Skyaard

Known as the nation of magic, Skyaard is home to many immigrants who wish to practice the arcane arts. The nation is leaps and bounds ahead of other nations in magic. Skyaard is responsible for defining the eleven schools of magic, as well as the four types of magi.

The races of Skyaard vary greatly, as the nation never turns away an immigrant based on their race. The greatest percentage of citizens are Human.

Politics
Skyaard is a massive university. Richard Winnfall is the president of the school and also the head of the nation. School board directors, deans, chair heads, and school heads also function as politicians of sorts. Certain towns far from the physical schools will appoint more traditional leaders such as mayors. Richard Winnfall doesn’t have as much power as many other nations’ leaders. Ultimately, Winnfall has the final say in rules around Skyaard, but he also trusts his underlings to make appropriate amendments where necessary. Should Winnfall discover that a leader under his rule is corrupting his laws in any way, he will see to it that the leader is removed from his position and a new leader is appointed.

Skyaard is the unrivaled expert of magic, and their military shows it. Skyaard encourages its citizens, particularly its students, to study any branch and form of magic they are interested in. Because of this, Skyaard’s armies are extremely unpredictable, and lack the uniform tactics of other armies. Rarely are any two troops alike. While not every citizen is trained in combat, most of Skyaard’s residents know at least a small number of combat spells. In a crisis situation, no less than 75% of Skyaardians are capable of going to war. While the nation lacks the uniformity of other armies, they are still highly coordinated and can use telepathy to communicate and issue orders that opponents cannot hear.

Skyaard’s closest allies are Nuhimm and Bretonia. Winnfall is friends with Nuhimm’s Allknower and Bretonia’s king Isaac Klove. In fact, Winnfall has placed so much faith in these two leaders that he’s promised full military support to either nation in the event of a war. Winfall has gone on record as saying that he believes the current leaders of Nuhimm and Bretonia would never fight for an unjust cause. Skyaard’s alliance with Nuhimm and Bretonia dates back to before their current leaders, but their relationship is stronger now than ever. Skyaard also has close ties to Wixicroft and Sprillan. These two nations of undersized geniuses adopt an approach to magic similar to Skyaard’s, resulting in a lasting friendship of sharing advances in the arcane arts. The three nations put very few limitations on magic, and encourage their citizens to discover as much as they can about any and all branches of magic. It’s no wonder why these three nations are the most advanced in the world when it comes to several forms of magic. Skyaard’s  relationship with Wixicroft has allowed for blossoming trade relations with the rest of Skone, the exceptions being Uss’Ssah and the Bog.

Skyaard is not participating in any wars and has no true enemies. They do however butt heads with some nations. Skyaard does not trust Utopia and highly disapproves of their politics and the way they treat their lower class citizens. Skyaard is a magical nation, and magic is outlawed in Utopia, so it seems logical that these two countries wouldn’t quite see eye to eye. Kahl is another nation Skyaard dislikes. Skyaard believes Kahl suppresses its citizens’ freedoms, particularly religious freedom. In the eyes of most Skyaardians, Kahl is also rather rash and quick to judge. I’m picturing Kahl as having very few friends. They must think that they can make it on their own, which makes me feel like they are both pround and quite competent. Like the Japanese in WWII

Skyaard is wary of both Elf nations, Sivverlynn and Halign Mak’kai. The Elves are generally known for being narrow-minded, arrogant races. Dark Elves and High Elves will take any excuse to fight one another they can get, and will disagree with one another out of resentment with no rational thought. Skyaard sees their animosity as a threat to all of Guero.

For obvious reasons, Skyaard is nervous about the instability of Grumlock and its “politics.” The Greenskins are perhaps a blessing in disguise however. Their primitive living keeps them from being a true threat to the rest of the nation, and their reckless, warlike behaviour has kept the Elves and Utopia occupied for several years now. While Skyaard holds not an ounce of trust for Grumlock, they also hold no interest in interfering with Greenskin culture or their war.

