Teleportation Commission

The Teleportation Commission is an ancient multi-national organization dedicated to the management, regulation, and maintenance of the global teleportation circle network that spans all three continents. With roots tracing back to The Didacy of Old, its power, influence, and ubiquity have shaped the face of politics and the movement of peoples across Perradin for millennia. It is considered by many to be the greatest technological and magical achievement ever created.
Heavily regulated, the Commission exercises control over the very concept of teleportation magic. With a legal partnership with the Didacy who produces the material components required for teleportation, the Commission maintains a complete list of every registered teleportation circle on Perradin, heavily limits the usage of non-circle teleportation, and requires technicians to sign agreements to never use the magic outside of sanctioned use cases. From its regional bases of operations on each continent, the Commission maintains relationships with organizations, cities, and nations to ensure safe and effective transportation.
In late 9047, its network of circles was the flashpoint for the world-spanning disaster known as the Circlecrash, which left tens of thousands dead and many more injured.

Origins

The original base magic for teleportation was first developed by Warforged 2 in the waning years of the War of the Starfall as a means of rapid infantry troop movement. The techniques and base components of the magic were a closely guarded secret, only known by the roughly one dozen qualified technicians in the Warforged Army.
Following the end of the war and the devastation brought on by the Starfall itself, the Didacy was in a state of chaos and collapse. The Warforged Diaspora and the Wayward Crater Wandering led to a population drain of the Didacy and a personnel shortage for maintaining the new Domain. Warforged 2, despite wanting to divest his involvement with the Didacy, assited in the creation of five permanent teleportation circles on Greenwave that linked to newly settled islands in the crater. Only high level Didacy operatives and diplomats were permitted transit.
As the Didacy relations with the Kingdom warmed in the 18th century, trade began to resume between the two powers. Because of the obstacle presented by the Stargash Crater, land travel had become nearly impossible before major roads were carved into the craterside. Likewise, sea travel had become treacherous with the rough sea currents inside the crater and the lack of timber for ship construction. As such, the Didacy determined a more direct solution would be necessary. Many details of the original deal are lost to history, but a permanent teleportation circle was eventually established in Throne linking to Greenwave, and the other islands of the Didacy by extension. While the magic and components were closely regulated by the Didacy and the price of 6000 gp per transit was considered astronomical at the time, this link between the two powers proved integral in the long term recovery of Kingdom-Didacy relations.

The Luminous Sea Express

The rough network began to expand over the centuries. Due to the extremely guarded nature of the Didacy to protect its proprietary magic and technologies, new "nodes" along the network were created only after excessive petitioning. On average, a new node was added every 200 years in various cities in Sinderlan. By the formation of the First Didacian Consulate in the 35th century, a simple network had been established, stretching from Greenwave at the South Pole to the Fortress City of Broken Bow in the far north of Sinderlan, bordering on the Luminous Sea. In the 46th Century the Didacy, seeing an opportunity for expanded profit and influence following their loss in control of the Sending Stone technology, opened the small network to the public.
This network became known as the Luminous Sea Express, with an average price of 4000gp per transit. While exorbitantly expensive, the LSE became extremely ubiquitous. The rich and powerful from the Kingdom and Didacy used the LSE to make trade deals in record time, easily making up the cost of their transit. The ease of transportation led to the creation of the first major trade corporation, the Craterslide Crafter's Company in the Didacian Consulate.
Warforged 2, an active member of the new Didacian Consulate, advocated for the relinquishment of technology to the public. He was outright denied, despite his role in the creation of the magic itself. In 5120, compromises were eventually made by Didact Heskena VIII to allow Consulate regulation over some aspects of the network's management and for Warforged 2 to teach the techniques to employees in more remote areas. Additionally, in a fine print clause added by Warforged 2, the Consulate was granted the authority to make treaties regarding network expansion.

