TEXT: ™
  
  1
  BY ALAN ALEXANDER, ERIC BRENNAN, GENEVIEVE COGMAN,
  CONRAD HUBBARD AND PETER SCHAEFER
  TM
  
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  CREDITS
  Authors: Alan Alexander, Eric Brennan, Genevieve 
  Cogman, Conrad Hubbard and Peter Schaefer
  Comic Scripter: Carl Bowen
  Developers: John Chambers and Stephen Lea Sheppard 
  with John “Bax” Masterson
  Editor: Scribendi.com
  Art Direction and Book Design: Brian Glass
  Artists: Ross Campbell, DPI Studios (with Embrio and 
  Jaysin), Andrew Hepworth, Imaginary Friends Studio 
  (with Junkman, KingMong and Scabrouspencil), Saana 
  “Kiyo” Lappalainen, Pasi Pitkanen, UDON (with Todd 
  Gak, Scott Hepburn, Jorge Molina, Joe Ng, Chris Stevens 
  and Jim Zubkavich) and Melissa Uran 
  Cover Art: Imaginary Friends (with Sami Basri and 
  Sunny Gho)
  COMING NEXT:
  THE MANUAL OF EXALTED POWER —
  THE SIDEREALS
  $31.99  
   
   
  224 PAGES
  Gifted with power by the Five Maidens, the Sidereal 
  Exalted were once the trusted advisors to the Old Realm’s 
  Solar masters. However, believing the Curse-maddened 
  Lawgivers’ irredeemable and unshakably convinced in 
  their moral duty, the Chosen of the Maidens persuaded the 
  Dragon-Blooded to rise up and slaughter their masters in 
  order to end the Solars’ depredations. Since that time, the 
  Sidereals have inﬂ uenced events behind the scenes in order 
  to safeguard Creation from its myriad of enemies. But with 
  the return of the Solars, the advent of the deathknights, the 
  Dragon-Blooded Realm nearing civil war, the tribes of the 
  Lunars threatening war and the Fair Folk massing for another 
  assault on the shaped world, will the Fivefold Fellowship win 
  the day or will its many sacriﬁ ces have been for naught?
  COMING NEXT IN THIS SERIES:
  THE COMPASS OF TERRESTRIAL DIRECTIONS, 
  VOL. III — THE EAST
  $24.99  
   
   
  160 PAGES
  Beyond the Scavenger Lands lies much more than 
  a rough frontier of rural backwaters and petty kingdoms. 
  The Far East is full of nations that rival its supposedly more 
  “civilized” neighbors in terms of size and sophistication, 
  from the warring states of Linowan and Halta, to the 
  ﬂ oating land of Metagalapa and even grim Sijan, ancient 
  city of the honored dead. Still, the region’s reputation as a 
  land of untamed wilds and rough barbarians is not without 
  merit, as the broad Eastern forests are home to a myriad 
  of human, once human and completely inhuman tribes. 
  The wealth of the East lies within these forests, waiting 
  for those brave enough to take it.
  © 2007 CCP NA, h.f.. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly 
  forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews, and for blank character sheets, which may be reproduced for personal use 
  only. White Wolf and Exalted are registered trademarks of CCP NA, h.f.. All rights reserved. Compass of Terrestrial Direc-
  tions, the West, the Age of Sorrows and the Second Age of Man are trademarks of CCP NA, h.f.. All rights reserved. All 
  characters, names, places and text herein are copyrighted by CCP NA, h.f..
  The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or 
  copyright concerned.
  This book uses the supernatural for settings, characters and themes. All mystical and supernatural elements are ﬁ ction 
  and intended for entertainment purposes only. This book contains mature content. Reader discretion is advised.
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  TABLE OF CONTENTS
  INTRODUCTION 
  4
  CHAPTER ONE: A HISTORY WRITTEN ON WATER 
  8
  CHAPTER TWO: JEWELS IN THE FOAM 
  17
  CHAPTER THREE: AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE 
  42
  CHAPTER FOUR: MIST-WEBBED ISLES 
  65
  CHAPTER FIVE: DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN 
  85
  CHAPTER SIX: LOST IN THE DEPTHS 
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  CHAPTER SEVEN: GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST 
  128
  TM
  
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  INTRODUCTION
  A ship is a bit of terra ﬁ rma cut off from the main; it 
  is a state in itself, and the captain is its king.
  —Herman Melville
   
  INTRODUCTION
  INTRODUCTION
  The ocean is deep. Island-continents rise and fall 
  again. The West is the least populated Direction of 
  Creation, and yet the seas are far from empty. The Wyld 
  is always close in the West, and its human inhabitants 
  stretch out lines of trade and commerce between the 
  islands and archipelagos, to defend against the en-
  croaching chaos beyond the world and those who’ve 
  been touched by it.
  HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
  The Compass of Terrestrial Directions, Vol. 
  II—The West is a setting book, designed to provide 
  players and Storytellers all they need to set games in 
  Creation’s oceanic frontier. From the Coral Archipela-
  go’s gambling halls through the necropoli of Skullstone, 
  south through the Neck’s tribes and the Wavecrest 
  Archipelago’s volcano gods, further south through 
  the territories of the Lintha pirates and ﬁ nally down, 
  into the depths, to sunken Luthe, this book details the 
  Direction of Creation least explored by mortals and 
  least understood.
  Chapter One: A History Written on Water
  This chapter covers the history of the West, from 
  the time of Creation’s forgotten beginning through 
  all the cataclysms of the past and into the world’s 
  troubled present.
  OUR HUMBLEST APOLOGIES
  In other publications, we promised this 
  book would contain rules for naval combat. 
  Unfortunately, there wasn’t room. This is a book 
  for setting, and when it came time to decide 
  what to keep and what to cut, setting had to 
  win out. Look for full naval combat rules in the 
  
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  Chapter Two: Jewels in the Foam
  The Wavecrest Archipelago, the Neck and the 
  culture of the Tya, female sailors who forswear their 
  gender to pursue life on the high seas, represent three of 
  the West’s most peaceful and idyllic of societies, but in 
  the Age of Sorrows, peace is relative. Even these jewels 
  of the Western Ocean are shadowed by the horizon’s 
  dark tidings, and Wavecrest’s volcano gods are ever 
  hungry for sacriﬁ ces.
  Chapter Three: An Ocean of Silver and Jade 
  The Coral Archipelago tolerates no weakness. This 
  nation’s relentless pursuit of excellence and the domi-
  nance of all who surround it—culturally, militarily and 
  ﬁ nancially—leave the rest of the Western nations wary. 
  Sea Lord Nemoran wishes to bring an entire Direction 
  under his heel, and with the Realm faltering, there 
  may be none to stop him. By comparison, the Denzik 
  Merchants pursue trade and fortune with no ill will, 
  spreading the wares of their clients across a great circuit 
  ’round all the waterways of the world. Come, see the 
  Denzik city-ship. No greater concentration of curiosities 
  and treasures exist anywhere else in Creation.
  Chapter Four: Mist-Webbed Isles
  The Silver Prince, the Skullstone Archipelago’s 
  master, claims he’s founded a utopia where the living 
  and the dead exist side by side. Skullfolk fear not 
  death, and labor not in life, for the souls of the dead 
  stay to advise their living relatives while the bodies 
  of the dead perform all the manual labor. But the 
  Deathlord also known as the Bodhisattva Anointed 
  by Dark Waters lies.
  Chapter Five: Demon Pirates of the Western Ocean
  This chapter reveals the origin and activities of the 
  Lintha Family, the most notorious and feared criminal 
  syndicate in Creation. The Lintha claim descent from 
  the Yozi Kimbery, the Sea That Marched Against 
  the Flame. Through her patronage, they spread their 
  demon-cult across all Creation’s waters, and with her 
  Chosen, they’ll revenge themselves against a world that 
  wronged them at the dawn of history.
  Chapter Six: Lost in the Depths
  This chapter sheds light on three of the West’s 
  hidden societies. In sunken Luthe, Leviathan’s scions 
  live out their lives in worship of their Great Whale 
  God, and even today carry out a terrible revenge 
  against an ancient tragedy. In the City of the Shin-
  ing Reefs, the heart of the pelagial empire beats 
  more slowly every year. Though one of Creation’s 
  oldest remaining civilizations, it lies on the verge 
  of extinction.
  Chapter Seven: Gods and Monsters of the West
  The spirits, heroes and creatures native to Creation’s 
  great ocean are allies of great strength and enemies of 
  inescapable tenacity.
  
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  INTRODUCTION
  
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  CHAPTER ONE • A HISTORY WRITTEN ON WATER
  CHAPTER ONE
  CHAPTER ONE
  A HISTORY WRITTEN 
  A HISTORY WRITTEN 
  ON WATER
  ON WATER
  Historians in the West have a few choice sayings 
  about their profession, most of which can be summed 
  up as, “The past is written on water.” It’s not the literal 
  truth, but the meanings are clear and on the mark. 
  Everything of importance in the West occurs on the 
  ocean. The people of the West rise above any trouble, 
  like ﬂ otsam after a wreck. Most importantly, the waves 
  wash away what has come before, ensuring that even 
  the greatest tragedies are eventually forgotten. Memory 
  is short in the West; even records carved in stone and 
  metal erode and rust away.
  The beginning is, as most beginnings are, clouded 
  in mystery and superstition. Myths abound. From 
  nothing, a sea of lonely ﬁ re coupled violently with a 
  being of cold emptiness, and from their union sprang 
  the Western Ocean, which birthed the Blessed Isle. A 
  maiden, abandoned and alone, wept, and her tears ﬁ lled 
  the nothingness to create both the ocean and life. The 
  ﬁ rst hero, Au Umba, slew the ﬁ rst god, whose body and 
  blood became the Western Ocean and its islands. The 
  Saigoth Gates appeared and deﬁ ned their dancers.
  These are just the most popular myths. There are 
  many more, disparate and fanciful, sold for a song and 
  held near the heart. Most of them are laughable, and 
  nearly all of them suggest that the Western Ocean pre-
  ceded or birthed the rest of Creation. The best efforts 
  of the Immaculate Order over more than a millennium 
  could not eliminate these heretical ideas.
  PREHISTORY OF THE WAVES
  When the sun ﬁ rst dawned on Creation, the rays 
  cast by the sun’s light created the very ﬁ rst jeweled 
  brilliance by reﬂ ecting off the waves of the Great 
  Western Ocean. Ancient demons occasionally refer to 
  
  10
  this as the “incidental invention of beauty,” a remark 
  of subtle sarcasm. There are other things demons 
  consider beautiful.
  On the Origin of the West was a seminal First Age 
  work on the time between nothing and something, now 
  available only in the libraries of Mahalanka, Yu-Shan 
  and the City of the Shining Reefs. The book’s author 
  suggests that the Primordials designed the West with 
  consistency in mind, if not beauty, and shaped the 
  contents appropriately. Coral grows naturally elegant, 
  seaweed dances in the current, ﬁ sh are as decorous as 
  rainbows, and even the islands serve to accent the 
  morning jewels instead of disrupting them.
  Theorists who hold that the Primordials were 
  embodiments of Creation’s aspects rather than direct 
  and intentional creators argue semantics, but usually 
  agree that the forms the progenitors took interacted 
  elegantly by choice and nature. These theorists grudg-
  ingly agree, in the way of academics, that this could 
  mean that the West has a propensity toward beauty.
  Before the Primordial War, creatures of those 
  immense entities skimmed and scudded the Western 
  Ocean frequently. Primordials seeking distractions 
  from their peers or the Games of Divinity spent time 
  near aspects of Creation similar in nature to them. The 
  Ebon Dragon swam in the ocean’s shadow, the farthest 
  depths where no light shines. Kimbery, the Sea That 
  Marched Against the Flame, sometimes basked upon 
  the surface. Both spawned races of creatures related and 
  beholden to them, and both eventually surrendered to 
  the gods and the Exalted.
  WAR ON THE SEAS
  The West was always ready for war. As tranquil 
  as the ocean occasionally seems, it is a violent place. 
  Revolt against the Primordials only made the ocean 
  more so, and highlighted the water’s inherent ruthless-
  ness. Storms raged across the entire Western Ocean as 
  uncountable ﬂ eets sailed to crush each other. The only 
  calms seen during the War were over the navies of the 
  Exalted, at the gods’ and elementals’ commands.
  Fleets of amber resin clashed with ﬂ eets of gold and 
  silver. A warship made of a starless night crushed ships 
  ripped whole from green jade . . . and was shattered by 
  black-jade submersibles, invisible beneath the dark 
  waves. Oliphem the Watcher, who only desired the 
  safety of all on the water, was befriended, betrayed and 
  broken. Dragons and worms swam above the ocean’s 
  surface only to be captured by phase-collapsing squid 
  and dragged to watery deaths. Entire peoples and spe-
  cies died. Chosen of the Primordials who had ruled the 
  oceans and islands without competition fell before the 
  Chosen of the gods.
  No one saw shimmering jewels on the water until 
  the last Primordial surrendered.
  THE FIRST REALM
  Exalted, given Heaven’s mandate over Creation, 
  did not hesitate to rebuild their ﬂ eets. Humans can 
  walk over land and mountains, they reasoned, but not 
  on water. It was the Old Realm’s ﬁ rst real frontier, and 
  even while conquering lands in the other directions, 
  the Solars commissioned thousands of ships. Creation’s 
  island and costal cultures have a hundred variations on 
  the proverb, “Make an ally of the sea or feel its knife in 
  your back,” and the conquerors took it to heart. The 
  ﬁ rst new craft launched were trim and quick warships, 
  able to pound an enemy’s shore or deposit hundreds of 
  armed and armored troops to any coast. Aid that paciﬁ ed 
  the reluctant costal nations was the ocean’s bridal gift 
  to the Old Realm, and the newly formed Deliberative 
  soon wedded the West to the empire.
  Strategists suggested annexing the West last. 
  Western nations were in greater disarray than their 
  land-bound counterparts, and the task of rebuilding 
  government and infrastructure would have sorely dis-
  tracted from uniting the rest of Creation. The West had 
  been ready for war, but not for catastrophe. Something
  happened to the subcontinent of Okeanos, and it tore 
  the land mass apart.
  Historians have theories: It was part of the last at-
  tack on a Primordial fetich soul. Loyalists to the world’s 
  creators set off some terrible weapon. The last Primordial 
  slain in the War, a name now lost, fell through the sky 
  and pierced Creation there. Whatever the cause, the 
  Western Continent shattered less than a year after the 
  last Primordial’s surrender.
  Evidence partially supports the theory that one of 
  the Neverborn, as they would later be called, fell into 
  the Underworld there. Only a vast, partial caldera 
  remained where the continent’s central volcano had 
  once towered over the Western islands. The caldera 
  was shrouded in perpetual shadow not by the walls of 
  the crater, but by a mysterious connection between 
  Creation and the Underworld. This was the ﬁ rst truly 
  new phenomenon since the advent of Creation, and 
  stymied even the greatest researchers of the period. 
  The Solar Deliberative quarantined Darkmist Isle, 
  where the shadowland sat. They were unable to heal 
  the world’s wound, even after later research resulted in 
  sorceries and geomantic techniques that could banish 
  shadowlands from Creation. 
  
  11
  CHAPTER ONE • A HISTORY WRITTEN ON WATER
  Eventually, despite the enormous distances involved 
  and the reconstructive efforts necessary, the Delibera-
  tive moved to absorb the West. All Creation was theirs 
  by mandate, and they claimed it. Troopships reﬁ tted 
  after the war carried colonists thousands of miles to 
  the nearest archipelagoes. Fleets of the Old Realm’s 
  newest warships accompanied the colonists, there to 
  protect them from hostile natives and to “encourage” 
  those natives toward peaceful integration.
  Colonists came from two sources. The ﬁ rst were 
  volunteers hoping to make better lives far from their 
  current homes; some simply hoping to escape the 
  terrors they or their parents had experienced during 
  the War. The others were criminals, condemned to 
  death should they not work hard to be productive 
  and respectable in their new lives. Sidereal advisors 
  helped the Solar Exalted decide 
  which of the condemned 
  would do well with such 
  a mutable sentence.
  There were many islands then, and most succumbed 
  to the onslaught of colonists. Maintaining an identity 
  separate from the Deliberative was difﬁ cult when all 
  neighboring lands paid tribute and received the empire’s 
  protections. Some others had to be forced into submis-
  sion and policed for two generations before they were 
  truly part of the Old Realm.
  Of these, Heartwind Isle and the Indigo Chain were 
  notable cases. The inhabitants of Heartwind Isle possessed 
  advanced biological genesis techniques. Many unremark-
  able plants and animals hid dangerous toxins, alarms and 
  traps that hindered the invasion. The changes that the 
  isle’s inhabitants had made to their own physiology were 
  remarkable and made them deadly saboteurs and often 
  allowed them to commit suicide rather than reveal their 
  knowledge. In the end, the Deliberative put every last 
  one of the island’s inhabitants to death.
  Bioengineers transferred samples of every organ-
  ism they could find to public laboratories on the 
  Blessed Isle, and researchers would be making new 
  discoveries from that store of knowledge up to and 
  
  12
  past the Usurpation. The military then sterilized 
  Heartwind Isle, though all estimates suggested that 
  at least 0.2% of the millions of adjusted organisms 
  on the island must have survived. Theorists in the 
  last years of the First Age proposed returning to the 
  island for excavations, believing that some of the 
  organisms left behind would be nearly immortal and 
  provide the keys to certain questions left unanswered 
  for millennia. Today, sailors who travel too far West 
  report an island inhabited by thousands of strange 
  creatures; stranger, without any visible mode of lo-
  comotion, the island approaches and follows those 
  who see it.
  The Indigo Chain of islands provided a different 
  challenge. The archipelago was so known for the famous 
  purple dye the inhabitants produced from a local strain 
  of sea urchin, using a special thaumaturgic ritual. The 
  people were immensely proud of their own culture, and 
  the thought of bending knee to invaders left them in a 
  cold fury. The Deliberative’s envoys assured the Indigo 
  Chain that local culture would not be forced to change, 
  but the loss of individuality that other conquests and 
  tributaries had suffered made the people suspicious. As 
  long as they lived among their own kind, and on the 
  islands they had mastered all by themselves, they would 
  never agree to be vassal to the Old Realm.
  The solution was to ship every individual native to 
  the Indigo Chain elsewhere in Creation. Most landed 
  on other islands, but tens of thousands ended up on 
  the Blessed Isle or in other coastal settlements. New 
  colonists moved in to take up where the natives had left 
  off, often settling directly into the natives’ old homes 
  and running their businesses. Over time, the people of 
  the Indigo Chain became productive members of the 
  societies in which they were placed. Their last deﬁ ance, 
  which none of them ever broke, was to never reveal 
  the ritual that created the dye for which they were 
  renowned. It was never rediscovered.
  Today, the Indigo Chain is more than a thousand 
  miles west of Skullstone Archipelago and considered 
  by most too dangerous and Wyld-tainted to approach. 
  Secretly, some Guild slavers use the Indigo Chain as 
  place to meet and deal with Western Fair Folk.
  THE GOLDEN AGE OF SAILING
  With the Old Realm’s future secure, the savants 
  turned their attention to more entertaining matters. 
  They reﬁ ned their warships, giving them the functions 
  they would retain even during the height of the First 
  Age. Form and appearance varied according to popu-
  lar trends. Exalted engineers created luxurious ocean 
  paradises that barely resembled classic sailing ships 
  but somehow refused to sink. Personal yachts became 
  popular, then common, among the wealthy.
  Watercraft became the efﬁ cient and leisurely 
  alternative to travel by skyship. Ships could carry so 
  much with so little fear that the size of merchant ﬂ eets 
  shrank by a factor of 100 over the ﬁ rst century of the 
  First Age. VIPs and people of moderate wealth traveled 
  by skyship; wealthy sightseers, poor emigrants and most 
  proﬁ table cargos (especially food) went over the ocean. 
  Even so, travel from the largest archipelagoes to the 
  Blessed Isle (and other breadbaskets, such as the Lap) 
  took a week or two at most.
  No longer separated from the main body of the 
  Old Realm, the West saw a boom in population and 
  economy. The powerful claimed smaller islands as 
  private homes and estates; experimental sorcerers 
  and engineers especially coveted isolated cays for 
  their work. Islands that had once operated at the sub-
  sistence level became popular vacation destinations 
  for the moderately wealthy, shifting focus to cater to 
  tourists. Cities with enormous dedicated recreational 
  facilities rose.
  To reduce the West’s growing dependence on im-
  ported food, Lawgivers began the program of enriching 
  certain islands. History still remembered then the vast 
  tracts of arable land lost in the eruption at the end of 
  the Primordial War. Importing food made the Western 
  islands seem and feel poor, and it hindered economic 
  redevelopment. Soon, the fast ships of the day were 
  delivering food over hundreds of miles instead of 
  thousands. This civil project gave rise to the Western 
  agricultural powerhouse known today as Wavecrest. The 
  food project also made more abundant certain drugs 
  and poisons unique to the Western archipelagoes, an 
  intended side effect.
  It was an idyllic time, the early First Age of the 
  West. Fleets of golden ships sailed to and past the 
  horizons. The enormous Wyldbreaker-class ship real-
  ized ﬂ uid chaos into solidity and then shattered it into 
  reality, making Western travel safer and broadening the 
  horizons. Trade ships followed occult patterns to ward 
  off the Wyld, and Creation-engine buoys strong-armed 
  the ocean into order. The Western ﬂ oating war platform 
  was repurposed as a glorious capital, and christened 
  Luthe. At the time, Luthe’s Exalted creators called it 
  the crowning oceanic achievement of their Age.
  Finally, the Exalted of the Deliberative turned their 
  full attention to the Western Wyld, and forged from it 
  a second great continent that dwarfed even historical 
  Okeanos. Creation’s borders expanded outward, and 
  
  13
  CHAPTER ONE • A HISTORY WRITTEN ON WATER
  the Western archipelagos that had existed up until then 
  receded from prominence. No longer on Creation’s 
  edge, they were safe from the Wyld—paciﬁ ed stepping 
  stones to a vast new fertile frontier. The true height of 
  the High First Age began.
  But nothing lasts forever.
  USURPATION
  The Dragon-Blooded conspiracy to overthrow their 
  Solar masters devastated Western society, economy 
  and geography.
  Island laboratories of the Celestial Exalted, popu-
  lar for secrecy and security, were prime targets for the 
  usurpers to secure, and then potentially investigate. 
  Many were primed to repel all intruders. A number of 
  these private workshops’ defensive mechanisms were 
  deadly enough to harm innocent populations despite 
  their isolation.
  Anti-dispersion-braided Essence-beams missed at-
  tacking ships, instead striking islands hundreds of miles 
  away as collateral damage. Damaged or misprogrammed 
  defense drones sought out “intruders” on far isles and 
  shot them down. Systems designed to siphon Essence 
  from distant demesnes found their power sources run-
  ning dry and defaulted to draining the life from entire 
  regions. Some were even intentional: at least one para-
  noid Solar Exalt mined islands containing important 
  military installations near her home. Her automated 
  defense network sent half a dozen islands to the bottom 
  of the sea, with few survivors.
  Also difﬁ cult to pacify were those naval bases still 
  loyal to the Solar Deliberative. Most important were 
  those built atop demesnes whose manses were remotely 
  tied into the Sword of Creation. These distant war 
  manses were very important during the expansion phase 
  of the ﬁ rst Realm, but had to be secured. Conspirators 
  inﬁ ltrated fewer than half the installations before the 
  Calibration Feast of Three Hundred Knives.
  The resulting war for control destroyed much. 
  The second Great Western Continent itself was 
  shattered into a thousand thousand islands, massively 
  depopulated. The archipelagos Creation knows today 
  had depended on those new Wyld-forged lands for 
  supplies, and the supplies stopped coming.
  Everything broke down. Ships no longer came from 
  the mainland or the Blessed Isle. Trade stopped. Money 
  didn’t begin to ﬂ ow between the West and the rest of 
  Creation for decades. The patterned ﬁ nancial transac-
  tions the Old Realm had used to keep the Wyld at bay 
  ceased entirely, and the jade obelisks were displaced 
  or sunk by cataclysm, and weren’t strong enough by 
  themselves. Out of sight, everyone had put the West 
  out of mind, and the Wyld crept inward, claiming vast 
  stretches of open ocean.
  Local governments collapsed, restructured them-
  selves and collapsed again. Most Western rulers had 
  leaned heavily on the stability of the Old Realm for 
  their power. Governors of recreational isles especially 
  found themselves rudderless when they had to actually 
  lead their people. Rebellions were fast and painful, and 
  usually misguided. With no examples of real governance 
  at the local level, the ﬁ rst attempts were clumsy and 
  ﬂ awed. Revolution followed revolution, and blood 
  stained the oceans.
  Not all the nations of the West fell into chaos, 
  however. Wavecrest’s government had primarily con-
  cerned itself with the organization and advancement 
  of agriculture, and continued to serve in that respect. 
  The greatest hurdle for them was to overcome the 
  reactionary impulse to store as many years’ worth of 
  food as possible; it took the governor years to redirect 
  energy toward building ships and trading food.
  THE LOST WESTERN WAR MANSE
  In the Far West sits a small island, no more 
  than 10 miles long and ﬁ ve wide. A large fortress 
  covers every last inch of land, and is in turn cov-
  ered by a thick and waterproof roof of adamant. 
  Communications failed ﬁ rst during the war in 
  the West, leaving the fortress’s soldiers alone 
  and confused. One of the ﬁ rst major attacks so 
  disrupted local dragon lines that the manse lost 
  power instantly. Doors designed to resist deep 
  sea pressure shut forever, severing the internal 
  population from the rest of Creation.
  All other war manses registered the loca-
  tion as destroyed, so no one ever visited. Only 
  backup systems, including freshwater collectors 
  and air generators, continued to function. The 
  base’s intended self-sustainability also served 
  it well, allowing the inhabitants to grow their 
  own food under a sun separated by unbreakable 
  adamant. Dragon-Blooded ofﬁ cers maintained 
  order through extreme and occasionally violent 
  means while waiting for orders or a rescue. That 
  was more than 1,500 years ago.
  Only the most daring and ingenious explor-
  ers might discover the lost war manse and learn 
  how the inhabitants have changed and how they 
  will react to freedom.
  
  14
  Economic stability was not the only casualty of 
  the Usurpation. The geomancy of the West cracked 
  under the strain of the conﬂ ict. The West had always 
  been naturally harmonious on the grand scale, but the 
  dragon lines were also tenuous where they stretched 
  between islands. Some thinned, and others buckled 
  under a greater weight of ﬂ owing Essence than they 
  had ever before seen. Many snapped completely.
  Manses became nothing more than grand buildings 
  with occult symbols and precise, wasted geomancy as 
  the demesnes that powered the manses died instantly. 
  Some exploded in ﬂ ares of mystical light, completely 
  overloaded by tsunamis of Essence. New demesnes of 
  freakish strength formed in days as dragon lines settled 
  into new positions, and many disappeared shortly after 
  as a new event would again shake the metaphysical 
  landscape.
  Islands sank as errant dragon lines, bleeding crack-
  ling energy into the material world, lashed through the 
  isles’ supporting stone. Wild Essence burned holes in 
  many of the few ship captains who dared the seas at 
  the time, including many brave Dragon-Blooded trying 
  only to reestablish peace.
  Afterward, the Essence of the West was tempo-
  rarily diminished and forever changed. The entire 
  Direction suffered diminished fertility and weakened 
  thaumaturgy for years once the dust settled. Regions 
  without strong dragon lines to start with took longer, 
  even decades, to recover. Places without any calming 
  Essence remained uncontrolled, making the Western 
  Ocean again a Wyld danger. This greatly increased the 
  risk of attempting to establish new trade routes—but 
  it would be those new-forged routes that laid paths for 
  dragon lines across the water.
  Most old demesnes became permanently quiescent 
  or remained at a fraction of their former strength. New 
  demesnes caused trouble until available geomancers 
  either redirected the Essence over a greater area or 
  capped them with manses, usually just sophisticated 
  enough to render the demesnes’ energies harmless to 
  the populace.
  THE SHOGUNATE
  Emissaries of the ﬁ rst Shogun eventually con-
  tacted the forming and re-forming governments of the 
  West, but the emissaries offered little and demanded 
  less. The Shogunate paid the Western archipelagoes 
  little attention, requiring fealty only in name so that 
  the Shogunate could impress recalcitrant nations 
  in other parts of the world. Emissaries offered in 
  exchange minor resources, small enough that their 
  loss would not hinder the Shogunate’s campaigns in 
  the Threshold mainland but large enough to help the 
  small island nations get back on their feet. Most island 
  governments recognized the farce for what it was and 
  agreed. Those that disagreed lost nothing but a small, 
  one-time advantage.
  The Shogunate cemented its rule over Creation 
  in the centuries that followed. The Shogunate then 
  returned its attention to the islands that were, on pa-
  per, tributaries. Emissaries found themselves welcomed 
  to self-sufﬁ cient island nations, all distinct in culture 
  and government. The same emissaries were killed and 
  chased off the islands when they attempted to assess 
  appropriate current tribute and arrears.
  War came again to the West, but the Shogunate 
  was half-hearted in its conquest, and the island na-
  tions were anything but. Overwhelming odds and 
  superior economy should have won the day within 
  a year; instead, the war dragged on for almost two 
  decades. Damage to the island nations was slight 
  outside of reduced ﬂ eets and the legal restrictions set 
  on them by the Shogun as they fell, one by one. In 
  the end, absorption into the Shogunate changed very 
  little about life in the West—these former central 
  provinces, which had once been a frontier, became 
  stepping stones once more for Shogunate attempts to 
  reclaim the dream-touched archipelago remains of the 
  second Great Western Continent.
  CONTAGION AND CRUSADE
  The West was one of the last places struck by the 
  Great Contagion, and therefore one of the last to re-
  cover. Many islands began turning away all foreign ships 
  upon hearing of the sickness that spread everywhere, 
  but by the time word reached the islands so had the 
  disease. Contaminated dragon lines carried the plague 
  to the few scattered islands that avoided all human and 
  animal contact.
  The lack of a durable support network was what 
  really made the difference. Unlike in the East, where 
  trade routes exist and will survive regardless of how 
  many walk them, the West’s trade is fragile. Western 
  nations could not easily band together and help each 
  other recover after the Contagion had done its work. 
  They were easy pickings for the invading Fair Folk, 
  whose only complaint about the West was that the 
  pickings were scarce. The hard-reclaimed lands west 
  of today’s islands ﬁ nally sunk back into the ocean from 
  which they’d been forged.
  
  15
  CHAPTER ONE • A HISTORY WRITTEN ON WATER
  RISE OF THE SCARLET EMPRESS
  The unnamed soldier in the Imperial Manse saved 
  the West, just as she saved the rest of Creation. Similar 
  to her predecessor, she considered the West secondary 
  to bringing the Threshold mainland under her banner. 
  Both the Empress and the Seven Tigers agreed on the 
  need to conquer the Threshold mainland and the Blessed 
  Isle before looking westward. No people in the West pos-
  sessed the combination of ambition and resources great 
  enough to be a serious (or even a farcical) threat to the 
  Empress’s rule, which was just another reason she could 
  ignore them while laying the foundations of empire.
  Darkmist Isle had suffered greatly from the Conta-
  gion, and the Fair Folk had paid the island more than 
  its due share of attention. Shadowlands rippled outward 
  from the worst atrocities and, joining, formed the web 
  that remains there today. The Bodhisattva Anointed 
  by Dark Water assumed power almost a century after 
  the Empress drove the Fair Folk away. He dictated the 
  existing structure of citizenship and power, and so the 
  island remains.
  In the end, the West became the Realm’s mirror 
  of the East. The Empress never conquered the West 
  because she never tried; the small return would not 
  have been worth the great expense of conquest. Her 
  Scarlet Empire never conquered the East, but not for 
  lack of trying. The great lure of the East’s wealth caused 
  the Empire to gnash its teeth many times, but all its 
  legions could only bite off a small portion.
  Of all the Western nations, the only signiﬁ cant 
  one to ally itself with the Realm was Wavecrest, but 
  even it had little the Empress wanted. Its largest 
  export was food, which the Realm had in bulk. The 
  nation was peaceful except in self-defense, so it didn’t 
  take slaves for the Realm to import. Great Houses 
  purchased Wavecrest properties, though, building 
  enormous villas and injecting jade into the slow-paced 
  local economy.
  Her Houses claimed other satrapies over the next 
  two years, moving northward from Wavecrest island by 
  island; the last such was the Neck. Most others were 
  backwaters with nothing to offer save half-hearted al-
  legiance and cowrie shells.
  As for Coral, it offered lavish gifts in exchange for 
  independence, and for her own reasons, the Empress 
  acceded. But now the Empress is gone.
  
  16
  TIMELINE OF THE WEST
  REALM YEAR EVENT
   
  12 
  Leviathan returns to sunken Luthe.
   
  13 
  The Scionborn are introduced to Luthan society.
   
  37 
  Wavecrest allies with the Realm.
   
  39 
  The Realm takes the Neck as a satrapy.
   
  40 
  The Realm establishes amiable relations with independent Coral.
   
  67 
  The Realm places a bounty on the Brass Leviathan.
   
  87 
  The Bodhisattva Anointed by Dark Waters appears on Darkmist Isle.
   
  143 
  Construction of the Bodhisattva’s manse Ebon Skull is completed.
   
  199 
  The Fair Folk march to war against the pelagial ﬂ uted city Lyre of Currents.
   
  243 
  The Bodhisattva Anointed by Dark Waters commits ritual suicide, promising to return 
  as a prince clad in silver.
   
  402 
  Tya Edralneth begins the tradition that bears her name.
   
  414 
  Lintha Ng Hut Dukantha is born. 
   
  424 
  Denzik Badr arranges the formation of the Denzik Merchant Association.
   
  521 
  The Skullstone Archipelago claims the island of Cormorant, formerly of the Neck.
   
  557 
  First reported appearance of Demon Captain Kasua.
   
  568 
  Sesus Marahd and entourage establish a monastery on the Island of Blasphemous 
  Prayer.
   
  592 
  The Lintha forge a treaty with the Shore Prince of An-Teng.
   
  600 
  The Denzik city-ship launches.
   
  670 
  Ten Stripes co-opts the island of Seminare for her social experiment.
   
  677 
  Wavecrest founds the Western Trade Alliance to combat Coral piracy, and ﬁ nds much 
  success. Coral’s economy enters a long, slow recession.
   
  696 
  Foundation of the Emissaries of Perfect Water.
   
  720 
  Immaculate-founded Simenarean rebellion; Ten Stripes puts it down mercilessly.
   
  758 
  Coral diplomats working under Sea Lord DiBello Gerarde establish new trade routes 
  with the North. Coral economic recession recedes.
   
  759 
  Sesus Chenow retires to the Neck, concealing his location from other Great Houses.
   
  764 
  The Silver Prince appears on Darkmist Isle.
   
  765 
  Avishander Nemoran elected Sea Lord of Coral, and channels the new inﬂ ux of Coral 
  wealth toward the military.
   
  768 
  Current day.
  
  17
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  
  18
  CHAPTER TWO
  CHARACTER
  CREATION
  THE WAVECREST ARCHIPELAGO
  The Wavecrest Archipelago is the largest single 
  Western state. The largest island, Abalone, has a land 
  area of approximately 100,000 square miles, and is the 
  biggest island in Western Creation. The other two main 
  islands both measure more than 5,000 square miles, and 
  the entire archipelago supports a population of over 
  a million people. Located toward the south and at a 
  moderate distance from the Realm, these islands seem 
  to bask in a perpetual verdant, sunny springtime.
  Wavecrest is luxuriantly fertile and supplies food 
  throughout the West. The archipelago is a proﬁ table 
  target for pirates and a lure to conquerors. Furthermore, 
  the islands are in constant danger from the volcanoes 
  that scar them and the Wyld zones surrounding those 
  volcanoes. While they are kept in check by a draconian 
  system of human sacriﬁ ces, the volcanoes remain a 
  reminder of the forces of nature that all who dwell in 
  the West must know and fear. Wavecrest’s ports and 
  trading ships are civilized and easy-going, but the in-
  ner reaches of its islands are wild and untamed, tribal 
  and lethal. Wavecrest may be peaceful and prosperous, 
  but as is the case with all the West, the archipelago 
  has its own dangers.
  HISTORY
  The Wavecrest Archipelago was not founded, as 
  such; it merely expanded, with savage tribes worship-
  ping the volcano gods and swelling outward into the 
  green land and thriving seas. While there has always 
  been enough food to survive on, the islands were not 
  as fertile as they are now, and the islanders were forced 
  to support themselves by ﬁ shing and raiding as well. 
  Different tribes worshipped the different volcano gods 
  and warred on each other. Bounded by the limits of 
  CHAPTER TWO
  CHAPTER TWO
  JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  
  19
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  primitive ships, the tribes directed their aggression at 
  each other rather than outward.
  Solar savants and engineers in the First Age sought 
  a way to increase the islands’ fertility, seeing Wavecrest 
  as a potential breadbasket that could serve the other 
  Western islands and also supply Solar expeditions 
  further into the West and the deep Wyld. Their ef-
  forts, though now lost to history (though see “Volcanic 
  Fertility,” p. 27) met with success. However, though 
  this turned Wavecrest’s industry from raiding to farm-
  ing, it didn’t dampen the incessant feuding. Tribe still 
  battled tribe, and their numbers grew with the increased 
  fertility that the soil could now support.
  The Solars intervened again. Eclipse Caste dip-
  lomats called together the volcano gods in a mighty 
  council that left the ground black with obsidian for 
  centuries. The Solars promised that the gods would 
  still receive their sacriﬁ ces, but insisted that the gods 
  declare peace between the tribes. The leader of the 
  largest tribe on Abalone was brought forward, clad in 
  a mantle made from garda bird feathers, and surren-
  dered his name to become the Feathered One, who 
  would rule all Wavecrest under Solar guidance. The 
  volcano gods grumbled, but were eventually forced 
  into compliance by Solar eloquence and threats and 
  Sidereal political pressure in Yu-Shan.
  It took a while for the tribes to accept peace. Petty 
  wars continued for decades, but attention slowly shifted 
  from internal aggression to external trade. The new 
  fertility of Wavecrest’s soil had become a major factor 
  in the West; with distribution coordinated from the 
  Coral Archipelago in the north, and facilitated by First 
  Age creativity, Wavecrest found itself undergoing an 
  industrial revolution. The people developed new ship-
  building techniques and crew organization schema. The 
  men of Wavecrest became proud of their new standing 
  in the West, while the women found themselves with a 
  higher place in society than most Western women, due 
  to the importance of Wavecrest’s agriculture.
  The entire West was shaken by the Usurpation. 
  Battles shattered the geomantic network and destroyed 
  surrounding islets. Wavecrest was forced to fend off 
  raiders who saw the archipelago as a soft target and 
  a convenient base. The Feathered One declared al-
  legiance to the Shogunate in hopes of protection, 
  but was disappointed by the lack of actual assistance. 
  The Great Contagion was a disaster. Corpses rotted in 
  Wavecrest’s ﬁ elds, and dead bodies choked the harbors. 
  The volcano gods themselves raged at the devastation 
  to their islands and the invading Fair Folk, and streams 
  of lava ﬂ ooded across both land and seabed.
  With the arrival of the Scarlet Empress, Wavecrest 
  was again quick to swear allegiance, but in return for 
  prompt tribute and undisputed fealty, the Feathered 
  One requested a light hand by the satrap and as much 
  non-interference as possible. The Scarlet Empress 
  readily agreed, having more urgent business with the 
  Scavenger Lands.
  Within the last 100 years, Wavecrest has become 
  conscious of the growing threat posed by the Coral 
  Archipelago. What was once simply a matter of pirate 
  raids has now become a full-scale trade war backed 
  up by raiding. In response, Wavecrest originated and 
  still supports the Western Trade Alliance. The recent 
  disappearance of the Scarlet Empress and rumblings 
  of war from the Realm have caused further concern, 
  as has the Silver Prince’s appearance on Onyx.
  The vast untamed stretches of Wavecrest’s inte-
  rior still nurture tribes that have never seen the sea 
  except in tales, and whose worship of the volcano gods 
  continues unabated by social pressure or civilization. 
  The politicians and merchants of Wavecrest work 
  to solidify their hold on trade throughout the West, 
  while the Feathered One molliﬁ es politicians and 
  negotiates alliances. The veneer of civilization that 
  covers Wavecrest, with its open attitude and friendly 
  reception, is a thin one; at the heart of the archipelago, 
  the volcanoes still burn.
  GEOGRAPHY
  The Wavecrest Archipelago consists of three large 
  islands, and dozens of tiny islets surrounding them. The 
  little islets lack the extreme agricultural productivity of 
  Abalone, Halcyon and Pearl, but have chosen to ally 
  themselves with the larger islands and be considered 
  part of Wavecrest for two main reasons: improved 
  trade conditions and reduced raiding. Since raiding 
  between members of Wavecrest is illegal (though it 
  does still happen), many local islets join up for protec-
  tion against their neighbors.
  The climate of the Wavecrest Archipelago is mild 
  and pleasant all year round. Rainstorms are frequent 
  but light, and true storms are rare, occurring mostly 
  in winter. Natives shrug the weather off, working in 
  the rain with wide hats of braided leaves covering 
  their heads. Sometimes, at the height of Calibration, 
  it snows over the largest volcanoes; this is considered 
  a good omen for the coming year. On such occasions, 
  groups of priestesses collect snow from the slopes, and 
  scatter it on crowds at festivals.
  Wavecrest’s intensely fertile soil supports large forests 
  of breadfruit, mangoes, guavas, walnut, mahogany, teak, 
  
  20
  banyan, maize, bananas and other fruit trees. Pigs, goats 
  and chickens grow fat on leftovers, and the local ﬁ shers 
  bring in ﬁ sh of all kinds, as well as harvesting kelp and 
  other seaweeds. While Wavecrest’s biggest export is food, 
  wood, pearls and coral all come in abundance from the 
  islands and the sea. The one thing Wavecrest lacks is 
  signiﬁ cant metal resources; the islands have some iron 
  and gold deposits, primarily on Halcyon, but have to 
  import most of what they use for shipbuilding, weapons 
  and jewelry. 
  ABALONE
  Abalone is the largest and southernmost of the 
  three main islands of the Wavecrest Archipelago. This 
  island, the home of the Feathered One himself, the 
  ruler of Wavecrest, also serves as headquarters for the 
  Wavecrest Navy and houses the main temple of the 
  priestesses who appease the volcano gods. The volcano 
  Hamoji is at the heart of the island, and a half-dozen 
  other volcanoes are dotted across Abalone, dominat-
  ing the landscape. The island’s forests are mostly 
  located on the western side of the island, facing out 
  toward the deep ocean, and across the center of the 
  island, while the open tracts of farmland lie on the 
  east. While the farmlands are slowly expanding into 
  forest territory, this has not yet become a signiﬁ cant 
  issue. Wide tracts of tribal territory and Wyld zones 
  lie in the heart of Abalone, despite its cosmopolitan 
  exterior. Dozens of small villages are spaced throughout 
  the island, but the ﬁ ve main cities are all port towns 
  rather than inland ones.
  The main cities on Abalone are Seahaven, Gull-
  wing, Gateway and Diver’s Joy. The ﬁ rst three are 
  centuries old. Diver’s Joy is comparatively new, having 
  grown up around the pearl-diving trade; the Guild is 
  surreptitiously patronizing the town, hoping to build 
  it up into a major center for trade, in order to get a 
  major foothold on Wavecrest and weaken the Western 
  Trade Alliance. Of the other cities, Gullwing might 
  better be referred to as a town, but the inhabitants 
  consider it a city.
  Seahaven is Wavecrest’s largest and oldest port, 
  lying on the east coast of Abalone. Seahaven contains 
  the Feathered One’s palace, the Realm embassy, the 
  Wavecrest Navy headquarters and the biggest prisons 
  on Abalone. The buildings are of stone and wood, 
  faced with tiny nacre tiles in the better part of town 
  and whitewashed in the cheaper districts, and roofed 
  with slate or thatch. The buildings sprawl into large 
  compounds rather than rising to multi-storey heights, 
  and brightly colored awnings overhang the streets 
  
  21
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  and courtyards. Deep gutters mark the center of the 
  paved streets, dug to carry off the ﬂ ow of water from 
  the frequent showers. Ancient trees grow on street 
  corners, often serving as important local landmarks. 
  Women walk openly in the streets, and female carters 
  and laborers bring food and timber into the city from 
  farms across the island. The mayor of Wavecrest is 
  Cyretha, a woman from a respected family of farmers, 
  who has managed to win the respect of local sailors by 
  publicly leaving all management of the docks to her 
  male second-in-command, Jathin. Behind the scenes, 
  she and Jathin cooperate, but in public, she disassociates 
  herself from all sea-related business, conﬁ ning herself 
  to land-related problems and laws.
  Gateway lies on the northeast coast of Abalone 
  and serves as headquarters to the Western Trade Alli-
  ance. Much of the food that Abalone produces passes 
  through here on its way to other islands. The city is 
  laid out for the convenience of merchants, from the 
  big alabaster-walled trade exchange on the Mormer 
  Promontory overlooking the sea to the wide streets built 
  for loaded wagons to the busy markets, where captains 
  chaffer for cargoes. Gateway is a very cosmopolitan 
  town, capable of handling visitors of all types, from 
  Lintha to deathknights. If the merchants there can’t 
  obtain a particular thing, then they’ll know who can, 
  or be able to order it from elsewhere in the archipelago. 
  The mayor of Gateway is Petrin Clubfoot, who, due to 
  his deformed right foot, has spent all his life ashore. He 
  is quite adroit at handling merchants and sailors.
  Law in Gateway is less harsh than in the rest of 
  Abalone. The normally rapid sentencing and im-
  prisonment of criminals, for possible sacriﬁ ce to the 
  volcano gods, caused difﬁ culties with foreign crews and 
  important visitors. The legal system now extracts ﬁ nes 
  for offenses of lesser assault, theft, damage to property 
  or killing in self-defense. Either the criminal pays the 
  ﬁ ne himself, or the captain of his ship pays it. If neither 
  can pay, then the criminal is imprisoned in the usual 
  manner. In some cases, if the judge is bribed and the 
  foreign criminal has no important connections, then 
  the criminal won’t get the option of a ﬁ ne.
  Diver’s Joy, on the southwest of Abalone, is a 
  young city. The actual docks are comparatively narrow, 
  extending some distance out so that they can handle 
  heavy ships as well as small light ones. There are local 
  ordinances forbidding ﬁ shing and casual sailing around 
  the pearl beds; the only boats allowed there are the 
  small coracles that the pearl divers use. The town is 
  dominated by the masculine pursuit of pearl diving. 
  Of late, however, sea monsters have been attacking 
  by night; oyster beds have been found stripped bare, 
  and some pearl divers have gone missing. The Guild 
  has offered to bring in professional hunters and guards, 
  but the mayor (Shamshung, a locally respected elder 
  who retired from pearl diving after losing an arm to a 
  siaka) has so far politely refused.
  Gullwing looks out toward the far West and has 
  launched dozens of voyages of trading and exploration 
  into the Wyld—usually Guild-run and Guild-ﬁ nanced, 
  but occasionally organized by adventurous brother-
  hoods of Terrestrial Exalted. Of late, such expeditions 
  have become few and far between, as both the Guild 
  and the Dragon-Blooded have more immediate uses 
  for their jade and time. Gullwing is also the port that 
  many of the smaller islets to the west of Abalone use 
  when visiting the island, making it one of the most tra-
  dition-bound areas of all Wavecrest. While particular 
  islet customs may vary, most islets have strong views on 
  the place of women, the danger of foreigners, the threat 
  of the deep Wyld and the general untrustworthiness 
  of the rest of the world. Visitors from these islets take 
  offense easily and haggle over every coin they spend, 
  or every item they barter. Gullwing also keeps watch 
  for incursions from the Wyld or Fair Folk invasions. 
  Few as these may have been, there are always watch-
  men in the high towers that crown the port, keeping 
  their eyes on the distant West. Gullwing’s mayor is 
  Elsed, a retired ship’s captain and explorer. He has an 
  unusually male-heavy personal staff due to the need 
  to deal with islanders from further west.
  Mount Hamoji, the central volcano of Abalone, is 
  surrounded by miles of the Wyld’s Bordermarches. The 
  caldera is a Middlemarch. As a result, it changes shape, 
  its silhouette on the horizon never constant from week 
  to week (or even day to day during full moons).The 
  Black Temple lies to the east of the Wyld zone and is 
  the main chapterhouse of the priestesses of Wavecrest. 
  Young priestesses are brought there to honor Hamoji 
  (even if this requires sea travel from another island in 
  Wavecrest), and old ones often retire there. The temple, 
  a forbidding ediﬁ ce of ebony and obsidian, contains 
  worship fanes, holding cells for prisoners, instruction 
  areas for novices and isolated cells for private meditation. 
  The temple is surrounded by farmland cultivated by the 
  priestesses. Many of the priestesses who dwell here are 
  burly, combat-trained women who practice wrestling 
  among themselves, and who are quite capable of man-
  aging the struggling prisoners when they are dragged 
  up the volcano. The priestesses keep wards around the 
  edge of the Wyld zone, and patrol regularly to deal with 
  escaped Wyld mutations or dangerous incursions.
  
  22
  HALCYON
  To the north of Abalone is Halcyon. Less than a 
  tenth of Abalone’s size, Halcyon is an island of breath-
  taking beauty, ﬁ lled with gardens and farms, home to 
  thousands of species of ﬂ owers and exotic birds, famous 
  for its hospitable inhabitants. Even the volcanoes on 
  Halcyon erupt less frequently than those of Abalone 
  and Pearl. The two islands on either side of Halcyon 
  shield it from storms, hurricanes and raiders, and the 
  island simply enjoys the beneﬁ ts. Most of the goods 
  that Halcyon produces are shipped to Abalone or Pearl, 
  and then exported outward from there.
  Many prominent Wavecrest sea captains have 
  luxurious mansions on Halcyon, with private docks, 
  servants and concubines, away from the hazards and 
  troubles of life on Abalone or Pearl. The inhabitants 
  (and, elsewhere, the Feathered One) are less enthusiastic 
  about foreigners or Exalted buying homes here, but so 
  far, good behavior and ﬁ nancial generosity has quieted 
  any concerns. Peleps Kaizoku Bemantis, a privateer 
  for the Realm with a record of successes against Coral 
  privateers, owns a home here and is locally popular.
  However, there is growing ill feeling between the 
  poor who work the farms and the rich who live in the 
  mansions. This was less deﬁ nite when only Wavecrest 
  captains had mansions here, but over the last century, 
  as foreigners and Exalted began to purchase property 
  on the land or to buy entire plantations and turn them 
  into private estates, the level of animosity has grown. 
  The Guild has inﬁ ltrated agents among the laborers in 
  order to stir up discontent, as it has long-term plans 
  to bring a small mercenary army onto the island in 
  order to seize a large area of land and fortify it. The 
  mercenaries will claim to be acting independently 
  but will seize what goods they can and sell them via 
  the Guild, thus damaging Wavecrest’s monopoly and 
  increasing the Guild’s market share.
  Aside from staple crops, Halcyon’s plantations pro-
  duce drugs, such as maiden tea, hashish and coca, as well 
  as a few more exotic Wyld-descended specimens. The 
  plantations are worked solely by women, and the normal 
  feelings about men doing land-based work apply even 
  more strongly here. The plantations are located toward 
  the center of the island, well away from the sea, and are 
  guarded by trained attack dogs and killer apes (gorillas 
  ﬁ tted with iron claws and trained to attack strangers) 
  as well as human wardens. Peleps Kaizoku Bemantis 
  sees potential for his House to exploit this industry; 
  he intends to have a ﬂ eet of ships from his House raid 
  the island while masquerading as Coral pirates at the 
  height of the drug-harvesting period. He is unaware of 
  the Guild’s plans, as they are unaware of his.
  The island has two main ports, as well as the 
  many minor private docks and harbors: Rockmouth 
  on the southeast coast and Crescent to the northeast. 
  Rockmouth is the more dangerous of the two ports, 
  due to the neighboring cliffs; only a daring captain 
  would attempt entry during a storm. The mayor of 
  Rockport is Tirello, an optimistic man whose good 
  nature tends to disarm all opposition. Crescent is more 
  cosmopolitan, and is used to receiving travelers from 
  outside Wavecrest. Its mayor is Dannisam, a retired 
  captain from the Western Trade Alliance. Though 
  respected for his naval experience, Dannisam is deeply 
  paranoid, seeing Coral spies around every corner, and 
  his recent legal reforms are making Crescent’s more 
  foresighted citizens nervous.
  PEARL
  Pearl is the northernmost of the Wavecrest Ar-
  chipelago’s large islands. Much of the Wavecrest Navy 
  is based here, in expectation of attacks from hostile 
  forces. Besides the usual farms and plantations, and deep 
  jungle interior, Pearl also serves as the training ground 
  for Wavecrest’s army and state navy. Young men from 
  across Wavecrest come here to serve for ﬁ ve-year terms, 
  and to learn how to ﬁ ght. Many trading vessels seek 
  crews trained on Pearl. Pearl also houses the School 
  of Wavecharters, an informal association for training 
  cartographers and navigators. Headed by Belmani One-
  Eye, the association attracts student from all over the 
  West, and has even been known to take pupils from 
  Coral, if they demonstrate sufﬁ cient talent and desire 
  to learn. The one standard is excellence.
  The main towns on Pearl are Goldsails, Starfall and 
  Windgate. There are also a dozen volcanoes across the 
  island; the largest is Amanji, but the most notorious is 
  Venestoro. Venestoro is in the north of the island, near 
  Windgate, and incoming sailors have come to navigate 
  by the volcano’s plume of smoke. Irritable and always 
  on the brink of eruption, Venestoro requires twice as 
  many sacriﬁ ces as any other volcano in Wavecrest.
  Goldsails is on the southwest coast of the island, 
  facing toward Halcyon. Goldsails is a quiet port city, 
  enlivened by the frequent arrival of privateers and 
  private craft looking for somewhere to hide. Though 
  Wavecrest’s ships are usually traders or navy, a number 
  of pirates and other gentlemen of private enterprise 
  also operate from there. When a privateer is on the 
  run from Coral, or from other nations, Goldsails is 
  a convenient place to shelter. The locals are used 
  
  23
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  to fencing goods, supplying and mending ships and 
  entertaining privateer crews. The mayor of the town, 
  Orass (or as he is generally known, Orass the Bastard) 
  is an outcaste Wood Aspect whose skill with a bow is 
  legendary. He’s held the position of mayor for 50 years 
  and looks set to hold it for another 50. He doesn’t tol-
  erate disorder in his town, handing out jail sentences 
  quickly and plentifully. He also loathes the Immaculate 
  Order, but Wavecrest’s satrapy status means that he is 
  limited in the actions he can take against them; any 
  Immaculates in town are watched closely by guards 
  looking for an excuse to arrest the monks.
  Starfall lies on the southeast of Pearl and is the old-
  est of the three ports. Legend has it that a star fell there 
  from Heaven, marking the port with a sign from the 
  gods. (According to Sidereal records, there is a starmetal 
  meteor buried somewhere under Starfall, but due to a 
  misweaving in the Loom of Fate at the time, nobody 
  has yet been able to locate the meteor.) The fact that 
  the port is one of the most perfectly formed natural har-
  bors in Creation didn’t hurt matters. Most trade to and 
  from the Realm or the South comes in through Starfall, 
  and as a result, there is a heavy Realm presence, which 
  eases the burden on the town guard. The two cooperate 
  well, as the Realm appreciates Wavecrest’s tranquility 
  and food trade, and the town is peaceful. The mayor 
  is Erwis Clansten, an old merchant, but he is substan-
  tially assisted by Tramnisa, a Tya in her 60s and happy 
  to spend most of her days on shore. Part of her success 
  as Erwis’s unofﬁ cial assistant lies in her ease at dealing 
  with female Realm representatives or sailors.
  Windgate lies on the northwest of Pearl, facing up 
  into the chain of islands that form the Neck. In addi-
  tion to being a trading center, Windgate also acts as 
  the main port and training ground for the Wavecrest 
  Navy and houses the School of Mapmakers. The 
  shipyards near Windgate are constantly busy, and the 
  town itself is surrounded on the land side by forests 
  rather than the usual farms. Storms are frequent here, 
  and when they blow up, the prevailing wind always 
  blows directly into the harbor, stripping tiles from roofs 
  and ﬂ owers from trees. Natives have grown proud of 
  this, and local sailors refer to the wind as “Old Grand-
  father.” The mayor of the town is Ensan Sailmaker, 
  whose family owns one of the biggest shipyards; his 
  second-in-command is Mirosa Woodkin, a woman 
  related to half the local tree plantation owners, who 
  has to struggle to balance the port’s needs against the 
  plantations’ ability to supply them. The two work well 
  together, but argue frequently and violently.
  OTHER ISLETS
  There are a number of notable islands included 
  in the Wavecrest Archipelago, known to outsiders 
  and to Wavecrest traders for the goods they produce 
  or for their particular customs. Among such islets are 
  the following:
  • Balderao, known for the rugs its natives weave from 
  dried seaweed through a secret process of softening.
  • Small Rock, where cormorants in all colors of 
  the rainbow can be caught and tamed.
  • Auragik, where the shells of ormers can be used 
  to trap songs and stories recited into them.
  • Tofanis, whose sailors have been bringing black 
  jade samples to market for the last year, and who clearly 
  know the location of a large jade deposit.
  • Dreamwhisper, which teams with spiders, and 
  whose natives keep large spiders as pets, letting them 
  run around on the people’s bodies.
  • Strange Goddess, an island close to a Wyld zone; 
  the islet’s natives bring in opaline coral to market but 
  are clearly more Wyld-twisted each time they visit.
  ISLANDERS AND CUSTOMS
  The islanders of Wavecrest are widely parodied 
  as a nation of farmers, merchants and shopkeepers. 
  Those who do so make the error of assuming that 
  the civilized exterior crust of the islands represents 
  the volcanic interior. Just because the volcano gods 
  were forced to declare a truce, or the outer cities and 
  ports of the islands engage in polite trade, does not 
  mean that the islanders have lost their hot warlike 
  spirit. Grudges are still grudges, war is still war, and 
  insults are remembered and avenged. The people of 
  Wavecrest have been invaded and attacked for their 
  fertile lands too often to ever trust in peace again, and 
  whether they conquer through trade or through force 
  of arms, they intend to be sure of their own safety by 
  dominating the West.
  Wavecrest natives tend to have skin ranging in 
  color from bronze to gold, and hair in dark shades of 
  purple and black. In winter, both genders wear sturdy 
  clothing, with canvas jackets over cotton shirts and 
  trousers or dresses; in summer, men often go bare-
  chested in cotton trousers, while women wear loose 
  skirts and breast-bands, and young children wear 
  simple tunics. Women wear ﬂ owers in their hair, and 
  jewelry of coral or pearls with copper, while men prefer 
  heavy necklets or bracelets of copper or gold. Tattoos 
  are common among men and Tya, but are considered 
  unlucky on women.
  
  24
  In casual conversation, Wavecrest natives are po-
  lite; this is due to the frequent wars between tribes in 
  the past, when insults were part of the scaling-up from 
  occasional raids to full-time feuds and open warfare. 
  An actual shift from politeness to curt speech or even 
  rudeness is a sign that a Wavecrest native is seriously 
  annoyed and actively escalating the situation.
  GOVERNMENT
  Government in the Wavecrest Archipelago is 
  ﬁ xed by centuries of tradition. The mayors of towns 
  are elected by popular acclamation, and they in turn 
  vote on the selection of the Feathered One. Unpopular 
  mayors quickly ﬁ nd themselves bankrupted as all the 
  trade moves elsewhere. Mayors can be male or female; 
  mayors of port towns are more often male, and mayors 
  of inland towns more often female, but this is not al-
  ways the case. Tya cannot hold public ofﬁ ce, but can 
  serve as private advisors.
  The Feathered One is the elected president of the 
  Wavecrest Archipelago. He is named for his ancient 
  cape of ofﬁ ce; woven from the feathers of garda birds, 
  and fringed with feathers from seven species of local 
  birds, the cape is said to confer wisdom, honesty and 
  forethought on the bearer. What’s certain is that the 
  cape protects the wearer against assassins, becoming 
  as hard as jade (+12L/+14B soak) and bearing the 
  wearer aloft on great feathered wings (ﬂ ight at three 
  times the bearer’s dash speed), all with no commit-
  ment cost. The smaller islets have no voice in the 
  election of the Feathered One. Their discontent was 
  suppressed in the past, with the Feathered One and 
  the council seldom mentioning it, and even then al-
  ways as a minor issue. With the current unrest, some 
  island-dwellers are looking for a position of strength 
  and forming a coalition to gain a voice. Others are 
  even more politically radical (particularly the ones 
  without nearby volcanoes), demanding open voting, 
  representation of all islets and even rotation of the 
  ofﬁ ce of Feathered One among the different islands 
  of the Wavecrest Archipelago.
  The duties of the Feathered One are to promote 
  commerce, maintain harmony among the islands 
  and select an admiral to lead the ﬂ eet in time of 
  war. The Feathered One also acts as ofﬁ cial repre-
  sentative for the archipelago’s dealings with other 
  powers, such as the Realm or Skullstone. Finally, in 
  the event of continued volcanic eruptions that can-
  not be quenched by lesser sacriﬁ ces, it is his duty to 
  throw himself into the volcano Hamoji at the heart 
  of Wavecrest. The last such sacriﬁ ce occurred more 
  
  25
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  than 50 years ago, but everyone elected to this high 
  ofﬁ ce knows that he may be called upon to give up 
  his life for Wavecrest.
  The current Feathered One was once named 
  Broknan and was the captain of a successful trading 
  ﬂ eet. He was surprised to be elected to his position, 
  but has held it for 10 years, mingling diplomacy with 
  caution and occasional brilliance. He is intelligent 
  and always on the lookout for a good deal. He sees 
  the current situation as full of opportunity, as the 
  unrest and turmoil in the West will allow him to in-
  crease its dependence on Wavecrest’s supply of food. 
  He has cut back on the regular tribute to the Realm 
  and is plowing most of the tribute into Wavecrest’s 
  navy. However, he has been forced to use some of 
  the tribute to put down attempts by smaller islets to 
  claim independence from Wavecrest. 
  The Wavecrest Council—made up of mayors from 
  more than 100 towns across the archipelago and three 
  senior priestesses—convenes on the death of the pre-
  vious Feathered One to debate on the selection of a 
  new one. They remain in conﬁ nement until they have 
  agreed upon a name. The new Feathered One is not 
  permitted to refuse the honor. He must surrender his 
  previous name and any ofﬁ ces or rank, and come to 
  Abalone at once to take up the position. Although he 
  may keep his wife and family, all his personal money 
  goes into the public treasury. He lives the rest of his 
  life as the Feathered One, unless injury or illness makes 
  him mentally unﬁ t for the position—and in that case, 
  many previous Feathered Ones have chosen to throw 
  themselves into Hamoji. There is no political route 
  for removing an unsuitable or incompetent Feathered 
  One. However, if his actions threaten the safety of the 
  archipelago (as opposed to mere private debauchery) 
  then the volcano gods, spurred on by the prayers of 
  their priestesses, will demand his sacriﬁ ce.
  LAW AND CRIME
  The justice system of Wavecrest is an outgrowth 
  of the sacriﬁ cial customs, designed to provide the nec-
  essary human material. Anyone convicted of a crime 
  more serious than public rudeness must spend time in 
  the local prison. Terms range from a week for petty 
  theft or minor vandalism to years for such crimes as 
  murder, treason or piracy. (Piracy against Wavecrest 
  or Wavecrest’s allies, that is; piracy against enemies 
  is heroism, not a crime.) The head of the town guard 
  in each town is responsible for the prisons as well as 
  for maintaining law and order. 
  The prisons are clean and safe, and the convicts 
  well fed, since the volcano gods take offense at blem-
  ished or mistreated sacriﬁ ces. In the past, when prison 
  guards were caught abusing prisoners or stinting food 
  to line their own pockets, the prison guards themselves 
  became sacriﬁ ces. When the volcanoes begin to fume 
  and mutter, the priestesses come to choose sacriﬁ cial 
  victims. Serious offenders are picked before minor ones, 
  but the prisons can be swiftly cleared of residents if the 
  volcanoes are particularly active. Only the end of a 
  prisoner’s term can save him from this horrible death. 
  As few locals wish to risk being fed to the volcanoes, 
  the people of Wavecrest are unusually law-abiding. To 
  attempt to escape from prison, or to assist in such an 
  escape, is a serious crime that automatically receives 
  a penalty of a year in prison (or an extra year, for 
  prisoners still serving their sentence). 
  If a victim is found to be innocent after he was 
  sacriﬁ ced, then the priestesses of the volcano that he 
  was thrown into pay restitution to the victim’s family. 
  Traditionally, no punitive action is taken against the 
  guards—an attitude that has caused riots in the past, 
  followed by mass jailing and further sacriﬁ ces.
  All forms of drugs are legal in Wavecrest, and many 
  types are grown on Halcyon and shipped out from 
  there. However, the offense of “reckless endangerment 
  of others while incapable” carries a short prison term, 
  and no drugs are available inside the cells. An area of 
  each prison is traditionally reserved for those suffering 
  from withdrawal symptoms.
  In addition to the standard docking fees, the 
  Wavecrest government takes a ﬂ at one percent tax off 
  the top of all transactions. Tax fraud is an automatic 
  jail sentence ranging from a week to a month. The 
  government currently puts much of the money back 
  into public works, such as road-building, dock repair, 
  sanitation and ship-building. Some Feathered Ones in 
  the past have used the tax monies for their own self-
  indulgence, and traditionally, no one speaks against 
  this practice, so long as the Feathered One is willing 
  to go to the volcano if he is called to do so.
  Town and dock guards keep order in the more 
  civilized parts of Wavecrest, and impromptu militias or 
  tribal war bands in the more agricultural or savage areas. 
  Rustics are supposed to drag criminals to the nearest 
  town for formal arrest, but are likely to deal with them 
  informally by “ﬁ ning” them of everything they possess 
  and then either chasing them out of settled areas or 
  throwing them into the nearest volcano on the principle 
  that the gods never object to extra sacriﬁ ces.
  
  26
  ESPIONAGE
  Calathis, head of the town guard in Seahaven 
  on Abalone, is also responsible for Wavecrest’s spy 
  service, the Obsidian Blade. Some agents of the Obsid-
  ian Blade are well known, while others (notably the 
  ones who operate outside Wavecrest, and even in the 
  Coral Archipelago) are top secret. Calathis practices 
  thaumaturgy and has persuaded a number of air and 
  water elementals to carry messages to his network. 
  Other nations also have their spies in Wavecrest, 
  ranging from the ofﬁ cial staffs of various diplomatic 
  embassies to those posing as sailors and merchants. 
  Calathis has identiﬁ ed some and takes care to feed 
  them the information that he wants them to know; 
  in other cases, he arranges for accidents, or frames 
  them for crimes and then leaves them to serve out 
  their term in prison, and hopefully be ﬁ rst in line for 
  the volcanoes. He isn’t aware of Koigure, the Coral 
  operative who works in one of Pearl’s biggest shipyards; 
  Buodona, the Skullstone woman who is a seamstress 
  in Abalone and works for many of the highest-ranking 
  priestesses; or Per Dimmal, an agent of the Realm’s 
  All-Seeing Eye who has inﬁ ltrated the Feathered One’s 
  private accountants.
  RELIGION
  Worship divides along gender lines. The major 
  protective deities of Wavecrest are the volcano gods 
  on land and the spirits of the sea and sky. While both 
  genders can pay casual respect to either group, serious 
  worship of the volcano gods is carried out by women, 
  while men honor the ocean and weather spirits.
  The volcano gods are worshipped as a family of 
  brothers, all turbulent and bad-tempered, needing to 
  be constantly propitiated so that they will not con-
  sume the archipelago in ﬂ aming lava. Hamoji is the 
  chief of the volcano tribe, but the populace honors 
  all the named volcanoes around Wavecrest in daily 
  prayers, led by the local priestess if one is in the area. 
  In contrast, Wavecrest has no speciﬁ c oceanic patron; 
  the inhabitants merely pay respect to minor divinities 
  when they are encountered. It’s the responsibility of a 
  ship’s captain to make the proper sacriﬁ ces or intone 
  the correct prayers and appease dangerous spirits.
  THE PRIESTESSES
  The priestesses of the Wavecrest Archipelago have 
  two main tasks: ﬁ rstly, keep the volcanoes appeased 
  through prayer and worship so that they won’t erupt, 
  and secondly, sacriﬁ ce victims when the volcanoes 
  do erupt in order to calm them again. The priestesses 
  also placate Wavecrest’s little gods and elementals, but 
  most of Wavecrest’s spirit courts are kept in check by 
  the volcano gods. The order of priestesses as a whole 
  wields considerable political inﬂ uence, and three of 
  the senior priestesses advise the Feathered One. While 
  the priestesses possess a main temple near Hamoji on 
  Abalone and small shelters or shrines near all the 
  volcanoes on the three islands, many priestesses are 
  itinerant wanderers, traveling barefoot across their 
  home islands. Some priestesses even have thaumaturgi-
  cal training. Priestesses may not marry, but are free to 
  sleep with whomever they wish; touching a pregnant 
  priestess brings good fortune, and many families vie 
  to adopt the child of a priestess. A priestess cannot 
  keep or raise her own child, though she can visit her 
  child if he or she has been adopted elsewhere. If a 
  priestess is caught trying to keep her own baby and 
  raise the child, then both she and the child are cast 
  into a volcano.
  Priestesses are highly regarded, but becoming 
  one is difﬁ cult and dangerous. Entrance to the order 
  is undertaken as an apprenticeship: a woman seeking 
  membership must gain the permission of a priestess 
  and then travel with her until her mentor considers 
  the novice is ready to be consecrated to the volcano 
  gods. This involves spending a day and a night pray-
  ing on the brink of a volcano; perhaps two in every 
  10 novices die at this stage, by falling into the lava, 
  being poisoned by fumes or being attacked by crea-
  tures from neighboring Wyld zones. Priestesses never 
  travel by sea if they can possibly avoid it. Journeys 
  out to the small volcanoes on neighboring islets are 
  considered unlucky for the priestess herself and the 
  men sailing the boat; such missions are usually given 
  as penitential assignments. This means that small 
  islets end up with priestesses working off penances or 
  lacking in application.
  THE IMMACULATE ORDER
  Immaculates naturally dislike the current religious 
  state of affairs in Wavecrest, and missionaries point out 
  how much better life would be if the volcano gods lived 
  in subjection to the Terrestrial Exalted. The Scarlet 
  Empress refused to allow more than a show of proselytiz-
  ing, being more interested in maintaining Wavecrest’s 
  food output (and its volcano-induced fertility) than 
  bringing Wavecrest into the Immaculate faith. In her 
  absence, however, the Mouth of Peace is permitting 
  more and more missionaries to travel to Wavecrest, and 
  civil unrest is rising as the Immaculate monks spread 
  seditious heresy and the volcano gods demand more 
  sacriﬁ ces in return for the Immaculate insults.
  
  27
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  GENDER IN WAVECREST
  As elsewhere in the West, women are generally 
  forbidden to participate in seagoing ventures. However, 
  the Wavecrest islands are home to substantial land-
  based craft industries and agriculture, activities at which 
  women are believed superior. This division of labor 
  separates the lives of men and women in Wavecrest, and 
  members of each sex hold power in their own sphere. 
  The land-based industries are important enough that 
  women have signiﬁ cant inﬂ uence. Men are sailors, 
  traders, ﬁ shermen, divers, marines, shipping agents and 
  couriers, or follow similar trades that involve the sea. 
  Although men and women share the land-bound jobs, 
  women make up the majority of jewelers, blacksmiths, 
  shopkeepers, merchants, tavern owners, cooks and 
  farmers. Unless men are unusually skilled or successful 
  at such professions, or clearly incapable of performing 
  seagoing work, men who hold “landlubber” jobs are 
  viewed as lacking or inferior. Female visitors to the 
  islands are treated as Tya (pp. 38-41), unless the visitors 
  give signiﬁ cant evidence to the contrary.
  Wavecrest men and women view themselves as 
  enlightened in allowing the genders to succeed in 
  their proper spheres. The inhabitants point to the 
  existence of the Tya, who originated on Wavecrest, as 
  proof of the islanders’ liberal attitudes. And there are 
  good reasons why women should not be sailors; the 
  existence of entities such as the storm mothers, who 
  actively hate attractive women, is only one of many 
  justiﬁ cations. Wavecrest islanders self-righteously de-
  spise the Coral Archipelago attitudes toward women, 
  viewing such ideas with as much scorn as the people 
  do anything else from Coral.
  After centuries of devotion to jobs such as farming, 
  carting and smithing, the ideal Wavecrest woman is 
  well built and muscular. Slender beauties are viewed 
  as good for nothing except bed and ornamentation; 
  a Wavecrest man wants a woman who can manage a 
  productive job and bring crops from the land, and who 
  feeds herself and her family well. Corpulence is not 
  applauded, but muscles and buxom health are what a 
  man expects to see in a woman. Captains and sailors 
  may have ethereally delicate concubines, but the men 
  marry strong Wavecrest women.
  SEX AND MARRIAGE
  Wavecrest has always been a polygamous society, 
  with one man maintaining as many wives as he can 
  afford. Some men prefer to have a different wife on 
  each island, so that wherever they are, they’ll have a 
  home to go to, while others have several wives living 
  together in a single household; the longest-married 
  wife has authority over the other women. Many of 
  the old farming families work this way, with the wives 
  cooperatively looking after the land while the husband 
  goes out sailing. Men marry early in the hopes of siring 
  children; women usually become established in trade 
  or farming before marrying, so that they can support 
  themselves in their husbands’ absence. This results 
  in young men marrying older women, which helps 
  reinforce women’s power in society and contributes to 
  the relative equality between the sexes in Wavecrest. 
  The woman has experience that the man lacks, and 
  he must depend on her to support and guide him. 
  Same-sex relationships are common, but marriage is 
  to the opposite gender.
  This version of polygamy can lead to disagreements 
  about the legitimacy of children born while the husband 
  is away. There are two degrees of legitimacy in a family; 
  the ﬁ rst is children who are acknowledged by both the 
  husband and a wife, and the second is children who 
  are acknowledged only by a wife. Children who are 
  acknowledged only by a wife are known as “Second-
  born” (or, as a derogative, “tidesweeps”), and are often 
  badly treated inside the household and forced to make 
  their own way in the world. Secondborn have difﬁ culty 
  ﬁ nding decent marriages, entering into apprenticeships, 
  being accepted as priestesses or becoming crew on good 
  ships. Secondborn are often bitter and resentful, and 
  many emigrate to the Neck or to Skullstone, or even 
  to Coral. A number of Coral’s most feared pirates were 
  once Secondborn. It is inauspicious for an unmarried 
  girl to be pregnant, unless she is a priestess, so her family 
  will usually arrange a quick marriage.
  VOLCANIC FERTILITY
  The islands of Wavecrest were once nearly as 
  barren as the Coral Archipelago, providing the bare 
  minimum to sustain a meager native population. 
  Using techniques of sorcery and engineering lost to 
  the modern day, the ancient Solar savants built great 
  engines from the magical materials and sank the 
  engines deep in the volcanoes that studded the area. 
  These geomantic anchors created synthetic dragon 
  lines that linked the engines across the archipelago. 
  Essence from demesnes that were considered unusable 
  due to their location (underwater or on isolated islets) 
  was diverted to help establish the network.
  The sorcerous engines converted the ferocious el-
  emental Essence of the volcanoes into tides of fertility, 
  which spread through the surrounding islands. Within a 
  generation, Wavecrest was able to support ﬁ ve times as 
  
  28
  many islanders, and the people began to trade with the 
  further islands as a nascent power in the region.
  The sorcerous engines needed little external 
  regulation and produced huge amounts of Earth- and 
  Wood-resonant Essence. In an unexpected side effect, 
  excess energy warped the areas around the volcanoes 
  into Wyld zones; the Solar savants added cut-in mo-
  tonic links to the system to drain and restabilize the 
  afﬂ icted areas.
  The cataclysms of the Usurpation seriously dam-
  aged this geomantic web. Anchors were shaken, power 
  links were cut off or overloaded and the whole drainage 
  and restabilization system was shattered beyond repair. 
  The Dragon-Blooded were aware that the early First 
  Age Solars had terraformed the islands, using Wyld-
  stabilizing Creation engines, but the precise mechanics 
  were beyond the grasp of Shogunate sorcerer-engineers. 
  In any case, few had the time or the funds to investigate 
  an area that was still productive.
  As the centuries went by, the land became more 
  and more fertile, and less power was needed from the 
  volcanic engines to maintain the land in that state. As 
  a result, the level of Wyld energies rose, and the Wyld 
  zones slowly expanded, while the volcanoes themselves 
  also became more active. Wyld zones now surround 
  all the volcanoes, including those on the three main 
  islands of Wavecrest and those on nearby islets. This has 
  resulted in a small but constant bleed of Wyld-tainted 
  plants and animals into the native ecologies. 
  The constant power ﬂ ux among volcanoes has had 
  some unusual effects on the local area, in addition to 
  the Wyld zones that surround the volcanoes. Coral 
  reefs have grown along the synthetic dragon lines 
  between the volcanoes, rising from the ocean bed to 
  the point that some of them have become visible on 
  the surface. While the reefs themselves are not actu-
  ally Wyld zones, the reefs are the result of motonic 
  overspill, and plants and ﬁ shes can be found there 
  that occur nowhere else in Creation. If the diagram 
  formed by the reefs and volcanoes were to be surveyed 
  from above, a savant with appropriate skills (Lore 3 or 
  higher) could map the volcanoes with buried geomantic 
  anchors, and possibly reverse-engineer the spells that 
  bind the whole structure together.
  From time to time, Wyld beasts escape the zones 
  surrounding the volcanoes and enter the uninhabited 
  forests that cover much of the three islands. A few even 
  manage to mate with local animals and reproduce. 
  Whenever such creatures are sighted, the priestesses 
  and their heavily armed assistants go out to hunt down 
  the beasts. Substantial bounties also attract the islands’ 
  most daring hunters, as well as thrill-seeking Terrestrial 
  Exalted from the Realm. Similarly, Wyld-twisted crea-
  tures escape into the sea from the small volcanic islets 
  and must be hunted down by the Navy or freelancers.
  THE INTERIOR
  The three main islands of Wavecrest cover hun-
  dreds of square miles of interior jungle and volcanoes 
  that outsiders never see. The civilized farms that extend 
  inward from the coast never touch the deep forests. 
  Traders must journey with armed escorts between the 
  tribes and across the jungle, and many never emerge. 
  Constant minor wars and feuds continue, despite the 
  peace that the volcano gods were forced to impose. 
  The only ones who can journey safely through the 
  deep interior of Wavecrest are priestesses and those 
  whom the priestesses escort. Merchants come here, 
  and explorers, and Dynastic hunting parties, but the 
  area is far from safe.
  Not only does the jungle contain its own native 
  hazards—giant apes, leopards, ﬂ esh-eating bats, swarms 
  of ants, killer bees, carnivorous plants and others—but 
  the Wyld zones that ﬂ ourish near volcanoes spawn 
  their own dangers. Even though the priestesses and 
  the tribes that live nearby do what they can to contain 
  the zones and prevent dangerous creatures escaping, 
  the priestesses and tribes are far from successful.
  The tribes have no political power at the moment, 
  since they are scattered and feuding with each other; 
  the Feathered One and the priestesses work to keep 
  it that way, in order to maintain their own political 
  dominance. Wavecrest is the West’s breadbasket. If 
  the tribes united, they could destroy the West or lend 
  it an army.
  THE NAVY
  Wavecrest’s navy numbers more than 500 ships, 
  and is currently expanding, as the Feathered One 
  seizes the opportunity to direct tribute funds into the 
  naval purse. Since smuggling is not a major issue, the 
  Wavecrest Navy’s main duty is to protect the inhabit-
  ants of Wavecrest from all the threats that the Western 
  Ocean holds. The rivalry between the Navy and the 
  Coral pirates in particular is intense and vicious. Ten 
  of the Navy ships are First Age trading craft, which 
  have been adapted to military purposes and ﬁ tted with 
  ﬂ ame cannons; the Feathered One reserves these as 
  an emergency strike force. Other First Age ships that 
  no longer function are currently stored in caves on 
  Abalone, guarded in the hope of eventual repair. 
  
