Agreed. The minecraft vids are nice and all but that's not why most of us came to his channel. We're here for the guy's worldbuilding videos. No offense to those who do like the minecraft vids, it's just really hard for most of us to show as much interest when we're all looking in from the outside.
I once wondered why Sherwood Forest was such a good place to hide and live for Robin Hood and his men. That's when I learned how much larger Sherwood Forest was back then. True, compared to the forests of North America and others Sherwood Forest would have been still small. But then again, it shows how 'little' a forest can be for a band to completely hide from the authorities. You would need a fantasy Ranger or Druid to find them, but if the band hiding has a Ranger or Druid of their own? They will be impossible to find.
Back when I lived in Alaska on the outskirts of town, it really woke me up to how easy it would actually be to have hidden villages, especially with magical, nature folk like elves. Because if it wasn't for the roads/paths, you would NEVER guess how many people were able to hide just off the roadside. Let alone further out.
I really appreciate the mention of microclimates, because as I've hunted mushrooms I've definitely noticed changes that may seem minor but are huge to me and help me orient myself and be able to accurately guess where I took a picture. The sandier part, the drier sunny part, the hills.
The ancient 5,000 year old peaceful forest elf society who established their city in their gigantic sacred magical tree of life: *just chilling* Me with a match:
You describe trees better than most fantasy writers. "Stand up straight and then scraggle out all hokey-pokey like at the top". I doubt ChatGPT will ever come up with a phrasal verb like "scraggle out" and then pair it with the comparison "all hokey-pokey like"... Sir, you are a modern poet.
Also, forests can grow back after a farm is abandoned, so there can be ruins of old farmsteads and even old wells that can break open and trap players and/or characters if not careful.
When it comes to world building civilizations, you entirely neglected agroforestry. We’re now learning that the Amazon was home to hundreds of large settlements, and that it was actively expanded by the indigenous people who lived there. They essentially shaped the entire Amazonian ecosystem to feed them every tree and shrub and bush, made fruit or medicine, or some sort of useful material for them. Food forest are an excellent way to world build forest civilizations
@@ryanmontgomery255 the book where I first read about it was 1492: New discoveries in the pre Columbia’s americas It’s honestly one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read and a treasure trove for world building Also the Dawn of everything by David Graeber is an amazing book along similar lines but I don’t think it really talks about the amazon
This is the kind of worldbuilding that I find fun. It isn't "original", but tries to be thoughtful, comprehensive, and combine tropes in interesting ways. The story of Anuthix, while brief, was very compelling.
I am a forestry major. In the American south, fire played a major aspect in the design and structure of the forests. Some fire was natural (lighting, etc) while some was man made by indigenous people. This resulted in what is called a "mosaic landscape", where you have a variety of different forest types next to each other: ranging from thick early rotation pine stands covered in bryer, to pine savannahs, and even clearings. I find this idea fascinating. Furthermore, it is interesting to learn how colonialization ended this mosaic. Settlers clear cut the land, converted into a farm, the farm would fail after a year or two due to poor soil, and they would move on. This lead to natural regeneration by pioneer tree species, who would reclaim the open space. Overtime, many of these new forests would be turned into pine plantations, to produce timber for industry. In fact, the dominate pine of southern forestry is lobolly pine due to how fast it grows, and the fact it can grow just about anywhere. A lot of people are trying to bring back native ecosystems, especially with shortleaf and longleaf pine.
Don’t forget fallen trees due to age and weather. Also, if near civilization, consider logging operations, which would have debris, runoff, skid roads, and logging equipment. Widow makers (branches hanging from trees that can drop from high) should also be considered. Lightning struck trees are cool too. Beaver activity with beaver felled trees and dams, which cause ponding, can be cool additions as well.
Here where I live is the weird forest patch in Southern Brazil shown on the forest map, which is made of Araucaria Pines. the 1:59 Menorah-like trees in the background look a lot like Araucarias here. There's no forest like the Araucaria Forests in the World, so it can be one of those "wacky" forests you can use in your worldbuilding, although Australia also has Araucaria species, so it implies the genus is really old, and I believe even Antarctica might have them when it was a rainforest. They are a endangered species which has a delicious nut and it's pinecone looks a lot like a grenade, so much me and the boys used them as so when we played together. The way they disperse seeds it's through these blue, crow-like birds called Gralha-azul. They usually form these woodlands with lots of space between them, which make the perfect picnic spots, and the worst place to be in a rainstorm, or they happen in the Atlantic Rainforest as the emergent layer species along Ype trees, Bracatingas and other rare species. There's nothing more beautiful than going to a beach here at summer, and see those hillsides lush with Ype trees in full bloom, which look like purple cherry blossoms at distance, and the chandelier-like Araucarias sprouting out of them. It's definitely a forest worth protecting. I plan to world build a forest inspired by the Amazon Rainforest and the Sumatran Rainforest, and one of my ideas is to have no mammals there besides humanoid species, so all niches are covered by Brazilian extant and extinct birds, such as the Terror Bird, and macaws so smart, they build their own little "villages" inside hollow tree trunks and hornero houses where they share resources and are these toddler-like mischievous creatures. There's also cockatrices, which are these giant fowls, the size of a cassowary, and they are herded more like how cows and ostriches are than chicken, and you can use a single egg to bake a whole cake. There will be an ensemble of musical instrument-like birds, such as the Lyrebird, which instead of being perfect copycats of bird songs and laser toys, sing with a lyre-like timbre, and macaws love to annoy them and toucans with bills full of holes to produce a flute-like call. Also, really tall moa-like cranes, with necks so long, they are like the giraffes of this forest, and have to use their tail as a counterweight to their neck like a real crane. My idea for this forest is to make these small niches you've mentioned, each one serving as a "dungeon map". They are navigation puzzles first, battle maps second.
