False Gods

OVERVIEW

Here on False Gods we strive to push the story outside of England! While there are many important locations in England and Scotland, we have expanded the setting to include various markets and points of interest all over the UK and Ireland. We hope to explore a wider wizarding world together! Below you will find a quick overview of the current world state as well as notable locations in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.

WORLD STATE

On the surface, wizarding UK and Ireland have seen an end to a long war and believe the new administration is leading their citizens into a bright future. Minister Umbridge has firm ideas, but they seem to be working to keep the general public in order, and while fighting still occurs, the media tells the world it’s all being handled efficiently. The Order of the Phoenix has been painted as a radical group hell-bent on taking down the Ministry and ending everyone’s way of life as they know it. The Ministry stresses the danger of these criminals and their hurtful and false rhetoric, claiming the Ministry to be corrupt and only looking out for the good of themselves. Strict registration and sanctions have been placed on creature-kind, an attempt to gather these tainted individuals and keep tabs on beasts that have too long run amok in the wizarding world. The administration preaches integration and involvement for those creatures who agree to follow the rules, but the reality of the situation has pushed many to violence. The general public would be led to believe that the Death Eaters and He Who Must Not Be Named have all fizzled out; defeated and running with their tails tucked. The Ministry and media place a young Harry Potter as the figurehead of their demise, and citizens tend to believe the word of a hero of the people.

Below the surface, things aren’t quite so shiny. The Order is often blamed for actions they did not commit and have become the most wanted individuals in the wizarding world as they fight to bring back true peace and justice. Creatures see registration for what it is, a death sentence, and decide to fight back. Moonlighters instigate fighting all over and form alliances with tainted willing to play dirty for their futures. Death Eaters control all, not gone, but stronger than ever with the Minister and Lucius Malfoy at the head, and Harry Potter as their rising star. The Dark Lord has been reduced to a half-state but is not alone; aided by Loyalists determined to bring him back and regain control of the ranks. The war never truly ended, the players simply grew in number and the strategies evolved with the times.

LOCATIONS

ENGLAND

Diagon Alley: A large wixen market located behind the Leakey Cauldron. It contains many shops, pubs, inns and housing, though as it is the center of magical London rent can be very high. Diagon is the center of life in wizarding England, but this also makes it a place where the Ministry has heavy influence and control.

Knockturn Alley: Located just off and slightly below Diagon Alley, Knockturn is home to more shady establishments. The lower alley has a reputation for selling items related to the Dark Arts and hosting many purist-run businesses. Housing is limited within Knockturn and often just as pricey as Diagon.

Carkitt Market: An outdoor shopping area off the side street of Diagon Alley. It is centered around a Victorian wrought-iron arcade. The shop facades, along with the wrought iron, are Victorian facades painted over in a bright technicolor palette. Living within the surrounding area of Carkitt is much more affordable, but flats are generally small and stacked closely together.

Horizont Alley: A main cross street of Diagon Alley that joins Knockturn and Carkitt together. There are few shops on this street, and most of the buildings are affordable residential housing. In recent years Horizont has become a hotspot for creature-kind and the place in London people are sure to find Mega for sale.

Ministry of Magic: The headquarters of the Ministry of Magic is located in the heart of London. The actual structure is all underground, although magical windows show whatever weather Magical Maintenance has chosen for the day, from bright sunshine to hurricanes. The Ministry is the ruling authority in the UK and Ireland, and currently heavily controlled by Death Eaters and their supporters.

St. Mungo's: A wizarding hospital and learning facility located in London. To enter the premises, one might step through the window of what appears to be a red-bricked, condemned department store called Purge and Dowse, Ltd. This acts as a magical gateway to the main building. Through recent years the rise in creature attacks has brought an influx of patients to the first floor ward, and as such a new wing was established. The creature-injury wing is meant to help those afflicted by attacks and new tainted blood heal and find their way back into society. However the reality isn't so hopeful, as treatment in this ward always leads to registration.

