Aegis Arcana

Overview

Aegis Arcana (sing. Arcanum) is the name given to the magical domes that protect the cities of Irallien and Dawnstone and using the reverse principle contain the Blight (Vaedrin's Blight) affected regions of The Blightlands and The Twisted Forest.

Appearance & Function

The dome created by an Aegis Arcanum is transparent. The Aegis Arcanum itself, though, is a magically enchanted device that is roughly a three foot cube in size. It requires boundary nodes to be placed at the edge of where the shield is required. Without boundary nodes, an Aegis Arcanum will generate a spherical shield at whatever size proportional the level of enchantment imbued into it. Irallien's power node and boundary nodes are made of mithril, the boundary nodes are especially important for Irallien since it isn't a perfectly circular city like Dawnstone. Dawnstone has a major advantage over Irallien, despite Irallien being the originator of the device. Dawnstone's walls are made from pure Whitestone, which is believed to be the most magically receptive material in existence. Therefore, Dawnstone's walls are, in fact, the boundary nodes for Dawnstone's Aegis Arcanum. The power node is also made from whitestone.

Origin & History

Irallien's Aegis Arcanum has been there for as long as records exist, so it is unknown precisely who invented it originally or when it first came to be. It was the only Aegis Arcanum in existence until The Ten Year Winter and The Aldenia Unification Treaty, at which point the High Elves of Irallien reluctant shared the knowledge with Dawnstone. The Dwarven capital of Khul Boldir and Gnomish capital of Rattlebottom are subterranean or mostly so, respectively, and thus did not opt for their own.
Dawnstone's adoption of the Aegis Arcanum was vital during The Cataclysm War, as both it and Irallien survived the conflict with major damage. Irallien remained entirely unscathed, in fact, whilst Dawnstone still had to defend itself from land-based assaults, which did manage to breach the walls on one or two occasions. However, the Aegis Arcanum prevented any attacks from aerial threats like the red dragon Cieris and earthquake dragon Mohzall.