Western Island Freefolk
The Western Island Freefolk aren't a nation or a faction so much as they are a group of outlaws who live in the same place and have agreed to not kill each other...mostly. Their relationship with the Little Warriors is complicated. Against Lady Wintergreen's protests, the Duke of Pizol rallied The Verdant Kingdoms to pacify Fangflower Bay, a pirate haven to the west of the guild hall at the mouth of the Tanquary River, and renamed it Port Trost. The pirates of the Council of Fangs were turfed out. They had lost their industrial base, their shipbuilders, and their source of cheap labour and expendable soldiers. For a good week, the Council unified in their hatred of the Verdant Kingdoms and resolved to retake their seat of power by any means necessary.
Then it became clear how difficult a task that would be, and they got back to stabbing each other in the back.
They were prevented from destroying themselves by an unlikely figure. Jinx Velvetpaw, agent of the Little Warriors, provided the pirates with maps and charts of the western isles. She presented them with a choice. They could accept her leadership and adhere to reasonable, sensible restrictions on their behaviour, aimed at winning over the local populations of these independent peoples of the west, and build a kingdom of their own on the seas. Or they could...no, actually, that was the only option Jinx ever presented to them. As Jinx made her pitch to the Council of Fangs, Captain Serean attempted to stab the would-be tabaxi pirate queen in the back, prompting Jinx to shoot her between the eyes with a Damien-Ironbrand-issue handcannon called Messenger. The message was received loud and clear, and the pirates set sail to the Freeman's Isles.
Jinx still rules as a respectable pirate out of Neptune's Reach, permitting her captains almost free reign to run their ships as they see fit. All she insists on in return is that the captains answer her call to defend the isles, and that every sailor give one month per year, paid themselves or by willing substitution, to assist in rebuilding the pirate nation and ensuring the needs of its common folk are met. In return, the pirates get food, lumber, canvas and easy access to willing recruits, and the locals are steadily improving their shipbuilding and shipkeeping skills as well. It won't be long before the Western Islanders are prepared to stand as military equals on the world stage, wherever there is a coastline. They still completely lack the ability to project power inland, and it still remains to be seen what will happen when some would-be Pirate King manages to catch Jinx with her guard down and put an end to her reign of good, practical sense.
The Western Isles require Sungwood and textiles for their ships, and fresh fruit for their sailors.
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