Welcome back Sky-rates,
In today's update we've taken to the skies to explore some of the regions you'll be visiting in Sky Oceans: Wings for Hire.
Sky Oceans' geography is complex.... The Southern Regions of Sky Oceans consists of four large areas separated by Wind Walls: strong winds that flow like currents, creating a literal wall that goes from the lowest altitude to the highest. Each region has three different layers or floors:
The Basement is the lowest level, touching the surface of the planet. Always engulfed in storms of superheated wind, with lakes of magma flowing through it, the Basement is an inhospitable place to live and has been almost abandoned by the tribes.
The Respite is the middle floor, with mild weather and many habitable islands. Most of Sky Oceans' population is located on this floor.
The Frozen Layer is a land of wind, snow and ice. Located on top of the Respite, the Frozen Layer has been used as a "safe area" where important infrastructure has been protected by the harsh weather conditions and difficulty of access.
Each region has a capital city, usually a port serving as a trade node for all the tribes inhabiting the region. While the population of the Southern Regions is not as high as the Central ones, trade routes going to the north are very important for the rest of Sky Oceans, forcing the Alliance to protect them from Trash Pirates, sending task forces to patrol the most important routes, ensuring that goods, materials and food reaches the most populated areas of the Central Regions.
Glenn's hometown is located in a region called the Green Archipelago, a group of floating island systems formerly famous for their crop and grain production. Changes in the seasons forced tribes to focus more on mining and Aerius extraction, exporting these commodities to other regions. The most important town in the Green Archipelago is the port of Grained'or.
This town was built during the apogee of the Respite's crop production. With large warehouses and a well equipped port, Grained'or used to receive dozens of cargo airships per day, becoming one of the busiest ports in the Southern Regions. Its importance attracted many enemies, thus the Old Order Guild decided to build and maintain their headquarters inside the town. From there, the Order would patrol the trading routes, helping merchants in reaching their destination while maintaining a tense truce with the Alliance forces sent to attack the Trash Pirates.
To the east of the Green Archipelago, beyond the Wind Wall, a new region and capital awaits for the traveler.
Located in the Haven Region, Wiyanya City (or the Cauldron) is very old. It's said that many survivors from the Big Scattering reunited in the Cauldron's main island and from there, once they had recovered and grew in numbers, started colonizing the nearby systems in the Southern Region. Wiyanya is also well known for holding a large festival called the Respite, celebrating a brief period of time during summer when the Wind Walls become less powerful, allowing smaller airships to cross them with less risk.
Protected from the wind by its thick natural walls, the Cauldron is a rock bay in the shape of a large U, with buildings and houses lodged into its inner walls. With the pier area on the frontal inner access, the deep "center" area is dedicated to trade and housing, with a large common area to accommodate large numbers of people that used to arrive during the Respite.All people living in Sky Oceans consider the Cauldron as an important part of their history, even Trash Pirates. Thus, the Cauldron is considered a Neutral City: no battles or fights are allowed inside, or near its island system, a rule followed by even the most unruly pirate.