Fun fact about redwoods that we've literally Just Recently discovered, the old growth centuries-old trees actually have their OWN microbiomes! As they get taller, the leaf composition changes from broad and suncatching to narrow water-conserving. But they also trap their own fallen leaves on the branches, which accumulates soil, which grows ferns, which attracts animals! I'd love to see a dungeon that's just a single megatree and you've gotta fend off waves of giant salamanders, birds, and worms to reach the top for a reward, or get down to the bottom and escape lol
The Red Frog, a large swamp perhaps similar to a degree to the everglades, is probably the forest I've worked on the most. It's a swamp like I said, but it's also a cultivated garden, meaning to a degree it's man made. Most of the plants and fungi that grow there are edible, and a ton of fruit is grown there. The land is inhabited by a group of people known as the Orangutangee. They live in small villages, rarely numbering more than 30 inhabitants, in homes built on stilts. Outside of living a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, they are experienced fishermen, using small boats made up of bundles of reeds, which they also use to get around. Animals such as hydra, trolls, basilisk, black ogre, goblins, and swamp khimera as well as fairies can be found here, to name a few. Monsters such as Crocodiles and Orangutans are also said to inhabit the large swamp.
Also the southern tips of the continents on Earth aren’t actually that far south. Like New Zealand is about the same latitude as Spain and the end of Patagonia the same as the UK, just reflected about the equator. There’s nothing in the south like the north of Canada, Scandinavia and Siberia with the tiny exception of Graham Land on the Antarctic side of the Drake passage, and that shits icy
Thanks for the mention of verticality, I brought this up with some RPG forums when i was playing through elden ring, and nobody seemed to get what i was talking about.
I'm currently up in the Yukon, but when you were talking about a river with jumping Piranhas I just imagined a Salmon run with Piranha-toothed Salmons. The Bears and Wolves still want access to that bounty of food but they are also in danger of getting swarmed by the aggressive mobile fish. So when the party makes it there they notice first like a crowd of "peaceful" predatory animals at the edges, all eagerly awaiting an opportunity to get some fresh fish but also wary of the prey they're after. If they go further downriver far enough they'd find fishing villages with armoured bridges over the rivers to allow them to catch the dangerous fish at their most populous.
Extreme thanks for this video. Forests are seriously underappreciated in DnD despite how often they're seen. I've been trying to depict them as mysterious, otherworldly lands, but it's been hard to brainstorm and figure out how. This video alone just became a game changer for my campaign.
Just found this channel randomly, but I really like the insights that you have on forests and the worldbuilding around them. Your passion on the topic really shines through, especially on the types of stories than incorporate forests and their mythologies. Your personal world is cool too. It reminds me of Redwall with all the mousefolk.
@@Stoneworksits amazing to see people appreciating those forests (and forests in general) as much as I do! Every time I walk through them it feels magical.
In my own worlbuilding project there is a small or very large island depending on how you look at it which is basically one massive forest,it's called Skepnagarten and it's to the north of the central continent where most of the story takes place,Ulthia Skepnagarten starts as more of a temperate rainforest near the coast but gradually becomes more like a deciduous forest the further inland you travel,at its center all of the streams and rivers converge into massive central swamp that has come to be known as the arena as it's been the sight of several wars and conflicts over the years,the main inhabitants of Skepnagarten are chimeras,which are creatures that are a combination of human and animal features,with traits resembling caprines,amphibians,mustelids and canines being the most common and prevalent,this continent is also home to giant wolverines called bushfiends,large alligator like reptiles known as marshdevils,various species of giant insects and large fungus,venison,insect larvae and mushrooms are a common food source on this continent...
Hey, I'm actually here from the D&D side of youtube and this video was suggested to me. I think I will start building a homebrew setting for a longer adventure this year and as such this video got me to subscribe to your channel. Always inspiring to spend 19 minutes and just absorp some of the knowledge and enthusiasm of someone who spent so much time on the topic. I saw that your channel doesn't upload super regularly but I just wanted to say that I personally would love for you to expand on this video series. I looked at your playlists and didn't find too much on the topic so I will have to look through your videos of the past. Not really part of the minecraft community anymore but have definitely been there before but I would love to explore this world building/environment side of your channel more. I would love a video on dry climates, not just desserts or savannas but in a style simillar to this video with examples and visual representation! Keep up the good work and I hope this video will do well for you, it really deserves attention!
The traditional way of crossing the piranha's river is sacrificing a animal and throwing it in the river, the piranhas will all go eat the carcass while it goes down the river, so you can cross the river more safely, hopefully. I Brazilian, down south of my state is this river, called "Rio das Piranhas" that as you may guess means Piranha's River, not so dangerous after a bridge was build, but was quite dangerous back in the day.
Who says the forest has to be trees? make them one organism coating the entire region in rocky pillars of a hexagonal lattice, an appearance looking dead and deserted devoid of life with the color of basalt tinted blue, the pillars of the forest occasionally cross and intersect one another to break the symmetry sometimes creating natural enclosures sheltered from the elements. the surrounding civilizations used the pillars shell to create metal stronger than diamond and tougher than plastic, they guarded the forest to ensure the production of the most durable weapons, with their weapons, they would conquer the world and burn it to ash, hundreds of years later the empire is gone, and a new one takes it's place, and the cycle continues. Is this too much?
Different, yet kind of like bamboo, from my understanding, which admittedly maybe in error. I think, though, that bamboo is actually a type of grass not a tree, and grass share roots systems, again I think, so they're kind of all connected as one.
I like the creativity, but not the material that creates super weapons. I really don't like the fantasy trope where there's this super material that can create those kinds of miraculous weapons and armour, like mithril in Lord of the Rings. That's one thing I like about Valyrian steel. It requires advanced knowledge to forge. It's not something any civilization can just mine and turn into miracle weapons/armour. It's like that sci fi trope where we're given advanced technology by a hyper advanced civilization, and I dislike it for much the same reason. It's too easy. It's something we should have to work towards, not given.
