The Silvertide Bay

Silvertide Bay is the sheltered sea that binds Freeport to the ocean and draws the wealth of distant coasts into a single blue reach. Its waters are clear and warm, the color of polished glass by day and, under a bright moon, veiled in a soft silver sheen that gives the bay its name. A long barrier island locals call the Crescent stands ten miles offshore and runs for twenty-five miles end to end, breaking the worst of the swell and turning the bay into a broad natural harbor.

Boundaries and Reach

To the east the dark line of the Ebonhart Forest presses almost to the shore. Off that coast lie scattered stony knuckles known as the Ebonhart Isles, small and wind-gnawed. Westward the coastline grows flatter and the water deepens toward open routes. North along the inner shore stand fishing villages whose nets and fishing keep Freeport and its visitors fed. South beyond the Crescent the vast ocean waits.

Waters and Weather

Currents turn gently within the Crescent’s lee. Squalls rake the outer ocean but pass with blunted force inside the bay. Winter brings the clearest water and a steady, workable wind. Summer is calmer still, though fog may pool at dawn along the eastern shore where forest breath meets sea.

On bright nights the surface carries a silvery luminescence. Wakes glow. Nets shine. Crews mark such nights for celebration.

Regions of the Bay

The Crescent Isle

The Crescent Isle is cliffed on its ocean face and grassed on its bayward slopes. Watchtowers spaced along the spine burn bright with magical light and mirrored lenses to guide traffic. The island’s central harbor is the Corsair station of Silverport, a hard-edged port where discipline and revel find equal footing.

Silverport

Silverport is a small port that the Freeport Corsairs call home. They manage their affairs from here away from the city of Freeport. They also offer every service a sailor might desire, often attracting visits from merchants, traders, and even pirates flying the white flag.

When the Corsairs sell escort beyond the bay they raise a second flag beside their own called the Silver Shield. Sailors drink and wager hard ashore and return to their ships at the bell.

The Deepbreaker Trenches

South-east of center the seabed falls in a raw scar of reef canyons called the Deepbreaker Trenches. The place is avoided by all but the most foolhardy crews. Here dwell the Deepbreakers, sea titans that rise without warning to smash piers and hulls when they become enraged.

These underwater red canyons appear to be carved by the sea titans and used as passageways to the deep unknown. Life thrives in these reefs and desperate fishermen will risk their luck for a good catch in these waters.

The Ebonhart Isles

Off the rocky shoreline of Ebonhart Forest, there are low rocky outcrops and small beaches reaching out into the sea. Kelp grows thick in the shallow water. Black seabirds perch on the rocks. When the weather is calm, small fishing crews stop here to rest. But in bad weather, these islands turn dangerous as indicated by the nineties wrecks found here. Only the most skilled sailors risk navigating through them.

The Everbloom Delta and Fortunetide

North-west inside the bay the Everbloom River parts into a small delta that feeds into the ocean. On its western most tongue stands Fortunetide, the largest of the fishing villages. Fortunetide is home to the region's fishing and river boat makers. Larger shipbuilding does not exist in Silvertide bay. Fortunetide’s strength is workboats that know every shoal between the Isles and the Crescent.

Peoples and Settlements

Silvertide folk live by tide and net. Towns rest where a ridge gives dry ground above storm mark. Sheds are stilted and smokehouses run year round. Children appear to learn knots before letters. There is law, but custom holds tighter.

The Freeport Corsairs

The Freeport Corsairs are the bay’s hired fleet. Although they share their name with the city, they are a private organization.

Once pirates, now bound by contract, they answer to Freeport’s nobles when the bell rings and to their own captains the rest of the time. They keep Silverport, man the watchtowers on the

Crescent Isle, and sell safe-passage beyond the island under the name Silver Shields. Inside the bay they strike quickly from open water.

Druven Marr, Pirate Lord of the Shattered Sails, works the sea lanes beyond the Crescent. He harasses, takes bribes when it suits him, and uses the bay to earn an easy payout. Skirmishes with the Corsairs happen outside Silvertide Bay which typically result in a payout to keep the pirate lord away from Freeport, for a time.

Ocean Groakyn

A few ocean side Groakyn exist in the Silvertide Bay. They make their stilted hut homes on sand bars and sandy shores. They live in family sized groups and unlike their swamp brethren, live socially non-complex lives. They hunt for food and dance at night. On full moons they gather on the Crescent and celebrate, share, and trade goods. They are friendly enough towards outsiders and will trade with the fishing villages if they’re nearby.

Food Sources of the Bay

Moonfish

The bay’s common prize is moonfish, a fast schooling fish the locals call moonies. They run in dense silver sheets that turn the water slick and bright. Casting nets fill boats when the schools push in on a rising tide. Moonies are considered a great source of food enjoyed by all types of people from locals to nobles and visitors. Fishers swear the taste is best when the water shines.

Work, Season, and Festival

Winter brings slower trade through Freeport, though Silvertide’s weather stays fair. Towns turn to their own and mark the season with the Festival of Silver Waves. A celebration of abundance, community, and family. Every village on the shore celebrates, including Freeport. Many citizens from the farmlands will travel to the coast to join in the festival celebrations.

Hazards and Warnings

Drums stand on promontories and at village squares. A triple beat calls boats to harbor for Deepbreaker sighting.

Sound carries strangely over calm sea. By old custom there is no whistling on docks or decks, said to stir the ire of titans. When the bay lies flat as glass there is no music ashore. Lanterns are hooded early. Voices drop. Fishermen say the Deepbreakers listen.

Trade and Restraint

Silvertide Bay exists for passage and provisioning. Towns sell rope, tar, salt, and simple craft. Fortunetide builds and mends the small boats that feed the villages and work the river. The Corsairs move where they must to protect the integrity of Freeport and Silvertide Bay.