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A Traveler's Guide to the Turamzzyrian Empire
Torre
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Torre is located near the center of the Empire on the west coast.
The weather is generally very mild, with the exception of a prolonged
rainy season in spring. The territory is centered around the Maelstrom
Bay. The capital city of Fairport accounts for most of the county's
population, with the rest being scattered fishing villages and farmsteads.
Fairport
Fairport is the major port city for Torre. The bustling port services
the coast, and with regular trade routes seaward to Tamzyrr, Ubl,
Idolone, and Brisker's Cove, the city is a well established component
of the Empire's economy. Fairport once maintained a lucrative trade
route with the inner Empire via the Tempest river by way of the
Maelstrom Bay, but the Great Quake that resulted in the creation
of the Tempest Falls closed that route in 4565.
The customs of Torre's citizens are married to the sea, and local
jargon is rife with references to fishing and the sea-faring life.
It is not uncommon for parents to bring their newborns to the Tower
of the Sea Princess in Fairport, seeking to placate Charl through
his daughter and ask the blessings of her priestesses. Tragedy is
common among those who sail the seas, and Niima's temple is never
lacking in wives and children beseeching the goddess for mercy and
the safe return of loved ones.
River's Rest
In the days of the Kannalan Empire the island of River's Rest was
a beacon of art and trade. The fall of that empire and the resulting
anarchy begat a long social decline in the region. Its location
at the juncture of the Tempest River and the mouth of Maelstrom
Bay, however, made River's Rest a natural trading center. It was
inevitable that it would be rebuilt.
Very likely River's Rest would have regained its prominence if
not for the Great Quake of 4565. The quake not only devastated the
island itself, it shifted the land to a degree that a large waterfall
was created on the Tempest River. This almost entirely disrupted
the river trade on which the prosperity of River's Rest hinged.
The island has never recovered.
With the loss of River's Rest's economic base, the County of Torre
and the Turamzzyrrian Empire lost much of their interest in the
region. Imperial indifference and neglect made River's Rest an
attractive location for outlaws, smugglers, pirates and fugitives.
Although in recent years some rough form of law and order has
been established, the island of River's Rest remains underpopulated
and primitive.
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Exports
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Imports
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Fish
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Produce
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Ships
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Grain
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Silk
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Iron
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Gems
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Oil
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Gold
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Wine
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Wood
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Glassware
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The First of Lormesta is a popular holiday in this region, during
which children travel the town wishing their neighbors good fortune
in the coming year. They wear silk flowers in their hats and carry
silver-spangled oranges on the ends of sticks. At each home they
are welcomed with a cry of "For those without and those within,
let the newfound year begin!" and given gifts of sweet foods
and money.
The ships that sail from Fairport almost always carry with them
a cat, and the actions of this beast are said to have great predictive
powers. If she stretches so that her paws meet, a storm will be
encountered soon. If she turns her back to the captain or the galley
fire, the ship is likely to be stranded. And if the cat scratches
the mast with her claws, the ship and all her crew are surely doomed.
Local custom dictates that an offering of roasted barley flour
and fruit be left by the ocean before embarking on a fishing expedition
of any kind. This ensures the goodwill of the seals, who will then
be sure to drive fish of all kinds into the fisherman's nets. If
this offering is not made, it is said that one's luck in fishing
will be poor and the fisherman's nets will tear. Old people tell
of "sealsingers" hired to laud the virtues of these aquatic
beasts on special occasions.
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