Difference between revisions of "Isle of Storms"

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* '''Kelvin Fenwich''', an aging halfling almost tall enough to be a dwarf, with a sour temper, works as a cobbler in a run down one room building near the old bazaar, full of leather and cobbling tools.
 
* '''Kelvin Fenwich''', an aging halfling almost tall enough to be a dwarf, with a sour temper, works as a cobbler in a run down one room building near the old bazaar, full of leather and cobbling tools.
 
* '''Frederick Rowntree''' operates Frederick's Furs.  He's an elderly halfling man and is quite talkative.  He skins local beasts and preserves the furs.  He'll pay (reasonably, if not especially well) for more exotic fured animals.
 
* '''Frederick Rowntree''' operates Frederick's Furs.  He's an elderly halfling man and is quite talkative.  He skins local beasts and preserves the furs.  He'll pay (reasonably, if not especially well) for more exotic fured animals.
* '''Rurigig Clanfang''', a young half-orc man, is the local tailor.  His shop is on the edge of town, and he's quite pessimistic, never having recovered from his sister being lost at sea a half dozen years ago.   
+
* <s>'''Rurigig Clanfang''', a young half-orc man, is the local tailor.  His shop is on the edge of town, and he's quite pessimistic, never having recovered from his sister being lost at sea a half dozen years ago.</s> Rurigig was killed by kuo-toa while on the ship rescue force.   
 
* '''Rosa Commonbrook''' is a halfling woman, early middle-age, slim, who serves as the barber of the town.  She appears to be lacking in self-confidence and often worries aloud about her two children.
 
* '''Rosa Commonbrook''' is a halfling woman, early middle-age, slim, who serves as the barber of the town.  She appears to be lacking in self-confidence and often worries aloud about her two children.
 
* '''Ivy McKinnon''' is a female half-elf.  She deals in precious stones and jewelry, as well as crafting new pieces.  She has a beautiful singing voice and will often sing when she works.
 
* '''Ivy McKinnon''' is a female half-elf.  She deals in precious stones and jewelry, as well as crafting new pieces.  She has a beautiful singing voice and will often sing when she works.

Revision as of 16:41, 12 October 2021

Isle of Storms Map

Isle.png


Islands

Isle of Storms

The Isle of Storms is a tropical island in the Summer Sea, with a lagoon in the center and an active volcano inside that. It sits on once major north-south trade routes and Trade Town was once a bustling town, with ships coming and leaving daily to trade, buy sugarcane, and restock supplies on the way to major cities. The decline and political instability of some of the cities on the northern trade routes, as well as changing weather patterns, has left Trade Town a shell of itself. While the Isle of Storms has always been subjected to major storms, particularly coming in from the northeast, ships sailing up from the southwest, docking, and then continuing on to the northwest or vice versa, as the trade routes went, were spared the worst of it. Over the last hundred years though the storms have moved farther south in their path, making it harder to reach the Isle from some of the main southern cities.

As trade has declined, the number of people on the island has also. This has lead to the Kuo Toa population in the seas and caves of the island growing more aggressive, and their raids on shipping has hurt trade, as well as the increased presence of lawless pirates on the outer islands.

The area around Trade Town is cultivated, with sugarcane fields making up the majority of the worked land, as well as some smaller, family farms that grow produce for local consumption. But further than five or so miles from town, the island turns into thick jungle full of beasts, old ruins, and precious few paths.

