Lesser Faydark: History
When the Elder Age was in full bloom, long before the Faydark was divided, the fey (brownies, pixies, faeries, and fae drakes) and the other sylvan creatures (unicorns, griffons, and others) dwelt together in the great forest. They assisted the Woodkine in the defense of their homeland, but, unlike the Woodkine, the fey eventually forsook the Greater Faydark for its smaller and more isolated sister forest. After the Faydark was divided by orcish assaults, the fey tried to maintain their ancestral homes in both forests; however, as the world beyond the forest continued to change, too many creatures began to venture into the realms of the fey. The Fier’Dal left their home on the continent of Antonica and began to settle in the Greater Faydark. Though they disliked the thought of sharing their woods with outsiders, the fey tolerated the wood elves, but grew increasingly uneasy as the years went by and other less welcome visitors began to arrive — dwarves, humans, and orcs; foresters, hunters, raiders, and bandits.
The fey fought these intruders, but even though the wee folk were brave and determined, in the end they proved too few to stem the tide. Faerie warriors perished at the hands of orc centurions, brownies were rounded up and killed or captured as curiosities, and nearly all of the proud unicorns of the Greater Faydark were slaughtered. At length, the pressure upon the fey grew too much, and they began to depart en masse, relocating to the nearby Lesser Faydark. Few remained in the Greater Faydark, stubbornly defending their old homesteads, sharing an uneasy truce with the wood elves and battling the intrusions of the Crushbone orcs and others.
The rest, however, retreated into the ancient and forbidding depths of the Lesser Faydark, where they created the last purely fey settlements. Intensely territorial and fearful of the outside world, the brownies, faeries, and fae drakes all jealously guarded their realm against intrusion, harassing if not ferociously attacking outsiders. For a time the fey held the outside world at bay, and lived at peace amongst themselves. The fae drakes flitted about the forest, serving their royal court and aiding the other inhabitants of the forest. The brownies founded a small but thriving settlement, and mushroom-houses were dotted throughout the area.
Few outsiders came to the forest, and fewer still survived. The best known of the survivors was the human monk called Master Wu, who established a small encampment and spent several years contemplating the wonders and peace of the surrounding forest. Perhaps sensing a kindred soul, the fey generally left Wu in peace, and after a time he moved on, continuing his studies elsewhere. For decades, the folk of the Lesser Faydark continued to live in peace.