Description
The sorting yards display an organized chaos of ocean-tumbled treasures. One section holds timber sorted by type and quality: massive ironwood beams still sound enough for construction, rare woods from distant islands suitable for fine carving, and salt-bleached planks that make excellent material for decorative panels. Each piece is tagged with carved shell markers indicating size, condition, and estimated value. Salvage crews drag these finds from the Storm Debris Zone during low tide, using the accelerated three-day growth period of The Tidal Expanse to their advantage as storms seem to deposit new materials with unusual frequency compared to the outside world.
Another yard specializes in maritime artifacts: glass floats in various sizes and colors that once marked fishing nets from distant waters, brass fittings corroded green by salt but still valuable for their metal content, ceramic fragments that hint at exotic trade goods lost to storms, and occasional cargo crates that arrive mysteriously intact. The depot master maintains a registry of ship markings and merchant symbols, sometimes able to identify the original owners of particularly distinctive items. While salvage law grants The Tidal Expanse claim to anything that washes up within the settlement's waters, returning identifiable goods to their owners often proves more profitable through the gratitude and future business such honesty generates.
The most valuable section of the depot is reserved for sandglass collection and storage. These tiny crystalline formations appear in pockets after major storms, humming with a faint resonance that some claim echoes the distant Celestine Chorus. Collectors and mages throughout the region pay premium prices for pristine specimens. The sandglass sorting area features padded workbenches where specialists carefully clean and categorize finds, separating the rare, perfectly formed crystals from the more common fragments. Secured chests hold the best examples, awaiting buyers wealthy enough to appreciate their subtle magical properties or simply their crystalline beauty.
The covered pavilion serves as both office and showroom. Salvage records carved on wooden tablets track every significant find, from the massive timbers that might become ship masts to the smallest glass bead that could adorn a noble's necklace. Visiting crafters and merchants browse the latest acquisitions, often discovering materials unavailable anywhere else. The depot master negotiates sales with practiced skill, knowing exactly which shipwright needs ironwood, which jeweler seeks unusual glass, and which noble collector would pay handsomely for that mysterious carved figurehead recovered last month. A portion of all sales goes directly to the salvage crews as incentive, ensuring they remain vigilant in their searches and honest in their reporting. After particularly productive storms, the depot buzzes with activity for weeks as crews work through the bounty while buyers compete for the choicest finds.
Benefits
Provides various benefits.