Yeah, that was my understanding: To the degree that humans trade with the Elder Races, it seems to be Uz and Mostali more than Aldryami. I'd assume Aldryami have more trade than the newts, but I'm not sure, and it doesn't really matter one way or another. The point is Aldryami don't seem trade oriented on average.
At the same time, however, there's a ritual trading ground older than the Dawn in northern Wenelia that is useful enough to maintain a small but stable city state, far away from the rest of humanity. The benefits for humanity from stable trade relations with Aldryami is obvious (or at least easier to come up with), but I was at a loss why the Aldryami would engage in that much consistent trade. Hence the thread.
The Arstola Aldryami motivation to reforest Wenelia is fine as far as it goes, but I don't think it sufficiently explains a stable trading relationship that has existed for (possibly) centuries.
Another possibility is that the Goddess Switch screwed them up big time, and they need to compensate as a result. The problem with this argument as I see it, though, is I'd assume that Aldryami Gods controlled the fates of Aldryami forests much more than Human Earth goddesses, especially ones linked with grain production.
Nick
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