Crescent Bay & Grey Sea

Geography

The broken and rocky shores of the Crescent Bay are awash with many local villages hidden among the large rocks that are a common sight. The waters that stretch across the bay tend to be abundant with fish and other sea life that finds its way into the cookpots of those that call it home. Calm water ways allow Carachs to travel directly across it over much deeper waters than they are typically capable of, making trade quick and safe as far as the geography is concerned.

In some locations massive cliffs rise like rath walls from the grey waters to tower high overhead. From them sometimes flows water caught on the winds and propelled back up as if a waterfall falling in reverse. The Grey Sea beats at these might cliffs where among the great float stones seals and puffin are laid about.

History

Much later into the Age of Summer the Arduids and their kin began construction of Manannan Port. Sea trade would come down from the eastern shore from up in the Summerlands. With the construction of Manannan's port realized, orbiting Unknown and fishing villages began to sweep out across the eastern and western ring of the bay. Much like it is today the Crescent Bay was a nexus of trade and traffic and could almost be self-sustaining even without the trade from the Unknown.

When much of the population left to join some altercation north of the Ardenroots trade took a massive dip and many of the villages and caern-hearths were left derelict or abandoned. It wasn't until the Wounding of the Good Son that saw the end of the Age of Summer that refugees and survivors of that great cataclysm began pouring back into the region. Even then it was left only sparsely populated.

Then came the War of Spears and the entire country was embroiled in a massive war of succession that ravaged the countryside. Opportunistic carachlinn used it as an excuse to perform wanton acts of piracy. Battle with the Fwoarians in the Bulthron, Doan Toor and all down Tailté na Gréine lit the rocky shores red hot with the flames of war. Trade and prosperity once again drowned in the Grey Sea.

With relative peace returned to the land for several hundred years and trade taking a relative rise in stability, much of what made the Crescent Bay rich and peaceful returned to it. Tawny sails coast along its rolling, maritime hills and the people laugh and fish at its shores again.

Ecosystem

Endemic life along the shores consists of stoats hiding among the craggy rocks. Various maritime foal make their nests in the reedy grasses that rustle restlessly in the cool air that comes in off the grey waves. Just behind the rocky shores extend grassy knolls flush with faun and hound. Out to the grey sea great albatross wheel over the gentle wake of the carachs. Schools of fish shoot through the cold waters into waiting nets and open mouths. Close to shore tall kelps grow in dark forests that shelter the many shellfish and gastropods that crawl along the rocky bottoms.

In the spring the waves and shores are cool with plentiful rains falling on nearby fields. The grassy knolls flower with soft yellows and pinks. By the summer its warmed enough for many to take to swimming in their down time or bring out buckets to collect the clams and crabs. Autumn sees the return of the reedy, almost barren hills and winter blankets the shores with ice and snow making beaching one's carach a difficult chore.

Flora & Fauna

Animals consist of boar, small deer, eagles, storks, typical vermin, typical amphibians, some serpents and very few wild cattle.

Plants consist of sweet gum, magnolia, bay, and hickory trees, which live near streams. Pine, live oak, saw palmetto, wax myrtle, and wiregrass grow in the flatwoods.