Region*: THE ISLANDS (Tiles: V, W, Z)
THE ISLANDS (Tiles: V, W, Z) Three islands, three purposes, three complications. Fort St. Bastion (V): Arid, small, densely populated. European-style fort on an Antarctic speck, population crammed into space that shouldn't support them. Military and administrative center for the region. Supplies expeditions, processes "discoveries," maintains imperial presence through sheer stubborn will. Surrounded by Mother Marsh—accessible only by boat, defensible by isolation. Winter Crest Island (W): Grassland, sacred to the Ulutak people (Tidal Folk). They do not welcome visitors. They do not explain why the island is sacred. Colonial attempts to "explore" it have ended in disappearances not worth investigating further. The island is claimed on imperial maps. The Ulutak people disagree. This tension has not resolved. Bright Stone Island (Z extension): Lighthouse and fort guarding Bright Stone Bay's harbor entrance. Small garrison, critical function. Controls access to the colonial center. House Kinnon has interests here—smuggling routes, unofficial harbors, the kinds of maritime activities that happen when official channels close at sunset. The islands aren't part of the main landmass. This matters. They have their own weather, their own politics, their own relationship with the peoples who've lived here longer than empires have existed. They're claimed on maps. Claims and reality diverge. What you need: Depends which island. Papers for V. Invitation for W. Discretion for Z.