List of Wizard Towers

Here we have a list of some of the wizard towers and other centers of magical learning in the world of Giantstep.
== Wizard Towers in Giantstep ==
=== Tower of Burudaraharadashirir ===
The Tower of Burudaraharadashirir, also known as the Pentagonal Tower, is one of the oldest wizard towers in southern Giantstep. The tower was at the center of the old city of Burudaraharadashirir, but after a massive sandstorm nearly engulfed the city, the population abandoned it, and only the tower remains inhabited nowadays. As such, the tower is considerably taller than first impressions would suggest, as most of its height is hidden beneath the dunes. Many of the biggest and most powerful wizards within the Dirihadarir Desert have been trained within his halls, and thus many cities often helped financing the tower in exchange for recommendations for wizards and the entrance of candidates. Once Sahbahaid Sahabaharadad began taking the desert cities, he had to negotiate with the handlers of the tower, as becoming an enemy of it would cause a lot of trouble during and after conquering the cities. As such, the Tower of Burudaraharadashirir had been a very independent entity from the very beginning, and with the death of Sahabaharadad, all attempts from the capital from reigning in the wizards’ independences have failed, as the sultanate needs the help of the institution to access to wizards. There have been multiple attempts of creating other more loyal and pliant towers, but without the proper personnel, all of them have failed, leaving the sultanate to depend of the Tower of Burudaraharadashirir. 
The current head of the Tower of Burudaraharadashirir is Jashid Gorofaradasaradizar. A wizened wizard, Jashid has spent all his life teaching the spoiled children of the urban nobility, and as such, he has developed a harsh attitude. His seniority and experience are the only reasons why the noble houses of the sultanate have not put a price for his head, as he has shown little of anything but contempt for them. He is also believed to be the secret hand behind the failure of all other wizard towers in the sultanate, keeping himself and the Tower of Burudaraharadashirir as key players in the nation’s politics. Many dark rumors tell tales of him having connections with certain badgassi groups, suggesting he might have bigger plans than just being the headmaster of the Tower of Burudaraharadashirir…
=== Tower of Samyria ===
The Tower of Samyria was built around 88 BBE by the Khenomeric Empire within their territories of the Otamlar province. Initially a castle of the Magoclergy watching over the city of Samyria, it became abandoned once Kyle I banned all magic in the empire, only being use by travelling herders as a refuge against mountain blizzards, and thus it fell into considerable disrepair. After the khenomeri lost their influence in the mountains, the civil war that exploded afterwards saw the castle restored once again, and during the conflict it changed sides multiple times. It would not be until the Otamlar unification and the slowing down of the gnoll expansion when it was decided to turn the Castle of Samyria into a wizard tower, as the kingdom now needed a more efficient way to train their wizards. To this day, the Tower of Samyria is the biggest magical training center in the Kingdom of Otamlar. Its roots as a fortification protecting the entrance to the city are still visible to this day, as the apprentices are versed in ways of combat as well as magic.
The current head of the Tower of Samyria is Treeka Triiaki. The elder daughter of the previous headmaster, she has inherited a great deal of her father’s vision of what the Tower of Samyria ought to be. She seeks to train mind, body and soul to fully harmonize with the arcane energies of magic, and as such, she has developed a very strict regime of martial arts training that all her students ought to do to perfection or be expelled from the tower. These martial arts are combined with heavy meditation and surviving the harshest of the mountains with the bare minimum, using their magic potential to the fullest. Her extreme standards have costed the lives of some of her students, but as she gives all of them the choice of leaving without shame at any moment, she does not hesitate to continue pushing her pupils to the very edge of their capabilities.
=== Tower of Salamantixa ===
The Tower of Salamantixa began its construction during the drunig expansion across the Terrania Freeholds. The discovery of the lush bioluminescent jungles led to an explosive growth as the drunig settled many colonies near the shores. As the population arrived and the colonial administration settled in, many elements needed to be created from scratch, and while drunig colonial planning already had a protocol for the establishment of new outposts, the truth was that there was a critical lack of wizards in the southern drunig colonies. After all, Drunigzar had few wizards as it was, and most of them were hired by the crown or by the biggest merchant houses, leaving the southern colonies in dire need of experienced wizards, especially once the exploration of the Terrania Freeholds began in earnest. As such, the colonial authorities decided to fund the construction of a wizard tower that could serve as a way to train wizards for the furthest parts of the kingdom. Thus, the Tower of Salamantixa was born, though it actually took some time until the tower was fully established. Even nowadays, the Tower of Salamantixa is one of the youngest towers, as well as one of the smallest, having less than a dozen of apprentices under their care.