SCOTLAND

Hogsmeade: One of largest all-wizarding villages in the UK, Hogsmeade is a picturesque village of cottages and shops. High Street is the main area of the village, containing many popular shops and pubs as well as the WWN Headquarters. Smaller shops and housing can be found off the side streets where there is a bit less foot traffic and a break form the influx of students on weekends. Hogsmeade remains the main center of wixen life in Scotland and because of it's position next to the school, many professors have made their homes here.

Hogwarts: Located in the Scottish Highlands, Hogwarts is a state-funded wizarding school that accepts magical students from Great Britain and Ireland. Established around the 10th century, Hogwarts is considered to be one of the finest magical institutions in the wizarding world. The school consists of the large Hogwarts Castle and extensive school grounds surrounding it: which included sloping lawns, flowerbeds, vegetable patches, as well as a loch, a large dense forest, several greenhouses and other outbuildings, and a full-size Quidditch Pitch.

Vale of McGowan: A valley located in the Highlands, it is the home of the spring where McSpratt's Sparkling Spring Spell Water was bottled. This area is known for the old magic that still lives in the land itself, giving the McSpratt's stream as well as many other areas of the valley powerful natural qualities. Healers and potion-makers insist that the ingredients grown here are the best of quality, and many shop keepers and suppliers can be found picking through the greenery, even setting up their homes to be closer to the crop. While the popularity of the valley has grown, so have the issues. The land here is deeply connected to creature-kind who see it as a sacred site being taken over by wixen who only to use it up. Residents face increased pressure and threats from tainted who wish to push them out.

Lasthorn Island: Located in the Western Isles, Lasthorn is a small wizarding sea village that has become home to some of the most wealthy in the UK and Ireland. Not strictly pureblood families, though primarily, the homes here are owned by the best of the best, and richest of the rich. Lavish and expansive estates are set up all over the cloaked isle, and the land is protected by something of a "neighborhood watch"; a group of residents who work together to keep any riffraff off the island. Mostly a residential location, however some more high end shopping can be done on Sandsummit Street, the main market area of town.

IRELAND

Corkscrew Hill: A growing wixen village located atop a large hill in a cloaked area of Cork. Corkscrew is a quickly expanding village; streets lined with new businesses and opportunities, but also people! The village has become overcrowded and under-regulated, the price of industry success. Many homes are affordable, but closely packed and poorly kept. With the rise in business to the area shops take up too much space, often attempting to buy out residential buildings and sending the village further and further down the hill. At the top, all of the most popular businesses and prominent homes, and as you descend things grow a bit more shabby.

Dublin Docks: A large area of the docklands that has been sectioned off for use by the magical community. The docks are a bustling import and export center, and many workers and merchants take to living in the area. There is a small, open-air market by the dock, vendors set up daily to sell various goods fresh from the ships. This area has been known to host a large criminal element, smugglers and fences easy to find around any shady corner.

Blindmoor Bog: Boglands located in Northern Ireland, this area is known as werewolf territory. The pack that calls the bog home have lived on the land for generations, and do well to protect their land. With stricter laws being enforced on creature-kind, many other species flock to the bog for safety, knowing it's the one place the Creature Department and DMLE wouldn't dare venture. While the Ministry patrol the outlying area around the bog, they have held back from any major breaches of the territory, fearful of the growing numbers of tainted inside. Blindmoor is a small, ramshackle village featuring many lodging places, a few scattered specialty shops, and the Bog House, am infamous wixen saloon situated on the edge of the territory that is run by the Blindmoor Werewolf Pack.

Keddle Fields: A large Quidditch Pitch that plays host to many minor and professional games as well as serving as a practice field and event arena. During games and events vendors can be found set up all around the outside of the field, selling Quidditch memorabilia as well as a variety of snacks and treats. The arena often hosts non-sporting events, such as holiday markets and other large public gatherings.

WALES

Scorchlight Village: Located just outside of Holyhead, Schorchlight is home to many magical families and contains a humble marketplace at the center. While they aren't the most popular village in the UK, the people of Scorchlight are proud of their home and happy to keep it small and cozy. A highly mixed community, most families here contain both magical and muggle members, and many establishments happily welcome those non-magical family members into their doors and employment. A large number of squib and muggleborn individuals flock to this area because of the welcoming attitude towards the non-magical.

