The witches forest

The founders

This event occurred after the treaty (200 years after it) and in the early stage of the Desmira kingdom. A human named Elizabeth (38, 5’9, with long black hair, and a face that can be described as uninterested or cold at times, but very charismatic) practiced dark and unique magical techniques in secret, passed down from her mother who was taught by other women from something called "the covenant". Elizabeth often practiced the magic in secret, but she was tired of hiding it, she wanted this gift to be shared with not just her or a few women, but a whole kingdom's worth. She set out to recruit women mages that showed promise and commitment to her cause and managed to recruit 5 other humans: Margret (35, 5’6, short brown hair, ran a market stand in the capital), Selina (35, 5’5, long blonde hair but dyed dark purple, was a seamstress), Vanica (33, 5’6, long black hair, housewife that was widowed when her husband “disappeared”) Kyre (30, 5’4, blonde hair, a nurse at an infirmary in the capital) and Jenny (22, 5’3, red hair, was an orphan and petty thief in the capital).
They then sought out a spot to perform Elizabeth's plan and found a Forrest at the edge of human territory to the west to do it. 5 years later, their preparations were complete, and they started the ritual and cast an unbreakable curse onto the entire human kingdom that branded about 20% of the population of women ranging from young adults to newborns (the human kingdom had around 250 adults and 150 children at that point) with a symbol of wings of a crow on their back. From then on, all females born have a chance (about 1 in 50) to be born with the ‘mark of the witch’, and when reaching teenhood, will be drawn to the forest to be taught the ways of witches' magic. The founding witches then used this brand to track down the women and bring them to the forest to teach them their ways. Reports of adults, teenagers, children, and even babies disappearing were spreading throughout the kingdom, and panic was growing. One night, a guard witnessed a woman wearing a black dress and pointy hat on a broom carry a child out of the capital and tailed her to the forest. Once he returned to the capital, bearing news, king Arterius ordered an army and some of the best adventurers in the kingdom to march to the forest, not knowing only 6 women were there, ready to defend their territory.
For ten minutes, the witches fought the adventurers and the army, until Jenny sustained a severe injury (an acid attack to her eyes, which caused her to go blind), and the witches were willing to cooperate with the king. After explaining the curse, the king demanded that at least the children be returned to the kingdom, and the witches complied. Despite the resolution, the fear of people's children and others being witches spread across the land, and many were kicked out of their homes/towns, shunned, or even killed. Hearing reports of this, king Arterius thought that a "witch hunt" (as the locals started to call it) would decimate their population and create a neverending fear of one of their own being a witch, so he decided to try and stop this early with a compromise: those marked can be transported to the forest for training but will have to be returned to their parents at the end of the day. Fast forward 300 years, and the forest is thriving with witches and enjoying its own culture.

The desmira-witch agreement

Following the release of the founders, King Arterius and his advisors made them agree to the following terms:

• They cannot expand
• They cannot own a military, self-defense forces are accepted
• They cannot form diplomatic or trade relations with any other powers except Desmira
• No religion should be placed on the young or the unwilling

Other facts

• Many witches live in the forest due to discrimination, abandonment, or they just like it there
• If you’re curious about the order the founding witches were recruited in: Margret, Jenny, Selina, Kyre, then Vanica
• Due to Jenny’s time decelerate magic, she is the only living founding witch to this day, giving advice to the queen of witches
• Gay relationships are very common in witch society, and a lot more accepted than in other territories

Structure

The witches are ruled by “The Covenant”, of which all under it serve witches put in place by the Witch Queen.

The witch queen

The top of The Covenant is the Witch Queen, Jenny the founder, a witch that placed 2nd during the Witch Queen selection, and sometimes the former witch queen all serve to advise and/or aid the current Witch Queen. The witch queen is chosen every 10 years, and after 10 years, a tournament-style selection takes place. Those old enough and qualified compete for the next 7 days in either two types of competition: the combat competition, or the support competition. After both competitions have one winner, each winner will describe the changes they wish to bring to the forest, and they are then judged by the witch queen, and Jenny the founder, and the new witch queen will be crowned.

The intelligence body and ritual/experimental group

Under them are the intelligence body and ritual/experimental group. The Intelligence body (often called “The Queens Crows”) handles law enforcement, spying/intel gathering, and manages the lookouts. The ritual/experimental group conducts research and experiments and rituals. The rituals and experiments are heavily regulated and supervised by “The head of magic”.

