Western Atoll

The western atoll is an archipelago two days of sailing from the western shores of the western continent, mostly inhibited by orcs and shifters.

Geography

Geographically, the Western Atoll is an archipelago made of one bigger central island and 7 smaller islands arranged around it. Several reefs and sandbanks are scattered in the archipelago, making it a formidable fortified position to attack by sea. Further away from the archipelago, a series of smaller and isolated islands can be found, seemingly uninhabited.
The central island, slightly bigger than the others, holds the “capital” of the pirate faction, Isolla. Isolla is also the only proper town of the area, but is still significantly smaller than Bridgetown. The seven surrounding islands each have their own den/cove, controlled by small pirate factions or local tribes. The pirate captains, or tribe leaders, of these seven factions form the Table of the Seven, a council that decides if the seven factions will go to war and decides on matters of importance to all the Seven. Because of this, the seven factions are politically often considered one individual entity.
To this day, the council has been called only twice, once shortly after its institutions, to decide on the Chart of the Seven (law) and once more recently (60 yrs), where formal war was declared to the Duchy of Sealance, at the time independent, (and subsequently to Enverdoon and, after the recent vassalization act, Khalimed).

Ecosystem

Excluding Isolla, the capital city and the name of the central island, there are 7 "official" islands in the archipelago.

These islands are:

1. Antharia - pirate island, governed by Thogrek the Just (dwarf, mad scientist vibe?)
2. Ellyria - former 
3. Ghorash
4. Pilobe

Fauna & Flora

Nature wise, these islands have vegetation similar to the western forest, with tall and large trees, even if in some islands they have been cut to make space and provide materials for the small villages and communities built there mostly by shifters. The beaches, some of sand, some of stone, are mostly clear of trees and only have bushes here and there. A striking difference to the western forest is the color of flowers and vegetation in general. Here, colors are more intense and vivid and most plants flower throughout the whole year, with the exception of winter in some areas. The same animals as in the western forest can be found here, with the exception of those that need a large territory (no wolves, no bears, etc.). Swarms of insects and giant bugs are common in these islands. Specific insectoid creatures are known to live in some specific islands, like the Island of Burrows, which is known to be full of Ankhegs.

History

The atoll remained unused and unexplored up until the time when human hordes defeated the native tribes of Sealance. Then, after what some say was a curse made by orcish shamans, some humans started suffering physical changes that made them similar to animals, becoming the first of those creatures now known as shifters. Kicked out from human society, they colonized the archipelago and started acting their revenge on the humans of Sealance, identified as the main cause of their transformation.

Alternative Name(s)

Freedom Islands

Type

Archipelago

Location under

Western Continent

Owning Organization

Table of the Seven

Contested By

• Duchy of Sealance