Planar Renovation Project: Arcadia

Ooh!  A stray thought! Going with my idea of one layer being devoted to offices and such, you could totally have scene wherein there's a Tanar'ri waiting outside an office door doing it's very best to relax and it's being guarded by two very anxious looking celestials.  Normally, the demon would've been killed outright but his paperwork checks out.

Possibly there's a bureaucratic center, wherein requests for an audience are sent out to different people/creatures/entities across the planes.  Upon going to this location, one encounters an entire cross-section of the populace of the Great Wheel, all being audited (or worse).  Imagine being an adventurer tooling around in Sigil and having a courier deliver a message requesting their presence in Arcadia to help clear up a clerical error.

Don't worry too much about the criticisms.  They're mostly par for the course when it comes to these kinds of conversations (and they were legitimate criticisms too, rather than just saying "Eh...I don't like that" and leaving it at that).  I'm gonna keep tossing out ideas though, so don't expect them to be extraordinarily well thought out.  I don't particularly care if they're torn to shreds, I just want to generate ideas and see if they head anywhere interesting.

 Ok, putting aside the bureaucracy stuff for the time being (I do want to explore the concept further because I think there's quite a bit more meat there still), what are we looking at as far as Arcadia goes?  Prime philosophers create new and idealized forms of society and government all the time.  Arcadia is the Plane where those thoughts are made manifest.  The merits of each and every one are tested out against each other all across the plane.

Hmmm...The two layers have mostly the same feel and look by all the descriptions I've read.  One's more pastoral, the other is more militaristically inclined.  Sadly, I don't have access to the Planes of Law, so I don't know if the third layer is canonical to 2nd Ed. or if it was an invention of 3e (it seems to be the latter). 

I see Abellio as being peaceful, organized and well kept.  This is the layer that shows the inherent goodness of each kind of social arrangements.  Philosopher-Kings justly ruling over their lands, Athenian-styled democracies that work seamlessly.  That sort of thing.  War never sees this place.  Conflicts between kingdoms are handled with lavish gifts, diplomacy and good economic relationships.

Buxenus, on the other hand, delves into idealized warfare.  Towns are captured against the Enemy.  It could be that the plane itself manifests an idealized enemy to war against (in the same kind of way that trees and other plants grow perfectly), rather than pit society against society.  Or maybe instead, gates from Acheron open up from time to time and invading armies of goblins or orcs enter.  (Hmm...that might be a bit much)

This second layer could possibly be filled with countless ruins from past conquests.  Or maybe instead, as an area is conquered, teams of engineers go in and rebuild.  As an area is rebuilt, it's pulled into the first layer and becomes a part of the conquering kingdom's realm.  This would require a sort of dual-presence on each layer for each kingdom.  One for the kingdoms themselves (safe homelands), and another for the kingdom's armies (wherein one could send news back home from the front lines). 

How about this: Occasionally, sections of kingdoms on the first layer find themselves on the second layer.  The reason for the shift is that the ideals symbolized by the inhabitents are found to be wanting or weak, and the shift is made to test the convictions of their believers.  Maybe the whole of Buxenus is filled with the "also rans" of the multiverse, societies that didn't quite make it, but are being given a chance to prove themselves on the field of honorable battle.  Those societies that find coherence and manage some sort of field negotiations with a conquering army find themselves being given their own lands on the first layer.

I think having a strong interplay between territories on both layers could lend itself to a very interesting dynamic for the plane.

Ok, I think I'm tapped out for the time being.  Hope this sparks something!

I fanagled my hands onto a copy of the Planes of Law set (temporarily).  Woot!  After reading through the Arcadia book, I can't say I'm all that impressed with the description of the place, which borders on the fanatic, xenophobic and seems a bit too severe overall.  And I'm not overly fond of the "Harmonium accidentally shifts the third layer of Arcadia into Mechanus" plot as it also seems a bit heavyhanded and blunt.  I like the direction we're going currently much more.

Oh, I don't know.  The idea of arriving in Arcadia in the middle of a pitched battle between two warring kingdoms could be interesting, especially if, upon entering, both sides immediatly stopped fighting and cordially escorted the uninvolved off the field before picking the battle back up.  I think it would reflect quite well on the nature of the plane.  Of course, all bets would be off if there was an attack came from Acheron (or elsewhere).  Anyway...