The social and societal affairs group

Finally, the social and societal affairs group (or SSA for short) maintains the infrastructure and logistics of the witch society. From lanes of travel to managing supply lines from the human kingdom to the functions of the schools and nurseries, the SSA ensures that witch society functions efficiently, and is thus the biggest body of the coven.

Culture

Many of the witches living in the forest have a sense of unity and comfort with each other. Most are open and social with each other, they respect those of different backgrounds and desire to have a home that is welcoming for them and those around them. They do, however, have a bit of an aversion when it comes to outsiders, especially men.

Public Agenda

The Queen and the covenant state that there goal is to continue to grow and protect their community.

Military

The witches don't have a military (as per the Desmira-witch agreement), but they have a sizable defense force.

Religion

There are some who didn't grow up in the forest who believe in their own religions from their homes (humans believing in human religions, etc), but the official religion in the forest is the coven. The churches are made of simple grey wood, and many witches attend to offer their prayers for the continued favor of their Nevra, the goddess of the witches and offer thanks to the founders. The children sent to be educated aren't taught of the religion (as per the Desmira-witch agreement), but anyone living there is free to adopt it or not. There are, however, religious witches who voice that it should be taught, and it is allowed for churches and businesses to mandate proper attire (black dress and hat).

Laws

There is a code of law the witches have: “The witches code”, and it states that:

1. All witches are sisters and their home is the forest. A witch must NEVER betray or harm their own sister or the forest
2. Witches must wear formal attire when informed in advance that they will be in the presence of the witch queen or Jenny the founder, or in buildings/sites that require it
3. Witches are their own person once of age. They are allowed to own land, come and go from the forest if they didn’t have a parent/guardian originally, join the coven, or become witch queen
4. The magic of witches is sacred. It must not be taught to others that are not witches, and practices of witch magic in the forest or out in the world must be done logically and cautiously
5. Same-sex relationships are acceptable

The code is amendable, as the 5th code was added (despite the protests of the more conservative witches protest). The covenant enforces these rules, and the punishments given vary in its severity. On less severe crimes, they get off with a warning, sent to correctional training, or on house arrest at most, but in more severe crimes, exilement is usually given.

Agriculture & Industry

To the benefit of both the forest and Desmira, they are the region's biggest potion and medicine maker. Witches use their vast knowledge of plants and magic to produce good-quality potions that they sell to Desmira. They do this through their several potion-making facilities located in their first inner layer.

Trade & Transport

For witches, most travel to and out of the forest via broomsticks, and for trade or transportation of children, they use teleporting crystals.

Education

The education system of the witches is pretty robust for the region, which includes lessons for children, teens, and adults. The children are brought to the forest every other day, taught how to control their magic and its applications by one or more covenant members, but are under constant supervision by Desmiran advisors. Adults (or children that are adopted by the forest) are not supervised by the kingdom's officials. When they reach their teens, they are excused from further education, but can still attend classes if they want to.
Those living in the forest are taught how to control their magic, its application, the history of the forest, its founders, and the coven. When they are old enough, they can learn more advanced magic or labor skills.

Infrastructure

The forest is divided up into 4 layers:

• The outer layer: The least dense part of the forest. Mostly witches who want to live alone or the lookouts reside in these parts. This is also where people who live there or visit enter through
• The second inner layer: This is where the majority of the adult witches live. You can find many areas with shops, taverns, and recreational areas
• The first inner layer: This is the densest part of the forest. This is where the children are kept and taught, and most of the medical centers and industrial areas are in this area. It also houses the arena, where community-wide meetings are held and where witches compete to prove that they should be the next witch queen
• The core: This is the smallest part of the forest. This is where the witch queen resides and where multiple posts of secret ritual, experimentation, and intelligence are stationed

In sisterhood, we find strength.

Type

Religious, Coven

Training Level

Trained

Veterancy Level

Trained

Demonym

witch

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Power Structure

Autonomous area

Economic System

Mixed economy

Major Exports

Potions and herbal medicine is a primary export to Desmira, and Desmira would go on to sell these to the Merchants Port, or distribute them to their kingdom.

Major Imports

The forest imports basic necessities (food, clothing, etc.) and things like crafting materials. Luxury goods like alcohol are also imported.

Official State Religion

The Coven

Location

Anersha

Neighboring Nations

• The Desmira Kingdom
• The kingdom of Dhashral

Neutral-cordial

The witches forest

40

The Desmira Kingdom

40

• Many in the kingdom still don't like witches cursing their children
• The witches are warry of the kingdom for their discriminatory treatment of them