Population: 1,133,500

Size: 43,200 square miles

Capital City: Jum’Hal

History
Founded in the year 308, Skyaard began as nothing more than a small wizard school in one of the lesser-ruled outskirts of Old Kahl. Skyaard was created as a direct result of King Leopold IV’s regulation of magic. In 306 Leopold IV banned certain forms of magic, namely any magic that could be used to harm others in anyway. Persons discovered practicing any hazardous form of magic were to be thrown into a dungeon, no questions asked. A wizard by the name of John Hamilton believed the king’s decree was greatly flawed, and decided to tutor magic in secret. He began doing so within Old Kahl’s own capital city Highcastle(I picture a golden city of spinning towers in the clouds, clockwork gleaming and spinnerets glistening in the sun). It quickly spread through the city that Hamilton was taking students in to practice magic, and before long, he was entirely overwhelmed. Hamilton eventually had a small school with a dozen or so other teachers, still within Highcastle, still operating in secret. Even then, his school was growing too rapidly to keep up with all of the interested aspiring magi. Hamilton believed that anybody with the will to learn magic should have the right to do so, and refused to cut anyone from his school. So instead, he left the city and rebuilt his school in the western forests of Kahl where society had not reached yet, and where magi could practice their arts without fear of prosecution.

And thus, Skyaard was born, named after the arcane sounds for “private learning”. As word spread, this time not only throughout Highcastle, but all of Old Kahl, Skyaard grew incredibly quickly. Leopold IV caught wind of Skyaard several times, and each time sent guards to investigate, paranoid that Hamilton was forming a cult to usurp the throne. The guards always came back with no evidence of Skyaard however. It’s unclear as to how Hamilton was able to keep the school hidden. Some say Hamilton camouflaged the school through magic, while others say Hamilton wiped the memory of the school from the guards’ minds. A third theory suggests Hamilton bribed the underpaid guards. Regardless of the reason, guards never reported spotting the school and Skyaard remained nothing more than a rumor as far as the law was concerned.

Skyaard grew larger and larger over the next 100 years until it occupied a hefty sum of Kahl’s uncivilized forests of western Guero. They broke the university into four sister schools, each dedicated to a certain branch of magic: Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. In the year 398 after Bretonia had proclaimed independence, Skyaard did the same. The humble folk of Bretonia claimed no more land than they needed, as they recognized their growth as a nation would not come very quickly. Skyaard, on the other hand, took a large portion of land, realizing that as their own nation, people from all around the world would flood Skyaard to hone their magic.

150 years after his death in 347, Hamilton’s goal still went strong through Skyaard. Despite being its own nation, Skyaard was still operated as a school whose overarching goal was to educate anyone with the determination to learn the arcane arts. It was around this time that Skyaard defined the eleven schools of magic (Acid/poison, Air, Dark, Earth, Fire, Force, Psychic, Radiant, Spatial/temporal, Thunder, and Water). It was also around this time that Skyaard recognized the four forms of magi, which they labeled as Wizards, Sorcerers, Priests, and Warlocks. Arturo Ink, Skyaard’s president from the years 478-513, vowed to teach any form of mage that came to Skyaard. That promise is still good to this day, and Skyaard now even has specific professors for each form of mage.

Skyaard’s students and teachers alike delved deeper and deeper into the secrets of magic, and ultimately discovered that magic is immense and vast and can surely never be truly mastered. The Skyaardians were obsessed, however, and the professors were incredibly knowledgeable. Many immigrants who began their time in Skyaard expecting to stay only a few years then return home were sucked into the vastness of magic and never did leave. Skyaard continued to grow as immigrants kept coming but seldom leaving. Skyaard’s reputation grew with its population, but Skyaard remained all-inclusive.

This drive to include all who are interested betrayed Skyaard in the Spring of 620, when a new Human student named Donald Reimsward enrolled in the School of Dark Magic. All seemed fine until two years later, in 624, when Reimsward lead an attack to destroy the school and murder those associated with dark magic. It was later discovered that Reimsward was a radicalist who believed dark magic to be an innate evil and that he was secretly gathering intel during his two years in the school. Reimsward’s army was not great in size, but the element of surprise allowed him and his followers to raze the School of Dark Magic, and kill more than two thirds of the citizens involved in that school before it was thwarted by magi and guards. Since then, Skyaard has implemented an initiation test, in which immigrants must be subject to a mind reading, in order to gain residency in the Nation of Magic.

In the year 653, Skyaardian scouts reported seeing battles in western Guero. These battles occurred with moderate regularity. Skyaard’s president at the time Wilson Brant decided to take care of the potential threat himself. He gathered 6 of his most powerful war magi, all generals in the Skyaard’s growing military, and readied several temporal wizards who could teleport him and his guards out of harm’s way. Brant also found a powerful psychic sorceress who could track Brant’s brain as he marched out to the west, as well as inform the temporal wizards when Brant needed an escape.

