The Dakra Isles were created when Thassa wept over the death of Korinna, a triton queen killed by a human's harpoon. Where the god's tears fell onto the sea there exploded forth an isle suffused with immortal magic and memory. Ages later, the Dakra Isles-also called the Isles of Enchantment-harbor strange sights and fierce monsters. Thassa's power makes it impossible to keep an accurate chart of the islands' positions, which roam as they please. Thus, even the most famed locations appear on no map, and sailors might spot them when or wherever Thassa wills.
Arixmethes
Tales tell of the lost island of Arixmethes, which was inhabitad for centuries untill suddenly, the island begann to move. Sailors were unable to find the island in the treacherous Draka Sea again and soon, it became a legend among sailors. Some people say, that the island is a riddle created by
Keranos, God of Storms. He who can solve the riddle will find unimaginable treasure on the island.
Cronemouth Cove
This tiny island lies in the midst of perpetual doldrums and holds a known gate to the Underworld. It is guarded by a coven of sea hags who share a single tongue that is perpetually trying to escape from their clutches, wriggling out of reach with a mind of its own.
Ketaphos
Famed for its role in The Callapheia, the island of Ketaphos supposedly exists in Nyx during the night and in the mortal realm during the day. Callaphe and her crew were welcomed there and fed by a band of Nyxborn centaurs when a storm drove them to the island, then found themselves stranded on a barren rock when the sun rose and the island shifted to the mortal realm.
Skathos
The island of Skathos was once a sacred meeting place for a secret cult of Pharika whose rites revolved around consuming a magical flower native to the island. The island is now home to the medusa queen, Hythonia.
Polyphemis
This great island rises like a jagged fang from the Dakra Sea, its interior swallowed by deep swamps and tangled mangroves. At its heart dwells Kelekthys, a many-headed hydra said to be blessed by
Nylea herself. Sailors tell of the beast slumbering for decades, only to rise when hunters or treasure-seekers disturb its lair. The island itself shifts with the creature’s movements, reshaping rivers and hills. Many tritons insist that Polyphemis is no true island at all, but rather an outgrowth of the hydra’s ancient body.
Eretria’s Fall
A forested isle dominated by a looming volcanic mountain, Eretria’s Fall is both beacon and grave. Its beaches are littered with shattered masts and broken hulls, a cemetery of ships stretching for miles. The island’s interior is no less treacherous: the forest is unnaturally quiet, and the slopes of the volcano are scarred with obsidian ridges sharp enough to cut through iron. Sailors whisper that
Phenax delights in luring mortals here with false lights and favorable winds, watching them founder against the reefs before they even glimpse the mountain’s peak.
The Bloodtide Shoals
This scattered cluster of low islands is barely visible above the waves, their sandbars and reefs shifting unpredictably. Here dwell clans of sahuagin who claim to be the chosen of
Mogis, God of Slaughter. They raid passing vessels with ritual cruelty, decorating their coral palaces with the bones of their victims. When the sea runs red at sunset, sailors say the sahuagin are holding one of their feasts, and to linger nearby is to invite a swift, merciless end. The shoals themselves seem to hunger, dragging ships into shallow waters where no escape is possible.
Lyrissea’s Veil
Hidden among shallow reefs and sunlit lagoons drifts a scattering of small isles, veiled in sea-mist that never burns away. Here dwell gentle communities of merfolk who claim descent from Korinna’s court, spared from sorrow by Thassa’s compassion. They weave pearl-bright homes within coral arches and sing in voices that echo through the currents like distant chimes. Sailors who stumble upon Lyrissea’s Veil speak of being offered safe harbor, food, and healing—though few can ever find the isles a second time. Some say the merfolk shy away not out of fear, but because mortals who linger too long risk becoming part of their eternal songs.
Comments