestures, etc.

Resisting drowning in the unconscious — Cymru method

A common way to cope with this, to some extent, is to sing a short song with a repeated phrase. Should one want to let a thought "float on the surface" and remain conscious it needs only to be added to the song and concentrated on. The Cymru folk describe this as snàmh, i.e., swimming and the Snàmh òrain — the swimming songs is the term used for songs to help remember stuff.

Type

Forest