Collegiate Arcanum
While many in the city have become enamored with Steam Power in recent years the old powers still hold much sway and it's their application that allows much of the workings of the city to continue onward. The Collegiate Arcanum or simply the College is the only official place in the city that one can learn to control, wield and master the magics of this world. Those with the aptitude for the arcane are taken from an early age both as a way of bolstering the Colleges alumni and student body but also as a way of keeping the students and the general populace safe. A Sorcerer without training is a dangerous thing and tales of homes being burnt down or small animals being bathed in acid is something nobody wants. The Colleges job is made extra difficult because of the high concentration of Aetheric particles in and around Arbor leading to a far greater concentration of Arcane, Divine and Natural spell casters.
This side of the college is concerned with bringing new students into the collective group and begin their education as soon as possible. The stated reason they do this is that most mages especially young ones may not be aware of their own power and could hurt themselves or others, there is some evidence and historical data to suggest this is at least partially true though how true is up for debate. In addition once a student is admitted to the school the job of teaching them how best to use their abilities is what is focused on next, ensuring that instead of becoming a danger to others they enter society as productive members.
For those individuals who cannot afford the schools tuition on their own a separate plan exists in order to ensure the college continues to operate and in fact it's this side where the college gets most of their funding. The College acts as a kind of agency for the mages that they educate. In this they provide magical services to the city for those that need and can afford to pay for it, this includes everything from simple continual light spells to more complex divinations and protection spells. The School is not shy about using their pupils this way and will regularly send them out into dangerous or compromising places not caring if they come back alive or not because they get paid either way. The names for these students are the bound
The people who work in the lower classes fear the Collegiate and for good reason, If you're born with magical gifts it's likely you'll be found and forced into indentured servitude with no choice but to obey or be killed as a danger to yourself or others. Hiding isn't impossible the city is massive after all but very few escape the eye of the College forever. In addition any presence by College Alumni likely signals no good for anyone involved, they are under the employ of those who think themselves better and decades of training and conditioning have made even those that came from the slums cold to their plight.
Your opinion of the College varies a little bit here and depends greatly on weather you have the money for the tuition, some see it as a way of advancing their families name perhaps even allowing them to move up in social standing should they have a child with magical potential. However the what holds below holds true here there is still a great fear that the colleges men will come and take your child away, though resisting them becomes more feasible.
Those of the artistocracy view the selection of their children as a blessing being easily able to afford multiple educations with the expectation that their children will be given preferentual treatment in class and when they graduate will begin work for the family business providing needed services that perhaps the family is already paying the College for.
"They come and take them away from their beds in the middle of the night, says it's to protect them and us. Tell that to my crying wife who won't ever get to hold her son again!" - Father of College admission
Public Agenda:
The Public face of the College is two fold each side helping the other to create a cohesive whole.Admission
This side of the college is concerned with bringing new students into the collective group and begin their education as soon as possible. The stated reason they do this is that most mages especially young ones may not be aware of their own power and could hurt themselves or others, there is some evidence and historical data to suggest this is at least partially true though how true is up for debate. In addition once a student is admitted to the school the job of teaching them how best to use their abilities is what is focused on next, ensuring that instead of becoming a danger to others they enter society as productive members.
Placement
For those individuals who cannot afford the schools tuition on their own a separate plan exists in order to ensure the college continues to operate and in fact it's this side where the college gets most of their funding. The College acts as a kind of agency for the mages that they educate. In this they provide magical services to the city for those that need and can afford to pay for it, this includes everything from simple continual light spells to more complex divinations and protection spells. The School is not shy about using their pupils this way and will regularly send them out into dangerous or compromising places not caring if they come back alive or not because they get paid either way. The names for these students are the bound
Public Perception
Lower Class
The people who work in the lower classes fear the Collegiate and for good reason, If you're born with magical gifts it's likely you'll be found and forced into indentured servitude with no choice but to obey or be killed as a danger to yourself or others. Hiding isn't impossible the city is massive after all but very few escape the eye of the College forever. In addition any presence by College Alumni likely signals no good for anyone involved, they are under the employ of those who think themselves better and decades of training and conditioning have made even those that came from the slums cold to their plight.
Middle Class
Your opinion of the College varies a little bit here and depends greatly on weather you have the money for the tuition, some see it as a way of advancing their families name perhaps even allowing them to move up in social standing should they have a child with magical potential. However the what holds below holds true here there is still a great fear that the colleges men will come and take your child away, though resisting them becomes more feasible.
Upper Class
Those of the artistocracy view the selection of their children as a blessing being easily able to afford multiple educations with the expectation that their children will be given preferentual treatment in class and when they graduate will begin work for the family business providing needed services that perhaps the family is already paying the College for.