Brant and his men set off with curiosity and wonderment, ready to uncover what Skyaard’s scouts had found. As the men marched on, they noticed a gradual change through the forest. The trees became sickly, the grass was dead, the birds stopped chirping, and a dark energy filled the air. Brant recognized the signs of undead, and figured he would be dealing with some necromancers. What Brant discovered in the West was much more terrifying.

Brant and his men found swarms of undead, seemingly with no masters. Brant was especially shocked to see that many of these undead were intelligent and free-willed. A well-read man, Brant recognized this to be the work of a lich, though he had never seen or heard of a lich outside of legends. The undead converged on Brant and his men. With a diplomatic nature, Brant kept his composure and convinced the undead that he meant no harm, he had no army, and that he only wished to speak with their leader. The undead agreed hesitantly and led Brant and his men to the lich’s tomb.

Brant hoped that if the lich’s kin could be reasoned with, the lich himself would do the same, and despite the terror Brant felt, he remained calm in the lich’s presence. Brant dismissed his six troops, symbolizing laying down his arms, and the lich invited Brant in to talk, one on one. The lich introduced himself as the Allknower, and explained the plights that had befallen his people. Brant telepathically reached out to his psychic mage and asked her to tap into the mind of the lich. She found sincerity in the lich’s words. Seeing the potential for a unique and powerful friendship, Brant sparked an alliance with the Allknower and his people, and promised to aid the Nuhimmians in their conflicts. Shortly after Skyaard showed their support toward Nuhimm, attacks on the undead dwindled significantly. Skyaard and Nuhimm have grown even closer as years have passed, and are now nearly inseparable in their alliance.

In the winter of 720, Skyaardian scouts reported a caravan of short, stout, humanoid creatures and their wooly, hoofed beasts. These humanoids turned out to be Dwarf traders with word of Skone’s new railroad system. The train, the Dwarves explained, made trade amongst the entire continent a breeze. The Dwarves traveled all around Skyaard showing their goods and sparking trade routes all throughout nation. The trade connection with the Dwarves was the start of a trade alliance between Skyaard and the major trade nations in Skone, namely Drehr Behrkán, Blute, Trakodo, Coalhearth, and Wixicroft. Wixicroft in particular took a liking to Skyaard, as the two nations were hundreds of years ahead of their time in magic. The two nations studied and shared information together, quickly developing a tight alliance. The Gnomes introduced Skyaard to the Siyokoy of Sprillan sometime between 730-735. This led to an alliance still intact today, making up undoubtedly one of the strongest pacts in the world: an alliance between Skyaard, Bretonia, Wixicroft, Nuhimm, and Sprillan.

In 748, Wixicroft initiated a project with help from Skyaard and Sprillan to create a piece of techmaturgy known as a transporter. Four years later in 752, Wixicroft had perfected the device and installed one in Skyaard’s capital city, one in Sprillan’s capital city, and of course, one in its own capital city. The transporter allowed for anyone to instantly travel between the three nations.

In recent years, business men have begun to complain about their pay. They claim that they are financially the backbone of the nation, and yet they are paid significantly less than most professors and students see nearly no fees for their education. Administration argues that the school is the priority of the nation. Some business folk have begun going on strike over this issue, and it has left a sizable dent in Skyaard’s wallet.

Trade
Skyaard has become one of the most dominant trade nations for two reasons: Their desirable goods, and their connection with Skone. Skyaard produces a small amount of raw goods, such as vegetables, wheat, cotton, silk, tobacco, lumber, and ore. Most of Skyaard’s raw goods, however, are imported.

The truly valuable Skyaardian items are the things they make from their raw goods. Skyaard’s citizens are no strangers to literature, and the nation houses some of the most renowned intellectuals in the world. Because of these studious minds, Skyaard produces incredible literature, including innovative novels, inspirational poetry, insightful studies, and instructive spell books. Skyaard has also been known to sell scrolls, alchemy recipes, cookbooks, and other assorted books and writings.

