Sarema

Shalasia's second-largest city and its most important western seaport lies on the mouth of the river Sharna, right on the border with Espava. (See regional map) While Sarema lies entirely south of the Sharna, its influence extends throughout the local region, to the extent that its much smaller Espavan neighbor across the river, officially known as Dezin, is often referred to colloquially as "North Sarema." Like Shalaton itself, Sarema consists of often-lavish stone structures clustered mostly along the river and coast, surrounded by a sea of temporary structures (mostly pavillions and tents) and the whole serves as a center of trade between Shalasia and the sea -- the sea in this case being the Great Ocean itself.

Population: More than 70,000 permanent residents, with some estimates exceeding 200,000. As in the case of Shalaton, "temporary" residents, including full encampments of desert nomad tribes, put the real population somewhere over 300,000. While Sarema is an overwhelmingly human city, the goblinoid and beastman populations are significantly higher than Shalaton's, even though the city is somewhat smaller overall. Moreover, while dwarven and elven merchants do pass through, they have formed no permanent communities (even by the tent city's loose standards of "permanence") of any significant size.

Government: Most of Sarema and its immediate environs are ruled by the powerful Pasha Masalles, though national Shalasian law holds a heavy influence, with many laws passed that in effect apply to the city of Sarema alone. As in Shalaton itself however, some of the city's powerful merchant organizations carry enormous influence with the local (and to an extent even the national) government. Moreover, many Pashas of western Shalasia own palatial homes and estates in and around the city which are officially regarded as lands under their own authority.

National Affiliation: The Imperial Sultanate of Shalasia

Chief Exports: Crafted goods of all varieties, from pottery to furniture to jewelry and swords -- in fact however, this might be extended to /all/ goods of all varieties, as this center of trade is likely to have anything and everything imaginable available for sale, passing into, out of, or through town from somewhere.


History

While habitations along the banks of the river Sharna are probably among the earliest human settlements in the Broken Sea region, and in one form or another have existed continually ever since, and coastal trade made the river mouth an important local population center before the development of writing, the city of Sarema in its present form is little more than a thousand years old, when it became in effect the capital of the de-facto state of West Shalasia following the sack of Aphera and the capital's relocation to Shalaton (then called Ge'ar Sultanri). The Al-Samir revolution that reshaped Shalasia's political landscape nearly four hundred years ago began here among the Pashas of the west whose seats of power lay in and around Sarema.


Important Landmarks (extremely incomplete list)

Fort Dezin: Though it lies on the north bank of the Sharna's mouth, in Espava, and in fact houses a significant detachment of the Espavan armed forces, most people regard the local Espavan fortress and the surrounding city of Dezin as simply the "Espavan side" of the greater city of Sarema. Dezin itself is colloquially known as North Sarema, and its population consists mostly of merchants whose livlihood lies in trade (openly in time of peace, secretly as smugglers when legitimate trade is forbidden) between Espava and Shalasia; those who serve or prey upon them; and Shalasians fleeing justice, creditors, or revenge on the far side of the river. Indeed, it is an open secret that many among the troops of Fort Dezin itself clandestinely cross the river to Sarema proper when on leave.

Hall of Assembly: A wide stone structure with an enormous golden dome, lying near the center of Sarema's permanent core (but naturally far northwest of the geographic center of the city if the vast tent city is included) officially resides within the jurisdiction of no single Pasha, answering only the laws of the Sultanate. It is here that the various Pashas with interests in the city meet on neutral ground to form policies and alliances, air and resolve their disputes, and mete out justice when required. The building itself is several hundred years old, and served its present function for all the Pashas of the west for centuries, surrounding the Al-Samir revolution -- which itself was (arguably) born and (certainly) nurtured within these walls.

Ocean Harbor: The vast natural harbor created by the bay of Sarema is supplemented by an enormous man-made breakwater, sheltering shipyards and docks second only to those of Shalaton itself. The harbor here is perhaps more cosmopolitan even than the capital's, receiving most of Shalasia's trade from the west, the north as far as Eastport, and even the far east.

Palace of Masalles: The sprawling wings and many-fountained gardens of the chief Pasha of Sarema rival even the Sultan's in Shalaton in many respects. Though far less extensive than the Imperial Palace grounds, which serve a far more varied purpose, and not nearly so ancient -- even the oldest structures here have stood for only a few hundred years -- its lofty spires and sheer extravagance seem calculated to inspire envy even in a Sultan or a king.

Rafesh Castle: The symbol (and active military projection) of the Imperial Sultan's might in Sarema is the enormous stone fortress whose walls stretch hundreds of meters along the river Sharna and out along the coast, sheltering the local naval yard. One could well imagine that nothing could escape the castle's countless ever-vigilant eyes, were one not aware of the smuggling of goods and people across the river that has occurred perpetually, in war and peace, for hundreds of years at least.

River Docks: Several kilometers upriver of the Sharna's mouth, lofty stone buildings begin to give way to shabbier structures and sometimes-makeshift piers where riverboats and ferries are constantly putting in and out, on journeys upriver or across to Dezin. Many wealthy merchants and Pashas have their own, usually better-kept docks and piers connected to their own homes and estates further down the river, but nowhere are they as crowded or as heavily used as here. The region of the city near the actual harbor is as rowdy as might be expected of any district dominated by sailor-choked docks, but those docks seem downright geneteel in comparison with the river docks upstream.

Temple District: While some individual Pashas have shrines erected to specific members of the pantheon -- some of them even lavish in the extreme -- the primary center of worship in the city is the official Temple District mandated by Pasha Masalles. While the temple to Athoth overshadows all others present, and several faiths have no visible presence in the district (given the nature of the faiths in question, whether their temples are absent or cleverly hidden must be in some doubt) the city deals with them in an essentially egalitarian fashion, and manages to keep the peace between them admirably well. Even the local temple to Isiyes was not significantly ravaged following the outlaw of its religion in Shalasia, though this may have resulted in no small part from Sarema's distance from the capital and the opportunity it gave the faithful to secure the temple and protect or remove its more movable valuables ahead of more general rumor. Since the worship of Isiyes became permissible in Shalasia again, at least to those who acknowledge her subservience to Athoth, the temple has even been reopened, though the worship service has necessarily changed.

Tent City: Like Shalaton's, the great majority of Sarema's people live, work, or do business in a vast, ever-changing city of tents and pavillions that extend far beyond the river and coast toward the desert. Most of the people here are desert nomads who come to trade through the city with the outside world, as well of course as those who seek to do business with them, or who simply lack the resources to live or work in the heart of the city, and criminals out to prey on nomads or other likely victims. As in Shalaton, while the vast majority of the city's wealth is concentrated along the river and docks, and most of its goods do pass through there, the actual business of trade mostly happens in the vast open markets of the tent city.

Shalaton

The capital city of Shalasia lies at the mouth of the river Lesh, just north of the vast Shalasa desert, on the coast just west of the large island of East Shalasia. (See regional map) Like the rest of the country's "mainland" of course, Shalaton in fact lies on the separated subcontinent that divides the Broken Sea from the Great Ocean between the Anvil and Channel Straits. The city of Shalaton itself is a vast, sprawling center of trade and commerce, its large and numerous stone buildings clustered around the river and harbor, but surrounded by endless-seeming fields of tents and pavillions in every landward direction -- even into the desert itself. Shalaton is always loud with the cries of tradesmen in daylight, and often well into the night. It is truly a city that never sleeps: Even in the wee hours of the morning, its perpetual flow of commerce and intrigue only shifts to a quieter tone and more secretive -- often more dangerous -- activity.