I cannot thank you enough for this video! I’ve been working on this world/game for years trying to find resources on how to bring this world to life in a believable way and this video was and will continue to be so helpful!! My idea is basically this warlock type character retires to a remote temperate forest type island to find peace but must take up arms against corruption or something to protect his new home. It still needs lots of work but I thank you again for this information and inspiration 🙏
This made my heart so happy! I love freaking world building forests (or being a player in a well built forest). You covered all my favorite topics with forests, from microbiomes to even the mice people living in the forest. Thank you long lost brother
This was awesome I have been looking into world building for making games and this popped up in my home feed. Forests are some of my favorite spots to explore through in games and life.
The forests of my native region genuinely look like spiders are the only life that lives there. Entire plants, bushes and trees are covered in what looks like kilograms worth of cobwebs. turns out there's just a massive moth infestation that lays its larvae in those webs.
Brilliant video. I just ran an Old-School Essentials Game where the party had to travel through a forrest and I - and my players I'm sure - would have loved knowing what I know now. The next time will be much more fun, diverse and atmospheric thanks to this video and your tips.
8:40, There's plenty of reality to your fantasy here! It was discovered that rainforests have arboreal, canopy biomes that often mimic in miniature the terrestrial biomes. Had you climbed up to the canopy of the redwoods, you would have found tiny moss and fern gardens, bonsai groves of cedars and firs, and miniature orchards of salal and huckleberries. Old-growth conifers often grow multiple trunks, and the accumulated needles and bark detritus in the groins of trees as well as on the stumps of dead topped trees can become thick enough to form soil and support these miniature forests within the forests. This is part of the secret for how the trees in my neck of the woods get so tall - they can grow adventitious roots from their bark and tap into the pockets of damp soil high up in their own canopy! If you're interested in the research behind this, "The Wild Trees" by Richard Preston chronicles the discovery of canopy ecology in temperate rainforests.
I'm just worldbuilding an alien race that lives in a forest with HUGE trees and a very dark and very dangerous forest floor. So, all activity has to be done up in the tree tops. I need to learn more about how to achieve that. This comment is really helpful, thanks. I already had a pond that formed in the side of a fallen tree trunk, dozens of meters above the ground. It has little fishfrogthings and there are herbs and moss growing around it.
@@johannageisel5390 That's awesome! The very first D&D world I built was based off of my undergrad research assistant telling me about her ecology class assignment that was basically "What if there was no dry land? ECOLOGY GO!" From there I designed a world in which everything lived either in the ocean, or an giant sea trees. Reading both "The Wild Tress" and "Finding The Mother Tree" (by Suzanne Simard) were extremely helpful in that endeavor.
@@rachelwebber3605 Have you also read "The Hidden Life of Trees" by Peter Wohlleben? (Not to be confused with "The Secret Life of Trees" by Colin Tudge.) It's a popular science book that talks about how trees work together in the ecosystem "forest". Maybe you'd like it.
Bromeliads in tropical rainforests serve as homes for insects and amphibians so yeah, there are frogs that spend most of their lives near the canopy never touching ground.
Something I’ve been curious about for your Kota world is the architecture. Since mice are so tiny, they can jump higher proportionally compared to us. Also mice have different mentalities than humans. For instance, human tribes were housed on a wider plot of land, where as mice colonies are very tightly knit. Not to mention, mice like to burrow.
This entire video is a work of art. So thorough, so well explained, such a deep level of understanding and research. Glad I found this channel, it inspired some completely new directions of thinking and my world and I'll definitely be giving the rest of your world building videos a look. Very interesting story at the end as well. Great job dude.
This was a good video, while I've had some of these ideas myself I tend to forget about them after a long while, this video brought me right back in and even gave me some additional ideas. It makes me think of forests against not as just lands with trees, but as a ecosystem of many natural biomes. A forest is like a city of nature, and just like a city if it's old enough it will have "Districts" where things might be overall the same forest but on a micro level very unique. Those ancient crabs for example are a good idea. An area around a pond is a big source for things to happen since all life needs water, and depending on how much water and where it is in the area, that will probably be a hotspot for all kinds of natural events of predators but also insect colonies and other such things who need that water to survive. Makes it even possible if some nasty folk set up some sort of structure there that (On purpose or not) affects the quality of the water.
A neat pattern I've heard of is that forests sometimes kinda follow air currents from bodies of water, other humid environments, or other plant-heavy environments like other forests. It takes a lot of water to support a forest, and if it rains in, then it needs to evaporate up and get carried over from somewhere, and a tree releases a whole lot of water vapor through transpiration. (though not as much as what rained on it) Mountains or other air currents can sometimes cause that water vapor to condense, but even with the rain-shadow effect being referenced in the video, I'm not really sure how it works.
Swamps, mangroves, and other forests that get water by it flowing in/literally being in a body of water don't follow this pattern, but can act as a 'humidity source' for areas downwind.
This was delightful to listen to, so much amazing fantasy elements can be found in real life if one just bothered to look. Instead we get so many "forest but it's like coral"s all over the place
Just wrote a whole section on a magical forest that one of my wood elf clans live in thanks to this video, was genuinely inspired by everything you were saying
The most memorable forests have either a main variety of plant, or other feature that informs the visual direction of the whole area. The Queen's Garden in Hollow Knight is taken over by overgrown rose bushes, which adds to the aesthetic of an abandoned kingdom. The Lost Woods uses mist for its confusing atmosphere, and the forests in Dark Souls use verticality + darkness (plus the narrowing of available space to move in) to create the feeling of descent into greater and greater danger
I just want to say this is really inspiring! It also reminded me of a story I've been brewing in me head about a fantasy kingdom that sprouted in this clearing inside a mystical, neverending forest. Little is known about the forest itself, as there's seemingly a magical mist a few kilometers in that few can enter and ever hope of returning. The people have, of course come up with ridiculous tales about these woods. They speak of strange things like "elves" and "spirits" and "ogres" and other mad creatures that live in the woods. They say that the forests are the homes of ancient gods and heroes and kingdoms unknown. They seem to believe these woods are sacred. Hah. No sensible person could ever believe the peasant rabble's rambles. They are fools. Right? They must be. Their tales of fantastical creatures and beasts surely are simply that, tales. Myths to tell their children, I suspect. But then... we know so little it could....
