Some people say that the islands of the Carpaasian are small corners of heaven. Others say that the islands are like raisins in a large steamed pudding.

It's hard to see why the steamed pudding analogy would work. After all, the Carpaasian doesn't steam, and the islands don't turn into dried fruit when left in the sun.

 

 

Carpaasian Cruises - Island Guide

Published by the Pike & Oyster Cruise Company, in the 14th Year of the Gryffon.

Pike & Oyster is a recognised trademark of the Corwythian Empire.

Brocoida is a small back-water island to the far west, shaped like a peanut. Ships stop three times a year at the island. It has just suffered a plague which turns people into fog, but one of the islanders, Zephira Slolumbut, has received a medicine for the plague, from Granny. On the south-east of the island is a harbour, and the deep gold sands of this island are warm and welcoming. A little further on is the village, and beyond it are the salt mines and the sugar fields. The population of this island is small, but lively. The village has a hospital, a tavern/inn, a school, a church, and a hall in which dances and so on can be held, and village fairs are frequently held.
Any visitor arriving upon these shores would be sure to find adventure of the homespun village type - what might be called a small-town mystery or a peculiarity in the behaviour of the local dogs, for instance.

The Island of Enigmas – a disappearing island. No co-ordinates can be given as its position changes. Sometimes it appears to be completely missing, and then it will re-appear in an unexpected position. This makes traversing the Carpaasian Sea a tricky business.
The island is made of a strange pinkish marble from which grow strange flowers. There are all sorts of mysteries about this island. Inhabiting this island, it is said, are the completely invisible wind nymphs, who can only be seen when leaves, or sand, or something, float in the wind over their invisible shape. Their touch is sweet and gentle; they speak with soft voices when they speak at all. They serve the Lord Zephyr of the island, who is a magician who seeks only solitude... They are very gentle, but they are powerful, too. They will not reveal themselves except to someone who respects the island and the Lord Zephyr's solitude. The palace on the island will be ready for a stranger who arrives, with unseen hands bringing food, playing music, and so on, but if anyone should be aggressive, the unseen hands will take up the aggressor and throw them down from the cliffs. Severe injury would result.
If anyone attempts to steal from the island, that would be regarded as unacceptable, and the person who did that would find themselves transported through the air to the Palace, where a voice would tell him/her, "You have sought to rob from this Island, from the Lord Zephyr himself. Why have you done this, when we are glad to give you what you need?" Assuming the Adventurer is suitably apologetic, no further action would be taken... If he's not apologetic, then yes, he could be thrown from the cliff, or simply deposited upon his ship, and the ship would suddenly find a tremendous wind moving it from the island.
And the island would be gone.
Lord Zephyr doesn't mind the occasional visitor... because, even though he craves solitude, he also becomes terribly lonely occasionally. And so he observes the visitors, unseen. VERY rarely will he ever be seen: in fact, not until something very unusual happens.

Carillon Island – a faery-tale island where tiny bells of the Carillon Lilies fill the air with the sweetest of chimes. It is said that Faer folk dwell here. The island is ringed with a pure white beach that almost glistens like magic, and the enchanting chimes of the Carillon Lilies that grow everywhere in the sweet grass add to the feeling of other-worldliness. Small gleaming paths lead the visitor from the beaches to the magnificent gardens of the island, in which hawthorn trees, foxglove, and groundsel grow in groves. There are the trumpet-shaped Carillon Lilies as well, and the delicate blue Forget-Alls, and many rings of lilac-tinged mushrooms. There are many bee-hives, and the hum of the bees adds a pleasant sonorousness to the beauty of the place. The sweet smell of the honeycomb is quite enticing. Scattered throughout the islands are several beautiful garden gazebos in the Silmarian style, made of the Corwythian white stone which is so precious. Laid out upon lavishly decked tables are delicacies to tempt the most hardened palate, goblets of fine sweet wine, tartlets, sugared plums, cakes, and so on. But beware: humans who step onto Carillon Island must be careful to neither eat nor drink anything there... lest they be trapped forever.
As one proceeds further, the sharp-eyed visitor may note that there are delicate gossamer-threads being spun on various trees, and that the spinners are either invisible or so tiny and fast that they cannot be seen. Occasionally, there may be heard tiny laughter… slightly mocking, and yet enchanting. It is believed that, shimmering in another dimension, the Faer Kingdom reaches all over this island, but that it cannot be seen except by the Faer folk themselves.
The fine silk produced by the faer folk is the export of this island.

Ferruga Island – an island that is very bare and sparse. Not much vegetation, but lots of rocks. There’s a forest just behind the beach, and it’s called The Forest. There is a ridge called The Ridge (trolls named it – they figured they would just call it what it was...). There is also a mountain. It’s not called The Mountain. It’s actually called Troll Mountain (a vast step in imagination for the trolls). Unsurprisingly, trolls dwell here. There are vast mines on Ferruga Island, with many, many precious stones waiting to be mined. The trees of The Forest are birches, oaks, and willows. Exports – precious stones.
Visitors seeking adventure here would encounter it, most probably from intruders who do not belong upon the island. It is said that free-traders from another land try to anchor here and come ashore every so often, drawn by the rumours of luscious rubies and flawless diamonds. Mostly the trolls deal with the problem, but who knows what twists and turns could occur?

Pashamon is an island shaped a little like a whirlwind. It is primarily a rural island, largely covered by cotton fields, and the population live in thatched cottages upon the fields, and spend their days picking cotton, thinking up jokes, and contemplating the fine debates and plays in which they indulge of an evening. Twice a year, the cotton is transported to the main town – a port town, called Porto Paroto.
There are three rivers that irrigate the entire island – the Rio Algodonna, the Rio Enbranquo, and the Rio Quotonete. The pub in Porto Paroto is called the Sampty Dampty, there is a shipping office, a general store, a school and church, some warehouses, and a General Hall, where entertainments are put on to amuse the locals.
Adventures here are likely to be distinctinly odd and full of trickery.

Majimca is an island whose aroma has caused even sailors in a terrible hurry to get home to make a small diversion... the divine smell of coffee. For this island has vast coffee fields, where the precious bean is grown. The northern end of the island is all farm country, with the town of Wolle being the main gathering place for the rural sheep-farmers. The sheep of Majimca are very fluffy white sheep known as the Corwythian Shorthorns, and produce exquisitely fine wool. The rest of the island is given over to coffee fields. Large estates have their own fields, and the workers live in cottages upon the estates. There's another town - Almir - named after the Empress, whose love for coffee is well known. The town used to be called Coco, and the channel between the coast and a small island (no more than a mere speck upon which the Dodo bird dwells) called Dodo is still known as the Coco Channel.
Both towns have the usual Great Hall, church, school, and tavern – the taverns being The Great Woolly-Head, and the Royal Bean, respectively.
Adventurers here will find a classic mystery. It's just something about the island...

Other islands abound, but they are of less importance and are unlikely to be encountered by the merchant ships or cruise ships.