The Black Shroud
The Black Shroud
The Black Shroud is the forest region surrounding the city-state of Gridania. Gridanian locals refer to it as the "Twelveswood." The forest itself is known to take the lives of anyone who does not heed the Elementals, a danger often referred to as the "woodwrath". This makes it a natural filter against those would would bear arms against Gridania, though that hasn't stopped Garlemald from trying.
The region also contains the areas of The Mun-Tuy Cellars, The Tam-Tara Deepcroft, and the Thousand Maws of Toto-Rak. It is connected to Thanalan to the south, Mor Dhona to the southwest, and Coerthas to the northwest.
Hamlets
Quarrymill
Quarrymill is located east of Camp Tranquil.
Hyrstmill
Hyrstmill is the destination for the Treespeak Caravan and it also serves as an area for "Hamlet Defense" battles.
Hawthorne Hut
Buscarron's Fold
Landmarks:
Airship Landing
An airship landing.
An airship landing ramp that may have been built for use by Ishgard in their trade with Gridania. There are other landings like it in Coerthas. There are no such ramps in either Thanalan or La Noscea.
White Willow
The White Willow is easily found in the middle of the clearing on the way from Emerald Moss to the Mun-Tuy Cellars. Though easy to miss at night or in bad weather, it glows an angelic white in the sunlight.
Lifemend Stump
The Lifemend Stump is a marked clearing just off the main road on the way to Camp Emerald Moss. It is a giant flat stump, the top having been cut cleanly and horizontally, with a primitive pattern made of stones on top. Gridanians will sometimes journey here to leave broken items for the Moogles to mend.
Stump of Births
Often overlooked, the trees here have been cut down. Such blatant deforestation of Black Shroud is considered a travesty by Elementals and Gridanians alike.
Moonspore Grove
Moonspore Grove is the nesting ground of the Sylphs. While the Grove is entirely blocked off by boulders, players can peek in to see white plants that glow red, and propped-up triangular tarps shelters. The Sylphs' houses also make worthy sights, glowing from the tree trunks in small clusters. The plants in the area are noticeably different, almost luminous.
The Honey Yard
The Honey Yard has small bee keeping boxes clustered next to trees.
Goldleaf Dais
Goldleaf Dais is another structure built by the Sylphs. It is a wooden platform with a leaf-shaped table and an elongate altar. Above the altar is a lightning bolt emblem. The Dais is entered via the stairs in front, but a decorative chain bars passage at the top of the stairs. These stairs are indicative of their good relations with other beast tribes and humans, as the Sylphs are able to levitate without ever landing.
Sorrel Haven
A massive tree grows in the middle of a shallow lake here.
The Gelmorra Ruins
The Gelmorra Ruins are a large circular altar with dilapidated columns surrounding it and dotted with glowing stones protruding from the bricks at regular intervals. As mentioned above, the Gelmorrans lived primarily underground, and this may be their only above-ground structure.
