Council of Nine

Council of Nine

Type: Supranational governing body
Founded: Early Age of Renaissance (post-Rending)
Member Cities: Bhurnfaldur, Crankwall, Lama Taesi
Number of Seats: 9
Meeting Frequency: Several times per year (location undisclosed)
Primary Functions: Legislation, inter-city diplomacy, trade regulation, taxation, military coordination

Overview

The Council of Nine is the most powerful political body in post-Rending Primordia, formed as a cooperative alliance between the surviving city-states of Bhurnfaldur, Crankwall, and Lama Taesi. Established during the fragile recovery of the Age of Renaissance, the Council was born from necessity: no single city could hope to rebuild civilization alone.

The Council is responsible for crafting shared laws, managing inter-city trade, levying collective taxes, and overseeing large-scale diplomatic or military affairs. Though its decisions technically require consensus, enforcement is backed by considerable resources—including naval and arcane power.

Structure

Each of the three founding cities contributes three representatives, selected to reflect political, economic, and spiritual balance:

• One Religious Leader
  → Represents the dominant faith within their region:
• The Conflagration (Crankwall, aligned with Fornax)
• The Fellowship of Quaking Earth (Bhurnfaldur, aligned with Melakka)
• The Stormbound Reverence (Lama Taesi, aligned with Vayu-Vata and Boann)
• One Economic Leader
  → A prominent merchant, guildmaster, or trade magnate—often with powerful connections and wealth.
• One Popularly Elected Representative
  → Chosen by the citizens of their respective city, these individuals speak for the common people. They are often former adventurers, civic organizers, or controversial populists.

Function and Secrecy

The Council convenes several times a year at a secret location, known only to the members and their personal guard. Rumors abound regarding the meeting site—some claim it floats among the clouds, others that it lies hidden beneath the sea or in the hollowed-out root of a world-tree.

Decisions are recorded on Codices of Concordance, enchanted documents that cannot be falsified or destroyed. These are periodically delivered to the city-states for public display and implementation.

Political Reputation

The Council is viewed with mixed sentiment by the people of Primordia:

• Supporters praise it as the reason civilization has endured since the Rending—bringing stability, commerce, and relative peace.
• Critics (including the Rackborn and other fringe groups) call it an oligarchy in disguise, pointing to corruption, taxation abuse, and increasing militarization of the seas.

Despite these tensions, few deny the Council’s influence. They command fleets, fund expeditions, and broker peace treaties with a quiet efficiency that many rulers envy.

Notable Lore & Rumors

• Some whisper that the Council's original charter was penned by scribes of the C.R.A.I.G.S., though it has since been buried in bureaucracy.
• It is said the Council maintains a private magical army, drawn from all three cities, known as the Mantle—but no one outside the Nine has confirmed their existence.
• The exact location of “The Seat of Nine” remains unknown, despite the best efforts of spies, adventurers, and rebel cartographers.