Scouting Report From the Northern Reaches

 Following the conclusion of Comalan's first interstellar war, which saw the liberation of the botanical world of Allene and the end of the aggression they faced from the aquatic world of Mennon, a victory celebration in Dalaska was marred by the capture of a suspicious individual lurking in the city's vacant Chaotic temple. The man remains imprisoned in Heron, having refused to answer any questions. Among his personal effects, the authorities found only a wooden token depicting a wolf standing on a mountaintop and a single document, which only raised more questions.

Though we have discovered much of note in this expedition, it seems appropriate to address the phenomenon that launched our expedition. The mystery of the skybound stars took little time to solve after making landfall on the northern continent. Our journey has taken us across three borders and everyone we've spoken to has spoken with mixtures of worry and excitement that the four nations of this continent, and the system of islands to their immediate east have all banded together to make war beyond the confines of our world. They accomplished this with five large vessels that can fly beyond our skies into the reach of the plane of stars. Even now, their cause is difficult to wrap my head around. One thing is clear, however: despite the spider's foolhardy challenge to their lands, the northerners are unconcerned with any threats from our side of the world.

Our tactical assessment remains inconclusive, however. What our people must understand about the northerners is that, while they have developed some interesting technology--particularly in the southern nation, but some notable examples exist along the eastern shores of Resta and among the visitors from the isles of Midania-- the source of their power lies firmly within the free practice of magic. Here, there are no Eye Witches and Shadow Witches. Their disparate cultures hold distinct views on magic, with the northernmost country being the only region to hold anything approaching a realistic attitude towards the gifts of the Judges. The worst offenders lie within the eastern region of the continent, where magic is practiced freely by commoner and noble alike while two armies of spellcasters wield the official sanction of their royalty.

While this land, known as Resta, wields more magical power under its banner than every single banner that stands over our lands combined, what makes them most dangerous is their political ties to the other countries in the North. While the others have conflicts to exploit, the neutrality and wealth of this kingdom make them a friend to all. Any campaign on this continent must not begin here for to attack them is to provoke four other nations as well.

This leaves the other four nations, which are bound with Resta in an accord of convenience against their otherworldly enemies. But beneath this facade of unity sands two essential alliances, from which the strongest threat stands apart entirely. The southland has developed a warm relationship with the woodlands to the west despite the stark social differences in their cultures. These southern nation, which is called Galeon, feels a lot like home in terms of both society and climate, save for their tolerance of the caste system of their strange, long-eared neighbors. Imagine forming an alliance with the Black Crown and you will understand the confusion with which I observed the relationship between these unlikely allies. There is justified unease among the people of Galeon over this association, but a growing alliance among each of the powers who threaten respectively seems to make it necessary.

The other alliance consists of the archipelago to our northeast and the northlands from which I write this report. The Galeans have come to fear the island nation for their powerful navy. and its recent conflicts with Galean fishermen and oceanic research vessels. Here in the northern nation of Heron, the people are forthcoming with discussion of their centuries-old enmity with the woodlanders of Tanis. While their hostilities have been set aside for now, they are half-expected to resume with the defeat of their common foe. Shrewd politicians from the isles have capitalized on this hatred and the friendship between their foes and Galeon--with whom Heron shares a cold, mildly cordial relationship as is-- to form a compact. Similar to the all-encompassing threat I've referred to in Resta, to launch an attack on Heron is to declare war on Midania as well--and vice cersa.

If you're looking for a weakness in this realm, there are a few bright sides to the dark tidings I've reported so far. The first is that, while their technology has taken unexpected leaps, their most advanced weapons may have been a match for ours no less than twenty years ago. The second is the population itself. From what we've been able to tell, our banner alone carries half as many bodies as all of their combined. If we could get enough ships through the storms, we could overwhelm  each country one at a time. If Raven Hills combines their might with ours, we could claim the entire continent before the red banners realize what's happening.

In conclusion, the northern realm carries a lot of power, but it is not untamable. Although it remains the prerogative of his imperial highness and the Senate whether action in the north realm is appropriate, I offer the following actions in my duty as a scout.

Resta-- This nation is not to be trifled with. Its combination of magical power and political connections make a direct assault on their throne the most dangerous proposal one could make to the Senate. However, their flagrant abuse of the Judges' laws makes them a clear target. A campaign against them must be carefully planned, but cannot be executed swiftly enough from what I can see. But if we conquer their allies or cut their diplomatic connections first, we can put an end to their twisted abuse of magic with little trouble.

Galeon- Limited contact is recommended. Given their agreeable culture, pre-emptive aggression towards this country could be detrimental to morale and their strange ethic of nonintervention would make them poor military allies. Attempts to sabotage their diplomacy with Tanis would be simple and worthwhile, but only to deprive a much higher-priority target of a crucial ally. Whatever we do, we can expect contact with their impeccable spy network. But that is all the more reason to avoid making an enemy of them too quickly.

Tanis- The woodlands are a suitable target for our opening move. The oppressive caste system that guides their society is something few would miss and their reliance on magic is second only to Resta's. Fortunately, nonviolence is their way, so if diplomacy fails, there is little to stop us from subduing them with force once we break through their meager defenders.

Midania- Midania is second in two critical ways. Behind Resta, their legendary navy and political savvy makes them our second-largest threat and their geographically scattered population places them behind Tanis when ranking easy targets. It may be necessary to disable their fleet if our entire army is to make it across the sea.

Heron- Opening a campaign that far north would be most difficult for logistical reasons and their average martial skill could make the empress worry. Not to mention the fact that, while their culture is not as similar to ours as Galeon's, their respect for magic makes them among the least troubling force on the continent. An alliance with Raven Hills would make such a prospect even more unattractive for the same reason I wouldn't ask our own people to attack Galeon. If there was any reason to recommend an attack against Heron it would be the cabal of flame casters that seem to be leading a push to accept magic in the same perverted way the rest of the realm has.

Finally, I would recommend caution around those the north realm folk call Avatars. Their renown is high throughout the entire realm and they are spoken of in the same tones as our own Heroes. But since all of them were involved in this otherworldly campaign, any report I could give on them would be inconclusive. They are said to have been given incredible powers by the Judges, who they have dared to assign names to. It is claimed that each wields the power of a Judge, but the truth of that cannot be determined until they return to the realm. My investigation will continue with these individuals. However the Emperor and Senate choose to act on this information, I reaffirm my commitment to expand the reach of our light.

The Legend of Prismix

Following the birth of Nidarys, word has begun to spread of yet another god. His existence was previously known exclusively to the second order of the Mages of Destiny and Resta's current royal family, the Baldus family. But in the wake of a great miracle, such news could hardly be contained for much longer. Initially ncovered by the Second Archknight, Lord Prismix has come to be known by the Mages of Destiny as an amalgam of heroes from four separate worlds who share a unique bond. Together they discovered that the four worlds which comprise what would come to be known as the Plane of Doran shared a spiritual link, which allow a person to reincarnate on any world within the plane.

This connection was first discovered by a woman known only as The Scholar. Her first incarnation, who died on a world called Dresnuk, would reincarnate on another world called Sarosed in which she sailed the seas as a mercenary witch. Upon dying once again, she discovered a way to retain her past knowledge. Taking her secret into her next life, she was reincarnated as a seeress on the world of Porvia who traveled the stars only to end her short life on Earth. When she finally came to Comalan she took the form of a spellwarrior who is well known for her longevity, madness, and the legendary bloodline that followed her.

As she began to shape her own reincarnation cycle, the Scholar's grip on her sanity loosened even as she grew in power. As the site of the scholar's most recent life, it fell onto the gods of Comalan to sanction her complete destruction for the good of the sacred realm of Doran in its entirety. But in the weakened state that Geos' rebellion had left the gods in and the wisdom she possessed of worlds that were unfamiliar to them, they were unable to subdue the Scholar. So they turned to an even higher power; the former king of their race. With eyes on each of Doran's four cities-- Fadal, Heaven, The Moonstone Expanse, and Plaisnu-- this unrecognized deity was uniquely suited to oversee the Scholar's movements. With the tiniest hope of unveiling any sentimentality he could take advantage of, he entrusted the footwork that would lead to her downfall to the Scholar's own children.

