Purple Shell Coast

At the western side of the Cornfloor Peninsula, there is a many kilometers long coastline, uninterrupted as far as the eye can see. Covered in palm trees, it is the natural limit of the Kinh Hee Palm Grove, with many species of coconut trees and dates growing in the pearly white close to the pearly white beach sands. The weather is sunny most of the time, with the exception of the rainy seasons, and even then, most of the heavy storms come from the eastern side of the peninsula, so they arrive weakened at the western side.
The coastline is famous for harboring a noteworthy species of mollusk, the king’s sea snail. The king’s sea snail are large snails, the size of a human head, and develop a massive conical shell all throughout their live. They are completely blind, only being able to move around though the many appendages covering their body, which grant them an impeccable sense of touch. Their meat is considerably poisonous, and while a human could eat one and survive once properly cooked, the painful stomach aches it would cause would make him not to try it ever again. For smaller beings or creatures with a weaker constitution, it could cause severe damages or even death. Thus, they have been able to populate the entire area around the coast. They mostly live in the coral reefs near the shores, which extend for miles parallel to the coast.
Twice a year, the king’s sea snails go to the beaches in the tens of thousands to reproduce. They males compete with each other by generating a massive amount of purple spew, a show of strength and virility to attract a mate. This would happen for two entire weeks, until all females find a mate and they all go back to the sea. The sheer amount of purple spew leaves the normally white sands of the region with a distinctive purple hue, hence the name of the region, the Purple Shell Coast.
The locals of the area have learned to take the inked sands and distill it to obtain the purple pigment. This has been used in the area for millennia to color any kind of textiles, from clothes to sails. Many drow vessels use the purple ink to paint their sails, creating different patterns to show to which drow city they belong. The local population of the Purple Shell Coast live near the shores, either as fishermen or gathering the fruitful produce of the palm trees. Most of the local dwarven towns live off the production and processing of the king’s sea snail spew into inks and hues. During the few weeks the snails are in heat, all other activity in the region ceases, and all men, women and children will be put into the processing of the spew. They have to, as the massive amounts of sea snails generate enormous amounts of purple spew, and the demand for it is just as great, being a popular pigment in Scimitarian and Western Giantstep.
The value of the inks and hues produced in the area has made the region quite prosperous, though the lack of adequate areas where to build a port are great. The great amount of coral makes big vessels hard to maneuver without being damaged, and the overall peripheral position of the region in regards to international trade is quite unfortunate, since most of the sea trade routes are either northwards or eastwards. This means that most of the trade is through land, with caravans moving the valuable materials to the Drow City States, from where it is then sold and redistributed. This is not without dangers, as there is some piratical activity within the area, especially coming from the drow city of Duskraen, which targets the shipments of ink from time to time.
Category:Geographic location
Category:Scimitarian