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thisisnotthenerd · 5 months

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Curriculum at the Aguefort Adventuring Academy

Now that the Night Yorb adventure has concluded and the Bad Kids are headed back to school I have thoughts about the structure of the Aguefort Adventuring Academy.

The Solisian School District in Elmville, as far as we know, consists of Skullcleaver Elementary School, Oakshield Middle School, Mumple School, Hudol College, and the Aguefort Adventuring Academy. While Skullcleaver and Oakshield serve the population as a whole, Mumple focuses on NPC trades, while Hudol is a private school that focuses on theoretical magic for the ‘upper class’ of Elmville, and the Aguefort Adventuring Academy focuses on training adventurers from within their specific classes while also providing general education.

Obviously, the differing structures of each of these institutions brings up some questions. Since the Solisian School District presumably has a school board and a superintendent, are there any enforceable curriculum standards that the high schools have to abide by? What common classes do Mumple, Hudol, and Aguefort have? What does a high school diploma from each of these mean?

Given the endless questions brought up by the organization of this school district, I’m going to try and make logical sense of it by tackling them as they come to me.

First, I’m going to focus on the Aguefort Adventuring Academy, since that’s what we have information on. I can speculate on the nature of Mumple and Hudol, but we have actual info about the AAA.

What has to be in the base curriculum for each school?

For the AAA:

I’m basing this on a combination of what we know from the Bad Kids’ classes and their investigation during Family in Flames.

Here’s what we know of the AAA faculty:

Administrative Staff:

Principal: Arthur Aguefort

Vice Principal: Goldenhoard/Kalvaxus, Gilear Faeth

Lunch Lad(y): Doreen, Gilear Faeth

Guidance Counselor: Mr. GIbbons, Jawbone O’Shaughnessy

Librarian: Maugly Dimweather

Nurse: Fatima al-Aydaa

Receptionist: Chart Bomsk

Custodian: Kasavian the Wise

Bloodrush Coach: Coach Daybreak, Gorthalax the Insatiable

Gen Ed/Elective Teachers:

History: Kurby Rockstone

Linguistics: Efevrian Stuttle

Home Ec: Pilby Hatchet

Driver’s Ed: Alphonse Doublefist

Health: Spunge Dirtfoot

Theater: Ebria Dwimmerwaithe, Mr. Pepper

Music: Lucilla Lullaby

Arcana: Joria Casterwall

Class-Specific Teachers:

Artificer: Grunding Tomblast

Barbarian: Porter Cliffbreaker

Bard: none listed

Cleric/Religious Studies: Yolanda Badgood

Druid: Ellarian Fallowglade

Fighter: Corsica Jones

Monk: River Moondaughter

Paladin: Halo St. Croix

Ranger: Ellen Fleetfoot

Rogue: Eugenia Shadow

Sorcerer: Jace Stardiamond

Warlock: Evan Freem

Wizard: Tiberia Runestaff

So we know there is at least history and linguistics, as well as many elective options. Math and science likely run differently when Arthur ‘Chronomancer’ Aguefort is around, so I can understand them not being present on this list, though I would say that math is probably present in the elementary/middle schools, just because having a basic understanding of how arithmetic and geometry work forms a lot of what goes into basic life skills and also things like material components and ritual circles for casters. Adaine has made reference to math classes before, so the existence of them is kind of up in the air–we don’t have direct confirmation, but they’re likely present.

I took the liberty of moving arcana to the elective category because while it is a specific specialization, it doesn’t fit with the rest of the class model, and it fits more as a class that would be shared between the casters that have to learn things. Understanding the foundations of each type of magic, learning the bases of material, verbal, and somatic components bc even if you use an arcane focus, it’s important to understand where the idea is coming from.

Based on my own American high school experience, I would have expected a few more core classes. There really are a lot of electives. There don’t seem to be specific curriculum standards that would transfer well from school to school. Thus, I would expect that earning a diploma and/or a GED would have significantly different requirements.

Class-specific curricula:

Artificers

They likely have some sort of shop class/STEM course to learn how to build things and repair them–easy way to get tool proficiencies. Also a class on the different infusions and how to use them?

Subclasses: Once you get past 3rd level and choose a subclass I'd assume they would have optional electives for each subclass (alchemist, armorer, artillerist, battlesmith). Ultimately it just comes down to different skills, but artificers do a lot of the same things from subclass to subclass.