From Dresnuk, he called upon its greatest mind; a scientist who sought hope for their broken world by reaching past the world's dimensional boundaries. From Sarosed, he called a humble bounty hunter who altered time to steal her brother's greatest achievement out of necessity and, in doing so, saved her world twice. From Earth, he summoned a space captain who bridged a peace between two planets by intertwining his heritage from both. From Comalan, he summoned the legendary Champion of Chaos himself. It was from him that the Mages of Destiny-- his descendants all-- learned what was happening beyond their world.

While nothing is known about their otherworldly journey, the reward that awaited them at the end of it was an ascension the gods never counted on. These four siblings would join together and, with the blessing of Doran's king became a new god-- Prismix.

Nothing is currently known about Prismix's capabilities or proclivities except for one thing: as a being borne of four different dimensions, his presence is not limited to Fadal in the way the other deities' are. He is also a denizen of Heaven, Plaisnu, and the Moonstone Expanse. This fact is why he is hailed as Lord Prismix, the God of Four Worlds. The descendants of Prismix believe, however, that he represents the coming together of four disparate souls and that the power that comes from their unity is a testament to the gifts of diversity.

The Vermilion Collective

The many uncharted lands of  Comalan's southeastern hemisphere have long been speculated to be occupied by uncivilized peoples whose development was suppressed by their perpetual struggle against the elements. These ideas are said to be enforced by the cultural exhibitions of the region's few emigrants, which have proven to be far more alien than even the differences between Mortanis and Midania could compare to. It wasn't until the end of the Second Age when this myth would be dispelled by the unexpected appearance of a naval vessel whose technology was significantly advanced even by Galean standards of the time. The ship flew a red flag and carried a hostile crew, who claimed to be from a nation referred to only as the Vermilion collective upon their capture by the Holy Key Knights. This battle resulted in many casualties on both sides, but their technology was only barely eclipsed by the templars' power.

Following the Archknight Rebellion, Kyle Baldus--the newly crowned king of Resta--received a message that was printed on a red scroll. This letter from the Vermilion Collective explained that their emperor, Julius Hartwell, had led his people in conquest of the vast majority of the southeastern hemisphere. With most of Hydrospace conquered, they had sent out exploratory vessels to establish a foothold out in the wider world. It was one of these vessels that had tested its might against the Restans and lost. After acknowledging the strength of the chosen land, Emperor Hartwell declared war on Resta.

Recently crippled by the bloody civil war they fought to restore the Gods to their seats of honor in Mortanis, the new court of Resta appealed to augurs, bishops, and tacticians alike to assess this threat. The clergy said nothing except that their actions against the templars, devoid as it was of the ritual that the Akisian Empire and Blackstone Order were known for, suggested a godless culture. The seers revealed that any attempts to scry into their future have yielded no visions of the Vermilion Collective. The military speculated that with the vast distance between the two countries, Resta's natural superiority at producing resources, and their long list of allies, the kingdom would be perfectly safe if the Collective decided to invade. So, with no clear idea of the threat they faced, Royal Army Intelligence dispatched spies to the region and focused on rebuilding.

Although they remain fully aware of a hostile presence in the world with technology beyond their understanding, the tentative unease over this declared conflict would fade with the ongoing years of the third age. Scholars and news media have taken to jocularly referring to this as the Empty War. But what information the spies have brought back regularly puts the court on edge. Their technology has been reported to be beyond anything ever witnessed on Mortanis. The mixture of fear and loyalty instilled into the various communities under their rule has slowly turned into hatred against the people of what they disparagingly call the "Gentle North." Finally, a spy who was thought to have been dead when she stopped reporting to the kingdom was revealed by another to have defected to the Collective, giving them access to many of Resta's secrets.

The Vermilion Collective continues to lack any presence in the north to this day, but Resta remains on notice--for when the empire finally makes its move, it will bring with it power that has no discernible counter.

Blood Magic Codex

Hey guys! The new job has been kicking my head in this week so the weekend post this time is actually a re-post from our Patreon page! Subscribe now for more Comalan content and enjoy this glimpse into the abilities of a blood mage!

Notable Spells

Blood Blade- The caster focuses their blood into the shape of a blade that can cut through anything with ease. Additional blood added to the spell can increase the size and even number of blades, creating a sinister and powerful close range offense.

Blood Drain- A mid-range spell which allows the caster to drain any nearby blood. While it is possible to draw blood from any open wound, it is considered an ethical obligation to only draw blood that’s already on the ground. Blood taken from this spell is drawn into the caster’s body, increasing their vitality and providing additional resources for their more powerful spells.

Blood Scrying- Using someone else’s blood, a caster trained in Intalan magic can see into the past of the person who owned said blood. This spell is notably used to discover the circumstances which led to the blood being spilled.

Blood Shield- A significant amount of the caster’s blood is used to create a dense shield that rivals solid steel in its strength and is most effective as long as the caster doesn't move. Additional blood added to the spell can expand its radius, creating the perfect defense.

Circulatory Purification- This healing spell is capable of curing nearly any blood-borne illness. It is activated by making a small incision from which to draw blood, then stimulating the patient’s blood vessels to push out any toxins or harmful microbes. A tiny bit of the caster’s own blood is then used to speed up the healing of their incision.

Corrosion- The caster imbues some of their blood with a corroding power that can quickly dissolve armor and flesh more efficiently even than Maulan toxins. This power is speculated to be a threat even to the gods since the Fourth Archknight used it to defeat the Second Avatar of Chaos.

Phlebotomy Grenade- A unique spell developed by Gyanda Maloran in which an exploding lump of blood is lobbed at an enemy. The shrapnel resembles countless tiny blood blades, which embed themselves in anything nearby. If the shrapnel makes contact with someone else’s blood, a vacuous force drains the victim of all of their blood through their wounds. This spell is described as a combination of the blood drain and blood blade spells enhanced with Arcane magic.

Transformations

Spellwarriors who are trained in blood magic can find their signature transformations altered by the foreign blood they imbibe with the blood drain spell.

• Bloodfist Style- Silverfist transformations become incredibly deadly when imbued with blood magic as their fists take on the property of blood blades, allowing their punches to penetrate any defense.
• Bloodhawk Style- Phoenix transformations combined with blood magic increase both their destructive and healing power. While phoenix wingbeats would usually drop motes of fire that burn their foes and heal their allies, the bloodhawk instead unleashes splashes of blood that apply Corrosion to enemies while accelerating the natural healing of their allies.
• Bloodtusk Style- When a blood mage transforms into a pachyderm, their rough skin becomes reinforced with the power of a blood shield, making them nearly impervious to harm without sacrificing any mobility.

The Skysworn

By the light of the kilg, Comalan's sun, there is a cabal of warriors who swear to uphold the values of Tanis' Serene culture. Based in Fort Kieransgard, the elves of the Skysworn are a counterpart to Resta's templars, differing primarily in their solitary focus on Doctrines of Serenity. All Serene Doctrines are represented, namely Tranquility, Love, Dreams and-- to a much lesser extent-- Shadows. Those who join the Skysworn are taught to live by a particular ideal; all life in Tanis is to be protected. This informs various responsibilities including nature conservation, hunting for casters of dark magic native to the Bog of Anguish, offering safe harbor to Restan and Galean pilgrims, and collaborating with rangers to protect the land from their Heronite enemies.