Ok, I'm going going with the idea of Arcadia being based on the historical Arcadia (which, as I understand it, was kind of a refuge), switching Abellio and Buxenos around might make some sense.  The entrance to Arcadia is hilly and hard to traverse, and it's filled with soldiers whose duties include fighting against incursions from other Planes and honorably testing themselves against other nations.  As the place is supposed to be one of safety and peace (at least at the heart of it), having the entrace guarded to prevent unwanted intrusions makes a great deal of sense.  Abellio would then become the peaceful refuge it's supposed to be, protected from the outside and it's own relative remoteness.  I'm not sure what Nemausus was suppose be that would've put it even deeper inside the "refuge".  Really, it could be turned into anything that's lacking on the other two layers (or scrapped altogether as it seems mostly to be yet another means of showing how bad the Harmonium is).

 Stray thought (and going with the idea of Abellio being the second layer): Maybe, in an effort to maintain the peace on the inner layer, groups of more than 10 individuals who find themselves in a fight of any sort find themselves shunted back out to the first layer as a matter of Arcadian Planar law.  Thus, groups of 10 Einheriar act in a police-type capacity and if it looks like some berk is going to be trouble, they forcibly restrain him and either escort him out peacefully, or they're shunted out, quite possibly into a military camp full of bloods who wouldn't be all too pleased that somebody's trying to cause trouble in their corner of perfection.  There would be ways around this for actual invasions, but it could make for some interesting situations on a smaller scale.

 Again, I'll put up more as it occurs to me.

Yeah, I like that.  Taking frequent breaks from the combat to take away the deadand wounded.  It could also be that, in the spirit of fairness, a third party to the two combatants might be the ones to take folks away. 

In terms of petitioners fighting petitioners, I wonder if there'd be much concern over lethality.  Killed combatants would either be born again on the plane or join with it.  I doubt there'd be anything resembling Final Death for the people fighting.  I also imagine that two warring kingdoms would take great pains to avoid drawing in people not involved in the fighting. However just a war between two different ideologies might be, pulling in innocents to the battle would be dishonorable and to be avoided.

Other thoughts:  It's already in canon that the dwarves of Mount Clangeddin occasionally march forth out of Arcadia and into Acheron (and elsewhere).  I have this vision of seeing a miles-long stretch of dwarves geared up for battle marching in unison, chanting battle chants, out of the heart of their mountain and into to the first layer of whichever lower plane they have their sights set on (usually Acheron).  I then imagine that, when they arrive, the dwarves are occasionally so filled with their conviction and sense of righteousness against evil, that the location they're fighting in actually shifts back to Arcadia.  Chant has it the dwarves actually shifted an entire cube one time.

 I imagine that similar shifts occur when different sects of paladins do similar ventures into the planes.  There's a description in the Planes of Conflict that tells of a group of paladins in the Gray Waste performing concecration rites on a location in an effort to grab some territory away from the place, so this is wholly within the realm of possibility.

The upshot of this is that the first layer of Arcadia would be this place that's kinda littered with a scattershot picture of landscapes and archeitecture from across the planes.  Not a *ton* of places, but there's the potential for some interesting adventures sites.  And maybe control over the rights to converting the different sites could be a reason why the kingdoms in Buxenus fight. (I also have this image in my mind of the Harmonium being in control of a converted profane temple from the Abyss. A shining beacon to the righteousness of the faction.)

Also, it means that one might encounter the occasional gang of goblins or orcs in Buxenus, escapees from a fight that obviously went really bad.  A number of them have probably been influenced by the nature of Arcadia and have settled down into somewhat normalized societies, but there are probably still bands of renegades in hiding and trying to figure out a way to get back to their home plane.

Hehe...this is what I think about while I'm at work during the day.

I like the idea of drawing a line between locations shifted back to Arcadia as an unintended consequence of a righteous war (or something similar) and locations that were purposefully wrenched away (such as any plans the Harmonium might develop to start wholesale claiming of lands outside of Arcadia).  One is a natural consequence of how the Planes operate.  The other is more like a slap in the face of the Powers of the Lower Planes (or any of the other planes for that matter).  The dwarves marching off to Acheron aren't doing it to claim land, they're doing it because the place is filled with evil and they need to fight against it.  That their convictions are so strong while they're fighting that chunks of the plane blip back to Arcadia is mostly beside the point, as I see them just up and marching back to their mountain home after the battle is finished, leaving whatever they captured whereever it ended up.

