Editing User:Bill/Magocracy of Dholavira/NPCs/Apep (section)

===Growth of Dholavira and Creation of the Eldrich College===
In the reign of Shamash, Siduri's son and heir, the citadel and bailey were constructed. Shamash saw himself as a would-be conqueror, but due to the isolation of Dholavira and its small size there were no neighbors close enough to subjugate. Shamash contented himself by attempting to exterminate the gnoll tribes. Apep, in the guise of Shamash's adviser Hasis, convinced the young king to hire several mages to support the crusade. One of whom was Apep himself in the guise of Enuma the Evoker.

Over the course of a year the gnoll tribes were driven away from the growing city. Their bloody shrines were wiped away from the land and hundreds of the beasts' corpses were burned on pyres. For more than a century, the gnoll tribes were seldom seen near the city.

Once the bloody work was done, Enuma bargained with his fellow mages and Shamash to create a college of sorcery in Dholavira. Apep made a couple deals with the mages privately to gain their acquiescence, and as Hasis he convinced Shamash to support the idea. Publicly, it appeared as if the mystical heroes of the great crusade against the gnolls were rewarded by the king with a charter to create a school of magic. Continuing to work behind the scenes Apep continued to gather faculty for the newly founded Eldrich College and drafted its charter to support a democratic ideal.

With the foundation of the Eldrich college, Apep was forced to back away from directing the course of Dholavira's growth. He had no desire to actually rule the city or to come into direct conflict with the powerful magi that would soon dominate her political landscape. Their ability to see through his disguises necessitated that he begin working through intermediaries. Only a very select number of magi in the city are completely aware of their draconic benefactor's existence. For most, Enuma is a historical figure that was important to the creation of the city as they know it and nothing more.