Ixinos: Island of Amazons - The Geography of Ixinos

Ixinos is located in the mouth of the Vilhon Reach, a southerly arm of the Sea of Fallen Stars in central Faerûn. It is located directly south of the Straits of Silvanus, a section of the sea that runs between the islands of Ilighôn and Wavecrest. Those two islands, together known as the Eyes of Silvanus, are controlled by a powerful cadre of druids known as the Emerald Enclave. The strategic location of these three islands makes them very attractive from a political, military and economic standpoint: anyone who could control them could effectively control passage into and out of the Reach. This is a situation that has caused the Amazons (and the druids) considerable trouble over the centuries, to say the least.

The island of Ixinos is roughly oblong in shape, with its long axis oriented along a northeast-southwest angle. It is about 20 miles [32 km] long along this axis, and varies from 7 to 8 miles [11 to 13 km] across, except near the more mountainous northeast tip, where it widens to nearly 10 miles [16 km]. Along with the two Eyes of Silvanus, Ixinos is part of an underwater stretch of that mountain range known in Turmish as the Aphrunn Mountains, and in Chessenta as the Akanapeaks. In ancient days, Ilighôn and Wavecrest were a pair of mountains guarding the entrance to the Bay of Jhaamdath, a human empire that once ruled this area. More than sixteen centuries ago, a war between Jhaamdath and the Elves of the Nikerymath culminated in the destruction of Jhaamdath by a magically-summoned tidal wave, which left the Bay of Jhaamdath in its current form as the Vilhon Reach, and reduced the two mountains to wasted islands of rubble which, over the centuries, regained their fertility.

The maps, charts and chronicles that remain from the days of Jhaamdath suggest that Ixinos was always an island, even before the fall of Jhaamdath, but that it is much smaller now than it was then as a result of the cataclysm. Old maps and surviving records show a large island marked "Isharia" near the mouth of the Bay; it seems to have been the site of a large temple to the goddess Isis (or Ishtar) whose weather-priestesses were charged with mitigating any severe storms that might make the straits dangerous, and with using their magic to help repel would-be maritime invaders. The present-day ruins on Ixinos known as the "Flowered Fane" may be a part of this ancient temple.

Ixinos's closest neighbor is Ilighôn, 25 miles [40 km] to the northwest. Uninhabited Wavecrest is about 30 miles [48 km] to the northeast. The nearest mainland ports are the fishing village of Asple, in Turmish, about 60 miles [97 km] to the southwest, and the Free City of Reth, on the Chondathian coast some 65 miles [105 km] southeast.

Terrain

Ixinos consists of a fertile (though somewhat rocky) plateau in the southwest, rising to higher hills and small mountains in the northeast. The most fertile farmlands, vineyards, and small stands of forest are mainly located in the lowlands between these two areas, more or less in the middle of the island. Its highest point, Mt. Aphaea, rises about 3,000 feet [915 m] above sea level. There are no large rivers, but there are two major streams and several smaller ones, which provide the island's primary source of fresh water.

The island's coastline consists of high sea-cliffs everywhere except at the narrow harbor of Tazixor on the southeast side, and the fishing village of Anarae near the northeast tip. The cliffs vary from 60-70 feet [18-21 m] high in the southerly portions of the island, to well over 500 feet [152 m] in the mountainous north.

Climate and Weather

The climate is semi-tropical, and rainfall occurs mainly in the spring and autumn. The island's relatively sheltered location shields it from the worst of the sea-weather, but it is still struck by two or three severe storms every year.

Summertime temperatures can exceed 100º Fahrenheit [38º Celsius], but the cooling sea breezes often spare Ixinos from the choking humidity that afflicts the rest of the Reach during the summer months. In winter the temperature has been known to drop below freezing, but due to the warm sea currents, no more than a dusting of snow has ever been seen on the island in all of its recorded history.

Flora and Fauna

Vegetation is relatively sparse and there are no large areas of true forest. Most of the trees are evergreens, with fir, pine, maquis, juniper, arborvitae, and scrub oak being the most common species. Flowering fruit trees thrive as well. Tulips, hyacinths and irises are the flower species most in evidence, but there is a great variety of other types of flower as well, many of them seemingly unique to the island.

The only mammals native to the island are rodents. Livestock, farm animals and horses have all been imported, as have dogs and cats for use as herders, guards, mice-catchers, and pets.

Bird species include pelicans and herons along the coastlines, and thrushes and cuckoos further inland. Each spring there is a vast invasion of migratory birds (swallows, mostly) returning to their summer homes in Vaasa, the Moonsea area, and the Sword Coast North from their winter roosts in the Shining South. In the late autumn this is repeated in the opposite direction.

Flying insects are kept to a miminum here due to the salty air, but bees, butterflies, moths and horseflies all live in the plateau and hill areas. There are a few species of spider as well, some with painful bites, but none of them truly dangerous.

Poisonous adders exist here, and each year the clerics must treat a handful of snakebite cases. Other small lizards, none dangerous, are found here as well.

Crops and Natural Resources

While the soil of Ixinos is fertile and rich in minerals, the salty air and rocky terrain make it a chore to raise any but the hardiest food crops. Barley and oats are the primary grain crops. Beans, tubers and legumes tend to grow well. Fruits, berries and nuts are grown in great abundance, and there are orchards dedicated to growing grapes and figs. Most leafy vegetables are grown in small kitchen gardens rather than in crops.

Although lumber and native metal is scarce on the island, stone is plentiful, and almost all structures are built of whitewashed stone.

Fresh water is provided by two large streams: the Chilly Run, located in the Vineyards (the fertile lowlands just north of Sirhala) and the Flowerflow in the northern foothills (so called because of the many flowering trees and vines that shade it along most of its length). The Flowerflow is fed by the Moon-Glass, the island's only large freshwater lake (about 5 acres [2 hectares] surface area) which is located just below the village of Holymount.

Map of Ixinos

Below is a map of the entire island of Ixinos. Its inhabitants normally regard it as having three distinct geographical regions: the Southern Uplands, an agricultural plateau region south of the landrise known as "The Slope"; the Central Lowlands, a densely populated region in the center of the island containing the largest towns, the Harbor, and the Vineyards; and the Northern Highlands, the mountainous headlands at the northern end of the island.