Farshore

A colony established by Lavinia Vanderboren’s parents on the small island of Temute, just south of the Isle of Dread mainland. Lavinia organised a second expedition to relieve the colony and provide more settlers, advertising the trip in Sasserine.

Map Key
1. Farshore Docks
2. Warehouses
3. Palisade
4. Watchtowers
5. South Gate
6. Farshore Cemetery
7. East Gate
8. Militia Barracks
9. Vanderboren Manor
10. Meravanchi Manor
11. The Clayworks
12. Sellis Woodworks and Smithy
13. Tehrik’s Tannery
14. The Last Coconut
15. Farshore Chapel
16. Hall of Records
17. The Infirmary
18. Greenhouse
19. Professor Aldwattle’s Laboratory
20. Farshore Farms (small holdings)

Isle of Dread

Over 1,300 years ago, a fleet of Olman princes from across the eastern sea came upon a bounteous land and claimed it as their own. They cleared vast stretches of jungle on the island to plant crops, and uilt a fortified city that dwarfed all other settlements in the region atop a massive central plateau. Known as Thanaclan, this city became the heard of one of the wealthiest kingdoms of the far-flung Olman empire. Yet after 300 years of rule, the city-state of Thanaclan fell prey to the first savage tide. The tide washed over the entire island, bringing ruin and madness and death, and what remained would become known as the Isle of Dread.

The isle itself is a large landmass surrounded by treacherous reefs and smaller islands. Most of the island’s coastline consists of rugged cliffs, but here and there isolated beaches allow safe landing. Most of the human population of the isle, descendants of the original rulers of Thanaclan, dwell on a southern peninsula, sheltered from the monsters and dinosaurs that rule the mainland by a great wall.

The Sea Wyvern

The Sea Wyvern was recovered by the adventurers after discovering it moored just off Kraken Cove. The ship was overrun with pirates turned savage by the magic of a strange black pearl they discovered shattered at the bottom of the bay. After killing these insane creatures the ship was claimed as a prize and used by Lavinia Vanderboren in her expedition to Farshore.

Sasserine and surroundings

Sasserine

History

Sasserine was founded in -124 CY by a group of pilgrims led by a priest of Wee Jas named Sasserine, who was inspired to found the town after receiving a vision. Not much is known about the early times of the city outside of Sasserine's death in a battle with a marauding black dragon named Zelkarune. However, after her death, the town gradually grew and expanded until it encompassed not merely the area inside the city walls, but a number of farming plantations lying on the outskirts. The success of the city made it a target for raids from pirates as well as attempts of subversion by the Scarlet Brotherhood, which the city would first encounter in 30 CY.

After a time, a family named Teraknian, descended from Sasserine's lover, began to rule predominantly over the city as lord mayors, taking advice from the clergy of Wee Jas and Kord. In 480, Orren Teraknian, the last of the lord mayors, began a reign of terror, and launched a persecution of the church of Wee Jas in the city. Orren was deposed soon after the city was conquered by the Sea Princes. The Princes kept the existence of Sasserine a secret from the rest of the Flanaess to prevent the city from being taken from them. The subjugation would last for a century, until the Sea Princes were forced to let go of Sasserine due to internal turmoil in their own lands as a result of the Greyhawk Wars. The city is still recovering from its century-long domination and isolation.

Geography and climate

The city lays on the coast of the Amedio Jungle, very close to its meeting with the Hellfurnaces mountain range, and about 200 miles north of Cauldron. Its nearest neighbor across Jeklea Bay is the Hold of the Sea Princes. Sasserine is built on a series of islands which make water travel through the town a vital link for intra-city trade, much like in the real-world city of Venice.

The climate is generally tropical, with high (but not unbearably so) temperatures and high humidity.

Population

As of 596 CY, The city of Sasserine totalled 15,650, with over three-quarters of the population being human. There is a small but sizable population of half-elves and halflings, with the rest of the population composed of minor amounts of dwarves, gnomes, elves, and other demi-humans.

Religion

Each of the different districts in the city holds a different patron deity, in particular: Wee Jas in the Noble District, Kord in the Champion's District, St. Cuthbert in the Cudgel District, Fharlanghn in the Merchant's District, Olidammara (under an alias) in Shadowshore, and a portmanteau religion composed of the worshippers of sea gods Procan, Xerbo, and Osprem in the Azure District. Religious toleration is prevalent throughout the city, although the churches of Wee Jas and Kord are in a state of cold war that has persisted since the persecution of the Jasadin by Orrin Teraknian.

Government

The city of Sasserine is a mix of oligarchy and representative democracy. Citizens are allowed to propose and vote on legislation. The decision to enact any passing legislation is left to the seven-member Dawn Council.

Legislative branch

The city of Sasserine is a mix of oligarchy and representative democracy, in which the people are allowed to originate proposals and vote on them, with passing resolutions sent to the Dawn Council, which then decides whether or not to enact them. The council itself is composed of noble representatives, one from each district in the city.

Judicial branch

Law and order are for the most part relaxed in the town (partly owing to a reaction against the somewhat harsh rule of the Sea Princes), and only the more egregious crimes such as murder and theft are actively pursued. Prostitution and the sale of exotic and potentially dangerous creatures goes on more or less legally within the city limits (although the exact lassitude varies from district to district), for instance.