The Sanction

The Sanction is a decree enacted in 1203 BVD by Emperor Valigard IV, and it remains in effect to this day. The original document is still kept in the Marble Palace.¹

Background

In 1768 BVD a circle of arcane scholars discovered a ritual of immortality, which was said to bind a mortal's soul to the body as nothing had before. At first both the mages and the world welcomed it, and the immortal mages became rulers of their lands. In time some of them saw how great a price they had paid, and how absolute power had corrupted them. Undoing the ritual needed everyone who had first taken part, and a bloody war broke out among the mages that shattered mountains, dried up lakes and levelled cities. The High Church and the imperial nobility ended it by backing the repentant mages, but fear of magic and of those who wield it lingered across the land.¹

That fear is the reason Valigard IV declared the edict known as the Sanction. The true fate of the immortal mages is still unknown.¹

Provisions

Under the Sanction:

• mages give up every right that comes from their surname, and may not own land;
• mages must enter the Archon Academy young, and may not leave until they can use their powers without harming their surroundings;
• even after graduation, a mage's blood is kept in the Archon Blood Archive;
• a mage who wishes to be independent after graduating pays a magical tax to the Empire;
• a mage caught without a licence from the Academy can be executed without trial;
• the learning and practice of certain spells is strictly forbidden.¹