This order owes its origins to a Restan templar by the name of Kieran Hawke, who once saved Tanis while escorting a group of pilgrims from his monastery in the year 2E87. He was unaware of the dangers of the Bog of Anguish, and so attempted to lead his people through it to Boggarde so that they may pay homage at a Serene temple there. This might have ended in the death or corruption of his entire group if not for a chance encounter with a ranger from Medear named Nalan. It was she who led the Templars safely through the bog, skirting known locations of sinister magical activity. Upon reaching their destination, Kieran bestowed a gift of prayer beads engraved with the markings of the Shadow Doctrine. Nalan initially rejected this gift for its association with Chaos, but a long and respectful discussion ultimately convinced her that the Shadow Doctrine was just as much a part of Serenity's wisdom as it was the war god's.

With the acolytes' charge to pray at the Boggarde temple completed, Kieran would thank his new elven friend once more before setting off toward Medear on a journey that would lead them back to Resta. Along the way, they would encounter an army of demons that bog witches had been cultivating in secret for over three decades. Although the rangers expected him to escape in order to protect his charges, Kieran led the acolytes to join the rangers in defense of Boggarde. While many acolytes would distinguish themselves as strong candidates for priesthood and knighthood in the ensuing battle, Kieran alone suffered a mortal wound from the horn of a crazed fever morph that took the form of a human-bull hybrid.

Understanding that this wound would finish him, Kieran surrendered his body to the gods for a powerful blast of divine energy that eradicated the remaining demons and rent a massive hole in the forest canopy. Elves who studied this miracle would find traces of Serenity in its aftermath as it opened up the sky not by harming the treeline above, but shoving thee branches aside. This exposed part of the Bog of Anguish to the sky for the first time and inspired many rangers to declare the site of this battle holy land. They would build a tower in this spot that reached beyond the treeline and swore to honor their newfound hero by adopting some virtues of his order. The Blackstone Order would send a commendation to the garrison of this new tower fifty years later, declaring them the Skysworn, Tanisian allies of the Blackstone Order. Nalan accepted this honor as the Skysworn's first Grand Master, pledging to uphold the honor that Kieran Hawke showed as a templar.

Adventures in Comalan: The Untouched City

Somewhere in the deep woods of Tanis lies a lone bunker that seems to lead to one of the elves' many subterranean settlements. This city is not plotted on any map and doesn't appear to have a name. No one seems to be aware of its existence save the scant few who have managed to discover it. The place is completely empty and even those who once swore to have explored it eventually forget all of its details. Concrete evidence of its existence can only be found in the journals of travelers who have seen there, but even those are rare and prone to strange mishaps. The last known recording of such an expedition only reports:

I have seen no one since I arrived, but there seems to be evidence of occupants all around. The shops are fully stocked, food is plentiful and fresh, and you can hear voices when you stop and listen. It's impossible to make out what any of them are saying because it's like standing in the middle of a large crowd. What bothers me about this place isn't that no one can be found here, but that it's emptiness seems clearly deceptive. It is hard to believe this place can even be real.

This is a passage that has only survived because the page on which it has been recorded is carefully preserved by a historian from the city of Setria by the name of Ayriel. She once collected many accounts of this unknown city until the majority of this collection vanished along with any memory of why she kept it. Among these recordings, only the words that are detailed above survived the series of random mishaps that collected the others. The author of the page is unknown and it is unclear why Ayriel has even chosen to keep it. When asked about it, she only replies "It's a very interesting writing. I'm curious about what it's for."

The researchers of Adventures in Comalan have determined that this is a city waiting to be explored, but an unintelligible curse exists to protect the secret of its existence. However, with our mass-produced format, it will someday be possible to attract enough adventurers who are interested in solving this mystery to investigate the city. Unfortunately, information of its location is limited to somewhere in the deep woods of northern Tanis. Given the power that has sealed away this place, it is assumed to be highly dangerous, but we are committed to providing leads to the most exciting adventures this world has to offer, no matter how dangerous even publishing our information might prove to be.

Metamorphology

In Comalan, the term metamorphology refers to the study of any one of four styles of magic that are used to change one's appearance. These sorts of spells are frequently confused for one another, so many people throughout the have clamored for a guide that distinguishes these styles.

Illusion Magic- Seen throughout the world, illusions are the most common form of metamorphology. Illusions are used to create visual and auditory effects that are only observable to those who fall under their enchantment. Casters of illusion magic are known to employ three different techniques. The first is the creation of psychoactive chemicals that create illusions for all who inhale it. The second is the use of hypnotic techniques that can modify the perception of an individual subject. Finally, some illusionists can use simple light-refracting and sound-generating techniques to produce the desired effect on their immediate vicinity.

Glamour Magic- Common in Galeon, Resta, and parts of Midania,  glamour spells are used to alter a person's physical attributes. They are popular with people transgender people as well as those who are experimenting with their gender identity. The effects of glamour magic differ from illusion magic in that the change in form is physical. However, since these spells are generally offered either as a professional service or to spies looking to hide their true appearances, glamour spells are designed to be temporary.

Transformation- Transformation magic allows a caster to take the form of another creature entirely. This practice is practiced primarily by druids from Tanis, Resta, and Sister. This allows the druid to take the form of animal they have taken the time to bond with, assuming both their appearance and natural instincts. Some spellwarriors also possess the ability to transform into one of three ancient creatures. The thick-skinned Frostback pachyderm, the mystical Hempact phoenix, and the magically-infused Silverfist gorilla have long been extinct, so there is little question that to see one of these creatures  means you are looking at a rare breed of spellwarrior.

Shapeshifting- The practice of shapeshifting is a rare ability that allows one to alter the shape of their body at will. It's the least understood branch of metamorphology because shapeshifting can't be learned or taught. It occurs naturally in an incredibly small number of elves and has been seen in only one human throughout history. Lack of understanding has led to some fear among most people, but military forces who uncover a shapeshifter will inevitably attempt to conscript them in order to make use of their abilities.

Give Back The Stars

The following is a short poem canonically written by Kaleth Marle, which was released to the public when acolytes from the Temple of the Children included the Avatar's journal in a book donation to the Royal Library by mistake. While the contents of the journal have been classified upon discovery, Resta's Princess Selena was so inspired by this poem that she used the Occulus to obtain Kaleth's permission to publish it. Many who've read it have since debated whether this poem is a product of or the inspiration for Kaleth's druidic inclinations.

I beseech you, give back the stars!

I don't want your light in the dark.

I prefer the light the gods made!

Is this what you call a fair trade?

When the world paved its long roads

to carry all the people's loads,

They divided miles of grass

Is this how the world's meant to last?

Whenever you fill up a car

with the fuel you need to go far,

You brew more poison for the air

Is this a world we can bear?

Why must boats sail out just to trawl,

creatures of the sea, one and all?

So much damage is done so we can eat.

Is it possible to live by these feats?

Mortal hands change this world every day

without ever thinking of the ways

we desecrate the world the gods made.

Is this the what we call a fair trade?

Adventures in Comalan: The Fever Plains

Following the aftermath of Salica's retribution for the War of the Gods, Akis' imperial capitol--now known as Midania--has long since had a featureless landscape in which the only people that can live comfortably are the sai'mul. Since the sai'mul have no need for anything but social interaction, all civilization on the once vibrant island have condensed to a handful of coastal cities. This leaves most of the inland space in Midania largely uninhabited. But an empire once thrived here, which explorers frequently note as the cause of their interest in the island. Those who go searching for the ruins of Old Akis, however, must pass through a desolate landscape of gravel and stone. While it is generally agreed by those who've flown over the area that there is little to see here, there has proven to be much to experience here nonetheless for those who walk upon it.

A Katrinean explorer by the name of Mortimer Baltar chronicled his experience in this land in the year 2E274. His journal documents an incredibly surreal month out on what he dubbed "the Fever Plains."