I love videos like this! Please make a world building series if you haven’t already! I think it would be cool to cover water features like fantasy/alien oceans, lakes, ponds, etc. and the biodiversity and sub-biomes that comes with them (pretty much this video but with water). Maybe some part of an alien ocean has its own underwater forest that looks like massive crooked coral with unique aquatic megafauna and flora
This video reminds me how awesome forests are, I don't think enough people go into the nitty gritty of ecosystems and how you can exaggerate them to make interesting places
what your describing in this video is one thing that survival/ nature (ie animal stories) get really accurate, a prime example off the top of my head is a 1970s manga called survival which in nearly every volume the protagonist shifts to a new biome and learns to overcome it, honestly it's a hidden gem of a series and deserves more attention. the series traverses many forests but each has a unique characteristic that makes them a challenge to traverse. beyond just the inherent struggle for survival, the series also explores human nature and what drives us to keep going, and how we handle (or don't handle) adversity.
This is very useful! I am working on a DnD campaign where everything is based on orchestra instruments (yes, it was inspired by the tuba memes) and, naturally, I put the woodwind people in a forest. My idea was that they built their houses inside and around huge trees and the windows sorta make them look like giant flutes. There'd also be smaller trees with holes in them that make the wind whistle, but I didn't really know what else to do with it. Thanks for the inspiration!
coming across a mama bear with cup on a path in the forest can still make total sense, but it then needs to be an wildlife path. animals like humans like to take the same routes between places they go to. different animals can also share the same paths, and especially in forests where walking around in general can be hard these paths will be even more pronounced. if the party travels in such a forest they too will want to follow these paths so they're not going trough difficult terrain, but on such paths animals will be more common.
also the southern tip of africa doesn't get beyond 35 degrees south, which is north Africa and the American South in the northern hemisphere, so its not like there would be colder climates here.
I really hate how in anime forrests are just palces with trees, they are completely barren. You can see that it was made by city dwellers who dont know the wilds.
the same moment I thought "oh instead of the tree leading to heaven like when you climb up, maybe the roots could go into-" "- Roots into the underworld"
I actually have a Forest in my story that was literally formed during a battle in one of my stories. The area becomes known in the future as a sacred Forest for those that respect and worship The Goddess of Nature and a place many tell horror stories about as the deeper you go the more dangerous and vicious monsters/beasts you come across. In truth it was formed by a powerful mage who used up all of her magic to a point of near death in a fight against a Corrupted Tyrant who is the cause of the corruption in the deepest parts due to, at one time, being sealed there at the end of the fight. Some believe the mage is still alive and remains in the Forest as the reincarnation of Mother Nature and is watching over those that journey inward
This advice is GREAT! My partner and I are about to start her first campaign together (something between solo and me GMing) and I've been looking for places to enrich the forest we'll be in. Thanks for the tips
![On Worldbuilding - Island Civilisations! [ GoT | Japan | Ghibli ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/pTYpjsGcKgQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![On Worldbuilding — Island Civilisations! [ GoT | Japan | Ghibli ]](/img/tr.png)
You can hear the life coming back to him when he makes a video that's not about the server. Keep it up!
Fr! I thought the Minecraft videos were cool but nowhere near the status of the world building videos. They're like nothing else
yeah, the worldbuilding stuff is what makes his channel unique
Literally all I come to this channel for is the worldbuilding, I just don't think the minecraft ones are that interesting
@@juwebles4352 It's intresting if you play the server. It's almost like a hall of fame. Though, I agree. They aren't the same as the lore videos.
Agreed. The minecraft vids are nice and all but that's not why most of us came to his channel. We're here for the guy's worldbuilding videos.
No offense to those who do like the minecraft vids, it's just really hard for most of us to show as much interest when we're all looking in from the outside.
I once wondered why Sherwood Forest was such a good place to hide and live for Robin Hood and his men. That's when I learned how much larger Sherwood Forest was back then. True, compared to the forests of North America and others Sherwood Forest would have been still small. But then again, it shows how 'little' a forest can be for a band to completely hide from the authorities. You would need a fantasy Ranger or Druid to find them, but if the band hiding has a Ranger or Druid of their own? They will be impossible to find.
Back when I lived in Alaska on the outskirts of town, it really woke me up to how easy it would actually be to have hidden villages, especially with magical, nature folk like elves. Because if it wasn't for the roads/paths, you would NEVER guess how many people were able to hide just off the roadside. Let alone further out.
I really appreciate the mention of microclimates, because as I've hunted mushrooms I've definitely noticed changes that may seem minor but are huge to me and help me orient myself and be able to accurately guess where I took a picture. The sandier part, the drier sunny part, the hills.
The ancient 5,000 year old peaceful forest elf society who established their city in their gigantic sacred magical tree of life: *just chilling*
Me with a match:
Trees like the giant redwood trees are highly resistant to fire. A match wont do much.
@@voidling2632 what about a lot of matches?
@@YataTheFifteenth maybe if you get like a hundted thousanda right next together maybe
A Match? Pathetic. Use a flamethrower like a true pyromaniac
@@DehToadKing greek fire is a tad more lore appropriate
You describe trees better than most fantasy writers. "Stand up straight and then scraggle out all hokey-pokey like at the top". I doubt ChatGPT will ever come up with a phrasal verb like "scraggle out" and then pair it with the comparison "all hokey-pokey like"...
Sir, you are a modern poet.
Also, forests can grow back after a farm is abandoned, so there can be ruins of old farmsteads and even old wells that can break open and trap players and/or characters if not careful.
When it comes to world building civilizations, you entirely neglected agroforestry. We’re now learning that the Amazon was home to hundreds of large settlements, and that it was actively expanded by the indigenous people who lived there. They essentially shaped the entire Amazonian ecosystem to feed them every tree and shrub and bush, made fruit or medicine, or some sort of useful material for them.