  • Bleak Cave: A large cave entrance that's known to lead down to the winding caverns where the Kuo Toa dwell.
  • Bone Cove: The best cove on the northern half of the island. However, due to the frequent storms from the north, the cove is mostly populated by the wrecks of old ships and the sailors who died on them.
  • Bullyburg: A number of Bullywug settlements dot the southeast corner of the inner volcanic island that sits in the lagoon, with Bullyburg (so called by the residents of Trade Town) being the largest. It's inhabitants are typically hostile to those who enter their territory unbidden, but while they sometimes venture across the lagoon to raid the northeastern sugarcane fields and crabbers, they almost never venture as far west as Trade Town itself, and have been known to trade with an occasional merchant who knows their customs.
  • Dasal's Peak: A volcano that rises some 8 thousand feet above the lagoon. While active, the last eruption was hundreds of years ago. Fire and earth elementals are sometimes spotted on its slopes.
  • Mirabella's Lagoon: No one now alive remembers who Mirabella was, but the name remains. Though locals are more apt to simply call it “the lagoon”. The water is clear in most place but in some spots near the old temple the water is murky (travelers should beware the giant leeches that live there), and on the eastern end it is swampy. While crabbing in the waters near Trade Town can be profitable, the farther out into the lagoon you go the bigger the crabs get, to the point where some are so big they can eat a goliath whole.
  • Old Port: The ruins of a city from hundreds of years ago. Were the inhabitants human? No one remembers. The city has been pretty well picked over in terms of loot, but some say there are vast caches of treasure buried underneath the old palace at the heart of the city. Though others say the treasure is cursed, and the last ruler of the city was a Medusa queen who the gods smote after she turned all the citizens in the city into statues.
  • The Southern Cells: The remains of what seems to have been an underground jail, it's origin are mysterious.
  • Temple of Storms: An old temple to Umberlee, the Goddess of Storms. Some say it was her first temple, others that it was built by the locals to appease her, but she could not be appeased because her appetite for destruction and storms was boundless. Now it lies in ruins, and worship of her has fallen out of favor, but rumors say some still maintain her cult and sail out to the temple, making a dark pact with her. Of course, there are always such rumors around Trade Town, as the power of the storms is endless.
  • Trade Town: At its height perhaps a hundred years ago, this town was populated by ten thousand people, with often a transient population of half of that again, from all over the world. While humans and halflings constituted a majority of the population, the cosmopolitan nature of it, with traders and sailors arriving and leaving on ships by the hour, meant half a hundred other races might be found here as well. Now with trade in decline, the population is down to maybe one thousand souls who have no where else to go. They eke out a living fishing, crabbing, and raising sugar cane for the few traders who still make the trip. The once great marketplace, with goods from the four corners of the world, now sits in ruin. Many buildings and shanties on the edge of town have been abandoned for decades, making a place to sleep easy to come by, if you don't mind squatting under a leaky roof. Only one tavern remains open, The Archer and Tankard. Trade Town was originally a human town (called Hemi in those days), before the coming of halfling traders. Human buildings in town are typically still traditional bures, while halfling built dwellings are a mishmash of styles, reflecting the cultures of where the builders came from. Most (though certainly not all) craftspeople and merchants in town are halfling, while humans mostly fish, crab, and work in the sugarcane fields. On occasion these differences have resulted in tensions or even violence, but for the most part the town is peaceful.
  • Westridge: The cliffs here rise high above the sea, and are usually clouded by a thick fog that doesn't feel natural. Many have reported hearing the voices of long lost loved ones in the fog.

West Island

The largest of the peripheral islands, it was once the home to small farmers cultivating bamboo shoots and okra. Now it lies largely uninhabited, with the jungle retaking the once cleared farmland, and tigers stalking the shores.

  • Aramore Keep Ruins: The ruins of an old keep and lighthouse. An abandoned way-station of a forgotten empire. Dead soldiers still keep to their posts, awaiting orders that will never come.

Far Island

A sandy island with a good harbor on the south side. A band of pirates called the Seawolves operates from here, though even they have a hard time supporting themselves with trade ships becoming so infrequent.

Duchess Island

An island named for a long dead duchess who lived here. Now primarily the home to monkeys and other jungle creatures. During the rainy season, the rains are especially strong here.

  • The Lady's Crypt: An elaborate crypt for a buried noblewoman. Many have tried to enter the crypt over the years, but most have failed. Some say the Lady's ghost only allows those she deems worthy to enter.

Lonely Reef

The top of a much larger, submerged, coral reef. Almost completely under water at high tide, but several feet above the water at low tide. Legends has it that an ancient kraken swims deep beneath the unfathomable waters between the Isle and Lonely Reef.

Isle of Faces

A rocky island without much vegetation. Ancient carvings of faces in the rocks dot the island. The faces appear to be elven, but no record of an elven civilization on the island exists.

Turtle Mound

A small, rocky island, famous for its snapping turtles and not much else, though one past resident of Trade Town was notoriously convinced it's the final resting place of the pirate warlord Xartigan the Bloody and his treasure, and spent much of her life fruitlessly searching for it.

  • Blue Bluff: On this high cliff overlooking the sea, the stone remnants of a gallows stands, and a graveyard lies nearby. Long ago pirates and mutineers were hanged here.

