Tandril Island
Tandril Island is a green, verdant island about 50 miles off of the Forest Coast in the Crescent Sea. Once a colony of Castorhage, it is now independent of that nation-state. The port city of Trinidar is on the northern coast of the island. The interior is rich with volcanic earth that lends itself to the growth of lush native crops. Plantations owned by Trinidarian nobles produce, among other things, sugar, rum, and rich coffee grown in the mountainous interior.
History and People
Tandril Island was colonized in 2284 I.R. by the City-State of Castorhage as a forward base for expansion and colonization into the Great Akadonian Forest.
The city of Trinidar, once known as the Jewel of the Crescent Sea, was founded at a natural harbor on the north coast of the island. Trade brought foreigners from other seafaring nations as well as indentured servants and slaves from the Castorhagi’s wars of expansion. Within 40 years, using Tandril Island as a base of operations, Castorhage began the settlement of the Forest Coast through the establishment of penal colonies and work camps. In the end, the colonization of the mainland proved disastrous for the rulers of Castorhage, who were summarily defeated by the wild elf defenders in the Forest Coast War (also called the Mortgage War) that ended in 2373 I.R.
Despite the eventual loss of the Forest Coast colonies, Tandril Island and the port of Trinidar remained critical to the power structure of the Castorhage throne. Repeated attempts were made by Trinidar nobles and governors to increase their share in the wealth created through the island. These entreaties were most typically ignored by Castorhagi monarchs, who as usual demanded absolute fealty on the part of their colonies. Over time, the island’s leaders found more and more ways to thwart Castorhage’s efforts to collect taxes and otherwise command obedience from their colony, becoming increasingly wealthy in the process.
By 2854 I.R., Trinidar was independent of Castorhage in all but name only. Efforts on the part of Castorhage to regain control were repeatedly thwarted by the Grand Duchy of Reme. When Castorhage lost the Short War with Reme in 3240 I.R., Trinidar took advantage of the situation and formally declared its independence. This resulted in the arrival of a new generation of Rhemian settlers who mixed with the local population and produced a folk who are as distinct and different as Rhemians are from the folk of Castorhage.
Trinidar and the Interior
The city of Trinidar makes up 70% of the island’s population. The port proper is the focus of the city, with the Governor’s Keep standing on a bluff that overlooks the harbor. The naval garrison occupies the north side of the harbor and a lighthouse stands on the south side that guides shipping to the civilian docks. The city’s architecture reflects the South Coastal style, being made from wooden timbers with grand shuttered windows and colorful stucco. In the time since it was founded, Trinidar has grown as a center for trade in the Western Crescent Sea, affording Rhemian naval ships and merchants a ready and welcoming port.
The rest of the inland is rich with volcanic earth that lends itself to the growth of lush native crops. A number of Trinidarian nobles own various plantations located inland along the slopes and shores. These plantations typically house several hundred workers and a personal complement of guardsmen and overseers numbering 20–30 heavily armed individuals.
Religion
Tandril shares some of the darkness of its original founding homeland, and many of the gods of Castorhage continue to be worshipped here, along with the (sometimes unsavory) festivals dedicated to those gods. As an island whose lifeblood is trade, however, it has a fairly liberal view on religions, and many gods of folk from afar also have temples in the city. The city of Trinidar, in fact, possesses the only known major public temple on Akados dedicated to the worship of Loa of the Aizanes-Tulita, an island group west of Libynos far to the east.
Trade
The Port of Trinidar holds a special place in the area of trade along the western Crescent Sea. The city is known as a place where ill-gotten gains can be exchanged with few questions. Smuggled items are quickly re-branded for a “fair” excise fee and immediately placed on merchant vessels that often return them to their port of origin. For this reason, the city is popular with pirates plying from as far off as the Razor Coast and the Utterends to those closer to home based in the foul city state of Braktu.
Rhemian nobles turn a blind eye to the less savory aspect of Trinidaran trade and religion so long as the sliding scale of profit and geographical power remains in their favor and puts Castorhage at a disadvantage.