  29
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  All sailors and ofﬁ cers of the Wavecrest Navy 
  are male or Tya. Promotions are at the whim of the 
  captain, and while theoretically they come from merit 
  alone, nepotism and favoritism are rife in practice. In 
  times of crisis, the Feathered One appoints an admiral 
  to command the ﬂ eet, but normally, there is no single 
  commander, only the separate captains, who are left 
  to coordinate their actions as seems ﬁ t to them. The 
  Navy consists of 100 triremes, 300 biremes and vari-
  ous small craft. In the case of emergency, the Western 
  Trade Alliance would be prepared to assist with battles 
  or evacuations.
  Captain Buruku is the ﬁ rst among equals in 
  Wavecrest’s ﬂ eet. The Feathered One takes Buruku’s 
  counsel, and the captains listen to his orders. If war 
  breaks out with the Coral Archipelago, he is the obvi-
  ous choice to be the next admiral. He is six feet eight 
  inches tall and massively built, with beautiful bronze 
  skin and purple hair; men quiver in fear and respect in 
  his presence, while women blush at the sight of him. It’s 
  obvious that he’s God-Blooded, as he radiates a power 
  that a normal mortal simply cannot match. Women and 
  men ﬂ ock to him; he has no interest in the former.
  Navy’s size and power, on the assumption that Coral 
  is taking advantage of the Realm’s inattention and 
  doing the same.
  With the sudden rise of the Silver Prince, Skull-
  stone is currently an unknown quantity. Wavecrest 
  lacks its customary leverage when dealing with the 
  Deathlord and his nation, since the dead don’t need to 
  eat and the living in the area have enough to survive 
  on. Although the Silver Prince shows no immediate 
  signs of animosity, the Feathered One and his council 
  are wary of the Deathlord and his agents. The fact that 
  the Silver Prince refrains from allying with the Coral 
  Archipelago is small consolation.
  The Neck and Wavecrest deal well together, 
  though the Neck has little that Wavecrest actually 
  wants. Still, the two nations maintain an alliance 
  and mutual peace.
  THE WESTERN TRADE ALLIANCE
  The Western Trade Alliance is based in Abalone, 
  spreading out northward into the Neck; the Trade 
  Alliance’s members deal on a daily basis with raid-
  ers out of the Coral Archipelago. The sailors of the 
  Trade Alliance are among the ﬁ nest-trained combat 
  sailors in the world, and certainly are among the 
  most experienced. 
  The Trade Alliance specializes in fast ships and 
  light cargos. Not even the Guild itself has a higher 
  success rate for running pirate blockades. The Trade 
  Alliance favors single, unescorted ships that can out-
  maneuver pirates. This makes Western Trade Alliance 
  ship captains independent and creative thinkers. They 
  have fewer than 150 ships, all of them small and fast. 
  What the captains lack in volume, they make up in 
  sheer audacity, and there is a saying in the West that 
  all their sailors are men because only a man has the 
  balls to be a Western Trade Alliance sailor. (This 
  proverb aside, the alliance does count Tya amongst its 
  members.) Fifty of the ships are rerigged blue-water 
  merchants and 30 are biremes; the remaining vessels 
  are smaller, faster craft, such as fast couriers.
  Unsurprisingly, there is a rivalry between the 
  Coral pirates and the merchants of the Trade Alliance. 
  While there is professional respect between the two 
  naval forces, and pirate captains have been known to 
  let Trade Alliance ships go (minus their cargoes) if the 
  Trade Alliance captains were particularly clever, both 
  sides have spilled more blood than can be measured. 
  The leader of the Western Trade Alliance is the 
  renowned Master Ciore, famed as one of the most 
  skilled naval commanders of all time, and notorious 
  CHILD OF DIVINITY
  Buruku isn’t just any god’s child; he is the 
  son of the god Hamoji. Hamoji has seen the 
  growing power of the Coral Archipelago’s ﬂ eet, 
  and wished to provide a worthy warleader for 
  the people of Wavecrest. He came down from 
  his volcano in human form and coupled with 
  100 of the most beautiful priestesses; 10 sons 
  were born, and the 10th was Buruku. The other 
  nine sons were tainted by the Wyld energies sur-
  rounding the volcano, and when they reached 
  adolescence, they ﬂ ed into the Bordermarches 
  around Hamoji, lurking there to await their 
  father’s commands.
  RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHERS
  Wavecrest views the Coral Archipelago with 
  long-standing vigorous distrust and hatred; Wavecrest 
  islanders see the inhabitants of Coral as nothing more 
  than a pack of raiders who constantly attempt to steal 
  Wavecrest’s food and openly proclaim their intent to 
  conquer. Any sign of Coral aggression toward anywhere 
  else in the West is viewed as the next step in a grand 
  plan of conquest against Wavecrest. The Feathered One 
  and his council are working to increase the Wavecrest 
  
  30
  as one of the most inept hand-to-hand ﬁ ghters in the 
  world. A slightly plump man who loses his breath at 
  the slightest exertion, he has tanned skin, sun-bleached 
  hair and dark eyes. A born sailor and a natural tacti-
  cian, he comes across in person as pleasant and rather 
  harmless—except during naval engagements. His men 
  love him, and most would lay down their lives for him 
  in a heartbeat.
  EXALTED IN WAVECREST
  Terrestrial Exalted are frequent visitors to 
  Wavecrest, and the population is accustomed to the 
  Exalted’s powers and behavior. The question of visiting 
  Dynasts who commit crimes was resolved by the decree 
  of the same Feathered One who made Wavecrest a 
  Realm satrapy. He declared that no Exalted could be 
  sacriﬁ ced to the volcanoes, since they were already 
  divinely chosen and thus belonged to the gods who 
  had selected them. Dynasts who commit crimes are 
  ﬁ ned rather than imprisoned, and reported to the 
  Realm satrap if they refuse to submit to judgment. 
  Outcastes are regarded as unusual but acceptable, and 
  some have risen to high ofﬁ ce—though none yet to 
  the rank of Feathered One.
  Celestial Exalted are regarded with far more trepi-
  dation, not to say outright terror. If they are setting up 
  a permanent base, then word is passed to the satrap 
  with a request for Dynastic assistance, but if they are 
  merely passing through, then Wavecrest islanders are 
  likely to give the Celestial Exalted anything they may 
  ask for, in order to get rid of them. If the local satrap 
  or any of his staff learn of the Celestial Exalted’s exis-
  tence, the satrap is apt to attempt the organization of 
  an impromptu Wyld Hunt from amongst whichever 
  vacationing Dynasts are available—but he’s aware he 
  cannot expect timely aid from the Realm and may 
  be open to looking the other way if the Anathema 
  leave quickly. The volcano gods themselves have a 
  long-standing grudge against the Solars, but are still 
  bound by the oaths that the Eclipse Castes extracted 
  from them centuries ago. Abyssals receive an unusual 
  degree of tolerance, since they are assumed to be from 
  Skullstone, and thus normal visitors rather than deathly 
  invaders. The Lunars amongst the inner tribes haven’t 
  made themselves known as of yet.
  WAVECREST AND THE REALM
  Wavecrest is a satrapy of the Realm, but is ruled with 
  a very light hand. Wavecrest provides a yearly tribute of 
  
  31
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  goods and jade, ofﬁ cially (on Wavecrest) gifts from the 
  republic of Wavecrest to the Realm out of respect and 
  solidarity. This legal ﬁ ction, and the fact that Wavecrest 
  is far from a threat, kept the Scarlet Empress content 
  and allowed Wavecrest to save face. With the Empress 
  gone, Wavecrest’s “gifts” are now less generous. The 
  laxity over the terms of Wavecrest’s satrapy means that 
  the local Realm satrap (Mnemon Dithrem, a noisy and 
  undiplomatic Water Aspect whose sailing abilities have 
  made him undeservedly popular) has less leverage with 
  which to threaten. The Feathered One intends to rees-
  tablish full tribute and make generous gifts to whoever 
  comes out on top of the building power struggle in the 
  Realm, as soon as someone does.
  THE CURRENT SITUATION
  The Feathered One (and indeed, most of 
  Wavecrest) can see that the Realm is on the verge 
  of civil war. The Feathered One doesn’t want to get 
  involved. War with the Coral Archipelago, or with 
  Skullstone, is far closer on the horizon, and potentially 
  far more dangerous.
  Civilized Wavecrest stands behind the Feathered 
  One. Most of the captains and mayors can see that 
  widespread war will be bad for business. If necessary, 
  Wavecrest will pull back and retrench, to protect itself, 
  even if this may cause famine in much of the West; 
  but for the moment, business is normal, and everyone 
  is keeping a weather eye on the horizon.
  THE GULL’S 
  TALON
  Description: A 
  group of five light-
  weight ships that serves 
  as a fast-moving task-
  force for Wavecrest’s 
  navy, working on the 
  in-fast, out-fast prin-
  ciple, then leaving the 
  larger ships that come 
  behind to do the heavy work. 
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Captain Ballash Manhammer, 
  on the Silver Gull
  Armor Color: Gray and blue
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: Five ships, each carrying 40 sailor/
  marines; unarmored, but carrying swords, daggers and 
  lightweight throwing spears 
  Overall Quality: Excellent
  Magnitude: 4
  Drill: 3
  Close Combat Attack: 4   Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: 4 
    Ranged Damage: 2
  Endurance: 7 
  Might: 0 
  Armor: 1 
  Morale: 2
  Formation: Relaxed
  The Wavecrest Archipelago, a Magnitude 6 
  Dominion
  Military: 3     Government: 3     Culture: 3
  Abilities: Awareness 4, Bureaucracy 3, Craft 4, 
  Integrity 3 (Religious Edict 3), Investigation 2, 
  Occult 3 (Supernatural Etiquette 3), Performance 2, 
  Presence 4, Stealth 2 (Spies 2), War 3
  Virtues: Compassion 3, Conviction 4, 
  Temperance 4, Valor 3
  Virtue Flaw: Temperance     Current Limit: 4
  Willpower: 7
  Bonus Points: 30 External Bonus Points: 4
  Notes: The Feathered One and Buruku are sorcer-
  ers with legitimacy, while several of the mayors 
  and sea captains are savants. Wavecrest’s bonus 
  points provide a dot each of Compassion and 
  Conviction, two dots of Performance, and its 
  specialties. The external bonus points provide a 
  dot of Awareness. In the event of a Limit Break, 
  Wavecrest vastly increases its rate of sacriﬁ ce 
  to the volcano gods, potentially leading to riots 
  and civil unrest.
   THE NECK
   The Neck is the northernmost Western satrapy 
  of the Realm, and the second largest after Wavecrest. 
  The Neck is what most people think of when they 
  imagine the West: a chain of small peaceful islands 
  whose inhabitants survive by ﬁ shing and gathering 
  kelp. The tribes of the Neck have lived in relative 
  harmony with the sea that surrounds them for more 
  than two thousand years. Becoming a satrapy of the 
  Realm has done little to change the lifestyle of these 
  tribes, and their willingness to provide regular tribute 
  belies centuries of activity that the Immaculate Order 
  deems heresy. Nevertheless, a long line of obsequious 
  chieftains, annually proffering token payments of coral 
  and cowry shells in exchange for relative autonomy, has 
  succeeded in blunting Realm interest and obfuscating 
  the Neck’s divine dalliances.
  
  32
  HISTORY
  In ancient times, the isles now known as the Neck 
  and the Skullstone and Coral Archipelagos were part of 
  a massive island called Okeanos, which was destroyed 
  by a great catastrophe. The great island shattered, huge 
  swathes sinking forever beneath the waves, and only 
  the highlands and mountains remained. According 
  to legend, the Ocean Father favored Okeanos, and 
  partisans of the Neck claim that being the southwest-
  ern tip of the ancient isle made their lands the most 
  blessed of all. The people of the Neck still call their 
  home islands Okeanos, and respond to “the Neck” as 
  the nomenclature of outsiders.
  The broken islands of sunken Okeanos retained 
  the interest of the Solar Deliberative only long enough 
  for them to mount underwater retrieval expeditions 
  and quarantine Darkmist Isle (see p. 67). Luthe’s 
  decommission and periodic ﬁ ghting with the Lintha 
  largely turned their eyes to the southwestern ocean, 
  with most of their remaining Western attention paid 
  to efforts to expand Creation into the Wyld.
  The Usurpation scarcely raised the importance 
  of the region, though the Usurpation led to changes. 
  During the Shogunate, Western Dragon-Blooded 
  favored the fertile isles of the Wavecrest Archipelago 
  as launching points for attempts to resettle the shat-
  tered Great Western Continent. As Wavecrest was 
  conquered by a succession of daimyos, a few tribes 
  ﬂ ed north to settle the remnants of Okeanos. Fighting 
  erupted between these emigrants and those who already 
  held the northern isles. Whether the newcomers ulti-
  mately triumphed, native groups drove the newcomers 
  out or the two groups joined together, a patchwork of 
  semi-antagonistic cultures evolved. Raids upon nearby 
  isles were common. Too divided to present a threat 
  and having little to offer, the northwestern islands 
  were generally ignored by the Shogunate.
  The Cyanin tribe eventually held sway over six 
  large islands—Amphiro, Suadela, Kerkeis, Petraya, 
  Okirho and Cormorant—and more than two dozen 
  smaller habitable islands. The tribe dominated the na-
  tive Smaragdi and Squalus tribes, and allied with the 
  Porphura, who were given control over Okirho, and 
  the Tautoga, who seized Cormorant. This confederation 
  called itself Okeanos, after the sunken land from which 
  the confederation sprang. If not for the Great Contagion, 
  the Shogunate would ultimately have crushed the rising 
  nation. Instead, the Wyld washed away vast expanses 
  of the West while the populations of its enduring is-
  lands withered before the plague or disappeared into 
  the clutches of raiding Fair Folk. Cormorant was lost 
  to the expanding shadowland of Darkmist, and many 
  smaller isles vanished entirely. Driven to the brink of 
  extinction, the remaining tribes threw themselves upon 
  the mercies of the gods of the sea.
  When the Scarlet Empress ascended her throne and 
  sent her Dragon-Blooded agents to turn the Threshold 
  states into tribute-paying satrapies, she referred to the 
  isles of the West as “that serpentine archipelago that 
  will become a leviathan if left to its own devices.” 
  Cartographers charting Creation’s Wyld-torn shore-
  lines sometimes remarked upon the isles’ physical 
  resemblance to the Empress’s metaphor. Lying at a 
  narrow bend in the long Western chain, connecting 
  the bulk of Skullstone and the Coral Archipelago with 
  Wavecrest and its stretch of northern neighbors, the 
  isles of those who still called themselves Okeanos were 
  named “the Neck” on Realm charts. Those Dynastic 
  savants who remembered Okeanos’s existence reserved 
  the name Okeanos for the lost isle of old.
  Faced with the threat of a growing Imperial ﬂ eet, 
  the elders of the islands saw little choice but to bend 
  to the demands of the nascent Realm. Nevertheless, 
  their chieftain convinced the Empress’s inspectors 
  that his people were of slight interest to the Blessed 
  Isle, as they posed no threat and had little wealth. 
  The isles of the Neck agreed to provide the coffers of 
  the Scarlet Empire with a chieftain’s ransom in cowry 
  shells and coral, and promptly spent the following 
  centuries doing their best to avoid the attention of 
  their remote overlords. More than seven centuries of 
  Realm colonialism have done nothing to sever the 
  ancestral ties of the Neck to their ancient sea gods, 
  and the Realm seems blissfully unconcerned with the 
  heresy that dominates these isles, provided the token 
  tribute arrives on schedule. Individual Immaculate 
  monks or delegates of the Foreign Ofﬁ ce have forced 
  the islanders to build Immaculate shrines and abandon 
  various little gods, but these agents inevitably leave 
  the backwater isles sooner or later.
  Since the disappearance of the Scarlet Empress, 
  the rising power of the Underworld endangers the seas 
  all around the Skullstone Archipelago and the Isle of 
  Shadows. In recent years, tribute-bearing ships could 
  not safely reach the Blessed Isle, and eventually the 
  chieftain stopped sending them. For a full year, the 
  Neck shipped no tribute, though the people carefully 
  hoarded cowrie shells and coral for the time when the 
  Realm would demand resumption. After 15 months 
  with no word from the satrapy, the Foreign Ofﬁ ce 
  
  33
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  dispatched a trio of Dragon-Blooded to investigate the 
  situation. The source of the interrupted trade, a ghost 
  ship of voracious pirates commanded by a deathknight, 
  set upon the Dynasts’ vessel, slaying Peleps Ondani 
  and her son Peleps Baraka. The young Fire-aspected 
  sorcerer Nellens Malakai gained some notoriety 
  for surviving and ﬁ nishing off the deathknight his 
  compatriots had wounded. The ﬂ ow of tribute to the 
  Realm has renewed, but growing unrest in the region 
  threatens to disrupt the shipping again.
  GEOGRAPHY
  The Neck was once composed of the southern 
  highlands of Okeanos before a cataclysm sank that 
  isle beneath the waves. The Great Contagion and 
  the subsequent invasion of the Fair Folk also ravaged 
  the Neck—Cormorant was lost to the Skullstone 
  shadowland and more than a dozen isles vanished into 
  the Wyld forever. Today, the archipelago stretches 
  across the sea more than 500 miles from east to west 
  and roughly 300 miles north to south. While a few of 
  the islands bear the signs of prior volcanic activity, 
  those ﬁ res have been quiescent since the First Age 
  catastrophe. Many barren rocks and coral atolls share 
  these waters, but only 18 of the islands are suitable for 
  continuous human habitation. Five of these islands are 
  signiﬁ cantly larger than the others, ranging from about 
  50 miles to nearly 200 miles long. The largest of these 
  is Amphiro, followed respectively by Petraya, Kerkeis, 
  Okirho and Suadela. The remaining habitable isles 
  are much smaller, each measuring between one and 
  20 miles in length. Most of them are part of a chain 
  called the Cowries, which stretches in a northwesterly 
  curve from Okirho to Petraya.
  AMPHIRO
  Largest of the islands of the Neck, Amphiro is about 
  200 miles long and abruptly widens from about 50 miles 
  on its eastern end to roughly 130 miles in the west. 
  The shoreline is speckled with ﬁ shing villages, most of 
  which are the ancestral homes of Squalus tribesmen. 
  Northern villagers sometimes share a Tautoga heritage, 
  while the southern islanders commonly show signs of 
  mixing with the Smaragdi (particularly in and around 
  the capital city). The steep slopes of a dormant volcano 
  dominate the western hinterlands of Amphiro, and its 
  valleys hold the richest soil the island has to offer.
  SOLID SHELL
  The capital and only true city of the Neck lies on 
  the eastern shore of the southern spur of Amphiro, and 
  is built upon the quake-shattered ruins of a small First 
  Age city. To ward off the rains of the frequent storms, the 
  major streets of the capital are covered with arched roofs 
  of translucent coral. As most of these sheltered streets 
  fan out from the Coral Palace toward the beach, as one 
  approaches from the east the entire city looks somewhat 
  like a shimmering giant shell. The typical inhabitant of 
  Solid Shell is bronze skinned with the gray-green hair 
  of mixed Squalus and Smaragdi descent.
  Coral Palace: Sitting aside the juncture of the city’s 
  main streets with Shell Street, this structure serves as 
  the traditional home of the chieftain of the Neck and 
  quarters for visiting Realm dignitaries. As the name 
  suggests, the palace is constructed of carved blocks of 
  coral, though its courtyard and windows are covered 
  with translucent panels. The building is an attractive 
  manse, but its poor geomantic design wastes much of 
  its Essence on aesthetic nuances. Public record says 
  that its hearthstone, the Jewel of the Wavesong, was 
  lost when one of the early tribute vessels bound for 
  the Realm sank during a storm. While the ship really 
  did sink, the chieftain of that time decided to entrust 
  the stone to a God-Blooded child of the Ocean Father, 
  and so the stone has remained ever since.
  JEWEL OF THE WAVESONG (MANSE •)
  This hearthstone or water resembles a shim-
  mering piece of translucent rose coral. The Essence 
  of this stone subtly infuses the wearer, so water 
  elementals and sea gods react more favorably to the 
  character. The character’s player may apply either 
  a +2 dice bonus to all Social rolls when dealing 
  with such entities, or reduce their difﬁ culties by -1 
  (to a minimum of 1). This includes Charms that 
  must exceed a target’s Mental Defense Values to 
  exert mental inﬂ uence, but the player may not 
  apply both advantages at once.
  Shell Street: The main street of the city is covered 
  for its full length, and its perfectly planned geomantic 
  path runs arrow straight through the eastern port and due 
  west to the Gate of Daana’d nearly 15 miles away.
  Gate of Danaa’d: Where Shell Street meets the 
  western shore is guarded by a great iron gate at the 
  top of a stairway carved from the basalt of the island. 
  The steps lead down to an enormous domed shrine to 
  the Immaculate Dragon of Water. This old temple is 
  a minor manse, though its hearthstone was taken to 
  the Realm long ago.
  
  34
  diet of ﬁ sh and kelp can prove monotonous. Islanders 
  supplement these mainstays with indigenous plants, 
  including pineapples and coconuts, and imported beasts 
  turned wild, such as boars and rabbits. The Realm 
  asks little in way of tribute, but the Neck has little to 
  give. Most tribesmen need work only a few hours a 
  day to earn their livelihood, yet luxuries are hard to 
  come by. Many bright afternoons are interrupted by 
  sudden rainsqualls, while others are overwhelmed by 
  merciless storms. So it is with existence in the Neck; 
  things are easy most of the time but can grow difﬁ cult 
  suddenly. Sail recklessly into the horizon, and it may 
  be your tempest-laden grave.
  Though the people of “the Neck” answer to Realm’s 
  call, they don’t accept that name—the islanders call 
  their land Okeanos, after the great sunken isle from 
  which their homes sprang. Outsiders see the isles as a 
  peaceful collection of islands, though the republican 
  bickering of the ﬁ ve tribes frequently turns into ethnic 
  raiding. Nevertheless, the tribes of self-proclaimed 
  Okeanos are tied together by an intricate web of 
  intermarriages and political compromise. 
  THE PEOPLE
  More than 200,000 natives are spread across the 
  islands they call Okeanos. Historically, they descend 
  from ﬁ ve tribes that time has held to a single fate. 
  Culturally, the tribes have become virtually one, 
  having spent more than a thousand years sharing the 
  same stretch of islands and seducing the same gods of 
  the sea. Yet their sturdy double-hulled outrigger war 
  canoes conduct bloody raids on their fellow tribes as 
  often as they target foreign isles.
  As they all have the bronze skin typical in West-
  ern people, the ﬁ ve tribes of Okeanos are most easily 
  discerned by their varying hair colors. Of course, all 
  of the tribes are extensively intermarried, particularly 
  within the capital Solid Shell. Within each of the 
  tribal enclaves, a single ethnic makeup is prevalent, 
  but one typically ﬁ nds traces of one or more of the 
  other four tribes. 
  Cyanin: Marked by blue hair, the Cyanin origi-
  nally ﬂ ed before the invasion of one of the daimyos of 
  the Shogunate. Coming north to the isles of Okeanos, 
  the tribe seized one island after other, through com-
  bat or alliance. For the following centuries of the 
  Shogunate, the Cyanin were the recognized rulers 
  of the archipelago. Efforts to expand their territory 
  had ﬁ nally attracted the attention of the Shogunate 
  when the Great Contagion struck. The Contagion 
  was particularly brutal to the Cyanin, and other 
  KERKEIS
  Resting at the center of the archipelago, this island 
  is roughly 90 miles long and 50 miles at its widest. 
  Most of the villages here belong to Smaragdi tribes-
  men, though the northern shores are home to Tautoga 
  descended from the refugees of Cormorant.
  OKIRHO
  Dominated by the Porphura during the Shogunate, 
  the northern reaches of this island have since come 
  under mostly Squalus control. The isle is about 80 
  miles long and 45 miles at the widest, and suffers the 
  worst incidences of raiding from island nations to the 
  south. Elders of both major tribes often accuse their 
  opposites of endorsing intertribal raids as well.
  PETRAYA
  Second largest of the islands, Petraya is approxi-
  mately 100 miles long and just over 60 miles wide. 
  Most of the villages here belong to the Smaragdi tribe, 
  but there are still strong enclaves of the blue-haired 
  Cyanin. Although sizable, Petraya is the furthest from 
  the capital, so foreigners rarely visit this island.
  SUADELA
  This oval island is 50 miles long and nearly 30 
  miles at its widest, and lies only 21 miles south of 
  Solid Shell. During the Shogunate, the pleasant isle 
  was the private reserve of the Cyanin, whose chieftain 
  sailed across the channel to govern the capital only 
  ﬁ ve days of every month. The Contagion brought an 
  end to Cyanin dominance, and the Squalus seized most 
  of the island. A number of ancient shrines are carved 
  into the coast, but the natives conduct their rites in 
  secret. Thus far, the Immaculate Order has settled for 
  a single temple on Suadela, set atop its highest hill.
  THE COWRIES
  This chain stretches over a 200-mile arc between 
  Petraya and Okirho and is composed of the better part 
  of the smaller isles of the Neck. When the Contagion 
  brought low the Cyanin, many of their people ﬂ ed 
  retribution and settled on these western isles, now 
  home to an astonishing number of God-Blooded due 
  to their isolation and closeness with the sea. The war-
  riors and elders of the Cowries rarely visit the capital 
  in Solid Shell, but they send great dowries with the 
  brides that tie them to other tribes.
  LIFE IN THE NECK
  Life in the Neck is not exactly idyllic, though others 
  might believe it so. Food is plentiful, even if a steady 
  
  35
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  tribes seized the chance to drive the Cyanin from 
  power. While there are still strong enclaves of 
  Cyanin on the isle of Petraya, most of the tribe 
  has retreated to the Cowries. Whether a result of 
  their location or some unknown predilection of 
  the sea gods, the Cyanin bear more God-Blooded 
  than any of the other tribes. Despite the tribe’s 
  fall from power, they enjoy a certain mystique, 
  in part because their hair shares the hue of the 
  rare blue lobster claws worn by tribal elders and 
  the chieftain.
  Porphura: Most numerous on the island 
  of Okirho, the purple-haired Porphura tribe 
  originally came northward to Okeanos during the 
  Shogunate. An alliance with the Cyanin gave the 
  Porphura control over Okirho, which remained 
  uncontested until after the Great Contagion. 
  Now the Squalus hold the northern section of 
  that isle, and violent (albeit covert) encounters 
  between the two tribes are on the rise.
  Smaragdi: This green-haired tribe is one of 
  the original tribes of Okeanos, mostly found on 
  the isles of Kerkeis, Petraya and Amphiro. The 
  tribe’s elders are inﬂ uential, and typically enjoy 
  close relationships with the chieftain. Histori-
  cally, Squalus detractors have claimed that the 
  differences between the tribes are the results of 
  Wyld taint among the Smaragdi.
  Squalus: Rare records from ancient Okeanos 
  suggest that the Squalus have inhabited the 
  southern reaches of that isle since time im-
  memorial. Their gray hair varies in shade 
  from that of the darkened storm cloud to 
  that of the ﬁ nest ocean mist. Legends at-
  tribute the hue to the blood of the Western 
  war goddess Siakal and various storm gods. 
  The tribe has always dominated Amphiro 
  and has seized Suadela, northern portions of 
  Okirho and a few of the smaller isles.
  Tautoga: Originally, the black-haired 
  Tautoga hailed from the south. During the 
  Shogunate, the tribe invaded the isles of 
  Okeanos and eventually settled on the island 
  of Cormorant. When Cormorant fell into the 
  shadowland of the Skullstone Archipelago 
  after the Contagion, the tribe ﬂ ed southward, 
  mostly settling on the northern shores of 
  Kerkeis and Amphiro. Young ﬁ rebrands fre-
  quently call for the recapture of Cormorant, 
  and tribal elders wearily refuse.
  
  36
  THE SIXTH TRIBE
  The Neck has frequent contact with ocean gods 
  and water elementals, and many inhabitants bear the 
  telltale signs of descent from spirit parents. Dallying 
  with the gods is an accepted way of ensuring the sur-
  vival of the tribes, and priests sometimes practice the 
  arts of seduction as religiously as the art of prayer. As 
  in most of the Western nations, women are considered 
  second-class citizens. In Okeanos, this leads to awkward 
  situations in which young women are regularly forced 
  to give themselves to lusty sea gods and then honored 
  as the mothers of powerful God-Blooded. Due to the 
  political reality of the Realm’s dominance, the children 
  of gods are encouraged to avoid Solid Shell, or any 
  other area they might face foreign discovery. Most 
  choose to reside on one of the Cowries or in villages 
  in obscure corners of larger isles. Hearkening to the 
  call of the sea, many God-Blooded take advantage 
  of their supernatural sea-born talents and serve with 
  ships or raiding parties loyal to Okeanos.
  Occasionally, one of the people of Okeanos Exalts 
  as a Dragon-Blooded. Most of these lost eggs eventually 
  come to the attention of the satrap’s agents, and are 
  transferred to the Realm whenever the next Immaculate 
  monk or Dragon-Blooded naval ofﬁ cer puts into port. 
  Historically, the majority of these lost eggs have been 
  Water Aspects, because such Exalted have been the most 
  likely to seed the isles of the West. The dominance of 
  House Sesus during recent decades has made Fire Aspects 
  nearly as likely. A handful of Water Aspect outcastes 
  live among the God-Blooded of the Cowries, and are 
  treated similarly to the God-Blooded.
  ECONOMY
  There isn’t much of value on the islands of the Neck, 
  but this is a blessing for those who wish to escape notice. 
  In recent years, troubles led to the Neck spending 15 
  months without paying tribute, and it took the Realm 
  that long to take any action over the issue. This sort of 
  delayed reaction is certain to help anyone who might 
  seek to turn the Neck into a base of operations.
  The primary exports of the Neck are cowrie shells 
  and coral beads, particularly as these comprise the 
  tribute that the satrapy pays to the Realm. All sorts 
  of cowries are viewed as symbols of fertility, birth and 
  wealth, though only those with red shells are accepted 
  as currency in the West. Natives value other colors 
  of the shell, but they are typically used for crafts and 
  decorative adornments. Coral carving is a highly devel-
  oped art, and local craftsmen are proud to offer pieces 
  cut from translucent, black or gold coral alongside the 
  more common shades of red, pink and white.
  The Neck produces a small supply of pearls, usually 
  brought up from the sea by God-Blooded divers, but 
  these pearls are almost entirely reserved for sacriﬁ ce to 
  sea gods. Various other crafts are practiced throughout 
  the islands, but these crafts merely satisfy local needs. 
  Production capable of reaching foreign markets is rare. 
  Fishing nets, spears, rope and the like are all manufac-
  tured locally. The citizens of the Neck also build their 
  own ships, favoring double-hulled outrigger canoes 
  for ease of travel among the islands.
  GOVERNMENT
   The islands of the Neck are each ruled by tribal 
  patriarchs, who appoint one of their number as spokes-
  man for the nation. This spokesman is the chieftain 
  of the Neck, who is expected to take a wife from each 
  tribe and to reside in the Coral Palace in Solid Shell. In 
  ancient times, a God-Blooded child of the Ocean Father 
  was selected as the chieftain. As the tribes learned that 
  loyalty to the Realm meant kowtowing to the Immacu-
  late Order and its view of heresy, tribal elders discarded 
  this tradition. For the past two centuries, chieftains have 
  been purely mortal or possessed of divine lineage so weak 
  that it’s impossible to detect. The position of chieftain 
  is not hereditary, and it does not last for a ﬁ xed period 
  of time. Each chieftain serves until death or a conclave 
  of dissatisﬁ ed tribal elders ends his rule.
  In accord with Western chauvinism, tribal leaders 
  and chieftains are always male. Though few would 
  admit it, God-Blooded are female as often as male, and 
  the females’ power is hard to ignore. More than one 
  tribal patriarch serves as little more than a mouthpiece 
  for a powerful God-Blooded woman. Traditionally, 
  each tribal patriarch wears a rare blue lobster claw on a 
  necklace around his neck. As merely one in a million 
  lobsters bears a blue shell, none but the wealthiest 
  could afford one; however, possession of blue lobster 
  claws is illegal for anyone other than an elder. The 
  number of tribal patriarchs varies with the vagaries of 
  history, but current law decrees that there cannot be 
  fewer than 10 from each tribe.
  The people of the Neck call their nation Okeanos, 
  but are forced to recognize their Realm name. Most 
  have become accustomed to saying “Okeanos” when 
  speaking to natives and “the Neck” when speaking 
  to foreigners. Technically, the chieftain of Okeanos 
  is empowered to command the nation’s military. Re-
  alistically, no martial exploit can take place without 
  the support of the individual patriarchs, as most tribal 
  
  37
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  soldiers are loyal to their hometowns above Okeanos. 
  The island nation has a long tradition of allowing 
  pirates to seek haven in its ports in return for the 
  safety of the nation’s ships, and the current chieftain 
  Bua-Shing has even managed to turn pirates into a 
  source of information about his nation’s enemies. Cur-
  rently, he is weighing the value of directly supporting 
  privateers against the risk of the Realm’s wrath should 
  things go poorly.
  CHIEFTAIN BUA-SHING
  Bua-Shing is an older man with the bronze skin 
  and gray-green hair of mixed Squalus and Smaragdi 
  heritage. The chieftain is married to ﬁ ve wives, one 
  from each of the tribes, and eight of his children have 
  yet to reach adulthood. At all times he wears the Collar 
  of Okeanos and a canvas cloak sewn with a fortune’s 
  worth of ivory cowry shells. Bua-Shing is a quick-wit-
  ted politician, with a successful history of weathering 
  the demands of the Realm. He carefully maintains his 
  predecessors’ use of the Collar of Okeanos and mun-
  dane redirection to ensure that the rest of Creation 
  considers the Neck harmless. Since the disappearance 
  of the Scarlet Empress, the chieftain has pushed for 
  regular councils of the tribal patriarchs.
  SATRAP SESUS CHIDO
  Almost two years ago, House elder Sesus Chenow 
  left the Neck to pursue his desire to die in mortal 
  combat. Satrap Sesus Chido, freed from the shadow 
  of his grandfather, has proven incompetent. That he is 
  un-Exalted is evidence of the scant import the Empress 
  assigned the Neck. The fact that he is also a drunken 
  wastrel who failed to keep the peaceful satrapy’s tribute 
  ﬂ owing has drawn the predatory attention of Houses 
  Peleps and Nellens.
  SEA RAIDERS
  Description: Sea 
  raiders are tribesmen 
  from the Neck, who 
  sail swift outrigger 
  canoes against other 
  tribes or ships. They 
  usually attack by sur-
  prise and escape as 
  quickly.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: 
  Varies; usually a heroic 
  mortal or God-Blooded
  Armor Color: Black with coral or shell decoration
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: 25 skirmishers wearing eelskin buff 
  jackets, armed with spears and knives
  Overall Quality: Good (equal to regular troops, Ex-
  alted, p. 279)
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 2
  Close Combat Attack: 3   Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: —      Ranged Damage: —
  Endurance: 5    Might: 0    Armor: 1    Morale: 3
  Formation: These raiders are tribesmen seeking to 
  enrich their tribe or take vengeance upon a foe.
  SHORE GUARD
  Description: The 
  shore guards of the 
  Neck spend most of 
  their time as peace-
  keepers for the tribal 
  leaders, or as a small 
  standing armed force 
  such as might defend 
  the capital. Under at-
  tack by outside threats, 
  shore guards usually act as archers.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Varies; usually a heroic mortal 
  or God-Blooded
  Armor Color: Black with coral or shell decoration
  COLLAR OF OKEANOS (ARTIFACT ••)
  This bright blue necklace of lacquered lob-
  ster claws is the traditional badge of ofﬁ ce of the 
  chieftain of the Neck. According to old stories, 
  the god Baxishun delivered the collar to the only 
  mortal child of the Ocean Father who survived 
  the destruction of ancient Okeanos. Skeptics from 
  the Neck suggest that the collar was recovered 
  from the underwater ruins of the isle, while Realm 
  savants generally ascribe more symbolic power 
  than actual magic to the item. Careful scrutiny 
  reveals that a thin chain of orichalcum alloy holds 
  the interlocking blue claws tightly together. If the 
  possessor of the collar attunes to it, committing 
  one point of Willpower, then he can duplicate the 
  Wise-Eyed Courtier Method Charm (see Exalted, 
  p. 238) at a cost of two Willpower points per use. 
  No Essence is necessary, which allows mortals to 
  make use of the collar, but otherwise the Charm 
  operates as normal.
  
  38
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: 25 skirmishers wearing eelskin buff 
  jackets, armed with self bows and broadhead arrows.
  Overall Quality: Good (equal to regular troops, Ex-
  alted p. 279)
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 2
  Close Combat Attack: —   Close Combat Damage: —
  Ranged Attack : 2        Ranged Damage: 2
  Endurance: 5    Might: 0    Armor: 1    Morale: 3
  Formation: Some shore guards are housed in barracks 
  sponsored by the tribal elders or the chieftain. Other 
  shore guards live with their families and gather daily 
  to report for duty.
  THE TYA
  Women in the West have another option to the 
  patriarchy under which most of them live—a society 
  called the Tya. The Tya choose to live as men. They forgo 
  the protection of their families, give up their dowries and 
  their right to support by male relatives and must never 
  ask a man to ﬁ ght their battles. In addition, the Tya are 
  expected to take an extract made from certain shellﬁ sh 
  that renders them temporarily or sometimes permanently 
  sterile. Members of the Tya are marked by male attire 
  and by the complex swirling tattoos on their cheeks and 
  foreheads. Wild tales of the Tya abound throughout the 
  West; they are said to indulge in perverse and secret rites, 
  to have close ties with the Lintha Family and to assault 
  and mutilate any men who offend the Tya.
  The Tya are quite willing to accept recruits from 
  among women who come from other parts of Creation, 
  not just women of the West. Most Tya become sailors on 
  the ﬂ eet of ships that the group maintains, while others 
  settle on those islands that deal cordially with the Tya. 
  Some live in Tya guildhouses and hire out as guards, 
  mercenaries or similar martial professions. Others become 
  merchants and traders, living above their shops and only 
  visiting the Tya houses for special seasonal ceremonies. 
  THE FIRST TYA
  The woman who gave the group its origin and 
  name, Tya Edralneth, came from Abalone in Wavecrest 
  400 years ago. On the ﬁ rst day of her 35th year, Tya 
  Edralneth walked to the harbor and announced that 
  she had had a revelation. She declared that the gods 
  and spirits of the sea had spoken to her, and said that 
  the only way a woman could sail was by no longer 
  being a woman. Drawing a knife from her belt, she 
  cut her hair and scarred her face and shoulders, then 
  took one of her family’s boats out to sea.
  Her father allowed her to take the boat, but sent a 
  small naval cutter after her to observe what happened. 
  Tya sailed on a course directly for the Neck, passing 
  through the territory of Kallaberse, one of the most 
  dangerous storm mothers near Wavecrest. The cutter 
  following her was astonished to see Tya perform the 
  normal rites of propitiation, and Kallaberse herself rise 
  from the waves to accept them and wave Tya on her 
  way with favoring winds. 
  The Neck, a Magnitude 3 Dominion
  Military: 2     Government: 2     Culture: 2
  Abilities: Awareness 2, Bureaucracy 2 (Trib-
  al Interrelations +1), Craft 2 (Shell and 
  Coral Goods +1), Integrity 1, Investigation 1 
  (Information from Pirates +1), Occult 3 (Sea-
  related Magics +1), Performance 3 (Swaying Sea 
  Gods +1), Presence 2 (Being Obsequious +1), 
  Stealth 1 (Appearing Insigniﬁ cant to Outsiders +1), 
  War 1 (Naval Defense +1, Protecting Tribute-
  bearing Vessels +2)
  Virtues: Compassion 3, Conviction 2, Temper-
  ance 3, Valor 2
  Virtue Flaw: Compassion     Current Limit: 4
  Willpower: 6
  Bonus Points: 15 External Bonus Points: 7
  Notes: Chieftain Bua-Shing is a sorcerer with 
  legitimacy. If other sorcerers are needed, they 
  may be drawn from the tribal elders. Powerful 
  God-Blooded with connections to the sea make 
  for interesting savants. The dominion’s bonus 
  points are tied up in its last dots of Performance 
  and Presence, and in its specialties. The external 
  bonus points are derived from Realm protection 
  (which is reﬂ ected in its tribute-related War spe-
  cialty), pirate connections (for its Investigation 
  specialty) and the power of divine ancestors (pro-
  viding the last dot of Occult). Should the Neck 
  ever adopt a more aggressive stance, the bonus 
  points dedicated to the dominion’s Presence and 
  Stealth specialties would soon be reassigned, and 
  the Neck would lose the Realm’s backing.
  The people of the Neck are strongly devoted 
  to their extensive families. Many citizens have 
  domestic ties that are also religious in nature. 
  When in Limit Break, the people of the Neck will 
  not risk harm or offense to their kindred even if 
  it hurts their place in the world.
  
  39
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  The scandal brought Tya to the Feathered One’s 
  attention, and he was faced with a difﬁ cult decision. Of-
  ﬁ cially endorsing Tya’s actions would set public opinion 
  against him. If he had her arrested for improper conduct, 
  then he might offend the gods. After consultation with 
  the priestesses of Wavecrest, he announced that Tya 
  Edralneth had clearly been favored by the heavens and 
  the oceans, but only those women who were prepared 
  to cut off their hair, mutilate themselves, destroy their 
  fertility and otherwise deny all their rights as women 
  could be permitted to behave in such a way. 
  Other women came to join Tya over the years. As 
  their numbers grew, they established guildhouses on 
  other islands and set up in different trades. At ﬁ rst, all 
  the other women took Tya’s name as a preﬁ x to their 
  own, but as the years passed, “Tya” became a title for 
  the group. The original self-inﬂ icted scarring become 
  extensive tattooing, with the only caveat being that 
  the tattoos be unmissable and obvious. Tya herself was 
  lost in a shipwreck while captaining one last voyage, 
  but to this day, a tablet of nacre or jade or ivory with 
  her name on it hangs in each guildhouse.
  THE TRUTH
  The storm mother Kallaberse wanted someone to 
  carry private messages between her sisters and her; Tya 
  wanted an excuse to be able to sail. Kallaberse sought 
  Tya out in dreams and offered her a bargain. If Tya was 
  prepared to give up all the privileges of being a woman 
  of the West, and live as a man, then Kallaberse and 
  all Kallaberse’s sisters would treat Tya as a man and 
  allow her passage. Tya agreed, and staged her dramatic 
  “divine revelation.” 
  Tya herself was secretly carried down to Kallaberse’s 
  court, where she still lives as a favorite of the storm 
  mother. Although Tya is wrinkled and bowed by age, 
  she is still healthy and vigorous, transformed into 
  a little god through the Endowment spirit Charm, 
  suspiring Essence from Tya veneration. Kallaberse has 
  given Tya gull-spirit servants who carry messages to 
  the Tya elders, and she acts as a liaison between the 
  storm mothers and the Tya. Kallaberse values Tya’s 
  perspective on mortal matters, but keeps her secluded 
  to preserve their secret. From time to time, Kallaberse 
  allows Tya to explore the far depths and the distant 
  West, with a guard of siaka-spirits and elementals.
  Only the Tya elders know that Tya still lives, 
  and whom she serves. The Tya are not minions or 
  mindless servants of the storm mothers; the Tya 
  simply undertake occasional commissions, carrying 
  messages or goods. 
  BECOMING TYA
  Any woman wanting to become a Tya will be as-
  sessed carefully by the Tya themselves. Women who 
  actually want to be Tya are expected to understand what 
  is involved (loss of all female rights and protections, loss 
  of fertility and permanent tattooing) and to be able to 
  explain precisely why they want to take this option. 
  Noble or wealthy families are generally reluctant 
  to allow their daughters to become Tya, and some 
  women must escape vigilant guards to join. Many 
  poor families, by contrast, care little if their female 
  children join up, and some even encourage them. It 
  is also considered an eccentric but permissible option 
  for widows who will otherwise be thrown on their 
  male relatives’ resources; such widows often pursue 
  land-bound trades rather than sea-based ones.
  A woman who wishes to become a Tya must take 
  a formal oath before ﬁ ve other Tya, preferably includ-
  ing a Tya elder, renouncing all local protections and 
  rights as a woman, and must drink the traditional 
  sterility-inducing shellﬁ sh extract. She then receives 
  the tattoos that mark her as a Tya. In emergencies, 
  she may delay tattooing and sterilization.
  The polite way to address a Tya is as “Tya [full 
  name]”; a Tya elder is “Elder Tya [full name].” Tya 
  simply call each other by their personal names.
  TYA TATTOOS
  The tattoos worn by all Tya are a diluted version of 
  the scars Tya Edralneth inﬂ icted upon herself. Their pur-
  pose is to mark the wearer, not to decorate her. However, 
  as time went by, the tattoos have become more personal-
  ized and more stylized. Tya tattoos typically run across 
  the forehead and cheeks and down the neck, shoulders 
  and arms, and can extend over the chest and back. All 
  Tya have basic jagged-line tattoos on their cheeks and 
  forehead, in imitation of scars; as Tya get older, many 
  add to these tattoos and modify them to soften their 
  impact, or to make them more personal. Common 
  themes include seaweed, stormclouds, lightning and 
  woven patterns. The tattoos are never pictorial. Some 
  Tya become specialized tattoo artists, and have even 
  provided designs for iconic Dragon-Blooded imagery 
  that has gone all the way to the Blessed Isle.
  TYA LOYALTIES
  Above everything else, the Tya are loyal to the Tya. 
  (They do not refer to each other as “sisters,” since they 
  no longer consider themselves female.) Any Tya who 
  is caught betraying other Tya, or abandoning them in 
  a position of danger, is viciously punished. 
  
  40
  Although an individual Tya has the right to swear 
  her loyalty or declare her allegiance to someone else—
  the Feathered One, the Silver Prince, a Solar—she will 
  never be trusted in quite the same way afterward by other 
  Tya. However, a Tya who has been enslaved or forced 
  into obedience will be rescued if at all possible.
  TYA TRADES
  The Tya are undoubtedly best known for their sailors, 
  and the society owns a ﬂ eet of roughly 100 ships, which 
  are crewed solely by Tya. While their primary business is 
  trade, they also have sidelines in mapmaking, exploration 
  and the escort business; women who must travel by sea 
  are often sent on Tya ships by their male relatives. The 
  Tya also produce skillful shell-carvers, physicians and 
  deep-sea divers. Tya sailors occasionally serve on non-Tya 
  ships, mixing freely with male crews. This can be subject 
  to misinterpretation, not to mention outright scandal, 
  and younger Tya are not encouraged to do this.
  The Tya maintain guildhouses in most major ports 
  of the West. These serve as lodgings for any visiting 
  Tya, drop-points for messages and trade and places 
  where would-be Tya can learn about the society and 
  apply for membership. Tya guildhouses tend to walk a 
  delicate line between self-advertisement and digniﬁ ed 
  restraint, making themselves available without actively 
  recruiting in the street.
  THE TYA ELDERS
  There are 25 elders, most of whom are also house-
  wardens (in charge of a guildhouse). When one dies, the 
  others choose a new Tya to replace the deceased. A new 
  elder is bound by heavy oaths of secrecy before being 
  told the truth about the storm mothers (see p. 39) and 
  the original Tya. Some elders are static, occupying ﬁ xed 
  geographical posts, while others sail with the Tya ﬂ eet. 
  Notable among the current Tya elders not mentioned 
  elsewhere are Elder Sarelle, originally from Coral, who 
  travels with the Tya trading ﬂ eet, and has numerous 
  spirit allies; Elder Arris Sharkfang, originally from the 
  Haslanti League, who brings an outsider’s perspective 
  to many Western issues; and Elder Tehona, once from 
  Wavecrest, who journeys from guildhouse to guildhouse 
  to check that they are functioning properly. All elders 
  are mature women in their 50s, with the complex tat-
  toos of long-standing experienced Tya.
  TYA AND OTHERS
  Reactions to the Tya vary throughout the West. 
  In Wavecrest, the Tya are accepted as a normal part 
  of society. Highly placed Wavecrest ofﬁ cials sometimes 
  hire Tya as independent advisors or agents. Although 
  
  41
  CHAPTER TWO • JEWELS IN THE FOAM
  there are several Tya guildhouses in Wavecrest, the 
  oldest and central one is on Pearl, and contains copies 
  of all Tya records. Elder Gneatha, the housewarden, 
  is in her 80s, and too old to sail or ﬁ ght now. She 
  retains a razor-sharp mind, however, and is skilled at 
  cartography. She handles politics with ease, taking 
  care to stay in the Feathered One’s favor.
  Coral lies at the other end of the spectrum. Inhab-
  itants treat the Tya as exotic aberrants and probable 
  lunatics; they’re encouraged to keep to the foreigners’ 
  district. The housewarden of the guildhouse in Azure 
  itself is Elder Frantha, an ex-courtesan who was scarred 
  when a customer threw vitriol at her. She’s a good 
  manager who knows how to handle the local authori-
  ties and where to place the appropriate bribes.
  The Neck treats Tya much as Wavecrest does, 
  viewing them peaceably as an eccentric part of society. 
  The main guildhouse is on Amphiro, and is considered a 
  vacation spot by Tya passing through. The housewarden 
  in the main guildhouse is Elder Xula, a one-eyed Tya with 
  a history of trading with the Fair Folk. Xula coordinates 
  incoming trade vessels, outgoing trade goods and a group 
  of Tya pearl-divers who work across the Neck. 
  Skullstone welcomes the Tya, treating them 
  equally with male sailors and allowing them free access. 
  While the Tya don’t like Skullstone any more than 
  other visitors do, the trade opportunities there are too 
  good to ignore. (Fortunately for the Tya, no female 
  undead inhabitants of Skullstone have petitioned to 
  join the Tya yet.) The housewarden in Onyx is Elder 
  Cathlan, an upright but aging Tya. 
  Other parts of the West tentatively if sullenly 
  accept the Tya as a gods-permitted anomaly, and do 
  normal business with them. The Tya are wary of the 
  Guild; however, the Guild’s trade links mean that the 
  Tya can’t risk offending it.
  TYA AND OTHER FEMALE SAILORS
  Tya don’t necessarily object to the status quo in 
  much of the West. Many consider that there is a per-
  fectly good option for women who want to sail or have 
  male rights: become Tya. Not all Tya are as friendly 
  and supportive as female sailors from elsewhere might 
  expect. Most Tya become ﬁ rm supporters of the social 
  order, feeling that everything is for the best. To ask for 
  more than the Tya option—to claim male privileges 
  as well as female protections and potentials—is greedy 
  and unreasonable and unnatural. The Tya make an 
  exception for Dragon-Blooded women, acknowledg-
  ing that the Terrestrial Exalted are a case apart and 
  cannot be strictly subjected to normal rules. 
  TYA RELATIONSHIPS
  Just because Tya have renounced their fertility doesn’t 
  mean that they have renounced their passions. However, 
  the sort of man who would sleep with a Tya is too often 
  the sort of man who’s doing it out of perverse curiosity. As 
  a result, Tya often turn to each other for relationships, or 
  patronize courtesans. Sometimes Tya formally marry local 
  women, but this is usually a business arrangement. Tya 
  have also been known to take water spirits and little gods 
  as lovers, and on rare occasions, this has even resulted in 
  the Tya becoming pregnant. Even amongst Tya without 
  occult experience, such pregnancies are usually accepted, 
  albeit with a share of awkward silences.
  THE CURRENT SITUATION
  The Tya have the storm mothers as patrons, they 
  have allies across the West and they’re a thriving, 
  growing society. However, the Tya are not blind to 
  the growing threat of civil war in the Realm, which 
  would disrupt trade and hamper their operations, and 
  they are very conscious of the rising levels of aggres-
  sion between Wavecrest and Coral. A war throughout 
  the West would quite possibly destroy the Tya in the 
  general strife, or force them into becoming one side’s 
  permanent subordinates.
  THE WAVEDANCER
  Description: A 
  single lightweight Tya 
  courier ship; more 
  heavily manned and 
  armed than usual, as it 
  is frequently given the 
  duty of carrying small 
  but important items, 
  or messages for storm 
  mothers. All Tya on 
  board are experienced hands.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Captain Tya Atrisa
  Armor Color: No armor, but all aboard wear plain gray.
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: One lightweight ship carrying 40 
  Tya, two of whom are thaumaturges; all are trained 
  ﬁ ghters, and carry swords, daggers and ﬁ shing spears. 
  Overall Quality: Excellent
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 3
  Close Combat Attack: 4   Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: 4        Ranged Damage: 2
  Endurance: 5    Might: 1    Armor: 1    Morale: 2
  Formation: Relaxed
  
  42
  
  43
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  CHAPTER THREE
  TRAITS
  CHAPTER THREE
  CHAPTER THREE
  AN OCEAN OF SILVER 
  AN OCEAN OF SILVER 
  AND JADE
  AND JADE
  THE CORAL ARCHIPELAGO
  The day will come when the people of the Coral 
  Archipelago will reclaim the glory that they once knew, 
  and drag the West into the future they alone can see. 
  A future without barbarism, without the Fair Folk’s 
  constant raiding. A future of civilization and law, where 
  excellence is rewarded and weakness is expunged.
  Coral is the second-largest state in the West, com-
  posed of 23 islands (all but ﬁ ve are small coral atolls) with 
  a total population of nearly a million; the population of 
  the nearby islands under Coral’s protection total another 
  few hundred thousand. Coral has little arable land, and 
  the archipelago has always been dependent on the seas 
  and its neighbors. Swept by cold rain and chill winds 
  for much of the year, the inhabitants of Coral go forth 
  in their ships built from the islands’ iron palm trees to 
  take their due tribute from the ocean around them, and 
  expand their zone of power. They value excellence and 
  power, but see no reason to give pity or mercy.
  HISTORY
  During the First Age, when the Solars bound the 
  West together into a glorious network of prosperous 
  isles, Coral was a lynchpin. The administrators of Coral 
  helped coordinate the movement of food and necessities 
  throughout the Western archipelagos, they kept a careful 
  eye on the fringes of the Darkmist shadowland, they 
  organized trade and shipping between the North and the 
  West and they viewed their surroundings with paternal 
  eyes, anticipating the day when all would enjoy the 
  beneﬁ ts of Deliberative protection and civilization.
  That day never came. The Usurpation devastated 
  the economy and geography of the West. Terrible 
  weapons destroyed islands, shifted weather patterns and 
  
  44
  rendered impassible important trade routes. The Coral 
  Archipelago was thrown back on its own resources, bereft 
  of supply lines. Previously, the men had controlled the 
  shipping and ﬂ eets while the women had supervised the 
  land-based bureaucracy. Suddenly, the women’s share 
  of the work became irrelevant, while the men’s ships 
  and sailing became vital.
  Over a mere three mortal generations, equitable 
  trading quickly became protection and tribute, or open 
  piracy. The surrounding islands pledged their allegiance 
  to Coral, paid heavy tribute and became the archipelago’s 
  protectorates. In turn, Coral’s ﬂ eets protected the islands 
  from freebooters. The sailors of Coral began to see 
  their mission as not only that of feeding their people 
  but also as the task of bringing proper leadership to 
  the whole West, raising it above barbarism and back 
  to order. Opportunistic older captains, land-bound by 
  age or injury but unwilling to give up command, took 
  control of the islands while younger men were out at 
  sea, seizing land-bound leadership roles from the Coral 
  women. Gender relations in Coral took a blow from 
  which they never recovered.
  When the Shogunate offered patronage, Coral was 
  quick to accept, hoping for a return to the days of glory 
  and stability. The people of Coral were as quickly disil-
  lusioned. Although the Shogunate demanded little (at 
  ﬁ rst) in terms of tribute, there was no true reestablish-
  ment of trading links, no real overarching authority and 
  most of all, no provision of magical resources or Exalted 
  forces to pacify the area. The Coral Archipelago had 
  to struggle along as it had been doing before. As the 
  Great Contagion struck, Coral’s dependence on the sea 
  rather than the land became a blessing. People died as 
  they did throughout the West, but there was enough 
  food to go round. The inhabitants survived on the 
  bare minimum of ﬁ sh, harvested seaweed and piracy, 
  but they did survive. Raiding dropped to a minimum, 
  as every island that Coral could reach with its ﬂ eets 
  became a potential pesthole and source of plague, and 
  every ship was needed to bring back food or defend 
  against the Fair Folk.
  The Scarlet Empress’s assumption of power elimi-
  nated the Fair Folk threat and allowed the archipelago to 
  expand again. The Empress sent Coral no more than the 
  minimum of embassies; she offered it terms as a satrapy, 
  but the government of the time refused, declaring politely 
  that Coral had no need of the Realm’s protection—”for 
  as our ﬂ eets have defended our waters for these past two 
  hundred years, so shall we continue.” Citing the distances 
  involved (almost 3,000 miles of pelagothrope-infested 
  ocean), Coral’s lack of resources and more pressing 
  concerns to the North and East, the Empress accepted. 
  A string of gifts from each new governor and favorable 
  trade arrangements kept her satisﬁ ed.
  The Guild, on the other hand, did not ignore 
  Coral. Members of the Guild viewed the archipelago 
  as a resource that could be developed to dance to their 
  tune, seeing its attitude toward piracy and control as 
  
  45
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  compatible with their own commercial attitudes. They 
  promptly funneled jade and goods through Coral, boost-
  ing it as a trade center. This investment allowed the 
  captains of Coral to upgrade their ships and improve their 
  trading links, making connections with Chiaroscuro, 
  Nexus and further beyond. Azure, the largest island and 
  de facto capital of Coral, became home to a vigorous 
  slave trade. Within a century, Wavecrest had formed 
  the Western Trade Alliance in response.
  The Guild has continued its investments, and 
  Coral has continued to expand. However, the Sea 
  Lord and Coral’s administrators view the Guild’s jade 
  as precisely what it is: an attempt at buying Coral. They 
  use the bribe, but they have not been bought. They still 
  pursue their own vision, of Coral restored to its former 
  power, ruling the West, raising the other islands from 
  barbarism to excellence and even, in time, becoming 
  a peer to the Realm.
  GEOGRAPHY
  The Coral Archipelago is hard, weather-beaten 
  land, with cliffs sculpted by the ocean and nigh-sterile 
  soil. After centuries of habitation, Coral has been 
  heavily developed, and the only true patches of forest 
  are the iron palm plantations. Plantation owners hire 
  (or kidnap) sorcerers to renew blessings of fertility on 
  the soil. Elsewhere, the atolls are ugly compounds of 
  defensive fortiﬁ cations and pleasure palaces; docks 
  are lined with ballistae and catapults, guard-posts and 
  signal-towers, and vibrant towns are ﬁ lled wall to wall 
  with taverns, brothels, casinos, restaurants, gladiatorial 
  pits, merchants and gutters for the poor. 
  Most large tracts of arable grow iron palms, but 
  wealthy families own the smaller pieces. They live 
  behind compound walls, where the women of the 
  households cultivate whatever will grow and placate 
  the gods and elementals of the crops. Some families 
  demonstrate their ostentatious wealth by devoting the 
  area to ﬂ owers and landscaping, while others cultivate 
  their self-sufﬁ ciency, growing food. For an outsider to 
  be invited into the private gardens of a wealthy Coral 
  family is an even more signiﬁ cant demonstration of 
  trust than simply being invited into a house. The rest 
  of the land doesn’t produce enough to grow anything 
  more than a few straggly berry bushes or stewable weeds. 
  Only the poorest of the poor would descend so far as 
  to take advantage of those.
  AZURE
  The capital of the Coral Archipelago, Azure is the 
  name of the principal island and the largest city on that 
  island. The Sea Lord dwells there, and many of the 
  plutocrats spend much of the year on Azure, politick-
  ing, plotting and working to expand their own islands’ 
  interests. It’s also the location of the Mouth of Siakal, 
  where the Navy brings its booty and keeps its records. In 
  addition to offering staggering luxury side-by-side with 
  harsh brutality and remorseless standards of excellence, 
  Azure is also the only place to buy a privateer’s license.
  Azure is a port city that caters to a pirate’s every 
  need. The people know how to entertain a crew: get them 
  laid, liquor them up and take their money. However, 
  Azure isn’t the best place to do business unless you are 
  an ofﬁ cial Coral pirate. Selling anything that looks as 
  if it were obtained by piracy, from a piece of booty to 
  a pirate ship, is certain to attract the attention of the 
  Admiralty Court (see p. 49).
  The city of Azure shows the impact of centuries of 
  wealth. High watchtowers at the ports are full of defen-
  sive weaponry, but also ﬂ y the silk standards of famous 
  pirates currently in residence. Iron palm plantations 
  and wealthy mansions lie at the center of the island, 
  taking advantage of the rare fertile soil. While there are 
  a dozen other ports on the island, all visitors ﬂ ock to the 
  port of Azure itself, and no notable pirate or plutocrat 
  would go anywhere else. The city’s gambling houses are 
  famous, and a newcomer to the archipelago can build 
  his reputation there, on how much he is prepared to 
  stake and how much he wins.
  The other ports are for basic trade—food, cloth, 
  metal and other necessities—and house some of the best 
  shipbuilders in the entire Coral Archipelago. Famous 
  pirates come to them to commission new crafts. The 
  Asberote family, on the northeast coast of Azure, work 
  with iron palm wood and imported iron from the distant 
  north to build galleons that can resist the most vicious 
  of gales, while their rivals, the Suskin family, specialize 
  in speed, building lightweight cutters.
  ELSEWHERE IN CORAL
   Mantaville, on Orei, is the second-biggest gambling 
  city after Azure, and Mantaville’s residents claim their 
  city has better odds and fairer houses. Newstone is the 
  southernmost port on Azure, and is the ﬁ rst resort for all 
  ships coming back after raiding Wavecrest or the Neck. 
  Wavecrest captains journey to Newstone under ﬂ ags of 
  truce, in attempts to buy back particularly valuable items 
  of cargo before they’re shipped deeper into the Coral 
  Archipelago. Dawn, on Serene, handles much of the 
  slave trade, and has a high Guild presence. Lately, with 
  the slave trade slowing down, Dawn’s fortunes have begun 
  to dwindle, and Serene’s plutocrat (Kamishe Turannon, 
  
  46
  a Guild member himself) is growing concerned. Zakalar, 
  on the island of Wheel, is the best iron palm source in all 
  Coral, better even than the Azure plantations, and houses 
  the most innovative shipwrights. While the shipbuilders 
  on Azure have made their reputation and are secure in 
  their fame, Zakalar shipwrights are young and inventive, 
  ready to break new ground in the ﬁ eld. Ironground lies to 
  the far east of the archipelago, and receives much of the 
  shipping coming in from the North, particularly metal 
  and gems. The capital of Forge supplies all Coral with 
  weapons and ship-ﬁ ttings.
  Among the better-known smaller islands of the 
  Coral Archipelago are Inero, Pakuta and Bait. Inero 
  lies to the north, and is prone to violent storms and 
  icy winds in winter. The inhabitants have developed 
  ways of drying seaweeds to produce workable threads 
  and fabrics, and also keep vast colonies of silkworms in 
  underground halls heated by great charcoal furnaces; 
  many poor children die young, slowly poisoned by 
  smoke and fumes while keeping the furnaces stoked. 
  Pakuta was an important nexus for messenger ships and 
  thaumaturgical communications during the First Age; 
  the smoldering ruins have long since been built over, 
  but investigations into the caves beneath the atoll turn 
  up occasional small First Age wonders. The plutocrat of 
  Pakuta, Damilo Engib, has all known entrances to the 
  caves guarded and attempts to keep a monopoly of all 
  ﬁ nds. Bait lies on the southeast of the archipelago, near 
  the Protectorates, and serves as an entry-point to the 
  archipelago for many immigrants. Because of this, the 
  island’s administration has become particularly skilled at 
  directing workforce to openings across the archipelago, 
  and Sea Lord Nemoran himself values Bait’s ability to 
  keep a ﬁ nger on Coral’s need for labor.
  THE CORAL PROTECTORATES
  Although Coral has many petty islands in all di-
  rections (perhaps 200) that pay it tribute and accept 
  Coral’s protection, the band of 75 small islands to the 
  south and east is known to all citizens of Coral as the 
  Protectorates. These islets tend to be counted in as part 
  of Coral by most of the West—both politically and 
  geographically. They’re a subjugated group of separate 
  island-states, protected from the Fair Folk and from 
  pirates, but otherwise subject to Coral’s will.
  During the First Age, these islands served a combi-
  nation of purposes for the empire-building Solars. Some 
  islands were private dwellings, sheltering manses or 
  laboratories; others were producers of food, fertile and 
  prosperous, if not on the scale of Wavecrest; and others 
  were trade outposts and transit points for merchants 
  and explorers on their way out toward the further West. 
  The islands were hit particularly hard by the Usurpa-
  tion. The Terrestrial Exalted tore apart those islands 
  in search of hidden Solars. With the whole Western 
  Ocean in chaos, their homes wrecked and their trade 
  cut off, the islands turned to the nearest center of power: 
  the Coral Archipelago. Each island kingdom pledged 
  its fealty to Coral, until the majority were all sworn to 
  provide tribute.
  Coral played the islands against each other, offer-
  ing them separate terms and secret arrangements in 
  order to stop them forming a power bloc that might 
  have hampered negotiations. In a few cases, powerful 
  leaders were assassinated, or “pirate raids” were used 
  to panic the island population into coming to terms. 
  Coral’s motives were a combination of genuine protec-
  tion and not wanting to lose potential tribute. While 
  the islands weren’t on a par with Wavecrest, they were 
  more fertile than Coral itself, and regular supplies from 
  the Protectorate islands made Coral’s survival and 
  expansion far more sustainable.
  Over the centuries, the Protectorates have ex-
  panded, and Coral has also claimed other small islands 
  within its reach in all directions. The Protectorates 
  don’t have voting rights in the Sea Lord’s election, 
  or any formal representation, though they can bribe 
  plutocrats. The leader of each island is free to govern 
  as he wishes, as long as the island pays Coral’s tribute. 
  Open treaties with “the enemies of Coral” (in practice 
  Wavecrest, the Fair Folk and hostile pelagothrope tribes) 
  are forbidden, but under-the-table deals are common, 
  and some Protectorate islands are nests of barbarism, 
  ancestor-worship or dream-eaten slaves. When these 
  are found, Coral roots them out with its convict bat-
  talions; if necessary, every man and boy on a turncoat 
  island is put to the sword.
  The Protectorates are free to deal with the Realm if 
  they wish, and Immaculate missionaries have found the 
  islands fertile ground for conversion. However, those 
  Protectorate islands with widespread conversion to the 
  Immaculate faith have their tributes raised, and their 
  citizens are less likely to be allowed to immigrate to the 
  Coral Archipelago. Such islands often end up isolated 
  from their neighbors, mistrusted by other Protectorates 
  and beholden to Immaculate funding necessary to pay 
  the raised tribute. A few such islets have attempted to 
  secede, placing themselves under the Realm’s protec-
  tion and refusing Coral’s guiding hand. Such islands 
  inevitably suffer heavy attacks from anonymously 
  Coral-funded threats, and rarely last a year.
  
  47
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  Notable Protectorates include the following:
  • Finreef, to the north. Siaka spirits are common 
  near Finreef, and many humans have traces of God-
  Blood, with harsh gray skin, white teeth and small 
  dark eyes.
  • Shensu, to the northeast, near the Nacre Whirl-
  pool. The Whirlpool is a Fair Folk outpost, and Shensu 
  is constantly on watch for Fair Folk raids; men from 
  Shensu are accustomed to harsh discipline and constant 
  vigilance, and rise swiftly in the Coral Navy.
  • Jushir and Kanir, twin islands to the southeast, 
  alike in all but one point. Kanir has converted to the 
  Immaculate faith, and hosts a monastery for the Order 
  that serves as a jumping-off point for missionaries. Jushir 
  remains steadfast in worship of the Ocean Father and the 
  gods of sea and sky. Despite this, the two islands remain 
  in close accord, even as Kanir’s tribute rises every year.
  • Arendin, to the southwest, on the edge of the 
  main Protectorates. Arendin looks toward the reefs 
  fringing Skullstone; the island hosts a small garrison 
  and serves as a watchpost, and has part of its tribute 
  rebated in consequence.
  • Komannu, far to the north-northwest. Kom-
  annu has secret trafﬁ c with the Haslanti League, and 
  Komannu’s leader, Savaron Iruka, wishes to break free 
  from Coral’s hegemony and become a lynchpin for trade 
  between Skullstone and the North.
  Tens of thousands from the Protectorates want to 
  become full citizens of Coral. They dream of rich and 
  brilliant futures as Coral pirates, merchants or anything 
  that could support a life of luxury, and they’re prepared 
  to take any job, however menial, as long as it means 
  working within the Coral Archipelago itself. Coral ap-
  preciates this constant ﬂ ow of cheap labor, and although 
  the bureaucracy conducts regular checks for spies from 
  rival nations, there’s always room for more immigrants. 
  And the dream is true; a Protectorate immigrant with 
  skills, ability and drive can rise to become a plutocrat 
  or even Sea Lord. Coral truly values excellence, and 
  will accept it from wherever it may come. But for every 
  immigrant from the Protectorates who achieves success, 
  hundreds of others work hard and die in poverty.
  GOVERNMENT
  The Coral Archipelago is ruled by the Sea Lord, 
  an elected dictator. He’s normally chosen based on 
  promises of large public works and lavish festivals, 
  funded mainly through tribute and plunder, sources of 
  income that also provide the islands’ high standard of 
  living without collecting taxes. This is an occasion for 
  candidates to show that they can raise Coral to hitherto 
  unknown degrees of wealth and prosperity. The Sea 
  Lord is expected to be an administrator of such a high 
  standard that he can easily afford the public works and 
  the festivals; keeping the basic ﬁ nances running and 
  the islands fed and defended is assumed to be the bare 
  minimum. Each successful Sea Lord raises expectations 
  a little higher.
  The Sea Lord must be a martinet; it is his duty to 
  keep the islands fed and defended, and in the worst 
  cases, to decide who and where must be sacriﬁ ced for 
  the greater good. When the Fair Folk attacked, it was 
  the Sea Lord’s duty to decide where the lines of defense 
  should be drawn, and which islands or Protectorates 
  had to be stripped of defenders in order to save others. 
  The Sea Lord must appease the Realm while protecting 
  Coral’s interests, must coordinate strategies to oppose 
  Wavecrest’s barbaric expansion and bribery and must 
  remain vigilant against the threats of Skullstone and 
  the Fair Folk. The Sea Lord also assumes the rank of 
  THE LAST GUY
  The previous Sea Lord was DiBello Gerarde. 
  His activities in spearheading trade with the 
  North pulled Coral out of a 20-year ﬁ nancial 
  recession, and many believe he’d still be Sea Lord 
  if he hadn’t declined to run in the most recent 
  election. He has not made public his reasons 
  for stepping down from the post. Gerarde and 
  Nemoran share an uneasy relationship—the Sea 
  Lord knows the current ostentatious lifestyles of 
  Coral’s citizenry owe much to Gerarde’s efforts, and 
  Nemoran’s military ambitions would be without 
  backing were Coral’s armies not bolstered with 
  the wealth Gerarde earned. And yet, Nemoran 
  worries that if Gerarde—who had few military 
  ambitions himself—were to run for the position 
  of Sea Lord again, he’d probably win. Avishander 
  has no intention of losing the Sea Lord title now 
  that it’s his, and privately debates ending Gerarde’s 
  life to simplify things. Perhaps, Nemoran muses, 
  he can make an assassination look like the work 
  of a rival power. On the other hand, rumors persist 
  that Gerarde has the protection of a supernatural 
  sort. The credulous even say an Anathema. So 
  Nemoran turns his attention outward while he 
  waits for further news.
  As for what Gerarde is planning, only he 
  and his most trusted conﬁ dants know.
  
  48
  High Priest of the Ocean Father, and must serve the 
  god by strengthening the inhabitants of Coral.
  The current Sea Lord is Avishander Nemoran, 
  who made his way up from raider captain to mer-
  chant lord to Sea Lord, and has drawn on his Guild 
  connections for every obol that they’re worth while 
  preparing for Coral’s expansion. He believes ﬁ rmly 
  in Coral’s superiority, and feels eventual conquest of 
  the West is not merely foreordained, but obvious. His 
  commanding presence, effortless charisma and ability 
  to think laterally and consider new options serve him 
  well. In public, he is a model of orthodoxy, devoting 
  himself to Coral, wealth, power and self-indulgence, 
  while in private he is willing to negotiate (temporary) 
  treaties with other nations, bargain with anyone who 
  has something to offer him and even employ female 
  agents and admit their utility. At the moment, he 
  sways both the plutocrats and the military, and is one 
  of the most popular Sea Lords in Coral’s history. He 
  is a devoted worshipper of the Ocean Father, and has 
  made large contributions to the temple orphanages 
  out of his own pocket.
  THE PLUTOCRATS
  Each of the 23 islands in the archipelago contrib-
  utes a representative to the Council of Plutocrats, who 
  assist the Sea Lord. These representatives are elected 
  from among the wealthiest inhabitants of each island; 
  technically they are all equal, but in practice the rep-
  resentatives of the larger islands have more inﬂ uence. 
  Bribing plutocrats is an accepted practice and a perfectly 
  normal transaction.
  The Council of Plutocrats has no actual power 
  to pass laws, but advises the Sea Lord in all matters. 
  Councilmen provide the information the Sea Lord uses 
  to make all necessary decisions, coordinating their own 
  spy networks, diplomats, sea captains, traders, petty gods 
  in their debt and other sources of data. A plutocrat may 
  shade information in order to promote his own island’s 
  interests, but may not lie or conceal information that 
  damages Coral’s interests as a whole. Plutocrats have 
  unparalleled opportunities to enrich themselves and 
  expand their power base, but must ultimately serve 
  Coral rather than themselves, or face ﬁ nancial ruin 
  and execution.
  
