Tower Faction

The snow-capped peaks of the mountain range known as the Dragon's Causeway hold more secrets than you might think. Somewhere in their observatory, Blind Brothers gazing at the stars are lurking. Naga of Shanriya also defend their independence. But is it really all that these peaks hide?

Blind Brothers and Helexia

Ice Nagas and Shanriya Kingdom

First Helexia Union

Second Helexia Union

The Dragon's Causeway

Ages of Silence

The Dragon's Causeway is a large mountain range located on the eastern side of the Griffin Empire. It borders on the Ranaar steppes to the north and east. From the south, there is the Lowland of Storm Clouds and free cities.  The Dragon's Causeway is the highest mountain of Thallan. It is also the most dangerous. Harbouring many magical species and suffering from frequent mana storms, the Dragons' Causeway is a mountain range where, according to legend, a great battle was waged between Asha and Urgash during the Mythic Age. Blood was spilled in great quantities, creating underground rivers and lakes of pure magic. As a result, passages to the Spirit World are said to exist deep within the mountains. Many Wizards have come to verify the stories, but no conclusive evidence of such a "causeway" was ever found -- or at least, reported. This is not the only reason why this mountain range is so unique. Dangerous storms, blizzards, high steep peaks and icy mountain edges make the area unfriendly and dangerous. Only the greatest daredevils or madmen venture into these areas. And many do not come back.

After 500 SDY, one of the great human migrations took place, due to religious persecution. Many took refuge in the Free Cities, but there were those who ventured into dangerous ice peaks to reach the mysterious Union. The refugees were welcomed in large numbers. The Blind Brothers and Archmages lacked people to do other activities. A system was also introduced on which the internal policy of the Union was based. Each city became, as it were, a separate state connected with others by means of a union. Each city-state was headed by the Supreme Enlightened One, elected from a congregation of the 10 most distinguished Blind Brothers and Archmages. His decisions in the affairs of the city were indisputable. There was not one person ruling the entire Union, and matters concerning its were raised at the Gathering of the Enlightened Ones. Local guards and armies were also built. Despite the ubiquitous belief in Asha, and to worship her as the most important goddess, and to worship her, there was religious freedom. Other things, besides the study of magic and the stars, also began to be covered. Mysterious flora and fauna, weather phenomena and underground tunnels were studied. The focus was quite heavily on metallurgy, alchemy and minerals. Archmages especially took a liking to the study of gemstones and their relationship to magic. And this area was very rich in them. Soon, sapphires, jewels, rubies and emeralds were used for new inventions and everyday use. Lapis Lazuli, however, enjoyed the greatest interest. After some time, it was even considered a sacred mineral.

The turning point of the Union was the anticipation by the Blind Brothers of the second eclipse in Helexia. When, after Sarah's sabotage, it happened earlier, many refugees came to the Union. Some seek shelter, others seek revenge, and still others have come for a different purpose.  An extraordinary The Gathering was then called. It was debated for a long time until the Supreme Enlightened Ones decided to dissolve the Union. Each city-state, however, remained on friendly terms and help each other. However, such a decision was made in order to hide the cities and prevent foreigners from accessing them. The collapse of the Union was announced, and the cities were hidden and slowly the world forgot about them. Cities, however, continued to develop, and the collapse of the Union meant that each of the nuch began to specialize in a different field. Even a system of movement and air communication between the towers was created. It relied on powerful machines called magic-powered airships. These devices, however, did not function anywhere else except the Dragon's Causeway. 

