Istial Isles
An archipelago in the northern reaches of the Sea of Gormallis , the Istial Isles are a curios collection of islands who, thanks to the unique theocratic governance of Lamizian Collective that rule them, have been physically changed over millennia to reflect the domains and personalities of the Divine each has been dedicated to.
Geography
The Istial Isles lie in the northern extremities of the Sea of Gormallis , with the northern and western shores of the three northernmost islands in the archipelago marking the boundary between the Sea of Gormallis and the Icefang Ocean. The waters that lie between the individual islands are relatively calm and shallow, allowing generally safe passage around the archipelago.
To the north east of the islands lies the shores of the continent of Hunar, level with the southern extremities of the Bjornfrost Forest and the Hjemso Wastes. To the west – south west lies the continent of Euristan and the Worfal Tundra.
Isles of the Divines
When they were originally formed in the creation of the Material Plane, the Istial Isles were simply hunks of lifeless rock, said to have been made as something of an afterthought by Orivious and forgotten about by the Divines in their excitement to shape the rest of Kelbonnar’s planes of existence. However, following the tumultuous celestial events that surrounded the Binding of Orivious a group of mortal mystics from across Kelbonnar came together and decided to demonstrate their devotion to the new divine order, by dedicating each of the Istial Isles to the thirteen most senior Divines. These mystics named themselves the Lamizian Collective. Initially, each of the Istial Isles remained a barren piece of rock with a simply monastic founding dedicated to the islands allocated Divine, but over hundreds of years, each of the islands began to take on features linked to their patrons, with the animals and plant life that emerged, seemingly from nothing, even taking on the personalities of their Divine patrons. This means that each of the islands is a unique biome, irrelevant of the climate of the Sea of Gormallis surrounding them. The islands are as follows:- Basilius: A large island near the centre of the archipelago dedicated to the now deceased ruler of the Divines, Prota. The flora and fauna here carries a noble and stately bearing, with strong, tall trees defining the landscape and proud, almost regal animals living beneath them. The capital of the Lamizian Collective, Port Lamiz can be found here.
- Bios: The island of Bios is dedicated to Menella and it teems with life, having taken on the appearance of an enormous garden, like that of a stately home. Neat rows of vibrant flowers spring out of the ground, naturally taking on the flower bed formations, with trees naturally growing in neat rows. All life here appears to exist in harmony with one another, and of the many animals observed to live here, only herbivores have been sighted.
- Polemos: Lying on the northern borders of the archipelago, this island is dedicated to Astartes and it personifies war. Huge rock and metal forms jut from the ground and shadowy forms, said to be echoes of the souls of warriors who have died in countless battles struggle with one another eternally. The plant life here consists mostly of thorns and briars, snaking out across the landscape like organic barbed wire. No herbivores reside here, only carnivorous creatures who constantly battle each other for food and supremacy.
- Agrios: This island, the largest and most southerly of all the Istial Isles, is dedicated to Wresmella. The landscape alternates between wide stretches of grassland and thick confusing forests, where creatures of excessive size, far larger than they naturally occur in the rest of Kelbonnar dwell. Packs of giant wolves hunt boar the size of carts and bison the size of houses, continually playing out the thrill of the hunt in dedication of their patron.
- Thoulla: A waterlogged, inhospitable place, the eastern most of the Istial Isles, Thoulla is dedicated to Polephemon. It is constantly lashed by storms and the tides fluctuate wildly, flooding parts of the island at random and making it confusing to navigate this harsh environment. Most of the creatures that live here are aquatic and rely on the sea for their survival, rather than the battered landscape.
- Synkomidi: The westernmost of the islands, Synkomidi is an agricultural idyll, dedicated to Persephonell. The entire landscape is one of rolling fields and shady orchards, forever groaning with produce and basking under a gentle, nourishing sun.
