Cloud Forest

The Cloud Forest is a region on the Utraean Peninsula, the multiplayer world in .
== Inhabitants ==
;Friendly
:Verrus - vendor
:10th Legion Ranger near the Temple of the Stars landmark and Legion displacer pad
;Hostile
:Bandit
:Bandit Archer
:Forest Klaw
:Gorack
:Enraged Gorack (miniboss)
:Hell Boar
:Spiked Maw
:Forest Troll
:Muong Troll (miniboss)
:Black Wolf
There are about two hundred bandits in the forest, evenly split between swordfighters and archers. But their leader, the Rogue Bandit, is located beyond this region up the Mt. Utrae slope.
== Overview ==
The Cloud Forest is a coniferous forest on the eastern coast of the Peninsula. It connects with the town of Meren at its northern end and the Mount Utrae Alpine Reaches at its southern end. Players pass through the Cloud Forest on their journey from Meren to Lang.
== Details ==
The Cloud Forest stands on a rocky and humid coastline, and in contrast with the Great Northern Forest, is a lush place with nearly-impenetrable undergrowth. Passage through it is restricted to the trails. Gaps in the tree canopy occur periodically, and the thick, pastel-green biome seen in the Elddim Lowlands flourishes in these spots.
Dense cover, bottlenecked routes, and bountiful wild game are an outlaw's dream-come-true, and this was exactly the situation faced by the people of Meren during the call to unite the Townstones. Bandits ambushed travelers in the forest and threatened Meren itself until those Marked with Fire arrived and eliminated them. Bandit kingpin Belwar was struck down by adventurers at the treeline between Cloud Forest and the Mt. Utrae summit.
Meren's sacred Temple of the Stars is located deep within the forest. Judging by the statuary this structure was built in the time of the Empire; it houses the Meren Townstone, the so-called Fish Stone. The 10th Legion installed a displacer platform nearby.
The forest begins as one travels inland from Meren. Once the log torches end shortly past the displacer tower, one is in the Cloud Forest. Trolls and Spiked Maws are common hostiles in the coastal parts of the Cloud Forest, gradually increasing in number until Hell Boars begin to appear. Some distance into the forest, adventurers will find a clearing, eerily similar to the around Elddim. Here, one will have to fight Forest Klaws and Goracks. Across some bridges, in front of a health shrine, the hunter Verrus can supply travelers with the supplies and equipment they need to fight what comes next: the bandit horde.
The bandits are damaging and numerous, and there are many curvy, long, branching paths that make traveling this section of the forest frustrating. To add insult, there are few Resurrection Shrines; one of them located by the first lake travelers must go by. Along the early parts of this trail are several green clearings. Throughout the area are bandit encampments, some flush with training targets and treasure chests. If one keeps his/her bearings and fights back every bandit, he/she will emerge in one of 3 places in the relievingly green and open Mt. Utrae Foothills.
In short, the Cloud Forest is a harrying trudge from the start; numerous regenerating trolls early on, and even more bandits deeper in the woods. The Cloud Forest is an analogue to the Dark Forest in Ehb.
== Dialogue ==
;Verrus
*"I've been hunting deer in this forest since I was five summers old, and never have I seen beasts such as these. You and I will be better off if we compare equipment and trade to reinforce each other. It's a man's duty to help his fellows in times like these."
*"The bandits are making trouble, but then, they always do. A word of advice; stay away from them, and they'll leave you alone."
*"If you need a safe place to stay, go north to Meren. The people there are a little strange, but they'll do right by you. Of course, if you need more equipment, I've still got some left."
;Ranger
*"Hail, friend! Come to see the Sacred Temple of the Stars for yourself, have you? It's just south along the ridge here, can't miss it. Once you've paid your respects, you'll be wanting to visit Lang, I'll bet. You're a fair ways off the main path, but you can rejoin it if you follow the eastern trail here and take the south fork into the hills. I've still got some work to do cleaning up the old Displacer Platform, so run along now and keep your eyes out for bandits in the trees. They're as bold as wolves these days, I'm afraid."
*Under red sky: "This doesn't look like bandit's work. If I didn't know better, I'd almost think the sky was bleeding."
== Trivia ==
*There is one gremal in the Cloud Forest.
Category:Locations in the Utraean Peninsula
Category:Locations
Category:Forests
Category:Displacer locations