Population: At least 100,000 permanent residents, with some estimates exceeding 300,000. If travelers, merchants, and other visitors -- consisting in large part of desert nomad tribes who set up temporary encampents around the city, sometimes for months at a time -- bring the real total population of the city at any moment above 500,000. While the vast majority of the city's population is human, a small percentage -- but nevertheless an enormous number, particularly in the more squalid districts -- have some degree of goblin blood, and the city even tolerates a few beastmen of different varieties, at least in its most miserable areas, or as slaves. Some number of dwarven and elven merchants are usually also present, including a very small number (at least in proportion to the enormous overall population) who have settled down permanently ... and according to Berlokh, there is even a population of resident Sheltzin.

Government: The city of Shalaton is divided with its surrounding lands into a number of fiefdoms controlled by important Pashas attached to the Court of Shalasia. Local laws are established in different districts of the city by these individual lords, but all are ultrimately subject to the Sultan of Shalaton, whose presence in the palace makes itself felt across the entire city.

National Affiliation: The Imperial Sultanate of Shalasia

Chief Exports: Textiles, artwork, pottery, and iron implements and weapons, as well as refurbished, refashioned, or merely re-priced versions of the city's innumerable imports.


History

The river Lesh has been inhabited along most of its length since prehistoric times, and the river mouth has been an important port apparently since the first oceangoing ships were built on the Broken Sea. The city of Amfah-Lesh grew up there as nomads from the desert, farmers from the floodplains, and miners from the mountains came together with traders from the seas to exchange their goods. It has been the center of Shalasian government since the sack of Aphera over a thousand years ago, when the present Palace of the Sultan was built and the city of Amfah-Lesh was re-named Ge'ar-Sultanri. Its name was changed again almost four hundred years ago, following the Al-Samir revolution, to Shalaton -- the name it retains today.


Important Landmarks (extremely incomplete list)

Basilica of the Sultanate: The largest and most lavish temple to Athoth outside of Havandia -- or, according to some observers, in the entire world -- is the massive, ornate Basilica in central Shalaton. Its diamond-hearted Sun Tower and marble fountains are famed from Hei-Setesh to Illenia, and though the Eminence of Shalaton is officially the presiding priest, the Basilica is often addressed by Pasha Richella himself on important occasions. Whenever a service is in progress, the interior of the Basilica is filled with rank upon rank of the wealthy and powerful among the city's elite, while commoners throng in the enormous courtyard.

Fallen Church of Isiyes: Not far from the Palace and the Basilica lies the still-intact structure of an enormous church, much vandalized but virtually untouched by the ravages of time. This is because the ravages of time haven't yet been given much opportunity: The Church of Isiyes was a vibrant place of worship until its faith was outlawed in Shalasia following the recent Fall of Isiyes. Most or all of the vandalism -- including the theft of all its relics and ornaments and the destruction or defacement of most of its symbols of worship -- took place within the three months (much indeed within the first few days) through which the ban lasted, before it was lifted for those who acknowledged the subservience of Isiyes to Athoth. No attempt has been made however to restore the church since then; worshipers of Isiyes in Shalaton now perform their devotions in a lesser annex to the Basilica of the Sultanate, and no one else has seen fit to move into their former church. Improbable rumors about the place -- hidden treasure known only to the former high priest, hauntings, and the rest of the usual run of nonsense associated with abandoned buildings -- are already current in certain quarters, and the ruin's steeple is still adorned by the skull of the last high priest of Isiyes, its bone long since stripped clean by carrion birds.

Grand Shipyard: Though all its wood is imported -- from countless nations around the sea -- the Grand Shipyard of the Sultanate is reputedly the greatest (and certainly the oldest and most extensive) ship-building and repair facility in the known world. The Shalsian government Naval Yard lies across the mouth of the river Lesh from the extensive Palace grounds, but is small in comparison with the vast merchant yards stretching out beyond, toward the city docks. The quality and number (or even existence) of drydocks among the slipways and construction yards noticably declines with distance from the Naval Yard, and the regular city docks, beyond the far end of the Grand Shipyard, include some of the most squalid neighborhoods in all of Shalaton (so long as certain portions of the Tent City are excluded) -- but a few wealthy merchants do see to it that certain neighborhoods around their private docks are well-policed and largely free of both drunken sailors and those who like to prey upon them.

Offices of The Day: A large stone building -- in fact a converted warehouse -- that backs on the river Lesh in east-central Shalaton now houses the staff, equipment, records, and secrets of The Day, the only daily newspaper known to Black Steel personnel, and the paper with the widest circulation. The means by which the paper is produced -- an endless-seeming quantity of identical scrolls -- is something of a mystery, though not perhaps unique: Thorm Casati reports that the Dwarves of Korv appear capable of producing books in similarly inexhaustible-seeming quantitites. The Day brings in news from all around the city, and even from distant lands, through a network of specialized researchers and reporters, and disseminates it at absurdly low prices -- barely more than the cost of parchment and ink -- across the city.

Palace of the Sultan: The ever-expanding palace complex of the Sultan of Shalaton includes grounds that extend far along the south bank of the river Lesh from its mouth, and well along the coast to the south. The central Hall and Court have remained essentially unchanged since their construction more than a millenium ago, but its wings and towers have been expanded, and outbuildings added and extended, over the centuries. At present, the palace complex includes not only the home and court of the Sultan, but those of several important Pashas, a number of embassies, including Black Steel's, and separate theaters and dining houses, as well as extensive and carefully-husbanded gardens.

Solo's: While it wouldn't (yet?) make most travelers' lists of important city landmarks, Solo's Restaurant is developing a reputation with the wealthy citizens of the city, and it is naturally important to Black Steel since it is owned and operated by a member of the Black Steel cabinet. Solo's is famous for its unusual layout and entertainment, but more especially for its fare, which includes authentic Grat'han dishes and ice-cold beverages and desserts (thanks to the cold-storage chamber maintained by Theril's sorcery).

Tent City: While Black Steel's activities have mostly occurred within the "permanent" core of the city, consisting mostly of stone buildings concentrated around the coastline and the river Lesh, the majority of Shalaton's real population lives (or at least temporarily stays) and works or trades in the tents and pavillions that perpetually cover the fields and sands surrounding the city proper. Many of these residents are desert nomads passing through and stopping to trade, but they also include numerous merchants who particularly seek business with the nomads in their own style, and large numbers of people who simply can't afford permanent housing. The vast majority of the city's business is actually transacted in the Tent City, in temporary bazaars and open markets, though most of the goods bought and sold here pass through the permanent sections of the city in one form or another as it travels to or from ships ... and much of the wealth from these transactions winds up lining the pockets of merchants who live in the better neighborhoods there. Of course, the Tent City is also the region most frequented by the city's numberless, oft-thriving /illegal/ "businesses."

Villa District: Many of the powerful merchants and minor Shalasian nobles who make Shalaton their home live in the various stone villas and mansions, mingled with parks, shrines, museums, and certain highly-specialized businesses that discreetly cater to such whims as the wealthy people of Shalaton wish to follow close to -- but not within -- their homes.

Religions and Faith

Most religions known to Black Steel personnel revolve around the worship and propitiation of members of an ancient pantheon. Mythologies differ from one church to another, but most assert a kinship between the various powers of the pantheon, and that the sentient beings of the world are descended from certain of its members (usually Thesmos and Woen in the role of mother and father). There are significant exceptions to all of this however; Black Steel personnel know of no myths that deal with the creation of dragons or of dwarves, and there exist known religions with their own theologies, mythologies, or both, that have little or nothing to do with the world's dominant pantheon.

