Conclave Reckoning
A Reckoning is a series of events used by the secretive Conclave of Wizards to select new leadership or membership. There have been two such events in modern history.
The First Reckoning
The first Reckoning took place in 656 AF when the wizard Maklak challenged Yudhishthira for leadership of the Conclave of Wizards. Quoting the Rules of the Reckoning, each side took twenty-eight months to demonstrate their worthiness and used adventurers and their champions Oughlor and Torrid Rakia as tools to battle for control. Each of the two Conclave members recognised this to be a personal challenge and agreed not to hold grudges against either the adventurers or their organisations beyond the limits of the trial itself. During this time, the city of Cyrene experienced its House Renaissance, Protean relics were unleashed upon the world, and the Conclave-themed talisman set was developed. In the end, the Greater Dragon Yudhishthira utterly and completely defeated Maklak before returning to his proper place in Polyargos where he stands ready to lead the Conclave to greater heights than ever before.
The Second Reckoning
In the year 825 AF, the Conclave announced they would be recruiting a fifth member to replace the imprisoned Maklak. Anyone who deemed themselves worthy of the seat was able to apply. After the deadline for applications had passed there were fifteen applicants. The first stage of selection began with a worldwide referendum and the top five moved on.
The Referendum
| Applicant | Votes |
|---|---|
| Telaan | 46 |
| Titania, the Dryad Queen | 39 |
| Pryla'ari, Priestess of Life | 38 |
| Maim de Vermiis | 36 |
| Sevet | 34 |
| Harmonia Nasemnova | 26 |
| Andraste Montenegro | 13 |
| Profit Bayt al-Azhan | 13 |
| Vewig, Magelord of House Tsez | 11 |
| Jirken | 4 |
| Wavel El-Mellon Cloussoi the Third | 4 |
| Venasia Enverren | 0 |
| Kaburia Le'Strange1 | 0 |
| Mistress Aethene, of the Grand Merchant Collective2 | 0 |
1Kaburia withdrew from contention during the vote.
2Aethene was disqualified due to problems with references.
3There was one (1) vote of abstention.
The Reckoning Championship
Just fifteen days after the referendum results the top five contenders moved on to the second round of selection. During the Reckoning the supporters of each contestant showcased their strength, cunning and wit in order to continue to the next round. This round consisted of a number of different activities where cities and rogues would throw their support behind a candidate and help them collect facets to be fused to the Impious Sceptre.
Facets were collected in a variety of ways:
- Defeating a Champion awarded one (1) facet.
- Conquering an Outpost awarded a fragment of a facet, of which three (3) were needed for a whole.
- A written essay on Why Your Candidate Deserves to Win awarded twenty (20) facets and was won by Ashtan for Maim.
- A series of riddles deciphered by Jurixe won five (5) facets for Sevet.
- Defeat of the final champion, Yudhishthira's Torrid Rakia, by Crixos, won five (5) facets for Sevet.
| Applicant | Champion | Ranking |
|---|---|---|
| Pryla'ari, Priestess of Life | Tsol'dasi Battlelord | 1 |
| Sevet, the Black | Ra'mah, the Corrupted | 2 |
| Maim de Vermiis | Patrick de Vermiis | 3 |
| Telaan | Lacharhad, the Witch of Sennos | 4 |
| Titania, the Dryad Queen | Reinna, the Houndsmaster of Annwyn | 5 |
After sixteen (16) months of hard fought battles between the supporters and commanders of each candidate, Pryla'ari, Priestess of Life, earned enough facets to claim the fifth seat of The Conclave. In her final test she summoned magic from the Tower of Falaq'tor to eradicate the Barrier Shards that Yudhishthira himself created. After this final act of power all four members of the Conclave agreed to her induction.
These events of the second reckoning were so impactful that Yuddhishthira and the rest of the Conclave chose Pryla'ari to devise how to replicate them. This she did, and in 839 the Conclave called elemental power to cast grand illusion and drawing upon Memory to make mirage real - the conclave forays.