I'm really starting to think of Arcadia as being the Plane of Righteousness.  Out of all the Upper Planes, I see the folks of Arcadia as being the most likely to be mobilized against the various Lower Planes.  Tthe other planes probably have their own organized efforts, but nowhere to the scale or degree of the armies of Arcadia (they don't just have the same degree of conviction).  And it could be that, as a result of the Blood War, these strikes are becoming more frequent. That just leads to the question of, what happens if too many armies are out there fighting the good fight against Evil? Might Arcadia be left defenseless?  *ponders thoughtfully*

Expect me to keep tossing out every neat idea that crosses my mind and don't be afraid to rein me in if I start going too far afield.  I really want these Planes to come alive.

Didn't mean to imply that the Arcadians were play fighting.  Whatever point the dispute is over is deadly serious to both sides.  Just that, I'd expect that they'd be very aware of not drawing innocents into their disputes as refugees tend to cause a lot of chaos in their wake.

In any case, I really see the wars only being fought on one of the layers.  Wars are far too chaotic and disruptive to subject the deeper/higher layers of Arcadia to.  So, I'm quite keen on the idea of flipping around Abellio and Buxenus.

Hehe...yeah, I kinda figured that was the case.

Maybe there's a specific site that both Arcadia and Acheron both claim as their own, and that there have been many long and bloody wars fought over it.  Heck, maybe Mechanus also claims the site and sometimes you have three way battles for control, with the place sliding between the three Planes during the course of even just one battle.  Modrons vs. Arcadian Dwarves vs. the Goblin Hordes of Acheron. 

I do like the idea of there actually being a whole cube from Acheron somewhere in Arcadia. Maybe not a big one, but it's there all the same.  Anyway, we can flesh out these ideas later.

Re: the third plane.  I think I'd be more comfortable with the whole concept if I had a better sense of how the place fit into the whole of Arcadia.  Right now, it feels...I don't know.  Unpopulated and kinda tacked on.  The only thing that's really known about it is that it reflects the pastoral nature of Arcadia, that it's currently residing in Mechanus and the Harmonium is trying to get it back.  It could be that I'm just forgetting something somewhere that talks about this in greater detail.  As it stands though, I'm uncomfortable with it.

Fair point.  Right now, I'm trying out all sorts of ideas when it comes to envisioning Arcadia and trying to get a sense of it's character. I'll hit on the right frame of mind eventually! 

Hmm...thinking on it, I could see a whole "Cold War" going on between the two planes.  The conflict itself could be a war of ideas that occasionally heats up into open conflict.

It might be that there are a number of petitioners from both planes acting as subversives and spies in the other plane.  They could be freeing (or abducting) petitioners, or putting effort into swaying the minds of the communities they belong to. Likewise, there could be an underground railroad of sorts, which funnels slaves and others from the opression of Acheron to Arcadia (or at least the Outlands).

I look forward to playing around with the ther planes concepts.  I already have a number of ideas for Bytopia.

Ok, so how I'm currently envisioning the layout of Arcadia:

 Buxenus becomes the first layer of Arcadia.  It has the more militinant bent, which works well given the occasional incursion from Acheron.  The landscape is more slightly rugged, and the people here live somewhat harder lives than on Abellio.  The kingdoms and societies that exist on Buxenus tend to have ideological wars over the full spectrum of conflicts.  Everything from whether civilizations should be ruled by a single philosopher-king or ruled by the people, down to what the correct shade of blue is most appropriate is properly venerate a particular Power (wars of the former sort happen far more often than the latter). 

Generally, when wars occur, great pains are taken by both sides to not involve non-combatants (though if there's a rumor that a town in the way sympathizes with the "Enemy", all bets are off).  In some cases, Arcadia itself might physically move a town out of harms way (maybe, maybe not).

Abellio becomes the new second layer of Arcadia, and basically remains unchanged. Personally, I'd probably want to drop the xenophobia of the place, and the strictness of the law enforcement - being arrested for minor offenses seems pretty steep, so I'd probably just change it to being fined or issued warnings.  This would, of course, be dependant on the nature of the kingdom/society you're in.

 Stray thought: In canon, the people in Arcadia reach higher layers of the plane by attuning their minds and themselves to the nature of the layer they're residing on.  Maybe the progression is such that on this new Buxenus, fresh petitioners are the ones who are willing to go to war and die for whatever particular cause they hold. 