Day 19

The unbearable heat seems to have let up today, but my thermometer disagrees. Could I be getting used to the climate or is this another symptom of my delirium? I can barely read the words I've written on this page. I've found shelter in a cave that is mercifully empty, but it's not the heat that's blurring my vision. There's something in the air. It's not only hindering my vision; it's causing the sights I can discern to be joined by impossible features. I thought I saw a tree near a pond this morning. I was only just thinking that a tree would be the last thing I expect to see out here and there it was. Or so it seemed. When I reached the pond, I saw nothing there but a pile of petrified wood splinters. It was like I was seeing this bit of land back when it was still alive.

What Mr. Baltar saw was an early, yet relatively mild example of the Fever Plains' most notable feature. Those who camp in the region tend to discover that the wildest figures of their imagination consistently appear as hallucinations. These vivid images can expose travelers to the sort of adventures that only they can conceive of. While it isn't widely understood how this is possible, experts have since come to attribute the cause to a layer of magical energy that rests higher off the ground than it would naturally occur. It is said that inhaling these particles causes them to eventually saturate the brain and project images from both their conscious and subconscious minds. While many are led to ask why this only seems to happen in Midania, there are far too many possible explanations to cover in this guide. For a comprehensive listing of the many theories surrounding the nature of the Fever Plains, we recommend Dr. Rolf Whitetree's book, Natural Mysteries of the Land.

Regarding the adventures one can experience in this place, however, we can safely assume that the only limit to what one can see here rests within the traveler's imagination. However, the Midanian government has asked that we warn travelers not to visit these lands without a guide, which can be hired in any of the island's cities. Sai'mul are immune to the hallucinatory effects of the island's ambient magic and so are the only people who can help you should you begin to lose sight of yourself. While extended stays are a difficult undertaking in a place without fauna or vegetation so far from civilization, it is still recommended that no one with a living brain stays longer than a month, as the effects of pure magical energy on the brain aren't widely understood. Despite this, those who spend a week living out their wildest fantasies in the Fever Plains often come back with a plethora of memories that persist even as the magic wears off and their minds return to normal.

The Stoneguard

For most of their history, the elves' peaceful way of life has been threatened. In the primordial phase of their culture, they warred constantly with the dwarof who once shared the forest with them. After that, they faced constant invasion from the humans of Pyris. The elves were a resilient people, who used their understanding of the land and the magic within to not only survive, but demonstrate why they are the most longest-lived people. When Serenity came to bring the elves' current form to the primitive lenof tribe, they discovered magical power pervades everything in the world, including metals and minerals. It was through this epiphany that they have developed their cultural affinity for metalwork and masonry. But early feats of civil engineering borne from necessity (because it was against the elves' ways to disturb the living parts of the forest) evoked envy from foreign humans. Travelers from Eris and the Eastlands seeking to learn their ways were a welcome occurrence that the elves accommodated gracefully. However, Pyrisians were eager to take advantage of their lack of use for lumber by invading their land to cut the trees they hold sacred. This threat gave rise to the Stoneguard, an order of sentinels who protect the western forests with magical powers derived from precious gems.

Each Stoneguard is anointed similarly to Resta's knightly traditions and equipped with four stones that are woven into their uniforms, usually in their capes. The rubies they carry contain raw power, which can be released in beams of destructive light. They are also equipped with sapphires which cast a healing light, emeralds which are used to create barriers, and topazes that can inflict a handful of mental effects such as sleep, pacification, fear, and confusion on others. With these powers, the Stoneguard has created a powerful defensive force that has kept their borders safe throughout the First Age. However, as the War of the Gods concluded and Serenity punished the elves for their part in the persistent conflict, the knowledge of how the Stoneguards derived their unique powers were among the secrets she buried in the earth. Along with their knowledge, she also buried the Guardian Stone that was the true source of their power, then a massive chunk of Ruby, and cut the remaining members of the Stoneguard from their abilities.

While the elves made do without the Stoneguard for most of the Second Age thanks to the Heron's embrace of isolationism over imperialism, the resurgent demand for lumber in the Third Age would lead to Colin Piers reigniting tensions with the people of Tanis over disputed land. This increase in hostility terrified the elves, who began to seek the knowledge of the Stoneguard with the most fervor they had experienced in over three centuries. But it wasn't until the Avatar of Serenity arrived with her goddess' blessing to regain this information for them that the Stoneguard could return.

Ekera would join forces with Keran--the younger brother of an Elder-caste councilor of Setria--and his dear friend, a forest scout named Larim. The three of them would journey together to a tower in the Marble Desert which had only recently become known for containing the last Guardian Stone of the Stoneguard. But without the means to recover the massive ruby, they learned that the only alternative was to sacrifice a life to create a new Guardian Stone. So it was that Keran gave up his life to become the massive chunk of emerald that floats over the Guardian Tower to this day and Larim gave up her unexplored love to become the first in a new generation of Stoneguard.

With a new Guardian Stone in the surface world for the first time in thousands of years, the Stoneguard have created a garrison along their northern border with the greatest power that anyone has ever seen. Their defense of the forest would have become complete at this point if their resurgence hadn't coincided with the revival of the Pyromancers, who have the power to extort concessions of disputed territory with the implied threat of creating wildfires (although it is largely maintained by Heronites that this perceived threat is baseless due to the inclination of the new lord of the Piers territory, Collin's son Aden, to pull back as much as possible in this dispute). As a result, the relationship between these two countries remain tense and are improving slowly only thanks to the friendship between Larim and Umi Karn, a prominent Pyromancer. If open war were to break out, however, the Stoneguard stand readier than ever to defend their land and all of the natural life that dwells within.

The Bumblebee's Voyage

The following is an excerpt from the book The Bumblebee's Voyage, a collection of folk tales and information about a famous pirate ship that sailed the seas in the early Second Age. This short passage mentions the crew's fabled heist of a wealthy Restan noble's coastal estate, and the actions of the Bumblebee's Captain, Melina, who went down in history as a folk hero for all who oppose the rich and powerful. 

***

There are several contradicting accounts of the Solan Dunes Heist recorded from the years following the event. It was not entirely unexpected for many people to falsely claim they had seen such a momentous happening firsthand, but it has also been speculated that the family of Edric Blackstone and other local nobility deliberately fabricated and dispersed rumors in order to discredit the rather embarrassing narrative that had taken hold among the populace. Considering the subsequent crackdown by the authorities on commoners that were heard perpetuating this particular narrative, this speculation is not without merit. 

Despite these attempts to keep the tale quiet or, at the very least, destroy its credibility, this narrative is the one that persisted and eventually grew into the legend we recall today. The acts of Captain Melina and her crew at Solan Dunes have since been immortalized in song, poetry, and visual art. One of the most well known and succinct versions of the tale is a song heard often in seedy taverns or on the deck of a ship, but is rarely received well when sung amongst polite company and nobility in particular.

There was a Blackstone by the sea

Who robbed his peasants dry,

He laughed at their most desperate pleas,

From 'hind his walls so high

This Blackstone had no greater love

Than comfort, wine, and gold,

His wife, as lovely as a dove

Grew ever far and cold

Come, Come!  Melina comes to give the lout his due!

Come, Come! Melina! If you're rich she'll come for you!

The sky above the Dunes grew black

The Blackstone's fate was sure

From 'neath the Dunes, the Bees attacked

Right through the cellar door

The Bees had been bequeathed the key

By Blackstone's lovely wife

Who found Melina's honey sweeter

Than her Blackstone's life

Come, Come! Melina comes to give the lout his due!

Come, Come! Melina! If you're rich, your wife she'll screw!

The Genesis of Comalan

While any history from prior to the First Age is difficult to find and generally delivered from unreliable sources, the legend of Comalan's origin is well known to most. This is only due to the Windlords' expedition to Skyres City, where the truth was discovered in Crane's own text. Among the many secrets that were stolen from the city's grand, forbidden library, this was the most grievous of sins. The windlords were punished by forgetting everything they knew about Skyres City and the information they found within. But Crane wasn't able to stop them from dispersing this information before his curse eradicated them. This knowledge, along with the ancient language that the gods speak, has been passed on through the clergy since that day with the blessings of Serenity and Salica, who have been quoted with the belief that the mortals deserve to understand where they came from.

