Currently it does not really matter whether you are on a cultivated map or on a wilderness map, as a walk in the woods is a lovely stroll. I always imagined forests in the medieval / late medieval age to be something dangerous, fearsome something that made the traveler to be cautious, wild, untamed. Same with mountains.
If we have a quickl glance at the map of Barovia, is obvious that large portion of the map is forested and there are mountains.
In my head the Balinoks and Ghakis (not the high elevation part) were something like these:
Currently it's something like this:
I once prompted this small aesthetic touch, to have the mountains, lower mountain parts (similarly to the foothills of the Baratak) more wild and forestated and less rocky and barren.
The other thing I can imagine that'd make the landscape of Barovia more wild are the following:
- more skitting animals (give permahaste to dear and a huge hide skill)
- deadly vipers in the woods (high ms/hide - currently you can spot a viper in game from long distance and dispose it. Vipers were a deadly threat for any wilderness walker as they were mostly concealed by the vegetation)
- spiderlings (high ms/hide - attack when you go near some webs)
- randomly spawning wolves (we know where they spawn, so we just avoid them - would be nice if they spawn randomly and when they attack they go move silently, similarly to some larger wolves)
- hidden things that can be found with high enough search skill (plants, mushrooms, special wilderness stuff, like edible things)
- movement hindrance in heavy - medium armor (the ground is filled with rocks, fallen branches and logs, roots, bushes, random holes made by rabbits, muddy soil - it's a nightmare to travel afar from the path in none suitable equipment) - or alternative: make a similar effect than in the dvergheim areas: success on reflex / tumble check else fall prone (heavy armor lowers tumble for instance)
- wandering animals (they just stand in the same spot...now imagine as a bear walks around on the map: you can't be safe, same with wolves, and other predators)
Just suggestions, you know me as heavy ranger / wilderness fan!