As awareness dawns, they realize that they're essentially fighting against their comrades and brothers and realizing that despite the importance of the issue they're fighting for (and it is important), there are larger and more dangerous ideological concerns elsewhere on the Planes. Only after a petitioner has stopped taking up arms against his fellow Arcadian and instead tries to find common ground that they both can believe in, is that petitioner able to travel to Abellio.  Sure, folks might get into heated arguments over this point or that on Abellio, but open warfare is practically unheard of (of course, there are probably a few cases where this would be untrue).  Also, this lack of open warfare would make the Harmonium training camps on the second layer stick out like sore thumbs. Might lead to some uncomfortable questions... 

This arrangement also holds with the canon about how, as an Arcadian petitioner becomes more attuned to the plane, they gradually appear older and older.  The wars are being fought by the youngest and fittest, while the people who argue and debate over the finer points of civilized life are the older appearing individuals.

Beyon that...I don't know how to handle the third layer.  I personally would like to address it's nature and how it showed the unification of Law and Good in Arcadia before it became a part of Mechanus. Obviously something about it made it an ideal location for the Harmonium to perform their forced conversions.  Given how the other two planes work in the new arrangement, I'm almost inclined to drop the need for the third and turn whatever it is that the Harmonium lost into just a realm/domain rather than an entire layer. It would highlight the growing Lawful Neutral mindset of the Harmonium without disrupting Arcadia, and by extension, the Great Wheel.

Thank you both!  It just seemed to be the next logical step in the search for a perfect, lawful, and unified form of government.  One idea I have for representing this is that no one actually knows how the government works the way it does.  Where on Abellio and Buxenus you can clearly tell one kingdom from another as well as which ones are republics, which are monarchies, and which are socialist. On Nemausus, there's nothing to compare the government to because it is the only government.  I picture Guvners working for years trying to work out the exact method that Nemausus uses to remain stable, without much success.  One thing I'd like to differentiate between the first two layers, would be that Nemausus would be much harder for petitioners to reach.  As you mentioned before, petioner kingdoms on Abellio and Buxenus would communicate back and forth to occassionally assist each other.  Nemausus does not need any assistances beyond the simplest trade.

Exactly!  If we're sticking to the canon about  Nemausus falling to Mechanus, I was thinking that the Harmonium might have proclaimed that they have discovered the method that Nemausus functions, seeing it as just an extension of their own system, and immedietely began attempting to force their system into the plane.  In actuality, the Harmonium were wrong, and were actually forcing the plane into Mechanus.

I've just finished reading the posts and I should say that you've developped the main ideas very successfully. I was skeptical towards first layer=>war deal first but it sounds good now. Here's what I liked:

1. The "Pyramid Structure" of planes. I have some elaborations on the subject will leave them for later. 2. Different kingdoms, diferent laws. 3. Nemausus as a single government. Jareddm's idea.

Now for my take:

1. I think that the warring armies in the 1st layer should each represent a nation from the 2nd layer. By keeping their destructive conflicts to an entirely different layer of the plane, they are keeping the more advanced petitioners from any of the harmful pyhsical or psychological effects of war. Life on the second layer is all about social sciences. War is considered, at least by some of the states on the 2nd, as a useful tool (Much like in the reneissance.). (more on that later)

2. Just like in the 2nd, perhaps 3rd plane's government includes a "supreme court" where politicians from the 2nd represent their countries. It is the interaction between these people that decides the future of the plane, where the elected or inherited leaders of the second are more concerned about the welfare of their citizens.

3. Some of the rules of engagement for 1st layer: - New petitioners are considered "Neutral" and are not to be harmed under any circumstances until such a time as they choose to join an army of their own free will and without pressure. - Wars are to be fought until the condition of victory, which should be precise and absolute. -  Peace should be made when defeat is imminent. 

4. Most battles are fought between armies of about equal strength.  Philosopher-generals, equals of such renowned primes as Sun Tzu, command vast armies of the most disciplined and loyal soldiers in the multiverse. Every order is carefully planned, obeyed without question, and executed with perfection. In the end, tactics and strategies win the day. which would mean: Whereas in blood war the battles are law vs chaos, and in Abyss they are chaos vs chaos, and in Acheron law vs whatever comes your way, in Arcadia they are law vs law.

