Masteries in Iskandria

Masteries in Iskandria are rare and potent arts that take a lifetime to master, come through divine favor, or a pact with powers beyond the mortal eye. They are not skills but avenues to power—some taught in dark schools, others inherited through bloodline or given to mortals by gods and demons. The different cultures in the world all have stories about warriors who tread in the shadow and strike in the dark, mages who command fire and ice, and zealots whose faith burns hotter than flame. These are not legends but the grim truth in a world where survival equals power.

Simply put, Masteries are codified paths to power. They offer a way forward to those wanting to achieve expertise in a certain area, and while most Masteries are related to combat, this isn’t necessarily the case, just a consequence of a world that is constantly in turmoil.

The rotting nobility and downtrodden masses of the Alderworth Kingdom breed such talent in adversity, and serve as a template as to how Masteries are seen and used in the rest of the world. The High District’s College of Arcane Lore sharpens the minds that will be the next Arcanists, and the Order of the Bronze Shields hardens unyielding Bulwarks in the mountains. Elsewhere beyond the kingdom’s walls, the Azari tribes train warriors to channel wrath into unrelenting charges, and the mysterious Coven of Shadows teaches Hexmancers the art of curse-making. Even the divine have a part to play—priests of Sonlios use fire to purify, and followers of Kevona, Goddess of Night, learn to vanish into shadow.

Masteries don't come easily. They come at a cost—years of brutal discipline, loss of mind, or oaths to forces better left unspoken. Those who emerge from the crucible of discipline come back remade, powers that set them apart from regular warriors and hedge magic alike.