Flotsam Calm
Finding your way there's not the hard part. Any sailor on the sea can reach Flotsam Calm, that's no lie. Leaving it? That's another matter entirely.Somewhere in the oceans to the east of Sebile and south of the Exalted Isle lies a stretch of sea where the currents are still and the wind stops. No landmarks are visible on the horizon, and the only sign of the world beyond would be floating debris which finds its way here from time to time. Stormy seasons tend to cause more wrecks, and thus the amount of debris increases. Survivors of those storms are brought in, clinging for their lives, and left with ample time to contemplate their fates. Among the seasoned sailors who travel, Flotsam Calm is a place to be feared, and there are many prayers made to the Gods in order to avoid ending a voyage within the silent sea. Star charts made over generations by those who escaped the Calm exposed a fear held by many who have heard the tales - Flotsam Calm is not a simple location to be avoided. It moves, as no two star charts have been found to share enough commonalities to pin down even a vague location. So it has come to pass Flotsam Calm has become associated with a number of folk tales and myths, suggesting it is a punishment for captains who aren't cautious enough.
However, a single tale has reached prominence in the last few decades as scribes accumulate more information from various ports and the sailors who work the trade routes. According to this tale, the source of Flotsam Calm's unusual properties is a divine curse leveled by the Sea Witch against those who take the sea lightly. With such a capricious deity as Her, there are various versions about the reason for the curse, and the means of avoiding it has been suggested to be anything from a sacrifice of salt poured into the harbor before a ship weighs anchor... to the willing sacrifice of a member of the crew, with weights tied to their ankles to ensure the body is claimed by the sea.
Those who have returned from the Calm are not keen on reminiscing about it, and attempts to pry information out of them has either ended in tears (of the survivor), or in blood (from the questioner).
Alternative Name(s)
The Silent Sea
Type
Ocean
Comments