The current head of the Tower of Salamantixa is Antania Cohibiras. A noblewoman coming from low nobility, she had studied magic in Nogar and Elanxa, and had ended in the service of the queen as a private tutor for the young princes. Once the Tower of Salamantixa was fully built, she was put in charge of the tower, as the kingdom needed other more experienced wizards in other areas. As such, many expect her role as headmistress of the Tower of Salamantixa to be a brief one, at least until the crown can find someone more adept and willing to go to the southern colonies. Undaunted by this, and seeing an opportunity to bring honor, privilege and influence in the new lands, Antania is working hard to prepare the few pupils enrolled for their future role. And while she has access to the crown’s resources to obtain the tools, materials and books needed to develop the tower, for now she needs to work with very little, as the waiting times between the southern colonies and the metropolis are considerable.
=== Tower of Cetna ===
The Tower of Cetna is the only wizard tower remaining within the Orontian Mountains. It was built during the confusing days of the 21st century ABE, as the war against the witchelven was spreading chaos and destruction throughout Azan. The imperial authorities had reached a conclusion that, while their centers of magical learning were safe enough, the witchelven attacks throughout the eastern borders had meant the loss of a great portion of azanese territory, and with them, some magical academies and towers. It was ordered that many more towers were to be built, and they would under the sway of the military rule, at least until the war was over. While this project was also hoped to produce a great wizard tower under the control of imperial authority, nearly all of these towers would end up in failure. With many wizards preferring the freedom of the other independent towers and without enough capable personnel to continue their services, they would wither after a couple of decades, or would fall during the long crisis that Azan was going to be under. This also repeated within the orontian cities, as each of them quickly began creating their own, so as to not be outclassed by their rival neighbors. Despite the orontians seeing wizardry with suspicion, the protected position the Orontian Mountains meant that these towers could develop freely and without fear of invasion. However, once the long series of conflicts finally ended, most of the orontian towers ended up abandoned, as most of their alumni were from the outside of the province, and preferred to move to more prestigious places, leaving the towers abandoned. The one exception being the Tower of Cetna, as it had produced enough wizards born within the city that it could sustain its activity for longer, eventually becoming the singular tower within Oront, something that brings the cetnese a lot of pride. 
The current head of the Tower of Cetna is Dujëk Vbenet. Dujëk has been the headmaster of the Tower of Cetna for nearly a century now, and has been seeking for a worthwhile replacement for many years now. However, the rivalries between the cities has always made succession within the Tower of Cetna a delicate deal, and a lot of care is needed to not upset the knights and the cities. Meanwhile, he has an eye on many of his students hoping that one of them becomes a strong enough candidate to succeed him. Düjek has also helped the acceptance of magical weaponry within the orontian knights, using it at the very least against the witchelven and their succubae horrors. He has travelled quite a lot throughout the world and has become an expert in the smithing and enchanting of magical weaponry, having within his collection a considerable display of examples of such crafts. 
=== Tower of Arzabinsk ===
The Tower of Arzabinsk, also known as the Arzabinsk Academy of Magic, is the biggest center of magical learning in the Zapalovach Republic. Initially built as a palace during the days when Arzabinsk wasn’t yet part of the republic, it was taken over by the authorities when it was discovered that its owner had been conspiring against the government to take over the city. After this, a series of wizards decided to take over the tower and settle in as a wizard tower, which grew into the biggest of its kind in the republic, as it garnered a great deal of prestige within nobility. It was also expanded from the original palace quite a lot, doubling in height to accommodate for the necessary space within, and kept growing afterwards. The academy is composed of the tower itself and the nearby district. This district was part of a poor suburb outside of Arzabinsk’s walls, and was eventually completely purchased by the academy’s administration over the years as a place where the students and the service personnel would live in. The tower is a distance from the city, but still considered a part of it. In recent years, there has been certain tensions between the tower’s administration and the local government, with many rumors centering on the tower’s heads plotting against Krupnov Cheslav Yanovic’s growing power. 
The current head of the Tower of Arzabinsk is Amirna Temnyychuk. A cold and calculating woman, she became increasingly worried of the influence of Krupnov within Arzabinsk and the republic in general. However, Krupnov managed to politically outmaneuver her by granting boyardom to her older sister, Niroma Temnyychuk. As brilliant of an alchemist and a pyromancer Niroma is, Amirna believes her hectic character is not fit for leadership, and that Krupnov put her in both to keep Armina herself out of the title and to erode the name of the Temnyychuk within the city. As such, she has used her influence and her own magical skills to become the headmistress of the Tower of Arzabinsk, a position of great prestige within the city, and perhaps something Armina could use to reign in both Krupov’s ambitions and her sister’s explosive nature. Using her house’s fortune and the political influence of the title of Headmistress of the Arzabinsk Academy of Magic, she is setting up an underground movement against Krupov, and in case the need arose, against her own sister. 