  49
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  While the Sea Lord may rule as he sees ﬁ t, the 
  council has the right to call for a new election, and can 
  do this as often as once every two years. A Sea Lord 
  who disregards the council’s wishes will face regular 
  elections, and the associated huge expenditures, until 
  he is defeated.
  On each separate island, all men are free to do as 
  they wish, but the military bureaucracy imposes the 
  law and extracts ﬁ nes and indentures. The plutocrat of 
  any particular island cannot give actual orders, but he 
  can make his wishes clear to the other rich merchants 
  and raider captains.
  Notable plutocrats include Miess Daka of Shellshat-
  ter, who made his money in the silk trade, both legal 
  and illegal; Kanate Dosso of Ironground, who holds the 
  lucrative contract to supply the Coral Navy’s weapons, 
  and has plans to strike at shipping of Northern iron if 
  forthcoming expansion by Coral results in more orders; 
  Yeggra Hinsit of Ashheart, a slaver and once inhabit-
  ant of Wavecrest; and Mura Soultwister of Cold Bay, 
  an immigrant from the Protectorates who retired from 
  piracy into plutocracy but still goes out on raiding 
  cruises to keep in trim.
  THE ADMIRALITY COURT
  The Admiralty Court regulates privateering. It 
  hears charges against privateers, provides letters of 
  marque for those independents willing to pay the 
  costs and makes sure the government gets its cut of all 
  booty—half the take, delivered promptly and with full 
  records. The Admiralty Court also revokes letters of 
  marque and executes privateers who have crossed the 
  line, or indentures them to serve out their lives among 
  the convict battalions. For the most part, the Admiralty 
  Court is notoriously lenient. As long as the privateers 
  have their papers in order, no blatantly friendly ships 
  are attacked (or at least, the attack cannot be traced 
  back to Coral) and the government gets its cut, then 
  the Admiralty Court looks the other way.
  The head of the Admiralty Court is Shanston Red, 
  also known as “Old Blood,” a vicious legal hardliner. 
  The joy with which he previously pronounced ﬁ nes and 
  indentures is now delight in ensuring that Coral gets 
  every jade obol, every silver dinar, every cowrie, every 
  slave and every last splinter of the archipelago’s share. 
  While only moderately wealthy by Coral’s standards, 
  he is the recipient of an endless stream of bribes from 
  pirate booty—the rarest of foods, the most exotic of 
  fabrics, the most beautiful of concubines—and lives a 
  life of dissipation and debauchery. This does not affect 
  his performance in court; he stares from the bench with 
  knifelike nose and raddled face, his eyes as keen and 
  black as a siaka’s.
  THE MILITARY BUREAUCRACY
   The other check on the Sea Lord’s power is Coral’s 
  military bureaucracy. This grew in parallel with the 
  administration network that actually feeds the archi-
  pelago and controls its ﬁ nances. The law states that 
  no Sea Lord may ever have served in the military. The 
  soldier-bureaucrats are loyal to Coral ﬁ rst, and to the 
  Sea Lord second. This division of government between 
  the military and the administration is one of the main 
  points that has stopped Coral launching any major 
  invasions so far. 
  Avarice goes hand in hand with literacy. No raider 
  can work out the proﬁ t share coming to him without basic 
  arithmetic. No pirate can sign a set of articles without 
  reading it ﬁ rst. Even the poorest citizen of Coral can 
  count up the money that’s due him, and looks down 
  on any fool incapable of mastering the written word 
  and numbers. On a higher level, the government and 
  military need to keep a ﬁ rm and absolute record of the 
  loot coming in. From talents of jade to cowrie shells, 
  everything that goes in or out of Coral’s ﬁ nances is 
  recorded, and the ﬁ nes for falsifying or damaging state 
  records are high.
  Coupled with the ﬁ nancial records are the per-
  sonal ones. The military bureaucracy keeps ﬁ les on all 
  its sailors, all Coral’s licensed privateers, and all the 
  vices of high-ranking visitors who may be vulnerable 
  to pressure later. Even if Coral’s diplomats choose not 
  to descend to overt blackmail, they can always use the 
  information for bribery.
  The military bureaucracy also provides Coral’s law 
  enforcement. This is frequently a posting for hard cases 
  who have disobeyed a captain at sea one too many times, 
  or forward-thinking types who want a low-risk, high-
  opportunity position. The usual way for the Guard to 
  resolve ongoing ﬁ ghts is to club everyone unconscious 
  and drag them off to the cells. Wealthy participants have 
  the option of paying the Guard a bribe to be merely 
  reported and not physically dragged away or paying the 
  Guard a large bribe not to be reported at all. 
  THE SIAKA AUDITOR
  One heavy granite building on Azure can be entered 
  only by mute slaves and by Querin, the current Siaka 
  Auditor. Querin’s role in the administrative bureaucracy 
  is to continually audit everything, randomly picking 
  transactions to seek out patterns of embezzlement or 
  weakness. Querin supervises a group of experts who 
  
  50
  never leave the Auditors’ Building, but who have 
  all the documents of Coral brought in to them for 
  checking. His role was instituted 300 years ago, after a 
  clerk discovered corruption and Wavecrest-instituted 
  blackmail compromising two plutocrats.
  The auditors who work for Querin are all female. 
  They live out their lives inside the Auditors’ Building, 
  slave-born infants or bastards brought as children and 
  tested to see if they have any talent for mathematics. 
  Those with a knack for numbers and facts are educated 
  inside the building, grow up there and die there. The 
  others are sold off as slaves to the Guild. These women are 
  totally uninﬂ uenced by the rest of Coral’s society, have 
  no ties to anyone outside the building and are taught 
  that they perform a vital service for Coral. If they show 
  too great an interest in the people they are auditing or 
  the world outside, they are quietly executed.
  cally) to all, diplomats in Coral are drawn from a few 
  speciﬁ c families and groomed from childhood, trained 
  in martial arts and military tactics, as well as the arts 
  and graces of dozens of different nations. On reach-
  ing their teens, these ofﬁ cers serve as spies, escorts for 
  elder statesmen and even elite military forces, leading 
  strikes against valuable targets. The most senior answer 
  to the Sea Lord alone, working as his top-level agents 
  and commanders.
  TAXES
  There are no taxes in the Coral Archipelago. Any 
  man, rich or poor, can go about his business and never 
  pay a single coin to the government throughout his 
  life. The government is entirely supported by the trade 
  ventures it undertakes, the loot and slaves it sells, the 
  casinos and brothels it runs and loans from the Guild. 
  Coral is the ultimate dream of the self-made merchant, 
  a place where the government doesn’t tax people on 
  their success—merely on their failure. 
  In practice, while nobody has to pay the govern-
  ment any money, donations to individual bureaucrats 
  (clerks, auditors, guards, permit issuers, plutocrats and 
  the like) make life go much more smoothly. A function-
  ary can’t refuse to do work just because he hasn’t been 
  bribed, but he can reschedule it to after all his other 
  tasks. The usual amounts for most bribes have become 
  settled through custom, and (for a small donation) 
  visitors can obtain a list of the expected gratuities for 
  most public services.
  THE FLEETS OF CORAL
   Spurred on by dreams of supremacy and the urge 
  to power, Coral’s sailors spread out across the West. 
  Even the merchants of Coral are part of this invading 
  force; they will cooperate with the Navy or with pri-
  vateers to help Coral gain control of an area. One of 
  Coral’s classic gambits, frequently employed on future 
  Protectorates, is to have the Coral Navy or raiders cut 
  off regular shipping to a particular area and proﬁ t from 
  raiding the supply lines, while the merchants replace 
  the usual providers and sell their wares at a high price 
  to the captive market.
  NAVY
  In Coral, the merchants are wealthy and powerful, 
  the administrators are valued and the raiders are popular 
  heroes—but no career is more truly esteemed than that of 
  the Navy. In addition to keeping a share of all goods that 
  they capture (recorded by the military bureaucracy), after 
  two decades of honorable service all recruits are allowed 
  MILITARY AND CIVIL ADMINISTRATION
  The gap between the military bureaucracy 
  (headed by the Admiralty Court) and the civil 
  administration (headed by the Sea Lord) dates 
  back to the Usurpation and the collapse of the 
  West. When Coral’s administration lapsed, and the 
  women in charge lost all status, the Navy and the 
  raiders were forced to develop their own methods 
  of handling ﬁ nancing and law. Meanwhile, the 
  merchants and land-bound men built up their own 
  systems to keep Coral fed and defended; what had 
  been a shameful task ﬁ t only for women eventually 
  became a worthy job suited to intelligent men. (By 
  this time, women were considered capable only 
  of running households.)
  The civil administration and the military 
  bureaucracy both value their autonomy, and turf 
  wars over areas of budgeting or legality are common 
  between plutocrats and the Admiralty Court. Part 
  of the Sea Lord’s function is to coordinate the two 
  so that they work together for Coral’s good, rather 
  than tearing Coral apart, and the Coral diplomats 
  (see below) are his most-used tools.
  THE DIPLOMATS OF CORAL
  Coral’s military provides its diplomats as well as 
  its bureaucrats. Coral diplomats negotiate treaties in 
  other countries on the Sea Lord’s orders, but Coral also 
  expects them to act as spies, assassins and anything else 
  that their nation may require. Unlike the rest of Coral 
  society, where upward mobility is available (theoreti-
  
  51
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  though the pirates may hold such victims for ransom or 
  sell them as slaves. The pirates are prepared to take a 
  tribute from an enemy ship rather than attack it, if the 
  enemy captain is willing to negotiate. Once in battle, 
  all options are open, but before and after battle, a man 
  of Coral is expected to keep to sea discipline, obey his 
  captain’s orders and not waste resources, whether they 
  are booty or possible slaves. Privateers are far more vi-
  cious and wasteful, and confusion between the two has 
  done much to worsen Coral’s reputation.
  After paying a hefty licensing fee, privateers are 
  ofﬁ cially recognized, and are able to sell their booty 
  in Coral’s markets. If they are particularly successful, 
  Coral’s ambassadors (often the famed diplomats) may 
  even ransom the privateers and their ships from enemy 
  powers, should the privateers be captured. Privateers 
  must give half their proﬁ t from sold goods and slaves, 
  and half the sale price of their prize ships, to the Sea 
  Lord. There are Guild representatives in Coral ports at 
  all times, and if a privateer can’t ﬁ nd a buyer, the Guild 
  is always happy to buy booty at half cost. Even though 
  this can mean a loss, many captains are glad to get rid of 
  troublesome or bulky cargo this way. In an emergency, 
  non-privateers can purchase interim letters of marque, 
  at the cost of 60% of the price of the goods.
  Because of the rapidly changing and essentially 
  unorganized nature of these privateers, it is difﬁ cult to 
  estimate their numbers. At any given time, there are 
  between 250 and 400 ships operating under Coral’s 
  letters of marque.
  SELLING STOLEN GOODS
  Selling pirated goods is costly business in Coral for 
  anyone who doesn’t have letters of marque and reprisal. 
  Only citizens of Coral, or those with a privateering 
  license, can legally sell pirated goods. The penalty for 
  violation is everything the seller owns, together with 
  indentured servitude if his worldly goods don’t match 
  the value of whatever he was trying to sell.
  ALLIED TRADERS
  The captains of vessels that regularly deal with 
  Coral receive special papers to identify them as Coral 
  allies. When a pirate vessel closes to within hailing 
  distance, the captain of an allied vessel announces 
  that he has a certiﬁ cate of passage, and the pirates 
  send over a representative to inspect it. If it is valid, 
  they release the ship. These papers are changed every 
  month, so old papers cannot be kept or copied. They 
  are sold directly on the Sea Lord’s authority, and any 
  captain willing to pay the price can buy immunity from 
  to retire with substantial pensions. These generous terms 
  make Coral’s navy attractive to individuals from across 
  Creation, and pull a constant inﬂ ux of raw young men 
  from both Coral itself and the Protectorates.
  The Coral Archipelago’s navy is the largest in all the 
  West, numbering more than 1,500 ships. Perhaps 30% 
  of ships are triremes, 40% biremes and 5% are trireme 
  tenders, dedicated to the upkeep and condition of the 
  triremes. The remaining ships are small craft manned 
  with marines. It would seem almost impossible to main-
  tain with the archipelago’s population and resources; 
  however, the high esteem in which a naval career is 
  held, the constant inﬂ ux from the Protectorates and 
  the recruits from across Creation not only keep up the 
  numbers but allow expansion. In particular, the Coral 
  Navy attracts experienced men from other navies who 
  lost their posts or their ships on grounds of immorality, 
  greed or anything except incompetence.
  The Coral Navy accepts only male recruits. Apart 
  from a general starting prejudice against foreigners, 
  anyone can achieve any rank in the navy. Wealth can 
  buy rank, or effort, ability and courage can earn it, but 
  bloodlines and family have nothing to do with it. Some 
  of the most famed and feared captains in Coral’s Navy 
  have been foreigners who rose to power through their 
  own merits.
  Admiral Tirak commands the Coral Navy. A man 
  of moderate height and build, on ﬁ rst acquaintance he 
  doesn’t seem the sort of person who could strike fear into 
  the hearts of hardened pirates, or quiet a quarterdeck 
  with a single word. However, there is something feral 
  about him; only the bravest man can meet his eyes and 
  not recoil. Tirak doesn’t walk, he stalks, and the wise 
  know to scatter when they see him coming. He doesn’t 
  ﬁ ght his own battles (he has bodyguards for that), but is 
  a premier strategist, both at sea battles and at Gateway, 
  and his skill at coordinating navy, pirates and privateers 
  has made him a powerful and respected man. Tirak as-
  sesses everything in terms of potential future forces, and 
  has private ﬁ les on all known Exalted in the West.
  PIRATES AND PRIVATEERS
  In Coral terminology, Coral’s pirates are citizens of 
  Coral who make their living raiding on the high seas, 
  while privateers are non-citizen pirates who have sworn 
  an oath never to interfere with ships belonging to Coral 
  or Coral’s current allies. Citizens of Coral draw a clear 
  distinction between the two. Other Western nations 
  are not so discerning.
  Pirates from Coral generally hold to certain stan-
  dards. They don’t kill victims who have surrendered, 
  
  52
  Coral’s pirates. The Sea Lord maintains tight control 
  over the trade; anyone caught buying or selling coun-
  terfeit certiﬁ cates is declared an enemy of Coral, with 
  a price on his head.
  As a matter of policy, the Coral Archipelago gives 
  all its allies papers. In the recent time of political con-
  fusion and Realm civil strife, Sea Lord Nemoran has 
  cut down on the number of such papers, and even the 
  Guild has only had papers granted to a few Syndics, 
  giving them a monopoly on trade. Everyone else must 
  purchase papers, but for the general convenience, 
  diplomats from the Coral Archipelago are available in 
  every port. The Realm has not yet taken formal notice 
  of this clear provocation.
  SOCIETY
  Coral’s society is founded on the urge to rise in 
  power, ability and wealth. Citizens of Coral draw clear 
  distinctions between sharp practice, intelligent precau-
  tions and the extraction of maximum beneﬁ t from a 
  situation on one hand, and treachery, deliberate waste 
  and betrayal of Coral on the other. Everyone admires an 
  achiever; priests of the Ocean Father speak movingly of 
  the god’s control of every wave of the ocean throughout 
  the West, while children are raised on stories of boys 
  similar to them who rose to become heroes and leaders 
  through effort and ability. The traders of Coral have 
  no time for charity deals, unless it’s in the interest of 
  future goodwill and pressure, but see it as simply natural 
  to want to make the best deal for themselves that they 
  can, and expect any intelligent dealer to do the same. 
  The poor are ground into the gutter, sold as slaves or put 
  to indentured labor, and the rest of society approves of 
  this, since the weak deserve no better. Mutual assistance 
  is a virtue, but pity is a waste of effort. And ultimately, 
  Coral knows that it will rise to lead the West.
  Other than the Sea Lord and the plutocrats and 
  military, Coral has no nobility or other ofﬁ cial class 
  distinctions, and no aristocracy of blood. On the other 
  end of the scale, the state is rich enough that nobody 
  starves, but those who depend on the Sea Lord’s bounty 
  for sustenance must wear special clothes in shades of 
  drab brown to mark their shame, and are given the 
  most menial jobs (or make-work, if no useful work is 
  available) in government-funded business ventures. 
  The only way for the poor to gain any status or respect 
  is to join the military. The wives of such poor men are 
  housed in barracks at the state’s expense, and set to 
  sewing uniforms and sails.
  Coral has no formal universities, and the only 
  schools are harsh temple-run ones. Those who can 
  
  53
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  afford to hire private tutors for their children, and 
  several families often join together and share funds to 
  hire tutors for their sons. Girls are educated to handle 
  household accounts and local training, but nothing 
  further. The Naval Academy in Mantaville handles 
  state-ﬁ nanced young ofﬁ cers from Coral’s navy and 
  self-ﬁ nanced Coral pirates, teaching such matters 
  as navigation, ship-handling, discipline, accounting 
  and the laws of dozens of nations; the academy has 
  provided diplomats and naval captains to Coral over 
  the centuries.
  Traditional dress on Coral is a naval uniform, for 
  men; pirates wear similar clothing in a more dashing 
  cut, while merchants wear naval uniforms of heavy 
  silks and imported wools. A man’s clothing should 
  demonstrate his personal wealth and the skills of his 
  women. Women wear long heavy dresses outdoors, and 
  thin linen or silk indoors.
  GENDER AND MARRIAGE
  Women are lesser beings in Coral. It isn’t meant 
  unkindly; any decent man feels properly responsible 
  for the women in his care, and treats them well, gives 
  them little indulgences, trusts them to administer his 
  household and so on. But he wouldn’t consider letting 
  them sail, or take up a military career; a true man doesn’t 
  force women into roles that they aren’t ﬁ tted for, where 
  they would be unhappy.
  Only men can vote. Women may own property, 
  but are technically under the authority of their fathers, 
  brothers or husbands. Women’s only path to autonomy is 
  acquiring wealth, and two of the major trading ﬁ rms are 
  headed by women, but even prosperity doesn’t make them 
  equal to their male counterparts. Women are expected to 
  associate only with other women and with their family 
  members; custom restricts women to domestic duty and 
  household ﬁ nances. Only lower-class women go to the 
  market, or run stalls or shops. One of the more publicly 
  acceptable ways of gaining a social position is for a woman 
  who’s the wife or kin of a famous pirate captain to join a 
  trading ﬁ rm and handle his ﬁ nances, booty-fencing and 
  land-bound investments.
  Polygamy is acceptable, and a man is free to take 
  as many wives as he can afford. Marriage is registered 
  at a local temple of the Sea Lord, in order to avoid 
  later disputes about inheritance and ﬁ nances. Divorce 
  is also carried out at a temple of the Sea Lord, and is 
  available to both men and women on simple declara-
  tion; on dissolution of a marriage, both parties regain 
  the original money that they owned at the time of the 
  marriage. Naturally, the man keeps any proﬁ t that has 
  accrued in the meantime. Children must be recognized 
  by the father to be legitimate; if not, they are left on 
  the streets to die, or thrown to the sharks. Some sla-
  vers conduct regular sweeps of the streets, collecting 
  abandoned babies and toddlers, and sell them to the 
  Guild or the Fair Folk.
  LAW AND JUSTICE
  All crimes committed in the Coral Archipelago 
  carry a monetary value; everything is a crime against 
  the state, and must be repaid to the state. Instead of 
  such common punishments as exile, mutilation, slavery 
  or death, criminals in Coral are either ﬁ ned or must 
  become indentured servants for a speciﬁ ed duration. 
  Once they have repaid the value of their crime in 
  money or labor, they are free. Half the ﬁ ne for a crime 
  is paid to the Sea Lord and half to any victims. (In the 
  event of murder, the victim’s half of the money goes 
  to any dependents of the victim; when a man is killed 
  and this is paid to his wife, it’s often referred to as “a 
  whore’s dowry,” given how many women have to turn 
  to prostitution to support themselves.)
  For a healthy young man convicted of a crime, 
  an alternative to indenture is military service in the 
  archipelago’s convict brigades. Convict-soldiers are 
  used as shock troops and laborers; if they capture an 
  amount of booty equal to their indenture, they are 
  WOMEN AND POISON
  Many women are forced to go into business 
  or take the reins of their households after their 
  husbands or other male authorities have died. 
  Some women decide to speed up the process. 
  Since gardening, herbalism and healing are all 
  acceptable occupations for a woman behind her 
  household walls, many women of Coral know 
  what substances can make a man ill, what can 
  keep him ill and what can kill him. If the man 
  is known to be sick or a habitual user of drugs 
  already, so much the better.
  Of course, this is a gamble. The household 
  may simply fall apart in the wake of the man’s 
  death, or the woman may be unable to take up the 
  business or trading that the man used to handle. 
  Also, if the woman is convicted of poisoning, she 
  will be indentured to service in a state-run brothel 
  for life, assuming that her family doesn’t simply 
  kill her once her crime has been discovered, and 
  then pay the ﬁ nes for it.
  
  54
  immediately freed. They pay the Sea Lord loot equal 
  to the cost of their indenture, and may keep any ad-
  ditional treasure. However, convict brigades are rarely 
  deployed in situations where taking loot is likely, and 
  those troops not killed suppressing rioters or quelling 
  rebellious natives are often reduced to near-cripples 
  by the manual labor to which they are set when not 
  deployed in the ﬁ eld.
  Visitors are just as subject to the laws of Coral as 
  permanent residents. However, visitors are subject 
  to a higher rate of ﬁ nes. Visitors are also permitted 
  to hand over slaves or personal servants to serve out 
  indentures on the visitors’ behalf; when the slave or 
  servant ﬁ nishes the indenture, he or she becomes a free 
  citizen of Coral.
  LEISURE
  The largest cities of Coral, including Azure, are 
  infamous as places where every possible commodity is 
  for sale: drugs, slaves, lives, deaths. When the citizens 
  of Coral work, they work; but when they relax, they 
  give themselves over to leisure. Drugs are common, and 
  while only a fool would incapacitate himself, physical 
  enhancers of all kinds are frequently used. The natives 
  are as keen to visit the brothels, casinos and other hives 
  of leisure as any foreign visitors are, and as long as a 
  man can pay, he can do as he wishes.
  The rich, the foolish and the desperate also come to 
  wager their fortunes in the archipelago’s gambling halls. 
  In addition to more conventional forms of gambling, 
  some risk-takers attempt to redeem their monies in the 
  infamous black casinos, where losers forfeit their lives, 
  and the wealthy watch their inferiors play games of life 
  and death. Two of the largest casinos have highly popular 
  back rooms where the jaded and the reckless come to 
  bet all manner of intangible commodities, including 
  their youth, talent, health and sanity.
  RELIGION
  The Ocean Father is revered by all Coral island-
  ers, male or female, rich or poor; he was patron of 
  the original Western Continent, and Coral in turn 
  shall rule the entire West. Local art portrays him as 
  a fabulously rich sea captain, with his loyal crew and 
  sons following him into battle. In Coral hagiology, his 
  wife is Sadara, the local earth goddess, and his sister 
  is Siakal, the war goddess. Sadara is the Cold Mother 
  who brings forth strong sons to serve her husband, and 
  nourishes the iron palm trees, while Siakal is the Mis-
  tress of Slaughter and Sharks who brings destruction 
  to the enemies of Coral. Women sacriﬁ ce to Sadara 
  and deal with the spirits of the land, but men sacri-
  ﬁ ce to Siakal. Lesser spirits garner the odd prayer or 
  offering from captains passing through the gods’ part 
  of the sea, and a libation of wine is always made in 
  iron palm plantations before any trees are cut down. 
  Shrines to petty deities of gambling are also common 
  in almost all casinos (except Plentimon’s) and always 
  have a few sticks of incense lit.
  There is no such thing as religious charity to the 
  poor; there are, however, harsh temple-run schools 
  for promising boys who couldn’t otherwise afford any 
  education. The temples train them for the military or 
  for piracy. Successful graduates of these schools are 
  expected to make generous donations in later life, and 
  in return skim the cream of the crop of new graduates 
  for their own ships and enterprises.
  BET YOUR LIFE
  The two largest of the black casinos, the Div-
  ing Sea Snake in Mantaville and Vason’s Luck in 
  Azure, house one of a pair of First Age artifacts 
  found 200 years ago. These artifacts enable gam-
  blers to lose and win almost anything imaginable. 
  Rich old men frequently bet large portions of their 
  wealth against impoverished youths willing to bet 
  a decade or more of their own lifespans. These two 
  casinos—or, indeed, any of the black casinos—are 
  a haven for Fair Folk. The Coral Archipelago 
  has no objection to welcoming the soul-drinking 
  creatures of fathomless chaos through its portals, 
  as long as they pay (cash) for any crime that they 
  commit, and otherwise abide by the nation’s laws. 
  One of these, Blue Sanata, is actually a spy for the 
  Pearl Court of the Fair Folk, and can put seekers 
  in touch with it—for a price, of course. 
  However, the most important inhabitant of 
  the black casinos is Plentimon of the Dice, the god 
  of gambling. He spends three seasons of the year 
  in mortal form, managing the Diving Sea Snake 
  Casino. The Diving Sea Snake offers generous 
  credit to anyone Plentimon deems eligible. He 
  treats failure to pay those debts as a personal affront 
  to his honor, and those who do not pay after the 
  ﬁ rst warning die in horriﬁ c and unlikely accidents. 
  Plentimon himself acts as a broker for gambling 
  involving the Fair Folk, or the First Age device 
  in his basement, but will also gamble personally 
  with anyone who cares to take the risk. 
  
  55
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  SLAVERY
   Slavery is not only legal in the Coral Archipelago 
  but one of the nation’s big industries. While no native 
  of Coral may be enslaved (indenturing is considered 
  quite different), citizens of Coral are free to own as many 
  slaves as they can afford. Most slaves provide manual 
  labor in the iron palm plantations or the shipyards, 
  where they are worked until they drop and then sold 
  off to the Fair Folk or sacriﬁ ced to Siakal.
  Occasionally, a slave turns out to be a Coral citizen 
  who was kidnapped and sold while unable to prove his 
  true identity. This is a high crime, and is investigated 
  with the utmost rigor of the law; anyone convicted of 
  selling a citizen into slavery will be ﬁ ned everything 
  he possesses and indentured for life.
  WEALTH
  Many outsiders see Coral’s insistence on wealth and 
  power as indicators of Coral’s morality, and stereotype 
  citizens of Coral as greedy merchants or avaricious 
  pirates. A successful man of Coral, be he sailor, mer-
  chant or pirate, believes that effort and excellence are 
  rewarded. Hard work, ability and intelligence bring 
  success and wealth as a matter of course. If a citizen of 
  Coral is wealthy, it is because he has achieved it himself, 
  and he therefore deserves that wealth, and deserves the 
  respect that goes with it. The rich and powerful have 
  proven their ability and fought their way to the top; 
  the poor have failed and merit nothing better than a 
  menial job sweeping the street or laboring on the iron 
  palm plantations. 
  The lower classes have different views, but in Coral 
  the poor are voiceless.
  FOREIGN RELATIONS
  Having the Coral Archipelago as a neighbor is like 
  having siaka in the water nearby. The inhabitants of 
  Coral are pirates, hard dealers, plutocrats, hungry for 
  conquest; however, they offer protection from their at-
  tacks, and protection from the Fair Folk and the undead. 
  The islanders’ rule is stern, but under it, everyone is 
  free to rise. Whether by coming to terms with them, or 
  defending against them or paying them off, everyone 
  within the range of their ships must make some sort of 
  response to them.
  CORAL AND THE REALM
  While Coral understands the Realm’s general at-
  titude of paternal rulership, Coral views the West as 
  Coral’s own territory—past, present and future. Thus, 
  Coral treats the Realm more as an equal power than as 
  a vastly superior one. The Sea Lord sends regular gifts 
  to the Empress, and orders Coral pirates to avoid obvi-
  ous Realm shipping (privateers are less discreet), while 
  looking for an opportunity to expand Coral’s inﬂ uence 
  and further shut the Realm out of the West. 
  For the Realm’s part, some young patricians and 
  even Dynasts ﬁ nd Coral’s attitude intoxicating, viewing 
  Coral through romantic eyes as a meritocracy, a place 
  where anyone can rise to his true level of ability. 
  CORAL AND OTHERS
  Coral’s expansionist attitude toward other nations is 
  fuelled by slightly different reasons in each case. Individ-
  ual outsiders are welcome to Coral, however—especially 
  those able and willing to aid Coral in its designs. Those 
  who have the strength and ability can win respect, and 
  those who have the money can buy it.
  Wavecrest: Coral views Wavecrest as a nest of 
  barbarism, where the inhabitants appease gods in primi-
  tive ceremonies by throwing people into volcanoes. 
  Wavecrest’s navies are admirable, and its agriculture 
  will some day help feed the entire West under Coral’s 
  supervision, but Wavecrest’s political system is mori-
  bund and its alliance-building is a hindrance to Coral’s 
  ambitions. Coral doesn’t dislike Wavecrest: Coral pities 
  Wavecrest, and looks forward to some day bringing its 
  people under proper guidance. In the meantime, Coral 
  works to break down the trading links that Wavecrest 
  promotes, in order to substitute Coral’s own.
  The Lintha Family: Bad as Wavecrest is, the 
  Lintha are worse. They’re demon-worshipping inbred 
  cannibal maniacs and an outright cancer on the ocean. 
  True pirates of Coral dislike being compared to these 
  scum, and take any excuse to sink their ﬁ lthy ships. In 
  the Sea Lord’s opinion, the entire race will need to be 
  rooted out; even the women and children are hopelessly 
  fouled. But in the current political situation, Coral is 
  negotiating for an alliance, to keep the Lintha Family 
  at bay while Coral expands and consolidates further. 
  The Neck: Coral has a long-standing tradition of 
  raiding the Neck. While it’s not an ofﬁ cial Protectorate, 
  Coral does a great deal to ward off Fair Folk attacks, and in 
  return claims what Coral considers its due in food, young 
  men and women and other resources. People of Coral view 
  the inhabitants of the Neck as untaught and rural, distant 
  relatives who need a ﬁ rm hand and education.
  Skullstone: Coral views Skullstone with justiﬁ ed 
  wariness, watching it for signs of planned expansion or 
  possible war. Coral’s ships treat Skullstone galleys with 
  careful respect, and Coral pirates and privateers only 
  raid Skullstone ships when the Coral pirates can be sure 
  
  56
  of doing so without getting caught. No sane citizen of 
  Coral wants to be the one who starts a war.
  The Guild: The Guild gains from an expansion-
  ist Coral, but not from Coral becoming the dominant 
  power in the West and having no further need of it. 
  The supply of slaves from Azure has slowed down, as 
  the people of Coral have chosen to conscript prison-
  ers of war or use them for labor rather than sell them 
  on. Trade has slipped in favor of aggressive piracy and 
  conquest—not that the Guild disapproves of piracy, but 
  it doesn’t bring in the regular ﬂ ow of jade that trade 
  routes do. The Guild is on the verge of using its loans to 
  the Sea Lord as leverage to contain the current political 
  situation. Some of the Guild’s merchant princes prefer 
  more forceful options, ranging from crushing tariffs to 
  assassination, but conservative voices argue the uncer-
  tainties of war make such options a bad investment. In 
  either case, the Guild is sending agents into Coral to 
  be ready for all eventualities.
  The Tya: Coral has two major issues with the Tya; 
  they’re closely allied to Wavecrest, and they’re women. 
  The archipelago tolerates a single Tya guildhouse on 
  Azure, and accepts visiting Tya with money to spend, 
  but ﬁ rmly discourages recruiting, and expects the average 
  Tya to be unstable, insane, a spy or all three.
  The Emissaries of Perfect Water: Coral admires 
  the Emissaries—the Coral Navy’s constant battles 
  with pelagothropes and Fair Folk raiders amongst the 
  islands of the outlying Protectorates ensure the people 
  of Coral have a healthy respect for anyone willing to 
  devote his life to protecting Creation from the Wyld. 
  The Emissaries don’t fully reciprocate. Coral does a ﬁ ne 
  job of defending its territory from the Wyld, which is 
  an argument for leaving Coral be—it’s one less front 
  for the Emissaries to worry about. On the other hand, 
  Coral is a major Guild foothold, Coral’s connections 
  to the Realm seem stronger the closer the Emissaries 
  investigate and should Sea Lord Nemoran turn his 
  full concentration toward expansion, Coral is likely 
  to become as much a threat to the rest of the West’s 
  well-being as any foreign power. The ideological conﬂ ict 
  between Emissaries from Coral and from elsewhere now 
  builds toward a schism—a crisis not a single Emissary 
  wants, but none see how to avert.
  EXALTED IN CORAL
  Coral society’s opinions of the Dragon-Blooded are 
  complex. Coral admires personal excellence but dislikes 
  inherited merit. The Dragon-Blooded possess both in 
  equal measure. Coral culture exerts subtle pressure to-
  ward its outcastes—especially its female outcastes—to 
  
  57
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  make the journey to the Blessed Isle and take the coin 
  or the razor. Those Terrestrials who stay (and don’t 
  join the Emissaries) have risen far, often to plutocrat 
  and even once to Sea Lord, but the child of an outcaste 
  must live up to his parent’s legacy amongst a people who 
  will always assume his upbringing gives him an unfair 
  advantage. Many patrician families in the Realm have 
  an outstanding adoption offer open to children of Coral 
  outcastes. After centuries of this drain, the blood of 
  dragons in the Coral Archipelago runs thin.
  Anathema are not welcome. Similar to most of the 
  rest of Creation, Coral citizens are raised on stories of 
  the terrible monsters who almost destroyed the world, 
  and the host of Dragon-Blooded saviors who stopped 
  the monsters. Everybody remembers the boogeymen of 
  legend. Coralites don’t have high-minded philosophical 
  justiﬁ cations for their hate and fear of the Anathema, 
  and don’t need such justiﬁ cations—the people of Coral 
  demonstrate the same reﬂ exive distrust found through-
  out most of Creation.
  With the Wyld Hunt so far away, Celestials who 
  go public in Coral won’t be harried by the Dragon-
  Blooded Host, but they will have bounties placed on 
  their heads by plutocrats and other rich citizens, and 
  will see fear in the eyes of nearly everyone the Celestials 
  interact with.
  THE IRON FIST
  Description: A 
  group of seven me-
  dium-weight Coral 
  pirate ships that can 
  take on a small trading 
  ﬂ eet. While they often 
  operate individually, 
  they frequently work 
  together in order to 
  bring down larger prey. 
  Some of the captains 
  and ofﬁ cers on the ships are God-Blooded or have minor 
  thaumaturgical Charms or enchanted items.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Captain Quonten Daggerhand
  Armor Color: Varies
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: Seven ships, each carrying 60 pirates; 
  unarmored, but carrying swords, daggers, harpoons and 
  lightweight throwing spears 
  Overall Quality: Good
  Magnitude: 5
  Drill: 2
  Close Combat Attack: 4     Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: 4     Ranged Damage: 3
  Endurance: 7     Might: 1     Armor: 2     Morale: 2
  Formation: Relaxed
  THE DENZIK MERCHANTS
  It begins as a speck on the horizon. The sharpest-
  eyed see it ﬁ rst, still unable to tell it from a sailing ship. 
  As the speck draws nearer, inexperienced lookouts 
  mistake its many sails and great breadth for an entire 
  ﬂ eet. Soon, it is close enough for even the untrained 
  eye to make out the vast expanse that carries the 
  Denzik over the Great Western Ocean, their legend-
  ary city-ship.
  The city-ship is a haphazard construction of woods 
  from across the West, South and North. Wind propels 
  the city-ship, caught in its thousand sails of canvas, 
  silk, woven yeddim hair, a dozen different sorts of hide 
  and any other sail-material conceivable propels the 
  city, as do hundreds of vaguely coordinated paddles 
  and rowers.
  WHY IS CORAL INDEPENDENT?
  The Empress’s reasons for ignoring Coral have 
  been pretext since her plans for conquest of the 
  Scavenger Lands were indeﬁ nitely delayed. Coral 
  is strong in numbers and population but lacks su-
  pernatural might. For all Coral’s talk of excellence, 
  the archipelago would be an easy target, though 
  time-consuming. The Empress knew this.
  The Realm has little use for cowrie shells, 
  yet Coral can spend what loot the inhabitants 
  plunder on more valuable goods, much of which 
  Coral makes available to the Realm through 
  gifts and favorable trade deals. The Empress 
  extracted great value from the Western satrapies 
  indirectly through Coral piracy. She cultivated 
  Coral’s expansionist agenda, the archipelago’s 
  refusal to accept the Immaculate Philosophy and 
  even Coral’s attacks on Realm shipping. Coral 
  functioned as a check on the power of her Great 
  Houses in the West, an isolated Direction that 
  might otherwise have served as a staging ground 
  for succession or coup attempts from her more 
  rebellious children. And ﬁ nally, should she ever 
  have sensed rebellion brewing amongst her own 
  generals, Coral would have made a ﬁ ne excuse to 
  send them far away on a time-consuming campaign 
  of conquest with few immediate rewards or op-
  portunities for glory.
  
  58
  ﬁ nancial venture in living (including Dragon-Blooded) 
  memory. The consortium’s wealthiest members pooled 
  their money to commission a vast number of durable 
  barges, linked with rope and chain into a single “vessel” 
  the size of a city. The Denzik family, Ismat Export, Sudi 
  Trading, the Varangian Shandar Caravan Company 
  and a dozen lesser entities all left themselves inches 
  from the bottom line. The city-ship took two years to 
  design and eight to build.
  It might not have happened without one member 
  of the consortium. Through a series of chance events, 
  mildly famous entrepreneur Utmin Ahara found herself 
  swimming in money and opportunity. Two long-shot 
  investments paid off, a close friend died and left her 
  an inheritance and Ahara happened to ﬁ nd and return 
  a Chiaroscuran noble’s cherished pet for an absurdly 
  large reward—and she tripled it all with one bet at the 
  dog races.
  Utmin spent her new wealth bankrolling curious 
  ventures of unreliable ﬁ nancial return. She sponsored 
  poets and artists, tried breeding furnace rhinos in captiv-
  ity (a disaster) and funded archaeological expeditions. 
  Mostly, she was just looking for some big investment 
  for her fortune. One of these last paid off.
  Her team found a vast underground storage area, 
  far beneath Chiaroscuro, containing row after row of 
  self-powered paddlewheels. Seeing them gave Utmin 
  the idea she’d wanted, and she immediately approached 
  the consortium. Most laughed at her plan, but Badr 
  had the same vision as Utmin, and still had enough 
  inﬂ uence to push the rest of the consortium.
  Most believe the rest is history. The Denzik con-
  sortium scrounged up the money, built the city-ship 
  and birthed the legend. The city-ship launched more 
  than eight mortal generations ago, and it has taken on 
  a certain legendary quality in those places it visits.
  People with longer memories are less impressed, 
  especially members of the Great Houses Nellens and 
  Peleps. The former secretly helped fund the city-ship’s 
  construction out of a desire to engineer greater difﬁ cul-
  ties for the Guild. House Peleps’s ﬂ eets are familiar with 
  the city-ship, and it beneﬁ ts from their protection for 
  more than a third of its annual circuit.
  THE DENZIK TODAY
  The Denzik began as agents of individual groups 
  within the consortium as well as paid sailors and 
  maintenance personnel. Over time, the Denzik have 
  intermarried and become nearly one political and 
  ethnic group. Most Denzik incorporate the name of 
  their forbearers’ original company into their family 
  The Coral Archipelago, a Magnitude 6 Dominion
  Military: 4     Government: 3     Culture: 2
  Abilities: Awareness 4 (Superior Diplomats 3), 
  Bureaucracy 4, Craft 3 (Public Works 3), 
  Integrity 4, Investigation 4, Occult 1, Perfor-
  mance 2, Presence 4, Stealth 3 (Spies 3), War 4 
  (Pirates! 1)
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 4, Temper-
  ance 3, Valor 5
  Limit Break: Valor 
  Current Limit: 4
  Willpower: 8
  Bonus Points: 30 External Bonus Points: 18
  Notes: Sea Lord Nemoran and Shanston Red 
  are sorcerers with legitimacy, while several of the 
  plutocrats are savants. Coral’s bonus points con-
  tribute a dot each of Bureaucracy, Craft, Integrity, 
  Occult, two dots of Presence, the Superior Diplo-
  mats specialty, two dots of Spies and the Pirates! 
  specialty. Coral’s external bonus points, squeezed 
  from the Protectorates and other island nations, 
  provide the Public Works specialty, the last dot 
  of Spies, the last dot of Valor and the second dot 
  of Compassion.
  In the event of a Limit Break, Coral attempts 
  to expand, striking at all nearby targets while 
  raising the tribute on all Protectorates.
  ORIGIN OF THE DENZIK
  In Realm Year 424, Denzik Badr formed the Denzik 
  Merchant Association. She had surprised everyone in 
  the extended Denzik family scarce years before with 
  her business suggestions and ascended from unwanted 
  daughter to respected mistress of the Chiaroscuran 
  family’s import and export concerns.
  Badr wielded her newfound inﬂ uence and the 
  rapidly multiplied wealth of her family like a scalpel. 
  Her quiet warnings made the other merchant families 
  and concerns nervous about the Guild, and she used 
  this fear to weave them all into the strong consortium 
  they are today. It took the Denzik family name in honor 
  of her efforts. The consortium’s primary intention was 
  not to increase proﬁ ts but to form a resistance to the 
  Guild’s sphere of ﬁ nancial inﬂ uence, and the consor-
  tium succeeded.
  The lives of mortals are not long, but Badr lived 
  an exceptional span. One hundred seventy-eight years 
  ago, during the last years of her life, Badr inspired the 
  Denzik merchant consortium to fund the most ludicrous 
  
  59
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  names but owe allegiance only to the city. The Enzo 
  Ismats try to best the Sevenfold Shandar family in the 
  sculpted bamboo market, but both knowingly enrich 
  the city with their schemes.
  Now, the city-ship pays out dividends to its share-
  holders. Each time Denzik merchants boat to a city for 
  business, a city ofﬁ cial travels ashore for the sole purpose 
  of dispensing dividends. The Denzik family holds the 
  largest number of shares in the venture, and has slowly 
  been buying others’ interests in the city-ship.
  Other major shareholders include Ismat Export, the 
  Tri-Khan of Chiaroscuro, the Western Trading Alliance 
  and House Nellens (through a half-dozen fronts). The 
  charter forbids the Guild from holding shares in the 
  venture. One-time investors who join the Guild are 
  invited to sell their shares, if somewhat under value, 
  before the shares are conﬁ scated. The Denzik have, 
  since the city-ship’s founding, conﬁ scated more than 
  200 talents’ worth of shares from people or businesses 
  found to be fronting for the Guild.
  The Denzik family relocated itself in full to the 
  city-ship just over 76 years ago. The current matriarch, 
  a daughter of Badr called Denzik Hala (as long-lived 
  as her mother), made the ﬂ oating city her family’s base 
  of operations in order to avoid being crushed by the 
  Guild’s inexorable march.
  The Denziks’ culture has also developed after over 
  a century of undirected growth. As the founders (and 
  hidden benefactors) expected, the Denzik focus on prof-
  itable ventures. But their culture and leaders discourage 
  falling into any patterns. They see that as the Guild’s 
  rubric, ﬁ nding something that works, then reﬁ ning and 
  dominating that venue to proﬁ t, and they consciously 
  choose to oppose it. The Denzik have a number of 
  consistent ventures that keep them in the black: Realm 
  weapons in the Threshold, Western art in the South and 
  East, Southern foods and spices in the North and East, 
  sand from the South for ice-covered Northern streets, 
  etc. The Denziks’ real proﬁ ts come from more creative 
  (and much less dependable) investments, such as the 
  much-advertised year-long ocean tour.
  CLANS AND ALLIANCES
  Inhabitants of the city divide themselves up into 
  clans along two lines. Clans are relaxed brotherhoods; 
  members offer others light assistance, advice and re-
  sources and expect the same in return, but they rarely 
  keep serious track. The ﬁ rst clan division is by blood, and 
  most distinct blood clans descend directly from agents of 
  the city’s original investors. Three of these are divisions 
  of the city’s most proliﬁ c family, the original Denzik: 
  Ashida Denzik, Uffah Denzik and Reyht Denzik. The 
  distinct family lines serve to distinguish members of 
  the Denzik family proper from the Denzik as a whole. 
  Other prominent blood clans include the Enzo Ismat
  and Umame Ismat clans, which compete every chance 
  they get; the Sevenfold Shandar clan, which includes 
  ﬁ ve internal divisions because two have died out; and 
  the Sudi clan, which welcomes members of dubious 
  relation and enjoys competing with other blood clans, 
  especially in the realm of recreational animals. 
  The other axis denotes product or profession. Joining 
  one of these chandler clans is not required for a Denzik to 
  work in a given ﬁ eld, but the chandler clans offer support 
  and expertise. Many clans have at least a half-century’s 
  experience shipping a given material and provide expert 
  knowledge on how to proﬁ t in that line of work. Choosing 
  not to join an appropriate chandler clan is usually a sign 
  of mistrust or great secrecy, and few secrets last long on 
  the water, even on a ship as large as a city. Most chandler 
  clans go without names; Denzik reference them simply 
  as “the soft furnishing clan” and “the paper clan.” When 
  competition or rivalry creates two equal clans at once, 
  Denzik use the clans’ foremost members to differentiate 
  them, for example, “Albatross’s silk clan.”
  Membership in a chandler clan is ﬂ uid. Joining is 
  a simple matter—receiving advice or assistance from 
  a current member sufﬁ ces. For some, the blood clans 
  are nearly as ﬂ uid. One can only be a member with the 
  right sort of blood, but the bloodlines have intermixed 
  since the city’s launch, so blood clan membership is more 
  a matter of admitting kinship than formal initiation. 
  People of mixed descent can shufﬂ e from one blood 
  clan to another with no ill feeling as long as they don’t 
  take undue advantage of membership.
  A Denzik may belong to any number of clans. A 
  mixed-descent entrepreneur could be a part of the Reyht 
  Denzik and Sevenfold Shandar blood clans while also 
  enjoying membership in the statuary, dried fruit and 
  iron ore chandler clans. A Denzik who acknowledges 
  membership in only one chandler clan is either a poor 
  merchant (of commensurate low status), young and not 
  yet spreading her wings or a genius in her narrow ﬁ eld.
  Any inhabitant of the city with an idea for turning 
  a proﬁ t may pitch it to the Financial Council. Denzik 
  Hala heads and dominates the council, mostly using it 
  to rubber stamp investments she suspects will be proﬁ t-
  able . . . or just interesting. Ventures that turn a proﬁ t 
  pay back the city’s loan with interest. Failed investments 
  are forgiven, but successes and failures are public. Denzik 
  increase or diminish status accordingly, and they consider 
  not learning from failures to be the worst stupidity.
  
  60
  The more people support a single idea, the more 
  resources it garners. Denzik Hala believes that more 
  minds and more hands make an enterprise more likely to 
  succeed. The city has the free funds to lose small fortunes, 
  and larger failures create more meaningful lessons.
  Denzik call such cooperative ventures alliances. 
  Alliances are (usually) strict business ventures with 
  their own bylaws, with the responsibility shared among 
  many. The term, at ﬁ rst used as the rest of Creation 
  does, took on connotations of its own during the city’s 
  cultural development. An alliance differs from a clan 
  in the level of each participant’s activity and in the 
  degree of organization. Each alliance is a miniature 
  company, assembled for the purpose of making a proﬁ t 
  from a single project. Some dissolve after a single trade 
  (especially spectacular failures); others have remained 
  for years with the same business plans circuit after circuit. 
  The Dulled Blade Alliance has bought broken, bent or 
  otherwise useless weapons for almost nothing and sold 
  them to historians for more than a century, and the 
  Rainbow Cushion Group has been moving embroidered 
  pillows around Creation for decades. The Hearth Cat 
  Trading Venture was a resounding success but know-
  ingly ﬂ ooded the market and disbanded (its members 
  intend to reconvene two years after the animal’s aver-
  age lifespan), while the Steam Hawk Taming Initiative 
  evaporated after less than a season.
  The people investing the most into an alliance’s 
  venture manage it and make the major decisions, while 
  lesser investors do more of the grunt work. It’s true that 
  the actual capital comes from the city’s coffers, but the 
  amount each individual requests determines how much 
  reputation each stakes. All Denzik should learn from 
  a failure equally, but a failure reﬂ ects more directly on 
  those who made larger requests for money. Individual 
  Denzik do not invest money, they invest status.
  DRAGON-BLOODED DENZIK
  Terrestrial Exalted are not citizens. There are cur-
  rently a half-dozen Dragon-Blooded living among the 
  Denzik. Two were born to the life, but even they are 
  no longer considered normal inhabitants of the city. 
  Dragon-Blooded are not allowed to belong to any clan 
  or hold shares in any alliance, and they may not sit on 
  the Financial Council. They may own shares in the 
  city-ship endeavor itself, and four do.
  Instead, the Dragon-Blooded are respected and 
  valued independents. They cannot request city funds 
  for a project, but enterprises may hire them; the two 
  sorcerers are especially valued. Denzik entrepreneurs 
  pay their Terrestrial freelancers from funds allotted 
  by the council, and Dragon-Blooded are exempt from 
  the city’s currency of changing status. Because of this, 
  a Terrestrial used in a failed endeavor still gets paid 
  and comes out ahead. But even an Exalt can drop in 
  demand if she ruins every venture that involves her; 
  attaining that reputation prompts the Dragon-Blood 
  to shape up or get off the ship—it’s hard to enjoy the 
  city’s entertainments without status or real money to 
  trade. None of the current Dragon-Blooded inhabitants 
  have such a reputation.
  All Terrestrials who live on the city-ship help with 
  defense. Each Dragon-Blooded has an individual agree-
  ment with Denzik Hala requiring his full cooperation 
  defending the city in exchange for something, be it 
  money, favors owed or promise of sanctuary.
  LIFE ON THE SHIP
  Lifelong inhabitants of the Denzik city-ship don’t 
  spend much time on other ships or in other cities. They 
  call their home and mode of transport “the city” or more 
  rarely “the ship.” They may refer to it as “the city-ship,” 
  but almost exclusively for foreigners’ beneﬁ ts
  Laws are few and simple (much more so than the 
  Denzik’s system of status). Murder, theft and other 
  wrongdoing are punished harshly, much as on a standard 
  ship. Other laws are speciﬁ c to the Denzik and mostly 
  related to safety, such as remaining on one’s home barge 
  when a storm draws near. Common punishments include 
  the lash or the rod. Trouble between individuals comes 
  before the Financial Council, which means each party 
  ends up arguing its case to Denzik Hala.
  The council recognizes alliances as agreements be-
  tween individuals, not as individuals in their own right, 
  so issues between alliances must be phrased as contention 
  between single members of each alliance. Intra-alliance 
  troubles usually fall under some sort of rules set in the 
  alliance’s bylaws. Bylaws often name someone within 
  the alliance as an arbiter, which prevents most matters 
  from going to the council. Unofﬁ cial alliances, those 
  without any charter, fall under standard practices.
  At sea, Denzik rise when necessary to perform the 
  everyday labor that all share. Doing available work 
  about the city-ship, which is mostly making repairs, 
  ﬁ shing, working the paddlewheels and performing 
  general seamanship, is the slowest but surest method 
  of increasing status.
  In effect, manual labor is an investment in the 
  vast enterprise of the Denzik city-ship, and the return 
  is greater trust and the respect of one’s fellows. This 
  is much slower than the astronomical rate at which a 
  successful trader can rise, but is dependable. The result 
  
  61
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  is that lower-status Denzik do more of the work, which 
  includes running the alehouses and administering the 
  dog races. Likewise, Denzik who take advantage of the 
  work that other Denzik perform by patronizing those 
  places diminish slightly in status. In this sense, status 
  becomes a vague currency, completely opaque to outsid-
  ers and mostly transparent to natives.
  Denzik sleep at night or when their shifts demand. 
  A signiﬁ cant number work nights, so many homes are 
  expertly sealed against light. Diets vary by status just 
  as they do in other lands; some have access to delica-
  cies throughout the year, and most eat fresh ﬁ sh and 
  dried fruit. 
  Each of the 125 barges that make up the city-ship 
  is equivalent to one neighborhood. City custom treats 
  each barge as a single entity when it comes to uniﬁ ed 
  regulations (which differ based on construction materi-
  als and location within the city-ship), in community 
  debates or grievances and occasionally in punishment. 
  The highest-status inhabitant of each barge is automati-
  cally the spokesman of the district. When necessary, the 
  spokesman may speak for her entire barge; occasion-
  ally the council mandates this. Inter-barge conﬂ icts 
  rarely escalate too far—everyone knows that damaging 
  the ship, and especially threatening its buoyancy, is a 
  high-severity, low-tolerance infraction regardless of 
  provocation.
  Denzik spend their free time between ports of call 
  fraternizing, free from the eyes of foreigners. Denzik 
  also spend time inventing the get-rich schemes that 
  the city encourages, wrangling the alliances they may 
  need to succeed and petitioning the Financial Council 
  for funds. Audiences are easy to obtain, as only a thin 
  veil of bureaucracy shields the council. To encourage 
  THE STANDARD PRACTICES
  These are assumptions the Denzik make 
  about an alliance (or any cooperative business 
  effort). They’re considered fair play unless the 
  people involved agree to other terms. The Finan-
  cial Council also considers them standard practice 
  for alliances without a speciﬁ c charter.
  • The alliance exists to achieve a stated 
  purpose (usually to turn a proﬁ t on a trade or 
  series of trades).
  • Shares exist in the possession of all members 
  of the alliance, issued in proportion to risk.
  • Shares may be exchanged as a trade good; 
  assumption of risk transfers along with shares.
  • A member’s vote carries weight propor-
  tional to his shares.
  • A member proﬁ ts in proportion to the 
  number of shares he possesses.
  
  62
  the ﬂ owering of all ideas, no matter how crazy they may 
  seem, Denzik Hala ensures there’s no shame or loss of 
  status in being turned down, and even the city’s favored 
  sons do not have blank checks.
  The city changes its demeanor completely when 
  the ship stops at one of the coastal cities or towns on 
  the city-ship’s route. Planning halts, and the merchants 
  put existing plans into action. Smaller boats leave the 
  city-ship in a swarm, traveling the few miles from city 
  to shore. 
  Fewer merchants deal with the smaller towns or 
  coastal tribes, and sometimes the city barely slows 
  down. These Denzik take faster ships to and from the 
  coasts where they have business, and the city barely 
  notices. At moderate towns, or when the Denzik can 
  treat with more people (an entire island or a massing 
  of tribes) at once, the city-ship comes to a stop for six 
  to 18 hours—most of a day. That’s plenty of time to 
  seal most deals, and Denzik who need more time can 
  use the faster ships to return to the city.
  The largest cities, for example, Chiaroscuro and 
  Cherak, demand more attention. Denzik ﬁ ght the seas 
  for up to two days to stay near a major metropolis. They 
  spend most of this time moving cargo, haggling and 
  entertaining clients. These stops see the most visitors 
  to the city-ship, temporarily swelling the city’s popula-
  tion by as much as 5,000. 
  TO OUTSIDERS
  The Denzik merchants are well-known among most 
  oceanic cultures in Creation. The merchants appear 
  on the horizon, swarm the shore and crowd the local 
  population centers.
  Some Denzik trades happen every year when the 
  city-ship comes by. Others are one-time events, and 
  many new enterprises leave the sellers questioning—not 
  the Denzik as a whole, because the legend is too strong, 
  but the individual. Whether or not potential buyers are 
  equally confused depends on the Denzik merchant’s 
  scheme. Successful investments always make perfect (if 
  surprising) sense to the ﬁ nal consumers, while failed or 
  ailing ventures appear strange, even ludicrous, to the 
  intended market.
  “You haggle like a Denzik” means “You’re all over 
  the map.” The person in question is unpredictable, 
  sometimes expertly wringing every last quarter-dinar 
  out of a deal, other times underselling or expecting 
  absurd prices for an unwanted good.
  “The contents of a Denzik hold.” This means 
  “something rare, timely or just damned curious.” Denzik 
  merchants collect trade goods from nearly all the ocean 
  coasts of Creation. As experimental merchants, they 
  reveal unexpected cargo often enough that they are 
  known for it—though they also often proﬁ t from the 
  surprise. Denzik also aren’t afraid to hold onto what they 
  have until the ripest time to sell, provided the cargo is 
  imperishable or reliably preserved. After all, they’ll get 
  to someplace with a buyer sooner or later.
  LOGISTICS: LAYOUT AND COURSE
  The haphazard look of the Denzik city-ship surprises 
  most visitors. Each barge is rectangular, about 100 yards 
  by 50 yards. Five-yard-long ropes bind it to six of its 
  neighbors. Each row of barges is staggered with respect 
  to the next, so every barge has another at each end and 
  shares both halves of its length with a barge on each side. 
  A barge typically has one rope bridge to each adjacent 
  vessel, but high-trafﬁ c areas sometimes warrant more.
  The ropes that hold barges together, and the rope 
  bridges, are designed to give under the stress the worst 
  storms can produce; heavier, longer ropes or chains of 
  10-yard length then keep the city together while allow-
  ing more slack. During storms, strict procedure dictates 
  that each Denzik keep to her own barge and ensure its 
  survival. When a storm appears on the horizon, the 
  service industry shuts down, and people return to their 
  homes. It’s better to lose a few hours’ productivity than 
  to lose lives, crushed between storm-tossed barges.
  Each barge is required by law to possess its own 
  sail and paddlewheel, as well as an adequate supply of 
  water, dried meat and fruit, ﬁ shing line and hooks, caulk, 
  tools and materials for emergency repairs. All Denzik 
  know how to sail and where the city is going, and thus 
  enough to raise or lower the sail when it would help 
  or hinder the ship’s travel. Failure to do either is only 
  a minor offense unless repeated.
  A barge’s inhabitants must also keep it in good repair. 
  Allowing a barge to remain damaged is a major offense. 
  The ship gets its disordered look from the variety of 
  materials used for repair work—the Denzik patch holes 
  and sails with whatever woods they can manage. Over 
  the years, each barge has acquired an individual look 
  and reputation from which the barge takes its name. 
  Even visitors can easily tell the Lustrous Teak-and-Taf-
  feta from the Startling Cotton-Crest Pine.
  Every ﬁ fth or sixth barge focuses on the service 
  industry. These are colloquially known as “tea” or 
  “ale” barges, for their most popular hangouts. These 
  barges contain amenities from brothels and cockﬁ ghts 
  to dueling clubs and poetry readings. The Denzik have 
  
  63
  CHAPTER THREE • AN OCEAN OF SILVER AND JADE
  absorbed entertainments from around the coasts, since 
  they travel everywhere and often have occasion to show 
  potential buyers a night on the town. Even these vessels 
  devote signiﬁ cant space to long-term cargo.
  Barges that occupy the outermost ring keep and 
  maintain the boats, collectively owned by the entire 
  city. Boatkeepers earn more status than most manual 
  laborers, since boatkeepers are necessary for the city’s 
  survival. Beyond the last barges sail the city’s scout 
  ships, keeping watch for their destination but mostly 
  for pirates.
  The outermost barges are also equipped with 
  weapons and manned with warriors for just such 
  occasions. Ballistae and catapults are kept in good 
  condition, as are the city’s 36 light implosion bows 
  (see Wonders of the Lost Age). With enough advance 
  warning, warriors can shift the bows to prepared 
  emplacements to better meet the enemy. These 
  volunteers dedicated to defense are enough to warn 
  away most pirates, and even some small navies, but 
  they are all the military the Denzik have. All told, 
  these warriors are about 500 strong with another 
  1,000 available as rough militia.
  All barges have paddlewheels, but scattered 
  throughout the city are nearly two dozen self-powered 
  First Age paddlewheels. Their presence and identities 
  are not secrets to the Denzik, but foreigners have no 
  idea which barges hide the rare treasures. Even when 
  functioning, it requires a difﬁ culty 3 ([Intelligence or 
  Perception] + Sail) roll to ﬁ nd the nearest. A half-dozen 
  artifact paddlewheels are nonfunctional; anyone able 
  to repair them would earn the respect and gratitude of 
  the Denzik.
  Also hidden on several city-approved barges are 
  more than 100 carefully stashed winterbreath jars (see 
  Oadenol’s Codex, page 32) used for special cargo. When 
  the chill won’t keep something fresh, the Denzik also 
  have more than 60 cargo preservation spindles (see 
  Wonders of the Lost Age, page 59) rated Artifact 1-3. 
  Any may be requested as part of a business petition. 
  Doing so increases the chance of being turned down 
  signiﬁ cantly (and preservation spindles often require 
  the help of a Dragon-Blood), but some Denzik have 
  made fortunes using them.
  About 20 “barges” at the center of the city have 
  no room for cargo. Instead, they are the mansions of 
  the rich and powerful. One belongs solely to Denzik 
  Hala, and one is set aside for the Financial Council and 
  its small bureaucracy. The others all contain large and 
  luxurious suites for those of great status.
  WHERE THEY GO
  Between high winds and doldrums, occasional 
  storms and corrupt gods’ ocean tollways, the Denzik 
  city-ship maintains a speed approximately ﬁ ve-sixths 
  that of a normal sailing ship on the high seas. (See the 
  Storytelling chapter of Exalted.) The Denzik make 
  about 2,000 miles in a solid month of travel.
  The city-ship follows a regular path. The city-ship 
  rarely deviates for reasons other than safety, since the 
  Denzik make plans for each stop. Visiting a city off the 
  beaten path at the expense of one on the schedule is 
  unfair and unproﬁ table. On the other hand, the Finan-
  cial Council keeps records of all ongoing enterprises; if 
  someone convinces Denzik Hala that the net beneﬁ t is 
  positive (and it must be overwhelmingly so), she may 
  authorize a change in course.
  The city-ship’s course takes it past all the major 
  Western islands and south and east into the Inland Sea. 
  The city-ship beneﬁ ts there from the protection of the 
  Imperial Navy and the merchant ﬂ eet, not to mention 
  the halo of calm weather that surrounds the Blessed 
  Isle and the plentiful food there. The Denzik city-ship 
  performs a full circuit of the Inland Sea, ignoring only 
  the cities of the Scavenger Lands, and heads north 
  through the Grand Strait before going directly west to 
  reconnect with its beginning. Many more details go 
  into the course-plotting.
  Ascending Air sees the Denzik city-ship leaving 
  the Wavecrest Archipelago for the long journey to 
  the City of the Steel Lotus. Moderate tribute to the 
  Lintha, combined with the city’s signiﬁ cant defenses, 
  keep the Denzik mostly safe from those dread pirates. 
  Catching occasional currents allows the Denzik better 
  speed than the city-ship usually achieves. They then 
  follow the coast northward until they break across the 
  Inland Sea to trade with several coastal towns on the 
  way to Arjuf. The island of Sweet Radiance merits a 
  brief stop as the Denzik’s course takes them to the Inland 
  Sea’s Southern coast, where they trade with the Lap, 
  Paragon, Chiaroscuro, Yane and Kirighast.
  This timing is not incidental. The Denzik’s time 
  trading with the Southern coast coincides with much 
  of the season of Water. It is temperate, and supplies 
  are plentiful, making restocking the city’s provisions 
  after the long journeys from the Western archipelagoes 
  relatively cheap. Ready access to food for the entire 
  circuit through the Inland Sea means the merchants 
  can devote more space to trade goods rather than salt-
  ing away months’ worth of nourishment.
  
  64
  Rather than following the Threshold’s coast onward 
  toward Thorns, the Denzik cross the Inland Sea again 
  to deal with Noble, Sion, Sdoia, the Imperial City and 
  Pangu on their way North. Avoiding the Scavenger 
  Lands ensures the Realm’s continued goodwill. 
  The city-ship moves west from Cherak to deal with 
  the cities and towns along the Northern coast, up to 
  Wallport. By this time, the dominant season is Wood. 
  The Northern coast is warmed enough to make access 
  trouble free, at least by sea. The Denzik are usually the 
  ﬁ rst merchants coming into the North each year, and 
  their timing and their bulk gives them a signiﬁ cant edge. 
  They also get to purchase the North’s earliest harvest, 
  cheap because the farmers all know that they will have 
  more chances to store for the winter.
  Again crossing the Inland Sea back to the Blessed 
  Isle, the Denzik trade with Chanos, Bright Obelisk 
  and smaller towns from there to Eagle’s Launch. This 
  is the Denzik’s last major chance to stock up on many 
  comestibles, including salted beef or pork and varieties 
  of dried or fresh fruit.
  The Denzik backtrack a couple of hundred miles from 
  Eagle’s Launch to head North. They follow the Grand 
  Straits around the coast, and meet and treat with the various 
  barbarian tribes there, trading weapons and tools. At least 
  one large group of disparate cultures times an enormous 
  annual moot to coincide with the Denzik’s arrival.
  Business draws the Denzik again across the Great 
  Western Ocean once there’s nothing more keeping 
  them in the North. The Denzik lay away as much food 
  as possible (much of it purchased in Eagle’s Launch, 
  but some also from Northern peoples) and catch as 
  many currents as they can to get across to the Coral 
  Archipelago as quickly as possible, typically arriving 
  by the middle of Ascending Fire.
  The season ends just before the merchants ﬁ nish with 
  Wavecrest, and spend any extra time until Calibration 
  in sight of the islands. Denzik tradition and superstition 
  dictate that the city-ship anchors offshore of Wavecrest 
  during Calibration.
  DENZIK EIGHTH DEFENSE
  Description: Denzik vol-
  unteers armed with composite 
  bows, ﬁ re arrows and spears for 
  close combat. They depend 
  on chain shirts and cover for 
  defense.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Yozou Yellowtail, a young 
  Dragon-Blooded outcaste
  Armor Color: Crimson on blue
  Motto: “Water and blood!” 
  General Makeup: Ten troops in chain shirts armed 
  with composite bows and short swords
  Overall Quality: Excellent
  Magnitude: 1
  Drill: 3
  Close Combat Attack: 2   Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: 2        Ranged Damage: 2
  Endurance: 6    Might: 0    Armor: 1    Morale: 3
  Formation: The Eighth watches over one barge and 
  represents the standard Denzik defense unit. The 
  Eighth actually has 10 more troops, usually stood down 
  to ensure fresh troops on duty at all times. Some units 
  maintain light implosion bows.
  The Denzik City-Ship, a Magnitude 3 Dominion
  Military: 2     Culture: 2     Government: 2
  Abilities: Awareness 5 (Trade +3), Bureaucracy 5 
  (Trade +2), Craft 2, Integrity 2 (Economics +2), 
  Investigation 1, Performance 3 (Encouraging 
  Trade +1), Stealth 1
  Virtues: Compassion 3, Conviction 4, Temper-
  ance 1, Valor 2
  Virtue Flaw: Conviction     Current Limit: 2
  Willpower: 7
  Bonus Points: 15 External Bonus Points: 9
  Notes: Denzik’s bonus points are in its specialties 
  and its fourth dots of Awareness and Bureaucracy. 
  The city-ship’s external bonus points increase 
  both to ﬁ ve dots and add another point of Trade 
  specialty to Awareness. The city-ship’s Virtue Flaw 
  moves it to ignore its good nature and harm itself 
  and others for proﬁ t’s sake.
  
