1. Locations

University of Wynarn

Educational Institution
Knowledge Ward in Fairhaven

Morgrave University might be better known, but the University of Wynarn— the original institution of higher learning in the Five Nations—is better respected. The campus outgrew its initial building long ago and now encompasses six sprawling structures equipped with dormitories, apartments, libraries, restaurants, coffee houses, theaters, classrooms, laboratories, and museums.

The university remained open throughout the Last War, but fewer and fewer enrollees arrived. By the war’s end, the professors outnumbered the students. To increase enrollment, the university relaxed its restrictions on attendees and invited new students from all nations. The new policy created a cosmopolitan mix of scholars including orcs, goblins, shifters, and even a few warforged. This diversity has resulted in increased tensions among the student body, and strident calls for more representation of minority races among the teaching staff. Still, the university is committed to educate as it has over the centuries and has taken steps to accommodate its diverse population.

Politics of Aundair

The University has six departments, each with their own enormous building that includes dormitories, classrooms, laboratories, restaurants, and museums. For much of the past century, these facilities sat empty, as ministers of magic prioritized funding and recruitment efforts for the Arcane Congress. Members of other nations could no longer attend, while Aundairians who had the money and status to attend frequently chose to pursue other, more practical paths.

By 990, the faculty outnumbered the students. The administration made a bold choice after the Treaty of Thronehold to open enrollment up significantly while creating a scholarship system, filling out empty classrooms with students of all nations and races. This has created tension amongst the student population, as members of the aristocracy confront the reality of warforged, goblinoid, and shifter students who have never had access to university.

Arcane Science and Theory

The department of arcane science and theory eschews the practicalities of spellcasting, focusing on topics such as the planes and magical phenomena. The department chair is Dr. Odatra Orulin Ornan, a wizened gnome that's nearly blind from age. Still, her mathematical mind is unmatched in Khorvaire, having published the majority of the major mathematical breakthroughs of the past two centuries.

Classics

The department of classics has not benefited from the school's resurgence, with almost all new students still considering it to be the study of dead literature. The department chair is Dr. Sartumal Peters, a venerable elf whose favorite works were old when he was young.

History

The department of history has worked to understand all aspects of the past century of warfare. The department chair is Dr. Juliona Walleau, an Aundairian nationalist. Her latest book The Forge of War has come under fire for portraying the Thranish armies as undisciplined zealots rampaging through Western Khorvaire.

Language

The department of languages has evolved and adapted with the new student population, integrating the perspectives of other cultures rather than gazing down upon them from its literal ivory tower. The department chair is Dr. Kleris Dekker, a middle-aged khoravar specializing in ancient Dhakaan.

Natural Studies

The department of natural studies has a partnership with the Wayfinder Foundation, providing scholarly expertise on exotic flora and fauna. The department chair is currently empty, after the last one died in a mysterious accident.

Philosophy

The department of philosophy has been directly challenged in many of its long-held assumptions, as the more diverse student population brings new views to the classroom. Dr. Marran Samalliar's career has included an extensive study of the origins and effects of the Galifaran gender binary; eir position outside that binary has given them particular insight in that field.

February 12th, 2021