WADA Campus: The Dramatic Arts Academy has its campus set up across a small area of the Welch countryside, featuring two theaters, many workshop spaces, cafes, and a budding artistic village. Many students live in academy housing around the campus, but the area is growing quickly, bringing the eccentric and creative from all over the world who wish to live together and share their passions.

Enacted by the Courts Wizengamot, by the authority of the Lords Temporal, Spiritual, and Magical, and at the behest of the duly elected Minister for Magic on this day, 2nd of November 1996.

An Act to restrict, prohibit, and forbid the activities of certain groups known to be spreading discord and false alarm amongst the peaceable magical citizens of the United Kingdom and Ireland; to impose due sanctions and punishments upon their members, and to prevent their expansion.

Be it enacted by the authority of the Wizengamot, as follows -

I. Restriction of Subversive Groups.

(1) Any group persistently and maliciously engaging in scaremongering or the spread of misinformation regarding the activities of the Ministry, or of any other group - 

(a) Is defined as subversive under the terms of this Act.

(b) Is hereby prohibited from meeting or organizing meetings amongst any number of its members.

(c) Is forbidden from advertising or promoting its views or activities in any public sphere, verbally or otherwise.

(d) Is required to disband itself immediately, or else to redefine its objectives in such a way that they no longer conflict with the terms of this Act.

(e) Must make available to any qualified Ministry official, upon request, any books, papers, records, or other materials which are held in common as the property of the group.

(2) Any person who is or has ever been a member of any such group -

(a) Is forbidden from attending any meetings which that group may organize, under the terms of I(1)(b) above.

(b) Is required to report this fact to the Ministry of Magic’s Witch Watchers Office.

(c) Must resign his membership of the relevant group with immediate effect, unless this is not possible by reason of obedience to I(1)(a) above.

(d) Must provide to any qualified Ministry official, upon request, a summary of the activities in which he was involved during the period of his involvement with the relevant group, and any papers or materials which he may hold that pertain to the relevant group.

(3) Any person or organization who is the registered owner, manager, or keeper of a public space, or a space which is made available for public use, is required -

(a) To ensure that at no time does he allow any group defined as subversive under the terms of this Act to make use of the space for which he is responsible.

(b) To take all reasonable steps to prevent such a group from making use of the space for which he is responsible without his knowledge or consent.

(c) To prevent to the best of his ability the display of any materials advocating the views of such a group in or around the space for which he is responsible.

(4) Any group which is defined as subversive under the terms of I(1)(a) above and which continues to meet in defiance of I(1)(c), or otherwise to contravene the provisions of this Act, shall be defined as a terrorist group under the terms of the Terrorism Offences Act (Magical) 1904, and its members shall be subject to the provisions of that Act; namely -

(a) That members of the group are eligible for immediate imprisonment without trial for an indefinite period at the discretion of the Minister for Magic.

(b) That the possessions of any member of the group are forfeit and subject to immediate seizure by the Ministry of Magic.

(c) That the relatives and other associates of any member of the group are liable to be subject to questioning and further investigation by the Auror Office without right of representation.

(d) That any members of the group or suspected members of the group who are not imprisoned are liable to be excluded from all-magical spaces within the borders of Great Britain and Ireland, at the discretion of the Head of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement.

(e) That any members of the group or suspected members of the group who are not imprisoned are liable to forfeit the right of magical practice, and to have their wands confiscated by the aforementioned Department.

II. Correction of Subversive Views.

(1) Any person not apparently affiliated with a subversive group as defined under I(1)(a) above who nevertheless expresses or is reasonably believed to hold beliefs that might accord with the views of such groups -

(a) May be subject to investigation and held for questioning over an indefinite period by the Auror Office.

(b) May further be subject to prolonged supervision or observation without notification, carried out by the Witch Watchers’ Office.

