Encyclopedia of Science and History
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

UC see University of Carthage

UCHEBNIK is a substantial landmass that extends from the western glacial wall toward the southern tip of Pavimentum, from which it is separated by the narrow Strait of Gruyt. The peninsula is thickly forested and sparsely populated except for its easternmost region which is dominated by the woodcutting and shipbuilding industries.

The peninsula nominally falls under the jurisidiction of Porte Darthur, the strongest of the city-states of southern Pavimentum, but Porte Darthur routinely (and ceremonially) seeks the advice of several neighboring states before setting new administrative or economic policies for the region. This political structure dates back to the 9600's during which the putative discovery of diamonds near the Namo River nearly touched off a war pitting Porte Darthur against Taylorwell, Gravesend, and Semiramide. The report proved to be spurious and the resulting haste to demobilize without losing face gave rise to the curious compromise that governs the peninsula today.

The stability of the situations owes much, perhaps, to the inherent lack of value of the lands; with the exception of the eastern forests (controlled by Porte Darthur) and some mediocre fishing grounds, there would be little to gain from any city-state advancing claims through force of arms.

The coast of Uchebnik is dotted with small fishing villages so poor that the cost of sending tax collectors to them exceeds the expected revenue. The exception is the small town of Carp Center on the southern side which has reinvented itself as a popular resort under the leadership of an enterprising family.

A curious development in the history of Uchebnik began in the early 10040's when the gypsy elves decided to make the peninsula the destination of their so-called Great Migration, a name devised to hide the blatant contempt for traditional sovereignty that it embodied. Porte Darthur moved rapidly to oust the invaders from the coast, but found that since the the gypsy elves neither possessed nor needed cities, they were always able to slip away into the woods to avoid capture. As of this printing [10045], the situation remained unresolved.

UDC see University of Dun Cess

UH see University of Haammerlinna

UIP see University of Iceland at Parapanisades

ULTIMA THULE is a small, exotic island in the north of the Western Ocean. Its flora and fauna distribution is unequalled in the world and the natural beauty cannot be duplicated. Unfortunately, a strange mist hovers over the island for most of the time--this was first recorded in the late 4300's--a mist which is toxic to anthropoid creatures. Several exploration teams per decade venture to this island, but only those return who have not ventured deep into the isle. The center of the island is shrouded in misty mystery.

UMBEL THISTLES are dark green plants found growing throughout Vyrica. The juice from their leaves causes a temporary stupidity in the taster, even in small amounts. Large amounts, if consumed, can lead to total amnesia. They are the material component of the spell feeblemind.

UNDEAD are creatures possessing the body and mind of a dead creature. They are soulless, and as such, suffer no motivations other than those necessary to sustain unlife. They think on their own and do not willingly serve, but are completely ambivalent on issues that don't directly affect their well-being. They can be very shrewd opponents, however, because their thinking is quite unclouded. Undead are produced through necromantic spells. Examples of undead include wraiths, mummies, and spectres. Wraiths are moderately powerful undead beings. They are also the "weakest" class of undead to be wholly or partly incorporeal and psionically aware. For brief periods (usually fifteen to twenty minutes) wraiths can lose their material existence and pass through walls, doors, and other usual barriers to travel. Wraiths also maintain minor magical abilities that are coupled with a strong ability to resist magic. In addition, many wraiths are confined to small physical size, about 60" tall, for unknown reasons.

