We're authors

In Marrishland, magic is the source of all power, so it isn't surprising that it plays such an important role in its history and culture. It also lies at the heart of the conflict in the book. To find out how, read the book.

More than just authors

OTHER PROJECTS

HANGOUTS

COMICS

Shadelshif

Coast-hugging ships used by the Totanbeni to raid the shores of what are now Manarem, Aflighan, and the coastal lands that lie between Huinsey and Kafthey. These ships were decorated with human bones and, according to accounts passed on by those living in the lands the Totanbeni pillaged, the shadelshifs (“skull ships”) were not merely a mundane means of transport for Totanbeni pirates. They were apparently able to sail unhindered in the absence of wind, when necessary, and could even navigate coastlines and broad rivers without a crew on board. Quite often, their arrival was preceded by heavy fog that masked their arrival until it was too late. In some cases, a large fleet of shadelshifs would ride upon the heels of a hurricane or tidal wave, arriving shortly after natural forces had broken the defenses of their enemies.

Some accounts even claim that shadelshif flagships called orkanaugi (“hurricane eyes”) could create and control a hurricane, and that at the center of every hurricane there lies a place of perfect calm where the orkanaug sails in safety, untouched by the storm around them. Such tales are dubious in their authenticity, for they usually cite the Totanbeni tradition of giving names to the hurricanes and other large storms they encounter as evidence that each of these names is derived from the name of the orkanaug that sails at the storm’s center.

Even though the Totanbeni are no more, sailors and other sea folk often tell stories of ghostly ships built of human bone and crewed by the ghosts of the dead. In many, these shadelshifs emerge suddenly from a bank of thick fog that hides them from view until the shadelshif is in position to board its quarry. In others, the shadelshifs come to finish off ships that have been blown off course by a gale, battered by a terrible storm, stranded by persistent calm, or incapacitated by bad luck. In some tales, these pirates will not harm the crew or passengers of a ship that does not put up any resistance to being boarded and will, in fact, bring a favorable wind and a safe journey to those whose wealth they have plundered. In others, these pirates horribly torture and ritually murder those who surrender. Regardless of the authenticity of such wild tales, it is clear that the shadelshif's have left a lasting impression.

(Contributed by Weard Leif Gesyk)