The Trade Companies of Oros Bay and beyond are the backbone of industry and even hold a large percentage of Hyuron martial might with their thousands of contracted mercenaries and seconded military personnel. Presided over by powerful Lord Factors.
The Azure Concord (Arune)
Sigil: A silver dolphin leaping over a sextant.
Specialty: Maritime logistics, bulk freight (grain, timber, textiles), and information brokerage.
Reputation: The oldest, wealthiest, and most powerful of the human trading companies. The Concord is a sprawling, bureaucratic behemoth whose ships are ubiquitous in every known port. They are the architects of the modern trade network and the primary purveyors of the common Arunaic tongue. To their rivals, they are pragmatic to a fault—soulless merchants who see ships as numbers on a ledger and loyalty as a line item in a budget. Their power is undeniable, but their methods often lack the fire of their younger competitors. It is from this company that mavericks like Henry Somerset often rise, as the Concord must value results above all else.
The Summit & Spire Mercantile (Befraria)
Sigil: A single, stylized eagle's feather crossed over a mountain peak.
Specialty: High-value, low-volume goods. Rare alpine herbs, exquisitely pure ores from high-altitude mines, precise cartographical data, and occasionally, tamed aerial beasts.
Reputation: Aloof, elitist, and secretive. The Summit & Spire operates on the principle of quality over quantity. Their routes are not the sprawling sea lanes of Arune but the treacherous mountain passes and, some whisper, the very winds themselves. Their Lord Factors are often reclusive scholars or grim mountaineers who rarely leave their cliff-side strongholds. Dealing with them is expensive and difficult, but their goods are of unparalleled quality. They look down on the "crass" bulk trading of the southern nations.
The Ghyllwood Compact ( Eastern Margalle)
Sigil: A fanged skull wreathed in mist-shrouded pine.
Specialty: Raw, unique planetary resources. Geothermally-hardened Spine-Stone, rare Ghyllwood timber, potent alchemical reagents harvested from the Steam-Moors, and the coveted pelts of beasts.
Reputation: Insular, suspicious, and xenophobic. The Ghyllwood Compact is less a trading company and more a reluctant gatekeeper. They do not seek trade; they tolerate it on their own harsh terms, governed by their complex and often brutal domin-law. Their "Lord Factors" are feudal Thanes who view foreigners with deep distrust. Any trade agreement with them is a dangerous affair, a dance of dominance where a perceived slight could end in a ritual challenge to the death.
The Golden Mane Caravans (Netzekal)
Sigil: A roaring lion's head crowned by the sun.
Specialty: Overland trade, desert survival, and security. They move spices, gemstones, latex, and other rare goods across the vast and hostile deserts of Netzekal.
Reputation: Resilient, patient, and incredibly sharp. The Lord Factors of the Golden Mane are not sailors but seasoned caravan-masters, descended from the nomadic Khanjar clans. They are masters of logistics in the most unforgiving land environment. They are known for their unbreakable contracts and for being tough, but fair, negotiators who understand the true value of a single drop of water or a loyal guard.
The Oro Bay Imperial Charter (Visia - Rising Power)
Sigil: A golden, unblinking eye set upon a ship's iron prow.
Specialty: Military contracting, resource acquisition for the burgeoning Holy Spectra, and aggressive corporate expansion.
Reputation: Young, ruthless, ambitious, and zealous. The Oro Bay Charter, born from the militaristic Oros Bay clans of the north, is the upstart that terrifies the older companies. They blur the line between trade and crusade, their fleets as much a missionary force as a mercantile one. Their Lord Factors are often fanatically devout to the nascent ideals of the Golden Eye, believing that profit is a divine reward for spreading the influence of their faith. They are the future, and they are utterly without mercy.