The Three Strictures
The Miracle of Rebirth
Over a century before humanity first rioted on the grounds of the University of Karradone's School of Pure and Applied Thaumaturgy, the Order of Shar'iish'ta invoked the first anti-arcane strictures in Tarien. With the wisdom of the Shar'rah dating back beyond written history, likely to the Age of Sun, when the Kari-Zaro and Tzecheni'korak destroyed the world, warned of the negative influence that Outsiders can have on world at large. While the term Outsider was a rough translation, its significance became clear during the Great War
First, Selengar Shal'Ashen bound demon for a year and a day, passing that knowledge to the priests and magi of the Elanthai Council. Once others learned this art, the generals of the Elynthi armies quickly put these children of Nosferian to use, both as elite fighting forces but, more dangerously by taking advantage of two key arcane powers: the ability to teleport and the ability to gate their brethren. Soon, Elynthi commandos, paired with a demon, were manifesting behind enemy lines, summoning demonic allies, wrecking havoc, and teleporting out.
The Tyloman Coalition quickly adapted, though not by summoning the feathered children of Tyloma to fight by their side. For whatever reason, Tyloma elected to provide assistance via allies of other races, as human-kind joined the war. Other, individual heroes also joined the fray. Two of these entrepreneurial allies proved most effective, including and planar traveler named Traipse and a Nerrid agent named Olaf. Using the power of a strange magical portal that they had discovered, they travelled to other planes of existence, acquiring assistance for the war. First, they enlisted the aid of a mighty Giff mercenaries. This hippopotamus like humanoids arrived on Tarien en masse, well disciplined armed with blunderbusses and fire pots, they proved a devastating, albeit expensive, ally. Later in the war, specifically to help drive Flind from the war, they enlisted the aid of the less predictable Githynki who arrived with their great sky ships to wreck destruction in the Frosted Mountains until they ultimately splintered from the Coalition to plunder cities as they saw fit.
The betrayal of the Githyanki, relentless hordes of Nosferian’s demons, and overall devastation had to be stopped before it escalated further. Without an armistice, many feared that Tarien was headed for a second mass destruction, much like the one that ended the Age of Sun. It was then, in 475 AC, that Alequeas Waterfall invoked the Miracle of Rebirth. Shar’iiish’ta’s power coursed throughout the land, banishing all beings and magic whose origin was not of Tarien. Peace soon followed.
Why the, does Dimension Door still function, as a spell, when Teleport does not? Some have speculated that, despite its name, Dimension Door does not truly open a door through another plane, but rather transports the caster faster than the eye can perceive. Others have postulated that the dimension it uses is still within the planar boundary of Tarien. Regardless, the facts, my young protegees, is that Dimension Door works within the Three Strictures. Teleport, does not.
An Elynthi in a Summoning Circle
The Barrier of Shar’iish’ta and the Three Strictures
The miracle had lasting effects, creating a barrier between Tarien and other planes. While the extent of this barrier is not fully understood, it generally prevents entities, objects, and energy from other planes of existence from travelling to Tarien. Before the Mage Wars, the University of Pure and Applied Thaumaturgy conducted some research on the subject. Lead by the Goblin scholar Xeerix Zenzorax, the research team established what they called three strictures, which described primary impacts of the Barrier of Shar’iish’ta: the Translocation Ban, Temporal Adherence Principle, Unidirectional Migration of Souls.
Importantly, unlike the mortal restrictions place on magic of during the Mage Wars, which seek to punish magi that perform an arcane act but allow (assuming the authorities are wise enough to tell the difference) divine acts, the Three Strictures are immutable restrictions put in place by the Old Onea. More simply put, many nation-states have laws that forbid magic, but do not prevent its use. The Three Strictures are firm bans that prevent certain types of magic, arcane or divine, from ever succeeding. They cannot be circumnavigated, though the rules surrounding what is involved often seem convoluted.