  65
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  
  66
  CHAPTER FOUR
  CHAPTER FOUR
  MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  The Skullstone Archipelago lies north of the Neck 
  and west of the Coral Archipelago. Site of the largest 
  shadowland in the West and abode of the Deathlord 
  alternately referred to as the Bodhisattva Anointed by 
  Dark Waters and the Silver Prince, Skullstone stands 
  as a testament to the power of its master and the in-
  evitability of death itself.
  The nation has a population of just over 400,000 
  living souls. There are no accurate records of how many 
  dead serve the Bodhisattva, but the number of ghosts is 
  thought to be at least equal to the living. Some outside 
  observers suspect that the number of zombie and skel-
  eton slaves in Skullstone may exceed one million. The 
  largest population center is in Onyx, with a population 
  of about 250,000. The next largest population centers 
  are Stark’s Reef on Greyshores (60,000) and Equinox 
  on Cormorant Island (45,000).
  HISTORY
  While the peoples of the Neck and the Coral 
  Archipelago view Skullstone with trepidation, not 
  even the savants of those nations realize how closely 
  connected the three nations are. Long ago, in the im-
  mediate aftermath of the Primordial War, these three 
  island chains were actually part of a single large sub-
  continent about one-fourth the size of the Blessed Isle. 
  Known to history as Okeanos, this great island nation 
  produced many of the ﬁ nest sea-going vessels piloted 
  by the Solars in the Western theater of the Primordial 
  War. The people of Okeanos considered themselves 
  “children of the sea,” and the nation supposedly had 
  the blessing of the Ocean Father.
  THE CATACLYSM
  The glories of Okeanos did not last. Very early in 
  the High First Age, the entire nation was wracked by 
  
  67
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  a cataclysm of devastating proportions. The subcon-
  tinent sank, leaving only its highest mountain peaks 
  behind. The rest of Okeanos, including glorious 
  Amphion, was lost beneath the sea.
  The early Lawgivers used their powers to miti-
  gate the damage as much as possible, rescuing the 
  survivors of the subcontinent and preventing the 
  resulting tsunamis from reaching the mainland. In 
  the aftermath of this disaster, observers discovered 
  something ominous—one of the newly formed islands 
  (the one nearest the former location of Amphion, in 
  fact) was perpetually shrouded by a miasma of dark 
  fog. When Solars investigated, they discovered what 
  they had previously thought impossible: the island 
  somehow existed simultaneously in both the lands 
  of the living and the dead. Twilights dubbed 
  this heretofore unprecedented phenomenon 
  a “shadowland,” the ﬁ rst stable example of 
  its kind in recorded history.
  At this early point in the High First 
  Age, even the Solars had only a limited 
  understanding of the afterlife. Before the 
  Primordial War, the deceased reincarnated 
  almost immediately. After the war ended, 
  savants and priests noted that for many 
  individuals, there was a lengthy delay in re-
  incarnation, often decades or longer. However, 
  not until the birth of the shadowland on Darkmist 
  Isle did Solars ﬁ rst learn of the Underworld, an 
  entire realm of death and decay coextensive with 
  Creation and populated with the ghosts of individu-
  als who refused to reenter the cycle of reincarnation. 
  Most frightening of all, the entire death realm 
  was maintained by the vast chthonic power of the 
  Neverborn, those Primordials who fell in battle, and 
  whose immense tombs ﬂ oated at the lowest level of 
  the Underworld around a bottomless pit that pulled 
  at the very souls of any who looked into it.
  Darkmist Isle was quarantined by order of the 
  Deliberative, with access limited only to highly classi-
  ﬁ ed exploratory missions undertaken every century or 
  so. Even then, only Celestial Exalted could visit, as 
  the Deliberative feared that Dragon-Blooded, with 
  their (relatively) short lifespans, might be tempted 
  by the possibility of extending their existences as 
  ghosts. Eventually, as Creation expanded, all but a 
  few Exalted had forgotten the island, which was both 
  relatively isolated and also dwarfed by much larger 
  territories fashioned further West from the very 
  Wyld itself. This state of affairs continued up until 
  
  68
  the Usurpation, at which point the Dragon-Blooded 
  quickly learned exactly what a shadowland was, as the 
  Solars were adept at fashioning new ones.
  POST-USURPATION
  For its part, the Shogunate largely ignored Darkmist 
  Isle, as the Shogunate did much of the West. While the 
  dangers of shadowlands were by then well known, the 
  one on Darkmist seemed quiescent and small (at least in 
  comparison to the immense one created by the Dragon-
  Blooded themselves at Marama’s Fell). The Western 
  Dragon-Blooded focused their attention on the more 
  commercially and strategically important Wavecrest 
  Archipelago and ignored the tiny shadowland.
  When the Contagion came, most of the Western 
  islands had most of their populations grouped together 
  in close-knit villages. Even major Western cities tended 
  to be tightly packed. In many island communities, the 
  virulence of the plague forced leaders to make draconian 
  decisions, often exiling entire families from the island if 
  even one family member showed signs of the sickness. In 
  the islands of the North, such refugees almost invariably 
  went to Darkmist Isle, the only place left to go. Some 
  refugees died on the shores of Darkmist only to rise again 
  miraculously as ghosts to continue “living” with their 
  families. Other refugees managed to avoid the Contagion 
  or even recover from it, as if the disease, created in the 
  Underworld to use against the living, somehow lost its 
  virulence in the realm of the dead. 
  The population of Darkmist grew even more when 
  the Fair Folk invaded. While unstoppable in most places, 
  the Fair Folk seemed terriﬁ ed of entering the Darkmist 
  shadowland, as if its dead, sterile atmosphere could drain 
  them of the chaotic energy that spawned them. Still more 
  refugees from the surrounding islands ﬂ ed to Darkmist 
  for safety, even as the death toll inﬂ icted by the Fair Folk 
  weakened the barriers between life and death until they 
  ﬁ nally broke. By the time the Fair Folk were repulsed, the 
  Darkmist shadowland had grown to twice its previous size, 
  and additional shadowlands sprang into existence on the 
  surrounding islands as their major population centers were 
  razed. These shadowlands tore at the fabric of Creation, 
  forming a nebulous maze throughout the affected islands. 
  Dubbed the Web of Shadows, this maze made it difﬁ cult 
  for even the most skilled pilots to journey from one of the 
  islands to another without at least temporarily entering a 
  shadowland area and becoming vulnerable to its frighten-
  ing denizens. The Web of Shadows also allowed the dead 
  of Darkmist easy access to the other affected islands, and 
  while the archipelago would not be christened for years 
  to come, the Skullstone Archipelago was born.
  THE COMING OF THE BODHISATTVA 
  Initially, the people who came to dwell in these 
  chthonic isles fared better at the dawn of the Scarlet 
  Empire than most Westerners. In the aftermath of the 
  Contagion and Fair Folk Invasion, Wavecrest, the Neck 
  and Coral all fell to varying degrees of social anarchy as 
  village leaders and national bureaucrats alike succumbed 
  to the disease. On Darkmist, however, these lines of 
  authority grew stronger. When Grandfather died of old 
  age, his wisdom was not lost. Instead, he continued to 
  advise his family for years to come so long as they paid 
  suitable homage to his memory.
  For increasing numbers of islanders, death became 
  preferable to life. There was little edible vegetation in 
  the shadowland, and livestock brought from outside 
  remained malnourished. The living were a sickly breed, 
  pale and jaundiced with a disturbingly high infant 
  mortality rate. Increasingly, young people committed 
  suicide so as to enter death with their looks or physical 
  strength intact, rather than waiting for natural death 
  and risking an eternity in decrepitude. Young, inexperi-
  enced leaders crossed over into death and bullied their 
  way into power. It seemed that even the people of the 
  shadowland were subject to the same slow decline that 
  the lands of the living faced, until a savior appeared.
  The Bodhisattva Anointed by Dark Waters made 
  himself known in Realm Year 87. Unlike his fellow 
  Deathlords, the Bodhisattva did not seize power through 
  brute force. He presented no powerful retinue of war 
  ghosts or a terrifying display of occult power. He did 
  not even identify himself by the title of Deathlord. He 
  presented himself almost as a mendicant, preaching 
  a gospel of the living and the dead working together 
  to create “the New Order,” a new form of society in 
  which living and dead were equally valued. But there 
  were limits to his humility. His sermons were laced 
  with powerful mind-altering Charms that captured 
  the imaginations of his listeners, and those few ghosts 
  who sought to challenge this brash evangelist saw their 
  corpus ripped casually to shreds. Nor did the Bodhisat-
  tva limit himself to Darkmist Isle, as he traveled to the 
  other islands at will to spread his New Order gospel with 
  nothing more than a one-man reed boat to protect him 
  from the ravages of the Web of Shadows. 
  Chief among the New Order’s doctrines was the 
  concept of “the righteous dead.” While death was the 
  natural fate of all who live, not all were worthy of life 
  after death. As the Deathlord gained cult-like author-
  ity over the people, he reached out to the ﬁ ve most 
  inﬂ uential leaders and offered them positions as his ﬁ rst 
  Dark Judges, ghosts who would evaluate the lives of 
  
  69
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  those on the brink of death and determine who should 
  be called upon to continue serving the community as 
  ghosts and who should immediately reenter the cycle 
  of reincarnation. If some among these Dark Judges 
  were once the most outspoken critics of the Bodhisat-
  tva transformed into his strongest supporters in the 
  twinkling of an eye, such reversals were seen only as 
  proof of the rightness of his cause.
  As the New Order philosophy took hold, the people 
  came to attribute enormous social status to those who 
  “accepted the burden” of continued ghostly existence. 
  One important factor in this status was reﬂ ected in the 
  disposition of the deceased mortal’s remains. Those who 
  continued on as ghosts were provided with lavish shrine 
  tombs so that the people could regularly leave gifts and 
  grave goods for their ghostly benefactors. Those who 
  reentered the Great Cycle needed no such anchors to 
  their previous lives. Far from receiving lavish tombs, 
  those who went on to reincarnation simply weren’t 
  buried at all. Their remains became property of the 
  state and subject to reanimation.
  In the earliest days of the Bodhisattva’s New Order, 
  all newly created zombies and skeletons served the 
  government, providing manual labor for massive public 
  works projects. The extinct volcanoes on Darkmist and 
  the surrounding islands were quarried for basalt and 
  obsidian, which zombie slaves then used to construct 
  the Bodhisattva’s great manse Ebon Skull, carved into 
  the side of the largest volcano, Mount Vashti. When the 
  manse was completed, the Deathlord commemorated 
  the event by christening his entire kingdom Skullstone 
  and dubbing his subjects “the people of the Skull,” or 
  simply Skullfolk.
  Zombie divers scavenged the ocean ﬂ oor, bringing 
  back huge catches of ﬁ sh and kelp to satisfy the public’s 
  food requirements. More importantly, the zombies could 
  search the ruins of sunken Amphion for lost treasures. 
  Although virtually no Okeanos artifacts survived the 
  millennia beneath the sea, the zombies delivered vast 
  quantities of gold and precious gems to the Bodhisattva’s 
  coffers, as well as limited quantities of magical materi-
  als. At the Deathlord’s direction, Skullfolk traders sent 
  out their ﬁ rst vessels in centuries to the nearby islands, 
  astonishing the people of Coral, who had assumed that 
  no one could survive in the shadowland, let alone come 
  out again with gold and silver.
  Initially, the people of Coral wanted nothing to 
  do with the strange pallid traders who claimed to be 
  emissaries of “the Skullstone Archipelago.” Soon, 
  though, the Sea Lord of that era realized if he would 
  not accept their gold, his rivals would. Besides, for all 
  their wealth, the Skullfolk seemed comically unaware 
  of current exchange rates, and were willing to pay ab-
  surd amounts of gold for inferior slaves and half-dead 
  livestock. What the Sea Lord could not have known 
  is that the traders couldn’t care less about quality. In 
  the hands of a skilled necrosurgeon, even the weakest 
  of specimens could produce a functional zombie, and 
  within a few years, the once-silent streets of Onyx were 
  busy with the clatter of skeletal horses pulling carriages 
  attended by zombie coachmen.
  The Bodhisattva Anointed by Dark Waters ruled 
  openly over the people of the Skullstone Archipelago 
  until RY 243, the 100th anniversary of the completion 
  of Ebon Skull. In that year, the Bodhisattva issued a 
  proclamation announcing that he had succeeded in laying 
  the foundation of the New Order and that he had faith 
  in his followers’ ability to build upon that foundation. 
  Accordingly, at year’s end, the Bodhisattva himself would 
  return to the cycle of reincarnation, leaving his subjects 
  to the ministration of a Council of Regents. He also 
  assured the people that in his people’s time of greatest 
  need, he would return to them, reborn. But instead of 
  a humble teacher and holy man, he would return as “a 
  prince clad in silver” who would lead Skullstone to its 
  rightful destiny at the forefront of Creation.
  True to his word, on the last day of Calibration, 
  the Bodhisattva committed ritual suicide in front of a 
  crowd of nearly 10,000 Skullstone citizens. Hundreds 
  committed suicide on the spot as well, in hopes of be-
  ing allowed to attend him in his next life. On the ﬁ rst 
  day of the new year, the eldest member of the Council 
  of Regents publicly read the Bodhisattva’s last will and 
  testament, in which he left a zombie slave and two 
  ounces of gold to every household on the Archipelago, 
  an extravagant gift that had the perverse effect of 
  instilling a powerful materialist streak in the citizenry. 
  Demand among the citizens of Skullstone for undead 
  slaves soon outstripped supply, and it was not uncom-
  mon for a status-conscious citizen to report his neighbor 
  for capital crimes (real or ﬁ ctitious) and claim rights 
  to the neighbor’s corpse as a reward. The Bodhisattva 
  also left behind a strong bureaucracy, the beginnings of 
  a powerful navy and a state religion that commanded 
  a devotion from its people just as strong as that of the 
  Immaculate Philosophy on the mainland.
  None of the Bodhisattva’s followers had any clue that, 
  as a Deathlord, he simply could not die from anything 
  as mundane as ritual suicide. In due course, his body re-
  formed in the Underworld, and after changing his form, 
  he reentered the Skullstone bureaucracy, assuming the 
  identity of one of the Dark Judges. Using a succession 
  
  70
  of false identities, the Deathlord subtly manipulated af-
  fairs for the next 500 years, until his prophesied “Second 
  Coming” was at hand.
  THE REGENCY
  After the Bodhisattva’s “death,” the Skullfolk set 
  themselves to building a utopia according to their spiri-
  tual leader’s principles and ruled by the self-perpetuating 
  bureaucracy he established. The highest level of author-
  ity belonged with the Council of Regents, the 12 oldest 
  and most respected ghosts in the archipelago who ruled 
  over Skullstone in the name of the Bodhisattva until the 
  coming of the Silver Prince. Below them were the twin 
  bureaucracies: the Ministry of Day, which regulated the 
  activities of the nation’s living populace, and the Min-
  istry of Night, which protected the interests of the dead. 
  In theory, the two ministries were coequal in power. In 
  practice, the Ministry of Night held jurisdiction over any 
  controversy in which one of the dead was involved, and 
  once the Ministry of Night became involved in a case, it 
  rarely ruled in favor of the quick over the dead.
  The number of the Dark Judges was increased, 
  with two panels of ﬁ ve judges each on Darkmist and 
  one panel on each of the other major islands. These 
  judges reviewed the lives of every Skullstone citizen 
  who approached death to determine who would be 
  obligated to continue on as a ghost and who would 
  pass on into reincarnation. The criteria to be used by 
  the Judges were left deliberately vague, and a particu-
  lar Judge might be just as willing to confer “righteous 
  dead” status on a favored artist, playwright or even 
  courtesan as the Judge would a respected bureaucrat or 
  businessman. Although the Dark Judges’ standards were 
  somewhat subjective, in practice they stuck to a rough 
  mathematical formula: no more than one soul in eight 
  could become a ghost. The rest would see their souls 
  pass on and their bodies used as fodder for Skullstone’s 
  ever-burgeoning zombie slave market. 
  As the years spent waiting for the Silver Prince 
  stretched into decades and then centuries, a certain 
  amount of decadence crept into the functioning of the 
  Skullstone government. Decisions as to who would arise 
  as a righteous dead and join the Ministry of Night were 
  increasingly based on how much money the dying could 
  offer the Judges in bribe money. The Ministry of Night 
  itself increasingly used feeble pretexts to involve itself in 
  cases that should have been decided by the Ministry of 
  Day simply to advance the interests of some third-party 
  ghost. The corruption led to increasing frustration not 
  only among the living but also among those of the dead 
  who lacked the proper political connections.
  This simmering resentment was exactly as the 
  Bodhisattva had planned. After watching and subtly 
  guiding Skullstone for more than ﬁ ve centuries, the 
  Deathlord knew his people well. One cannot have a 
  reformation without something to reform. In the spring 
  of RY 764, a strange man, pale and haggard but still 
  very much alive, appeared in the city of Onyx on the 
  steps of the Ministry of Night and proclaimed himself 
  the Herald of the Silver Prince. The so-called Herald 
  was quickly arrested by city guards and charged by the 
  Dark Judges with heresy and sedition. Undaunted, the 
  Herald challenged the Dark Judges’ authority over him, 
  displaying a knowledge of the Bodhisattva’s scriptures 
  that surpassed even their own. The Judges were divided, 
  with some willing to believe the stranger’s claims. 
  The majority, however, refused to accept the Herald’s 
  claims about the Silver Prince’s imminent arrival and 
  condemned him to death by immolation at the base of 
  the Ebon Skull. Almost the entire population of Onyx 
  turned out to see the Herald’s execution, with much 
  of the mortal populace loudly condemning the Dark 
  Judges for the unfairness of the sentence. 
  Just as the crowd was on the verge of rioting, however, 
  the Herald himself called out to the people, castigating 
  them for attempting to prevent his death. “Death is not 
  the end,” he cried, “and my death opens the way for he 
  who is to come forth and rule! May you all be as eager to 
  face your deaths when they come as I am to face mine!” 
  With that, the Herald demanded that the executioner 
  set him alight. Even as the ﬁ res consumed the Herald, 
  he never cried out, but instead sang hymns to the glory 
  of the Bodhisattva and to the truly righteous dead. 
  When the Herald ﬁ nally died, the ﬂ ames around him 
  turned to silver and erupted into a bonﬁ re. Out of this 
  unearthly blaze stepped a powerful ﬁ gure, clad in robes of 
  silver draped with razor-sharp soulsteel shards and wear-
  ing a mask of polished ivory who called out: “People of 
  Skullstone, behold your prince, the Bodhisattva reborn 
  whose coming was foretold! Peace unto those of you who 
  kept my teaching of old, and woe unto those who have 
  corrupted my scriptures for your own purpose!” 
  And with that, the Silver Prince pulled out his 
  grand daiklave, Howler in Darkness, and instantly 
  slew those Dark Judges who had voted for the Herald’s 
  execution, as well as dozens of other prominent ghosts 
  in attendance whose sins the Prince seemed to know 
  intimately. As the Silver Prince struck down those 
  whom he judged wicked and vowed to purge their inﬂ u-
  ence from the New Order, an unprecedented religious 
  fervor swept over the people of Onyx. The word soon 
  
  71
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  spread to the rest of the archipelago—the Bodhisattva 
  is reborn, the Silver Prince has come and the destiny 
  of Skullstone is at hand.
  THE SILVER PRINCE
   The reformation of the Skullstone government 
  was ruthlessly efﬁ cient. The Council of Regents was 
  disbanded, with the Silver Prince assuming total 
  control over the entire nation and those regents of 
  questionable loyalty disappearing in the night. In 
  the council’s place, the Silver Prince established two 
  separate elected bodies—the Elder Council, whose 
  members are voted on by the nation’s ghosts, and 
  the Younger Council, who are chosen by the living. 
  The Silver Prince also re formed the twin ministries, 
  merging them into a single body, the Ministry of Day 
  and Night. Although the new Ministry is completely 
  integrated between living and dead, the dead still hold 
  almost all positions of any importance. However, the 
  dead no longer hold exclusive control over the right 
  of promotion. Instead, mixed review boards containing 
  both living and dead monitor the character, loyalty and 
  job performance of all living bureaucrats, and those of 
  particularly outstanding potential are rewarded with 
  promotion into the upper echelons—provided they 
  were amenable to ritual suicide ﬁ rst. Some cunning 
  mortals even managed to manipulate this process to 
  their own ends, taking their own lives while at delicate 
  junctures in important projects in hope that their 
  superiors would elevate them to ghost status simply to 
  ensure the projects’ completion. Often such audacity 
  is even successful.
  The Silver Prince also rewarded particularly loyal 
  subjects with appointments as Dark Judges, as many of 
  that body had been slain when he seized the reins of 
  power. The Deathlord also altered the traditional role 
  of the Dark Judges, expanding their authority over the 
  living and installing them as the head of the priest-
  hood of his powerful death cult, which also served as 
  the Silver Prince’s secret police. The greatest reward 
  presented by the Silver Prince, however, is one he has 
  only doled out a handful of times in the past three 
  years—Abyssal Exaltation. He has granted ﬁ ve Black 
  Exaltations, four to his most favored mortals and once 
  
  72
  on a Solar Exalt who he tortured into submission. The 
  former Solar, now an Abyssal called Fallen Wolf of the 
  Cutting Sea, was an unruly servant, however, and the 
  Silver Prince later exiled him.
  Today, while the Silver Prince is the undisputed 
  master of the Skullstone Archipelago, he has little to do 
  with its daily internal affairs. Such mundane concerns 
  are left to his bureaucracy, now purged of any hint of 
  disloyalty or apostasy, while the Silver Prince turns his 
  attention to matters of expansion. In addition to its al-
  ready sizable merchant ﬂ eet, Skullstone has secretly built 
  a signiﬁ cant ﬂ eet of warships. Thus far, the Bodhisattva 
  keeps the size of his navy secret, with most ships docked 
  at his hidden shipyards on Island Five. Even those ships 
  on regular patrol typically conceal themselves within 
  the murkiness of the Web of Shadows until the ships 
  emerge from its black fog to surprise doomed pirates. 
  Many of the Deathlord’s ships were built with carefully 
  recovered First Age techniques as well as necromantic 
  principles, but such wonders take time to create, and 
  the Silver Prince has no desire to tip his hand until 
  he has enough First Age caliber warships to crush his 
  regional rivals. 
  GEOGRAPHY
  As far as most savants know, the Skullstone Archi-
  pelago consists of four islands: Darkmist, Greyshores, 
  Seagate and Cormorant. Other than the Bodhisattva’s 
  deathknights, no living person is aware of the ﬁ fth 
  island in the archipelago, suitably dubbed “Island 
  Five” by the Deathlord. Summoned into Darkmist’s 
  orbit by an unresolved Wyld anomaly during the 
  Great Contagion, Island Five is Skullstone’s greatest 
  state secret. 
  Darkmist was Creation’s ﬁ rst shadowland, and after 
  its initial manifestation, the shadowland just barely 
  covered the entirety of the island. The shadowland 
  expanded in response to the Contagion, however, and 
  today, the Darkmist shadowland extends more than 50 
  miles from the island’s shores. The original shadowland 
  also connected with dozens of much smaller shadow-
  lands across the region created by the Contagion and 
  the Fair Folk Invasion, forming a great labyrinth of 
  roiling black fog called the Web of Shadows. While 
  this Web is mostly static, the black fog from which 
  the Web of Shadows is formed ﬂ uctuates according 
  to tides and weather patterns. Consequently, while 
  it is possible to navigate through Skullstone waters 
  without entering a shadowland, only the foolish and 
  the reckless would attempt to do so without know-
  ing the proper navigational routes. Skullstone’s navy 
  employs a great many zombies drawn from the ranks 
  of the foolish and the reckless who braved the Web 
  of Shadows only to be drawn inside it when the winds 
  shifted unexpectedly.
  DARKMIST ISLE
  The seat of power in the Skullstone Archipelago, 
  Darkmist Isle is home to the main ofﬁ ces of most 
  Ministry agencies, as well as half the Dark Judges and, 
  of course, the Bodhisattva himself. The capitol of the 
  entire nation is in the city of Onyx, which was built into 
  the base of the extinct volcano, Mount Vashti. Higher 
  up the mountain rests Ebon Skull, the Bodhisattva’s 
  personal manse and the seat of government for the 
  entire nation. 
  While Onyx is by far the largest city in Skullstone, 
  there are about seven smaller towns dotting Darkmist’s 
  coast. For the most part, these are simple villages, loyal 
  to the Bodhisattva but lacking any particular resources. 
  Two are somewhat notable, however. The town of Karon’s 
  Point, on the northeastern shore of Darkmist, is the site 
  of a small manse called the Palace of the Black Soul, 
  which the Bodhisattva has provided to the Knight of 
  Ghosts and Shadows, a recent defector from the court of 
  the Bodhisattva’s rival, the Lover Clad in the Raiment 
  of Tears. Similarly, the town of Blackwater Cove on the 
  southern side of the island is also home to a small manse, 
  the Tower Against the Maelstrom, which the Bodhisat-
  tva has bequeathed to the Dusk Caste Ebon Siaka, the 
  eldest of the Deathlord’s deathknights and the admiral of 
  his Black Fleet. Blackwater Cove is also commonly used 
  as a port of call for ships of the Black Fleet, particularly 
  those whose crews would not be permitted to visit the 
  shipyards on Island Five (see pp. 76-77).
  ONYX
  One of the most populous cities in the West (and 
  certainly the most notorious), Onyx was the ﬁ rst city 
  constructed by the refugees who ﬁ rst came to the shad-
  owland so many centuries ago. The ﬁ rst buildings in 
  Onyx were crude thatch huts constructed mainly from 
  reeds. Over time, the early Skullfolk learned that ebony 
  and teak could grow even in the shadowland, and both 
  types of tree still provide construction materials today. 
  However, the principle building material in Onyx is 
  basalt. Nearly every building in Onyx (and the rest of 
  the archipelago) is fashioned from the jet black volca-
  nic rock, with wood primarily used today for furniture, 
  rooﬁ ng and building signs. Roof construction typically 
  consists of a thin layer of teakwood slats covered with 
  obsidian shingles, which cause roofs to glisten darkly 
  
  73
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  in sunlight. A small number of public buildings even 
  incorporate limited quantities of soulsteel into their 
  construction, including some of the most famous struc-
  tures in the archipelago. 
  Surrounding most of the city is a wall constructed 
  entirely from the blackened bones of some ancient 
  behemoth and reinforced with soulsteel bands and 
  rivets. The wall extends up Mount Vashti and connects 
  to Ebon Skull. At the opposite end of the wall stands 
  the mammoth Bone Gate, the primary entry point 
  to the city, although there are several much smaller 
  gates built into the wall and accessible only by the city 
  guards. Outside the walls stands a small shantytown of 
  reed huts. Referred to by the locals simply as “outside 
  of town,” these crude dwellings are home to Onyx 
  citizens who for one reason or another have suffered 
  a serious demotion or some other economic tragedy 
  that has rendered them too poor to afford living space 
  within the city.
  THE THEATRE MACABRE
  Surprisingly to some, the Theatre Macabre is the 
  building in which the Bodhisattva holds the most pride. 
  A symbol not only of his power but also of his apprecia-
  tion of the arts, the Theatre is a massive enclosed arena 
  used for the production of elaborate plays and operas 
  referred to as “necrodramas.” Famed for their startling 
  violence, most necrodramas employ both living and 
  unliving actors. Skullfolk ascribe great social status to 
  performers in necrodramas, much more than actors and 
  singers anywhere else in Creation, for two reasons.
  The ﬁ rst is that the Bodhisattva’s patronage of 
  the arts means that the very best singers and actors 
  of the Theatre are awarded righteous dead status, and 
  the performing arts are viewed as a potential route to 
  immortality that would otherwise be open only to the 
  greatest generals and most brilliant bureaucrats.
  The second reason for the popularity of necro-
  dramas is far more subtle—many of the necrodramas 
  themselves are magical plays penned by the Bod-
  hisattva under various pseudonyms and augmented 
  by powerful Linguistics Charms. Consequently, the 
  audience attending these plays invariably leaves 
  happy, spiritually reviviﬁ ed and usually receptive to 
  whatever message the Deathlord magically wove into 
  the text. Such subliminal messages usually reinforce 
  the audience’s beliefs about the moral rightness of the 
  New Order, the importance of loyalty to the state and 
  the ultimate necessity of death itself.
  Three types of actors perform in necrodramas. The 
  greatest actors of the archipelago are almost all dead, 
  rewarded for their thespian skills with ritual suicide 
  and the chance to perform for eternity. Living actors 
  generally play supporting roles, although particularly 
  gifted ones often understudy for ghostly stars and a 
  handful play leading roles that speciﬁ cally call for live 
  performers. Finally, some actors are actually mindless 
  zombies limited to non-speaking roles. While no smarter 
  than the typical zombie, zombie actors are designed 
  speciﬁ cally to play a particular role in a necrodrama, 
  typically that of an extra or a stunt person. Such zom-
  bies perform their roles ﬂ awlessly, although they have 
  no ability to emote, let alone improvise, and many of 
  the most talented performers refuse to share the stage 
  with zombies.
  While the Theatre Macabre is the oldest of the 
  necrodrama theaters and by far the one with the greatest 
  pedigree, several other such theaters are found across 
  Skullstone. In particular, the theaters in Cliffhaven 
  (on the eastern coast of Darkmist) and Port Jyna (on 
  Greyshores) are well-known not only for their serious 
  necrodramas but also for bawdy comedies and violent 
  passion plays with all-zombie casts specially trained to 
  perform simple roles.
  THE COLLEGE OF NECROSURGERY 
  While all the Deathlords make use of necromancy, 
  none have progressed as far as the Bodhisattva in in-
  corporating death magic into the very fabric of their 
  domains. The great College of Necrosurgery is a testa-
  ment to his efforts, a sprawling structure whose design 
  is based on the legendary College of Biothaumaturgy 
  that once stood on the Isle of Voices, the First Age 
  predecessor to Versino. Within the College, the Bo-
  dhisattva and his followers pioneered techniques by 
  which both mortal and ghostly savants could duplicate 
  the simplest techniques of necromancy. For most of 
  these students, their training would come to naught. 
  Neither ghosts nor true mortals can be initiated into 
  necromancy. Ghost-Blooded mortals can, however, 
  and more than half the living population of Skullstone 
  has enough Ghost-Blood heritage to qualify.
  Even mortals who cannot master Iron Circle 
  Necromancy still beneﬁ t from attending the College, 
  however, as all students are required to study necro-
  surgery, the art of preparing corpses for necromantic 
  rituals. While only a true necromancer can actually 
  raise a zombie, she can save herself a lot of time by 
  having one or more trained necrosurgeons on staff 
  to prepare the body in advance. Since Skullstone’s 
  entire economy is based on dead labor, necromancers 
  would never be able to keep up with demand if each 
  
  74
  one had to prepare every corpse from scratch, and in 
  many ways, exceptionally skilled necrosurgeons are 
  considered as important to the Skullstone economy 
  as the actual necromancers. 
  Part of this accord is due to Skullstone’s natural 
  bias in favor of the dead over the living. As a practical 
  matter, only living Ghost-Blooded can learn necro-
  mancy, but each necromancer will lose his powers upon 
  death. The system favors the dead over the living at 
  every level, so it’s only natural that necrosurgery skills 
  that can be mastered by both the living and the dead 
  should be viewed as more valuable than those skills 
  which can only be mastered by the living. Needless 
  to say, a living necromancer who uses his powers to 
  abuse the dead will face the severest sanctions if his 
  indiscretions come to light.
  The College of Necrosurgery is actually a cluster of 
  six buildings—ﬁ ve buildings of moderate size arranged 
  in a ring around the sixth, an enormous tower seven 
  stories tall and 400 yards in diameter. Three of the 
  ﬁ ve outer buildings house classrooms for new initiates, 
  experienced necrosurgery students and necromancy 
  initiates. A fourth contains dormitories for the students 
  attending the College. The ﬁ fth outer building serves 
  as the “morgue” for the entire facility. Designed by 
  the Bodhisattva personally, the structure incorporates 
  stones taken from near the Elemental Pole of Air into 
  its construction, and the entire building remains near 
  freezing temperature regardless of the season. The 
  central building contains administrative ofﬁ ces and 
  faculty housing. More importantly, however, the central 
  building is where the actual work of necromancy is 
  performed. While students study the necromantic arts 
  in the outer buildings, most graduates contract with the 
  government for employment as a licensed necrosurgeon 
  or state necromancer. Necrosurgeons usually rent out 
  space in the large central building until their reputa-
  tions have grown to the point that they can branch 
  out and open up necrosurgery clinics of their own. All 
  necromancers work directly for the state and receive 
  free workspace either at the College or in a satellite 
  facility elsewhere in the archipelago.
  MINISTRY HOUSE
  It is a misnomer to refer to a single building as 
  housing the Ministry of Day and Night. The Ministry’s 
  role in Skullstone society is both expansive and inva-
  sive, intruding into nearly every aspect of Skullfolk 
  existence. Furthermore, the nature of the Bodhisattva’s 
  
  75
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  socioeconomic system means that almost everyone in 
  the archipelago is at least technically a member of the 
  Ministry. When people refer to a building as “the Minis-
  try,” they usually refer to the Ministry House, a gloomy, 
  ﬁ ve-story ediﬁ ce that stands across the main boulevard 
  from Judgment House. Ministry House contains most 
  of the Ministry’s administrative ofﬁ ces.
  One such ofﬁ ce is the dreaded Auditing Depart-
  ment. Technically, no one in Skullstone pays taxes 
  except for foreigners, who must pay an excise tax to 
  dock at one of the harbors. Other taxes are unnecessary 
  since, under Skullstone law, every business is consid-
  ered an arm of the state, which is entitled to all proﬁ ts 
  anyway. Business operators are entitled to a percentage 
  of all proﬁ ts realized, so there is competition between 
  rival managers, but the amount of proﬁ t a manager 
  can take is determined by the Auditing Department, 
  which also investigates fraud or embezzlement against 
  the government.
  Another ofﬁ ce housed in Ministry House is that of 
  the Skullstone Guard, which serves as both the prin-
  ciple law enforcement agency in the archipelago and 
  as the Deathlord’s standing army in case of invasion. 
  The Guard has been under the command of General 
  Caron Mustaigne for the last 78 years except for one 
  brief period—he was removed from ofﬁ ce four years ago 
  for refusing to participate in the execution of the Herald 
  of the Silver Prince on the grounds that the Herald had 
  broken no laws of Skullstone. When the Silver Prince 
  assumed power, one of his ﬁ rst acts was to reappoint 
  Mustaigne to his former post. Although Mustaigne is 
  the chief law enforcement ofﬁ cer in the land, he shares 
  authority over military matters with the Abyssal Exalt 
  Ebon Siaka. Despite Mustaigne’s actual age, he died 
  young and appears to be in his late 20s. 
  JUDGMENT HOUSE
  Across from Ministry House lies Judgment House, 
  or one of them, at least. In fact, there is a Judgment 
  House in every major city in Skullstone, although 
  the largest and most respected is the one in Onyx. 
  The Onyx Judgment House, just as each of the oth-
  ers, serves as the seat of ofﬁ ce for a panel of ﬁ ve Dark 
  Judges. On the top ﬂ oor of Judgment House are the 
  chambers of the Judges and the courtroom in which 
  they hear civil controversies brought before them. 
  Judgment House also holds ofﬁ ce space for those clerks 
  who openly work for Dark Judges (although many 
  employees of the Dark Judiciary are “off the books”). 
  Most importantly, each Judgment House contains 
  several lavishly decorated “rebirth chambers” in which 
  citizens near death can hold ritual suicide ceremonies 
  with enough room for dozens of guests. Ofﬁ cially, tak-
  ing one’s life in a rebirth chamber has no effect on 
  one’s afterlife, but many Skullfolk fervently believe 
  that dying within a Judgment House (and speciﬁ cally 
  within the Onyx Judgment House) will either ensure 
  a beneﬁ cial reincarnation or increase the likelihood of 
  becoming one of the righteous dead. Elderly Skullfolk 
  who cannot afford to rent out rebirth chambers often 
  simply commit suicide on the steps of Judgment House 
  and hope for the best.
  GREYSHORES
  Greyshores is the island nearest to the Coral Ar-
  chipelago. Greyshores’s main settlement is Stark’s Reef, 
  a bustling port city that is the chief trade hub between 
  Skullstone and Coral. While the Web of Shadows 
  covers relatively little of the island itself, almost all of 
  the eastern half of the island is surrounded by a maze of 
  coral reefs that makes navigation even more treacher-
  ous than traveling through the Web. Stark’s Reef was 
  named for Captain Zhuroku Stark, a pirate turned 
  privateer who swore loyalty to the Bodhisattva during 
  his ﬁ rst reign. Stark was the ﬁ rst to successfully ﬁ nd a 
  safe route through the deadly reefs, thereby making 
  trade with Coral practical.
  Today, Stark’s Reef is home to a number of trading 
  warehouses, including some rented out to Coral traders 
  and to the Guild. Stark’s Reef is also home to roughly a 
  third of the Black Fleet (or at least of that part of it that 
  is publicly known to exist), as well as the port of call for 
  a number of brigands and privateers who sail under the 
  Skullstone ﬂ ag. Moray Darktide usually makes Stark’s 
  Reef his port of call, and the Silver Prince has granted 
  Darktide use of a small demesne near the center of the 
  island. The Deathlord might even be willing to cap 
  the demesne and build a manse on the property should 
  Darktide prove his loyalty sufﬁ ciently.
  SEAGATE
  Seagate Island is the farthest Skullstone territory 
  from Onyx and has always stood at the periphery of the 
  Deathlord’s power. The city of Seagate was constructed 
  during the First Age. The Solars discovered a small 
  demesne, barely sufﬁ cient to yield a level-one manse, 
  located in a bay on the island’s eastern shores. As it 
  happened, offshore were treacherous reefs and other 
  underwater hazards that made navigation difﬁ cult. To 
  resolve the problem, the Solars constructed a series 
  of dikes from adamant, pumped out the water in the 
  bay and constructed a manse-lighthouse on the site. 
  
  76
  The manse’s Essence was just enough to keep the 
  lighthouse beacon perpetually lit, and over time, a 
  small city grew around the manse in the shadow of 
  the adamant dikes that held the seas at bay.
  When the Silver Prince seized authority over Skull-
  stone, the people of Seagate were among the few to put 
  up more than token resistance. Living at the edge of 
  Skullstone’s authority, the Seagate islanders thought that 
  the time was right to overthrow the local Dark Judges and 
  declare independence from the rest of the archipelago. 
  The islanders could not have been more mistaken. 
  Once control of Darkmist Isle was secure, the Silver 
  Prince made Seagate the second stop on his itinerary. 
  Announcing his presence via a towering illusion, the 
  Deathlord bade every islander who wished to remain a part 
  of Skullstone to swim out to the Silver Prince’s ship. A 
  few dozen did so. Then, using long-forgotten knowledge of 
  the Seagate Lighthouse’s control systems, the Silver Prince 
  opened up the dikes and ﬂ ooded the city. The vast majority 
  of the citizens were killed outright, and not one returned 
  as a ghost. Today, the lighthouse continues to serve as a 
  beacon in the night, but Seagate’s population is a fraction 
  of what it once was. The survivors now dwell in the few 
  buildings that have ﬂ oors above sea level, traveling from 
  building to building in crude paddle boats. The Web of 
  Shadows now covers the city, with only the top third of 
  the lighthouse rising above the mist to continue warning 
  the island’s rare visitors of the dangers they face.
  CORMORANT
  Cormorant is the southernmost island in the Skull-
  stone chain, and the nearest to the Neck. Before the 
  Contagion, Cormorant was one of the most populous 
  islands in the Neck, complete with a small Shogunate 
  naval base on the northern shore. The Fair Folk utterly 
  destroyed the naval base and the surrounding villages 
  before withdrawing as the Web of Shadows reached 
  out to claim the ruins. Today, the island is Skullstone’s, 
  though Cormorant represents the largest contiguous 
  area that remains permanently in the land of the living. 
  While most of the other islands are dotted throughout 
  with small shadowlands, Cormorant has only a single 
  shadowland, which takes up the northernmost half of 
  the island and extends north into the sea. This shad-
  owland cuts right through the heart of a town on the 
  east coast ﬁ ttingly known as Equinox. Because half of 
  Equinox remains in the land of the living, the town 
  serves as a major trade hub, as well as a meeting place 
  for diplomats from other lands who wish to meet with 
  agents of the Silver Prince but lack the nerve to travel 
  into the shadowland itself.
  Cormorant was the last major island to become part 
  of Skullstone. The island remained sparsely populated 
  after the Fair Folk were repulsed, as the islanders of 
  the Neck viewed the shadowland on Cormorant with 
  superstitious dread. In RY 521, Skullstone itself decided 
  to colonize the island, beginning with the dead northern 
  half before slowly expanding out into the living southern 
  half. Eventually, these colonists built trading posts on 
  the southern half of the island and essentially invited 
  disaffected islanders from the Neck to relocate there. 
  The largest such trading post is a moderately sized town 
  of 15,000 (all living) called Bountiful Sunrise whose 
  population is lavishly subsidized by the Skullstone gov-
  ernment in order to demonstrate the beneﬁ ts of peaceful 
  co-existence between the living and the dead.
  When the Silver Prince assumed power, he per-
  sonally visited Bountiful Sunrise to assure its people 
  that their indolent lifestyle would continue as long as 
  they remained loyal to the New Order. Accompanying 
  him were several spies whom he left behind to inﬁ l-
  trate the living of Cormorant and watch for any sign 
  of disloyalty. These spies are armed with a First Age 
  neurotoxin, enough to poison the entire water supply 
  of Bountiful Sunrise and ensure that the shadowland 
  expands considerably.
  ISLAND FIVE
  The landmass known as Island Five is easily the most 
  unusual of the islands in the Skullstone Archipelago 
  because, in most senses, Island Five does not exist. In 
  the First Age, the Solars greatly expanded the frontiers 
  of Creation with powerful Wyld-shaping Charms, 
  creating new territories whose continued existence 
  depended on social interaction with the more stable 
  parts of reality. As the First Age fell to Contagion and 
  the Fair Folk, Creation underwent massive upheavals, 
  and vast stretches of these artiﬁ cial territories winked 
  out of existence when everyone who knew of them 
  died out.
  Island Five was one such territory, a penal colony 
  that once existed more than 2,000 miles west of modern 
  Skullstone. The death toll in the colony was almost 
  complete, but one survivor, a convict, was blessed 
  with natural resistance to the Contagion. Because of 
  the prisoner’s continued existence, the island endured, 
  but through a quirk of the Wyld, the expanse of ocean 
  surrounding the island did not. As geography warped to 
  accommodate the new status quo, the island relocated 
  to within the Skullstone shadowland where the Wyld 
  could no longer affect the island. The prisoner, who had 
  survived the deadliest plague Creation had ever seen, 
  
  77
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  was promptly torn apart by the dozens of hungry ghosts 
  that arose from the bodies of his fellow inmates.
  The circumstances surrounding Island Five’s 
  transportation into the shadowland are the source of 
  the landmass’s most unusual property. Metaphysically 
  speaking, Island Five does not exist. Accordingly, it 
  cannot be perceived through any means by anyone 
  more than 100 yards from its shores. In the aftermath 
  of the Fair Folk invasion, Creation was full of such 
  strange anomalies, most of which were resolved by the 
  Sidereal Exalted as part of their normal duties. Because 
  Island Five came to rest in a shadowland, however, the 
  Sidereals never knew of Island Five’s existence. The 
  Bodhisattva discovered the island by chance and after 
  conquering the hungry ghosts who populated it, he 
  realized that it was the perfect place to build his secret 
  factory-cathedrals. The island was quite literally impos-
  sible to ﬁ nd unless the searcher were piloting strictly 
  by the stars of the Underworld, and even then, only 
  the most skilled pilot could navigate to the shores of 
  an island he couldn’t see. 
  Island Five is the Bodhisattva’s most carefully 
  guarded secret. Other than his deathknights, no living 
  person is aware of the island’s existence, and only those 
  dead whose loyalty has been magically secured are told 
  of it, let alone allowed to visit there. A handful of ghosts 
  permanently bound into service to the Deathlord make 
  their homes on this island, along with several dozen 
  nephwracks loyal to the Bodhisattva’s goals. These 
  ghosts oversee the island’s two main facilities. 
  The ﬁ rst is the Bodhisattva’s secret shipyards and 
  his massive factory-cathedral, the House of the Sea’s 
  Cold Embrace, which supplies the secret ﬂ eet with 
  artifact weaponry and materials. The Deathlord has 
  carefully maintained the ﬁ ction that his Black Fleet 
  consists of only a few dozen ships designed according 
  to modern ship-building principles. The true bulk of 
  the Black Fleet consists of nearly 50 vessels dry-docked 
  at Island Five, each of which is built according to First 
  Age design principles and is individually a match for 
  all but the most advanced ships in the Realm. If events 
  do not force his hand, the Bodhisattva plans to keep his 
  ﬂ eet a secret until he has an even 100 ships, enough to 
  destroy an entire imperial ﬂ eet and more than enough 
  to crush all of his regional rivals.
  The other facility holds the secret that lies at the 
  heart of the Bodhisattva’s entire kingdom: the Foundry 
  of Souls. The Bodhisattva’s entire religious philosophy 
  rests on two assumptions—ﬁ rst, that everyone who dies 
  in Skullstone will eventually be reincarnated according to 
  his worth and his loyalty to the Bodhisattva, and second, 
  that those who continue to exist as ghosts merely delay 
  their eventual reincarnation out of obligation to the 
  state. Both of these assumptions are utter lies fabricated 
  by the Bodhisattva to take advantage of the Skullfolk’s 
  desperate need for hope of a better afterlife. 
  The truth is that everyone who dies while within 
  the Web of Shadows, without exception, returns as a 
  ghost. Upon death, however, such newborn ghosts are 
  drawn instantly to the Foundry of Souls like iron ﬁ lings 
  to a magnet, snatched up so quickly that others present 
  at the time of death never even notice the newborn 
  ghosts’ manifestation. Once captured, the ghosts are 
  held in storage, oblivious to everything around them 
  until they are judged. Those considered by the Bod-
  hisattva or his agents to be necessary to his long-term 
  goals are returned to Skullfolk to the jubilation of their 
  families. The rest, roughly seven out of every eight souls, 
  remain trapped within the necromantic mechanisms 
  of the Foundry, where they are shaped into soulsteel 
  by the nephwracks in the Bodhisattva’s employ and 
  then forged into material components to be used by 
  the Skullstone society. 
  This is the dark horror that lies at the heart of 
  the Skullstone Archipelago. Each of the thousands of 
  zombies and skeletons used as slaves for the Skullfolk is 
  held together by several feet of soulsteel wire. Most of 
  the public buildings are reinforced by soulsteel girders. 
  Every one of the ships in the Black Fleet contains massive 
  amounts of soulsteel components. The Bodhisattva’s 
  own armor consists of more than 200 individual soul-
  steel pieces woven together with soulsteel wires. And 
  every single one of these individual components was 
  once a living being who went to his death expecting 
  that his loyalty to the Deathlord would secure him a 
  better place in his next life.
  The unholy mechanism that allows the Foundry 
  to function is not a creation of the Bodhisattva’s 
  ingenuity. Deep within the Foundry, hidden within 
  a labyrinth armed with deadly traps and patrolled by 
  scores of nephwracks, lies a small plain room containing 
  only a pedestal. On the pedestal lies a small stone—a 
  pebble, really—cut from the tomb of the Bodhisattva’s 
  Neverborn master, Principle of Consumption. This 
  tiny stone, dubbed “the Hungry Stone,” represents the 
  Bodhisattva’s connection with his master and with the 
  labyrinth itself. The Hungry Stone draws the newly 
  dead to itself and keeps them paralyzed, insensate and 
  ready for processing. The Hungry Stone empowers the 
  Foundry’s amazing and terrifying inﬂ uence over the dead 
  caught within its range, a range that grows ever farther 
  as the Web of Shadows continues to expand.
  
  78
  LIFE (OR NOT) IN SKULLSTONE
  Mercifully unaware of the true nature of the 
  Bodhisattva’s New Order, most Skullfolk lead lives of 
  bourgeois indolence. The typical citizen works a 40-
  hour workweek, with plenty of time to enjoy the latest 
  necrodrama or other diversions while the zombiﬁ ed 
  remains of former neighbors attend to menial tasks. 
  Thus, the Skullfolk have developed a culture all their 
  own and unique in all of Creation.
  ISLANDERS AND CUSTOMS
  The living citizens of Skullstone appear biologically 
  identical to those of Coral, although the Skullfolk seem 
  extremely pale and sickly in comparison. This pale ap-
  pearance is largely the result of Skullstone’s perpetually 
  overcast skies, even over those areas outside the Web 
  of Shadows, and their sickly demeanor is the result of a 
  society in which menial labor is performed exclusively 
  by undead slaves. Besides, Skullstone citizens typically 
  make little effort to keep themselves healthy, since their 
  society so often rewards death.
  The pale demeanor of Skullstone islanders is ac-
  cented by their clothing choices: virtually all clothing 
  worn on Skullstone is black. Originally, this fashion 
  was the result of necessity. The unwholesome vegeta-
  tion of Darkmist invariably turned dark gray or black 
  when processed into fabric, and Skullstone was home 
  to no natural sources of colored dyes. Over time, the 
  somber apparel became part of Skullstone tradition 
  to the extent that ostentatious displays of non-black 
  clothing are considered tacky even now that Skullstone 
  trades extensively with other lands. Not all clothing is 
  black—white, gray or dark blue accents are common, 
  and modern tradition often calls for all white funereal 
  garb—but anyone wearing bright colors immediately 
  identiﬁ es herself as an outsider.
  For most of Skullstone’s history, the Skullfolk diet 
  consisted chieﬂ y of red widow, a large, meaty non-poi-
  sonous spider that was the only indigenous animal life 
  when Darkmist was ﬁ rst settled. Red widows are large, 
  crab-like aquatic spiders that come ashore to bred and 
  lay eggs. The name is taken from the spider’s red, lob-
  ster-colored carapace and from the fact that females kill 
  their mates after sex. Early Skullfolk subsisted almost 
  entirely on red widow meat for centuries—supplemented 
  occasionally by worms, cave slime or bat wings—until 
  the ﬁ rst trade missions to Coral introduced other food-
  stuffs. Even then, it remained impossible to effectively 
  breed livestock within the shadowland, and so the spider 
  remains the main staple of the Skullstone diet. 
  GOVERNMENT
  The modern Skullstone government is a rigidly 
  controlled bureaucracy with slight theocratic over-
  tones. The Silver Prince is the undisputed ruler of the 
  entire archipelago, both temporally and spiritually. 
  However, he gives every appearance of leaving most 
  political matters to his subordinates. This is an illusion, 
  of course; spies among the Dark Judges keep the Prince 
  constantly informed of any political developments that 
  could undermine his goals. 
  Beneath the Bodhisattva are two bureaucratic enti-
  ties: the Dark Judiciary and the Ministry of Day and 
  Night. The Dark Judiciary governs all affairs pertaining 
  to religious law, including determining whether a dying 
  mortal is entitled to become a ghost. Each Dark Judge is 
  assisted by a retinue of clerks, both living and dead. In 
  addition to various administrative functions, these clerks 
  essentially serve as the secret police for the archipelago, 
  as the Judges also have primary authority for identifying 
  and punishing heresy and treason. Many of the clerks 
  serve the Judges secretly, publicly maintaining positions 
  in the Ministry or even the private sector. Only the 
  individual Judges (and the Bodhisattva) know exactly 
  who holds a clerkship, but the fact that a signiﬁ cant 
  percentage of Ministry employees are also on the payroll 
  of one or more Judges is well-known.
  The Ministry itself consists of virtually every citizen 
  who doesn’t work directly for the Dark Judiciary or the 
  Bodhisattva. If a citizen works as a tailor, then he is licensed 
  by the Ministry and is ofﬁ cially considered an agent of the 
  Bureau of Apparel Supplies. If the citizen is a restaurateur, 
  his establishment is considered a branch ofﬁ ce of the 
  Department of Food and Libations, which also licenses 
  his chefs and service workers, reviews his restaurant to 
  see that it meets health regulations and then takes a hefty 
  percentage of his proﬁ ts (and sends auditors after him if 
  he fails to meet minimum proﬁ t standards).
  ECONOMICS
  In the archipelago, every piece of property, real 
  or personal, is considered property of the state to held 
  in trust for the beneﬁ t of the people of Skullstone. 
  The deﬁ nition of property is expansive and includes 
  the very corpses of the deceased after their souls have 
  moved on. The majority of businesses are state-owned 
  and state-run, including the entirety of the military, 
  the state hospitals and the educational system. Even 
  the ancestor-cult priests and the funerary guild are 
  considered state employees. Those who do not wish to 
  work directly for the government or who wish to pursue 
  some business venture outside the scope of the normal 
  
  79
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  state-run areas can petition the Ministry for a “writ of 
  opportunity,” which, if granted, provides a license for 
  the prospective business and a certain amount of start-up 
  capital that must be repaid within two years. 
  Currency in Skullstone comes in three forms. The 
  most valuable currency are soulsteel oboli fashioned from 
  shavings left over from artifact manufacturing. Only the 
  wealthiest Skullfolk trade in oboli, however, and the 
  Bodhisattva forbids the trading of oboli with foreigners, 
  lest enemies such as the Realm gain insight into the 
  nature of soulsteel. Most Skullfolk trade in soulsteel 
  scrip, in the same way that most Realm citizens trade 
  in jade scrip. Finally, ghosts receive payment in the 
  form of state-mandated prayers for honored ancestors 
  and valuable Ministry positions, and ghosts can freely 
  transfer Essence with one another. Ultimately, however, 
  a majority of Skullfolk don’t even use currency of any 
  kind. Ministry employees for their entire lives (and 
  beyond), these Skullfolk never receive any physical 
  payment for their services. Instead, an employee’s pay 
  is added to his personal account, which is maintained 
  by Ministry accountants, and his purchases from state-
  run businesses are debited from the same account with 
  all transactions handled via intra-agency memos, all 
  efﬁ ciently governed by the Bodhisattva’s managerial 
  Charms—an effectively cashless society. 
  To say that Skullstone has a planned economy is a 
  gross understatement. The Silver Prince, drawing upon his 
  knowledge of First Age economic development principles, 
  knows exactly how many “rich,” “poor” and “middle-class” 
  citizens Skullstone needs in order to maximize productivity 
  and minimize the likelihood of social unrest. Furthermore, 
  even the poorest Skullstone citizen lives in relative luxury 
  compared to the poor in other nations. Skullstone’s huge 
  zombie and skeleton population virtually eliminates the 
  need for simple manual labor. The lowest occupational 
  echelons in Skullstone are government employees who 
  have been demoted due to incompetence or offending 
  a powerful superior. Such luckless individuals see their 
  government pay reduced to below the level needed to 
  afford their former government-provided housing, and 
  they are forced to move “outside.” 
  In this context, “outside” simply means the citizen 
  is forced to reside in cheap and humble government 
  
  80
  housing outside the city walls, typically wood construc-
  tion with dirt ﬂ oors. Such dwellings would constitute 
  unimaginable luxury to the poorest citizens of Nexus or 
  Chiaroscuro. Skullfolk, however, view those who dwell 
  outside the city walls with the same disdain that a wealthy 
  Chiaroscuran would view a beggar in the street. Those 
  condemned to live outside the city must do without most 
  of the amenities Skullfolk take for granted because those 
  who live outside simply can’t afford them rather than 
  because such amenities are forbidden. 
  One serious drawback to living outside makes it a 
  terrible burden for those who live there—Skullstone 
  law considers it a form of deprivation to raise children 
  outside the city. Accordingly, when a citizen is forced 
  to move outside, any children under the age of 12 are 
  seized by the government to become wards of the state 
  and raised in state-run orphanages.
  EDUCATION 
   
   
   
  Education in Skullstone is compulsory from ages 
  four to 12. Teachers are supplied by the Ministry’s 
  Commission on Young Citizens. Students study letters, 
  mathematics and Skullstone history, and while plainly 
  biased in favor of the Bodhisattva’s political views, this 
  education is otherwise quite comprehensive. By age 12, 
  most young Skullfolk are as literate and numerate as 
  similarly-aged children anywhere in Creation save the 
  children of Dynasts. 
  Around their 12th year, all children undergo 
  compulsory testing that assesses each child’s mental 
  and physical capabilities. The Commission on Young 
  Citizens carefully reviews these tests through blind 
  grading and then assigns each child to a mentorship/
  apprenticeship program lasting four years. One child 
  might be sent to military training while another might 
  apprentice to a tailor or a spider butcher. Prodigies, 
  especially Ghost-Blooded prodigies, are most often 
  sent to the College of Necrosurgery unless aptitude 
  testing suggests a high likelihood of failure there. At 
  some point between the ages of 16 and 20 (depend-
  ing on the student’s aptitude), the apprenticeship 
  period ends, and the child is legally an adult and a 
  Skullstone citizen. Most new citizens continue on 
  in the occupations assigned to them by the Com-
  mission, but doing so is not compulsory. However, 
  young citizens who wish to pursue any other career 
  must complete a second apprenticeship period, a 
  daunting prospect for someone who has just spent 
  five years as an apprentice.  
  When a given citizen completes her apprentice-
  ship, her master is responsible for submitting logs of 
  her performance, as well as his personal assessment of 
  her capabilities, to the Commission, which will then 
  assign her to a suitable job opening. While this system 
  might seem to give masters a frightening degree of 
  power over the job prospects of their apprentices, the 
  Commission routinely conducts extensive background 
  checks on all citizens who mentor apprentices, often 
  to the point of actively spying on them at the slightest 
  hint of impropriety.
  LAW AND CRIME
  Skullstone’s legal system is intimately connected 
  with the nation’s religious philosophy. The name of every 
  Skullfolk is recorded in the ledgers of the Dark Judges. 
  When a citizen is convicted of a crime, there is typi-
  cally no direct punishment. Instead, a Dark Judge adds 
  a variable number of black marks next to the offender’s 
  name in the central registry. The number of black marks 
  is determined according to the severity of the offense. 
  Crimes are not the only factors that are recorded in the 
  registry, however—demotions or work-related repri-
  mands are also reﬂ ected in black marks (though rarely 
  as many), while promotions and other signiﬁ cant acts 
  in support of the state are denoted by red marks. When 
  a citizen receives a certain number of black marks in 
  her registry entry, for whatever reason, she is arrested 
  by clerks of the Dark Judiciary and summarily executed. 
  When a citizen receives an equivalent number of red 
  marks, she is simply contacted by a judicial clerk and 
  given one week to resolve her affairs before she is to 
  report to the Judiciary for ritual suicide. However, the 
  number of marks required for mandated death is quite 
  high, and except for those guilty of serious crimes, the 
  vast majority of Skullfolk die without being ordered to 
  do so by a Dark Judge.
  After the citizen dies by whatever means, her 
  name is reported to a panel of Dark Judges (typically 
  three judges except in exceptional circumstances) who 
  review the records of her life and offer a recommenda-
  tion to the Bodhisattva as to whether she continue on 
  as a righteous dead or pass on into her next life. Since 
  his return, the Silver Prince has publicly overruled 
  the Judges’ recommendation only once, although he 
  has moved behind the scenes on several occasions to 
  manipulate the Judges according to his will. As far as 
  the general public knows, the Judges must approve a 
  decedent for righteous dead status within three days or 
  it is impossible to bring the deceased back as a ghost.
  The only exception to the legal process outlined 
  above is in the case of murder. The Bodhisattva’s religious 
  philosophy places great emphasis on individuals dying 
  
  81
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  in highly controlled situations. Murder is not merely a 
  crime but also an affront to the social order. Murderers 
  in Skullstone are almost invariably brought to justice, 
  in large part because their victims usually testify against 
  their murderers. After the murderer is convicted, a panel 
  of Dark Judges immediately review the circumstances 
  of the crime. When the murder was committed out of 
  greed, passion or some similar context, the murderer 
  is typically executed and summarily denied righteous 
  dead status. On the other hand, the Judges often show 
  leniency when the murder was committed in order to 
  alleviate the victim’s suffering. On one occasion, a 
  murderess was rewarded with the opportunity for sui-
  cide and righteous dead status, as well as a signiﬁ cant 
  promotion, after she killed her own father, who had 
  been severely crippled in an accident.
  RELIGION
  Most religions in Creation are a mixture of truth 
  and ﬁ ction, a delicate balancing act between honoring 
  the gods who actually maintain Creation and advancing 
  whatever moral philosophy the local government wishes 
  to inculcate through religion. The New Order is differ-
  ent—almost nothing about it is true. The entire religion is 
  a sham devised by the Bodhisattva in order to render his 
  subjects pliable, loyal and above all, eager to offer their 
  own souls up to the Deathlord to use as he sees ﬁ t. 
  The chief principle of the New Order is actually 
  identical to the central belief of the Immaculate Philoso-
  phy: each person’s action in his current life inﬂ uences 
  the quality of the life into which he will be reincarnated. 
  The two religions diverge in two fundamental ways, 
  however. First, they differ sharply on what actions will 
  positively or negatively affect a believer’s reincarna-
  tion cycle. It goes without saying that Skullfolk do not 
  venerate the Elemental Dragons, let alone recognize 
  the moral superiority of the Dragon-Blooded. The New 
  Order holds that gods in general are unworthy of any 
  sort of veneration and that only ancestors should be 
  so rewarded. Of course, Skullfolk have little need to 
  venerate spirits, as there are no little gods within the 
  shadowland to demand such worship. 
  The other chief difference between Immaculate 
  Philosophy and the New Order lies in their attitude 
  toward ghosts. The Immaculate Philosophy places 
  a duty on all people to quickly pass into reincarna-
  tion upon death and views ghosts as a blasphemous 
  violation of the natural order. Interestingly, the New 
  Order agrees that ghosts violate the natural order. 
  However, the death cult holds that such violations 
  are necessary, since, in a shadowland, only ghosts 
  can perform the services that mortals once begged 
  of the capricious and uncaring gods. Skullfolk view 
  ghostly existence as a necessary evil, and every ghost 
  in their society is a hero who has voluntarily delayed 
  her own reincarnation, almost certainly into a better 
  life, in order to serve her family and her nation. The 
  righteous dead are not like other ghosts who selﬁ shly 
  cling to existence at the expense of the living, but 
  noble patriots to be admired and respected.
  Or so the Dark Judges say. The reality is that the 
  Bodhisattva views his subjects the way a farmer views 
  the cows in his ﬁ eld—as a commodity to be exploited or 
  shipped off to the slaughterhouse depending on which 
  is more convenient. The Deathlord ensures that a small 
  percentage of his people endure as ghosts only because he 
  requires a minimum number of loyal bureaucrats in his 
  employ for his powerful society-shaping Charms to function 
  optimally and because he needs the illusion of a ghostly 
  utopia in order to placate his regional rivals so that they 
  do not unite against him or ally with the Realm. 
  In truth, every ghost in Skullstone endures only at 
  the Silver Prince’s sufferance. With but a word from 
  him, every single one of the righteous dead would be 
  instantly and violently sucked into the Foundry of Souls 
  to meet their ﬁ nal oblivion. As the Deathlord’s plans 
  come ever closer to fruition, the day approaches when 
  that word will be given.
  GENDER ROLES, SEX AND MARRIAGE
  A fairly strict meritocracy, Skullstone ofﬁ cially sees 
  no distinction between women and men. In practice, 
  of course, the overwhelming majority of naval person-
  nel are men since the local storm mothers attack ships 
  with female crews. This may change—the Bodhisattva’s 
  forces recently directly confronted and defeated the 
  powerful storm mother Shakar-Anisi and bound her 
  against harming Skullstone ships. If the Deathlord takes 
  similar actions against the other area storm mothers, 
  his past actions suggest that he will open his navy up 
  to any women who wish to serve. 
  The New Order’s views on sex itself are unusual, 
  even by the standards of the West. According to the 
  Bodhisattva, the purpose of marriage is to produce 
  children so that after death citizens can rely upon the 
  prayers of their children to sustain them until reen-
  tering the cycle of reincarnation. However, the New 
  Order rejects the suggestion that women merely are 
  brood mares. Married Skullstone women are socially 
  obligated to have at least one child in their lives. Any 
  more than that is entirely left to the woman’s discre-
  tion. An exception is made for Tya who petition for 
  
  82
  Skullstone citizenship. Skullstone generally views Tya 
  as men and exempts them from any social stigma for 
  childlessness. 
  Skullstone society places great stigma on bastard 
  children. If it is possible to determine who the father is 
  and both he and the mother are single, then the state will 
  typically require the parents’ marriage, if only for book-
  keeping purposes. If a single mother refuses to identify 
  the father or if the father is already married, the child is 
  taken immediately after birth and placed in a Ministry-run 
  orphanage. The state also adopts any children produced by 
  rape or incest. Ofﬁ cially, rape is punished by a substantial 
  number of black marks assigned to the rapist’s name in 
  the Dark Judges’ ledgers. Unofﬁ cially, rape victims who 
  murder their attackers almost never face any legal sanc-
  tion. All Skullfolk orphans are ceremonially adopted by 
  the Silver Prince, and when they pray to their parents, 
  the Deathlord reaps the rewards of their faith. 
  Despite the stigma against bastardy (or perhaps 
  because of it), Skullstone religion presents no objec-
  tions to sex, regardless of the gender or marital status 
  of participants, where there is no chance to produce 
  issue. In fact, not only are both male and female 
  prostitution legal in Skullstone, they are respected 
  and highly proﬁ table divisions of the Ministry. The 
  Authority for Pleasurable and Genial Companionship 
  operates state-run brothels across the nation, as well 
  as the Black Pearl Courtesan Academy, a school for 
  prostitutes and concubines. Both males and females can 
  achieve remarkable status as courtesans in Skullstone, 
  although state courtesans are required to submit to 
  monthly medical exams and regular doses of maiden 
  tea in order to retain their licenses.
  As with most Skullstone occupations, legalized 
  prostitution is open to both the living and the dead. 
  Especially skilled prostitutes who have excelled at 
  pleasuring Dark Judges and other inﬂ uential people 
  are as eligible for righteous dead status as anyone 
  else, and the Silver Prince himself has, on occasion, 
  summoned well-known courtesans of both genders to 
  his bedchambers from which they have emerged with 
  their beauty and skill preserved for eternity. For those 
  with cheaper budgets or less discriminating (or merely 
  particular) tastes, several bordellos also offer the services 
  of zombie prostitutes of both genders. Such macabre 
  lovers, while perfectly acceptable to most Skullfolk, are 
  considered repugnant to most visitors to the island . 
  . . most, but not all. The College of Necrosurgery has 
  sold quite a few zombies programmed to function as sex 
  toys to the Guild and House Cynis.
  
  83
  CHAPTER FOUR • MIST-WEBBED ISLES
  THE BLACK FLEET
  The Bodhisattva’s naval forces are referred to col-
  lectively as the Black Fleet. There is no meaningful 
  distinction between his merchant ﬂ eet and his military 
  forces. All Skullstone ships carry the Deathlord’s pen-
  nant, a white circle on a black ﬁ eld, and every ship has 
  at least some armaments. The Sea Lord’s intelligence 
  is spotty at best where Skullstone is concerned, but he 
  estimates that the Deathlord has about 100 warships. 
  The actual number is 229, and that only counts con-
  ventional warships that patrol Skullstone waters. The 
  number of cargo ships is about 400.
  The true heart of the Bodhisattva’s ﬂ eet has not yet 
  left drydock on Island Five. There, construction contin-
  ues on the true Black Fleet, an armada built according 
  to a synthesis of First Age ship construction and modern 
  necromantic principles. The Bodhisattva estimates that it 
  will take another two years to ﬁ nish construction on the 
  ﬁ rst wave of ships. When that wave takes to the seas, it 
  will number exactly 100, a fraction of Coral’s ﬂ eet, to say 
  nothing of the Realm’s, but every one of those 100 ships 
  will be the equivalent of a First Age light warship armed 
  with necrotic Essence weapons and powered by hundreds 
  of skeleton rowers. In comparison, the best equipped of the 
  ﬁ ve Realm ﬂ eets has about 30 such ships. When the Black 
  Fleet enters battle, the ships will leave bloody timbers and 
  pelagic shadowlands in the ﬂ eet’s wake.
  CAPTAIN MORAY DARKTIDE
  Until just a year ago, Moray Darktide was a petty 
  raider. Then, the Unconquered Sun chose him as a most 
  unlikely target for Exaltation. Darktide Exalted as his 
  ship was being boarded by Lintha pirates, and the young 
  Dawn Caste drove the pirates away single-handedly and 
  then safely piloted the survivors back to Onyx. A true 
  patriot and fervent believer in the New Order, Darktide 
  wasted no time in revealing what had happened to the 
  Silver Prince and reafﬁ rming his loyalty to his homeland. 
  The Deathlord accepted Darktide’s loyalty, promoted 
  him to captain, gave him one of the best ships in the 
  Black Fleet . . . and then dispatched him to ﬁ ght Lintha 
  pirates hundreds of miles from home. 
  The Solar represents an invaluable resource, but also 
  a deadly danger, particularly if he ever discovers what 
  happens on Island Five. The Deathlord keeps Darktide far 
  from home as much as possible, even as the Silver Prince 
  rewards the Dawn Caste with money, artifacts and a letter 
  of marque that would ransom him from most captors. For 
  now, the Bodhisattva watches his Solar pawn, always aware 
  that, should Darktide show the slightest disloyalty, his fate 
  will follow that of Fallen Wolf of the Cutting Sea. 
  PIRATES AND PRIVATEERS
  While Captain Darktide is the most infamous pri-
  vateer in the Bodhisattva’s employ, he is not the only 
  one. Several pirate ships under mortal captains serve 
  Skullstone, attacking merchant ships from other nations 
  as part of the Bodhisattva’s schemes to undermine trade 
  among the Western nations. For the most successful 
  and ruthless captains who have proven their utmost 
  loyalty, the Deathlord performs a potent Void Circle 
  Necromancy spell, Suture of the Perfected Heart, which 
  renders a mortal virtually immune to injury.
  RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER NATIONS
  Since his “return,” the Bodhisattva has focused primar-
  ily on consolidating his hold over the territories actually 
  within his shadowland, while laying the groundwork for 
  expansion into the surrounding lands. The Deathlord 
  moves cautiously, as his plans require him to rely on 
  diplomacy until his military resources are overwhelming. 
  Consequently, those who compare the Silver Prince to 
  the Mask of Winters usually assume the former represents 
  the “reasonable” face of the Deathlords and is someone 
  who can be dealt with diplomatically. This is exactly the 
  mistake the Bodhisattva wants his enemies to make.
  Currently, the Coral Archipelago is Skullstone’s 
  chief trading partner. Skullstone supplies precious 
  metals salvaged from sunken Amphion, as well as a 
  limited supply of zombie slaves, while Coral supplies 
  material goods that cannot be manufactured within the 
  shadowland. Avishander Nemoran is understandably 
  cautious in dealing with Skullstone—the Silver Prince 
  alone is a frightening prospect, but the Sea Lord must 
  also avoid the appearance of allying openly with the 
  Deathlord lest he draw unwanted imperial attention. 
  In response, the Silver Prince dangles the possibility 
  of a secret alliance. His ultimate plan is to manipulate 
  Coral into a disastrous war with Wavecrest or even the 
  Realm. Then, when Coral is on the verge of falling, the 
  Deathlord will send in his Black Fleet to crush both 
  armies, ensuring that the death toll is high enough to 
  expand the Web of Shadows over Coral.
  The Bodhisattva has little interest in the rest of the 
  Western islands, at least at the moment. Wavecrest is 
  too far away to make conquest currently practical, and 
  the nearer islands have nothing of value. Instead, the 
  Deathlord sends diplomatic envoys to Abalone with as-
  surances of neutrality in any conﬂ ict between Wavecrest 
  and Coral. These envoys also subtly try to manipulate 
  the Feathered One into an isolationist stance, in hopes 
  that Wavecrest will sever its trading ties with the other 
  nations and let famine spread across the West.
  
  84
  The Bodhisattva views civil war in the Realm as 
  imminent, but he sees little way he can advance his in-
  terests there without giving the Dynasts a mutual enemy 
  to rally against. With the Mask of Winters’ boundless 
  ego attracting so much of the Realm’s attention, the 
  Bodhisattva considers the Realm a negligible threat 
  to his goals. The Deathlord considers his chief rival in 
  the West to be the Lintha Family. A relic of the First 
  Age, the Bodhisattva knows exactly what the Lintha 
  are all about and wants none of it. If it came to it, he 
  would rather see the West raised up by resurgent Solars 
  than fall to a clan of inbred Yozi-worshiping cannibals 
  with a castration fetish, and he fully supports Captain 
  Darktide’s efforts to harry Lintha piracy.
  BLACK FLEET 
  MARINES
  D e s c r i p t i o n : 
  Thanks to the massive 
  quantities of soulsteel 
  the Hungry Stone 
  harvests—greater 
  even than the stores 
  of the First and For-
  saken Lion—the Silver 
  Prince manufactures a 
  higher grade of zombie than most of the Deathlords, and 
  in great numbers. Coursing through the soulsteel wire 
  with which they’re inlaid and the remaining pathways 
  within their dead brains are the barest echo of life’s 
  memory. They’re still largely mindless, but they stride 
  rather than shamble, and wranglers train the zombies 
  to wield weapons and engage in boarding actions, us-
  ing techniques ﬁ rst perfected in Skullstone’s Theatre 
  Macabre and bordellos. More importantly, the zombies’ 
  hunger for ﬂ esh is curbed, and they don’t stop ﬁ ghting 
  the moment they have a single kill to feast on.
  These traits represent a scale of zombie marines. 
  Each Skullstone marine assault bireme carries two 
  scales, as comfort is not a concern and the oarsmen 
  are tireless skeletons.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: Usually a war ghost; see Exalted, 
  p. 318
  Armor Color: Black
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: 25 zombies armed with chopping 
  swords, wearing breastplates
  Overall Quality: Good
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 2
  Close Combat Attack: 2    Close Combat Damage: 4
  Ranged Attack: — 
  Ranged Damage: —
  Endurance: N/A  Might: 0  Armor: 2   Morale: N/A
  Formation: The increased utility of the zombie marines 
  comes at a price. Though they require less in the way 
  of battleﬁ eld support labs—a necessity, as labs are 
  difﬁ cult to transport over the sea—they require much 
  more effort to produce. Without the House of the Sea’s 
  Cold Embrace, supplies of both soulsteel and zombies 
  would dry up. Over the centuries since the Silver 
  Prince perfected their creation, he has accumulated 
  seven legions (35,000) of his zombies, but currently 
  commits only 2,500 to his patrols, stockpiling the rest 
  on Island Five until his true Black Fleet is ﬁ nished. 
  The rest of his army is made up of more conventional 
  war ghosts and zombies.
  The Skullstone Archipelago, a Magnitude 6 
  Dominion
  Military: 3     Government: 4     Culture: 2
  Abilities: Awareness 2 (Spies 1), Bureaucracy 4, 
  Craft 4, Integrity 3, Investigation 3 (Secret 
  Police 1), Occult 5 (Necromancy 1), Perfor-
  mance 4 (International Diplomacy 1), Presence 2, 
  Stealth 3, War 2 (Black Fleet 1)
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 6, Temper-
  ance 3, Valor 4
  Virtue Flaw: Conviction      Current Limit: 4
  Willpower: 9
  Bonus Points: 30 External Bonus Points: 9
  Notes: Skullstone is a Mostly Supernatural 
  dominion. The Silver Prince is a sorcerer with 
  Legitimacy (and a lot of high-Essence Mandate 
  Charms). Skullstone’s bonus points are tied 
  up in one dot each of Valor, Awareness, Craft, 
  Investigation, Performance and War, as well as 
  the Investigation, Occult and War Specialties. 
  Skullstone’s external bonus points go toward 
  another dot of Valor and the Awareness and 
  Performance Specialties.
  Currently, the Skullfolk are in the grip of religious 
  reforms. In the event of Limit Break, they’ll take 
  the principles of the New Order well past logic 
  and sense and into mania, killing themselves en 
  masse to swell the ranks of the righteous dead and 
  turning against those elements of the populace 
  who’ve shown less than absolute devotion to the 
  ideals of the Silver Prince—or at least the ideals 
  he espouses in public.
  
  85
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  
  86
  The Lintha are the scourge of the Southwest. Pirates, 
  crime lords, Demon-Blooded cultists and self-mutilat-
  ing cannibals, they make hidden port at Bluehaven, 
  a demon itself—the living, moving island Lintha Ng 
  Oroo. Beholden to no wind, the Lintha Family hitches 
  ships to great sea-demons loyal only to the blood of the 
  Yozi Kimbery.
  Every port in Creation tells rumors of these pirates: 
  They never leave a sailor alive. They do, but only after 
  forcing him to consume his shipmates. They breathe water 
  through their mutations. They use mutants as slaves.
  Those who work the sea have no stomach for the 
  rumors, because they know enough. All sailors know 
  what to do when the black and silver appears on the 
  horizon. Resistance means death, either by the hellish 
  magic and auhzian swords of the Lintha themselves or 
  in the coils of the monsters that tow the ships. Most 
  sailors give up without a ﬁ ght; some bring their cargo 
  on deck at the mere sight of the Lintha’s banners.
  Only idealistic fools ﬁ ght the Lintha. Dragon-
  Blooded ﬁ nd their Charms avail them not. Captains 
  who would resist face mutiny. Nations send forth great 
  heroes at the helms of mighty ships, and even so, win 
  few victories.
  Worse, the Lintha operate also on land. Through 
  proxies and dupes, the Lintha’s criminal empire has 
  agents in every port. They remember all who’ve ever 
  served them, and call back reluctant slaves through 
  blackmail and threat. Refusing a summons is betrayal, 
  punished by torture and death not only of the deserter 
  but his loved ones as well. The only path out of the 
  Family is the Underworld.
  Woe to the enemies of the Lintha. Suffering to the 
  impure. The thinnest blood of Kimbery’s get is stronger 
  CHAPTER FIVE
  CHAPTER FIVE
  DEMON PIRATES OF THE
  DEMON PIRATES OF THE
  WESTERN OCEAN
  WESTERN OCEAN
  
  87
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  than the mightiest bloodline of Gaia’s bastards, and the 
  Chosen of the Incarna are no match for the Chosen 
  of the Great Mother; the Lintha’s greatest champion; 
  brother, husband and son to Lintha Ng Oroo; and 
  Exalted of the Sea That Marched Against the Flame: 
  Lintha Ng Hut Dukantha.
  HISTORY OF THE LINTHA
  This history begins before the dawning of the First 
  Age. The Lintha were princes then. Their shapes were 
  similar to man’s, but better in all ways. An ideal Lintha 
  was gaunt and tall, seven feet or more, with a bright 
  green skin and pure, frost-white hair. Their grace was 
  unparalleled, and the eyes in their long, thin faces 
  burned crimson. They ruled over a vast continent in 
  the Southwest at the will of their patron and parent, 
  Kimbery, the Sea That Marched Against the Flame, 
  whom they call the Great Mother. Their land was more 
  than property. It was their sister, another child of the 
  Great Mother, called Lintha Ng Oroo.
  Kimbery was proud of her children. She taught them 
  the arts of shaping Creation to their will, of crafting 
  works of peerless function and form and more. Their 
  artiﬁ cial soldiers and sailors guarded her children against 
  all dangers, wielding swords that could hew islands in two 
  and shields of greened copper that could not be broken. 
  Lintha art and construction would endure forever.
  A Lintha prince’s highest honor was to father a child 
  on their Great Mother. It was a reward for embodying all 
  that Kimbery valued and a promise that the Lintha race 
  would never fall. In addition to the arts that maintained 
  their supremacy, Lintha Ng Oroo changed shape and 
  position to protect her siblings against threats in that 
  time. Even the mighty Dragon Kings could not assail the 
  Lintha in their home. From this position, the Lintha were 
  superior to all others. They were the chosen race. 
  The Exalted did the impossible. Given power by 
  traitorous gods and equipped with wonders matching 
  the Lintha’s, the Exalted heroes toppled the mighty 
  Primordial creators of the world. Creation’s nature 
  changed as eternal, boundless beings learned mortal-
  ity and lost their freedom. The gods’ Chosen bound 
  the Great Mother herself inside the bones and ﬂ esh of 
  Malfeas, her king.
  
