The Root-Walkers

Forty years ago, the village of Nattveden pushed too deep into the dark Rotskogen. A group of woodcutters fell victim to the Pale Rot, a fungal infection that causes the skin to harden like bark. Instead of dying, they were guided by a voice in the mist to the center of the woods. There they found the Marrow-Yew, an ancient, sentient tree-monster that offered them life in exchange for servitude. These original woodcutters became the first Root-Walkers, turning their back on humanity to become the forest's immune system. They transitioned from victims of the woods to its most fierce defenders during the Great Cleaving, where they successfully sabotaged three major logging camps in a single night of blood and moss.