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peckishmods) wrote2019-05-16 05:06 pm
WORLD SETTING
--BASICS-----
DEVELOPMENT MAGICAL EDUCATION COMMUNITIES PUREBLOODS MAGICAL LINGUISTICS--CIVICS-----
PEOPLE CURRENT CLIMATE THE MACUSA--TECH-----
OVERVIEW MAGICAL JOURNALS MAGITECHNOLOGY MAGIC & THE INTERNET WIZARD WIRELESS MAGIC & MEDIA TRANSPORTATION--CULTURE-----
QUODPOT QUIDDITCH OTHER POP CULTURE TOPWORLD SETTING: basics
Peckenpaugh and Elflock Falls are the focus of our game, but it's all still affected by what's going on outside our little holler. The World Setting page is here to give a bit of shape to that greater world, explaining magical society, providing details on locations and teams and people. This is a collaborative effort: players are encouraged to contribute to the setting by filling in the blanks on things like schools, magical communities and pop culture. All comments on this page are initially screened, but will be made public as they are approved. We hope this page will continue to grow as Peckenpaugh does. Don't feel obligated to read and process this page in one sitting. It's simply here for your reference, when you need it.
development of magical talent
Children as young as two can show signs of magical aptitude. Moving objects, phantom sounds, flickering lights and other poltergeist-like activity are generally the extent of early phenomena. A failure to display any of the markers of magical ability by age eight means that a child's ability to harness magic is weak or non-existent. By age ten, magic becomes a bit unwieldy without the proper training, and ignoring it much longer after that poses dangerous risk to the child's well-being. To avoid this, the MACUSA's Department of Magical Education has mandated that all magical children should be enrolled in a School for Magic by age eleven (6th grade equivalent; first year of Hogwarts equivalent).
Unlike in the UK, where students only receive letters from Hogwarts, North American children tend to receive a truly ridiculous amount of solicitation from nearby schools and the amount of school-related junk mail one’s child gets is often a bragging chip for competitive parents.
magical education in north america
All children, halfblood, pureblood, squib or muggleborn, usually begin school by age five or six. While there are certainly wizard-only schools for the years preceding a child's 11th birthday, they typically teach only magical theory and some limited wandwork. Schooling prior to age 11 focuses instead on academic fundamentals and it's not unusual for halfblood (and, of course, muggleborn) children to attend local muggle schools for a few years. Practical application of spells does not begin until the 6th grade. Students are expected to see through both primary and secondary education to the 12th grade. Afterward, a variety of apprenticeships and higher education opportunities are available.
The United States is dotted with schools of magic - private, public, charter, day schools and boarding schools. Deciding which school to attend generally comes down to geographic location, financial situation and overall talent. There are four Great Schools of Magic, old public boarding schools of high prestige (if not proper funding). Peckenpaugh is one such school. Ilvermorny is another. The most relevant schools to Peckenpaugh have been listed below. In the comments, beneath the Schools of Magic header, other player-created institutions can be found.
MAGICAL SCHOOLS
One of the United States's four Great Schools of Magic, Ilvermorny is modeled the most closely on Hogwarts. It is a boarding school with a four house system, hosting students grades 6 through 12. It is notoriously overcrowded, but its top spot in Quodpot and close ties to the MACUSA ensure it receives adequate funding.
Of the four Great Schools of Magic in the United States, Vercoer Academie is the most academically elite. Although it is a public school, it uses loopholes and strict disciplinary guidelines to be more selective of its student population. Vercoer hosts grades 9 through 12 in a three house system and it is Peckenpaugh's biggest rival in the Arithlete Bowl. It is ranked third in the nation for Quodpot.
The largest magical high school in the nation is also one of the US's four Great Schools of Magic. Bottleby has no House system, but its students (grades 6 through 12) tend to form strong bonds with others in their dormitory buildings, of which there are seven. Bottleby has ties to old west Coast Purebloods, and up until very recently was rumored to hold Dark Magic sympathies as well. Bottleby is ranked second for Quodpot in the nation, although the year previous it took home the national championship.
An elite private day school on the Pennsylvania-West Virginia border that draws students predominantly from Lake Erie-bordering states, Maryland and Virignia. Malstrom hosts grades 6 through 12 in a four House system, and its relative proximity to Elflock Falls means many residents with the means send their children there. Malstrom (number four in the nation for Quodpot) and Peckenpaugh are fierce rivals, which is perhaps why most people claim Malstrom only produces Dark Wizards. Probably.
