Spice Quest, the Thread! - Meet Rubila

With the recent opening up of much of the western world to trade and exploration, no small number of private individuals had set out to get a head start on the government enterprises. While everyone appreciated the power a monopoly could give them... Most people also knew that they were out of luck when it came to getting one of those. 

If the government got there first, you could almost always bet that they would charter a new company and give it the monopoly for trading there. As such, a brave band of entrepreneurs began visiting little old ladies for money and selling deeds to bridges in Duom. After less than three months of hustling, the hucksters had bought a ship, filled it up with cheap goods, and had set off to explore new lands and discover new civilisations, to go where no (con)man had gone before!

Immediately, the gods hated them. They were tossed about, hit with lightening, and attacked by sea-dragons (It's true, it really happened!). The only thing that stopped them from turning back, was the fact that none of them actually knew how to navigate nor sail a ship. As such, they kept going into the dark and dangerous unknown. 

After a month at sea and with fuel and water running low, they finally came in sight of land. And what a land it was! It was a tropical hell hole, but it had cities, which were no doubt filled with stupid savages who would make them all filthy rich over little beads of glass. Sailing into port in their battered collier-turned-merchantman, the insipid explorers prepared to meet their new friends!