 5. Symmetry increases with each layer every georaphical feature has a purpose. First layer has less defined edges. To the keen eye, the whole place is an ensmble of sandboxes. Every hill, mountain passage, valley, river, bridge, even towns seem to be a strategic battleground. Fortification of all kinds, architectures and sizes dot the layer with a few towns set up by neutrals. Other then the occasional, insistent harmonium recruitment agencies, no one will bother you unless you bother them. -On the second, plains are perfefctly plain, mountains perfectly angular, cold places are just cold enough to freeze you if you are not protected, and warmplaces are just the opposite. Every society, has found the perfect place to prosper, just how far they can prosper is the question. Beware; the place is nearly entirely devoid of violence, so don't go toting your weapons around. - 3rd layer is a vast, breathtaking capital city that stretches on as far as the eye can see. This is what Archdevil Triel was said to aspire to when he had so many cities built and then destroyed. Streets are clean, people are nice and orderly, and they are always about their business; as you should be. If you don't have a business to attend to, you shouldn't be here.

That's all I have for now, even this much took me so long I forgot half of what I was going to write . To sum up:

1st is military; 2nd layer is social conflict, 3rd is political. In each case every move is planned. So, whereas the feel of the "old" Arcadia was a not-so-well-implemented "common good", in this new version it is the plane of "Planned thought"( a major change, to be sure).

What do you think?

I too have also been trying for some time to make a response, though certainly not because of lack of thoughts, only a lack of internet connection.

 I feel that it would be best not to tie the armies of the first plane with the kingdoms of the second.  By keeping them as seperate entities, you allow them to communicate individually.  In addition, I feel that some forms of government might not be suited to have a standing army, and some armies might not be capable of creating a long-lasting stable government.  While there could certainly be cooperation between armies and kingdoms, I feel binding them together makes it seem too forced.

Additionally, I'd like to stress my feelings that the highest levels of government on the third plane remain a great dark of the multiverse.  It makes a great goal for wannabe rulers and guvners alike.  If the form of government for the most perfect kingdom were known, than every lord and king from across the planes would be comming to copy their exact system.  Also, i like the idea of even greater beings not knowing the truth.  If the Archduke Triel attempted to copy it, but was incapable of getting it just right, it makes for a worthy goal for even the highest of beings.

Furthermore, I do feel the 3rd plane should be lost to Mechanus.  It gives the feeling that the Harmonium thought they had finally figured out how the plane is run, forcing it upon all others and in the process, destroying that which they found most holy. (I say destroyed only because I'm not quite sure what happens to it once it has merged with Mechanus.  I feel it should get broken down and turned into gears, never again recognizable of the great city they once formed.)

No , I certainly don't have any intention to add a layer to Arcadia.  Personally, I also like to think that in the Great Fheel such things as the sliding of entire layers is possible. 3rd plane I described was the layer that joined Mechanus. I explained it as it once was; how it exists now is anybody's guess. Before the planes-shaking event, it certainly was the highest form of order in Arcadia - which is probably why it was lost anyway.

I was thinking that the Supreme Court, something like UN Security Council (not a direct legislative arm), would be held in the 3rd layer, but not necessarily in control of that layer. The Government there, as previously mentioned, is an inexplicable beurocracy. As in any beurocratic model, it is possible to use The Government to your own ends if you figure out how it ticks, but the puzzle is impossible to solve without trial and error methods. The Harmonium, with study, care, a good amount of luck and a long, long time, thought they have figured it out. As it turned out, they failed miserably.

As of today that Government is lost. Not that it directly effected any of the petitioners in the other two layers. But that Neutral Zone that Center of All mentioned (which I consider was on the 3rd layer) was lost. This created shock, trauma and turmoil. Harmonium is trying to shake off the blame. It is quite possible that even the weather and day-night cycle of Arcadia was controlled by some branch of The Government via the Storm Kings and the Orb of Day and Night. (imagine a government that could control the basic nature of its lands, like in "The Giver"). Now that The Government is gone, the harmonius workings of the Storm Kings , and even the Orb of Day and Night is asynchronous and conflicting.

The armies on the first can be tied to or separate from the 2nd layer states, and I did mention that not all of them keep standing armies, anyway. Most of them has already left behind such things. Perhaps some aries are backed up by 2nd's states, others are entirely freelance. But it should be noted that each army should be united around a goal, or perhaps an approach to warfare.