The Port of Trinidar is also home to a chapterhouse of the Imperial Mercantile League, where its mercenary members plot out risky ventures on the high seas in search of plunder and wealth at any cost. The league’s offices are in an otherwise nondescript warehouse at one end of the docks and houses a private club for members as well. Denoted by their Sphinx of Boros tattoos, the league’s locals constitute a small but critical percentage of non-military sailors who claim Trinidar as their home port. Their power in the city comes less from their numbers than their wealth and knowledge.
The island’s rich plantations produce foodstuffs — including sugar, rum, and rich coffee grown in its mountainous interior — that are much sought after on the eastern mainland and provide cash crops and a steady stream of homegrown revenue for the denizens of Tandril.
Government
The Port of Trinidar is ruled by a high council that is presided over by the Lord Commodore of Port Trinidar and attended by the Tradesman’s Guild of Tandril. The high council seats 10 members, including seven nobles descended from the ancient families of Trinidar and three Rhemian transplants who are careful not to overexert their positions, though they do tend to vote in a unified block.
The Tradesman’s Guild is composed of shopkeepers, landlords, wholesalers, shipwrights, and tradesmen, including a representative of the Imperial Mercantile League who owns his position largely through intimidation of other members of the Tradesman’s Guild. Membership in the guild requires fairly hefty dues, meaning the poorest of local businesses often group their coin together to back a single member who works for all of their collective interests.
The lord commodore is appointed by the high council, though bribes from the Tradesman’s Guild and the league go a long way in influencing the vote. The requirement for appointment is that the candidate be of blood descendancy from the original noble founders of the island. Furthermore, the lord commodore must have been a captain in the Trinidaran Navy with no fewer than 10 years of experience on the high seas.
The current lord commodore is Levassier Elian, a middle-aged, square-jawed man with iron gray hair, the scarred hands of a swordsman, and the eyes of a hawk.
Military
The Trinidaran military trains at the Naval Academy of the Crescent Sea, which offers training in seamanship, close-quarters combat, and a school of magic emphasizing crowd control tactics. Most sailors, marines, and magic-users are required to perform six months to a year of training before being sent out on their first patrol.
Trinidar’s navy serves two purposes. It is first and foremost designed to intercept and destroy warships that would invade or otherwise threaten the port itself. Its secondary purpose is to serve as military escorts for wealthy merchants who pay a high premium for the protection provided by their heavily-armed warships.
Trinidaran marines wear studded leather and carry light crossbows and cutlasses. They are adept at close-quarters fighting and are trained in the use of the most modern ship- and land-borne siege equipment. These units are backed by wizards who pay off their training in service to Trinidar. There is usually at least one wizard per 20 standard marines.
Trinidaran soldiers work mostly in seeing to the defenses of the port from invaders and threats both monstrous and magical. Their shore patrol is renowned for its toughness and holds a long tradition of maintaining order among the various sailors who make port there, be they navies of visiting nations, pirates, or merchant marines looking to burn through their pay in the city’s many taverns, gaming parlors, and pleasure houses. Entrance to the shore patrol requires a minimum of a year at sea in the service of the Trinidaran fleet.
The Trinidaran shore patrol wear chainmail hauberks, and are armed with saps, longswords, and shields. They swap weapons depending on the threat they face. Shore patrolmen who keep watch on the walls trade their clubs for heavy crossbows.
Major Threats
Trinidar’s major threat comes from Castorhage. The royalty of the Blight would very much like to see Tandril back in its colonial empire, though they recognize that such an event would never be tolerated by Reme. As a result, their competition with Trinidar can be fierce and merciless, and many would, if they can’t have Tandril, prefer to see it left in ashes. Other threats include the wild elves of the Green Realm and the Green Warden Nations, who would strike the denizens of Tandril Island from the map before it could again be used as a point of invasion against their beloved forests.
Region
Tandril Island
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