Difference between revisions of "Zaphar Isle"

'''Zaphar Isle''' is a dry, sandy island in the [[Southern Sea]] populated by two native clans: a village of fishermen and their families, and a treehouse settlement inhabited by the Losilde family. Both groups are descendents of a crew of Jaruvian fishermen who were marooned on the island following a storm at sea. The Isle is host to many dangerous creatures and more than a few mysteries.

The Isle is actually composed of two separate landmasses connected by a stone bridge. At high tide, the bridge becomes submerged, rendering it completely unusable as a means of travel between the two islands until the tide rolls back out.

Both the southern and northern islands are primarily desert habitats. The natives have taken advantage of a deep gorge in the center of the southern island to protect their modest village from the constant ocean winds. A dense jungle in the southeastern corner of this island provides shelter for the Losilde clan. At the end of the path leading into the jungle is a small chapel containing a rickety wooden altar and an old version of the [[Holy Codex]].

The northern island is where the villagers travel to collect fresh water with certain peril, as this half of the Zaphar Isle is swarming with aggressive creatures. Nearly equal in size to its southern counterpart, the northern island is also rocky and dry except for a large, central freshwater oasis surrounded by tall trees and dense vines. A windswept sand dune at the extreme northern end of the island partially obscures the wreckage of a ship that will never again cut through the waves of the Southern Sea.

Zaphar Isle was initially settled by the crew of a Jaruvian fishing expedition gone awry. The Isle was rediscovered in the year 461 AF, shortly after the advent of [[:Category:Ships|sailing]]. The native villagers have managed to scrape together a meager existence by fishing the warm coastal waters and gathering fresh water from the oasis on the northern island. At some point, the dangers of the northern island prompted Danel Losilde to take his family away from the village, and they formed a settlement of treehouses in the southeastern jungle. Here, the Losildes learned to collect potable water from the occasional rain showers or through boiling seawater.

Slow adaptive changes in those who remained in the village have produced a strange speech impediment, making it difficult to understand them. Other subtle changes can be seen in the features of many of the young children and the women of the village.

The wild, northern half of Zaphar Isle is crawling with giant, aggressive [[scorpions]], as well as the occasional [[snakes|rattlesnake]], [[snakes|treesnakes]] and banana [[spiders|spider]]. The scorpions are to be approached with great caution, as their rapid stings deliver several deadly venoms. Rattlesnakes also inhabit the beach and village of the southern island, and banana spiders weave webs in the trees of the southeastern jungle there.