The Bone Alliance is whispered of by those who fear conspiracies around every corner. Naughty children are often coerced with the threat of being carried off by the “Bone Witches” if they misbehave. Most believe they are just stories, but the Bone Alliance is very real. They pursue and gather the old knowledge of spellcraft and attempt to keep it out of the hands of those who would control adepts of magic for their own gain.
Their name is taken from a historic band of outlaw mages who fought against the Magi of the West hundreds of years in the past.
Some in the city do not like the Baron aligning with the North. They have formed a resistance to this and protest in the streets. They mark houses and buildings with graffiti. They attack elves and other non humans. They have strong leadership and funding, but no one knows who pulls the strings. When seen, they wear silver masks that look like demons, mimicking and ridiculing the masks that the Orovari wear.
The Druids are a group of magic users who have watched over the lands for thousands of years. They believe in finding balance in peace with oneself and the world around you.
In the past the Druidic Order had groves set up in every major city and were often sought as counselors and advisers. They are no longer sought in this way, though two cities, Bordon and Seahaven, still have open and populated groves.
Old symbol (no longer officially supported by the order) – a silver dragon eating the tail of a black dragon.
From the Tome of the Arts:
The ancient Druids were formed from tribal magic users who found themselves drawn to the forests, deserts, and other natural places of Uteria. They were heavily influenced by the Elves, seeing magic as part of everything around, a fabric of the world that extended beyond the self and into the stars. Still, following the tendency of humans, they tried to define it, finding the five elements of magic – fire, water, air, earth, and spirit. They also defined the three sources – self, world, and spirit. This differed from the view of magic of the Elves, which simply put is there is no magic, there is life.
As the Druids progressed, they formed larger communities, knit by a want to make the world a better place. They became the advisors to kings, the lorekeepers, and observers. They built Groves, or places of meeting and meditation, a direct influence from the Elves. These Groves were found inside or around all major cities. In Seladar, the capital of the Aradan Kingdom, the king’s castle was built in the center of a Grove itself.
During the Great War, the Druids spent their time defending cities attacked by aggressors, never taking to the offense. Though there was some internal debate to this course of action, it held until the end of the war and the Disappearance.
After the war the Druids lost much of their power, many looking to them as archaic and blasphemous in the time that followed. Those of the Church persecuted them, causing the Groves to fall, and the Druids to become all but extinct.
Seahaven was the one refuge for the Druids. Not as touched by the war as many other places, they were allowed to keep their Grove and tomes in the city proper. As magic has come back into the world, the Druids have begun to expand, finding those who share their views and beliefs to join their ranks. They spent their time rebuilding Groves or searching for old ones, hoping to find some of the vast knowledge lost by war.
From Encyclopedia Uteria
The Druids are a group of magic users who have watched over the lands for thousands of years. They believe in finding balance in peace with oneself and the world around you. In the past, the Druidic Order had groves set up in every major city and were often sought as counselors and advisers. They are no longer sought in this way, though two cities, Bordon and Seahaven, still have open and populated groves.
Druidic Order (Druids)
No one is sure where or when the Druids first started. Some claim they were wizards who lead a religion of the old gods in the far north. Others claim it was formed from a council of sages before men built their first city. The one thing that is known is that the Druids have always played a part in the forging of Atheles.
In the far past, they were a group of solitary scholars and thinkers. They practiced magic and science, pushing the boundaries of both, in a castle lost to time. Something happened, something the Druids did not record, which caused the downfall of this community. The Druids then looked outward.
The Druids have been revered. They have been hunted. They have been valued as counselors. They have been burned at the stake for foretelling. In the current day, they serve as lore keepers and knowledge seekers. A few regions keep their council, like Endamas and Norhan, while others shun it, like Tirian and Uthgard.
Laws, Beliefs, and Culture
The Three Axioms
You are the shield for the world, its creatures, and its spirit.
You must defend yourself and others but never strike a preemptive blow.
You must abide by the truth as you know it.
The first core tenet is that Druids protect the world and the living beings that inhabit it. The second core tenet of the Druids is that no preemptive aggression is allowed. A druid learns to defend themself, but that is never to be used as unprovoked offense. The third core tenet is that Druids must abide by the truth. A Druid is to be truthful in all dealings and counsel, to the best of one’s own knowledge.