Most Elflock Falls residents attend Elflock Local at some point. This public K - 8 day school filters most of its students into either Peckenpaugh or Malstrom.
post-secondary education
For witches and wizards in the US, there isn't a great emphasis on formal university-level education. Apprenticeships are still the standard for most fields and many students study under a mentor rather than attending a formal program. While wholly magical universities (and magical programs within muggle schools) do exist, these tend to be for Healers, academics and researchers. Students usually begin thinking about what they'll do after high school in their junior year, apply through their senior year, and typically hear back from post-high school programs in the winter and spring of their senior years.
Auror training is a two year endeavor and competition to get into Auror programs is fierce. There are Auror training sites in several places across the US: Area 51 (the most elite), New York and Hawaii all have confirmed Auror bootcamps. Healer programs take roughly three to four years, depending on specialty, and can be found all across the nation. Purely academic/research study is usually a 4-year minimum commitment, done at one of the many magical universities across the United States.
magical communities in the us
The United States is filled with thriving magical communities, from pocket neighborhoods in places like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles to wholly magical cities like Olympus, TN, Turtle River, MN and Elflock Falls, WV. Witches and wizards can be found just about everywhere, though they tend to flock to the two extremes: densely populated cities where it’s easy to get lost, and the middle of nowhere, where muggles can’t find you. You're as like to stumble upon a witch in your apartment complex in Houston as you are to see a wizard flying by on a broom the middle of rural Pennsylvania.
We’ve provided a space below in the comments for players to list magical communities and neighborhoods that they have created.
purebloods in the united states
There's no Sacred Twenty-Eight list in North America—tracking Pureblood families in the States a hopelessly complicated task. There are just too many families making the claim, and not enough people interested in quibbling over what exactly it means. Lineage certainly has little to do with it, as money will cover up just about any magical gap in a person’s family tree. Really, as long as they’re walking the walk and talking the talk, any sufficiently old family with enough money can make a claim to Purebloodedness.
Of course, this is all complicated by the fact that, region to region, Pureblood “culture” is very different. East Coast Purebloods tend to be involved in politics on the national scale. West Coast Purebloods are often seen as nouveau riche by others, far too willing to change the status quo and rub elbows with muggles. Southern Purebloods are all old families, heavily interconnected and steeped in tradition. Throughout the Midwest there are many locally powerful Pureblood families. One uniting factor between them all is that they tend to occupy positions of power in their communities (and beyond). They are politicians, large business owners, and socialites. Nepotism is widespread, even as the MACUSA professes to be a meritocracy.
magical languages & linguistics
For every one thing magic makes more simple, ten others become more complicated. The myriad of magical beings capable of language makes for a truly mind boggling list of languages spoken, sang, seen or smelled in the world. In addition to this, there are special writing systems like Ancient Norse Runes, magical sigils and glyphs, which possess magical power. If you are a Peckenpaugh student interested in magical communication, you may want to enroll in the school’s new Non-Human Languages program. If you’re a witch or wizard looking to commit spells to paper (or any other surface, really), then Symbology might be more your speed. Either way, you’re sure to find something interesting.
In an effort to inspire you in picking a language for your character to study in Non-Human Languages, we’ve provided a few broad language families and specific language examples below. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Feel free to get creative!
NON-HUMAN LANGUAGES
WORLD SETTING: civics
people to know
PRESIDENT Jack Du Pont
WV REPRESENTATIVE Iphigenia Cog
MAYOR Perdita Hull of Elflock Falls
current climate
Perhaps in an effort to flex on their non-magical counterparts, WizAmerica has spent the last few years pushing through progressive social policies. Three years ago, in 2016, Jack Du Pont was elected to the highest office and he wasted very little time in pushing through initiatives that would ensure basic rights and strengthen understanding of muggle culture and technology. There seems to be a general push toward thinning the barrier between the magical and non-magical, a movement widely supported by younger witches and wizards, and not so much by their elders. The rest of the world is also raising its eyebrows, fearing that the United States may be gearing up to pull out of the International Statute of Secrecy. But that's got to be catastrophizing...right?