UNION is an underground organization of Drow Elves dedicated to the overthrow of sea/high elf civilization in Gailinia and the reclamation of that continent for the Drow. The Union is based in the Gailinian Range and claims 2,000 members; 200 would be more realistic. The Union engages in guerilla and terroristic warfare, having waged an unsuccessful war of attrition for thirty years. Nothing is known about the hierarchy of the Union; the few prisoners taken have refused to talk, even under the fiercest torture the high elves could devise; this, however, doesn't say much. Union members are likely to be tenacious fighters with the longsword and the longbow, versed in at least the essentials of necromantic magic, and unscrupulous. No official government of organization has admitted collaborating with them, but it is strongly suspected that the deep gnomes have trained their fighters, supplied advisers, and sold materiel and material components to them. The Union (c. 9920- ) has an extremely unfavorable reputation of gruesome torture, assassinations, and massacres. It was founded by Malcolm G (9899-9940), generally thought to be psychopathic, and continued by his insane son, Malcolm L (9922-9966), upon his father's natural death. When Malcolm L died the leadership passed into unknown, immoral, but immensely capable hands. In 10018 the well-liked and able mayor of Upanishad, Firin Sashenka, was kidnapped by the Union; his mutilated body was found two days later. Vengeance-seeking vigilantes scoured that mountains for two months without accomplishing anything of note. In the past three years, though, the Union has been relatively quiet and unobtrusive in Gailinian affairs.

UNICORNS are intelligent animals, very similar in appearance to common horses, but distinctive due to their possession of a single iridescent horn on their foreheads. In earlier times they were widely sought as steeds, but after the development of the "modern" warhorse under the Sudibin (and later Orcish) Empires, unicorns were relegated to places in ceremonial possessions, frequently as mounts for queens, princesses, and other royal women. With the population increase attendant on the founding of the great human civilizations on Ilico the unicorns were eventually hunted into extinction, or so it is generally thought. From time to time a frontiersman or a sailing ship will claim to have spotted one "away in the woods," or "at the shore," but the last confirmed sighting was over 150 years ago near Lake Balkhash by the famed trapper Andrew Boryan on one of his many expeditions into Vyrica.

Unicorns originally ranged over much of southern Ilico and northern Vyrica and were found on Pavimentum as well. They have never been recorded on Gailinia or Allotrope. A recurring place in sailors' travelogues and older bestiaries is the existence of the island of Thera, a lush island populated by herds of unicorns who would nurse sailors back to health before arranging with the dolphins to return them to their homes. Artaxerxes I was famed for the team of four chalk-white unicorns (known to him as "monokeroi") that drew his royal carriage.

Unicorns are though to be inherently magical beasts; it was previously thought that material components gleaned from their horns were the "horn" referred to in ancient magical texts as a necessary ingredient for telemantic magics, possibly even the sine qua non of teleportation. Recent work has shown this to be untrue, but it remains the case that unicorns are were also in high demand by imperial mages in recorded times and it is probable that powerful sorceries could still be unlocked if there were any such beasts left to examine.

Unicorns are strong and powerful for their size, which is larger than the native horses of northern Ilico and Pavimentum, but not so large as the impressive destriers bred in Vyrica and subsequently diffused throughout the fighting world. Unicorns, while passionate in their own defense, also proved more difficult to train for battle.

UNITED ORPHANAGE OF JACKETZ is a model orphanage of the Confederacy of Dun Cess. Since receiving nearly 200,000 silver pieces from an anonymous donor in 10007, it has won several awards of national recognition for the care and education of its wards. The head instructor, Dr. Galden Koro, a blind 68 year- old, is convinced that the reason for the orphanage's success is the care given by the community toward finding jobs, funds, and food for the youngsters. He cites a recent example where a new company situated in Jacketz has been anonymously giving 5% of its income to the orphanage since its inception. "This kind of dedication makes me believe in true, agapic love," says the aging Koro.

UNITED OUTFITTERS OF PAVIMENTUM

UNITED WHALERS OF ILICO (UWI) was a company founded by Randall Chopan, Sr. in 9958 out of the independent whaling captains of the western coast of the Confederacy, particularly those of Distown, Dattown, Ilum Alpha, Ilum Gamma, and Guyl. The independent captains had been having trouble competing with the whalers of Pavimentum (particularly Mickelgarth) because of their larger ships and substantial government support. The new company was able to successful meet those threats and re-establish its economic dominance in the waters east of Biskupin. The company also subsidized exploration of the northwestern waters around India and the Abyssal Sea and found several profitable areas in which to begin hunting.

