The Magewood

Map of The Magewood, by Andy Hoover.

The Wax (South)

The Magewood is one of thirteen official regions of Merion, located in the far South-East of the continent. It is loyal to The Candlebrooks, and was brought under their control during The Third Consolidation. The Magewood is home to 8 noble houses. It has been described as resembling "enchanted forest type stuff."

## Geography and Climate

Located in the southeastern-most corner of United Merion, the Magewood borders the Eastern Marks to the southeast, with the Wax to its west and south, the Shimmergaal to its south and southeast, and the lands of the Ides and Birchcrown to the east and northeast. The region also includes the island to the south of the mainland controlled by House Odean.

The region is almost entirely covered in the dense foliage of the woods with which it shares its name, with the Plains of the White Tiger belonging to House Mytharen being the most noticeable exception. The Covenant and Amendment Rivers split the region in half, with House Foxbriar located in the center of both.

The Magewood has a humid continental climate with four distinct seasons over the course of the year. Summers are typically warm, though not hot, and winters are cold, although snow in the region is rare.

## Notable Locations

### The Conclaves

Within the Magewood lies the two Mage Conclaves of United Merion: the Eastern Conclave and the Western Conclave. The Mages are primarily considered herbalists and scholars (similar to the Knights of Water but more focused on odd and supernatural topics), although it is known that some number of them can perform true magic, or something equally inexplicable.

While both Conclaves consider themselves to be part of the same tradition, there is a fair amount of tension between them due to their differences, most notably in their work ethic and strictness. The Eastern Conclave is generally seen as more "hardcore" than the Western Conclave, who they view as imitators. In return, The Western Conclave tends to view the Eastern Conclave as extremely conservative and behind in the times, as well as stuck up and snooty. However, despite these differences and some strain between the Conclaves, they still work together on occasion and serve the Candlebrooks faithfully (if in a less orthodox way than the Twelvescore Ennobled).

Both Conclaves have a number of "Eyes:" small keeps, housing locations, and other gathering points for mages to meet and work in. Each Conclaves' Eyes are located in various locations on their respective sides of the Magewood, although the exact location of any of the Eyes is a secret kept only by the Mages. The two Conclaves also share a single location: the Tomb of the Mages. Officially under the control of the Eastern Conclave (in part done by the Western Conclave to ensure a peaceful relationship), the Tomb is located somewhere in the eastern Magewood, although like the Eyes its exact location is a close guarded secret. The Tomb is the burial site for Mages of great significance, although due to their control of the site and their prejudice against their Western compatriots, Eastern Mages are represented approximately four times more than Western Mages in the Tomb.

### Other Locations

* **The Plains of the White Tiger** - The location of the former capital of the Kingdom of the White Tiger, the plains are now under the control of House Mytharen. Although smaller foliage can be found, the plains do not have heavy tree coverage, setting them apart from the rest of the Magewood. On the southwestern tip of the plains' peninsula sits the ruins of the former capital city of the fallen kingdom, now used as one of Lord Mytharen's various ruling locations.

* **Adventuros** - The lands east of the Magewood, stretching from the Torment Coast of the Shimmergaal to the Longmarsh. Little is known about Adventuros or the creatures that reside within it (rumors include ghosts, zombies, incubi, and more) other than that it is the presumed home of the Ides and, by extension, the Birchcrown to the north. An ancient city known as Manymeetings is recorded to exist somewhere along the Torment Coast, however nobody in recent history who has traveled into Adventuros has returned.

* **The Shimmergaal** - Located to the southeast of the Magewood, the sea known as the Shimmergaal separates the continent from the [Patreon] Ocean. Rumored to be the home of the Kraken, and known to contain other monsters, as well as typhoons and the inexplicable nature to have compasses lose the ability to work properly, the Shimmergaal does not have many ships sail through it, and those that do tend not to return. To the east of the Magewood border, where the sea meets Adventuros, lies the Torment Coast, whose exact location changes as drastically as the tides on a beach over the course of a day

* **The Slumber** - Forming the entire eastern border of the Magewood, the Slumber is an enchanted river that runs from a spring at the Eastern Marks border down into the Shimmergaal along the Torment Coast. While the origin of its enchantment is unknown, the effects are well document: any person that crosses the river shall fall into a deep sleep, hence the river's name. This is known to effect all forms of life with the exception of the Ides who, for reasons unknown, are immune to its effects. However, the Birchcrown are not and will be affected the same as a human.

* **The Covenant and The Amendment** - Dividing the region into two halves, the Covenant and Amendment rivers flow through the center of the Magewood. The Covenant springs from the center of the border with the Eastern Marks and flows south into the fluid border between the Shimmergaal and the Wax. The Amendment, smaller and more marshy than the Covenant, flows both out of and into the larger river around the borders of House Foxbriar's land.

* **The Joust** - Located to the north of the Magewood and technically outside of the Kingdom, the Joust is the name given to the area of land where most fighting between the Birchcrown and the Merionese (primarily House Illwoll) takes place. The western border of the Joust is formed by the Nine Fires, a series of castles controlled by House Illwoll to serve as protection against the Birchcrown, who are located to the east of the Joust in the northern parts of Adventuros. The land is mostly bare and is thought to be fairly worthless for planting crops of any kind.

* **The Island of Odean** - Formerly known as "The Anchor" or "Greyanchor" (for when you went beyond it, you were adrift in the Shimmergaal), the island to the south of the Magewood is now frequently referred to simply as Odean or the Island of Odean in reference to House Odean's complete control of the landmass.