The very existence of a "dominant pantheon" is a matter of some debate, and based mainly on the similarities between certain world faiths. For instance, the worship of Great Mother on the Grat'han coastal plains is so similar to that of Thesmos (so named the Eastport trade language is dominant) that some Grat'han tribes have come to call their Great Spirits by pantheonic names. Nevertheless, the overlap in mythology and ceremony from place to place is by no means complete. Many of the rituals used to call upon "miraculous" sorcerous intervention bear striking similarities to one another between worshipers of pantheon members with similar realms of influence but different names, but these similarities might be the result of the method by which the sorcerous effects in question propogate between the sorcerous and natural worlds rather than because the entities being worshiped are the same; some believe that, far from being the same set of entities worshiped differently across numerous cultures, the members of the pantheon do not exist at all, but are rather inventions of the human imagination to make as-yet little-understood forces in the sorcerous world seem comprehensible and familiar to the human mind. This theory, and a numbr of others that assume a separate object of worship exists for each of the many seeming-similar religions across the world, may be supported by the many mythological differences between similar religions in different regions, the varying names of the members of the pantheon, and their differing roles; for instance, many Grat'han religions feature aspects of animism or ancestor worship not normally associated with the pantheonic religions, and one of the major figures in the most common Grat'han pantheon is War Spirit, a figure who appears to combine aspects of the roles of Darzien, Matorath, Vamakhel, Varekh, and perhaps Sylthos, none of whom have a separate analog in these Grat'han spirit faiths.

Responses among those who believe in a literal, extant pantheon vary; some believe that members of the pantheon accept worship under any name, so long as it is done properly and with true heart, and therefore that (for instance) Darzien might accept prayers offered to War Spirit so long as they are of a kind appropriate to him. Others argue that the battle within the pantheon for ever-greater realms is being played out among their worshipers, such that (for instance) Matorath, under the name of War Spirit, might through some of his Grat'han worshipers be seeking to extend his realm deeper into what is presently Darzien's. Still other scholars are of the opinon that the members of the pantheon, though real, are not able to attend to every mortal prayer or even every congregation of mortal worshipers, and as such have worked upon the landsape of the sorcerous world so as to cause it to create "spells" in response to proper mental and ritual action closely associated with their worship. At all events, whether because of the similarities between their rituals and codes of behavior, because they are in fact worshiping the same literal being, or for some other reason entirely, most worshipers of the pantheon best known along the Fire Coast accept other, similar figures from the Broken Sea region, Grat'ha, and elsewhere, including goblinoid and elven pantheons, essentially as different aspects of or approaches to their own, a feeling that appears to be reciprocated, though it rarely does much to ease strife between the worshipers of the various "aspects" when it exists; disagreements over the "right way" to worship can grow as heated and as dangerous as those over who or what most deserves worship in the first place.

It is important to note that the mythology of the pantheon is ongoing; hatred or alliance between two powers (naturally reflected in their churches -- or resulting from changes in their churches' relationships, depending on what you believe about the pantheon as a whole) changes in the course of their present and continuing struggle for importance and strength, and myths of the acts of various members of the pantheon continue to be made in the present day, often with wide-reaching consequences (or causes, as the case may be). The most recent major example is the Fall of Isiyes, when Isiyes, through her church, demanded the worship of all the wizards of the world, and was virtually destroyed in consequence (as reflected in the collapse of her church hierarchy, the dispersal of her followers, and the deaths or broken faiths of her most influential priests). The battle waged over the fate of sorcery in the world, little known to most humans, changed the landscape of the sorcerous world drastically, with effects that are still propogating through that world, only now calming and settling, with significant consequences for both wizardry and ritual magic. Whether the Fall of Isiyes was a battle between immortal beings aided by mortals on every side (Aveyn and Athoth are said to have thwarted Isiyes according to some myths, with Athoth finally accepting the service of Isiyes in exchange for preserving her existence) or whether it was in effect a power play by an entirely mortal church that overestimated its own capabilities and collapsed in consequence, it was a battle involving enormous sorcerous power, and in spite of its recent occurence, it is already growing difficult to separate its literal history from the tricks and deceptions of the various sides and its growing halo of myth.

Other Religions
Apart from primitive animism, ancestor worship, and personality cults, any of which can sometimes associate themselves with pantheonic worship in any case, few religions are known to Black Steel personnel that do not fit in one fashion or another into the pantheon with which most of them grew up, but this may be a reflection on the amorphous nature of that pantheon and its apparent willingness to accept "variations" on its own faiths rather than any lack of religious diversity. Moreover, there are important exceptions to the general rule.

The Serpent Cult of Grat'ha
Though little is presently known about it, Black Steel personnel have recently encountered a religion deep in Grat'ha that appears (or is claimed) to predate the worship of the Great Spirits, built around the worship of gods who visit or live within the natural world in corporeal form, usually as some variety of serpent or part-serpent-part-human entity. Different classes of serpent gods apparently have specialized roles within their unique pantheon and in the lives of their followers totally unlike the pantheon described above, and theirs appears to have a much more definite hierarchy, with all the gods answerable to the one "great god Kenalthryn.".

The Faith of Nahl
Though pantheonists attempt to incorporate this faith's existence into their own worldview, sometimes even going so far as to say that Nahl is a part of the pantheon itself, attempts to do so are misguided to the point of hopelessness. The faithful of Nahl in fact do not worship, and do not regard Nahl as an entity -- certainly not as a being within a world, and least of all as a member of a pantheon of like beings. To the faithful, Nahl is that which is beyond all knowing; it is from Nahl that all things arise, and to Nahl that all shall return in the end. The name Nahl itself is to them only a name for that which in truth can be neither named nor comprehended. Much of the ritual and ceremony associated with the faith is drawn from those who "Walk with the Night," a term for those who turn for inspiration and example to the Dark Lady of Night, who in some sense represents Nahl in the same fashion as does the name. The Dark Lady is not herself called Nahl, and does not have a separate name, as she and the rituals associated with her, like the name "Nahl" itself, serve primarily as reminders of Nahl, being neither Nahl themselves nor the objects of worship, service, or attainment. They are in some sense merely symbols through which the faithful may attempt to conceive of that which is beyond conception and beyond any knowable reality.

Atheism
Several of Black Steel's most prominent, powerful, and capable members are avowed atheists, following no religion and believing in no partiular god. They do not necessarily insist that the entities worshipped by the world's various religions do not exist -- the corporeal "serpent gods" of the jungles, for instance, manifestly do -- but believe that none of them are all-powerful, nor deserving of worship, either singularly or in the collective as a pantheon. Upon meeting an entity (such as one of the corporeal serpent gods) who claims divinity, atheists tend to behave as they would toward any other sentient being, albeit a potentially dangerous one -- dangerous because of their power, if only the power of influence over those who worship them, and dangerous because claiming to be a god means to the atheist that the entity in question is one or both of ruthless enough to manipulate other people's heartfelt beliefs, or dangerously insane.

Many religious people in the Black Steel world find it hard to believe that atheists can exist or especially thrive in the face of the miraculous benefits provided to the faithful by their gods. (The faith of Nahl is an exception, as Nahl is not imagined to interfere with the world in any way except to continue to permit its existence and to welcome that which leaves it again; those who "walk with the night" appear to gain advantages having to do with the Dark Lady, but do not regard such advantages as primary to their faith. A tolerant faith in general, the faith of Nahl on the whole is very tolerant of atheists.) In light of this, it is curious to note and perhaps difficult to explain that atheists known to Black Steel seem to thrive, and to have developed capabilities well beyond the usual range of their peers, in spite of lacking the miraculous aid lent to the holy. A religious person would say, "Imagine what Theril could have achieved were she only to have found faith!" but Theril herself might say, upon considering the evidence, that she then might well have achieved less than she has on her own.