The MACUSA is not without its major controversies. In 2015, a stunning tragedy at a high school in Utah resulted in the death of what witnesses describe as a "Forest God" and revealed that a cabal of Dark Wizards had infiltrated the MACUSA's Auror division. Confidence in Aurors was shredded, fear of Dark Magic has skyrocketed, and the MACUSA has had its work cut out for it rebuilding faith in its magical law enforcement. While mistrust is still a persistent problem, the number of young people applying to become Aurors to help "clean up" the Bureau of Magical Law Enforcement is quite high.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Magical Beings has been working overtime to identify the beings, beasts and spirits that presented themselves in Utah. "Forest God" isn't exactly a label they're eager to throw around officially, and BoMB researchers and cryptonaturalists have been sent all over the nation in search of similar beings, or...beasts...or ?spirits?—whatever they are.
divisions of the macusa
This is a non-comprehensive list of Divisions and Departments of the MACUSA. We've only listed Divisions that we feel might be relevant to the game and its characters, and may add more as necessary.
the bureau of magical beings (BoMB)
The largest division of the MACUSA, tasked with overseeing outreach, diplomacy, legislation, policy and concealment as it pertains to non-human magical entities living within US borders. The BoMB also advises the President and MACUSA, itself, on such matters as needed. It is led by a Director and headquartered in Morgantown, West Virginia.
The Bureau's sheer size and labyrinthine organization make it somewhat difficult to fully map out, however it does resemble a slightly more finessed Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. There are three subdivisions—Being, Beast and Spirit—and a number of smaller offices. Most notably, the Office of Crypto-Diplomacy, which places and hosts diplomatic envoys to and from various magical communities. The Bureau is also distinct from its Ministry of Magic counterpart in that it employs magical Beings and Spirits at all levels and in all subdivisions.
While the private Malstrom Academy certainly sends its fair share of graduates on to work at the BoMB, it's actually Peckenpaugh that has the closest relationship with the Bureau. Many of the Bureau's employees, from its diplomats to its assistant directors to its pencil pushers, are graduates of Peckenpaugh, and all of them send their children there, in turn.
the bureau of no-maj engagement (BoNE)
When muggles are exposed to the existence of magic, magical beings or other supernatural phenomena, the standard procedure is to contain the leak, obliviate the witnesses and move on with your day. Sometimes, however, the problem is a bit too big to solve with a simple memory wiping charm. In those cases, the Bureau of No-maj Engagement is called in.
Half-public relations firm, half-special ops task force, the BoNE monitors potential magical exposures and steps in to mitigate things if they start to get out of hand. When they aren't sending angry owls to incautious wizard podcasters, BoNE Agents sow skepticism among muggles, working in muggle media as celebrity ghost hunters and crackpot conspiracy theorists. They're the ones who make spirits seem like dusty camera lenses and turn runaway dragons into UFO sightings. The MACUSA would be lost without them, so don't make fun of their name.
The Bureau of No-maj Engagement would like to state, on the record, that one Mr. George Trullinger is not affiliated with the organization. Any assertion that he is an agent or consultant of BoNE should be taken for what it is: hogwash.
the department of magical law enforcement: auror division
In 2016, ten months after Dark Wizards were found working within the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, it was decided that the MACUSA's Auror Division would see full administrative restructuring. A new interim director was installed, dozens of Aurors were put on leave, and investigations and audits are still ongoing. The extent of the infiltration is unknown, and the press is having a field day with wild estimates. The interim director has her work cut out for her. Faith in the Department as a whole has been shaken, and fears of Dark Wizards are the highest they've been in almost twenty years.
the muggleborn outreach office (MOO)
The stated mission of the MACUSA’s Muggleborn Outreach Office (MOO) is to facilitate a smooth transition from the Non-Magical to Magical lifestyle for every young witch or wizard of solely No-Maj descent. In theory, MOO workers are meant to provide support, guidance, and resources that will allow non-magical parents and guardians not only to participate more fully in their magical child’s upbringing from, but also to help cut down on that pesky unintentional magic in the grocery store. In practice, it’s a lot more complicated than that.
By law, government agencies do not keep track of the blood status of private citizens. This is a good thing. Everyone agrees this is a very good thing. But, coupled with the criminal underfunding and understaffing of the MOO, you don’t get a very efficient service. Instead of notifying Muggleborn children and their families of their talents in the early stages of life, MOO workers spend most of their time running after mysterious bangs and trying to determine if an innocent child is to blame, or some asshole with a gift card to a joke shop. Those lucky enough to make contact with the MOO will get pamphlets, brochures, sometimes even an entire booklet on how not-at-all-terrifying it is to raise a little witch or wizard! Others, especially those who are better at not starting fires in their preschool, just have to wait until middle school to find out why they’ve short-circuited every electronic in their house.