=== Ionnian Academy of Magic ===
The Ionnian Academy of Magic is the biggest center of magical studies within southern Azan. As one of the wealthiest cities in the empire, Ionnia’s noble families have invested a great deal into the development of the academy, both as a way to garner political capital and to gain access to talented wizards. As such, the Ionnian Academy is able to train hundreds of wizards at once, though it has also developed an aura of elitism compared to other centers of magical studies, creating the popular notion that ionnian wizards are snobbish and conceited. The Ionnian Academy itself is composed of two towers connected with each other through a massive basilica, giving it the appearance of a cathedral. The surrounding areas of the Ionnian Academy also include a small forest and other magical workshops to allow the pupils to experiment and study their preferred fields. The azanese army also holds a part of the academy for the purpose of training battle wizards for the empire, and as such, it is very frequent to see azanese soldiers guarding the academy. 
The current head of the Ionnian Academy of Magic is Nekos Foren. A member of one of the most important dragon tiefling families within southern Azan, he has managed to reach the position of headmaster of the Ionnian Academy after a long career. His youthful appearance mask a long and dedicated career as a wizard, having a great amount of influence within most magical circles of the empire. Nekos is well known for his distaste against the demon tieflings, as his family has had a long history of participating in the persecution of demon tieflings. During Nekos’ stay as headmaster, many of the more pragmatic members of the magical community have accused him of baring demon tieflings from entering the academy, keeping them out of magical education regardless of talent or influence. While he has rejected those allegations, the numbers of wizards coming from the demon tiefling community has been reduced sharply since his rise to power. 
=== Tower of Meng ===
The Tower of Meng is in the zhou of Ku Ko of the Changrilese Empire. The tower is infamous for its unchanging nature, as it has barely suffered any alteration since its creation right at the end of the Azanese Civil War. The wizards that come from it also share this more passive nature, preferring to staying aside from empire politics or economics, and instead dedicating their time to meditation and to the study of the arcane. This famous neutrality almost cost them being declared traitors, as during the Changrilese Civil War they refused the calls of both sides to join their forces. The God-Emperor himself was going to brand them as renegades, and it was only due to the recommendations of the imperial court that he did not do so. As such, the wizards trained in the Tower of Meng are considered as odd, hermits at best and isolationist outcasts at worst. 
The current head of the Tower of Meng is Duxian Fi-Xu, an old master who perfectly embodies the values of inner peace regardless of the chaos around one self. A silent and taciturn individual, he is said to be one of the most powerful wizards in the entire empire, but the actual extent of his skill and knowledge is not well known due to him barely exiting the tower. He is also said to be an skilled swordmaster, and many stories about him speak of his path to enlightenment began when he struck his brother down in anger, forcing him to become a recluse a study magic to find inner peace. 
=== Tower of Qatadras ===
The Tower of Qatadras is the biggest center of magical learning in Gilgemash. Built in the city of Qatadras, it was created during a period when the city held the capitality of the kingdom. Its construction was taken as a point of pride by the king at the time, to the point of it becoming one of the biggest buildings in the entirety of Gilgemash. Luckily for the kingdom, Gilgemash has always had a great demand for wizards, and as such, the sheer size of the tower allows hundreds of wizards to study and learn at the same time, being the main center of magical studies in southern Giantstep, with its influence reaching so far as the lands of the Gökmavi. Its influence is greatly monitored by the different factions within the gilgemashi court, as many of the other political factions vying for power need to always keep an eye on the wizards so as to not destabilize the ever-shifting political balance. 
The current head of the Tower of Qatadras is Nielir Hishasth. A priestess of the cult of Kagar, she is a figure of both admiration and fear within the gilgemashi aristocracy. Rumors tell of her family’s acts of cold and calculated butchery to gain their position in gilgemashi politics, creating rivalries that ought to have crushed them on the spot. And yet, the Hishasth remain in the ascendance while a pile of corpses made out of their rivals grows ever higher, all dead under mysterious yet unrelated circumstances that leave Hishasth’s name clean and under no suspicion. Her rise to become the headmistress of the Tower of Qatadras represents the latest of the meteoric rise of the Hishasth family, with many pointing that her ownership of the title has put her family and her at odds against some of the most powerful people in the kingdom. Some even darker rumors voice that their meteoric rise cannot be something nature, and that darker forces are pulling the strings. Whatever her next move is, many see blood and turmoil in the near future for the Hishasth and the Tower of Qatadras. 