Barbarians

We have insight into these classes because Fig and Gorgug attended them; they are learning about the sources of rage, and how to control the rage state while in combat.

Subclasses: electives likely split into controlling magical elements of rage for wild magic, zealot, totem, storm herald, and ancestral guardian barbarians, and martial elements of rage for battleragers, berserkers, beasts, giants, and juggernauts.

Bards

Bards are one of the classes that often have a strong theoretical basis, so I would assume they have a relatively heavy curriculum. We know there’s bardic history, because Aguefort talks about it in Sophomore Year, but bards would likely have some required music classes as well.

Subclasses: Lore bards would definitely have some history crossover and maybe arcana crossover with the wizards once they started taking electives for their subclasses, while swords and valor bards would share classes with the fighters, creation bards with the artificers, glamour bards with the charisma rogues, and eloquence, spirits, tragedy, and whispers would likely have similar electives.

Clerics

Healing/medicine is likely one of their core classes, but generally clerics are probably going to be learning rituals and the histories of deities, along with other wisdom based skills.

Subclasses: like the bards, there’s a ton of variance with clerics. A knowledge cleric is not going to have the same classes as a trickster cleric, or a grave cleric, etc.. Now that I think about it, it makes sense for forge clerics to be taking shop classes with the artificers.

Druids

Ecology, druidic magic, survival classes? They’re probably paired with the rangers often. I think I recall Aabria and Erika talking about Danielle helping Antiope with more traditional ranger skills, so it makes sense that they share some classes. Wildshape training and summoning practice probably factor in when they can perform the skills more than once a day.

Subclasses: the things that druids can do can vary significantly, but if i had to guess: moon & shepherd druids would get paired because they’re working with creatures, spores & blighted druids would work with more necrotic spells, dreams & stars druids would get paired because they’re associated with night in differing ways, land druids have their own classes, and wildfire druids would be arsonists. Just kidding.

Fighters

Fighters are explicitly trained warriors, so learning strategy, different fighting styles and martial skills depending on what fits their needs best. Learning to use action surge and attacking quickly would be a big one.

Subclasses: Each subclass would get slightly different training, but ultimately they’re all learning to fight, so it would be more like groups within a larger class. Fighter is also a solid multiclass, so I’d expect a bunch of multiclassed kids to join in with training.

Monks

Monks are also explicitly trained warriors, though the focus is ki and finding enlightenment at a base level. We haven’t had a monk PC in the world of Spyre, but there is a monastic studies chair, so there presumably are monks at the AAA

Subclasses: some monks learn more ki-based techniques while others learn more arcana, so there’s probably some really split classes there.

Paladins

Paired with the clerics for deific history, though they have electives on the different forms of oaths as well as fighting classes/training. Ultimately paladins are a partial caster combination of a fighter and a cleric, so I would expect them to share classes with both of those

Subclasses: as stated, it would mostly be based on the differing oaths and the magics they get from each.

Rangers

They’d share ecology/survival classes with the druids, though the rangers are given more specific combat training and ways of tracking favored enemies and such. There’s probably a class that helps you decide your favored terrain.

Subclasses: all of the animal companion subclasses would get paired, while the hunter/assassin types would probably have some kind of stealth and tracking classes.

Rogues

Rogues would get skills training for expertise but also stealth training. Basically assassin training but also charisma classes for charisma rogues and elective magic for the arcane tricksters

Subclasses: not huge differences here except for the arcane tricksters because they’re partial casters. they're learning to sneak around and kill people by surprise.

Sorcerers

Sorcerers would get basic magic training, with a focus on controlling sorcery points/fonts of magic, and understanding where sorcerers come from. Sorcerers don’t technically have to do work to get their magic, rather, it’s a matter of precise control of what they have i.e. metamagic.

Subclasses: There’s a wide variety of sorcerous origins, so each would have pretty different classes associated. Divine soul sorcerers would probably get paired with the clerics, but everyone else would have their own options.

