Archmage Xvim of House Wrenlow is widely regarded within the Grand Order of Wizards as one of the most technically accomplished spellcasters of the modern era. Born into the sprawling Wrenlow estate on the outskirts of Mor’Koc, he entered the Order at a young age and ascended through its ranks with a consistency that contemporary scholars describe as “inevitable.” His rise was not the result of political patronage; as unlike many of his kin, Xvim developed an early aversion to the House’s internal manoeuvrings. He removed himself from its affairs entirely, a decision the House now finds both inconvenient and strategically useful.

Within the Order, Xvim serves as instructor of Advanced Spatial Magic and as personal tutor to a small number of final-year students. His classes are infamous. He is the subject of countless student rumours, all uniformly unflattering, most of them circulated by those who failed to endure his tutelage. Xvim encourages this reputation. Fear deters the unprepared, and in his view, the first service a teacher can offer is to prevent the weak from wasting everyone’s time.

Xvim’s pedagogical philosophy can be summarised by a single principle: no student can advance until they understand the limits of their current ability. To that end, he subjects new students to a series of deceptively simple exercises normally reserved for first-year initiates. These tasks, requiring precise manipulation of minor forces, expose flaws in concentration, discipline, and magical control. The majority collapse under the workload. Those who persist can expect six months of relentless drills before Xvim deigns to teach them anything resembling advanced spellcraft. The attrition rate is famous: nine students in ten depart by the third month; nearly half the survivors quit by the sixth. Yet the few who endure emerge as Masters several years ahead of their peers, and most attribute their success—grudgingly—to Xvim himself.

The Archmage’s magical technique is the subject of substantial academic interest. His casting displays almost no wasted motion or excess energy, a phenomenon senior mages have attempted to study with limited success. He possesses a rare instinct for analysing spell structure in real time, allowing him to dismantle hostile magic with unnerving ease. His breadth of knowledge is equally remarkable; he appears to have mastered the foundational curricula of nearly every Tower. Rumours circulate that he has achieved the ability to cast Wish, though neither he nor the Order have acknowledged this. It is known, however, that he favours Simulacrum, and that his command of destructive magic is such that he can manipulate fireball patterns from an inch-wide bead to a ten-foot sphere without apparent effort.

Although withdrawn from politics, Xvim is not absent from the Empire’s crises. During the Siege of Mor’Koc, when dragons threatened the capital, he participated directly in the defence. During the Balla Counter-Attack, he was nearly caught behind enemy lines—not through miscalculation but because he refused to abandon his students. Qau the Mighty and Glaw Trwm intervened to extract his scholars, an act Xvim later repaid by holding one of Balla’s gates alone while Glaw lay unconscious and Qau hauled him to safety. Order accounts describe this moment as “a rare demonstration of Xvim’s priorities,” though none specify what those priorities are.