Sky Pirates

Raiders of Wind and Mist: Chronicles of the Golden Age of Air Piracy

Ask any sky-hand about the first true pirate, and they'll tell you about Carter the Windchaser. Back when airships were new, he ran a small trading vessel between Ferrocrux and the outer peaks. The story goes he discovered that Tempstradium merchant ships were paying triple for levium on the frontier. He spent six months mapping the high winds and cloud patterns before pulling off his first heist–stealing a levium shipment right out from under a Pyrocrux convoy's nose. Carter never kept the profits for himself; instead, he used them to help other independent traders stay airborne. He established the first "free traders' network," which everyone knew was really the first pirate alliance. Gifting essential levium to other crews made them unofficially indebted to him and helped secure his place as the pirate king.

As Tempstradium's power grew, their merchant houses began employing privateers to protect their interests. The most famous was Captain Martin Vellum, who commanded the feared Storm Hawk Squadron. Vellum's ships flew Tempstradium colors when it suited them, but tales spread of him raiding Etherwave supply lines under cover of darkness. The merchant houses always denied any involvement, but Vellum's crews never seemed short of premium Tempstradium equipment.

The Battle of Three Peaks

The simmering tension between Tempstradium and Etherwave erupted into open conflict in 162 AT. Three crucial trading peaks lay between their territories, each claiming neutrality. When Etherwave troops peacefully integrated one, Tempstradium responded by establishing a protective trade presence in another. The third peak became a hotbed of espionage and proxy conflicts.

Enter Bert Starrum, once an Etherwave naval commander before that ship was conquered. He played both sides masterfully, selling information to Tempstradium while raiding their ships, then using the proceeds to bribe Etherwave officers while stealing their military supplies. He established the first permanent pirate haven on Wanderer's Rest, a Skyland traveler that drifted between the contested peaks.

The Rise of the Free Ports

The legend of Hilcum Sparlus shows how the Skylands became pirate havens. A former Tempstradium merchant house captain, Hilcum lost his ship and commission after refusing to fire on civilian vessels during the Three Peaks Crisis. Instead of retiring, he mapped the predictable patterns of certain Skylands, establishing the first floating free ports. His most famous creation, Windhaven, became the model for other pirate settlements - neutral grounds where even ships from warring nations could trade and resupply, no questions asked.

Playing Both Sides

The ongoing cold war between Tempstradium and Etherwave created perfect conditions for pirates like the notorious Zhang Wei. Once a junior member of a Tempstradium merchant house, she used her knowledge of trade routes to build a vast intelligence network. Her crews would protect Tempstradium ships from Etherwave raiders one week, then help those same raiders bypass Tempstradium patrols the next. She popularized the saying, "No nation rules the wind."

The Crystal King

No discussion of modern piracy is complete without mentioning Anton Crystal King Deveraux. After deserting from the Etherwave navy, he discovered that certain crystal formations in the Skylands could be used to hide ships from detection as they distorted light making everything in their interior invisible. He established a network of hidden bases throughout the crystal forests, creating safe harbors that neither Tempstradium nor Etherwave could locate. His legacy lives on in the current system of secret pirate ports and hidden routes through the Skylands.

The New Generation

Today's pirates face a complex political landscape. Etherwave continues its aggressive expansion, now controlling twenty-nine peaks. Tempstradium responds by tightening its grip on trade routes and building ever-larger merchant fleets. Caught between these powers, modern pirates have become masters of manipulation.

Take the recent exploits of Captain Maurice Vellum (claimed descendant of Captain Vellum). When Etherwave began pressuring neutral peaks to restrict Tempstradium trade access, he organized a consortium of pirate captains to offer independent means of shipping. His ships regularly ran valuable cargo past Etherwave patrols while simultaneously "liberating" choice items from Tempstradium merchant vessels.

As tensions between Tempstradium and Etherwave reach new heights, piracy has become more organized than ever. The old Skyland havens have evolved into sophisticated operations, complete with their own governments and laws. Some say another major conflict between the powers is inevitable. Others whisper that the pirates, with their control of the spaces between peaks, may hold the true balance of power.

Honor Among Thieves

The culture that evolved among sky pirates was as harsh as the winds they rode. When your closest law enforcement is leagues away and your nearest neighbor might be your next victim, you make your own rules. The code that developed wasn't about morality–it was about survival.

