A forest of tall hardwoods and tangled undergrowth wherein the people of the wood defend against the attempts of Ahlissa to subjugate them.
The tall hardwoods and tangled undergrowth of the Grandwood were once a haven for refugees from the evils of the Great Kingdom. Nonhuman troops were sent in against the clever rebels, to little effect. The dissident folk wish to consolidate themselves and form a government, but Ahlissa's Overking Xavener, who has the strongest extant claim here (calling the forest a marchland of Ahlissa), will have none of that. The wood elves are the most powerful inhabitants and are wary of outsiders. The humans now trade with Rel Astra, as the stance of Lord Drax has softened of late, but they can infiltrate enemy forces and mislead them if the wood is invaded again.
The Grandwood is perhaps the only part of the old Great Kingdom with some claim to being an enclave of the fair and good. It has been for over a century the refuge for those fleeing the cruelties of the Overking or the Herzog of North Province. The wood elves of this forest, some 7,000 in number, take care to establish the credentials of those who seek refuge here, challenging them to swear oaths by the gods of good, and magically testing their alignments.
Historically, Medegia and men from Rel Astra have laid formal claim to this forest, but their opposition to each other prevented either from mounting a concerted assault on the great swathes of land covered by the Grandwood. Now that Medegia is a ruined land, and the ruler of Rel Astra is concerned with revenge on his Overking, the Grandwood folk are arguably more secure than ever before. Certainly, the natural defenses of the Grandwood are formidable, with great tangles and thickets of vegetation and excellent branch perches for elven archers.
Grandwood people are cunning and cautious. Historically, they have often dressed as soldiers of the Great Kingdom, making it easier to infiltrate troops seeking entry into the Grandwood and preventing them from knowing friend from foe. To counter this, the Overking began to employ humanoid troops, and some of these creatures (notably orcs) have managed to survive, though they are ruthlessly hunted by the elves and woodsmen, as are the few bandits and brigands fled here from old Aerdy.
The Grandwood folk now trade more with Rel Astra than previously, since it seems plain that they have little to fear from that quarter. They do not trust those they do not know, and they continue to buy weapons and resources to defend themselves.
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