Seriously: if you need inspiration for a “wood of adventures” style thing, look at Bomarzo Park, link at the end of the original post.
It’s XV century architect populated out of strange and wonderful sculptures for the entertaining of an Italian noble family, and the thing has a phenomenal “old school”, “chanson de geste” vibe to it.
It’s full of mysterious and fantastic elements that could help you finding the right aesthetic of a game.
Originally shared by Ezio Melega
When people search inspiration for their upcoming fantasy campaign they often look at medieval England or Germany, at the Arabian Desert or as far as New Zealand.
They
People are objectively wrong in this assumption.
As every filmmaker of the eighties knew (and you can’t contest such an authority) the quintessential fantasy scenario is Center Italy.
You don’t believe me?
Look what I found in a single day trip in the Umbria region.
Cities digged in the living rock of the mountainside! Seedy alleys squished between ancient buildings! A wood populated by monsters, gods and dungeons calling adventurers to explore!
You can’t make this stuff up better than the real deal!
(the town is Bomarzo, but in this corner of Italy there are even more characteristics mountain towns, the road is in Orvieto, I found seedier ones but they were too dark. The wood is the Holy Wood of Bomarzo, an early modern “mystic garden” of unknown meaning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gardens_of_Bomarzo?wprov=sfla1)