A ship's captain held the power of life and death over their crew, but even they were bound by certain customs. Most ships operated under Articles of Agreement, signed by every crew member. Break the articles, face the consequences. And those consequences were designed to strike terror into even the hardiest soul. But the articles were a doubled-edged sword and more than one captain was thrown overboard for underperforming or excess cruelty.

Dipping became the preferred method of serious punishment around 50 AT. The practice started aboard the Midnight Scar when Captain Ezra Potts needed a way to discipline his crew without actually killing them. A rope around the waist, a quick drop below the ship, and a few seconds in the acid mists left a man alive but marked forever. The scars from dipping were distinctive - pale, spiderweb patterns across the newly reddened skin that never faded. They called these marks the Kiss of the Mist and they served as both punishment and warning to others.

Some captains used dipping as initiation. You weren't truly crew until you'd "tasted the mists." The practice led to a hierarchy among pirates - those who'd been dipped were considered harder, and more trustworthy. They called themselves Mist Tested.

For truly egregious crimes, a pirate or captive was made to walk the plank. Simply put, the victim was forced to jump into the mists, whether a plank was involved or not.

Walking the plank wasn't just execution -- it was entertainment. Unlike dipping, which happened swift and businesslike, plank walking was a ceremony. The condemned would be given a last drink, allowed final words, and sometimes even bet on how many seconds their screams would last before the mists swallowed them. It is said that a person dissolves all the way down.

Survivors of plank witnessings tell of the way the mists would seem to reach up for their victim, like eager hands grabbing at falling prey. It was believed that no one ever hit bottom–or at least not much hit the bottom.

Safe Harbor 

The Skyland havens developed their own peculiar mix of cutthroat politics and strict codes of conduct. Windhaven became famous for its "peace bonds" - all weapons sealed with distinctive red wax. Break the seal, face dipping or worse. The Crystal King's hidden ports required every visitor to surrender a valuable item as a promise of good behavior.

Most legendary was the custom of the Mist Truce– even bitter enemies wouldn't fight each other when sheltering from mist-storms. Break that rule, and every crew in port would join forces to execute the offenders.

Superstitions

Few people spent as much time flying over the grey as Pirates and they developed their own beliefs about the mists. Many wouldn't raid during certain wind patterns, believing the mists rose higher when the winds blew from the north. Others thought the mists were alive, hunting them. The practice of pouring the first drink of the day over the side "to feed the mists" became common.

The most feared phenomenon was the Calling– the belief that someone who'd been dipped too many times would eventually hear the mists whispering to them, driving them to jump to their death. Many a scarred veteran disappeared over the side after claiming the mists were "singing" to them.

Hierarchy

A complex social structure evolved around scars and survival. The unmarked were considered "soft" - usually merchants or new pirates. The once-dipped earned basic respect. Multiple dipping survivors became almost legendary, though many suspected the mists had touched their minds as well as their flesh.

Above them all stood the captains, who maintained their authority through a combination of skill, brutality, manipulation, and the ability to keep their crews rich enough to stay loyal. A captain who couldn't provide had two choices - step down or face mutiny.

The Articles

Most pirate articles included common elements:

- Share distribution of plunder

- Compensation for injuries (losing an eye earned more than losing a finger)

- Rules about gambling and fighting onboard

- Protocols for electing new officers

- Punishment schedules for various offenses

But each ship added its own peculiarities. The Crimson Wake required every crew member to donate blood to seal their signature. The "Storm's Child" included rules about caring for the ship's cats, considered essential for good luck. By all accounts it was the nastiest-smelling pirate ship that ever plied the Grey.

End Game

Few pirates died old in their beds. Those who survived long enough generally sought legitimacy through letters of marque from various nations, or bought their way into respectable society in one of the frontier peaks. The smartest invested their plunder in legitimate businesses, becoming the very merchants they once preyed upon.

But for most, the end came suddenly - in battle, by execution if captured, or through the ever-present threat of the mists. As the saying went: "The mists claim everyone eventually. Pirates just try to choose the when and how."

Today's pirates maintain many of these traditions. Basic structure remains - the articles, the harsh justice, the complex honor among thieves.

The mists still wait below, patient and hungry. And for those who choose the pirate's life, they remain both executioner and judge, the ultimate arbiter of life and death in the lawless spaces between the peaks.