Sailor's Guide to Savelan Shores

This one goes out to every godsforsaken shoreline I've lost a sandwich to.

— An angrily scrawled dedication

This rather passionate guide follows one sailor's travels through the Kingdom of Arsavela's many shores, noting the best and worst of each coastal city and town on the itinerary.

This guide comes to you in a hastily-bound folio of assorted paper types and qualities, some fine and others crude, but all salt-crusted and ale-stained.

The penmanship within is certainly not of a scribe's trained hand, but it is serviceable enough that the contents within are legible throughout.

Map of Arsavela by Strixxline

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Welcome to Silverbay!

What can I say about this one? It's silver, and it's a bay. They sure know their way with words round these parts.

— First impressions.

Can't say I was impressed with the port when we first saw it roll over the horizon, but any moorable harbor is a godssend after that sailing. Still think they could'a been more creative with the name. Whatever — the crew and I are touring this Kingdom, so I'm writing the only travel guide you'll ever need for it. You're welcome.

Scoping out the taverns

The locals say this place is a hit. I think they forgot an "s" somewhere in that word. They gotta be holding out on us.

— Food's sitting on the plate a little too long in front of a starving man

Who do these folks think they're talking to, sending me off to some tidy little tavern? Do I look like the type to fork and knife a little meat patty, dip it into some light sauce... bah, I need to find the REAL food. I'll let you know what I find:

The Avoid-List

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If you want a good meal, you don't go to the Bayside Tavern. With a generic name like that, you already know it sucks. I think they just send travelers there first to make sure they don't try to come back again for the food.

Also tried the Scuttled Skiff — what a damn disappointment this one was! I was expecting a real hit here, but it didn't hold up. Business is just as scuttled as that skiff. Drinks are okay, though. Could get blasted here on a budget.

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Now THIS is something! Load up that plate a few more times, my good wench! This place is making its year's quota on me alone tonight!

— Finally some good f*cking food

Silver Dollar

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Might sound fancy with folks throwin' silver around or somethin, but this is some hole-in-the-wall garbage I've been craving since we set out to sea.

There's nothing good for you here, at least if you're the type to sit around port all day doin' nothing. Us, though — we're burning off the grease from this meal in no time at all.

The Salt Bucket

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Bit of a tourist trap, this one, but there's a reason they all love it so much. Everything here is covered in salt: pretzels, drinks, meats, you name it.

You even get to take home a little prop bucket full of Silverbay salt & sand when you're done. Might start a collection of my own.

Jarvey's

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All right, not every tavern I like needs to be a disaster. This one's got some charm, some real high-society feel. Get yourself a good steak and ask for some of that top shelf rum, and you're eating like a king for a night.

It's a pricey way to live, but I'm not surviving the rough seas to come eat some gruel at port. Live a little!

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Had my first meal back on land, some drinks and all, and felt like my day was off to a grand old start. Took some food to-go from each spot I hit today. I'll wanna enjoy those later, no doubt.

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The following entry is scrawled in a hasty and sloppy hand on a torn-off sheet of food-stained brown paper.

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Never coming back to this shore again.
Blasted birds stole everything I had.
Nothing I can do about it.

"Beware the Sea Scamp," they told me. What? It's just a buncha dumb birds, I thought.

I got so used to locals lying to me about what's good in this city, but the one time I don't listen, I pay the price.

New plan.

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Enough with tavern reviews. Welcome to the Scamp Scale.

— (I'll get that trademarked, or whatever.)

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Wow, you can actually have a meal here. We'll see if such a place exists.

You'll have some eyes on you. Maybe a little buddy. Had plenty of meals like this back home.

One set of eyes ain't enough. You'll draw a crowd.

They're gonna be bold. Like trying to share a meal with a cat nearby.

You're in hell. You might be left wondering if you brought food at all.

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Silverbay, Revisited

You already know what happened here. It was like a battlefield. Sandwich, in hand — gone in an instant. I took a bite out of a few things before the thieves got at them, suddenly there was a beak in my mouth like some barbaric dentist. Pried my damn jaw open to get what it wanted.

One can hope it'll only go up from here

— Praying to all of my gods, plus some I've never even heard of, just in case

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To the Northlands

First sailing, headed east to Baliyan. I'm done with Silverbay.

— Onto the next shore!

Our first stop on the tour was a small city stuck on the inland-shore of the northern cape. Folks here are fabulous, carefree, not a worry in the world. What a way to live.

Everyone in this city is practically living on the sand. You know who else lives right on the sand? Yep. Sea scamps. I'm already seeing them everywhere.

Tavern Fare

I said I'd stop doing tavern reviews, and that's still true, but you won't catch me skipping out on the good stuff in a new city.