=== Tower of Barabacuss ===
Within the woods of Barbacuss Peninsula and near the Appletree Shores there lied a massive tree, imposingly growing towards the sky. It was the tallest and proudest of all the forest, growing so wide that its shade killed most other plants near it, not leaving the sun pass through its canopy. However, an infection of woodeater beetles ended up infecting the mighty tree, condemning it to a slow death. It is said that, while the faerie lord Arbul Applebloom was on his daily walks across the lands, he saw the dying king of the forest, and in a fit of pity, it blessed the tree with great magical powers. While it was left hollow within, the tree managed to survive, growing taller and stronger than before, eventually being found by some hobbit wizards, who decided to use it as the founding place of a wizard tower. Thus, the tale of the Tower of Barabacuss is still told to this day. The Tower of Barabacuss is the most well known of the wizard towers within the Lands Behind the Hedge, with many wizards from the region coming to the tower. In particular, it attracts a great deal of druids and wizards interested in the fey forms of magic, finding it a great middle ground between commuting with the natural energies of the world and the academic studies of magic. 
The current head of the Tower of Barabacuss is Snulu Luisliul. Often called “the Brave”, Snulu Luisliul is considered one of the oldest snoloths in the world, with him being a youngling when he had to leave his home in Hereby due to the fear of the witchelven threat in the 21st century, sailing to the Isle of Wizards, something shocking due to the snoloths’ fear of the sea. He spent many centuries in Wanaidheain, seeing how it became the Isle of Wizards, and learning a great deal of magic during the process. After many centuries more, he decided to travel back to his home, making it twice the voyages he did across the sea, an impossibly high amount for any snoloth. Being more than a millennia old, he is one of the wisest wizards in the world, though he spends most of the time meditating and reading his books. Many of his pupils bring him books and scrolls from faraway lands, and he also gets a great deal of presents from the Ancient Order of Most Practical Wizards as a show of respect and seniority. 
=== Tower of Flerinith ===
The Tower of Flerinith is one of the oldest towers in the region around the Sherillu-Ium Lakes. As the rest of the cities of the League of Florinth grew in influence and size, Flerinith ended up somewhat stagnating, as the growing economy of the cities left the fleriniths as somewhat backward in comparison. This also affected the Tower of Flerinith as well, the city’s pride and joy, which ended up losing many of its students to other areas of eastern Giantstep. Seeking to keep their tower from being abandoned, the headmistresses of the Tower of Flerinth, Stella and Celestina Avelnni, decided to put once again their tower on the map. As the city was still greatly renowned by its high quality glass, the two planar wizards decided to continue an long abandoned theory from their master. According to the old tower headmaster, there could be a way to develop multiple stable holes into a relative safe dimension, connecting to it from two different sides of the world, thus reducing transportation and travelling to near instantaneously moments. While in theory this was sound and possible, in reality creating these kind of portals through the dimensions had resulted in horrible disaster, with many people ended up lost, or going through spaces where time and space were so warped there was no way it could be safely travelled through. The sisters’ believed that using a series of rituals to enchant finely crafted florinthian glass could be the key to finally mastering interdimensional gateway travel, perhaps even creating a network of portals to connect the world together.
They spent years studying the nature of florinthian glass, working with some of the finest craftsmen of Florinth to create the optimum mix to create a crystal perfect for their enchantments, while also searching for the adequate dimension for the task at hand. Eventually, they managed to find an extradimensional space, which they called “the realm between mirrors”, which they thought it would be the key for the project’s success. However, once they started to open a portal to the “realm between the mirrors” and Celestina went in, they found a strange dimension where physics were not what they seemed, all bodies distorted and perspective was warped. Worse still, a series of entities who had been chained into the world managed to get free after Celestina arrived, using her arrival to flee their confines, and attempted to cross into the material world. While Celestina managed to close the portal behind her, the demons that had been unchained now knew of the existence of the physical world, and since then, they have attempted multiple time to cross the barrier into the material plain. Nowadays, Stella is working with other extradimensional wizards to try to save her sister, while also dealing with the unwittingly freed creatures, than more and more threaten the material realm through the mirrors. Meanwhile, Celestina is giving them chase from their own dimension, learning how the “realm between mirrors” work, and while contact with the two sisters has become somewhat easy, the enchantment used to cross into the dimension is seemingly unable to work to come out of it, thus being stuck until they manage to find a way out. 