Language

Eastport Trade Language
The language with which most Black Steel personnel grew up, represented within the game by English, is regarded and used among the trade empires of the Broken Sea region as a trade pidgin, relating to and sharing words with many other languages in the region and abroad. Almost all humans in civilized countries known to Black Steel personnel speak this language to at least a minimal extent, especially to the extent they deal with trade and other matters of foreign exchange, and most sentient beings who deal in any way with humans do so in this tongue as well. Proficiency with the language varies widely from place to place and from person to person, and differing dialects can sometimes make communication challenging, but most people are able to convey and understand simple and especially commercially relevant ideas in this tongue, from the high walls of Illenia in the north to the palaces of Havandia in the south, from the university of Athelenia in the distant west to wild desert plains of the Teigarant Freelands in the east, and perhaps beyond.

Though little regarded as a "high language" by some in the more distant reaches of the world known to Black Steel, this "trade pidgin" is in fact a rich and complex language, sufficient in breadth of expression not only for commercial purposes, but to serve as the default language of international diplomacy. It is the first language of most coastal towns and provinces up and down the Fire Coast, where most Black Steel personnel were born, and also of Eastport itself, perhaps the single most important trade city in the known world. Moreover, in the course of their research, Theril, Dargon, and Quix have found documents supposed to be many hundreds of years old, in countries separated by thousands of miles, written in a language that appears to be an archaic form of the very "trade pidgin" they speak. The origins and history of this language have not been explored in any depth by Black Steel personnel, but if Dargon's theories are correct, it could shed light on the cultural history of the entire known world.

Grat'han
Another surprisingly widespread language is shared by the many tribes of Grat'ha; though dialects have diverged significantly in some cases, virtually all human inhabitants of the known jungles speak variations of the same basic language. The similarities are strong enough that members of different tribes separated by hundreds of miles of dense jungle can usually make themselves understood to one another if members are introduced. Grat'han tribes tend to be heavily steeped in ancient traditions, and this likely affects their language as well as the rest of their culture, but Theril would nonetheless estimate that the languages of distant tribes have only been diverging for a few hundred years at most. Another possibility is that widespread language vectors are keeping distant tribes in relatively close communication and therefore limiting language drift, but no candidates for this role have as yet been found. Llaesira's Grat'han trade network might qualify, depending on its extent, but according to observations by Herring, Theril, and Telaeri, as well as Llaesira's testimony, the network arrived in the northern reaches of the jungle best known to Black Steel too recently to have been a factor there. Recent discussions with Llaesira and especially Dotrum however have suggested to Theril that there really might have been a universal Grat'han language and culture just a few centuries in the past, based perhaps upon worship of (and intervention by) the serpent-like jungle gods whom Dotrum worships.

Other Human Language Groups
In addition to the language with which Daryan and Osiavia were raised, purportedly spoken in the extreme east, far across the northern sea, any number of local languages and dialects are known to various Black Steel personnel, including various traditional languages used by people who dwell inland from the Fire Coast, and several western language groups encountered by Dargon and Quix in their recent travels. Various dialects of Sheradi language spoken along the peninsula are also known, some of which are eccentric enough to be incomprehensible even to those who grew up with the language in less isolated regions such as the Itheshian Confederacy (these languages also bear some resemblance to that which is grudgingly shared by Ephinos and Rhedas). Naturally, the native languages of the most powerful trade nations in the region have impacted local dialects of the trade language considerably, so that people who have traded long in the area are usually able to communicate with bits and pieces of Espaish in rural Espava; Shalasian inland across the Shalasa desert, especially among its nomads and bandits, and even Old Havandian in the high courts of Virhas and on the wide plains between jungle and sea. More opaque to the average merchant are the deep, guttural language of Korv, in which Thorm Casati alone of Black Steel personnel is fluent, and the various dialects of Teigaric spoken in the eastern deserts and arid plains. Korvan in particular appears to share less in common with local dialects of the trade language than with the language of the nation's non-human sentient population.

Other Races' and Non-Human Language
With the magic inherent in their genetic make-up, which can allow for relatively convenient long-distance communication, and their long generations, which tends to slow linguistic drift, it should come as no surprise that the elven peoples known to Black Steel have far less diversity of languages than their more numerous human counterparts. The various dialects spoken by woodland elves encountered in the Grat'han jungles, the tropical forests of Scabbard Isle, and throughout Tornbring Vale, are closely related to each other, to those of the elves among whom Theril lived some of the earliest years of her life near the Fire Coast, and even to the native language of Black Steel's single resident moonlight elf, from somewhere in the distant northwest. The shadow elves of course have been (according to most histories) separated from the rest of their race for many thousands of years, but even their language, at least as spoken in Night Harbor, is reminiscent enough of their distant cousins' tongues to invite inevitable comparisons (though typically not comprehension). Goblinoid languages, by contrast, are wildly divergent, to the point where two tribes living within a dozen miles of each other might not be able to understand each other's tongue at all. The various types of beastmen known to members of Black Steel, with their differing vocal apparatuses, have if possible even greater difficulty in understanding one another. To the extent that goblinoids and beastmen interact with humans at all, the prevailing human language in the region, or a dialect of the Eastport trade language, is almost always used for the purpose. Very often, these are even the languages used for negotiations between tribes of goblinoids or beastmen, when such negotiations are held at all.

Other sentient species' languages are little known to Black Steel, as few have heard them spoken except on rare occasion. Those dwarves, dragons, nethygi, and the like who have spoken with Black Steel members at all have almost always done so in human languages, speaking too few words in their own tongues for any assessment to be made about those languages -- certainly not about their distribution among those creatures' societies. The same might be said as well of the serpent language of Grat'ha, only recently encountered, mostly in rituals associated with the jungle gods.

Grat'han Language

We haven't yet described the Grat'han language in detail, but I figured I might as well post what little we have in a nice central location (i.e. here) to keep things semi-consistent. Note that ambiguity, homophones, and synonyms do muddy the waters (e.g. make it possible for us to sort of ignore this when it makes for good names and/or storytelling) but I kind of like having this around for reference.
In general, the Grat'han language is rich in sound and texture, with a non-universal tendency toward multisyllabic compound words, and toward hard consonants in male names and soft consonants in female ones. A simple "dictionary" follows -- these words are significant only in the sense that they happen to have come up in the course of the game.

English - Grat'han:

black = Thah

both (prefix to certain compound words consisting of two nouns) = T (T' when preceding a hard consonant)

bud (a plant's shoot) = Neyl

dance = Ahren

dew(drops) = Nisin

dusk jay (a kind of Grat'han bird) = Rovaru

entry = Thestrin

feather = Lacreth

fire = Reyla (sometimes spelled Reila)

gift = Felis

green = Leth

home = Mona

laughter = Alimna

point = Krendas

river = Alua

sun = Narra

tide = Arten

treasure = Anyoth

water = Sefi

weapon = Volk

Grat'han - English:

Ahren = dance

Alimna = laughter

Alua = river

Anyoth = treasure

Arten = tide

Ato = Living (things)

Felis = gift

Krendas = point

Lacreth = feather

Lamna = Searching

Leth = green

Mona = home

Narra = sun

Neyl = bud (a plant's shoot)

Nisin = dew(drops)

Reyla or Reila = fire

Rovaru = dusk jay (a kind of Grat'han bird)

Sefi = water

T or T' (prefix to certain compound words consisting of two nouns) = both

Thah = black

Thestrin = entry

Volk = weapon

Annual Calendar

The calendar used along the Fire Coast, from which most of Black Steel's founding personnel originate, is similar in principle (but not in detail) to those used by the peoples of Tolkien's Middle Earth, having 12 months of 30 days each, and five days that exist outside of any month, with an additional one for leap years. Within the Broken Sea region, this calendar (with slight variation) is the primary one used in Black Steel lands, Arasta, Ephinos, Espava, Korv, Rhedas, and the Sheradi provinces, and is recognized in Shalasia, Itheshia, Tornbring Vale, and Kolmarch. Havandia, the Sankel Badlands, the Teigarant Freelands, and the Grat'han Trade Network use lunar calendars primarily, whose details will not be described here; Korv and Kolmarch also use a Dwarven calendar the details of whose very basis is beyond the scope of this article.

