Avon Accords

The Avon Accords are a codified agreement that details the political and bureaucratic boundaries of the Arcane Society, the Order of Avalon, and the Sabers with the past, current, and future political bodies of Varia.

History

In 177 3E, the major factions of the continent at the time: the Arcane Society, the Order of Avalon, and the Sabers convened in an undisclosed location in Avon. Over the span of one week, these powers formulated and drafted an agreement which sought to maintain an amicable balance of power between the organizations spanning Varia and the major political powers within. Titled the Avon Accords, the document serves as a covenant that simultaneously acknowledges and restricts the authority of extraterritorial organizations. In the modern day, it continues to see application even as Varia steeps in geopolitical conflict.

The Accords

The Avon Accords validates the effective continent-wide jurisdiction for the operations of the Arcane Society, the Order of Avalon, and the Sabers. The caveat to such an expansive jurisdiction required that each organization adopt a level of political neutrality and abide that they will operate in those areas solely for the specified purposes of their organization. However, the Accords did not impose blanket restrictions and instead specified criteria for each group. At the time immediately following the Accords' definition, the document was signed into effect by over one dozen established or rising political entities along with the aforementioned organizations.

Arcane Society

The Arcane Society can operate within any known corner of Varia; however, all their members and branches must remain apolitical, which in return grants them limited political immunity. The implementation of this portion of the Accords dissolved formal ties of colleges associated with the Society to their home locations. However, an exception to this rule allows the continued circulation of their services to politically aligned and neutral factions.
Due to the widespread applications and breadth of magic's, the Arcane Society also possesses the ability to impose the Arcane Censure and the Arcane Indictment. The Censure acts as a warning to the offending party and summons to a convention at a third party location with other organizations involved in the Accords as mediators. During this time, the offending side and the Arcane Society hash out the point of contention intended to decide an agreed upon course of action without further escalation. However, the Indictment occurs after continued disagreements even after the convention and serves as an official charge that effectively blacklists a faction from utilizing magical services and calls away affiliated mages. The Indictment threatens not only to the offending party but also to their allies, making it a hefty step that requires the fulfillment of the Society's criteria for full-scale involvement.

Order of Avalon

Stipulations in the Accords allow the Order of Avalon to maintain its seat as the governing body of Grandia while also exerting political immunity in areas beyond. However, carrying out operations in any claimed territory means that the Order of Avalon must make formal declarations regarding their entrance and/or presence to the ruling body of the area, along with an explanation of the purpose and length of stay. The general expectation for this notice requires its submission prior to taking any action which, in the past, has caused the Order to respond less than promptly to matters regarding the Scourge. Furthermore, while conducting their operations, the Order of Avalon must maintain contact with the local governments, if any, but otherwise holds no obligation to them.
However, the Accords include stipulations to address detection and priority in severity. Governments that detect onsets of the Corruption and Scourge and subsequently inform the Order of Avalon possess more authority over the conditions in which the Order of Avalon enters their territory. In instances were the Order of Avalon directly detects the phenomena, then they have a wider swath of control over the bureaucratic aspect of their entrance and, therefore, their methodology.

The Sabers

The Sabers have been the fringe group of the trio. Their members have the allowance to participate in political affairs and join other major organizations but still have the right to operate in the organization's affair as per the Sabers’ continental jurisdiction. However, keeping the peace in Varia has always kindled heated and subjective debates to its definition. Thus, members that choose to affiliate with any political body beyond solely the Sabers lack the political immunity characteristic of even the general bodies of members belonging to the two other organizations.

Impact

All the major states of Varia abide by the Avon Accords to the present day, and even lesser bodies adhere to its acknowledgment. As a result, the Arcane Society and the Order of Avalon have been able to carry out their respective duties to a great span of effect. However, the political limitations imposed on their areas of operation comes at a forefront during times of international warring. Since the precedent for freedom of action changes specifically during such conflicts, the ability of these organizations to carry out their purpose-specific tasks greatly diminishes, or at the least is impeded. Furthermore, the Accords impose a general rule of mutual exclusivity to their activities, in regards to each other. Bypassing such limitations otherwise requires a special counsel where each faction and at least one third party mediator convenes.
Furthermore, political theorists have proposed that the Avon Accords actually created an environment of perpetual tension between all the parties involved. While the stipulations supposedly helped set a balance of power, they also increased the stakes and impact of one faction in particular gaining strength relative to the others. However, this phenomenon has been more consistently observed in the geopolitical entities populating Varia than between the three involved major organizations.

Related Historical Events

• 2177
  Avon Accords Enacted