  88
  With the loss of their Great Mother, the world of 
  the Lintha came apart. They had fought in the time-
  less war on her behalf, sending their animated men 
  and puissant artifacts against the Exalted only to meet 
  equals for the ﬁ rst time. Orichalcum shields turned 
  the Lintha’s sharpest blades, and daiklaves of jade cut 
  deep gouges in the greened copper of their fortresses 
  and constructs. Exalted warriors shattered the Lintha 
  dominion, breaking the continent Lintha Ng Oroo in 
  a cataclysmic attack and scattering the noblest race.
  Tens of thousands died then, wailing at the Great 
  Mother’s captivity and their sibling’s pain. Many 
  drowned, denied their tradition of returning to Kimbery 
  by being consumed by the land of their birth. More 
  died in the few years that followed, raging against their 
  oppressors and falling in futile resistance to the blos-
  soming Old Realm.
  THE MIGHTY, FALLEN
  One hundred Lintha survived. Three score were en-
  slaved by the Solar Exalted, used for the Lintha’s cunning 
  and wisdom until their deaths. Three dozen joined the 
  world of the usurpers, willingly abandoning their heritage 
  and honor; their bloodlines intermingled with those of 
  humanity, losing all that made the Lintha noble.
  Three retained the pride of their race. They con-
  tinued their forbidden line with each other and with 
  their enslaved brethren, ensuring the Lintha would not 
  disappear. They also slew, one by one, the Lintha who 
  had betrayed their heritage, beginning the tradition of 
  no tolerance for disloyalty.
  Well into the First Age, descendants of these three 
  Lintha sought the truth of their heritage, longtime 
  companions devoted to one another and dedicated to 
  recovering what their people had lost. Modern Lintha 
  remember a few names of these great heroes. Rat Scur-
  deon was a fearless and cruel pirate and captain of the 
  Skalleng. Sirji Tan was the princess of a Southern na-
  tion now completely forgotten. Kan Pol was a scholar 
  and expert on his line’s history, and he motivated his 
  companions on their quest.
  The group sailed across the West in search of their 
  people’s past. It took them a century, but the long 
  Lintha lifespan served them well, and they rediscovered 
  much. They learned of their nobility and the injustices 
  perpetrated upon them. They declared their mission to 
  reinvent the Lintha nation and again claim the West 
  as their rightful domain.
  Western kings and governors were displeased. Every 
  one declared the crew of the Skalleng outlaws. Pirates, 
  privateers and military ships all hunted the Skalleng to 
  claim the many bounties. Admiral Strider-of-Storms 
  eventually captured the crew, but the Lintha were 
  clever. Rat Scurdeon claimed protection from mighty 
  gods and threatened curses on any who would dishon-
  orably slay the companions. Afraid, the admiral left 
  the Lintha in chains on their own ship, rudderless and 
  without food or water, assuming the ocean would kill 
  them. He was wrong.
  HOME AGAIN
  The Skalleng drifted aimlessly, slave to the currents 
  and the winds. The Lintha drank from storms that beat 
  upon the ship’s decks, prolonging their deaths. The 
  merciless sun burned them by day, and the uncaring stars 
  gazed down on them at night. Dehydration had killed half 
  of them when the ship ran aground. Given strength by 
  desperation, Sirji Tan freed herself from her chains and 
  looked to see where they had landed. She saw only wet 
  blue grasses and tall trees growing out of the ocean.
  Her crew had neither the strength nor the tools and 
  materials to repair the Skalleng. Eating the grasses caused 
  violent tremors of the stomach, as one died to learn. 
  The trees bore no fruit and were anyway too distant to 
  reach, with misshapen, hungry sharks hidden in the 
  grasses. The Lintha were free, but condemned.
  The starving looked to their dead for sustenance, 
  but their companions had rotted in the sun and salt, 
  and the ospreys and quetzals had torn the dead into a 
  festering maze of blood and ﬂ esh. One survivor died 
  trying anyway, providing a fresh corpse to sustain her 
  friends. There was little nourishment in it, but by then 
  the Lintha’s tastes were undiscerning.
  The heat grew worse, forcing the Lintha crew to 
  hide below decks. Most kept busy with fruitless efforts 
  to ﬁ nd food. Rat Scurdeon spent his time watching the 
  horizon. When he one day saw ships, they turned out to 
  be the Black Freighters—infamous slavers of the day.
  The proud Lintha prepared for a ﬁ ght to the death. 
  But when the ships drew near, disgorging longboats of 
  armed men, the sea beneath began to buckle and froth. 
  From the depths rose a mass of land, water streaming 
  from its heights. The longboats overturned, and the 
  slavers’ ships were landlocked. The Lintha’s enemies 
  fell into the sea, where the sharks consumed them.
  Trees and lush vegetation adorned the island’s 
  fecund hills. The Lintha did not remember their sister, 
  Lintha Ng Oroo, but trust overwhelmed Kan Pol. Racial 
  memory told him she was of his blood; sadness ﬁ lled 
  him, though he did not know how much she had been 
  diminished. He listened when she spoke, her voice 
  echoing from a cave near her shore. She invited the 
  
  89
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  survivors to sate themselves on her limitless bounty, 
  producing milk-heavy goats, gourds of fresh water and 
  wine brought by quetzals, copper and iron in abundance 
  and plentiful trees without end.
  “Our Great Mother greets you,” said Lintha Ng 
  Oroo. “She has heard your silent prayers for salvation 
  and vengeance, and honors her favored children. You 
  were all destined to join the dead, but you shall instead 
  live to honor her, spread her glory and pay her in tribute 
  as long as there are days and as long as there is light.”
  As the Lintha fed and regained their strength, 
  their sister swam westward. Rat Scurdeon’s keen eyes 
  saw the battlements and towers of an ancient alcazar 
  barely topping the waves. From the highest tower 
  stepped two forms: an aged Lintha with a long beard 
  as white as his hair and a machine of greened copper. 
  The automaton carried the old man across the calm 
  ocean toward the visitors.
  “This is the ancestral home of the Lintha,” Lintha 
  Ng Oroo whispered, “T’foor Na, the Place of the 
  Stonehearted, mortals called it. The Lintha knew it 
  as the Blue City.”
  The Blue City had been the center of the Lintha’s 
  dominion, spanning many islands. When the Exalted 
  shattered Lintha Ng Oroo, the city fell from her back 
  into the Great Western Ocean and had been drowning 
  ever since. The old man drew closer, and the companions 
  saw his blindness. He was the Warder of the Blue City, 
  ghost of the 100th surviving Lintha after the Usurpa-
  tion, who returned to his people’s ancestral home to 
  record the tragedy that befell them and swore to remain 
  until the last drop of Lintha blood had disappeared 
  from Creation.
  At his side was Truthteller, a creation from prehis-
  tory who could read the Lintha’s ancestral memories. 
  When the two reached Lintha Ng Oroo, the automaton 
  gazed into the eyes of the survivors. Tears streamed down 
  the Warder’s face as Truthteller silently communicated 
  the brutalities his people had suffered since their fall.
  The tears ceased as Truthteller read on. “You have 
  each sinned against the Great Mother,” T’foor Na 
  intoned. “I see cutting of kinﬂ esh and blood drinking, 
  eating the roasted heart of sister and brother. You have 
  sinned against the Mother and shall for ever hunger 
  for the kinﬂ esh you have tasted.” The Warder of the 
  Blue City looked on Lintha Ng Oroo, and she read 
  her doom in his eyes. “Go from this place. Go back to 
  your tangled sea where you have cowered and serve 
  the Great Mother while you can, for there is a curse 
  on your blood that cannot be lifted.”
  THE FOUNDING OF BLUEHAVEN
  The Lintha’s sister returned to where sargasso clogged 
  the waters. People of the Old Realm kept their distance, 
  and this place had once been a holy place of the Lintha. 
  They had come there to cleanse themselves and beg the 
  Great Mother’s forgiveness, but these new Lintha refused 
  the shame that the Warder had heaped on them.
  They made their home among the holy weeds, 
  trapping the Skalleng and the slaver’s ships in the ﬂ oat-
  ing sargasso and turning them into the seed of a city. 
  Lintha Ng Oroo continued to give bounty, and from 
  there the Lintha planned their conquest of Creation. 
  Their piracy began with one ship, but they captured 
  more. Each ship joined either their growing ﬂ eet or 
  their spreading city. Those that were not swift enough 
  for piracy or sturdy enough for construction became 
  part of the dead-ship labyrinth.
  It ﬂ oated atop the seaweed, always moving. The 
  ﬂ oating labyrinth was difﬁ cult to ﬁ nd and, without fore-
  knowledge, approach was suicide. The Lintha were safe 
  there while they spread their seeds and regained their 
  strength. They called this city Bluehaven, to honor their 
  past and defy the ghost who had condemned them.
  By the city always was Lintha Ng Oroo, protecting 
  and nurturing her brethren. At ﬁ rst, the Lintha tried to 
  repopulate their race themselves, but they were too few 
  and infertility plagued them. They mingled their blood 
  with humanity. It was inappropriate for a Lintha to lay 
  happily with a lesser being, so the ﬁ rst generations of 
  halfbloods came of rape.
  Centuries later, when Kan Pol the Elder lay dy-
  ing, he looked out over Bluehaven from his deathbed 
  on Lintha Ng Oroo’s highest hill. He saw thousands 
  of halfblooded Lintha working for the Mother’s glory, 
  walking the hundreds of planks that led between the 
  city’s dozens of districts, harvesting their sister’s gifts 
  from her shores and navigating the dangerous drifting 
  paths out from the city for a tour of just piracy. What 
  he saw pleased him.
  THE SECOND AGE
  The upheaval of the Usurpation rocked the entire 
  world. The Lintha took it as their opportunity to reenter 
  Creation under a different guise.
  Up to this point, the Lintha had been purely pi-
  ratical. They took the wealth of any they caught on 
  the open seas and collected it in the treasure towers of 
  Bluehaven, reﬁ tted holds designed to entice the greedy 
  and kill the unwary. The Lintha let their victims die 
  or enslaved them.
  
  90
  Creation’s societies fell to pieces during the Usurpa-
  tion, especially in the West, and the Lintha ﬁ lled the gaps. 
  They sold drugs of all kinds and increased their slaving, 
  raiding both ships and coastal villages. They also stole 
  and resold food while surviving on the gifts of Lintha Ng 
  Oroo, blind to how she hung lower in the water.
  The Lintha dominated swathes of the Western 
  economy. Entire societies lived or died on the ship-
  ments of food the Lintha Family provided at exorbitant 
  prices. Dozens of small islands became slave states to 
  Bluehaven, a de facto capital they’d never see. Many 
  remain enslaved today. The Lintha rule as distant over-
  lords, keeping their “subjects” land bound and ignorant 
  of the world beyond their shores. Lintha slave states 
  earn survival through labor, crafting the weapons, ships 
  and tools that the Lintha do not steal.
  KAN POL THE YOUNGER
  Kan Pol the Younger was a halfblood, sired on a 
  human commoner by Lintha Ba’ar, a ship’s mate. Ba’ar 
  named his son after the Lintha historian and hero, who 
  predicted a return to former glory for the race, in a move 
  both prophetic and ironic. Kan Pol the Younger became 
  a poet, historian and philosopher, and the greatest and 
  most inﬂ uential Lintha thinker of the Second Age.
  Kan Pol believed he understood the curse that the 
  Warden of the Blue City had placed on the Lintha. 
  It was in their blood, causing it to grow ever thinner. 
  Union between two of strong blood seldom produced 
  issue. True bloodlines are polygamous to better the 
  chance of offspring. When Lintha conceived, mothers 
  often died in childbirth. The Lintha race was doomed 
  to fade into humanity’s shadow. Kan Pol showed his 
  contempt for his tainted blood and the halfblooded 
  children he would produce by castrating himself, and 
  his most ardent admirers followed suit. Historians trace 
  the Lintha practice of castration to this point.
  He also condemned the hunger. Every Lintha feels 
  a lust for the ﬂ esh and blood of his brethren. Suckling 
  infants bite their mothers’ breasts. Convention stops 
  a grown Lintha from killing his brethren to satiate the 
  hunger, but nothing prevents feasting on the dead. 
  The Lintha make excuses, claiming the consumption 
  of fallen brothers and sisters keeps lines pure. Kan Pol 
  the Younger refused to partake of Lintha ﬂ esh and wrote 
  of his intention to be cremated.
  The author’s satires mocked the efforts to subvert 
  the fate given them by the Great Mother. With age, 
  his philosophy grew more fatalistic and his pen more 
  acerbic. He spoke out against the great number of half-
  blooded Lintha and condemned any who watered their 
  blood through congress with mortals. He especially saw 
  the Dragon-Blooded born to the Family as pollutions 
  of the bloodline. Younger Lintha read hypocrisy in Kan 
  Pol’s words, and one night a group of them cut out his 
  tongue. At only 135 years of age, having survived the 
  Contagion, the philosopher bled to death.
  Kan Pol the Younger sparked a revolution of conser-
  vatism among the Lintha. His magnum opus, The Book 
  of the Utz Semivir, remains today the most popular work 
  of Lintha literature. The book extols the nobility of their 
  race while bleakly laying out the inevitability of their dis-
  appearance from Creation. Selective reading popularized 
  Kan Pol’s philosophy into a statement that emphasizes their 
  superiority but ignores their certain decline. Lintha today 
  continue to willfully misinterpret Kan Pol’s works. 
  The text’s popularity spurred the Lintha to severely 
  limit the privileges of lesser races and those tainted 
  with impure blood. Strict control over breeding and 
  punishment for breaking those rules became normal, 
  including dictated castration. Lintha ignore subtler 
  aspects of Kan Pol’s philosophy that condemn ﬁ ghting 
  the inevitable decline.
  Enforcement of these rules varies with the zeit-
  geist, but they have never entirely faded from the 
  Lintha consciousness. Strong conservative leanings 
  TRUE BLOOD AND FALSE BLOOD
  Kan Pol was the last of the original Lintha to 
  die, and the last true Lintha in Creation. He knew 
  that the pure bloodlines died with him, but he 
  believed the Great Mother would reinvigorate the 
  dwindling blood of her distant children when they 
  had done her enough honors. The curse was a thing 
  to endure, a penance instead of a condemnation.
  By the time of the Usurpation, the noblest-
  seeming halfbloods called themselves true Lintha. 
  Only Lintha whose heritage was an obvious mix 
  were halfbloods. From convenience and pride, 
  they forget that the last pure bloodline died with 
  Kan Pol.
  This continues today. Lintha elders accept only 
  a few bloodlines as true and guide their eugenics 
  accordingly. Purer Lintha blood brings infertility and 
  dangerous childbirth, forcing the septs to sometimes 
  breed outside approved lines just to conceive. De-
  spite the Lintha’s efforts at eugenics, even children 
  of unions between two “pure” bloodlines display 
  traits that should prove the lines ﬂ awed and thin-
  ning. The Lintha Family deludes itself.
  
  91
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  in today’s Lintha makes Kan Pol the Younger’s writing 
  and philosophies more popular than ever, and nearly 
  every home in Bluehaven has a copy of The Book of 
  the Utz Semivir.
  THE CONFIRMATION
  In time the Lintha Family’s ambition began to drift. 
  Their goal was clear, but the elders grew uncertain about 
  the point of pursuing it. Deeper readings of Kan Pol the 
  Younger’s writings permeated Bluehaven’s culture and 
  distressed the Lintha. The Book of the Utz Semivir was 
  defeatist, and realization crept into the Lintha intel-
  lectual society that the work held no true guidance, but 
  many were hard-pressed to refute its arguments.
  Young populists railed against the logic: the Lintha 
  were mighty. They were many, all devoted and loyal. 
  They had turned their curse into strength by improv-
  ing base stock with their great blood. It was a matter 
  of honor, for both the dead and living, to consume the 
  corpses of their fallen, whether or not the ﬂ avor tempted. 
  They had ﬂ ourished, by the Great Mother, so why did 
  so many Lintha believe they were truly damned?
  A singular event purged their society of conﬂ ict, 
  leaving them focused for the time to come. Rafts, each 
  bearing dozens of skeletons, drifted unerringly toward 
  Bluehaven. Closer inspection revealed that the rafts 
  were of more bones fused together. The dead were of 
  all ages, picked clean by time and tides, the skeleton 
  passengers fused to the vessels by Wyld energies.
  The rafts clogged Bluehaven’s harbor, halting all 
  naval trafﬁ c. Thousands inundated the city until every 
  inhabitant was constantly aware of the cadavers surround-
  ing their home. Without warning, all the skeletons but 
  one sank beneath the surface. Bobbing on the waves, the 
  last skeleton became a green-skinned, blind old man who 
  announced that the Lintha dead had honored Bluehaven 
  with their presence and required a ﬁ tting place of rest.
  Within weeks, the Lintha had built a vast un-
  derwater sepulcher in which they interred the bodies 
  of their ancestors. It rests in a dead end deep within 
  THE BOOK OF THE UTZ SEMIVIR
  Behold. I am a dry tree. And in this, I am mighty.
  I drop no seed and bear no fruit. Yet, my progeny is great, my works, princely. My limbs break and burn with 
  ease. But my kindred, abundant and opulent, destroy and bring doom to my foe.
  So begins The Book of the Utz Semivir. The arguments therein are often ﬂ awed, missing necessary steps 
  from certain logical proofs or depending on fallacious deductions. Some ﬂ aws were intentional, meant to 
  call attention to specious assumptions; others were simply mistakes. Kan Pol’s readers fail to notice the 
  subtlety or the errors or ignore them willfully. They instead accept its appealing conclusions without giving 
  much thought to the whole. Some of its basic (and most bandied) tenets follow:
  Lintha blood is divine blood. The Great Mother, a Primordial, passed her blood to the Lintha so they 
  might do her good works. Other races, not so blessed, are inferior.
  Lintha will one day rule all the lands of man. The superiority of the Lintha will one day lead them to rule 
  all of Creation for the Great Mother’s glory. Some have greater power than the Lintha, but their blood is 
  not holy; they are therefore less ﬁ t to rule. This is one of the most commonly misinterpreted passages. A 
  deeper reading concludes that the Lintha would rule, were they not doomed ﬁ rst.
  The nobility of the Lintha blood cannot diminish. Death is not the end of divinity. Eating the corpse 
  of a brother reclaims that brother’s blood for the Family and breeds it into the next generation. Even 
  the blood of a body lost to the depths will be carried in the ﬁ sh that eat him, inevitably returned to the 
  Lintha. While the statement is accurate to the text, Kan Pol considered the Lintha nobility a constant 
  within Creation that would not diminish in total and concluded that it would become so thin as to be 
  worthless. The common reading of the passage, condoning cannibalism, is also completely opposite to 
  Kan Pol’s authorial intent.
  The Lintha rule will be oblique. Kimbery’s chosen ruled once, but lost that rule and that right. To again 
  ascend over the rest of Creation, they must exercise a subtler control. Kan Pol believed that the Family’s 
  path of piracy and ﬁ nancial domination was the correct one.
  Lintha who procreate with mortals are no true Lintha. Kan Pol the Younger equated thinning the blood 
  with betrayal of the race. This conclusion in particular is currently very popular in Bluehaven, to the point 
  where some demand the death of offending Lintha.
  
  92
  the labyrinth of dead ships, separate from the city 
  itself to give the honored dead peace. The Lintha 
  named it the Cofﬁ n Vurjawna, the Lintha home 
  of the dead.
  Where the Lintha had before been questioning 
  and uncertain, they were now ﬁ lled with pride. The 
  arrival of their ancestors was the greatest blessing, 
  and it reafﬁ rmed their ambition.
  THE COMING OF DUKANTHA
  Dukantha was born into the Ng Hut sept 350 
  years ago. He was a trueblooded child and donned 
  the imperious, cruelly ingenious nature of the Lintha 
  as soon as he could form complete sentences. His 
  sept lauded him as a gift from the Great Mother, an 
  individual with nobility, grace, cunning, curiosity, 
  a keen mind and deep ambition.
  He displayed an abiding interest in the occult 
  at a young age, and took lessons from the Family’s 
  sorcerers and thaumaturges. History also enraptured 
  him, and he spent countless hours listening to elders’ 
  stories and poring over ancient texts. Dukantha 
  especially studied accounts of the Usurpation and 
  the terrors that followed.
  Many criticized Dukantha for his apparent 
  disinterest in procreation. They called his failure to 
  prolong the bloodline betrayal, in the mold of Kan 
  Pol the Younger’s works. Dukantha ignored them 
  or, at worst, defeated his opponents with rhetoric. 
  All saw the young trueblood spend long hours deep 
  in Lintha Ng Oroo’s cave mouth, conversing with 
  his sister in an unknown tongue.
  At the age of 16, after a tour terrorizing 
  the Great Western Ocean with others his 
  age, Dukantha returned to Oroo’s cave 
  and disappeared. One year later, a boul-
  der on the island shattered with a sound 
  like thunder, and Dukantha stepped from 
  the stone womb of Lintha Ng Oroo. He 
  gathered the leaders of all the septs and 
  commanded a feast. “Our island sister dies,” he 
  announced, “as I am reborn. We celebrate 
  my birth and her passing.”
  Dukantha explained his past year during 
  the feast, proved his tale with miracles and 
  reshaped the Lintha with words. He had jour-
  neyed to the Great Mother and been Exalted, 
  tasked to raise his race above the presumptuous 
  mortals. Dukantha’s return reinvigorated the 
  race’s arrogance and cruelty. He taught them 
  new forms of worship, rituals and prayers that would 
  
  93
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  make both Kimbery and the Lintha more powerful. Lintha 
  joined his cult by the hundreds, and he ordained many 
  as priests. Dukantha summoned the great demon-beasts 
  that pull Lintha ships and taught others to do the same. 
  He shared other sorceries and methods for bringing 
  themselves closer to the Great Mother.
  The Lintha were on the road to again become 
  Kimbery’s weapon in Creation. Dukantha’s mission 
  accomplished, he returned to Lintha Ng Oroo, and 
  once again left the Lintha Family.
  AS THINGS STAND 
  Very little troubles the Lintha Family today. The 
  Realm stumbles and will soon fall. The generations-old 
  treaty with An-Teng gives the Family sole rights to smug-
  gling off that nation’s shores, and piracy elsewhere in the 
  Great Western Ocean grows more lucrative. The Family 
  has known ﬁ nancial failures, but no true disaster.
  The last few decades have seen marked increases 
  in the Lintha’s already haughty position. Their offenses 
  have reached new heights of disdain, disrespect and 
  cruelty. Fear of the Lintha has risen proportionally.
  SOCIAL STRUCTURE
  All things in Bluehaven begin and end as matters of 
  the blood. Truebloods are greater than halfbloods, and 
  all Lintha are greater than all mortals. Those Lintha of 
  the purest blood expect mortals to obey all direction 
  without hesitation, up to and including complete self-
  abasement or suicide.
  Quality of blood is never certain. Lintha take 
  pride in their precise genealogies and pure family 
  lines, secure in those lies, but true blood goes beyond 
  parentage. Lintha blood is nobility and expresses itself 
  through excellence. The Lintha expect trueblood 
  scions to epitomize the Lintha’s valued qualities. The 
  reverse is also true: a Lintha of imperfect ancestry who 
  earns honors through action, such as glory on the seas 
  or vigor in ordination, must be of greater blood than 
  records indicate. This social mobility only goes so far. 
  One clearly halfblooded never equals a trueblood, and a 
  mortal never equals a halfblood. This requires the septs 
  to recognize great accomplishments from their lesser 
  cousins only unofﬁ cially—in the record, a trueblood’s 
  deeds must be greater than those of lesser creatures.
  THE LEI KIANGI
  Atop of the Lintha hierarchy sits the Lei Kiangi 
  and the Septian Covenant. The Lei Kiangi is the eldest 
  grandmother of the Lintha, a position currently held by 
  Wari Fan of the Gajui sept. She controls all aspects of the 
  Lintha Family, settling all disputes. Every person in the 
  Family, from the next-eldest grandmother to the newest 
  initiate in the farthest land, lives at her sufferance.
  The Lei Kiangi may command any ship or ﬂ eet 
  belonging to the Lintha. She may also command any 
  Lintha, or any person residing in Bluehaven. She wields 
  this authority for the beneﬁ t of the Lintha Family but 
  does so only when necessary. Responsibility for defense 
  of Bluehaven also falls on her. The Lei Kiangi is free to 
  delegate to members of the Septian Covenant or her 
  chosen representatives, but all honor and blame for 
  their actions ultimately return to her.
  No Lei Kiangi has ever been assassinated or de-
  posed. Such direct politics are common between the 
  septs themselves, especially in the conﬂ ict before the 
  ascension of a new Lei Kiangi, but Dukantha created 
  the position after his Exaltation, and the position has 
  the blessing of the Lintha’s champion and the Mother. 
  Denying the Lei Kiangi would invite holy wrath.
  Beneath the Lei Kiangi is the Septian Covenant, 
  a council composed of the elder grandmothers of each 
  sept. The council’s only function is to advise and guide 
  the Lei Kiangi when she lets them. The council’s inﬂ u-
  ence is real but not great, and the Greatsepts gain little 
  by dominating its membership. The Septian Covenant 
  meets twice each month to privately discuss Bluehaven’s 
  economy and security.
  LINTHA GRANDPARENTS
  As proof of good blood, age confers respect and 
  power. The titles of “grandmother” and “grandfather” 
  belong to those who wield inﬂ uence within a sept. Every 
  grandparent is a trueblood of signiﬁ cant age, and most 
  have accrued lengthy lists of honors over their years. 
  The titles need not be literal, though.
  The Lintha Family is a matriarchal society, as be-
  ﬁ ts their worship of Kimbery, the Sea That Marched 
  Against the Flame. Women hold all ﬁ nal authority and 
  responsibility, including apportionment of ﬁ nances. The 
  Lei Kiangi is the ultimate expression of this, with all 
  Bluehaven and the Lintha Family as her household.
  Men work the sea, a practice inﬂ uenced by the 
  common Western attitudes toward gender roles and 
  the symbolism of masculinity sailing upon the feminine 
  ocean. This symbolism is visible in Lintha ship design. 
  Their vessels are kept in excellent trim, appropriate as 
  methods of communion with their Yozi patron, and 
  adorned with phallic sexual imagery as homage to the 
  ultimate Mother.
  An elder grandmother rules each sept with a ﬁ rm 
  hand. Her word is law, except where it conﬂ icts with that 
  
  94
  of the Lei Kiangi. She controls the sept’s budget com-
  pletely, taking advice from the other elder grandmothers 
  as she likes, and she sits in uncontested judgment over 
  any disputes that do not cross sept lines. Each grand-
  mother also holds responsibility for her family lines. 
  All of her descendants are under her distinct authority, 
  which only the elder grandmother of the sept can over-
  rule. Grandmothers with no actual offspring claim the 
  bloodlines of others as their own. Only a grandmother 
  with immense personal inﬂ uence can claim another 
  grandmother’s bloodline, but any Lintha woman given 
  the position of grandmother without descendants of her 
  own has enough to do so.
  Proper guidance means making sure the family 
  remains proﬁ table, in good order, and aligned with 
  the Lintha Family’s overall goals. When a family line 
  loses too much money or causes too much trouble, the 
  line’s grandmother can suffer punishments ranging 
  from lashes to the conﬁ scation of a bloodline. Allow-
  ing treason amongst one’s children or grandchildren is 
  punishable by death.
  An elder grandmother guides her sept with a whip 
  of jade. If she dislikes a war, she does not fund it. If she 
  feels a grandfather is being foolish in trade, she applies 
  greater proportions of the budget to piracy or war. When 
  she disapproves of a grandfather’s leading in piracy, she 
  cuts spending on ship repairs. A grandmother who wants 
  to rid herself of an irritating grandfather can hoard the 
  sept’s treasury from him.
  Grandfathers have a wholly different set of respon-
  sibilities. Theirs is the duty to represent the Lintha 
  Family to the outside world. This includes guiding their 
  family in piracy, trade and diplomacy with everyone 
  outside Bluehaven.
  There is no elder grandfather distinction. Grand-
  fathers in a sept earn their honors and authority, 
  competing for wealth and power among each other, 
  but only as much as is healthy. Too much internecine 
  conﬂ ict brings the wrath of the elder grandmother.
  The polygamous nature of Lintha couplings makes 
  it difﬁ cult for any male of the Family to be sure which 
  Lintha are his descendants. Historians and priests keep 
  detailed records of ofﬁ cial pairings and when two Lintha 
  of any decent blood mate, which most Lintha ignore. 
  Wealth and inﬂ uence decide which grandfathers get 
  ﬁ rst claim to potential descendants, and grandfathers 
  choose the ones who please them.
  Within the septs, a given grandfather’s bloodlines 
  are under his command with respect to the males’ re-
  sponsibilities. When away from Bluehaven, which is 
  rare, grandfathers command ﬂ eets and see to months of 
  trade and slaving. They take direction from the elder 
  grandmother only when they return to the city.
  A grandfathers helms a sept’s ﬂ eets, deciding where 
  they sail for plunder or trade. He balances the need to 
  turn a proﬁ t, which drives him to keep competing ﬂ eets 
  apart, with the need to let that competition take place, 
  just as the elder grandmother chooses when to step 
  between warring grandfathers. Grandfathers believe 
  this spurs their captains to greater heights through 
  natural pride.
  None can gainsay a grandfather’s decisions. War 
  is his to declare, just as strategies are his to decide. He 
  chooses how much effort his family puts toward piracy 
  and how much toward slaving and other trades. A 
  grandfather controls spy networks and foreign diplomats. 
  When something goes wrong abroad, a younger Lintha 
  may be at fault but the responsibility is the grandfather’s. 
  They ﬁ ght the elder grandmother’s budgetary assault 
  with proﬁ ts that missed the grandmother’s coffers.
  Any clever grandfather has enough salted away to 
  fund a few of his own projects. Enough self-funded success 
  forces the elder grandmother to return her support.
  LINTHA FATHERS AND MOTHERS
  A mother of the Lintha Family has varying degrees 
  of responsibility for her sept’s economic well-being. 
  She usually sees to a wide spread of ﬁ nancial matters 
  as suggested by her grandmother or elder grandmother. 
  She’s also responsible for executing punishments handed 
  down by her superiors.
  A father spends his time captaining a ship or, for 
  the most honored, a ﬂ eet. Fathers are pirates, slavers, 
  traders and ultimately at the mercy of the grandmoth-
  ers who rule them.
  Both fathers and mothers are expected to join the 
  Cult of Dukantha, and though it’s not strictly mandatory, 
  they face scorn and prejudice should they refuse.
  A sept’s elder grandmother bestows the rank of 
  mother or father on sisters, aunts, brothers or uncles 
  she feels have earned it. Fathers must sire two trueblood 
  children, and mothers must bear the same. Only the 
  greatest accomplishments or most extravagant bribes 
  garner enough honor for a grandmother to raise a Lintha 
  with fewer children to the position. Likewise, bringing 
  two purebloods into the Family isn’t enough without 
  displaying other prized qualities.
  LINTHA BROTHERS AND SISTERS
  All pureblood Lintha are born as brothers or sisters. 
  Halfbloods born to the most powerful families are also 
  
  95
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  brothers and sisters, but halfbloods of lesser inﬂ uence 
  must prove their worth before ascension to the rank. 
  Lintha children spend their youths separated from 
  their parents in one of the island-bound academies. 
  There, they learn the blood-stirring history and 
  glorious destiny of their race, along with skills they 
  will need in life, such as seamanship, bookkeeping, 
  personal combat, commerce and war.
  Children nearing graduation are responsible 
  for rearing their youngest siblings and overseeing 
  the academies. They discipline those younger 
  than they, playing at crude politics that prime 
  them for the society they will soon enter.
  Older children take on responsibilities as 
  beﬁ t their heritage. Young Lintha of both 
  genders serve as mates on their fathers’ 
  ships. Sisters are expected to return 
  after one year to begin taking part 
  in running their families or septs, as 
  well as breeding. Sisters must ﬁ ght 
  their mothers and grandmothers 
  for permission to stay longer 
  on the waters, making older 
  Lintha women a rare sight 
  on ship.
  Scions of the lesser septs 
  often have fewer options. There 
  are more than 700 ships in the 
  Lintha “navy,” and there are far more 
  fathers and brothers deserving of posi-
  tions on those ships. Greatsepts take 
  the choicest positions, forcing children 
  of other septs to serve as crewmen, mes-
  sengers, servants or otherwise subordinate 
  to the dominate families if they want to 
  sail. Otherwise, they work at trade and 
  bookkeeping within their own septs. 
  LINTHA AUNTS AND UNCLES
  This title can be either an honor or a 
  demotion. Brothers and sisters who distin-
  guish themselves as wise, cunning and able 
  to work well with lesser peoples may become 
  aunts or uncles. They travel to far-off lands as 
  attachés, where they watch over the sept’s 
  business and gather information. It is a sign 
  that their grandfathers and grandmothers trust 
  the aunts and uncles’ allegiance to the Lintha 
  Family and their capabilities. Unlike the other 
  gender lines, there is little difference in duty 
  between an aunt and an uncle.
  
  96
  Others ﬁ nd it less of an honor. A father or mother 
  in disgrace may be made an aunt or uncle, forced into 
  exile, stripped of authority and given tasks of lesser 
  importance away from the politics of Bluehaven. Few 
  can recover lost glory abroad, so Lintha dishonored 
  in this way must depend on skill and results to earn a 
  recall to the sargasso waters.
  Trueblood Lintha operate as aunts or uncles with 
  difﬁ culty. Responsibilities include managing local cous-
  ins, fences and spies on behalf of the sept and Family. 
  Grandmothers usually promote halfblooded brothers 
  and sisters to the position, as their diluted Lintha ap-
  pearances allow them to integrate with mortal societies. 
  This rank is the highest any Lintha of impure blood 
  ever achieve. Lintha of pure blood have a difﬁ cult time 
  doing the necessary work, especially given the hate 
  most outsiders have for the Lintha Family. Aunts and 
  uncles also come from the ranks of Lintha cousins, and 
  are often initiates with no Lintha blood.
  LINTHA COUSINS
  Cousins are connected to the Family tenuously, at 
  the very bottom of the Lintha Family ranks. Lintha of 
  dilute blood are cousins from birth. They come from 
  the lesser septs, which have weaker lineages and less 
  inﬂ uence to wield in the battle to declare a child of true 
  blood, and from unions of noted halfbloods or mortals. 
  Cousins are raised similarly to Lintha brothers and sisters 
  but with signiﬁ cantly less attention, and cousins with 
  Lintha blood usually gain the rank of brother or sister 
  (or aunt or uncle) over time.
  Cousin is also the term for an outsider with no Lintha 
  blood who becomes tied to the Family. Any initiate is 
  ﬁ rst considered a cousin, except for those who spend 
  ludicrous amounts of money to purchase higher ranks. 
  Cousins do the meanest work, almost always abroad. 
  They are the spies who listen at doors, root through 
  garbage and shadow persons of note. Cousins man the 
  oars and are on the front lines for violent boarding ac-
  tions. It’s not glorious, but it’s usually proﬁ table.
  A cousin without Lintha blood may not set foot 
  in Bluehaven before castration. Uncastrated initiates 
  who work in the Lintha ﬂ eet must remain on their 
  ships during visits to the secret city. Most are required 
  to remain below decks until the ship is 10 or more 
  miles out of the harbor, and Lintha consider themselves 
  within their rights to kill any mortal they see peeking 
  out from a ship.
  Once a cousin, never less than a cousin. Those ad-
  mitted to this rank never suffer demotion except through 
  death. There’s no other way out of the Family. No one 
  expects a cousin to be unﬂ inchingly loyal to the cause—
  most are motivated by money and ill-gotten gains—but 
  that doesn’t mean they get to leave their responsibilities 
  behind on a whim. This famous restriction doesn’t usually 
  bother a person unless it’s staring her in the face. Ranking 
  as a cousin means opportunities for underhanded work 
  and little more until her Lintha contact asks her to do 
  something she doesn’t want to do.
  Refusal begins a program of calculated coercion. 
  If a cousin can’t be persuaded to accept an assignment 
  through normal means (haggling over fees or other 
  incentives), the aunt or uncle in authority abducts a 
  close family member to Bluehaven as a hostage. De-
  pending on the level of disobedience, the Lintha in 
  charge may take additional hostages, up to an entire 
  family, or ﬁ nd other things the cousin holds dear. Good 
  behavior sees the hostages released in as little as three 
  years. Continued deﬁ ance causes the Lintha to visit 
  various horrors upon the hostages. Ritual castration is 
  standard, beginning with spouses, then moving on to 
  children and other blood relatives.
  Promotion from the rank is rare but not impos-
  sible. Exceptional service in the name of the Lintha 
  Family never goes unrewarded. Cousins most often 
  become aunts and uncles, overseeing operations and 
  commanding the afﬁ liates who used to be their peers. 
  Great honors and the display of qualities prized by the 
  Lintha may earn promotion to the rank of brother or 
  sister, at which point nearly all foreigners stop. Great 
  ambition in mortals offends those of Lintha blood and 
  risks a deadly reminder of position.
  JOINING THE FAMILY
  People without Lintha blood join the Family as 
  initiates. The term mostly refers to cousins, differenti-
  ating mortal cousins from those with weak blood, but 
  can also apply to any mortal member of the Family not 
  permitted to visit Bluehaven. There are multiple ways 
  to become involved with the family, and they all begin 
  with having something the Family wants.
  STARTING AT THE BOTTOM
  Most initiates don’t even know they’re being in-
  ducted into the Lintha Family. They don’t have money 
  or valuables, but they have useful skills. This sort of initi-
  ate might crack safes, burgle homes in silence, launder 
  money through investments with good return, fence goods 
  without a trace or just know all the right people.
  Contact is not overtly connected to the Lintha; 
  it’s just another job. Lintha scouts pick someone whose 
  skills the organization needs and offer work just as 
  
  97
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  any other client might. Some choose to mention the 
  Lintha Family after acceptance of the job, but most 
  never mention it at all. They mention that there is 
  more work if the person is interested, but nothing more 
  than that. As soon as the person comes to the Family 
  for something, whether or not she knows whom she’s 
  approaching, there’s no backing out—of the agreement 
  or the Family.
  A Lintha cousin begins delving as deeply as pos-
  sible into the new initiate’s life. He digs up everything 
  from living family (out to third cousins) and frequent 
  associates to places of birth and the name of child-
  hood instructors. All the dirt ends up in a local aunt 
  or uncle’s ﬁ les for use should the subject be unwilling 
  to go ahead with the initiation, or if she ever causes 
  trouble later on.
  After adequate performance in a number of mis-
  sions, typically from three to eight, the Family agent 
  makes his afﬁ liation clear if he has not already. It is now 
  far too late to escape the Family’s grasp. The initiate is 
  given two choices: undergo ofﬁ cial initiation into the 
  Lintha Family or be castrated and sold into slavery in 
  a far-off land, but only after watching as all those he 
  holds dear are tortured and their lives destroyed. It’s 
  not a difﬁ cult decision.
  Initiation means an ocean voyage to a Lintha 
  client state where the initiate swears an oath to the 
  Lintha Family and a lesser oath to the sponsoring 
  sept. A grandfather from the sept, generally the one 
  responsible for the agents who brought the new cousin 
  into the Family, receives the oath to sept, and a priest 
  of the Cult of Dukantha consecrates the oath to the 
  Lintha. Also present is a child or blood-relative of the 
  initiate, who then becomes a hostage up to such time 
  that the initiate’s loyalty is unquestionable. After the 
  ritual is complete, the initiate is considered an ancillary 
  member of the sponsoring sept.
  The Family keeps hostages on islands not far from 
  Bluehaven. Hostages eat well and have their choice of 
  numerous distractions, from games to drugs to books to 
  prostitutes. Most resist at ﬁ rst, then realize their prison 
  is more luxurious than the lives they would have led. 
  Those who refuse to remain peaceful are subdued against 
  their will, usually drugged. There is no reason to mis-
  treat hostages, since doing so could turn a completely 
  loyal cousin into an implacable enemy. Lintha visit the 
  islands often to make sure their guests are comfortable 
  . . . until an initiate misbehaves. Initiates who break 
  their oaths leave family to suffer the consequences, and 
  the Family makes it clear to the hostages why they are 
  being subjected to such torture.
  Lintha aunts and uncles deliver evidence of the 
  hostage’s suffering to the wayward initiate. If the initiate 
  succumbs to the pressure and returns to the fold, all is 
  forgiven. He will not be a trusted member of the Family 
  for many years, but the torture ends. The initiate must 
  then provide an additional hostage, whom the initiate 
  himself must choose.
  It is a point of pride for the Lintha that no betrayal 
  goes unpunished. The Family hunts ex-members across 
  Creation, using all its contacts to ﬁ nd a ﬂ eeing cousin 
  in her new life and bringing it down around her before 
  torturing the defector. Death or castration and slavery 
  follow. This practice minimizes the number of traitors 
  the Lintha endure.
  BUYING IN
  Those aware of the Family and the potential income 
  and inﬂ uence the Family represents may buy their way 
  in. A simple gift of wealth can purchase rank within the 
  Family. In this case, it is the person’s money that the 
  Lintha want, rather than any talent they need.
  A Resources ••• purchase secures the rank of 
  cousin without any need for a hostage. For Resources 
  ••••, one can become a brother or sister as long as 
  one provides a child or close relative as a hostage. A 
  single enormous Resources ••••• gift to the Family 
  makes one a Lintha mother or father and also requires a 
  hostage. The initiation ceremony, complete with oaths 
  and consecration, is still necessary.
  The potential Family member must ﬁ nd a sponsor. 
  This is harder than letting a sponsor ﬁ nd you and intro-
  duce you at the bottom rung of the ladder. A sponsor 
  must be a Lintha mother or father who supports the 
  foreigner’s induction into the Family. The sponsor’s sept 
  keeps most of the monetary gift, with a fraction going 
  to the Cult of Dukantha. A sept’s elder grandmother 
  must approve the sale of mother or father rank. 
  Any initiates who wish to visit Bluehaven must un-
  dergo ritual castration. Most cousins never visit, and many 
  brothers and sisters are willing to work as aunts or uncles 
  rather than suffer that. Mothers and fathers have no choice 
  but to work from Bluehaven at least part of the time, and 
  must therefore be castrated. Someone purchasing such a 
  high rank must perform the castration himself.
  People who buy a place in the Family often fail to 
  realize that true Lintha will never, ever treat the initi-
  ates as equals. The Lintha conceal their hate behind 
  crimson eyes and speak kind, ﬂ attering words, but they 
  hold no respect for the initiates. This exempliﬁ es the 
  Lintha’s power in the current Age, that outsiders pay
  to become servants.
  
  98
  Initiates with purchased ranks usually end up dead 
  after a decade or so, once their money dries up and the 
  Lintha have milked the initiates’ contacts for all they’re 
  worth. The Lintha are a deeply racist people; they hide 
  their racism only to protect their proﬁ t margins.
  known for cunning in business and piracy, not for valor 
  in battle. Few Gajui join the Sword Brotherhood, and 
  few believe there is any future in warfare. Most of those 
  Gajui not at sea remain in Bluehaven, preferring to do 
  their business abroad through trusted agents.
  Despite this, they have a reputation as the most 
  cosmopolitan and least xenophobic of the septs. The 
  Gajui sept maintains pleasure palaces in lands abroad 
  for entertaining friends of the Lintha Family, and the 
  sept’s grandfathers often declare that they will do busi-
  ness with anyone, regardless of blood, sept and politics, 
  as long as the jade is plentiful. This accounts in part for 
  the sept’s great wealth. The Gajui also have a reputation 
  for recreational eccentricity, especially sexual.
  Wari Fan, the Lei Kiangi and current elder grand-
  mother of the Gajui sept, is shrewd, with has a reputation 
  for wisdom. She’s also a respected poet and painter. 
  Lintha society talks about her frequent vacations to 
  unnamed places west of Bluehaven, not least because 
  she always returns with exotic treasures.
  Haquen has rivaled the Gajui in all things as long 
  as Lintha history records. Haquen wealth is impressive, 
  if not as great as Gajui’s, and the Haquen fund seven 
  pirate ﬂ eets manned almost entirely by family—some-
  thing Gajui could not possibly do. Haquen Lintha also 
  hate the Ng Hut sept and take every opportunity to 
  sabotage its efforts.
  The Haquen passion is the Sword Brotherhood, 
  which they founded and dominate. The sole ﬁ rst 
  kur master is Haquen, as are two of the three second 
  kur swordsmen who currently run the Brotherhood. 
  Haquen uses the Brotherhood to maintain the sept’s 
  martial dominance by producing the very best swords-
  men, and through the Brotherhood, the sept gathers 
  information on the many Lintha who join. Desire to 
  advance through the sept’s ranks represents another 
  form of inﬂ uence the sept can leverage through the 
  Brotherhood’s leadership.
  When it comes to fashion, Haquen leads, and the 
  rest of Bluehaven follows. They say that if a Haquen 
  brother wore a ﬁ sh between his legs, the bay would be 
  empty by noon. The Haquen lean strongly toward busy, 
  intricate designs, and they take trends piecemeal from all 
  over Creation. Even the least clothes-conscious Haquen 
  captain wears rufﬂ ed silk and long, ﬂ owing scarves, which 
  means so do half the captains of the other septs.
  Sarangkai is the elder grandmother of the Haquen 
  sept. She is nearly 350 years old but still looks young. 
  She wears risqué fashions and maintains more than 80 
  active trueblood suitors.
  CASTRATION IN BRIEF
  Lintha practice self-castration to prevent 
  the spread of trueblood seed outside their careful 
  eugenics, as such spread would weaken the race 
  overall. They castrate others, male and female, 
  to likewise prevent dilution of the Lintha blood. 
  Castration is also a common threat to hostages 
  or untrustworthy initiates, and some Lintha 
  practice it on mortal captives, slaves or even 
  subordinates simply for cruelty’s sake.
  Performing a castration safely is a difﬁ culty 
  2 (Intelligence + Medicine) roll, difﬁ culty 4 
  for female castrations. Self-castration increases 
  the difﬁ culty by 2 and replaces Intelligence 
  with Wits.
  Lintha men and women who spend much 
  time abroad are likely to volunteer for cas-
  tration after they have sired or borne two 
  trueblooded children.
  Joining the Cult of Dukantha requires castra-
  tion, and only those who’ve sired or borne two 
  trueblooded children are eligible.
  Halfblood Lintha are punished with castra-
  tion if they ever procreate outside the assigned 
  eugenics programs.
  Anyone with no Lintha blood must submit 
  to castration before visiting Bluehaven.
  LINTHA SEPTS
  The Lintha divide themselves into eight house-
  holds called septs, three of which are “Greatsepts.” The 
  Greatsepts hold the most wealth and inﬂ uence, and 
  claim greater purity than other septs. All septs pride 
  themselves on the purity of their blood and the success 
  of their breeding, and all have unprovable, conﬂ icting 
  genealogies as claims to superiority. Each sept takes its 
  name from its founder and primary ancestor.
  Gajui is the current ruling Greatsept, as the Lei Ki-
  angi is of this sept. The Gajui control a full quarter of all 
  Lintha wealth and maintain 31 ﬂ eets (seven dedicated 
  to slavery). The Gajui also invest in many indepen-
  dent operations, from their own brand of privateer to 
  land-bound theft and slavery in the South. Gajui are 
  
  99
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  Ng Hut was a lesser sept for most of the Lintha’s 
  history. The Ng Hut were not exceptional businessmen 
  or warriors, and their genealogies were often contested. 
  That all changed three and a half centuries ago, when 
  Dukantha returned from Malfeas and the sept’s fortunes 
  changed completely.
  The Ng Hut dominate the Cult of Dukantha, which 
  nearly all Lintha seek to join, though not all can mus-
  ter the requisite trueblood children or equal inﬂ uence 
  necessary to qualify. The sept’s political inﬂ uence stems 
  from others’ fear of being ejected from the cult. The Ng 
  Hut ordain all Lintha outcastes as cult priests, giving 
  the sept great inﬂ uence over the Family’s sorcerers. 
  The Ng Hut have also managed to turn the cult into a 
  proﬁ table venture; other septs keep hoping this hubris 
  will be the Ng Hut’s downfall, but Dukantha has never 
  condemned this practice.
  All septs but the Ng Hut live in the island district 
  of Bluehaven, as near sister Oroo as possible. Ng Hut 
  broke with this tradition almost two centuries ago 
  when the temple portion of the island sank into the 
  sea. They dubbed their new home the Temple District 
  even as other septs cried out against their actions. It’s 
  the most blatant example of how Ng Hut ignore tradi-
  tions they don’t ﬁ nd convenient or useful—and most 
  of the traditions they favor are ones they invented for 
  their own beneﬁ t.
  Ooloo currently leads the Ng Hut as elder grand-
  mother. For the 70 years of her reign, she has spent their 
  funds with no apparent regard for good business and 
  maintained several secret breeding farms in an attempt 
  to reclaim the true glory of the Lintha race. She lets 
  nothing, especially morality or tradition, stand between 
  her and this goal. Some elder Ng Hut currently plot to 
  replace (kill) her. The greatest obstacle might be her 
  brother, Yrjow Han, who leads the Cult of Dukantha.
  LESSER SEPTS
  Members of these septs are trueblooded but are 
  not the true nobility of Bluehaven. Lintha society is 
  designed to keep the powerful and the weak in their 
  respective places. The lesser septs’ elder grandmothers 
  keep a hand in through the Septian Covenant, and 
  none of them are hurting—they’re just small compared 
  to the Greatsepts.
  Sennong is the most ambitious of the lesser 
  septs. The Sennong keep secrets well and possess 
  impressive spy networks and long memories. The 
  sept has benefited from an enormous influx of wealth 
  in the last decade through systematic defrauding of 
  
  100
  nearby An-Teng. In the guise of An-Teng business 
  concerns, the Sennong sell the mortal princes goods 
  at high prices before sailing in as Lintha and robbing 
  them. Sennong know this can’t work forever, but the 
  grandfathers are having trouble letting go of such a 
  lucrative enterprise. One source of potential trouble 
  is the Gajui, whose treaty with An-Teng becomes 
  less certain with every Sennong trick.
  The secrecy of the project means that the Sennong 
  have more wealth than they can ﬂ aunt. They are cur-
  rently funneling their new wealth into legitimate (by 
  Lintha standards) ventures. Wise investment of their 
  current capital could give them enough clout to stand 
  beside the Greatsepts within a decade or two. The 
  Sennong elder grandmother is Fia-Eng.
  Ixora: There are no septs lower than the Ixora. Ever 
  since a failed attempt to suborn great swathes of the 
  Haquen ﬂ eets and business interests 30 years ago, known 
  infamously as the Borog-Na Conspiracy, the Ixora have 
  been barely more worthy than mortals in Lintha eyes. 
  The Lei Kiangi conﬁ scated the Ixora’s wealth, burned 
  their ships and forbade them to sail, bear arms or seek 
  membership in the Cult of Dukantha. There is little 
  more for the sept to do but dwindle.
  But Ixora fortunes may be changing. One of the 
  sept’s remaining scions just Exalted as a Dragon-Blood, 
  and without exception, all outcastes are inducted into 
  the Cult of Dukantha and trained in sorcery. Such 
  inﬂ uence is exactly what the Ixora need to take the 
  ﬁ rst step back toward their former glory. The Ixora 
  elder grandmother is Trlosi. She is not welcome in the 
  Septian Covenant, despite what the law says, and has 
  not been seen in 10 years.
  Angsana: Other septs may fall from the path of 
  Lintha tradition, but not the Angsana. They are proper 
  to a fault, and nearly incorruptible within the system of 
  Lintha honor. To Bluehaven’s irritation, the Angsana 
  freely criticize others who do not meet the sept’s rigorous 
  standards. Angsana record the Lintha’s glorious history 
  as it unrolls; even if the Angsana are critical, no one 
  can say they are unfair. Bribery and threats both fail 
  against their unassailable Lintha sensibilities.
  Greatsepts disparage the Angsana for being less 
  proﬁ table than normal for a sept of their size, usually 
  prompted by unﬂ attering records. This is true, but the 
  Angsana fund four pirate ﬂ eets and make moderate 
  returns on their investments. The elder grandmother, 
  Junni Oinn, disapproves of slavery as distasteful and 
  expensive, and refuses to fund it.
  Dewantara: The Dewantara believe in the Lintha 
  curse, because the Dewantara think they have the worst 
  of it. Their families procreate only with difﬁ culty, mak-
  ing their sept a small household. Only two children 
  have been born into the sept in the last century, and 
  barely more than a dozen members live in their small 
  Bluehaven estates.
  Dewantara has always been a small sept. No great 
  glories or disgraces mark the Dewantara’s histories. They 
  ply the trading lanes of the sea like other pirates, but 
  with no great advantage. Other septs neither hate the 
  Dewantara nor love them. Suwar, the elder grandmother, 
  has the Septian Covenant’s respect but always advises 
  the safe, conservative path. Any treason or heroics from 
  the sept would surprise all Bluehaven.
  Dara-Said: Malice common across the septs 
  whispers that the Dara-Said are not true Lintha, that 
  LINTHA NAMES AND TITLES
  The Lintha system of address can be confusing 
  to an outsider. Getting it wrong can also be very, 
  very dangerous. First, foreigners may address a 
  Lintha only as “Lintha.” To do otherwise assumes 
  too much familiarity. This applies also to members 
  of the Family speaking to any unknown Lintha until 
  seniority becomes clear. Otherwise, Lintha address 
  each other as the elder among them choose.
  One Lintha is called Lintha Ixora Cousin Juri. 
  The ﬁ rst clearly marks him of the Lintha Family. 
  The second marks his sept. The third is his rank. 
  The fourth is his unique personal name; most use 
  the personal name, often with the rank, when 
  speaking to or discussing Cousin Juri.
  Lintha not of true blood have a pejorative 
  subtitle after the sept name. Juri’s full name 
  would be Lintha Ixora falong Cousin Juri if he 
  were a halfblood and Lintha Ixora gan Cousin Juri 
  if he had no Lintha blood of consequence. All 
  initiates technically have a full name that uses 
  their sponsoring sept + gan, but it sees so little 
  use outside Bluehaven and the Lintha’s ﬂ eets that 
  few distant cousins know it.
  Additional titles and honors come before the 
  rest of the name, supplanting even Lintha as the 
  proper base address for these individuals. The Lei 
  Kiangi’s full name is Lei Kiangi Lintha Gajui Wari 
  Fan, but all just call her Lei Kiangi; the master of the 
  Sword Brotherhood is Dokur Lintha Haquen Father 
  Tow-Ang. Note how one title removes the Lintha 
  rank from the name, since the name encompasses 
  the rank, while the other does not.
  
  101
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  their genealogies are completely fake and their blood 
  no better than water. They look mostly human, and 
  suggestions that they be ejected from Bluehaven or 
  castrated and made slaves are common, though rarely 
  serious. Others appreciate the Dara-Said’s ferocity in 
  battle, but their lust for blood is uncouth rather than 
  sophisticated, and some say that the Dara-Said consume 
  the ﬂ esh of mortals.
  Dara-Said control three pirate ﬂ eets and ﬁ ve slaver 
  ﬂ eets, but their proﬁ ts are slim. Either the books are 
  doctored or the household pisses away its money on 
  frivolities and poor investments. The elder grandmother, 
  Karatull, is a belligerent dwarf with a sharp tongue and 
  harsh words for all the world.
  but spends more time with a select few. Most mar-
  riages are within a single sept, designed to strengthen 
  that sept’s blood and numbers. Inter-sept marriages 
  must be blessed by the elder grandmother of each; 
  children belong to the mother’s sept. As Lintha age, 
  they tend to pair off into eventual monogamous or 
  near-monogamous relationships.
  Weddings are small ceremonies overseen by the 
  sept’s elder grandmother and consecrated by a priest 
  of Dukantha. Grand weddings are a waste: any dowry 
  would stay within the sept, and each trueblood marries 
  so many times that large celebrations would consume 
  too much time and money. Only marriage between septs 
  breaks the rule, as they are rarer and occasions for each 
  sept to demonstrate superiority. One wedding tradition, 
  begun in the spirit of procreation, is that all the bride’s 
  and groom’s extant spouses join the newlyweds in a 
  tremendous private orgy.
  Producing a child brings honor on the mother and 
  the sept. Lintha men may claim children as theirs, 
  but proof is usually impossible. The mother chooses 
  which of her husbands was the father, often based on 
  fondness or bribes.
  Outside of marriages, the Lintha have little sex. 
  A desired mating between two truebloods demands 
  marriage, the method through which Lintha ensure 
  the purity of their bloodlines. Not only is the idea of 
  procreation with inferior beings abhorred in their soci-
  ety, but such an action can have serious repercussions, 
  such as castration and exile. Lesser deterrents include 
  ﬁ nes and physical chastisement. Strict interpretations 
  consider only intercourse taboo, but any form of sexual 
  play between Lintha and mortals is discouraged. Still, 
  some Lintha use the ambiguity as an excuse to demean 
  their lessers through rape.
  Halfblooded Lintha may only marry as directed by 
  their sept elder grandmother, and they are expected to 
  breed only with their spouses (an average adult half-
  blood has ﬁ ve). The restriction prevents the halfbloods 
  from ruining centuries of eugenics intended to force 
  the nobility in their blood to resurface. Punishment 
  for breaking this rule is castration, selectively applied 
  depending on a given arbiter’s opinions.
  Mortals in Bluehaven have already been castrated. 
  Outside of Bluehaven, the Lintha care not how the 
  inferiors reproduce.
  PIRACY AND SLAVERY
  As a matter of pride, Lintha create no goods. They 
  steal or buy everything they own, and trace all their 
  wealth to thievery.
  OTHER LINTHA LINEAGES
  Lintha history holds that all Lintha bloodlines 
  died off but the one that led to them, as guided 
  by the three unnamed survivors of the Usurpa-
  tion. This may not be true. A tribe of icewalkers 
  in the North displays features and strict breeding 
  rules similar to those of the Lintha, and children 
  with bright green skin and stark white hair are 
  occasionally born among the Haltans.
  What would the Lintha Family do were they 
  to discover such a bloodline? The instinctual 
  response would be to wipe out those of tainted 
  blood, but wiser heads realize that the Lintha are 
  none too pure themselves. Envoys might try to 
  bring the wayward sons back into the fold through 
  ﬂ attery and assertions of superior lineage . . . and 
  would react badly to refusal.
  LINTHA TRADITIONS
  The Lintha are a more ancient culture than most in 
  Creation, and they are bound by the traditions of their 
  history. Much of that culture has been reconstructed 
  from fragments and stories, and other parts have been 
  invented whole cloth, but the Lintha still take pride 
  in their traditions.
  MARRIAGE
  Lintha marry only other Lintha. It’s important for 
  them to maintain pure bloodlines. Marriage is rarely 
  for love, instead playing a part in the constant politi-
  cal interplay between families and septs. Marriage to a 
  person of good blood is worth a price, which might be 
  money, favors, goods or another marriage.
  The typical Lintha trueblood has 20 to 30 
  spouses. She has slept with all of them at least once 
  
  102
  The Family sails more than 500 ships devoted to 
  piracy and more than 300 to slavery. Many of the Family’s 
  pirate ﬂ eets pose as honest merchants, complete with 
  legitimate papers provided by Lintha cousins of vari-
  ous nationalities. These ships travel the shipping lanes 
  disguised as normal ships, their sea-demons submerged 
  and out of view. Victims don’t realize the danger until 
  the black and silver ﬂ ies, when it’s too late.
  Other pirate captains dispense with the charade, 
  ﬂ aunting their banners and monsters. Cutthroat, they 
  relish the deaths of every crew that resists. Many con-
  sume the ﬂ esh of horriﬁ ed still-living victims; the Lintha 
  are more forgiving of eating mortals at sea.
  Wearing watershoes, Lintha attack other vessels 
  over the waves. Those with gills swim under to surprise 
  the defenders from the other side. Their unique hooked 
  auhzian swords help them scale enemy hulls. Some 
  merchants are overtaken before they realize they’ve 
  been attacked.
  Pirate ﬂ eets typically contain four or ﬁ ve ships. 
  Vessel captains are of at least brother or sister rank 
  and have practiced piracy for at least 10 years; ﬂ eet 
  captains are usually fathers and have 30 or more years 
  of experience.
  Slavery is a completely different business. Most 
  Lintha consider it gauche, but the proﬁ ts are too entic-
  ing to ignore. They also consider using slaves foolish for 
  the security-conscious—Lintha use well-paid servants 
  to ensure loyalty.
  Slaving ships are large, black ships with enormous 
  cargo holds, driven by paddlewheels. Slaves, or in rare 
  cases, demons, turn the paddlewheels. These ships 
  travel in convoys of 16 or more ships, hugging the coast 
  to take prisoners, then moving the slaves directly to 
  destinations around the world. For security reasons, 
  slaves never see Bluehaven. If a Lintha slaver needs to 
  ofﬂ oad slaves someplace before reaching a buyer, he’ll 
  use the nearby Boonsong Cay.
  THE CULT OF DUKANTHA
  Dukantha’s ascension brought the Lintha to their 
  current heights. Without his cult, they would have none 
  of their sea-demons or other hellish servants. Dukantha 
  binds the Lintha to their Great Mother, transmits to her 
  their prayers and offerings and ensures they continue 
  to serve Kimbery’s ends.
  Membership in the Cult of Dukantha is mandatory 
  in all but name. Refusing to join cuts off the advantages 
  
  103
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  it provides. Demon servants increase the proﬁ t of piracy 
  manyfold, the social network is expansive and the social 
  penalties for not belonging are immense. Denying the 
  cult makes one nearly an exile in Lintha society.
  The cult claims nearly all Lintha outcastes as its 
  sorcerer-priests. They are necessary to the beneﬁ ts 
  the Cult of Dukantha provides, and thus its massive 
  inﬂ uence over Lintha society. Most outcastes are pli-
  able enough after Exaltation that indoctrination is 
  fast and painless.
  Ahgai Lintha Ng Hut Yrjow Han is the current high 
  priest, a position outcastes cannot hold because of their 
  impure blood. A grandfather of the Ng Hut always holds 
  the position, which the title “Ahgai” signiﬁ es. Other 
  grandfathers and grandmothers serve in the cult under 
  him, all personally appointed by Dukantha. Yrjow Han 
  receives visions from the Great Mother as he sleeps in 
  Lintha Ng Oroo’s cave mouth. Most recent visions are 
  of a coming slaughter and the sea running deep with 
  green and crimson.
  Initiation into the Cult of Dukantha is available 
  only to Lintha mothers and fathers. The short ceremony 
  involves an oath to obey Dukantha and ritual castration. 
  Priests sacriﬁ ce the lost parts to Kimbery. Members of 
  the cult in good standing may pose a question to the 
  Great Mother once per year, which outcaste priests 
  convey to her through the Song of the Lintha.
  Dukantha himself visits his people once per year 
  during a feast in his name. The Feast of Dukantha takes 
  place over the ﬁ ve days of Calibration, during which 
  time all true Lintha return to Bluehaven—even the 
  Lintha ﬁ nd the seas dangerous during that fell time. 
  Dukantha emerges from Oroo’s cave at midnight on 
  the ﬁ rst day of Calibration to see young brothers of 
  each sept awaiting him with gifts.
  The Greatsepts present ﬁ rst, each offering 100 slain 
  mortals, a talent of jade dust and a gift representing 
  their accomplishments over the past year. Greatsepts 
  compete to outdo each other each year with the gift. The 
  lesser septs are not in the same league, but Dukantha 
  sometimes picks a simple gift from a lesser sept as his 
  favorite. The brother presenting the gift becomes Lord 
  Eunuch and leads the feast’s events.
  The next ﬁ ve days are a tremendous party like one 
  would expect to see anywhere else in Creation. The 
  Family engages in competitions and games, storytelling, 
  meals and excesses of all kinds. During this time, Lintha 
  ignore strict laws of breeding, believing they are under 
  the aegis of Dukantha’s blessing.
  On the last day, the Lord Eunuch receives his 
  honors. Dukantha himself castrates the young man and 
  SONG OF THE LINTHA 
  (TERRESTRIAL CIRCLE SORCERY)
  Cost: 25m
  Target: Putrescent door
  The Song of the Lintha is a six-day ritual of 
  meditation on the glories of the Great Mother 
  and the blasphemies of Creation’s rulers. One the 
  sixth day, the caster sings a repeating three-note, 
  seven-syllable song that crescendos as ghostly 
  black and red ﬂ ames coalesce into reality around 
  her until the song climaxes in an inferno after 10 
  hours. The spell complete, a door of decaying black 
  ﬂ esh appears before the caster. To pass through 
  the door, one must cut a laceration in the ﬂ esh 
  with an edge of a magical material; then, anyone 
  present can push through the dripping wound into 
  an exit-less cave of hard black stone.
  Here is a chancre in Malfeas’s body, a place 
  where a being named Yozi can hear a mortal’s 
  voice and choose whether to answer or excise 
  the offending sore and its contents, casting them 
  into emptiness and certain death. If the Yozi is 
  sympathetic to the request, as Kimbery may be 
  sympathetic to her progeny, she sends a servant to 
  aid the caster. This is a demon of strength relative 
  to how the Yozi weighs the request’s importance; 
  Kimbery often sends Dukantha. Any aid requires 
  a price, especially for action instead of advice, and 
  often one unpleasant for the seeker.
  Lintha use this spell to contact Kimbery, but 
  it can be used to communicate with any Yozi. 
  Few are as well-inclined toward petitioners as 
  Kimbery is toward her children, and even she 
  can be harsh. An Exalt seeking a backdoor into 
  Malfeas may ﬁ nd another use for this spell, but 
  only with difﬁ culty.
  consumes the parts, leaving the brother to bleed to death 
  on the altar. After the patron’s midnight departure, cult 
  priests parade the corpse through Bluehaven, anointing 
  streets and alleys with his blood. He then joins thousands 
  of other bodies in the Cofﬁ n Vurjawna.
  Each time Dukantha returns to Malfeas, Lintha Ng 
  Oroo slips a little further beneath the waves.
  THE SWORD BROTHERHOOD
  The Sword Brotherhood is the premier martial 
  fellowship in Bluehaven. Members train with the auh-
  zian, a hooked sword featuring pointed blades on the 
  
  104
  hilt, pommel and hand guard that can all threaten an 
  enemy—or an untrained wielder. The sword ranges in 
  size from one to ﬁ ve feet, and many Lintha ﬁ ght with 
  one in each hand.
  Each rank in the brotherhood is called a kur, with 
  initiates at the ﬁ fth kur and the single Saint of the Blade 
  at the ﬁ rst kur. The current ﬁ rst kur, Tow-Ang, lives 
  and practices along on the tiny islet of Eight Lupo to 
  the song of the nearby Yun giants. Three Lintha are at 
  the second kur, and they lead the Sword Brotherhood 
  in his absence.
  Brothers of the Sword settle internal disputes and 
  internal advancement through personal combat. Ad-
  vancing from one kur to the next consists of besting 
  others of greater rank until the second kur masters agree 
  the person is ready. Swordmasters outside of the Lintha 
  accord no honor to the Sword Brotherhood—its style 
  focuses on dirty tricks and inﬂ icting lasting, crippling 
  injuries—but any Sword Brother would argue the point 
  with his blade.
  ALLIES
  The Lintha are not popular, but neither are they 
  entirely without allies.
  The Lintha dead protect their descendants. When 
  danger threatens Bluehaven, the Lintha ancestors sail 
  forth from the Cofﬁ n Vurjawna with ships of greened 
  copper and weapons not seen since before the Primor-
  dial War.
  Mnalif Nganto is a Lunar Exalt with a shark totem. 
  Similar to her spirit animal, she is vicious and hungry 
  when aroused, and there is always blood in the water 
  near the Lintha. She commands a Lintha ﬂ eet of four 
  ships, all crewed by her beastman children. Her ships all 
  carry the taint of the Wyld with them, and Wyld-twisted 
  whale-creatures pull the ships at great speeds. 
  The Stone Society is an association of Western 
  Lunars and their kin who form a small independent 
  ﬂ eet of pirates. They do good business and would be 
  too expensive for the Lintha to force off the waters, so 
  the two maintain amicable relations and occasionally 
  barter to mutual beneﬁ t.
  Lord Verethine, Vodonik King has an unexpected 
  tolerance for the Lintha. Verethine and his court 
  of elementals and gods patrol Lintha waters for the 
  Lintha’s enemies. The Family provides live humans for 
  Verethine’s famous hunts in exchange.
  Other gods have no real fondness for the Lintha, 
  but the Family is careful to always pay due respects to 
  the many local gods whose waters they sail. Grandfa-
  thers encourage their captains to be generous, and the 
  Lintha accumulate few divine grudges.
  ENEMIES
  All Creation hates the Lintha, and the Lintha like 
  it that way. Some people are just in a better position to 
  do something about it.
  Chiaroscuro’s navy is has little power outside 
  Chiaroscuro’s immediate vicinity, but the Lintha are 
  also weak so far from Bluehaven. Chiaroscuran admirals 
  have sworn to eradicate the Lintha presence, and the 
  admirals really are thinning the herd of aunts, uncles 
  and cousins. The Gajui sept is cutting its losses there, 
  so the Sennong are ﬁ lling the gap. They have done well 
  so far, but the navy must soon react.
  Coral pirates are skillful and far more numerous than 
  the Lintha, but lack the Family’s signature ruthlessness. 
  Lintha are happy to crush Coral ships and take their 
  booty; some Lintha make a practice of hitting targets 
  just before the Coral pirates can, simply as a sign of con-
  tempt. Coral pirates and privateers have bound together 
  to sink a number of Lintha vessels recently, attacking 
  from distance to avoid the Lintha’s sea monsters.
  The Water Fleet is the chief naval power in the 
  West and outnumbers the Lintha ﬂ eet by at least two 
  to one. Well-equipped warships and Dragon-Blooded 
  ofﬁ cers are enemies the Lintha try not to engage, but 
  they do not always succeed. Some recent battles between 
  the two have ended in spectacular and cruel deaths for 
  the pirates, earning the Realm a grudging respect from 
  the Lintha.
  Realm agents have tried numerous times to locate 
  Bluehaven, but without success. The Lintha know 
  that the Realm is in decline (as they have “known” 
  for centuries), but prefer not to antagonize thousands 
  of Dragon-Blooded warriors and sorcerers. Only proﬁ ts 
  too great to resist draw them into shipping lanes that 
  will attract more attention.
  BLUEHAVEN
  The city itself lies in the center of miles-wide patch 
  of sargasso that ﬂ oats on the ocean. Around a small 
  island, all that remains of Lintha Ng Oroo, the seaweed 
  supports dozens of foundered ships bound together by 
  heavy ropes and walkways. Some sport new construc-
  tion, such as towers and plazas for the inﬂ uential. Two 
  ruined First Age vessels, hulls shining still, beach on 
  opposite sides of Lintha Ng Oroo and serve as home to 
  the Haquen and Gajui septs. All told, the city supports 
  about 10,000 at one time. That number swells to 25,000 
  
  105
  CHAPTER FIVE • DEMON PIRATES OF THE WESTERN OCEAN
  during Calibration, and Family members up to double 
  that number never see the city.
  Skeletal ships, too fragile to live on, surround 
  Bluehaven for miles. The Lintha leave any ship not 
  worth repairing in the extensive ship graveyard to slowly 
  rot, sink and defend the Family against intrusion. The 
  graveyard is a treacherous labyrinth of dead vessels that 
  only native pilots safely navigate.
  A cul-de-sac in the labyrinth is the Cofﬁ n Vurjawna, 
  home to the honored Lintha dead. Dead ships laid upon 
  one another hold hordes of Lintha bones gazing down 
  on visitors with malice. The sacred place is all too easy 
  to stumble upon, and the dead take umbrage as easily 
  as their living ancestors.
  SWORD 
  BROTHERHOOD 
  DEFENSE
  D e s c r i p t i o n : 
  Available should Blue-
  haven suffer attack, 
  these swordmasters 
  rush to defend the 
  city, eager to prove 
  their skills and cruelty 
  against any foes.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: A Lintha Demon-Blooded, but 
  increase Melee to 4
  Armor Color: Black and silver, but with red trim
  Motto: None
  General Makeup: 25 swordsmen wielding exceptional 
  auhzian swords and wearing reinforced buff jackets 
  Overall Quality: Elite
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 2
  Close Combat Attack: 4    Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: — 
  Ranged Damage: —
  Endurance: 5    Might: 2    Armor: 2    Morale: 3
  Formation: Often Close formation due to Bluehaven’s 
  narrow streets and walkways. Used to ﬁ ghting in small 
  groups, Lintha pirates are ﬂ exible in their arrange-
  ments, and will take advantage of whatever formation 
  offers the most tactical advantage against whatever 
  foes they ﬁ ght.
  Bluehaven and the Lintha Family, a Magnitude 
  4 Dominion
  Military: 3     Government: 1     Culture: 3
  Abilities: Awareness 2, Bureaucracy 2, Integrity 4 
  (Bloodlines +3), Investigation 2 (Defectors +3), 
  Occult 2, Presence 3 (Cruel Expansion +3), Stealth 3 
  (Assassination +3), War 2
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 5, Temper-
  ance 2, Valor 4
  Virtue Flaw: Valor 
  Current Limit: 3
  Willpower: 9
  Bonus Points: 20 External Bonus Points: 5
  Notes: The Lintha have several savants and a few 
  sorcerers (the Lei Kiangi, the head of the Sword 
  Brotherhood and the head of the Cult of Dukan-
  tha). In season-long turns, they guide the Lintha. 
  In turns that last a year or longer, Dukantha himself 
  can act as sorcerer in the turn. The Lintha’s bonus 
  points are in their specialties, the third dot of 
  Stealth and the ﬁ fth dot of Conviction. The Lintha 
  external bonus points come from a treaty with 
  An-Teng and purchase the +3 Presence specialty. 
  In Limit Break, the Lintha’s pride overtakes them, 
  and they engage in suicidal raids against superior 
  or unworthy foes while squandering their wealth 
  on luxuries, mistakenly believing the former will 
  fund the latter.
  
  106
  
  107
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  Below the surface of the Western Ocean, and at the 
  edge of its horizon, secrets nestle in the depths of time 
  and tide. Some recede with the passing of years, and if 
  not recovered soon will diminish to nothing. Others 
  build up momentum like a tsunami moving across the 
  ocean ﬂ oor. Barely perceptible now, the fury of these 
  hidden forces will crash against the West’s shores and 
  cities in the time to come.
  SUNKEN LUTHE
  Savants across Creation know the tale of ancient 
  Luthe, lost jewel of the First Age and symbol of the 
  perﬁ dy of the hated Anathema. An incredible product 
  of Solar engineering, Luthe was a ﬂ oating city, powered 
  by the ocean waves themselves. Savants also know how 
  Luthe fell, destroyed by an angry Solar Anathema as 
  petty revenge against the righteous Dragon-Blooded, 
  and how Luthe’s treasures and people were lost for-
  ever. In that, the savants are wrong. Luthe lives still, 
  its ancient technology shining light onto the eternal 
  darkness of the ocean ﬂ oor. Luthe’s people still live, as 
  descendants of the ancient Luthans survive in brutish 
  conditions solely through the largesse of a powerful 
  and bitter patron who keeps them alive to satiate a 
  twisted revenge.
  HISTORY
  The city of Luthe is so ancient that even during 
  the Usurpation, most people had forgotten its true 
  origins. Even the city’s current name did not come 
  into existence until centuries after its creation. In 
  Luthe’s earliest iteration, the city was called “Mobile 
  Platform 3” or simply as “the Western Base,” and far 
  from a paradise, was an instrument of war. When the 
  CHAPTER SIX
  CHAPTER SIX
  LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  
  108
  Primordial War began in earnest, the ﬁ rst generation 
  Solars concluded that they would need large mobile 
  bases to avoid having their supply lines cut. They cre-
  ated ﬁ ve mobile platforms, one for each of the cardinal 
  directions and each the size of a city.
  Powerful high-Essence Charms fashioned the West-
  ern Base, most of which are now forgotten. A dozen 
  Twilight craftsmen, supported by hundreds of Water 
  Aspect Dragon-Blooded, raised the waters of the ocean 
  up and coalesced it into physical structures. Once the 
  island’s structural shell was completed, the Solars in-
  stalled the Western Base’s unique Essence drivers, which 
  converted tidal motion into energy to power the city’s 
  various functions, along with several hundred tons of 
  equipment, weapons and both aerial and aquatic warships. 
  Fully submersible, Mobile Platform 3 could move at up 
  to 50 miles per hour either on top of the ocean’s surface 
  or thousands of feet below it. The vessel was protected 
  by an array of weaponry mounted both above and below. 
  On the surface, the Western Base served as landing pad 
  and launch platform for Essence-driven skycraft. When 
  necessary, the ﬂ ight deck doors closed to completely 
  seal the ﬂ ying ships from harm. The platform was also 
  capable of deploying its large ﬂ eet of small submersible 
  ships whether surfaced or underwater. 
  THE FOUNDING OF LUTHE 
   
  Mobile Platform 3 served with distinction through-
  out the Primordial War. After the war’s end, the Solars 
  continued to use the platform as a military base for 
  several centuries in the Western theater until further 
  development rendered the platform obsolete. Rather 
  than scuttle it, the Solar Deliberative decided to simply 
  decommission the construct, converting roughly three-
  quarters of the military base into civilian property and 
  reestablishing it as the regional capitol of the West 
  and seat of power for whichever Solar would serve as 
  regional governor of that part of Creation. With the 
  inauguration of the ﬁ rst queen to rule the ﬂ oating city 
  instead of an admiral, Mobile Platform 3 was formally 
  christened “Luthe.” In the oldest dialects of Old Realm, 
  the word meant “tranquility,” a ﬁ tting name for an 
  oceanic metropolis that could ﬂ oat calmly even in the 
  midst of a hurricane.
  Luthe soon became a marvel renowned across 
  Creation. Still capable of movement, Luthe was never 
  a stationary capitol. Rather, it traveled a regular cir-
  cuit, moving from the east coast of Coral, down past 
  the islands of the Neck and around the southern tip of 
  Wavecrest and then out and around the great continent 
  in the Far West forged from the Wyld by the Solar 
  
  109
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  Exalted (and later shattered during the Usurpation), 
  before turning north to curve back toward Coral. By 
  order of the Deliberative, Luthe never ventured closer 
  than 100 miles of Darkmist Isle.
  THE REIGN OF AMYANA
  Roughly four centuries before the Usurpation, an 
  experienced Zenith Caste administrator named Amyana 
  was appointed Queen of Luthe, the ceremonial title for the 
  Western Regional Governor. Lucid compared to her more 
  aggressive and unstable peers, Amyana served Luthe and 
  the West well, her powerful (and arguably overdeveloped) 
  sense of compassion motivating reforms improving the lives 
  of the mortals under her authority. Amyana’s eccentrici-
  ties did rankle the local Dragon-Blooded, many of whom 
  resented Amyana’s generous programs to aid the mortals, 
  subsidized by higher taxes on Terrestrial bureaucrats. 
  About a century after assuming the throne of Lu-
  the, Amyana entertained courtship offers from Kendik 
  Arkadi, the aging but powerful Eclipse Caste who served 
  as Grand Admiral of the entire Solar ﬂ eet. Just as all 
  Solars, Amyana and Arkadi were each mystically bonded 
  to a Lunar mate. However, not all Solar-Lunar mating 
  arrangements resulted in stable marital relationships. 
  Amyana’s mate at the time was a male Lunar named 
  Red Coral Manta, and while they were devoted to one 
  another, the two agreed early on that they had no sexual 
  chemistry. Arkadi, on the other hand, had been happily 
  married for nearly 900 years to the same Lunar until her 
  death in combat against the Fair Folk at the Western 
  frontier. Arkadi’s mate reincarnated as a male in the form 
  of a young sailor named Leviathan, and while Arkadi 
  happily served as the boy’s mentor and benefactor, the 
  Grand Admiral was staunchly heterosexual.
  And so it came to pass that Kendik Arkadi and Queen 
  Amyana were married after a somewhat lengthy courtship. 
  The relationship was largely one of convenience—they 
  were the only two unattached Solars in the entire West, 
  and their respective duties already overlapped. By all ac-
  counts, the marriage was a happy one. But even happy 
  marriages are not immune to temptation. Over time, 
  events caused Amyana to spend signiﬁ cant time in the 
  company of Leviathan, who, within a century of Exalta-
  tion, had already risen to the rank of commodore. For 
  once, Amyana’s boundless compassion betrayed her, and 
  she became attracted to the handsome and virile young 
  Lunar. As for Leviathan, he was smitten with Amyana 
  almost upon meeting her due both to her natural beauty 
  and her free use of Presence-based Charms. The two 
  ﬁ rst consummated their passionate affair on a torrid 
  summer night while Arkadi was away on maneuvers. 
  Amyana and Leviathan’s time together was ﬂ eeting by 
  the standards of Celestial Exalted. The Usurpation was 
  less than a century away.
  THE USURPATION 
   
  Surprisingly for an Exalt for his age and experi-
  ence, Grand Admiral Arkadi never suspected that he 
  was being cuckolded by his wife and Lunar second. 
  Arkadi himself was never faithful to Amyana, but 
  his dalliances were discreet and nonconsensual—he 
  preferred raping Dragon-Blooded female ofﬁ cers and 
  then forcing them into silence through the power of 
  the Eclipse Caste oath. Arkadi never suspected any hint 
  of disloyalty from Leviathan, and through his mentor’s 
  aid and tutelage, the Lunar rose to the rank of admiral 
  within a few centuries. By the time of the Usurpation, 
  Leviathan was the highest-ranking non-Solar ofﬁ cer 
  AND THE OTHER PLATFORMS?
  The early Solars fashioned five mobile 
  platforms, one for each of the major theaters 
  of conﬂ ict in the Primordial War. Each of the 
  platforms was the size of a small city and was 
  designed for maximum functionality within the 
  spheres of its associated element. For example, 
  the Central Platform, associated with Earth, was 
  forged of white jade. The Eastern Platform, on 
  the other hand, was carved from a single tree near 
  the Elemental Pole of Earth, an immense log that 
  was more than ﬁ ve miles long and nearly a mile 
  in diameter when laid on end.
  Mobile Platform 3 was unusual in that it 
  was the only submersible platform, an essential 
  design element in the Western theater. However, 
  this platform was also the only one incapable of 
  ﬂ ight. Presumably, maintaining such great ﬂ oat-
  ing citadels was much harder than building one 
  that merely ﬂ oated, as Mobile Platform 3 was the 
  only one that endured into the High First Age. 
  Some savants claim that the legendary ﬂ oating 
  city of Bagrash Köl was forged from the remains 
  of either the Northern or Eastern Platform. The 
  former was forged of enchanted ice that could defy 
  gravity, while the latter was a great wooden city 
  held aloft by Essence-laden balloons. All reliable 
  knowledge of the fate of the other four platforms 
  seems to have been lost during the Usurpation, 
  even to the Sidereals, although Vanileth, god of 
  artiﬁ cial ﬂ ight, may still know the truth.
  