Food forest are an excellent way to world build forest civilizations
shame about that whole malaria business
I would love to read more about indigenous agroforestry in the Amazon - any suggested resources?
I plan to do food forest in poland this year . Wish me best
@@ryanmontgomery255 the book where I first read about it was 1492: New discoveries in the pre Columbia’s americas
It’s honestly one of the most interesting books I’ve ever read and a treasure trove for world building
Also the Dawn of everything by David Graeber is an amazing book along similar lines but I don’t think it really talks about the amazon
@@Potato-pq5ez I’m not sure I understand your meaning
This is the kind of worldbuilding that I find fun. It isn't "original", but tries to be thoughtful, comprehensive, and combine tropes in interesting ways. The story of Anuthix, while brief, was very compelling.
Finally I really love the worldbuilding ones I really hope there's a new Kota Forest one again soon too!!
Me too it’s been like a year I love the mouse people
I am a forestry major. In the American south, fire played a major aspect in the design and structure of the forests. Some fire was natural (lighting, etc) while some was man made by indigenous people. This resulted in what is called a "mosaic landscape", where you have a variety of different forest types next to each other: ranging from thick early rotation pine stands covered in bryer, to pine savannahs, and even clearings. I find this idea fascinating. Furthermore, it is interesting to learn how colonialization ended this mosaic. Settlers clear cut the land, converted into a farm, the farm would fail after a year or two due to poor soil, and they would move on. This lead to natural regeneration by pioneer tree species, who would reclaim the open space. Overtime, many of these new forests would be turned into pine plantations, to produce timber for industry. In fact, the dominate pine of southern forestry is lobolly pine due to how fast it grows, and the fact it can grow just about anywhere. A lot of people are trying to bring back native ecosystems, especially with shortleaf and longleaf pine.
Don’t forget fallen trees due to age and weather. Also, if near civilization, consider logging operations, which would have debris, runoff, skid roads, and logging equipment. Widow makers (branches hanging from trees that can drop from high) should also be considered. Lightning struck trees are cool too. Beaver activity with beaver felled trees and dams, which cause ponding, can be cool additions as well.
Here where I live is the weird forest patch in Southern Brazil shown on the forest map, which is made of Araucaria Pines. the 1:59 Menorah-like trees in the background look a lot like Araucarias here. There's no forest like the Araucaria Forests in the World, so it can be one of those "wacky" forests you can use in your worldbuilding, although Australia also has Araucaria species, so it implies the genus is really old, and I believe even Antarctica might have them when it was a rainforest. They are a endangered species which has a delicious nut and it's pinecone looks a lot like a grenade, so much me and the boys used them as so when we played together. The way they disperse seeds it's through these blue, crow-like birds called Gralha-azul.
They usually form these woodlands with lots of space between them, which make the perfect picnic spots, and the worst place to be in a rainstorm, or they happen in the Atlantic Rainforest as the emergent layer species along Ype trees, Bracatingas and other rare species. There's nothing more beautiful than going to a beach here at summer, and see those hillsides lush with Ype trees in full bloom, which look like purple cherry blossoms at distance, and the chandelier-like Araucarias sprouting out of them. It's definitely a forest worth protecting.
I plan to world build a forest inspired by the Amazon Rainforest and the Sumatran Rainforest, and one of my ideas is to have no mammals there besides humanoid species, so all niches are covered by Brazilian extant and extinct birds, such as the Terror Bird, and macaws so smart, they build their own little "villages" inside hollow tree trunks and hornero houses where they share resources and are these toddler-like mischievous creatures. There's also cockatrices, which are these giant fowls, the size of a cassowary, and they are herded more like how cows and ostriches are than chicken, and you can use a single egg to bake a whole cake. There will be an ensemble of musical instrument-like birds, such as the Lyrebird, which instead of being perfect copycats of bird songs and laser toys, sing with a lyre-like timbre, and macaws love to annoy them and toucans with bills full of holes to produce a flute-like call. Also, really tall moa-like cranes, with necks so long, they are like the giraffes of this forest, and have to use their tail as a counterweight to their neck like a real crane.
My idea for this forest is to make these small niches you've mentioned, each one serving as a "dungeon map". They are navigation puzzles first, battle maps second.
TREES! TREES AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE!
*sniffs leaf*
Awww yeah, that's the stuff!
The part with the mice really helped my learning thank you.
Yo is that the famous Eat_Up?
Fun fact about redwoods that we've literally Just Recently discovered, the old growth centuries-old trees actually have their OWN microbiomes! As they get taller, the leaf composition changes from broad and suncatching to narrow water-conserving. But they also trap their own fallen leaves on the branches, which accumulates soil, which grows ferns, which attracts animals! I'd love to see a dungeon that's just a single megatree and you've gotta fend off waves of giant salamanders, birds, and worms to reach the top for a reward, or get down to the bottom and escape lol
I was thinking about all that when here was talking about the vines 8:38
The Red Frog, a large swamp perhaps similar to a degree to the everglades, is probably the forest I've worked on the most. It's a swamp like I said, but it's also a cultivated garden, meaning to a degree it's man made. Most of the plants and fungi that grow there are edible, and a ton of fruit is grown there. The land is inhabited by a group of people known as the Orangutangee. They live in small villages, rarely numbering more than 30 inhabitants, in homes built on stilts. Outside of living a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, they are experienced fishermen, using small boats made up of bundles of reeds, which they also use to get around. Animals such as hydra, trolls, basilisk, black ogre, goblins, and swamp khimera as well as fairies can be found here, to name a few. Monsters such as Crocodiles and Orangutans are also said to inhabit the large swamp.