WORLD SETTING: tech
Magical folks, particularly younger generations, are becoming more and more comfortable with muggle technology every day. Roombas, Alexa and cars may still evade them, but computers, smartphones and the Internet are starting to take hold in magical culture, particularly in the more muggle-friendly United States. Isolated witches and wizards like Purebloods and those who grew up in remote magical communities tend not to know a Galaxy s10 from a calculator, but it’s not unusual for halfblooded witches and wizards living closer to muggles to have smart phones, to know how to browse wikipedia and to maintain Instagram accounts. This presents the problem of maintaining the International Statute of Secrecy, and the MACUSA’s Bureau of No-maj Engagement is constantly warring with magical content creators and wannabe influencers who, say, rattle on about magical life in a podcast, or use their animagus abilities to become internet-famous Instagram Animals. The volume of cease and desist howlers has quadrupled in the last five years.
magical journals
In the Peckenpaugh universe, the first magical journal network came to be in 2011. It was a small closed network, intrinsically tied to its place of origin. The magic used to create these first journals has since been replicated and now sees widespread use across the United States. The trend really caught fire in 2015 - 2016, and closed network magical journals are wildly popular social media platforms in magical high schools all over. The features and limitations of the magical journal system are broken down here on our FAQ page.
Peckenpaugh has been using their journal system since 2015, the current staff administrator of the network is Instructor Stirling. That means, he is the one who will address bugs and quirks in the system. The unique magical nature of the journals makes them difficult to police efficiently, which has made them unpopular with some parents, but their value as facilitators of communication makes them an important part of life at Peckenpaugh.
magitechnology
While by no means a new field, Magitech — a division of Artificing wherein magic is used to enhance muggle technology — is rapidly gaining traction and interest all over the world. Muggle technology tends not to play nice with magic spells (malfunctions, sometimes of the explosive variety, are commonplace) so it’s a touchy, dangerous area of study. However, some amazing creations have resulted from magitechnology: automatons, flying cars, knightbuses and sentient Roombas, to name a few. Magitech is studied in Peckenpaugh’s Artificing course and is also the foundation of its Magirobotics club.
wizards & the internet
Note: Per our FAQ page, cellular service and internet access at Peckenpaugh and in Elflock Falls is extremely limited. Browsing the internet is no easy feat.
In the United States, witches and wizards are just starting to dip their toes into internet culture. Muggleborns and halfbloods tend to be savvier, but many witches and wizards still look at text messages and web pages with awe. There are news sites where you can read clickbaity articles about magical celebrities, informational pages for all the MACUSA's bureaus, limited social network options and a ton of assorted weird little personal pages. It all looks like the sort of things you'd see on Geocities in 1998, complete with embedded MIDI file and “UNDER CONSTRUCTION” gif. Wizards have also embraced podcasting as it is the closest thing to their favored medium: the wizard wireless.
When it comes to media platforms, magical folks tend to just use what already exists — instagram, YouTube, there's a thriving LinkedIn magical community. It's all just out there for anyone to find, though most of it is unlisted from non-magical search engines. Still, BoNE has its work cut out for it, spinning potion recipe sites and Animagus Instagram accounts as elaborate works of fiction.
the wizard wireless
Radio is one of the few muggle technologies that seems to work seamlessly with magic, and maybe that's why the Wizard Wireless has such a stranglehold on magical entertainment. Or maybe Wizards just like their stories. The Wizard Wireless is a nationwide network of magical radio stations. From Top 40 music to High Fantasy Dramas, you can find just about anything on the WW. The stations are nearly countless in number — in addition to the largest corporate stations, there are plenty of smaller, independent, publicly funded and even hobbyist stations across the nation. Call letters tend to be WW followed by two to three more letters and a lengthy string of numbers to denote frequency. Peckenpaugh's WWPWV is one of the most popular publicly owned stations in the Midwest, and people tune in from all over to get updates on America's quirkiest school of magic.
magic, movies & television
So what about visual mediums? Movies and television have always struggled to capture the hearts and minds of witches and wizards. There are a few iconic wizard movies and television shows, but not many. What's so great about a TV show when you've got portraits that hold conversations with you and books that have moving pictures, already? Magical televisions — called WizVizzes — and movie theaters do exist, but aren't commonplace. Magical folks tend to prefer their wizard wireless programs, and TV and film never grasped people the way magical radio did. That said, it looks like the culture may be shifting. There's a surprising willingness among witches and wizards to embrace smartphones and the Internet, and video may be getting a second chance along with it.
transportation
Owing to the great distances between places and a general lack of consistency in the Floo Network, Apparition and Port Keying are the two most popular forms of transportation in WizAmerica. They aren't the only ones, though. Brooms of all shapes and sizes are still a go-to mode of transport, and there's still more than that...