  110
  in the entire ﬂ eet. None of the three Exalted attended 
  the fateful Calibration festival that served as cover for 
  the ﬁ rst strike of the Usurpation.
  Grand Admiral Arkadi was caught aboard his ﬂ ag-
  ship, Inevitable Victory of the Noonday Sun, betrayed by 
  his Sidereal chief savant Quick-Swimming Messenger 
  and the entirety of the Dragon-Blooded crew. Only 
  the intervention of his second-in-command, Rokaya 
  Many-Teeth, allowed Arkadi to make it to the deck, 
  where he was torn asunder by an Essence cannon, his 
  body parts ﬂ ung overboard by the force of the blow.
  Admiral Leviathan was aboard the light warship 
  named Setting Sun Glorious when the attack began. He 
  received simultaneous calls for help from Arkadi and 
  Amyana, and after a moment’s hesitation, chose to answer 
  Amyana’s summons, leaving Arkadi to his doom. Fighting 
  his way past the Dragon-Blooded assassins (luckily, the 
  Setting Sun Glorious had no Sidereal personnel), Leviathan 
  made it on deck and jumped overboard. Moments later, 
  the betrayers learned just how deadly a Lunar could be 
  when Leviathan assumed his great Behemoth Orca form 
  and capsized the warship with a single strike. He paused 
  just long enough to swallow most of the Water-aspected 
  survivors whole before setting out for Luthe, leaving the 
  rest of the Dragon-Blooded to a watery grave.
  Finally, Amyana was attacked in her bedchambers 
  by silent Air Aspect assassins led by a Chosen of End-
  ings. Although principally a diplomat and administrator, 
  Amyana was still an elder Solar, one of the oldest and 
  most powerful beings in Creation, and the traitors 
  sought to strike quickly and quietly before she could 
  bring her full power to bear. They failed. The soft creak 
  of a single loose ﬂ oorboard awoke Queen Amyana, and 
  a single breath of Essence brought her full defenses to 
  bear. Moreover, her potent Charms didn’t just reveal 
  the nature of her own attackers; her Charms allowed 
  her to intuit the entire Usurpation motivating the at-
  tackers. By the time the last attacker’s head was severed 
  from his body, Amyana instinctively knew that the 
  Dragon-Blooded and Sidereals had betrayed the entire 
  Deliberative and that most of her allies had already 
  fallen. She resolved that the betrayers would never see 
  the fruits of her victory if she could help it.
  And so, after sending a quick message to both 
  husband and lover, Amyana fought her way to Luthe’s 
  command deck. Overriding normal protocols, she di-
  rected the city to submerge while the ﬂ ight deck was 
  still open to the air. Sea water rushed in, ﬂ ooding ﬁ rst 
  the ﬂ ight deck and then most of the lower levels of the 
  city. Emergency systems kicked in, automatically sealing 
  interior doors to stop the whole city from ﬂ ooding, but 
  thousands were killed instantly, and tens of thousands 
  more were trapped in airtight apartments with limited 
  food and tons of water just outside the door. Amyana 
  also destroyed the control systems that operated the 
  submersible access ports, trapping the city’s submersible 
  ﬂ eet inside. Finally, she programmed the city’s naviga-
  tion systems to send Luthe to the bottom of a deep sea 
  trench southwest of Abalone, one too deep for all but 
  the most powerful of Water Aspects to reach but not to 
  deep for Leviathan in his whale form. Having done all 
  she could to protect Luthe’s resources from her betray-
  ers, Amyana barricaded herself in the command center, 
  hoping to hold out until Leviathan’s arrival.
  She nearly made it. Amyana managed to hold off 
  scores of Dragon-Blooded soldiers and two Sidereal-
  summoned Second Circle demons for days before they 
  broke through. Leviathan swam into the now-sunken 
  metropolis to ﬁ nd his mortally wounded lover surrounded 
  by the corpses of her enemies. The proud young Lunar 
  cradled his Solar queen as she died in his arms. Then, 
  Leviathan went to war. Armed with his great trident, 
  Islebreaker, he stalked the ruins of Luthe, slaying every 
  Dragon-Blooded he could ﬁ nd. The mortals he left alone 
  save for those foolish enough to challenge him. 
  Then, his rage sated, Leviathan accessed the 
  Deliberative’s communications network and sent a 
  coded message to every warship in his ﬂ eet. The coded 
  order went out to every animating intelligence, direct-
  ing the spirits to activate their self-destruct protocols. 
  Some ships carried savant-engineers skilled enough to 
  deactivate the protocols, but the majority of the Western 
  Fleet exploded in a brilliant shower of Essence within 
  moments of receiving Leviathan’s message. Having done 
  all that he could to avenge his lover and mate, Levia-
  than left his great trident on Amyana’s empty throne 
  and carried the dead queen out into the ocean, where 
  he constructed a simple tomb for her before heading 
  off into the Wyld with his Lunar kin. 
  THE LOST CITY
  Though battered and sunken, Luthe was not de-
  stroyed. Despite the massive internal damage the city 
  suffered, its special Essence batteries were intact, and 
  they continued to absorb power from the ocean cur-
  rents to fuel the city’s remaining systems. The city also 
  came to rest on the ocean ﬂ oor near a natural undersea 
  demesne that helped to replenish the city’s Essence bat-
  teries. There were survivors as well. Out of an original 
  population of nearly a million, about 4,000 survived. 
  Mortals all, the survivors were trapped in the sunken 
  city, unable to endure the great water pressure outside 
  
  111
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  the walls, to pilot the few Essence-powered craft that 
  were not destroyed by the deluge or even to contact 
  anyone on the surface to plead for aid.
  As terrible as things were for these survivors, they 
  could have been much worse. The city was designed to 
  remain underwater indeﬁ nitely, and the Essence-powered 
  air scrubbers continued to function perfectly. Likewise, 
  while Luthe had always relied primarily on food goods 
  purchased from elsewhere to feed the city’s great popu-
  lace, the few survivors could easily survive on the small 
  hydroponic gardens in the bowels of the city. Also, by 
  happy coincidence, Luthe was home to a Solar-sponsored 
  research project designed to improve the efﬁ ciency of 
  farm-raising ﬁ sh to reduce the need for large ﬁ shing ﬂ eets, 
  and the project’s fully automated ﬁ sheries were undam-
  aged during the Usurpation. While roughly two-thirds 
  of Luthe was completely underwater, the rest of the city 
  was watertight and more than large enough to provide 
  ample room for the surviving Luthans.
  Over the course of the next 700 years, the Luthans 
  developed an insular and parochial society. Those who 
  survived the city’s descent never fully understood why 
  it happened, but the enraged Leviathan’s massacre of 
  the city’s Dragon-Blooded led many to believe that 
  the cataclysm was the fault of the Terrestrial Exalted, 
  a punishment for their betrayal of the beloved Queen 
  Amyana. Over time, these vague beliefs hardened into 
  religious dogma. Those survivors who were descended 
  from the families of Dragon-Blooded were treated as 
  second-class citizens—the Traitorspawn—and, in a 
  mirror reﬂ ection of the Shogunate, Luthans reviled 
  Terrestrial Exalted as traitors to the Solar Deliberative 
  and enemies of all that was decent. 
  Things became even worse for the Traitorspawn 
  about 200 years after the Usurpation, when a young 
  Traitorspawn of noble ancestry Exalted as a Fire As-
  pect shortly after his 15th birthday. More than a dozen 
  Luthans died in the ﬁ ery blaze that accompanied the 
  Exaltation, and the child and his parents were all torn 
  apart by a frenzied mob fueled by religious mania. After 
  that, Traitorspawn were tattooed with a special mark 
  after birth, segregated and carefully monitored. When 
  a new Traitorspawn child was born, she was taken from 
  her parents and raised in a child labor camp until reach-
  ing the age of 19. After that age, Terrestrial Exaltation 
  was unlikely, and the young adult was returned from 
  the camps. In the centuries since, 17 Traitorspawn have 
  Exalted as Dragon-Blooded. With one exception, each 
  of the new Exalted was quickly executed along with 
  her entire family.
  THE RETURN OF LEVIATHAN
  By the time of the Contagion, Luthe had a popu-
  lation of about 9,000 citizens with an additional 700 
  Traitorspawn living in squalid conditions on the barren 
  ruins of the once luxurious Dragon-Blooded neighbor-
  hoods. The Contagion never came to Luthe, but in the 
  aftermath, someone else did. Leviathan returned from 
  his self-imposed exile, accompanied by a two younger 
  Lunars. Curious to see what remained of the ancient 
  city, Leviathan was astonished that a mortal society 
  had survived so far beneath the waves and delighted 
  to learn that its people loathed the Dragon-Blooded 
  as thoroughly as he did. Leviathan never personally 
  visited the city, deciding that his cetacean form would 
  be far more impressive than any mortal form he could 
  take. Instead, he sent his Lunar subordinates, Swims in 
  Shadow and the Sage of the Depths, to make contact 
  with the Luthan people.
  After centuries of isolation, the Luthans knew the 
  Lunar Exalted only from myth and legend. Through 
  a combination of Charisma-based Charms and brute 
  force, the two visitors persuaded the Luthan people 
  of the Lunars’ identity and status as demigods. The 
  bloodless conquest of Luthe culminated in Leviathan 
  swimming close enough to the city to be clearly seen 
  from its windows and domes. The sight of the Great 
  Whale God, a legendary religious icon in the eyes of the 
  Luthans, obliterated any possibility of resistance. 
  Leviathan and his fellow Lunars left, only to return 
  one year later, now accompanied by a small tribe of 
  pelagothropes and an equal number of sharkmen and 
  octopus men. Collectively, these immigrants were 
  known as “the Scions of Leviathan,” although none 
  were his descendants but rather those of his two ap-
  prentices. Leviathan established these Scions, whom 
  he had been selectively breeding for centuries, as 
  “advisors” to the ruling caste of Luthan society. Over 
  the course of the next several decades, the Scions 
  eventually became the ruling caste through dint of 
  superior power as well as aggressive breeding programs. 
  While beastmen in other parts of Creation increased 
  their numbers through rape, such brutal tactics were 
  unnecessary in Luthe—the mortal leaders of Luthan 
  society viewed the Scions of Leviathan as demigods, 
  and most willingly offered themselves in marriage to the 
  pelagothropes and beastmen. Only the Traitorspawn 
  were forbidden to breed with the Scions. Of course, 
  the Scions themselves were not immortal, and over 
  the centuries, they became completely intermarried 
  with the mortal Luthans. 
  
  112
  In the modern era, there are essentially two peoples 
  in Luthe: Scionborn, who are descended from the original 
  Scions of Leviathan and who are subdivided into the two 
  beastmen lines and the pelagothrope mutants, and Traitor-
  spawn, who are descended from ancient Dragon-Blooded. 
  Today, there are approximately 12,000 Scionborn and 
  2,000 Traitorspawn in the city. The increased population 
  has presented little difﬁ culty to the Scionborn, as nearly 
  all of them have some form of inherited aquatic mutations 
  and have expanded out into the rest of the city. The Trai-
  torspawn have no such capabilities and remain trapped 
  in their traditional ﬁ lthy communes in near-starvation 
  conditions. Their suffering is not the result of neglect 
  but deliberate malice—Leviathan is convinced that the 
  Dragon-Blooded who murdered Amyana continue to rein-
  carnate among their own descendants, and by tormenting 
  the Traitorspawn, he inﬂ icts misery among the slayers of his 
  lover. That Leviathan has no rational basis for this belief 
  does not deter him or his followers in any way.
  This is what has become of once-shining Luthe—
  now a citadel for mortals who trade their humanity to 
  become more like their oceanic gods and a death camp 
  for others whose only crime was to be descended from 
  the “winners” of a war fought centuries before.
  THE GREAT CONTAGION 
  As noted previously, the Great Contagion 
  never made its way to sunken Luthe. How this 
  fact affects its citizens is a matter of Storyteller 
  discretion. The Scions of Leviathan and their 
  descendants most likely have immunity to the 
  Contagion by virtue of being descended from 
  its survivors. On the other hand, all modern 
  Scionborn are the result of interbreeding be-
  tween ancient Luthans and Scion immigrants, 
  and this immunity may have been inadvertently 
  bred out of the populace. Regardless, the Trai-
  torspawn have no natural immunity to the 
  Great Contagion, and if their hopes ever came 
  to pass and they were delivered en masse to the 
  surface, they might quickly succumb to history’s 
  greatest plague. Or not. It’s just as likely that 
  the Great Contagion burned itself out centuries 
  ago, and even those without immunity are safe 
  from its curse.
  
  113
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  SOCIETY
  Just as many societies that develop under the aegis 
  of a Lunar Exalt, Luthe is governed according to its 
  patron’s philosophies. In Luthe’s case, however, the 
  society is warped by an overweening and compulsive 
  hatred for a segment of its own population, a hatred 
  driven almost entirely by a 1,500-year-old vendetta.
  SOCIETAL DIVISIONS
  Breeding plays an essential role in Luthan society. 
  While there is some social mobility in Luthan society, 
  some class boundaries are impenetrable, most impor-
  tantly the divide that separates the Traitorspawn from 
  the Scionborn. That is not the only division, however, 
  as the Scionborn themselves are a divided society. At 
  the top are those who trace their lineage directly back 
  to the two original ancient beastmen races, the shark 
  folk and octopus folk who followed Leviathan back 
  to Luthe and thus are descended directly from Lunar 
  Exalted. These two distinct lines take their names from 
  the Lunars who sired their ancestors: the shark folk are 
  referred to as Shadow Swimmers while the octopus folk 
  are called Deep Sages. Despite their shared connection 
  through Exaltation, the two breeds are separated by 
  cultural tradition—Shadow Swimmers are warriors, 
  ﬁ rst and foremost, while the more intellectual Deep 
  Sages tend to be priests and savants. There is a strong 
  social taboo against sexual congress between Shadow 
  Swimmers and Deep Sages.
  Directly below the beastmen are the pelagothropes, 
  who make up the bulk of the Luthan population. Pel-
  agothropes are permitted to breed freely with either 
  Shadow Swimmers or Deep Sages. This is not in spite 
  of the pelagothropes’ inferior lineage but because of 
  it—when a pelagothrope breeds with a beastman, the 
  offspring always takes after the beastman parent, while 
  the offspring of two beastmen of different lineages either 
  develops a freakish combination of mutations or, worse, 
  appears superﬁ cially human and free of both shark and 
  octopus mutations.
  Within Luthan society, Deep Sages and Shadow 
  Swimmers share power, albeit somewhat uneasily. The 
  militant and warlike Shadow Swimmers hold supreme 
  authority over all military and law enforcement mat-
  ters, while the Deep Sages see to the maintenance 
  of Luthe’s infrastructure and the religious rites of 
  Leviathan’s cult.
  DEEP SAGES
  Deep Sages are thin humanoids who stand between 
  ﬁ ve and six feet tall. A Deep Sage’s skin invariably 
  glistens as if still wet, and his skin changes color and 
  pattern according to the Sage’s will. All Deep Sages 
  are hairless. The most distinctive characteristic of a 
  Deep Sage is his head—a slight dome-shape with two 
  large, softly glowing green eyes, nostrils but no nose, 
  and a cluster of eight small tentacles between six and 
  24 inches in length arranged around the mouth. Sages 
  typically eat with their tentacles, picking up food with 
  them and placing it directly in their mouths. The ten-
  tacles are also potent weapons, however: a Deep Sage 
  can release a neurotoxin through his tentacles in the 
  same manner as a poisonous jellyﬁ sh.
  A Deep Sage has arms and legs just as a normal 
  human, but her hands and feet are webbed and end in 
  wicked retractable claws. A few Deep Sages (mainly 
  those who come from strong bloodlines that have not 
  intermarried signiﬁ cantly with pelagothropes) have 
  additional mutations. Poison claws are most common, 
  but most well-bred Deep Sages have large retractable 
  tentacles that grow out of their backs. These tentacles 
  can reach a distance of up to ﬁ ve yards and usually inﬂ ict 
  poison damage. Large tentacles are also very strong and 
  can be used for lifting or attacking. All Deep Sages have 
  gill slits both on their necks and over their ribs. These 
  gill slits are fully capable of metabolizing both air and 
  water, and Deep Sages are fully amphibious.
  Deep Sages are intelligent and cunning. Despite 
  their appearance, which most mortals in Creation 
  would consider hideous, Deep Sages move with a 
  sinuous grace. In fact, Luthan social customs consider 
  their octopod characteristics sensuous and alluring. The 
  voice of a Deep Sage is sibilant and at times gurgling. 
  Most Deep Sages are ﬂ uent in Old Realm and in the 
  debased Old Realm patois spoken by the pelagothropes 
  and Traitorspawn. Deep Sages are also capable of com-
  municating with each other via a unique language of 
  shifting changes in skin coloration.
  Names among Deep Sages tend to be ﬂ owing 
  and sibilant, and often lacking in vowels. Some Deep 
  Sages have names that are nearly unpronounceable, 
  and many Shadow Swimmers suspect the Deep Sages 
  adopt such impossible names solely to tweak those they 
  consider intellectually inferior. Since Deep Sages com-
  municate among themselves through their color-based 
  skin language, they never mispronounce or even use 
  each other’s names. Currently, the most prominent 
  Deep Sages include Hrsh’duljha, the High Priest of the 
  Cult of Leviathan; Shk’ktlithu, who oversees Luthe’s 
  hydroponic gardens; Throth-Shulgu, the chief savant 
  in charge of research into First Age artifacts; and Kltja-
  S’bto, the Weapons Master for the Luthan Militia.
  
  114
  SHADOW SWIMMERS
  Descended from the powerful Lunar Swims in 
  Shadows, Shadow Swimmers are muscular humanoids 
  typically standing between eight and nine feet tall. The 
  average Shadow Swimmer has bluish-gray skin, and, 
  similar to Deep Sages, hands and feet with retractable 
  claws. However, the feet of a Shadow Swimmer are 
  much larger than those of a Deep Dweller or a mortal 
  and resemble ﬁ ns. As a result, the Shadow Swimmer is 
  slightly clumsy on land but a superlative swimmer.
  By far the most distinctive feature of a Shadow 
  Swimmer is his head, which appears to be that of a 
  large shark grafted on to an oversized humanoid body. 
  Despite the shark-like nature of the Shadow Swimmer’s 
  head, he still has a humanoid skull and skeleton, albeit 
  one that differs notably from that of a mortal. Accord-
  ingly, a Shadow Swimmer can turn his head with the 
  same mobility of a mortal, and the shape of his head 
  allows for normal human vision. Shadow Swimmers can 
  intuitively sense the Essence patterns of living beings. 
  They use this special “shark sense” to zero in on living 
  targets otherwise invisible in the ocean depths.
  All Shadow Swimmers are fully amphibious, with 
  gill slits on their heads and their sides. Shadow Swim-
  mers typically speak the adapted version of Old Realm 
  spoken by pelagothropes, although with some difﬁ culty. 
  While not intrinsically stupid, Shadow Swimmers have 
  some difﬁ culty enunciating complex words and so tend 
  to use a truncated vocabulary. Among themselves, 
  they have a unique form of communication employ-
  ing their ability to sense the Essence patterns of living 
  beings—a Shadow Swimmer can subtly modulate his 
  own internal Essence just enough to send out messages 
  that only the well-developed senses of another Shadow 
  Swimmer can perceive. Absent Charms or other special 
  powers, an observer might never even notice that two 
  Shadow Swimmers were conversing, let alone interpret 
  their remarks.
  Shadow Swimmer names tend to be monosyllabic 
  and guttural, in keeping with the breed’s traditional 
  brevity. Prominent Shadow Swimmers include Grokr, 
  commander of the Luthan military; Skarg, comman-
  dant of the civil police; and Kurgo, the city’s chief 
  judge and executioner.
  PELAGOTHROPES
  Pelagothropes make up the bulk of Luthan society. 
  Descendants of the Wyld mutants introduced into the 
  city by Leviathan himself, pelagothropes generally appear 
  at least superﬁ cially human. Except for gills and excep-
  tional vision, which all pelagothropes possess, most of 
  their breed are indistinguishable from Western mortals, 
  albeit very pale ones. Most but not all pelagothropes, 
  however—some pelagothropes who’ve descended from 
  the original mutants with only minimal mortal interbreed-
  ing have additional mutations, such as tentacles, shark 
  teeth, webbed hands or feet or even stranger features. 
  Luthans have mixed views about the more heavily mu-
  tated pelagothropes. They are closer to Leviathan and 
  thus superior to more human-seeming pelagothropes (and 
  of course, the completely human Traitorspawn). On the 
  other hand, the mutations are the result of uncontrolled 
  Wyld exposure rather than deliberate breeding by a Lunar 
  Exalt. Accordingly, it is forbidden for a pelagothrope who 
  has an exceptional number of mutations to breed with 
  beastmen, lest the pelagothrope’s Wyld mutations taint 
  the purity of the beastman lines. 
  Pelagothropes speak a debased form of Old Realm, 
  which a visitor to the city who knows the original 
  tongue can master with some difﬁ culty. If an Old Realm-
  speaking visitor succeeds on a roll of (Intelligence + 
  Linguistics) at difﬁ culty 3 (one attempt per day), she 
  can pierce the strange accent and decipher centuries 
  of linguistic corruption enough to communicate with 
  locals. However, even a visitor who speaks Old Realm 
  and succeeds at this roll suffers a -1 external penalty 
  to all verbal social rolls while interacting with Luthans 
  unless she actually learns the local language (i.e., her 
  player buys it as a Linguistics specialty). 
  Pelagothrope names are largely the same as com-
  moner names throughout the Realm, most commonly 
  “adjective-noun” combinations. However, sea-based 
  names are, understandably, much more common in Lu-
  the than in most of Creation. Prominent pelagothropes 
  include Sagacious Manta, who advises Judge Kurgo 
  on legal issues in criminal cases; Blue Anemone, who 
  operates the most successful tavern in the city with 
  the aid of her homemade distillery; and Hunter of the 
  Bountiful Sea, one of many pelagothropes who regularly 
  leave the city for ﬁ shing or hunting.
  TRAITORSPAWN
  Traitorspawn are indistinguishable from West-
  ern mortals. While the various families among the 
  Traitorspawn can trace their lineages back to noble 
  Dragon-Blooded houses of the First Age, such breed-
  ing is not a source of public pride in Luthe . . . but late 
  at night, when the pelagothrope and beastmen over-
  seers have gone home, the descendants of the ancient 
  Dragon-Blooded gather in their hovels to share stories 
  of the ancient days and to whisper their hopes that, 
  some day, the Dragon-Blooded will return to free their 
  
  115
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  descendents from their bondage and carry them up to 
  see the sky once more. 
  In a tradition beginning centuries ago, Traitor-
  spawn are marked at birth. A small tattoo on each 
  Traitorspawn’s forehead depicts the Old Realm char-
  acter for “treachery.” This tradition continues today 
  even though it is completely redundant—the rest of 
  Luthe’s mortal population is so heavily intermarried 
  with pelagothropes and beastmen that Traitorspawn 
  are instantly recognizable simply by their lack of gills. 
  Because Traitorspawn cannot survive underwater, they 
  also have no way of reaching the city’s hydroponic 
  gardens, which are heavily guarded and separated from 
  the Traitorspawn by several inundated sections of city. 
  Accordingly, Traitorspawn are completely dependent on 
  their social betters for food and potable water, neither 
  of which they receive in quantities large enough to 
  stave off malnutrition and sickness. 
  Despite suffering, the Traitorspawn remain the 
  heirs to Princes of the Earth. Today, the Traitorspawn 
  are beaten and enslaved, but not yet broken. In the 
  gloom of their ghettos, they still trade the old stories 
  and still recite their ancient lineages. They still keep 
  hold to their ancient family names and recall ancestors 
  of legend. And, most importantly of all, the Traitor-
  spawn still stand together. For the Traitorspawn have 
  a secret. Four years ago, a Traitorspawn child Exalted 
  as a Water Aspect Dragon-Blood but through luck 
  and quick thinking was able to conceal his Exaltation 
  from his overseers. Eventually, he came of age and was 
  returned to his family. Every night, the young Water 
  Dragon secretly practices his Charms and Abilities, 
  waiting for the right opportunity to lead his people 
  out of captivity, all the while knowing that one wrong 
  move will mean not only his death but those of all his 
  loved ones as well.
  Traitorspawn still retain their ancient family 
  names and use the traditional “alternating vowel and 
  consonant” naming convention familiar to modern 
  Dynasts. As with Dynasts and gentes, the family name 
  comes ﬁ rst. Prominent Traitorspawn include Gavrane 
  Iraka, head of the Gavrane family and descendent of 
  the Dragon-Blood who struck the killing blow against 
  Queen Amyana; Horukami Edivo, matriarch of the 
  Horukami line and secret teacher of Dragon-Blooded 
  lore; and Gavrane Tomazri, nephew of Iraka and secretly 
  the ﬁ rst Traitorspawn to Exalt in centuries. 
  Cirese Ujeni is a young Traitorspawn who was el-
  evated to the position of trustee over her fellows after 
  she reported her own parents for sedition against the 
  ruling classes, leading to her parents’ bloody executions. 
  Ujeni has been ruthless in her suppression of dissent 
  among the Traitorspawn and is widely hated. In real-
  ity, Ujeni has known about Tomazri almost since his 
  Exaltation, and she betrayed her parents in order to 
  distract attention away from him. Since then, she has 
  used her position to target Traitorspawn who might 
  be tempted to betray Tomazri should they learn of his 
  existence. The possibility that she might be the ﬁ rst to 
  die at Tomazri’s hands if he ever started an open revolt 
  has occurred to her as a grim and ironic necessity.
  CULTURE
  Centuries of isolation followed by centuries of social 
  manipulation by an ancient Lunar elder have created a 
  strange and unique culture within sunken Luthe. The 
  city is ruled by small, caste-like populations of beast-
  men (and far more intelligent and erudite beastmen 
  than are typically found in Creation) who maintain 
  power by exploiting the majority population’s hatred 
  of a despised minority. 
  GOVERNMENT
  Political power in Luthe remains with the Coun-
  cil of Scions, a governing body of three Deep Sages, 
  three Shadow Swimmers and three pelagothropes. The 
  council’s composition ostensibly reﬂ ects an equitable 
  division of authority between the priests’ caste (the 
  Deep Sages), the warrior caste (Shadow Swimmers) and 
  the workers (everyone else). Naturally, Traitorspawn 
  have no representation on the Council of Scions, or 
  any other form of political power. In practice, the work-
  ers and warriors don’t have much power, either. The 
  three Deep Sage councilors regularly commune with 
  their Lunar progenitor, Sage of the Depths, who has 
  been assigned to monitor Luthe by Leviathan himself. 
  Consequently, the Deep Sages have the authority to 
  speak for the Great Whale God, and when they do so, 
  few have the courage to defy the Deep Sages’ pronounce-
  ments. The Deep Sages have not abused this authority 
  too much, but they have not been shy about threatening 
  to do so. The three pelagothrope councilors are utterly 
  in awe of the priests and almost invariably vote with 
  them on every important matter, much to the chagrin 
  of the shark folk.
  Below the Council of Scions are the four main 
  occupational divisions of Luthan society: the Cult of 
  Leviathan (which consists primarily of Deep Sages), 
  the military (which consists mainly of Shadow Swim-
  mers), the Traitorspawn (who are essentially a slave 
  class) and everyone else.
  
  116
  THE CULT OF LEVIATHAN
  In a very real sense, Luthans venerate Leviathan 
  in the same way that Dragon-Blooded venerate the 
  Elemental Dragons and the Solars worship the Uncon-
  quered Sun. Luthan mythology identiﬁ es Leviathan as 
  the Great Whale God, the god of the ocean itself who 
  came to avenge the murder of the sun goddess Amyana. 
  The Luthans have never heard of the Ocean Father or 
  any other Western god, and for various reasons (most 
  often the might of Leviathan himself), no god has ever 
  sought to control or even communicate with the people 
  of Luthe. As an open secret, the Traitorspawn continue to 
  worship the Elemental Dragons. The Cult of Leviathan 
  unofﬁ cially permits this heresy in order to further cement 
  the idea that Traitorspawn are spiritually damned.
  The rites associated with the Cult of Leviathan 
  tend toward the barbaric. Aside from the six daily 
  prayers, the Cult engages in human sacriﬁ ce on holy 
  days several times a year, on dates commemorating the 
  murder of Amyana, the return of Leviathan and other 
  important events in Luthan history. Sacriﬁ ce victims 
  are chosen from criminals convicted of capitol offenses, 
  or, if no such criminals are available, randomly chosen 
  Traitorspawn. The victim is tortured for several hours 
  and then slowly lowered into a ceremonial pool of 
  needleﬁ sh (see p. 158).
  The vast majority of the active priesthood are 
  Deep Sages, although some of the lesser acolytes are 
  pelagothropes. Traitorspawn are excluded from reli-
  gious activity. Shadow Swimmers, on the other hand, 
  are generally too violent to consider religious careers, 
  although a tiny handful do serve as temple guardians. 
  Judge Kurgo and his retinue are technically considered 
  religious ﬁ gures when acting in their capacity as execu-
  tioners, since all state-sponsored executions are carried 
  out as part of religious ceremonies.
  Although Leviathan is the only god worshiped by 
  Luthe as a whole, he is not the only god worshiped in 
  Luthe. A carefully guarded secret within the Cult of 
  Leviathan is the worship of the Sage of the Depths. 
  Over the centuries, the Lunar has become jealous of 
  the Essence reaped by Leviathan from his mortal wor-
  shipers, and he quietly directed his beastmen progeny 
  to begin worshiping him as well.
  
  117
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  In addition to its religious role, the Cult of Le-
  viathan is the de facto legislative body in Luthe, with 
  the priests passing laws that they claim were handed 
  down by Leviathan himself. Technically, these laws 
  must be ratiﬁ ed by the Council of Scions, but no law 
  has ever been rejected by that body since its founding. 
  Finally, the Cult of Leviathan governs all use of First 
  Age technology by the people of Luthe. While Luthe 
  contains perhaps the largest collection of intact First 
  Age artifacts still in use in Creation, actual knowledge 
  of how these devises work is strictly limited. Centuries 
  of Cult dogma have ingrained in most Luthans the con-
  viction that technology only works because Leviathan 
  wills it, and major technological breakdowns are often 
  accompanied by inquisitorial raids by Cult leaders to 
  round up the “heretics” whose disbelief impairs the 
  city’s proper functioning. (See “Technology” on p. 119 
  for more information.)
  THE MILITIA
  Shadow Swimmers aren’t stupid. The typical 
  sharkman has the intelligence of a typical mortal. The 
  problem for Shadow Swimmers is simply that they’re 
  too driven. Even after centuries of controlled breeding, 
  Shadow Swimmers remain in the thrall of their innate 
  shark nature. They must remain on the move. They 
  must hunt. They must survive. Since the overwhelming 
  majority of the Luthan military are Shadow Swimmers, 
  understanding their nature is essential to understanding 
  how Luthe organizes its defense.
  The Luthan Militia combines civil law enforcement 
  with civil defense, with all inductees spending part of 
  their time enforcing the city’s laws and part patrolling 
  outside the city’s dome for potential threats. Arguably, 
  civil law enforcement should be more important than 
  civil defense since Luthe has never faced any hint of 
  attack from outside, but Shadow Swimmers don’t ac-
  cept that. Just because no one has ever invaded before 
  doesn’t mean that someone won’t try it tomorrow. A 
  disproportionate amount of Luthe’s military expendi-
  tures are spent in preparation for hypothetical invaders 
  that may never come. 
  The highest level of authority for the Militia is the 
  Council on War. This body consists of four high-ranking 
  ofﬁ cers, three of whom are invariably Shadow Swimmers 
  and also the Militia representatives to the Council of 
  Scions: the Warlord, the Captain and the Judge. The 
  fourth position, Weapons Master, may be held by a 
  member of any of the three breeds of Luthans. 
  The Warlord directs the actions of squads sent out 
  regularly to patrol Luthe’s surroundings. He also plans 
  regular war games in preparation for a possible attack 
  by an invading force, and barring exceptional circum-
  stances, he will command the Militia in the event of 
  an actual invasion. The current Warlord is Grokr, an 
  aging Shadow Swimmer ﬂ irting with senility. He remains 
  convinced that he will see an invasion force within his 
  lifetime and hopes for a glorious death in battle. 
  The Captain (short for Captain of the Guard) 
  oversees the Militia when it acts in its capacity as law 
  enforcement by assigning patrols, appointing investiga-
  tors and operating Luthe’s small jail facilities. Ofﬁ cially, 
  the Captain’s position is grossly inferior not only to 
  that of the Warlord but to many of the Warlord’s un-
  derlings, and many Shadow Swimmers look down on 
  the Captain’s position. Unofﬁ cially, the actual power of 
  the Captain as the ﬁ nal authority on law enforcement 
  gives him far more inﬂ uence among the Luthan citizenry 
  than the largely ceremonial Warlord. Skarg, the current 
  Captain, is well aware of the value of his ofﬁ ce and uses 
  his power ruthlessly, even as he maintains the appear-
  ance of complete deference to Warlord Grokr.
  The Judge bridges the gap between the military 
  and the religious order. All criminals in Luthe arrested 
  by the Militia are eventually brought to the Judge for 
  questioning, adjudication and, in the event of a guilty 
  verdict, sentencing. There are no juries in Luthe and 
  no defense or even prosecuting attorneys. Every aspect 
  of the “trial” is governed by the Judge, who by law must 
  be a Shadow Swimmer, despite the self-evident fact 
  that Shadow Swimmers are the breed least suited for 
  a job that requires wisdom and impartiality. This legal 
  requirement is as ironic as it is ancient. Centuries ago, 
  an idle remark by Sage of the Depths stating that “shark 
  folk make the best executioners because they take such 
  joy in their work” was misinterpreted by the awestruck 
  Deep Sage priests to whom he’d been speaking, and the 
  Sages promptly established it as a law of the city. Since 
  then, the Shadow Swimmers have jealously protected 
  their authority over Luthe’s judiciary, and the Sage of the 
  Depths has learned to be more cautious when speaking 
  to minions enthralled by his powerful Charms.
  When criminals receive the death penalty, the 
  Judge also carries out the executions, which are timed 
  to coincide with the city’s religious holidays and ritual 
  sacriﬁ ces. The current Judge is Kurgo, a sociopath who 
  seizes almost any opportunity to sentence a defendant to 
  slow death by sacriﬁ ce, primarily because he has an erotic 
  ﬁ xation on the sight of churning, bloody water.
  The Weapons Master is responsible for maintain-
  ing the state of Luthe’s First Age weaponry. Although 
  traditionally held by a Shadow Swimmer, this position 
  
  118
  is technically religious, and while not a priest of Le-
  viathan, the Weapons Master must report regularly to 
  the Cult as to the readiness of Luthe’s armaments. As 
  with every other piece of First Age technology, Luthe’s 
  weaponry is considered to be a gift from Leviathan, and 
  maintaining the arsenal’s readiness requires knowledge 
  of the proper rituals as much as military experience. The 
  current Weapons Master is a Deep Sage named Kltja-
  S’bto, who uses his position to spy on the activities of 
  the other War Council members for the beneﬁ t of the 
  Cult of Leviathan.
  the most democratic bodies in Creation. The City Council 
  undertakes a census every 10 years and draws up wards 
  according to demographics and population migration. 
  The new wards are then submitted to a quasi-sentient 
  First Age computational device that draws up the precise 
  ward boundaries so that none of the three Luthan breeds 
  is disadvantaged politically. Elections are held every two 
  years for all positions. The at-large councilor also holds 
  the position of Chief Councilor and sets the agenda for 
  the council. All adult Luthans other than Traitorspawn 
  have an equal vote for both ward council and at-large 
  councilor, and by law, every able-bodied adult is required 
  to vote in general elections.
  LIFE UNDER THE SEA
  For the majority of Luthans, life consists largely of 
  work and recreation not unlike that of villagers found 
  throughout Creation. Food production is ofﬁ cially 
  regulated by the Cult of Leviathan, with about 20% 
  of the pelagothrope population (along with negligible 
  numbers of Deep Dwellers and Shadow Swimmers) 
  maintaining and operating the hydroponics gardens 
  and the First Age automated ﬁ sheries. While these 
  farmers are not considered members of the clergy, their 
  activities are governed by the Cult, ensuring that every 
  Luthan receives a regular ration of fresh ﬁ sh, fruits and 
  vegetables. These rations are quite generous compared 
  to many towns in Creation, but that’s not enough to 
  eliminate the desire for black market goods, and a sig-
  niﬁ cant number of Luthan farmers smuggle extra food 
  out with them to trade with other citizens. 
  Economically, Luthe is primarily a barter society. 
  Private Luthan citizens are expected to provide a 
  certain amount of free goods and services to Militia 
  soldiers, hydroponic farmers, ﬁ shery operators and 
  priests. Beyond that, citizens trade goods and services 
  with one another informally. For example, a healer may 
  establish a relationship with a local tailor whereby the 
  former provides free medical care for the latter’s family 
  in exchange for free clothing for himself and his own 
  family. All citizens are entitled to three square meals a 
  day of nourishing (if repetitive) food drawn from the 
  gardens and the ﬁ sheries. 
  Luthe has a thriving black market for extra food 
  rations, as well as spices, liquor, other rare luxury goods 
  and sexual services. The Council of Scions is well aware 
  of the black market’s existence but considers it a safety 
  valve against public discontent. As long as luxury goods 
  are available illegally, the people as a whole will not 
  raise up to demand them from the Council. Besides, 
  those who abuse the system draw the attention of the 
  HOW MANY?
  In times of peace, the Militia uses about 2,000 
  citizens, covering as it does civil defense, slave 
  management and law enforcement. Fifteen hun-
  dred are Shadow Swimmers, and the rest divide 
  equally between Deep Sages and pelagothropes. 
  Most Militia members are seasoned troops. Even 
  without experience ﬁ ghting actual invasions, they 
  engage in extensive training operations and war 
  games, hunt dangerous pelagic fauna and put 
  down Traitorspawn riots.
  Should the city face a real invasion with 
  time to prepare, Grokr could swell the Militia to 
  6,000, calling back retired soldiers and conscript-
  ing from the citizen populace over the course of 
  weeks. The expanded Militia would be an equal 
  mixture of green and seasoned troops. Should an 
  expanded Militia repel an invasion, the cultural 
  impact of pelagothropes in such numbers serving 
  with distinction alongside Shadow Swimmers and 
  Deep Sages would be considerable.
  THE CITY COUNCIL
  The City Council is an elected body of 13 Luthan 
  citizens—one from each of 12 wards within the city, 
  plus one at-large position. The City Council has little 
  real power of its own. Instead, the City Council presents 
  proposals to the Council of Scions regarding matters of 
  civic concern: taxation, city planning, proposed new 
  laws, etc. The Council of Scions has absolute authority 
  to approve or deny any of the City Council’s proposals 
  or to amend them in any way the councilors desire. 
  Accordingly, such proposals tend to come in two variet-
  ies—those that are utterly non-controversial and those 
  that have the full backing of the Cult of Leviathan.
  Despite (or perhaps, because of) City Council’s lack 
  of real power, the Luthan City Council is arguably one of 
  
  119
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  Militia, thereby providing the city with extra sacriﬁ ces 
  on holy days and alleviating the population drain on 
  the Traitorspawn slaves.
  Beyond the occupations directly or indirectly con-
  trolled by the city government, Luthans fulﬁ ll most of 
  the societal roles found in small cities on the surface 
  world. Luthan society requires tailors, physicians and 
  apothecaries, craftsmen and carpenters, artists and 
  performers. Citizens are generally expected to maintain 
  their own dwellings, most of which are of First Age 
  construction and rarely suffer serious damage anyway. 
  When construction or renovation of public buildings 
  is required, the City Council contracts with one or 
  more of the city’s craftsmen, arranging for additional 
  food rations in exchange for work.
  Traitorspawn are treated as slaves by the Luthan 
  government, but as a practical matter, most Traitorspawn 
  remain conﬁ ned to their lowly hovels, forbidden to move 
  about the city. When the City Council begins some 
  large-scale building project, however, a detachment 
  of able-bodied Traitorspawn are removed from their 
  families, chained together and put to work until the 
  job is down. Traitorspawn can also be found walking 
  the streets, picking up trash and sweeping streets late 
  at night under the watchful eye of Shadow Swimmer 
  guards. Traitorspawn also perform any number of other 
  jobs—unblocking sewage systems, gutting ﬁ sh and 
  performing other unwholesome tasks deemed necessary 
  but unﬁ t for decent citizens.
  FAMILY
  Family planning is important in Luthe. Aside from 
  the social taboos against unregulated breeding between 
  the city’s four main ethnic groups, married couples must 
  also consider the impact of having too many children. 
  Currently, Luthe’s automated food production systems 
  provide more than enough food and fresh water to 
  maintain the health of the citizenry. If Luthan popula-
  tion grows too fast, however, it may outstrip the city’s 
  capacity to sustain itself. Of course, the city has barely 
  tapped the potential of the seas outside its walls to 
  provide food, but most Luthans see the ﬁ sheries and the 
  hydroponic fruits and vegetables as gifts from Leviathan 
  and are loathe to spurn them. 
  The city’s limits on procreation are currently in-
  formal. Pelagothrope couples are strongly discouraged 
  from having more than two children. Married couples 
  consisting of two beastmen or a beastman and a pel-
  agothrope are exempt from this taboo, largely because 
  beastman births tend to be difﬁ cult and it’s in the city’s 
  interests to increase its beastman population. Traitor-
  spawn birthrates are not closely regulated. Instead, 
  the city keeps their numbers low by culling adults for 
  sacriﬁ ces whenever their population grows unacceptably 
  high (typically, more than about one Traitorspawn per 
  ﬁ ve Scionborn). The bush used in the production of 
  maiden tea is one of the many medicinal plants grown 
  in the hydroponic gardens.
  Among the Scionborn, children usually apprentice 
  at an early age to either one of their parents or to a 
  relative or friend of the family if one presents better 
  job prospects than the child’s parents. Apprenticeships 
  last until the apprentice can realistically try to move 
  out on her own and make a living outside the master’s 
  oversight. In some highly competitive occupations, 
  that day never comes, and the apprentice works for her 
  master until he dies and she simply takes over his shop. 
  By Luthan law, apprentices equally divide all of their 
  master’s occupational possessions when he dies. Thus, 
  it is unusual for a skilled worker to take an apprentice 
  outside his family, and equally unusual for either spouse 
  not to work (since a simple housewife inherits none of 
  her husband’s work tools if he dies while mastering an 
  apprentice). Husbands and wives commonly work in the 
  same profession, maintaining joint control over family 
  businesses and joint authority over apprentices.
  Divorce is illegal in Luthe, and adultery is a serious 
  crime. Both the husband and the wife have the right to 
  seek the death penalty against a philandering spouse.
  TECHNOLOGY
  Despite the passing of centuries, Luthe still possesses 
  a massive supply of functional First Age artifacts. Even 
  the city itself is an artifact. The city’s entire infrastruc-
  ture consists of an adamant-like blue material formed 
  from water solidiﬁ ed into the hardness of iron while 
  retaining its normal density. Without the city’s inbuilt 
  ballast systems, Luthe’s natural buoyancy would cause 
  it to spring up to the surface even today.
  COMMON ARTIFACTS
  The entire city is lit by Essence lamps, and every 
  dwelling has fully functional plumbing and water systems, 
  as well as environmental control mechanisms that keep 
  the occupants comfortable even on the cold ocean ﬂ oor. 
  The city’s internal communications network still func-
  tions, allowing individuals across the length and breadth 
  of the city to communicate freely, as well as permitting 
  the Cult of Leviathan to spy freely on the Luthan people. 
  Even most of the furniture, clothing and household 
  utensils used by the Luthans are made of either incredibly 
  durable materials or of self-repairing design. 
  
  120
  THE MILITIA
  The Luthan Militia in particular takes great ad-
  vantage of Luthe’s First Age resources. The Militia 
  has access to more than 5,000 shock pikes, along with 
  39 light implosion bows and four portable lightning 
  ballistae (see Wonders of the Lost Age, pp. 76, 130 
  and 132). Militia soldiers do not have access to armor 
  made of magical materials. Instead, they typically wear 
  perfect reinforced buff jackets enchanted millennia 
  earlier by use of the Ritual of Elemental Empowerment 
  (soak of +7L/+10B, no mobility penalty or fatigue). 
  For rapid transportation, Militia members use special 
  versions of the swift rider artifact (see Wonders of the 
  Lost Age, pp. 34-35). Specially designed for mortal 
  riders, these swift riders can be used by mortals, with 
  all energy requirements met by the city’s internal power 
  grid. Accordingly, while no Essence commitment is 
  required to activate swift riders, they are also useless 
  outside the city itself. 
  BELIEFS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY
  The Cult of Leviathan maintains the city’s artifacts, 
  its elders trained by Sage of the Depths. However, their 
  training is deliberately incomplete. Rather than initiat-
  ing his students fully in the theory behind First Age 
  artifact design, the Lunar explained the technology’s 
  inner workings as simply being the blessings of Leviathan 
  . . . and the student himself. Consequently, the Luthan 
  people have no empirical understanding of the devices 
  at their disposal. If the lights in someone’s quarters 
  come on when he presses a button, it is only because 
  Leviathan wills it. If it doesn’t, then the citizen calls 
  a repairman sanctioned by the Cult of Leviathan who 
  ﬁ rst prays along with the caller for Leviathan’s blessings 
  and intercession before repairing the fault according 
  to an ancient repair manual that the repairman views 
  as a religious text. The truth—that the lights are self-
  repairing Essence transceivers that have maintained 
  themselves for centuries and only rarely require minimal 
  adjustments—is carefully concealed from the Luthan 
  people, who pray to Leviathan every night in hopes that 
  the lights will come on again in the morning.
  INACTIVE TECHNOLOGY
  Of course, the First Age artifacts used by the Luthan 
  citizenry are only a fraction of what the sunken city 
  holds. Even after its decommissioning, Luthe remained 
  a Realm military base with signiﬁ cant ordnance. The 
  exterior of the city is still ringed with a series of light-
  ning ballistae and other Essence weapons, while the 
  underbelly has a half-dozen Essence cannons capable 
  of obliterating an undersea target (see Wonders of the 
  Lost Age, p. 131). These exterior defenses are currently 
  inoperable, but a savant armed with the proper Charms 
  could repair them.
  Within the wreckage of Luthe’s fabled ﬂ ight deck 
  are the ruins of dozens of First Age skyships. Most are 
  wrecks, broken when Amyana ﬂ ooded the ﬂ ight deck 
  centuries ago and then exposed to centuries of corro-
  sion and decay, but a determined effort could scavenge 
  enough equipment to repair at least six warbirds and 
  one Manta-class troop transport (see Wonders of the 
  Lost Age, pp. 41 and 43-44).
  In the depths of the city lie the submersible pens. 
  The underwater craft located here are in far better shape 
  than the ﬂ ying ships, but the underwater craft cannot 
  be released out into the open water unless the city is 
  lifted off the ocean ﬂ oor so that the undersea doors 
  can be opened. The city’s submersible complement 
  includes ﬁ ve Resplendent Dolphin-class undersea couriers 
  (see Wonders of the Lost Age, pp. 37-38) and a dozen 
  Barracuda-class undersea ﬁ ghters. Barracudas have all of 
  the standard characteristics of warbirds except that they 
  move underwater at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. 
  Just as warbirds, Barracuda-class submersibles actually 
  have open cockpits, with special built-in helmets to 
  allow pilots to breathe underwater and see clearly. 
  Also within the ruins of the sunken city are an 
  even dozen First Age warstriders made from a variety 
  of magical materials (see Wonders of the Lost Age, 
  pp. 137-160). All are capable of functioning normally 
  underwater, and most are also ﬂ ight-capable. Three of 
  the warstriders are royal warstriders: two orichalcum 
  models owned by Amyana and Admiral Arkadi and a 
  moonsilver one owned by Leviathan. The rest are noble 
  warstriders. The three royal warstriders can be found 
  within the submersible launching area, along with four 
  nobles. The rest can be found scattered around the city 
  in long abandoned military barracks. 
  The most powerful weapon in Luthe is the city 
  itself. If restored to full mobility, Luthe is faster, more 
  maneuverable and better armed than almost anything 
  else of comparable size on the seas. Under optimal con-
  ditions, Luthe could challenge an entire Realm ﬂ eet. 
  Of course, Luthe’s weaponry and mobility systems are 
  in far from optimal condition. It would take months, 
  even years, to repair the city to that extent.
  RAISING THE CITY
  Despite the massive damage Luthe has suffered 
  over the centuries, it remains seaworthy. No repairs 
  are required at all simply to raise Luthe to the surface. 
  The ﬁ rst step in doing so is gaining access to the central 
  
  121
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  command chamber, unfortunately a place so secure that 
  even the Luthans fear it. After 1,500 years, the defenses 
  left in place by Leviathan remain active. These defenses 
  include automated Essence cannons, electriﬁ ed ﬂ oors, 
  dart traps using rare and deadly First Age poisons, 
  automatons and even a dozen summoned First Circle 
  erymanthoi bound to prevent anyone without the proper 
  command codes from entering the chamber.
  Characters who make it into the command cham-
  ber must then remove Leviathan’s trident, Islebreaker, 
  and then attune to the command console chair. Do-
  ing so is much harder than it looks, as Islebreaker is 
  enchanted so that only Leviathan himself can lift it. 
  Anyone else attempting remove it from the command 
  chair must have a combined Strength + Athletics 
  pool of 60. Furthermore, the command chair requires 
  a minimum Essence of 5 in order attune it safely. 
  Anyone with an Essence below 5 who attunes to the 
  chair takes one level of unsoakable aggravated dam-
  age for every point by which she falls short. Actually 
  attuning to the chair costs 25 motes of Essence. After 
  that point, the new commander can communicate 
  with the animating intelligence that maintains all of 
  Luthe’s systems, including weapons and propulsion. 
  The Exalted can also activate the city’s long dormant 
  bilge pumps and clear the city of millions of gallons 
  of seawater that have ﬂ ooded so much of it.
  THE ANIMATING INTELLIGENCE
  Shortly after Luthe was ﬁ rst fashioned from the sea, 
  the Solar Exalted installed a powerful animating intel-
  ligence to operate the city’s major functions —Towers 
  of Azure. When she scuttled the city, Amyana also shut 
  down most of the AI’s higher functions, limiting it to 
  regulating the city’s Essence power grid. Should an Ex-
  alted successfully attune to the command chair, she could 
  reactivate Towers of Azure, who manifests as an imposing 
  male ﬁ gure of brilliant blue glass. The years have not been 
  kind to Towers of Azure, however. He has functioned at 
  a fraction of his potential for centuries since his partial 
  lobotomy at Amyana’s hands. Although he is bound to 
  obey any Exalted attuned to the command chair, he is 
  eccentric to the point of addle-brained and is likely to 
  mistake his new master for Amyana, regardless of the 
  
  122
  Exalted’s gender. Towers of Azure also has a tendency 
  to speak in rhyme, to engage in inappropriate humor or 
  make incomprehensible non sequiturs. Should he suspect 
  that the Exalted attuned to the command chair might try 
  to shut him down, Towers of Azure will almost certainly 
  turn the entire city against his new master.
  LAYOUT
  Luthe’s central component is an enormous hemi-
  sphere more than three miles in diameter. A number of 
  towers and ramparts jut off this central dome. Encircl-
  ing the dome is a large ring ﬁ ve miles in diameter. Five 
  large pods are spread out evenly along the ring and also 
  connect to the central dome, similar to the spokes on a 
  wagon wheel. Essence cannons are mounted all along 
  the outer ring, while lightning ballistae are mounted 
  both above and below the central dome (see Wonders 
  of the Lost Age, pp. 131 and 132). 
  The command deck is located at the very top of 
  the central dome, which is reinforced with an enor-
  mous orichalcum plate and is virtually indestructible. 
  Immediately below the command deck are the apart-
  ments that once belonged to Queen Amyana and her 
  husband, plus those that belonged to dozens of Celestial 
  Exalted dignitaries who had vacation homes in the city 
  and hundreds of Dragon-Blooded who worked there. 
  Except for the chambers belonging to Amyana and 
  Leviathan (which have been preserved as shrines), 
  all of these apartments were thoroughly ransacked of 
  anything of value and then left as slave quarters for 
  the Traitorspawn.
  The central dome has a number of lift shafts that 
  remain functional even today. The dome has 40 levels. 
  The command deck is identiﬁ ed as Level 1, while the 
  Traitorspawn ghetto takes up Levels 2 through 4. A 
  large structure that was once a temple to the Uncon-
  quered Sun and is now the Temple of Leviathan takes 
  up much of Level 5. Levels 10 through 15 contain resi-
  dences, plazas, shops and even indoor parks, carefully 
  landscaped by Traitorspawn slaves and maintained by 
  the ancient magic of Luthe. The bulk of the Scionborn 
  live on these levels.
  The special research wings housing the hydroponic 
  gardens and automated ﬁ sheries are on Levels 17 and 
  19, respectively. The Flight Deck takes up all of Level 
  20, its great sliding doors still open to the sea. Most 
  of the lower levels are underwater, although there are 
  pockets of air where emergency procedures sealed off 
  parts of a deck. Also, parts of Decks 16 through 19 were 
  deliberately ﬂ ooded by the Scionborn in order to make 
  it impossible for Traitorspawn to reach the hydroponic 
  gardens and the ﬁ sheries, thereby making them utterly 
  dependent on Scionborn for food.
  Decks 21 through 25 house the enormous Essence 
  converters that still convert tidal action into power 
  despite centuries spent underwater. The converters also 
  draw considerable power from the nearby demesne, and 
  the city has far more power than it needs to maintain 
  its current level of operation. Automatic safety features 
  prevent the city from overloading, but serious damage 
  to the Essence converter control systems could theoreti-
  cally cause the entire city to explode. The great array 
  of memory crystals physical housing Towers of Azure’s 
  memory and intellect are also located on Deck 25.
  Decks 26 through 30 contain the great automated 
  mechanisms that operate Luthe’s sanitation system 
  and its water and air puriﬁ cation systems. Deck 26 also 
  marked the city’s “water line” when the city ﬂ oated 
  on the surface. Decks 31 through 35 house the city’s 
  great submersible pens, as well as dozens of First Age 
  work shops used to repair them. Decks 36 through 40 
  are the site of the access ports by which submersibles 
  entered and left the city. These ports are blocked shut 
  by the city’s current position on the ocean ﬂ oor. The 
  anterior Essence weaponry array is also mounted on 
  the hull on these levels.
  The outer ring connects to the central dome at ﬁ ve 
  junction points on Deck 26. This outer ring consists 
  almost entirely of propulsion mechanisms, which per-
  mit the city to move freely across the water’s surface. 
  They also contain the ballast regulators that determine 
  the city’s buoyancy. When the city ﬂ oated on the sur-
  face, special adamant plates unfurled, connecting the 
  junction tubes, the outer ring and the central dome, 
  creating huge pools so that visitors to Luthe could 
  enjoy swimming in the ocean’s waters without wor-
  rying about such hazards as sea life or undertows. The 
  Essence converters also ensured that these recreational 
  pools remained at pleasant temperatures.
  USING LUTHE
  Storytellers who are interested in integrating 
  Luthe and its insular culture into an existing series 
  have several possible approaches, depending on the 
  nature of the existing series. Alternatively, the Sto-
  ryteller might choose to simply set the series within 
  Luthe itself, allowing the players’ characters to try to 
  either reform the ﬂ aws in the city’s culture or simply 
  to ﬂ ee the city for the surface—the ultimate “ﬁ sh-
  out-of-water” story.
  
  123
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  SOLARS
  Solar Exalted will almost certainly learn of the fabled 
  lost city of Luthe at some point, and the prospect of 
  an entire First Age city will attract a swarm of treasure 
  seekers. Or perhaps the Solars have memories of the 
  city, perhaps from inheriting the Exaltation of Amyana, 
  Kendik Arkadi or some other Solar who frequented the 
  ﬂ oating paradise. Solar sorcerers and craftsmen will be 
  drawn to an ancient city fashioned out of the water itself 
  in hopes of reverse engineering this marvel.
  DRAGON-BLOODED
  As with Solars, Dragon-Blooded will most likely be 
  drawn to Luthe out of a desire for treasure. The pros-
  pect of Realm civil war looms closer every day, and the 
  treasures hidden within the sunken city might tip the 
  balance in favor of the ﬁ rst House to ﬁ nd and claim it. 
  Even now, the Water Aspect sorceress Cynis Megara 
  scours the West for clues to hidden treasures of the 
  First Age, and eventually, some hint to Luthe’s location 
  will come her way. Or perhaps Gavrane Tomazri, the 
  long-awaited messiah of the Traitorspawn, escapes from 
  Luthe, evades the patrols outside and even Leviathan 
  himself, and makes his way to the shores of Wavecrest, 
  the ﬁ rst Luthan to see the sky in 1,500 years. What will 
  the Realm make of the Traitorspawn’s strange story? 
  And will the Immaculate Order demand that the Realm 
  send in the Wyld Hunt to crush this blasphemous city 
  and free hundreds of cruelly enslaved descendants of 
  Dragon-Blooded heroes of legend?
  LUNARS
  Those Lunars aware of Leviathan’s involvement 
  in Luthe tend to give the city a wide berth. Just as all 
  Lunar elders, Leviathan is expected to shape a culture 
  according to his will as part of the Lunars’ great experi-
  ment, the Thousand Streams River. Even among Lunar 
  elders, however, Leviathan has developed a reputation 
  for . . . eccentricity, and it has not gone unnoticed in 
  the Gatherings of the Lunar Exalted that Leviathan 
  never has anything to report about his city’s progress. 
  Perhaps the time has come to see what the Great Whale 
  has been up to. Perhaps some enterprising young pack 
  of Lunars should investigate for themselves what goes 
  on in sunken Luthe. Perhaps they should see that in 
  700 years, Leviathan has done nothing in Luthe to 
  advance the Lunar agenda, save raise himself up as a 
  god and punish generations of innocents out of reckless, 
  unchecked hate. And perhaps these young Lunars might 
  even escape from Luthe with this knowledge without 
  being eaten by the hungry Whale God themselves.
  MILITIA PATROL
  Description: A 
  scale of Shadow Swim-
  mers. Groups such as 
  this can be found with-
  in Luthe, swimming 
  in patrols outside, and 
  engaging in war games 
  in the miles of undersea 
  wilderness surrounding 
  the city.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: 
  Varies
  Armor Color: Blue and gray
  Motto: Eerie, coordinated silence. They communicate 
  through Essence-modulation.
  General Makeup: 25 sharkman soldiers, wearing perfect 
  First Age reinforced buff jackets enhanced with the 
  Ritual of Elemental Empowerment, carrying shock 
  pikes with charges sufﬁ cient for 10 ranged volleys. 
  They continue to use the shock pikes when they close 
  to melee distance.
  Overall Quality: Excellent
  Magnitude: 2
  Drill: 3
  Close Combat Attack: 3    Close Combat Damage: 3
  Ranged Attack: 3    Ranged Damage: 4
  Endurance: 7    Might: 3    Armor: 3(0 mobility) 
  Morale: 4
  Formation: Overall Militia numbers are on p. 118. 
  Within Luthe, they tend to travel in fangs of 10 (reduce 
  Magnitude to 1). Patrols outside the city consist of two 
  or three scales working together. Units engaging in war 
  games come in all sizes.
  THE CITY OF 
  THE SHINING REEFS
  The pelagials rule a scattered underwater empire 
  whose extent even they do not appreciate. The empire’s 
  heart is the City of the Shining Reefs, a prehistoric ruin 
  from which their tendrils of power snake out across 
  the ocean ﬂ oor to corrupt seaside communities, grasp 
  slaves by the shipload from surface-born powers and 
  even insinuate themselves into the courts of Heaven. 
  Little do surface-folk know that these ﬂ esh-eaters do 
  not merely squat restlessly in the ruins of their civiliza-
  tion, but toil ceaselessly to the beck and call of a dead 
  Primordial, whose whispers reach from the heart of the 
  Underworld to direct the pelagials’ actions through the 
  mouths of their leaders, the Sleeping Princes.
  
  124
  their bodies with his mastery of form. Autochthon had 
  been proliﬁ c, and kept his counsel to himself. The In-
  carna and their Exalted regents found it easy to believe 
  the Primordial had reshaped a race of men at some idle 
  whim. It would not have been the ﬁ rst time. 
  The pelagials became a novelty to the Exalted of 
  that Age. The Solars bent their knowledge to turn the 
  pelagial capital into a center of undersea commerce 
  and governance, building on the sunken skeleton of 
  the pelagials’ ruined metropolis. The Sidereals studied 
  the lore of pelagial scholars and marveled at their 
  knowledge of navigation and the ocean currents. The 
  Sunken Luthe, a Magnitude 2 Dominion
  Military: 2     Government: 2     Culture: 1
  Abilities: Awareness 2, Bureaucracy 2, Craft 2 
  (First Age Repair 2), Investigation 2, War 2
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 3, Temper-
  ance 3, Valor 2
  Limit Break: Conviction     Current Limit: 0
  Bonus Points: 10 External Bonus Points: 0
  Notes: Sage of the Depths is a sorcerer with 
  legitimacy, as are Grokr, Skarg and Hrsh’duljha. 
  Several savants exist among the Cult of Leviathan 
  and public services. Luthe’s bonus points are tied 
  up in one dot each of War and Craft, as well as 
  the Craft specialty. In the event of a Limit Break, 
  Luthe’s population blames all its problems on the 
  Traitorspawn and begins a heavy campaign of 
  increased persecution, purges and sacriﬁ ces.
  These traits are fragile. Players’ characters enter-
  ing Luthe are likely to shatter its society in short 
  order. In that event, Storytellers should re-write 
  Luthe’s Mandate of Heaven statistics entirely. Were 
  Luthe to become active in outside politics without 
  a revolution, the city’s large population (compared 
  to other Magnitude 2 dominions) and First Age 
  resources would justify Luthe taking the Dragon 
  Spreads Wings Expansion action immediately.
  HISTORY
  Legends speak of ancient races of men from the early 
  days of the First Age, and civilizations fallen into ruin. 
  The Lintha are one such lineage, whose origins predate 
  the Primordial War. The pelagials are another, but while 
  the Lintha have suffered long to ﬁ nally ﬁ nd their star 
  ascendant, the pelagials have squandered their power 
  and are now forgotten by most of Creation. 
  The story the pelagials tell when they speak to 
  surface-dwellers is of a race of peerless sailors whose 
  cities suffered a mighty cataclysm. They were saved by 
  the whim of loyal gods who transformed the sea-folk 
  from tall, proud men into aquatic half-breeds. The 
  pelagials, as these new transformed beings were called, 
  rebuilt their civilization beneath the waves as it had 
  been above.
  This story is misdirection, falsehood as much as 
  truth. The story they told in the First Age, when the 
  Deliberative discovered them after the departure of 
  Autochthon, was that the Great Maker had saved them 
  from destruction during the Primordial War, reshaping 
  AUTOCHTHON
  Savants ascribe the greatest creations in his-
  tory to Autochthon and his craft, but he built not 
  so many as they claim. After the war, wonders 
  created by the enemies of the gods were marked 
  for destruction by the Incarna or the Exalted, 
  but some treasures were too valuable to destroy. 
  Auditors and collectors misattributed the origins 
  of some devices and races, as the new masters 
  of Heaven and their Exalted servants could not 
  admit the Primordials had been anything but 
  destructive tyrants. Legends multiplied, attrib-
  uting such creations to Autochthon when their 
  origins lay on the opposing side of the war. None 
  now are left who remember which creations 
  were truly his.
  Lunars rejoiced in a race of companions who could ply 
  the depths alongside them. And in undersea arenas, 
  the Dragon-Blooded sparred with pelagial warriors 
  in ritual combat. It was then the pelagial capital 
  became known as the City of the Shining Reefs, glit-
  tering under the attention of the Deliberative as the 
  pelagials’ fame rose to brieﬂ y eclipse that of even the 
  Dragon Kings.
  But the reality is that the pelagials were a race 
  saved from destruction by one of the incomprehensible 
  enemies of the gods. He was the only one of that ancient 
  number to look upon the nascent Underworld after the 
  ﬁ rst few deaths of his fellows and foresee his own pos-
  sible destruction. Bending his omniscient gaze toward 
  the Underworld—which although new was still an echo 
  of the Great Work of Creation that he had had a hand 
  in shaping—he saw the spirits of his brethren come to 
  rest in the space at the edge of Oblivion. Listening, 
  he caught their dreaming murmurs, and their stories 
  
  125
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  of the end of all things. When he himself died, slain 
  at the hands of the Incarna and their Exalted soldiers, 
  his spirit came to rest on the precipice of the Well of 
  the Void, where his dreams shaped the will of the pe-
  lagials. It is he—Whose Whispers Chain—whom the 
  pelagials serve, and his dreaming murmurs the Sleeping 
  Princes mutter through rotted lips, driving the pelagials’ 
  cryptic plans.
  THE CITY
  The City of the Shining Reefs is like some aquatic 
  creature, which over the centuries has secreted layers of 
  armor and shell about itself. Deep under the Western 
  Ocean the city lies, the center of a tattered empire.
  The outermost layer of the city is a coral labyrinth 
  grown to defend against outside attack. Because the pela-
  gials must protect themselves not just along the seaﬂ oor 
  but from attacks coming in at steeper angles to the surface, 
  the labyrinth is three dimensional. Within, barracks full 
  of slave-warriors, pelagial ofﬁ cers and stranger things 
  lurk, waiting for attack forces of beastmen, pelagothropes 
  and raksha. Murder-holes, booby traps and observation 
  points litter the maze, all lit by glowing plankton and 
  photovoltaic creatures, creating a glittering bauble ﬁ lled 
  with death for the unwary or aggressive.
  Metal-framed adamant towers set with Essence-
  powered batteries and lights all lay beneath the coral, 
  remnants of Deliberative construction. Unhindered 
  by gravity, the First Age city had sprung upward and 
  outward, metal and glass, most of it set with pumps to 
  ﬁ ll it with air for the surface-dwelling guests who’ve 
  become a rarity in this late Age. 
  Finally, underneath the coral maze and the First 
  Age exostructures, lay the white marble and verdigris of 
  the prehistoric surface city. Ancient palaces ﬁ lled with 
  rotting ﬁ nery rest along the ocean ﬂ oor, and here the 
  pelagial nobility feels most at home. At the center of 
  this ancient metropolis, now buried under the extrusion 
  of later ages, lies the Tomb of the Sleeping Princes. To 
  outsiders, it is a vault for the pelagial dead, for although 
  the race is long lived and breeds rarely, they are not 
  immortal. But those who make it within the sprawling 
  palace ﬁ nd it ﬁ lled with priests, serving the preserved 
  remains of the ancients.
  GOVERNMENT
  Atop the pelagial hierarchy sit the living nobility, 
  who entertain visiting dignitaries and manage their 
  race’s few remaining operations, salvaging wrecks 
  and ancient goods and excavating artifacts lost to the 
  depths over the millennia. Every pelagial is technically 
  a member of the nobility. Their race’s numbers are too 
  few to support an underclass, and so all bear titles, each 
  more grand than the last.
  Beneath the idle nobility are the Collegia, each 
  focused on an area of special interest. As the pelagial 
  race dies out, these schools disappear one by one, and 
  knowledge predating the Primordial War is lost forever. 
  The greatest is the College Martial, which produces 
  members of the ofﬁ cer corps who command the slave 
  armies and twisted beasts of the pelagials’ defenses. 
  The College Visceral produces chirurgeons, whose 
  knowledge of surgery and human anatomy is unmatched 
  by any mortal alive, and who transform land-dwelling 
  mortals into sea-based life through torturous medical 
  experiments and exposure to the Wyld and to ancient 
  devices. As the numbers of pelagials dwindle, they 
  join as many Collegia as possible, to keep this priceless 
  knowledge the Collegia protect from dying out.
  And lurking in the shadows, hidden from outsid-
  ers, are the Sleeping Princes and the priests who serve 
  them. The Sleeping Princes are the greatest of the race, 
  who upon death submit to the binding of their ghosts 
  to their corpses. These spirits are bound to the will of 
  Whose Whispers Chain, and through them, he guides 
  the race, showing them hidden caches of Primordial 
  power, ancient artifacts sunken to the bottom of the 
  sea. The Sleeping Princes decree which isolated, inbred 
  land-based communities are subverted to the Coastal 
  Cult and taught the secret rites by which their elders are 
  turned into mummiﬁ ed channels to the will of Whose 
  Whispers Chain. In other cultures, the priesthood 
  would use their access to the Sleeping Princes to take 
  the reins of power, but the Sleepers see into the hearts 
  of the priests, and the most avaricious and ambitious 
  are sacriﬁ ced to the dead Primordial who rules them.
  COLONIES
  The pelagials once controlled an undersea domain 
  stretching from the distant Southwest to the deepest 
  rivers of the East and beneath and within the perpetual 
  icepack of the North, but they have lost interest in all 
  but a few of their ancient holdings, driven back to their 
  capital by the Fair Folk’s war against Creation and by 
  the pelagials’ own dwindling numbers and indolent 
  lifestyles. Some of these colonies the pelagials have given 
  up to a tide of beastmen scavengers and raksha interlop-
  ers, others the pelagials left booby trapped in case they 
  one day have need of them again. Only a dozen of their 
  holdings—ancient but still fruitful mines, a handful of 
  cities now almost totally abandoned—bear even a token 
  pelagial presence, usually antisocial nobles surrounded 
  
  126
  by legions of slave-warriors, or the odd missionary mak-
  ing brief vigil in between circuits of the Coastal Cults. 
  Those places the pelagials still deem truly important 
  but cannot spare the manpower to populate, they hide 
  under cultured coral and stock with slave-warriors, 
  commanded by lone pelagial ofﬁ cers. Some of these 
  are ancient colonies, but others are valuable treasure 
  troves, undersea demesnes and ancient shipwrecks 
  stocked with the wonders of a lost Age.
  EXTERNAL RELATIONS
   Individually, captains, traders, slavers and the 
  ranking members of several oceanic trading guilds still 
  deal with the pelagials, and savants will have heard of 
  the pelagials even through passing study of the First 
  Age, but collectively they’ve been forgotten by the 
  surface-folk, except for the leaders of the Western na-
  tions and the bureaucrats of the Thousand Mazy Paths. 
  Assume any being with a Lore of ••• or more has heard 
  of the pelagials, although the location of the City of 
  the Shining Reefs is a well-kept secret—the Sidereals 
  purged most maps following the Usurpation in order 
  to hide access to the troves of the pelagials from the 
  Dragon-Blooded.
  The Realm: House Peleps and V’neef sold Cynis 
  slaves and Realm-forged steel to the pelagials under 
  the close supervision of the Empress and the imperial 
  bureaucracy. The Empress feared the pelagials and their 
  troves of artifacts, and because the Sidereals went to such 
  lengths to hide the location of the City of the Shining 
  Reefs. The only other nation similarly situated with 
  Essence-technology was Lookshy. But after centuries 
  without any aggressive posture on the pelagials’ part, she 
  warily opened trade with them. Now the Realm slides 
  toward civil war, and small factions within each House 
  seek to curry the favor of the pelagials, offering them 
  slaves by the shipload and talents of jade in exchange 
  for artifacts of varying power.
  The Western Nations: The pelagials treat all of the 
  Western nations equally, trading them artifacts, exotic 
  cures and anagathic surgery in exchange for slaves and 
  wealth. The average Westerner, in turn, knows the pe-
  lagials as folktale demons, akin to the worst beastmen 
  and Wyld mutants.
  The Coastal Cults: At the behest of the Sleeping 
  Princes, the pelagials cultivate Coastal Cults in remote 
  settlements along the shores of the Inland Sea and the 
  islands of the West. The Coastal Cults resemble the 
  
  127
  CHAPTER SIX • LOST IN THE DEPTHS
  ancestor cults of the North, but the Coastal Cults are 
  taught the ritual obeisances of the pelagial priesthood, 
  engaging in orgiastic rites and cannibalism under the 
  watchful gaze of pelagial missionaries. The Coastal Cults 
  have been in place since the fall of the Deliberative, but 
  now the Time of Tumult has arrived, and the Sleeping 
  Princes have decreed groomed agents should move along 
  rivers and waterways into the continental interior of 
  Creation, to create new vessels for the unutterable will 
  of Whose Whispers Chain.
  Yu-Shan and the Sidereals: Atop a platform on 
  the surface of the seas above the City of the Shining 
  Reefs, a gateway to Yu-Shan stands. The gods of Yu-Shan 
  have largely forgotten the pelagials, most mentions of 
  their history ruthlessly edited out of the annals of the 
  Bureaus. A tiny handful of high-ranking gods are prey 
  to the call of Whose Whispers Chain, and dominate, 
  quietly bribe and eliminate those gods who realize the 
  extent of the spread of the Coastal Cults.
  These eliminations are often attributed to the Si-
  dereals or other factions within Heaven, because cabals 
  within Yu-Shan and the Chosen of the Maidens make 
  infrequent raids into the City of the Shining Reefs to 
  steal powerful artifacts or bargain with the pelagials 
  for access to the depths of the sea. The pelagials them-
  selves wonder why Sidereal astrology does not reveal 
  their plans, but the Great Curse has blinded every 
  attempt by the Sidereals to delve into the pelagials’ 
  background—every astrological forecast, blind to the 
  inﬂ uence of the Neverborn, reveals unmistakably to the 
  Seers that the pelagials are unimportant throwbacks, 
  relics who should have died out long ago and whose 
  impact on Creation is insigniﬁ cant.
  The Silver Pact: Few Lunars outside those who 
  ply the depths realize the pelagials still live, and none 
  outside of the West pay them any heed. Only Leviathan 
  and a handful of others see the pelagials’ comings and 
  goings with anything other than disinterest. Leviathan 
  despises their indolent and corrupt civilization, but 
  suspects that open war with them would be too costly, 
  given their stockpiles of ancient artifacts and their 
  massive slave armies. He allows his pelagothropes (save 
  for those in Luthe) to trade with the pelagials under 
  highly speciﬁ c circumstances, and any contact with the 
  pelagials is riddled with taboos and rite, the better to 
  keep such contacts infrequent.
  The City of the Shining Reefs, a Magnitude 4 
  Dominion
  Military: 3     Government: 2     Culture: 2
  Abilities: Awareness 2 (Spies 1, Coastal Cult 1), 
  Bureaucracy 1 (Priesthood 1), Craft 2 (First Age 
  Technology 3), Integrity 3 (Inhuman Heritage 2, 
  Primordial Puppets 1), Investigation 1, Occult 2 
  (Fading Prehistoric Knowledge 3), Performance 1, 
  Presence 2 (Coastal Cult 2), Stealth 3 (Spies 2), 
  War 3 (First Age Military Codices 1, Stranger 
  Lurking Things 2)
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 4, Temper-
  ance 4, Valor 4
  Virtue Flaw: Conviction     Current Limit: 3
  Willpower: 8
  Bonus Points: 20 External Bonus Points: 6
  Notes: The City of the Shining Reefs is a Mostly 
  Supernatural dominion. Its bonus points go to-
  ward a dot of Valor and the Bureaucracy, Craft, 
  Integrity, Occult and War specialties. The city’s 
  external bonus points provide the Awareness, 
  Presence and Stealth specialties. The pelagials’ 
  Virtue Flaw is hidden within their subjugation 
  to the will of a dead Primordial—in Limit Break, 
  they destroy themselves pursuing fruitless action 
  dictated by the Sleeping Princes.
  
