A Geologist's Survey of Valenwood

The following journal was found hidden within the bookshelves of the University of Gwylim and may have been tossed into a pile of rubbish due to the numerous crossouts and corrections.

As a scholar, my interest in Valenwood and it's wonderful landscape never ceases. In particular, I am far more interested in the soil and rocks, but alas, while the soil of much of Valenwood is very fertile, it lacks the precious minerals I seek to learn about.

I started my journey with a traveling merchant throughout Valenwood. He told me to stick by him and his guards and not ask questions. I did not. Grahtwood was the first region we crossed with it’s rolling hills, and the famed Tarlain Heights. The place is a towering Graht-oak forest, which gives the floor a rather dark soil, which is teeming with grubs, worms and numerous insects that devour all the leaf litter. The forest is very self sufficient in this way, and the bosmer who live here practically help it along with what little they dispose of being all natural. We didn't stop in Elden Root, like I'd hoped, I had wanted a sample of the soil beneath it. However I did get to tap on some Ayleid ruins and decided the stonework was made of limestone and chert, but this is conjecture. Without actually being able to test it, I cannot tell what it's really made of.

I was told to get a grip on myself as we headed for Greenshade next. Oh, a pristine jungle! How exciting! Alas, that was not to be. I heard some tales about some Wilderking who had shaped and ultimately fought wth the land. Some bosmer even told me that some other person had come and tried to build something in one area and only succeeded in taking down much of the forest. Another told me that person was the Wilderking. A pity, but at least I can see the rocky formations from nature! There's at least a few good mesas, plateaus, and I think I might have seen a butte in the distance! Maybe. That stupid khajiit might have slipped me a drink or two, clouds my memory it does. All I recall is the moors south of Woodhearth being filled with crocodiles and horavor ticks and getting stuck in the mud.

Malabal Tor was to be our last foray, as the khajiit I was traveling with was not terriby happy with me. Called me a mer who loves rocks too much! Preposterous! He simply doesn't appreciate the land beneath his feet. I was amazed at the fact tat here, in Malabal Tor, was a rather healthy jungle. I loved the sharp cliffs in some parts, and the very ground beneath us was as fertile as Grahtwood’s. I couldn't dicern what type of stone the boulders were due to the moss coverage, but they were rather interesting. It was a shame that I couldn't explore more.

I'm headed to Skyrim next, I know they have granite there. I just hope all these stones I gathered while taking a trip through Valenwood can be studied. They may be soft minerals, but they pique my curiosity so much!

NOTE: This is based on my own observations through Valenwood in ESO, it's incomplete right now, but I wanted to get something out.