The Synaptic Squeeze

The Synaptic Squeeze is the name given to a period of forty eight years during the era known as the Time of Terrors when access to Synaptic Unbinding Potion was restricted (or squeezed) by the Unbound as they attempted to gain a monopoly over its production, distribution and use.   It began in 3192 APC when the mixing houses at the Institute of Magical Analytics were taken over by a faction of the Unbound with the direct approval of the Deep Perceptor, Avelin Saerkh and it ended in 3240 APC when Clarise Vabatan established a secret independent manufacturing facility at Tylisfort which secured supplies for the Sisters of Vabatan.  

Historical Context

    In the immediate aftermath of this political and social revolution Synaptic Unbinding Potion became widely available, produced in quantity not only at the Institute of Magical Analytics but also at the Free Union of Magical Scholars in Greystow.   Resistance to the unthinking use of Synaptic Unbinding Potion began to crystalise as it became increasingly apparent that the substance could have undesirable side effects when taken in quantity over time. This knowledge was disseminated most effectively via the mage Tobias Golkin's influential study, Synaptic Suicide : The Case Against Synaptic Unbinding Potion which was published at the The Free Union of Magical Scholars in 3082 APC but it was not until he became the Provost of the Free Union in 3105 APC that he was able to enforce a policy which stopped production in Greystow.   Meanwhile at the Institute of Magical Analytics, a shadowy organisation known as the Unbound had been established in 3089 APC, advocating for the use of Synaptic Unbinding Potion as a spiritual aid and not merely to enhance magic. This cult was led by one they called the Deep Perceptor and it grew secretly over the following decades.   After Tobias Golkin was killed in an infamous incident known as Golkin's last stand in 3113 APC, the Free Union of Magical Scholars resumed production of Synaptic Unbinding Potion, but a faction known as the Golkinites, continued to speak against it, in public and private, becoming the polar opposites to the Unbound.  

The Squeeze Begins

    In an apparent contradiction of their expressed purpose of advocating Synaptic Unbinding Potion, the Unbound now began to withhold it, distributing it only to their members and allies. Production at sites outside Quarowl, such as Greystow and Ralsimoor was closed down. Knowledge of how to make the valuable potion was suppressed everywhere. Now many mages began to panic, and many were forced to co-operate or join the Unbound. But not all.   This was the climate into which Clarise Vabatan came, when she travelled to Quarowl, seeking a solution for the Sisters of Vabatan in 3229 APC.  

The Squeeze Ends

  The story of Clarise Vabatan's adventures at the Institute of Magical Analytics are told in full in Volume 8 of the Diary of Clarise Vabatan. Here we will only note that matters came to a climax in a conflict known as the Rift Below in 3231 APC. Whilst Clarise Vabatan lost much in this battle, she escaped with details for the manufacture of Synaptic Unbinding Potion and was able to set up her own secret mixing house in Tylisfort by 3240 APC. This supplied the Sisters of Vabatan with as much Synaptic Unbinding Potion as they needed and more to service a black market which undermined the Synaptic Squeeze. It was effectively over within ten years and for the remainder of the entire age of the Time of Terrors, was readily accessible to those who wished to use it.   It is beyond the scope of this article to cover the ongoing conflict between the Unbound and the Sisters of Vabatan which was triggered by the Rift Below and rumbled on for centuries.   Synaptic Unbinding Potion ceased to be effective at the end of the Time of Terrors with the arrival of the Nexorin Pathogen in 3627 APC, marking a definitive end to one of the most chaotic periods in the long and turbulent history of Magicians' End.