Runeforest Incursion: (Into the Wyrd & Wild + Stygian Library) Campaign Setup

I've had this idea stewing in my head for awhile and finally have a group to run it for.

The central idea is a combination of these two unlikely RPG books I both greatly enjoy- one for running weird forests, the other a sort of Eternal Haunted Library.

THE INCURSION

The forests, usually savage but predictable, have become strange. Text scrawls itself onto the trunks of trees. Legendary animals appear and replace their more mundane counterparts. Piles and piles of books appear from nothingness. Trappers and Hunters find abandoned desks and studies in forest clearings.

The trees move when nobodies looking.

There are Traders here, in this hostile place. They have things you want- pelts, spices, ancient scrolls. They want the things you have- metal, food, water, alcohol, supplies.

You know, you could make alot of money with a few carts and the means to protect it...

The Bears are Hangry and Magical (Source)

Goals:

Focus on the Locations: I want to spend the extra time to make two central static locations become more "alive" - A Baroque coastal city with lots of garish nobles and scheming merchants, and the Trading Post, the esoteric and strange place of safety deep within the Forest.

Offer a Dynamic Challenge: I don't know the specifics yet but the idea so far is as follows; every set interval (perhaps every 2 weeks in game) all maps of the Runeforest become unusable. New paths and places of interest appear. Both Wyrd & Wild and Stygian Library have excellent "map" generation that I intend to take full advantage of. On top of the map changing, I hope to offer the players alot of choice in how they spend each session- Tracking down exotic beasts? Attempting the race to find the safest path through and sell the maps? Guarding one of the many Caravans to or from the Trading Post? Scouring the RuneForest for ancient knowledge or new and strange spells? Take on a Wytch-Guard Contract and try not to let the bumbling apprentice get eaten by something?

Express the Aesthetic: Deep and mythical dark forests, dusty tomes, strange rituals.
Whimsical and horrible things. Places of ruin, knowledge, life, and hostility. Circles of stones and humanoid shapes with antlers.

Threats both Mundane and Supernatural: There are rivals everywhere. Whenever you make money, it means that someone else didn't. The players aren't the only ones trying to map the way through, or hunt that beast, or get that caravan charter. They'll make enemies in the civilized places and will need to balance the politics of business with the threats of the wylds. Assassins, bandits, starvation and exposure are just as lethal as Forest Drakes and Runeclaw Beasts and Werewolves. Lots of things are trying to kill you.

Art by Vityar83

To-Do's

- Finish the Encounter Tables
- Formalize the Rules: Some things, like Hunting and Camping, will run just as they are in Into the Wyrd & Wild. I'll need to make my own rules for mapping rules and finalize the timelines. I want maps to be worth more the "safer" they are and the faster they are delivered since the last reset. I still want to work out gold expectations as well
- Finish the details of the City and the Trading Post