=== Tower of Alka ===
Beneath the waves of the Labyrinth Bay, there lies the last of the great cities of the ancient mermaids. After the Curse of Uun, the surviving mermaids scattered across the world, forming isolated communities all across the waters of eastern Giantstep. Within these communities, the underwater city of Alka quickly grew in population, managing to recreate a facsimile of life before Uun’s treachery. Over the centuries, Alka has slowly grown to become the biggest population of merfolk in the world, and while in theory it is considered under the protection of the Kingdom of Tarot, in reality it is pretty much independent from Ouroboria. This also led to the construction of the Tower of Alka, which serves both as a center of magical studies and as the administrative center of the city. After all, the fact that the Tower of Alka is an underwater structure means only merfolk and other seafolk species can go there, so there are very few students each time. Thus, the building mostly operates the city’s administration. The tower also holds some of the oldest surviving tomes of ancient merfolk magic, written in coral and shark bones. 
The current headmaster of the Tower of Alka is Lien Fliferen. Despite her youthful appearance, Lien has been the headmistress of the Tower of Alka for many decades. Her role as the caretaker of the ancient magical of the lore of the merfolk has led to some clashes with both the Ancient Order of Most Practical Wizards and the owlmen of Biblion. While the wanaidheain wizards are generally diplomatic in their goals and dealings, as both sides respect the value of magical knowledge and the care necessary for its preservation, Lien’s relations with the owlmen has been somewhat more combative. For reasons neither side will disclose, the representatives of Biblion were bluntly expelled from the Tower of Alka after a reunion between the two parties, and ever since then, owlmen are not allowed to request access to the tower’s archives. Meanwhile, Lien has also attempted to find as much magical talent within the remaining mermaid population, and often sends many wizard representatives to other merfolk communities to search for magically gifted youths. 
=== Trymras College ===
The Trymras College is the biggest center of magical studies within the lands of the Terusia Isthmus, as well as other mystical fields such as astromancy or alchemy. It was created during the years before the Terusian War of Independence, as an azanese noble house began building a summer palace in the mountains. Once the war started, the azanese army requisitioned the structure still under construction to build a fortification, which saw considerable clashes that let it quite damaged. In the end, terusian independence forced the azanese army to relinquish the fortress. The local authorities, unable to maintain the massive structure, offered it to the wizarding community of Terusia, as keeping such a building abandoned after a war could attract banditry to fortify themselves within the edifice. However, the need for many repairs forced the wizards to search for any source of income, thus resulting in the creation of the Trymras College. Its high fees resulted in the admittance of only the families of the wealthy being able to enter, giving the wizards who come from there a fame of spoiled and snobbery. Its minimal discipline and relatively low standers did not help its image. The town of Trymras has grown in size since the founding of the college, catering towards the rich students who attend to it. Featuring many taverns, brothels and drug dens, the college authorities have tried unsuccessfully to clean up the town, but the pressure from the students themselves has kept it from being done. 
The current head of the Trymras College is the Board of Trymras, though in reality they have considerable little authority, as corruption has caused it to lose much of its reputation. As the Board of Trymras sought to find a figure that would clean up the college’s reputation while also not fall for the bribery and influence peddling that had plagued the organization since its inception. However, there was a considerable debate whether that person should come from within or without the college itself. In the end, they managed to find an appropriate candidate in the unlikeliest of places. During a stormy night, a hermit witch came out of the mountains carrying the unconscious body of one of the students, who had apparently become lost in the woods after a drunken night in the town. As old and wizened as she looked, she was powerful enough to not only subdue the aggressively drunk young man, but to bring him all the way to the college. Berating the teachers and the local authorities for their incompetent tutoring, she threatened to curse them all if anything of the sort would happen again, and when another student dared to laugh at the old screaming lady, she immediately turned him into a frog. After having suitably scared the students and turned the heckler back to normal, some of the members of the Board of Trymras invited the witch, named Shelie Eeise, to stay in the college as a teacher, something she reticently accepted. Building a hut from a rotten tree outside the school, she has become the unofficial head of the Trymras College, as any potential complaint or misdemeanor is quickly resolved by Shelie Eeise, having become infamous for turning teachers and students (and the students’ parents from time to time) into frogs or mice, to then being chased by Shelie’s cats. 
=== Towers of Dobea ===
The Towers of Dobea are a pair of wizard towers located near the city of Dobea, in the Empire of Elanxa. The history of the towers can be tracked all the way into the founding of Greater Elanxa. As the fear and hatred of wizards winded down, the first wizard towers began appearing across the empire, and one of the biggest at the time was that of Dobea. In particular, they were focused on the studying on the many different ways to create golems and other artificial entities, which means they have to develop a lot of astromantic knowledge as well. However, the tensions between the students generally saw them clashing against each other, as the wizards sought to upstage the astromancers at any chance they got, and the same could be said for the astromancers. Seeing this as an opportunity to push their students’ talents even further, they fed these rivalries, eventually leading to the creation of a second tower: the wizards, living within the red tower, and the astromancers, living in the blue tower. From then on, the two groups have been pushed against each other, and the headmasters have managed to direct their students to avoid the more dangerous results of this rivalry. 
