Fantasy Dominion Academy Lore

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INTRODUCTION​

The arcane sciences have been essential to the growth and advancement of civilization. From medicine to simple comforts like running water, there is seemingly very little that the combination of magic and artifice cannot accomplish for the benefit of society. Unfortunately, it is nature of man to misuse their knowledge in the pursuit of power and fortune. Aurelian Empire has been a looming presence on the continent of Eifos, it's military forces having slowly conquered nearly all of it's neighboring territories. Empress Elenda now sits on the Dusk Throne, and she is just as ambitious to continue the work that her mother began. It is only through the united effort of three nations that western Eifos is free. The combined military forces and arcane knowledge of Bastiel, Obann and Weissland have proven to be a match even for the seemingly overwhelming might of the empire. While a loose armistice currently exists between the Alliance and Empire, it is only a matter of time before outright war begins again. Key to the Alliance's continued resistance is quality of their mages which is thanks to Dominion Academy, a facility specializing in educating promising students in the arcane sciences and the art of war. Potential students travel from all across Eifos for chance to be accepted by the academy, those who graduate capable of joining the Alliance's military as an officer. All you have to do is survive which is not a guarantee.

ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Knowledge is the sword.
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Dominion Academy is a state of the art facility with some of the most experienced instructors from around the Alliance. The building is imbued with a plethora complex wards that prevent structural damage, stops divination attempts, fends off intrusion by both physical and magical means, and much more. Those who pass the initial entrance exams are put into squads where they will compete against each other in both typical graded classwork and practical field exercises. Squads share barracks and train with each other constantly with the exception of their elective courses where choose to specialize in a particular type of magic. Through teamwork it is expected that a squad achieves sufficient grades to continue on to the next year, though the required overall score rises as they progress. Squads that fail out within the first two years are required to complete their obligated service time as enlisted personnel within the Joint Alliance Forces or a branch of their respected home nation's personal military. Those who make it beyond the sophomore year are eligible to become officers within the JAF even if do not pass next into the next year or choose to leave the academy early. Should a squad make it to the end of their fourth year and pass a final review board consisting of their instructors, each student receives substantial standing in the JAF and allowed to pick orders to their preference. It should also be noted that a Dominion senior graduate receives an exceptional pay raise compared to their underclassmen. Other things to know include: Students must be at minimum age of 17 but no older then 24 by acceptance, must be reasonable physical health with no ailments, cannot be married, must be a citizen of a allied nation, must be willing to complete at least four years of post fail or graduate service, and all students receive a stipend for uniforms, study material, etc. (School Map: 1-F 2-F )

 

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NATIONS AND RACES
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The Republic of Bastiel - At the heart of Eifos, is the second largest nation and arguably the most powerful within the Alliance. Made up primarily of humans and half elves, Bastielians are fiercely loyal and patriotic to war effort against the Aurelian Empire. They have personally repelled more invasion attempts by the Empire's hands then their allies, but not without great cost. The Republic's eastern border is a no man's land of artillery scared earth, labyrinthine trenches and reinforced barricades that are constantly under guard. Many sons and daughters have bravely fallen in the line of duty with the armistice only being a brief respite for those still living. Bastiel has plenty of fertile farmland, but is more widely known for the urban sprawl that is Dominion, the capitol of the Republic. It is a gargantuan city will all the fairly modern comforts one could imagine. From Valor Hall, the governing body of elected officials known as the Forum work to maintain order and ensure that their nation is safe. Most important though is Dominion Academy itself, the military school that trains the best and the brightest in the Alliance. Their national emblem is a silver griffin wielding a long sword.

The Theocracy of Obann - South of Bastiel, Obann is the smallest of the three allied nations, but one would be foolish to think them to be the weakest. Made up of humans and genasi, tend to view things from a very different perspective then their respected counterparts. The people of Obann value ingenuity, foresight and self-discipline as core principles of their faith. They worship the god-phoenix Chol, who represents ongoing cycle of creation and destruction who inspires the faithful with burden for which they grow from overcoming. Obann is mostly scorching desert and jagged cliffs, but using their skills artifice/alchemy, they have managed to make their homeland hospitable. The Sunspeaker (the head of Chol's priesthood) is considered the spiritual leader of their government, but there is also a ruling line of nobility that focuses on more political matters of state. Their capital is Skytear, a tiered port city by the Azure Sea that is also home to most of the Alliance's naval forces and trading vessels. Obann's national emblem is a phoenix a key in it's talons.

The United Baronies of Weissland - North of Bastiel is the largest of the allied nations, but there is some disagreement on that subject. In truth, Weissland is made up of 14 different baronies who had a habit of warring against each other to consolidate their respected territories. Fighting runs in the blood of every born citizen of the baronies and King Magnus upholds his great ancestor's belief that only the strong have the right to lead. Weissland also has a very diverse population consisting of humans, elves, dwarves, genasi and is the home of beastkin. The most powerful barons include Lady Fang (a wolf beastkin), Voltec Bloodbeard (a possibly insane dwarf), the White Fox (a mysterious fox beastkin), and Baron Katja (a water genasi battle mage). Since the Aurelian Empire first made it's move on Weissland, King Magnus and the 14 barons agreed to focus on defending their lands from a common enemy as opposed to skirmishing with each other. The capital of Weissland is Rittersburg, a snowy city that is home to the royal family and neutral ground for the various barons. While each baron as their own emblem, their unified emblem is a two-headed wolf fighting itself.

