Trade Routes

Trade is the blood of the Empire as a whole and is part of what keeps it flowing and acts to equalize much of the distinction between the many Realms.

The major methods of Trade are, in order of importance, Water, Land, Train, and Sky.

Trade moves most commonly by water, either up rivers or around the Seas.

The Sea Trade Routes used are generally divided into the following:

Akadia gets two routes because a lot of folks will tend to do a round robin, and Akadia is the primary home of the skyships, as Dorado is the home of the Train.

Islandia often acts as a clearing house for resources and materials from Duat and Thule, often captured from Duatian or Thulian ships, and Antilia, in defiance of the Empire, produces some distinct things of interest and value as well as collecting such rarities from the Dread lands through immigrants. Officially, Trade is forbidden with Antilia directly, though that only applies to the Empire – and the Sea Realms are not part of it, nor does Aztlan see itself as subject to such rules.

The Savage route leads up into the Savage lands of Hyboria and Kahokia, but an additional, rarely used route moves by sea, adding Bermuda to that mix, and enabling a degree of trade that Bermuda would love to see increased.

The Seven Seas route takes a ship along the full length of the inland seas and is mostly focused on the primary Ports that are major cities and a few Towns.

The River Routes are many in number, generally named after the realm in which they are located.

Land Trade Routes and the Train are similarly situated, with a single pointed distinction: the Train does not travel to Akadia. It runs from Dorado to Sibola and follows many of the same coastal roadways as land-based merchants.

Land trade routes are of critical importance, easily equal to that of Sea Trade, as they often connect those Villages, Hamlets, and other smaller settlements that may not be located near a navigable waterway. There is one overland trade route that follows the coast from Dorado to Akadia, and that is the only known overland trade route, as there is no passage from Sibola due to the Grimstone mountains coming right to the edge of the sea. It is noted that such is intentional, and the land route was discovered accidentally long after Akadia’s founding.

The Grand Round is the route from Akadia to Sibola, passing through all the major realms and linking the major Towns and cities along the Imperial Road. It is a fairly arduous and long trek, taking nearly two years to travel the full length, and a more average and typical year for the major stops.

The Skyships are the only Sky route, and they were a solution to a problem, but the cost associated with them is considered exorbitant even for many generally thought of Luxury goods, a problem the Mages of Akadia do not seem to worry about. Thus, much of the trade along it is trade headed to Akadia, and not so much trade headed out – it is said that it is cheaper to fly out of Akadia than to ship something out of Akadia.

The Sky Routes are much more pointed and direct, each one having a target City or town, and all of them starting in Akadia. Unlike Water or Land routes, they fly directly over the Seven Seas, crossing areas that are rumored to be extremely dangerous or untrustworthy and are only partially known, as no ship will readily travel more than 50 miles away from land, and most stay within a about 30 miles of it.