Raiders of the Waking Sea

—From “The Dowager’s Field Guide to Good Society” by Lady Alcyone.

The Raiders of the Waking Sea, or more simply “the Raiders”, is the more commonly known name given to an association of pirates called the Felicisima Armada. Once upon a time these pirates were little more than opportunists, individual ships based out of the coastal city of Llomerryn that preyed on sea traffic and which were frequently the target of concerted efforts by the Orlesians and Free Marches cities to destroy them once and for all. After each such effort, new pirates would appear to fill the vacuum and thus the cycle continued.

During the New Exalted Marches, however, the nations of Thedas found themselves in dire need of every ship they could muster against the massive power of the Qunari dreadnaughts. The Llomerryn pirates were faced with a difficult decision: band together under one flag and fight with those they had previously preyed upon or face conversion and annihilation by the Qunari. Thus the Armada was formed. The pirates brought their knowledge of stealth and trickery to bear, plaguing Qunari supply lines and even launching seaborne invasions against the Qunari coast. For a time it was said the Armada was the premier naval power of Thedas, and after the signing of the Llomerryn Accord they maintained their association rather than disbard—much as others might have hoped.

Wealthy merchants often pay the leaders of the Armada, rather than risk having their ships commandeered and their merchandise stolen and sold on the black market. They’re hardly unified, and bloody battles between Armada leaders are frequent, but any attack by outsiders will cause them to instantly put aside their differences and close ranks… and thus the raiders have become far more of a plague in the last century than they ever were before. There are a lot of legends told about how dashing and romantic life aboard a raider’s vessel is, but don’t believe it. They are scoundrels and smugglers all.