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Waverider Story - Campaign - Author's Notes

# Coralwyn

Carefree elves on paradise beaches.

Story
The wreck had left them half-dead, clinging to planks and broken spars as the sun beat down. When at last the tide carried them onto white sand, they collapsed like corpses, too weak even to thank the shore. Salt burned their eyes, their lips were split and bleeding, and the roar of the surf filled their ears.
When they awoke, they were not alone. Figures stood above them, tall and slender, with skin bronzed by the sun and hair bound in plaits of shell and flower. One bent low and pressed a cool gourd of water to a sailor's mouth. Another peeled back a green leaf to reveal sweet fruit, its juice running down her fingers as she offered it with a smile.
The sailors blinked in disbelief. They had expected death, not laughter and song. The strangers spoke in lilting voices they did not understand, but their kindness was clear in every gesture. One elf poured coconut milk into their cracked hands, another placed garlands of blossoms around their necks. Children peered from behind the trees, wide-eyed, while the elders lifted the sailors gently to their feet.
"Come," said the tallest, tapping his chest with open palm, then pointing inland. "Home."
The sailors followed barefoot through groves of palms where lantern-fruits glowed like captured moons. The village was no fortress, only huts of woven leaves standing open to the breeze, fires burning in circles of stone, laughter spilling like music. The elves moved among them as though they had known the castaways all their lives, pressing roasted fish into their hands, draping them with bright cloths still smelling of the sea.
At first the sailors thought it was welcome, pure and simple. But as the night deepened, they began to notice the strangeness. Lovers embraced without shame, then parted with a laugh to join another. Children darted from hut to hut, claimed by none and yet by all. Quarrels rose like sparks but burned out in a moment, smothered in song and shared cups of drink.
One sailor, still trembling from the wreck, felt a garland of pearls slipped over his shoulders. A woman kissed his salt-cracked lips, then vanished into the dancers, leaving him dazed and uncertain. Another tried to thank an elder for saving his life, but the old man only laughed and pressed his forehead to his, whispering words he could not understand.
It was joy, it was freedom, it was kindness without asking anything in return. Yet to the sailors it felt as if they had washed not ashore, but into another world entirely-one where time itself drifted like the tide, and nothing was bound to last.

Coralwyn elves helping shipwrecked sailors

Story
The drums beat from the canoes, echoing across the water like thunder. Spears gleamed in the sun, their tips hardened coral bound with sharkskin cord. The elves paddled in unison, eyes fixed on the black fin that sliced the surface ahead.
The bull shark had grown bold, dragging fishermen from their outriggers, biting nets to ribbons. Now it was war.
With a flash of silver, shapes rose from the deep. Merfolk broke the surface, sleek and glistening, their hair streaming like kelp. They spoke no words, but their hands traced quick signs, pointing where the beast lurked beneath. The elves answered with nods, tightening their grip on spear and paddle.
The hunt began. The shark surged up in a spray of foam, jaws snapping, rocking a canoe near to capsizing. An elf drove his spear down, only to have it slide against the beast's hide. The water boiled as merfolk darted like arrows around the shark, flashing blades of bone to drive it toward the waiting circle of canoes.
Then the eldest hunter, Tevaro, rose to his feet. He stood steady even as the canoe swayed, his long hair whipping in the wind. The shark lunged, and he hurled his spear with both hands. It struck true, lodging deep in the gills. The sea turned red.
The merfolk dove as one, wrestling the thrashing beast, dragging it down until at last it stilled. When they surfaced, their laughter rang with the elves' cheers. Together they hauled the carcass into the shallows, where children leapt and shouted at the sight of it.
That night, on the beach, the fire roared high. The shark's flesh fed the village, its teeth were strung into necklaces, and its hide stretched into drumskins. The elves and merfolk feasted side by side, their songs twining like waves, celebrating not just the kill, but the bond between land and sea.

# Description

A paradise of sand and pearl, where the elves live as lightly as the tide.

Coralwyn is a scattering of lush islands in the warm Pearl Sea, ringed with lagoons, coral reefs and palms that bend over silver beaches. The elves here have little concern for the greater struggles of the world. They rise with the sun, dive for fish and pearls, sail between isles in outrigger canoes, and end their evenings with songs by the fire. Life is not about conquest or craft, but about savoring the moment, for tomorrow will bring its own tide.

Their villages are simple clusters of palm-thatched huts, decorated with seashells and bright flowers. Every home is open to the breeze, and every hearth is open to a guest. Strangers are welcomed with laughter, food, and a bed, though few who visit ever feel entirely certain if they are just guests or something more.

