The third world is the only plane of Spire which contains other connections to other worlds. It is a nexus world, a sieve, connected here and there and everywhere to other realities. It is a neutral world, both in terms of mana flow and morphogenic consistency, the prototypical tier 3. This means that both magical and technological entities can traverse the world unchanged without any innate negative effects from the universe itself. There is a low level of ambient mana, not enough to power most spells but enough to maintain any spells already cast and to protect the biological functions of highly magical creatures. Similarly, morphogenic consistency is high, so technological entities and devices can cross the plane unchanged in either their form or basic functions.
Speckled across the landscape are endless oasis-like patches of foreign environment which expand and bleed together. They average one portal every 200 miles, with the sparsest areas having 500 mile spans between portals and the densest (outside of Spire) holding a portal to a unique world every 20 miles. These are usually easy to spot from a distance, as the trickle of plant and animal life through the portal creates a unique microbiome. Some portals need unique conditions to be met in order to cross them (such as a spoken phrase, a pass-key, particular timing, or more esoteric requirements) while others stand open perpetually. Most are tight openings to full other worlds, but many have degraded into shallows as the connections have expanded and the spaces beyond have been folded into the third world.
These shallows are especially common in the areas immediately surrounding Spire. While collapsed courts are common across the third world, they’re especially prevalent here, as the trolls have spent centuries even before the Convergence forcibly disconnecting courts which latched onto the first world, and many of them found themselves crash landed on the third in the areas around the city. This results in a terrain commonly known as the “fae wilds,” miles upon miles (not that space can be measured consistently across shallows) of extraplanar geography, ecology, and society, piled on top of and through each other.
Each court’s citizens will be wildly distinct from each other’s, but some trends are common among the survivors of low-reality worlds. Fae- the citizens of courts- tend to have high baselines for Magical Potency and very low baselines for Morphogenic Consistency, and thus tend to have similar affectations upon settling in the third world- a hunger for mana and rigidity of identity. Most (though it’s important to note, not all) fae are incapable of lies (untruths can unbalance an already low reality setting) and thus culturally encourage deceptive and unclear wording, to slip around truth without ever strictly violating it. As high MPB entities, iron is particularly deadly to court citizens. The mana flow innate to them is quickly converted to pure heat, as is always the case when iron is exposed to a magical field, causing intense and immediate burns and mana-deprivation. The movement of iron samples is strictly regulated across the five cities, but especially so on the third.
Physiologically, fae vary wildly. Fae around Spire include the mammalian, insectoid, reptilian, amphibian, or fully aquatic. Almost all are humanoid, and all have at least one set of five-fingered hands. All have at least three of the standard six senses, though individual members of a court may of course have disabilities which limit this further. In height they range from 1’ - 10’ on average, though there is evidence of much larger entities further afield in the third world.
Courts are primarily organized into four seasonal courts, correlating to the quadrants of fae wilds that surround the city. These are separated by well maintained troll trade roads which leave the city in the four directions. They form the Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter Courts, each of which is composed of many smaller and often competing dimensional courts.The seasonal courts are the primary political organization of the 3rd city and the 3rd world. They maintain order, to whatever extent they deem necessary, within their quadrants. For the city itself they alternate, with the seat on Spire parlament rotating yearly between the four seasons.
The season within the third city shifts to show the relative power of the courts in an area. The winter quadrant of the city is always the coldest, summer the warmest. At the same time, the whole city grows hotter when summer sits upon the throne.
The seasonal courts have a long-standing truce for the areas near Spire, where the four factions meet. Predation, pillaging, and war are severely limited in the area by a tangled web of truces and allegiances which far predate the city’s founding. Further afield, these truces break down. The boundaries between seasons become muddled and battles for territory are frequent. The trolls’ roads disperse. Though outright war is rare, tensions are constant. Their resolutions often take place near the heart of Spire, as the city represents a safe neutral ground for members of all courts to meet.
There’s a strong correlation between the seasonal quadrant a court falls in, the mechanisms by which various fae sustained their realities while loose, and the physical appearance and mannerisms of the fae.
The fae of the spring court are referred to as pixies. Pixies primarily sustain their realities by stealing attention, gaining notice, and causing strife. It’s through their interaction with the world that the elements they feed on are generated. They don’t remove anything that was there when they arrived, or if they do, it's only as one step in generating the discomfort and/or attention which is their actual goal. They are sustained by siphoning off good luck and focus.
Pixies are typically flashy, vibrantly colored, and hard to ignore. The spring court values mirth, unpredictability, and change.
The fae of the summer court are referred to as Goblins. Goblins sustain their realities by taking something physical and tangible from the host world, and by siphoning off the effort their victims expend to gain it back. Often they’re taking personal effects, magical artifacts, or animals. In cases where no effort is expended to reclaim them, goblins can often feed off of the physical objects themselves. Many prioritize items with strong sentimental attachment, making them quite similar to elves, but the important part is that they require the physical item itself and the effort their victims expend in reclaiming it. They cannot simply strip off the attachment.
Goblins are typically mid-height and strong, with pointed ears and tails. The summer court values strength, brutality, cunning, and teamwork.
The fae of the fall court are referred to as Cryptids. Cryptids sustain their realities by physically removing vitality from discrete living victims. This typically takes the form of physical control (either abduction or possession), and either the complete destruction of the victim or the physio-metaphorical removal of the victim’s reality before returning them, which typically results in the erosion of interpersonal connections, an inherent loss of credibility, and a loss of any regard others have for the victim.
Cryptids are typically tall, thin, and ephemeral. They range from the translucent and insubstantial to the gangly and otherworldly. The fall court values discretion, professionalism, and good timing.
The fae of the winter court are referred to as Elves. Elves primarily sustain their realities by removing something metaphysical or abstract from those they visit. This can range from the theft of emotions or memories to the removal of abilities or names. Note that in the case where whole people are stolen from a host world, elves are still feeding off of the interpersonal connections themselves, the relationships between the stolen person and their community, rather than on the person’s physical form.
Elves are typically tall, slender, and attractive. The winter court values elegance, cunning, and mystery.
As you might suspect, tensions between the seasonal courts are high and ever shifting, but they pale in comparison to the tensions between the courts and the rest of Spire. All forms of entrapment within the bounds of Spire itself are strictly forbidden, and the enforcement of those bans are always topics of hot debate within Spire’s parlament. The representative seat rotates each year between the four seasons and politics within the court can shift dramatically in the three years they don’t hold the seat, making it difficult to form lasting political allegiances with the rest of Spire.
While the shallow courts’ worlds themselves are no longer unstable, having been folded into the larger reality of the third world, many fae retain physiological needs derived from their prior parasitic relationships. Some of these can be satiated with access to high-mana orcish gems, or through interaction between the courts. For those that cannot, explorations out into the third world and the worlds connected to it are common. Sometimes fae are able to make connections from within their shallows, where the world’s membrane is still thin. Fae pose very little danger to anyone within Spire, and the trolls have negotiated for safety along their four main trade routes, but it’s always a good idea to avoid the fae wilds themselves without a deeply trusted guide.
Due to the varied nature of the 4th city humans (see below), and their mutual lack of external culture from a wider world, human and fae communities share a long friendship in Spire. If you’re having reservations about dealing with a wild fae, bringing a human along is always a good place to start.
Fae culture, diet, religion, and holidays are almost infinitely varied. Each seasonal court throws large celebratory revels at the start of their respective seasons, and little else stays consistent between the courts or from year to year.
Fae are generally considered clever, adaptable, honest but not trustworthy. They are easy to predict if you understand their motives, but that understanding is hard to achieve.