The Druids have a strict policy against attachment. A druid can have their own belongings, but these belongings must be able to be carried on your person. A druid must also follow a strict rule against romantic bonds. A druids can love another, but they can not form an exclusive and confining bond with another. Many believe this is based on the religious belief that Arias, mother goddess, refused all vows and bonds with her many loves. Others believe this is to stop the suffering of attachment and desire.
Organization
The Druidic Order is divided into Circles, each with a region. Each circle varies in exact beliefs, though the core beliefs are always upheld. Druids often gather in “groves”, a descriptive, if not symbolic, gathering or community of druids. These are places of refuge for all who need it.
Each Circle has an Arch Druid who is chosen by the Circle’s council every 7 years. The Arch Druids form the Grand Council.
Symbols
While the Druidic Order does not believe in symbols or flags for their organization, a long standing druid symbol is two dragons swallowing each others tails. One is silver and one is black. Spokes of a wheel fill the inner circle, embedded in the dragons bellies. Some druids still wear this as a reminder of the past and a pledge to the future.
A lesser known symbol is a circle, half white and half black.
The druids also have a chart that they believe explains the relationship between self, the world, and magic.
The Knights were formed by a faction of the Church of the One during the 30 year war. They consisted this time of nobles and land owners along the northern Border Mountains. As the war wore on, these Knights started accepting others among their ranks and separated themselves from the church. Their beliefs became more strict, and they started to blame the problems of the war on magic and those who supported it. After the war they denounced magic of all kinds and became an isolated society. They slowly lost power and prestige over the years, but in the current day, some people have started to turn to them for help. They have started to fill out their ranks and have even expanded north to Ensam.
An Uthgard governmental body, it studies magic and licenses the ability to use it.
It is divided between the Divine Academy which is run by the Unelesia Orthodox Church and the Arcane Assembly which is run by appointed officials and mages.
The Arcane Assembly mages are also called the Nulthari.
During the Aradan War, Uthgard created an elite group of warriors who vowed to give everything to crown and kingdom. They gave up themselves, the Nulthari erased their desires, their individual thoughts, and their names. The Nameless became the most feared elite unite of the faction called Death’s Embrace.
Nulthari is the name given to the mages who are a branch of the Ministry of the Arts called the Arcane Assembly. They look to gain power over life, to end suffering and disease, and conquer death. Some see this as an avenue to power, others see this as a way to stop the pain of those suffering. They also claim to be able to commune with the dead, but many believe that they are only speaking with those of the Navirim or the Between.
History
In the 3rd Age the Nulthari were the advisors to the Warlock King and were the chief strategists of the invasions to the South and West (The Great War). They perfected extending life and healed many diseases that the people suffered.
They also used ravaging magics to win the war leaving the world scarred.
In the 4th Age, the Nulthari are part of the Ministry of the Arts and publicly model themselves after the good parts of the Nulthari from the 3rd Age. Though in any institution power reigns and many within their ranks once again search for answers over life and death. They also seek knowledge of their ancestors’ destructive and powerful magics.
The Mages of the Tower are by far the most well known in the lands, or at least they are the ones that fill the stories. White haired old men with beards calling down lightning, throwing balls of fire, and causing the walls of the great castles to crumble. The wizards spent their time researching and classifying magic, they felt that magic could be defined and quantified. Their ability to warp energy was beyond any of the other magical groups of Uteria, and that power led to corruption. During the Great War, some wizards left to fight with Uthgard and the armies of the North, becoming the Nulthari. Others aligned themselves with the Aradan Kingdom in the South. Some stayed neutral. This infighting caused the fall and destruction of the Tower, all factions wanting control of the knowledge there.
A hundred years ago, a small group came back to the ruins of the Tower and began to rebuild. Though there was no magic to harness, they taught of the world and its ways. They pushed science and discovery, but often hit dead ends as they could not find common threads between different theories. One day a chemical substance would cause an explosion, and the next day it would not. They surmised that there was some force that altered the state of physics in Uteria.
