Jarrstone Island

Jarrstonne Island, also known as Jarre, and formerly known as Greycliff, is an island situated on the Western coast of Sedia. Through this article, we will refer to the island as both "Jarre" and "Jarrstone Island".
Currently governed under Sedian title, Jarrstone Island has been the target of many land disputes throughout the ages. A source of minerals and treasures for the people of Sedia, and a traditional and sacred home of the Jarre-Rokkai, Jarrstone holds a great deal of importance. Created by the processes of the ancient, extinct volcano, The Tranquil Mountain, the island now rests in the ominous shadow of her living, violent sister, Mt Cruelty.
Subject to ever-fluctuating weather, volcanic activity, earthquakes and massive waves; the island is incredibly dangerous and only explored by the very experienced.

History

Traditional Owners

It is thought that the thick-furred Jarre-Rokkai, a specific and distinct subculture of Rokkai, have lived on Jarrstone since the First Age, and perhaps longer. Known simply as "Jarre" to the local inhabitants, the island holds a great wealth of Rokkai culture that has been lost to others on mainland Aresia. The Jarre-Rokkai are well adapted to the landscape of Jarrstone; their thick fur with its waterproof outer coat protects them from the harsh weather, their innate agility aids them in moving across the terrain and their specialist meat-and-fish-based diet allows them to thrive when large-scale farming is all but impossible. Rokkai from Jarre are often nicknamed "Fishbones", partially because of the heavy influence of seafood in their culture, but mostly because of the distinctive white striping and markings that most carry.

Sedian Possession

During Sedia's early, disputed days, Jarrstone Island was infrequently visited by curious travellers. Usually, these travellers were high elves or orcs coming to the rocky cliffs to fish or trade. Over time, as borders were drawn and the continent circumnavigated, early explorers included Jarrstone Island in maps and included it under Sedian territory. Then known only as "Greycliff", this Sedian ownership was undisputed for many centuries. Though a substantial amount of Sedian Rokkai argue to this day that Jarre is an important cultural site that has a traditional history dating back millennia, Sedia holds its grip on the island firmly. The Island itself is not particularly useful to Sedians for agriculture or even fishing, but there are substantial deposits of Flux on the island, as well as many volcanic minerals. The striking black volcanic rock is desirable for building and crafting, but is extremely expensive and gathered infrequently. Other volcanic gemstones such as obsidian, emerald, diamond, quartz and topaz are common in the area, and are often used in jewellery by the Jarre-Rokkai. In particular, a striking blue-green form of beryl known as Sea Emerald or Jarre-Emerald can only be found in the mountains of Jarrstone.

Sedian Historical Landmarks

 

The Stirling Iris

The Stirling Iris is a large, wrecked Sedian battleship that is nestled off the Western Coast of Jarre. Destroyed in battle during the beginning of the Last War, the wreck is now barely more than a battered frame. It has been used in subsequent years as a target for shooting and bombing practice by the Sedian Airforce, but this practice has since ceased following protests in Astrellos by conservation activists. Since the bombing of the wreck has stopped, it has become a small sea-life ecosystem in itself, and is used as a perch for Myrrow, as well as a sturdy attachment point for many corals and seasponges.

Jarrestrong Fort

Jarrestrong is an unmanned Sedian Fort on the Western Coast of Jarrstone Island. In a state of disrepair and very rarely visited, the fort is usually repossessed during times of war. In a very unique fashion, it is left open and has its contents removed during times of peace, and is often used as a shelter in particularly heavy storms by locals on the island, or as a location to hold large social affairs.  

Demographics

Because of the mobile living nature of the Jarre-Rokkai, and the large amount of trading travellers that reside on the island on a semi-permenant basis, the population is hard to accurately count. Jarre is estimated to house around 1000-1500 individuals at any one time, almost all of these individuals being Rokkai. Seasonally, the Island sometimes plays host to notable populations of sea elves or other travelling merchants that stay for a few months at a time. Other non-Rokkai individuals are usually speciality traders, Sedian miners, researchers or other forms of academics.

Most worship on Jarre is, understandably, directed toward Oceanic and Fire dieties, Trichor and Liesiel being the most important to the Jarre-Rokkai people. Trichor, known simply as Ka-Orrann locally, "Ka" meaning "God" or "Leader", and "Orrann" meaning "Ocean", is considered to make up the Ocean itself and is incredibly important culturally. There are no official churches or large buildings of worship on the island, but most people wear jewellery symbolic of Trichor daily, and practice prayer every morning and evening. Statues, shrines and ancient cliff-face carvings can be found throughout the island, and the most common imagery found on Jarre-Rokkai art features symbols and depictions of Trichor.
     Liesiel, a chaotic nature God associated with natural disasters, is worshipped out of fear and awe. The inactive top of the extinct Tranquil Mountain at the centre of Jarrestone is used as an important religious site to pay respect and give offerings to the Liesiel. A notable pilgrimage to the pit is a coming-of-age passage for children when they reach the age of 10. The children must brave the summit with their favourite childhood things to offer to Liesiel in thanks for protecting them through their childhood. The items they carried are thrown into the pit of the volcano as a sacrifice when they reach the top. This marks the beginning of their adulthood, and they may then choose a piece of red obsidian from the summit, which is made into a ring to show they have passed this milestone.