The abundance of magic in Skyaard has allowed many alchemists and business men to keep herbs and plants in desirable weather conditions year-round, allowing for harvest regardless of the season. This assures that Skyaard’s finest potions, spices, and dyes will be available at all times.

Skyaard has become famous for their clothing. The nation is not known to produce much in the way of armor, but their casual clothing is elegant, beautiful, and well crafted. It’s also very expensive, and Skyaardian clothing has become a status symbol in many cultures.

Students in Skyaard are charged a nominal tuition, then charged per class, but are not taxed on any of their local purchases. Classes are generally a season long, and many of Skyaard’s citizens will enroll in classes off and on for the majority of their lives. Most Skyaardians will take up a trade skill of some sort, something that interests them, practice the trade for a season or two to raise money, then go back to school with their saved gold.

Skyaard imports a decent amount of their raw goods (orres, lumber, herbs) from Nuhimm. The undead nation always offers exceptional prices on their goods, and their proximity to Skyaard makes their goods especially convenient. Skyaard  is also known to import potions, spell books, and art from Nuhimm.

Bretonia is also a convenient trade partner to the Skyaardians. They produce high quality goods, both raw and otherwise. Bretonia tends to be a bit more expensive than Nuhimm, but they also produce goods more regularly and in higher volume. Bretonia is famous for their ballistic weapons. These weapons are not overly prevalent in Skyaard, but some portion of their population is interested in the arms and their ammunition. As with the firearms, most of the imports from Bretonia are special ordered. These items include armors, explosives, boots, and furs.

Skyaard does very minimal trade with Drehr Behrkán, though the Dendroid nation handles nearly all of Skyaard’s trades, imports and exports, to and from Skone.

Blute and Trakodo have proven invaluable to Skyaard. A large majority of their raw good resources come from these two trade nations. This includes ore, lumber, stone, cotton, silk, tobacco, wine, ale, furs, leather, meats, feathers, seeds, ingots, alchemy reagents, and so on. Blute and Trakodo are essential to Skyaard's success as a trade nation, and without the two trade nations, Skyaard's trade capacity would dwindle and shrivel significantly.

Skyaard had been known to trade with Hauntos on rare occasion. This mysterious nation can offer extremely rare and exotic goods and reagents. Skyaard, as the nation of magic, is naturally curious about Hauntos' unique trade opportunities. Hauntos refuses to trading consistently, and will contact Skyaard with their offers from time to time.

Trade with the Dwarves of Coalhearth has become an important aspect of Skyaardian culture. Dwarven brews are among the best in the world. They're potent, delicious, and the perfect way to celebrate after an exam. Coalhearth's thick, rich tobacco is a favorite in Skyaard, and many of its citizens have taken to smoking Dwarven cigars or pipes. Many Skyaardians collect Dwarven artifacts, weapons, and armor just because they enjoy the culture. Skyaard also imports a fair amount of metals, coal, and tools from Coalhearth.

Wixicroft is one of Skyaard's favorite trade partners. The two nations have plenty of information to share with one another, and this occurs through the trade of books and prototypes. Skyaard imports techmaturgical devices from the Gnomes, as well as experimental spell books and alchemy recipes.

Skyaard trades with Sprillan occasionally, importing their coffee and tobacco. The Siyokoy, while skilled in magic, are a notoriously distractible race, and rarely write spell books, so Sprillan doesn't contribute much to Skyaard's magic. Skyaard will import some of Sprillan's luxury devices, such as blenders, grinders, wood-burning hot tubs, and sometimes record-cubes and record players.

Skyaardian caravanners alternate turns with Nuhimmian and Bretonian traders, traveling across borders to important trade cities to conduct their business. Most if not all of Skyaard's trade with Skone is handled by the Dendroids, through rail and trade ships. Their ships travel near the coasts of Halign Mak'kai and Bretonian to reach Skyaard. Trade with Sprillan occurs only between the capital cities via the transporters.

As a nation that depends greatly on trade, Skyaard is a respectfully wealthy nation overall. The coin is well distributed amongst the citizens, however, and the government does not hold as hefty a stock of gold as many other nations. Furthermore, Skyaard is serious about ensuring that they’ve always got the resources they need, and therefore a considerable difference of the nation’s wealth goes back to other nations. Skyaard’s current president Richard Winnfall has stated that he’s not concerned with making a profit in the trade industry, but sustaining the economy of his people. That being said, Skyaard is financially very sturdy and never without the resources that it needs, and their lack of accumulated wealth should not be mistaken as a weakness.