The world began with the two brothers, Chaos and Crane. Together, they survived a war that was never well described and a deadly plague that was driving their species to extinction. Believing that they were the only people left in the world, Chaos boldly declared his intent to master the evils that killed his kind. With his power and Crane's intellect, the two bound together to create a world where new people could form to fill the void left in the wake of such tragedy. The groundwork for this new world was laid in a once-unimportant city known only for being the birthplace of the brothers. This was the place mortals now know as Fadal, the sacred city of the Gods. Crane's mind went into designing the planet and all of the life that would inhabit it while Chaos' hands made all of these designs real.

Although their plan was described by Crane as perfect in theory, the brothers quickly lost control of what they had created. As such, any life they spawned was quickly threatened by the natural disasters which were commonplace at the time. It took the help of another godly creature, referred to as the King of Doran, for the brothers to finally bring order to Comalan. After declaring that Chaos owed him a debt for his role in fixing their imperfect world, the King left Fadal, never to be heard from again.

With their world finally put together as they envisioned, Chaos and Crane spawned the first person, a man who was known as Morta. It was from his image that humanity began to grow and spread through the great continent of Mortanis.  It was the ultimate goal of both brothers for their creations to eventually fill the shoes of their lost race, but their methods couldn't be more different. It was the intent of Crane for humans to develop intellectually so they could converse with him as equals. He fostered this growth by encouraging their curiosity and leaving lessons for them in every living thing that surrounded them. Chaos, on the other, prized those with the fortitude to resist the dangers of his past. Thus, he intentionally created both the feral beasts of the world and all of its evils with the express intent to promote strength.

The accord the brothers shared over the planet eventually crumbled when each became concerned that the other's methods set everyone back. Chaos began to find that the mortals' desire to understand the world around them was a distraction from the demands of daily survival. Crane, for his part, believed that Chaos' intentional creation of evil was killing more people than it helped. This disagreement spilled over into the mortals who listened to them. Divisions began to form among the humans based on loyalties to Chaos and Crane respectively. With the eastlands threatened by war for the first time, those who resisted this partisanship banished those followers of only one of the brothers. Those who worshiped Chaos and his Doctrine of Power moved north to form the first clans of Pyris while those who believed in Crane's Doctrine of Knowledge migrated south to form the republic of Eris.

The hostility between these two creeds placed the North and South into a long state of perpetual war that only ended during the First Age's War of the Gods. With more easily-navigable land, the tribes in the east were frequently caught in the middle of these conflicts.

Meanwhile, the westland forests were taken over by Crane for a series of biological experiments. From the genetic material of existing humans, he created two tribes. The lenof were breed imbued with some characteristics of Crane's own biology and he used them to study the effects of the plague that killed his people. It was through the data he collected in these efforts that he cultivated the genes of a second tribe--the dwarof-- with the specific intent of resisting this malady. However, these two tribes formed a natural enmity that caused the lenof to drive the dwarof deep underground.

The debt of the King of Doran would later be collected in the form of two new arrivals to Fadal-- his two daughters Serenity and Salica. They looked upon the world the brothers created with disgust and set about fixing their problems. Serenity touched the westland forests, changing the lenof who survived Crane's experiments into forms that more closely resembled the gods' race; thus the elves were created. Salica, meanwhile, claimed dominion over the various islands littering the seas to the east of Mortanis. There, using the model of Morta, Salica created humans of her own to play with.

Though the Gods did not all get along for most of the planet's existence, it was by getting to know each other through the eyes of mortalkind that they created a lasting bond with each other. When the mortals carried on their hatred long past the point when they had reconciled, they purged most of the known world and bid everyone to start over. Since then, the four elder gods-- and later, the three offspring of Chaos and Serenity-- ruled over Comalan as a close-knit family that shepherds mortals toward greatness.

Infiltration report: The Specializations and Command Structure of Aeros Academy

The following is a report from an operative from Restan Army Intelligence. It details what they have learned about their rivals in Galeon while infiltrating their ranks.

The Disciplines

Direct Contact(DC)- Disciples of the Direct Contact discipline are exclusively combat-oriented. Their role in the order is to confront savvy and hostile sources of information and extract it through either intimidation or force. They are extensively trained in hand-to-hand combat as well as the use of short swords and concealable weapons such as blowguns, shuriken and kunai. Their use of magic revolves around controlling the wind in the following ways:

• Light- In a situation where delicacy is crucial, windlords can subtly alter the movement of the air around them in advantageous ways, such as knocking an opponent off balance or distracting them by whipping up their hair or clothes while delivering deciding blows with their weapons.
• Heavy- In situations in which shocking a target is the way to go, Windlords will attack their enemies with winds powerful enough to send them flying. Those with exceptional control can effectively “juggle” an opponent by blowing them back and forth.

Soft Contact (SC)- Like their DC counterparts, Soft Contact Windlords specialize in making direct contact with the sources of information. Rather than taking what they need by force, however, SC Windlords focus on manipulating their sources into giving information freely. This school is least dependent on wind magic and instead encourages the windlord’s natural talents as well as disguises to entertain and confound their targets. They can take the form of an entertainer or unassuming server, among other things, comfortably and work with their silver tongues and open ears.

Shadow- Shadow Windlords are masters of stealth who focus on infiltrating restricted areas to steal and spy. Though their primary training is in avoiding line of sight by any means necessary, they use their wind magic in the most different ways.

• Retrieval- In the right situation, windlords can steal target objects, usually documents, by summoning a gust of wind that brings said objects closer. Although this can be helpful for a windlord contending with security too tight for them to get close, the gust itself can be easily noticed and therefore this spell must be used carefully.
• Catching whispers- All windlords have the ability to sense the air movement generated by speech, They can use magic to bring this air closer and determine what was said. The Shadow discipline sees the most use of this technique and have mastered it to the point of being able to hear through walls, which would otherwise negate the technique.
• Distraction- Shadow Windlords tend to use wind in various other ways to distract people in their path or even encourage them to go in a certain direction. The only limit to this power is the windlord’s imagination, but careful thought must go into the best way to use this spell as savvy targets can’t be allowed to suspect windlord involvement.
• Windwalking- Targeted blasts of wind propel the windlord further with each step, dramatically increasing their run speed and jump height.

Although fledgling windlords are instructed to choose a path at the beginning of their training, those who are recognized as proficient can change their discipline any time so they can learn new skills. While most windlords tend to choose a discipline and stick with it, the Grandmaster and Master tend to pay special attention to those who show interest in all of them.

The Structure

Most windlords are considered equals as they mostly reject a formal ranking system in favor of offices that are decided based on knowledge, merit, and popular support.

• Grandmaster- The Grandmaster is the one who is recognized to have the most skill and knowledge of the order. They are recognized as the face of the organization and the point of contact for Galean officials who wish to enlist their services. The current Grandmaster is James Hawke.
• Master- This role customarily belongs to someone with a close relationship with the grandmaster. Their role is to assist the Grandmaster in their duties, stand in their place when they are indisposed, and succeed them if they die. The current Master is Ellie Skye.
• Captains- These accomplished windlords are those who’ve mastered their discipline and now represent all of those who study beside them. Their role is to dispense missions to others of the same discipline and coordinate the trainers. 

• The current DC Captain is Markus Vilkoff
• The current SC Captain is Iekika Winstrom
• The Shadow Captain is customarily anonymous. While they may not correspond with other windlords exclusively in writing, this is the only form their mission orders can take. Only the Grandmaster and Master can ever know the Shadow Capain’s true identity.
• Trainers- This position is assigned to the five most skilled windlords of each discipline. Their role is to teach new recruits the skills of their discipline, based on the curricula decided by their captains.

