[Traveller]

Just before Rillish and Nether enter the Imperial Warren, and see Ragman kill the brother to the count (Dol D'Avig), they pass through a whole forest of Azath trees/roots, some of which ensnare the dukes horse.

Following a recent Azath discussion in the TTH's area, I was wondering how people think this fits in with the general view of the Azath; as it seems to be a small but significant addition to our present knowledge of the Azath, a bit like the 'Builder' sequence in TTH's.

Firstly, the roots take a horse, and Nether says that they'll take anyone bold enough to intrude. I thought that they usually only grab at powerful beings, in order to contain them.

Secondly, the forest is in the Shadow realm.

"As those trees are to the Azath, so is this forest to Shadow. None who enter escape...
...and this raises an important question - what could be so difficult, or important, to imprison that an entire forest is required?"

Do they surround an Azath? Does Nether mean that they trap things for Shadow?

It's all idle speculation of course, as none of it's really explained, I'm just interested in Azath/Warren mechanics, and I like the way we just get a few lines here and there that only hint at how it all works.

EDIT - not duke; he was the brother of the count

This post has been edited by Traveller: 23 December 2008 - 10:08 AM

[Aptorian]

Okay I remember no mention of an Azath forest in RCG. Could you give us the page number because I'd certainly like to reread that.

Who is this duke that you say is killed by Topper? Prince Kazz?

[Traveller]

It really is brief. Remember when Rillish is manning a blockade with the Wickans, and a group of Malazans turn up? One is a Mage - 'Dol D'Avig - a better mage than his brother is count.'
He tries to choke them, but flees on horseback, and Rillish and Nether follow him.

Ok, he's brother to a count, maybe not a duke, I couldn't remember.

P375 in my copy, a little way into chapter IV, just after the magistrates in Heng have been marched off by Storo.

[Aptorian]

Okay found it. Certainly is an interesting section. I believe the tree's are just an extension of one azath though, it isn't a forest of azaths plural. That would be ridiculous.

[Traveller]

So there is an Azath house in the Shadow realm. That still seems odd in itself, although this might be another wandering fragment.

The forest might be linked to one house, but it's still on a scale not seen anywhere else - a whole forest instead of a garden. If it only takes a few roots to take large soletaken and toblakai, the forest could take a hound or seven maybe. Tremolor gave it a go, anyway.

This post has been edited by Traveller: 23 December 2008 - 11:06 AM

[Aptorian]

It takes much more than single roots and branches to take soletaken and the hounds.

Tremolors garden lay in the middle of a gigantic maze of roots and trees. If you remember, all the time fiddler and co were travelling towards tremolors center hundreds or thousands of soletaken were fighting their way in through Tremolors defenses. They could be heard smashing their way as branches were broken and roots were torn. Tremolor just generated more and was slowly taking them one by one, only the most powerfull were able to make it all the way. And here were talking a freaking Dhenrabi D'ivers. Only a dragon D'ivers could be more awesome than that.

[Traveller]

Yeah, I forgot the Dhenrabi D'ivers...! I was thinking more of the Azath in Lether, that didn't have a forest, but had a load of Toblakai, and Ruin, and Sheltatha etc all in the same garden. Like the roots didn't need a whole forest.

Tremolor was practically a forest - a ruined one, with a maze of roots rather than trunks. Just thinking about that, it was the fake path of hands left by Pust that led them all in there in the first place, wasn't it?

Dragon D'ivers - now that would be fun.

This post has been edited by Traveller: 23 December 2008 - 11:12 AM

[Aptorian]

Tiam!

[Aptorian]

Double posting here, but.

I think I know what the difference between Tremolor and small Azaths like the Dead House, Finnest and the Lether one are.

Tremolor didn't have a guardian. The deadhouse for example didn't need a gigantic forest as a protection, it had a Jaghut Tyrant protecting the grounds.

[Traveller]

Is that why Moby could open the door? It needed a Guardian? Are you certain that the suit of armour in there wasn't empty, as I thought someone told Moby off for pissing on the floor after Fiddler etc had left.

This post has been edited by Traveller: 23 December 2008 - 11:21 AM

[Aptorian]

Yeah, Moby was allowed to open the door because he was needed as a guardian.

[Sinisdar Toste]

best thing in the world, a demon thats a soletaken bhokarala

[Silencer]

You guys are taking this the wrong way. The forest is not an Azath.

As those trees are to the Azath, so is this forest to Shadow. None who enter escape...
...and this raises an important question - what could be so difficult, or important, to imprison that an entire forest is required?"

The forest is compared with the trees of an Azath. Compared with. They are not the same. The forest is obviously a Shadow defence-mechanism. Nothing more.

Still, a very strange occurance. Even if not quite related to the Azath.

[T'renn]

Maybe Shadow is the depository of those who are incarcerated in the Azath, I mean it was mentioned that every tenth feature had a creature/Soul ? chained to it

[HoosierDaddy]

 Imperial High Mage Tayschrenn, on Dec 24 2008, 02:16 AM, said:

Maybe Shadow is the depository of those who are incarcerated in the Azath, I mean it was mentioned that every tenth feature had a creature/Soul ? chained to it

The repository of the incarcerated people is the Azath. Anyways... Shadow has some weird stuff going on. Edgewalker was around during the initial birth of the Hold of Shadow"? Why not just take control then? This comes from the scene with Kyle watching Osserc & Anomander, "It is of Emurlahn".

[Urizen]

 HoosierDaddy, on Dec 24 2008, 09:56 PM, said:

The repository of the incarcerated people is the Azath. Anyways... Shadow has some weird stuff going on. Edgewalker was around during the initial birth of the Hold of Shadow"? Why not just take control then? This comes from the scene with Kyle watching Osserc & Anomander, "It is of Emurlahn".

Can we be certain that the third person was Edgewalker? When I read it, my intial thought was that the third person was Tulas Shorn or maybe Scabandari. One of the initial bigshot Tiste Edur.

Speaking of the Kyle/Osserc/Anomander scene, anybody got any speculation as to who Resuthenal might be? L'oric's mom? another daughter of Osserc's?

[Claymore]

I have to agree that the Shadow forrest is only compared to the trees of Azath, not that they are of the Azath. As far as beings chained to the trees, maybe they are the pretenders to the throne of Shadow, as referenced in NoK by Edgewalker. Shadow claimed them and holds them in that forrest.

[Excellence]

The Denrabhi d'ivers was powerful; the bugger moved by warrening in and out through the air alone. But there was one higher than him. One that made it to the very door itself.

The Hornet Horde.

Swarms and swarms of hornets that were too elusive to catch by conventional vine grabbing.

[Richard]

The forest seemed to be compared to the Azath rather than an example of it in another form. It certainly seemed to serve the same purpose.

One interesting point about the Bhokarala that was cleaning up in the house whilst Liossercal, Dancer, Traveller and the others were facing off was that it seemed connected to the house. That and the caution with which they all seemed to treat it made me think the house was an Azath. In which case does anyone think it could be the one that made it into Tremolor?

[Xardean]

Didn't the rat D'ivers make it pretty far too?