Natural Philosophers

For more than three millennia, a single, unbroken chain of natural philosophers has carried forward the furtive pursuit of arcane and alchemical discovery. Known in some scholarly circles as the Proliferation of Worldly Wisdom, this lineage preserves knowledge too potent—and too dangerous—to be entrusted to monarchies, religious institutions, or even the broader academic world. Each master chooses a single apprentice, teaches them the secret arts, and grants them a ceremonial mononym binding them to the tradition. When the apprentice is fully versed, they inherit the mantle of the lineage, and the cycle continues. At its origin, the line was orderly, disciplined, and austere. Over the centuries, the fields of alchemy, cosmology, esoterica, kinetics, and metaphysics would all be reshaped—secretly or openly—by descendants of this line. But in the last four centuries, the tradition has become troubled. Cultural shifts, technological revolutions, political upheavals, and personal failings have strained the integrity of the lineage. Betrayal entered the system, as public attention threatened its secrecy. The Proliferation persists, but its future no longer feels as certain as before. What follows is a chronological account of each master, apprentice, and the circumstances of their succession.

“Hermaeus” — Zarathustra Thrice-Keen (Elf)

• Born in the flying capital of Melanthir in Luminor over two thousand years before the Syzygy.
• A prodigy sorcerer whose insight into both the material and phenomenal made him an unparalleled natural philosopher.
• Authored the Grimoire Hermetica, foundational to pre-Syzygy scholarship and later considered the first Apocryphal Tome.
• His works explored alchemy, humoral theory, and the macro/microcosmic structure of reality.
• Lived during the height of Luminari intellectual culture, when airborne cities served as centers of philosophical thought.
• His contributions to the fields of alchemy and the arcane arts gave rise to the term “hermetic,” associated with secrecy and mastery.
• Determined late in life that his knowledge must kept hidden out of fear of misuse.
• Selected a youth in his own household—a chaos-touched garuda servant—to inherit and safeguard his work.
• Renamed him Idris, initiating the tradition of the master’s mononym.
• Fate unknown after the Syzygy; most believe he perished with Melanthir during the destruction of the Old World.

“Idris” — Akashverosh the Younger (Ganzi Garuda)

• Born a low-status servant boy in the household of Zarathustra Thrice-Keen within Melanthir.
• Marked by wild eyes and iridescent feathers, regarded as unusual even within Luminari society.
• Chosen personally by Hermaeus to inherit the secret lineage because of his perceptive intuition.
• Renamed Idris, becoming the second bearer of the mononym tradition.
• Authored the Grimoire Esoterica, the second Apocryphal Tome, focused on spiritual, psychic, and noumenal realms.
• His work expanded the tradition into the ecology of spirits, dimensional theory, and the power in true names.
• His perspective as a chaos-touched outsider shaped his fascination with liminal magic and metaphysics.
• Became a legendary figure among early occultists, though few knew his true origins.
• Took on a single apprentice, Bombastus von Hohenheim, near the end of the Old World’s final centuries.
• Disappeared during the Syzygy; scholars debate whether he died in the catastrophe or was lost in a spiritual plane.

“Paracelsus” — Bombastus von Hohenheim (Gnome)

• A gnomish scholar originally seeking a cure for the vampirism ravaging his homeland in the Old World.
• Tracked down Idris and begged him for the knowledge to save his people. He never got the chance to return before the Syzygy.
• Taken on as Idris’s apprentice and renamed Paracelsus, becoming the third in the line.
• Meticulously united Hermetica and Esoterica into a practical, medical framework.
• Revolutionized anatomy and botany through experimentation on plants, animals, and extraplanar creatures.
• Was completing his training when the Syzygy destroyed the Old World.
• Survived the Grim Voyage, using transmutation to produce food and desalinate water, saving entire fleets.
• His medical skill prevented disease outbreaks, making him one of the chief reasons survivors reached the Isles.
• Upon arrival, he settled on the elven island of Cylbaros, living quietly and studying the exotic flora and fauna there.
• Took on only one apprentice in the Isles—Nathanael Bazalgette—when his health began to fail.