Came here for Minecraft, stayed for the in-depth descriptions, and vivid culture clashes for story flavour underrated channel
The Forests meme was just what I needed at 12 am by myself
Also the southern tips of the continents on Earth aren’t actually that far south. Like New Zealand is about the same latitude as Spain and the end of Patagonia the same as the UK, just reflected about the equator. There’s nothing in the south like the north of Canada, Scandinavia and Siberia with the tiny exception of Graham Land on the Antarctic side of the Drake passage, and that shits icy
You're forgetting far southern Chile, which has an almost Tundra climate
@@corki9930 I’m not at all, it’s about the same latitude as the UK except without the influence of the Gulf Stream it’s relatively colder and drier
@@TAP7a Oh shit you right my bad
I had to look at a map again to confirm the latitude
Thanks for the mention of verticality, I brought this up with some RPG forums when i was playing through elden ring, and nobody seemed to get what i was talking about.
It took 30 seconds for me to fall in love with this video, that's gotta be a new record!
I'm currently up in the Yukon, but when you were talking about a river with jumping Piranhas I just imagined a Salmon run with Piranha-toothed Salmons. The Bears and Wolves still want access to that bounty of food but they are also in danger of getting swarmed by the aggressive mobile fish. So when the party makes it there they notice first like a crowd of "peaceful" predatory animals at the edges, all eagerly awaiting an opportunity to get some fresh fish but also wary of the prey they're after. If they go further downriver far enough they'd find fishing villages with armoured bridges over the rivers to allow them to catch the dangerous fish at their most populous.
i love your world building content, it's so helpful and very inspirational.
I want friends like him to chat about lore and writing
If you have a discord, I am here to be your friend to chat about lore and writing!
Extreme thanks for this video. Forests are seriously underappreciated in DnD despite how often they're seen. I've been trying to depict them as mysterious, otherworldly lands, but it's been hard to brainstorm and figure out how.
This video alone just became a game changer for my campaign.
Just found this channel randomly, but I really like the insights that you have on forests and the worldbuilding around them. Your passion on the topic really shines through, especially on the types of stories than incorporate forests and their mythologies.
Your personal world is cool too. It reminds me of Redwall with all the mousefolk.
This was super inspiring and useful as most of my work on my own planet so far has been within its forested regions
As someone who lives in the Pacific Northwest, the forests are a part of me
They are truly beautiful forests! Being out there was spiritual for me, until we got the camera rolling
@@Stoneworksits amazing to see people appreciating those forests (and forests in general) as much as I do! Every time I walk through them it feels magical.
In my own worlbuilding project there is a small or very large island depending on how you look at it which is basically one massive forest,it's called Skepnagarten and it's to the north of the central continent where most of the story takes place,Ulthia
Skepnagarten starts as more of a temperate rainforest near the coast but gradually becomes more like a deciduous forest the further inland you travel,at its center all of the streams and rivers converge into massive central swamp that has come to be known as the arena as it's been the sight of several wars and conflicts over the years,the main inhabitants of Skepnagarten are chimeras,which are creatures that are a combination of human and animal features,with traits resembling caprines,amphibians,mustelids and canines being the most common and prevalent,this continent is also home to giant wolverines called bushfiends,large alligator like reptiles known as marshdevils,various species of giant insects and large fungus,venison,insect larvae and mushrooms are a common food source on this continent...
Hey, I'm actually here from the D&D side of youtube and this video was suggested to me. I think I will start building a homebrew setting for a longer adventure this year and as such this video got me to subscribe to your channel. Always inspiring to spend 19 minutes and just absorp some of the knowledge and enthusiasm of someone who spent so much time on the topic. I saw that your channel doesn't upload super regularly but I just wanted to say that I personally would love for you to expand on this video series. I looked at your playlists and didn't find too much on the topic so I will have to look through your videos of the past. Not really part of the minecraft community anymore but have definitely been there before but I would love to explore this world building/environment side of your channel more.
I would love a video on dry climates, not just desserts or savannas but in a style simillar to this video with examples and visual representation! Keep up the good work and I hope this video will do well for you, it really deserves attention!
The traditional way of crossing the piranha's river is sacrificing a animal and throwing it in the river, the piranhas will all go eat the carcass while it goes down the river, so you can cross the river more safely, hopefully. I Brazilian, down south of my state is this river, called "Rio das Piranhas" that as you may guess means Piranha's River, not so dangerous after a bridge was build, but was quite dangerous back in the day.
Who says the forest has to be trees? make them one organism coating the entire region in rocky pillars of a hexagonal lattice, an appearance looking dead and deserted devoid of life with the color of basalt tinted blue, the pillars of the forest occasionally cross and intersect one another to break the symmetry sometimes creating natural enclosures sheltered from the elements. the surrounding civilizations used the pillars shell to create metal stronger than diamond and tougher than plastic, they guarded the forest to ensure the production of the most durable weapons, with their weapons, they would conquer the world and burn it to ash, hundreds of years later the empire is gone, and a new one takes it's place, and the cycle continues.
Is this too much?
Hello mid
@@captainwaffles6576 hello, I guess?
Different, yet kind of like bamboo, from my understanding, which admittedly maybe in error. I think, though, that bamboo is actually a type of grass not a tree, and grass share roots systems, again I think, so they're kind of all connected as one.
Seems pretty cool to me! Well thought out.
I like the creativity, but not the material that creates super weapons. I really don't like the fantasy trope where there's this super material that can create those kinds of miraculous weapons and armour, like mithril in Lord of the Rings. That's one thing I like about Valyrian steel. It requires advanced knowledge to forge. It's not something any civilization can just mine and turn into miracle weapons/armour.
It's like that sci fi trope where we're given advanced technology by a hyper advanced civilization, and I dislike it for much the same reason. It's too easy. It's something we should have to work towards, not given.
0:48 hey I made that, cool to see it here
I cannot thank you enough for this video! I’ve been working on this world/game for years trying to find resources on how to bring this world to life in a believable way and this video was and will continue to be so helpful!!