In Coralwyn, bonds are like tides, flowing in and out without fixed shores. Friendships are many and fluid, intimacy is freely shared, and few expect promises beyond the present moment. Lovers come and go like passing storms, yet the closeness of touch, laughter, and song is treasured as deeply as any oath. Children are raised by the whole village, each hut a home and each adult a guardian, so no one is ever left alone. Elders, called Moatu, are honored for their memory and wisdom, but their role is to guide, not command. Quarrels are eased with songs or shared meals, for grudges are seen as a weight that drags the spirit down, and in Coralwyn, nothing is meant to sink.

## Religion

The Coralwyn elves follow the Way of the Seven Currents, a faith that blends reverence for the sea, sky and islands into one flowing whole. They believe that seven divine forces move like invisible tides across the world, shaping fate and fortune. These are:

- Tikele the Vast Mother, goddess of the open sea and endless horizon.
- Tava'e the Swift-Wing, god of birds, navigation and journeys.
- Haelea the Wave-Born, goddess of love, joy and fleeting union.
- Koriri the Tidefather, god of waves, storms and change.
- Naea the Pearl-Heart, goddess of beauty, song and hidden treasures.
- Uruhi the Reef-Keeper, god of fish, abundance and protection, but also the betrayer lurking under the surface.
- Anakea the Silent Depth, goddess of death, memory and the dark beneath.

Shrines are often simple, driftwood arches decorated with shells, stone circles on the beach, or sacred groves where flowers are left floating on pools. The most sacred place is Te Rua Tikele, a blue hole at the heart of the Pearl Sea, said to be the wellspring of the Seven Currents.

Festivals are frequent, often tied to the moon and tides. They involve dance, chanting, drumming and sometimes ritual swimming far into the reef, where offerings of shells, pearls or garlands are cast into the sea.

## Leaders

Coralwyn has no kings. Each island has a Moatu (elder), but their word is guiding, not binding. In times of crisis, a council called the Hiva o Moana gathers, though such times are rare.

## Relations

- Tideforest Fibians: They trade brightly woven nets and dried fish for dyes and venom, though the elves treat the frog-folk with wary courtesy.
- Sylvarinith Elves: Coralwyn sees them as kin, but finds them too solemn and rooted to stone. They sometimes send singers and divers to share songs and lore.
- Sea Elves: The closest allies. To the sea elves, Coralwyn is a friendly haven, a place to find food, lovers, laughter, and safe anchorage. Some sea elf captains even claim Coralwyn as their second home.
- Merfolk: Friendly exchanges abound. Coralwyn elves often sing with the merfolk at the beach.
- Humans: Traders and explorers are welcomed, but not common. The elves may share food and stories, but few humans ever understand Coralwyn's fluid way of life.

## Villages

Some of the major villages: Luahea, Korare, Tevakai, Anaroa, Pihura, Hanoara, Velika, Na'oro, Tihane, Marehua, Tivare, Noakea, Hanurei, Kalava, Pohira, Anuare, Taviri, Moekai, Lahoru.

## Possible Secrets

### The Drowned Temple

Beneath Te Rua Tikele, the sacred blue hole, lies a vast ruin of coral-encrusted stone, older than the elves themselves. Only a few Moatu know of it, and they believe it to be the true cradle of the Seven Currents.

### Pearl of Voices

Somewhere in the reefs is said to rest a pearl the size of a man's head. When held to the ear, it whispers with the voices of all who drowned in the Pearl Sea. Some claim it grants wisdom, others say it drives mortals mad.

### The Vanished Isle

One island of Coralwyn, called Nerehua, is missing from every map. Once it was home to a thriving village, but one night it sank beneath the waves without warning. The elves say it was claimed by Anakea, goddess of the Silent Depth, though divers sometimes return with trinkets from its sunken huts.

### The Wandering Captain

A sea elf captain named Maeloris has been secretly living among the Coralwyn elves for decades, hiding from his people. He is said to carry charts showing hidden places of the Pearl Sea.

## Adventure Hooks

### Storm-Stranded

A great storm smashes a visiting ship on the reefs. Survivors must rely on Coralwyn's hospitality, but when supplies run short, tensions rise between outsiders and elves.

### Pearl War

Two villages claim the same pearl-diving reef, and their playful contests have grown into raids and sabotage. The Moatu ask outsiders to help settle the dispute before it turns violent.

### Song of the Sirens

Fishermen vanish after hearing strange singing at night. The merfolk deny involvement, but some elves whisper of something else beneath the waves that knows how to sing.

### Shark Hunt

A massive reef-shark, revered by some as a spirit of Koriri, has begun attacking canoes. The elves are divided: should it be hunted, appeased, or driven elsewhere? Outsiders may be asked to take a side.

### The Wandering Canoe

An outrigger arrives empty at a Coralwyn village, its sails furled, with food and water untouched. The crew is missing, and the trail of their last voyage leads far into the Pearl Sea.

### Festival of Currents

During a moonlit festival, a dancer collapses, speaking in a voice not her own. She warns of danger coming from the sea, and the Moatu believe the adventurers must follow the omen.

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