Languages

  • Trade Tongue: A creole language that is a mix of Onesh and Torricade, it originated on the Isle of Storms as halfling traders dealt with the native human population. It is now the native language of most residents of Trade Town, though knowledge of the two base languages is not uncommon. It has also spread to many of the ports of the Summer Sea, though it is rarely anyone's native tongue outside of the Isle.
  • Onesh: The native language of the humans, kuo toa and bullywugs of the Isle of Storms, though all three groups speak somewhat different dialects. Some scholars theorize it was the native language of the inhabitants of Old Port, and then spread to the other sapient species of the Isle. Most humans native to the Isle now speak Trade Tongue instead as their first language, but some on outlying farms still grow up learning Onesh.
  • Torricade: A language of the southern cities, common among sailors and and traders from the area.
  • Duilsetic: The second most common language of the south, after Torricade, it is spoken more inland from the ports, among the temperate planes and grasslands.
  • Old Imperial: The language of the Empire of the Seas, covering the archipelagos far to the west of the Isle. No longer the native language of anyone, it still sees use as a scholarly and liturgical language.
  • Ismoni: Related to Old Imperial, was spoken by many of the immigrant human workers who came to toil the sugarcane plantations during the height of Trade Town's prosperity.
  • Fuelese: Originated in the city of Fuel to the north, across the sea. Now also common among the dwarves, gnomes and giants of the mountainous northern lands.
  • Irathi: The primary language of the southern Misty Forest, spoken by the fey, elves, and other woodland dwellers there.
  • Abanese: An older language of the Misty Forest, now mostly only spoken by Druids as a liturgical language. Also called Druidic.
  • Xookekti: A language spoken in the first of the Nine Hells. Often studied by wizards who seek to summon infernal support.
  • Telleric: A pidgin language that developed along the southern inland trade routes, and spread by wagon caravans and mercenary bands. Derisively refereed to as Thieves' Cant.
  • Deep Sea Speech: A language originally spoken by the merfolk of the southern Summer Sea, it has spread to some traders and pirates who ply the waters. Also know as Bluwati among the merfolk.
  • Aeoses: A language of the Inner Planes, spoken in different dialects in the City of Brass and other elemental locales.
  • Dichikian: The language spoken on Tasla, an island several hundred miles to the northeast, including by the aarakocra and tabaxi of the lowland jungles.
  • Abutian: The primary language spoken in the northern cities known as the Trio, mostly by the human, tiefling and goblin populations there.
  • Exeo: A language spoken by the Githyanki, Githzerai and other travelers of the Astral Plane.
  • Quoic: A cousin of Aeoses, spoken by the Djinn and their subjects of the Elemental Plane of Air.