Feast of the Sun's Return - The first day of the calendar year always follows the longest night of winter. It is traditionally a time of celebration in the north, where the seasons are more keenly felt. In the tropical lattitudes of Grat'ha, where the year is divided into the rainy season and dry season, this festival has little meaning; the sun never went anywhere.

Teimary - Roughly corresponding to January (but starting several days earlier), Teimary falls in the middle of the northern winter, and of the north-Grat'han dry season.

Karaban - Likewise corresponds approximately to February.

Tempest - Closest to our March, Tempest is famous for its high winds in the north, but its name is more than a little misleading in the Broken Sea region, as the Rat Pack is fond of pointing out.

Festival of Life Renewed - Generally corresponding to the Vernal Equinox, this day falls near the end of the north-Grat'han dry season, where it is celebrated by many as a last sure chance to enjoy good weather before the rains come.

Shelin - Analogous to April.

Leva - One of the most delightful months on the Fire Coast, May-like Leva marks the beginning of the north-Grat'han rainy season.

Su - Corresponds roughly to June.

Midsummer Day - The summer solstice, celebrated raucously in the north, a tradition which Telaeri has tried to bring to The Scabbard, where unfortunately it usually needs to be celebrated indoors. On leap years, (roughly one year in four) this festival is divided into the Day of Revels and the Leave-Taking (of the sun), surrounding Midsummer Night.

Zerian - July-like weather means oppressive heat, and in the case of northern Grat'ha, even more oppresive humidity and rain.

Argolan - Like August, Argolan carries weather every bit as bad as Zerian's, and often worse.

Nifoper - Similar to September.

Feast of the Harvest - Another festival whose name is more or less meaningless in the region of Grat'ha, this one falls on or near the Autumn Equinox.

Afor - The end of the north-Grat'han rainy season usually falls in the month that corresponds to our October.

Day of the Veil (between living and dead) - Corresponding more or less to America's Halloween, this is a day of remembrance and preparation for the coming winter in northern climes. At The Scabbard, it has become a massive all-day and all-night celebration, fueled in part by the fact that the rainy season comes to an end right around this time.

Noaver - Similar to November, this month is usually the first of the dry season.

Acar - The final month of the year corresponds roughly to December.

Advanced Black Steel Spellweaves

These are the most powerful spellweaves known to Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix, and among the most powerful known even to Theril. These reflect the same types of changes mentioned under "Basic Spellweaves" in a previous post. Again, note that these are very basic descriptions; the specific extent and limitations of these spells, even when woven in their normal forms, are rather more complicated.

Bane: Bane allows the caster to invent and speak a simple, single-sentence prophecy directly pertaining to the victim of this spell; if the victim fails to resist, then to the extent it lies within the power of this spell to arrange it, the prophecy will come true. The prophecy must be of intrinsic and obvious harm to the victim, and may be made continuous or conditional (e.g. "You will stink of death forever," or "If ever you look upon the House of Renin in Calasta, your hair and nails will all fall out, never to regrow!" or "Whenever you do battle with a Knight of Illenia, your right arm will weaken and fail you!") as the caster wishes.

Curtain of Flame: This is the spell that Nimlo eventually used to ensure that the "Holy Grat'han Bandits" remained trapped in their cave, raising a thin sheet of completely opaque, blazing fire that holds back creatures and flying projectiles alike with its thermal currents and constant waves of searing heat, needing no fuel of its own except for the caster's attention as he continually weaves it into being, but setting anything that comes too close aflame.

Displaced Perception: One of the options Theril considered for surveillance of Thaqz's team, this spell allows the caster to see, hear, smell, and (to a limited extent) even touch and taste objects within a few dozen meters as if standing right on top of them without actually coming near.

Dragon's Roar: Apparently as a curiosity, Dargon and Quix's draconic tutor taught them a spell that allows them to briefly duplicate the full effect of a dragon's roar, a sound audible for miles around that can shatter glass and ceramics close by, and deafen, flatten, or even kill living creatures who stand too close.

Driving Hail: Somewhat more subtle than the likes of Firecast and Thunderbolt, Driving Hail fills a ground-level area of limited size but any simple shape the caster desires, forcing anyone and everything within away with gusts of icy wind and driving hailstones. It can be released in such a way that it lasts for two hours, doing slow but steady damage throughout that period to everything that tries to pass, or concentrated into a shorter time, dealing much less potential total damage to someone or something that fights its way in and insists on remaining inside, but dealing damage far more quickly to anything trying to enter or pass through the area.

Emancipate: Emancipate can free its subject from virtually any single magical or pseudomagical influence or compulsion, from a simple Bewitch spell to the lure of a siren's song, from the effects of a backfiring attempt at Mind Reading to a Bane spell. If it worked in Tolkien's world, it could even have freed Boromir (at least for a while) from the lure of the One Ring.

Fertile Ground: First developed by the elves of the Grat'han jungles, this is the spell by which (with many castings over the course of several days) Theril was able to transform a handful of thornbush seeds into the vast Hedge that protects Alluarten. Only Theril has mastered all of the uses of this one, but Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix have all learned to use it in its simplest form.

Greater Bewitchment: This is a general-purpose form of the highly specialized Bewitch spell, capable of affecting almost any sentient creature, or several non-sentient creatures at once.

Hallucination: The subject of this spell is wrapped in a powerful multisensory illusion of which no one else is aware. In addition to possibly causing the victim to appear completely insane, this illusion is convincing enough to potentially kill, blind, or otherwise cripple the victim by convincing him completely of the truth of a horrible vision. Beneficial effects are also possible, but the mind is always doing nearly all it can to help itself and the body, and so the margin of possible benefit from convincing the mind of something is much smaller than the margin of possible destruction, so it is used far more often against an enemy than to give aid to a friend. This is the spell that Theril originally learned from Karloc Denobson of the Seven, in exchange for teaching him Theril's Assurance.

Mirage: This powerful variation on Visual Illusions generates large, long-lasting illusions that remain stationary relative to either the center of the spell's effect or the willing creatures they conceal. Though the illusions can not move themselves (within their frames of reference) they can conceal moving objects, like flowing water or moving animals. The spell is broken however when touched by a sentient being.

Permafrost: The spellweave Theril developed to keep the Solo's restaurant icehouse cold has a number of other uses, though they haven't been put into use. The basic effect is to generate a volume of extremely dense, solid ice, in a shape of the caster's design, that powerfully resists melting and breaking of all kinds.

Preemptive Strike: Developed by Pasha Zavalier (who claims it's almost as valuable in the court of Shalasia as in the Grat'han jungles), this spellweave lies dormant for more than a day, or until triggered by an attack on the caster, at which point it reacts with a bright flash of light and repulsive power to knock the attack aside and knock down the would-be attacker. Unlike Force Block, it works only once, but is pretty much foolproof and infallible. Among Black Steel Wizards, only Theril has mastered this one.

Space Jump: One-way, short-range teleportation that can cause its subject to disappear and reappear, even in mid-motion, with extreme precision and without a sound. Its name derives from the fact that its subject appears to jump instantaneously from one point in space to another.

