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Ground level forest cities built around and between trees, rather than tree house cit

Swordfry

Troubadour
I'm going to repost this from the Worldbuilding Reddit to get a bit more feedback:


One of my main races in my fantasy world is mostly a forest dwelling race. They stand 4-5 feet tall, and are adept climbers and carpenters. My world is paced with sprawling, densely treed forests, but fit this race well due to their diminutive stature. Thus, I have these guys living in the forests, except for their massive capital city and farming communities not far from the forests. My problem I faced, though, is this: This race is very skilled at climbing, and they live mostly in forests, but I would hate to have them live in just treehouse like structures above the ground. It would just be too complicated for me to write, and also rather impractical to build and move everything up. So here is what I came up with:

This race is big in the lumber industry as it is the main resource in this world. For bigger settlements, a whole clearing would be made at once, and build a settlement there. However, most of the settlements are smaller ones where buildings are constructed in the empty spaces where trees have been removed. Some buildings can be built completely standalone, but many others utilize the surrounding trees as posts, building walls between trees, and creating buildings by connecting the dots sort of. As for defense: There are no outer walls to these settlements. Instead, a big network of small tree forts surround settlements and are also posted throughout the forest as guard and patrol posts. These are really nothing more than big platforms built around the tree trunk. The reason for this is twofold: 1. All of the other humanoid races are an average human size, a good foot taller on average than this forest dwelling race. They attack from above, whether on the small tree forts, or just on the branches and tree trunks. 2. Their culture. This race worships a sun god, as each race worships one thing that gives life to all like sun, water, the planet's core. However, they view this sun god as very powerful, and unable to control its power, hence the constant heat and light beating down on the land. They take shelter from this god in the shade of their forests, knowing that it is not wise to constantly be in direct view of their god. Dwelling in living quarters higher up in the air would provide less shade, so this is just how they see things.

What do you guys think? How practical does this sound, especially compared to settlements constructed in the branches and canopies of trees? What problems would you think arise? Just want some feedback.
 
See the major reason for building a settlement in the trees is because the forest/jungle floor is unsafe. Some predators hunt at night and would easily find ways into houses. Other times its due to deadly ants, beetles and other insects who have trouble climbing trees, but a sting/bite from one of them could kill a person. Then there is mundane things that make the ground unsafe, like near constant rainfall makes the ground like a bog. The ground can also be very uneven from roots and rocks that might make building on the ground undesirable.

If your forest doesn't have those kinds of things, there isn't much of a point to building in the trees. Houses on the ground are easier to build.

I do think that if they weren't just going to cut away a full clearing like any normal settlers/people would do so they could farm and build homes. Then they should cut away a sort of empty treeline ring around their settlements instead. They can still have the guard posts in the trees, but that way people approaching a settlement are forced out into the open. so the people living in your forest city have an easier time judging friend from foe.
But that is just if you want to talk fortifications for the forest city. Its a very simple way to protect it.
 
Hi,

For me the main issue is that your forest floor dwelling race seems to like the cold and damp. And they would have food growing limitations. Life in the tree tops gives you sunshine which is warmth as well as the chance to dry out. And it allows you to use the clearings to grow crops and raise livestock. It may also allow access to certain foods - fruits and nuts of alien(?) trees. So what is your race like? Do they have large eyes to allow for the lower light levels of the forest floor? Heavy, waterproof fur? Toughened feet to deal with roots and treacherous footing? And what do they eat?

Cheers, Greg.
 

Nomadica

Troubadour
Why are they good at climbing if they don't live in trees? there are other reasons I can think of like if their crops are mostly high tree fruits. But for me they would need a reason to have that skill. The body is a use it or lose it thing.
 

jm.milks

Scribe
I'd recommend researching kingdoms that have existed in these environments to help figure out how the environment effects them. not to base anything off them, but to take how society evolves to function there into consideration.

I think the Ojibwa kingdom would be good, or maybe even the Iroquois.
 

Swordfry

Troubadour
Why are they good at climbing if they don't live in trees? there are other reasons I can think of like if their crops are mostly high tree fruits. But for me they would need a reason to have that skill. The body is a use it or lose it thing.


This race, like all my others, are built to survive everywhere, but thrive specifically in one environment. This forest race are expert climbers for a number of reasons. Access to food and avoiding predators are the biggest things, especially since they are a good two feet shorter than the other main race that they are in conflict with. Their warfare consists mostly of assaulting enemies with missiles from above.

It's also a matter of religion. They worship the sun, but it a religion based in fear as they know the sun can harm them and cannot control its heat. They view it as a life giving, but fierce and wrathful god. Thus, they have taken to living in the forests that provide shade from their god. And just one reason they don't live in the tree tops is they would be closer to their god and its heat, which they want to avoid.
 

Swordfry

Troubadour
Hi,

For me the main issue is that your forest floor dwelling race seems to like the cold and damp. And they would have food growing limitations. Life in the tree tops gives you sunshine which is warmth as well as the chance to dry out. And it allows you to use the clearings to grow crops and raise livestock. It may also allow access to certain foods - fruits and nuts of alien(?) trees. So what is your race like? Do they have large eyes to allow for the lower light levels of the forest floor? Heavy, waterproof fur? Toughened feet to deal with roots and treacherous footing? And what do they eat?

Cheers, Greg.

I have actually taken this into consideration. They do have physical features which aid them: Rough, slightly rigid, dark brown skin that provides camouflage and natural protection from the abrasion from climbing trees too much. Their feet are also similarly tough with extra thumb like appendages that aid in the root filled footing and climbing. The dampness, water level thing is not much of an issue as this does not get any unusual amounts of rain.

As for farming and livestock: I believe I mentioned in my op that they primarily live in the forest, but have farming settlements not far from the forests. They mostly use the forest for hunting, gathering various resources, lots of lumber included, and trading because there are two rivers that run right through the forest that they use as a trade route between their own settlements and those of other people they trade with. It is also their main method of transporting fallen trees to be shipped to mills just like in real life.

I think it's my fault kind of misleading people by saying "forest race" because that is not entirely true. When I first started creating this world, they were strictly forest only dwelling, but then evolved into much more. Now they are still a mostly forest dwelling race, with the exception of farming communities and their nation's capital. There is also a story reason behind all of this, as their kingdom used to be situated right in the middle of the forest, but after a falling out with another race they are now at war with, they thought it best to move the capital further away from their enemies, which is outside of their forest and close by their farming communities. Thanks for the feedback.
 
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Hi Swordfry,

I used to live by a pine forest - they are dark, cold and wet by comparison. It's not because they get any more rain than anywhere else. It's because they don't get sunshine to dry things out and heat things up.

Cheers, Greg.
 
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