Casseus, the Floating Isle

## Common Knowledge

This island travels around the world by air, encircling the continent within which Binturia is located to raid and pillage villages along the coastlines. It touches down in water when it isn’t moving. The Island is made of ships conjoined and is a den of miscreants, thieves, murderers, etc.

## Topography and Climate

Due to its constant travel the climate on board can vastly vary from a warm and balmy tropical, to a blazing hot desert, to a freezing blizzard, and anything in between. The ship’s topography doesn’t change much beyond what precipitation will do/accumulate on a flat surface of wood.

## Population

Casseus was a haven to those outcast from all other lands: pirates, murderers, thieves, marauders. It is a place where anyone and everyone can make a living. There is a healthy representation of almost every race on board this colossal isle.

## Exports and Trades

They specialized in black market trading of the goods they pilfered from the towns they pillaged and burned to the ground. If anyone ever needs any type of illicit or illegal job done, there is always one person willing to do the job for a price.

## Government

The leader of this den of thieves is a man named Captain Dempsey. A fearless pirate captain with a flare for fashion. He 'employs' a seamstress constantly, commanding him or her to make a new outfit every week. Nothing can satisfy his desire for material wealth. He has four mates who act as extensions of himself to watch the outer boats while Captain Dempsey stays on the Dragon Hydra.

## Military

Every single person on this isle knows how to wield some type of weapon and defend themselves in multiple ways. They are practically one giant army.

## Social Hierarchy and Culture

They have a love of the sea, but even more of a love to their recreational activities and their booze, especially a newly developed drink born from the coral off the shores of Aiur mixed with the minerals extracted from the mountain peaks of Ӧrӕfin cooked over a fire until a crystalized form was made then dissolved into regular Galkadorian Ale. This new alcohol was savoury and salty, not unlike sea water, but was refreshing at the same time. This drink, aptly named Riptide, is always cold and seems to have the ocean currents themselves swirling inside the mug. It appeals to many aboard Casseus and those they trade with.

Along with these pirates and thugs are average people; taken from various coastlines, marked with their owner's sign and forced to work as slaves. Each slave is marked with a tattoo when they are acquired/bought (if they are at least 10 years of age). This tattoo marks who the owner of the slave happens to be. Dempsey's sign is the dragon so his slaves are tattooed with dragons. Dempsey’s four mates have the sign of the section they oversee, thus their slaves are tattooed with whatever that is. Tattoos are located over the slaves’ heart and spread up over the shoulder and neck.

The hierarchy is based on merit and skill, the better you are at what you do the more respect and money you get. The slaves are at the bottom of the pyramid but can work their way out of that station with enough time, hard work, and a sponsorship from one of the higher ranking people on the isle.

### Celebrations and Holidays

The entire time on the isle is like a giant constant party but there are no real celebrations or holidays that are Casseus wide. They do participate in the annual RobCon in Binturia, it is the only time that Casseus stops over land for any substantial length of time

## The Five Ships

The isle of Casseus is made up of five gigantic ships, each of which could easily carry five times the crew of any normal vessel, slung side by side. The fearsome and beautiful figureheads adorning each of these ships are magnificent. The left two figures: a great beast of the sea, a Leviathan, and the beautiful goddess of the sea, Undina. The right two figures: a Sea Wurm poised to attack and eat its prey, and a Siren Queen, vicious with claws reaching towards the horizon to slash anyone in her path. The center figurehead was the island’s pride and joy: an enormous Dragon Hydra, three times the size of the other figureheads but just as magnificent and just as malicious. The green and gold color of its scales flash in the sun, blinding oncoming vessels.

All five boats host the black market trading equally but certain types of crimes are generally isolated to specific boats.

### Leviathan

The bottom left boat of the fleet, the Leviathan, holds the forgery and fraud section of the fleet. Any person or material someone may need is at their fingertips if the offer is right. If someone needs new papers to travel somewhere or needs to forge tax documents, anything they need is on the Leviathan.

### Undina

The top left boat of the fleet holds those willing to kill for a price. Assassinations and murders that look like accidents or with evidence planted to blame someone else. Planting evidence to incite violence is also available here. Anything of that sort can be found on the Undina.

### Sea Wurm

The ship docked on the bottom right is the Sea Wurm which has people that specialize in explosive devices (or results) as well as arson. Just general destruction is their whole shtick and they are completely willing to do so to anyone and anything a customer points too after being handed some gold, of course.

### Siren Queen

The Siren is located in the top right of the fleet is known to house those skilled in theft and kidnapping. They are, of the many services provided here, often the most disciplined in their work. They can do exactly what the customer wants with almost never having unexpected consequences or collateral damage.

### Dragon Hydra

As the center boat it acts as the anchoring point for the other four boats. These points are carved to look like four of the Dragon Hydra’s heads whose jaws clamp down and anchor the boats. This ship acts as the “administrative center” where all the orders come from and the direction of flight is decided. It is the point of convergence so if someone wants to go from one edge boat to another they have to cross the Dragon Hydra.

## Alliances

Casseus has no formal alliances but they will trade with literally anyone as long as you have the money for it.

## Enemy Countries

Casseus doesn’t have official enemies but they are a nuisance to many coastal nations.

## Founding and History

Casseus was founded when Captain Demsey found an ancient artifact in the 6500s AB that would make a ship fly and used it to make his fleet fly, as long as they were attached together as one ship. Other pirates and thugs flocked to the isle as a sanctuary and a wonderful business opportunity; thus Casseus, the Floating Isle, was born and it still flies to this day under the watchful command of Captain Demsey.

There is a legend that the Figureheads of each ship are made from the petrified bodies of what they represent; a Leviathan, Undina, a Sea Wurm, a Siren Queen, and a Dragon Hydra.