The Modern Teleportation Commission

As the Luminous Sea Express continued to expand to other cities, various Free Cities in Pillarin expressed interest in acquiring the rights to obtain the necessary components for teleportation, as well as the expanding Sinderlan Connection Sending Stone Network. Several pilot programs were attempted by the Consulate government to establish offices in Cord Ea Turin, but rates were extremely high due to their isolated nature and inability to ship the paint components in meaningful quantities. In 6837, Senior Consul Warforged 2 deduced the easiest way to make a network viable was to establish dozens of offices simultaneously, but due to the Free Cities' lack of centralized governments on Pillarin's western coast, such a venture would likely bankrupt both the LSE and the Consulate government. Warforged 2 then traveled to the inland city of Bigton, seat of the Bigton League, where he negotiated and signed the Treaty of Bigton.
The Treaty of Bigton established a neutral organization named the Teleportation Commission that would take over the operation of all teleportation offices along the Luminous Sea Express and be responsible for establishing offices in Pillarin. Funding came from all of the treaty's signatories, allowing a virtually unlimited resource pool. The Didacy, still the sole proprietor of the techniques used in the creation of teleportation paint, opposed the treaty vehemently and caused the Commission's establishment to be delayed for nearly a decade. After negotiations came to a close, the Didacy became the only legal producer of teleportation paint and main training facility for Teleportation Office Supervisors. The Didacy and Commission Technicians became the only individuals who could legally know teleportation magic. This deal proved extremely lucrative and allowed the Didacy to renovate its facilities. The deal also called for a Warforged Employment Program that provided any Warforged who showed affinity for the teleportation magic a job to help establish permanent circles across Perradin.
After its formation, the Commission quickly expanded its complexity. It established massive hubs of teleportation circles in remote regions and major population centers to allow for effective circle relaying at cheaper costs than direct teleportations. The Commission continued to grow in member cities and states, eventually establishing an office on every continent. With the Didacy-exclusive monopoly on teleportation paint, prices for the component were entirely up to the organization's discretion. Despite the high price range of 500-2000 gp per trip, many came to view the Commission as one of the greatest achievement in Perradin's history, quickly linking cities together in a way that had never been truly done before. Its influence allowed governments to maintain relations with foreign powers and far flung domestically controlled regions. Many wars are believed to have been averted due to the easy flow of both civilians and dignitaries to foreign powers to ease tensions.
By the 91st century, virtually every settlement with a population above 2000 had a teleportation office with at least one permanent circle. In addition, non-circle teleportation services were offered. However, this was considered highly risky due to the potential for an incident to occur and the high cost of paint. As such, circleless teleportation was only used in extreme emergencies.
In the centuries following the expansion of the Fen in eastern Pillarin, the Commission attempted to maintain its neutrality. However, the Fen presented an unprecedented ultimatum to Commission technicians in the form of conversion to their religion. Many, believing in the neutrality of the Commission, resigned and departed. However, a small contingency of Commission Supervisors who had converted to the Fen religion remained and trained new technicians. In accordance with the Treaty of Bigton, no laws were being broken by the Fen technicians. As such, the Commission continued to provide the teleportation paint and necessary trainings to Fen technicians, much to the protest of Free Cities not under fen control.
All Fen-controlled teleportation offices are said to now have a Fen Inquisitor stationed on site to provide the Fen Ultimatum to incoming travelers not of Fen origin and to ensure memory erasure upon departure. It is also believed that offices have been used to quickly move military forces.

The Circlecrash

On 15 Dying Light 9047, a diplomatic event in Vortex was assaulted by a group of rogue Eladrin under the leadership of Linthea. Here, Warforged 2 was apprehended and was subsequently killed. While no witnesses were able to verify the details of the assault, Warforged 2's body was split apart and held inside a large bubble of magic. Throden Lowaan later interacted with Warforged 2's remains, causing the bubble of energy to rapidly expand.
The bubble rapidly circled all of Perradin, and as the bubble passed over a teleportation circles or paint used for their creation they were ignited in a highly volatile and violent explosion or incineration. All individuals actively teleporting at the time were instantly vaporized. All stockpiles of paint violently exploded, sending shock waves across the urban centers where they were housed. The Commission, completely unprepared for such a disaster, scrambled to extinguish the fires. Many Commission members were killed in the shock waves and fires. Once control had been reestablished, the Commission no longer had any active circles across all of Perradin. It is speculated that roughly 20,000 sapient beings were killed in the initial disaster with many following through collateral and secondary damage to local infrastructure.
It is speculated that Warforged 2's innate connection to the magic used to create the very teleportation spell somehow caused its components to become volatile. However, there is no recorded instance in history of such events occurring with Warforged or spells that had been developed in the war. The mystery of just how and why the Circlecrash occurred are still being reckoned with.
In the aftermath, the remaining members of the Commission have dispatched to repair the main arteries of the network as quickly as possible. As the Treaty of Bigton dictates The Didacy is the sole producer of teleportation paint, they were required to direct all available resources to its production. The secretive process has come under immense scrutiny as many Commission offices have, while remaining grateful for the free aid form the Didacy, wish to produce the component themselves.
Emergency technicians from the Commission were deployed to conduct teleportation services without the use of circles by the Central Office in late Dying Light. While the method is far more dangerous, and the paint is a precious commodity, such services have been used only in emergency situations or for exorbitantly high prices.
Repairs of teleportation offices as of early 9048 remain almost entirely within the Didacian Consulate, as it remains the closest nation to the Didacy. Offices beyond the Stargash Crater have remained focused on repairing physical damages to their physical spaces.

A Search for Alternatives

While the Treaty of Bigton officially prohibited any signatory governments from establishing competing teleportation circle networks, it was commonly viewed as impossible to do so due to the secretive nature of the teleportation magic. Despite this, it is rumored that some trade companies such as the Harwick Trade Company have been researching alternative modes of teleportation without the need for the elusive teleportation paint in the weeks after the Circlecrash. It is speculated that such initiatives have been in progress for decades as of the mid-91st Century. While the Harwick Board has not confirmed the existence of such initiatives, they similarly have not denied them.

"The Lifeblood of Perradin"

Founding Date

1700s (origins)
4500s (LSE)
6447 (current form)

Type

Corporation, Transportation

Alternative Names

TP Network, The Commission

Ruling Organization

Didacian Teleportation Council

Parent Organization

The Didacy

Location

Sinderlan