Nearly every transaction in Skyaard is made with coin. Vendors and merchants will very seldom accept a trade except by personal friends. Anyone who can present a valid School Card has the charge of taxed waived from their purchase. For all others, a tax of 10% is charged on all purchases. This requires precise bookkeeping on the part of the shopkeepers to prove that they have charged their customers appropriately.

All of Skyaard’s international trade income goes to the president first. He then pays the traders their share, and the wealth trickles down from him. This is because all professors, staff members, and groundskeepers are considered government workers and must be paid. Winnfall’s accountants see to it that the appropriate sum of gold is sent to each school’s head accountant, who then pass on the proper gold in a similar fashion. This is a steady means of paying all those who need pay, but has cause some strife for the businessmen, who believe they are not getting what they deserve for the work they’re organizing and carrying out.

Science
With Skyaard’s large pool of citizens, each encouraged to pursue magic in any way that interests him or her, indubitably some portion of the population is going to engage in techmaturgy. Skyaard has made no breakthrough in technology strictly speaking, but they have certainly made waves in techmaturgy. A Dwarven inventor named Riloff Grizzleglugg created a techmaturgical device in 858 known as a biodome, which could control the weather and temperature in a small area. Skyaardian and Gnomish scientists have since improved on Grizzleglugg’s biodome to control the weather conditions of several acres of land with a single device.

In 898, a team of researchers at the Air School imbued Gnomish Clockwork Bots with arcane intelligence. While the spell needed to be sustained (like all magic), it gave the bots the ability to communicate and receive vocal orders, as opposed to remote control input. This idea was later expanded upon to create warmachines without operators, turrets that could differentiate between allies and enemies, and worker bots which could carry out a wide array of orders without supervision.

Overall, Skyaard has a tendency toward Clockwork technology when it comes to science, as the gears are easily cranked with various forms of magic (electricity, force, telekinesis, ect). Water magi often prefer Steampower for obvious reasons.

Skyaard has also gained quite a reputation for their alchemy. While they are less involved in the science than their neighbors in Nuhimm, they are intellectual and studious, and recognize patterns in the art more quickly than others might.

Citizens of Skyaard have a broad range of interests, and while the nation may not be known particularly for their science, many Skyaardians practice and study all sorts of science. Certainly Skyaardians love to learn, and many will study biology, chemistry, physics. Any and all forms of science.

Magic
Skyaard is the magic capital of the world. Skyaard has consistently pushed the envelope of what is possible in magic since its start in 308. Skyaard’s eleven schools of magic is the accepted standard all around the magic world. Skyaard has pretty well proven that anything is possible through magic with the proper practice and research. The nation has also proven that there is still much to learn about magic.

When John Hamilton first pledged to train any magician, he certainly didn’t realize that magi other than wizards existed. This pledge stuck, however, and in the hundred years since Hamilton, Skyaard has discovered and classified the four types of magi: Wizards, Sorcerers, Warlocks, and Priests. Skyaard as a whole does not segregate between these four types of magi, and has special teachers to train each type. Some citizens, however, have different ideas, and may see one type of mage as superior to another.

Skyaard wishes its citizens to discover and learn any path of magic that appeals most to them. Magic with few restrictions is seen by Skyaard’s populous as the best way to innovate, and is arguably the reason Skyaard has excelled in magic beyond any other nation. As a result, Skyaard has no favored school, and masters of all schools can be found. Many citizens do not stick to a single school of magic, and prefer to mix and match. Others wish to study a single branch of magic in an attempt to perfect it. Most find that magic is too vast to ever be truly mastered. There are few if any trends in Skyaard’s tendencies in magic, due to the large population, each taking unique paths. Even those Skyaardians who are invovled only in business in Skyaard know a minimal amount of magic. Like an immigrant to Coalhearth is likely to pick up on the Dwarven language, anyone in Skyaard will inevitably learn some magic.

