The Golden Age of Piracy has begun
The New World has been up to something for quite a while. The adventurers, trailblazers and privateers have begun to seek better compensation for their hard work, and many have seen this bountiful world of opportunity ripe for their own taking. Each of the European world superpowers have made a claim here, and the map of the Caribbean and Spanish Main is dotted with outcroppings from each. With so much freedom and the wrathful arms of the crowns so outstretched, it is a wonder that peace has kept for so long.
Wars of the Four Crowns
France, Great Britain, Spain, Portugal; the world superpowers of the era are constantly entrenched in a constant ebb and flow of battle. Whether outward aggression through maritime conquest or shadow war through the employment of spies and brigands on their behalf, each of the big four have laid claim to parts of the new world, but has insatiable hunger for more. The four crowns seek absolute control over the new world, as far North as the British Colonies, and as far South as the tip of South America. This world is their sandbox, and they intend to build empires on these fertile sands. Corruption is abound in these titans of the world, and all bets are off in the name of the king.
These settlements dotted throughout islands in the Caribbean serve as extensions of the Four Crowns' influence, and their cities are microcosms of their own world, complete with citizens from each superpower. They serve as beacons of order and justice in a world unbound by the unknown and uncivilized. Many a brave adventurer and navyman serve on behalf of the Four Crowns, creating settlements, fighting back foes, and bringing glory to their respective houses.
The rise of the first corporations
Aside the four crowns come budding gods of industry and development. With much of the new world requiring an abundance of resources in both directions from the motherland to the young colonies, several major players have appeared in the industry of worldbuilding. The first licensed corporation in the world, the
East Indian Trading Company, has obtained major contracts from Great Britain to control industrial development in the new world. Free to collaborate with each of the four crowns in matters of trade and resource distribution, the EITC operates independently of political squabbles and trade embargos to serve none other than the bottom dollar. Fueled purely by rapid expansion and predatory hunger, the company hires the most dangerous and effective of criminals and the most esteemed masterminds of the era to serve its best interests- even if that means violating the laws of the four crowns at times. Unlike the four crowns, the EITC rarely engages in open combat, preferring to use subterfuge, bribery, blackmail, and aggressive business tactics to resolve their opponents. If it comes to violence, the EITC has many navy members of the four crowns in their pockets to fight wars on their behalf.
With this consolidation of power, the EITC has emerged as a major independent player amongst the world superpowers. With much more infrastructure and resources than any of the four crowns in the Caribbean, it is only a matter of time before they gain the boldness to venture out on their own without the direct sponsorship and oversight of the British Crown. It is quite unclear what the EITC stands for, other than good business, but rest assured their aspirations as of late suggest their desire for nothing less than a penultimate world order- which they intend to buy for pennies on the dollar.
Pirates abound!
It is the beginning of what many of the era are calling the Golden Age of Piracy, and no one is more responsible for its rearing than the Pirates of the Caribbean. Resentful of years of abuse from the four crowns, some of the privateers and sailors of the Caribbean have cut off the four crowns from their precious mercenaries and ships-for-hire. Led by the famous British privateer,
Captain William "Bill" Mason,
The Brethren Court was founded one generation ago with Mason as king. Fueled by a desire to control the seas for themselves, it is said that Captain Bill Mason and his companions subdued the sea goddess Calypso to secure a free and open sea for the swashbucklers. Pirates of all types are exploring across the Seven Seas, and still not all have been incorporated into the young order of the Brethren Court, but their battle prowess and political authority is demanded by even the Four Crowns.
In a secret bay somewhere in the Caribbean lies a pirate haven city called
Shipwreck Cove. Few have been, but many say it will overcome
Tortuga as the leading free pirate city in due time. Many believe it to be pure legend. Still, the Brethren court and all her pirates have evolved as a major player in the struggle for power in the new world, advocating for freedom from oppression from the four crowns. As such, they have been labeled as lawless criminals and been prosecuted for crimes of association.
This has culminated in a major clash- where the British Royal Navy betrayed Captain Mason by revoking his privateer's license and hanging him by the neck for all to see in Port Royal. The Brethren court has been little seen or heard from since, at least in major force.
The Mysteries of the Sea
With the new world comes new discoveries, innovation, and uncovered secrets from generations past. Ancient cities, lost treasures, and artifacts from the first adventurers of the New World are all shrouded in legend. These legends are pursued not only by adventure-fueled pirates, but as means of control and income for the Four Crowns and the corporations of the New World. It is a massive race, and all parties will go to the greatest of lengths to ensure their success.
With the apparent quelling of the sea goddess Calypso (if it is to be believed) many of the more arcane-inclined of the Caribbean see dark clouds on the horizon. Since the first brethren court, mysterious creatures have washed ashore at every major port of call. Sailor superstition has run abound in this fog-covered world as adventurers from all factions seek to fill out the corners of the map. Those wiser to the ancient and deep powers of the oceans fear the consequences of such a power vacuum the brethren court created, while large shadows move about in the dark depths of the Caribbean and Spanish Main.
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