  128
  
  129
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  In the West, mankind clings to precious islands 
  or cleverly crafted boats, and generally fears the dark 
  depths below. The sons and daughters of humanity stand 
  on the shores and pray to the gods of the sea for aid in 
  procuring its bounty or avoiding its dangers. Meanwhile, 
  the amorphous broods of the sea—whether they spring 
  from Primordials, the Wyld or marine divinities—lurk 
  beneath the restless mirror of the Western Ocean and 
  frequently pull its propitiators beneath the waves.
  SPIRITS OF THE WEST
  The gods, demons and elementals of the West 
  are generally associated with the sea and those things 
  that pass beneath or across it. This section provides 
  examples of some notable Western spirits using the 
  same format presented in the Exalted main rulebook. 
  For more spirits and information about spirit Charms, 
  see The Books of Sorcery, Volume IV—The Roll of 
  Glorious Divinity I.
  BAXISHUN
  Lord of the Surf, Old 
  Man of the Sea, the Wise 
  Crab
  The god of crusta-
  ceans, the water’s edge 
  and shoreline ﬁ shermen, 
  Bashixun is also called 
  the Old Man of the Sea 
  and the Wise Crab. Most 
  often he takes the form 
  of a coastal ﬁ sherman, a 
  warrior dressed in thick articulated armor made of chitin 
  and spikes or a perverted old man. His divine form is a 
  gigantic lobster-crab with two massive ﬁ ghting claws, 
  CHAPTER SEVEN
  CHAPTER SEVEN
  GODS AND MONSTERS 
  GODS AND MONSTERS 
  OF THE WEST
  OF THE WEST
  
  130
  a pair of smaller claws beneath and eyestalks that peer 
  in all directions.
  The Wise Crab is an honored noble of the Ocean 
  Father’s court, with his own holdings in the Western 
  Ocean. Over the centuries, he has used his position to 
  gather an impressive body of the recorded knowledge 
  of Creation, from ancient books of sorcerous lore to 
  ill-written love notes. Bashixun is possessive of his 
  collection, though he makes little use of it. He can’t 
  even read those texts not written in Old Realm or 
  Seatongue. The only thing he loves more than his 
  collected works is female companionship, especially 
  that of human females. Trading such company, clever 
  women and exploitive panderers have managed to gain 
  bits of lost enlightenment. The Wise Crab’s servants 
  largely consist of minor spirits of education and lore, 
  manipulative nymphs and lobster and crab spirits.
  Sanctum: From the outside, the Lord of the Surf’s manse 
  resembles a gigantic barnacle shell set within a coral 
  atoll in the Western Ocean. If his crab-spirit guardians 
  allow a visitor entrance, she soon ﬁ nds the manse holds 
  an eclectic collection of objects of lore. The crustacean 
  god’s sanctum lies beyond an inner doorway shaped as 
  a massive blue lobster claw, and contains his favorite 
  books and scrolls.
  Motivation: To become a purveyor of knowledge in 
  all its many forms.
  Attributes: Strength 14, Dexterity 8, Stamina 12; Cha-
  risma 3, Manipulation 4, Appearance 2; Perception 4, 
  Intelligence 6, Wits 6
  Virtues: Compassion 3, Conviction 4, Temperance 3, 
  Valor 4
  Abilities: Archery 5, Athletics 6 (Swim +3), 
  Awareness 6 (Notice Details +2), Craft (Earth) 3, Craft 
  (Water) 3, Dodge 4 (Scuttle Move +1), Integrity 4, 
  Investigation 4 (Learn Secrets +1), Linguistics (Na-
  tive: Old Realm; Others: Seatongue) 1, Lore 8, Martial 
  Arts 6 (Claw +1, Clinch +2), Medicine 4, Melee 4 
  (Great Axe +3), Occult 6, Presence 4 (Physical Intimi-
  dation +2), Resistance 6, Sail 1, Stealth 3, Socialize 1, 
  Survival 1, War 1
  Backgrounds: Allies 3, Artifact 3, Backing 4, 
  Contacts 5, Cult 2, Followers 2, Inﬂ uence 3, Manse 4, 
  Resources 4, Sanctum 2
  Spirit Charms: Bashixun has many spirit Charms. Some 
  important ones are speciﬁ ed below.
  Command Crustacean—For a single mote, Bashixun 
  may issue a command to one or more crustaceans 
  nearby, and they will treat it as a Compulsion until it 
  is completed. This Charm affects any creature with a 
  crustacean nature, even those of magical origin, though 
  supernatural targets require an expenditure of ﬁ ve 
  motes per target. Ignoring this Compulsion requires two 
  Willpower points, but Bashixun might simply try again. 
  If he merely desires to converse with such creatures, 
  then this Charm allows reciprocal conversation, and 
  no Essence is required.
  Essence Plethora—Bashixun has 10 extra motes of Es-
  sence in his Essence pool.
  Excellencies—Bashixun has First, Second and Third 
  Excellencies for the following Abilities: Awareness, 
  Dodge, Lore, Martial Arts, Melee and Presence.
  Hurry Home—For 10 motes and a Willpower point, 
  Bashixun can immediately transport himself to his 
  atoll manse.
  Materialize—Bashixun can materialize for 75 motes.
  Principle of Motion—Bashixun typically has up to nine 
  extra actions stockpiled.
  Shapechange—Bashixun can appear as a monstrous crab-
  lobster, a coastal ﬁ sherman, an old man or a powerfully 
  built chitin-clad warrior.
  Terrestrial Circle Sorcery—From his store of lore, Bashix-
  un has learned many spells of the Terrestrial Circle.
  Join Battle: 12 (if Notice Details applies 14)
  Attacks:
  As Crab
  Large Claws (Clinch): Speed 6, Accuracy 22, 
  Damage 14L (piercing), Defense -, Rate 1
  Lesser Claw: Speed 5, Accuracy 16, Damage 16L, 
  Defense 17, Rate 2 (1 each)
  Special: Bashixun can attack with each of his lesser 
  claws even if his large claws are busy maintaining a 
  clinch, though this counts as multiple actions. 
  As Humanoid
  Clinch: Speed 6, Attack 22, Damage 14B (piercing), 
  Defense -, Rate 1
  Punch: Speed 5, Attack 15, Damage 14B, Defense 16, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Attack 14, Damage 17B, Defense 12, 
  Rate 2
  Great Axe (Shell-Cutter): Speed 6, Attack 18, Damage 
  21L/2, Defense 14, Rate 3 (Tags 2,O,R)
  Soak: 21L/27B (Chitin armor, 15L/15B, Hardness: 
  7L/7B)
  Health Levels: -0x4/-1x8/-2x14/-4x4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 9 (10 with scuttle move)    Willpower: 9
  Essence: 6 
  Essence Pool: 115
  Cost to Materialize: 75
  Other Notes: Bashixun’s axe and armor are part of his 
  divine panoply, and they appear whenever he assumes 
  his humanoid warrior form. In giant lobster-crab form, 
  the armor is his carapace.
  
  131
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  CHILD OF SAIKAL
  Maw of Siakal, War 
  Shark
  The servants of the 
  Western war god gen-
  erally take the form of 
  voracious, bloodthirsty 
  siaka. When given 
  suitable sacriﬁ ces, the 
  great war sharks will 
  help their allies by slowing or damaging the vessels of 
  their enemies so that they are easy prey. Unless the war 
  sharks’ matron objects, the only price the Maws ask is 
  the right to devour enemies who fall overboard. Similar 
  to mortal sharks, the Maws have a tendency to become 
  frenzied at the scent of blood in the water.
  The children of Siakal usually appear as particularly 
  monstrous siaka. They ﬁ ght with terrifying ferocity, yet 
  display intelligence in their attacks and use of Charms. 
  Alternately, the war sharks can take the form of huge 
  siaka-men.
  Sanctum: Most of Siakal’s children dwell within her 
  bloody pool in Yu-Shan. Those that leave her sanctum 
  roam the seas in search of prey. Rarely one of the war 
  sharks may temporarily obtain its own small sanctum 
  should its name become known to a reverent warband, 
  but sooner or later Siakal calls her children to return 
  to her side.
  Motivation: To devour their enemies and those of the 
  goddess Siakal.
  Attributes: Strength 13/8, Dexterity 4, Stamina 10/5; 
  Charisma 4, Manipulation 2, Appearance 1; Percep-
  tion 4, Intelligence 2, Wits 3
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 2, Temperance 1, 
  Valor 4
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swimming +3), Awareness 4 
  (Smell +2), Dodge 4, Integrity 5, Investigation 3, 
  Linguistics (Native: Old Realm; Others: Seatongue) 1, 
  Martial Arts 5 (Bite +3), Occult 1, Presence 4, Resis-
  tance 5 (Underwater +2), Stealth 4 (Underwater +1), 
  Survival 5 (Tracking +2, Underwater +1), War 5
  Backgrounds: Allies 1 (other children of Siakal), 
  Inﬂ uence 1
  Spirit Charms:
  Afﬁ nity Element Control—For six motes of Essence, a 
  child of Siakal can manipulate water around the war 
  shark, causing the water to reshape itself, convert to 
  mist or solidify into ice. The war shark can affect the 
  equivalent of three barrels of water with each use of 
  this power, and the effects last for one scene.
  Essence Bite—A child of Siakal can spend three motes 
  of Essence, and for a scene, any being that touches or 
  is touched by the god takes 1L damage, ignoring armor 
  and soaked only by Stamina.
  Excellencies—Children of Siakal have First and Second 
  Excellencies for the following Abilities: Awareness, 
  Dodge and Martial Arts.
  Landscape Travel—Children of Siakal may pay ﬁ ve 
  motes of Essence to double their movement rate while 
  swimming.
  Materialize—Children of Siakal can materialize for 
  50 motes.
  Paralyze—For six motes, the bite of a child of Siakal 
  temporarily stuns its foe. Instead of taking normal 
  damage, the target’s player must make a (Stamina + 
  Resistance) roll with a difﬁ culty equal to the war shark’s 
  Valor. Failure leaves the victim at -2 dice to all non-
  reﬂ exive rolls until the tick when the child of Siakal 
  next acts. This power has no effect on beings with an 
  Essence higher than the siaka.
  Principle of Motion—A child of Siakal typically has one 
  to seven extra actions ready.
  Shapechange—Normally the children of Siakal appear 
  as particularly large siaka, but when they want to speak 
  or use hands, they take the form of huge siaka-men 
  (see p. 153), lowering Strength and Stamina by ﬁ ve 
  dots each.
  Uncanny Prowess—By expending two motes, a child 
  of Siakal may add its Valor to any Dexterity-based roll 
  made in combat.
  Join Battle: 7 (if Smell applies: 9)
  Attacks:
  As Siaka
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 19L, Defense 9, 
  Rate 2
  As Siaka-Man
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 8L, Defense 9, 
  Rate 1
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 10, Damage 5B, Defense 
  11, Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 9, Damage 8B, Defense 7, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 10, Damage 5B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Soak: 17L/20B (14L/15B in siaka-man form; Tough 
  hide 12L/10B, Hardness: 5L/5B)
  Health Levels: -0x3/-1x4/-2x4/-4x2/Incap
  Dodge DV: 6 
   
  Willpower: 7
  Essence: 3 
  Essence Pool: 65
  Cost to Materialize: 50
  
  132
  Other Notes: The hides of the children of Siakal can 
  be tanned and formed into lightweight buff jackets. 
  This exceptional armor can be worn by anyone willing 
  to risk the ire of Siakal.
  Perhaps offended by the beauty or nobility of the 
  moment, an eristrufa is sometimes called to Creation 
  without summoning when a lone dolphin swims beneath 
  a rainbow in a sunny sky.
  Motivation: To destroy or drive into insanity those who 
  travel upon the sea or live on its edges.
  Attributes: Strength 0/8, Dexterity 4, Stamina 6; 
  Charisma 1, Manipulation 4, Appearance 0; Perception 2, 
  Intelligence 2, Wits 4
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 3, Temperance 1, 
  Valor 4
  Abilities: Awareness 3, Dodge 4, Integrity 2, Linguis-
  tics (Native: Old Realm) 0, Martial Arts 3 (Tentacle 
  Slash +1, Tentacle Grab +2), Performance 1 (Creepy 
  Noises +2), Presence 3 (Physical Indimidation +2), 
  Resistance 2, Sail 1 (Tracking Ships +2), Stealth 1 
  (Mist Touch Attacks +3)
  Backgrounds: Allies 1 (other eristrufa)
  Spirit Charms:
  Confusion—For six motes of Essence and one Will-
  power, an eristrufa can cause confusion in a victim. 
  Roll the demon’s (Manipulation + Conviction) with 
  a difﬁ culty of the target’s Essence. Success indicates 
  that the target is mildly confused, and likely to make 
  mistakes such as choosing the wrong direction at a 
  fork in the path. With at least two extra successes, the 
  target is quite confused and might believe such things 
  as traveling after dark without a lantern is a reasonable 
  thing to do. Four or more extra successes results in a 
  completely addled target, who may do very dangerous 
  things such as scaling a mast in the dark or sleeping in 
  the crow’s nest during a storm. Fair Folk are immune 
  to this Charm. Eristrufa typically target ship captains 
  or navigators with this Charm.
  Cunning Thief—The eristrufa must touch a target (which 
  may require a successful Dexterity + Martial Arts roll). If 
  this succeeds, the eristrufa may make a reﬂ exive (Wits + 
  Temperance) roll, costing one mote for every two dice, or 
  fraction thereof. For every success the demon achieves, 
  the target loses two motes of Essence. The demon may 
  not steal more motes than twice its Essence.
  Dreambane—For 15 motes and one Willpower, the 
  demon can shape the dreams of a sleeping target. The 
  player of the demon rolls (Manipulation + Conviction) 
  with successes controlling the degree of power held by 
  the dream. The target rolls Wits to prevent incidences 
  of dream damage from becoming real damage, with each 
  success preventing one health level. If the target suffers 
  physical damage, she may roll (Willpower + Integrity) 
  to wake up. Damage from this Charm cannot reduce a 
  target below Incapacitated.
  SPIRIT SHARK HIDE BUFF JACKETS 
  (RESOURCES ••••)
  Soak 
  Mobility Penalty 
  Fatigue
  7L/10B 
   
  -1 
   
  1
  ERISTRUFA, THE 
  MIST-DEMON
  Demon of the First 
  Circle, Progeny of the 
  Dam of the Eristrufa
  The eristrufa are 
  creatures of fog and 
  shadow that drift across 
  the dark oceans of 
  Malfeas. The eristrufa’s 
  services appeal most 
  to sorcerers who want the creatures to confuse or slay 
  enemies at sea. Typically, an eristrufa appears as a dense 
  fog bank several miles across, except that this ill mist 
  can move against the wind or tide when it must. If 
  multiple mist-demons work together, they join into a 
  fog bank dozens of miles long.
  As with mundane mist, the eristrufa confuse ships 
  within by blinding their crews. The mist-demons hide 
  greater terrors, though, as those within are beset with 
  disturbing sounds of mournful ship’s bells, intermittent 
  hideous laughter or moaning sobs of agony. Those who 
  try to sleep in the dark fog face greater suffering, dreaming 
  of damnation and waking more tired than when they 
  laid down to rest. Ship crews and shore villages caught 
  in the mist face exhaustion and madness, and most 
  eventually perish, sometimes at their own hands.
  If the mist shape is not sufﬁ cient, or if it grows angry, 
  the mist diminishes and an eristrufa takes the form of a 
  mass of grasping, writhing tentacles with misshapen eyes, 
  powerful suckers, piercing claws and cutting edges. These 
  tentacles may stretch up to 20 feet to strike a target.
  Eristrufa will not set out against a victim on Venus-
  day, although they will not cease attack if it is already 
  ongoing. They cannot change shape when the moon 
  is full, and they can’t abide the smell of fresh garlic. 
  Sacriﬁ ces of blood may convince an eristrufa to leave 
  a target unharmed, provided the eristrufa is not under 
  the command of sorcerous bindings.
  
  133
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Essence Bite—An eristrufa can spend three motes of 
  Essence, and for a scene, any being that touches or is 
  touched by the demon takes 1L damage from chilling 
  cold, ignoring armor and soaked only by Stamina.
  Excellencies—Eristrufa have First and Second Excel-
  lencies for the following Abilities: Dodge, Martial Arts 
  and Presence.
  Ghostly Presence—This Charm works as the demon’s 
  Will-o-Wisp but can create distinct patterns, with a 
  duration up to one scene. The demon may hold conver-
  sations while unmanifested, and successes grant control 
  over the light, sound and smell of the scene (which may 
  not exceed a 10-foot radius in any direction).
  Harrow the Mind—An eristrufa may create illusions in 
  the mind of a single target, which distract and confuse 
  its victim. The demon must spend 10 motes of Essence 
  and one Willpower to activate this Ability for a scene. 
  The eristrufa’s player then makes a (Manipulation + 
  Performance) roll against the target’s Mental Defense 
  Value, adding a number of automatic successes equal to 
  the target’s Temperance. Only one success is necessary, 
  but additional successes add to the difﬁ culty of any ap-
  plicable roll made to break free of the illusion. Barring 
  other methods, a victim can break free by spending one 
  Willpower per success the eristrufa gained.
  Landscape Travel—Eristrufa may pay ﬁ ve motes of Essence 
  in mist form to move at normal sailing speed (see Exalted, 
  p. 264) regardless of the wind direction, or to attach to 
  a single waterborne ship and keep up with it.
  Materialize—An eristrufa can materialize for 50 motes.
  Measure the Wind—Eristrufa have uncanny senses and, 
  for one mote, use this reﬂ exive Charm to measure the 
  strength of their enemies.
  Principle of Motion—An eristrufa typically has seven 
  extra actions stockpiled.
  Shapechange—For one mote of Essence, an eristrufa can 
  shift from its mist form to its physical shape consisting 
  of a hideous mass of razor-edged tentacles. Some legends 
  claim that the eristrufa have a third form, which appears 
  as a beautiful Fair Folk lord or lady, or something that 
  looks like one. Even the bindings of sorcery have been 
  unable to force the eristrufa to reveal the truth of this 
  matter, though.
  Sustenance—The demon must touch a sleeping mortal 
  to activate this Charm and feed on her dreams. For three 
  motes, the demon may roll (Wits + Temperance), with 
  each success devouring one mote of Essence.
  Will-o-Wisp—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence, the demon 
  causes brief, somewhat muddled manifestations of 
  sound, smell and light, such as a ball of illumination 
  or indistinct hints of conversation. Roll the demon’s 
  (Manipulation + Valor). The more successes, the more 
  noticeable these manifestations are (louder, brighter), 
  though the manifestations may not exceed one action 
  in duration. This Charm may not be used in precise 
  ways—no writing words, making pictures in light or 
  speaking distinct phrases.
  Join Battle: 7
  Attacks:
  Tentacle Grab: Speed 6, Accuracy 13, Damage 8L 
  (piercing), Defense -, Rate 1
  Special: The damage from a clinch made by the ten-
  tacle grab increases by 1L every action the clinch is 
  maintained.
  Tentacle Slash: Speed 5, Accuracy 9, Damage 10L, 
  Defense 10, Rate 3
  Mist Touch: Speed 5, Accuracy 7, Damage (Charm 
  only), Defense -, Rate 3
  Special: The mist touch cannot be parried, but can 
  be dodged.
  Soak: 6L/9B (Scaly slippery skin 3L/3B)
  Health Levels: -0/-0/-1/-1/-1/-2/-2/-2/-2/-4//-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 6 
  Willpower: 7
  Essence: 3 
  Essence Pool: 65
  Cost to Materialize: 50
  Other Notes: In mist form, an eristrufa has no Strength, 
  but can “touch” any target surrounded by its mist (counts 
  as touch for the purposes of Essence Bite, Cunning 
  Thief and Sustenance). In mist form, the demon may 
  only be harmed by ﬁ re attacks (damage 1L), unless 
  powered by an Exalt using such Charms as Blazing 
  Solar Bolt or Elemental Bolt Attack (Fire), which do 
  normal damage.
  OCEAN FATHER
  Lord of the West, 
  Daimyo of the Seas
  The Ocean Fa-
  ther, also known as 
  the Daimyo of the 
  Seas and the Lord of 
  the West, is a power-
  ful god in the Bureau 
  of Nature’s Hierarchy 
  of Type. Despite his 
  celestial position, with 
  responsibility for all 
  the seas of Creation 
  and the accompany-
  ing quarters in Yu-Shan, the Ocean Father spends 
  much of his time in the Great Western Ocean.
  
  134
  In ages past, he was almost always found in Heav-
  en—even arguing on behalf of Valor in the Sonorous 
  Discussion of Virtue at the annual Carnival of Meeting—
  but now he focuses on preserving and strengthening the 
  remnants of his once-neglected dominion. What time 
  the turbulent Western spirit courts and the depredations 
  of the Wyld do not consume, the Lord of the West spends 
  forming various human relationships Celestial Censors 
  might deem inappropriate. He is worshipped through-
  out the Coral Archipelago and a surprising number of 
  God-Blooded from the Neck claim his blood.
  The Ocean Father is a mercurial creature, quick to 
  anger and to forgive, given to unbridled lust and sullen 
  brooding. If there is anything the Ocean Father fears, 
  it is the jade dagger named Black Depths Foretold (see 
  Books of Sorcery, Vol. 3—Oadenol’s Codex, p. 36), 
  which the stars have long declared is fated to slay the 
  Lord of the West. Before the Usurpation, reclusive 
  Solars carried the blade to the East, where the dagger 
  was lost. The Daimyo of the Seas fondly remembers the 
  days when the Solar Deliberative expanded the Western 
  Ocean far beyond its current bounds, but he is torn in 
  regards to their return. The Ocean Father might parley 
  with any Solar Exalts whose purposes seem to include 
  the restoration of the West, but he is always careful to 
  conﬁ rm they do not bear his bane. 
  The Ocean Father appears as a tall, handsome, 
  middle-aged man with mid-length black hair and curls, 
  tipped in white, that tumble about his head like 100 waves 
  in motion. Dark skin with a blue-green sheen stretches 
  over his taut swimmer’s muscles, his teeth are burnished 
  coral and his eyes glow like the setting sun. At home in 
  the open sea, the Ocean Father’s only ornaments are a 
  large gleaming white shell codpiece and a bejeweled black 
  jade cephalopod whose undulating form hangs across 
  one shoulder and his powerful chest. He bears a pearl as 
  large as a human head in one hand, and within the pearl’s 
  depths, he scries upon his dominions in the sea.
  Sanctum: For eight centuries, the Ocean Father’s pri-
  mary manse in Creation has been hidden beneath the 
  waves 800 miles to the south of the Coral Archipelago’s 
  capital Azure. The gods of the ocean courts pay their 
  respects within the manse’s carven halls of basalt and 
  precious shells, and a pearl gateway within leads to 
  his sanctum, but there is still a sense that the Lord of 
  the West has not permanently settled into his “new” 
  quarters. The Daimyo of the Seas visits his Yu-Shan 
  estate and ofﬁ ces when occasion demands it, and he 
  often waxes nostalgic for the opulent manse he lost to 
  the Wyld during the Great Contagion.
  Motivation: To preserve his precious seas from dissolu-
  tion by the Wyld, shadowlands or divine politics, and to 
  continuously enhance their size, prestige and quality.
  Attributes: Strength 8, Dexterity 8, Stamina 8; 
  Charisma 8, Manipulation 8, Appearance 8; Perception 8, 
  Intelligence 8, Wits 8
  Virtues: Compassion 4, Conviction 4, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 5
  Abilities: Archery 1, Athletics 5 (Swim +3), 
  Awareness 6 (Underwater +3), Bureaucracy 6 (Ocean 
  Courts +3), Craft (Air) 2, Craft (Fire) 2, Craft 
  (Magitech) 4 (Repairing Aegis Talisman +3), Craft 
  (Water) 5, Dodge 6 (Underwater +3), Integrity 6 
  (Against Sea Creatures +3), Investigation 5 (Relat-
  ing to the Sea +3), Larceny 5, Linguistics (Native: 
  Old Realm; Others: Seatongue, Flametongue, 
  Skytongue, Pelagial) 4, Lore 6 (Oceanic 
  Knowledge +3), Martial Arts 6 (Terrestrial Hero Style +2, 
  Art of Forceful Declaration +1), Medicine 1, Melee 8 
  (Aegis Talisman +3), Occult 6, Performance 5, 
  Presence 6, Resistance 6, Ride 1 (Sea Creatures +3), 
  Sail 5, Stealth 5, Socialize 5 (Ocean Courts +3), Survival 5 
  (Underwater +3), Thrown 1, War 5
  Backgrounds: Allies 3, Artifact 5, Backing 4, Celestial 
  Manse 3, Contacts 4, Cult 5, Followers 4, Inﬂ uence 5, 
  Manse 5, Resources 5, Sanctum 4
  Spirit Charms: The Ocean Father has all appropriately 
  themed spirit Charms for which he qualiﬁ es. Some 
  important ones are speciﬁ ed below.
  Black Depths Foretold—Though there is terror in knowing 
  the cause of your death, there is also great freedom in 
  it. Unless someone manages to convince the Maidens 
  (or perhaps a sizeable majority of the pattern spiders) to 
  change his fate, no being currently affected by destiny or 
  fate can slay the Ocean Father without using the artifact 
  weapon named Black Depths Foretold. Instead, any other 
  attack that would kill the Ocean Father merely reduces 
  him to Incapacitated. Unfortunately for the Ocean Fa-
  ther, every attack made with the fated dagger causes the 
  wielder to instinctively realize that she can reﬂ exively 
  spend four motes of Essence and one Willpower point to 
  make every die in the attack’s dice pool a success. Such 
  an attack roll operates as though the wielder possessed 
  the relevant Essence Auspicious Excellency even if she 
  does not. This “Charm” is a blessing (and curse) unique 
  to the Ocean Father and cannot be learned by any other 
  being. Beings outside of Fate are immune to this effect, 
  but cannot beneﬁ t from it either.
  Celestial Circle Sorcery—The Ocean Father has learned 
  many spells of the Celestial Circle.
  
  135
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Daimyo’s Prerogative—While in Heaven, the Ocean 
  Father may summon any single one of his subordinates 
  in the Bureau of Nature to his side immediately. He 
  does so only in times of danger or other emergency. He 
  must spend a point of Willpower and a number of motes 
  equal to the (Essence + Willpower) of the subordinate 
  he is summoning.
  Donning Spiritual Armor—Through the expenditure of 
  ﬁ ve motes, the Ocean Father may add his (Temperance 
  + Essence) to his bashing and lethal soaks. By spending 
  one point of Willpower, he may also add his Essence to 
  his aggravated soak.
  Elemental Expression—The Ocean Father can double or 
  halve the effects of any natural phenomena related to 
  the sea (such as fog, storms, waves, etc.) for one mote 
  of Essence. Alternately, he may cause such an effect to 
  inﬂ ict damage (or increase the damage of an already 
  damaging effect) on material beings within it, with 
  each mote spent (maximum of his permanent Essence) 
  dealing one health level of lethal or bashing damage, 
  soaked normally.
  Elemental Rejuvenation—For every three ticks spent 
  doing nothing else, provided he is in contact with 
  seawater, the Ocean Father may heal one health level 
  of damage or regain one mote of Essence.
  Essence Plethora (x4)—The Ocean Father has 40 extra 
  motes of Essence in his Essence pool.
  Excellencies—The Ocean Father has First, Second and 
  Third Excellencies for the following Abilities: Bureau-
  cracy, Investigation, Larceny, Martial Arts, Melee, 
  Presence, Sail and Survival.
  Hurry Home—For 10 motes and a Willpower point, 
  the Ocean Father can immediately transport himself 
  to any underwater or surface location in the Western 
  seas. In Yu-Shan, he can use this Charm to instantly 
  return to his Celestial Manse.
  Martial Arts—The Ocean Father has mastered the martial 
  Essence of water, including all of the supernatural Martial 
  Arts Charms from the Terrestrial Hero Style (see Manual 
  of Exalted Power: Dragon-Blooded, pp. 191-193). Ad-
  ditionally, the Ocean Father is a practitioner of the Valor 
  style of the Four Arguments of Virtue, knowing all of 
  the Charms of the Art of Forceful Declaration (see the 
  PDF ebook Scroll of the Monk: The Imperfect Lotus). 
  Detractors claim that his mastery of Valor is based upon 
  the assurances of Fate rather than any inherent virtue.
  Materialize—The Ocean Father can materialize for 90 
  motes.
  Measure the Wind—The Ocean Father always surveys 
  the power of those who are near him, and for one mote 
  this Charm helps him do so.
  Principle of Motion—The Ocean Father typically keeps 
  10 extra actions reserved.
  Reserve of Will (x4)—The Ocean Father has four extra 
  Willpower points at his disposal.
  Shapechange—As a protean god of the sea, the Ocean 
  Father can change his appearance to that of any non-
  unique marine creature.
  Terrestrial Circle Sorcery—The Ocean Father has learned 
  many spells of the Terrestrial Circle.
  Join Battle: 14 (17 underwater)
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 15 (Terrestrial Hero 
  Style +2, Art of Forceful Declaration +1), Damage 8B, 
  Defense 16 (Terrestrial Hero Style +2, Art of Forceful 
  Declaration +1), Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 14 (Terrestrial Hero 
  Style +2, Art of Forceful Declaration +1), Damage 11B, 
  Defense 12 (Terrestrial Hero Style +2, Art of Forceful 
  Declaration +1), Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 14 (Terrestrial Hero 
  Style +2, Art of Forceful Declaration +1), Damage 8B 
  (piercing), Defense -, Rate 1
  Aegis Talisman Lash: Speed 4, Accuracy 15, 
  Damage 5L (up to 15L), Defense 15, Rate 3, Range 4
  Aegis Talisman Blade: Speed 4, Accuracy 23, 
  Damage 8L (up to 18L), Defense 20, Rate 3, Range 4
  Special: The Ocean Father wields a unique black jade 
  “Quicksilver” Aegis Talisman. See Books of Sorcery, 
  Vol. 2—Wonders of the Lost Age, p. 111 for Aegis 
  Talisman rules. The Aegis Talisman Lash’s attacks are 
  treated as a separate entity with their own dice pools. 
  The Ocean Father can use the Aegis Talisman to add 
  up to 5 extra Dodge Defense Value or Parry Defense 
  Value to any weapon (natural or otherwise). Addition-
  ally, the Ocean Father may supplement his unarmed 
  attacks with Terrestrial Hero Style Charms.
  Soak: 12L/16B to 18L/22B (Tough skin, 8L/8B, Hard-
  ness: 4L/4B; armor bonus up to +6L/+6B from Aegis 
  Talisman)
  Health Levels: -0/-1x8/-2x8/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 11 (13 underwater; bonus up to 5 DV 
  from Aegis Talisman) 
  Willpower: 10 (14 temporary 
  points)
  Essence: 8 
  Essence Pool: 170
  Cost to Materialize: 90
  Other Notes: The Ocean Father possesses the Pearl 
  of the Occulted Seas, which allows him to duplicate 
  any thaumaturgical ritual for a single mote of Essence 
  (without Willpower or Resources expenditure), 
  provided the effects are somehow related to the sea. 
  
  136
  When the Pearl of the Occulted Seas is used for 
  Scrying, any subject currently resting upon or within 
  the ocean is a valid target without any other arcane 
  link requirement and regardless of range. He often 
  creates wards against those bearing the Black Depths 
  Foretold, but such things inevitably expire and are 
  easily destroyed by countermagic.
  PLENTIMON OF THE 
  DICE, CELESTIAL 
  MINISTER OF 
  GAMBLING
  Plentimon is the 
  god of gambling and 
  gamblers. His domin-
  ion over a universal 
  concept would guar-
  antee him a powerful 
  position in the Bureau 
  of Heaven, but he has 
  steadfastly remained 
  in the Bureau of Hu-
  manity’s Department of Universal Human Affairs and 
  forsaken the Celestial City of Yu-Shan to live among 
  humanity. There is nothing Plentimon enjoys more than 
  watching people risk everything on games of chance, 
  except perhaps the artistic appreciation he has for the 
  skill and guts that the best players bring to the table.
  Plentimon spends the majority of his time in the 
  most prosperous gambling house in Coral, as he owns 
  the Diving Sea Snake Casino in Mantaville and controls 
  a majority share of Vason’s Luck in Azure. He wagered 
  and lost two-ﬁ fths ownership of the latter establishment 
  to the clever gambler whose name the establishment 
  now shares. For three seasons of every year, Plentimon 
  personally manages the Diving Sea Snake, but the 
  months surrounding winter are spent traveling to the 
  gambling houses of Creation.
  Sometimes Plentimon goes in mundane disguise 
  and gains vast wealth by bankrupting various gambling 
  establishments. Other times, he chooses to travel openly 
  in his divine splendor, dressed in jeweled and gilded 
  ﬁ nery beﬁ tting a king. In his natural form, he appears 
  to be made of millions of tiny glowing ﬂ ecks of silver 
  and gold ﬂ oating in a jet-black human-shaped void. 
  He always plays honestly, for incredibly high stakes, 
  though his extraordinary skill at such games hardly 
  renders such contests fair.
  The Diving Sea Snake offers all of the typical 
  games of cards and dice, but some visitors prefer more 
  interesting challenges. Games held in the god’s casino 
  include such deadly contests as life drinking, where 
  the participants each select one glass of wine from 
  a tray of goblets that includes one ﬁ lled with lethal 
  poison, to dangerous bets with Fair Folk bargaining 
  the beneﬁ ts of their power against people’s souls. For 
  games with prices he can afford, Plentimon is willing 
  to extend credit to those who seem likely to be able 
  to pay them off, but failure to repay is an affront to his 
  personal honor. Those cannot pay their debts to the 
  god are sometimes given the chance to play again, with 
  lengthy servitude matched against relieving the debt. 
  More often, however, those who refuse to pay suffer 
  horriﬁ c and unlikely deaths, and Plentimon’s servants 
  swiftly conﬁ scate the players’ possessions.
  Many gods of the Bureau of Heaven consider 
  Plentimon a rogue deity, though they have done 
  little to rein in his activities. Gods within the Bu-
  reau of Humanity generally support the Minister of 
  Gambling, particularly those gods who agree with his 
  open interaction with mortals. Plentimon is thus well 
  accepted by the rulers of Whitewall and Great Forks, 
  but sometimes harassed by divinities such as Bronze 
  Faction-dominated Censors of the Blessed Isle and 
  those southern gods who remain loyal to Swan Dragon, 
  the fallen Paragon Censor of the South.
  Sanctum: A hidden back room door in the Diving 
  Sea Snake Casino leads to the private sanctum of 
  Plentimon. Here the form of the structure’s Essence 
  is as ever-shifting as the luck of the die, sometimes 
  revealing simple threadbare quarters and sometimes 
  appearing as a sumptuous apartment with furnishings 
  worthy of the Empress. Great riches are more common 
  here than abject poverty, given the skill of the sanctum’s 
  owner, but apparently the God of Gambling desires raw 
  reminders of the dangers of losing.
  Motivation: To experience the thrill of watching beings 
  risk their fortunes on games with an element of chance.
  Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 6, Stamina 5; Cha-
  risma 6, Manipulation 6, Appearance 5; Perception 6, 
  Intelligence 6, Wits 6
  Virtues: Compassion 3, Conviction 5, Temperance 4, 
  Valor 3
  Abilities: Athletics 2, Awareness 5 (Catch-
  ing Cheaters at Gambling +3), Bureaucracy 4 
  (Casinos +3), Dodge 5, Integrity 3, Investigation 2 
  (Cheating +3), Larceny 5, Linguistics (Native: Old 
  Realm; Others: Guild Cant, High Realm, Riverspeak, 
  Seatongue) 4, Lore 4 (Games +3), Martial Arts 4 
  (Withering Touch +2), Occult 4, Performance 7, 
  Presence 7, Resistance 2, Sail 1, Stealth 2, 
  
  137
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Socialize 5 (Blufﬁ ng +2), Survival 2, Thrown 2 (Game 
  Pieces +3)
  Backgrounds: Artifact 5, Contacts 3, Cult 5, Fol-
  lowers 4 (Casino Workers), Inﬂ uence 3, Resources 5, 
  Sanctum 3
  Spirit Charms: Plentimon has many spirit Charms. 
  Some important ones are speciﬁ ed below.
  Bad Luck—Plentimon may curse a target with the atten-
  tion of the gods of bad luck. For one mote, the effects of 
  this instant duration Charm last for one week, although 
  the interval may be extended an additional week for 
  every extra mote spent. The Charm causes every “1” that 
  the victim rolls on any dice roll for a speciﬁ ed Ability 
  to subtract one success from her total successes. This 
  can eliminate automatic successes gained from such 
  effects as Second Excellencies and the like.
  Essence Plethora—Plentimon has 10 extra motes of 
  Essence in his Essence pool.
  Excellencies—Plentimon has First and Third Excellen-
  cies for the following Abilities: Awareness, Bureaucracy, 
  Larceny, Performance, Presence and Socialize. Second 
  Excellencies and perfect effects offend him.
  Good Luck—Plentimon can bless a target with the 
  attention of the gods of good luck. For each mote he 
  spends, the target gains one extra die on actions using a 
  speciﬁ ed Ability, with a limit of three dice. This effect 
  explicitly does not count as a dice-adder for the purposes 
  of other Charms. This effect lasts for one week, although 
  Plentimon can extend the interval for an additional 
  mote per week. This Charm is of instant duration, so 
  Plentimon does not have to commit the Essence.
  Hurry Home—For 10 motes and a Willpower point, 
  Plentimon can immediately transport himself to any-
  where in the Diving Sea Snake Casino, or to the front 
  door of any well-known gambling house. In Yu-Shan, 
  he can use this Charm to immediately transport him-
  self to his divine ofﬁ ce, although his long-abandoned 
  secretary would likely be very surprised.
  Interdiction of Certainty—Plentimon is a natural advo-
  cate of chance, and the thrill of the risk it inherently 
  creates. Therefore, anyone nearby who invokes a perfect 
  Charm effect (such as Accuracy Without Distance or 
  Heavenly Guardian Defense) must spend one extra 
  mote of Essence. Similarly, anyone nearby who invokes 
  Second Excellency, or any other Charm that grants one 
  or more automatic successes, must pay one extra mote 
  of Essence. Charms that guarantee failure also require 
  one extra mote of Essence. This additional charge is 
  applied for every use of such Charms in Plentimon’s 
  presence, and if the Charm’s user is unable to pay the 
  surfeit, then the Charm unexpectedly does not activate 
  and the motes are wasted. This Charm is of permanent 
  duration and also affects Plentimon whenever he em-
  ploys relevant Charms.
  Materialize—Plentimon can materialize for 75 motes. 
  The god of dice almost never abandons his material 
  form except when faced with great danger.
  Measure the Wind—Plentimon surveys the power of those 
  who are near him, to ascertain their potential ability to 
  cheat, and for one mote this Charm helps him do so.
  Principle of Motion—Plentimon typically reserves up to 
  eight extra actions.
  Sense Domain—Plentimon may spend ﬁ ve motes and one 
  temporary Willpower to discern the status of his sphere 
  of inﬂ uence. The Storyteller rolls (Perception + Aware-
  ness), adding a number of automatic successes equal to his 
  Compassion. Unless this Charm’s effects are contested by 
  sorcery or another Charm, Plentimon detects all games 
  involving a degree of chance within three and a half miles 
  and is alerted to any potential threats to himself or those 
  games (cheating represents a threat to a game).
  Shapechange—Plentimon can appear as an innocuous 
  mortal, when he wishes, although he may not assume 
  the form of a speciﬁ c person.
  Thrown Game—For one mote of Essence, Plentimon can 
  reﬂ exively enchant a game piece (such as a die, Gateway 
  piece, card, counter or jade coin) so that he can hurl 
  it with the force and accuracy of a sling stone. At the 
  end of the action, the item reverts to its normal state, 
  although occasionally one becomes a lucky rock item 
  (see Books of Sorcery, vol. III: Oadenol’s Codex).
  Join Battle: 11
  Attacks:
  Withering Touch: Speed 5, Accuracy 13, Damage 16L 
  (up to 25L), Defense 14, Rate 3
  Special: Plentimon’s base damage for Withering Touch 
  is (15 plus the result of one 10-sided die)L, with this 
  bonus added before soak is applied. He may also parry 
  without a stunt.
  Thrown Game Piece: Speed 5, Accuracy 10, Damage 
  6L, Defense -, Range 100, Rate 1
  Soak: 14L/17B (Spirit ﬁ nery, 12L/12B, Hardness: 
  5L/5B)
  Health Levels: -0x15/-1x5/-2x5/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 9 
  Willpower: 8
  Essence: 7 
  Essence Pool: 120
  Cost to Materialize: 75
  Other Notes: Plentimon has access to two ancient 
  artifacts that allow people to willingly gamble nearly 
  anything, from years of their lifespan to permanent dots of 
  an Attribute (see p. 54). A handful of mortals have even 
  become God-Blooded by winning divine Essence.
  
  138
  SIAKAL
  The Western God 
  of Battle, Slaughter and 
  Sharks
  Siakal is the god 
  of war, mass death 
  and bloodshed in the 
  oceans of the West. 
  Often she appears as 
  a colossal shark more 
  than 20 yards long, 
  although she can also 
  assume the form of a 
  frightening slate-gray 
  woman with lidless eyes, a mouth full of jagged teeth, a 
  serrated sword of enchanted orca bone and a buff jacket 
  of sharkskin. In any shape, Siakal revels in slaughter 
  and destruction, though she especially favors sea battles 
  because the losers sink beneath the waves and feed her 
  bloodthirsty children.
  As a regional god of war, Siakal is far more political 
  than her voracious appetite might suggest. She is respon-
  sible for the proper administration of the dominion of war 
  in the West, and must answer to two masters: E-Naluna, 
  the Queen of Warfare in the Bureau of Heaven, and Hu 
  Dia Liang, the Shogun of the Crimson Banner in the 
  Bureau of Destiny. Typically, Siakal advances her agenda 
  through intimidation and the support of particularly 
  bloody military campaigns. As beings of great valor, 
  her fellow gods of war are rarely unsettled by threats of 
  violence. Nonetheless, these divinities cannot discount 
  the terrible ferocity of her servants and worshippers when 
  contemplating the battleﬁ elds of Creation. Siakal cares 
  little for bravery and honor, as she is primarily interested 
  in carnage. If she cannot achieve her desires in the court 
  of Yu-Shan, then her followers will ruthlessly advance 
  her desires on the seas and shores of their neighbors.
  Western nations such as Wavecrest ban the wor-
  ship of Siakal. Nonetheless, many soldiers cast a bit of 
  animal blood into the sea before battle, and periodically 
  an underground warrior cult proves so savage that the 
  local ruler feels compelled to ruthlessly suppress it. 
  Although many nations ban the veneration of Siakal, 
  she is widely honored in the Coral Archipelago, among 
  pirates and coastal raiders and by the dreaded Lintha. 
  In the Neck, only warriors who put to sea regularly 
  give homage to Siakal, although some members of the 
  Squalus tribe honor the goddess and her children as 
  ancestors. Devout adherents, including many Lintha 
  captains, wear specially carved shark-tooth amulets 
  and raise pennants bearing her image when going into 
  battle. Those familiar with the shark ﬂ ag know they 
  can expect no quarter from those who ﬂ y it.
  Siakal accepts but one form of sacriﬁ ce. Living 
  victims must be bloodied and thrown to the sharks. The 
  goddess prefers the taste of Exalted ﬂ esh above all oth-
  ers. Guild ﬂ eets regularly propitiate the goddess before 
  venturing into areas infested with her followers.
  Sanctum: Siakal dwells in Yu-Shan, where her sanctum 
  is an immense pool of black basalt ﬁ lled with seawater 
  tainted with intoxicating trails of blood. Her favored 
  servants are the gods known as the children of Siakal, 
  and a multitude share her Celestial abode. As one of 
  the ﬁ ve regional gods of warfare, Siakal also holds of-
  ﬁ ces in the Bureau of Heaven’s Division of Warfare and 
  the Bureau of Destiny’s Crimson Panoply of Victory. 
  Sometimes she ventures into the mortal world to search 
  for prey or watch over a particularly bloody battle, but 
  she maintains no sanctums there.
  Motivation: To foster battle that features bloody 
  slaughter.
  Attributes: Strength 15, Dexterity 5, Stamina 10; Cha-
  risma 3, Manipulation 2, Appearance 1; Perception 4, 
  Intelligence 3, Wits 4
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 2, Temperance 1, 
  Valor 5
  Abilities: Archery 1, Athletics 4 (Swimming +3), 
  Awareness 4 (Smell +3), Bureaucracy 1, Dodge 5,
   Integrity 5, Investigation 3, Linguistics (Native: Old 
  Realm; Others: Guild Cant, Seatongue) 2, Lore 1, 
  Martial Arts 7 (Bite +3), Melee 7, Occult 2, Perfor-
  mance 3, Presence 5, Resistance 5 (Underwater +2), 
  Sail 1 (Sea Battles +1), Stealth 5 (Underwater +1), 
  Socialize 1, Survival 4 (Tracking +2, Underwater +1), 
  Thrown 4, War 7
  Backgrounds: Allies 5 (Children of Siakal), Celestial 
  Manse 3, Cult 4, Followers 5 (Various Warriors and 
  Pirates), Inﬂ uence 3, Resources 3, Sanctum 4
  Spirit Charms: Siakal has many spirit Charms. Some 
  important ones are speciﬁ ed below.
  Afﬁ nity Element Control—For six motes of Essence, 
  Siakal can manipulate water around her, causing it to 
  reshape itself, convert to mist or solidify into ice. She can 
  affect the equivalent of seven barrels of water with each 
  use of this power and the effects last for one scene.
  Bane Weapon—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence, Siakal can 
  cause one single physical attack with her bite (only) 
  to deal aggravated damage.
  Essence Bite—Siakal can spend three motes of Essence, 
  and for a scene, any being that touches or is touched 
  by the goddess takes 1L damage, ignoring armor and 
  soaked only by Stamina.
  
  139
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Excellencies—Siakal has First, Second and Third Excel-
  lencies for the following Abilities: Awareness, Dodge, 
  Integrity, Martial Arts, Melee, Presence and War.
  General’s Prerogative—While in Heaven, the Siakal may 
  summon any single one of her subordinates to her side 
  immediately. Siakal does so only in times of danger or 
  other emergency. She must spend a point of Willpower 
  and a number of motes equal to the (Essence + Will-
  power) of the subordinate she is summoning.
  Hurry Home—For 10 motes and a Willpower point, 
  Siakal can immediately transport herself to the site 
  of any battle in the West. In Yu-Shan, she can use 
  this Charm to instantly return to her sanctum or her 
  divine ofﬁ ces.
  Landscape Travel—Siakal may pay ﬁ ve motes of Essence 
  to double her movement rate while swimming.
  Materialize—Siakal can materialize for 70 motes.
  Paralyze—For six motes, the bite of Siakal temporarily 
  stuns her foe. Instead of taking normal damage, the 
  target’s player must make a (Stamina + Resistance) roll 
  with a difﬁ culty equal to the war god’s Valor. Failure 
  leaves the victim at -2 dice to all non-reﬂ exive rolls 
  until the tick when Siakal next acts. This power has no 
  affect on beings with an Essence higher than Siakal’s.
  Principle of Motion—Siakal typically has seven extra 
  actions ready.
  Scent of Blood—For one mote, Siakal can sense the 
  closest fresh blood, regardless of distance. Each addi-
  tional mote spent allows her to sense the next closest 
  source. The goddess sometimes uses this to track down 
  exceptional prey that escapes her initial attack.
  Shapechange—Often Siakal appears as a colossal siaka, 
  but when she wants to speak or use hands she takes 
  the form of a frightening gray-skinned woman with a 
  mouthful of fangs and a wicked sword.
  Uncanny Prowess—By expending two motes, Siakal 
  may add her Valor to any Dexterity-based roll made 
  in combat.
  Join Battle: 8 (if Smell applies: 11)
  Attacks:
  Fanged Warrior Goddess
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 13, Damage 15B, 
  Defense 14, Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 18B, 
  Defense 10, Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 22, Damage 15B, 
  Defense -, Rate 1
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 15, Damage 20L, Defense 12, 
  Rate 1
  Orca-Bone Sword (Shark’s Tooth): Speed 5, 
  Accuracy 14, Damage 27L/4, Defense 12, Rate 2
  Special: Shark’s Tooth is a six-foot sword made from 
  orca bone set with the teeth of dead spirit sharks. The 
  player of anyone injured by Shark’s Tooth must succeed 
  at a (Stamina + Resistance) roll with a difﬁ culty equal 
  to the number of health levels of damage done by the 
  blow after damage is rolled. If the roll fails, the victim 
  suffers +1 difﬁ culty to all Dexterity-based rolls for the 
  remainder of the scene. This penalty stacks if a victim 
  is injured more than once.
  Colossal Siaka
  Bite: Speed 4, Accuracy 15, Damage 20L, Defense 12, 
  Rate 3
  Soak: 35L/40B (Sharkskin or sharkskin buff jacket, 
  30L/30B, Hardness: 15L/15B)
  Health Levels: -0x22/-1x6/-2x6/-4/Incap 
  Willpower: 7
  Essence: 7 
  Essence Pool: 105
  Cost to Materialize: 70
  Other Notes: None
  THE FIVE CELESTIAL ADMIRALS
  Humanity is not the ﬁ rst species to ride the waves 
  on ﬁ nely crafted vessels, but humans have certainly 
  become the greatest proponents of the art of sailing. 
  Other races have passed from the face of Creation or 
  learned to dwell beneath the water. Nonetheless, as 
  surely as water is necessary for life, the waterways of 
  the world are the lifeblood of trade, travel and military 
  exploits. Five regional gods watch over the sailing 
  vessels of Creation, and ﬁ nd themselves torn between 
  the politics of the Division of Waterborne Artifacts in 
  the Bureau of Heaven, the Department of Universal 
  Human Affairs in the Bureau of Humanity and the 
  Division of Journeys in the Bureau of Destiny. Often 
  they engage in personal conﬂ icts with gods from the 
  Bureaus of Nature or Seasons, or the Terrestrial Courts, 
  but such quarrels stem from direct interactions rather 
  than bureaucratic policy.
  RUDHIRA THE STORM RIDER
  The greatest of the ﬁ ve ship gods is the red-haired 
  Western goddess Rudhira the Storm Rider. The Admiral 
  of the West sails from her Seacalm manse to brave the 
  greatest tempests and watch over those who travel upon 
  the Western Seas. She is reputedly an occasional lover 
  of the Ocean Father, as well as an incomparable sailor. 
  The storm mothers both loathe and fear her for this.
  The beautiful goddess with hair the color of a 
  crimson sunset sails an ancient ship cleverly crafted 
  of driftwood bound in black jade, bearing a bejeweled 
  wavecleaver into battle. Rudhira is jealous of other 
  
  140
  female sailors, and generally refuses to protect them 
  against malign ocean forces. However, sailing women 
  with naturally red hair are holy to her, and gain her 
  favor. Wise sailors put images of her on their mastheads 
  as talismans against the storm mothers.
  Rudhira is ambitious, and hopes to one day seize 
  control over the Bureau of Destiny’s Golden Barque, 
  reducing its captain Ruvia to the simple god of roads she 
  believes he should be. The Admiral of the West is also 
  quick to report any storms that are out of place, trying 
  to check the power of the courts of wind and water by 
  subjecting them to the scrutiny of the Western Censor 
  Fakharu. Unfortunately for her, the Censor of the West 
  is no longer vigilant in his duties and is apt to accept 
  bribes to overlook divine indiscretions.
  NASELLUS
  Nasellus, the ship god of the Blessed Isle wears a 
  crisp black uniform with white jade medals and is in 
  league with House Peleps and the Realm Navy. The 
  Admiral of the Center sails a warship called Swift Midday 
  Brilliance, for which an entire class of magitech vessels is 
  named; however, the ship remains dematerialized at all 
  times in deference to the Immaculate Order. Nasellus 
  is notoriously lusty and given to drink, and some wags 
  suggest that he has even wooed the Sea Witch when 
  in his cups. In recent years, the upstart V’neef have 
  begun plying him with their ﬁ nest wines in hopes of 
  gaining his favor.
  BARIS
  The ship god of the East does not favor actual ships, 
  as he stays mostly on the rivers, piloting his great bamboo 
  skiff with a long sturdy pole of whalebone. Baris is a 
  friend to ﬁ shermen and Guild merchants alike, though 
  his favorite port (and his sanctum) lies in the docks of 
  Great Forks. The Lord of Barges is tall and slender with 
  skin the muddy yellow-brown of river water. Lookshy 
  honors him as the Admiral of the East, but his temple 
  there takes liberties with his appearance as they blend 
  his dress with the standard uniform of the Lookshy 
  Navy. The Linowans portray Baris sailing one of their 
  long canoes, and armed with a long spear. The shape 
  and vessel of the Admiral of the East vary as greatly as 
  the many rivers on which he sails.
  BIRANA
  The ship god of the South is an indolent god, who 
  sleeps lazily aﬂ oat much of the time, and awakens to 
  speed across the sands in a vessel of ﬁ re. In recent years, 
  the Admiral of the South has become somewhat enam-
  ored of a handsome dunerunner known as Sand, and his 
  Solar Exaltation has only made him more beautiful in her 
  eyes. Frequently, Birana assumes the form of a slothful 
  sailor aboard various Southern ships, but whenever her 
  current ship of duty is set aﬂ ame, she assumes control 
  of it and sets forth with red jade armaments to engage 
  in ﬁ erce naval battles against the ﬁ re-ships of the Fair 
  Folk of the Southern Desert.
  PRUINA
  The Northern ship god sails a vessel with moonsil-
  ver outriggers, which change from secondary supports 
  that guard against frozen bergs ﬂ oating upon the water 
  to razor-sharp blades that glide across the ice. She was 
  once a secretary to Vanileth, the god of artiﬁ cial ﬂ ight, 
  but managed a promotion out of his court. Now the 
  Admiral of the North is carefully considering a bold 
  move—perhaps she can get the airships of the Haslanti 
  added to her dominion. A number of powerful gods in 
  the Bureau of Heaven openly oppose her efforts, though, 
  as violations of the inherent logic of abstract matters. 
  Meanwhile, the white-haired goddess is a favorite of 
  the Haslanti captains who sail the seas and iceﬁ elds of 
  the North.
  HEROES OF THE WEST
  Although many refer to some of these notables as 
  villains instead, the heroes of the West are no less ex-
  traordinary for the fact. One nation’s hero is another’s 
  murderer.
  CAPTAIN BURUKU
  First Captain of 
  Wavecrest, God-Blood-
  ed Son of Hamoji
  Captain Buruku 
  is not the admiral of 
  the Wavecrest Archi-
  pelago’s navy, but he 
  might as well be. He 
  is a powerful God-
  Blooded and the most 
  renowned captain of 
  the isles. Standing six 
  feet eight inches tall 
  and massively built, 
  with beautiful bronze 
  skin and purple hair, Buruku’s divine blood is obvious 
  to all. His charisma and godlike beauty are similarly 
  overbearing; women blush at the sight of him, while 
  men quiver in fear and respect.
  
  141
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  The Wavecrest Navy does not have an admiral, 
  but the island nation’s ruler, the Feathered One, would 
  almost certainly choose Captain Buruku for such a posi-
  tion should war break out with the Coral Archipelago. 
  Many naval ofﬁ cers throughout the West think that 
  such a war is inevitable.
  Buruku has no wife, but many male lovers. Although 
  women vie for his attentions constantly, he has no sexual 
  interest in women. This is a grave disappointment to 
  the priesthood of Hamoji.
  Motivation: To become a powerful god of the sea and 
  the oceanic patron of the Wavecrest Archipelago.
  Attributes: Strength 5, Dexterity 4, Stamina 4; Cha-
  risma 4, Manipulation 3, Appearance 5; Perception 3, 
  Intelligence 3, Wits 3
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 4, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 3
  Abilities: Archery 1, Athletics 2 (Sea Legs +1), 
  Awareness 3 (Long Distances +1), Bureaucracy 3 
  (Naval +2), Craft (Wood) 3, Dodge 2, Integ-
  rity 3 (Ignoring Women +3), Investigation 2, 
  Larceny 1, Linguistics (Native: Seatongue; Others: Old 
  Realm) 1, Lore 3, Martial Arts 3, Medicine 1, 
  Melee 4 (Swords +2), Occult 3, Performance 3, 
  Presence 5, Resistance 3 (Fire +3), Sail 5, Stealth 1, 
  Socialize 3 (Wavecrest Culture +1), Survival 2 
  (At Sea +1), Thrown 1, War 4 (Sea Battles +2)
  Backgrounds: Allies 3, Artifact 1 (steelsilk sails), 
  Backing 5, Contacts 3, Followers 3, Inﬂ uence 3, 
  Inheritance 3 (God-Blood), Mentor 1, Resources 4
  Powers/Charms: Captain Buruku is the God-Blooded 
  child of Hamoji. Thus far, Buruku has expressed only 
  a limited degree of his power and had little contact 
  with his father.
  Attune to Spirit World—For one Willpower or three 
  motes of Essence, Buruku can sense immaterial spirits 
  and entrances to sanctums within range of his senses 
  for one scene.
  Dragon’s Suspire—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence and one 
  temporary Willpower, Buruku may bellow forth a gout 
  of volcanic ﬁ re 10 feet long and ﬁ ve feet wide, doing 
  4L damage plus extra successes.
  Elemental Expression—With a successful Willpower 
  roll, Buruku can expend his Essence to affect or control 
  natural elemental phenomena. A mote of Essence spent 
  either doubles or halves the effects of any natural phe-
  nomena, including wind, fog, rain, thunder, undertows, 
  ﬂ ames and earthquakes. These effects may be used to 
  inﬂ ict damage on material beings at the cost of one mote 
  of Essence per health level of lethal or bashing damage, 
  soaked by the target normally. Buruku cannot spend 
  more than [Essence] motes of Essence in this manner. 
  The control over sea elements, as well as the shaking 
  earth and ﬁ re of his father, suggests that Buruku has 
  some sea-god blood in his ancestry.
  Essence Pool—Buruku has an Essence pool of 30 motes. 
  He can access nine motes of Essence normally, but the 
  remaining 21 motes require him to spend one Willpower 
  point to gain access for the remainder of the scene.
  Principle of Motion—Buruku typically has up to eight 
  extra actions stockpiled.
  Join Battle: 6 (7 if Awareness specialty applies)
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 8, Damage 5B, Defense 9, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 7, Damage 8B, Defense 5, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 8, Damage 5B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Perfect Slashing Sword (Tsunami’s Crest): Speed 4, 
  Accuracy 13, Damage 9L, Defense 11, Rate 3
  Dragon’s Suspire: Speed 6, Accuracy 6, Damage 4L, 
  Range 10, Rate 1
  Soak: 9L/13B (Perfect lamellar, Scales of the Deep, 7L/9B, 
  0 mobility and 0 fatigue)
  Health Levels: -0/-1/-1/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 5 
  Willpower: 8
  Essence: 3 
  Essence Pool: 30
  Committed Essence: Buruku typically has Essence 
  committed to the Principle of Motion Charm.
  Other Notes: Captain Buruku commands a seaworthy 
  ship known as the Stormchild, which boasts valuable 
  steelsilk sails.
  LEVIATHAN
  Admiral 
  of the Western 
  Fleet, Steward 
  of Luthe
  B o r n 
  four and a 
  half centu-
  ries before the 
  Usurpation, on an isle in the Western Ocean, Leviathan 
  was drawn to service in the Deliberative’s navy from an 
  early age. Even as a child, Leviathan was larger than 
  his peers, yet lithe and handsome. As a warrior in the 
  Realm’s ﬂ eet, he was a prodigy unmatched by few out-
  side of the Exalted. At age 21, already a young ofﬁ cer, 
  Leviathan’s scout trimaran was attacked by an angry 
  storm mother and scuttled. Fighting to save his sinking 
  
  142
  crew and drive off the wrathful goddess, Leviathan was 
  Exalted by the light of the full moon. The cowed spirit 
  ﬂ ed his redoubled defense, and Leviathan was brought 
  before Kendik Arkadi, the aged Grand Admiral of the 
  Deliberative’s navy. Recognizing Leviathan as the new 
  incarnation of Arkadi’s deceased Lunar mate, the power-
  ful old Solar took the young Steward under his wing.
  Gifted with the spirit shape of a fearsome killer 
  whale, Leviathan’s love of the sea seemingly met 
  with the approval of Luna and the Solar Deliberative. 
  Within a century, the young Lunar had risen to the 
  rank of commodore, and was known for his friendly 
  rivalry with Water-aspected Dragon-Blooded. Despite 
  his strong bond to Arkadi, Leviathan fell in love with 
  the Solar administrator of Luthe, Queen Amyana. 
  Favored by two Solars, the Full Moon became the 
  highest-ranked Lunar within the Realm’s navy. When 
  the Usurpation began, Admiral Leviathan was torn 
  between defending his Solar “mate” and defending 
  his lover Queen. Ultimately, he failed both of them, 
  though he ravaged the Dragon-Blooded of the Western 
  Fleet, unleashed a deadly self-destruct protocol that 
  destroyed numerous vessels and assumed the environs 
  of sunken Luthe as his personal territory. Finally, he 
  laid his weapon Islebreaker upon the throne of Luthe 
  so that none save the new incarnation of Kendik 
  Arkadi’s Essence might lift it.
  In his true human form, Leviathan is a large, hand-
  some man with dark bronze skin and black hair that 
  glisten when wet. Lightly colored patches form the same 
  pattern found on his spirit shape. His moonsilver tat-
  tooed totemic true form is that of a gigantic orca. The 
  largest orcas found in Creation are a monstrous 32 feet 
  long, but the Steward of Luthe possesses Knacks that 
  cause his spirit shape to rival the size of a behemoth. 
  For nearly eight centuries, Leviathan has remained in 
  his Emperor Ox Expansion Knack-enhanced orca form, 
  an immense killer whale 96 feet in length. He is one of 
  the most dangerous predators in the ocean.
  Motivation: To turn Luthe into the center of a Western 
  culture that dominates the seas of Creation.
  Caste: Full Moon
  Anima Banner: A strong silver light grows brighter 
  until it ﬁ nally reveals a great hulking orca that shim-
  mers like the moon.
  Spirit Shape: Leviathan’s spirit shape is that of a gar-
  gantuan orca (killer whale).
  Tell: Whatever form he takes, Leviathan’s skin is dark 
  with lighter colored markings along the side of his head, 
  chin, neck, chest and underbelly.
  Attributes: *Strength 5, *Dexterity 5, *Stamina 7; 
  *Charisma 5, Manipulation 3, Appearance 4; Percep-
  tion 4, Intelligence 5 (Sail +3), Wits 4
  * Caste or Favored Attribute
  Spirit Shape (Orca) Attributes: Strength 12 (19 with 
  Emperor Ox Expansion outside mass combat), Dexter-
  ity 4 (may use his natural 5 because of Internal Form 
  Mastery), Stamina 8, Appearance 1, one additional -0 
  Health level
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 3, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 4
  Virtue Flaw: Curse of the Lone Wolf
  Abilities: Archery 2, Athletics 4 (Swimming +3), 
  Awareness 4, Bureaucracy 3, Craft (Air) 2, Craft 
  (Fire) 2, Craft (Magitech) 5, Craft (Wood) 3, 
  Dodge 3, Integrity 3, Investigation 2, Linguistics 
  (Native: Old Realm; Others: Pelagial, Seatongue, 
  First Age military codes) 3, Lore 5, Martial Arts 6 
  (orca form +3), Medicine 1, Melee 5 (tridents +1), 
  Occult 5, Performance 3, Presence 5, Resistance 5, Ride 1, 
  *Sail 6, Stealth 3, Socialize 3, *Survival 5, Thrown 5, 
  War 5 (Naval Conﬂ icts +3)
  * Favored Ability
  Backgrounds: Allies 2 (Swims in Shadows, Dweller 
  in the Deep), Artifact 5, Backing 5 (Seneschals of 
  the Sun Kings), Cult 3, Followers 4 (Whalemen and 
  Pelagothropes), Heart’s Blood 5, Manse 5 (Luthe’s 
  Demesne), Reputation 5 (Famous First Age Admiral), 
  Solar Bond 3
  Knacks: Deadly Beastman Transformation (Armored 
  Hide, Enhanced Sense: Hearing, Fangs, Inexhaustible, 
  Night Vision, Tail, Water Adaptation), Emperor Ox 
  Expansion, Internal Form Mastery, Life of the Hum-
  mingbird, Lightning-Change Style, Mountainous Spirit 
  Expression, Prey’s Skin Disguise, Quicksilver Second 
  Face, Selenographic Transmission Technique, Tower-
  ing Beast Form
  Charms: Agitation of the Swarm Technique, Armor-
  Forming Technique, Boundary-Marking Meditation, 
  Breath-Drinking Executioner Attack, Bruise-Relief 
  Method, Burrowing Devil Strike, Dog-Tongue Method, 
  Durable Battle Mind, External Hide Perfection, Eyes of 
  the Cat, Ferocious Biting Tooth, Fertile Breath Inversion, 
  First Appearance Excellency, First Charisma Excellency, 
  First Dexterity Excellency, First Intelligence Excellency, 
  First Stamina Excellency, First Strength Excellency, First 
  Wits Excellency, Flawless Intelligence Focus (Sail), Flow-
  ing Body Evasion (Valor Flaw), Form-Fixing Method, 
  Frenzied Bear Fortiﬁ cation, Furious Hound Pursuit, 
  Glance-Oration Technique, God-Cutting Essence, 
  Golden Tiger Stance, Halting the Scarlet Flow, Hide-
  
  143
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Toughening Essence, Impressions of Strength (Mighty 
  Ram Practice, Ogre’s Loving Caress, Rock-to-Pebbles 
  Attitude, Undeniable Might), Instinct-Driven Beast 
  Movement, Instinct Memory Insertion, Instinctive 
  Dexterity Unity, Instinctive Stamina Unity, Instinctive 
  Strength Unity, Keen Hearing and Touch, Lightning 
  Flash Might Methodology, Lightning Stroke Attack, 
  Lodestone Reckoning Manner, Luna’s Fortitude, Lunar 
  Hero Style (Armor-Rending Claw Fist, Den Mother 
  Method, Foot Trapping Encounter, Crouching Tiger 
  Stance, Lunar Hero Form, Rabid Beast Attitude, Run-
  ning Through the Herd, Terrible Wolverine Onslaught, 
  Thousand Claw Inﬂ iction), Maintaining the Pack, 
  Many-Armed Monkey Style, Meerkat Alertness Prac-
  tice, Might-Bolstering Blow, Moonlight Curtain Drawn, 
  North Mastery Technique, Ox-Body Technique (x7, -2 
  health levels option), Relentless Lunar Fury, Sense-Bor-
  rowing Method, Shell-Crushing Atemi, Silver Lunar 
  Resolution, Steadfast Yeddim Meditation, Tearing Claw 
  Atemi, Terrestrial Circle Sorcery, Third Charisma Ex-
  cellency, Third Dexterity Excellency, Third Perception 
  Excellency, Third Stamina Excellency, Third Strength 
  Excellency, Unstoppable Juggernaut Incarnation, Un-
  stoppable Lunar Wound, Wary Swallow Method, Wasp 
  Sting Blur, Watchful Spider Stance, West Mastery 
  Technique, Wind-Dancing Method
  Spells: Calling the Wind’s Kiss, Death of Obsidian 
  Butterﬂ ies, Demon of the First Circle, Emerald Circle 
  Banishment, Emerald Countermagic, Lightning Whip 
  Smites the Water, Summon Elemental, Written Upon 
  the Water
  Combos: 
  Dancing Salmon Escape (Flowing Body Evasion, Wary 
  Swallow Method, Wind-Dancing Method)
  Deadly Torpedo Attack (First Strength Excellency, 
  First Dexterity Excellency, Impressions of Strength, 
  Lightning Stroke Attack, Tearing Claw Atemi, Un-
  stoppable Lunar Wound)
  Swift Kraken Mode (Crouching Tiger Stance, First 
  Dexterity Excellency, First Strength Excellency, Foot-
  Trapping Encounter, Many-Armed Monkey Style, 
  Running Through the Herd, Third Dexterity Excellency, 
  Third Strength Excellency)
  Note: Leviathan can activate many Charms in con-
  junction with Deadly Beastman Transformation or 
  Relentless Lunar Fury without a Combo.
  Join Battle: 8
  Attacks: 
  Gargantuan Orca Form
  Ram (as punch): Speed 5, Accuracy 15, Damage 19B, 
  Defense 16, Rate 3
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 14, Damage 19L, Defense 11, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch (using mouth): Speed 6, Accuracy 28, 
  Damage 19B, Defense -, Rate 1
  Tail Smack (as kick): Speed 5, Accuracy 14, 
  Damage 22B, Defense 12, Rate 2
  Deadly Beastman Form
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 6L, Defense 9, 
  Rate 1
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 13, Damage 6B, Defense 14, 
  Rate 3
  ISLEBREAKER (ARTIFACT •••••)
  Islebreaker is the personal weapon of Admiral Leviathan, crafted for the Lunar by his Solar men-
  tor Kendik Arkadi during the First Age. The moonsilver trident is a potent artifact, capable of crushing 
  artifact ship hulls with the force of a tsunami. Nonetheless, the Admiral’s great trident is of little use to 
  most Exalted, as it is enchanted so that it requires others to possess Strength + Athletics of at least 60 to 
  lift or wield; Leviathan and Kendik Arkadi, or any incarnation of their Essences, may wield Islebreaker 
  as normal. When charged with Essence, Islebreaker may deliver particularly devastating blows to objects. 
  During Step 1 of combat, the wielder may spend one mote per extra +1L added to the weapon’s base 
  damage dice for a single attack against an object. The wielder may spend up to 60 motes of Essence for 
  extra damage in this manner, but motes are lost even if the blow misses. The extra damage is not subject 
  to Charms or effects that multiply damage, and if such effects are in play the Islebreaker’s extra damage 
  is added to the new base damage after they have been calculated. Islebreaker has one hearthstone setting 
  placed where the three prongs meet.
  Speed Acc. 
  Damage 
  Defense Rate Range 
  Minimums 
  Attune 
  Cost 
  Tags
  5 
  +2 
  +8L/+12L 
  +2 
  2 
  40 
  Str ••• 
  6 
  ••••• 2, D, R, L, T
   
   
   
   
   
   
   (special)
  Note: These traits do not reﬂ ect the moonsilver material bonus for melee or thrown weapons.
  
  144
  NEW KNACK: EMPEROR OX EXPANSION
  Prerequisites: Mountainous Spirit Expression, Essence 5, Stamina 5
  Lunars with this Knack crush their opposition through their massive spirit shape’s sheer might. Spend-
  ing a point of Willpower when donning the Lunar’s spirit shape increases it vastly in size, making it large 
  enough to engage in mass combat as a unit of Magnitude equal to the Lunar’s Essence. Represent the Lunar’s 
  size outside of mass combat by increasing her Strength and soak by her Essence.
  Assuming the Emperor Ox Expansion form takes time. The Speed of the shapeshifting action is mea-
  sured in long ticks, and even a Lunar with the Lightning-Change Style Knack requires a minute to assume 
  her spirit shape if she’s augmenting it with this Knack.
  NEW KNACK: SELENOGRAPHIC TRANSMISSION TECHNIQUE
  Prerequisites: Essence 3, Intelligence 3
  Leviathan developed this shapeshifting reﬁ nement Knack to enable him to communicate orders in the 
  dark of night or deep beneath the sea. For one mote of Essence, spent reﬂ exively, the Lunar’s body causes 
  her anima to brighten and dim in ﬂ ickering patterns observable for up to [user’s Essence] miles (depending 
  upon visibility). During the First Age, this helped the Lord Admiral coordinate his ﬂ eet’s naval attacks, 
  and he used it to issue the self-destruct protocol that destroyed much of the ﬂ eet during the Usurpation. 
  Luckily for future crews, Shogunate technicians managed to remove the self-destruct mechanisms, once 
  the usurpers discovered their existence. Nonetheless, some remnant vessels of the Old Realm’s Western 
  Fleet include still-functioning sensory instruments that detect the signals of this Knack at a range of [user’s 
  Essence] miles regardless of visibility, but the purpose of these devices confounds the current captains of 
  these ancient ships. Once the signal pattern is transmitted, the Lunar’s anima returns to its current state, 
  increased by one mote if the Knack was powered with Peripheral Essence. If the Steward’s anima banner is 
  already ﬂ ared to the 11+ level, then the range of this Knack is doubled. In the current era, only his whale-
  men allies and the glowing lights of Luthe’s control systems answer Leviathan’s messages.
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 9B, Defense 10, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 12, Damage 6B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Islebreaker Strike: Speed 5, Accuracy 16, Damage 
  14L/18L, Defense 16, Rate 2
  Islebreaker Thrown: Speed 5, Accuracy 14, Damage 
  14L, Range 60, Rate 2
  Soak: 3L/7B (human form); 7L/15B (gargantuan orca 
  form); 8L/12B (Deadly Beastman form)
  Health Levels: -0/-1/-1/-2x30/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 8 
   
  Willpower: 9
  Essence: 7
  Personal Essence: 25 
  Peripheral Essence: 72
  Committed Essence: None
  Other Notes: Leviathan’s moonsilver trident, Islebreaker, 
  rests on an empty throne in Luthe. Whom Leviathan 
  reserves that throne for is a secret he keeps to himself. 
  Combat traits for the weapon are included in the event 
  that he chooses to recover Islebreaker and use it.
  These traits are designed for use in a game requiring 
  only the Exalted core rulebook, The Manual of Exalted 
  Power—The Lunars and this book, on the assumption 
  that even characters with only core Charms are capable of 
  the world-shaking power appropriate to a Lunar elder of 
  Leviathan’s stature. Storytellers running higher-powered 
  games may wish to increase Leviathan’s traits using other 
  source material such as Dreams of the First Age.
  LINTHA NG HUT 
  DUKANTHA
  Infernal Exalt, 
  Prince of Malfeas
  For nearly 350 
  years, Dukantha 
  has been the Ex-
  alted prince of the 
  Demon-Blooded 
  Lintha Family 
  and unques-
  tioned emissary 
  of their Yozi progenitor, the Great Mother Kimbery. 
  Born to the unconventional Ng Hut sept, Dukantha 
  was removed from the wealth of the Gajui and the 
  martial dominance of the Haquen. The aristocrat was 
  nevertheless precocious and ambitious, cruel and noble. 
  
