Cluster of Fire

Geography

The Cluster of Fire is comprised of several volcanic islands and a large portion of a volcanic mainland, arranged in a rough circle around a large expanse of ocean. The center of this large expanse of ocean is impassable, as the water is boiling and the air poisonous. Any ships that have made it across have done so without a living crew. Underneath this expanse of ocean is the remains of a supervolcano, dormant but not extinct. Millennia ago the Cluster of Fire was one large landmass, comprised of the supervolcano and its many subsidiary mountains and hotspots. When it blew, the resulting ash cloud created a dark age for over half the planet. Survivors of the explosion fled across the waters, many to The Equatorial Desert, then a jungle, under the rule of Ixtepan, some further south on the mainland that remained from the original volcano, others to Velevieren. It's unknown where those on the west side of the mountain fled, or if any of them survived. Much later, after the volcano had calmed down and the islands became livable again, the descendants of the survivors of the explosion returned to their homeland and began to rebuild -- now on a series of islands instead of one large landmass. Currently, the Cluster of Fire's volcanic islands are all fed by the heat of the supervolcano, resting deep beneath the waves. Some of them have gone dormant, but others remain lively and awake, growing their islands with every eruption.

Ecosystem

The Cluster of Fire is a tropical ecosystem. The seasons are dry and rainy, and even during the rainy season it is very warm. Each island is covered in lush plant life with an amazing biodiversity among flora and fauna. The ocean waters hold an abundance of fish, and the skies are populated with several species of bird. However, this abundance goes in a cycle. Each Island has stories of when the gods would revoke their favour, bringing lean times to the island. This refers to the natural ebb and flow of the flora and fauna population -- whether this is brought on by overfishing and overhunting, or some natural phenomenon, is unknown. To deal with these ebbs, the residents of the islands have a system called Kapu: there are certain places on each island where hunting, fishing, or gathering of plants is forbidden. When the ebb happens, the kapu areas act as a preserve for animals that might otherwise be hunted to extinction.