Sea of Jars

The Sea of Jars is a sea almost landlocked by the geography of the southern continent of the world. Shaped somewhat like an egg lying on its side with the thin end to the west, it is bounded in the south by the Alluvial plain and in the east and north by The Empty Quarter, while the rugged, inhospitable uplands surrounding the city of Ramoros enclose much of it to the west. Only a fairly narrow straight between two enormous natural pillars, known a trifle dramatically as Fire and Fortune in its northwestern corner, allow access to the Great Ocean.
The Sea of Jars is so called because it is a major commercial conduit, elaborately criss-crossed by trade routes between the Eleven Cities.

Geography

As noted above the Sea of Jars is near-landlocked and settlements dot its shores. These cities are divided into three recognisable geographical blocs, though these should not be considered political units as each of these communities is fiercely independent and makes great claims for its cultural importance.
To the south, along the coast of the Alluvial plain, lie the cities of (from west to east) Chogyos, Loros and Pholyos. Loros and Pholyos are both situated around the landward coasts of sizeable lagoons, while Chogyos commands the mouth of the Chondolos River. Pholyos and Chogyos are among the largest and most powerful of the cities while Loros has struggled to recover from setbacks which occurred during the Wesmodian Reformation. A fourth city, Ramoros is situated to the north-west of these three settlements and occasionally grouped with them, although it is culturally quite distinct.
On the north coast of the Sea of Jars are - to the northwest - Elpaloz and - to the northeast - Andymalon. Smaller than the southern cities by population the two are nonetheless strengthened and enriched by their long-standing alliance, which gives them a limited capacity to control traffic through Fire and Fortune and therefore the extensive trade between the cities of the Sea and the far-northern outposts of Halumay and Oluz.
A number of tiny islands dot the sea, such as Ormkalos and Kobolon. For reasons best guessed at, the islands in the eastern part of the sea are larger, with three being large enough to support permanent settlements large and powerful enough to be named cities. These three islands give their names to the cities of Tyros, Dypholyos and Dyqamay. The three 'insular cities' share a language and vague common cause which limits conflict or competition between them, though they are not allies in any formal or codified sense.

Trade

Although storms are known to happen, particularly during winter, the Sea of Jars enjoys fairly benevolent and predictable winds, and since time immemorial the cities of the sea have viewed the sea more as a conduit for trade than a barrier thereto. Countless ships cross the sea at any given time, transporting food from the Alluvial plain, timber from Ramoros, Oluz and Halumay, metals from the insular cities and less vital (but still valuable) commodities from all over the region. Such is the skill of the Sailors on the Sea of Jars and the strength of maritime culture that it can take less time to transport a load of, for example, hazelnuts from Pholyos to Elpaloz than it does to get the nuts to Pholyos from the southern environs of the Alluvial plain where they are traditionally grown. With forgiving winds the round trip on the longest trade route in operation, between Pholyos and Halumay, can be handled in perhaps three moons; a good crew can move a ship between Dypholyos and Dyqamay overnight. Trade brings wealth and culture, and without the sea to transport goods to their markets it is highly unlikely that the artistic and intellectual endeavours on which the cities pride themselves would not be possible.
The Commercial Guilds oversee much of this trade. The latter-day equivalents of the cult of Zargyod, the pre-Wesmodian god of fortune, metals and the sea, the guilds maintain offices in all eleven cities - in most cases the former temples to Zargyod - and devote themselves to coordinating and facilitating trade between them. The guild members also serve as diplomats smoothing out tensions between the cities. With sea trade so vital to the way of life enjoyed in the cities, the Sea of Jars has been the chosen venue of conflict between them, with the Mast Wars and the Great Northern War having been fought almost exclusively via naval battles.

Type

Sea