[Orcslayer]

{Mayor Damion enters the library and searches for any history on the origins of the Nether scrolls and their locations..}

[Gmork]

The Nether Scrolls and the Great Lost

Across the entire Empire, there is one symbol of power, influence and unity that can be said to be one of the two key pillars upon which the Netheril Empire is built upon. Where Iouloum may be the heart and brain of the Empire, the Nether Scrolls are the soul of the empire. But though Iouloum is perhaps the greatest Arcanist of the empire, if not for the Nether Scrolls everything about the Empire might never have become so, and we would be as limited as the elves and other inferior magical races and nations.


The Nether Scrolls, are a set of 100 golden scrolls, detailing the very nature of magic. Studies into the creation and authors of these scrolls have offered few results, but scholars all agree that whoever made them were very advanced magically. They were also, from artifacts found near the scrolls to have possessed four legs rather than two. They were discovered in a series of ruins in the Far Horn's Forest in the year 326, which would be later given the starting date for the Era named for this very discovery; The Nether Age.


The scrolls though totaling in 100, are actually two sets of 50, one older looking and the other newer looking. The contents divided into five chapters, each consisting of ten scrolls. The scrolls are made not from paper but gold, or platinum and made like flexible paper; a feat that has driven a number of metal workers and arcanists mad trying to replicate. What is perhaps the greatest achievement of the scrolls is that despite their small size, they contain more knowledge then what an ordinary object of their size could hold. Each time a scroll is read, new knowledge appeared and once a reader has gained significant knowledge and understanding of the chapter, the scroll provides additional knowledge and information. In short, the scrolls are a limitless fountain of arcane knowledge and it is speculated that even Iouloum, living as long as he has so far,  would only learn a portion of what the scrolls contain.


The five chapters of the scrolls are as followed:



Arcanus Fundare: Foundations of Magic.



This chapter gives insight about fundamental magic, giving a reader magical skill matching or surpassing true masters, but no additional base power.



Magicus Creare: Spells of Creation.



This chapter details the creation of magical items.



Major Creare: Major Creation.



This chapter also details magical item creation but focuses on constructs such as golems.



Plauns Mechanus: Studies of the Planes



This chapter deals with the planes and how to planar travel without ill effects from the planes environments.



Ars Factum: Of the Creation of Artifacts


The contents of these scrolls are, unfortunately unknown. Though it can be wisely suggested it involves the creation of magical artifacts as the title states. These scrolls, however, require some sort of key, or other items in order to access the knowledge within. Currently, there are twenty-five funded expeditions to search for the key,  such as in the same ruins where the Nether Scrolls were founded and in other spots where ruins showing similarities to the ruins where the scrolls were found. Also, a number of Archmages have invested great wealth and power to find other ways to open the scrolls and they claim it is only a matter of time before these last ten scrolls are opened and their knowledge added to the Empires.


The Nether Scrolls are indeed the greatest magical artifact of the empire, and the very cause for the empires rise to glory and as the single most powerful nation in all the world. And so it is no wonder that some would seek to steal them. In the year 764 during the Mythallar Era, a complete set of the Nether scrolls, all 50 of the newer-looking set, were stolen. Luckily the two sets were separated to assure that one copy would be safe, but to this day there is no hint or idea of who or what it was that stole the scrolls. The vaults that contained them were locked, alarmed, trapped and sealed, to the best of the empires magical ability. Yet despite this the scrolls were none the less removed without setting off the alarms, unsealing the vault or activating the traps.


This loss of one of our nations national treasures, caused and still does cause, an uproar in the arcanist community. Many arcanists and patriotic members of the empire, work to uncover the truth of the culprits or to track down and find the lost scrolls. In fact, a large number of Archmages have put forth a reward for any information regarding the stolen Nether Scroll set that currently stands at 100,000,000 pieces of coin and a noble title; a reward that still to this day has not yet be claimed.


The remaining Nether Scrolls are now kept under tighter guard than ever before, with a vow by all arcanists and archmages to never let such a theft happen again. These scrolls are one of the pillars of the empire, and if we were to lose these last scrolls we would lose a critical pillar of our empire.