Clarity pyre

Clarity pyres are book burnings instigated by the government of Cheliax that are designed to reinforce its prestige and power.

Background

History in diabolic Cheliax is a slippery thing, especially if it deals with events that occurred before the ascendance of House Thrune. Cheliax's current rulers understand history's power to inspire, and therefore have actively worked to eradicate any mention of the nation's imperial past. They have even done this to former allies, and more than a few noble families have found themselves excised from official records after offending Queen Abrogail Thrune II.

Every three months a new state-sanctioned history is printed and disseminated to the nation's universities and libraries. The now outdated, older copies of these books are collected by the Hellknight Order of the Rack and burned on so called clarity pyres, and heavy penalties are imposed on any organization that fails to offer up its previously assigned volumes. The new histories invariably have large gaps and omissions, sometimes to the point of making them unreadable.

Despite this, records survive that have escaped the Imperial Ministry of Historical Accuracy's frequent revisions. These publications can fetch a high price on the black market, providing one can find a buying who is not a paid informant for the Ministry. Note that any text that the government considers "troublesome" can be fuel for the pyres, not just historical ones.