The Howling Waters

Summary

Shrouded in superstition, the Howling Waters earned its moniker from the fearful stories spread by pirates. Tales of horrid betrayals, raving undead, and other malevolent forces supposedly haunt the area, dragging crew from the decks until the empty husks of ships ram into rocks. All of this, mindfully, without much weight in reality. High winds often blow across the Howling Waters, creating screaming sounds when they cut across the cliffs and sharp rocks in the area. In the dead of night, such sounds are truly harrowing indeed.
With no real indigenous population to speak of, the Howling Waters has been the home of exiles, pirates, and other lawless sorts for as long as anyone remembers. True to at least one of its rumors, some undead do linger around the area. With few sanctified burials and fewer still holding love or friendship in their hearts, they often emerge. Whether on the jagged islands or from the drowned, it isn't simple surviving this far out from civilization.
With its back toward Olaniad and the Shimmering Ocean, the Howling Waters are often the last port anyone has. By necessity as much as anything else, explorers and the like make a stop here before venturing into the unknown.

Geography

Jagged rocks, desolate islands, and unreasonable weather define the Howling Waters the best. Nearly inhospitable, only the truly desperate eek out a living this far from anything civilized in the world. As such, it is an intensely lawless place, ruled by pirates and other malevolent powers who dwell there. Even the waters within the cluster of islands are 'dead'; fish, shermadi, and other life struggle to survive. As so described by the water-dwellers, it is impossible to breathe in its depths, and so it tends to be a forbidden zone.

Fauna & Flora

With little flora or fauna to be found, what is there is either hardy and inedible, or deadly and inedible. Being virtually on the doorstep of Olaniad, a variety of sea monsters lurk around the Howling Waters. Few go into its actual depths, as the waters virtually choke everything to death. Air-breathing sea life can suffice, though, coming up for gulps as they need.

Natural Resources

No one has ever actually prospected the area. With no history of indigenous development, there may be great mineral wealth waiting in its rocky grounds. Some pirates, either with themselves or by forcing slaves, have tried mining in some areas. While some riches did emerge, the tall-tales around bountiful deposits is more rumor than reality.

Type

Sea