Nelanther Isles

The Nelanther Isles are a widely scattered chain of nearly a thousand islands west ofAmn and Tethyr into the Trackless Sea. More than half the islands lack water and are fit only for wrecking ships upon. The hundreds of islands that have drinkable water and can support life are fought over by seagoing pirates who prey upon the shipping of Amn, Tethyr, Calimshan, the Sword Coast and the Moonshae Isles.

Among the hundreds of islands, only the largest of the islands are named. Only a handful of these names are known to the mainlanders, while the pirate captains know them like the back of their hands. The bulk of the the Nelanther pirates have never been captured due to the multitude of hiding places among the islands. Mainlander maps show many of the main islands and many of the minor islands, but not the shoals, currents, small exposed or submerged islets, and other hazards amond the inner Nelanther.

Aside from their dependence on violence and larceny, the Nelanthers have surprisingly little in common with the Pirate Isles of the Dragon Coast. The Pirate Isles are predominantly human, while the Nelanthers' pirates are nonhumans such as orcs, lizardfolk, ogres and minotaurs. The various races and factions of Nelanther pirates war on each other as often as they war on outsiders.

Life and Society
The raiders of the Nelanther Isles live by the winds that fill their sails on the Sea of Swords and die by the gales that smash them to Umberlee's depths. Unlike the swashbucklers of the Pirate Isles who sometimes observe strange forms of chivalry, the Nelanther reavers torture their victims and leave them to hideous deaths. The pirates here are born into the society's violent cycle and escape only by dying, usually while young. Nearly all able-bodied adults fight aboard ships, while the weak, crippled and surviving children are left ashore to make repairs or salvage wrecks.

Geography
The known islands among the pirate captains are

Carcathen

Ioma

Irphong

Nemessor

The Rookery/Pelath's Isle

Thordentor

Important Sites
Except for a couple of smaller settlements, the pirates of the Nelanther Isles live in their ships or in huts that can be abandoned at a moments notice.

Major Port
Skaud

Major Landmark
The Sea Towers