Dorandor

The Artificer

Although the world does not seem to have realised it, the construction of the Ennahtad has escalated the Iluarn threat more drastically than any other event in the past three hundred years. And it is all the work of one man, Dorandor, who even now is working on new projects. I recommend we engage the services of the Syr.

— Classified communique, author unknown

Archmage Dorandor, more commonly known as Dorandor the Artificer, is one of the most respected visionaries of the Iluara. Commonly regarded as the world's leading expert on magical items, Dorandor's most notable achievements are the creation of a true artifact, the design of the Iluarn Hub, and the reorganisation of the Iluarn teleportation network.

Early Life

As with all Iluara, Dorandor was enrolled in the standard educational curriculum. He was regarded by his teachers as an above-average student, with a gift for organisation and inspiration. In the later years of his education it emerged that he had a particular fondness for, and skill with, magical items. Deducing how an item worked came easy to him, and he found it straightforward to create new ones. It came as little surprise then that he specialised into the artificer track of his later education. Upon attaining the title of magus Dorandor dedicated himself to furthering the Iluarn understanding of the fundamentals that underpinned the function of magical items, and wrote a well-regarded treatise on the subject that clearly presented a number of basic laws and formulae that he himself had discovered.

Dorandor's Anchor

Wanting to further improve his understanding, Dorandor made it his goal to be allowed onto the highly-exclusive group working on understanding the workings behind the Obdurate Anchor, the immovable artifact that lay at the heart of the Onoubras. The Anchor was the means by which the hovering tower that housed the heart of Iluarn civilization could remain hovering, fixed immovably above the ocean. After two years of campaigning behind the scenes, greasing palms, and furthering his reputation as an artificer, Dorandor was finally admitted to the group. For two decades he, and the rest of the team, continued the study of the artifact, attempting to determine how it functioned and how it could be replicated. During this time Dorandor ascended to leadership of the group thanks to his insight and skill.

Eventually, after twenty-three years of work, they did it: they duplicated the Obdurate Anchor. More than that, Dorandor's insights allowed them to alter the design, and create a superior version of the artifact. Dorandor's Anchor, as it became known, could in fact be moved by the command of its owner, but not by any other force, making it possible to build a version of the Onoubras that could move. This was the first time the Iluara had managed to create a true artifact, and the act secured Dorandor's reputation as an artificer without peer.

The Hub & the Teleportation Network

For centuries, as the Iluara established Sanctums across the world, they had been linking these outposts together with paired teleportation circles. The network of circles had grown organically, and after several hundred years of organic growth with little forward-planning the network could most charitably be described as a hot mess. Getting from one particular Sanctum to another could require a dozen or more teleportations, with no rhyme or reason to them. Links existed that were completely unnecessary, or that were duplicates of existing links, and links that would be tremendously useful simply didn't exist.

There had been talk for some years about the chaotic state of the network, and various Iluarn factions had suggested a re-organisation, but they could not agree on exactly what form this should take. The most popular suggestion required a central hub for the network, but nowhere suitable could be found for it. The Onoubras itself could not be used, for there was too little plain-world space left inside the dimensionally-expanded tower, and establishing teleportation circles into specially-stretched or extra-dimensional spaces was...problematic, to say the least. A suggested alternative was to create a dedicated structure, but nowhere was considered safe enough to house such a vital piece of Iluarn infrastructure.

Dorandor stepped in, capitalising on the esteem he had acquired from the creation of his Anchor. The chaotic state of the teleportation network had always irritated him, and in his spare time he had drawn up plans for a re-organisation, but had ran into the same problems others did: the need for a secure central hub. Now, with his reputation established, he browbeat the ruling council into aligning behind his vision.

On an uninhabited island, protected by every defensive ward the Iluarn could erect, a huge workforce followed Dorandor's instructions and began construction of a vast new building, built around Dorandor's Anchor. In contrast to the Onoubras it would not be tall and thin, but short and wide - only five stories high, but three hundred feet across. It was officially christened the Ennahtad, but was most commonly known simply as the Hub. After years of work the construction was finished, and with most of the world's Iluara in attendance the Hub rose steadily into the sky for the first time.

With the Hub safely airborne, Dorandor and his team began work on the teleportation network. They ruthlessly tore down vast swatches of the old network, erasing teleportation circles and severing Sanctums, before reconnecting them in a much more ordered and logical fashion, with the Hub at the centre of it all. Now travel from any Sanctum to any other was a mere two or three jumps at most, and all of it went through the security of the Hub. Floating high in the skies, and never staying still, the Hub is hard enough to even reach, let alone attack, but if anyone tried they would find it protected by the most devious and dangerous wards and spell-turrets Dorandor's mind could devise. He similarly established internal defences to ensure that no one could penetrate the teleportation network from within, with anti-intruder enchantments and lockdown measures, all designed to make sure no one could use the greatest strategic asset of the Iluara against them.

Current Activities

Following the reconstruction of the teleportation network, the ruling council has made it known that Dorandor is taking a well-earned break form his work. Dorandor is rarely seen now in either the Onoubras or the Hub, and declines to answer questions on his activities. Rumours that he is working on a project classified beyond top-secret are persistently denied as unfounded and baseless speculation.