Adventures in Arcadayn
Cauldron Isle
By Tim Emrick

Ruler: (no single ruler).

Capital: (no single capital).

Symbol/Arms: N/A.

Culture Level: Barbarian.

Currency: none (uses barter or foreign coins).

Divisions: (several tribes and temple communities).

Government Type: Theocracy.

Languages: The islanders use archaic dialects of Krithian and Northlander, defaulting to the modern language (and vice versa) at -4. Islander Krithian is very close to Old Krithian, defaulting to that language at only -2.

Population: Estimated at 33,000, of which 15,000 are in Caldor Colony, and about 18,000 on the rest of the island.

Racial Stock: The island is made of distinct communities of North Anidels (in the Tombwood) and South Anidels (to the north and east).

Geography: Cauldron Isle, located at the center of the Great Sea, measures about 150 miles long along its east-west axis and about 60 miles north-south. The center is dominated by volcanic mountains, at the center of which is the gigantic, steaming fissure known as the Cauldron. The western half of the island is covered with a thick forest known as the Tombwood, while the eastern half is composed of rugged central hills and rolling coastal meadows. The majority of this arable eastern land has been claimed by the Kingdom of Visala, and has been named Colony Caldor.

Climate: Warm and rainy.

Agriculture & Resources: Crops: citrus, grapes, olives; some grains (most only at subsistence levels). Resources: asbestos, copper, fish, gems (obsidian), sulfur.

Religions: Except for the Visalan priests in Colony Caldor, this island is solely inhabited by Elemental cultists, primarily those worshipping Uralor and Kemira, whose combined might is represented by the Cauldron. These two cults maintain an impressive number of shrines and temples throughout the island, but the most important centers are located among the volcanoes in the interior. While the cultists seem to tolerate outsiders on the coasts of their sacred island, those who wander too close to the central holy places are slain out of hand.

Military: Cauldron Isle has no professional military (unlike Caldor's garrison), but many of the cultists are highly-trained warriors who will defend their sacred isle with their lives. Most of these, being normal tribesmen, fight as irregulars, but the permanent temple guardians are usually more disciplined.

Nonhumans: Few sentient nonhumans are known here, but the mysterious interior very likely shelters more fire- and earth-worshipers than mere humans. (In fact, most iron and bronze dwarves take it for granted that a separate dwarf subrace dwells here, but they dislike the sea too much to investigate.) A few centaurs from Visala have emigrated to Caldor Colony, and there may be sidhe in the Tombwood.

Other Special Groups: The Oracle of the Cauldron: The Elemental cults maintain an oracular shrine somewhere within the central mountains, which no credible witness has seen and survived. A smaller shrine exists in the southern foothills, where outsiders may ask questions of priests affiliated with the Oracle. If a suitable offering has been made, the priests return with an answer within a few days. Due to the mystery surrounding the cults, the true nature of the Oracle has not been determined to any outsider's satisfaction. The Oracle might be a priest, wizard, demigod, monster, or holy object, or even simply a fiction of the cult.

History: When Kemira inflicted the Cataclysm upon Arcadayn, she preserved the Cauldron as a permanent warning to all who might anger the All-Mother. Eventually, humans from the northeast and southwest discovered the island--and each other. The island proved a dangerous choice of home, and only the most faithful worshippers of the earth-goddess and fire-god thrived. These devotees formed communities ruled by their priests and shamans, which occasionally joined forces to consecrate new holy sites. The mysteries of the Oracle arose out of this religious unity.

Names: See The Krithian Empire and The Northlands. Among the islanders, some consonants and vowels have changed, but their languages and names are recognizably related to Krithian and Northlander.

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