Clockwork Cathedrall

The origins of the Clockwork Cathedral are not well understood, though natives now take it for granted. Less than a century ago, a tall, gaunt, cloaked figure called the Assembler arrived on an iron hulled ship from the south. The pilot who steered the iron ship through the ship graveyard reportedly claimed no creature of flesh was to be found on board. The Assembler bought a ruined building that gad once been a temple to Asmodeus, destroyed by a mysterious fire months before. Throughout the night of the Assembler's arrival, neighbors reported sounds of shattering stone, grinding metal, and low, rumbling thunder. By the next morning, the old temple was gone. In its place was the Assembler's iron ship, though no member of the Harbormaster's Grange could say how it got from the dock to the center of the city. For the next month, the sounds continued every night, and the iron ship was larger and more complex every morning. When the sounds stopped, the Clockwork Cathedrall had claimed every inch of land the Assembler had purchased. The Clockwork Cathedral is the newest and most specialized of Absalom's Great Schools. It is the premier center of learning focusing on mechanics and constructs, and no one outside of Alkenstar can claim better knowledge of these subjects. An imposing building of heavy iron plates, interlocking gears, gothic arches, and sliding joints, the single-building academy has oft been compared to a mechanical centipede with a clock tower on its back. The long cathedral has numerous segments in its "hall," each buttressed by several wrought-iron sliding braces. a giant gear sits between each segment, interlocked with smaller cogs and levers throughout the cathedral. The movement of these gears within each segment periodically cuts off a number of rooms, all driven by the central clock tower. Those who study within its metal halls must learn to time the movements of these gears, as there is no warning when they will shift, sometimes blocking off rooms for days at a time. Basic classes are often taught by senior students and generally not on school grounds. Anyone who wishes to apply for such classes may do so, but no one knows how the governing body of the cathedral (called the Ruling Escarpment) decides what students to take on. Each applicant receives a letter, delivered by a small construct, telling them if they have been rejected or accepted the amount of their tuition. These acceptances and the prices charged appear to be random, and no bargaining or renegotiation if allowed. The cathedral has no living maintenance staff, with all repairs, errands, cleaning, and (when needed) security provided by short, rotund constructs called "Thumpers" (due to their less-than-silent walking style). Thumpers carry the messages that offer terms to new instructors, deliver monthly salaries, and act as go-betweens for the teaching faculty to the Escarpment, the never-seen ruling council of the cathedral. No living being is ever allowed to spead directly to the Escarpment (at least that they'll admit to), and rumors about the nature of the cathedral's ultimate authority abound. Some students claim to be followed at random by pole-thin robed figures during their tenure at the school, leading to suggestions the Assembler remains in control of his construction. Others claim the Assembler was himself a construct, and the whole cathedral is a vast, uncaring machine. What is known is that, in his youth, Lord Gyr like the primarch before him, went to the cathedral to demand answers. What he was told is unknown, but the first spell lord has supported the Clockwork Cathedral ever since. Students often find the cathedral uncomfortable. There are numerous classrooms, laboratories, study spaces, and workshops, but nothing designed for the comfort of living walls, nor any privies, cafeterias, lounges, or even padded chairs. Contrary to public perception, the interior of the cathedral is not furnished entirely in metal, but it is austere and spartan in its accouterments. Students can take classes and do coursework within the cathedral, but all their other needs must be seen to on their own time and with their own resources. Any student who has completed at least a basic course may apply for an advanced class. Students are accepted on a probationary basis, and told only where the class meets. Such meeting spaces are always in rooms that only rarely have open entrances; most of the time, they are blocked by the cathedral's massive gears. To remove their probationary status, students must analyze the gears around the classroom and determine then the interlocking movements will grant access. Anyone who misses the first class is banned from advanced courses for one year. Once students have completed at least one advanced class, they often receive an invitation from the Ruling Escarpment to teach an introductory course to junior students, though once again the timing and terms of such an offer seem random to outside observers. Because there is so little guidance from the faculty of the school, students themselves often form loose organizations, called cognates, with colorful names. these groups range from 3-12 advanced students and as many as 70 junior students. They are part study group, part commune, and part mercenary company, often living together in a rented villa, warehouse, beached ship, basement space, or even an unused section of the city sewer. Each cognate tends to specialize in a particular area of study, such as crossbows, traps, spring-powered toys, siege weapons, plumbing, wheels and axles, the study of falling and flight, and so on. At least one has developed a series of expensive automata with a tiny golem as the controlling agent in a spring-powered chassis, though the utility and durability of these things still leave much to be desired. For years, the dwarf-founded Stirgeworks was the best regarded cognate, specializing in variant crossbows. In recent years, the more eclectic Brass Carrots have shown fast-growing popularity with their handheld gliders, and have been working with the Mithral Madmen (who create wind-up animal toys) on a design for a spring-powered bird automaton that can actually fly short distances.