Religion
Skyaard is not a very religious nation on the whole. Of course 20-25% of Skyaard’s population are priests of one or more gods. Some portion of non-priest citizens will worship one or more gods as well. There are five chapels in Skyaard, one for each god. Li’ina’s chapel is in Radiation City, attached to the Radiant School. Syra has a chapel at the Earth School in Crowe’s Crater. In Mauve at the Psychic School is Vorb’s chapel. Naturally Slyvix has a chapel at the Dark School in Raesburrow. Finally, Kira’Zhin’s chapel can be found in The Drink at the Acid/Poison School. Various churches of all kinds can be found all throughout the nation,  in big cities, small towns, and even in the midst of forests.

Priests of Li’ina are most likely to study at the Radiant School for evident reasons. Many will use their light magic for its healing capabilities. Others will use it for burning, sun, and moon magic. Occasionally these Li’ina focused Priests will enroll in the fire school instead.

Priests of Syra are slightly less predictable than the Priests of Li’ina. Often times Syra’s Priests will enroll in the Earth School. Earth magic is related to plant control, and because many people believe Syra is the earth, it seems rational that a Priest of Syra should go to the Earth School. Other magi of Syra may prefer the Water or Air schools, both of which tie back easily to Syra’s teachings. Priests who wish to connect with animals will often find themselves at the Psychic School. An understanding of nature and life force combined with an understanding of psychic magic can allow a person to communicate with animals through nothing more than eye contact.

Priests dedicated to Slyvix almost invariably end up involved in some Dark Art at the Dark School. Dark magic, aside from being dubbed “dark”, are also often considered secretive in nature. The knowledge of dark arts is only to be shared in the right company. The school parallels Slyvix’s teachings perfectly. Slyvix devotees who go against the grain may be found at the Acid/Poison School.

Priests of Kira’Zhin are generally difficult to classify. Many have shady pasts which have brought them to respect any given school for any given reason. Many will study at the Dark School, preferring branches such as Hemomancy, Hepatomancy and Necromancy. Others practice at the School of Acid and Poison, a school of magic known for little more than pain and death. Others still may be found at the Water School, as ice is often thought of akin to death, pain, and relief. Truly, Kira’Zhin followers can be found at just about any of the eleven schools. One common theme seems to unite her Priests; their magic almost always includes some element of self sacrifice.

Priests of Vorb, fittingly, are impossible to predict. They may wind up at any school for any reason. Vorb may imbue a Priest with powers of one or more particular element, and in this case, the Priest may choose to enroll in the school related to their Vorb-given gift. For instance, if a Priest of Vorb consistently casts electricity, he’s likely to enroll at the Air School. On the other hand, Vorb’s followers have been known to have little to no control over what school their magic belongs to. In this case, the Priest may choose to study at any school that tickles his fancy.

Language
Skyaard’s national language is Common. Skyaard’s roots are in Kahl, where Common was the only language. Furthermore, with a gaggle of different races, each from different pasts and backgrounds, Common is an easy way to ensure that citizens can communicate and partake in class.

Most immigrants generally retain use of their native tongue, and seldom have trouble finding others to practice languages with. The intelligent folk of Skyaard often enjoy linguistics and become fluent in two or more languages. This is also beneficial, as it allows them to read literature in its original language.

Culture
Skyaardians are passionate folk, encouraged by all those around them to pursue their dreams. Most have fairly similar dreams, namely, to pursue and delve into their favored school of magic. Students in Skyaard quickly learn that magic is expansive, as limitless as one’s own imagination. Despite that, or perhaps in light of that, people often find themselves obsessing over their path in magic. They find themselves swiftly climbing the rungs, and while the top of the ladder is no where in sight, they gain a tremendous sense of purpose and progress. Many Skyaardians will remain involved in the school for their entire lives. Even immigrants who move to Skyaard for a few years of school may become consumed by the art and never find their way back to their homeland.

Children in Skyaard begin learning magic at a young age, usually from their parents and friends, but wealthier parents may opt to enroll their kids in a youth school. They can enroll in the college as soon as they're capable of passing the psychic examination, which can test for their mental maturity as well as their intentions in school. The college is not overly expensive, but most students do not work while in school, as classes are rigorous and require extensive research and use of one’s free time. Most students will work for a season or two to save up money, then take classes again for another season or two. In some cases, folks will find a way to work part time and go to school part time. This is incredibly difficult on both fronts, and is therefore fairly rare. Many citizens will maintain this schedule of work, school, then back to work until they are too old to continue. A fortunate, hard-working minority will find their way into the school as board members or professors. These lucky few are paid year-round for their work without having to sacrifice their research. Some Skyaardians never enroll in the school, choosing instead to make a living as a trader, merchant, or business owner.

