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Inselreich

Foreign Grounds

Written by Endrise

It's quite the abstract place to be. Not a bad place, but I would definitely describe it as an alien environment even for me.
— Sailor

Inselreich is a small cluster of islands found in the middle of the Crescent Sea, named by the Great Sangfroid Empire during its expansion age over Sichelan. However, whereas many roots of the historical power can be seen over the main continent, these isles have their history be mostly separate from the mainland.

In the present day it's used as a stopover for many sea routes from one continent to another, with some adventurers daring to investigate the countless ruins found across. Some might uncover a lost piece of history, others something left to remain buried and forgotten.

Abandoned History

Little is known about the exact chain of events that led to modern-day Inselreich, seeing as great parts of it has been deliberately kept cryptic. The empire itself explicitly has been shown to keep their past hidden from the public eye, supposedly for the safety of everyone.

However, curious adventurers and researchers have over the course of the centuries revealed many secrets, including a supposed golden age: knowledge of the cosmos, technology way ahead of its time and advancements that made them almost unconquerable. Yet most of it has been lost or destroyed, presumably to avoid any more bloodshed to try and obtain such knowledge.

Nowadays, they have opened up their borders for others, sharing some of their newfound research and mixing their culture with others. While still secretive about their past, most of it has been buried or taken care of, wishing to start over with the mainland inhabitants.

Common Races

Myopsians

Myopsians are a race of squid-like humanoids who seem to not be from Fabulae itself. Instead, many presume them to come from beyond the stars, said to arrive in the belly of a giant whale. They make up most of the civilisations found on the mainland of Inselreich, being there for almost the longest.

Most of their history with the continent has been far from desirable, either secluding themselves from the outside world or having conflicts like with the Great Sangfroid War. Only in recent decades have they opened up to the rest of the continent, desiring to fix their troublesome past.

Sirens

Sirens are a female-only race of amphibious humanoids, found mainly on the western Siren Islands. Supposedly, their origins are closely related to Myopsians, as both their history have been very close. Many possess an infamous voice that can persuade mortals alike or give an ear-piercing screech, leading to many tales as a femme fatale.

Their past has been also filled with troublesome times, whether it be defending their homeland from the Great Sangfroid Empire or the infamy of Melpomene. They too desire to change said viewpoint of them, although their road to redemption is still a long struggle.

Noteworthy Locations

Bloodmoon Graveyard

Bloodmoon Graveyard is a cluster of islands that have become the historical battlefield of the Day of the Red Sea. Most of the coast lines are covered in massive shipwrecks, making navigation often difficult. However, it has also become the hiding spot for many of the Crescent Sea's pirates, mainly being the home of the fabled Elisabeth Saltfroid III.

Kwal

Kwal is the main capital of mainland Inselreich, a giant city home to most of the island's society. Known for its abstract architecture, it has become the stopover for most of the inner-sea travel towards other continents, although also the place for astronomy. Given the Myopsians loosening up to their research, this has made it the vocal point for any star-gazing scientist trying to understand the world beyond Fabulae.

Siren Islands

The Siren Islands are the western isles found in Inselreich, a secluded place that is the hotspot for the Siren race. Although the region doesn't benefit from the technological boom as much, it is said to be home to many ruins and port settlements to live at. Hence, many explorers often see it as the only way to learn more of the islands' history.

Stargazer Peaks

Stargazer Peaks are the tallest mountains of the mainland, given such name mainly by being excellent spots to observe the night sky. With a few observatories being present here as well, many astronomers make their home in these mountainous regions.

Inselreich
The map of Inselreich and its surrounding islands
Alternative Name(s)
Heart of the Crescent Sea
Land of the Stars
Type
Island
Location under
Owning Organization
Related Ethnicities

Abnormal Ecology

The isolated nature of Inselreich has led to an environment, unlike seen elsewhere on Fabulae. Many exotic plants and animals can be found here in the wild, whether it be unique variants of existing creatures or entirely new species exclusive to the islands.

