Sellen River
The Sellen River is one of the most heavily traveled waterways in eastern Avistan and plays an incalculably important role in the trade and culture of all the nations of central and northeastern Avistan. Originating in the Lake of Mists and Veils north of Brevoy, the Sellen flows south through Numeria and the River Kingdoms (where it branches into countless fingers winding through the marshy countryside), and along the borders of Kyonin, Galt, the Five Kings Mountains and Andoran, finally pouring into Star Bay and the Inner Sea at the Taldan port of Cassomir.
It is easily one of the longest rivers on Golarion. Fed by dozens of tributary rivers, high mountain lakes and thousands of streams, the Sellen moves more water than all the other rivers that touch the Inner Sea combined. For this reason it doesn’t show typical flooding and dry seasons like most rivers, but flows as faithfully as the sun rises.
In the River Kingdoms
The lay of the land in the River Kingdoms is the direct result of the Sellen River and its many tributaries. The rich, damp soil supports ancient trees and traps water, creating dozens of isolated boggy areas with their own ecologies and pockets of native creatures.
This wide, lazy river system drains across the gentle slopes of the River Kingdoms into Kallas Lake, and eventually empties into the Inner Sea. The Sellen is the main transport system of this region, as it or its tributaries touch most kingdoms in the nation. Thanks to the Third River Freedom, these waterways are clear of any official obstruction to trade or travel. However, bandits and pirates ply all parts of the river, so travel and commerce are never certain. Merchants mainly move food around the kingdoms, but steady traffic in arms and armor makes traders both good targets for bandits and well prepared for them. Travelers also use the Sellen daily, and the western and main branches are highways for crusaders headed to Mendev. Of course, crusaders often feel obliged to halt wrongdoing along the way as well, or to stop and collect some much-appreciated “donations” to the cause.
In most places, the river is less than a mile wide and around 12 feet deep, best suited to barge travel. Bridges seldom last outside of the stable kingdoms, so ferryboats are common along the waterway.
Outsiders find it confusing that on many maps the tributaries are also called “the Sellen River.” The turnover of sovereignty leads to frequent renaming, making most names too temporary to be useful. When it’s relevant, the river is referred to by its three main branches: West Sellen, Main Sellen, and East Sellen, with specific sections of the river named according to the nearest kingdom through which it flows. Clearly, understanding the particulars of directions and locations or conversing with a native about one of these confusingly named rivers will require some local knowledge.
In the River Kingdoms, the Sellen winds past the ruins of Heibarr, and past the towns of Outsea, Artume, and Sevenarches. South of there it is joined first by the Goldenrun and then the Yhalt River before finally flowing into Kallas Lake.
As the river moves south, it gradually becomes slower and wider as it no longer has to fight its way between walls of glacier-carved rock. Grasslands and rich forests along its banks become more common, as do the various outposts that cater to trade.
Trade
Trade along the countless branches of the Sellen River provides the economic lifeblood of most of the nations of central and northeastern Avistan. Plying the waterways of what is known as the Sellen Passage, the river traders connect such inland nations as Ustalav and Brevoy with the warmer, more populous nations surrounding the Inner Sea.
The Sellen has become an increasingly important trade route as the recent rise of Tar-Baphon has made travel across Lake Encarthan much more hazardous.
Because of the incredible importance of trade along the Sellen and its tributaries, governments that border these rivers tend to invest in well-regulated harbors and towns where a certain level of safety can be expected. Maintenance of these locations is supplemented by the taxes and tolls levied on traders and travellers alike. This does not mean that banditry is absent from the Sellen. Far from it, smugglers, pirates, and other brigands are common along its less populated stretches. These threats have created a secondary industry of river pilots and mercenaries to guide and protect travellers, although it is an open secret that these individuals often turn to piracy once business slows.