The company was the dominant, but not the sole, provider of whale products from 9958 until the Second War of Ilican Succession when marauding navies, pirates, and divided loyalties fractured the company, then being run by its founder's oldest son, Randall Chopan, Jr. The company was dissolved in 10012 and Chopan, Jr. died the next year.

UNIVERSITIES. The Confederacy of Dun Cess has the largest college in the world. It is renowned for its magic department, its history department, and its literature department. The University of Dun Cess has over 10,000 students. The University of Iceland's at Parapanisades is also well-reputed, offering the best language and literature education of any university. The Republic has a series of college-level specialized schools throughout it's lands, each concentrating in improving a certain set of vocational skills. Mickelgarth City-State University (MCSU) is well-respected for its science and history departments. Non-human universities include the University of Haamerlinna (a small conservative arts college on Syllabus), the University of Carthage, the Technon, Allotrope College (in Cinnabar), and the Crimson Tide School of Religion and Philosophy. As a generality, the human universities are too expensive for most people, only the rich and the few lucky gifted who win scholarships can afford to go. The Republic's system, however, is free, and assumes that educated citizens will contribute more to the public good than ignorant plebeians. The University of Haamerlinna offers free tuition to veterans of the drow military as well as talented non- veterans.

URBAN HOBBITS are members of a sub-race of hobbits contemporarily found within densely population regions. Dun Cess, Kissing Dragon Pass, Dattown, Ryche, and other major (human) centers of population have sizable populations of urban hobbits. Urban hobbits are tall for their parent race, averaging 4'3". They have dark skin, brown hair, and brown eyes. They are also the only hobbit race to have a majority of bearded (male) members. Urban hobbits have acquired a reputation as untrustworthy thieves; current statistics dispute this fact showing comparable numbers of crimes committed by humans and urban hobbits. Nonetheless, this group has earned the less-than-respectful name of Urchin Hobbits.

URBAN V (9851 - 9920) held the office of Supreme Prelate for 18 years from 9902 to 9920.

URBANDALE (pop. 11,000) is the only port city north of the Confederacy of Dun Cess. In is situated in Iceland, the vast majority of its trade deals with the export of water and the import of metals and manufactured goods. It was the first human settlement in Ilico, founded in 9395 by an exploration group from Mickelgarth.

URCHIN HOBBITS (vit. slang) see Urban Hobbits

UXOR. Of all the non-anthropoid races known, few are the result of as much wonder and speculation and as little study as the uxors. Beyond the physiological facts of appearance, much of the information in this article is conjectural and supported by very little evidence. Uxors appear to be anthropoid from a distance (though their height varies from day to day) save for their skin which changes from opaque to translucent white and their head which is nearly transparent and possessed of about thirty six- inch tentacles through which the creature feeds. Uxors have poor vision and hearing, but extremely well developed senses of smell and touch. Their bodies have a gelatinous feel and can shrink or expand in volume by as much as one-tenth of their mean values. Uxors feed primarily on fish and birds' eggs but seem capable of digesting any meats or vegetable matter with ease, those herivorous habits leads to a greenish shimmer of the skin. They are intelligent, wear minimal clothes, use basic tools and weaponry, have no oral or written language, live in large groups, dislike direct sunlike and have some artistic talent and apparent aesthetic appreciation. Most importantly, uxors have minds which are highly developed in exhibiting so-called psionic abilities of various kinds. It is known that they can communicate over distances of one mile with each other, cause hallucinations of all kinds in observers, induce mental pain, fatigue, paralysis and (sometimes) death, and sense approaching individuals and even perform minor empathy. The study of these fantastic abilities promises to offer valuable insight into the phenomena; unfortunately, captive uxors die rapidly in captivity, usually through self-inflicted means. Their natural art, social structure, philosophy, means of repoduction and technology are completely unknown. Uxors are known to live in regions of the Vyrican mountains, the northern Sprines and Sprinal Tap. It is not thought that they have any interactions with other species at any of their commununities. Whether the communities are in physical or mental contact is also impossible to say.