Barkos Island
Lying in the Sea of Tyre off the coast of eastern Libynos, Barkos is a small island, yet has two small harbors, one on its north shore and one on its south. Each of the harbors is partially concealed from the sea by tall cliffs, and the approaches to each are rocky, making it likely that a captain unfamiliar with the island would ground his ship or rip its hull. These factors made the island difficult for the crusaders to use, although they did so anyway. On the other hand, they make Barkos an excellent base for pirates, and so it has been now for many years.
Pirate Captain Lucien “the Black” Delamain claims control over the south harbor and leadership over the pirate band that calls itself the Merry Marauders. They are more vicious than their name would indicate, and ships (and villages) go to great lengths to resist them because those taken alive invariably wish they had died instead.
The north harbor is controlled by Captain Romike Hildrsdottir and her Sea Rovers. They are an offshoot of the Marauders and formed when Captain Romike (as she prefers to be called) saw a diplomatic split as the best way to avoid bloody rebellion. The Sea Rovers plan their own operations and choose their own targets, but pay a portion of their take to Lucien the Black in order to be left alone. Ships from each group have the right to put into each other’s harbor in case of emergency. The Sea Rovers almost never take advantage of this, though, while the Marauders do so more often than would seem necessary. Captain Romike just accepts that Lucien the Black has his people checking up on her, and keeps preparations for the Rovers’ future plans well away from prying eyes in their harbor.
One drawback to the rocky entrances to each of the harbors is that just a few ships could bottle up those inside. To counter this risk, both harbors have placed siege engines in high places where they can strike ships at sea.
Over the years, the pirates have done some desultory cultivation of fruit trees and berry bushes (which were probably first started by the crusaders), so there is food on the island, and fish in the sea if they are inclined to catch them. Captain Romike encourages her group to smoke some fish and set it aside in case of future need, along with some of the dried or preserved foods from ships they take. This is one of the preparations the Sea Rovers don’t report to Lucien the Black, who sees no reason for any such precautions.
Region
Barkos Island
Owning Organization
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