Port Reaver is a modest port city settled by Old Worlders and dedicated to piracy located on the eastern coast of Lustria's Isthmus of Pahuax.[1a][3c]
History[]
The island of Sartosa was once an outpost of the Tilean city-state of Luccini, but in 1757 IC, the inhabitants ousted their rulers and claimed independence. Sartosa quickly became a lawless state, governed by whichever pirates could intimidate their neighbours into recognising their authority. Pirates from Sartosa soon plagued the Tilean Sea and preyed upon ships in the Great Ocean.[3d]
When the Pirate Prince of Sartosa Lucciano Soprania was ousted from power, remaining in Sartosa would have resulted in his death. He and his remaining supporters braved the journey to the Isthmus of Pahuax in Lustria and founded Port Reaver in 1801 IC, and whilst the initial inhabitants were from Tilea, it cannot really be thought of as a Tilean colony. The settlement managed to survive several attempts by the Lizardmen to wipe it out and soon flourished as a base for raiding, trading, adventurers and treasure seekers who sought to penetrate the Lustrian interior. Whilst the only law in the settlement is a straightforward adoption of the brutal pirate code of Sartosa, it is not so wild a place as the nearby Norscan settlement of Skeggi.[1a][3d]
Although it lies a hundred miles south of Skeggi, Soprania and his successors make all who land there swear to never touch a Norscan longship. This was not just in fear of retaliation from Skeggi's navy, the Dodvakt; while the Norscans remain, no Old World power can truly rule the Great Ocean, and that keeps piracy alive. Skeggi treats other pirates as they treat all sailors. There are no flags in Skeggi, no laws or letters of marque are valid, no arrest orders paid heed. The Norscans have no treaties either, with pirates or other nations, so freebooters who know what is good for them turn and flee if they see a Norscan flag ahead.[3e]
In 1847 IC amid rumours of illegitimacy, Duke Tudual du L'Anguille of Bretonnia financed an expedition led by his son Rodrik de L'Anguille into the jungles of Lustria. The Bretonnians landed in Port Reaver, and spent several months in preparation. Nearly six months after entering the jungles, the Lizardmen temple-city of Huatl was robbed of its sacred artefacts. Yet the young Bretonnian noble and his entourage of knights were never heard from again. Their presence is not missed.[1a]
Treasure hunters leave Port Reaver with a fortune worthy of a merchant prince.
At sometime after 1944 IC, the mercenary general El Cadavo and the surviving colonists of the neighboring settlement of Cadavo laboured to make their sole remaining ship seaworthy. They sailed to Port Reaver and begged for supplies before returning to Tilea, but as soon as they left, an unseasonal typhoon lashed the shores of Lustria. What became of El Cadavo no one knows.[3d]
In 2064 IC, fleeing their debts in Port Reaver, a group of gamblers fled the settlement and founded nearby Swamp Town.[1a]
In 2315 IC, the Pirate King Draven was employed to protect the merchant ships arriving and leaving Swamp Town from the pirates based in Port Reaver. He used his power to destroy the fleets of his competitors and then sacked Swamp Town himself.[1a]
At an unknown date, the noted Jade Wizard Cyrston von Danling witnessed a punitive raid by a force of Lizardmen upon Port Reaver. He would later publish his detailed account of the event in the book titled In the Garden of the Gods. Most readers, however, believe von Danling had spent too long in the sun.[2a]
Government[]
The pirate settlement of Port Reaver on the Isthmus of Pahuax in northern Lustria.
Port Reaver is a pirate port administered under pirate law. The so-called "captain-in-chief" who rules the town is always a retired pirate, and he rules with the harsh law of the sea. Vessels not flying pirate colours are turned away or sunk on sight.[3a]
Making a stop at Port Reaver requires paying the Captain-in-Chief's tribute, which is always a large take of a hold or any treasure the new arrivals may have found, should the pirates even decide to let newcomers leave. And of course, should the Imperial Navy get word that a ship has docked with the pirates, they become pirates by association and will be blown out of the water by any Imperial gunship that finds them. So Port Reaver is a poor choice for explorers to make port.[3a]
Notable Inhabitants[]
Port Reaver's harbour
- Philipp Billings - Billings is the current ruling captain-in-chief of Port Reaver.[3c] He is notable for his dislike of mosquitoes, snakes and angry, tropical Norscans.[4]
- Lusty Jim - Lusty Jim is a popular Port Reaver tavern keeper who has recently vanished. He was named for the vivid red birthmark across his face, which many sailors joked is a perfect map of Lustria's coast. In truth, Jim's birthmark extends across his skin and matches the map of the Blessed Pyramid of Tzunki in the Lizardmen temple-city of Tlaxtlan. The Skink priests of that temple-city learned about this birthmark. They wished to know what this means and ordered the Human to be kidnapped and brought to them.[3b]
Videos[]
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Armies: Lizardmen (6th Edition)
- 1a: pg. 9
- 2: White Dwarf 300
- 2a: pg. 53
- 3: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Lustria (RPG)
- 4: Total War: Warhammer II (PC Game)
Gallery[]