Lately those who would classify themselves strictly as businessmen have begun to work up a fuss about their pay. They claim that they do Skyaard’s essential work and are not paid decently for doing it. Some business folk have begun to go on strike all throughout Skyaard, threatening the stability of the economy.

There are 12 large cities in Skyaard, one for each school as well as Jum’Hal, the capital city. Each of the eleven schools have personalities which attract like-minded people. Therefore, the branch of magic is somewhat irrelevant to students’ choices in schools. For example, a student interested in learning fire spells may enroll at the Water School because the atmosphere suits him better than the Fire School. While most experts in Fire magic work at the Fire School, Water experts at the Water School, and so on, each school teaches all branches of magic. Some students take to their schools proudly and would never dream of enrolling in another school. Some students jump from school to school each season to best pursue their interest. Some of the schools have rivalries, and play games or create competitions to prove superiority. This is generally light-hearted vying, but there are those who get sucked too deep into the rivalry.

Jum’Hal is a massive citadel, the only walled city in the nation, and home to the President as well as each of the eleven school heads. Jum’Hal is located in the center of Skyaard, and for this reason, became a huge trade city post 740 when the Dwarves first made contact with Skyaard. Many business men live in Jum’Hal.

The Acid/Poison School can be found in a city known as The Drink, located Northeast of Jum’Hal near the Utopian border. The Drink is named after a large lake, contaminated by a natural, noxious plant. Most of the city circles the lake, while the school sits directly on top of the center of the lake, with spoke-like bridges leading to the city. Students and professors at the Acid/Poison School are schemers. Professors will go to great lengths to lead their students to answers through unconventional means, as opposed to responding to questions up front. To enroll at the Acid/Poison school, one should have a sharp wit, be prepared for cryptic conversations, and prefer creative, hands-on learning over studying scholarly tomes. The folks at the Acid/Poison School have a rivalry with the Spatial/Temporal School, believing that fluid intelligence is superior to crystallized intelligence. That is to say, the Acid/Poison School does not believe one can be prepared for every occasion, and must be adept at recognizing  patterns and relationships in new situations quickly. Their school color is forest green.

On Skyaard’s northern border, there is a crag overlooking the ocean. At the top of this crag is the city of Spec, home of the Air School. Spec was a natural choice for the Air School (one of Skyaard’s first schools) because the high cliff often sees great wind storms. Folks at the Air School tend to be free willed and physically fit. They prefer training through practice over studying, and are able to adapt to new things quickly. Many Sorcerers choose the Air School because they require more practice than study. Some students become infuriated at the Air School, describing the professors as flaky and unreliable. Their school color is white.

Raesburrow hosts the Dark School. It was built in 668 after the first Dark School was burned down. Nuhimm and Skyaard discussed borders in 665, and Skyaard decided to build the Dark School adjacent to Nuhimm for a couple of reasons. Firstly, magi of the Dark School would certainly be most understanding of their Necromancer  neighbors. Secondly, it would give the Dark School easy access to research in Nuhimm. Magi interested in the Dark Arts tend to be reserved and quiet, sometimes anti-social. Dark magi are generally well-read, eloquent, and more than willing to help one another on projects, but they are far less likely to become drinking buddies than magi of other schools. Dark magic is broad and often requires an inordinate amount of practice, so magi of this school are almost always working to control these abilities, and have little free time. Many warlocks find their way to the Dark School at some point in their life, as their magic often stems from a Dark ritual or pact. Their school color is black.

The Earth School can be found in a city called Crowe’s Crater, named after Joshua Hunnington Crowe (416-473). Crowe was a powerful Earth mage who reportedly demonstrated his strength in magic by lifting an enormous plot of earth from the ground, and heaving it over 60 miles to the ocean, leaving behind a massive crater. This story is not well documented, but many believe it to be true. The crater is Southeast of Jum’Hal, and the city sits within the crater. Magi of the Earth school tend to be cogitative and calm. They prefer to master magic by understanding their subject. For many Earth magi, this means attuning oneself with nature and meditating out in the elements. A Fire mage at the Earth school might sit and watch fire, or even burn himself to understand his subject more thoroughly. Earth School magi will often study near their elements of choice, and prefer not to research in an office, but out and about. Their school color is brown.