My idea is basically this warlock type character retires to a remote temperate forest type island to find peace but must take up arms against corruption or something to protect his new home. It still needs lots of work but I thank you again for this information and inspiration 🙏
It kinda works for every biome, thanks for great tips! I really struggled with biomes because didn’t knew where to go
Stoney gonna say it's stoning time and stone us.
i love his stones
This made my heart so happy! I love freaking world building forests (or being a player in a well built forest). You covered all my favorite topics with forests, from microbiomes to even the mice people living in the forest. Thank you long lost brother
Thank you.
Please keep this up.
I love your world building series. Excellent work
This was awesome I have been looking into world building for making games and this popped up in my home feed. Forests are some of my favorite spots to explore through in games and life.
0:53 Oh nice look at Maine there!
Oh hey, Tamriel Rebuilt respect! There is absolutely amazing biome-building going on there
The forests of my native region genuinely look like spiders are the only life that lives there. Entire plants, bushes and trees are covered in what looks like kilograms worth of cobwebs. turns out there's just a massive moth infestation that lays its larvae in those webs.
Could that be turned into decent quality clothe?
Brilliant video. I just ran an Old-School Essentials Game where the party had to travel through a forrest and I - and my players I'm sure - would have loved knowing what I know now. The next time will be much more fun, diverse and atmospheric thanks to this video and your tips.
I’m glad you found it helpful, I’m sure you’ll run a fantastic game for your players with all the great creepy crawlies of our favorite biome!
Fuck yea, glad you've not given up on this type of content
Its time! Ive been awaiting another world building video!
Now I gotta plan a trip to the redwoods with the boyz
8:40, There's plenty of reality to your fantasy here! It was discovered that rainforests have arboreal, canopy biomes that often mimic in miniature the terrestrial biomes. Had you climbed up to the canopy of the redwoods, you would have found tiny moss and fern gardens, bonsai groves of cedars and firs, and miniature orchards of salal and huckleberries. Old-growth conifers often grow multiple trunks, and the accumulated needles and bark detritus in the groins of trees as well as on the stumps of dead topped trees can become thick enough to form soil and support these miniature forests within the forests. This is part of the secret for how the trees in my neck of the woods get so tall - they can grow adventitious roots from their bark and tap into the pockets of damp soil high up in their own canopy! If you're interested in the research behind this, "The Wild Trees" by Richard Preston chronicles the discovery of canopy ecology in temperate rainforests.
I'm just worldbuilding an alien race that lives in a forest with HUGE trees and a very dark and very dangerous forest floor.
So, all activity has to be done up in the tree tops. I need to learn more about how to achieve that. This comment is really helpful, thanks.
I already had a pond that formed in the side of a fallen tree trunk, dozens of meters above the ground. It has little fishfrogthings and there are herbs and moss growing around it.
@@johannageisel5390 That's awesome! The very first D&D world I built was based off of my undergrad research assistant telling me about her ecology class assignment that was basically "What if there was no dry land? ECOLOGY GO!" From there I designed a world in which everything lived either in the ocean, or an giant sea trees. Reading both "The Wild Tress" and "Finding The Mother Tree" (by Suzanne Simard) were extremely helpful in that endeavor.
@@rachelwebber3605 Have you also read "The Hidden Life of Trees" by Peter Wohlleben? (Not to be confused with "The Secret Life of Trees" by Colin Tudge.)
It's a popular science book that talks about how trees work together in the ecosystem "forest". Maybe you'd like it.
Bromeliads in tropical rainforests serve as homes for insects and amphibians so yeah, there are frogs that spend most of their lives near the canopy never touching ground.
@@nunyabiznes33 I've seen that in the "Amazonas" exhibition of Yadegar Asisi.
It's so cool!
Something I’ve been curious about for your Kota world is the architecture. Since mice are so tiny, they can jump higher proportionally compared to us. Also mice have different mentalities than humans. For instance, human tribes were housed on a wider plot of land, where as mice colonies are very tightly knit. Not to mention, mice like to burrow.
This entire video is a work of art. So thorough, so well explained, such a deep level of understanding and research. Glad I found this channel, it inspired some completely new directions of thinking and my world and I'll definitely be giving the rest of your world building videos a look. Very interesting story at the end as well. Great job dude.
This was a good video, while I've had some of these ideas myself I tend to forget about them after a long while, this video brought me right back in and even gave me some additional ideas. It makes me think of forests against not as just lands with trees, but as a ecosystem of many natural biomes. A forest is like a city of nature, and just like a city if it's old enough it will have "Districts" where things might be overall the same forest but on a micro level very unique. Those ancient crabs for example are a good idea. An area around a pond is a big source for things to happen since all life needs water, and depending on how much water and where it is in the area, that will probably be a hotspot for all kinds of natural events of predators but also insect colonies and other such things who need that water to survive. Makes it even possible if some nasty folk set up some sort of structure there that (On purpose or not) affects the quality of the water.
this video has given me a lot to think of regarding my world building. also trees are cool
Love the worldbuilding vids more than the cursed server vids! been working on a cool worldbuilding thing recently.
is this the REAL Kakapo???!!
an actual worldbuilding video amen
love this stoney this is really helpful for building forests in mc, cheers mate
Love this kinda' shit. May the algorithm smile upon this video.
A neat pattern I've heard of is that forests sometimes kinda follow air currents from bodies of water, other humid environments, or other plant-heavy environments like other forests. It takes a lot of water to support a forest, and if it rains in, then it needs to evaporate up and get carried over from somewhere, and a tree releases a whole lot of water vapor through transpiration. (though not as much as what rained on it)
Mountains or other air currents can sometimes cause that water vapor to condense, but even with the rain-shadow effect being referenced in the video, I'm not really sure how it works.
Swamps, mangroves, and other forests that get water by it flowing in/literally being in a body of water don't follow this pattern, but can act as a 'humidity source' for areas downwind.
My name is Forest and good lord this video is a head trip to listen to
This was delightful to listen to, so much amazing fantasy elements can be found in real life if one just bothered to look. Instead we get so many "forest but it's like coral"s all over the place
5:06 for those coming from TR, nice vid!
