SALTMARSH IS A NONDESCRIPT FISHING VILLAGE
tucked away on the southern coast of the
Kingdom of Keoland. For several generations,
Keoland was a formidable military power.
Its superior cavalry and bold knights pushed
the kingdom's borders outward to the north.
west. and east. Each successful campaign
increased both the crown's wealth and power,
and each one in turn drew the kingdom's attention even
farther north. The southern coastal regions of Keoland
remained a backwater.
The crown's benign neglect allowed piracy and banditry to flourish. Saltmarsh and similar towns kept to
fishing, content to maintain a low profile and avoid governmental entanglements. Decades ago, the pirates who
prowled the waters off Saltmarsh grew strong enough
to create their own realm, a loose confederacy known as
the Hold of the Sea Princes. With the rise of that nation
came increased raids on Saltmarsh and its neighbors.
The Sea Princes' raiding ships pillaged the coast for
more slaves to support their growing realm. and Saltmarsh suffered heavily. The memories of those times
loom heavily over the area, and the locals' hatred of the
Sea Princes runs deep.
In time, Keoland's victories in the north gave way to
a string of defeats in which its neighbors pushed the
kingdom back to its original boundaries. With the world
closing in, King Kimbertos Skotti looked to the south
and saw unchecked banditry and a rising pirate nation.
The crown struck peace treaties with its former foes to
the north, raised a navy, and dealt a sharp check to the
ambitions of the Sea Princes- but the conflict is by no
means over.
King Skotti has decreed that the pirates must be put
down, the sea lanes secured, and trade cultivated. If
Keoland cannot prosper as a military force, it must grow
mightier as a center of trade.
Saltmarsh. remote though it might be from the center
of power in Keoland, is entering a new phase of its life
as it reacts to the king's plans. The crown's agents want
to expand the village's port and make it a prime location
for trade with the world beyond. In another recent development, a band of dwarves bearing a decree from the
king himself- have arrived and begun LO excavate the
hills and seaside cliffs near town, looking for precious
metals. If their work bears fruit as expected, the mine
stands to become a major factor in the village's-and.
indeed, the entire region's prosperity.
Naturally, not all of Saltmarsh`s residents feel the
same way about the recent developments in and around
their community, which is the key issue that affects their
lives and livelihood. Although the recent changes stand
to bring new prosperity to the area. many locals don't
want to see their home changed. At the same time. as
an undercurrent through all the goings-on, agents of the
secretive and mysterious Scarlet Brotherhood work to
thwart Keoland's ambitions while advancing their own.
