Visavan Institute Alchemical (visɑʋɑŋ in̼st̪it̪ɨɨt̪ æl̠kxɛɱikxal̠)

Origin and Overview

The Visavan Institute Alchemical is the heart of research into the science of alchemy in not only Visava but the world.

Originally founded in 102 VE (PS 130) by members of the Association of Visavan Alchemists, the VIA was the first dedicated academical institution on the Savisan continent. AVA alchemists claim that they were the first in the world, positing that the Spellsong College of Epicentre is more interested in record-keeping and law than research. Situated on the northern slopes of the extinct volcano at the heart of Visawashri, the Institute is a sprawling complex of dome-spired lecture halls, squat, vaulted laboratories and covered walkways.

Graduation from the VIA is considered a mark of honour, and many Nɘka - members of the ruling class - send their children to the academy for their basic education.

Ranks

Rank	Educational Level	Open To	Notes
Junior Apraintis	1	Jɘnɘvara Gulɘɱa Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	New apraintisi are only allowed in the labs under supervision. They range between 10 and 16 years of age.
Senior Apraintis	2	Jɘnɘvara Gulɘɱa Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	An apraintis is promoted to Senior Apraintis when they have proven themselves responsible enough to supervise their juniors.
Sponsored Naveɱ	2.5	Jɘnɘvara Gulɘɱa	In order to progress to the rank of Naveɱ, fourth and third class citizens must be sponsored by a patron. For Gulɘɱa, this is usually their owner, but particularly gifted Jɘnɘvara are often sponsored by senior members of the Institute.
Naveɱ	3	Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	Naveɱ are competent students who have proven themselves ready to be inducted beyond the most basic processes of alchemy.
Sponsored Adagraijut	3.5	Jɘnɘvara Gulɘɱa	The course load of a sponsored adagraijut diverges from that of an adagraijut in that it begins to include pedagogical principles; lessons on how to teach as well as how to learn.
Adagraijut	4	Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	The move from Naveɱ to Adagraijut is a sign that a student has mastered the basics of alchemy and is ready to understand the underpinning principles of the science itself.
Vitirah	4.5	Jɘnɘvara Gulɘɱa Nɘgɘraka	Vitirah is the highest level to which jɘnɘvara and gulɘɱa can rise in the Institute. Gulɘɱa vitirah are expected to return to their masters' households, while jɘnɘvara and nɘgɘrak vitirah join the Institute faculty or travel to the provinces to teach apraintisi the basics and seek out new talent for the VIA and the AVA in general.
Graijut	5	Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	The move from adagraijut to graijut is less about alchemical skill and more about personal development. Graijuti are expected to design and investigate their own experiments, and actively contribute to the Institute's understanding of alchemy and the sciences.
Maseta	6	Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	Recognition as a maseta involves publishing a major research study and beginning to teach advanced classes at the Institute. Maseta only teach classes to adagraijuti and above.
Tenured Maseta	7	Nɘgɘraka Nɘka	A maseta who has held their position for more than twenty years without leaving the academy is granted tenure, meaning that it would require the entire senior faculty to remove them from their position. An agreement by four or more tenured maseti is required to grant someone the rank of senior maseta.
Senior Maseta	8	Nɘka	Senior maseta are those maseta who have been recognised by the faculty for their contributions to the study of alchemy above and beyond that of regular alchemists.
Grenmaseta	9	Nɘka	The grenmaseta is the leader of the Institute and the most senior member of the faculty, and is selected from the ranks of the senior maseti upon the previous grenmaseta's death by a vote among the tenured and senior maseta.

Culture and Politics

While the VIA are theoretically apolitical, the grenmaseta has a lot of influence because of her position. While she does not have a seat on the Council of Peers, she is often called upon to advise them due to her wide range of expertise and familiarity with some of the most notable figures across the Empire.

The internal culture of the VIA is academic and cut-throat. Graijuti compete savagely for research grants, while advancement for jɘnɘvara and gulɘɱa students is as much a matter of politics and favour-trading as it is reliant on individual skill. While there is no legal limit on how many students a given maseta can sponsor, there are financial constraints - sponsoring a student comes out of their personal budgets and the Institute only provides funding for one sponsorship per year per maseta.This is seen as just and reasonable, for a jɘnɘvara must be truly exceptional and dedicated to the Institute to be worthy of a sponsorship in the eyes of most nɘgɘraka. Dedicated - or wealthy enough on their own to pay a maseta the cost of their sponsorship out of their own pockets.

Notable Members (PS 1007)

Grenmaseta Fang Al-jir

75 year old female aasimar. Fang Al-jir has been the grenmaseta of the Institute for fifteen years. She was elected to the position on the strength of her alchemical practice and clear love for teaching, having spent two decades as a vitirah before taking the mastery exam. In the years since her promotion to grenmaseta, she has started several programs for the advancement of jɘnɘvara, including a highly controversial scholarship fund. It was in partial response to her policies that Empress Nayar was elected.

Senior maseta Han Cheung

40 year old tiefling. Han Cheung is a the master of Jeongvri Academy and a direct descendent of AVA founder Jia Cheung. They were due an important position in the Institute due to their bloodline, but their interest in the elven arts makes them something of an embarassment. They were sent to lead Jeongvri Academy to keep them out of the way, but have proved a more than capable administrator and have led the charge on pioneering a new science - the art of blending elven magic with visavan alchemy.

Facilities

Visawashri Academy

Originally named the Visavan Institute Alchemical, the name was changed when the organisation opened its second facility. The Visawashri Academy remains the largest and most important complex in the VIA and the seat of its power. As well as offices for the faculty, the Academy complex includes two libraries, three dining halls, ten lecture theatres, some fifty laboratories and over a hundred seminar rooms. Four on-site dormitories house the students. Two are dedicated to apraintisi, one houses the majority of the adagraijuti and graijuti, while the fourth houses vitirah and visiting guests, as well as the few faculty members who do not have their own homes in the city.

Harpreetevri Academy

The second academy founded by the VIA, the academy in Harpreetevri is relatively small for the size of the city it is attached to. A single dormitory, a library, two lecture halls, three seminar rooms and four laboratories make up the majority of the grounds, with the administrative block situated between the lecture halls.

Jeongvri Academy

The Jeongvri academy was founded in 700 VE (PS 730). It was intended to replace the Visawashri academy as the main campus for the VIA, but its remote location proved too much for the majority of students and staff to cope with. Over half the campus remains empty, even after admissions there were opened to elven aspirants in 802 VE. The academy remains home to a dedicated team of researchers investigating the unusual properties of the waters of the Pool of the Needle lake. It also hosts a permanent delegation from the Guardian Archive of Epicentre, who are studying the ancient ruins under the Needle. Jeongvri Academy boasts eight dormitories, a hundred laboratory spaces, two large libraries, and four dining halls. One dormitory has been set aside for elven students and faculty, who have also taken over several of the laboratories and two of the lecture halls for the teaching of their own arcane traditions. While senior maseta Cheung has encouraged this to continue, it remains an unpopular decision among the rest of the Institute.

Type

Educational, Scientific Institute