The Thousand Isles is a tropical archipelago, stretching over approximately 5000 leagues (15,000 of our miles) of ocean west of Valoria and north of Mbo It contains countless volcanic island chains, most importantly ten extremely large islands in The Inner Archipelago and thousands of smaller ones scattered in two outer reaches, The Northern and Southern Reach
History
Further information: History and Demographics of the Thousand Isles, Timeline of the Thousand Isles
While the Thousand Isles has been populated for millennia by an assortment of indigenous tribes, collectively called the First People, and had occasional contact with neighboring cultures, up until 500 years ago it’s society was relatively insulated and tribal, with no large cities, low population densities and late stone age technology levels.
That all changed with the coming of the great ships of the Annwyn Empire. Unlike in neighboring Mbo and Valtentis, the An aggressively and extensively colonized the Thousand Isles especially Bonny Isle and the nearby major islands of the The Inner Archipelago. This colonization had disastrous effects on the indigenous populations of the First People that lived in that area, as they were overrun and displaced by waves of immigrants from the Annish home islands. The Annwyn Empire built up Haven Towne (then called West Haven) as their primary military base in the western ocean and the The Inner Archipelago became the furthest reach of an Empire that seemed intent on colonizing the entire Thousand Isles.
When the Annwyn Empire unexpectedly withdrew from the entire region , its colonies were left to their own devices. After a period of warfare, social upheaval and a widespread reclaiming of sovereignty by many of the tribes of the First People (a period known as The Interregnum), a rich polyglot maritime culture emerged from the wreckage, spreading across the extent of the Isles.
The island populace is still sparse by continental standard, and primarily human, though orcs and halflings are numerous in the The Northern Reach, there are rumors of Tortles in the south, and giants dominate the island of Gianthome in the far north. Elves, tieflings and dwarves are uncommon though not unknown.
In the The Inner Archipelago, over the past five hundred years, ethnic Annish have mixed with local populations of First People to create a polyglot ethnicity called Creole, though some noble families, most notably of The Republic of Haven, The Antilles and Etmarch are still jealous of their more pure Annish blood.
Elsewhere, In the The Northern and Southern Reach, and The Garden Isles, where The Annwyn Empire's touch was light, it is a different story. Here a revilitzied and technologically equivalent First People rule, with only an occasional town or settlement even remembering the Annwyn Empire.
In general, due to their historical position as a major trade corridor, creatures of all races and creeds can be found here, the islanders are remarkably worldly and accepting of other faiths and races,
While the Thousand Isles are small by population and not aggressively expansionist they are consummate seafarers and far ranging traders. They have retained more of the old Annwyn naval technology then the adjacent continents have managed to do. Their ship building, metallurgy and naval warfare is well in advance of most of their neighbors, though still well behind the peak of the An Empire (mapping to roughly mid 1600’s in our world while most neighbors are two hundred years behind that).
Geography and Travel
Further information: Inner Archipelago (Map), Northern Reach (Map), The Western Sea (Map)
5,000 leagues or 15,000 miles is a huge geographical region, roughly 2/3rd of the circumference of Earth. However, the planet on which the Thousand Isles is located has over twice the circumference of our world (while maintaining the same gravity), so the stretch of ocean covered by the Thousand isles is still only around 30% of the planets circumference, roughly proportional to the distance from LA to Singapore.
While these distances may seem daunting it is well within reach of the nautical technology of the time. The square rigged Galleons that dominate long distance sea trade, given moderately favorable winds can consistently average three knots of headway (note this is different from measured ground speed) or 1 league / hour, 24 hours a day. If the winds are contrary, that speed will drop in half, however if the winds are favorable (such as sailing with the Trades) it can double.
Thus to sail from one end of the Thousand Isles to the other will take on the average 200 days, however that time can range from as fast as 100 days to as slow as 400. As a result, long range journeys are almost always carefully planned to coincide with the pattern of the trades (Easterly in Spring, Westerly in Fall). Similarly, if the pattern of the Trades is respected, the 3000 league trade routes to and from Valoria can generally be completed in two months.
Trade
Further information: Trade in the Thousand Isles
Trade is extremely important to all major cities and states in the Thousand Isles. Sitting astride the seasonal east/west trade winds allow the Islanders to enjoy a privileged position connecting the trade of two continents (Valtentis and Mbo) in addition to allowing them to easily move their own local goods to those markets. Trade has allowed some elements of society to become extremely wealthy. It is said in Haven Towne that there is no good produced anywhere in the world that cannot be had for a price.
Climate, Weather and The Trade Winds
Further information: Weather in the Thousand Isles, Climate of the Thousand Isles
The Thousand Isles has an oceanic tropical climate, warm and humid. Temperatures are stable all year round, varying from the low 90's F during the day to the low 80's at night. Precipitation is highly variable, depending greatly on the direction of the dominate Trade Winds. During the springtime rainfall is greater in the northern and western (windward) coastal areas and mountains, averaging 50 inches annually; much lower in the eastern (leeward) areas. However the heaviest rainfall generally occurs in the fall and winter, when the Trade Winds reverse, and the southern and eastern coastal areas receive the lions share of precipitation.
The trade winds regularly sweep the Thousand Isles and are the key to the trading routes and strategies of the merchants. These winds blow reliably and quite strongly from Valtentis to Mbo, one way in spring, the opposite in fall. They stretch north to south from approximately the northern tip of Etmarch to the coast of northern coast of Mbo.
Weapons and Warfare
Further information: Warfare in the Thousand Isles
Cannon and gunpowder exist in the Thousand Isles but are expensive, ungainly and still rare (roughly late 16th century equivalent). While it is not uncommon to encounter individuals sporting matchlock pistols and rifles, they are usually a mark of wealth and success or membership in a military organization or militia. Armor, melee weapons, bows and crossbows are still common fair. With regards to ship weaponry, heavier warships and larger merchants can and do carry cannon however smaller crafts generally can’t, due to both size and expense.
Piracy
Further information: Piracy, The Pirate Crusade
Pirates are a continual problem for the entire region. Most of the naval resources of the Inner Archipelago go into building and maintaining the large fleets of war galleys that dominate the inner archipelago or the great merchant fleets of Galleons and Fluytes that make up the yearly cycle of the great trade fleets. Deep water ships to hunt pirates are something of an afterthought for the merchant houses and governments. The galleys are useless in the open ocean of the Reaches and the merchant ships, while well able to protect each other in mass formations are too slow to catch the pirates.
Religion
Further information: Religion in The Thousand Isles
The Thousand Isles are home to a polyglot of cultures and as a result home to many religions, Religions and philosophies from both east and west, from Valoria to Mbo and even beyond meet and merge here, giving way to a bewildering array of gods and beliefs.
Nonetheless, two faiths stand above the rest in terms of popularity, the Mithric Religion and Voodoo. Confusingly, despite the fact that these two religions hold somewhat contradictory beliefs, a majority of Islanders follow both, at least to some degree.
Inspiration
The Thousand Isles is primarily inspired by the 17th century Caribbean and French Polynesia, economically, culturally, and historically. However 15th century Venice inspired the governmental systems, especially of The Republic of Haven. The geography of the larger islands steals heavily from 17th century Indonesia in size and demographics, as the islands of The Inner Archipelago are considerably larger than their Caribbean counterparts. There is also considerable borrowing from Ursula Le Guin's "Earthsea".