Rack-Tack Reefs

The Rack-Tack Reefs lie inbetween The Fingers in the north, The Dread Seas in the west and breaklines in the south and east. The reefs are home to many small islands, none larger than a 100 mile across. The reefs are treacherous for ships, and only those with exceptional skill or familiarity with the region should attempt to navigate the region.

Home of Pirates

Its proximity to Cala Ynys and several breakline crossings to Marine Territory together with its many hidden islands, makes the reef an ideal location for all kinds of outlaws and criminals. Many pirate crews have one or multiple hideouts on the islands, and on some islands towns and cities can be found.

History

Not everyone was happy with the rapid expansion of Marine Territory by the New World Government. Many adventuring crews and merchants not following correct procedure were branded "Pirates". A lot of these crews fled north, as this breakline was one of the only ones were many crossings were known.

Lawless

With many outlaws arriving and settling down, the reefs became a lawless place. Some of the existing villages were plundered and the people in the villages put to work under one of the crews. As there was neither rule nor structure, pirates kept plundering from each other, and bloodshed was a daily occurence. The New World Government was not very concerned with the place, as it seemed as if soon enough all the outlaws would have killed each other.

Privateer Esmeralda

This was until Esmeralda the Pirate Queen  entered the fray. She used to be a priveteer, and her fleet of Emerald ships was hired by the government multiple times when acquiring new kolonies for the Territory. This was a very profitable business, until one day she had a falling out with the Marines over waging war on an island the Marines wanted to acquire. The official statement from the government tells a tale about her wanting to claim the island for herself, having become greedy after all the warfare. In the Rack-Tack Reefs however, people tend to believe another story, where she was expected to wage war on her homeland, and when she refused, branded as a pirate.
Full of hatred, Esmeralda fled to the North and fought her way into the reefs. One by one, she subjugated the other crews on the larger islands. Finally, she conquered the largest city in the Reefs, and renamed the island Mask, and its city Umbercity, for the evil goddess of the sea, Umberlee.

The League

Not much later she started the The League of Captains to maintain the peace and stop the raiders on her city. Together with other captains they decided that to make this place livable, there should be some rule and order. The most important of these rules was not too steal from the poor. Stealing in and on the reefs itself, where most original residents lived under some selfproclamed pirate king or queen, had not done well for the economy, and more raiding only worsened this situation.
The League also facilitated talks between different crews, and joined raids in Marine Territory could now be planned that much easier.

Nature

The reefs are not tropical perse, but some of the energy of the breaklines seems to cause the very diverse coral reefs growing between the islands.

The Rack-Tack Reefs

Open full size

Type

Coral Reef, Fringing

Related Reports (Primary)

• Session 66: The purge