Feralas

Unlike its barren neighbors to the north, south, and east,Feralas (pronounced Fehr-AHL-ahs)[1] is a lush jungle. Both the Horde and Alliance lay claim to the area and have to contend with powerful local forces. These include the bloodthirsty Gordunni ogres who control a number of scattered ancient Elven ruins, including the vast dungeon of Dire Maul. The ogres have desecrated and defiled much of Feralas, damaging the land with their taint. The Horde in particular is concerned with the unchecked expansion of the Gordunni and has put out a call for adventurers to aid the war effort against them. Feralas is also home to a number of scatteredGrimtotem tauren tribes, members of which are hunted by order of Belgrom Rockmaul in Orgrimmar. The far western islands are crawling with Naga and recently several Silithidhives have been spotted. Feralas is also the location of one of the four Great Trees leading to the Emerald Dream and guarded by the four Emerald Dragons. The three others are inAshenvale, Duskwood, and the Hinterlands.

History
Prior to the cataclysm, Feralas saw little traffic from players and had relatively little in the way of storyline outside of Dire Maul. Many quests involved simply dealing with the local harsh wildlife including yetis, harpies,gnolls, and a silithid hive called The Writhing Deep. The main settlements were Feathermoon Stronghold off the coast, and Camp Mojache to the east. The corrupted green dragon Taerar prowled the Dream Bough to the north

History
Once part of the great expansion of Night elf power, the forest of Feralas holds many ancient ruins as well as the great city now known as Dire Maul that have long since been overgrown by the native plant life. One possible explanation for its abundant flora and fauna could lie in the fact that Kalimdor was once nothing but lush forests prior to the Great Sundering. It is likely the high mountains that surround the area served as a protective barrier from such outside factors.[citation needed]

From Lands of Mystery
The Twin Colossals.

The Forgotten Coast.

In Lands of Mystery (before the events of the Cataclysm), Feralas is one of the zones described by the adventurer and explorer Brann Bronzebeard.

Upon arriving from Desolace, he witnessed a lush valley filled with enough ancient trees to "make any elf weep with joy". He quickly spotted the Twin Colossals and decided to climb to the summit of one of them, spending most of his first day in Feralas by circling the Twin Colossals while fending off wild creatures and mountain giants. In the evening he met a night elf who'd been observing Brann for some time for fun, but was gentle enough to teleport him to the top. From there, Brann saw a road descending into the valley from the south, cutting through the forest until it turned east and disappeared. To the west, amid the thick treetops, he saw stone ruins "jutted up like bony fingers". Further westward, he spotted the Forgotten Coast, both Sardor Isle and the Isle of Dread along the horizon, as well as the Feathermoon Ferry.[4]

People and culture
In Brann's opinion, most residents of Feralas were rather barbaric, living in simple dwellings or holes in the ground. They wear whatever they can create using simple tools and have little knowledge of higher technologies like stonecutting and metalwork. The tauren at Camp Mojache are the most civilized, though remaining true to their tribal roots and treating their surroundings with respect. The ogres are "the worst menace in the area", being scavengers and squatters. Some live in traditional mounds, other in the Highborne ruins. They hate anything that isn't an ogre, sometimes not even caring about that.[5]There are also pockets of satyrs and harpies "whom will kill you first, eat you second, and ask questions later."[5] Oddly enough, Brann describes the night elves as not being true natives of Feralas, despite their strong history there.[5]

Geography
Brann describes Feralas as a lush, L-shaped valley stretching from Desolace in the north to the ocean in the west and then stretching across half of Kalimdor until it reaches the Thousand Needles in the east. The region is nearly bisected by the ridge in the middle, which stretches from theWoodpaw Den in the south to Dire Maul in the north. The climate is subtropical with most days being warm and humid, with plentiful rainfall. All kinds of creatures inhabit Feralas, ranging from carnivores like wolves andhippogryphs to "smart animals" known as yeti and intelligent creatures like gnolls.