Roe

The one marked town in Jarrestone, Roe is a coastal township nestled beneath the cliffs of the Southern coast. Roe predominantly a fishing town, and is built around a central market square where people can congregate, buy and sell seafood, and go on their way. Very few people live permanently in Roe itself, and the township consists of hundreds of buildings and tunnels cut out of the cliffs themselves. Cut into the volcanic rock, the Rokkai of Jarre learned that this was the only way to make buildings that would withstand the regular storms and hurricanes that the island faces.
Inside the buildings, there are simple, elevated beds and furniture that can withstand light flooding. Most of the buildings are not lived in year-round, and act more as shared, trust-based shelter for those who are in the town to fish or trade. Rokkai tend to move around and camp across the island frequently, and rarely stay in one place for very long. 

Industries

The surface of Jarrstone Island makes it difficult to set up permanent infrastructure for many forms of industry, but some do remain. Mining and fishing are the two main industries on the island currently. Sedian mining operations are small-scale; one current stone quarry exists on the island's Western coast, digging the obsidian and other volcanic rock that is prevalent. 6 small gemstone mines operate at this time, digging predominantly for flux, emerald and diamond. There is a singular Rokkai-owned Jarre-Emerald mine in the town of Prreit
Sea-shell trading is another surprisingly active industry, and many Jarre-Rokkai make a solid living trading in shells and crafted goods made from shells. These are prized across the seas, and there are many collectors of the seashell jewellery in Sedia, Virias and Osmen.
While most food in Jarre tends to come from the sea, there some small-scale production of other foods. Osmeni junglefowl, an introduced, type of small chicken, are sometimes kept in mobile cages and bred for eggs and meat. Bananas, Sandfruit, Rabbitnut, and Gingerbark are all grown on the island in small plantations, but these populations are unstable and availablity often effected by recent weather, disease and storms.

Geology and Ecology

Jarre's landmass is incredibly rocky, with very little of its size usable for farming. Tall, jagged cliffs make the island incredibly difficult to traverse; carts, wagons or other vehicles are useless and walking or flying are the only reliable forms of transport across the rocks. There are no horses or other mounts reside on the island, due to the shortage of farmable land for feeding them. The majority of trees on the island are salt marsh species. These species are integral to the island's ecology, as they prevent erosion from the sea, and hold sand along the shores, forming windbanks to trap fertile soil further inland.
The island is home to many endangered and vulnerable species. Variegated bats, now very rare in inland Sedia, find solitude from the sounds of airship engines in the cliff caves of Jarre. The rocky shorline reefs on the outskirts of the island are home to important fish colonies and make up breeding grounds for species of marine mammals. Notably, the cliffs and shorelines play host to large colonies of Myrrow.

Weather and Storms

Jarrestone Island is nestled in the Cruel Bay; an area known widely for its unpredictable and often extremely disastrous weather patterns. Jarrstone Island is the only island in the Cruel Bay with a notable population, and those people have long learned to live with the catestrophic storms that frequently batter the area. While Sedia's Western coast often sees its share of strong storms, they are almost always broken and softened first by Jarrstone Island, the other Islands in the Cruel Bay, and the mountains on the Westcoast Mountain Range.
Jarre is hit with an average of 55 large storms in a year, and an average of 10 hurricanes. With the combination of almost impassable mountains, very little wood available for building, and the majoritory of food coming from the coast, Jarre is a very difficult and dangerous place to live. Stone-cut buildings in cliffside with raised floors and beds make for the safest kind of housing possible, and Rokkai children are taught a bounty of knowledge through their young years about survival and living alongside storms. Jarre-Rokkai care for the marshes and coastlines, a practice which is done to appease Trichor and the Ocean itself. The marshes are very important to help buffer the effects of large storms, nurture fish and prevent erosion. Boats are not simply tied to the docks on Jarrstone Island, and are instead kept in "cages", with rope nets containing the boats in the stone docks from large waves or storms. They have carved stone boat caves in the docks, where boats can be locked inside to prevent loss during times of oceanic havoc also.

Earthquakes and Volcanic Activity

Volcanic eruptions are another constant threat to those who live on Jarre. Mount Cruelty resides nearby, and usually erupts every few years, causing no end of problems to those living on the island. Lung health is a common problem that shortens the lifespans of those who live on the island; while the nomadic lifestyle of the local people works very well, and their stone-cut houses protect them against storms, they are not very efficient at protecting from poisoned, ashy volcanic air. While shawls that cover the face are a staple of Jarre-Rokkai wardrobes and protect them well enough during eruptions, it is often not enough to prevent long-tem lung damage across the span of an entire life, and lung disease and cancers are a common cause of death among the population.
With volcanic activity, comes earthquakes and associated tidal waves; another concern to living on the island. Earthquakes are very destructive to the stone-cut cliff buildings constructed by the Jarre-Rokkai, and the buildings need constant renovation across the decades to correct shifting, cracks and changes inside the structures. Though not particularly common, there are many written accounts of people becoming trapped during extremely powerful, ground-shifting earthquakes due to the collapse and shifting of the buildings. This is thought to be the will of Liesiel, and that they are chosen for a great and honourable death. Jarre-Rokkai consider death in this manner to be desirable, and believe it shows that the individual cared for and protected the island well.
Tidal waves are another common threat following eruptions and earthquakes, and the local people ritualistically make their way into the mountains following earthquakes or eruptions, often to make sacrifices and pay respects to Liesiel at the mountaintop, while also escaping the threat of large waves.
Despite the destruction that the volcanic activity in the area causes, it comes with many benefits. Jarrstone Island is home to many active volcanic springs that are considered sacred and treasured bathing areas for those who live on the island, and are a popular "tourist" attraction for explorers brave enough to visit the dangerous Islands. Comfort aside, the volcanic activity on the islands is the sole reason for the small patches of fertile soil that allows Jarre-Rokkai to grow the small amounts of fruits and vegetables, and medicines that help keep their diets and lives balanced and healthy, and also nurture the vibrant wildlife that calls the island home.

Type

Island