The Festival of Summer

Among the seasonal festivals that have arisen to honor the four Elder Gods, there is one that stands alone for its hype, attendance, and historical significance. When the bells of Dalaska and Resta City signal the first Chaotic temple sermons of the summer, a week-long festival is held in honor of Chaos. It takes very different forms whether its celebrated in Heron or Resta, but one thing is consistent with both versions: a tournament that draws warriors from across the country to compete for the ultimate prize. In the case of Heron, champions have traditionally received a valuable gift from each of the three houses, while those who participate in Resta's tournament compete for a rare honor called the Royal Boon-- the right to make any reasonable wish of the monarch. The purpose of the tournament isn't hard to guess, for Chaos values strength above all else and competition as a motivator for greatness.

In the First Age, during the Brokamac Clan's occupation of Coronos, the Pyrisians would host gladiatorial games pitting the locals against their own champions. To the Pyrisians, these fights were a test of honor; both their own and that of their new subjects while the Coronosians saw it as a constant attempt to assert the Brokamac clan's dominance. For many years, warriors of both peoples fought against each other for both glory and the Pyrisians' entertainment, with the eastlanders being motivated to win by promises of comfort and luxury to the champions. In this, the lesson the Pyrisians meant to impart to the Coronosians wasn't always clear. The Brokamac meant for their subjects to learn that only in strength can one live in comfort and safety, but they instead began to value the thrill of competition itself; in their minds, great satisfaction is owed to those who strive to be the best. 

This tradition ended when the Coronosians discovered magic. With the ability to stand on even footing with even the Brokamac's pyromancers, they won a greater share of their matches until the Brokamac clan leader, Ivan the Relentless, called off the games to spare his warriors further embarrassment. Many years later, the liberated state of Coronos merged with their southern neighbors to form a newer, stronger kingdom. This was followed by a stern proclamation to the people of Heron that the newly formed Kingdom of Resta was ready for any further threats from the north. The lords of the Piers, Crowmont, and Karn clans responded to this challenge not with aggression, but with an invitation: one more tournament held with Resta and Heron's greatest champions. The Restans accepted this invitation and offered the grounds of their newly built castle, Sunburst Keep, as the arena for the competition.

Historians from both countries agree that the tournament was a political maneuver meant to demoralized the newly unified country. While the Heronites had recently undergone a series of reforms that promoted isolationism over the imperialism of their ancestors, they saw Resta's proclamation as a threat and wanted to prove that this nubile giant could fall. The Malorans who controlled Resta's throne at the time were well aware of this, but doubled down on their insistence that they would no longer feel threatened by the north. But in a strange twist of fate, neither country was able to prove their point when the tournament ended in a draw between the first phoenix spellwarrior, Gaius Maloran and Altan Karn, the last surviving pyromancer of the First Age. 

Since the end of this tournament, the Heronites and Restans went their separate ways in amicable terms. The mutual respect that resulted from the tournament's result has stabilized relations between the two countries for the entirety of their respective existences. While their cultural differences cause them to keep each other at arm's length, their acknowledgement of each others' strength has foreclosed any potential hostility. At first, this tournament was a yearly tradition for which both countries traded the responsibility to host. Over the next decade, however, it became clear that the two cultures each valued something different about this tradition. So, each country formed its own version of the festival, offering praise to Chaos in their own distinct ways.

In Heron, the trappings of the Summer Festival are rooted in the theological purpose of the original tournaments. For the whole week of the festival, temple services are held every hour, which encourage attendees to reflect on Chaos' will for mortality. The tournament is the center of the festivities and encompasses four days out of the week. Games are held for children as well, including toy swordplay, archery, and wrestling. These allow children to prepare for the main event when they are old enough. The festival is catered with many of Heron's summer staples, including rabbit stew, sausages made with pork and smoked venison, fish cakes, and bread bowls. 

In Resta, the Summer Festival embraces the competitive nature that their Coronosian ancestors found in the original tournaments. While Resta's own tournament, the RGT, only encompasses the final two days of the festival, the other five days are devoted to various other athletic events; namely track and water sports. One of those days is generally devoted to experimental events meant to expose spectators to new sports, such as the freeform cycling race known as Blitzroll. For everyone else, Resta's summer festival is a lure for the bounty of firecrab one can eat there, whether its deep fried, packed into sausage, or diced into chili. Various other forms of seafood, as well as the fruits of Blackstone Farm, can also be found for those who can't handle the spice of firecrab.

The beginning of summer is a time of praise for Chaos for giving people the strength to be frequently become better than they are. While this virtue takes two vastly different forms, the lesson is clear: when this festival comes around, everyone is in for a bounty of hearty food and gripping entertainment.

Sigil of Salica

This is a pendant which depicts the symbol mortals most commonly associate with Salica, Goddess of the Storm. The symbol represents the Goddess' familiar-- Karashartal, the mother of all krakens. Pendants like these usually drape the necks of Restan clergy who have been fully anointed in the Doctrine of Storms. Once earned, it allows priests to demonstrate their mastery of Salica's teachings to strangers and serves as a status symbol at the Blackstone Monastery, where masters frequently return to seek an education in the next of the gods' Doctrines.

Pendants like these are universally reviled outside of Resta, as only a citizen of the "Chosen Land" would ever see the need to wear their religion like a piece of jewelry. Besides this, the gold used to make the amulet and chain, as well as the magical threads used in the embroidery, make these pendants very expensive. Among the many reasons for a templar to protect an anointed priest in their pilgrimages, one of the most common is that the value of such a prize is a lure for robbers and bandits. The money one can make from selling this, or any other theological pendant from the Blackstone Monastery, would be enough to buy a house anywhere in the world.

Adventures in Comalan: The Solan Lighthouse.

The eastern Restan city of Solan, located somewhere near the country's southern coast, has long been known as a place of secrets. People silently walk past each other on the streets, visitors pass through unremarked, and no one enters a building uninvited. Those unfortunate few who disregard these unwritten, unspoken rules frequently run into something they wish they hadn't, like a hastily buried corpse, human traffickers, or unethical scholars-- magical and scientific alike. The most famous of these hidden secrets are the catacombs carved from the mountain beneath Solan's iconic lighthouse. Originally built to aid templar ships passing by on their northward journeys, ownership of this historic landmark has changed hands several times as a new local governor takes office in the city. In the final century of the second age, however, is when the sinister rumors that have made the place the legend it is today began.

It all began in the year 2E241, with the fall of the Scarlet Starlings. Following the events of the Second Wave of Death, the newly recognized Champion of Salica began a three-year crusade to eradicate the guild of assassins. With templars at her side, she stormed the Governor Estate that had once been her home and turned over the belongings of her former stepmother, Dinorah Winstrom. Among her personal files, Mia found a letter to a long-deceased associate of the starlings, which mentioned an unknown place referred to only as the vault of shadows. From studying the buildings under the governor's control and thinking of places she remembered Lady Winstrom visiting, the champion had deduced that she would find this vault underneath the lighthouse.

In the opening month of winter that year, Mia and the templars stripped the lighthouse bare until they found the secret staircase leading into a maze of interconnecting tunnels below. The catacombs were filled with countless deadly traps and false paths, seemingly designed to keep the explorers lost and terrified for their own lives. If the maze had worked as it should, they might have fled the very next time they happened across the staircase that would take them back in the direction from which they came. But Mia was stubborn and hungered desperately for revenge against the very organization that was responsible for these deadly tunnels. Her obsession overpowered her fear and she searched every inch of this underground stronghold. When she finally found the remaining Starlings in hiding, she initiated a purge of their hideout in order to rid Comalan of their particular evil.

With the Scarlet Starlings eradicated, the lighthouse became a favored haunt of daring urban explorers for the next few decades. While many sought the accolades of surviving a tour of the catacombs, nearly as many would continue falling victim to previously uncovered traps until Mia, then the governor of Solan, ordered the lighthouse sealed. That might have been the end of the legend, but there were practitioners of forbidden magic who sought refuge in a forbidden safe, away from prying eyes. It was first occupied by a small coven of dark mages who had escaped the Purge of Shaville. These mages managed to revive their demon "breeding" operation for some time before being driven out by the Royal Army under Karen Blackstone's Geosian Regime. 