The Aurelian Empire - East of the allied nations, the Empire stands to be the greatest threat to the people of Eifos. Ruled by Empress Elenda, that have slowly conquer their way from the original homeland of the eastern coast of the continent to now be largest territory in the known world. While primarily humans, the Empire is also the unwilling home to many races that are essentially second-class citizens frequently forced into conscription or quartering their conquerors. Using sheer numbers and over whelming force, very few were able to resist the Empire until the Alliance unified and established a force that narrowly repelled the first wave of invaders. Since then, Empress Elenda and her generals have been plotting, prodding the Alliance's defenses, and developing new weaponry that might aid in the war effort. The capital of the Empire is Duskcrown, home to Empress Elenda and her consort Nikolai, an infamous blood mage. Their national emblem a crescent moon with three crossed dagger at it's center.

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Humans - Pretty self explanatory unless you are one of very few non-human people reading this. Human make up nearly half of population of Eifos which makes them the most common race on the continent. They have no distinct magical features, but it is commonly believed that certain bloodline have a natural affinity towards manipulating aether. Even if this is true, the advantage is minimal at best, but it won't stop certain families from flaunting it.

Half Elves - The first thing that should be known is that there a no more full-blooded Elves on Eifos anymore. This would be direct result of the Aurelian Empire as they personally saw to this matter during their earlier years. The Floating City of Rhael was once the home to the Elven people who were capable of drawing energy from a powerful fountain of concentrated aether known as the Manaspring. As they were all magically attuned to the Manaspring, they were capable of extraordinary feats and had life spans that far exceeded humans. A single imperial blood mage sent by Empress Nadia (Elenda's grandmother) tainted the fountain with his magic, causing the Elves to slowly wither and die. Only Half Elves survived because they were attuned to the Manaspring and were therefore unaffected. While ever few Half Elves exist, they do benefit from a mildly longer life spans then humans.

Dwarves - First things first, they aren't just short, bearded drunkards as some would assume. Shorter then humans, definitely but not by a lot. Hailing originally from the Nameless City north of Weissland, they are far calculating then they typically given credit for. Aside from their various mercantile connections, it is believed that the Nameless City has tunnels that extend all over the continent, and possibly ones that allow access into places that could account for security concerns. Not many Dwarves regular the surface, so its unknown how many of them are actually around. Those who choose to live in the light often have very personal reasons for this, and they are not inclined to reveal that information. Dwarves reach adulthood at the same age as humans, but no one quite knows how long they live.

Genasi - The first Genasi were speculated to be the offspring of humans and foreign elemental beings that are no longer on Eifos. While initially they capable of manipulating their associated elements with ease, their bloodlines greatly diminished over the course of centuries, changing them to what is commonly seen in Eifos. While Genasi no longer have outlandish fiery hair or skin hard like stone, they tend to have very odd physical features like eyes that glow or a strange tinge to their skin tone. They do have a more natural inclination to magic then humans, but have a shorter life span a strange downside to their diminished heritage.

Beastkin - As the name implies, Beastkin animal-like humanoids. Originally from Weissland, they claim to descended from supernatural beasts like the great wolf mother Fenrir or the raven twins
Huginn and Muninn. In truth, there is nothing to back the claim, but it would be in poor taste to tell them otherwise. Their animal physical features are not so dramatic as to make them look like beasts, but person with slitted eyes, claws, fangs and a tail tends to stick out in a crowd. They are not always so well received outside of Weissland since their appearance can be disconcerting. Beastkin mature faster then humans, but rarely live past the age of 60.

 

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MAGIC AND TECHNOLOGY
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Magic or rather the "Arcane Sciences" are essential to everyday life in Eifos. To be direct, the blend of magic and technology is how I'm hand waving limits of real life. A train can be powered by lightning elemental and street lights are glass spheres filled with alchemically treated algae that glows bright in the dark. A fire arm might use enchanted ammunition and prosthetic limbs are fully functional thanks to advanced artificery. The days of wands and scrolls are long gone. Even in the more rural areas of Eifos, there is no impractical fear when it comes to these various devices. As far as "applying the Arcane Sciences" are concerned, there is a logical explanation that is understood by it's basic practitioners. To start with, every living individual has source of energy in their body called their Well. When an individual wishes to perform a spell, they direct the flow of this energy outward (also referred to as exerting their Will, which can be further assisted possibly with incantation or movement) manipulate ambient aether in the air or in an object. This is further defined by how you choose to manipulate the aether in what is referred to as the Four Arcane Methods: Evocation, Abjuration, Transmutation and Conjuration.

Evocation is used to push or exert a raw forms of energy, a good example being simply shooting a bolt of lightning from your hands. Abjuration entails binding, repelling, defensive warding and dismissal. Transmutation consists of altering the state of existing matter and energy. Conjuration can call forth and shift objects or entities from other planes of existence. A Summoner would primarily focus on conjuration and abjuration for controlling their summoned guardians. On the other hand, an Enchanter would likely specialize in using evocation and transmutation to infuse items with spell-like properties. In reality though, a mage of any variety is capable of using the four methods. It is important though that a practitioner be mindful of how of their Well they expend as over use causes severe physical and mental strain. If they manage to completely deplete their Well, it can cause permanent damage in the form of internal aetherburn and potentially death. With continued practice though, that individuals's Well grows more powerful and allows them to cast for intricate and intensive spells.

With the advancement of technology, mages have found more efficient ways to use magic. In the old days, wands, staves, gems, and various other implements were used as arcane foci to make easier for a mage to exert their Will . Now such items are completed outdated nowadays, now replaced by aetherium attunements. Aetherium is a alchemically modified metal that more efficiently channels aether then any arcane foci. With the help of an artificer, this metal can be safely infused into the skin on the limbs in the form of attunements. The aetherium attunements allow to a caster to exert their Will with significantly less effort while providing the additional benefit not requiring an external device to use as a focus. A wealthier individual might ever forgo the attunements in place of a full aetherium limb, though it would mostly serve as status symbol.