NPCs of Trade Town

  • Kelvin Fenwich, an aging halfling almost tall enough to be a dwarf, with a sour temper, works as a cobbler in a run down one room building near the old bazaar, full of leather and cobbling tools.
  • Frederick Rowntree operates Frederick's Furs. He's an elderly halfling man and is quite talkative. He skins local beasts and preserves the furs. He'll pay (reasonably, if not especially well) for more exotic fured animals.
  • Rurigig Clanfang, a young half-orc man, is the local tailor. His shop is on the edge of town, and he's quite pessimistic, never having recovered from his sister being lost at sea a half dozen years ago. Rurigig was killed by kuo-toa while on the ship rescue force.
  • Rosa Commonbrook is a halfling woman, early middle-age, slim, who serves as the barber of the town. She appears to be lacking in self-confidence and often worries aloud about her two children.
  • Ivy McKinnon is a female half-elf. She deals in precious stones and jewelry, as well as crafting new pieces. She has a beautiful singing voice and will often sing when she works.
  • Ecin Annsen, an old halfling woman, run the only local tavern, the Archer and Tankard. She is quite matronly and seems to care a lot about the tavern regulars. The tavern itself is a single story timber framed building with a thatched roof, with roughly hewn tables and benches. There are no rooms for rent here, but those who want to pay 5 copper can sleep in the common room on the floor near the fireplace, rather than squatting in a wet shack. The tavern's specialty is roasted crayfish and rice, along with a shot of rum, for 9 copper.
  • Terrowin Redstream is an aasimar clothes seller. She buys clothes from the other townspeople when they're not needed, and sells them cheaper that it would take to make a new piece. Her store always has a musky smell.
  • Imithren Talraidal is a female drow who makes deserts and pastries, in a shop near the docks. She has a tendency to curse like a sailor.
  • Rainan Hardhelm, is a female hill dwarf who makes wooden furniture from logs that wash up on the beach. She's quite taciturn and has the reputation around town of being greedy.
  • Alice Truegust is a middle aged halfling, and she crafts tables, chairs, wardrobes and such, along with an apprentice, in a building near the old marketplace. She's quite impatient and very talkative. She's also rather superstitious and always wears blue, her "lucky color".
  • Olaga is a middle aged female human who hawks the fish her husband catches. She has a cutting tongue and often complains about her husband not catching enough.
  • Jetta Mournhell is the town weaver, weaving strands of tree cotton into cloth. She's an elderly halfling woman, who is quite calm in demeanor.
  • Galadher Falavaul is a half-elf man who practices the trade of chandler, or candle maker. He gets bored easily when not making candles and is liable to wander off in the middle of a conversation.
  • Enengod Falavaul, Galadher's brother, is a mercer, a dealer in fabrics. He buys excess local cloth and sells it to merchant ships, and buys silk and wool from ships and sells it locally. He's a generous and fairly young man.
  • Akamu is a veteran human fisherman who most of the other fishers look to for advice and counsel. He has a scar on his side where a shark once bit him. Everyday when he finishes fishing he walks to the eastern edge of town and prays to Pola, the Goddess of Volcanoes.
  • Seven Seers on the Mountaintop, is the local cooper (barrel maker), a middle aged female tabaxi, with gray fur and green eyes. She's circumspect in what she says, though some around town say that on the rare occasions when she drinks, she always talks about a dream she had of Old Port.
  • Simon Redstream is a youngish halfing man. He has an obstinate personality, and he brews potions, many of which smell quite unsavory, in a leaky building on the north edge of town. Though he rarely has customers, he still pays good coin for a variety of exotic components.
  • Benedict de Bolbec, is a young, plump halfling, who works as the town baker. The bakery is located near the docks, on a stilt house. He's one of the more disliked figures in town, as it's an open secret that he's prone to shorting the weight of the baked goods, when he thinks he can get away with it.
  • Strundrogkrii, a female dragonborn, makes scabbards from stingray leather in a large hut on the beach. She's mercurial and rather literal. Her son disappeared in the jungle a year ago, and most of the town is perplexed at her lack of obvious grief.
  • Carac Hillless is another cobbler. Most people agree his shoes aren't as good as Kelvin's, but he charges less. He typically has a sarcastic demeanor.
  • Falk Wheatflow is a middle aged, unusually muscular halfling man who is the town blacksmith. He doesn't speak much, though when he's angry he can unleash a torrent of invective. The most common item he makes is shoes for oxen that plow the sugarcane fields.
  • Malosi, an elderly human man, works as a scribe and bookbinder. He also sells supplies for writing and the occasional scroll or codex he has on hand. He's absent minded and prone to change the subject often.
  • Letholdus Ashglade, a middle aged, balding, male halfling, is the owner of the largest sugarcane fields, and the self-proclaimed mayor of Trade Town. His family, the Ashglades, were a minor trading family on the Isle of Storms, but after everyone else with more money left, they ended up the richest family in town. Eager to throw his newly found weight around, he has proclaimed himself the mayor of the town (the previous town council was essentially defunct due to all the members moving away) and hired mercenaries to form a "town watch", that's really just a group of bodyguards for himself and his family.
  • Robin Ashglade, a halfling man who is approaching old age, owns the town's largest mill. He's a first cousin of Letholdus, and while not as eager to be in charge, he's a deeply cynical man who cares first and foremost for his profit, and tactically backs his cousin.
  • Mooncaller is a goliath woman who is a veteran of several wars and dozens of skirmishes, and has several scars to prove it. She served as a lieutenant in a mercenary company before being hired to be the captain of the "town watch". While some of the guards under her regard this as a cushy assignment, she attempts to maintain discipline. However, her loyalty is not to the town but to Letholdus Ashglade, who pays her.
  • "Old" Deegan is a human fisherman who specializes in fishing the lagoon for rare fish. He also works sometimes as a trader, bargaining with the Bullywugs, due to his long experience with them.

PCs

Pantheon

The primary deities worshiped on the Isle are known as The Seven Sisters, a collection of female deities from various cultures that have formed a single pantheon.

  • Umberlee, Goddess of Sea and Storms
  • Pola, Goddess of Volcanoes and Fire
  • Muhena, Goddess of the Night Sky and Navigation
  • Sheela Peryroyl, Goddess of Nature and Agriculture
  • Tem-Et-Nu, Goddess of Wealth and Life
  • Tiamat, Goddess of Conquest and War
  • Ayailla, Goddess of the Sun and Light

Gazeteer

Some locations outside the scope of the map.

  • The Summer Sea: The sea in which the Isle of Storms and its nearby islands are located. It is primarily located in the southern hemisphere.
  • Latesh Archipelago: An archipelago of islands perhaps three hundred miles to the west of the Isle of Storms. It was the location of the Empire of the Seas, a now defunct empire that conquered many islands in the Summer Sea and many of the ports cities on the mainland to the south.
  • Fuel: A port city on the northern continent, built over several hot, tropical islands that lie just offshore. Probably the most important northern port city on the Sea, it is ruled by the Archduke of Fuel.
  • Misty Forest: A large, temperate forest in the southern lands, home to many elves and fey.
  • Tasla: A large island several hundred miles to the northeast of the Isle, with high mountains, and lowland jungles.
  • The Trio: A trio of northern cities on the Sethla river, with Rives being on the mouth of the river, and Quartan and Legarte a bit farther north along the river. Closely allied and mostly sharing the same culture.
  • Acawood: A land-locked northern city, sitting on inland trade routes fairly far from the Summer Sea and ruled by an oligarchy of merchant houses.
  • Torric: An important trading city on the southern continent, and the original home of the Torricade language.