It seemed that this state of affairs of the free city-states hidden from the world in the peaks of the snowy mountains would last forever. However, in 674 SDY in Ukur, Teklamesh was elected as Supreme Enlightened One. He was an extremely learned and religious Blind Brother who left the Order in the middle of his life and became Archmage. His goal was to recreate the former Union. To begin with, he went to Helexia. He knew that the support of the city named after the former Union would make it easier for him to achieve his goal. Unfortunately, the Supreme Enlightened One of Helexia, was a Blind Brother who had a bad opinion of Teklamesh because of his leaving the Order. Besides, he believed that Helexia was good for the lack of contact with the rest of the cities. Resigned, he decided to try to convince other cities. Nobody agreed. True, he found support in Kalmish, but they did not join him. So after the defeat, he went to the extreme. Ukur had a strong army that often fought against wild snow monkeys attacking people near the city. Having no way out, he attacked Helexia. The city quickly surrendered due to virtually no defense. Lamak was the next target. At the same time, Kalmish conquered Entilu. A civil war began in Dragon's Causeway. With Teklamesh conquering Grimmur and then Almash, the kingdom of Kalmish declared war on the  Shanriya Kingdom. Kalmish has long wanted to claim a kingdom rich in precious stones. Cut off from allies by the Ukur war with other city-states, it turned out to be a strong opponent. When Teklamesh conquered Grimmur and Almash, the Supreme Enlightened of Kelmish asked for help in fighting the nagas. In return, the kingdom of Kelmish was to join the Union. Teklamesh agreed and attacked Shanriya from the other side. The city was quickly conquered. 

The war was over. Teklamesh organized a rally with the leaders of the conquered city-states and the Kelmish Kingdom's Enlightened Supreme. He decided to restore independence to the cities on condition that a new Union would be created, at the head of which he would be - the Supreme Enlightened One. Each city will be ruled according to the old rules of the Lesser Enlightened, elected as before. This did not satisfy King of Kelmish, who would thus lose the city of Entil. However, he retained Shinriya's dependence until his death, and the Nagas city was to be ruled by the Lesser Enlightened One chosen by Teklamesh. This is how the new Union was born, and the uprising ended with the construction of a tower in the city of Nagas. The new country was called the Ice Spiers Union.

The Order of the Blind Brothers was founded in 62 SDY by Sar-Antor, a student of Sar-Elam. Established as a congregation of healers, prophets, and embalmers. The Blind Brothers were famous primarily for the predictions of the Blood Moon eclipses. So they quickly became associated only with this function. Even so, the Order has done a great deal of research into and understanding magic. Their greatest goal was to understand Sar-Elam's revelations and put them into practice to unite all the people and rebuild the Shantiri Empire. It is visible in the very way they are. Quiet, secretive, eternally staring at the stars or the manuscripts, yet always willing to help for the good of others or the public. They are also the only ones among the successors of Sar-Elam who profess Asha in a sacred, religious way. 

It is not without reason that the Dragon's Causeway became one of the places where the Blind Brothers necessarily wanted to go. High mountains with a perfect view of the starry sky and huge concentrations of magic and mana. This is the perfect place for the Blind Brothers. In addition, natural protection in the form of a dangerous neighborhood meant that they could study whatever they wanted in peace. Soon there was the most magnificent observatory there and the site of magic research in all of Thallan - Helexia.

Located on one of the highest summits of the Dragon's Causeway, the Monastery of Helexia is the great observatory of the Blind Brothers, where they study the stars in the hopes of predicting the future. On the other hand, in the basement of this mighty tower there are rooms where magic is studied in its purest and perfect form, praising Asha at the same time.

After the fall of the Shantiri Empire, most of the naga went to Hashima. However, small groups decided to go to other parts of Thallan. Some went to the Sahaar desert. Others have reached the snow-capped mountains of the Dragon's Causeway. They founded the city of Shanriya there. Even so, they were still dependent on the kingdom of Hashima and the Eternal Empress. However, the remoteness from the kingdom and the difficult access to Shanriya made the city more and more independent. 

Early in the seventh century, the Eternal Empress intended to reconquer Shanriya, who had become too free-spirited for her tastes. To support her war effort, she sent her best generals across Ashan to gather powerful relics, this was known as the "Crusade of the Autumn Wind". One of the Empress’ most trusted advisers, Daimyo Oshiro, got his hands on a Tear of Asha whose power was at a magnitude never seen before. Rather than bringing it back to his mistress, Oshiro decided to harness its power for himself, turning his armies against the Eternal Empress. It is said Oshiro came as close as the gates of Nariya, the Nagas’ underwater capital city, but his rebellion was eventually crushed when the Empress herself came to the battlefield and demonstrated how powerful she truly was. 

