[Bithawa]

Setting:

The majority of the sentient races of the sea have their own version of what transpired before, during, and after the flood. It is important to note that the flood was a catastrophic event even for the denizens of the sea. All races, with perhaps the karkanaks as an exception, were seriously uprooted at the very least. Most suffered serious loss and casualties. In the time of the flood, millions of sea creatures clamored for shallower shores. All would agree that the new world was birthed in crimson waters. Generally good races turned to their more primal survival instincts to endure. Few are proud of this time in history, and fewer still actively recount the happenings of these dark times.

Continents were replaced by scattered islands and the endless blue. Land bound races were wiped from the world, only some of those that already survived in a semiaquatic existence managed to make it through the watery cataclysm. Most of the fauna went the same route of existence. The mostly deserted islands only seem to cater to smaller creatures and sea birds. Many of the islands remain uncharted and unexplored, of little interest to the sea folk.

The flood is close to three hundred years past, and most of the world remains in a state of peace. The majority of the surviving races were among those that were never very hostile in the first place. The deep drow seemed to have survived, not that anyone has seen a living member of that race but occasionally a corpse will drift out of the depths, somehow bypassing scavengers to make it into the shallows. They were relatively easy to avoid, as long as you never dive too deep.

Prologue

Your parents are planning a get-together with all the other families whose children are graduating from basic studies (early schooling). The graduating students were tasked with catching one Boil Crab each, a shellfish that is considered a delicacy by many races. They are known to frequent the shaded areas of the reef that sits less than a mile north of the city. Your characters all know each other already, having attended school together and likely friends even outside of school.

Main Game:

Six years after the events of the prologue. Now considered adults, the group of friends reunites for what is called Refinement. Those children that have finished their mentorship are sent into the wider world to experience more of what life has to offer and is considered a form of enlightenment. Tradition requires that you head to Aciolora, the nearest large city, and spend at least six months in a form of exile. Once you make it to Aciolora you are free to go where you please, but you cannot return home.

Aciolora is several hundred miles west of your hometown, named Flotsam, but still along the same string of islands. The larger city is said to be a sight to behold, magically grown right from the coral of a reef. Your own home was built on the ruins of a surface city that has long since lost its old name. The fresh faces that set out on Refinement don’t always return, either finding a new life elsewhere or perishing somewhere along the way. Those that do return to Flotsam often bring new friends back with them.