Fellmoor Swamp wasn't always a swamp -- formerly a fertile marshland with many streams and small lakes, human levies protected the area from becoming completely sodden. However, after the humans' demise, the neglected levies on the coast near Yarmouth eroded and fell apart, unleashing brutal floods that would stay in the area for months at a time, eventually giving rise to the swamps of today. For miles in the south and southwestern portions of the territory, the mud is thick and deep, and normal vegetation is sparse and unhealthy. A variety of birds still populate the area, but there generally isn't food for animals like rabbits and squirrels. Nevertheless, large prey animals such as moose and caribou may wander in seasonally.
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Further north, and further away from the flood area, the vegetation begins to thicken only to suddenly hit an area of blackened ashes. The forests in The Ashlands are burned out piles of charcoal, the ash which should be nourishing future plant-life poisoning the very soil. It doesn't take much investigation to find the source of the problem: crashed and ripped asunder along the coast are no fewer than three oil-tankers, all with Arabic script painted in fading red along their hulls. One of them also has a large hazardous-materials warning. Clearly, years and years ago, something went very wrong here. Still, in recent years, the toxicity of the soil has begun to recede, the first hardy plants are emerging, and the air no longer poises danger to those who stray too far in.
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Even further north, but still within the boundaries of the Ashlands, there is a perfectly shaped hill-and-basin area that has managed to escape much of the tragedy of its surroundings. The Oasis has several clean-water ponds, flourishing fauna, and is naturally sheltered from harsh weather. There is still some evidence of the fire's work -- some of the flora is stunted and small, and there are few prey animals compared with the pristine forests found far north of the Oasis. Nevertheless, the area provides a lush green respite from the gray dull of the surrounding demesne.
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