[Sea Roads] The Peoples of the Archipelago

The peoples of the Archipalego are uniformly red-brown skinned and dark haired, with the exception of the Grak, who are white skinned with blond or red hair. The average Archipalegan is between 5 foot 5 and 5 foot 9 tall and between 15 and 25 stone in weight, with women traditionally shorter and lighter than men.

The common language of the Sea Roads is Kaqe and the written text is Kaqic Runes, though the Grak speak a different language altogether. Kaqe is a bastardization of the True Speech and, while having little actual magical power, some words are suspiciously close to their original roots. Literacy is abnormally high for this technology level as both reading and writing is encouraged for all levels of society, though the majority of people are semi-literate and able to read most things slowly. Memorization is also encouraged, for the variety of songs and lays that are popular along the Sea Roads.

There is no religion in the Archipelago, with the exception of ancestor worship among the Grak, but there is veneration of few sites true to the Old Powers of the earth and the sea amongst the islands. The very concept of a god or gods is foreign to the inhabitants of the Sea Roads.

Professions range from sailor to soldier, witch to wizard, smith to carpenter, farmer to fisherman, and merchant to prince, to name a few. Most islanders are familiar with the sea, having sailed it since infancy, but a few on the larger isles have no such skill, seeing the sea from afar but never actually living or working on it, though this is rare. In every town can be found a witch or sorcerer, a head man or woman, a carpenter, a smith and a tavern keeper. The few cities have much more, while the smaller villages and hamlets have even less.

Trade is carried out by barter or with ivory or gold. The technology level of the world is early iron, with bronze still prevalent. Fashion includes tunics and hose or robes for men, women and wizards, and cloaks with hoods.