Táfos (tá.pʰos)

"Just wait and see - this will be a new start for us, and lead to something wonderful!" - Famous Last Words

While there are many haunted islands in the Great Ring, none carry more tragic history than Táfos. It has long been wrapped in a story of doomed settlements that ensnare people to settle upon the tiny island of black stone, only to be destroyed by one catastrophe or another. It is an example of how the Egregoric Force can ensnare the vulnerable into playing out a particular narrative - in this case one that repeats an endless cycle of death and destruction.

Táfos is located in the Rasrathnian Sea, just north of Trinacria. It has little to recommend it. There is little fresh water on the island, and correspondingly little vegetation. Despite this, and the proximity to the man-eating Cyclopes of Trinacria, there have been at least eight attempts to build settlements on the island. In each case, some catastrophe has wiped out the entire population. From the ruins and what records remain, it appears that previous settlements have been devoured by monsters, killed off by plague, destroyed in an island-wide fire, and in at least two instances vanished completely without explanation. Ruins of the previous settlements can be found all over Táfos, and in several of them can be found a great pit where the bodies have been collected, presumably by the final victims of each disaster. Some legends claim that these pits lead to a vast and dark underworld that connects all the lands of the dead, but there is no confirmation of this theory, for obvious reasons.

Táfos' reputation is well-known among the Kaphtor Islands, and the name means 'Tomb' in Kaphtorikós. Nevertheless, each new community that attempts to set up on the island arrives with high hopes and bright outlooks, convinced that their settlement will thrive and persist for ages. They usually have an idea that they are going to create some utopia, but the more lofty their ambitions, the more cataclysmic their downfall tends to be. At one point, the Order of the Lightkeepers attempted to place a lighthouse on Táfos, with the idea that they could warn people away from the island. The builders of the lighthouse were stranded by incredible storms, and succumbed to famine and eventually cannibalism, which was found only after the storms abated and the island was accessible again. The half-built lighthouse remains as the largest structure on the island, forever dark.

Notable Spirits

Táfos is known for its many ghosts. They are often dormant for years at a time, but will start to emerge when people visit the island, drawn to the warmth and energy of the living. When a settlement establishes itself on the island, the ghosts begin to emerge in large numbers, rising up from the many caves and pits. They grow stronger the longer living people remain the island, and may be the direct cause of at least some of the massacres in the island's history.

Geography

The island is primarily made of black rock, and there are many coastal rocks and grottos. Navigating the waters around Táfos safely requires great expertise, as it is very easy to run afoul of barely submerged rocks. Some claim that the rocks move when they want to, and will target boats that come near them.

Type

Island

Location under

Rasrathnian Sea

Geographic Details

Location: Southeastern Region
Latitude: 32.81 degrees North
Longitude: 31.5 degrees East
Average Elevation: 98 ft
Highest Point: 801 ft
Lowest Point: 0 ft
Area: 3.18 sq mi