Theril's Assurance: The spellweave Theril developed to keep Black Steel's command network functioning across the breadth of the world sees more use than any other in the Black Steel repertoire. Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix all use this one to keep in touch with one another, Theril, and their far-flung friends ... and Theril still uses it to coordinate and direct all the forces of Black Steel.

Transfiguration: When wizards threaten to turn their misbehaving apprentices into toads, this is the spell they're implying they would use. This is also the spell that Theril used to create Grynne's "costume" for the celebration of last year's "Night of the Veil" ("between living and dead"). Theril, Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix have all also used a less-lasting variant of this spell to transform themselves when they found it convenient.

Zone of Fury: Another variation on bewitchment magic (like Spellbind), this one fills an area with roiling emotion, so that anyone in the area who fails to resist becomes unaccountably incensed with everything he sees, sometimes furiously attacking friends and foes alike, sometimes standing motionless and quivering with helpless rage.

Standard Battle Spellweaves

These are somewhat more advanced spellweaves known to Theril, Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix. Most of these are designed explicitly for military use, though not all are directly applicable to the immediate exigencies of combat. These reflect the same types of changes mentioned under "Basic Spellweaves" below. Again, note that these are very basic descriptions; the specific extent and limitations of these spells, even when woven in their normal forms, are rather more complicated. I did leave out one spell in this class, known only to Theril among Black Steel wizards, because it was a highly specialized spell which she learned for a very specific purpose, and has not been used or mentioned since. If it, or any use for it, ever comes up again, I'll describe it then.

Amphibious Lungs: Originally designed by human wizards to combat undersea enemies, preferably by enchanting a giant ally, this spell allows its subject to breathe oxygenated water (e.g. water in which a fish can "breathe" with its gills) as comfortably as though it were air, for up to 24 hours, without interfering with the subject's ability to breathe air as well. The change affects the subject's reflex system, physiology, and lung structure as well, allowing him to breathe water without reflexively choking, to descend safely into deeps where the pressure would normally crush a human's lungs, and to avoid the bends upon surfacing, no matter how quickly.

Darksight: Another "special forces" spell for wars against inhuman species, this one was designed to give the subject, usually a spy or assassin, the ability to see clearly in starless night or the lightless depths of a cave, without giving himself away by carrying a light source. It was designed with long-term missions in mind, and therefore, like Amphibious Lungs, lasts up to 24 hours.

Directed Deflection: Developed and expanded from the simple Deflection spell, this spell's enhanced effects are made possible by the caster's continuous and direct attention, directing the field of deflecting force himself. Any and all arrows, javelins, spears, crossbow bolts, even rocks of reasonable size -- falling, thrown, or launched from slings -- that the caster can see approaching the subject of this spell are automatically knocked aside unless enabled to get through by enchantments of their own, allowing a great warrior, a giant with a ram, or the caster himself to walk into a storm of arrows unharmed. This spell may last indefinitely, ending only but as soon as the caster's attention to it (and weaving and direction of it) lapses.

Enhance Reflexes: Intended for use upon an army unit in preparation for battle, this spell gives its subject and everyone immediately around him at the time of the spell's release the energy and reflexes of a berzerker so long as they all remain near the central subject (e.g. part of their unit). It does nothing to prevent wounds or exhaustion, but those are matters to be considered after the battle is won. By means of a simple modification to its core in the inital weaving process, the caster can instead prepare a slightly different version of this spell that has the effect of sapping the energy and dulling the reflexes of its target and everyone near him if they fail to resist its power; this version of the spell, usually called "Impede Reflexes," is most often used to weaken the enemy at a critical position, like a castle gate or the crest of a hill, or to soften a key section of the enemy battle line. Though anyone other than its immediate target can escape its effects by leaving the area of its power (even if they immediately return) an army whose men leave an important station at the wrong moment is likely to suffer even more than one that finds the men there suddenly and severely weakened.

Firecast: Finesse and subtlety have their place. The drawing room for instance. On the battlefield, you want /this/ kind of spell. Firecast doesn't act like an explosive bomb or rocket-propelled grenade -- there's no explosion or impact, and there are no fragmentation shards -- but it does fill its target area with blazing, magical fire. The more skilled the caster of the spell, the wider the area, and the hotter the flames.

Flight: How do you get a sniper into a good position over a castle on a bluff? How do you send a swordsmaster after the rider on a hippogriff who's dropping rocks on you from above? How do you place a scout or general to observe every position and direct his whole army on a battlefield three miles across? How do you get a messenger home with a captured artifact when the enemy surrounds you on all sides? Oh, you can find other ways, no doubt, but the best way is usually to fly. Based on the humble Resist Gravity spell, Flight is just a little over-ambitious for its power and spellweave design, and is therefore one of the most unstable spells in a wizard's repertoire, but it works, and if woven correctly is always good for at least an hour. A skilled wizard like Theril can make it last even longer too, and though it /does/ cut out without warning when its weave finally collapses, the final stages of the collapse can be recognized by the caster or anyone else familiar with the spell, as long as they can see its weave working with their sorcerous vision, usually enough to give several minutes of warning.

Group Invisibility: Another spell meant (like Enhance Reflexes) to be worked on a small combat unit, this is ideal for flanking maneuvers, ambushes, and sneak attacks, among other special assignments. It works just like the Invisibility spell, but affects everyone immediately around the subject as well as the subject himself. As with Enhance Reflexes, those under the spell must remain close to the subject (e.g. moving together as an army unit) in order to continue to benefit from the spell.

Protective Aura: The third spell intended for army units, this one is meant to defend one as it escorts the caster himself. Its effects are identical to a simple Protective Charm, but protects the caster's entire immediate vicinity and anyone in that area who treats him as a friend and ally.

Spellbind: When Matrix met Pasha Fokahre for her jungle party, people say he just stood and stared as if spellbound by her beauty. This is the spell to which they're referring. It is heavily based on the Bewitch spell, but so overwhelms its subjects' faculties -- it is most potent against a single target, but may affect several at once -- that they essentially freeze in place, slowing and stopping if in motion when the spell is cast and more or less relaxing while holding roughly the same position they were in when the spell caught them. The subjects can still see and hear, but can't move even their eyes while the spell continues (usually roughly an hour, depending on the caster's skill). It is possible, via a simple change in the weaving process, for the caster to prepare a different version of this spell, usually just called Release, since Spellbinding magics are common enough that Release is primarily used as a means of breaking them. Its true effect however is to ease undue stress and strain on its subject's mental faculties, thereby breaking not only Spellbindings but the temporary power of paralyzing emotion, religious fervor, or even pain, allowing its subject to function normally, at least until something triggers the natural paralyzing effect again. (Thus, a mourner, helpless with grief, might be Released by this spell and go about the business of his own life, only to break down again on seeing something that reminds him too strongly of the deceased.)

Spellbreak: Spellbreak is quick and dirty anti-magic, and its operation is quite straightforward: It sweeps through a wide area, tying tight, blocking knots into every spellweave it can find, preventing them from operating, so that they collapse and cease to function. The spellweaves of especially skilled wizards are resistant to this effect for the same reasons that they tend to be more lasting in the first place: They are typically more compact, better capable of repairing themselves, and better fortified against outside interference. Nonetheless, Spellbreak is such a crude and powerful instrument, even the spells of very powerful wizards rarely escape its effects -- and of course as a wizard becomes more skilled at spellweaving, he can make his Spellbreaks more effective too.

