the darkest part of the woods; advanced roleplay discussion

[SPRING COURT]

The Fields of Spring is one aspect of the Fae courts governing the Spring Court, wherein an endless meadow of tall grass, flowers, and many hedges roam. Imagine a vibrant, verdant grassland with the occasional spot of trees. The grasses are tall and often taller than most humanoids, making it a hazard and great hiding place. It has rolling hills that stretch for countless miles, crystal clear lakes overlooking serene indigo mountains.

Now mind you, there are still woods within the Fields of Spring, small forests to be sure. Within these woods, often resides the sovereign of the Spring Court. Prince Connall lies within this domain. Connall is commonly referred to as the King of the Spring Faeries and is rumored to be the murderer of Queen Titania, the High Queen. Connall is often depicted as an arrogant foolish Seelie sovereign, with a terrible cruel streak. Despite this the Spring Court is the most hospitable to mortals, the prince apparently having a little bit of a soft spot for the short lived humans.

[WINTER COURT]
Autumn wanes as the cold and darkness sweep through the land. Winter has come. The air is frigid and unforgiving. Trees become leafless, the area covered in ice and snow, many creatures take shelter from the lower temperatures while others thrive in it. The days are short and the nights are longer, various creatures who prefer the dark often lurk and roam in the land of endless winter. The ruler of Winter is the undisputed Queen of Air and Darkness, colloquially referred to as Princess Mab, though her original name is lost the ravages of time. There is also an Archduke of Frost, a creature who ripped their own heart out of their devotion only to be forsaken by his love, leaving a cold, empty void that can never be fulfilled. While the Archfey of Frost is a deadly and powerful force on his own, all Winter fey know that Mab is the real supreme leader.

Winter often symbolizes death, the end of a cycle, cold and harsh weather, but through Winter, Spring shall bloom again. So Winter has a vital part to play in the sequence of the seasons, often serving as the time nature sleeps to be born again. Darkness is usually an excellent symbol for secrets, mysteries, and illusions. But during these harsh times, creatures often bond and form communities to ensure the tough times. The Winter court is often referred to as the Gloaming Court or sometimes rather as the seat of the Unseelie Court.

[AUTUMN COURT]

Autumn symbolizes the fade of Summer’s light and vitality, waning and from their throes become the season of Winter. So keep in mind the ideas of the fall harvest but also don’t forget that as the season begins to enter into Winter, especially when daylight hours start to shrink while the night strengthens. Autumn commonly is associated with the concept of Halloween, a remembrance of the dead and the departed. Certain types of spirits can be categorized as a type of fae or faerie, as the forces of life and death are important aspects of nature.

The Pastures of Autumn is set in a field or ever expansive pasture filled with red-orange leaves on trees and on the ground. There are bounties of fruits and vegetables and a soft nip in the air, the sky is stuck in a constant twilight, a reminder of the darker nights of approaching winter. Harvest time is a serious matter in the Pastures of Autumn. Typically, many mortals make offerings to these sort of fey spirits for a fruitful and abundant harvest before Winter’s chill sets in. The trees with their prismatic allure are the backdrop though many of them bear fruits like apples or nuts. Certain squashes and pumpkins can be seen scattered throughout the endless fields. There are no spring songbirds here, only birds that migrate between worlds such as crows, ducks, and geese. Many animals prefer to stock up and often feed in preparation for their hibernation, so oftentimes you’ll find small rodents or larger mammals that seem fatter than the norm.

[SUMMER COURT]

The Summer Woods, or the Emerald Forest, generally are the regions governed by the Summer Court. An endless forest of tall verdant trees with pockets of groves, springs, and streams. The grass on the forest floor can vary in density and height but often remains within a reasonable size compared to medium sized humanoids. The trees are a different matter, many are a couple hundred feet tall with the oldest ones being possibly three to four hundred feet tall. The fauna and local animals are a wide range, there are numerous varieties of fey as well. Many denizens either live deep beneath the earth, inside the trees or roam freely across the endless forest.

Most fey in the Summer Court will carry some sort of motif with them since the Summer court generally represents vibrant life and strength. You might find the fey here more warlike or tribal. Many beasts and beast-like fey will tend to be larger than their mortal coil cousins. Some may be covered in gold or emerald leaves, their coloring may also be extremely colorful and prismatic. Summer Court fey might be prone to anger or have short tempers, you will find plenty of strong predators as well. Even Prince Vex has been known to be extremely vengeful, almost as badly as the Princess of Air and Darkness from the Gloaming/Winter Court. The Summer Court is elementally aligned to fire with the Winter court typically aligned to air. You can also expect many summer fey to be arrogant and stoic.

