Hundred-League Gates | Notes About the Setting

  Six armoured figures kneel upon the ramp, silently reciting oaths to the hilts of their swords or the stocks of their projectile casters. Before them lies a portal: a shimmering field constrained within an arch of cables, enclosed incompletely within a metal frame. On either side, robed figures adjust sets of balances, oscillating springs and sparking, brass spheres distributed along the wooden consoles. One by one, they step back in satisfaction that their part of the calibration is complete, then exit the chamber in single file.
  The knights stand. Their champion, stood at the front, turns and raises his blade aloft with a shout. The others match his salute, and then he turns once more and leads them into the now stabilised glow. A series of flashes: one, then two, then three, and then the chamber is empty. The clerics return again to power the mechanisms down and leave subsequently in irregular groups for their next duties. The chamber is dark and silent once more, until the powers of traversal sealed within are called upon again.

  The last gift to the Northern Kingdoms of the great scholar, Lin of Ffrwntyr, before their disappearance at the end of the Age of Blades, the Hundred-League Gates solved a vulnerability that had plagued the knight orders since their inception. The Gates enable scores of warriors to travel vast distances in an instant, an act that would previously have required weeks of marching, or days cooped up inside one of their earth-cleaving transports. The mechanism by they function was perhaps only fully understood by their originator, but the schools of techno-occultism that participated in their construction still practise the necessary teachings for their continued operation. So long as they are within the limit of one hundred leagues, aid will never be far from those who fight for the kingdoms' future.

  The effective range is only one of a number of key factors in the deployment and usage of the Hundred-League Gates. Other considerations include their tremendous power requirements, which make them operable within a number of larger, permanent fortifications and the few mighty battleships still within the knights' possession, and the limited ability of the technological priesthood to conduct repairs, which further bolsters the need to keep these treasures within the largest and most defensible structures.
  Following these are the aspects regarding their users. The spatial gap between steps is disorienting at a minimum and those unfamiliar with the experience are often left in a state of unreadiness for a short while after. Therefore, only experienced warriors will head forth directly into battle where their foes exclusively will be stunned by the sudden arrival. On the other hand, novices will be directed on acclimatisation routes that take them to a prepared landing zone, typically either a designated hall within a fortress or a temporary space cleared at an encampment, to provide them with the time and facilities to recover before their services are called upon.