Settlements and Sites of the Four City-States #189

Settlements and Sites of the Four City-States #189 

July 8th, 2023 

• Number: 189 

• Name: Deep Dive on a Site of Interest: Buccaneer's Arc of Ceannar Part 7: Rumport 

• Location: Northwest Ceannar between Staplefish Bay and Lesser Staplefish Bay (aka Lapit Bay) 

• Population (approx.): 350 

• Brief: Rumport’s origins are lost to history but since the founding of the City-States, it has been home to all manner of ne’er-do-wells including smugglers, pirates, buccaneers, exiled nobles, displaced travelers, criminals on the run, mysterious strangers, and even one or two of the indigenous Wildfolk population.  

• The Council of Captains, who run Rumport and the entire Arc, and dispense justice per the Oaths of Blood sworn to by any Captain who wishes to dock in the Arc, counts the following as worthy of a seat at the table: 

• Commodore and Council chair Dane Balthier, 125, Elf male, is in a bit of pickle as he is a pirate captain in need of a ship. His last ship was sunk off the coast of Ceannar in a battle near Skyward Platform (#78).  His surviving crew scattered to other ports or ships. Dane has heard rumors of a golden statue that brings a tsunami on call. He started looking for a new crew (and ship) to seek the statue, but so far there's no interest. The other captains of the Council are considering replacing him with another such as Captain Crom. 

• Captain Glade "Two Teeth” Xander, 34, a Human male of the “The Mermaid’s Revenge.” He captured the ship last year with his crew, The Sea Foxes. He is tall and has a beer gut, but he is very skilled with various sword types. He plans to raid with his new ship soon, but repairs keep him from leaving. 

• Captain Harmor Divingham of the “The Greedy Abandoned” (#187) 

• Captain Gesa Khuna, 41, Human woman, of the Red Raider. The ship, named for the coppery hair of her captain, is a mish-mosh of different parts from other ships. Gesa is of middling height and wears cloth pants and soft leather armor. Her favorite weapon is a short sword. Gesa's crew comprises a mish-mosh of former crew from other vessels including a couple survivors of Commodore Balthier’s lost vessel. 

• Captain Regina “Bird’s Eye” Crowley of “It Takes Two” (#186) 

• Other notables of Rumport include: 

• Walfinas, 56, Half-Elf woman, is a scientist of the highest caliber. She is tall and chubby. Her favorite research is creating items that explode. Orman 'Crazy' Crom, the infamous (and crazy as she is) pirate, has given her a laboratory, a safe distance from Rumport, that lets her experiment with ways to add explosive effects to standard weapons. 

• Bluebell Natas, 59, Human woman, is a witch that specializes in removing curses. She appears as a young woman dressed in a frilly blouse and a long skirt. Bluebell is herself under a curse that no one seems to know how to or care to cure. She keeps the locals free from harm and uses many herbs to keep everyone healthy. 

• Geography: Rumport can be found nestled in a large cove on the south shore of Faom Motu island. The town is a hodgepodge of buildings made from wood (from wrecks or trees of the island) and stone (from earlier ruins found in the depths of the forest or pulled from atop Spyglass Hill). A pair of long piers, for the small boats of the pirate crews and several local fishing vessels, extend out into the cove. They lead to a single wide dirt and cobblestone path through the center of town and leading up the slopes to Spyglass Hill.  

• The largest building is a mashup of a hotel, tavern and town hall, hosting the Council of Captains in a great central chamber in the center. It is surrounded by residences, a general store (items smuggled, scrounged or foraged), a pawnshop (loot for coin and vice versa), a tinker’s (handling both wood-working and smithing), a herbologist-healer (Bluebell Natas will you alive at least), and a run-down chapel to the Seas.