The isle of Kolact is located in the Trier Sea, west of Skybreak Bay. It is allied with the nearby islands of Sunset and Sestegos and has reasonably friendly relations with Kaltos and Transel. The island nations usually support each other in the Delarquan Crown Council and form a formidable power bloc--however, their very different cultures have so far prevented them from becoming a unified nation.
Kolact considers itself by far the most civilized of the islands, and it is renowned for its sages and scholars. The great philosopher, Strigeron, whose thought so influenced the laws set forth in the Charter of Destiny when the Federation was formed, taught at the University of Kolact. Kolact has the greatest libraries in Alastari, and they are open to all nationalities--in fact, all sentient species, provided they can be quiet, and do not mistreat the fragile books and scrolls.
Kolact is ruled by Prince Lindain, whose grandfather was a signatory to the Charter of Destiny some eighty years ago, when the Federation was formed. Lindain, a scholar, is a fairly popular ruler, though a bit of an isolationist. Lindain is a bit of a philosopher himself, and tries to put Strigeron's philosophies of the perfect government to practical use. Because the island and its population are small, conditions which would be difficult to enforce in a sprawling mainland city are the rule. Kolactan society is governed by strict laws and stricter customs; crime is low, but outsiders often find the city repressive and grim. As Prince Lindain does not feel it his duty to house and feed lawbreakers, the city has no prisons, and the punishments of lawbreakers consist solely of death, banishment, or, for lesser crimes, the loss of assorted body parts. The city is ruled by a small upper class of nobles, led by Prince Lindain, from whom the government officials and scholars most often come. The next tier in the social structure is that of the merchants and ships' captains; mid-level officials and naval officers belong to this class. At the bottom of the pyramid are the laborers and fishermen.
Kolact is a rocky island without much agriculture. There's fishing, but the mainstay of the economy is the excellent freelance navy. Kolact's warships hire out to merchant vessels to protect them from pirates. Most of them don't care whether the merchants in question are from Andorian lands, the Federation, the Skaithvarn Peninsula, or anywhere else on the Trier Sea.
The political climate of Kolact is mixed. Some merchant-marine captains would love to get involved in a war against the Andorian League; others don't want to break their lucrative escort-contracts with Andorian merchants. If it came to a war, probably half the navy would fight and half wouldn't. They are privately owned ships, after all. However, the people of Kolact are definitely Delarquan in law, culture, race, and sympathies.
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