Same can be said underwater, where the strange nature is even more extreme, to the point that many have described the sealife as downright alien. If it isn't for the vibrant colours found on fishes, the more abstract ecology and relationships make the inner sea look like it comes from another world.


Articles under Inselreich



Cover image: Geographic Location Cover by Endrise

Comments

Author's Notes

This article was made for the #CallOfCartography Challenge, in which we had to make a map and its associated article for it.

The map is made with the Azgaar Fantasy Map Generator program, although some elements have been modified.


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Apr 1, 2020 16:04 by Matthew McKay

Really like your names and the location! I want to know what those abstract cities look like!

Apr 5, 2020 21:02 by Terry-Lynn L

The opening quote may need a little tweaking; they tell us it's abstract and alien environment but we don't know how. Maybe work on the characterization of this character to help pull people in.   The opening paragraphs get your information in, but a lot of names are thrown at us in rapid succession. Perhaps try to feed us this information spread out. The words 'however' and 'whereas clash with each other, I think choosing one over the other will help simplify and strengthen your opening. I'd vary your sentence structure in the following paragraph, and perhaps tweak the wording. 'the countless ruins found across' feels like we're missing a word. A 'and' after 'piece of history,' will help with flow.   I dont think you need the part of the opening about history about 'great parts of it have been deliberately left cryptic', since your next sentence has plenty of reason to why little is known. I would take out 'supposedly' and try to imply (maybe with bb code italics) that the safety of everyone isn't what it seems.   With your next two paragraphs, you have a very repeatable habit of 'Bridging word', 'text'. You don't need this for every paragraph, since it can affect your reading rhythm. You're pretty comma heavy, I would recommend reading it out loud and figure out the tone of this: do we want the reader to know that things are being hidden through implication, or be direct about it?   The common races section is a good idea, along with linking them so people can learn more; the layout of this is really nice! However, your blurb just re-states what's in the article block description. Maybe you can tweak this; The belly of a giant whale bit is really neat lore! The only other thing would be varying sentence length and structure. Sirens section gets similar advice, the layout is interesting, perhaps alternate the side of text/article block to play off of the Myopsian text above? I would take out the 'supposedly' and play with the wording, it sounds less confident then making a direct statement about it. Same kind of comments from above count here; vary your sentences a little more to avoid falling into repetition and dryness.   For the side bar, I wish there was a little more to balance out the full article, but it's still solid! I would take the comma away from after environment, as it doesnt need to be there. You do a lot of comma splicing in this so I would read it over outloud. A personal take is reading fishes as a plural threw me off for a second, but I know it's just as valid as fishes!   The Noteworthy Locations bit is full of tidbits of information, and looks like it did a lot of article prep for the future for you! For flow, I'd put 'often' between making and navigation.   I would split up the sentences about sea-travel and then astronomy. Using it as a lead up to the following sentence and working it into that will help it flow better! I think you mean 'focal' and not vocal! But that sounds exciting. I wish there were some images to play off these sections.   I would take 'hence' out of the Siren paragraph, but the rest works fine.   Stargazer peaks sounds like it may be better to go directly after Kwal, since you mention stargazing and such in each section. Rearranging 'given such name' or something might help it flow better, it's okay to simply say 'named for being excellent....'.   All in all, the article is solid, the only things being comma heavy and needing a bit of variation in sentence flow. Your layouts are strong! Its just minor things that pop out.

Apr 8, 2020 14:20 by Diane Morrison

Your map is really pretty! And I *love* the background; very striking! I immediately feel like I'm there! I look forward to seeing this fleshed out after the contest, when we have more word count to play with. I want to know more about the exotic lifeforms here. :)

Author of the Wyrd West Chronicles and the Toy Soldier Saga. Mother of Bunnies, Eater of Pickles, Friend of Nerds, First of her Name.
Apr 8, 2020 14:46

Thanks!