Tuarapon

Northeast of the ruined colony of War-Wel lies the island of Tuarapon. It's an island with beauty like no other, where several species of plants and animals thrive, many found nowhere else on the Continent.
Its beauty has been known for a while by Asvaran explorers, although Tuarapon's full potential was not unlocked until a famed alchemist from Arangea landed on its coast during a botanical expedition. Although its forests and jungles are extremely value to any alchemist for a plethora of rare potions, true danger lies in the geological properties, where cracks in the earth's crust release dangerous fumes that can incapacipate a human in mere seconds.
That's why all expeditions to Tuarapon are always to be proceeded with extreme caution. Many voyages have returned with poisoned alchemists due to their extreme eagerness upon eyeing the exotic plants.
== History ==
Traces of civilization have been found deep in the rainforests of Tuarapon, indicating that the toxic fumes that have engulfed most of the island were not always present there. Since Asvaran explorers and alchemists first visited the island, with word spreading around the world about the many mysteries that it beholds, small trading towns have sprouted along the northern coast of the island, where the fumes are not present, and are vassals of Asvaran. These towns are mostly made up of humans from Asvaran and Ortuga, but some Zulutaurs and Badgassi have also found themselves in there. The settlers of Tuarapon only wander in the interior of the island whenever a wealthy alchemist or merchant stops by and pays them to retrieve a certain alchemical ingredient. In fact, these jungle expeditions make up a large part of the island's economy, although most of those end in failure, with people either not returning to the towns at all, or returning with diseased lungs and skin, often resulting in a slow death, as even the sturdiest of gas masks can 
== Flora and Fauna ==
Most of the plants and animals of Tuarapon are endemic, not being present anywhere else in the world, even in the neighbouring island of Sutaman. They have adapted to the environment and are resistant to the toxic fumes.
Most of the animals in Tuarapon either live underground, or have developed specific defensive mechanisms against the fumes. One of those is the Slippery Tuarapon Toad, which is a large amphibian with a very thick layer of mucus that is extremely toxic, even to the touch. Another one is the Saramaga, a species of salamander that has an skull around its head, resembling an exoskeleton. Notable plants include the umbrella tree, preventing the fumes from escaping above the canopy and restricting them inside the rainforest, and the parasitic vine, which can find a way and grow inside a mammal's mouth, penetrating its lungs and oesophagus and causing death.
Strangely enough, Tuarapon's jungles are devoid of large predators, with the largest animal being the size of a tortoise or a small boar.
Category:Geographic location
Category:Giantstep