Magic Of Krynn
The orders of sorcery were created by the three gods of magic, Solinari,
Lunitari and Nuitari, back during the Age of Dreams. During the All Saints' War, the three
gods of magic walked upon the face of Krynn, searching for mortal followers. Each god
chose one follower and bestowed upon them the keys to the Lost Citadel, where the
followers were taught the three fundamental principles of magic on Krynn:
1.All wizards are brothers in their Order and all Orders are brothers in power.
2.The Towers of High Sorcery are held in common amongst the orders and no sorcery shall be
used there in anger against other wizards.
3.The world may bring brother against brother and Order against Order, but such is the way
of the universe.
The followers were returned to Krynn where they founded the Orders of High Sorcery.
Solinari, god of benevolent magic, founded the Order of the White Robes. These mages act
to promote good. Lunitari, goddess of neutral magic, founded the Order of the Red Robes.
Red robes, like myself, try to balance the forces of good and evil, so neither one becomes
more powerful than the other. Nuitari, god of black magic, founded the Order of the Black
Robes. Black Robed wizards usually act to further their own ends, but will not jeopardize
the future of magic to do so.
The centers of magic on Krynn are two Towers of High Sorcery. There is a Tower in
Palanthas, and one in Wayreth Forest. Both towers are protected by magical defenses,
making them impenetrable to those who are not invited. The Tower in Palanthas is
surrounded by high walls, but that is not the true defense. Inside the walls is a grove of
trees, known as the Shoikan Grove, which is enchanted by an overwhelmingly powerful
fear spell. The Tower of Wayreth is surrounded by a magical field which allows it to
appear anywhere within 500 miles of its original location.
Originally there were five Towers upon Krynn. There was a Tower in Daltigoth, which
supposedly caused sleep. The Tower in Istar was surrounded by a forget spell. There was
also a Tower in the Ruins, whose defense was to create intense feelings of passion. These
towers no longer exist, for various reasons. The towers in Daltigoth and the Ruins were
attacked by the people of Krynn, incited by the Kingpriest of Istar. However, rather than
allow the populace to claim the Towers, the wizards destroyed them, causing mass
destruction. Rather than risk the destruction of the city of Istar, the Kingpriest allowed
the wizards to keep that tower intact; however it was destroyed during the Cataclysm.
Spellcasting is a complex art form, one which requires as much practice as any other sort
of art. To use spells, a magic user must memorize the spell. The spell, which may be
composed of words, gestures and material components, remains in the caster's memory until
it is used, at which point it is lost from the caster's memory until it is re-memorized.
Since spells must constantly be re-memorized, wizards keep spell books. The more spells
you know, the more books you have to keep those spells. Some great wizards had entire
libraries of spells which they knew, but did not necessarily have memorized.
In case you haven't noticed the moons overhead during your travels on Krynn, you will
discover that there are three moons. A red, a white and a black moon. These are the gods
of magic in their celestial forms. The phases of each moon strengthen or weaken the
followers of that particular order. Say Nuitari is low in the sky--a new moon. The Black
Robes are at their weakest during that time. At the same time, Solinari might be full, so
the White Robes are at their peak. A rare occurrence is the Night of the Eye, a night when
the moons are full and align to form a white eye with a red iris and a black pupil, when
all magic is at its peak.
The Orders of High Sorcery are governed by a Conclave of Wizards. Each order sends seven
wizards to sit as it's representatives to the Conclave. One of these representatives also
serves as the Master of the order. This honor is determined differently, depending upon
which order you are referring to. In any event, the Master serves a life-long term in
their position. From the twenty-one delegates, one is selected to serve as the Master of
the Conclave. This position is an election, whose ballots are cast by every wizard on
Krynn, through a consensus spell.
If a person wishes to join an Order of High Sorcery, they usually begin at a young age,
studying under an archmage, who is generally approved by the Conclave. When a pupil is
deemed ready, usually about age 25 in humans (or in AD&D game terms, level 3-5), he or
she ventures to a Tower of High sorcery to take the Test of High Sorcery. The Test is
incredibly hard, and is never undertaken by a person not completely devoted to magic,
since failure means death. Each Test is different, customized for each apprentice by the
Conclave itself to measure each individual's strengths and weaknesses. The Test is
designed to separate the wheat from the chaff; in other words to take those who will use
magic responsibly and admit them to the order, while leaving undesirables out. Through
their actions during the test, each apprentice pledges allegiance to an Order of High
Sorcery.