History:
When there is magic there is danger, uncontrolled and unmanaged magic is a danger to everyone caster and innocent alike. When the tree was first discovered the realization of what it meant and it's effect on the surrounding area wasn't really understood all that well. It took decades of living there eating it's fruit breathing it's air and drinking the water at its roots before people began to take notice. The percentage chance of any individual being born with magical talents in the wider world is about 1 in 100,000,000 so exceedingly rare that most of The First Ones didn't even believe magic was a real thing, thought it was superstitious nonsense spouted by people who prefered to believe in what they couldn't' see to what was right in front of them. How wrong they were... In the area around The Great Tree Workers the odds of a person with magical talent being born is 1 in 100. At the rate they were beginning to emerge something had to be done to educate and train these new found magical children.The Birth of the College:
In the early days of Arbor the only thing to be done with those with these talents was to pass them to the church and post Reconciliation they were more than happy to take them helping them to understand and control their gifts. Any that were found to be too powerful or perhaps too willful were culled by the church before they could become a real problem. The church of course used these mages they had trained to help them keep an iron grip on their power for as long as they were able to do so. However a schism began to form within the church and those trained in arcane powers such that eventually the College locked it's doors and effectively shut the church out. Now ordinarily this would have led to the church summoning it's retainers and calling in favors to quiet the rebellion however at that same moment they were dealing with Nathan Penn and his Factory Boses slowly eroding their power. The Mages had somehow foreseen this coming locked the doors and were banking on the fact that The Order of the Fallen Leaves would be unable and unwilling to commit resources to them while undergoing a direct financial and they were right. The church and Collegiate separated and have remained thus ever since.Attire / Common Garb / Quirks:
In times past the College would mark it's mages with robes signifying their power and station, however as style and need has progressed they decided to ditch some of the old ways and embraced more modern clothing attire, this also helps them blend in and not stand out and be vilifying in a crowd of people. Most though choose to wear nice suits and dresses, with the only identifying piece of clothing a small choker like piece of jewelry with a gem set in the middle, this choker is only present on those who are working off their debt. As for facility and other members of the college who are not subjected to indentured servitude they may wear what they like but usually have a badge of office somewhere on their person.
Choker of Binding
The choker around the bound serves a few purposes beyond simply identifying an individual as a member.
- Firstly it acts as a kind of beacon allowing another mage to locate the bound individual should they not return in a timely manner or become lost within the city
- It prevents someone from leaving the confines of the city
- It can be tuned to prevent an individual from leaving a particular area
- It contains within it the ability to explode instantly killing the bound should they become a threat
Structure and Hierarchy:
The two sides of the business could not be more separate if they tried and often times students will be ripped from classes in order to facilitate client requests if the need arises. Of course this does not happen to the students who can afford the tuition but that is neither here nor there.The Council of Sorcerers:
The council is the highest governing body of the College, and it is made up of the most powerful and influential sorcerers in the school. The council is responsible for overseeing the education and placement of the students, as well as making decisions about the direction and policies of the College.Placement
The Placement Director:
The placement director is the leader of the placement team, and they are responsible for overseeing the allocation of mages to jobs in the city. The placement director is a powerful sorcerer who is knowledgeable about the abilities and skills of the students, and they are able to match the right mages to the right jobs.The Placement Coordinators:
The placement coordinators are the assistants to the placement director, and they are responsible for organizing the allocation of mages to jobs in the city. The coordinators are knowledgeable about the abilities and skills of the students, and they are able to assist the placement director in matching the right mages to the right jobs.The Placement Assistants:
The placement assistants are the entry-level members of the placement team, and they are responsible for gathering information about potential jobs in the city and matching them to the abilities and skills of the students. The assistants are able to provide support to the coordinators and the placement director in their efforts to allocate mages to jobs in the city.The Bound:
The bound are the students who are unable to pay the tuition for the College, and as a result, they are required to provide magical services to the city in order to fund their education. The bound are allocated to jobs by the placement team,Admission
The Head of the College:
The head of the College is the leader of the school, and they are responsible for carrying out the decisions and policies of the council. The head of the College is a powerful sorcerer who is chosen by the council to serve as the leader of the school.The Professors:
The professors are the teachers of the College, and they are responsible for educating and training the students in the arcane arts. Each professor is an expert in their field, and they are responsible for teaching specific subjects and skills to the students.The Students:
The students are the individuals who attend the College to learn the arcane arts. They are divided into different classes based on their skill level and abilities, and they are expected to study and learn from the professors in order to become powerful and successful mages.The Bound:
The bound are students who are unable to pay the tuition for the College, and as a result, they are required to provide magical services to the city in order to fund their education. The bound are often sent on dangerous or difficult missions, and they are considered to be lower in status than the other students.Notable People:
- Professor Arcturus (Head of the College a stern man from low origins)
- Elinor Ravenwood (Placement Director a violent and cold woman)
Territory:
As the College works throughout the city and works for many of the companies of Arbor few places are forbidden to them however their territory that they specifically control is confined to a single campus located near the heart of the city in the Second RingNotable Structures:
The Arcanum (Campus for the Collegite Arcanum and the largest magical stronghold in the city.)
Type
Education, Magic
Alternative Names
The College
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