Spinning Stones: Before he and Dargon moved up to Illenia (by way of Night Harbor, which most people would say is going about the thing back end foremost) Quix took regular walks by the stream that runs through the Scabbard, picking up skipping stones to toss across the water. Wizard that he was, he soon got the notion of getting such stones to skip on the air. He's a practical-minded guy though, and the spell he eventually developed, a clever union of Spellstrike and Minor Telekinesis with some ideas of his own, is a quirky but effective combat spell, especially useful for "shooting around corners," as the stones can twist and swerve in flight, and don't require line of sight as long as the targets' locations are known. Upon impact, each Spinning Stone is eradicated by the spell's magic, delivering a shock of pure magical energy to its target. Although greater skill allows wizards to enchant greater numbers of stones (all must be hurled at once, regardless) the only sure way to get the maximum effect is to prepare the number of stones you want and wrap the spell around them just before releasing it. It's therefore of limited effect as a quick reaction spell, but if you've waging a secret war against Black Steel, and you spot Theril approaching, counting smooth river stones into her hand, the time has come to turn around and run.

Thunderbolt: Finesse and subtelety really /are/ terrific, and they really /do/ have their place. Sometimes the time and place for certain other tactics is just a little easier to recognize. Thunderbolt does not call down lightning from the clouds, and does not generate a "bolt from the blue" like a judgment from the gods. The wizard points at the spot where he wants the bolt to start, and forked lightning roars out from there in the same direction the wizard is pointing, generating a thunderclap that can be heard for miles around. A Thunderbolt can blast through wooden doors and walls, set trees afire, and sometimes even shatter stone, and if it strikes something it can't get through, it only multiplies its forks, arcing through the area with greater force than before. This is the spell you use on giants and drakes when the time for subtlety is gone.

Vicarious Vision: Sometimes finesse even has its place in war. Wizards are often repositories of knowledge, and leaders of men -- too valuable and vulernable to be risked in espionage missions or lightning raids, but necessary to their success or in need of such information as they bring as soon as it can be had. Long ago, a great sorcerous general therefore developed the means of going on his spies' most important missions without ever leaving his command post. By casting Vicarious Visions and spending ten minutes with one of his spies, attuning to his vision, he could see the world as though he were looking through the eyes of the spy for nearly two hours. This spell is also useful for learning a creature's motives without the dangers inherent in Mind Reading though; attuning to a creature does not require its permission or knowledge so long as it's close, and the caster can see exactly what that creature looks at, focuses upon, and does in its own view, then return to his own eyes or even move on to someone new.

Weave Read: Though now most often used /after/ a battle to discover the nature of enchantments left behind by the enemy -- or during a secret mission, to learn the nature of sorcerous defenses -- Weave Read was originally developed as a counter-intelligence measure to learn what enchantments might lie upon an ally or informant who had been in enemy territory. Weave Read enhances the wizard's sorcerous vision to reveal intimate details of spellweaves set upon the caster's location or an object in his hands. While this does not grant perfect knowledge of the spell's effects, and certain spells, especially when cast by highly skilled wizards, are capable of deceiving it, Weave Read is in general extremely reliable, especially as the caster grows skilled enough to recognize greater numbers of spells and deceptions. It is also the simplest enhancement to sorcerous vision that is actually superior to what Theril can do naturally.

Simple Utility Spellweaves

These are slightly more advanced general-purpose spellweaves known to Theril, Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix, mostly with primarily peaceful uses. These reflect the same types of changes mentioned under "Basic Spellweaves" below. Again, note that these are very basic descriptions; the specific extent and limitations of these spells, even when woven in their normal forms, are rather more complicated.

Delay: A "nasty little meta-spell" taught to Dargon and Quix by their draconic tutor, this one has a simple effect with extremely complicated consequences; it is cast in anticipation of another wizard (friend or foe) releasing a spell, and holds that spell dormant, if one is cast, for just a few seconds, then releases it normally. Only Dargon and Quix have learned this one thus far.

Enhance Second Sight: Enhances the wizard's sorcerous vision so as to reveal all power sources (and therefore the objects or creatures that generate them, and the natures of those objects and creatures) and spellweaves nearby, whether they are in the wizard's line of view (or visible) or not. This is another spell that seems to fall short of what Theril can do naturally.

Field of Light: Perhaps the most stable and elegant spellweave ever devised, this spell efficiently converts ambient magical energy into light energy, effectively turning everything (including air molecules) within a wide globe into a tiny light source, rendering the entire area as bright as a cartoon day. A simple modification to the weaving process allows the spell to be released in such a way that everything in the area will absorb light instead of emitting it, much like the less-powerful Shadowcast spell; Field of Light (and Field of Darkness) can last indefinitely, so long as it remains in an area with any ambient magical energy.

Ice Lattice: Fills an area with gigantic ice crystals, constantly dissolving and regrowing, trapping and holding any creature caught in the affected zone, that last up to eight hours in typical weather if not destroyed. The ice is formed from sorcerous power and not actual water, and is therefore rather unstable, especially in the presence of extreme heat; it tends to explode and vaporize upon the introduction of flame.

Illusory Visions: May be woven in any number of different ways for different optical effects; the most open-ended allows the wizard to actively design the appearance of the target area into anything desired, though the spell collapses as soon as the wizard ceases to do so. It can also be woven so as to create "hands-off" illusions: It may be woven around a creature or object (or the wizard) to create one or more illusions that imitate the subject exactly while the spell lasts, or it may even woven tightly into a tiny and unmoving but essentially permanent illusion.

Invisibility: Renders its subject -- an object or creature of reasonable size, or part of a larger inanimate object -- completely invisible while the spell lasts. It provides better camouflage than mere transparency -- an invisible creature swimming underwater would not appear as a giant air bubble, for instance -- but does not affect objects or pieces dropped by the subject (e.g. an injured character might leave a trail of blood, and rubble would become visible upon falling from an invisible wall) or anything picked up after the spell takes effect, and is unstable enough to be broken by direct or indirect contact with an animate being, or by any action involving the release of significant physical or sorcerous energy.

Invisible Messenger: Calls a tiny, invisible, more or less mindless being into the world; it will stay only long enough to hear the wizard's instructions, travel to the destination described (up to a few miles away), and repeat a few words or sounds that the wizard instructed it to repeat, in the same voice and intonations used by the wizard.

Magic Bag: This spell enchants the wizard's bag so that anything placed inside it effectively shrinks in weight and volume to a small fraction of its size. This allows tricks like pulling a floor lamp out of a handbag a'la Mary Poppins, but (also a'la Mary Poppins) the more the wizard stuffs into the bag, the more difficult it will be to find anything inside.

Mind Reading: This is the spell Nimlo used back at the old pirate isle to check for possible recruits, test pirates' loyalty, and generally cause massive quantities of mayhem. Notfrank still hasn't lived down Nimlo's claim that, when he called himself Frank, he was thinking with smug pleasure that he had concealed his true identity. This active use is actually a somewhat dangerous application of the spell, not that Nimlo cared in the slightest, as some beings can turn the active version around on the caster, or even expose him to thoughts that could impair his sanity. The spell can also be used passively however, to find the source (and existence) of any active malice being directed toward the wizard in the immediate vicinity.

Personal Levitation: This specialized version of the Resist Gravity spell allows the wizard to drift up and down through the air in spite of gravity, and more or less at will, though slowly. Daryan and Osiavia say that this is a very common spell in the far eastern lands where they were born, but it's still mostly significant as a precursor to Flight.

Personal Seal: An altogether superior version of Time Seal, this spell is extremely stable, and is meant to keep the wizard's most prized personal effects safe from examination or tampering. It lasts indefinitely -- standing dormant whenever the object it enchants is open, only to seal it again as soon as it is closed again -- and allows the wizard to open or close the sealed object without affecting the seal.