This left the lighthouse abandoned for quite some time until the new queen's son Michael-- recently appointed Solan's new governor-- appropriated the catacombs as the headquarters for his rebellion against Geos. It was there where he coordinated the efforts of the resistance on behalf of the Fadalians until a very public incident forced him to reveal himself as a leader of his own mother's opposition and flee Solan. Many spellwarriors would spend the rest of their years under the Geosian regime, and during the subsequent Archknight Rebellion, combing these catacombs once more for secrets left behind by Michael Blackstone's resistance.

The lighthouse would once again be occupied in the Third Age, by an entity known to most as Erdas, the God of Suffering. It was there where he kept countless prisoners, including the Avatars of Life, Death, and Time and the innocent people that Erdas used to manipulate the Avatars in games against each other. It was believed at first that he was doing this simply for his own sadistic amusement, but he was actually using them to combine the power of the three demigods in order to create new members of the kilgor-- a nearly extinct race which is comprised mostly of the Fadalians themselves. While these three Avatars were manipulated into creating a new god through suffering, Gyanda Maloran, the third Archknight, was held prisoner here to be tortured with the many mistakes of his past.

The Archknight would find himself returning to this lighthouse months later, when-- with Erdas and his prisoners gone-- blood mages began to take up residence in the catacombs. It was only after taking over the coven, a feat famously* described in his memoirs, that the lighthouse was abandoned for the final time, leaving it in its current state. With Resta in a state of uncertainty as the world's eyes center on the Starlight Crusade, explorers have once again found an opening to explore these catacombs again. Doing so continues to yield lost secrets left behind by each of the lighthouse's past inhabitants, which makes this an attractive for brave adventurers who are most interested in the turbulent history of this mysterious city.

* This represents a passage in TMR, which is an actual book in canon. But said passage hasn't been written yet as of the most recent update-- and probably won't for a long time, anyway.

The Templars of the Blackstone Order

Templars exist in every corner of known world. Their purpose is to defend the honor of the gods, both as individuals and as a a collective. No act of sacrilege or desecration can be forgiven by these earnest, sectarian warriors. To become a templar requires intense training that would ideally allow one to hold their own against any of Comalan's superpowers, whether they be from Tanis, Heron, Resta, Midania, or Galeon. To a templar, the ability to put down anyone who makes an enemy of the gods is the highest calling. As such, they are especially hostile to blood mages and warlocks, who practice their arts in open defiance of the gods' condemnation. While separate orders of templars exist in each country, they are all united in the mission of enforcing the Fadalians' highest commands.

The templars of Resta represent one of the crown's three knightly orders, the Blackstone Order. They were founded in the First Age as the military of Necros, a long-since perished country that now composes the southern province of modern Resta. Their founder, a warrior named Karla Blackstone, mobilized a group of soldiers to secure the Pledge River when the Brokamac clan of Pyris invaded the land of Coronos to their immediate north. With a secure foothold against further Pyrisian expansion won, Karla held her defenders together for the length of the occupation of Coronos with inspiring words that preached the value of the continental east, where mortal life was said to have begun. It was this dogmatic attachment to the eastlands that allowed the first spellwarrior, Hem Maloran, to convince her to bring her soldiers to Coronos and aid in their revolution. With the Brokamac clan successfully routed, the Blackstone Order returned to Necros as heroes who helped to secure the chosen lands.

With Necros now secure to the north, Karla Blackstone took her troops back to the capitol of Necros and garrisoned its newly constructed castle, which was named for its newest hero. When the Plague of Suffering wiped out many citizens of both Coronos and Necros and compelled their leaders to join houses, Blackstone Keep became the Blackstone Monastery, a center of training for both clergy and new generations of Restan templars. It is in Blackstone Monastery that Resta maintains a reputation of excellence in all things divine.

Among all of the world's templars, the Blackstone Order has the highest standards of both strength and religious zeal. This causes them to produce the least fully recognized templars of any country, but the most powerful by far. The majority of their templars are followers of the Doctrine of Rage. This means that most Restan templars, including one of their most famous, are anointed in the faith of both Chaos and Salica. The knights of the Blackstone Order also particularly despise the spellwarriors of the Hem Order on a systemic level. While many outsiders assume that this is because of a historical rivalry between the two knightly orders that resulted from the merging of Coronos and Necros, the truth is that the templars distrust the Hem Order's undisciplined experimentation. For their part, the spellwarriors are proud of their heritage and consider the Blackstone Order's stigmatization of the power that allowed Coronos to liberate itself to be an insult to Restan history.

 While the average duties of a Blackstone knight involve dispensing justice to those who desecrate something divine, the dogmatic, sectarian nationalism of Resta makes defense of the kingdom a part of their duties. In times of conflict, the Blackstone Order is called upon to serve as Resta's naval forces. With a resource-rich kingdom behind them, and many years of hard discipline drilled into them, the templars of Resta can expertly sail ships that eclipse mariknights in power. Despite this, the Blackstone Order envies Midania's navy for their magically-enhanced speed and secret navigation techniques.

Out of a sense of necessity, Restan templars focus on mirroring the versatility of their counterparts in the Hem Order. Whether they are serving their country at sea, or their gods on land, you can count on the knights of the Blackstone Order to carry out their duties with practiced excellence.

The Spellwarriors

The subjects of the most fame in all of Resta are those who have graduated from an elite school near the center of the capitol known as Hem Academy. Those who survive the rigors of this prestigious institution go on to join a knightly order of the same name. Known for their mastery of both martial and magical combat skills, these knights of the Hem Order are more commonly referred to as spellwarriors. In times of peace, they are peacekeepers, charged with protecting the peoples' justice. In times of war, they are Resta's living artillery and soldiers charged with scaling the most treacherous terrain to gain an advantage on their enemies. Whatever a spellwarrior's charge is, the legacies they leave behind have inspired Resta's greatest songs. They are recognized far and wide by the people as Resta's heroes, much to the ire to the templars of the Blackstone Order, with whom they share a mutual dislike.

The Hem Order is named for one of the first heroes of modern Resta, a warrior of Coronos named Hem Maloran. It was through his accidental discovery of the laws of magic that he found the power and hope to liberate his people from their Pyrisian oppressors. After declaring Coronos an independent country once more, Hem took the new throne with the people's blessing and bid them to build a school in which he could give back to those who pushed him up to his throne by developing and sharing his understanding of magic. Over time, thousands of warriors have come to Hem Academy's ageless campus with the hope of joining this proud tradition. Despite this, fewer than ten percent of those who attempt the school's rigorous curriculum ever complete it and become a fully accredited spellwarrior.

This school has classes in various skills, including marksmanship, swordplay, tracking, beast mastery, elemental magic, and medical mysticism. Students are encouraged to specialize in as many skills as possible during the mandatory ten-year training period, but most will only ever focus on perfecting a minimum number of skills they are most comfortable with. This gives the Hem Order the most versatility of any army in the world: they offer innumerable skills as a collective, but each spellwarrior is trained differently and utilized in different ways upon graduation.

Rarely, among the students of Hem Academy, people are found with the additional potential to perform the Hem Academy's unique magic: transforming into the aspects of magic. These abilities seem to occur randomly in one of three forms, which are almost never revealed outside of Hem Academy's secret methods. Some take the form of the silverfist, a now-extinct species of ape credited with teaching humanity to use magic. Others can inhabit the body of a phoenix, who can both destroy and heal with its mysterious flames. Finally, some tend to discover the ability to transform into a foothill mammoth, a large, furry pachyderm found in northern Resta and known for being the sturdiest beasts in the world. Whether a spellwarrior discovers any such abilities rarely has an impact on their future legend, as even the Champion of Chaos became legendary without them.

