Northern tip of the Island of Odus
The High Council (7 Members)
Erudin is a peaceful, balmy city by the sea, as famous for its glittering marble halls and splashing fountains as it is for its unmatched storehouse of arcane and academic knowledge. Central Erudin consists of the palace where the High Council sits in judgement, a market area where merchants sell their wares, a largely unused dock where infrequent travelers make their way to and from Erudin, the two temples, and the world-famous Library.
To the northwest of the city is a residential area. Land is scarce and the Erudites' population has been slowly growing, so the result is that most people live in structures very like condominiums. These multistory dwellings are both beautiful and functional; the higher-end dwellings and schools have elegant networks of interconnecting bridges, ramps, and teleport platforms. Only the very wealthiest have single-family houses.
Exclusively Erudites.
Disgusted with the dissipation and ill manners of most of their fellow Humans, a group of men and women led by the great Erud abandoned their home of Antonica and sailed across the sea to the island of Odus, which was at the time inhabited solely by a race of sentient cat-people called Kerrans. On this island, Erud founded a city based upon the pursuit of pure knowledge: academic, philosophical, and arcane. He alone is credited with devising the entire system of law and social order that exists in Erudin today, well over a thousand years later.
It is said by some that Quellious blessed her faithful Erudites by darkening their skin against the powerful island sun and enlarging their brains to make their quest for knowledge easier. Others attribute the brain development to Quellious and the more practical skin coloration to Prexus. Others claim the Erudites always looked the way they do, and that they were always a distinctly separate race from the Humans. Erud's records are oddly silent on this matter.
The Erudites and the Kerrans managed to live in reasonable peace until the traitor Miragul began experimenting with dark and powerful magics. Horrified by the pain and suffering his studies caused, the High Council condemned Miragul and forbade the study which had come to be known as necromancy. Miragul and his followers broke away from Erudin and a bloody civil war began, ending with massive destruction and the accidental relocation of an entire tribe of Kerrans to the moon of Luclin. Since then, Erudin and the Heretic city of Paineel have kept a brooding stalemate from opposite sides of Odus, each plotting the eventual destruction or overthrow of the other.
Erudite society is a complex mesh of factions, family, and class snobbery. Erudites are divided into more or less "old money" and "new money." The "truebloods," those with inherited wealth, tend to have older family names that do not have meaning in the modern Erudian language but instead trace back to their Old Erudian roots. The second class is the "merchant class." This term is something of a euphemism. While Erudites who chose to dirty their hands with trade were indeed often disowned by their snobbish families and forced to make up new names, many names were also changed due to criminal associations. Names such as Highbrow and Bluehawk are examples of merchant-class names. Though merchant-class Erudites have advanced into government and even become renowned scholars in some cases, the trueblood Erudites tend to secretly (or not so secretly) look down on them.
The Erudites are not a typically passionate people, but as their aim is to disseminate knowledge, for this they need numbers. Therefore they place a high value on childbearing. Child-raising is another matter altogether; that is left for the schools and professional nurses. Because of the importance of child bearing, women are deeply respected and allowed into the the highest levels of government and scholarship. They are not, however, permitted to sit on the High Council, as it is feared that they will show mercy too frequently. Childbirth does not interrupt women's studies or hinder their progress. They only have to take the time off necessary to actually give birth; then they hand the child over to a highly-trained nurse and that is that. It is not unheard of that a child might never meet his parents. Siblings tend to have close bonds, however, as they are nearly always raised together.
As for marriages, they are often surprisingly affectionate, as spouses and siblings are the only Erudites (other than infants and nurses) who can make socially permissible public physical contact with one another. This creates a unique bond between husband and wife that can often smooth over personality conflicts and other marital problems. Courtship is a very formal affair among truebloods, with marriages often arranged by the respective families. Marriage for love is also approved, as long as the choice does not shame the family. For a Quellisite, any sort of physical contact with a member of the opposite sex (other than a sibling) is tantamount to a marriage proposal. The followers of Prexus tend to be a bit more relaxed about these things, as fishing and sailing are very physical work and cannot support the kind of emotional distance that the followers of Quellious practice.
In public, Erudites traditionally greet one another with a simple nod. Siblings greet by touching palms; lovers or spouses will add to the gesture by twining their fingers together. A public embrace, to an Erudite, would be as shocking as a grown Human running naked through the streets. However, in private, lovers tend to carry on much as Human lovers do, if not more so to make up for lost time.
Adventurers are scorned by the average Erudite. Life is not an adventure, it is a study. One can learn all one needs to know about the world by spending one's days in research at the Erudin Library. (Of course, no one likes to talk about where all the rare books in the library came from... that is highly improper).
Government consists of the High Council, a group of seven men nominally led by the Overseer of the city (a position that rotates between the three arcane representatives). The Craftkeepers, Gatecallers, Crimson Hands, Peacekeepers, Clerics of Quellious, Deepwater Knights, and Clerics of Prexus each have one representative in the High Council. The religious element actually outnumbers the arcane, putting the Priests and Paladins in ultimate control of the city. To balance this, the Overseer is always an arcane member of the Council; however, his powers have been gradually eroded over the centuries until the title is little more than an honorary one.
Each representative on the High Council is elected by the appropriate guild. The merchants and common folk, as a class, technically have no representation in government, though their contributions to the Temple of Prexus do not go unnoticed.
The High Council tries criminals and makes decisions based upon a code of law so orderly yet complex that one must study for fifteen years simply to become eligible for election to government. Although the system of law in Erudin is complex, the punitive code is not. Technically there is only one penalty in Erudin - the death penalty. Execution is usually performed by evisceration via the esophagus. However, over the years there has been an interesting trend toward exile for those who have displeased the Council in some subtle way. These exiles are often disguised as "special missions." It has become difficult at times to discern who is being honored and who is being punished.
Religion consists of two main groups: worshippers of Quellious the Tranquil (Temple of Divine Light) and worshippers of Prexus the Oceanlord (Deepwater Temple). Although Quellious was the original god of Erud and his followers, the Knights have slowly but surely converted nearly 75% of the populace (the growing merchant class) with their more practical approach to religion. The Temple of Divine Light is funded by a wealthy but stingy minority, the truebloods of Erudin. Also, many who are not truebloods but wish they were join the Divine Light in hopes of currying favor with their superiors. The Temple of Divine Light focuses on self-knowledge and inner peace.
The Erudites are not a particularly celebratory people. However they do observe the New Year, January 1, as a time for reflection on personal and academic progress and advancement. They also cease all work and study on September 3, which is largely believed to have been the founding date of the City of Erudin. This holiday, such as it is, is referred to imaginatively as "the holiday." Most Erudites spend it checking up on their children, putting their household in order, or furtively studying behind closed doors.
The Erudites prefer to remain independent.
Paineel
Polumus Stormcrow
Zuurena Imdaara, Xianyos Februs, Bakir Stormtide, Izern Deepfathom, Iberenya Omaruu, Otadan Skyfire, Xeldovar Numaetrex