Kalathtyr was a small fishing village that stood at the mouth of the River Specie in Amn.[1]
Description[]
The village was a small collection of huts raised on stilts. Kalathtyr was permeated with the smell of dampness and mold and surrounded by mud, sea-chills, and seemingly ever-present swarms of nasty stingflies and bite-gnats. The village's population was around twenty families as of the late 14th century DR.[1]
Kalathtyr lacked any guest accommodations and had no inns for travelers to spend a night in. The best they could hope for was a spot on the local tavern's floor. Its streets were decorated with hanging lantern lines, lit for signaling. Seabirds often sat upon these lines and became sling target practice targets for the Kalath kids.[1]
Trade[]
The village's main industry was fishing, and the locals caught abundant silverfins and burdolins. The latter fish was a bottom-feeder flatfish, beloved for its flavorful stomach-warming flesh but having an extremely unappealing appearance reminiscent of a pile of rotting seaweed. Burdolins were a popular treat and started gaining popularity in Athkatla as of the late 1360s DR. When hauled to shore, silverfins were turned into saltfish, pickled for export to be cooked into fishpaste by purchasers or smoked and made into smoked fish tarts.[1]
The lands around Kalathtyr—the Zehoarast Floodplains—were treacherous, hiding areas of deadly mud. Kalath people knew their way around the most dangerous mud pits of the floodplains and navigated the mud and River Specie on skiffs. These flat-bottomed vessels were primarily used to haul trade goods to and from Kalathtyr.[1]
Kalath folk consumed other creatures apart from fish. The village's abundant seabirds were shot down by sling-wielding children and were used in some of the most common dishes. In general, Kalath cuisine consisted of chopped and fried eels, shovelbills, mudfrogs, and seagulls.[1]
History[]
Kalathtyr received an unfavorable mention in Volothamp Geddarm's published guide to Amn and Tethyr. He recommended travelers avoid the squalid village, and he speculated that Kalathtyr's unremarkable nature was hiding a smuggling operation hiding in plain sight.[1]
The Sothillisian War struck close in the Year of Lightning Storms, 1374 DR, as on Mirtul 12 Sothillisian raiders attacked a large farm near Kalathtyr, owned by House Gheldieg and controlled by House Tanislove. It was rumored that the attack was in retaliation against House Tanislove for their past actions.[2]
Notable Locations[]
The village of Kalathtyr was known for the remnants of a huge ship stuck in the mud, surfacing every low tide. By the late 14th century DR, only ribs and a keel were left from the vessel, still ensnared in the carcass of a great water dragon—the cause of the ship's demise. The ship's name was thought to be lost to history, and the only sign of its origins were peculiar blue-hued electrum coins from early Nimbral that regularly washed ashore around the wreck. Occasionally, old ensorcelled rings and gauntlets could be found washed ashore as well, but their magics were almost completely gone.[1]
Appendix[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Ed Greenwood (July 2000). Volo's Guide to Baldur's Gate II. Edited by Duane Maxwell, David Noonan. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 52. ISBN 0-7869-1626-5.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd (March 2006). Power of Faerûn. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 43. ISBN 0-7869-3910-9.