Neovia
Neovia is a city within the Haunted Woods, released on October 6, 2006 in conjunction with part 3 of the prologue to The Tale of Woe. Neovia was desolate for the duration of the storyline, and the only places of interest as of October 12, 2006 were a burnt-out mansion and a road leading to Sophie's home. It is reached from the Haunted Woods via the Gypsy Camp.
Since the resolution of the plot, however, Neovia has become a viable town, with a food store, an antique shop, a book store, and a clothing shop. Other areas of Neovia, such as the abandoned mansion, the trail to Sophie's hut, and The Meepit Oaks Sanitorium for the Psychologically Fragile are no longer accessible on the main map, however.
Neovia appears to be colonial-themed, reminiscent of Victorian and Jacobean architectural eras.
Plot summary
The Tale of Woe
- Main article: The Tale of Woe
In a tale told to Gilly, she learns of Neovia as populated town within the Haunted Woods whose citizens were tempting into buying a potion to grant them their desires that turned them into twisted visions of their own ambitions. After putting the blame on one family - the first to try Mr. Krawley's Hissi Oil - the townsmen rioted, burnt down the offenders' house and chased two of the children - Sophie and Bruno - into the Haunted Woods. The residents turned on each other, until the Mayor calmed them and convinced them to contact The Spirit of Slumber to restore them. He agreed to do so, but at a price: the town became deserted, except on Hallowe'en, where the townspeople take to the streets as unresponsive spectres.
Gilly, investigating the mystery, eventually encounters Sophie and Bruno, and with aid from some of the Haunted Woods' residents, sought out the Spirit of Slumber to reverse his magic and return the Neovian's to their bodies. To do so, they had to determine the Spirit's name in order to assemble a spell to summon him - they had to dig up every single grave in the Haunted Woods until they found the bones that, when magically tested by Sophie, were proven to be the Spirit's. The relevant grave was damaged, however, and so every other grave in the Haunted Woods had to have its name checked off against the graveyard's list until, by process of elimination, the name - Jubart Igig - was found.
The Spirit summoned - he possessed Bruno, after the correct potion was formulated - he lifted the curse on Hallowe'en, and the Neovians reappeared in the flesh - however, still under Mr. Krawley's curse. The angry, disfigured townspeople turned on the trio, and Sophie fled, leaving Bruno and Gilly to hold off the hoard.
Sophie ran back to her Shack, where she came to her senses and worked on forming an antidote to Mr. Krawley's elixir. Not knowing the restorative, she was forced to experiment with her entire knowledge of concoction to form an elaborate composite that would work. When her work was completed, she left for Neovia, but could not help thinking that something was missing.
Meanwhile, Gilly had chased Mr. Krawley - who had appeared when the Neovians attacked her and Bruno - through a series of obstacles to The Meepit Oaks Sanitorium for the Psychologically Fragile. When she arrived there, she became trapped between a zombie hoard and the Krawk himself. She confronted him, but he merely told her that he had led her there as there something she should look for inside - and she had to make her decision fast, as the zombies were approaching. Exploring the asylum, she discovered its demise following the disappearance of most of the staff and the arrival of a mysterious Dr. Alexander, who had a miraculous potion with him for maintaining discipline amongst the residents. She discovered an enchanted flower clutched in the hands of a nurse's skeleton - a presence from the curious doctor.
Escaping out into the Haunted Woods, Gilly found Sophie, who realised she could use the flower to complete the potion. Together, they freed the Neovian's of their enchantments and removed the power mad Mayor Thumburt from office - by transforming him into a Moquot.