The Council Lands

THIS POST INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

Council Lands

Capital: The Summer Tower
- Gemstones
- Medicines
- Minerals

Predominant Races: The populace of the Council Lands is largely human, but has large pockets of other races, as the estates of the Magisterial Council hosted international delegations and the extended families of guild members.

The Isle of Donougal was largely unsettled for many years, despite its close proximity to the Old Lands. Small families of shepherds roamed its rocky meadows and hazardous cliffs. Two primary factors led to it coming to the attention of the Empire. The first was the charting of the Shadowed Canal, a large, deep, straight sea cave with predictable tides that leads to a vast, subterranean cove that serves as a natural harbor. The second was the Centennial Ram, a rugged mountain sheep that travelled the countryside with its owner, who claimed to be the great-grandson of the original shephard who had seen it born. The Centennial Ram eventually travelled to the Imperial Court, stymieing alchemist and wizard alike with its apparent longevity.

The isle, once a naval convenience, was at the rump end of the Covenant state of Wellach. Largely neglected as no prior Governor wanted to be responsible for its well-being, garrison, or defense, the Imperial Mages' Guild, propelled by courier-spells and with sloops riding conjured winds, were able to negotiate for its wholesale purchase at a relative bargain price, before the furor of the Centennial Ram reached the Governor from the court. Although the Mage's Guild is ostensibly a government entity, the purchase of the vast island in its entirety still stands as one of the most remarkable exchanges of real estate inside the Covenant.

The Mage's Guild used its not-inconsiderable resources to construct the Lower Harbor, and charged exorbitant docking fees and export duties on even small samples of local materials. This attracted numerous herbalists and alchemists to the Mage's Guild in exchange for access to the miraculous island, in search of the secret of immortality. Though the secret has never been found, and may never be totally unlocked, the numerous magickal materials and extraordinary plants were discovered across the idyllic island.

As the initial rush faded, and the ambition for the secret of eternal life faded, many Mages had come to enjoy the isolation from the intense politics of the central Empire and the agreeable, mild weather of the island. At the behest of the Guild, the Summer Tower was erected. More of a palatial leisure estate than a fortification or seat of power, the Summer Tower came to be a favorite destination for the more well-to-do of the Mage's Guild. On the one hand, it was seen as a resort, a place to spend the hot season away from the baking cobblestones of the capital cities, but it was also a refuge, where research could be conducted uninterrupted by the vagaries of the court. While the Summer Tower was largely the domain of influential and wealthy Mages, it was also populated by a large contingent of promising researchers, sent away from the crushing politics of the Old Lands to work on promising projects in secrecy and isolation. Small estates and workshops began to dot the island, while the walls of the Lower Harbor were carved into public houses, lodging, and warehouses for import of luxuries from the Coastlanders to sell to their lucrative clients.

The Summer Tower produces Minerals from its many alchemists, Medicines from its miraculous flora, and Enchantments from its population of Mages.

Current Territory



Current Population in Controlled Lands: 137,000

Is the Centennial Ram still alive by the way?

I don't see why not, if you want him to be. That sort of small detail is fun to play with.

I have some ideas about what to do with it, but I gotta save some stuff up for posts proper once we get started.