(c) May have their assets confiscated or frozen by any office of the Department for Magical Law Enforcement at any time and without prior notice.

(d) Will be added to the Register of Subversive Persons maintained by the aforementioned Department, which will be declared to any prospective employer upon request.

(e) Will be ineligible for employment by any office, department, or affiliate of the Ministry of Magic.

(2) Any person defined under II(1) above whose beliefs are confirmed to be subversive in nature -

(a) Will be subject to the terms of the Terrorism Offences Act (Magical) 1904 as described in I(4)(a) to (e) above, as though he were a member of a subversive group as defined under I(1)(a).

(b) May be subject also to a mandatory prolonged course of Ministry-Approved Thought Process Adjustment (MATPA) at an approved center.

(3) Any person defined under II(1) above whose beliefs are confirmed to be subversive in nature but not substantially harmful -

(a) May be declared an Ill-Adjusted Person and therefore be -

(i) Stripped of their Rights of Magical Practice.

(ii) Subject to the reimposition of the Trace.

(iii) Stripped of the right to own magical property.

(iv) Assigned to the care of a court appointed Responsible Person who will be accountable for their conduct.

(v) Forbidden to travel alone in the magical world.

(vi) Subject to random inspection by a Ministry-appointed official.

(b) May be subject to immediate exile and relocation to another sovereign state.

(c) May be detained indefinitely for further investigation and assessment at the discretion of the Minister for Magic.

III. Conferment of Emergency Powers.

(1) On account of the imminent danger evident to all right-thinking members of the magical community at this time, this Act further grants any Ministry-appointed official or Ministry-approved person the powers -

(a) To employ the Unforgivable Curses in the course of their work where it appears to them to be a proportionate and rational response to their situation.

(b) To execute an arrest for offences which have previously been designated as Non-Arrestable Offences where this appears to them to be a necessary and reasonable action to take.

(c) To execute an arrest in hostile circumstances notwithstanding the previous requirement that the arresting official should be in possession of evidence reasonably suggesting that an offence has been committed.

(2) On account of the evident dangers which would arise from corruption and sedition in the ranks of the Ministry itself, this Act further grants to the Internal Investigations Office the powers -

(a) To detain for questioning any Ministry official whose behavior seems to them to be suspicious.

(b) To examine without notice or permission the files and correspondence held by any Ministry official.

(c) To inspect without notice or permission the workspace, cabinets, drawers, and other areas used by any Ministry official in the course of their work.

(d) To sanction without senior review any activity or behavior which appears to them to be inappropriate.

(e) To question without consent or notice any Ministry official, or any associate of a Ministry official.

(f) To deny the right of representation to any Ministry official subject to internal disciplinary hearing where it appears appropriate to do so.

Enacted by the Courts Wizengamot, by the authority of the Lords Temporal, Spiritual, and Magical, and at the behest of the duly elected Minister for Magic on this day, 2nd of November 1996.

An Act to place sensible limitations and restrictions upon the freedoms and liberties available to those whose heritage is less than human, and particularly those who pose a danger to the remainder of civilized society as a result.

Be it enacted by the authority of the Wizengamot, as follows -

I. Ministerial and Administrative Regulation.

(1) Any person who has in his ancestry within the last three generations any non-human relative is to be considered as being non-human in nature, and is required - 

(a) To submit his name, his occupation, and his address to the Ministry of Magic’s Office for the Registration of Creatures and Halfbreeds at his earliest possible convenience and in any case before 1st April of this year.

(b) To ensure that the records held by the aforementioned Office are at all times accurate and up to date, and to inform the Office of any change at his earliest convenience and in any case within 7 days of the change being effective.

(c) To obtain from the aforementioned Office a copy of Form MRC14/C, which serves as confirmation of registration and of ancestry.

(d) To present to his current employer and any future employer a copy of the aforementioned Form, which serves as notification of non-human ancestry, and to do so immediately upon receipt of the Form.

(2) Any person who has been subject to a Creature-Induced Process of Change, for example a werewolf bite, is to be considered as being non-human in nature, and is required -

(a) To comply with all requirements enacted under (1)(a) to (d) above.