Firstly, these ideas are certainly very good, taken for itself.

  But I see the problem that Arcadia is supposed to be a friendly place without much inner conflicts, or outside endeavours. Hence the name Peaceable Kingdoms of Arcadia. After all, the Harmonium chose it as its planar homebase because it's a harmonic place.

Further, expanding these wars to other planes creates the problem that every fighting petitioner who dies outside Arcadia vanishes completely. You probably don't want an afterlife on a good plane when that means you're going to get slaughtered in some war on even another plane (well, the dwarves of Arcadia do, anyways).

I actually like the idea of keeping a little xenophobia  on the third layer only.  In a place where everyone knows their role in life and there is an established harmony in the government, any outsiders, whether they enter for good or for ill, will be seen as a disrupting factor, at least until proven otherwise.  Even if there's no full blown hate-crimes against foreigners, I imagine visitors being constantly peppered with questions of, "What are you doing here?"  "How long are you staying?"  "What are you bringing with you?"  Well meaning questions, but ones which could become quite irritating in repetition.

I just came back from a 3 week trip to europe, so if there's one thing I'm familiar with at the moment, it's going through customs.

I'm also opposed to the "Supreme Court" concept.  Arcadia is supposed to represent a heaven of government and beuracracy.  A perfect (or near perfect) system that mortals have dreamed into existance the same way the heavens and the hells have been created.  Now think to our own systems of government, or any other form of government you've ever heard of.  I doubt any one of them would even come within a mile of being called perfect or near-perfect.  While a grand council as seen in starwars would certainly fit the plane, look how it crumbled and grew corrupt.  If the third layer is to be lost, I personally would like it to be lost with it's beliefs and honor still intact, not as a bloated, hateful harmonium recruitment camp.

 Ahh, now I understand what was meant.  If it's designed to be a neutral territory to settle disputes, than I am certainly for it.  i thought that it was supposed to be a governing body for Nemaunsus.  In this case, I feel there are strong arguments for it to exist on either the second or the third layer.  The second because of its proximity to the small to medium size kingdoms that would have the most use for it.  The third because it would present an environment as a goal for those who use it to look towards.  i personally would prefer it to exist on the third layer.  To be surrounded by Nemaunsus and its harmony shows what the participants are attempting to achieve.  Is it not the responsibility of a well-meaning government to help those less fortunate to achieve stability?  But in a non-obtrusive way.  The Harmonium forgot that last statement. 

Hi.

Okay, so this is looking interesting: I honestly think that Nemaunsus is too neat a setting to toss completly over to Mechanus. As an alternative, what if the plane is only half lost? The Great Capital is currently the ground of a spiritual guriella war between the inhabitants of Mechanus and Arcadia, who are struggling for the soul of the great city. How this actually plays out can vary from game to game, from a full fledged guriella war to preachers shouting their creeds on the street, fighting for political position within the Capital's buearucracy(VOTE MODRON: For Alderman!), or what have you. Gives the plane a little more spice and keeps a neat part of it partially intact. 

As for the other layers, a lot of the conflict speaks about these kingdoms without discussing what sort of kingdoms there are. I think a few examples would make things a little less, 'Well, you make it up DM!', without overly restricting things. Here are a few ideas; 

Seveneye Mining Company: Reflective of the 'corporations' that have become popular on some developing Prime worlds, the Company espouses that the best system is enlightened self interest. By having an economic incentive, the Company is free of the pride and vanity that has led otherwise sterling kingdoms into regretful decisions; it's about the bottom line, and there's nothing wrong with that, because everyone prospers when the Company prospers. Of course, there is no perfect harmony; workers struggle with management for rights and pay, innovators struggle with traditionalists over the direction the Company should develop towards, and everyone struggles with that most reviled of foes, the competition. While the core of the Seveneye's industry is in mining rights of valuable minerals such as coal, iron, adamant, quicksilver, and the dreams of men petrified in amber, and the refinement and crafting of these materials, there is a lot of talk about expanding into everything from publishing to food production to the burgeoning entertainment industry. 

Leaders: Thane Yani Seveneye, founder and owner(Male dwarf, Fraternity of Order, LG), Steady Darla, conservitive executive(Female ogre, Harmonium, LN), Willy Paulo, innovative young turk(Male human, Fraternity of Order, LG), Gremmiel, popular worker and philosopher(Male Angel of Labor, Harmonium, LG). 