Oshiro’s rebellion had put an end to the Eternal Empress’ plans to bring Shanriya back into the fold, and the Ice Nagas had used the time to fortify themselves, even making strong alliances with the Free City of Strormcliff and the Dwarves of Ostgerd. After the losses suffered against Oshiro, any new attempt to wage war against Shanriya would be foolish. Eventually, Shanriya became a completely independent city, and shortly thereafter became the kingdom of the Ice Nagas - Shanriya Kingdom. 

Around 130 SDY, the first Blind Brothers came to the Dragon's Causeway. Before they founded the greatest observatories in all of Thallan, if not Ashan, the Helexia, they had built several smaller monastery. At first, they weren't even watchtowers. These were ordinary temples where the Order gathered knowledge and studied the secrets of magic. For this reason, they were built in highly magical and magical places. Of course, the entire Dragon's Causeway is filled with them, but the Blind Brothers have only built 4 monasteries. Their research focused on pure, primal magic in its perfect form.

The first observatory tower was built almost 150 years after the monasteries were built. It was then that the Blind Brothers noticed that such a large concentration of magic was not only conducive to studying it, but also to observing the sky and reading the future from it. Towers to study the night sky were quickly erected at every monastery. As time went on, each of them had more and more and higher towers. Along with studying magic, stargazing became the Blind Brothers' second most important activity in Dragon's Causeway. And a bit later, the most important, if not the only one.

It was then, in the middle of the 4th century, shortly after the first Blood Moon eclipse, that the construction of the Blind Brothers largest and most magnificent observatory began. The premise was very simple. Thanks to a strong concentration of magic, a perfect view of the sky, and sewing observation technology, the Order was to anticipate the next Demon invasions. Helexia was completed before 400 SDY. It was meant only for observing the sky, although it also had rooms for studying magic. However, it did not act alone. The entire complex of five observatories and the monasteries worked together to predict the future. It was called the First Helexia Union.

The first success, though not total success, of the First Helexia Union was the prediction of the discovery of necromancy. The Blind Brothers saw only a few details that later turned out to be true. It was still not a true prediction of future events. However, the Union caught the attention of the Kingdom of Magic, especially that it was located in a place full of primal magic. This is how the first expeditions of daredevils from the Seven Cities to the Helexia Union began. 

The first mages to appear there set out to investigate the magic present there. It quickly became clear to them, however, that the methods they were using were not appropriate. Having no choice, they began to practice the ways of the Blind Brothers. The methods of the Order and the approach to magic of the magicians of the Seven Cities resulted in discovering many secrets so far impossible to find. Communing with such pure magic and practicing it, however, meant that the magicians had no intention of returning to the Kingdom and left them there, accepting this magic and Asha as their religion.

The Blind Brothers predicted the future better and better, and as a result more and more magicians came to the Union to study the magic hidden there. The wizards who came to the Union began to build their own research centers. The Order, on the other hand, increasingly abandoned the study of magic in favor of predicting the future. In short, the Blind Brothers were only concerned with star gazing, and wizards there called archmages studying magic. 

Two Archmage Cities were established. However, they still used two Blind Brothers monasteries. The turning point was the declaration of independence by archmages from the Seven Cities and joining the Helexia Union. The construction of the observation towers in the archmage cities was the moment of the creation of the Second Helexia Union.

Ice Spires Union

Capitol: Ukur - Largest of all 8 city-states. It is the only one not specialized in one field. It is the perfect blend that defines the Union. This is also where the largest army of all is based.

Colors: Navy blue, light blue and white.

Symbols:

Spiral Ice Crystal

Fractal Cycle of Winter

Authority: In matters of the entire Union, the Supreme Enlightened One, elected from among the rulers of all the cities of the Union, has an unquestionable voice. Each city-state is ruled by a Lesser Enlightened One, chosen from among the 10 most distinguished Blind Brothers and Archmages of the city.