During the Great War, magic twisted and destroyed the lands in the East, so when the Tower was rebuilt, both the people who studied there and the local governments built a separate tower for the Archeons, or Watchers. They were there to keep watch over the wizards and their power, so that no one could ever harness the great power that laid waste to the lands of the southeast.
Since magic has started to return, the Mages have begun to scour the lands for potential apprentices. At the same time, the Archeons are on the hunt for those who abuse the power or magic.
The old religion still holds sway over many regions, and most of the bigger cities host a temple to the old deities. While the Unelesia view the followers of this religion as misguided at best or heretics at worst, the Polythesians are content to their own beliefs and rituals.
They have always had a more open minded view of the world around them and the reemergence of magic only strengthens their beliefs. While the Unelesian see the pantheon of deities as servants of the Creator, the Polythesians see the Creator as an absent father and the deities as the ones who watch over and protect those who ask for their favor.
The Protectorate is a politically unaffiliated group founded on the history of magic in Atheles. They believe that magic can be used for good or evil. They exist to protect those that would use it for good and to protect the innocent from those that would use it for evil. Its members are trained in combat using many different fighting styles, but more prominently in defense.
The Protectorate is led by a High Chancellor that is voted upon after the death of the previous High Chancellor. There are three Chancellors that serve as the High Chancellor’s advisors. From there the Protectorate consists of many lower ranks of knights and the lowest of which is a servant. Servants are mainly young children which the Protectorate takes off the streets. As the child gets older they squire for one of the knights in its chapter until they are of age to be trained for combat.
The Protectorate serves as hidden monitors of the mages in their communities. They know when mages arrive in their cities and they know when they leave. They assign knights to assess new arrivals and once assessed, assign further. Peaceful or “good” mages are assigned a knight to protect them from their surroundings as long as they maintain their alignment. Dangerous or “evil” mages are assigned watchers to keep an eye and monitor their actions further. The watchers are instructed to not make their presence known unless absolutely necessary.
When magic left Atheles, the senior leadership disbanded the order with their purpose no more. At least that is what everyone thought. The Chancellors spread out and hid copies of their manifests and orders. As time passed the leadership aged and new guardians were selected for their secrets. Once the signs of magic’s return showed, the guardians broke the seals on their charge and the Protectorate was given life again.
Every 10 years a new set of recruits are trained, selected in the same way as before. Their mission is much of the same. This time they actively seek out groups of magic wielders to “guide” them on the approved uses of magic.
In early 5705 the headquarters of the Protectorate, the Grand Hall was destroyed by a terrorist magical attack. Half of the building was destroyed and the ruling council were all killed. The ranking officer alive, Heilman Ricter, lead those surviving to battle and kill the terrorists they found. All signs pointed to the attack originating from Eredar, the Tower of Mages. Ricter was quickly elected to High Chancellor, and he set about planning for retribution against Eredar.
Grand Hall
The Grand Hall once served as the main headquarters of the Protectorate until it was destroyed in 5705. It was located between Dorn and Kowal, a wild area which did not fall under rule of any kingdom or city state.
From Roe (Fiction):
Roe thinks back to what he can remember before speaking.
“The inside is cold and lacks color. It’s not very inviting. I imagine that was part of our training, no distractions. We had our living quarters where each initiate had their own bed. Very little open space. No peronal belongings other than the clothes we wore. There was a classroom where we were schooled. I imagine the things most people with that luxury would learn. Reading, Writing, Arithmatic, History. Simple layout about 30 desks, again very plain. There was a small library that housed tomes of history books and other information we rarely referenced. Perhaps the Elders had greater use of this than us. There were private dwellers for our Elders. We were not allowed in the wing of which they lived.
The Armory was a grand collection of weapons and armor. All styles of weapons and armor from different regions. I remember there were over 10 different styles of long swords alone. This is where the real equipment was, we did not train with these until we were much older. Outside, but still within the walls of our keep, were a training yard, a forge and stables. The stables housed what you would expect, horses. Other horse related items were there as well. The stable was fairly large, enough for at least half of our number to have one to our selves. The Forge was a forge and did forge things. We were taught to repair and maintain our own equipment there once we earned it. The training yard is where we spent most of our time growing up. About a dozen training dummies and plenty of room for at least 25 pairs of initiates to spar.”
