Philaen, the Disjointed Tower, Cradle of Magic

Pronunciation and Spelling

• Pronounced: Fee-'Lane [fi.'lejn]
• Alternative Spellings: Philane, Fielén and Phileyn
  • Origins: The name Philaen, originaly spelt Phileyn, translates to "Tower of the Ley" in the local Elven dialect at the time of the tower's construction.

The Tower of Philaen

• "It is difficult for one to truely understand why any place on this plane would carry the name the Disjointed Tower. But, merely one glimpse of Philaen will strip that ponderance with record swiftness." - Balirius Dandarion Folorander

• The Tower of Philaen is a wonder of architecture. The Tower itself is not precisely even a tower. But, rather, the building is seperated towers independant of one another, floating together in a complex pattern. Each tower in the spiral has the top of its spire exactly 60 yards above the spire of exactly one other tower. Each floating building has at least one bridge connecting it to another tower, either ascending further up the spiral or descending. Due to the complex pattern of the towers, one can get to every floating tower via bridge, even though there are many towers with only one bridge.

History

• xxx

Statistics - Economy and Trade

• Medium of Exchange: Maddock's Gate sanctioned coinage
  • Paper money is not used in Philaen

Statistics - Population and Culture

• Total Kingdom Population: Approximately 500,000 inhabitants
  • Race by Percent: 20% Silver Elf, 10% Northerner, 70% various others
• State Religion: None
  • Religion by Percent: 30% Hosh, 70% various others
• Crime
  • Kingdom : Low (Rating: 1)
• Music
  • Common: A strange atonal music of math is frequently heard emmenating from the halls of some towers in Philaen
• Art
  • Name of Most-Current Movement: Mathematicism
  • Description: Mathematicism is not so called by its practitioners, but rather by the art critics of The Three-Rivers, who often are underappreciative of the beauty of the movement. Math-art, as it is sometimes called in colloquial speech, is the art of using mathematical and magical theories to create patterns--either on canvas or with illusionary spells.
• Great Literature to come from Philaen
  • Balirius Dandarion Folorander, the current Steward of Philaen, is required to release annual reports of findings in the fields of mathematics, sciences and magics.
  • Oriliender Nandesendiam, third-degree archmage, was credited for writing the most compelling argument for the pervasive usage of magic in the history of Therra.

Politics

• The politics of Philaen are rather simple. That is to say, there truely are none.
• All trade and economy functions as a free bazaar type market, with no intervention by a larger force or entity.
• Elections are never held in Philaen, but this is because there are no positions for which to run.
  • The only position of "power" in the tower is the Steward of Philaen, this position is passed on from one archmage to another by the former Steward appointing a new Steward. The position is available to any archmage who lives in Philaen and plans to do so for the remainder of his lifetime. The Steward is law-bound to remain in Philaen year round, with the exception of a two-week vacation in the spring.
• Philaen is a neutral state within the kingdom of Cor-Anan. The kingdom does not tax Philaen, and in return, Philaen releases information discovered within the tower.

Steward of Philaen

• Current Steward: Balirius Dandarion Folorander
• Age: 454
• Age upon recieving position: 351
• Previous Steward: Erinninedaman Malestendanar

Unique Traits and Interesting Facts

• Philaen remains today the only completely neutral state in Therra.
• There are a complex network of magical elevator-like lifts that opperate throughout Philaen to facilitate travel up and down the towers.
• In some of the upper towers of Philaen, crosswinds blowing on the bridges exceed 80 miles per hour, requiring Force-magic barriers to be errected to prevent catastrophic falls.
• Philaen has been the recorded as the cause of death for at least 2 dragons over the course of its history. One such dragon was unfortunate enough for be caught in a dense fog over Philaen and collided with one of spires. The exact manner of the death of the first dragon is unrecorded, but many theories exist.
• Spacial distortions created by the Leystone occasionally shift the location of Philaen's structure. In fact, the tower is spinning at a rate of one full 360 degree rotation per 248 years. This is known as a Philaen Cycle.
• The holiday associated with the coming of a new Philaen Cycle is referred to as Angad der Rannii, Day of the Stone, or often Stoneday.
• Stoneday is the largest feastday celebration in the north of Therra, and festivities begin a week in advance.
• Stoneday is not celebrated in Philaen, only the surrounding area.