The Magical Exclusion Zones, or MEZ's

The Magical Exclusion Zone (MEZ)

  The Magical Exclusion Zone, or MEZ, is a class of ecological regions where magic behaves in unpredictable ways. It is an area characterized by a volatile and unstable magical environment that is difficult to control or predict. Spells may backfire, enchantments may fail, and magical phenomena may manifest in unexpected and potentially dangerous ways within the MEZ. The ambient magical entropy is simply higher as a result of destabilization from the Cataclysm's fallout; however, why it has remained this way so long after is not known.   The MEZ is often avoided by most inhabitants of Dunia due to the inherent dangers associated with the unstable nature of magic within the zone. Only those who are skilled or desperate enough may dare to venture into the MEZ, and they must be prepared to face the unpredictable and often perilous consequences of magical particle excitation. The very air vibrates threateningly when one casts magic here. The single most prevalent reason people intentionally cross the threshold into a Zone is for the fact that there can be magically charged artifacts that manifest in an area, anomalous and powerful items that can do incredible or dangerous things. Other times, technological marvels might spring out of nowhere in things not unlike military compounds or abandoned factories.   Guides may claim they know how to navigate it, but the terrain often changes or shifts its shape without rhyme or reason. Some devices were invented to measure the ambient magical entropy, or chaos particle volatility in the very air itself, but the sudden fluctuations can be incredibly difficult to account for. Local dialects have formed regarding the wandering souls that venture into the surreal. Words like Divers, Explorers, Magpies, Madcaps, Riveners, Seekers all describe the same lifestyle. One older Eadwellian in the Westlands told a story to a freelancer about one such person who would venture into the MEZs.   “Don’t listen to him. It’s the ravings of a magpie, his eyes are full of delirium. You can see it, can’t you? One driven to the edge by those— those things. Covetous creature, he is, coming back from the brink with all manner of strange findings. Some of it is rubbish, other times it gives off a dark feeling, as if it is not meant for this world. I don't trust it as far as I can walk, which, to be quite honest, is not a stone's throw further than the kitchen. One day, he won't return, of that I promise.” ~MagTape recording of Edith Braithwaite expressing skepticism of a local MEZ Explorer.   There are many conflicting ideas on how the MEZ came to be after the Cataclysm. The Drakaan think it is the leftovers of a planar collision where multiple worlds intersected and disrupted everything. The scientists on Saghira-Aqsaa think it was some result of a cascading chain reaction of magical fission and that it's happened before. Some people that were alive when the Cataclysm happened are convinced it was an act of the gods, punishing and abandoning Dunia. There are few recordings of the Cataclysm happening, but from an incredible distance, and the film may have been somewhat damaged or distorted by the shockwaves that happened afterwards. A phrase, Karithat-Aldawi could be heard in one of the recordings, being repeated over and over until it cut off.   Its very location, aside from the Plateau of Storms, is also subject to change or fluctuation over time thereby making the MEZ a dynamic and ever-evolving phenomenon on Dunia. Its boundaries change, and pockets of magical instability pop up here and there, often signified by bright 'sparks' in the atmosphere where magic excitation occurs. These 'zones' can shape mountains, dunes, forests, and oases in a few hours, twisting the landscape and distorting what once was yet it never changes the land significantly enough that it could be seen with the naked eye from space. Localized maps that are made might have outdated information just a few days after, as cartographers tried fruitlessly to document the regions shortly after.   The Cataclysm that created the MEZ also resulted in the desertification of large swathes of Dunia and caused large portions of the ocean to evaporate. The desertification and evaporation did not happen equally across the planet, as the MEZ originates at the heart of one of the major continents in the Aarahat region, and mountain barriers shielded some areas from the destruction.  

Features

  The Malignant Haze   The only known constant MEZ aside from the roiling Plateau of Storms, the Malignant Haze appears to be anchored to an area in the Western Expanse. Its reason for the attraction to the particular spot has not been uncovered yet. It is one of the few Anchorpoints that are widely known on Mudira-Karrah. It is believed that the residual radiation from a nuclear weapons testing site suddenly elevated and spiked during the Cataclysm.  

Preferred Vehicles

  Non-magical vehicles are almost a requirement in these weird pockets thanks to the disruptive effects that it has on enchantments and other magically-imbued things. Some advanced sensor equipment and electronics are needed to identify when a surge is about to happen and to evade the spikes in magical entropy. There is no regularity to the environments either.  

Inhabitants

  Nobody stays in the MEZ for any extended period of time unless there's something incredibly valuable. There are no permanent settlements or inhabitants of a Zone. Those that venture into the Zones willingly have many names: Divers, Explorers, Magpies, Madcaps, Riveners, Seekers are just a few names that have been given.  

Monsters

  Echoes are highly likely to appear in the MEZ, and while not necessarily a monster, they are still a hazard to be avoided at all costs. Otherwise, the species of monsters depends on the region that the current 'zone' is.