The Archmagi

Grigori (1)
Martin (1)
Javed (1)

Formerly, the Time of Three Archmagi (1)
Now Grigori is supreme (1)

Grigori
-Lawful Neutral (1)
-Abjuration Master (1)

Javed
-Divination Master (1)

Martin:

Daria Martin (1c). Necromancy Master. (1c).

I may have gone overboard...

The Prophet, the Psychopomp, and the Custodian

In the beginning, there were three celestial bodies: the sun, the moon, and the world. They were vain and desired children to admire them. The nature of the sun was fire and so the sun said, "Though I will love and cherish my children, I cannot house them for they will perish in my flames." The nature of the moon was solitude, and so the moon said, "Though I will guide and teach my children, I cannot house them, for they will perish in the cold of the night." The world smiled and said, "I will house all our children, for my nature is to protect. I will clothe, shelter, and feed them." And so it came to be that all the celestial's children lived and died on the world.

As time passed, the moon saw that the children, though happy and healthy, were ignorant. So the moon appointed one among them as her archmage, her prophet, to whom she gifted knowledge and foresight. As the moon reflected light from the sun to illuminate the night, the archmage reflected on the natural world and became wise. He taught the people magic, augury, and reason.

The sun saw that as the children grew wise under the tutalage of the archmage of the moon they began to understand and fear their mortality. Though healthy and wise, they were depressed. So the sun appointed one among them as his archmage, his pyschopomp, to whom she gifted power of death. As the morning sun burns away the nightmares of the night, the psychopomp guided the children through death and sometimes beyond. She taught the people medicine, necromancy, and the observing of death rites.

The world saw up close that some of the children become both wise and powerful under the tutalage of the prophet and the psychopomp. However, although there were great scholars and powerful priests, the world was unfair. So the world appointed one among them as her archmage, a custodian to protect the children who were not as wise or as powerful. As the world shelters the children from the elements, the custodian protected them from cruelty. He taught the people justice, civility, and honor.

Now the three Archmagi push and pull against each other, as the sun, moon, and world push and pull, if any one should become too strong, the other two must pull them back into balance.

We may need to talk about this. I'm only on mobile now but there is only one Archmage presently. I took the idea from the time of three popes. Martin is locked up by Grigori and Javed has abdicated.

That's fine. They are myths, not truths. I kind of envisioned Grigori taking this as his mandate to "save" humanity from itself.

Nice! I hadn't even thought of creation myth-as-political-tool. Establishing a divine right? All the craziest best rulers do! I wonder how Grigori justifies upsetting the balance, in that case. Also which one he claims to be.

I didn't actually read it that thoroughly before posting before. I was about ready to murder my computer with a sledgehammer earlier today but for some reason it is working now. Reading it closely and actually understanding it makes it so much better than what I had imagined and actually stands to reason why we play this game (Universalis) at all. By setting it up as one way in my head, I failed to see how it could be another way in a different place in which fantasy rules the world. When I envisioned it as the Three Popes, and Grigori siezing power, I saw it play out as it had in history.

This adds a new level of depth to the story. It also is reminiscent of the Three Moons of Kyrnn without being anything whatsoever like it. It means that Grigori is making life out of balance. Koyaanisqatsi. The heroes are on a mission to restore balance. But it is still only one aspect of the world and doesn't hinder any other parts of the story. This is great. Sorry for being curt earlier. It was so built up in my head as one thing that I couldn't see it being any other thing. Now I can. And it looks way better.

lol, no worries, John. Jon, I tried to set them up aligned with the schools of magic that were already chosen. So Prophet is Javed (divination), Psychopomp is Martin (necromancy), and Custodian is Grigori (abjuration).

Javed builds tall stone towers on the desert continent. (1) The towers take at at least twenty years to make. (1) There are forty seven towers spread across the continent. (1) Each is built in preparation for lunar events that happen with semi-regularity. (1) They are built decades before the events. (1) They are used to channel the moon's strength for powerful magicks. (1) Javed's and his entourage only live in one tower at a time. (1) Often sending adventurers as advance parties to clear them of vagrant monsters. (1) The desert lizardfolk population was wiped out as a result of the constant building and what was known as the Squatters Wars of the last decade. (2)

Javed
-True Neutral (1)

The towers are made from glass bricks, forged from the desert sands (1). The sand in each of these key locations is steeped in the power of the leylines that converge there, and contribute this resonance to the towers (1).