The Kingdom of Lost Veterans: More a mobile army than a kingdom, this up and coming organization was carved from the petitioners of an army contingent that was sacraficed by the cold hearted Emperor who needed to slow an enemy with the blood of green soldiers. When the leader of the troops realized his master's plan, he could not betray the will of the Emperor, and so protested the only way he could, by dieing with his troops instead of moving away with other high ranking officers as he was origionally ordered to do. Li Danyu wandered the Upper Planes for years, trying to resolve the conflicting tenants of his morality and decide if he was a good man or a wicked one; the answer came to him when an Arcadian villaige came under attack by a band of Archoni slavers. Li Danyu's military background allowed him to train the villaigers into a group of skilled defenders, and together they repelled the band of slavers; Li felt at peace with his life as a warrior for the first time, and taking the title the Duke of Old Soldiers, pledged to aid other lost souls in coming to peace with themselves after a martial life. Currently, the soldiers of Danyu struggle internally and externally to perfect their leader's 'tao of the moral soldier', detaching from West Wind Villaige to help defend other threatened border towns, help repair damaged public works, oppose bandits or rampaging monsters, and otherwise use their military training to do something decent in the world. While many scorn Danyu's unabashed martiality, no one has yet to refuse the aid of his soldiers when it is offered. 

Leaders: Li Danyu, Duke of Old Soldiers(Male Human(Petitioner), Harmonium, LG), Grovinder, the Elephant Man(Male Baku, Sign of One, NG), Maria Theresa, mayor of West Wind Villaige(Female Human(Planar), Harmonium, LG), Lazzik Ha, pentient warlord(Male Hobgoblin, Fated, LE).

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I have this:

Ujan, an undergraduate at the Institute of Leadership and a representative of the Student Council, volunteered for the "orientation" of our readers. 

Arcadian United Cities of Learning (University for short)

Character:  Teach everything you know, learn everything you can; spread the knowledge. In the battle against ignorance, the pen is mightier than the sword.

Ruler: Head of the Administration/Government of the University is entitled "Rector". He is elected by the senate of Deans for 10 years up to 5 terms. Current one is Ordinarius Professor Soran Alim (Axiomatic Celestial/Pe/M/very high level) The Senate of Deans consists of the Deans of all the Faculties.

Behind The Throne: Student Council is influential among those on the beginning stages of their academic careers. A full three quarters of population are our members. We have no official power yet, so while our opinions do carry some weight, they are often dismissed. That's why we are currently vying for representation on the Senate.

Description: The United Cities of Learning, or the University, started up as a single town for lonely scholars and petitioners to share knowledge and educate others. It mostly drew petitioners who were teachers or professors while they were alive. As its name got heard among the planes, more and more people came to visit. The town became a city, then expanded to other towns until each was essentially the center for a single discipline, like social studies, natural sciences, engineering, even fine arts and magic. We call these cities “faculties”, but some faculties have different names like “Institute”, “Academy” or “Madrasa”, so don't be confused, they all serve the same purpose: Provide a healthy, productive environment for study and learning. One thing to know about is that a number of Powers “sponsor” the faculties matching their portfolios, and the University itself has the backing of many Righteous Powers who have an interest for knowledge and learning.

The Campus, meaning University lands, are an area about that of a middle sized kingdom geographically no different than the rest of Abellio. First thing you have to know that resident population are all students of varying degrees. A merchant could be an economics major, a bartender a human relations master working on his doctorate. Guards are graduates from the Academy of Peace, and they are promoted as they move up the academic ladder. The Academic career starts with preschool and goes on first school, second school, third school up to the faculties. Many majors feature cross-class elements so teachers, and sometimes students move between faculties. Anyone from the outside who is willing to make the effort can apply for the education of his choice and become a student as well. Just pass a few entry exams. They are not that hard, really.

There are more than 20 cities in edition to tens of other smaller towns in the Campus, which means there are just as many Faculties in the University. I neither have the knowledge or the space to explain them in detail, so I’ll just mention a few that you should know about.

Principle Towns: “capital city” of the University is the Faculty of Leadership, where the Rectorate is located and the Senate of Deans is held. Main interest of the faculty is the Sociology, Social Psychology and Political sciences. It is truly a splendid city with many gardens and parks, mansions and palaces that serve as both classrooms and residences for students and teachers. Embassies from about every other state in Abellio can be found, as well as those from many prime worlds that look up to the Heavens for leadership. These embassies hold portals to their home worlds as well. You can find most anything you can find on another city here, but you can’t find this many nobles anywhere. The Central Library is also here, but many of the more prized items are borrowed and reserved until the next century.

