Sephinan Hold
The Sephinan hold is dedicated to containing and providing a safe environment for those cursed by more volatile arts of magic either by birth or circumstance, such as sorcerers and warlocks. All those who need to study the arcane arts, but rather grow more naturally with their powers are harder to teach as they may not necessarily understand their innate talents, and can therefore prove quite the hazard to themselves and other students, or worse still be a lure for the unnatural if use their powers recklessly.
The Hold is built into the great Jarska mountains, a great central structure that was carved into the mountain by magic, with many great testing chambers buried deeply and safely away. The great halls and smaller lecturing room and studious also being located here, and three great towers to house the respective wings of the Hold, within dedicated to warlocks and the two others dedicated to sorcerers.
At its base is the Warden hall, here the witch finders, watch over their charge while the northern knigthage is content to let them take care of themselves most of the time, they take care to let their presence be felt, in order to ensure nothing too radical is done during practice. Redmond has however proved a more lenient watcher than his predecessors.
Structure
The hold's internal organization is rather more loose than in many other towers, as there are no actual schools in which a single mage can claim Seniori in. Therefore they are structured into 3 towers, in which the 3 most experienced members are declared senior for sake of official title, and organization. In truth, each tower is a set of teachers who take on apprentices whose powers somewhat match their students, that they have the experience their student needs of them.
Internally the hold has little formal structure outside of the three wings given the unique circumstances of how such powers are taught, with the three Senior mages sharing a cordial relation but entrusting each other not to interfere in their teachings. Monthly meetings are held to discuss progress on students and the necessity of transfer and also other major news within the hold.
Each wing is separately responsible for supplies and materials which they requisition from the Witch Finders.
Culture
The Sephinan Hold encourages natural exploration of one's abilities, knowing full well that the arts which they practice cannot be "taught" but are learned by experience. It fosters confidence and assurance in oneself rather than one's abilities, the members of the Hold treat each other like family, for in a sense much stronger than most Arcane Holds they truly are all they have, wizards scorn them, society fears them. It breeds a certainly fatalistic outlook on certain things in life, but accept them with what mirth can be gained in life.
Contrasted with the keen awareness that the Witch Finders is watching them, which breeds are certain caution, in the otherwise stated mission of exploring one's abilities, perhaps for the best, as many sorcerers bloodlines are quite volatile.
History
Founded by Yrlan Sephina of House Stolbrand in agreement with the Witch Finders , though the exact reason for this collaboration was unknown, most suspect it was with the promise of heavy funding for the poor region her family had long inhabited in the north. These days it is funded by House Asger, as the family Sephina was married into their house.
Its remote location was chosen to house a growing concern amongst the Order, in that of warlocks and sorcerers being of particular trouble to contain and train amongst ordinary wizards. Thus it was deemed better for all parties if a particular Hold was made in order to train them.
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