The first 8 towers constructed by the Javedean clan were unable to contain and withstand the harmonic vibrations of the power channeled through them (1). Their failed wreckages stand testament to the power being harnessed at these locations.

The Vidrious Sea (1)
-The site of the third tower (1). Now a stretch of desert melted into solid glass for an area of 10 square miles (1).

Since his abdication, Javed has been hard at work reinforcing several of his towers, seemingly at random (1). Rumor has it that this has involved the hiring or abduction of several renowned artisans and magewrights from around the world (1). The Circle of Wild Mages is interested in his activities, since said activities have included the eradication of what few Wellsprings they had managed to establish on the desert continent (1). Several ley-lines may be starting to shift (1).

Once every twenty years, upon harmonic convergence of the leylines, the minds of the seers present at the completed tower-site are able to touch the very fabric of reality. For a single instant they see with perfect clarity (1). Most do not survive the experience entirely... intact (1).

The Javedean clan know that they are behind on construction of the present cycle's tower (1).

Javed travels between towers and sometime through the towers in his palanquin. (1) The palanquin is an extradimensional space that is actually his headquarters, (1) a castle sized space that holds room for all his varied experiments and libraries (1). The palanquin is tirelessly walked about by two stone golems carved of rose quartz and carrara marble (1).

Daria Martin: Chaotic Neutral (1)

With the Archmage's absence, many of the various hospitals and necropolises she funded or otherwise supported have been struggling to continue (2). Consecrations and burials are seriously backlogged, and old diseases have begun to reappear (2).

They say the sun has not shone on a single funeral since her imprisonment.

Since Martín's imprisonment, withdrawal of benefactors' support, and expropriation of her assets, the priests of her order have been forced to turn to more... atypical forms of fundraising (1). This started with simply selling the corpses of criminals to local doctors (1), though day by day as diseases begin reappearing and the backlog widens, the priests are becoming less concerned about who the buyers are (1).

Grigori's strength lies in his incredible defense. (1) Not only are his mountain dwarf fortresses nigh impregnable (1) but so too are his mage army, trained in abjuration and heavy armor (1). The most fearsome of his army are the Crow Riders (1) who are de facto law keepers in the land and are respected and feared as jurisdictional authorities of the highest order (1).

What do you think Grigori's prime motivation is?

Safety? An obsession from his younger days when mages wore no armor. He changed the game for the dwarves and sets about to make certain all citizens of the world are safe from their own destruction.

Was thinking about this. The better word to use is Security. He invokes a police state because it is most efficient in maintaining a secure world in the face of uncompromising chaos. Lawful citizens need not fear his methods.

The Tattered Verge is an offshoot branch of the followers of Daria Martín (1).

Security begs the question then: will he be content with simply locking down Midland, or is he going to try for the entire continent or even the world? Size and security have obvious tradeoffs, so the answer will probably also rely on his relative sanity.

Correct. Javed has tipped a balance in power. I thought of this back when Margaret wrote the Mythology of the Archmagi - The Prophet, the Psychopomp, and the Custodian. See back on page 1. The world needs three wizards in balance. The prophet has abdicated to the over militarization of the Abjurer. Everyone will be protected from themselves. (This has already been said ) Javed could have slowly tipped the Abjurers over the brink with distrust for the necromancer and it's undead fascinations.

Martín was imprisoned, not executed, because Grigori knows that death would allow her to escape.


One important thing we haven't defined, I think, is why Grigori imprisoned Martín

Corruption. Martín's orders of Eldritch Knights were becoming corrupted by local lords and were no longer following the codes of honor set forth by their progenitors. Martín inherited a failing kingdom, aided by the manipulations of Javed and the Rakshasa (one who may be manipulating Javed). The people were suffering and Grigori thought best to cut off the head of the snake and let the body die (kill itself with infighting). Martín tried to fight off the Crow Riders but Grigori brought his best and countered much of what Martín threw at them.

The Archmagi are beginning to uncover the signs of the Hand of Fate and the existence of the Undying. But have not yet pieced together the full picture (and certainly not that Javed is one of them).

Grigori has, taken his sole archmagi position to heart. This has allowed him to take over the Dwarven kingdom in favor of security for all dwarves. This led to him displacing Prince Gerold. The archmagi continues to send spies to every corner of the world to find and destroy the prince. This can give the players a chance to protect the prince along with his faithful coward, Ivan Wintersclub, from the evil crow warriors of Grigori.