Wayfarers' Union

The Wayfarers' Union is one of the wizardly covins that play a major role in the politics of Curcalen. As each of the covins have their own celemological specialities, the Wayfarers' Union focuses on translocation. In particular, they have come to specialize in interplanar travel, and to a lesser degree on æalogy in general.

Philosophy and goals

Like most of the Curcalish covins, the Wayfarers' Union had its germ with a philosophical idea. In the case of the Union, this idea was the importance of broadening one's horizons, of seeing the world—and, so far as possible, other worlds as well. The original philosophy of the Wayfarer's Union was one of learning a little from everywhere one went, of openness to new concepts and ideas and of cultural (though not necessarily moral) relativism.

Characteristically, these original ideals were largely abandoned, or at least honored more in word than in deed, as the covin grew in size and power and ambition. Now, though a few stalwarts still believe in the old philosophies, the Wayfarers' Union mostly develops translocational spells and explores the planes for their own sake, or rather for the sake of building up the covin's power. While more so than most covins the Wayfarers' Union turns much of its appetite away from Curcalen itself, seeking to found bases of operation on distant planes where they have less competition and more proximity to the frontiers the Union wants to explore, this does not mean that the covin has no interest in gaining power on Curcalen itself. On the contrary, the Wayfarers' Union sees a strong base on Curcalen as a very useful thing; Zien has something of a central position among the planes that make it extremely handy to have a foothold there, and it makes more sense for the Union to try to consolidate its power in the world where it started than to try to develop a new presence in an unfamiliar world. Therefore, the Wayfarers' Union is a full participant in the clandestine competition among the covins to gain political influence and control over the nations of Curcalen, and is quick to bring to bear on the issue any useful tools it has garnered from other planes.

Organization

Despite its members' being scattered all over the planes, the Wayfarers' Union has succeeded in maintaining a relatively stable organizational structure. There is some tension, however, stemming from the fact that the Union's organization is divided into three discrete parts, and while a clear hierarchy exists within each division, relative ranks of members of the different divisions can sometimes be ambiguous.

The largest of the three divisions is the Breaker Branch, so called not because of any destructive tendencies but rather in the same sense as in "trailbreakers"; the Breaker Branch settles the planes, establishes bases of operation there, and explores the particular planes where they're headquartered. At the head of the branch is the Overbreaker, the current holder of that position being a chocho-blooded man named Ruhalo Tiar. The Runner Branch are itinerants who travel between the planes, observing their relations and discovering new planes to study. The head of the Runners is the Runnermaster, currently Enelia Rassentoffel. Finally, the Factor Branch do most of the overall administrative work; they are led by the Overfactor Grelyne Mourrit. While the leaders of the three branches are explicitly equals, the relations between lower-ranking members of the branches is sometimes unclear. In general, both the Runners and the Factors tend to look down on the Breakers, for slightly different reasons, and in questionable cases tend to see themselves as higher in the chain of command, though a high-up Breaker would still clearly outrank a novice Runner or Factor. Matters between Runners and Factors are even more disputatious, with each branch tending to see itself as the superior, and absent clear orders from superiors Runners and Factors of comparable rank are likely to work together poorly.

Over all three branches of the Union is the Waylord, the ultimate ruler of the covin. The Waylord is appointed by the leaders of the three branches, two of the three of which must agree on the appointment. Officially, the Waylord is appointed for a period of three years; in practice, the incumbent is almost always reappointed, this being easier than seeking out a suitable new candidate. (Of course, a new candidate must still be sought out to replace a Waylord who dies in office—as they usually do.) The current Waylord, Nimin Shrae, is relatively new to the position, having just been first appointed five years ago to replace the late Moroban Touri.

Headquarters

Although the Wayfarers' Union is interested in maintaining a place in Curcalen itself, most of the the Union's bases of operation are on other planes. The closest thing the rather decentralized Union has to an overall base of operations is the Auasadon, the seat of the Waylord, a structure capable of traveling through the planes. Though it started as little more than a single building, the Auasadon has gradually been extended and built onto until now it is virtually a city in its own right, a mobile millevia with thousands of permanent residents. Other well known bases of the Union on the planes include the Great Rool in the plane of Oïdai, Tiar's base of operations the Rose Palace, and the White Peel in Turtoray. Not used for everyday operations but serving important special purposes are the Star House, the covin's primary training facility; and Clover End, a sanitarium of sorts for the far too many covin members who lose their senses.

The Wayfarers' presence on Curcalen itself is maintained mainly by the Factor Branch; nearly all the covin members actually living on Curcalen are Factors. The headquarters of the Factor Branch, Kulu Hall, is situated on the border of the nations of Grubis and Yao Daa, over both of which nations the Union retains significant influence. Next to Kulu Hall, the Union's most important base on Curcalen is the Elgevory, an extensive compound lying mostly underneath Abecard, extending largely into Bathk.

Magic

The Wayfarers' Union has produced perhaps the most eclectic set of new spells, and talismans of any covin, taking inspiration from bizarreries encountered on diverse planes. Such disparate magics as the skinstone, passage paint, the skyhand spell, and the entire paracarminical magic system of Cunacatti all owe their origin to the Wayfarers' Union, influenced by their explorations of far-flung singula.

What the covin is best known for, however, even though they don't actually make up the majority of its output, is spells and talismans of translocation and travel. The flingarcher, the wanderer's window, and the planepool are some of the best known talismans the Union created; among its most famous spells are mitemark, the dip spell, and the planar dance. On Curcalen, the Wayfarers' Union is also credited with creating the magic doorknob, but mistakenly so; this rare talisman (of which only two or three examples have ever surfaced on Curcalen) is actually a panypar that long predates the covin's existence.

Relationships

Though much of the Union's attention is focused on other planes, it still has sufficient interest in Curcalen to come into frequent conflict with other covins—and to make occasional alliances against common threats. Still, for the most part, its dealings with other covins tend to be brief and inconsistent.

The other covin with which the Union has the most interaction is the Long-Handled Net, due to their shared interest in æalogy—though the Long-Handled Net is most interested in other cosmoi, and the Wayfarers' Union on other planes within the cosmos of Usm. The nature of this interaction varies by occasion and by the attitudes of the individual covin member; some Wayfarers see the Long-Handled Net as infringing on their turf, or as fastuous fanfarons who think their study of foreign cosms makes them better than the Wayfarers, while others see them as valuable contacts whose studies complement those of the Wayfarers' Union, and with whom they could profitably exchange discoveries and share knowledge.

Another covin that the Union frequently treats with is the Bit and Basket, which allies with demons—as demons are otherplanar beings, this is a subject that intersects the Wayfarers' interests. As with the Long-Handled Net, however, the attitudes vary of individual members of the covin toward the Bit and Basket. Some see them as supplying a provocative perspective, and as a potential source of useful information about demons and their home planes, while others see them as dabbling in things best left alone, and as a potential danger to Curcalen and possibly to other worlds as well.