The current head of the Towers of Dobea is Taneld Aqusto. A wise man who long ago gained the favor of the magpie-emperor, he has led the Towers of Dobea to a position of privilege and quite a lot of prestige for a long time. He has spent a lot of time creating golems and other similar artificial entities to be sent southwards, as the presence of the Kingdom of Grobianismus and the corrupted lands of Kokaine represent a threat to the empire. He has also been tasked with the continue development of ways to create armies of golems and automata like the ancient Khenomeric Empire used to do, just in case war against Avangar ever started. This assignment has led him to collect all sorts of pieces of ancient technology, turning his quarters in the towers looking like a mad museum, full of strange pieces and uncanny mechanisms. 
=== Academy of Domeng ===
The Academy of Domeng is the only center of magical studies in the Dominion of Leng. Its origins are considerably recent, as the khenomeri exiles that formed the bulk of the population of the archipelago preferred to send their gifted children to foreign towers, while the peasants had little chance of ever being educated in the mystical arts. However, after the situation in the region stabilized and the economy began to recover, a growing middle-class became interested in investing in magical education. Unable to finance an education outside of Leng, the cities began organizing a project to prepare the funds for the construction of a magic academy. In the end, it was an elanxan noble, Melos Domeng, who manage to organize the final push, using his fortune and connections to finish the construction, under the condition the academy would be named after him. Domeng’s interest in ancient lore was well known, and he invested great amounts of resources in expeditions to the ruins of the Merfolk Empire and other areas cursed by Uun. As such, another condition was that the academy was going to dedicate many efforts in studying and unravelling the magical secrets of the Merfolk Empire and the Khenomeric Empire, as much of their lore had been lost in their respective cataclysms. Ever since, the Academy of Domeng has attracted a great deal of archaeologists and sages interested in the fates of these two lost empires, gathering lost items and pieces of lore. Some darker rumors also tell that some members of the academy have ties to drunig contrabandists to gain access to khenomeric relics, as the drunig’s alliance with the Gnoll Empire means that they are the only ones with any kind of access to those lost ruins. 
The current head of the Domeng Academy is Klus Gloeth-ith. An expert archaeologist as well as a skilled wizard, he has dedicated great efforts in studying the labyrinths of Leng. He has developed many theories that defend that the patterns the Besshiru create within their labyrinths actually show subconscious patterns that could shine light in the nature of the Curse of Uun. He has travelled through the labyrinths of the island for decades, and it is said that no mortal knows the routes across them than Klus Glueth-ith, safe for the Besshiru themselves. He has also organizing a series of expeditions to the lands of the Gnoll Empire, but so far he has found no support for this mad endeavor. Many in Leng are worried that his interest in returning to the lands of the ancient Khenomeric Empire could cause an incident with the gnoll, and while there are few in the world who hate the gnoll as much as the surviving sons of the Khenomeric Empire, they also have no wish of fighting them ever again. 
== Wizard Towers in Scimitarian ==
=== Tower of Bla'O Bol'ee ===
The Tower of Bla'O Bol'ee is located at the center of the Island of Orc’eire. As one of the few wizard towers in Orc’eire, as well as the oldest, it is located in the deeper parts of the Orkeir Highlands, in an area considerably remote and far from the nearest cities. Its exact construction is difficult to discern, but many believe it was built around the 10th century ABE. The Tower of Bla’O Bol’ee has served as a center for orcish magical studies for many centuries, though the relative isolation of orc magic from the rest of the magical community has made them somewhat backwards in regards to magic development. The tower has also been considered as a neutral ground between orcs and bugbears, which can let their feuds aside in the name of knowledge. The tower follows a generally simple design, a simple circular plan with a set of spiral stairs at the center that connects the different rooms, as well as with the lower levels. The exterior walls are covered in ancient orcish runes, many of which following vegetal patterns as well as representing elements of traditional orcish culture. 
