This is hopefully the first post in a series of seven posts about GLoGtober 2021. If you want to learn more about the GLoGtober challenge, head over here. Now, the first day of the challenge is collaboration. For this I have decided to write about Magnos, a nation in the world of Firmament. Without further delay...
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Magnos is often said to be a land of two seas. One of water, referring to the magically polluted Sea of Vir which wracks the surface of Firmament with hurricanes and storms, and one of trees, as the land of Magnos is covered in woodland as far as the eye can see, split only by towering mountains.
The peculiar government of Magnos is called a heptarchy; a council of seven bizarrely long-lived and terribly callous scholars have dominion over the land, granted to them in ages past by the Sun King. In times of great importance, they meet at a council in Aikamo and make a united decision. Most of the time, however, they spend plotting against one another in shadow wars and hidden conflicts.
Major Settlements in Magnos
Aikamo is the largest of the six major ports in Magnos, walled and bustling with traffic. Tough sailors bring in metal and ore from the storm-wracked islands in the Vir while traveling Zzargodish merchants ply their wares. In the industry district of Aikamo is the seat of its ruler, Sarvom the Swordsman. Sarvom appears to be a middle-aged man with green eyes, unkempt red hair, and a long, straggly beard. He is always seen in dull gray plate-mail. He -- in his own words -- is a scholar of war and collects THREE WORD SWORDS. Sarvom wishes to eradicate the other heptarchs and establish himself as the Duke of Magnos.
Yorrai is located a day's travel north of Aikamo. It is home to the Academy, a place of cliques, theorization, and academia. Enrolled in the Academy are many kinds of students and scholars from all over Firmament. Its heptarch is Philosopher Minoru, who appears to be an old man in gray robes with bug-like eyes and a gray beard. He founded the Academy three hundred and forty-two years ago. Minoru collects opinions and apprentices. Minoru's goal is to collect Scripture (magical texts) and to spy on the other heptarchs.
Kelika is the most well-known of the six major ports in Magnos. Its many taverns and inns provide shelter for all different types of sailors, explorers, and merchants. Its heptarch is Hinata the Magnanimous, a massively obese woman who sits within the town hall of Kelika. She collects stories, historical texts, and myths. Hinata requires a story if a ship is to be docked inside Kelika. She, inspired by the tales of the Five Knights, hosts a secret resistance against the Sun King, and desperately doesn't want to be found out by the other heptarchs.
Helkau. A city of deep pits, stone towers, and palpable misery. Built on an ancient gold mine, Helkau is the source of Magnos' material wealth. Mined by tortured slaves and debtors, the gold is melted down and turned into beautiful statues for the heptarch of the place, Avaracious Juro. Juro himself appears as a handsome blond man with piercing red eyes. He is always covered in jewelry and other finery. His goal is to expand his power and establish more mines within the wilderness of Magnos.
Aidran, is a place of strange fog and even stranger myths. Few sailors ever dock here because they are afraid of being disappeared, as the rumors attest. The few locals who live there prefer to be left alone. Aidran's center is a great lighthouse, which dates back to the beginning of the Age of the Sun. Dwelling within the lighthouse is the ruler of Aidran, Ayako the Masked. No one knows what Ayako looks like, for she -- if they are a she -- hasn't left the lighthouse since her appearance two hundred years ago and anyone who goes into the lighthouse doesn't return. Ayako's agenda is unknown.
On the swampy coast, wracked by storms from Vir, lies a stone island. The small village of Pelei rests on this island. No one lives there except the Reliquary Order, a specific Minor Charter that work for the heptarchs. The Reliquaries can smell magic and trace Scripture, leading them to collect it for the heptarchs. Their leader is Elikki the Cruel, the eldest of the seven rulers. She has been in Pelei since before the Age of the Sun. She collects the skulls of the magically empowered, specifically those Reliquaries who betray their master or otherwise fail to meet her expectations. Her sinister agenda is unknown.
The only of the seven major settlements in Magnos not on the coast, Ayfen is a place of unending cold and snow. Situated high in the peaks of Magnos, Ayfen is called the Province of Winter. Its folks are an eccentric sort, preferring machines and clockwork to travelers and merchants. They are largely insular. The heptarch of Ayfen is Maerga the Green, a beautiful young woman with lustrous green hair. She leads the town's effort on a mysterious project.
Due to the ongoing War of Regicide Hubris, conscription has been forced onto the populace.
d8 Hooks in Magnos
- The Reliquary Order is seeking new members after several Reliquaries were killed trying to retrieve some powerful Scripture from a pre-Sun tomb.
- A thief has stolen one of Sarvom's THREE WORD SWORDS and he is willing to pay highly for the thief's head and the sword.
- Raised and dissected corpses have been found near the town of Yorrai. Hysteria is spreading among the students as they believe one among their number is a terrible Skull Scribe.
- You are part of the Reliquary Order. You have been commanded by Elikki to pursue a peculiar objective: find damning evidence on Hinata the Magnanimous.
- You are slaves in the city of Helkau, tortured and beaten by the golden hand of Juro. Your goal is to either escape captivity and seek asylum in the wilderness, or lead a successful revolution amongst the powerful heptarch.
- The lighthouse in Aidran has flickered out. Find out what happened and try not to die.
- You are burglars hired by Philosopher Minoru to break into Maerga's lab in Ayfen and find out what she is working on there.
- Rumors have spread of a mysterious woman who can control lightning with a twitch of her hands and a blink of an eye. The rumors also say that she is very anti-heptarchy. All of the heptarchs are worried and have sent agents to eliminate her.
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