Help me describe a large elven city

It's this sort of deal:

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How does that look?

That looks great - thanks for the images!
 

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"As you move closer to the center of the lakeshore,you see hundreds of
elven children sliding down smooth branches on leaves the size of sleds,
flying impossibly high into the air.Screaming and laughing some are caught by huge turtles who then throw them back up into the air.The turtles take notice of you and form a defencive possition,hissing menacingly,until
near by parents calm them."

'Can we kill them?'
;)
 

All good idea about the trees, but don't forget the island and the lake itself.

Buildings under the lake, kept dry through magic could serve as house, store rooms, green houses, aquaculture or even as prisons.

They would probably have delved some chambers into the rock of the island itself for both storage away from the weather and as a place to put those crafts which are not safe to practice in trees like baking and blacksmithing.

If they are preparing for war, they will be trying to fortify their island. In sticking with the plant theme picture them weaving walls of nasty thorny plants like japanese rose or acacias into a continuous barrier around the island while the druids cast plant growth to grow them into true barriers. They might also be employing some of the various nasty plants in the monster manual.

There will also be trying to take steps to make it harder for the enemy to get across the lake at them, although the specifics of that depend too much on the particulars of your scenario for me to guess at. But as a general guideline they'll be trying to deny them access to boats and launching points, in that order.
 


You want a rude surprise?

Have the Druids & Wizards among the Elves in that city create a giant Awakened version of the Archerfish to help defend the shoreline of the lake and its tributaries...possibly even the open waters.

Archerfish - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

After all, who said that cooshee had to be the only "elven" animals?

Thanks - the elf city will generally be friendly to the PCs, but that could work as an example of defense.
 

For interesting source on elven cities see the 2E Complete Elves Handbook Chapter 8: Elven Dwellings (The Grey Elves' City, The High Elves' Tree Town, The Sylvan Elves' Encampment) and/or Dragon #224, p19 "Elven Cities and Settlements". (This is the special architecture issue - castle design, elven cities, dwarven tombs) Also 2E's Elves of Evermeet is bound to have some details on elven cities in the Forgotten Realms. Evermeet and its capital Leuthilspar are described on the FR Wiki and could provide a few interesting tidbits.:
Leuthilspar - The Forgotten Realms Wiki - Books, races, classes, and more
Evermeet - The Forgotten Realms Wiki - Books, races, classes, and more

Another option is to poach from the city of Evereska:
Evereska: An Overview
*Evereska, Land of Elves*

The unpublished Greyhawk sourcebook Ivid the Undying available as a free pdf here has a few elven cities in it.


Last not least the excellent article "Tal Aska - An Elven City in the Vesve" on canonfire describes a large wood elven city situated near a lake and a huge forest, which lies very near to the humanoid infested lands of Iuz the Evil. There's even a a map included as well. In fact i think this city fits you parameters pretty well...
 
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For interesting source on elven cities see the 2E Complete Elves Handbook Chapter 8: Elven Dwellings (The Grey Elves' City, The High Elves' Tree Town, The Sylvan Elves' Encampment) and/or Dragon #224, p19 "Elven Cities and Settlements". (This is the special architecture issue - castle design, elven cities, dwarven tombs) Also 2E's Elves of Evermeet is bound to have some details on elven cities in the Forgotten Realms. Evermeet and its capital Leuthilspar are described on the FR Wiki and could provide a few interesting tidbits.:
Leuthilspar - The Forgotten Realms Wiki - Books, races, classes, and more
Evermeet - The Forgotten Realms Wiki - Books, races, classes, and more

Another option is to poach from the city of Evereska:
Evereska: An Overview
*Evereska, Land of Elves*

The unpublished Greyhawk sourcebook Ivid the Undying available as a free pdf here has a few elven cities in it.


Last not least the excellent article "Tal Aska - An Elven City in the Vesve" on canonfire describes a large wood elven city situated near a lake and a huge forest, which lies very near to the humanoid infested lands of Iuz the Evil. There's even a a map included as well. In fact i think this city fits you parameters pretty well...

Thanks - very good ideas. I might even have the 2E Complete Elves book somewhere - it's just a matter of finding it, since I've moved twice since 3E came out. ;=)
 

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