People: Various peoples from all over Ashan live in the Union. The most numerous group are Humans from various regions of Thallan. In addition to them, you can meet other races here, such as Elves and Dwarves. Nagas, although they are also a large group, prefer to stick to the city of Shanriya, although they can also be found in other states of the Union. 

Religion: There is complete religious freedom in the Union. Although Asha's religion as the mother of all dominates, there are also state ceremonies and holidays. However, each city-state has its own guardian deity whom it worship. The second most widespread dragon god is Shalassa, or actually its icy aspect called Mashana, which in the Naga language means the ice queen. The popularity of this religion was started by the Nagas and it will quickly spread across the Union. So it can be said that there is a cult of Asha and Mashana as mother and daughter, creator and protector throughout the Union. Here is a breakdown of the City States and their deities:

Ukur - Sar-Elam called The Seventh or Elamsar.

Helexia - Asha, mother of everything.

Shanriya - Mashana, the icy aspect of Shalassa, daughter the protector.

 Kalmish - Arkath, god of fire and wealth.

Entilu - Elrath, god of sun  also called Jerosh. 

Lamak - Malassa, god of shadow and cave. 

Gimmur - Devanna, Sylanna's mountains aspect. 

Almash - Perenu, Ylath's thunderstorm aspect. 

Buildings and Construction:

The buildings of the Union are built to fulfill their function, usually magical. Made of materials present in snowy mountains and not used anywhere else. The most common raw materials used for building are: Silimanites, Calcites, Quartzites, Ice Crystals and White Marbles. They usually have simple shapes: squares, rectangles and circles, often ending with domes or spiers. Despite its rugged appearance, the buildings are adorned with all kinds of metals, minerals and precious stones. The main raw materials for ornaments are: Lapis lazuli, white and ordinary gold, copper and amethyst. Magically solidified mercury is often used.

Cities are built around great centers of magic and high peaks. The central part is a tall tower or a tower complex on top of which there are observers. The lower parts are the rooms where magic is studied. They can often reach deep underground caves. The remaining buildings are erected later around the main tower, adapted to the terrain. Often times, huge, extensive bridges have to be erected so that you can move around the city at all. A must-bee is also the port for magical airships, which is called the landing strip.

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Interesting facts:

The magic of minerals and metals

Teklamesh the envoy of Asha

In Ashan, the following valuable resources, apart from gold, ores and wood, are: Dragonblood crystal, Shadowsteel, Starsilver and Dragonsteel. Mainly because they are magical resources, filled with magic. Other known resources, even rare ones, are either worthless or serve only as trinkets. However, in the Dragon's Causeway there is an abundance of such "trinkets", and enormous amounts of magic have revealed their hitherto unknown properties. Archmages began to study these minerals and discovered their remarkable properties. Thanks to this, they created amazing innovative inventions, previously considered impossible to build. No wonder then that the Union has a huge amount of mining of all kinds of minerals. A similar situation applies to metals that were previously considered useless. In this way, archmages are able to create artifacts that amaze the mages of the Silver Cities. There is also a theory that perhaps it was the use of these minerals and metals that made the Shantiri Empire so advanced.

Teklamesh was the Supreme Enlightened One of the city of Ukur, and the founder of the present Third Union, known as the Ice Spiers Union. He was a Blind Brother, learned in the arts of using primal magic, including fortune telling. Very gifted, he quickly began to see the irony of his situation. So he decided that instead of predicting the future, he would start creating it himself. At the age of 45, he left the order and began practicing as an archmage. He gained the rank very quickly, and became famous for the new mana storage possibilities. He quickly became a respected inventor and joined the Ukur city council of ten at the age of 59. A year later, he became the Supreme Enlightened One, after the death of his predecessor's old age. His first goal was to recreate the old Union, which he eventually succeeded in despite the bloody war. Later he ruled the entire Union and introduced many innovative solutions. As a hobby, he was still an inventor. Although Union scholars view him rather as an extraordinary sage and responsible leader who has taken steps that others feared, he is considered among the common people as the envoy of Asha himself. Even today, worshiped as a saint, he is considered to be one of the greatest archmages of the Union.

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