Post by Trippy Hare on Apr 18, 2005 5:13:45 GMT -5
Located along the major veins of magical energies in Eshathar, Failewyn is home to the Academy Arcannum, the prestigious institution where aspiring mages all over Eshathar journey to delve into the secrets of Magic. The existence of the Academy has acted as both a deterrent to agression, and an attraction to other kingdoms. Desiring to learn the secrets of magic, but unwilling to risk having it used against them, the other kingdoms of Eshathar have left Failewyn to its own devices. Failewyn itself has no real allegiances, and has maintained a strict neutrality in various conflicts.
Failewyn is perpetually surrounded, and encased in, the icy chill of Winter. The land is covered in a permanent frost, and the temperature inside the kingdom's boundaries never rises above 32 degrees. Although this presents some difficulty in feeding and supplying the populace, Failewyn's population is low enough, and the citizens skilled enough mages, that there is little poverty within the icy landscape.
Failewyn is ruled by a single Queen, Daeleth, who rules absolutely and without question. In a bid to become immortal, Daeleth cast a freezing spell over herself. But since, as Queen, she embodies the kingdom, all Failewyn shares in her icy fate. The constant supply of Magic seeping up from the very ground ensures that Daeleth is indeed immortal, and with her immortality, her cities' is assured as well. Children born within the kingdom's borders are further influenced, as they cannot exist outside of the frozen ground, and should they ever try, they would perish.
Failewyn does not have a military in the traditional sense, as any non-magical combat is seen as vulgar and depraved. The entirety of Failewyn's military lies in magic, and in it's Mage Guild. Comprising of about 150 of it's finest sorcerers and sorceresses, the Guild acts as both the police arm and the military arm of Failewyn. Most of these individuals are handpicked by Daeleth herself, though any student at the Academy who shows enough skill and understanding of magic is offered a position in the Guild.
Failewyn's spirituality revolves, as the city does, around magic in all its forms. There are hosts of deities, each accredited to different aspects of arcane practice. Some Academy students even go so far as to fabricate their own deity, though doing so is discouraged.
There is, however, one variety of magic that is not practiced, or taught of, in Failewyn. In fact, the mere mention of it is punishable by death. Though Failewyn is tolerant and accepting of the arcane, it is openly hostile towards Necromancy and any arcane art relating to it. These are seen as perversions of magic, and to practice them, or even mention them, is believed to so irrevocably taint the very soul, that death is a merciful and just solution.
Since Failewyn has so many magic practitioners, and many of them use alchemic spells to change one material into another, it is impractical for Failewyn to mint its own currency, as the ability to turn clay or lead into gold would lead to runaway inflation. Instead, currency in Failewyn consists of Daels, a magically-altered gold coin minted exclusively by the Queen herself, who also controls their distribution. Merchants wishing to trade with Failewyn are required to exchange their currency at the Palace Exchange, and upon leaving the city, can return any Daels earned for a more or less equivalent value in gold or silver coinage. Each Dael is worth about 5 terran silvers, or 2 to 3 dwarven silvers.