Astralone - The land of Sorcerers
.
Astralone was not always the country it is now. For a long time, it was just one city, known as Astraloné, standing beside the Gods’ Lake, and the main pilgrimage place for sorcerers. Population was scarce, and so was food.
Situated in the far south of Rhéio’s Southern Hemisphere, and submitted to a harsh cold climate most of the year, Astralone’s agriculture benefits, today, from the presence of sorcerers who lend their power to ensure the population can subsist all year long in a relative comfort.
It was Ketal’s rise which pushed sorcerers to escape his armies and himself, which consequently gave weight to Astralone’s considerable growth. Even after his demise, many sorcerers kept coming in the land who would soon be known as the Land of Sorcerers.
To protect their all new country, sorcerers built seals of magic along their frontier, allowing them to maintain only a very small defensive army, as the seals could block foreign armies, which both Darah, but especially South-Darah, would quickly learn. Today the seals, or moreover their maintenance, has lead to a radicalisation of South-Darah’s government against all sorcerers. Indeed, the Dahrans have accused Astralone of using the renewal of seal to push them further into their own territory, costing them lands year after year.
This is not the only conflict which Astralone has to face. The other concerns its own government structure. As said above, Astralone was colonised by sorcerers, but this does not mean there were no people leaving in the area. These natives did not have any structures which could allow them to keep the sole control of their lands, but they and their descendants still live in this land. For centuries, sorcerers excluded them of all political instances, but, with the help of a mediator designed by the gods, some sort of balance has been restored, and non-sorcerers are not only allowed to be elected, but also more likely to become a representative, sometimes even with the support of sorcerers who have come to understand their value, which rests in their intimate knowledge of the Gods Plain and its resources.
Astraloné is still the biggest pilgrimage for sorcerers. All year round, yurts are dressed for them on the lake’s bank. Those, among them, who seek to form a coven travel in the week before the Winter Solstice, and register with the office in charge of helping the process. It is also the moment to share knowledge across the international community.