“Athenaeus” — Lord Nathanael Bazalgette (Human)

• An affluent Cravenite aristocrat who frequently wintered in tropical Cylbaros.
• Befriended Paracelsus during one such winter and gained his trust through genuine intellectual curiosity.
• Chosen as the next successor and granted the mononym Athenaeus.
• Became High Arcanist of the first Court of the Crown in Craven’s late Revival Age.
• Built a private library in Pumice Grove that eventually became the Athenaeum.
• Flaunted bright colors and open homosexuality, scandalizing a conservative pre-Regency society.
• First to embody the “Victorian magician” archetype and establish the custom of the wizardly mononym publicly.
• Used Philosopher’s Stone elixirs to extend his life — a taboo none of his predecessors violated.
• Took on Rupert Wolfram as apprentice to save him from the dangers of the Fisher Wars.
• Retired from public life as Craven’s politics grew turbulent, aging only when he chose to stop the elixirs.

“Erasmus” — Rupert Wolfram (Half-Human Orc)

• A half-orc field medic drafted during the brutal Fisher Wars.
• Met Athenaeus during a period of convalescence and impressed him with practical ingenuity.
• Taken on as apprentice and renamed Erasmus.
• Continued to serve during the wars but now shielded by his master’s protection and connections.
• Expanded natural philosophy using both classical alchemy and every magical tradition available.
• Worked during the era when post-Voyage science developed the periodic model of cruxes and fulcrums.
• Personally identified several cruxes—including Phosphorus and Helium—and discovered two new but unofficial cruxes, Neon and Tungsten.
• Extended his own life via Philosopher’s Stones after Athenaeus willingly ended his.
• Nearly ended the lineage after his first apprentice’s betrayal but eventually agreed to take on a second.
• Withdrew to the Northern Isles and never returned to Craven, likely still alive.

“Delphia” — Tethys of House Vangelis (Diluvian)

• A noblewoman of the underwater civilization of Tezcatl, heir to House Vangelis.
• Sought Erasmus out directly, demanding apprenticeship rather than waiting to be chosen.
• Her raw determination and brilliance convinced him to take her on despite breaking tradition.
• Renamed Delphia after completing her training — the first woman in the lineage.
• Learned the deepest aspects of alchemical bio-crafting and arcane engineering.
• Immediately betrayed Erasmus by returning home to share the secret knowledge.
• Became one of Tezcatl’s most powerful and wealthy scholars, using the lineage’s secrets openly.
• Her betrayal psychologically devastated Erasmus, who felt he had broken the chain.
• She still lives, a formidable academic figure in the Isles.
• Her actions created a permanent distrust in choosing successors too readily.

“Crescentia” — Elizabeth Flamel (Human)

• A young Cravenite inventor working for House Tyrell, known for her brilliant mechanical mind.
• Caught Erasmus’s attention for her disciplined creativity — the opposite of Delphia’s audacity.
• Became his second apprentice and was renamed Crescentia after swearing to uphold secrecy.
• Focused deeply on the spiritual and animating forces in alchemy.
• Developed soulfire, the essence enabling the creation of the anvilwrought.
• Earned the moniker Soulforger among Tyrell operatives.
• Survived the Upheaval when House Tyrell fell, though she lost nearly all colleagues and resources.
• Hid herself and the secrets of soulfire, ensuring no new anvilwrought could ever be made.
• Eventually traveled to Cylbaros, echoing Paracelsus’s retreat into quiet study.
• Began searching cautiously for a successor who could be trusted.

“Germaine” — Venturo Allard (Catfolk)

• A young catfolk man raised by his grandmother in Craven’s South Quarter, never knowing his parents.
• Survived through petty crime, largely as a cutpurse, before meeting Crescentia.
• First approached her intending to rob her but became fascinated by her instead.
• Their ongoing conversations allowed Crescentia to see raw potential beneath his rough exterior.
• Became her apprentice and was renamed Germaine.
• Studied alchemy with surprising dedication despite his criminal entanglements.
• Continued pickpocketing on the side and was eventually arrested by the Crownsguard.
• Crescentia visited him in prison only once, when she severed their relationship as master and student.
• After release, he kept the name Germaine and reinvented himself as a private investigator.
• Uses alchemical knowledge to study biology, brew elixirs, and solve cases; Crescentia quietly watches over him from afar in Cylbaros.