Anchorage

Anchorage is an independent city on the Isle of Rogues. It is known as a refuge for pirates and criminals, and is a center of crime and black markets, as well as monster hunters and looters looking to hunt and look in the surrounding waters.

History

Anchorage was founded by a group of exiles from Zeyhan. His small fleet of a few ships was wrecked ashore the Isle of Rogues in a storm, and he and his surviving men were stranded. They eventually met with the native Kabou on the island, who begrudgingly gave the foreigners the land around the bay to build homes for themselves. Through luck and tenacity the refugees built a new life for themselves, and news of this new settlement began to spread. The cove that now forms Anchorage was well hidden, dotted with spots to dock vessels, and better yet covered with abandoned ruins for shelter. These qualities made it an ideal hiding place for ships, and the settlers resentment for mainland law made it an ideal port for pirates. As piracy ebbed and flowed in the Verta Ocean, Anchorage remained a safe place for those evading the iron fist of naval forces. Inevitably, as more crews began to use the cove, the settlement began to expand. Traders willing to deal in stolen wealth, and entrepreneurs ready to cater to these crews set up shop amidst the ruins of the cove. The hardy settlers began to construct more permanent buildings, using found materials to build on top of the ruin foundations. As the population of Anchorage began to grow, the Kabou natives were forced to act. They approached the people of Anchorage and held council with those most influential in the settlement. The Kabou agreed to allow the expansion of Anchorage, on the condition that the city would never expand beyond the bay's confines. The people agreed to the terms, and with this victory in hand, Anchorage began to flourish.
In past decade, a pirate captain named Goldwin Savage came to serve as the unofficial ruler of Anchorage crowning himself the Reaver King. He held this position of influence for years until an attempted assassination on his life by a bounty hunter named Margueritte Fortune. While Savage managed to survive the attempt, his ship, and his most faithful followers were destroyed, forcing him to disappear from public view. In the power vacuum following Goldwin's supposed death, a ruling body called the Corsair's Conclave formed. The Conclave was composed of the four most influential captains in Anchorage (including Margueritte Fortune), and they divided Anchorage into territories to enforce their rule.

Description

Anchorage is built in a bay of a tropical jungle island called the Isle of Rogues. The bay is enclosed by tall rocky cliffs which protect the harbor from weather and attack. The only way into the harbor is through an arch of natural rock. The city itself is built all around the bay atop the cliffs, and is largely a vertical city. It climbs its way steeply up from the docks and then wraps itself in a large circle around and above the bay below.

The architecture of Anchorage is that of rickety wooden buildings, often 3 or more stories tall, built with little to no city planning as streets wind left and right, up and down. Buildings are connected by walkways and rope bridges crossing over streets several stories up.

As is to be expected of a city full of pirates and criminals, this city is quick to prey on the naive and un-cautious. The streets are filled with thieves, pick pockets, and charlatans trying to run all manner of scams and schemes on the unprepared.

Fights and violence in the streets are commonplace here, as the different gangs vying for control often clash in bloody confrontations. Not to mention all of the personal matters which are more often settled with steel than with words.

Inhabitants

Anchorage is a home to the outcasts of the world. Criminals from the surrounding nations come here seeking refuge, pirates use it as a base and for selling stolen goods and plunder. Adventures come here seeking fortune and fame. Monster hunters and archaeologists come here to search the surrounding waters and islands for long lost relics and fearsome beasts.

Factions

While there is no formal government established in Anchorage, it is a city teeming with factions, each looking to further their own goals and agendas. Some of the active powers that shape life in Anchorage are presented below.

Soldiers of Fortune

After a bloody coup, Margueritte Fortune is the de facto ruling force in Anchorage. Though she holds no official title, her allies and crew members enact her will in the city, applying pressure as needed to achieve her goals. She currently fixates on finding and killing Goldwin Savage, who previously ruled Anchorage.

The Jagged Hooks

Goldwin Savage is the first and only captain to crown himself the Reaver King of Anchorage. At the height of his power, he was deposed by Margueritte Fortune, and he now collects allies from the shadows of Anchorage. His growing band of allies seeks to kill Margueritte and restore Savage to his place as Reaver King.

The Kabou

The city also has a large number of Kabou, the native people of the island, living within it. The Kabou are not very happy with the outsides having built a city on their land but they have learned to live alongside them. The culture of the Kabou influences much of Anchorage, and a healthy population of Kabou live in the city. While the Kabou tolerate the settlement, the majority of them consider it to be a stain on their island.

Economy and Trade

Anchorage is a city teeming with wealth and opportunity. Residents can make their fortunes scouring the seas, hunting those who flee justice or catering to those who do.

Bounty Hunting

Anchorage is a lawless city, outside the reach of the other factions of Nune. Consequently, it attracts plenty of criminals aiming to flee justice. The presence of so many wanted criminals has given rise to a burgeoning population of bounty hunters. Anchorage has several bounty boards, where new bounties are posted daily by pursers who pay out the hunters returning their targets dead or alive. With so many pirates, assassins, and criminals operating in and around Anchorage, bounty hunting is an incredibly lucrative profession.

Monster Hunters

Anchorage is famous for its monster-hunting trade, with its economy built around this burgeoning industry. The seas that surround Anchorage are teeming with sea-monsters of every size and description. These monsters make travel around the city quite dangerous, but crews of monster hunters have turned this peril into profit. These individuals, sometimes referred to as 'serpent hunters,' embark on missions to hunt these monsters, slay them, then bring their corpses back to Anchorage to sell to the highest bidder. Entire regions of Anchorage host facilities built to process these corpses into food, treasures, and other sellable resources. A comfortable living can be made by hunting these monsters, or by working amongst the docks that process them.

Salvage Divers

If the swarms of sea monsters don't deter voyages to Anchorage, then the brutal terrain certainly does. The seas around the Anchorage are dotted with rock formations and coral reefs that can destroy a ship before the crew realizes what they've hit. Many ships carrying valuable cargo have sunk to the ocean floor surrounding Anchorage Bay, and retrieving these lost goods has become a profession. Treasure hunters and salvagers strike rich daily as they mine the ship graveyards just off of the coast. Traversing the ocean is incredibly dangerous, so skilled salvage divers can sell their services for extraordinary fees. Those with the stomach for the profession, make their fortunes retrieving lost treasures for merchants, for pirates, and by leading their private expeditions.

Piracy

Piracy has been historically tied to the legacy of Anchorage, and it remains an active portion of the city's economy today. Because Anchorage operates outside of the law, it is one of the only places pirate crews can safely sell stolen goods for profit. Many of the businesses in the city cater specifically to these crews, who return after laborious stints at sea with pockets full of coin seeking revelry. Pirate crews can return to the bay without real fear of persecution since natural hazards surround the Isle of Rogues. The best navigators jealously guard knowledge of safe routes to the Isles, which forces larger navy vessels to abandon hopes of landing on its shores. The only real threats to pirates in Anchorage come from other stronger crews and the occasional bounty hunter.

Places of Interest

Type

City

Population

8000