Increasingly, the Emperors dispatched mercenary sorcerers to the frontier. By the reign of Perius (over 1500 years before the Invoked Devastation) sorcerers were freely welcomed into the emperor’s own palace; from then on no wizard feared plying the trade within Thae.
The assassination of Perius initiated a terrible period of turmoil within the Empire. At this time Thae’s borders were overextended, and for several centuries, its frontiers had slowly retreated before barbarian invaders. The economic strain of maintaining the sprawling Empire proved extremely burdensome. High taxes and a series of economic crises led to famines, labor strikes, and general internal unrest. A gnollish revolt broke out in the east which demanded sudden and massive redeployment of Imperial troops.
During this period, the succession of Emperors, never painless, became especially contentious; the Emperor was more-or-less made by the military. The most powerful amongst the Legion vied amongst themselves for their own chosen candidates. These internecine struggles occasionally approached civil war. At one time no less than five different Emperors were declared.
It was out of this period of crisis that the Imperial Adepts were born. The emperor Lineaus, fearing for his life, appointed his personal wizard Octavian as the first Adept. Within a decade twelve other wizards had been so named, and the next, another dozen. The Adepts were charged with upholding the rule of the Emperor. They swore solemn oaths of loyalty to him. They originally attended exclusively to the Emperor; their spells were to shield him from harm or spies. The deranged Emperor Corontitus insisted that no less than three dozen such protective spells were to be constantly in effect on his person; the Adepts wove spells day and night to fulfill this command. None of these spells seemed able to prevent his assassination. History records that Corontitus reigned for a scant eight months before being murdered.
Despite this inexplicable lapse, the Adepts soon came to serve not only the Emperor and his family, but Senators, generals, governors, and other important figures. Their ranks were swiftly expanded. Each new Emperor seemed eager to create positions for new Adepts. Harried Champions amongst the Legion soon considered the Adepts invaluable in their numerous wars. Although the common soldiers generally hated all sorcerers, they at least came to respect (and fear) the offensive capabilities of the Adepts.
When the period of turmoil was finally over, the Adepts were at the height of their influence—more than six hundred years after their inception. The Adepts had played a decisive role in stabilizing the Empire, and shoring up its borders against encroaching barbarian and monster tribes. At their apogee the Adepts were formidable wizards, with considerable sorcerous power and learning at their disposal. It is sometimes said that the Adepts had knowledge of over a thousand different spells.
It was during this time that the Adepts unleashed their most famed achievement, the Nine Colossi of the Limites. These were nine 50-foot tall bronze statues, formed in the image of Marnes, Thaecian protector and god of war. The Adepts were able to animate these monstrosities. It is said they bound a powerful spirit within each metal housing. The Colossi were placed at the limits of the empire, and were able to fight and defend their posts. In Arator (in what is now southern Calabria), the wildmen were terrified of the Colossus that towered over Demerian’s Wall.
The Adepts were originally accomplished abjurers and diviners. They used these and other magicka to protect the Emperor. Despite their triumph with the Colossi and lesser automata, the Adepts were not especially skilled enchanters. Such skill was never deemed really necessary; Thae’s numerous victories had brought a wealth of wondrous items into the Empire, as well as foreign wizards who could always be commanded to produce more such devices. Many Adepts were accomplished transmuters. In late antiquity, a large and esoteric body of writings was exclusively devoted to alteration magic.
The Adepts rapidly developed an abiding interest in the school of conjuration/summoning. Many of these spells entered into Thae by way of ancient Pyrrha. These spells came to dominate the Adepts’ repertoire, while the other schools of magic fell into disuse. Conjuration spells appealed to a distinctly Thaecian quality. The Adepts, like any Thaecian citizen, were accustomed to having the entire world at their beck and call. Using magicka to compel other beings to fight and toil for them seemed a natural and desirable development. The Adepts used their sorcerous might to impose their will on monsters, both terrestrial and extra-planar, and a tangled series of pacts and bindings were soon formed.
As the Empire neared its twilight, the Adepts became increasingly corrupted and ineffectual. Many neglected their oaths of loyalty to the Empire, and were more interested in promoting their own personal fortunes. And the Adepts’ Art, always derivative, suffered a steady decline; there were fewer and fewer magical innovations, and more dependence on the legacies of the past. Many Adepts devoted their limited abilities to composing pedantic commentaries and pursuing esoteric theories. As the Adepts’ personal abilities waned, they increasingly called on extra-planar powers to buttress their depleted magics. Increasingly, these powers originated from the lower planes, from fell denizens of Andurin such as the abomination Dagon, and from a dark and nameless evil known only to its hidden worshippers as the Faceless Lord.
(to be continued)
