Floating Island
From Stormravengaming
The archwizard Merlin was long a denizen of the Realm and one of its history's most powerful wizards. His interplanar travels to the mundane world have given rise to much myth and legend there. For years Merlin maintained an island floating in the sky as his demesne in the Realm. After Merlin's passing, the island went unused for long centuries, but recently Presto learned how to control the floating island and claimed it for himself. Now floating in the waters of the Alicorn Sea, the island is again at rest, awaiting a new master.
The island is uninhabited, owing in part to legends of its strange nature. (Those few who know the truth are usually all the more eager to avoid the island.) The only artificial structure on the island is a small castle, possibly built by Merlin, later used by Presto to host the Princes of the Universe shortly after their summoning and animation in constructed bodies. This castle is a repository for a treasure of knowledge, equipment and adventuring gear, most of which the Princes had to leave behind when they left the island.
The rest of the island is unremarkable (with the exception that it floats in the water). Though unmoored to the sea floor, the island is stationary, held in place by the same powerful magics that give it mobility. As such it is, at first glance, indistinguishable from a typical island. It is somewhat smaller than the average natural island in the region. The surface is lightly vegetated, and there is a little forest. The vegetation is not native to the area, an indication that the island is a foreign presence. But in many places native species are gradually encroaching upon and replacing the current plant life. The island's geology is also very different from the region, but only a trained eye would take note of the differences.
The floating island was once much larger, but over the centuries fragments of it have fallen away. The magics giving the island levity have always clung to the largest piece, so the lesser chunks that have eroded away have simply fallen to the ground as mundane rock. One day perhaps the island will become too small to sustain the enchantments upon it, and the entire island will then fall to the ground, never to rise again.
The secret of commanding the island has apparently been lost with Presto, though there may be clues hidden in the texts in the castle. Geoff estimated that it would take months of research to learn how to operate the island, and even then he couldn't guarantee success.