Telekinetic Trigger: A modification of Minor Telekinesis and a classic example of the use of sympathetic magic, this spell can activate virtually any simple device, from turning a door's latch and swinging the door open on its hinges, to cinching and buckling a belt, to cocking and firing a siege engine or crossbow.

Vermin: Essentially a cousin of Bewitch, but specialized to attract much simpler creatures that are much easier to compel, this spell attracts huge numbers of small, biting vermin to an area of the wizard's choice nearby.

Wood Haven: Theril learned this spell from the elves in Grat'ha, and has put it to nearly perpetual use ever since. It creates a small secret room inside a tree, though in some cases much larger than the inside of the tree itself, opening a knot in the trunk as the secret room's "door." Only Theril has managed to master this spell so far (well, Theril and Quil...).

Basic Spellweaves

These are the simplest spellweaves known to Theril, Nimlo, Dargon, and Quix, and often the ones on which more powerful, complex spellweaves are at least partly based. These reflect the changes we discussed ages ago (not the abortive ones we rejected recently) that resulted from the fall of Isiyes and the change in the way Black Steel wizards deal with magic; in some cases, of course, the changes are just the spellweaves' names. Finally, note that these are very basic descriptions; the specific extent and limitations of these spells, even when woven in their normal forms, are rather more complicated.

Bewitch: When people claim a friend of an accused witch is "under her spell," this is the spell they mean. Contrary to popular delusion, this spell does not make the victim the caster's slave; it just tricks the victim into trusting and liking the caster, and works best if the caster can maintain the illusion of being likable and trustworthy to him.

Cloak in Shadow: Pasha Zavalier claims to have developed this one while perpetually drunk. It creates a small zone of shifting, flickering shadow, generally around a target creature, who can see into and through the spell's shadows, though their darkness is otherwise impenetrable to human vision. Only Theril knows this one.

Confer: Allows the caster to converse with one or more nearby targets in near-silence; possibly the original basis for Theril's Assurance, but at several removes.

Contribute Power: Boosts the power of a spell being cast by another (willing) wizard (if he is sufficiently skilled to control the boosted spell) but makes the caster of Contribute Power completely vulnerable to the spell thus boosted if it is cast upon him. (The history of this one is even more complicated than the details of how it works...)

Decipher: Allows the caster to see words written in invisible ink or otherwise concealed through chemical or certain kinds of magical trickery, and to correctly interpret magical runes or too-ornate-to-read, sloppy, worn, or otherwise damaged letters, so long as enough remains for the spell to get a grip on their intended form.

Deflection: One of the three basic defensive spells, this one generates a continuous field of force around the caster that attempts to knock attacks aside -- like judo to Force Block's boxing.

Enchanted Runes: Encodes a brief message in runes that can be interpretted only by the caster and a person or group of his choosing, with whom he is intimately acquainted (but also to anyone using the likes of the Decipher spell). Various enchantments can be included in the runes, so that they glow faintly, are invisible except to sorcerous vision, or even seem to burst into flame upon being touched.

Fire Show: Allows the caster to cause flames to dance and leap, glow bright, die down to nothing, or any combination, in any order, while the spell lasts. The effects are mostly visual, used to control the light level in a local area, to impress an audience, or both. Only Quix and Dargon know this one.

Force Block: Another basic defensive spell, and probably the one on which Pasha Zavalier based Preemptive Strike, Force Block lies dormant until someone or something tries to strike its subject, then instantly generates a counter-force to try and push it away. Unlike Preemptive Strike's, the resulting force isn't very powerful, and doesn't reach very far, but it can operate several times for a single casting if not broken down.

Illusory Sounds: Generates noises of the caster's choosing, potentially including speech; the more familiar the caster is with the sounds being made, the more convincing they can be.

Minor Telekinesis: Allows the caster to lift, push, and move things around in his immediate vicinity (or the area where the spell was released) without touching them, by means of mere words, glances, and gestures. The spell isn't capable of fine manipulation, and breaks down if resisted by a living being.

Protective Charm: The third basic defensive spell generates an all-purpose defensive field that (weakly) resists not only attacks on the caster but even magical spells.

Resist Gravity: The simplest artificial force spell, mostly notable for its presumed association with the development of Flight.

Second Sight: Enhances the caster's sorcerous vision to aid in identifying power sources and spellweaves. Theril seems to have no need for this spell, as ever since the fall of Isiyes, she seems to see deep into the magical world naturally.

Shadowcast: Fills an area with impenetrable shadow, as everything in the area, including the air molecules themselves, absorbs all light that reaches it.

Sleep: Works on the minds of animals to send them into sleep. Though most sentient beings are animals, their minds are much more complex than those of nonsentient creatures, and it takes tremendous skill or a personalized effort to make this spell work upon them.

Spellstrike: Directs the energy of the spell's power source directly against its target's animating energy. It leaves no wounds, but can be debilitating or even deadly to living, undead, and magical beings alike.

Time Seal: Often used for privacy (of person or of letters during delivery), or to guard objects or records under the caster's protection while he weaves other spells or engages in other attention-intensive activities, this spell seals an object (e.g. a book, door, drawer, envelope, etc.) so as to prevent it from opening (even for the caster) until the spell expires.

Werelamp: Causes a small (part of an) object or creature, or a point in space, to glow like the wick of a small lamp, shedding light and casting shadows normally, but consuming neither the "wick" itself nor fuel of any kind, except of course for magical energy.

Political Map of the Broken Sea Region

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This map doesen't include physical terrain features apart from land/sea and very major rivers, though the rough locations of a few mountain ranges are listed. UPDATE 4/29/08: There is now a physical map available as well, with more complete terrain features, though this one provides a more complete picture of the local spheres of influence.
Each country uses a(n at least slightly) different color, but white always represents areas that are uninhabitable, unclaimed, unexplored, unknown to Black Steel, or some combination; harder colors fading toward white represent either disputed claims (e.g. between Rhedas and Ephinos; Rhedas has the upper hand in the disputed area, which is why it's shading to their color from white) uncertainty about the extent of certain nations (e.g. the depth of the jungles controlled by the trade network, and the extent to which "control" is the operative term, still isn't very clear, which is why the green fades toward white as you grow further from Llaesira's region) or essentially wild lands ruled mostly "in name only" (e.g. the Shalasa desert has always been claimed by Shalasia, and no one disputes the claim, but ... it's still just a huge, empty desert).
Shalasia (capital: Shalaton) was the first nation to establish diplomatic relations with The Scabbard, and Matrix has been ambassador there for years; she is also betrothed to one of this rich desert country's powerful Pashas, Pasha Fokahre, who controls the iron mines near the border with...
Espava (capital: Leziv) is where Matrix is currently stationed as temporary ambassador; she recently established diplomatic relations there after negotiating an end to the border war then brewing between Shalasia and Espava, but when Byriche (the new ambassador to Espava) arrives, she expects to return to Shalaton.
Arasta extends further north than the map shows; Dwiereth is currently ambassador there (recently installed, and mostly as a sinecure, and to help imply a greater presence and influence around the Broken Sea than Black Sail actually has).
Korv (Capital: Korv Harbor) is the strange and complex realm of dwarves and men out beyond the Edge (Thornton) and the jungles, where Thorm "Glib" Casati has long been ambassador.
Havandia (Capital: Virhas) is the large country southeast of the Scabbard that relies heavily on Grat'han slaves and is Black Sail's biggest competitor for export of jungle resources. Thragor is "playing ambassador" there right now, but there hasn't been a full-time embassy since Trevor was recalled to the Scabbard to work on construction projects.