[COURTLESS]
Many of these other courts or those that are deemed courtless owe their allegiances to themselves and whatever groups they wish to associate with. The four fairy courts may have allied with these fae on occasion, summoning them in times of conflict and war. Most of these unaffiliated faes keep to themselves and remain neutral in the faerie politics. Creatures like Eladrin and Gnomes often have communities that are courtless but there are also some communities that are affiliated with a particular court as well. Many archfey are courtless or are affiliated with a non-traditional court. An archfey is the center of their own universes, as such, their awareness of other fey or even the faerie rulers is left entirely up to whether they acknowledge their existence or not.There are, of course, those who swear no allegiance to any Court, they are known as Solitary Fae. Nowadays, Solitaries are seen as having a neutral/balanced/common ground between the courts and they are also seen as some of the most dangerous. Living a life as a Solitary can be simple and good in some respect, but because they have chosen to be cut off from the larger support network, social interaction with others is not as available. Even so, Solitary fae can find means of interacting with others and can often be an intermediary for many purposes of Faerie and of Earth. Solitaries are usually unpredictable and have been seen as the outcasts (either banished, choosing to leave, or not choosing at all), and the "wild wee ones". There are not many that regret their decision of being court-less.

[The Undersea]

The fae of the undersea are as strange and terrible as sea storms. Sinking mortal ships on a whim for sport. Their kingdom is wild and untamed, the only power being the Sea King and his family. The Sea King has sworn a campaign of vengeance against the four Princes for they killed the only one he had ever loved, The Queen of the Fae. He dares not challenge them directly but their ships are often found destroyed by storms, and their sailors nowhere to be found.The culture of the Undersea seems to be somewhat more violent in nature than that of most land fae. Titles are won and kept by strength and conquest.

Uldwin, King of Coral: The latest king in a long royal line that stretches back countless millennia. The last of the sea fae kingdoms is his domain, the last of the ancient courts. He is old and bitter, a cruel fae

[Faerie]
The Faerie race is as old as nature itself. None quite remember where they came from or when they were born. They simply have been and always will be. They might at first glance look like a human if it weren't for several defining features. The Fae are seemingly perfect save for one imperfection. Every Fae has one flaw, it might me extra jointed fingers, completely black eyes, a tail, or needle like teeth. They are generally taller than most humans, with a lean grace. The Fae are immortal, ageless, they can only can killed by iron. A metal that burns them to nothing, that saps the very life from their bones. Their magic is as deadly as it is seductive, a drug so addictive that many who sample it will never break their addiction. Humans often make the mistake that because they appear to be human they may have some humanity in them. A dangerous misconception, the Fae are as wild and as dangerous as nature in all its glory. Nothing about them makes them relatable to their mortal counterparts. They will wear emotion like a glove, trying them on for size. Some consider it their life's work to perfect the intericies of human emotion. Each fae of the courts is bound to a prince and his court, and no one but the prince himself can break this bond. Their power is his, and he will use it as he deems fit. Each Prince rules unchallenged in their own court, no one would challenge them in their season, and to do so would surely end in your death. They are in complete control of their season, it bending to their will with a mere thought. The landscape of their lands change to the mood of their Princes, the weather mirroring whatever the Prince feels. No one matches the Princes in raw, unadulterated power and cunning. They were the four fae that rose against the last Faerie Queen, who cut her throne into four pieces. Together they hold the stolen power of the Queen, no one will ever take it from them. Well not with having to pry it from their cold dead chests.
The wrath of a Prince is an ancient unstoppable force. They have never been questioned and it is best to leave it that way. Their only fear is the new Queen of the Faerie rising, and they will do anything to prevent this from happening. They have held their power far too long, to simply give it to some else. They relentlessly search their lands for the new Queen, with an almost fanatical desperation. They know their crime and do not wish to answer for it.

[SEA FAERIES]
There are dozens of lakes and ponds that shatter across the courts, but then there is the endless sea beyond the borders of the courts. Some iconic fey folk that may preside here are undines, merfolk native to the courts, and below the depths are monstrous entities that can only live in the endless expanse of this Fey sea. These watery fae are grouped together as the CORAL COURT.

[Wild Hunt]
The Wild Hunt can be called by any Prince of any Court, all they need to do is sound a the Horn of the Hunt. With that blast any fae is allowed to leave the confines of his or her court and hunt what their Prince called the Wild Hunt for. The Wild Hunt will hunt for an eternity to catch its prey and few have escaped its hounds.

The hunt was said to pass through the forests in the coldest, stormiest time of the year. Anyone found outdoors at the time would be swept up into the hunting party involuntarily and dropped miles from their original location. Practitioners of magic may have sought to join the huntsman in spirit, while their bodies remained safely at home. The myth originally began as a hunt led by a Prince and his huntsmen visiting the land during an equinox, bringing blessings, and accepting offerings from people. They could be heard by the people in the howling winds, but later became known as a pack of ghouls with malicious intent.