  145
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  At a young age, the traces of Dragon-Blood in his 
  veins led to his Exaltation. The outcaste lord became 
  an intense student of the occult, communing with the 
  isle Oroo as often as he could. During his early years, 
  he argued that the Lintha should seize the Blessed Isle 
  by force and then dominate the world. After being 
  sent to sea by his family, his politics evolved and he 
  advocated using the Lintha’s wealth to secure their 
  interests whenever possible, in lieu of sacriﬁ cing their 
  blood in fruitless endeavors.
  In his 16th year, Dukantha returned to the Cave 
  of Oroo and disappeared beyond the ken of all Lintha. 
  One year later, on the ﬁ rst day of Calibration, Dukan-
  tha rose from the earth of the isle. The Family’s Yozi 
  mistress transformed his Essence, and he had become 
  one of the Infernal Exalted. Dukantha revealed that 
  he had been with the Great Mother Kimbery, and that 
  she had returned him to Creation to teach her children 
  the proper ways. After various demonstrations of his 
  miraculous power, the Lintha accepted him as the 
  anointed emissary of the Sea That Marched Against 
  the Flame. Dukantha became the central ﬁ gure of the 
  cult dedicated to the Great Mother, and the Ng Hut 
  became the most prominent of the Greatsepts.
  In the three centuries after his Infernal Exaltation, 
  Dukantha has spent virtually all of his time in the Yozi 
  hells, slavishly serving his mistress. He typically returns 
  to Creation only for the ﬁ ve days of Calibration. In his 
  absence, the bureaucracy of the Cult of Dukantha looks 
  to the interests of their prince and the Great Mother. 
  The Infernal outcaste’s Bureaucracy and Presence 
  Charms combine with religious zeal to ensure that the 
  Cult is particularly dedicated.
  Typically Dukantha is attended by one or two 
  erymanthoi demons, which often remain dematerial-
  ized. Should he come to the aid of Bluehaven against 
  a powerful threat, Dukantha will sail Kimbery’s Dawn 
  from the hellwaters of Kimbery into the sargasso sea 
  that surrounds the isle of Oroo. This demonic vessel 
  is crewed by 144 of the most fearsome blood apes that 
  the Infernal captain could ﬁ nd. Dukantha bears the 
  hearthstone of the Cave of Oroo, the mystic heart of 
  the isle of his people. He goes forth into battle bearing 
  a veritable arsenal of artifact armaments of infernal lead 
  and greening brass. So long as the Lintha serve the 
  purposes of the Sea That Marched Against the Flame, 
  Dukantha will defend them whenever necessary.
  Should the Great Mother ask it, Dukantha would 
  sacriﬁ ce his entire Family to her whim. He is inexorably 
  her slave. Yet, Dukantha’s enemies would be foolish to 
  underestimate the favor that his Yozi mistress gives him. 
  The Lintha prince bears Kimbery’s blood in his veins and 
  her taint upon his Essence. He personally arranged the 
  transport of the 50 Solar Essences that the Neverborn 
  paid to the Yozis, carried in chests of gold and ivory 
  through the Lintha city of the dead into Creation and 
  through the Cave of Oroo into Malfeas. Though they 
  were sealed to living eyes, he was entrusted with the 
  secret devices of Essence-corruption, which the cohorts 
  of Kimbery sent to their brethren in the Underworld 
  and which ultimately created the Abyssals.
  Motivation: To serve the Sea That Marched Against 
  the Flame.
  Aspect: Water (Infernal Dragon-Blooded)
  Anima Banner: Dukantha’s corrupted Essence ﬂ oods 
  forth like the cold, green-black sea of Kimbery
  Attributes: Strength 6, Dexterity 6, Stamina 8; Cha-
  risma 4, Manipulation 4, Appearance 5; Perception 4, 
  Intelligence 6, Wits 6
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 5, Temperance 4, 
  Valor 5
  Abilities: *Archery 5, Athletics 4, Awareness 4, *Bu-
  reaucracy 4, Dodge 4, Integrity 5, Linguistics (Native: 
  Seatongue; Others: Old Realm) 1, Lore 5, *Martial 
  Arts 6, *Melee 6 (Daiklave +2), *Occult 6, Presence 5, 
  Resistance 3, Ride 3, *Sail 6, Socialize 4, War 4
  * Aspect or Favored Abilities
  Backgrounds: Allies 4, Artifact N/A, Breeding 5, Cult 4, 
  Family 5, Followers 5, Henchmen 5, Inﬂ uence 5 (Lintha), 
  Manse 5 (Gem of Sleep)
  Charms: All-Encompassing Earth Sense, Aura of 
  Invulnerability, Auspicious First Meeting Attitude, 
  Bellows-Pumping Stride, Benevolent Master’s Blessing, 
  Bestow the Saffron Mantle, Blinding Spark Distraction, 
  Brother-Against-Brother Insinuation, Conﬂ uence of 
  Savant Thought, Deck-Striding Technique, Dragon-
  Graced Arrow, Dragon-Graced Weapon, Dragonﬂ y 
  Finds Mate, Effortlessly Rising Flame, Elemental Bolt 
  Attack, Elemental Burst Technique, Elemental Concen-
  tration Trance, Elemental Empowerment Meditation, 
  Eternal Mind Meditation, Falling Star Maneuver, Fine 
  Passage Negotiating Style, First Archery Excellency, 
  First Dodge Excellency, First Integrity Excellency, First 
  Martial Arts Excellency, First Melee Excellency, First 
  Presence Excellency, First Socialize Excellency, First 
  War Excellency, Geese-Flying-South Administration, 
  Ghost-Fire Blade, Glowing Coal Radiance, Hopping 
  Firecracker Evasion, Hurricane-Predicting Glance, Jade 
  Defense, Moth to the Candle, Oath of the Ten-Thousand 
  Dragons (Yozis), Ox-Body Technique (x3), Portentous 
  Comet Deﬂ ecting Mode, Ringing Anvil Onslaught, 
  Safety Among Enemies, Sense-Destroying Method, 
  
  146
  Sense-Riding Technique, Seven Seas Wind-Luring 
  Chanty, Spirit-Chaining Strike, Spirit-Detecting Mirror 
  Technique, Spirit-Grounding Shout, Spirit-Shredding 
  Attack, Storm-Outrunning Technique, Strength of 
  Stone Technique, Sturdy Bulkhead Concentration, 
  Swallows Defend the Nest, Sweeten-the-Tap Method, 
  Terrestrial Bureaucracy Reinforcement, Terrestrial 
  Hero Style (Become the Hammer, Blade-Deﬂ ecting 
  Palm, Currents Sweep to Sea, Disarming Strike Prana, 
  Dragon-Claw Elemental Strike, Drowning Embrace, 
  Flow from the Rocks, Pounding Surf Style, Riptide 
  Method, Terrestrial Hero Form, Trireme Strikes the 
  Rocks), Terrestrial Melee Reinforcement, Third Ar-
  chery Excellency, Third Athletics Excellency, Third 
  Awareness Excellency, Third Bureaucracy Excellency, 
  Third Dodge Excellency, Third Integrity Excellency, 
  Third Lore Excellency, Third Martial Arts Excellency, 
  Third Melee Excellency, Third Occult Excellency, Third 
  Resistance Excellency, Third Ride Excellency, Third 
  Sail Excellency, Third Socialize Excellency, Third War 
  Excellency, Threshing Floor Technique, Threshold 
  Warding Stance, Unbearable Taunt Technique, Un-
  sleeping Earth Meditation, Warlord’s Convocation, 
  Wary Yellow Dog Attitude
  Combos:
  The prince of the Lintha knows few Combos, as he 
  supplements his easy access to Reﬂ exive Charms with 
  Infernal powers granted by his mistress.
  The Tide Goes Forth (Dragon-Graced Arrow, Swallows 
  Defend the Nest)
  Vortex of the Mother’s Wrath (Dragon-Graced Weapon, 
  Falling Star Maneuver, Ghost-Fire Blade, Ringing 
  Anvil Onslaught)
  Supernatural Powers:
  In addition to his Terrestrial Charms, Dukantha has access 
  to Infernal powers granted by his mistress Kimbery.
  Infernal Aura—For a cost of 10 motes of Essence, Du-
  kantha is sheathed in green ﬁ re, appearing huge and 
  terrifying for the rest of the scene. This power operates 
  as the Dawn Caste anima power, except that Infernal 
  Aura always requires 10 motes expenditure (i.e., does 
  not activate automatically at 11+ peripheral motes).
  Infernal Resilience—As part of his Infernal Exaltation, 
  Dukantha’s body is nearly impossible to destroy. Dukan-
  tha may reﬂ exively regenerate health levels at a cost 
  equal to the wound penalty (for example, a -4 health 
  level costs four motes to regenerate), with a minimum 
  cost of 1 mote. He can only activate this power once 
  per action, but may regenerate as many health levels 
  as he can afford. Additionally, Dukantha is immune to 
  poisons and diseases of all sorts.
  Infernal Sorcery—Dukantha has learned the art of 
  Infernal sorcery, and is capable of casting spells of the 
  First, Second and Third Circles. Such spells resemble 
  normal sorcery but are tied to the Yozis. Precisely which 
  spells Dukantha knows is up to the Storyteller, though 
  Dukantha has more First Circle than Second Circle 
  spells and little access to the Third Circle. Certainly he 
  knows Song of the Lintha, and Infernal equivalents to 
  Demon of the First and Second Circles, plus Emerald, 
  Sapphire and Adamant Countermagic.
  Summon Kimbery’s Dawn—For 30 motes of Essence 
  and two temporary Willpower, Dukantha may summon 
  Kimbery’s Dawn (see p. 147) to his presence, in Creation 
  or the Yozi hells, provided he is close to a body of water 
  sufﬁ cient to support the demonic vessel. No contest of 
  wills occurs, but the summoning requires two Shape 
  Celestial Circle Sorcery actions, followed by a Cast 
  Sorcery action. Kimbery’s Dawn appears immediately 
  when the Cast Sorcery action is performed, provided 
  suitable water is available, and she brings her current 
  crew and passengers.
  Summon the Sea That Marched Against the Flame—By 
  taking a six-tick Simple Charm type action, and spend-
  ing 15 motes of Essence and one temporary Willpower, 
  Dukantha may open a doorway in the sea to Malfeas, 
  allowing Kimbery’s corruption to infest the waters 
  around him. For a number of miles in all directions 
  equal to Dukantha’s permanent Essence, the sea takes 
  on a cold, green-black color. The sea becomes rank 
  and acidic, dealing 1L environmental damage per ac-
  tion to any living creature soaked by the water. Boats 
  with mundane wooden hulls will perish in a number of 
  minutes equal to half the hull’s soak. Ships with First 
  Age hulls were generally designed to be proof against 
  such horrors, and their substance extends the damage 
  period to days instead of minutes.
  The water comes alive, and tendrils of the sea lash out 
  at Dukantha’s enemies, acting as a clinch with 10 ac-
  curacy and 10L damage. A number of tentacles equal 
  to Dukantha’s permanent Essence appear, but only 
  two tentacles can attack each opponent at once and 
  the tentacles cannot dodge or parry. Each tentacle has 
  10L soak, is immune to bashing damage and takes 10 
  levels of damage to destroy. The tainted sea called up 
  by this power lasts for one scene, although the water 
  remains polluted when it ends.
  Note that use of this power is a violation of Kimbery’s 
  contract of imprisonment. Strike forces from Yu-Shan 
  go on alert when this power is used, and the Realm 
  Defense Grid registers the attack. As a result, Dukantha 
  is usually reluctant to use the power.
  
  147
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Primordial Maelstrom—Dukantha uses this power only in 
  dire circumstances; to activate it, he must have already 
  activated Summon the Sea That Marched Against the 
  Flame. He must spend an additional 20 motes of Essence 
  and another temporary Willpower, and must take a 
  six-tick Simple Charm type action, to cause the cor-
  rupted water to form a deadly vortex that pulls anything 
  within its area downward. Dukantha must continue 
  to take Simple Charm type actions to keep the power 
  active, but no further Essence is required. Vessels and 
  individuals in the water take environmental damage as 
  for an acid bath (see Exalted, p. 131, damage 5L/action, 
  trauma 5). Ship captains must succeed at a reﬂ exive 
  Wits + Sail roll (standard difﬁ culty) each action to keep 
  their vessels from capsizing, while individuals caught in 
  the vortex must succeed at a Stamina + Athletics roll 
  (difﬁ culty 3) every action to stay aﬂ oat. On Dukantha’s 
  third action, anyone currently caught within the mael-
  strom (including him) is shunted through the veil of 
  Creation into the Primordial Sea of the Yozi hells. Such 
  unfortunates continue to suffer the effects of the fetid 
  corpus of Kimbery until they can escape her waters, may 
  face repeated demonic attacks (particularly by eristrufa) 
  and must ﬁ nd their own way home.
  Join Battle: 10
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 13, Damage 6B, Defense 14, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 12, Damage 9B, Defense 10, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 12, Damage 6B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Infernal Grand Daiklave (Glittering Havoc): Speed 5, 
  Accuracy 17, Damage 18L/4, Defense 15, Rate 3
  Infernal Long Powerbow (Foreshortened Transﬁ x-
  ion): Speed 6, Accuracy 13, Damage 12L, Range 400, 
  Rate 3 (Green ﬁ re arrows, 5L additional ﬁ re damage 
  rolled separately)
  Soak: 21L/25B (Infernal superheavy plate, Virescent 
  Dawn Glory, 17L/17B, -2 mobility penalty, 2 fatigue, 
  Hardness 11L/11B) 
  Health Levels: -0/-1/-1/-1/-1/-1/-2/-2/-2/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 9 (7 with armor) 
  Willpower: 10
  Essence: 8
  Personal Essence: 23 
  Peripheral Essence: 61
  Committed Essence: 22 
  Other Notes: Lintha Ng Hut Dukantha’s Motivation 
  is tied to his Infernal Exaltation. Altering his Motiva-
  tion should be difﬁ cult on an epic scale, if doing so is 
  possible at all.
  KIMBERY’S DAWN
  Demon of the Second Circle, Progenitive Soul of the 
  Tide that Knows No Life, Dam of the Eristrufa
  When Dukantha was taken into Malfeas, to submit 
  to the will of the Sea That Marched Against the Flame, 
  a powerful demon of Kimbery sought to gain the Yozi’s 
  favor. Known as the Dam of the Eristrufa, mother of 
  the razor-tentacled man-o’-war that writhes beneath 
  the waves of Kimbery, this demon pledged to serve the 
  Yozi’s new agent in Creation. Kimbery saw the value in 
  this and remade the Dam into an Infernal ship ﬁ t for 
  her Exalted servant.
  The Dam’s great bloated body twisted and hardened 
  into a sturdy hull, her tentacles braided and stiffened into 
  dragon-ribbed sails, her beak melded into a long horn 
  with which to ram her enemies. The Dam sailed the 
  Sea That Marched Against the Flame, now the ﬂ agship 
  of the Lintha’s unholy aristocrat, the Infernal Exalted 
  Dukantha. Kimbery’s Dawn follows every command Du-
  kantha gives, without question, yet he typically chooses 
  to leave her free to conduct naval combat maneuvers 
  without detracting from his tactical attention.
  Kimbery’s Dawn is a Second Circle demon trans-
  formed into an infernal travesty of a warship of the 
  First Age. Membranous dragonwing-style sails spread 
  between blade sharp black coral spines of rigging. A 
  massive razor-tipped horn projects forward to form a 
  mighty ram, and four emerald crystal spines jut forth to 
  form malign weapons as powerful as lightning ballistae. 
  The terrifying beast-ship is 220 feet long, with a beam 
  of 132 feet and a draft of 16 feet.
  Motivation: To serve Dukantha and thereby gain the 
  favor of Kimbery.
  CAVE OF OROO (WATER MANSE •••••)
  The heart of the Cult of Dukantha is a mys-
  tic cave that is seen as the womb and mouth of 
  their people’s island sister, Lintha Ng Oroo. This 
  strange structure is a powerful manse formed from 
  the body of the isle.
  The Cave of Oroo is a ••••• rated Water 
  manse, and the hearthstone is a Gem of Sleep. 
  The manse has the ﬂ aws of Habitability • and 
  Maintenance • and offers 12 Creation points of 
  manse powers: Sympathetic Dream Link, Oth-
  erworld Gate (to Kimbery in the Yozi hells) and 
  Sentient (Lintha Ng Oroo). See the Books of 
  Sorcery, Vol. II—Oadenol’s Codex for details of 
  the hearthstone’s power and the manse’s traits.
  
  148
  Attributes: Strength 8*, Dexterity 4*, Stamina 6*; Cha-
  risma 1, Manipulation 4, Appearance 0; Perception 2, 
  Intelligence 2, Wits 4
  * These physical Attributes apply to actions taken 
  such as attacking with the rigging or ﬁ ring weapons. 
  Otherwise, Kimbery’s Dawn operates as a ship.
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 4, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 5
  Abilities: Archery 5, Awareness 5, Dodge 2, 
  Integrity 5, Linguistics (Native: Old Realm) 0, Lore 3, 
  Martial Arts 5 (Rigging +2), Occult 2, Presence 5 
  (Physical Indimidation +2), Resistance 5, Sail 3, 
  Stealth 3
  Backgrounds: Allies 1 (Dukantha), Mentor 5 (Kimbery)
  Spirit Charms:
  Confusion—For six motes of Essence and one Will-
  power, Kimbery’s Dawn can cause confusion in a victim. 
  Roll the demon’s (Manipulation + Conviction) with 
  a difﬁ culty of the target’s Essence. Success indicates 
  that the target is mildly confused, and likely to make 
  mistakes such as choosing the wrong direction at a 
  fork in the path. With at least two extra successes, the 
  target is quite confused and might believe such things 
  as traveling after dark without a lantern is a reasonable 
  thing to do. Four or more extra successes results in a 
  completely addled target, who may do very dangerous 
  things such as scaling a cliff face in the dark or sleeping 
  on the deck of an enemy ship. Fair Folk are immune 
  to this Charm. Kimbery’s Dawn typically targets ship 
  captains or navigators with this Charm.
  Cunning Thief—Kimbery’s Dawn must touch a target 
  (which may require a successful Dexterity + Martial Arts 
  roll). If this succeeds, the demon may make a reﬂ exive 
  (Wits + Temperance) roll, costing one mote for every 
  two dice, or fraction thereof. For every success the demon 
  achieves, the target loses two motes of Essence. The de-
  mon may not steal more motes than twice its Essence.
  Dreambane—For 15 motes and one Willpower, Kimbery’s 
  Dawn can shape the dreams of a sleeping target. The 
  player of the demon rolls (Manipulation + Conviction) 
  with successes controlling the degree of power held by 
  the dream. The target rolls Wits to prevent incidences 
  of dream damage from becoming real damage, with each 
  success preventing one health level. If the target suffers 
  physical damage, she may roll (Willpower + Integrity) 
  to wake up. Damage from this Charm cannot reduce a 
  target below Incapacitated.
  Essence Bite—Kimbery’s Dawn can spend three motes 
  of Essence, and for a scene, any being that touches or 
  is touched by the demon takes 1L damage from chilling 
  cold, ignoring armor and soaked only by Stamina.
  Essence Plethora—Kimbery’s Dawn has 10 extra motes 
  of Essence in her Essence pool.
  Excellencies—Kimbery’s Dawn has First and Second 
  Excellencies for the following Abilities: Martial Arts, 
  Presence and Sail.
  Ghostly Presence—This Charm works as the demon’s 
  Will-o-Wisp but can create distinct patterns, with a 
  duration up to one scene. The demon may hold conver-
  sations while unmanifested, and successes grant control 
  over the light, sound and smell of the scene (which may 
  not exceed a 10-foot radius in any direction).
  Harrow the Mind—Kimbery’s Dawn may create illusions 
  in the mind of a single target, which distract and confuse 
  its victim. The demon must spend 10 motes of Essence 
  and one Willpower to activate this Ability for a scene. 
  The demon’s player then makes a (Manipulation + 
  Performance) roll against the target’s Mental Defense 
  Value, adding a number of automatic successes equal to 
  the target’s Temperance. Only one success is necessary, 
  but additional successes add to the difﬁ culty of any ap-
  plicable roll made to break free of the illusion. Barring 
  other methods, a victim can break free by spending one 
  Willpower per success Kimbery’s Dawn gained.
  Hurry Home—For 10 motes and a Willpower point, 
  Kimbery’s Dawn can immediately transport herself to 
  any location within the acrid waters of its mistress. Used 
  in the Yozi hells, the demon may immediately pass to 
  any point on the surface of the seas contained within 
  Malfeas. In Creation, the ship may only transport to 
  a region speciﬁ cally attuned to Kimbery, such as those 
  created by Dukantha’s special powers. This Charm does 
  not allow Kimbery’s Dawn to pass from Creation to the 
  Yozi hells, or the opposite; the Charm merely enables 
  movement within one or the other.
  Landscape Travel—Kimbery’s Dawn may pay ﬁ ve motes of 
  Essence to move across the water at 70 mph, regardless 
  of the wind direction, for one hour.
  Malediction—Kimbery’s Dawn can inﬂ ict a curse on one 
  being with an Essence rating less than the demon’s. For 
  15 motes and one temporary Willpower, the target suffers 
  from terrible misfortune. This curse lasts for one week 
  (although it ends early if the target dies), and causes 
  the victim’s player to roll one less die for every action 
  the character takes. Whenever Kimbery’s Dawn uses this 
  power, the demon becomes visible to astrological and 
  Fate-based effects for the duration of the Charm.
  Materialize—Kimbery’s Dawn can materialize for 55 
  motes. Whenever Kimbery’s Dawn carries a crew or pas-
  sengers, it must cause them to materialize or dematerialize 
  along with it for a cost of one mote per target. Targets 
  who are able to do so may materialize or dematerialize 
  
  149
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  on their own, and if they choose to do so, then they 
  do not count against the demon’s Essence. If there are 
  too many targets for Kimbery’s Dawn to affect, then the 
  vessel may not materialize or dematerialize.
  Measure the Wind—Kimbery’s Dawn has uncanny senses 
  and, for one mote, may use this reﬂ exive Charm to 
  measure the strength of her enemies.
  Principle of Motion—Kimbery’s Dawn typically has seven 
  extra actions stockpiled.
  Shapechange—For one mote of Essence, Kimbery’s Dawn 
  may take the form of a mundane ship or a large sea 
  creature such as a whale. She can no longer assume 
  her eristrufa or mist forms.
  Sustenance—The demon must touch a sleeping mortal 
  to activate this Charm and feed on her dreams. For three 
  motes, the demon may roll (Wits + Temperance), with 
  each success devouring one mote of Essence.
  Tracking—Kimbery’s Dawn may track enemies, even 
  across the water. The vessel spends ﬁ ve motes of Essence, 
  and rolls (Perception + Compassion). The difﬁ culty of 
  the check is equal to the Essence of the creature being 
  tracked (or 1 in the case of a quarry without an Essence 
  trait), modiﬁ ed by any supernatural evasive techniques 
  the quarry can bring to bear.
  Will-o-Wisp—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence, the demon 
  causes brief, somewhat muddled manifestations of 
  sound, smell and light, such as a ball of illumination 
  or indistinct hints of conversation. Roll the demon’s 
  (Manipulation + Valor). The more successes, the more 
  noticeable these manifestations are (louder, brighter), 
  though the manifestations may not exceed one action 
  in duration. This Charm may not be used in precise 
  ways—no writing words, making pictures in light or 
  speaking distinct phrases.
  Join Battle: 9
  Attacks:
  Ram: Speed 6, Accuracy 11, Damage 30L, Defense 11, 
  Rate 1 (defense inapplicable against ranged attacks or 
  enemies smaller than ship-sized)
  Rigging Slash: Speed 6, Accuracy 12, Damage 15L/2, 
  Defense 10, Rate 2 (may only attack or parry against 
  enemies on the deck area)
  Infernal Cannons (x4): Speed 6, Accuracy 11, 
  Damage 20L (piercing), Rate 1, Range 1,000
  Note: Each infernal cannon may only ﬁ re 20 shots per 
  day before the cannon must rest. Firing each cannon 
  requires an action, though Kimbery’s Dawn may use 
  Principle of Motion to ﬁ re more than one. A cannon 
  may only ﬁ re once per action, and cannot ﬁ re more 
  often even as part of a magical ﬂ urry. Each shot costs 
  three motes of Essence. Three cannons ﬁ re forward, 
  one ﬁ res aft; all have ﬁ ring arcs of 270 degrees, with 70 
  degrees of upward elevation and 15 degrees of down. 
  The attack is a searing beam of green light, drawing its 
  nature from the penetrating beams of Ligier.
  Speed: 10/20 mph under sail; 34/70mph under Land-
  scape Travel Charm’s power
  Maneuverability: -5S (under sail); -2S (under power)
  Endurance: Under sail, none; under power, limited 
  only by Essence
  Crew: 145/0 (or 145/1 if piloted by Dukantha)
  Cargo: No space beyond that taken by the listed 
  crew size
  Armor: 50B/50L (Hardness: 50B/50L) 
  Health Levels: Ux50/Mx30/Cx10/Ix10/D
  Weapons: See Attacks, above.
  Dodge DV: 0 
   
  Willpower: 7
  Essence: 4 
  Essence Pool: 85
  Cost to Materialize: 55, plus special regarding others
  Other Notes: Kimbery’s Dawn is treated as a creature of 
  darkness for the purposes of Charms or powers that have 
  special effects. It is also treated as an object for Charms 
  that work differently for objects. For armor, health levels 
  and movement purposes, Kimbery’s Dawn uses vehicle 
  traits (see Wonders of the Lost Age, pp. 31-33).
  ADMIRAL TIRAK
  Commander of the 
  Navy of the Coral Archi-
  pelago, Heroic Mortal
  Only ﬁ ve foot ten 
  and 145 pounds, Tirak 
  is nonetheless feared 
  by his enemies and 
  applauded by his allies. 
  One withering glance 
  from this sinister-look-
  ing, dark-haired and 
  dark-eyed Westerner is 
  enough to silence all but the bravest or most foolish souls. 
  Admiral Tirak possesses fairly basic skills in personal 
  combat, but these are never tested. He surrounds himself 
  with loyal bodyguards and diligent advisors. Those who 
  threaten him without political backing are summarily 
  beaten, often to death. If someone truly angers Tirak, 
  he will hire assassins to kill their family.
  Admiral Tirak is a patriot, and wants nothing less 
  than the ascension of his country to empire. Fellow 
  ofﬁ cers may disapprove of his harsh tactics, but they 
  respect his devotion to Coral. He ﬁ ghts naval battles 
  the same way he ﬁ ghts his personal ones, carefully ma-
  neuvering Coral vessels manned with foreign recruits 
  
  150
  into battle while husbanding the strength of his own 
  countrymen. His policy of ignoring the dark pasts of 
  naval applicants was initially controversial, but he has 
  quietly demonstrated its pragmatic value. Rewarding 
  the hard work and valor of heroic sailors inspires others 
  to follow suit. Tirak promotes talented naval ofﬁ cers 
  who demonstrate exceptional loyalty and patriotism to 
  his own cadre of captains and staff.
  Tirak considers himself an intellectual powerhouse 
  who was wrongfully denied the blessings of Dragon-
  Blood, even going so far as to become proﬁ cient in 
  High Realm and Gateway. He disdains gambling and 
  the use of drugs as the activities of the weak-minded. 
  His studies of thaumaturgy have borne fruit, and he is 
  an adept weather-worker. The private activities of the 
  Admiral are disturbing, and could potentially ruin him if 
  they became public knowledge. Tirak likes women, but 
  he is a sadist who gets his sexual thrills from torment-
  ing them. He is also a homophobe, and has discreetly 
  kidnapped and tortured to death a number of homo-
  sexuals. In the past few years, his studies have delved 
  into the Art of the Dead. Initially, the admiral chose 
  to study the dead in order to ward against the threat of 
  the Skullstone Archipelago. Spies from Onyx hope to 
  turn Tirak to the service of the Bodhisattva Anointed 
  by Dark Water, and have delivered Tirak necromantic 
  texts while trying to gather evidence or control of his 
  vices. Thus far, the admiral has been successful in ruth-
  lessly suppressing any trace of his secrets. 
  Motivation: To turn the Coral Archipelago into a 
  powerful and prosperous empire under his command.
  Attributes: Strength 2, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3; Cha-
  risma 3, Manipulation 5, Appearance 3; Perception 4, 
  Intelligence 4, Wits 3
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 5, Temperance 3, 
  Valor 2
  Abilities: Archery 1, Athletics 1 (Swimming 
  +1), Awareness 3 (Spotting Enemy Ships +1), 
  Bureaucracy 4 (Naval Bureaucracy +3), Craft 
  (Water) 1, Craft (Wood) 1, Dodge 3, Integrity 3 
  (Resist Urge to Gamble or Take Drugs +2), Investiga-
  tion 3 (Finding People’s Weaknesses +2), Larceny 1, 
  Linguistics (Native: Seatongue; Others: Coral Naval 
  Codes, High Realm, Old Realm) 3, Lore 3 (Naval 
  History +1, Gateway +1), Martial Arts 1, Medicine 1 
  (Torture +1), Melee 1, Occult 3 (Art of the Dead +1, 
  Art of Weather Working +2), Performance 2, Pres-
  ence 4 (Indimidation +3), Resistance 1, Ride 1, Sail 4, 
  Stealth 2 (Inconspicuously Leaving the Scene +1), 
  Socialize 4 (Sensing Weaknesses +2), Survival 1 (At 
  Sea +1), Thrown 1, War 3 (Naval Combat +1)
  Backgrounds: Allies 5, Artifact 2 (cord of winds, 
  freshwater pearl), Backing 5 (Coral Archipela-
  go), Contacts 4 (Coral Archipelago and Onyx), 
  Followers 4, Inﬂ uence 3, Resources 5
  Charms: None
  Join Battle: 6 (7 if his Awareness specialty applies)
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 5, Damage 2B, Defense 6, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 4, Damage 5B, Defense 2, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 4, Damage 2B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Exceptional Slashing Sword: Speed 4, Accuracy 6, 
  Damage 6L, Defense 5, Rate 3
  Exceptional Thrown Knife: Speed 5, Accuracy 5, Dam-
  age 5L*, Range 25, Rate 3
  * Stoneﬁ sh venom: Damage 7L/hour, Toxicity 4, Toler-
  ance –/–, Penalty -4, Resources 3
  Soak: 4L/5B (Exceptional chain shirt concealed under 
  clothes, 4L/2B, -0 mobility penalty, 0 fatigue)
  Health Levels: -0/-1/-1/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 3 
  Willpower: 8
  Essence: 1
  Other Notes: Admiral Tirak is typically protected by 
  ﬁ ve personal bodyguards. Treat them as elite soldiers 
  from Exalted, p. 280, though they are not extras. These 
  men are chosen because they are loyal to Tirak and are 
  misogynists or homophobes. Depending upon the cir-
  cumstances, hundreds of sailors and marines might also 
  join the fray. If pressed in combat, Tirak will hurl three 
  knives coated with rare and deadly stoneﬁ sh poison, and 
  ﬁ ght a retreating battle as he maneuvers toward a rallying 
  group of allies.
  LINTHA DEMON-BLOOD
  Descendant of the Sea That 
  Marched Against the Flame
  The line of Lintha 
  descended from the Great 
  Mother is very old, dating 
  back to before the Exalted 
  defeated the Primordials. 
  Over the ages, 
  unions with 
  o u t s i d e r s 
  have diluted 
  the blood of the 
  Lintha. Grand-
  mother Ooloo’s 
  carefully orches-
  
  151
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  trated breeding program has returned some of the strength 
  and power of the Family. Lintha Demon-Blooded are 
  expected to mate before their sterilization and initiation 
  into the Cult of Dukantha. Bred for combat and physical 
  exertion, the Demon-Blooded of the Lintha are typically 
  powerfully built and exceptionally healthy. Their natural 
  attributes are enhanced by a brutal training regimen.
  Motivation: Varies. A typical Motivation for a Lintha 
  Demon-Blooded might be, “To build a personal ﬂ eet 
  and become a revered elder.”
  Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 3, Stamina 3; Cha-
  risma 3, Manipulation 3, Appearance 2; Perception 3, 
  Intelligence 3, Wits 4
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 3, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 3
  Abilities: Archery 3, Athletics 2, Awareness 2, 
  Bureaucracy 3, Craft (Wood) 1, Dodge 3, Integrity 2, 
  Larceny 3, Linguistics (Native: Seatongue; Others: 
  Old Realm, Flametongue) 2, Lore 1, Martial Arts 2, 
  Medicine 1, Melee 3, Occult 1, Presence 2, 
  Resistance 3, Sail 4, Stealth 1, Socialize 1, Survival 1, 
  Thrown 3, War 3
  Backgrounds: Allies 2 (other Lintha), 
  Backing 2, Contacts 2, Inheritance 1 (Demon-Blood), 
  Mentor 1, Resources 2
  Powers/Charms:
  Attune to Yozi Hells—For one Willpower or three motes 
  of Essence, the Demon-Blooded can sense demons 
  (whether material or immaterial) and Infernal magic 
  within range of his senses for one scene.
  Essence Pool—The Demon-Blooded has an Essence 
  pool of 20 motes. He can access six motes of Essence 
  normally, but the remaining 14 motes require him 
  to spend one Willpower point to gain access for the 
  remainder of the scene.
  Excellencies—The Demon-Blooded has First Excellen-
  cies for Athletics, Awareness, Melee and Sail. He may 
  add no more than (Attribute + Ability) dice to a roll 
  with these Charms.
  Landscape Travel—For ﬁ ve motes, the Demon-Blooded 
  doubles his rate, when swimming or using watershoes, 
  for the duration of the scene.
  Wyld Armor—With this Charm, the Demon-Blooded 
  protects himself against the ravages of the Wyld. For three 
  motes, the Demon-Blooded adds (Essence) dice to his 
  resistance against the Wyld for a full day. For every two 
  motes committed to the Charm, the Demon-Blooded 
  can extend this protection to one other person.
  Mutations: Almost half the Lintha population now 
  carry the Gills afﬂ iction, even though the original 
  Lintha race had no such mutation. Lintha with gills 
  never suffer atrophied lungs.
  Join Battle: 6
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 6, Damage 4B, Defense 7, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 5, Damage 7B, Defense 3, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 5, Damage 4B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Exceptional Auhzian: Speed 4, Accuracy 9, Damage 
  9L, Defense 8, Rate 2, Tags D
  Soak: 5L/11B (Reinforced buff jacket, +5L/+8B, -2 
  mobility, 2 fatigue)
  Health Levels: -0/-1/-1/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 4/2 
  Willpower: 5
  Essence: 2 
  Essence Pool: 20
  Other Notes: These traits represent a sample Lintha 
  Demon-Blooded; individuals may vary signiﬁ cantly. 
  Demon-Blooded Lintha are typically heroic mortals 
  rather than extras. Additionally, Demon-Blooded 
  Lintha heal, bleed and resist disease as Exalted due to 
  the strength of these Lintha’s blood.
  MUTANTS AND BEASTMEN
  The West is home to many Wyld mutants and 
  beastmen. These individuals are sometimes still human 
  enough that they might Exalt, but few humans would 
  THE AUHZIAN
  pronounced OW-zee-ahn
  Reviled as the trademark weapon of the Lintha, the auhzian is a razor-sharp straight-bladed sword 
  with a wide, serrated hook curving back from the tip. This hook is used for disarming and for scrambling 
  up the sides of enemy ships. An auhzian has no soft hilt covering, and the hilt, pommel and hand guard 
  all feature pointed blades that can be used to stab and cut. Successful Lintha often inherit, are rewarded 
  with or commission an exceptional auhzian.
  Speed 
  Acc 
  Damage 
  Defense 
  Rate 
  Minimums 
  Cost 
  Tags
  4 
  +2 
  +4L 
  +1 
  2 
  S•••,D••• 
  ••• 
  D
  
  152
  claim them as anything but a breed of monster. The 
  following entries, for Deep Sages, Kaigani Berg Riders, 
  pelagothropes, sharkmen and Shadow Swimmers, present 
  packages of Wyld mutations common to each breed.
  Traits for mortals can be found starting on Exalted, 
  p. 278. Apply the packages of mutations presented here 
  to determine the traits of the various types of Western 
  Wyld mutants and beastmen.
  WYLD MUTATIONS
  Rules for Wyld mutations, and numerous examples 
  of them, can be found in the Exalted core rulebook, 
  beginning on p. 288. Additional rules and examples may 
  be found in the Manual of Exalted Power—Lunars (p. 
  206) and The Compass of Celestial Directions, Vol. 
  II—The Wyld (p. 144).
  This section offers additional Wyld mutations, with 
  an eye toward those that are particularly suitable for 
  denizens of the West.
  POXES:
  Bio-luminescence: The character can give off a lu-
  minescent glow that provides enough light to see with 
  up to 10 yards away while underwater.
  Changing Coloration: This pox is an inferior version 
  of Chameleon afﬂ iction. The character cannot use 
  her control over her skin tone to conceal herself, but 
  she can change her markings and skin color at will to 
  form decorative patterns. Deep Sages have developed 
  a non-verbal language using skin color, which is their 
  preferred method of communication. A character can 
  learn this language as a normal Linguistics specialty 
  but cannot communicate with this language unless he 
  also has this pox.
  Enhanced Senses (fogsense): This pox works as 
  a version of the normal Enhanced Senses pox, but it 
  only grants the mutant the ability to ignore all fog for 
  the purposes of visibility conditions, and to apply the 
  normal pox’s bonus of two dice to Awareness rolls in-
  volving targets concealed by fog. The ability to pierce 
  fog depends on a combination of enhanced sight and 
  hearing, and mutants who regularly use fogsense often 
  assume an unnaturally quiet lifestyle.
  Mouth Tentacles: This pox causes the character’s 
  mouth to be surrounded by short tentacles ranging in 
  length from six inches to 24 inches. These tentacles are 
  very weak, essentially a less functional (and less easily 
  concealed) version of the Prehensile Tail afﬂ iction.
  Sonar: The character constantly emits high-pitched 
  sounds and visualize his surroundings from the resulting 
  echoes. Mechanically, the character can see underwater 
  far beyond her normal visual range. The character can 
  also ignore all penalties for blind-ﬁ ghting as long as she 
  has access to this mutation.
  AFFLICTIONS:
  Shark Sight: The character can identify living targets 
  at great range by sensing their internal Essences. The 
  range for this sight is 10 yards while out of water or 200 
  yards while in water. Shark Sight also forms the basis of the 
  Shadow Swimmers’ unusual Essence-based language. A 
  character can learn this language as a normal Linguistics 
  specialty but only if he also has this mutation.
  ABOMINATIONS:
  Fish-Body: The character’s legs are replaced with the 
  lower half of a large ﬁ sh, shark or dolphin. Alternately, 
  the character’s legs might be replaced with a multitude 
  of tentacles similar to the lower half of a large squid or 
  octopus. In the former case, the character’s swimming 
  speed is multiplied by four. In the latter case, swimming 
  speed is only multiplied by two, but the character gains 
  the Tentacles blight for free. In either case, the char-
  acter gains +2 to all Athletics rolls while underwater, 
  but moves at only half normal movement rate while 
  out of water.
  Fog Carrier: The mutant carries a bit of the frozen fog 
  of the Northern Wyld with her wherever she goes. Frigid 
  mist ﬂ ows from her body in a radius of approximately 
  one yard. Anyone engaging the mutant in hand-to-
  hand combat suffers the potentially deadly effects of 
  frozen fog. This thin layer of mist is not sufﬁ cient to 
  interfere with normal visibility, though the mist may 
  play a role in suitable stunts. See The Compass of 
  Celestial Directions, Vol. II—The Wyld for complete 
  rules for frozen fog.
  PELAGOTHROPE
  Pelagothropes are unquestionably the most common 
  Wyld-tainted humanoids of the Western Ocean. Strictly 
  speaking, any human with obvious Wyld mutations that 
  enhance her ability to operate in the water and to adapt 
  to a saltwater environment is a pelagothrope. However, 
  many pelagothropes display other mutations, which 
  typically divide them from one another in their own 
  eyes and those of outsiders. Bloody battles over oceanic 
  territory are at least as common among pelagothropes 
  as similar conﬂ icts are among land-dwellers.
  Pelagothropes differ greatly in the degree to which 
  they are bound to the sea. Some pelagothropes have 
  merely been adapted to the Western Ocean, their skin 
  turned blue or green, with webbed hands and feet. These 
  tribes may drink saltwater without harm and hold their 
  
  153
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  breath for longer periods of time, but they must ultimately 
  live above water. Others have mutated so that they have 
  functioning gills in their necks, cheeks or chests, allowing 
  them to breath water and air alike. These pelagothropes 
  live beneath the waves, although some tribes must raise 
  their young on the shore because their gills form over 
  time rather than being present at birth. Still other pel-
  agothropes have gills, but suffer from atrophied or absent 
  lungs, and these mariners are conﬁ ned to the undersea. 
  Tribes that can breathe air or water equally, and whose 
  young do not require air, are among the most elusive 
  and aggravating raiders of the West. The most aberrant 
  of pelagothropes are barely human at all.
  Pelagothrope breeds are spread across the Western 
  Ocean. Northern breeds often have thick layers of 
  fat and leathery skin, more reminiscent of seals than 
  ﬁ sh. Southern tribes often have color-changing skin 
  that camouﬂ ages them from their enemies. Those 
  pelagothropes that travel furthest to the West are 
  often assimilated into the Wyld, becoming stories of 
  cold-blooded marine raiders, seductive mermaids or 
  withered fonts of piscine wisdom.
  Luthan pelagothropes are especially mutated com-
  pared to their surface cousins, and may have almost 
  any mutation.
  Wyld Mutations: All pelagothropes have the pox 
  Water Adaptation. Most also possess the Gills afﬂ iction 
  (roll for lung atrophy). Some pelagothropes have one 
  or more other Wyld mutations, the most common being 
  Chameleon, Enhanced Sense, Fangs, Fish Scales, Night 
  Vision, Thick Skin, Tail, Ugly and Wyld Assimilation.
  SHARKMAN
  The Great Western Ocean is home to a variety of 
  monstrous humanoid shark creatures. Sharkmen are 
  the most feared and numerous beastmen breed found 
  in the West. They breed rapidly and can easily escape 
  into the water if a conﬂ ict goes poorly for them. These 
  beastmen are fully amphibious, and raise their young 
  underwater. As creatures of the Wyld, sharkmen’s forms 
  can vary signiﬁ cantly, but most sharkmen belong to 
  fairly stabilized breeds. Sharkmen are savage warriors 
  with nigh-endless hunger, and no regard for other life 
  forms. Those sharkmen who adopt any semblance of 
  Creation’s cultures typically worship the bloodthirsty 
  goddess Siakal (see p. 138).
  The people of Wavecrest, the Neck, Coral and 
  Skullstone consider sharkman-hunting a deed of valor 
  and a public service. Unfortunately, it is easy to confuse 
  sharkmen with superﬁ cially similar creatures that are 
  usually even more dangerous, and doing so can be a fatal 
  mistake. Fair Folk of the Western Seas spawn a type of 
  hobgoblin warrior known as siaka-men. The children 
  of Siakal (see p. 131), and their divine matron, can 
  assume a humanoid shark form. Most sharkmen tribes 
  ﬁ ercely attack siaka-men invaders, with neither side 
  likely to give any quarter. The children of the Western 
  war goddess are often treated as ancestor spirits.
  Wyld Mutations: Poxes: Elemental Adaptation: 
  Water, Enhanced Smell, Fangs, Shark Hide (as Fish 
  Scales), Large; Afﬂ ictions: Gills (no lung atrophy), 
  Wyld Assimilation (for Wyld-dwellers only); Deﬁ cien-
  cies: Atrophy (Intelligence), Ugly; Debility: Diet (Raw 
  Meat); Deformity: Short Life
  Other Notes: Sample traits for a beastman can 
  be found in Exalted, pp. 282-283. Simply replace the 
  Wyld mutations with those found here. Sharkmen 
  rarely wear armor, as it restricts their underwater 
  movement. If they use weapons, these are usually 
  javelins, spears or knives.
  SHADOW SWIMMER
  Shadow swimmers are fully described on p. 114. 
  Most use the trait package for regular troops or elite 
  soldiers.
  Wyld Mutations: Poxes: Claws, Elemental Adap-
  tation (Water), Enhanced Senses (Smell), Enhanced 
  Senses (Underwater Vision), Shark Hide (as Fish 
  Scales), Large; Afﬂ ictions: Gills (no lung atrophy), Shark 
  Bite (as Tusks), Shark Sight. Shadow Swimmers of ex-
  ceptional breeding often possess the Huge afﬂ iction.
  DEEP SAGE
  Deep Sages are fully described on p. 113. Many use 
  the trait package for savants/elders/thaumaturges.
  Wyld Mutations: Poxes: Claws, Elemental Adapta-
  tion (Water), Changing Coloration, Mouth Tentacles; 
  Afﬂ ictions: Toxin. Deep Sages of exceptional breeding 
  often possess the Bio-luminescence pox. Some also pos-
  sess the Tentacles blight.
  KAIGANI BERG RIDER
  Unlike most Wyld mutant types, all Kaigani have 
  a singular origin. The pirate warlord Kaigan and his 
  cutthroats terrorized the sea-lanes of the Wavecrest 
  Archipelago for decades before being crushed by Realm 
  Navy forces under Peleps Ursa. The broken pirate ﬂ eet 
  ﬂ ed into the ice ﬂ oes of the North and disappeared from 
  history. In recent years, a horde of Wyld barbarians has 
  emerged from the North, calling themselves the Kaigani 
  and claiming descent from the fugitive corsairs. Finding 
  regional resistance from the Imperial Fleet scant in the 
  
  154
  current age, the scions of the lost pirates have taken to 
  plundering the Northeastern Seas again.
  Kaigani sail from the North astride massive icebergs, 
  which seem to move according to the desires of the 
  Wyld-tainted raiders. Banks of the deadly frozen fog of 
  the Northern Wyld surround the Kaigani’s icy ﬂ eets and 
  cling to the berg riders. Emerging from the pale mist, the 
  Kaigani ﬁ ght in the nude, and foes are dismayed by the 
  sight of their transparent frozen ﬂ esh, the azure blood that 
  ﬂ ows sluggishly beneath glassy skin and the dim outlines of 
  internal organs in grossly displayed motion. Their weap-
  ons are typically axes and spears made of ice hardened by 
  thaumaturgy and stained with frozen blood.
  The magic displayed by the berg riders is intriguing 
  and disturbing to their enemies. Kaigani Wyld shamans 
  specialize in the thaumaturgical Art of Weather Working. 
  They know rituals that can direct the path of ﬂ oating 
  icebergs and banks of frozen fog. In addition, they perform 
  Enchantment rituals that combine with the unnatural 
  cold to allow their people to use weapons carved from 
  ice. Kaigani speak a strange dialect that seems to be a 
  corrupted form of Seatongue, though survivors of attacks 
  report that the raiders are eerily silent during battles.
  Wyld Mutations: Poxes: Elemental Adaptation 
  (Air), Enhanced Senses (fogvision); Deﬁ ciencies: Tem-
  perature Sensitivity (heat); Abominations: Fog Carrier, 
  Stone Body (ice)
  Other Notes: Sample traits for a Wyld barbarian or 
  Wyld shaman can be found in Exalted, pp. 286-288. Simply 
  add the Kaigani Wyld mutations and some dots of Sail.
  MONSTERS AND ANIMALS OF 
  THE WEST
  The West is home to many creatures dangerous 
  to human life. Some are creatures of Creation, whose 
  natural characteristics are inherently threatening. Oth-
  ers are products of the Wyld, the Primordials or other 
  powerful ﬁ gures. This section includes a sampling of 
  such creatures, and additional ones can be found in such 
  sources as the Exalted core rulebook and The Compass 
  of Celestial Directions, Vol. II—The Wyld.
  MONSTERS
  OLIPHEM
  Watcher of the Sea
  Before Creation became what it is now, Oliphem 
  watched over its waters, guiding friendly ships to safety. 
  Standing more than 150 yards tall, this giant of stone 
  and iron walked upon the surface of the Western Sea, 
  shining warning light 
  from the great lens that 
  Oliphem possessed in 
  place of a face. From 
  this lens, Oliphem 
  could see everything 
  that occurred on the 
  surface of the ocean, 
  and the Watcher of 
  the Sea would signal 
  ships from afar to steer them away from danger. Many 
  sailors used Oliphem’s signal light as an important point 
  of navigation.
  Oliphem refused to choose sides in any conﬂ ict, 
  for the race of beings Oliphem once honored above all 
  others was devoured in the time of the Primordials and 
  existed no more. The ships Oliphem once protected sail 
  the seas no longer, but Oliphem nonetheless protected 
  other vessels out of an endlessly abiding sense of duty. 
  Unfortunately for the Watcher of the Sea, this neu-
  trality was to prove Oliphem’s tragic downfall. When 
  the Exalted went to war against the Lintha, Oliphem 
  helped ﬂ eets on both sides equally. The Solar prince 
  Desus determined to put an end to this, and plied the 
  Watcher with exquisite offerings and ﬂ attering words. 
  Timing his plans with those of the Exalted ﬂ eets, Desus 
  struck Oliphem by surprise, shattering its great lens with 
  a single blow from Desus’s mighty ﬁ st. Caught unawares, 
  scores of Lintha vessels perished and Solar sorcerers 
  struck the isle of Oroo with a catastrophic storm.
  Nearly blinded (at least relative to its peerless 
  sight), and in terrible pain, Oliphem could not keep 
  Desus from escaping, and the Solar returned to his 
  people a great hero. The Watcher of the Sea wandered 
  the oceans, alone and bitter. Every day, Oliphem sinks 
  beneath the waves to slumber on the seabed, rising to 
  the surface as night falls.
  Oliphem continues to steer vessels away from 
  harm, although the Watcher’s abilities to do so are 
  severely curtailed. Nonetheless, it can still see about 
  as well as a man standing atop a lighthouse 150 yards 
  high. The Watcher of the Sea does not save ships out 
  of concern for the people who sail them, but because 
  of Oliphem’s conviction in its ancient duty. Whatever 
  Oliphem’s motives, numerous stories tell of it helping 
  desperate sailors during terrible storms, driving ships 
  away from submerged reefs or pushing broken vessels 
  to shore before they sink.
  The return of the Solars creates an interesting 
  situation for the Watcher of the Sea. It hates Desus 
  with an undying passion, and will surely try to destroy 
  
  155
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  the newest incarnation of his Essence in a ﬁ t of un-
  controllable rage should Oliphem ever encounter him. 
  Unbeknownst to Oliphem, the Solars’ return could 
  prove to be the Watcher’s salvation. A skilled Solar 
  from the Twilight Caste could certainly ﬁ x Oliphem’s 
  lens, restoring the Watcher to its former glory. Sadly, 
  the race that the Watcher originally served has been 
  extinct since before the dawn of the First Age, so 
  restoring Oliphem’s lens cannot heal the Watcher’s 
  sense of aimlessness.
  Motivation: To protect the ships that sail upon the sea.
  Attributes: Strength 20, Dexterity 5, Stamina 15; Cha-
  risma 5, Manipulation 4, Appearance 2; Perception 2, 
  Intelligence 7, Wits 5
  Virtues: Compassion 2, Conviction 5, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 5
  Abilities: Archery 7 (Piercing Gaze +3), Athletics 5 
  (Balancing on Rough Waters +3), Awareness 2, 
  Dodge 4, Integrity 5 (Sense of Duty +3), Investigation 3 
  (Finding Ships +3), Lore 5 (Ancient History +3), Martial 
  Arts 5, Occult 2, Presence 5, Resistance 5, Survival 1
  Powers:
  Indestructible—Oliphem may only be harmed by sor-
  cery or attacks enhanced with Essence. Additionally, 
  Oliphem can parry with its arms and legs, as they are 
  tough enough to deﬂ ect most attacks. Oliphem effec-
  tively has an unlimited number of Incapacitated health 
  levels, and Oliphem’s body heals from even the most 
  crippling damage at the same rate as an Exalted. Only 
  power on the order of the Celestines or the Primordials 
  can actually kill Oliphem. A Solar might be able to do 
  so with a Solar Circle Sorcery spell created solely for 
  the purpose of destroying the Watcher.
  Piercing Gaze—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence, Oliphem could 
  release a burning stream of cold, blue-tinted light at a 
  range of 10 miles. This attack mode is currently inoper-
  able, as the Watcher’s lens is not indestructible.
  Sense Domain—For ﬁ ve motes of Essence and one 
  temporary Willpower, Oliphem could automatically 
  observe everything that occurred on the surface of 
  the Western Ocean. The Watcher of the Sea did not 
  understand everything it saw, and could be deceived. 
  This power lasted for an entire day. This power is cur-
  rently inoperable due to the broken lens.
  Walk on Water—Oliphem can walk on the surface of 
  the water as though it were dry land, or reﬂ exively 
  choose to sink beneath the waves like a stone. The 
  Watcher can also walk on land, but has never been 
  known to do so.
  Join Battle: 7
  Attacks:
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 11, Damage 20B, Defense 12, 
  Rate 3
  Kick: Speed 5, Accuracy 10, Damage 23B, Defense 8, 
  Rate 2
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 25, Damage 20B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Piercing Gaze: Speed 6, Accuracy 20, Damage 25A, 
  Rate 3, Range 10 miles**
  Note: Oliphem cannot currently use its Piercing Gaze 
  attack.
  Soak: 27L/30B (Stone and iron construction, 20L/15B, 
  Hardness: 20L/15B)
  Health Levels: -0x30/-1x30/-2x30/-4x10/Incap
  Dodge DV: 9 
   
  Willpower: 10
  Essence: 9 
  Essence Pool: 140
  Other Notes: The Piercing Gaze attack is only available 
  if someone ﬁ xes Oliphem’s lens. Fixing the lens would 
  also raise Oliphem’s Perception and Awareness traits 
  to 7, and increase the range of the Watcher’s ability to 
  detect events on the surface of the ocean.
  PELAGIAL
  Pelagials are 
  hideously mutated 
  creatures, too inhu-
  man to be graced with 
  Exaltation, yet they are 
  still humanoid. Their 
  upper torsos appear to 
  be those of a man or 
  woman, with a thick 
  layer of blubber to 
  protect them from the 
  cold. Their hair is long and thick, like kelp, and their 
  eyes are huge and black, adapted to seeing in the depths 
  of the ocean. Their lower halves have been transformed 
  into those of a manatee or bull seal. They are huge, and 
  ponderous on land, but their tails and webbed hands 
  help them swim swiftly through the watery depths where 
  they live. Pelagial skin is faded to a pale white, rarely 
  touched by the sun.
  Pelagials have scavenged the bottom of the sea, 
  and conquered many of its demesnes. Despite having 
  no Exalted, the pelagials’ culture produces an amazing 
  number of savants capable of recreating minor artifacts 
  or manses. Literacy is prevalent, and the secrets of past 
  ages await discovery in countless pelagial hoards.
  Motivation: Varies. A typical Motivation for a pelagial 
  might be, “To conquer the isles of the West in the name 
  of their Yozi patron.”
  
  156
  Attributes: Strength 6, Dexterity 2, Stamina 5; Cha-
  risma 3, Manipulation 3, Appearance 1; Perception 4, 
  Intelligence 2, Wits 3
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 2, Temperance 2, 
  Valor 2
  Abilities: Athletics (Swim +3), Awareness 3, 
  Bureaucracy, Craft (Earth) 2, Dodge 3, Integrity 2, 
  Investigation 2 (Search +2), Linguistics (Native: 
  Pelagial; Others: Seatongue) 1, Lore 2, Martial 
  Arts 4, Melee 2, Occult 2, Performance 1, Presence 2, 
  Resistance 1 (Against Knockback +3), Socialize 3, 
  Stealth 3, Survival 1, Thrown 2, War 1
  Backgrounds: Allies 3, Artifact 2, Manse 1, Resources 4
  Charms: None
  Wyld Mutations: Poxes: Claws, Elemental Adaptations 
  (Air, Water), Fangs, Large, Longevity, Night Vision; 
  Deﬁ ciencies: Hungry, Ugly; Afﬂ ictions: Gills, Huge, 
  Prehensile Tail, Thick Skin; Debilities: Lame
  Join Battle: 6
  Attacks:
  Bite: Speed 5, Accuracy 6, Damage 6L, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Claw: Speed 5, Accuracy 6, Damage 6L, Defense 6, 
  Rate 3
  Punch: Speed 5, Accuracy 7, Damage 6B, Defense 8, 
  Rate 3
  Clinch: Speed 6, Accuracy 6, Damage 6B, Defense -, 
  Rate 1
  Coral Spear: Speed 5, Accuracy 5, Damage 10L/13, 
  Defense 6, Rate 2
  Soak: 2L/13B (Thick hide and layer of blubber, 
  2L/8B)
  Health Levels: -0/-0/-0/-1/-1//-1/-1/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 2 
  Willpower: 5
  Essence: 1
  Other Notes: These traits are for an average pelagial. 
  Traits between individual pelagials will vary greatly. 
  See pp. 123-127 for more information on the pelagials, 
  their dying empire and their last city.
  SINGER OF THE DEEP
  These strange creatures were once men, until they 
  were tainted by the Western Wyld. Now they are fearsome 
  humanoid ﬁ sh. Magical examination by Realm savants 
  reveals that even singers’ souls have been altered beyond 
  humanity. Their skins are scaly, and their backs sport 
  winglike ﬁ ns that spread when the singers take to the 
  air. Their “song” is caused by air whistling through these 
  ﬁ ns, as the singers launch themselves up to 100 yards in 
  the air and glide to attack their prey. Hearing this song 
  causes paralyzing sensations of fear and uncertainty in 
  creatures not immune 
  to such things.
  The singers’ num-
  bers were previously held 
  in check by Water-as-
  pected Dragon-Blooded, 
  but such patrols have 
  been scarce since the 
  disappearance of the 
  Scarlet Empress, and 
  the numbers of singers 
  have increased consid-
  erably in recent years. 
  Wild singers of the deep 
  usually hunt in packs, 
  launching from the sea with a ﬂ ick of their powerful, ﬁ nned 
  tails. Diving upon their prey from above, the singers attack 
  with a crushing slap of their tails while swooping past or 
  by dragging the foe beneath the waves. The pelagials once 
  controlled whole legions of tamed singers, but as pelagial 
  society atrophies, the armies grow feral.
  Singers cannot stay out of water for long, asphyxiat-
  ing in air as a human would underwater after about ﬁ ve 
  minutes. A singer who has landed on the ground—or 
  a ship deck—can still ﬁ ght until the singer suffocates 
  or manages to leap back into the water.
  Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 4, Stamina 2; Cha-
  risma 1, Manipulation 1, Appearance 1; Perception 3, 
  Intelligence 3, Wits 2
  Virtues: Compassion 1, Conviction 1, Temperance 1, 
  Valor 2
  Abilities: Athletics 4 (Fly +2, Swim +1), Awareness 2, 
  Dodge 5, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 5, Medi-
  cine 3, Presence 1, Resistance 5, Stealth 3, Survival 1
  Supernatural Powers:
  Fearsome Song—Singers of the deep emit a sound that 
  drives fear into the hearts of all who hear it. Players of 
  characters who hear the howl must make a reﬂ exive 
  Willpower check every action as long as their characters 
  can hear the song. A successful roll indicates that the 
  character resists the song’s effects, while a failure applies 
  a -2 dice internal penalty to all actions, and a botch 
  causes the character to cower in fear until his player 
  succeeds in a Willpower check. Either fear effect is an 
  unnatural mental inﬂ uence, which can be thrown off 
  for one action for a cost of one temporary Willpower.
  Creatures that have been affected by the Wyld, including 
  singers of the deep, are immune to the ill effects of this 
  power. Instead, they get two extra dice on any Join Battle 
  rolls, and their permanent Willpower and Valor ratings are 
  temporarily increased by one so long as they hear it—the 
  
  157
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  song makes them feel strong and brave. These bonuses do 
  not stack; multiple songs do not increase the bonus.
  Join Battle: 4
  Attacks:
  Tail: Speed 5, Accuracy 8, Damage 16B/4 (piercing), 
  Defense 6, Rate 1
  Talons (lethal clinch): Speed 6, Accuracy 9, Damage 5L, 
  Defense -, Rate 1
  Note: A target clinched by a diving singer of the deep 
  is automatically pulled into the water with it.
  Soak: 2L/4B (Scaly skin, 2L/2B)
  Health Levels: -0/-0/-0/-1/-1/-2/-2/-4/Incap
  Dodge DV: 4 
   
  Willpower: 3
  Essence: 1
  Other Notes: Singers of the deep might occasionally 
  be extras. A singer on land suffers a -4 mobility penalty, 
  and the singer’s song ceases. A successful attack that 
  damages a gliding singer causes it to cease its song, and 
  the singer’s player must make a (Dexterity + Athletics) 
  roll at difﬁ culty 3 for the singer to avoid falling from its 
  current height. Singers of the deep are far too Wyld-
  tainted to Exalt, and despite their high Intelligence 
  score, they’re no longer self-aware.
  ANIMALS
  Dolphin
  These marine 
  mammals are renowned 
  for their playfulness and 
  their friendly interac-
  tions with sailors. Stories 
  of dolphins rescuing 
  hapless humans from 
  harm are ubiquitous 
  among seafaring people. 
  Some Western tribes 
  honor the dolphins 
  and their animal spirit patrons in religious ceremonies. 
  Dynasts, particularly of House Cynis and House Sesus, 
  sometimes capture and train dolphins. Most sailors are 
  simply happy to see a dolphin swimming alongside their 
  ship, considering such events auspicious.
  Dolphins range throughout the oceans, although 
  they prefer the warm seas of the South. Most breeds 
  have excellent eyesight, but all of them possess the abil-
  ity to echolocate, projecting and sensing sound waves 
  to perceive their surroundings. Dolphins are cunning, 
  gregarious and intelligent creatures. If they have any 
  particular failing, it might be that they seem to be as 
  fond of other anthropomorphic creatures (including 
  Fair Folk) as the dolphins are of humans.
  Grelidaka, the Thou-
  sand Hungry Wings
  The skies of the 
  West are best known for 
  their fearsome storms, 
  yet the potential fury of 
  an oncoming tempest 
  is sometimes eclipsed 
  by the ravenous Wyld-
  tainted birds known as 
  grelidaka. Gathering 
  in terrifying ﬂ ocks of 
  black, screeching birds with red eyes and serrated 
  beaks, swarms of these misshapen predators are called 
  the Thousand Hungry Wings by frightened survivors 
  and those who listen to the survivors’ tales. A ﬂ ock 
  of these screaming mutants will fall upon the unwary 
  crew of a ship, descend into an island village, attack 
  other birds or sweep across an island devouring wild 
  boars and other beasts. The frenzied avians range from 
  as small as a sparrow to as large as an albatross, though 
  they average around the size of a goose with a wingspan 
  of six feet.
  The Thousand Hungry Wings are nomadic, moving 
  from one island to the next after stripping their previous 
  hunting ground bare. A ﬂ ock of these birds always seems 
  to work together as a single entity, with the largest and 
  most agile members assuming lead roles solely due to 
  their greater aptitude. Lone grelidaka, separated from 
  their ﬂ ock, sicken and eventually die. Indeed, this shared 
  existence is so ingrained that the Wyld-tainted birds do 
  not lay eggs as other birds do; instead, after mating, the 
  largest specimens split into two smaller birds. Grelidaka 
  mate only while consuming the ﬂ esh of fresh prey, and 
  virtually all of their attacks occur just before an incom-
  ing storm. Scholars believe that the birds are driven by 
  tempests as surely as other birds migrate with the change 
  of seasons. Sometimes other forces drive the direction 
  of a ﬂ ock—Shepolpa, the Goddess of Hungry Waters, 
  has periodically caused grelidaka to plague the Neck. 
  Western shamans claim that whenever the Thousand 
  Hungry Wings consume the dead corpse of one of their 
  own that the feasting bird splits into three birds, so many 
  communities despair of actually ﬁ ghting the grelidaka 
  and prefer to hide behind battened down windows, as 
  though the birds were a passing storm.
  Other Notes: The traits on page 160 represent a 
  single grelidaka, which will generally be treated as an 
  extra. The Thousand Hungry Wings are nearly always 
  encountered in ﬂ ocks of at least 100 birds, and therefore, 
  typically use the mass combat rules. Because they are 
  
  158
  smaller than human targets, up to seven grelidaka can 
  attack a single human target at a time.
  Thousand Hungry Wings
  Description: A ﬂ ock of the terrible Wyld-tainted 
  birds attacks en masse.
  Commanding Ofﬁ cer: The largest grelidaka in the ﬂ ock
  Armor Color: None
  Motto: Screech!
  General Makeup: 100 to 150 grelidaka. For larger ﬂ ocks, 
  the Storyteller should increase the ﬂ ock’s Magnitude.
  Overall Quality: N/A
  Magnitude: 3
  Drill: 5
  Close Combat Attack: 4     Close Combat Damage: 1
  Endurance: 9 
  Might: 1 
  Armor: 1 
  Morale: 5 (perfect)
  Formation: Typically, grelidaka birds travel in an 
  unordered formation, but eerily, during attacks they 
  organize into skirmish or relaxed formation without the 
  need for relays. They do not assume close formation, 
  due to the restrictions of ﬂ ying en masse. This means 
  that a Magnitude 3 unit of Thousand Hungry Wings 
  boasts seven attackers, one unit-enhanced attacker for 
  its leader and an additional solo attacker for each of its 
  hero-designated special characters.
  Special: When mass combat rules require the Thousand 
  Hungry Wings to use Charisma, use their Essence rating 
  (of 2) in place of Charisma. Under most circumstances, the 
  unit enjoys the beneﬁ ts of ﬂ ight (see Exalted, p. 154).
  Enshroud: In mass combat, the unit will use the Envelop-
  ing action whenever possible, thus ﬂ anking an opponent 
  and making it difﬁ cult for that opponent to Disengage. 
  Their small size allows up to seven attackers to launch 
  attacks, subject to the normal mass combat rules (which 
  provide for seven attackers for a Magnitude 3 unit, see 
  above). Importantly, this means that the target unit suf-
  fers a -2 Dodge Defense Value penalty against all attacks, 
  and one attacker will receive an unexpected attack on 
  the enemy unit (see “Multiple Opponents,” Exalted, 
  p. 155). 
  Infernal Worm
  These massive 
  creatures resemble 
  monstrously huge oily 
  black lampreys as long 
  as a trireme. Hailing 
  from the seas of the 
  Yozi hells, these beasts 
  trail bad omens in their 
  wake as they slither 
  through the seas of Creation. Typically, infernal worms 
  are bound to the service of the Cult of Dukantha, 
  writhing through the ocean as they draw the hulls of 
  Lintha ships into battle regardless of the winds. Their 
  infernal nature causes discordant ripples in the ﬂ ow of 
  fate, and astrologists are sometimes forewarned against 
  the coming threat.
  Infernal worms are demons of the First Circle and 
  are typically summoned by the Lintha via the appro-
  priate spell. Sometimes when an island in Creation is 
  utterly destroyed, an infernal worm is called to Creation 
  without summoning, so that it might feast upon the 
  dead island’s roots. Infernal worms serving the Lintha 
  lurk beneath the island of Oroo, feeding upon her waste 
  and dying body.
  Needleﬁ sh
  The needleﬁ sh is 
  a carnivorous deepwa-
  ter ﬁ sh similar to the 
  freshwater piranha, 
  although even more ag-
  gressive and dangerous. 
  The typical needleﬁ sh 
  is between two and four 
  feet long, with a sinu-
  ous, eel-like body and 
  large head with heavy 
  jaws, similar to a barracuda. The ﬁ sh’s name stems 
  from its teeth, which consist of three rows of sharp, 
  thin needle-like incisors. The needleﬁ sh’s gums possess 
  tiny striated muscles that undulate while the ﬁ sh feeds. 
  This causes the needleﬁ sh’s teeth to actually vibrate at 
  high speeds, allowing the ﬁ sh to literally saw its way 
  through the toughest materials. Needleﬁ sh can scent 
  blood at up to half a mile and go into a feeding frenzy 
  when exposed directly to its taste. Needleﬁ sh travel in 
  swarms of 20 to 50 and usually attack in schools. 
  When a swarm attacks a single target in the water, 
  dodging is virtually impossible (save for perfect defens-
  es), so at least some ﬁ sh will normally get a successful 
  attack. And yet, a swarm of needleﬁ sh is not sufﬁ ciently 
  dangerous as to warrant use of the full mass combat 
  rules. To represent this, a character within an attack-
  ing swarm of needleﬁ sh suffers 4L dice of damage per 
  action. Soak can reduce this to a minimum of 2L dice 
  of damage, but armor will only provide protection if the 
  armor covers the entire body. If the victim is incapable 
  of movement, the damage pool doubles to 8L.
  The traits on page 160 describe an individual 
  needleﬁ sh.
  
  159
  CHAPTER SEVEN • GODS AND MONSTERS OF THE WEST
  Pelagic Dragon
  The mighty pelag-
  ic dragon reaches sizes 
  of more than 40 feet 
  long, although much 
  of that length lies in 
  the dragon’s serpentine 
  neck and tail. Pelagic 
  dragons normally hunt 
  prey such as swordﬁ sh, 
  but are happy to seize 
  and devour sailors from 
  the decks of their ships. An enraged pelagic dragon is 
  capable of sinking most ﬁ shing vessels, and of damaging 
  larger whaling ships.
  Pelagic dragons are scaly predators with four mas-
  sive ﬁ ns where a land beast’s legs might be. The body 
  of a pelagic dragon is relatively short in comparison 
  to their elongated neck and shorter tail. Some Realm 
  wordsmiths have described a pelagic dragon as looking 
  like a snake strung through a tortoise (though pelagic 
  dragons are not shelled). Pelagic dragons are naturally 
  good swimmers, but not the fastest marine creatures in 
  the sea. These beings must surface to breathe air, but 
  can remain below the surface for relatively long peri-
  ods. Sailors in the West claim encounters with larger 
  pelagic dragons, supposedly up to 100 feet long.
  Rock-Roller
  These entities are 
  one of the strangest 
  Wyld creations found 
  in the West. The crea-
  tures’ bodies resemble 
  a totem pole, carved 
  from stone, and each 
  one has a slightly dif-
  ferent shape. Some 
  islander legends claim 
  that the rock-rollers 
  were actual totem poles, carved on a faraway island 
  to win favor from the gods. Unfortunately, according 
  to the story, the gods were angry because these totems 
  were poorly carved. As revenge, they animated the 
  poles and gave them life, moving the totems to wreak 
  havoc on the people who unwittingly deﬁ ed the gods. 
  Some island shamans claim that every rock-roller has 
  a divine message for someone whose face the rock-
  roller bears on its body, and shamans encourage young 
  people to locate their personal rock-rollers to learn 
  their messages. Shamans explain the savage attacks of 
  most rock-rollers as the unfortunate effects of people 
  trying to steal the messages of others.
  These creatures live on rocky islands, typically 
  solitary except for the brief time when a mated pair 
  has yet to release its young into the wild. At rest, 
  the rock-rollers appear as stone totem poles ranging 
  from three to five feet in height. The stony flesh of 
  the rock-roller ensures that they have few natural 
  enemies. When one of these predatory creatures 
  moves to pursue prey, however, four spidery legs unfold 
  from the rock-roller’s sides and a single thick tentacle 
  uncoils from the top of its head, opening to reveal 
  a circular mouth with a double row of sharp teeth. 
  Once a rock-roller seizes its prey, it throws itself to 
  the earth and begins violently rolling around until 
  the prey is dead.
  Other Notes: The creature possesses a special roll 
  attack. This attack can only be made if the rock-roller 
  has successfully clinched a victim. If the rock-roller 
  has control over the clinch, then the rock-roller may 
  cause damage as normal for the clinch, and apply this 
  special secondary attack as well. Violently rolling 
  around, with its victim held in its grasp, the rock-roller 
  causes additional damage. Roll a special attack roll 
  using the rock-roller’s (Dexterity + Athletics) against 
  the victim’s (Stamina + Athletics). If the rock-roller 
  wins this contest, then the victim suffers 6B + successes 
  damage, soaked as normal. The rock-roller may use this 
  special secondary attack on any action during which 
  it controls a clinch.
  Sea Dragon
  Reaching sizes of 
  nearly 60 feet long, 
  these scaly beasts are 
  fearsome aquatic-eat-
  ing machines. Savants 
  argue about whether 
  or not sea dragons 
  are related to river 
  dragons, while sailors 
  merely avoid them 
  whenever possible. 
  Sea dragons have two large front flippers, two smaller 
  rear ones and a long tail with a flat paddle-like exten-
  sion. Their mouths are blunt-nosed, double-hinged 
  like a massive snake, and filled with sharp teeth. Sea 
  dragons must breathe air, and prefer warm shallow 
  waters to the open sea. They typically eat sharks and 
  pelagic dragons, but will consume other prey when 
  it’s convenient.
  
  160
  Shark
  Sharks, unlike 
  their larger siaka 
  cousins, are mostly 
  coastal dwellers, particularly when breeding. Sharks 
  don’t usually attack targets as large as men, but 
  blood in the water can easily send sharks into a 
  feeding frenzy.
  Name 
  Str/Dex/Sta Per/Int/Wits/Will Health Levels 
  Attack (Spd/Acc/Dmg/Rate) Dodge DV/Soak
  Dolphin 
   
   5/4/5 
   
  3/3/3/4 
  -0/-1/-2x3/ 
  Bite: 5/7/5L/1,  
   
  3/4B/2L
   
   
    
   
   
  -4x3/Incap 
  Ram: 5/7/8B/1
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swimming +3), Awareness 3 (Underwater +3), Dodge 3, Integrity 2, Investigation 2, Martial 
  Arts 2 (Bite +1, Ram +1), Presence 3, Resistance 3, Stealth 2, Survival 2
  Grelidaka 
   
   2/4/4 
   
  2/1/2/3 
  -0/-1/-2/I 
  Beak: 5/9/2L/3 
   
  6/2L/4B
  Abilities: Athletics 3, Awareness 3, Dodge 5, Integrity 2, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 4, Presence 3 (Intimidation +3), 
  Resistance 3, Stealth 1, Survival 3, War 3
  Essence: 2
  Infernal Worm 
  12/5/10 
   
  2/1/3/6 
  -0/-1x4/-2x8/ 
  Bite: 5/10/12L/1 
   
  4/5L/10B
   
   
    
   
   
  -4/Incap
  Abilities: Athletics 2 (Swim +3), Awareness 4, Dodge 1, Integrity 2, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 3 (Bite +2), 
  Presence 2 (Intimidate +3), Resistance 3, Stealth 1, Survival 1
  Spirit Charms:
  Materialize—Infernal worms can materialize for 40 motes.
  Essence: 2 
  Essence Pool: 50
  Needleﬁ sh 
   
   2/3/3 
   
  3/1/3/4 
  -0/-1/-2/-4/Incap Bite: 3/8/–/1 
   
  3/2L/4B
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swimming +2), Awareness 2 (Scenting Blood +2), Dodge 3, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Martial 
  Arts 2 (Bite +1), Presence 1, Resistance 3, Stealth 1, Survival 3
  Pelagic Dragon 
  10/4/9 
   
  2/1/3/4 
  -0x2/-1x3/-2x2/ 
  Bite: 5/7/10L/2 
   
  3/4L/9B
   
   
    
   
   
  -4/Incap
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swim +2), Awareness 2, Dodge 2, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 3, Presence 3 
  (Intimidation +2), Resistance 2 (Holding Breath +2), Stealth 1, Survival 2
  Rock-Roller 
   
   4/3/4 
   
  3/1/3/3 
  -0/-1/-1/-2/-2/ 
  Tentacle Clinch: 6/12/4L/– 
   
  2/5L/9B
   
   
    
   
   
  -4/Incap 
   
  (Rocky skin 5L/5B,  
   
   
    
   
   
   
   
  Hardness 5L/5B)
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Tumbling +3), Awareness 2, Dodge 1, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 5 (Clinch +3), 
  Presence 3, Resistance 2, Stealth 1, Survival 2
  Sea Dragon 
   
  15/2/12 
   
  2/1/3/3 
  -0x3/-1x4/-2x3/ 
  Bite: 5/6/15L/2 
   
  2/6L/12B
   
   
    
   
   
  -4/Incap
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swim +2), Awareness 2, Dodge 2, Integrity 2, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 3 (Bite +1), 
  Presence 3 (Intimidation +1), Resistance 2 (Holding Breath +2), Stealth 1, Survival 2
  Shark 
   
   6/3/6 
   
  2/1/3/3 
  -0/-1x2/-2x3/ 
  Bite: 5/6/6L/2 
   
  3/3L/6B
   
   
    
   
   
  -4x2/Incap
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (Swim +2), Awareness 3, Dodge 3, Integrity 1, Investigation 1, Martial Arts 2 (Bite +1), 
  Presence 1 (Intimidation+2), Resistance 2, Stealth 2, Survival 3
  
  ISBN: 978-1-58846-696-9   WW80201   $24.99 U.S.
  www.white-wolf.com/exalted
  The savage seas of the West hide 
  wonders and terrors unknown 
  to Creation’s landlubbers, mortal 
  and Exalted alike. Those who ply 
  the waters of the Great Western 
  Ocean tell tales of ghostly fleets, 
  savage slavers and demon pirates, 
  which all sail the trade routes 
  to threaten the unwary 
  and send them to the 
  ocean bottom. 
  However, they also 
  speak of lost continents 
  waiting to be 
  rediscovered, 
  beautiful natives 
  waiting to be wooed 
  and First Age 
  treasures waiting to 
  be plundered. Will 
  your crew brave the 
  West’s perils to reap 
  its rewards?
  The second of five Terrestrial 
  Direction books devoted to 
  fleshing out the bare bones 
  of Creation presented in 
  the Exalted
  Exalted core book, 
  this book includes the 
  following:
  • Mass combat stats for 
  the forces of the Silver 
  Prince, the Lintha 
  Family and other 
  Western powers, as 
  well as dominion 
  stats for the 
  Mandate of Heaven
  • Traits for the 
  West’s native 
  gods and beasts
  9 781588 466969
  5 2 4 9 9
  PRINTED IN CANADA
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Storyteller [multi]/Exalted/Exalted 2nd Edition/4 Compass of Terrestrial Locations (Creation Locations)/Exalted 2E - Compass of Terrestrial Directions Vol. 2 - The West [WW80201].pdf