Arcadian Law School teaches all the intricacies of law inside and outside the courtroom, but a body may never graduate unless she learns to serve justice before her client. Buildings are massive and imposing, but in a graceful way. The streets are free of any kind of dirt, because it's forbidden to litter, and if there was any of the other kind of dirt, the surprising number of knightly orders and temples would take care of it.

Academy of Peace is entrusted to raise responsible man for armies and law enforcement agencies in the University and other planes. Students are regularly shipped to the first layer for internship in the University Army. The huge portal to the first layer is the Arch of Triumph (of Knowledge Over Ignorance) a day’s march from the city. The Faculty itself is a fortress with no scientifically proven weaknesses.

The Madrasa is the Faculty of Magic, and it is the best place for the talented to learn magic without spending the family fortune. Not if you have angered one of the Powers of Magic though; they have a strong presence here. The Madrasa is built around 101 towers, each home to an archmage of a different specialization. These towers, called minarets, are where apprentices study their chosen school of magic under their guidance.

Institute of Life is the place to come if you'r interested in living (or dead) things. Besides the labs and theatres of medicine and biology studies, the largest zoo, the largest botanic garden, the largest paleontology museum and the only micro organism exhibition on the great wheel can be found here. Folks are always searching for new creatures to add to their collection. If your visit to Abellio is a one time event, be sure not to miss the Institute.

Special Conditions: I’m not very familiar with the exact mechanics of it, but my Statistics Professor once said that it was slightly easier to “learn” in the University than the Multiverse average. Perhaps it’s just because there is very little distraction here.

Principal NPCs: Each Faculty has their own Dean, so there are too many of them to count here. Student’s Council President is Dr. Aman Siz, and he is the most popular person in the University. Even the Rector likes him.

Militia: Not that there is much need for a militia in Abellio, but the Academy of Peace is more than enough for whatever trouble might come up Their leader is also the Dean of that Faculty, Proffesor Arn.

Services: What services you can find change according to the faculty you are in, though all cities have the same basic services you might need.  If you become a student in a faculty, you are provided with a place to stay and some extra jink to cover your expanses. You can find temples to a great variety of powers in Faculties, not all of them lawful or good. Each faculty has its own library with literally hundreds of thousands of thesis’, case studies, academic papers, magazines and journals, in edition to, regular library items. Other than those, you won’t find a lot of things to distract you from your studies.

Local News: There is always the buzz of the latest breakthrough, and you might think suddenly the layer turned upside down. Next day there will be other news and older one simply forgotten. Those aside, The University Fest is coming up – a week before finals!

This took me a week to write down, but the idea was very old. I was thinking of including an "Insitute of Leadership for the Chosen" (Chosen One's are very prevalent in the fantasy literature) in Arcadia, a funny place with possible long adventures. However, Center-Of-All wrote he "envisioned Arcadia as a land of magnificent kingdoms", so why not devote an entire kingdom to the concept of public education? Education is good, and it is mostly lawful, isn't it I hope you liked it!

Edit: A few minor things, addition of militia. If you haven't noticed already, I'm not an expert with the rules, and I'm not good at making up names. Soran Alim means "Asking Sage" in Turkish

Finally a reply after waiting for days I really neded some opinion since it took me so long to write. What I've written about the university is definitely not the final draft. However it already ended up to be too long so I didn't get into much detail. I tried to conform to the Planescape template. What you mention about rhetoric is absolutely true. I can see that as being a major part of a Student's daily life in the Faculty of Leadership, whether it be class work or student's council duty. In the last edit I expanded on it by saying it is interested in Social Sciences. School of Life, for example, should be the place where the food comes from. By using advanced farming methods they have increased crop yield to rival some realms. Same with foodstock. But a last thing I'm toying with right now is the addition of a Tarrasque. It is displayed in an aquarium full of isotonic water, its regeneration balanced by drowning damage. Many visitors from planes come just to see the Undying Tarrasque. Other than touristic income, tarrasque is an endless source of meat and raw materials. I stole this idea from another, admittedly, but The Institute of Life is the best place for this.