Port Tonoro

The pirate dock town of Port Tonoro is always hidden behind one anonymous southern cliff or another. Sunlight glimmers on the surface of a clear blue sea, and the docks of the pirate city harbor dozens of criminal vessels. The port itself is a wonder of quick construction—sturdy enough to handle the throng of people that walk its dock roads, but nimble enough to toss the entire city onto the deck of a ship and sail away with a halfhour’s notice. 

Port Tonoro is the largest persistent settlement in the region, though its identity shifts every time it moves from one island to another. It disappears when storms roll through the region or when the Vinyotian navy gets bold enough to sail through the south. Whenever it gets word of trouble, the docks of Port Tonoro disappear. 

Sneaking In, Sneaking Out 

Port Tonoro has a different crowd and docks different ships every week. When a pirate’s raid goes well, it’s usually necessary to lie low while any searches peter out. The Quartermaster of Port Tonoro is a well-loved and respected tiger pirate named Skull Charlie. Skull Charlie looks after Port Tonoro, but rejects being called the city’s cacique, calling it a “settled man’s title.” 

The Port Tonoro Navy carries the settlement’s immediate needs. These ships can load all the “street-docks” running along whatever island the city has hidden against. Provisions come in from Al’ari dock towns, Vinyotian ports, and anywhere else the fleet can find sympathetic sellers willing to make extra coin at the risk of attracting unwanted Dramphinian attention. 

The city charges a docking fee to vessels doing business there. The ongoing existence of Port Tonoro proves that pirate captains know the value of a friendly port that doesn’t ask questions. Al’ar’s most ruthless criminals and famous pirates have walked its docks. Visitors are well-advised to keep their eyes low while feeling out Tonoro. The ships respect the fee and a few other unspoken rules, but anyone mistaking Port Tonoro for having any kind of “cease-fire” or “gentleman’s agreement” is probably doomed. 

Fence Markets 

The merchants of Port Tonoro are also fences. The city is a well-connected reseller’s dream; no central authority to hide from and a never ending supply of smugglers. Fences manage their contacts from the lower decks of their ships, and on the deck, they run front-facing operations right in public view. Every fence’s hold is a trove of ill-gotten gains; flashing something shiny makes any storeroom a showroom. 

The fence markets are for a crew that wants to offload stolen goods, purchase rare equipment at a fence’s price, or is simply looking for quick work. However, they’re just as dangerous as the rest of Tonoro. First-time visitors should seek a guide or risk falling prey to a scam (or worse). 

A Land of Enchantment 

A quirk of Port Tonoro’s lawlessness is the city’s lax attitude about the use of enchantment magic. An unspoken code of conduct allows anyone with enchantments to use them so long as the charmed individual isn’t forced into any permanent decisions. Losing free will to a mage is hardly attractive, but most regulars prefer that disagreements end with a few. 

It’s a rite of passage among Al’ari pirates to spend an evening as someone’s mind-magicked best friend, but it’s best to travel in pairs when doing so. One rarely sees a sailor walking alone on the docks. A buddy ensures a charmed night doesn’t end with a stolen ship. 

Looking Out For Each Other… 

All Al’ari pirates follow a list of rules which is short, but sacrosanct. These rules are enforced by the Tiger Sea’s most feared sailors: the pirate hunters. 

Leave the Storm Voyage alone. Most pirates have family or acquaintances in the dock towns of Al’ar. During the Storm Voyage, they are vulnerable to any naval attack. Al’ari pirates rarely raid dock towns anyway, but while they’re moving, doing so is a death sentence. 

Tell Tonoro if you see the navy. Tonoro is a haven for pirates, but the navies of the homelands are on a constant vigil. If naval vessels are spotted within a hundred miles of Tonoro’s borders, a pirate must send word to its lookouts by any means necessary. Pirate hunters have spies in every homeland’s navy who watch for ships that shirk this responsibility. 

No hits on docked ships. A ship doing business in Tonoro is safe. Attacking a ship, stealing cargo from its hold, or running night raids on sleeping crews are all forbidden. Its crew are fair game once they set foot on the dock, but no one is to board a ship without permission from its captain. 

Tonoro brands anyone who breaks these rules as traitors. Traitors are fair game anywhere, anytime. The pirate dock towns of Tonoro all contribute gold to the Traitor’s Kitty, a well-guarded treasure used to pay off successful hunters. The most bloodthirsty of all pirates enforce these rules; they keep a Traitor’s Register memorized so they can carry out thieves’ justice when they spot someone in the little black book. 

…But Every One For Themself 

Money and blood flow on the docks of Port Tonoro. In the corner of every filthy tavern, deals are struck to move tens of thousands of gold in stolen goods. Dangerous beasts and those they’ve betrayed use the city to find work. Fast friends share songs of long voyages, but ugliness and violence are always one misspoken word away. 

Delvers use this lawless port to fetch a good price for Dungeon spoils. Pirates and fences are more than welcoming to crews who seem easy marks. The society of the Delve is wising up to the pirates who would rob a naïve crew blind. Even worse, jilted captains walk Tonoro, who would seek a murderous payback for losing once-loyal crew to the promise of delving riches. 

Some Major Players

The Murmuration 

All Al’ari dock towns have birdkeepers to keep a list of exiles who would bring woe to their shores. The city of pirates has its own birdkeepers: The Murmuration. This faction in Port Tonoro collects docking fees, maintains the secrecy of its location, and manages the Traitor’s Register. Their most venerated members have secret identities and answer only to the Quartermaster. The Murmuration are always visible while in Port Tonoro. Perched in crow’s nests, they look out for intruders and other dangers.

Traitor Hunters 

The hunters are the Beast World’s most openly violent people. They are the last chance for society’s misanthropes to do their grisly work with any legitimate purpose. There’s no sure way to spot a hunter, except by the nervous glances that spread through a room they enter. Traitor hunters are known for a casual attitude toward murder and destruction. They’re only tolerated by pirates for the grim purpose they serve. 

Remoras 

The waters surrounding the islands glitter with unclaimed treasure. Often, a battered ship will sail toward the port only to sink before reaching the shore. Others are the victims of failed raids that let their spoils sink to the unreachable depths. 

A social club of daring beasts and brethren have made their fortune diving to salvage the shipwrecks of Tonoro. The Remoras are fiercely territorial—they attack outsiders caught skimming the depths of Tonoro’s sea floor on sight and hunt them relentlessly. The divers live on a barge in Port Tonoro. They’re a good contact for information about affairs underneath the waves.