Warlocks

Warlocks are the weirdest type of full caster, so they probably don’t combine with other classes very much. I imagine that not many high schoolers are making these kinds of deals early on, so it probably involves learning about patrons, and maybe negotiation with your patron? There’s also probably classes on invocations and the different benefits of each. To be completely honest, I wouldn’t expect them to offer much in the way of warlock classes anyway. The only warlocks we’ve run into have been Johnny Spells and the greasers, Fig, Bill Seacaster’s cult, and Sam’s eldritch adept feat. Most of these are outside organizations, and if they aren’t it’s been based on in-game deals and negotiation.

Subclasses: very split. Different patrons have very different demands.

Wizards

They’re already nerds that learn magic from books. Arcana and history classes, split courses to work in different schools of magic. Aguefort is a wizard–you think he wouldn’t have a robust wizard’s education at his academy?

Subclasses: one for every school of magic and also chronomancy.

Next Question:

How does leveling work at the AAA?

Everyone presumably starts around level one in freshman year, probably with some variance based on family background and previous experience. The seven are level 10 when they get their GED, and all of them lost at least part of a school year. According to the RTX college visit oneshot, college students are ~level 15. I would say they probably don’t enter at level 15–somewhere around level 12-13 maybe?

This is not canon, but I think what’s maybe intended is annual progression requirements. You start at level 1 and get to 5ish freshman year, start at 5 and get to 8 sophomore year, start at 8 and get to 10 junior year, and start at 10 get to 12 in time for graduation. While they’re forming adventuring parties on the first day, most groups are not going to be going out and finding encounters immediately in Solace. They’re going to school. They’re learning how to work together as a party. They’re participating in extracurriculars. The lower levels are easier to get through–that’s why the progression slows down at the higher levels, because you get diminishing returns on leveling the higher level you are.

This seems to fit–the 7 are evenly leveled, but fit into the junior-senior model that would allow them to get their GEDs while being a little underleveled for graduation. The assumption is that they’re immediately going to go and be an adventuring party–they’ll make up any difference very quickly. By contrast, the bad kids had progressive leveling during freshman year that left them at level 8 during the Prompocalypse fight. I’m fairly sure that Penelope and Dayne were level 10 at least, and during sophomore year she can cast 6th level spells and has 3d10 fire bolt damage, so she’s at least 11th level if not higher. So being at level 12 in senior year tracks.

Thus the bad kids over-level during freshman year, even going by milestone leveling. if you go on an xp model you’d have to get around 10000 throughout the year to hit level 5–they’re running into so many encounters that they overshoot. And thus they’re still over-leveled in sophomore year, but if they had a relatively quiet year up to spring break, then not leveling up significantly makes sense.

Numerically, if a student is assessed on xp basis for what they have to earn in that year to level up appropriately, if they go back to zero at the start of each level.

Freshman year: 10,400

Sophomore year: 71,000

Junior Year: 112,000

Senior Year: 185,000

That tracks for high school–you can do very well in freshman year classes and then all of a sudden start struggling, and it’s more work every year. you’re capable of more, sure, but you also have way more responsibility.

How does the quest assignment system work?

What we know: they have adventures during the year as a party that serve as a sort of capstone project–60% of their grade. My hypothesis: Knowing how high school classes work in a non-fantasy public school, I’d posit that the adventures are considered a form of independent study; every student is required to do a certain amount every year, in order to move to the next grade as an adventuring party. If they don’t complete a quest of a high enough level, or enough lower-level quests, the party can be disbanded, and they may need to repeat grades in order to move to the next grade.

In order to support the infrastructure of a modern school system, and modern technology, Solace can’t be unstable enough to require adventurers. That’s the crux of what Charity Blythe was advocating for with Project Reset–using a catastrophe to drive the market of adventure. Since this was a distinct event that the Ministry of Adventure was planning for, one can conclude that these Class A, B, and C quests are not happening all that often. What are those you ask?

The Ministry of Adventure classifies quests in a six-tiered system, from class A to class F, in order of decreasing severity. Class A quests threaten the existence of the Universe and planes beyond the prime material; class B quests threaten the prime material/the world of Spyre; class C quests threaten nations; classes D-F are for localized threats, the ‘bread-and-butter’ quests, though an adventurer that can handle a class F quest may not be able to handle a class D quest. There is likely some further calculus when it comes to these classifications–the classes simply refer to the scope of the threat with regard to what it threatens, not specifically how difficult it is to complete the quest.