MAGICAL TRANSPORTATION
WORLD SETTING: culture
quodpot
Quodpot is an explosive aerial winter sport wildly popular in North America. Both high school Quodpot (overseen by the North American High School Quodpot Association, or NAHSQA) and professional Quodpot (overseen by the North American Quodpot League, or NAQL) have dedicated, fanatical followings. NAQL officials scout potential new players throughout the year, and draft picks are announced in May. While there are a few less buzzworthy pre-season games, the Pro-Quodpot season runs in earnest from November to March, when the biggest sporting event of the year takes place: the Big Pot.
We've provided a few national teams here. Feel free to suggest your own below!
NAQL TEAMS
quidditch
Quidditch needs no introduction. While not the most popular sport in magical North America, it still commands a strong following, one that has only been buoyed by the United States’ taking second in the 2018 Quidditch World Cup — the win ultimately went to Brazil. If you've come up with any National Quidditch teams of your own, feel free to suggest them below!
other
There's a whole assortment of other magical games and sports out there in the world, or else they wouldn't need a whole department for it! If there's a popular magical game or sport you've developed that isn't represented here, let us know in the comments below!
pop culture
Being a young person with their fingers on the pulse of magical culture, there are a few things your witch or wizard might've heard of. If you'd like to contribute, you can do so in the comments below under the appropriate heading!
people
- Snoop Crupp is a famous magical rapper and entrepreneur.
- Dave Grohl is a wizard. Yeah.
- Tom Cruise is a known squib.
media
- Pillywickle! is a wildly popular stage musical written by Peckenpaugh's own Birdie Beridze back in 2014. It's Wizard Hamilton.
EDUCATION: MAGICAL HIGH SCHOOLS of NORTH AMERICA
Pioneer High School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Bountiful, UT)
The James Jesse Academy of Magical Learning (Cracker Barrel, AL)
Founded roughly 100 years ago by lesser known outlaw James Jesse, this struggling day school has a decidedly unrigorous curriculum as much from poor funding as inattentive leadership - Headmaster Jesse would really prefer to spend his incorporeal days napping inside a bust of himself. The school has a long standing rivalry with Vercoer, but tell that to anyone at Vercoer and they're most likely to respond "Who?"
Merrymount Academy (Quincy, MA)
EDUCATION: POST-SECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES in NORTH AMERICA
MAGICAL COMMUNITIES in NORTH AMERICA
Cracker Barrel, AL
Turtle River, MN
Boot, MA
Glittering Springs, UT
Dueling Pines, NC
Owlville, MI
Barebone, KY
SPORTS: QUODPOT TEAMS
Quodpot Teams: The Carolina Wright Bros
(Fans of the team identify as either 'Orvilles' or 'Wilburs.' The former are optimists who always say "Next year we'll win," and the latter are less optimistic and say, "Two years from now will be our time." Nobody thinks this is the year.)
SPORTS: QUIDDITCH TEAMS
CULTURE: MUSICIANS
NOTE: We know that some Gooseberry High students technically went on to experience celebrity, but at this time we will not be unscreening contributions that invoke Gooseberry High player characters.
CULTURE: FAMOUS PEOPLE
NOTE: We know that some Gooseberry High students technically went on to experience celebrity, but at this time we will not be unscreening contributions that invoke Gooseberry High player characters.
Professor Benedek Pataki
Fergus O'Malley
Tom Cruise
"Order of the Odeis"
One source described these meetings ending in "masked orgies" [...] but he later recanted his story.
CULTURE: FAMOUS PEOPLE
Perpetua Rain is a famous model with famous mood swings.
Libitina Provenza
CULTURE: MEDIA
GENERAL: MAGICAL BEASTS & BEINGS
SPORTS: OTHER
NASBROOM