The Arbor

The Arbor is a golden island off the southwestern-most part of Westeros, ruled by House Redwyne. It is considered part of the Reach, and is separated from the mainland by the Redwyne Straits. It is protected by the Redwyne fleet, the largest fleet of the Seven Kingdoms

There are several settlements and islands of note in the region, all of which swear fealty to the Redwynes in their castle of Vinehall.

The port town of Ryamsport is located on the Arbor, as well as the settlements of Vinetown and Starfish Harbor. Smaller islands in the vicinity of the Arbor include Stonecrab Cay, the Isle of Pigs, the Mermaid's Palace, Horseshoe Rock, and Bastard's Cradle. The Arbor and its surrounding isles are an excellent center for shipbuilding.

Culture
The Arbor is known for making the best wine in Westeros, especially a terrific red one and a gold wine. Wine from the Arbor is usually sweeter than wine from Dorne. Tourneys held at the Arbor are restricted to knights.

Even in the days of the Conquest, the Arbor was famed for its hawking and hunting. The western end of the island is rife with game, while much of the eastern end is given over to farms and the vineyards that make the famous Arbor wine.

A generally pious folk, the recent tyranny beneath the Brotherhood of the Warrior has had long lasting effects.

History
Gilbert of the Vines, the legendary founder of House Redwyne, is said to have taught the Arbor's people to make wine. It is through Gilbert that the House claims descent from Garth Greenhand.

Ironborn
In the era of the First Men, ironborn rule under driftwood kings such as Qhored Hoare extended as far south as the Arbor. House Hoare's sigil included a grape cluster to represent the Arbor. Weaker ironborn kings eventually lost the Arbor, however, although Joron I Blacktyde is said to have raided the island and carried off its younger women.

Kingdom of the Reach
In the aftermath of the ironborn's decline, the Arbor was an independent kingdom. It was incorporated into the realm of Meryn III Gardener, the King of the Reach, when his cousin, the last King of the Arbor, was lost at sea. Fleets from the Arbor and Oldtown protected the Reach from naval attacks during the Andal invasion.

Targaryen Era
There were reliable reports that Lord Aegon Targaryen of Dragonstone hawked at the Arbor as a guest of Lord Redwyne before Aegon's War of Conquest.

During the reign of King Aerys I Targaryen, the Arbor suffered from a drought and its grapes turned to raisins on the vine. The island was also raided by ironborn pirates around that time. Prince Oberyn Martell and Princess Elia Martell visited the Arbor on their way to Casterly Rock where their mother was to broker their marriage to the Lannister twins, Cersei and Jaime.

Baratheon Era
The Arbor was attacked by the ironborn after the fall of the Shield Islands. Most of the Redwyne fleet was away at the siege of Dragonstone, and the small fleet left to defend the island is overwhelmed and destroyed. With the aid of House Targaryen the Redwynes retook the isle.

Recent Events
Under Eryk Redwyne the Arbor saw religious purges sweep through its populace; men, women, and children were executed, their possessions taken and their bodies buried without ceremony. With his passing, rule of the island fell to Ryam Redwyne.

Starfish Harbor
Starfish Harbor is the second largest town on the Arbor, situated in a natural harbor just south of the Mermaid’s Palace. It is the exit point of the Gold River, which is fed from the mountains towards the middle of the island. Starfish Harbor is placed in a natural depression, surrounded by cliffs that act as defense. The port entrance is very small, allowing only merchant shipping. The cliffs surroun

ding the Harbor are impossible to scale, and there are only three exits and entrances out of the town.

Though the town mostly deals in and exports wine, Starfish Harbor is somewhat self-sustaining. The calm water of the Mermaid Sound are suitable for fishing, and a stone quarry is fashioned into the right side of the town. There are inns, smithies, guildhouses, markets and more. Farmland is protected by scaling cliffs, and high walls prevent assailants from being easily able to enter the town. For miles around, cliffside dominates the terrain, but atop the plateau, there are long rolling fields, suitable for farmlands and orchards. House Rhysling rules Starfish Harbor from the Mermaid’s Keep, which looks over the sound and the city proper. Starfish Harbor employs a city watch of one-hundred men, which are typically more than enough, thinned down to fifty during summertime.

Mermaid’s Keep employs no more than forty workers at one time, hand-selected from among the best workers in town. Though hardly rich, House Rhysling is exalted inside the city, credited to it’s prosperity and often bountiful harvests.

Starfish Harbor’s main export is wine, followed by textiles and stone. The farmlands surrounding the town account for almost one third of the Arbor’s annual crop production. Compared to the remainder of the isle, the seas are calm, and the wind from the north is warm.

The Mermaid's Palace
The Mermaid’s Palace is the seat of House Lowther just north of the Arbor. Framed in the shape of a mermaid’s tail, the island is thick, and vegetative. Prone to flooding, the island is also dangerously close to sea level, and it is said that during high tide, large swaths of the island disappear under the waves.

Despite it’s apparent danger, the Mermaid’s Palace is a place where many marriages are held. Those wealthy enough to book passage to and fro have noted the old architecture of the inland, leading many to believe that the island is sinking slowly. There are some navigable paths on the island, and they all lead to the center, where a broken-down stone structure has been the subject of a thousand marriage rites.

The island is said to be desirable, and beautiful. Dolphins dance in its surrounding waters, and a thick canopy hides native animals from the sun. It is a three hour trip from Starfish Harbor to the Mermaid’s Palace.