* **The Hills of the Matriarch** - Named after the historic matriarchs of House Ooroo, which continues to be matriarchal to this day, the Hills are just south of the northernmost part of the Slumber, essentially forming a secondary border against the Joust.

## The Ides

Presumed to live in, and have originally come from, Adventuros, the Ides are a race of elf-like humanoids with incredibly pale skin, tall bodies (averaging around ten feet tall), and elongated limbs. Ides are famous for their laid-back demeanor and being fairly easy going, although they tend to be firm in their beliefs and views with little room to change their opinions. Merionese attempts to convince an Ide to do something they do not want to tend to end in the Ide self-amusingly refusing to do as asked and being as uncooperative as possible, all while being unfailingly polite and kind. Attempts to force Ides to do something they do not wish to do has historically ended extremely badly for all involved parties, and such attempts are rarely made these days.

Nothing is known about an Ide kingdom, capital, or even if they have cities and towns at all. Ides will occasionally travel into Merion, typically in groups via the Magewood, either to trade, take in the sights of the Kingdom, or for reasons known only to the individual. The Candlebrooks have attempted to send ambassadors to the Ides or determine more about a shared Ide culture (if one exists), but they have yet to be successful in the centuries since they seized power. As such, the Ides, as a people, are typically ignored but watched with a wary eye due to the remaining mystery surrounding them.

The Merionese people tend to get along well with Ides and enjoy their arrival if one should decide to visit town. This is especially true for merchants as Ides are known to pay far more for an object than it is worth, although any attempts to get even more money from an Ide after they have already made an offer is guaranteed way to ensure that no Ide ever returns to that merchant again. It is not uncommon for towns to throw celebrations and festivals in honor of Ides visiting, if not in in honor of the Ides themselves. On rare occasions, Ides will settle down and live in United Merion, although they never stay permanently. The current longest time an Ide lived in the Kingdom is five years, after which he returned to Adventuros as all other visiting Ides do.

## The Birchcrown

Biologically identical to the Ides (although there have been various implications that there is some kind of unseen difference caused by dark magic), the Birchcrown are a militant group of Ides that live to the east of the Joust. Unlike the Ides, the Birchcrown are extremely aggressive and violent and appear to want nothing more than to invade United Merion, although their ultimate goal is unknown. United Merion is in a constant state of war with the Birchcrown, and House Illwoll consistently stations soldiers in the Nine Fires along the border of the Joust, the piece of land where most of the fighting between the Birchcrown and Merionese occurs. The Ides tend to treat the Birchcrown as a violent and unfortunate sect of their species and are quick to denounce their actions, although they do not take physical action against their evil counterparts.

The Birchcrown are technologically superior to the Merionese, at least in terms of warfare, utilizing firearms and extremely advanced and impressive looking armor. The armor does not seem to grant or possess any sort of supernatural abilities, and the Merionese can touch it without risk, although wearing it is out of the question due to the drastic size difference between the species. Ides, however, have always refused to go near Birchcrown armor when it was presented to them, and will become uncharacteristically violent in their attempts to not go near it, furthering the belief that there is some kind of magical difference between Ides and the Birchcrown. This theory is further supported by the fact that Ides can cross the Slumber without being affected while Birchcrown will fall drowsy like all other creatures. Despite their technological superiority, the Birchcrown have managed to push past the Nine Fires into United Merion very few times in the kingdom's history, although when they do, it takes entire companies of men to deal with the crisis. Presently, they continue to push against the Merionese forces, under the command of House Illwoll, from their lands in the north of Adventuros.

## Citizenry and Nobility

Citizens of the Magewood, regardless of social class, tend to be closed-off, secretive, and shy around people from other regions. However, they are no less friendly or outgoing once they feel comfortable with someone or are discussing something that they deem important or worthwhile. Many people living in the Magewood also tend to have an enjoyment of, or a natural pull towards, things of a magical, weird, or otherwise indescribable nature.

The Magewood has six noble houses, as well as the two Mage Conclaves, both of which have the authority and powers of a noble house, and are treated as such (although non-Magewood houses tend to look down on the Conclaves, especially houses from the Eastern Marks).

 Foxbriar | PC
 Mytharen | PC
 Amaria | PC
 Everwoods | PC
 Odean | PC

## Trivia

* It is not uncommon for somebody who joined the Western Mage Conclave to eventually change their mind and reintegrate themselves into regular Merionese culture. However, those who join the Eastern Conclave typically never leave.
* The Covenant was so named due to its discovery coinciding with a treaty being created between the Candlebrooks and the Mage Conclaves. The Amendment was discovered to be a river later (after originally thought to be a small stream due to overgrown plants) and named for its addition to the Covenant.
* The players of House Everwoods and House Amaria, both of which are known for possessing a World-Class Library, have set up an inter-library loan system in the Magewood. While the system is primarily used only by the two houses and is based in the Magewood, the system has reached into the Eastern Marks (most prominently for House Dravnonia) and may continue to spread westward as more houses join. The system has no effect on the gameplay aspects of the podcast.
* The relationship between the Ides and the Birchcrown has been compared to the relationship between the Irish and the IRA
* The Magewood is home to a creature known as "Literal Wolf Blitzer," a parody of journalist and political commentator Wolf Blitzer. "Literal Wolf Blitzer" is a cursed, half-demon, werewolf-like creature whose personality flips back and forth between delivering commentary on the politics of the kingdom and hungering for flesh. A Photoshop fan image created by the player of House Vianoziah depicting the creature can be found here.