Bluefern

Bluefern is a virid plant with distinctive blue feathery fronds, found principally in the temperate uplands of Anásthias. Its white tendrilous roots are ground and dried to form a potent narcotic known as sylin.

Bluefern are blue-toned shrubs which grow on upland slopes in full sun. The prosper most on well-drained granular soil, unusual for virid plants since most are better suited to warmer lowland jungles.

The drug sylin is made by carefully harvesting the roots in the right conditions to maximise the intensity of the drug in the plant. The roots are dried, ground, and processed into a preservative tincture.

In low doses sylin has mild euphoric effects, but in larger doses it increases memory and concentration. Bluefern only grow in wild virid regions so it is a rare and expensive drug. Therefore it is used particularly by academics, statesmen, and anyone who needs the intellectual boost the drug can bestow. Casual use does not cause dependency, but regular use causes a physical dependency, and the withdrawal is difficult and painful. High doses can induce feelings of extreme paranoia and anxiety.

Bluefern extract is used medically for people with neurological disorders, as for a time it can compensate for intellectual loss caused by dementia and brain damage.