— Let's get some drinks and food.

Palm Villa

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They really get the tropical vibes going here, even though the shores around the north are pretty cold. Lots of fresh air with doors open all the time. That also means there are sea scamps running around indoors. Thought it would be a disaster — almost shouted when the server brought the food to my table with those little beady eyes watching.

Turns out, they're not big fans of table service. They do sit on the floor waiting for you to drop food, though. Little creeps.

Stoneshore Rest

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Fancy name for an inn. Decent beds, food's okay. Got the whole crew shacked up here for the night before the morning's sailing.

Bit of a disaster in the morning. Woke up with something soft curled up behind my neck. Oh good, an inn cat. Wrong. Sea scamp. Everything was fine until I moved, then it all chaos. Those things are LOUD.

Shut it up with some pocket snacks. Had to fight it to keep it out of my pocket after it found out food comes from there.

Lost some food, but didn't feel like I was in a war zone. They earned an extra star by being polite indoors.

— Baliyan is all right. Still a little treacherous.

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Morningtide

These folks run a tight ship. Tighter than this crew, somehow. We'll be up earlier than any Bohar should.

— Yawning through the day is a standard

We're cresting the horizon on Morningtide before the sun does. Not our favorite timeframe to work in, but we got a job to do.

Not a lot going on here for us to have fun with—

The writing cuts off abruptly here, then resumes with some passion.

The ship sprang some leaks. We're stuck in boringtown for a few days.

Pre-dawn rating. Had some breakfast the moment we hit shore. It's quiet, it's nice. I see the little critters trotting around, but they're too sleepy to bother anybody.

— As close to peace as this place might get!

Things to Do

I lied a little bit. There's stuff to do, but their hours are scattered and strict. No morning stuff at night. No night stuff in the morning.

— What do you mean I can't drink before sunset?

Brighthall Inn

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Never had an inn kick me out at sunrise before. Usually they wait until the afternoon starts heading in.

The early morning sunlight fills the building to an almost blinding degree. Built-in alarm clock, I suppose? Great breakfast foods, though. Dining hall stays open for a little while after the rooms close out.

Workman's Kitchen

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If you're someone who does hard labor, this place is your haven. Just be sure you slide in while the sun is still high in the sky or you might miss out on a true feast.

Most of the folks around here do the bulk of their work after noontime. This is the hot spot to get fueled up and ready to go.

The Moonwell

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If there's anything I can appreciate about this city, it's that the night life is more exciting than I ever expected. The Moonwell is truly a well that never empties.

Guess it makes sense now, why so much of our Morningtide cargo was liquid. Getting to partake makes hauling those heavy boxes worth it.

Night rating. Stumbled out of the Moonwell with leftovers, got back to the inn with about half of them missing. I was so drunk I didn't even notice.

— Saw the birds, was blind to their theft.

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Auspicious Shores

Auspices are a good thing right? Good fortune? Hope that means this place isn't a disaster.

— Finally back on the seas after repairing the ship!

Got some deliveries to make up in Ausper, but it's a bit of a hike from Laoro, the little town on the shore. They make the trip worth it, though. They're sending us back home with enough supplies to last the rest of the tour, and our ride home. Much obliged!

Beautiful shores, around here. Eastern end of the kingdom sure has some sights.

Back to Laoro

The Ausper folk tried to get us to stay the night at the farms, but the crew is antsy being so far from the ship overnight. Laoro is cooler, anyway. I mean, who's turning down a stay in a floating tavern? Not me.

— Not looking to lose my sea legs again

Flotsam

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Always worried when I see floating buildings, but this place is built like a proper ship! Sturdy, takes rough waves like a champ. Not that the waves around here get too crazy.

Had a meal in my room, thought getting an ocean view out the window while taking a bite would be a good idea. Wrong. One moment, I had a sandwich, the next, I was staring at my empty hand. The beautiful ocean backdrop didn't ease the sting too much. Turns out the scamps here are largely aquatic, and part-dolphin, apparently. All right.

I'll be honest, that one was a little demoralizing. Stayed in my room the rest of this stop.

— I thought I would be safe indoors. I was wrong.

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Crossing the Bay

One last stop. Let's make it good.

— No more agony, please

Right across the bay from Laoro is Damila. I'm expecting the same experience, since it's so close.

Taking to the Shores

Skipping right to the punch. We don't have a ton of time here.

— Let's see if they jump up on shore.

It's... all babies

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They don't know how to hunt. They just sit and stare at you while you eat.

I did it. I found a place I could be in peace. Bliss, even.

— I even gave them my food willingly.

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