Glossary in Brief

Provided for those new to the setting, and anyone else who wants to catch up.

Adept – A skilled magician in one of the various disciplines studied by the Guild of the Great Art. Sometimes also Mage. Usually as distinct from a Witch.

Briah – The World of Creation, the sphere that is one step away from the Source or Godhead. Here all things are present in their archetypal nature, or possibly only exist as the ideas of things.

Coven – A society of Witches, usually much more loosely-organized and anarchic than the more structured orders or lodges of Adepts.

Covenanti – An ancient order of magicians who took on the task of preserving the lore of magic for humankind. There were originally only five Covenanti, but there are considerably more at present. They are frequently in disagreement as to the nature of their responsibility, leading to internal strife and feuds that have endured for many centuries. All are beings of immense power and longevity, though their individual natures may differ considerably. Singular Covenantus.

Eldritch – The great primordial beings whose power helped to shape the worlds. Not true gods, but possessing divine essence and puissance. Most make their home in Yetzirah, as they are constrained when they manifest in the purely physical worlds.

Enclave – Splinter group of lodges that broke from the Guild over differences in philosophy, notable for their particularly elitist and ambitious approach to the study of magic.

Folk Under – The various tribes and races of creatures, many of Eldritch descent, who have come together for mutual protection in the secret places of the world, away from the threat of humanity. Also called Wildish. A significant community exists in the grottoes and tunnels underneath Otherwood.

Guild of the Great Art – Society comprised of a number of different orders, lodges, traditions, and cabals of magicians, organized despite their various differences for the sake of protecting, preserving, and passing on their craft and knowledge.

Kyr – The Parliament of Lords, overseeing those who rule in various magical domains across the worlds. Headquartered in Nisroch.

Lodge – One of the names by which a particular society or school of Adepts might be known; others include (but are not limited to) Order, Cabal, or Circle.

Lucid Order – A monastic society dedicated to the study and compiling of the lore of the magical and hidden worlds. More completely, the Lucid Order of the Brotherhood of St. Masbeth the Fallen. Their abbey is located in Otherwood.

Mabon – A realm in the border between Yetzirah and Briah, also called the Empire of Autumn. A place of eternal harvest-tide.

Mage – see Adept.

Marchenwald – A forest within Yetzirah touching on many worlds, wherein the tales and folklore of peoples from all across the worlds are made manifest. A frequently dark and dangerous place to stray into.

Marchess – Title adopted by the first human Lords of Otherwood at the beginning of their sovereignty, from the Italian marchese.

Master – Denotes a mage of paricular knowledge and skill who has surpassed the level of Adept. In the context of the Guild, it bestows eligibility to sit on the Quorum, though not all Masters choose to do so.

Mystery – Used by magicians of many traditions to refer to the unknowable Godhead, the Primum Mobile of the worlds.

Nisroch – A city and realm in the outer reaches of Briah, said to have ascended there in the forgotten dawn of the worlds. Spoken of as a city and a world and a god.

Norton – City in eastern America where the Guild has maintained its headquarters since the Age of Reason. Home to the campus of Tower College.

One Wood – The great primeval forest in Briah of which all others are reflections. At its heart is Yggdrassil the World Tree, the great spine of all Creation.

Otherwood – Both a suburban township on the outskirts of Norton and the actual forest beyond it, wherein there are many gates and pathways to places and realms Elsewhere.

Qlippoth – Ur-demons of particularly destructive nature, dwelling in the Abyss beyond creation. They are the dark shadows of living beings, seeking only to consume, despoil, or annihilate all they can. Singular qlippah.

Quorum – Governing body of Guild Masters, presided over by the Grand Master of the entire Guild.

Scholomance – Elite school for the training of particularly promising adepts. Tower is home to one, but there are several others throughout the world.

Tessitori – Mysterious Powers who seem to be charged with maintaining the integrity of the fabric of reality; they manifest as workers of cloth or thread.

Tower College – School of magic in Norton founded and run by the Guild of the Great Art.

Uranticas – Great family of Eldritch descent, of whom the adept Jenny Haniver is the youngest scion.

Verge Domain – A place, usually a city, where the stuff of the material world has aggregated in Yetzirah and become stable. Valuable as meeting-places, hubs of commerce, and stopping places for travelers between worlds.

Wildish – see Folk Under.

Witch – Connotes a magician devoted to a particularly subtle, mystical, spiritual, or earth-oriented path of study, usually as distinct from the more academic versions of the Art practiced by Adepts.

Yetzirah – The World of Formation, the ethereal and chaotic realm that lies beyond the material world, wherein the archetypes of Briah are refined and given potential to be made incarnate. Encompasses also various dreamlands, fairy realms, hells, paradises, and other spheres that exist because people need them to, as well as serving as the home of Eldritch, gods, and beings of spirit. Other, more firmly physical worlds of several varieties, also exist in Yetzirah, as islands of matter in a sea of creative entropy.

Yggdrassil – The World Tree, the great primal ash that grows out of the heart of the One Wood in Briah, whereon all the realms and worlds and spheres of Creation hang.