(b) To present himself at St. Mungo’s Hospital, or another Ministry Authorized Healing Establishment, at monthly intervals to undergo examination.

(c) To obtain from the Ministry of Magic’s Office for the Registration of Creatures and Halfbreeds a copy of Form MRC14/D, which serves as confirmation of Creature-Induced Change status.

(d) To present to his current employer and any future employer a copy of the aforementioned Form, which serves as notification of non-human ancestry, and to do so immediately upon receipt of the Form.

(3) Any person affected under the terms of (1) or (2) above is required in addition -

(a) To report himself in person to the Ministry of Magic’s Office for the Registration of Creatures and Halfbreeds within the next forty days, and;

(b) To submit to examination by any accredited official of the aforementioned Office, and;

(c) To accept any determination by the aforementioned official regarding the risk posed by him to the remainder of wizarding society.

(d) To take all reasonable steps laid out to him by the aforementioned official in order to safeguard other members of wizarding society against the risk posed by him.

(4) Any person deemed by the Ministry of Magic’s Office for the Registration of Creatures and Halfbreeds to fall under the terms of (1), (2), or (3) above who believes that these clauses are not applicable to him has the right to appeal as follows -

(a) In the first place, to the Manager of the aforementioned Office, or;

(b) In the second place, to the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, or;

(c) In the third place, to the Senior Undersecretary, or;

(d) In the fourth place, to the Court of the Wizengamot.

II. Restriction of Dangerous Individuals.

(1) Any person who is considered by an appointed official under the terms of I.(3) above to pose a significant risk to wizarding society at large is required -

(a) To refrain from entering major centers of wizarding civilization in the British Isles during the hours of darkness.

(b) To refrain from occupying himself in any employment requiring or otherwise involving regular contact with members of the public, Muggle or magical.

(c) To inform the proprietor of any business or the manager of any location which he may enter that he is classed by the Ministry of Magic as being a high-risk individual.

(d) To refrain from engaging in public activities, including (but not limited to): lobbying, debating, political speechmaking, petitioning, poster campaigns, &c.

(e) To seek permission from the Ministry of Magic before traveling within the country or attempting to leave it.

(2) Any person who is considered to be of a non-human nature under the terms of I(1) or I(2) above is required -

(a) To refrain from feeding or otherwise sustaining himself in a public place.

(b) To feed or otherwise sustain himself in a manner which is hygienic and non-harmful to other members of the magical community, in accordance with MoM Code of Practice C132 (Appendix A).

(c) To obtain his foodstuffs from only those sources approved and regulated by the Ministry of Magic.

(3) No person who is considered to be of a non-human nature under the terms of I(1) or I(2) above is permitted -

(a) To own, rent, lease, or otherwise hold in their name any form of material property other than that which is deemed portable and reasonably necessary to their survival.

(b) To purchase, rent, or otherwise obtain any object which might reasonably be classified as a weapon or object of hostile nature.

(c) To reside within twenty miles of a major wizarding settlement, unless within a specified Ministry-registered Center for Creature Housing at the behest of the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

(d) To have a wand in their possession between the hours of 8pm and 7am.

III. Powers of Enforcement.

(1) An officer of the Ministry, or a person acting with the authority of such an officer, upon witnessing any behavior criminalized by the due application of this Act, or being satisfied by witness account that such behavior is likely to have occurred, shall be entitled -

(a) To issue Form BH98843/X, a formal warning noted on the offender’s Ministry file.

(b) To impose an immediate fine not exceeding 50 Galleons and 4 Knuts.

(c) To execute an arrest and transfer the suspect into the custody of the Ministry of Magic, pending trial.

(2) The penalties to which an offender may be subject following trial are -

(a) The immediate imposition of a fine not exceeding 300 Galleons.

(b) The confiscation of assets to a value not exceeding 500 Galleons.

(c) The reimposition of the Trace and removal of the right to practice magic.

