The strix is totally willing to shake hands! Fifth circle! Wow!

Coeliaris shakes his hand too, and that of the strix. "Fourth, Universalist, though my specialization is really in topological spellcraft. You might have seen my Primary Circle Reduction of Evaluators' Lens." She looks at Carme, and raises a perfectly sculptured eyebrow.

"I have! It's a fascinating development," though from what he's heard of it the spell is basically just a way of substituting for a competent assistant and you'd need to get it all the way down to first to be meaningful, "of considerable theoretical value."

"Good morning," says Carme, when Coeliaris looks at her. "I should like the quick summary of the intent of this gathering. I am in fragile health and cannot stand around doing things just because they are... diverting."

Feather doesn't know what a 'caucus' is, but she's a mage so maybe it's something she'd care about?

"Hello," she says, walking up. "I'm Bright Morning Feather, a druid from Ravounel Forest." She'd heard them sharing circles but, really, that's not the kind of thing you tell a stranger! (Unless you're great at deceiving people and countering their deceptions and thinking several steps ahead. Feather isn't going to try to deceive humans about her spell circle.)

Signs are pointing to "diverting, and not even in a good way" but just in case Carme will wait for the elf to talk.

Coeliaris gives a them a casual nod. "We're putting together a committee for the regulation of magic and mage academies. There's pamphlets discussing the topic already, so it will happen. When it happens, it should happen under wise, mature and magically experienced leadership."

"Hi everyone!"

On the one hand, the Chelish humans famously have too many wizards with not enough Wisdom between them, and everyone needs wise and mature leadership. On the other hand, what if this just makes them better at burning down forests?

She settles for a nod at Coeliaris' statement.

Mage caucus? Mages don't really have common interests but maybe someone here knows how to cast two scrivener's chants at once. Unfortunately she's probably too short for an elf to notice.

"I own that the academy of Westcrown, my own alma mater, has great need of Salutary Reform," she says, not really having any idea what that reform might be. You can always say something needs reform!

"If you have copies of the pamphlets I'd take them to read while I sit somewhere more comfortable."

"You can sit on my cloud if you like! It's like a pillow!"

Coeliaris smiles at Lluisa. "It is then fortunate, that the Academy of Westcrown has returned to the name of the Westcrown College of Wizardry, the name of its predecessor institution. The WCW, of which I was proud to count myself a member, was a great college, and I am pleased indeed to rejoin it."

Oh, makes sense for an elf!

"Any wisdom predating the Diabolical Thrune Regime is of surpassing Value in the present Days. I have sought it in books, myself."

...the pillow cloud is actually really tempting. It's absurd but it's MAGICALLY absurd and it's okay to like silly things if they are magic. She sits on the cloud.

"My experience at the Academy of Westcrown certainly confirms it needs reform," he says, "though I would have expected abolition to serve far better."

"Ah, but a College of Magic is certainly needed, especially in a noble capital under such a Great Queen. Delegate Aspex, I believe you are somewhat opposed to the regulation of magic- but you must realize that in the Cheliax of Hell magic was already regulated. The hideous practice of soul-selling wizards is perhaps ended, but many other practices remain. I believe your opinions, as a well-travelled gentleman will be quite valuable in a Committee on Magic. Will you- all of you- join me in such a proposition on the floor?"

"A proposition to... what effect precisely."

What, all of them? "I probably shouldn't," Feather says, "because I suspect some of the other delegates might oppose anything I support."

"For what it's worth, I learned magic and other things in a very -" how do you say 'nurturing' in Chelish - "pleasant and supportive environment, that wasn't Evil at all. And our teachers were very wise and experienced. I don't know anything about wizard magic but I can't imagine it has to be Evil, magic is - neutral. Why can't people who want to teach and to learn just meet and do whatever they want freely? What needs to be regulated about it?"

"The proposition is that of a committee on magic and magic education. Magic is power, and it can either work alongside the state or in opposition to it. Nobody can control an archmage, but we are not all archmages.  One notes that unregulated magic inevitably also leads to more Badgers."

Hmmm. "I'm already on three committees..."

To Coeliaris - "The Cheliax of Hell had nothing but regulation of mages, and though it was an abomination unto Nethys for wildly more reasons than that it is why I am opposed to it. The attempt to make every wizard sell his soul was merely the apex of a pyramid of attempts to turn all wizards into a soldier of the state. Detect thoughts at second circle, fireball at third, animate dead at fourth, teleport at fifth, every spell used for the Queen and have a thousand slaves to compensate."

To Feather - "That works, but you can get fifty times as many wizards if you force all intelligent children to go to school at spearpoint and have them whip anyone who makes a mistake."

"I remain Vexed on the Question of whether the Badger be Veracious or a Satire in Poor Taste," she admits. "I have heard rumor that the author scribes Spells into said Pamphlets, which if true would be an Absurd Expense for a mere Satire, though I have not read one and could not say if it is a true Spell-Diagram or a Derangement of Words purporting to describe one, and the latter seems more likely."

 "Oh, I think she is a lich. All forms of undeath are bad for the wits; a young lich might have been driven mad by a hasty transformation, while an elder lich would never do this and a mortal imposter would lack the resources. But this makes us ask - is the badger a product of freedom or a product of regulation? For she claims to be a native of Westcrown, and the best reason for any Chelish wizard to seek lichdom is if she has sold her soul and thereby to seek an escape from Hell."

Feather didn't know there was a wizard badger in the city! ...though apparently it's an undead, eugh. She wishes she'd met the badger when she was alive and could be reasoned with.