When the people cry for help and the templars judge their problems to be beneath the gods' intervention, the spellwarriors are there, offering their diligently honed expertise to them for the solution of any problem.

The Coming of the Avatars

The following is a poem written by the Shadow Mage, Princess Tanya of Resta. It has since been enshrined among the hallowed texts of the Gilded Keep's Royal Library for its prophetic truth.

The Coming of the Avatars

The Gods have returned, and soon comes a choice
Of mortals qualified to speak with their voice.
The barriers between mortal and divine shall soon fade
When Gods and mortals share in common aid.

Terror of blood and a reluctant son
Shall draw Chaos' eye when they become one.
Though what results may be an unnatural thing,
He will be adored for the hope he'll bring.

The pride of Crane will be his first mistake
When he places his faith in a man from near the lake.
But when all seems lost, we'll look to his heart
And find a talented apprentice who's nearly as smart.

When a monster roars in fury and pain,
A believer in Serenity's beauty will make herself plain.
She'll come from an isle where no one has heard her name,
But she will defend her Goddess' interests all the same.

A land of dreams without conflict and strife,
Stirred by our struggle and bonded to us for life
Will bring us hope in the form of Salica's favorite son.
Who's felt less pain than scarcely anyone.

A hero of our movement, fallen from grace
will be the one to sire Geos' newest face
A son lost to his father will easily compare
to the torment of Chaos' eldest heir.

Death after death begets more death
Such is the truth of one who shares Maula's breath
They will also share a cynical attitude
And disdain for this world they've viewed.

Life is the greatest gift for all
Such is the truth of one who answers Kerun's call
The mysteries of her life represent the enigma of life
She chases the wonders with which existence is rife

Kneel before these hallowed souls as you would the gods
Though our future is uncertain, they are greater than our world's odds.

Zara, the Adjutant of Kerun

Zara, the Adjutant of Kerun

Zara was named adjutant by his dear friend and confidant, Voltairine Maloran, with whom he shares a long past that is mired in mystery and rumor. In recent years, he is known by his association with the Phoenix Blade and the kinship he found with its leader, a fellow Midanian named Takaa. He has made many friends in his travels, and it is common to hear stories involving him from the clubs of Rashara to the seedy pubs of Dalaska. He is generally known for his kind, if eccentric nature, and his love for flowers and animals. He has more than once been compared to the legendary Talib, who circled the world several times after pointing to a line of stars in the sky and vowing to follow wherever it pointed.

***

Zara took a deep breath as he felt the air around him move. It had continued to pick up as the sun dipped lower behind the rolling Galean hills. He noted the slight breeze and took it into account as he aimed carefully, looking down the shaft and adjusting the angle of his arrow. He released the shot and smirked in approval as the point stuck the center of the target, prompting an eruption of cheers and whistles from the small, drunken crowd that had congregated nearby. 

Volt watched, wide-eyed, as she hung on the shoulder of a handsome oni who had joined their caravan. The man seemed preoccupied with her, but she was engrossed in the impromptu shooting contest that had broken out. She turned her gaze to Zara’s opponent — a bearded, golden haired human with a refined Restan accent. He frowned as he eyed Zara’s perfect shot, and took several moments to line up his own. Everyone fell silent, careful not to distract the shooters and inadvertently tip the game in anyone’s favor. 

With a whirr, the man’s arrow stuck the center of the target, prompting another round of cheers from the crowd, who seemed to be taking nobody’s side in particular. They were simply glad for the entertainment. Zara smiled charmingly at the man. “Nice shot, mate.”

The Restan snickered, looking Zara up and down derisively. “The target is a bit close. And a bit still for what I’m used to.” He fumbled casually with his bowstring before fixing his gaze on Zara again, narrowing his eyes. He seemed particularly disgusted with the poppies Zara had braided into his locs. 

Zara ignored the man’s aloof manner and simply nodded in agreement. “In that case, let’s have a bit more fun with it, yeah?” He nodded to Volt, who cocked an eyebrow curiously before grinning and running off towards their wagon. The Restan eyed the woman with interest before she disappeared. Zara continued to study the man, noting his reaction to Volt. The woman emerged a few moments later, carrying a bushel of apples. Zara grinned approvingly as she approached him, giving the Restan man a coy glance. The tall Midanian reached into the bushel and pulled out one of the apples before leaning in towards Volt and kissing her on the cheek before covertly whispering something in her ear. A subtle smile curled her lips as she backed away. “Ready?” Zara asked the Restan man with a playful smirk, tossing the apple between his hands.

The man returned Zara’s smirk haughtily and raised his polished bow. “When you’re ready, Sir,” he replied. 

Zara pulled his arm back and tossed the apple high into the air. His eyebrows perked as it disappeared with a crunch, the arrow taking it out as it peaked. “Nice one!” Volt cheered and whooped loudly for the Restan, giggling and prompting the first genuine smile from the man. She tossed him an apple, and he looked to Zara. Zara nodded.

Zara raised his bow as he followed the apple’s path through the air. He pinpointed it, and moved his arrow a hair’s width to the left. His arrow grazed the side of the apple, prompting a groan from the crowd. “Damn!” he swore, snapping his fingers. “Guess I’m a bit more out o' practice than I thought!”

The Restan man snickered. “Too bad. I suppose fending for oneself is no substitute for proper training.”

“I guess not! Better luck next time, Zara!” Volt called to him with a vacuous tilt of her head. She giggled and stood up, filling a tankard of mead and taking it to the Restan man with a smile on her face. Zara eyed the pair and set down his bow and quiver, doing his best to look dejected as the crowd began to disperse. He shot a covert smirk and wink to Volt when he was sure the Restan’s back was turned. 

***

Volt grinned as she drove their wagon through the darkness, the trees thickening around them as they followed the road north.

“He’s tied up nice and tight, yeah?” Zara asked with a laugh as the air whipped against his face. 

“You know I’m good at knots!” Volt replied. “And anyway, he’s out cold. Prolly will be till we get him back to Resta!”

Zara sighed and leaned back, smiling as he ran his fingers over the finely-crafted bow the Restan man had been shooting with a few hours earlier. “Damn, this is a nice piece. That dick don’t deserve it. Guess that’s one o’ the reasons we do this, though,” he mused, spotting a small line of engraved text on the weapon. “Esia,” he whispered. His eyebrows perked.

“Keep it!” Volt called over to him with a smile as her braids whipped behind her. “It’s just a little bit o’ justice, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Zara sighed soulfully as he gazed down at the item for a few more moments before pulling his gaze up towards the night sky.

Volt sighed, her own smile fading as she spoke with an uncharacteristically serious tone. “At least he won’t be able to hurt no one else anymore. I hope the spellwarriors don’t find out, but it kinda seems like those ladies have done this sorta thing before. At least, I hope so.” She slowed the wagon down as she started to catch a chill. “Karatal can be rough.”

Zara stowed the bow in his pack before folding a blanket behind his head as he continued to stargaze.“Yeah, but you’re right though. They seem like they know what’s up.” 

***

An arrow whirred towards a target and pierced it dead through the center as a few sunbeams poked through the grey sky over Midania. 

“Ooh! Nice shot!” Volt called with a whoop as the sable-haired woman lowered the bow with a surprised smile.

“You’ll have to thank that funny Midanian for me,” she replied as she lifted the bow and ran her fingers over the delicate spirals that were carved into the ruddy wood. “This is a nice item. Not surprising, since it came off that blonde bastard. Shame he couldn’t use all that money to buy a damn conscience, though.”

Volt snickered as she leaned against one of the pillars holding up the rickety building behind her. “Well, he doesn’t need neither where he is now. As for the bow, Zara seems to think it’s rare or something.”

“Well, we’ll be careful,” the woman replied, raising an eyebrow. “We always are.”