Whalewood Shrubs

Stunted, bone-white shrubs that grow only in ancient whalegrave shoals—bleak coastal sanctuaries where the great ice-whales come to die. Whalewood is sacred to the clans of Borealos, believed to grow from the mingled essence of leviathan bones and storm-forged soil. Their presence marks places of ancestral power, sorrow, and oceanic mystery. Appearance: Gnarled, wind-sheared branches twist like frozen antlers. Wood is bone-pale with hairline blue-gray striations, said to be veins of memory or whale-song trapped in woodgrain. Produces no leaves, fruit, or visible seeds—propagation remains a mystery to even the wisest Ice-Seers. Resin wells in small amber-like nodules that shimmer faintly in moonlight.