Four-Faced Forests is what the Aezkian call the northern, cooler half of Threa's temperate zone. The aezkul explorers, being used to living in a land with a less varied climate, were fascinated by the distinctness of the region's four seasons, hence the name. West to east, the Four-Faced Forests extends from the Starless Forest, whose border is marked by the Dragon Mountains, to the Starstruck Sea. Its southern neighbors are the Sunblessed Lands and the Zephyr Plains, which begin at the Golden Guard and Whistling Lowlands respectively. Northward, the Four-Faced Forests fades into the Frigid Frontier, making it difficult to define a clear border. Included in this major region are also the various temperate islands that lie close to its shores, such as the Fishers' Isles.
Given how large an area the Four-Faced Forests includes, Aezkian scholars have split it into two unequal chunks – the Crowndales in the west and the Scarwood in the east. The former encompasses everything between the Dragon Mountains and the Northward Spine. It is named after the dense forest canopies and the three valleys they cover – the Verdant Valley, Broken Vale, and Great Wild Basin. The latter, the Scarwood, covers the Scar, a bit of land just northeast of it, and the land south of it all the way down to the Whistling Lowlands.
Dense woodlands make up almost the entirety of the Four-Faced Forests, ranging from broadleaf deciduous forests in the south to mixed ones in the north. They teem with life, being inhabited by all kinds of creatures, from small fewiggs to mighty trezkul, and are filled with mystery, having overgrown countless ancient ruins, many of which contain mundane or even magical artifacts. Magic and arcane installations make exploring and looting these abandoned structures of peoples long extinct as dangerous as it is profitable.
Abundant water, fertile soil, and plentiful natural resources are cause for the many civilizations that have risen among the lush woods. Though many of them have fallen, others prevailed or rose in their stead, and continue to live atop the former's remains, often without knowing. Most prevalent settlers of the Four-Faced Forests are the Gren realms, sozlin tribes, trezlin tribes and petty countries, and the wolshak packs of the north. The Gren only inhabit the southern half of the Verdant Valley and the eastern reaches of Vandell, while the latter three are spread all over the region. Last but not least, there are also the aezkul and their lin students, servants, and slaves. Multiple small Aezkian outposts have been founded among the mountains of the Four-Faced Forests – homes to explorers and scholars eager to uncover the region's secrets.