A GED from the Larger Solisian School District requires the sign-off of the Superintendent of Schools as well as the completion of a Class A, B, or C quest. By classification: the Bad Kids’ defeat of Kalvaxus was a class C quest, their defeat of the Nightmare King was class B, and the Seven’s quest to release Talura to infinity was a Class A quest. Sidenote: if a GED requires quest completion, how does anyone not from the AAA get a GED? Do they still have exams for non-adventurers? What subjects are required in the world of Spyre? Is it even needed?

So, Solace isn’t unstable enough to induce quests beyond class D on a regular basis; where, then, do these teen adventurers get high level quests? We first need to talk about how the rest of the world and their capacity for teen adventurers.

Highcourt: Nation ruled by monarchy that reigns over most of the rest of Spyre, the have an ongoing treaty with spyre–they were the source of the original Sol worshippers that became the harvestmen. Thus, the mentions of perditional contradoxy in their treaty with Solace make sense. Not suitable for adventures beyond D class as it would likely violate treaties, unless the adventurers are specifically hired.

Fallinel: high elven nation ruled by the court of stars, or Seven Immortal Dancers on a Spindle, who Sing to the Various Phases of the Moon, with lower courts for bureaucracy. No lawyers. Not suitable for adventures beyond D class as it would likely violate treaties, unless the adventurers are specifically hired.

Sylvaire: aka the forest of the nightmare king. south of Highcourt, home of cassandra’s original worshippers, the town of arborly, and a bunch of captured gnomes who were sustaining magic for the druids of the storm king. The forest itself was walled off for ~850 years. Quests are feasible along the coast and around the borders of the forest, but quests to enter the forest would not succeed without infernal permission.

Red Waste: Kalvaxus’s initial territory but his lair was in the mountains of chaos? Desert-like, full of Kalvaxus worshippers and Yorbies. The Seven went there for their sophomore year quest. Developed enough to have a tattoo parlor where Antiope could get her leader tattoo. Suitable for higher level adventures.

The Baronies: collection of small city states/nations that are constantly at war, where the richest of the rich have access to technology while others are still operating in a medieval society. Suitable for higher level adventures.

Mountains of Chaos: where Kalvaxus’s lair is located, but also home to the Temple of the Earth Defiant. Sklonda Gukgak has family from there, though she is from Bastion City in Solace. Suitable for higher level adventures.

Swamps of Ruin: Not much that we know currently; Kristen was building swamp Venice there while on a humanitarian/missionary trip. Suitable for higher level adventures.

Nekronomicron: subterranean city of necromancy and the undead, the location of Talura’s final stand. Kalvaxus was allied with the necromancers–which extended his control beyond the Red Waste. Suitable for higher level adventures.

Leviathan: the pirate city made of ships cobbled together into a functional city. if you can find it. They have their own adventurers though. they’re more likely to kill you. Technically suitable for higher level adventures.

Throshk: North of the Mountains of Chaos and Solace, home to Kalebrimbor, not much known in canon. clear for adventure. Suitable for higher level adventures.

Frostheim: North of Throshk, snow-covered according to maps of Spyre. Suitable for higher level adventures.

And that’s just the continent we’ve been shown; there’s probably more to Spyre that we have yet to explore. Sidenote: the map poster from the seven has been taken off the dropout store and i’m sad about it. I know this means they’re probably doing a poster for this season but still.

So what does this all mean? Well, all students of the aguefort adventuring academy must engage in a quest of an appropriate level with their adventuring party in order to jointly pass the year and move to the next grade. They are allowed to travel to achieve their objective, and can enlist paid assistance from non-students known as hirelings. They must go on at least one higher level quest, or multiple D-F quests, presumably starting in sophomore year, since parties are generally formed on the first day of freshman year, and the expectation is that the students are not of a high enough level to engage with threats of class C and above.

This contextualizes Antiope failing a year for non-palimpsest reasons–her party would have failed their yearly quest and been disbanded. It also gives context to the rest of the Seven losing their adventuring parties; if one of your members is not participating in the completion of the quest, they can be removed from the party and left as a solo adventurer.

That’s all I have for now on this because I don't have the energy to keep digging at the moment. We’ll see about more as this season progresses.

#dimension 20 #dimension 20 meta #dimension 20 spoilers #dimension 20 speculation #fantasy high #fantasy high sophomore year #fantasy high junior year #the seven #d20 the seven #musings on the solisian school district

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