Enacted by the Courts Wizengamot, by the authority of the Lords Temporal, Spiritual, and Magical, and at the behest of the duly elected Minister for Magic on this day, 2nd of November 1996.

An Act to regulate and to control the expressions and behaviors displayed by witches and wizards in places defined as being public, the better to protect the decency and the propriety of the community as a whole, and to ensure that the sensitive may walk the streets without fear of observing behaviors which may offend their sensibilities.

Be it enacted by the authority of the Wizengamot, as follows -

I. Impropriety of Appearance.

(1) Any person appearing in a public place, defined for the purposes of the Act as a place to which members of the wizarding public have free access at any time, is required - 

(a) To do so in a manner of dress which would not be judged by a reasonable person to be excessively revealing, provocative, or otherwise inflammatory.

(b) To do so in a state of cleanliness and hygiene which does not cause offense to other members of society.

(c) To ensure that no aspect of his demeanor or dress might be considered by a reasonable person to be offensive, aggressive, or otherwise incompatible with the sensibilities of the general public.

(2) Any person appearing in his place of work, defined for the purposes of the Act as a place in which he has permanent, temporary, or casual employment at the time of his appearance there, is required -

(a) To do so in a professional state of dress appropriate for the occupation in which he is employed, which a client or colleague would consider as such.

(b) To do so in the greatest possible state of cleanliness taking into account the demands of any particular occupation, and in any case so that a reasonable person would not be offended by his presence.

(c) To comply in all other respects with the requirements established in (1) above.

(3) Any person appearing in a private place, defined for the purposes of this Act as a place to which the wizarding public do not have free access at any time and which is not his place of work, is required -

(a) To ensure that at no time does he allow anything to be visible from a public place which might cause offense or distress to a reasonable person.

(b) To ensure that at no time does he appear in a private place which is not under his ownership or management without having first taken all reasonable steps to align his appearance with the expectations of those responsible for the ownership or management of the space.

II. Impropriety of Behavior.

(1) Any person appearing in a public place, defined for the purposes of the Act as a place to which members of the wizarding public have free access at any time, is required -

(a) To refrain from engaging in any activity which might cause discomfort or embarrassment to any reasonable person witnessing it.

(b) To refrain from excessive physical contact, friendly or romantic, which is inappropriate to the context in which it occurs.

(c) To speak only on matters appropriate for and reflective of the context in which the conversation occurs, taking account of others in the immediate area.

(d) To moderate the volume and language of their conversations according to the context in which they occur, taking account of others in the immediate area.

(e) To ensure that their general demeanor or carriage is not of a sort which might cause distress or discomfort to any reasonable person witnessing it.

(2) Any person appearing in a public place, defined as above, must, when making use of any magical item or device -

(a) Ensure that its use can cause no conceivable harm, distress, aggravation, or upset to others in the vicinity.

(b) Satisfy himself that it is not a prohibited item listed on the Register of Prohibited Disruptive and Disturbing Devices.

(c) Immediately cease its use when requested to do so by any respectable person.

(3) Any person appearing in a public place, defined as above, must, when in company of children or other beings of lesser or reduced responsibility -

(a) Ensure that their behavior causes no disturbance or disruption to others in the vicinity.

(b) Take all reasonable steps to restrain and control their behavior where appropriate and necessary to do so.

(c) Accept full responsibility for their behavior and actions during the entire time of their presence in a public place.

III. Powers of Enforcement.

(1) An officer of the Ministry, or a person acting with the authority of such an officer, upon witnessing any behavior criminalized by the due application of this Act, or being satisfied by witness account that such behavior has occurred, shall be entitled -

(a) To issue Form BH1223/C, a formal warning noted on the offender’s Ministry file.

(b) To impose an immediate fine not exceeding 20 Galleons and 6 Sickles.

(c) To execute an arrest and transfer the suspect into the custody of the Ministry of Magic, pending trial.

(2) The penalties to which an offender may be subject following trial are -

(a) The immediate imposition of a fine not exceeding 300 Galleons.

(b) The confiscation of assets to a value not exceeding 500 Galleons.