The current head of the Tower of Bla’O Bol’ee is Wickrag Nubikney. An old student from the tower, he left to find adventures across the world, serving as a battle wizard in many different mercenary groups across the step. Now, as an old battle wizard, his many years of mercenary have allowed him a great deal of experience in the practical use of magical arts, and his desire of finding peace after all the fighting made him go back to his old alma mater, eventually taking over the role of headmaster from his old teacher. His old rage tempered by age, he is known as a patient and wise teacher, transmitting the wisdoms of his lifetime to future generations. He has taken as a goal before his passing to expand the old library of Bla’O Bol’ee, since it suffered from a magical flooding and many of the books there were greatly damaged. As such, Wickrag has sent many of his students to other wizard towers with the goal of bringing many copies to the tower. 
=== Tower of Laurel Tree ===
The Tower of Laurel Tree had a long history within the Calcabrian Mountains. Originally a monastery for a now unknown cult, it abandoned and rebuilt as a small fortified outpost in the mountains at the beginning of the Drow Uprising and as the nearby human populations left due to the drow advance, the place was occupied and once again abandoned when the Second Elven Empire fractured. It would not be until the considerable migrations from Wanaidheain and the Lands behind the Hedge when the place was reoccupied again, this time by a series of travelling hobbits. In the process of inhabiting the Calcabrian Mountains, the ruins were taken to be the next place to settle a hobbit burrow, but the region around it was not that well suited for sustaining great numbers, so it was once again abandoned. However, the inhabitants of the burrow gave the old place to a group of hobbit wizards, who reorganized the place and built a second tower near the old watchtower. Thus, the Tower of Laurel Tree was born. The relative remoteness of the tower means that it receives a small amount of apprentices compared to others of its kind, and as such, its often the preferred spot for sages and people who prefer meditative learning in isolation instead of more communal and active towers. 
The current head of the Tower of Laurel Tree is Abbin Galantfoot. As one of the premier sages of the Calcabrian Mountains, he has spent most of his long life studying the mysteries of magic. He is also well known for his candid and diplomatic attitude, which has seen often dealing with the occasional disputes between the hobbit clans, as well as with other inhabitants of the mountains, and even outsiders. He is also a particularly avid collector of magical items, in particular magical rings. He has travelled many areas of Scimitarian and Western Giantstep, knowing some of the most skill artisans and enchanters in the world, learning their techniques and registering them in his massive library. 
=== Tower of Amrurinth ===
The Tower of Amrurinth is one of the biggest wizard towers within the lands of the drow. The tower was created by the cult of Infernus, the Volcano God, as a great temple. Over time, the temple also doubled as a place of magical training and study, as the cult made sure that they would have a stronger influence over the city’s wizard community if they made sure they were proper acolytes of Infernus. Nowadays, the building serves as a wizard tower and as the main temple for Infernus. It was built by specially treated stone, magically reinforced so that it could resist the magmatic flows that move underneath the structure, as it is separated from solid ground by a river of lava. The delicate craft and the carefully prepared enchantments also keep the white marble to turn dark due to the ash spews of the nearby volcanoes, giving it an ethereal aspect amongst all the black rock and white-hot magma. 
The current head of the Tower of Amrurinth is Aesh’leia Aman’iesh “the Lady of Lava”. A woman of exceptional power, she is said to have been blessed by Infernus itself, having become an avatar of its volcanic nature. Her body is now cracked with power, similar to a magmatic flow, and many cultist who see her quickly break into pray. Behind the curtains, however, Aesh’leia is working hard to gain an even tighter grip over amrurinthian society, using her magical and religious influence to become the ruler of the city. This has gained her a growing opposition from the aristocratic families within the city, as well as from the other city-states, as they fear her influence spreading into their own domains. 
== Wizard Towers in Littlestep ==
=== Tower of Levagneus ===
The Tower of Levagneus dates its origins to the end days of the Isolation Edict. With the healthy noble marquisates seeking to expand, the merchant city marquisates on the rise and the War of Burnt Incense quickly approaching, the nobles prepared for war. As such, the Marquis of the Valorous Heart ordered the construction of a series of towers along the coast, worrying that however the war developed, the shores would be left undefended against piracy. After the War of Burnt Incense and the stop of the uprisings, these towers were mostly abandoned, or left into the charge of lesser nobles. The one exception being the tower closest to the city of Levagneus, as it had been particularly well reinforced to serve as garrison for the city. The marquesate’s wizards requested its use to the marquis, to turn it into a wizard tower, which he granted so as long as the wizards trained there must swear an oath of fealty to the marquis, helping him in case of crisis or war. 