Just wrote a whole section on a magical forest that one of my wood elf clans live in thanks to this video, was genuinely inspired by everything you were saying
The most memorable forests have either a main variety of plant, or other feature that informs the visual direction of the whole area. The Queen's Garden in Hollow Knight is taken over by overgrown rose bushes, which adds to the aesthetic of an abandoned kingdom. The Lost Woods uses mist for its confusing atmosphere, and the forests in Dark Souls use verticality + darkness (plus the narrowing of available space to move in) to create the feeling of descent into greater and greater danger
The Boreal forest in Poland/Belarus is especially magical, one of the oldest and wildest forests left on earth.
I just want to say this is really inspiring! It also reminded me of a story I've been brewing in me head about a fantasy kingdom that sprouted in this clearing inside a mystical, neverending forest. Little is known about the forest itself, as there's seemingly a magical mist a few kilometers in that few can enter and ever hope of returning.
The people have, of course come up with ridiculous tales about these woods. They speak of strange things like "elves" and "spirits" and "ogres" and other mad creatures that live in the woods. They say that the forests are the homes of ancient gods and heroes and kingdoms unknown. They seem to believe these woods are sacred. Hah. No sensible person could ever believe the peasant rabble's rambles. They are fools.
Right? They must be. Their tales of fantastical creatures and beasts surely are simply that, tales. Myths to tell their children, I suspect.
But then... we know so little it could....
I love this video! Great work.
Nebular!
As a permaculturist and a D&D player this is my favorite D&D video of all time
That daggerfall music is a perfect fit
*TOLKIEN HAS ENTERED THE CHAT WITH SOME THOUGHTS*
I love videos like this! Please make a world building series if you haven’t already! I think it would be cool to cover water features like fantasy/alien oceans, lakes, ponds, etc. and the biodiversity and sub-biomes that comes with them (pretty much this video but with water). Maybe some part of an alien ocean has its own underwater forest that looks like massive crooked coral with unique aquatic megafauna and flora
“Mind the trees, they are hungry”
Signage in front of the direwood, located in northern Svallton.
REALLY appreciate the daggerfall music at 5:34!
Hearing you from afar is like hearing my own voice recorded. Sounds like a totally different person.
I love these vids, they've been very helpful
Here for the Algorithm, may it bless thy vid
Can't believe you hadn't addressed this biome before
This video reminds me how awesome forests are, I don't think enough people go into the nitty gritty of ecosystems and how you can exaggerate them to make interesting places
Yup, this is kind of video I need more of in my life
AYYY!!!
Tassie got a mention
There are 7 layers of a forest, notice this when adding life diversity to your forests
what your describing in this video is one thing that survival/ nature (ie animal stories) get really accurate, a prime example off the top of my head is a 1970s manga called survival which in nearly every volume the protagonist shifts to a new biome and learns to overcome it, honestly it's a hidden gem of a series and deserves more attention. the series traverses many forests but each has a unique characteristic that makes them a challenge to traverse. beyond just the inherent struggle for survival, the series also explores human nature and what drives us to keep going, and how we handle (or don't handle) adversity.
This brought up a memory of a weirdly in depth eldritch horror tree and forest I made for my oc
I'd do unspeakable things just to play in your world, sir. I wish I could play in a game of Mausritter with you :D
This is very useful! I am working on a DnD campaign where everything is based on orchestra instruments (yes, it was inspired by the tuba memes) and, naturally, I put the woodwind people in a forest. My idea was that they built their houses inside and around huge trees and the windows sorta make them look like giant flutes. There'd also be smaller trees with holes in them that make the wind whistle, but I didn't really know what else to do with it. Thanks for the inspiration!
Simply adore these videos, very nice for my dnd setting I’m working on :)
Caught me off guard when this boi but a viewer discretion for grass
I absolutely love cloud jungles and fog deserts. They're some of the coolest-looking regions that actually exist.
Love some forest appreciation!
On the subject of north american forests they also have more poisonous and toxic flora and fauna, and fewer edible plants and fungi. Good video!
holy shit when you pulled out the elder scrolls 2 music I got really surprised. That game is so underrated.
coming across a mama bear with cup on a path in the forest can still make total sense, but it then needs to be an wildlife path. animals like humans like to take the same routes between places they go to. different animals can also share the same paths, and especially in forests where walking around in general can be hard these paths will be even more pronounced. if the party travels in such a forest they too will want to follow these paths so they're not going trough difficult terrain, but on such paths animals will be more common.
Loved this video!
i love the little mice..
Love the video!
How I miss the old non Minecraft videos pls make another one.
Laurisilva (is like an enchanted witch´s forest) in Canary Islands (we have Dragos/Dragon Blood Trees too and yes the sap is red).
Stoneworks Worldbuilding. Please make more videos thanks.
also the southern tip of africa doesn't get beyond 35 degrees south, which is north Africa and the American South in the northern hemisphere, so its not like there would be colder climates here.
I really hate how in anime forrests are just palces with trees, they are completely barren. You can see that it was made by city dwellers who dont know the wilds.
the same moment I thought
"oh instead of the tree leading to heaven like when you climb up, maybe the roots could go into-"
"- Roots into the underworld"
I actually have a Forest in my story that was literally formed during a battle in one of my stories. The area becomes known in the future as a sacred Forest for those that respect and worship The Goddess of Nature and a place many tell horror stories about as the deeper you go the more dangerous and vicious monsters/beasts you come across. In truth it was formed by a powerful mage who used up all of her magic to a point of near death in a fight against a Corrupted Tyrant who is the cause of the corruption in the deepest parts due to, at one time, being sealed there at the end of the fight. Some believe the mage is still alive and remains in the Forest as the reincarnation of Mother Nature and is watching over those that journey inward
This advice is GREAT! My partner and I are about to start her first campaign together (something between solo and me GMing) and I've been looking for places to enrich the forest we'll be in.
Thanks for the tips