ToME WikiThe Old Forest is located just a few steps (via overland travel) to the north and west of Bree.
It is equivalent to dungeon levels 13 to 25.
Terrain: The Old Forest is dominated by a mix of trees and water, so treewalking and levitation are big pluses here. (The usefulness of treewalking should be obvious. Levitation prevents drowning damage when crossing water, especially if you're carrying heavy loads.) You may occasionally encounter vaults, especially as you go deeper.
Although there are many dungeons that may have dungeon towns, the Old Forest has a reputation as a dungeon that one visits (or doesn't) in the early midgame specifically in hopes of encountering a dungeon town.
Monsters: Typical low- to mid-level monsters. Because there are water streamers, you may encounter some water-specific monsters.
Boss: The bottom level is inhabited by the unique Old Man Willow. He is the first in a series of "dungeon guardians" -- out-of-depth monsters with a guaranteed random artifact (or in some cases a fixed artifact) at the bottom of a dungeon.
Old Man Willow cannot be detected by telepathy and is cold-blooded. He does not deign to chase intruders. He can paralyze or teleport-to. He is vulnerable to fire, but resists some other things. He does not move very fast, but if he hits you, you'll feel it, and you might get paralyzed as a result, so be sure to have Free Action. A spellcaster can make short work of him with Manathrust, or an archer can shoot him. He drops a random artifact along with a few good items.
Chatter
Warppooted : I just killed OMW using an archer, and he only dropped one excellent armor. Is the random artifact always guaranteed?