Sartosa
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| Sartosan Freebooter | |
|---|---|
 Death before landfall, gold before honour |
|
| Founding | |
| Founded | Unknown (pirates have been there forever) |
| Founder | No one claims it, everyone fights over it |
| Current Leader | Whoever currently calls themselves Pirate King/Queen |
| Geography | |
| Capital | Sartosa (the city and the island are the same thing) |
| Major Cities | Port Reaver, Freetown, the Docks |
| Regions | Sartosa, southern Tilean coast, Estalian ports |
| Biology | |
| Lifespan | 35-60 years (if the sea, rum, or a knife in the back doesn’t get you first) |
| Height | 165-185 cm (5′5″ - 6′1″) |
| Culture | |
| Language | Tilean, Estalian, Reikspiel, plus every curse in the Old World |
| Religion | Manann when the storms come, Ranald when the dice roll |
| Government | |
| Government | Whoever has the biggest fleet and the sharpest cutlass rules |
| Relations | |
| Allies | Whoever pays best this week |
| Enemies | Whoever paid last week |
Sartosa is the pirate paradise squatting off the Tilean coast like a drunken troll at a banquet. It’s a sun-bleached rock where law is a joke, gold flows like rum, and the only crime is getting caught. Every cutthroat, smuggler, privateer, and honest merchant who ever decided “honest” wasn’t paying enough ends up here eventually. The island’s taverns never close, the duels never stop, and the black flags never come down.
Overview
Sartosans aren’t a race, they’re a profession: professional bastards with ships.
Appearance
Sun-browned skin, salt-crusted hair, more scars than clean skin. Tricorn hats, striped breeches, gold hoops in ears, and enough pistols to start a small war. Half the population is missing an eye, a hand, or a conscience.
Culture & Society
- Regions: Sartosa and every port that looks the other way.
- Culture: Take what you can, give nothing back.
- Names: Real ones are optional. Most go by “Black-eyed Marco”, “Isabella the Knife”, “One-Leg Giovanni”, or whatever sounds good after the third bottle.
- Religion: Manann gets a quick prayer when the storm hits, Ranald gets the dice and the loot.
Morality, Slavery, and Corruption
- Slavery: Common and widely accepted. Pirates frequently capture and trade slaves, and many crews keep forced laborers for ship work or ransom. Laws are loose, and morality varies between captains.
- Non-consent sexual relationships: Technically discouraged within pirate codes to avoid crew conflict, but enforcement is inconsistent. Morality is chaotic and depends heavily on the individual captain and crew culture.
- Vulnerability to Chaos corruption: Moderate. The lawlessness and greed of Sartosan life make individuals susceptible to dark influence, though most pirates favor profit over pacts. Those who embrace Chaos often become feared or hunted even by fellow pirates.
Strengths & Weaknesses
- Strengths: Quick-witted, fearless, adaptable, and skilled with blades, pistols, and shipboard life; thrives in chaos and fast decisions.
- Weaknesses: Greedy, impulsive, unreliable when sober—worse when drunk—and burdened by a reputation that makes trust hard to earn.
Relations with Other Races
| Category | Faction | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| Humans | Empire | Neutral |
| Bretonnia | Neutral | |
| Kislev | Neutral | |
| Araby | Neutral | |
| Cathay | Neutral | |
| Norsca | Neutral | |
| Elves | Asur (High Elves) | Hostile |
| Asrai (Wood Elves) | Neutral | |
| Druchii (Dark Elves) | Neutral | |
| Dwarfs | Dwarfs | Neutral |
| Chaos Dwarfs | Neutral | |
| Greenskins | Orcs | Neutral |
| Goblins | Neutral | |
| Monstrous | Ogre | Friendly |
| Beastmen | Hostile | |
| Affliction | Chaos | Neutral |
| Vampire | Neutral |
Playing a Sartosan
You sold your soul for a faster ship and a sharper cutlass. Speak with a lazy drawl, grin like you know where the treasure is buried, and always keep one hand on your purse and the other on your pistol. Loyalty lasts exactly as long as the gold does. Betrayal is just good business.
A good Sartosan can talk his way onto any ship, out of any noose, and into any captain’s chair. Duels are settled at dawn, deals are sealed with rum, and tomorrow is a problem for whoever’s still breathing.
Physical Appearance
Salt, sun, and steel have done their work. Skin the colour of old leather, teeth missing or gold-capped, tattoos telling stories no priest would repeat. Captains wear coats so gaudy they hurt to look at. Deckhands wear whatever they stole off the last prize. Everyone smells of tar, gunpowder, and cheap rum.
Gender Roles and Sexuality
Gender Roles
- Sartosa is a pirate republic, heavily maritime in culture, with social norms shaped by the sea and commerce. Men dominate leadership roles as captains, officers, and mercenary commanders, though women occasionally rise to positions of power aboard ships or in pirate crews.
- Pirate Captains and Nobility: Leadership is almost exclusively male, but successful female pirates can command ships or entire crews, earning grudging respect. Social mobility at sea is higher than on land, allowing some women to break traditional gender expectations.
- Crew and Commoners: Both men and women participate in trade, raiding, and shipboard life. Women are active participants in logistics, combat, and maritime commerce, though male authority generally prevails.
- Life at sea emphasizes practicality over strict patriarchy, with women enjoying greater freedom than in inland human nations.
Sexuality
- Sexual norms are libertine and opportunistic, shaped by the transient, high-risk life of pirates. Marriage is rare or informal, and relationships are often temporary or strategic.
- Taboos: Sartosa has few sexual taboos beyond consent; especially if they benefit social cohesion or personal gain.
- Pirate Culture: Casual sexual relationships are common among crews. Sex may be transactional, opportunistic, or consensual, often tied to status, reputation, or survival.
- Elite Behavior: Sartosan merchants and captains may engage in erotic liaisons with nobles, foreigners, or exotic slaves to cement trade deals or alliances.
Attitudes toward Other Races (Sexualized)
- Sartosans are pragmatic, mercenary-minded, and sexually adventurous regarding other races, often fetishizing outsiders in private or elite contexts:
- Elves: Exotic and alluring; High Elf or Dark Elf women may be courted for beauty, status, or magical allure. Male elves are sometimes admired for grace or skill. Relationships are risky but erotic fascination is common.
- Dwarfs: Less overtly sexualized; dwarf women may appear in private fantasies, while male dwarfs are respected for strength and craftsmanship.
- Greenskins: Orcs and goblins are enemies, but pirate folklore or bawdy tales sometimes exaggerates orcish virility or depicts sexual domination in grotesque or humorous ways.
- Humans of Other Nations: Sartosans are opportunistic in sexual relations with foreigners, including nobles, merchants, or slaves. Erotic and exotic appeal is often tied to status, trade, or intrigue.
Notable Cultural Nuances
- Life at sea fosters sexual freedom and practical egalitarianism, particularly for women who prove themselves in leadership or combat.
- Sexualized fascination with other races is common, especially in private tales, erotic stories, or elite circles seeking exotic partners.
- Sartosa balances fear, exoticism, and erotic interest pragmatically — danger and desire are often intertwined in pirate culture.
Notable Ranks & Careers
Deckhand → Swashbuckler → Boarding Party Captain → Pirate Lord → Pirate King/Queen (until someone cuts your throat)