The current head of the Tower of Levagneus is “The Fist”. A hulking figure of a man, whose past and origins are completely unknonw, he appeared one day in the court of the Marques of the Valorous Heart and demanded that “The Fist” (as he only talks about him in the third person) was given a position in the lord’s court, as a bird had told him that it would be a good thing to find a job. Amused by this apparent giant simpleton, but with no intention of actually bringing him anywhere near his circle, he proposed him that he would offer him the position of headmaster of the Tower of Levagneus if he won a magic duel against the current headmaster, a considerably powerful and wise wizard, highly experienced in duels and battle magic. The Fist accepted, saying that he had studied magic from listening to a mute hermit. Expecting the newcomer to be trounced, the Marques saw to his horror that all spells and enchantments that the headmaster of the tower threw at the stranger were seemingly ineffective, with every magical curse and attack seemingly bouncing off The Fist’s body. The Fist calmly walked towards the headmaster, immune to any of his magic, and knocked him out with a singular punch, and some reported to seeing him gibberishly screaming his attacks. After the bout, the Marquis had to be true to his word and give him the position of headmaster. From then on, the Marquis has been trying to get rid of The Fist, as he is considered a figure of ridicule and embarrassment, as he has shown himself to be barely above illiterate when it comes to magic (and most things other than punching really). However, The Fist’s shocking luck and immunity to magic has kept him safe and in control of the tower to this day.
=== Tower of Enesh ===
The Tower of Enesh is one of the most important towers in the Avangar Empire, located at the outskirts of the provincial capital. It was built years after the war against Tarot and Poker had ended, as most of the native population of Eneshores had fled or had been executed. As part of the repopulation efforts, many elyrians and other allied tribes were invited to settle in the now empty province, with many wizards accepted the offer. This led to the creation of the Tower of Enesh, given to a particularly successful battle wizard as a reward for his services in the war. While the tower was initially dedicated to the training of battle wizards, it diverged over time as a center for general magical studies, losing most of its martial heritage, and instead serving as a place for dark experiments. The tower itself follows the typical elyrial architecture, with a construction of humble materials such as brick and mortar, and decorated with sebka panels and arched windows. The main tower has a squared plan, with the upper part of each level allowing enough space for a balcony. The tower is also next to a series of annexed buildings, as the Tower of Enesh also holds a series of alchemical laboratories that produce certain concoctions very popular by many in the region. 
The current head of the Tower of Enesh is Danagia Abrahar. A pyromancer well known in all of the empire, Danagia was one of the few non-pure elyrians who is allowed to not wear the mandatory mask. Half of the reason is her upbringing, as she is the result of the union of a zapalovach trader and an elyrian noblewoman. As elyrian unions with outsiders are rare, the laws considered her an outsider for the most part, but once she began shinning as a powerful sorcerer, she managed to pull enough strings around to be considered a full elyrian, with all the privileges that entailed. She also managed to use her growing influence to marry an important general of the elyrian army, granting her even more influence, eventually landing the position of headmistress of the Tower of Enesh. A woman of great ambition, she is dedicated to enhance the reputation and the standing of the Tower of Enesh as much as she can, using the resulting status to marry her five children into elyrian nobility. This seems to clash with most of the Church of Avangar, who see her as an upstart outsider, but her magical skills and her connections have given her a great standing within the army. 
== Wizard Towers in Zemyland ==
=== Tower of Platina ===
The Tower of Platina appeared during the early days of the Princedom of Platinum. As Miladiya Arkadiya reorganized her portion of her father’s inheritance, she worked hard to set a competent bureaucracy and administration, both to stabilize her lands and to keep the nobility both happy and under check. As one of her first major projects, she ordered the construction of the Tower of Platina, located in a fjord near the city of Platina. The tower quickly became the premiere center of magical teachings in the princedom, with many of the wizards educated there ending up working for the royal administration in one way or another. As the tower has a great amount of financial backing form the royalty, it has expanded considerably over the years, being one of the biggest wizard towers in the entire continent of Zemyland. The tower was also fortified considerably after the end of the war against Avangar, as the growth of the empire in the south represented a possible threat to the control of the Platinum Strait, and their tendency of using dark wizards meant that the wizard towers would be a priority target in case of war. 
The head of the Tower of Platina is Elena Maksimin. The niece of the current prince Sila Maksimin, the choice of Elena as the headmistress of the Tower of Platina caused some controversy within certain circles, both within noble families and wizard circles, with many fearing the effects of royal nepotism. However, she has proven that she is a skilled administrator despite her young age, as well a considerably skilled spellcaster. To make this promotion more palatable for the court, she publicly renounced her rights to inheritance to the principalty’s crown, though many still question the validity of such an act. Her main worry now is the growing concentration of dark wizards within Avangar, and while his uncle has his sight towards the growing unrest in hyperborean lands, Elena has travelled multiple times to the principality’s lands within Littlestep. She has personally brought some of her men into the borders between the empires to inspect any unconventional magical activity and bring the information to her as soon as possible. 
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