MSFT:Age of Discovery
Introduction
In order to provide a more robust explanation to the future generations of the Father Kingdom, I feel that it is necessary to provide some context as to where we are in history. Consider this to be something of a preface to the Exploration Lexicon.
When I was a younger lad in the All-Seeing College, many of us had looked to the horizon with the hopes that one day, we would breach that horizon and discover all the mysteries that lay beyond it. As time grew on, we learned of the physical sciences, of the purity that is mathematics and the application of it our world, which is geography. We learned of how reality works with relation to the forces of the arcane; and, some of us even managed to learn how to manipulate this force.
Such was my life before my graduation. Anyway, I digress - onward to your history lesson, my dear reader.
Travel Developments
The Age of Discovery was heralded by the domestication of arcane forces. People known as Dominor Aeris learned of how to control weather phenomenon by using a mixture of geometric calculations and magical divination. Exercising their abilities, they were empowered by the Father Kingdom to travel to and breach that horizon by land and sea. In all cardinal directions they traveled from the Father Kingdom, searching and documenting everything that they could. However, their results did not come back immediately; it took just as long for them to return from exploring as it did to depart on the expedition in the first place. Their discoveries were not well-documented, unfortunately, so much of what we know is hearsay - to that end, we have organized a more formal Grand Expedition Council which sends Royal Explorers abroad to confirm these reports that their predecessors had originally discovered.
Traveling By Sea
With the Dominor Aeris, seafaring vessels could reach their destinations faster than ever before. However, it was only a matter of time before engineers from the All-Seeing College began to reinvent how seaborne travel would work. There were many hurdles to come over - how could they increase the speed, maneuverability, and hardiness of a sea vessel without running into a logistical nightmare? Initial designs involved oversized vessels which could support an entire city, however the cost to manufacture was simply too great, and nobody took well to the idea of a ship of such size.
Eventually, the engineers found a breakthrough - taking an existing sea vessel, the Sloop, and applying magical reinforcement by means of Rune Casting enabled the boat to meet the design requirements the engineers had desired. A skeleton crew of one Dominus and one other Royal Explorer skilled in navigation and sea lore were all that was needed in order to embark on a naval expedition. Over the next span of years, many of these reinforced Sloops were made. The modified Sloop, now known as the Auspex, delivered seafarers into a more modernized method of transportation. The designs from the Auspex would prove to be useful, and subsequent redesigns of other seagoing vessels ensured that the Dominor Aeris were well-cared for and respected.
Traveling By Land
Land exploration was not nearly as hampered as sea exploration. Royal Explorers, following in their predecessor's footsteps, put to use their excellent skills and gathered all manner of data for the Lexicon in no time at all. Some Royal Explorers who were more comfortable out in the field rather than at the All-Seeing College used their talents to provide added mobility to other Royal Explorers. Far from the All-Seeing Colleges, these Explorers founded lodges where any alumnus from the College or anybody participating in the Grand Expedition were welcome. It is said that there is always an Explorer's Lodge irrespective of the climate, as long as it is remote and well-nigh unreachable except by other fellow Explorers.
Larger caravans began to move out in earnest, using the Lodges as guideposts and bases of operation from which to supply themselves. In the crafting of these Lodges, the Royal Explorers were, perhaps unknown to some of them, expanding the territory of the Father Kingdom with every Lodge they founded. Some Lodges would grow into fortresses, while others would merely remain as a small hut in the middle of arctic woods. Nevertheless, by the time the Auspex entered full production, there were already Lodges in key areas on the outskirts of civilization.
--- Percival Cormad, "An Introduction to the Exploration Lexicon, Generation I"
