Living forests

**Living forests** are a type of neutral Deity native to Earth. They are a powerful amalgamation of the spirits of animals that have died inside of the forests.

## Physiology

Living forests themselves are usually invisible and intangible, but are in moderate possession of every natural item within a certain area of effect, as well as unnatural items that have spent a long time inside the forests.

Thusly, the so-called bodies of Living forests are usually composed of trees, rocks, moss, bushes, shrubs, animals, and abandoned buildings.

The spirits that have died in Living forests become a part of a hivemind.

## Powers

Living forests are, along with Genies and ClusteredPoltergeists, some of the most powerful natural spirits in Pigverse. The more souls they encompass, the more power they gain.

An average Living forest can move around items and people almost completely freely, only hindered by the speed of light. They can summon the appearance and presence of deceased animals and entities, as well as commune with any animal that is part of the Living forest's hivemind.

Living forests are magical beings, and are naturally capable of basic elemental magic and telepathy. This aptness increases with time and the amount of souls incorporated into it.

Larger or older Living forests are capable of other types of magic as well. They can create several types of spatial or even time loops, summon some types of natural and magical animals and put out forest fires.

## Alignment

Most Living forests are neutral, and will not interfere with people or animals who wish to travel through them, or inhabit them. Neutral forests are known to help those who get lost inside of them, or cause grief to those who disrespect or desecrate them. Neutral forests can sometimes even engage in fair trade.

Benevolent forests sometimes grant handouts to anyone who asks, and will not interfere if someone goes to pick berries, hunt animals or even to fell trees. They have a sense of self-preservation however, and will not tolerate logging companies or pyromainiacs.

Some Living forests will lead people to treasure upon certain circumstances.

Malevolent forests can cause grief to anyone, for any reason. They are known to hurtle rocks and tree trunks towards people and animals, trap living beings in spatial loops to starve them to death, mislead and misdirect people, and drive people insane by bombarding them with the calls of their hiveminds of the undead.

Some seemingly malevolent forests can still exhibit motivations of some sort. For example, in the Magadan oblast of Russia exists a sentient forest that only kills dogs, for some reason.

## Notable living forests

* It is known that an extremely malevolent living forest exists somewhere in the Yellowstone National Park, USA. No mortal being has survived entry into it, so it is considered an impossibility to map out its precise borders. Indiana Stark has succesfully entered and unentered the forest, but was unable to make any clear observations, as the forest ejected him into a nearby mountain side after only a few minutes.
* There was a benevolent Living forest in early Medieval England that allowed King Arthur to find the Excalibur, and become the King of England. The forest was mostly cut down in the 18th century to make lumber for ships, after which it was burnt down by a lightning strike in 1924.
* In Southern Algeria there is an ancient neutral living oasis that has protected a group of black rhinos from at least since 1000 BC.
* In the jungles of Slethany stands a neutral living forest inhabited by a group of Attick elves and Laplandish refugees. The forest is riddled with Sudenkuoppas, and Piggy became stuck there in at least one incarnation.
* In Kenya there exists a somewhat malevolent Living forest that kills all sentient beings, but allows animals to roam fee. This has created a massive nature reserve.
* It is speculated that most of Scandinavia, Finland, and Western Russia is covered by a single, ancient humongous benevolent living forest.