At some point, the Sultan and the people of Il-Heban realised that they needed to centralise all their agricultural knowledge in one place. In addition, they required a centre where alchemical research could be developed, supported by the Hanging Gardens and the local glass industry. Finally, when Il-Heban mastered the production of the finest and largest magnifying lenses, it became clear that a dedicated building for astronomical research was also needed.
To support this endeavour, architecture was included as a separate field of study. In fact, what is now the Faculty of Architecture began as the group of builders and architects responsible for designing and constructing the university itself. The fifth and final faculty was Archaeology, whose members had already been conducting excavations around Il-Heban for some time. This faculty received particularly generous funding from the Lords' Alliance.
The university is located in the Southern Heights, near the famous Clay Palace where the Sultan resides. The entire campus is situated within spacious grounds filled with gardens, fountains, and gazebos.
There are six main buildings. The central administrative building, which also houses the main library, stands at the heart of the campus, while the remaining five faculty buildings are arranged around it in the shape of a pentagram. Each building reflects the character of its faculty. For example, the Faculty of Alchemy is decorated with minerals, beautiful depictions of plants, retorts, and glass vials. Likewise, it is impossible to miss the enormous telescope of the Faculty of Astronomy or the images of stars and galaxies adorning its walls.
The pentagram serves as the university's symbol because it can be drawn using five capital "A"s. Each "A" represents one of the five faculties:
Architecture
Agriculture
Alchemy
Archaeology
Astronomy
The names are read clockwise, beginning with the upper point of the pentagram.
Visitors are free to enter the university grounds, provided they behave appropriately. Large items, such as carts or horses, are not permitted inside the campus.
In principle, anyone may apply to study at the university, although tuition is not free. In practice, however, the university has become so financially successful that it first considers the financial situation of every successful applicant and then awards scholarships accordingly. This system allows almost anyone with sufficient talent to study without requiring the university to spend excessive amounts on scholarships. At the same time, the number of applicants remains manageable, as Il-Heban is generally regarded as a remote city and its desert climate does not appeal to everyone.
The university is headed by a Rector, while each faculty is led by a Dean. As the university is still relatively young, the first Rector was personally appointed by the Sultan. The Deans and professors were then selected jointly by the Sultan and the Rector. Today, new professors are typically chosen by the Dean of the relevant faculty together with its senior academics.
Each faculty, as well as the university itself, has dedicated groups responsible for maintaining relationships with potential clients and partners. Their role is extremely important, and their opinions carry considerable weight, as much of the university's future depends on how successful its research proves to be beyond Il-Heban.
The Sultan takes a keen interest in the university and regularly invites professors to discuss their latest research and discoveries. These meetings help him stay informed about recent scientific advances while also giving professors an opportunity to raise concerns or make suggestions that may not have been addressed by the Rector or their Dean.
A small but important role is played by the Lords' Alliance emissaries, who maintain their own offices within the administrative building. They oversee the university's research, ensuring that it is conducted safely and for beneficial purposes. In addition, they issue licences to newly qualified spellcasters, most commonly alchemists. Recently, their workload has increased due to the rapid growth of alchemy and the arrival of several fey. Dryads have proven themselves to be well-intentioned and invaluable to agricultural research, but their naturally chaotic behaviour often results in their licences being temporarily revoked.
Each faculty has its own specialised facilities and research focus. Below is a brief overview.
Perhaps the university's most important faculty. It is responsible for all the plants on the university grounds and maintains its own orangeries.
The faculty works closely with most of the others. Alchemists develop new fertilisers while requesting newly discovered plants for alchemical ingredients. Architects assist in designing irrigation systems and other agricultural infrastructure. Astronomers help predict the changing seasons. There has been relatively little cooperation with Archaeology so far, although archaeologists have discovered depictions of several unknown plants and asked the Faculty of Agriculture to identify what they might have been.
The Faculty of Agriculture also manages numerous projects beyond Il-Heban. The most significant include:
Brell – Developing agriculture within the Wild Magic Zone. Researchers are attempting to discover ways of making wild magic benefit plant life while also studying how Magic Suppressors affect crop growth.
Ironhold – Developing greater botanical diversity within Ironhold's cave systems.
Stormhaven – Researching marine plants and exploring the possibility of establishing fish farms in Stormhaven's former harbours, which have suffered repeated famines in recent years as a consequence of the war. This is an entirely new field for the faculty, as it previously had no experience with marine ecosystems.
Arland – Assisting local foresters in finding sustainable ways to make better use of the forests without damaging them.
Ishar – Supporting agriculture in an already fertile region free of charge, with the agreement that the university will receive a share of the future economic benefits generated by its improvements.
This faculty possesses perhaps the most advanced laboratories in Kildar. The most sophisticated glass and clay laboratory equipment is developed and tested here before being introduced elsewhere.
Its primary fields of research include fertilisers for agriculture, improvements to laboratory equipment, and a deeper understanding of the relationships between the alchemical elements. The most ambitious—and by far the most difficult—project is the creation of the Philosopher's Stone. Many dismiss it as little more than a fairy tale, but the researchers of Il-Heban claim they possess fragments of its original formula.
Outside Il-Heban, the faculty is best known for developing advanced laboratory equipment, which is then manufactured by the city's renowned glassblowers.
The Faculty of Architecture was responsible for designing and constructing the university itself. Today, it is primarily occupied with planning new facilities for the other faculties, the Hanging Gardens, and major construction projects both within Il-Heban and beyond.
Although other cities also possess excellent schools of architecture—particularly Arland and Ironhold—they generally have far less experience designing sophisticated agricultural infrastructure. Furthermore, anyone seeking truly innovative architectural solutions often turns to Il-Heban, whose architectural style is still considered fresh and unconventional. The faculty also collaborates closely with the alchemists in developing new construction materials.
The Il-Heban Observatory is the newest and largest astronomical facility in all of Kildar. The elves of Arland had long possessed telescopes of their own, but even they now admit that none can compare to those built by Il-Heban's engineers.
Astronomical research also benefits greatly from the city's location. The observatory stands atop a hill in the open desert, free from forests or mountains that might obstruct observations.
At present, its primary role is to predict the seasons and weather patterns needed by the Faculty of Agriculture. Beyond Kildar, its astronomers collaborate with foreign observatories to compare their observations while continuously improving telescope design. They also hope that future generations of telescopes will become valuable export products.
The youngest faculty at the university. The idea for its creation emerged during the university's construction. Previously, archaeology in Kildar had been represented mainly by the Archaeological Guild, whose membership was small and whose researchers rarely cooperated with one another.
Because the Sultan has a deep interest in history and wishes to uncover the world that existed before the Great Cataclysm, he decided to establish a dedicated Faculty of Archaeology. Surprisingly, the Lords' Alliance also chose to invest considerable funds in the project, partly as a gesture of goodwill toward Il-Heban. In return, the Sultan granted the Alliance a small office within the university's administrative building.
Since then, numerous expeditions have been organised to important historical sites throughout Kildar, carrying out excavations and archaeological research.
One particularly interesting exhibit is the former portal from Il-Heban. At the request of the Lords' Alliance, it was dismantled and relocated to the main building of the Faculty of Archaeology, where it is now displayed as part of the university's collection.