Atemcester

Atemcester is a city on the northern coast of Lyvernus. It is renowned as the City of Magic.

Description
Atemcester is a large city built around a lake on the northern end of the Atemcestari Peninsula. The city is famed for the wizards that live there and create magical goods that are exported to other areas in Lyvernus. The mages of Atemcester are also known to offer their spellcasting abilities to those able to afford them. There are also several renowned academies of magic, such as the Academy of the Archmagi downtown, located in the city. Kain Thessos studied at one of these academies. Some of the mages of Atemcester also reside in floating towers, held aloft by aerocrystals, stones with magic properties that can be mined in the Spine of the World. At night, enchanted stones placed around the city begin to glow, providing pedestrians with light. However, not all of the residents of Atemcester are magically inclined, and at least some people from the city (such as Jorah Wolfwood) regard magic with suspicion, due to their exposure to some of the mages' more dubious experiments. The city guards are called the Mana Wardens and their ranks include wizards. The Mana Wardens' uniform consists of large purple chestpieces with eye emblems and blue robes underneath. As a port city, Atemcester is also heavily involved in more mundane trading, including exporting seafood inland to places like the Exeter. Inland, the city is surrounded by the Everspring Forest, which is magically climate-controlled to be temperate year-round.

Atemcester is the capital of the City-State of Atemcester, which also includes the rest of the Atemcestari Peninsula and the nearby farming village of Terrath. Atemcester and Terrath are closely linked, as Atemcester provides Terrath with magically enhanced farming tools in exchange for producing much of Atemcester's food supply. Atemcester itself is ruled by the Circle of Eight, a group of wizards representing each of the major schools of magic. These wizards are publicly known only by titles based on their primary school of magic (ex., Archmage of Evocation), rather than their names. These titles are passed down to each wizard who takes the seat within the Circle. The Archmage of Necromancy tends to be the most controversial appointment. Recently, since their long titles can be cumbersome when discussing members of the Circle, the archmages have adopted the names of powerful ancient mages, higher-ranking members of the Vrinian Empire's Arcane Studium. Like the original titles, these names are passed on to the archmages' eventual successors. The Circle doesn't hold direct audiences with the people of Atemcester, preferring to work through liaisons who filter out the less important grievances and petitions.

Downtown Atemcester
Downtown Atemcester is located on an island in the middle of the lake and connected to the lakeshore districts by floating bridges, powered by aerocrystals. It is where many of the important mages of the city gather and where most of the authentic magic shops are located. In the middle of Downtown, there is a large circular building called the Teleportation Nexus, containing teleportation circles connecting to all of the major cities in Lyvernus, as well as Arc-Delia. The Circle Tower, where the Circle of Eight conducts their business, floats directly above the Teleportation Nexus and is accessible from the Nexus. One of the largest buildings in Downtown is Atemcester's library, located on the ground because it's too large to be elevated by a reasonable amount of aerocrystal. It is seven stories tall, with each floor being lined with bookcases. Many other smaller towers also float above Downtown, including one housing Valmorra's Magical Gewgaws. There are also some restaurants in Downtown, such as the Mages' Conjuration, as well as ordinary shops, such as a bakery called the Levitating Loaf.

The western side of Downtown is dominated by the Academy of the Archmagi, although it doesn't take up the entire side of the district. The Academy contains several facilities, including dormitories, lecture halls, and a library rivaling the city's main one in size, specialized in arcane tomes. Many of the students are in their teens, although older students taking longer courses of study exist as well.

Southside
Southside is located on the southeast side of the lake and is the easiest point of access to the city for travelers coming from the road. It is one of the poorer districts of Atemcester, but its main street is fairly well-off and lined with shops attempting fraudulent magic items to unsuspecting tourists. The façade of the main street quickly falls away when traveling deeper in the district. It is connected to Downtown by the Creidon Bridge. It is also the location of Julia's orphanage, the Wayward House.

Portside
Portside is located to the northeast of Downtown. The buildings are composed of lower-quality materials than those in Downtown. Many sailors stay in and handle their business in Portside. Ships dock along the river and in the lake, where they have easy access to the Eadrenan Sea. It is also the location of an inn called the Fish and Spell and a restaurant called the Atemcester Fishery. It also contains many shops selling fraudulent magic items but, unlike those in Southside, the fake items are more likely to do something bad, rather than nothing at all.

Westside
Westside is a large district covering the entire west side of the lake. The northern half of Westside contains its residential area, as well as many of Atemcester's temples. Most of the temples are ornately adorned, but the temple of the Nameless God there is a plain building of black stone. The southern half of Westside is where most of the city's non-magical shops are located.

History
An Abyssal Crest resided in Atemcester, suggesting that the mages of the city may have been involved in the sealing of the demon lord Alzrius in ancient times. During the Age of Dragons, many mages were taken in by chromatic dragons as pets and servants. They artificially extended their lives to serve their masters and were known as the dragonscale mages. While Atemcester may or may not have been the City of Magic during this time, stories of the dragonscale mages are often told in the city, although they are incorrectly treated as myth. In much more recent times, much magical research has been conducted by the mages of Atemcester, leading to the development of the anti-life magic that was eventually stolen by the Fireaxe Clan and unleashed in Port Valor to devastating effect. Mages from Atemcester found themselves as the Fireaxe Clan's preferred targets during the first half of 598 as well.

Known Residents

 * Aros, an archmage of the Circle of Eight
 * Daria
 * Delmarillia
 * Ermos, an archmage of the Circle of Eight
 * Hados, Archmage of Necromancy
 * Heifitos, an archmage of the Circle of Eight
 * Jorah Wolfwood (formerly)
 * Julia
 * Kain Thessos (formerly)
 * Paisodos, an archmage of the Circle of Eight
 * Phrodaste, Archmage of Illusion
 * Rendor
 * Thelysra
 * Thenoda, an archmage of the Circle of Eight
 * Valmorra
 * Zalos, an archmage of the Circle of Eight