To the far east, near the border where Utopia meets Bretonia, is a city known as Clarissa. The mysterious city seems to have popped up from nowhere. The architecture is dissimilar from any of ancient Kahl’s, and no one seems to know where the buildings came from. The only evidence of the city’s origin are ethereal, spectral blueflame creatures that wander the city. When approached, the flames may sometimes whisper “Clarissa,” hence the city’s name. Clarissa’s beautiful tower house was converted into the Fire School. Magi at the Fire School tend to be extroverted and group-oriented. Classes are generally discussion based, and the magi prefer to study and practice magic in groups. The Fire School adopts the mindset, “two heads are better than one.” The Fire School has a rivalry with the Water School, but the rivalry stems out of the opposition of the elements in favor, and not a conflict of mindsets. This is generally a light-hearted competition. Their school color is orange.

The Force School is on the west coast of Skyaard in the city of Silverbay. The students at the Force School tend to be friendly and fun loving. They are not slackers, but they know how to keep work at work. When school is out and friends are together they enjoy having a drink and cracking jokes over discussing research. Professors will often attempt to disguise the day’s lesson in games or puzzles. The Force School has a rivalry with the Psychic School. This rivalry often manifests itself via pranks. Their school color is turquoise.

Skyaard’s Psychic School is located in Mauve, just south of Jum’Hal. Magi at the Psychic School tend to be very open-minded, liberal and compassionate people. Most of these magi can actually read others’ minds, allowing them to easily sympathize with friends. Generally psychic magi will not tap into a person’s mind without consent, but many will allow friends to do so. Reading minds is good practice for magi, and gives the reader greater insight into a person’s life choices and troubles. The Psychic School is known for being quite imaginative and good humored, two traits which have sparked a rivalry with the Force School, often resulting in creative pranks. Their school color is pink.

North of Jum’Hal is Radiation City, home of the Radiant School. Radiant magic was one of the last branches defined by the nation, and Radiation City was built specifically for the Radiant School. The school is made of stained glass, which illuminates the halls in beautiful colors. Magi at the Radiant School tend to be serious and self-sufficient. They’ve got no time for play and are often ill-humored. They are generally very friendly people if approached, but often too lost in their research to be outgoing. The Radiant School’s school color is yellow.

The Spatial/Temporal School is just a bit northwest of Jum’Hal, in the city of Wellwick. Spatial/Temporal was the most recently classified branch of magic. The Spatial/Temporal magi are the most studious of the eleven schools, and often come across as a bit dry. This is in part because Spatial and Temporal magics take more training and knowledge than many other branches of magic. The Spatial/Temporal School has a rivalry with the Acid/Poison School which roots from their belief that crystallized intelligence is superior to fluid intelligence. Their school color is lime green.

The city of Valmere in Skyaard’s farthest southeast corner is home to the Thunder School. Students at the Thunder School are often charismatic, silver-tongued linguists. Often bards will enroll at the Thunder School to give their stories and songs a touch of magic to motivate and inspire listeners. Many schools see spells as a crutch to cast magic, but most at the Thunder School have a different view. Spells to these magi are not only a learning tool for magic, but an implement in the right hands that can increase the power of magic beyond what was before believed possible. Their school color is grey.

The Water School is situated in Sea Legs Shore, a large port city in southern Skyaard. The school itself sits out on the ocean. Students and professors at the Water School tend to be gentle and high-spirited. They are often optimistic, though careful about their decisions and approaches. Professors like to find a balance of lectures, independent research, and hands-on practice. The Water School has a rivalry with the Fire School, partially due to the elements' opposition. The primary reason for the rivalry in the eyes of the Water School is because the Fire School students are viewed as rash and intrusive. Their school color is blue.

While the Skyaardians have all sorts of different personalities, most share a few common character traits. They tend to be very open-minded people, accepting of those whom come from unique backgrounds and pursue different dreams. They are generally a hard-working people, simply because they are so passionate about their work. Intelligence is considered the highest virtue, and most folks have little patience for dim-wits. The less intelligent folk can find work and respect amongst their peers, but may have a hard time finding friends in Skyaardian society.

Crimes are brought up with the dean or other school officials, and dealt with accordingly. Punishments can range from suspension to expulsion to imprisonment and excommunication from all schools depending on the severity of the crime.