Estark

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Estark
Information
Plane Dominaria
Status Current
Part of Kush, Aerona
Formerly part of The Western Lands

Estark is the high barony and city of the land of Kush.[1] Estark is primarily known for its annual Festival of the Arena, which took place every year and served as the primary reckoning.

History

Golden age of Kush

Originally, there were five houses in Kush that governed each district. The master of the house dwelt in their respective palace.[2] They oversaw that house's retinue of magic fighters, who resided in chapter houses throughout the Western Lands (later known as Kush). These fighters were once required to undergo a pilgrimage and serve others before the advent of the Arena. Each house wore a different color, and its fighters were generally associated with an enemy color pair of mana.

House Color Mana
House of Bolk Brown Black manaGreen mana
House of Fentesk Orange Red manaWhite mana
House of Ingkara Purple Blue manaRed mana
House of Kestha Gray White manaBlack mana
House of Oor-tael Turquoise Green manaBlue mana

The Grand Master of the Arena was considered the master of all the colors, and flew a rainbow-hued pendant.[3][4] His rule was enforced by dozens of magic wielders who pledged lifelong service and several hundred men of the Watch, men of the city guard who could not use spells but were nevertheless skilled warriors, armed with pike or crossbow.[2][5] Houses sponsored fighters in return for ten percent of any purse they won in the arena during the Festival, as well as twenty percent of their services retained by outside contracts. The fighters were given room, board, and the full legal protection of the House. Magic users unaffiliated with one of the five houses, known as hanin, were banned by the Grand Master on pain of death. Fighters were separated into ranks up to at least the tenth; first-rank fighters could conjure a single creature, but lacked the innate ability to harness mana, and were therefore relegated to simple guard jobs. Fighters were trained by master trainers called yolin.[6] Fighters lived longer than average citizens by using mana to slow their aging, sometimes living several hundred years.[5]

Fighters were governed by sessan, the intricate set of codes and rules that bound those who could control mana.[7] It was customary not to ask a fighter where their victories and powers were won. Legally, nobody, including the Grand Master could ask what artifacts, amulets, and spells a fighter controlled. Any member of a House, including its master, challenging another of the same color to a fight went against all custom and tradition.[6] Before a fighter was fully initiated into a house, they were free to leave for any other.[8]

Street fights were conducted by drawing a circle in the mud surrounded by a neutral square.[3] Stepping into the circle was considered a challenge. Common formats of fighting included:

  • Single spell and spell as prize; each fighter would cast a single spell, with whoever's spell defeated the other's receiving the gem containing the loser's spell as their wager.[3]
  • To the death; illegal outside the arena, both fighters could use as many spells as they pleased, and received the loser's entire spell purse as a prize.[3]
  • Oquorak; a ritual fighting style in which fighters tie their right hands to each other with a six-foot-long rope, while holding daggers in their left hands. By ritual, a fighter can ask if their opponent is left-handed and choose to tie to that hand instead. Daggers are held backhanded for slashing, and stabbing is against the rules. The first to draw blood three times wins.[6]

Festival of the Arena

Originally, the Festival of the Arena was a ritual conducted privately by magic fighters wishing to test their skill.[5] Under Kuthuman, an arena was constructed, and the Festival became a public sporting event. Fighting was governed by sessan (a code of chivalry among magic fighters) and was used to gain power, honor, and face. Fights outside the Arena were banned, although this was generally only enforced against fights to the death during the time of the Festival.[3]

The last evening of the 978th Festival, the Night of Fire occurred, on which Zarel Ewine led a massacre of the House Oor-tael, joined by the other four houses. Kuthuman immediately capitalized on the massacre to ascend. Oor-tael's treasury was used to construct the Grand Master's palace and the four remaining houses' palaces.[2] Zarel became the new Grand Master, turning the games into a blood sport. The ultimate winner of each Festival was promised the opportunity to serve Kuthuman, though he secretly euthanized each one to prevent them from becoming a threat to his survival.[9]

Locations in Kush

The city was split into five quarters by five main thoroughfares that reached nearly 72 feet wide.[2][5]

  • Bolk quarter[2] Contained the streets of metal, streets hosting smiths and craftsmen. As one approached the center of the city and the Great Plaza, they passed:[2]
    • The street of steel
    • The street of brass workers
    • The street of silversmiths
    • The street of workers of gold
  • Fentesk quarter[2]
  • Ingkara quarter[2]
  • Kestha quarter[2]
  • Oor-tael quarter[2]
  • The Great Plaza, the center of the city, where the five quarters of the city converge.[2] About a third of a mile across.
    • The Great Palace of the Grand Master and the barracks of the Watch, at the Plaza's center.[2][10] The palace was a five-sided pyramid, at least 180 feet to a side and nearly as tall, with doors on each side.[11] The outside of the palace was sheathed in polished limestone that reflected the sun, and it was surrounded by fountains that sprayed water in every color of the rainbow.
    • Four palaces, one for each House remaining after the Night of Fire, at each side of the plaza.[2] Oor-tael's side hosted only squat shops, eateries, and several small palaces of well-heeled merchants. The former location of the house instead held a brothel and the Drunken Dwarfs tavern.[4] A semicircle of colored flagstones denotes the boundaries of each house from the Plaza's smooth limestone.
  • The harbor[4]
  • Street of butchers[11]
  • Street of money changers (an empty courtyard)[10]
  • Street of silk merchants[11]
  • Street of sword makers[11]
  • Street of tanners[11]

The Arena was located just south of the city.[4]

Fall of Kush

At the time of the 998th Festival in 4069 AR, Kush had a population of 500,000, with over 1,000,000 tourists traveling for the Festival.[12] The city was razed immediately following the 998th Festival and was rebuilt as Estark.[13] Many of its former citizens took up a modest lifestyle in the countryside.[13] New Houses were formed, along with the return of Oor-tael.[14] Fights returned to being tests of skill with wagers of a single spell and no more.

Mending Era

In the Mending Era, Estark was conquered by Benalish troops under command of Knight-Commander Aryel.[15]

Notable characters

All dates below are given as a Year of the Festival.

Masters

Grand Masters

House Masters

Others

Maps

  • Aerona and the near Domains
    Aerona and the near Domains

In-game references

Represented in:

References

  1. ↑ Ethan Fleischer (April 20, 2018). "Dominarian Cartography". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 2". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  3. ↑ a b c d e William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 1". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  4. ↑ a b c d William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 10". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  5. ↑ a b c d William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 7". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  6. ↑ a b c William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 3". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  7. ↑ William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 8". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  8. ↑ William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 4". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  9. ↑ William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 12". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  10. ↑ a b William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 9". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  11. ↑ a b c d e William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 15". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  12. ↑ William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 5". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  13. ↑ a b Magic: The Gathering 1997 Calendar: 365 Days in Dominia
  14. ↑ a b c d William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). "Chapter 16". Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  15. ↑ James Wyatt (2018), The Art of Magic: The Gathering - Dominaria. VIZ Media.
  16. ↑ a b c d e f g h William R. Forstchen (September 26, 1994). Magic: The Gathering - Arena, HarperPrism. ISBN-13 978-00610542426.
  17. ↑ Wizards of the Coast (April 21, 2018). "The Cabal is back in full force in Dominaria!". The Official Magic: The Gathering Tumblr. Tumblr.
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