The Deeproot Daily

Wisteria Willow Academy experiences the Fading?

Opinion by Jem Stone

Sources say the school is experiencing it’s smallest class of first years in 36 years. 9 students suspected to be Normborn.

Even the halls of one the few prestigious academies around aren’t safe from fading. Wisteria Willow Academy of Magical Arts, established 1702, has always been a large part of the community of Deeproot. For 348 years students have sought and fought to attend, as only those with strong magical aptitude are admitted. By magical birthright you are an applicant, however that does not guarantee your admittance to the academy. Thus the problem: Wisteria Willow’s discriminant practice of who is worthy of the best education is upholding Normling systems of oppression….cont. pg. 27a

MANA to Conjurer new research center in Elderstone Forest

by Tara Ott

"This is something that will benefit all magical communities," Mayor Peach enthusiastically announced at this morning's round stump. That "something" is MANA's next move to expand its research bureau.

Elderstone, Deeproot's oldest natural stronghold. Wildwood like these are odd, scant and inestimably precious. Ask anyone around and they will sing the tales of a magic forgotten by Wix; an Æther that can only thrive in the harsh thicket. In recent years, Elderstone has grown less mysterious as the Magical Association of Northeastern Atlantica continues its mission to safeguard magic through various sectors.
...cont. pg. 4

Spring Equinox AnnouncementsThis years Equinox festivities will be held in the
town square as Wisteria Willow Academy prepares for its newest crop of sprouts!

Everfields Farmstead plagued by Glumpkin Grubs

by Lemm Awn

“Positively, wretched things! But don’t you worry! We have it under control! Nothing that we haven't seen before!"

The resurgence of the Glumpkin Grub took greenthumbed Wix by surprise last Fall. According to Adora Everfields, this was to be expected. "I warned 'em! The growing season is long, and this year with all the extra rain, it gives varmints a better chance to thrive!" Glumpkin are a staple for Fall recipes and various Autumnal Equinox rituals in Deeproot. While it's too early to tell how deep the grubs have burrowed, this year the gargantuan gourds could be scarce. "You know they were first grown right here in this soil! Phaseolus Everfields, my great great great—you know the guy! He hybridized, cultivated and perfected the growing method to yield the biggest, toughest Glumpkins and that's why I'm not worried about ours here on the Farmstead. Other farms should be worried, not Everfields!"...cont. pg.11

Academy Bell Tower transfigures a Tibetan twist

by Tara Ott

New professor blends culture with coursework, reshaping the foundation of Defensive Magic.

Last year, the Summer Solstice soiree soured upon news of a tenured tendering of resignation. Professor Barberry had been teaching Defensive Magic at Wisteria Willow Academy for 32 years. While the abrupt announcement of her departure shook students, colleagues, and the community alike, the Headmistress eagerly began the impossible task of finding an adequate stand-in. As the stars would have it, the search ended seasonably, as a recent graduate would migrate back to Deeproot. Yeshi Lee King Tenzin made history by being the first student to graduate from the academy a year early in 2042. Now the 26-year-old monk has returned to his old nook with a new spell or two....cont. pg. 34d

MAGIK Graduates Propagate Pestiferous Philosophies

Opinion by Jem Stone

The Blightblue burned for months before the next great disaster extinguished it.

993 A.D. was a time of wild potent power and few guiding hands. The carelessness of wix and the pursuit to control ancient nature magic of the time caused events such as the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, the extinction of several magical creatures, and even the deadly trend of wix hunts. Pushed into the shadows, “witches and wizards” needed a place of safety; moreover, a place to cultivate and protect magic from those that sought to extinguish it. Thus, the Magical Academy of the Great Imperial Kingdom was built by the “four greatest witches and wizards of the age”.Grypusroar, Rookrive, Heavelhump, and Skitterhiss created four guilds baring their namesake and ideologies, molding the template for future magical academies. However, one must wonder, had 3 founders of the time known their bright vision would turn red with blood, would they forge the same path? Skitterhiss’ dreams of “magical purity” were passed on for generations, trapping minds in a cycled of odious and oftentimes violent behavior.MAGIK was the United Kingdom’s premier school for witchcraft and wizardry. Hidden in the barren rowling hills of the Scottish Highlands, the school was shrouded far away from normling reach. While several notable wix attended, it would seem that hidden in the ancient walls were terrible secretes and dark desires. Slavery, segregation, slurs, curses; such things were common practice for students and faculty alike. Even the school song was a twisted glamour of indoctrination:“MAGIK, MAGIK
Bold and old MAGIKKeep our bloodline clean.”It is no surprise the school would descend in every respect under the late Headmistress Wartz. Many speculate that her obsession with transfiguration, sex, gender, and even insisting that wix children do not exist caused her own magic to fade. When interviewed by The Profit, the Choosing Cap stated that “Wartz’s venom roused occulted parts of the school / polluting minds that foolhardily followed the rules”The nonsensical, extractive and rapacious culture of MAGIC, its cohort, and the British Ministry crumbled under the weight of centuries of villainy. Blightblue engulfed the Magical Academy of the Great Imperial Kingdom on July 31st 2027. While it is not known what sparked the flame—some speculate that Headmistress Wartz overcome with madness spoke the incantation herself—it remains clear how the tragedy could have been avoided. The magical ecosystem the castle was built on had been plundered, offering no natural fortification. Runoff deposits of phosphorus rich soil and years of potion dumping alchemized the Deep Lake, MAGIK sat upon, making it highly flammable. The charm was impossible to extinguish as no fieldwork had been done on the lake’s changed disposition. Had MAGIK formed better relations with the Deep Lake Merfolk and the once thriving magical ecosystem, it might still be standing.Today, all that remains of MAGIK—save the minds it shaped—is the odd paradigm it left behind. Renamed guilds continue to artificially pit students against one another under the guise of preparedness for the world outside of magical communities. Deeproot’s own Wisteria Willow Academy shares the same anatomy; a sister school as it has been called. Although our local, lofty halls of ivy no longer reside a vestige of MAGIK, the true legacy of Wisteria Willow can only be defined by the Headmistress.