Magocracy of Valsan

Magical spires and feint arcane barrers make up the skyline of Valsan, cities of arcane erudition filled with prospective mages in training.

Massive spires jut into the sky all over the small kingdom of Valsan. Alongside the spires, a faint but massive arcane barrier that protects it from direct attacks shimmers faintly in the sunlight. Magic is a normal part of life of the kingdom, from rulers to commoners. From lighting homes to assisting agriculture, the kingdom is rife with arcane arts.
Founded as a small wizard’s guild after The Zenithian Great Secessions , locals soon congregated near the guild for protection. Gathering knowledge and fame at a quick pace, the Valsan Wizard'g Guild eventually worked together with settlers under their protection in forming the Magocracy of Valsan, which developed quickly into a powerful neighbor in the coming decades. The ruler is decided by something titled the "Arcane Joust", in which the six major wizarding families, and other challengers compete in a to-the-death duel in order to decide Valsans most powerful wizard, and next ruler. As deadly as it is, most of the time there are no Arcane Jousts at all, as no one is willing to risk their lives enough to enter. The current ruler is Grand Magister Roland Grimbolt.
Valsan is known for it’s wide variety of magic schools, and arcane workshops, that churn out magical scrolls and arcane items. The Magocracy accepts all races and creeds, especially any of those who show an aptitude for the arcane arts. However, because of its success and popularity, Valsan and its surrounding satellite cities are growing quite vast, and there is concern amongst the populace that there may soon be critical infrastructure shortages due to the intake of so many so quickly.
There are five wizarding colleges within Valsan which formed the basis and the foundation of the nation. There are more magically talented people that come from Valsan than any other place, thus the influx of the magically talented and those who want to focus their talents required more than one college. Most have general studies but few have a specialization and secret spells that are handed down to the students. The six colleges are;
Grimbolt College of Wizardry (Speciality:Fire, Lightning)
Forgeshield Manor (Speciality: Earth, Ice)
Kalar Academy (Speciality: Blood)
Strigensburg (Speciality: Alchemy)
Valones Institute (Speciality: Shadow)
The citizens of Valsan tend towards worship of Wry, as the foremost god of magic and wisdom. They accept the faiths of others, but so important is the quest for knowledge and wisdom, that worshipping Wry is almost a given in most places in the Magocracy of Valsan.
For the most part, the culture of Valsan is a peaceful society. The large majority of the citizens of Valsan is magically talented and thus is eligible for higher governmental positions. For those rare occasions when one is not born with magical talent, they have the option of becoming an artisan or joining the military of Valsan, which is a volunteer only force. Crime is at a low, either out of just a pure peace or out of subtle fear for the Coercitors, a sect of Valsan trained "peacekeeping" soldiers.
Magic is involved in every aspect of Valsan society, from being able to light their candles at night, to being used in transport around the city of Valsan in well placed teleportation runes. Any visitor is usually bewildered by the amount of magic there and some people who are not accustomed to it gain a temporary sickness called “Arcane Feedback” of which are symptoms of dizziness, nausea and vomiting.
The tensions between the “magicked” and the “non-magicked” are calm, and any dissent is usually hushed and swept underneath the rug. Valsan is known for its craftsmanship, and mass exportation of magical scrolls and items. They are also known for being able to magically scribe things, making messages appear invisible, as well as being able to scry through their magical orbs, in which messages and discussions can be conducted instantly across the Erolan.
Lately, in the lower sections of the Valsan Academy of Magic, and in the poorer residential districts below, there has been the beginning of a sickness spreading. No one knows how one catches or transmits it, but it is being called “The Mage Plague” at this time. The person afflicted with said plague develops varying symptoms which have not been able to be pinpoint, ranging from vomiting blue substances, to losing body parts, to even simple symptoms as coughing and sneezing. Any efforts to get the leadership to acknowledge this has lately fell on deaf ears.
In the early weeks of the Spring of 1024, Valsan was spared from immediate disaster. Due to timely information given to High Magister Grimbolt only weeks before, he learned of crucial information about an artifact that remained in the possession of Valsan. A tall black mirror had been in the possession of Valsan for centuries, with little clue as to its purpose. After receiving a key piece of information, the High Magister contacted the Academy of Enmarken, petitioning the Raven Magi for the aid of their divine magics.
They sequestered the mirror, and with the aid of the Raven Magi, High Magister Grimbolt crafting a trapping spell around it. They did not have to wait long for the trap to spring. It was only days after when through the mirror, a fae with fanged mouths covering the surface of his skin, stepped through the mirror. They spell bound the fae-thing in place, who seemed only mildly surprised at the spell. According to the High Magisters report, the creature looked at the spell, and then the surrounding wizards. In unison, his many mouths spoke;
“Well done, mageling mortals, well done.” With that the creature has gone silent, simply staring, unblinkingly, at those who maintain his prison. The spell is currently maintained by several magisters of Valsan and several Raven Magi, who rotate out at regular intervals to rest. The High Magister Grimbolt is currently deep in council on the fate of his prisoner, and helping Il Paraonde and the Sultanate of Sahir in researching the strange plague that grips their kingdoms.
9/1024 - Valsan has been abuzz with activity over the recent months. Most mages and healers were recruited to solve the puzzle of the Gibbering Plague that inflicted the western coastlands. It took weeks of experimentation, but the mages of Valsan eventually discovered an intensive reversal spell, and went to work in the afflicted lands to begin the laborious process of curing the Gibbering Plague. The process may take months to complete in total, but progress continues to be made.
Meanwhile, a select few mystics have been selected by the High Magister Grimbolt himself to work alongside the Raven Magi of the Academy of Enmarken to solve the riddle of their strange visitor through the Black Mirror. Having spoken only a half dozen times during his magical imprisonment, the mouth-covered fae entity, known as “Legix the Many”, still waits within the spell-prison created for him. The High Magister has been using his gathered mages to reinforce the prison, as well as attempt to understand the nature of this strange entity. He has very pointedly not made the results of research public as of yet.

Cultural Dress
Wide varieties of deep colored, beautiful robes, and enchanted looking jewelry.

Kingdom Skills
Hand of Valsan: Once per day, out of combat, point to an object within 10 feet of you and interact with it. Must have line of sight. Can move an object up to 5 pounds