Nibenay State School

The education of most templars begins in the state schools run by higher-level templars. Here, young templars are taught reading, writing, mathematics, military history, astronomy and organizational skills. They are also provided with combat skills and basic military training. Young nobles traditionally spend at least seven years attending the schools, starting around the age of seven. Talented female citizens often receive sponsorship from the state. These schools are used both to enculturate the young to the values of the state and to identify talented women for spots in the priesthood. Nibenay likes to draw templars from across the social and geographical spectrum of the kingdom. This ensures that a certain number of families throughout the city are loyal to the crown. At the age of 14, after seven years of study, qualified women are initiated into the priesthood and begin to receive intense military training in the Chamber of Fire. Girls who do not pass muster after seven years are taken into the Naggaramakam to serve as scholar slaves. The noble families believe that dedicating a child to the priesthood is a political necessity, but they never allow their most talented children to enter. They consider it a poor life and one which puts a person's loyalties at odds with their family. Some free citizens believe that a child accepted into the king's priesthood is a political windfall, while others despise the state's bureaucrats and would disown a child who aspired to its rank.