Faolyn
(she/her)
Since when does "significantly safer" mean "super safe"?The response to my point about sea trade was that overland was significantly safer.
I assume you meant to address this to @doctorbadwolf, but from what I can tell, horses were used a lot. Or if not horses, cattle.And it’s funny you would mention trade from Boston to New York when the vast majority of trade between those points would be by ship. Until you had trains, no one in their right mind would walk between those points. You certainly wouldn’t have significant movement of trade goods going overland between Bodtonand New York until after railroads.
I'm no expert on the history of ship building, but I'm going to guess that there's a bit of a difference between the ships of the 15-18th century and the ships of the vague medieval period that D&D is set in. Also, I'm pretty sure that Boston and New York are (a) on the ocean, (b) significantly closer to each other than Baldur's Gate and Waterdeep are, and (c) the Atlantic isn't ruled over by a chaotic evil god who loves sinking ships. Or, for that matter, filled with other monsters.
So you never actually answered my question. Ignore the monsters and Umberlee. How smooth sailing is the Sea of Swords? I'm sure you can find some source that describes it as being amenable to frequent ship travel.