For further information see Timeline of the Thousand Isles
The Thousand Isles is a tropical archipelago, stretching over approximately 5000 leagues (15,000 of our miles) of ocean west of Valoria and north of Great Mbo. It contains twelve large extinct volcanoes, ten large islands in an The Inner Archipelago and hundreds of smaller ones scattered in two outer reaches (the The Northern and Southern Reach)
While the Thousand Isles has been populated for millenia by a polyglot of natives and neighboring nationalities, up until 500 years ago it’s society was relatively tribal, with no large cities, low population densities and late stone age technology levels.
That all changed with the coming of the Annwyn Empire. Unlike in neighboring Great Mbo and Valoria, the An aggressively and extensively colonized the Thousand Isles especially Bonny Isle and the nearby major islands of the The Inner Archipelago. This colonization had disastrous effects on the indigenous populations of the First People that lived in that area, as they were displaced by immigrants from the An home islands. The Annwyn empire used Haven Towne as their primary naval base in the western ocean and these islands became the furthest reach of the An empire.
When the Annwyn Empire fell, the local populations were left to their own devices. After a period of social upheaval and a widespread taking back of sovereignty by many of the tribes of the First People, a rich polyglot maritime culture developed, scattered across the extent of the Isles.
The island populace is still sparse by continental standard, and primarily human, though orcs and halflings are numerous in the The Northern Reach, there are rumors of Tortles in the south, and giants dominate the island of Gianthome in the far north. Elves, tieflings and dwarves are uncommon though not unknown.
In the The Inner Archipelago, over the past five hundred years, ethnic Annish have mixed with local populations of First People to create a polyglot ethnicity called Creole, though some noble families, most notably of The Republic of Haven, The Antilles and Etmarch are still jealous of their more pure Annish blood. In the The Northern and Southern Reach, and The Garden Isles, where The Annwyn Empire's touch was light, it is a different story. Here the First People dominate with only an occasional town or settlement remembering the Annwyn Empire.
While the Thousand Isles are small by population and not aggressively expansionist they are consummate Ships builder, seafarers and far ranging traders. They have retained more of the old Annwyn naval technology then the adjacent continents have managed to do. The Ships of the Thousand Isles, metallurgy and naval Warfare is well in advance of most of their neighbors, though still well behind the peak of the An Empire (mapping to roughly mid 1600’s AD in our world while most neighbors are two hundred years behind that).
The Inner Archipelago states and merchant houses field large war fleets of galleys for use in the shallow water of the inner archipelago, in addition to deep water trade fleets, generally consisting of large slow Galleon and faster, smaller Fluyt. These ships trade far across the wider ocean, to the Reaches and beyond. In addition small fast sloops, barks and brigantines are prolific for local trade especially in the more far flung and less populated Reaches.
Cannon and gunpowder exist but are expensive, ungainly and still rare (roughly late 16th century equivalent). While it is not uncommon to encounter individuals sporting matchlock pistols and rifles, they are usually a mark of wealth and success or membership in a military organization or militia. Armor, melee weapons, bows and crossbows are still common fair. With regards to ship weaponry, heavier warships and larger merchants can and do carry cannon however smaller crafts generally can’t, due to both size and expense.
Land armies contain a mix of matchlock infantry, crossbowmen, halberdiers, short pikes and other melee weapons. Since land combat is still primarily ship based, cavalry is rare as are large Tercio style formations. In general the Thousand Islanders are masters of sea combat while being generally less inexperienced in large scale land warfare then their continental cousins.
That is not surprising as naval warfare is essential for the survival of the various states, citiestates and principalities. Every municipality in the archipelago exists in a precarious balance of power and shifting alliances. Many states maintain large galley warfleets on constant alert, as they may be required to leap into battle at short notice in order to prevent an enemy from attacks on harbor facilities and cities. Wars flare quickly, are relatively common and fiercely fought, but usually of short duration and mostly confined to sea, culminating with (mostly unsuccessful) land actions against fortified settlements or scorched earth raids against rural landscapes.
It’s very difficult for any one state in the inner archipelago to achieve a permanent advantage as they usually lack the land based military power to maintain an army in the field on an enemy island or to overcome the heavy fortification of their enemies. Supremacy at sea is usually the end goal and achievable however, as control of the sea lanes and all important trade routes is crucial to garnering the lion's share of the great wealth they generate.