A Study of the Organization of Magical Learning in the 3rd Age

(A treatise by Master Diviner Falvian Dorrest, submitted to the High Council of Mages of Drem, in the year 196 of the 3rd Age.) 
So long as magic exists in our world, there will be those with the will and the drive to master it. How this knowledge has been proliferated has been of great interest to mage-kind through the entire history of magic. It is my hope that this treatise illuminates the current standing of magical learning on the continent of Lerias in comparison to that of the 1st and 2nd ages.
One cannot understand the learning of magic without first understanding the great magecity of Drem. Originally founded in the year 945 BC of the 1st Age, Drem was the crowning achievement of wizard-kind. Created whole by the combined magic of the High Wizards from the 30 recognized schools of the age, Drem was a paradise. For a time, the wizards of Drem studied and furthered magical knowledge together. Yes, they did remain organized by their schools, but even then, knowledge was shared and the first priority of each mage was the furtherance of magic itself. This would change with the end of the Empire of the Giants, when the outside world looked to Drem to lead in the absence of the Giant’s rule.
This turn towards political power and control brought great wealth to Drem, but with it came dissension. During these years the 30 schools became more like warring guilds, who were jealous of their standing and their knowledge, ultimately culminating in the War of Brothers in 695 BC of the 1st Age.
From the fallout of the War of Brothers, two organizations who would have incredible impact on the study of magic, formed: The Academy of the Arcane and the Cabal of the Dark Brotherhood. These two groups, while each still divided into magical schools, formed overreaching organizations dedicated to different moral systems for the study of magic. Their control over magical learning would last for over 700 years and have far reaching implications even to this day.
Beyond setting the standard for magical learning, the other issues of importance for this discussion that stemmed from their control was the formation of the school of War Wizardry in Fetesca, and the destruction of the 8 lost schools. These two events, though separated by centuries, were interconnected. The destruction of the lost schools and the lore that was lost convinced the mages of the age that their primary concern was the protection and learning of magical lore. To that end their gatekeeping of magic became what we might consider draconian now.
Both organizations forced rigorous testing on those who would become wizards, with death being the reward for those who did not live up to the high standards of the organizations. This reclusive secrecy led to wizardry becoming mistrusted in the years leading towards the Chaos War. And so it was that in the years after the war, a new organization to study magic arose that held its primary allegiance to a pollical power as opposed to magic itself: The War Wizards of Fetesca.
The second age was not a kind one to the organizations of wizardry. Their power broken along with the mage city, the study of magic became much more localized and during this time War Wizard Schools dedicated to each of the governments of Lerias became, alongside private universities, the primary source of magical lore.
It is into this chaos of magical learning that the re-emergence of the magecity of Drem near the end of the second age occurred. It is the learning of this time that we will focus on.
In the current age, the magecity is ruled by the council of mages, who have representatives of the eight remaining schools of true wizardry: Abjuration, Enchantment, Illusion, Divination, Invocation, Transmutation, Necromancy, and Conjuration. While this council works together to oversee the rule of Drem, advised by the church of the Stargazer, the individual schools are responsible for the proliferation of their magical lore. In this age, there is stiff competition between the eight schools, but at the time of this writing this competition has remain scholarly and served to strengthen the magecity.
The number of “Lost Schools” have increased as well with many of the former schools of the Academy and the Dark Cabal having lost so much wizardly lore that their power is only seen in those of particularly influenced bloodlines. These schools are known, in Drem, as Schools of Sorcery. While not represented in the mage’s council, many of these Sorcerer’s dwell in Drem seeking to understand the magic in their blood. The recognized schools of sorcery are: Dracomancy, Wild Magic, Shadow Magic, & Storm Magic. There is rumor of the existence of Sorcerous power descending from a divine bloodline, but that, along with bardic songs, Warlock Pacts and clerical prayers, are not considered true magic by the Council of Mages. War wizards, while recognized as practitioners of true magic, have no standing within Drem, as their allegiance tends to align more with the government of the lands rather than to magic itself. Some do live within the Magecity, but the majority of the study of War Wizardry stems from smaller schools in various cities throughout Lerias, as such there is no unifying organization of lore for their studies.