- Ilikia: The most enigmatic of the isles, Ilikia is dedicated to Kroni the Divine linked with time, autumn and ageing. Whilst at first the land and its creatures appear normal, at closer inspection, each individual element of the island exists in its own time loop. One flower might spring from the ground, bloom, wither and die within a matter of seconds, whilst another of the same species might spend years in the act of blossoming. Those who visit this place will find that the longer they remain, the more they are sucked into their own time vortex and suffering the consequences that brings.
- Dianoia: The island dedicated to the Divine Sagosa, Dianoia, is not really an island at all, but is instead one enormous building rising out of the sea. Within is said to be a record of all of the things ever discovered by any creature born on the Material Plane. It is jealously guarded by the clerics dedicated to this temple and few are ever allowed admittance. It is even said that it is the only place on the Material Plane that Sagosa herself will ever come to defend at a moment’s notice, such is the importance of this place and its secrets to her.
- Nomos: The island of Nomos is dedicated to and takes on the character of Kalkari, whose domain is law and justice. Though the place presents as a relatively plain expanse of grassland, every action carried out here has consequences that are almost immediately enacted, consequences that have been vastly overamplified relative to any crime knowingly, or inadvertently committed. This means that only simple plant life exists here, as even herbivorous creatures have consequences enacted against them for harming the plant life.
- Karos: Existing in perpetual twilight, the isle of Karos is dedicated to Thanata, the Divine associated with death. As a consequence it is the only one of the isles that has remained a barren piece of rock. The vast majority of those who set foot on the island though do not immediately succumb to death. Cosmically Thanata does not kill, but they usher the souls of those who have died to the next part of the cosmic cycle. The only exception to this are undead, who are an anathema to Thanata. Any undead who set foot on the island are immediately struck down, unless they are incredibly powerful entities, and their souls dragged into the afterlife. Karos is renowned as being the only place on the Material Plane where one can attempt to commune with the spirits of the dead without the aid of magic, so strong is its connection to the places beyond the veil of life.
- Sophia: The island of Sophia is a tranquil oasis within the Isitial Isles, full of shady groves, babbling brooks and aesthetically formed and placed caves and grottos, where people can come and to honour the islands patron Divine, Samenta. Whilst her mother is concerned with knowledge, Samenta’s domain is wisdom and the isle of Sophia has come to embody landscapes where people go to search for deeper meaning or find answers to questions they were hitherto blind to.
- Filoponia: Long before one sees the island of Filoponia, one will see the glittering of light reflecting off the myriad metal objects there. Filoponia is dedicated to Hvanmara, and the association to the Divine of craft and industry has turned the landscape into a fantastical replica of the natural world, but rendered in metal, stone, wood and more exotic materials. Though nothing living dwells here, aside from the clergy of Hvanmara, the island is populated by constructs and automatons, each a marvel of ingenuity and engineering.
- Isorropia: One of the strangest of the isles is Isorropia, dedicated to the Divine Hella. The island is divided into four equal parts, each of which perpetually experiences one of the four seasons and instead of having a normal day night cycle, when the sun rises on one half of the island, it sets on the other half, a homage to Hella’s domain of balance. The island has some of the largest biodiversity of the Istial Isles, as its creatures and plants have had to adapt to experiencing a constant, never changing season depending on where they live.
Natural Resources
Most of the Istial Isles teem with life and have abundant resources at their disposal. The crops from the isle of Synkomidi taken from a single harvest could feed every person in the Empire of Turelion for a month, and even if just the metal outcroppings and formation above the ground on Polemos were extracted, they could be turned into hundreds of thousands of swords or suits of armour. However, all of the life and resources of each of the islands is deemed to be dedicated to their divine patron and that Divine alone. Should anything be taken from their island, it will wither into dust as soon as it is more than a mile away from the shoreline and those who attempted to perpetrate such blasphemy are cursed.
The only exception to this rule are the humanoids who dwell on each island and act in the service of their Divine. They are allowed to come and go as they please and are permitted to take anything that they can wear or carry.
Alternative Name(s)
Isles of the Divines
Type
Archipelago
Location under
Included Organizations
Owning Organization
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