The Council of Mystic Elders and the jirzai hold meetings a secret location unknown to all but a small handful of Elders who are scattered across the globe. They disseminate any information through animal servants in order to keep their location secret. If one of the Mystic Elders dies, a new member is recruited from among the current ranks of the Elders, and that person will be summoned to a specific location where she will learn the location of the Council.
The Jade Circle is spread quite thin, given its small numbers. Most forests on the World Continent do not have the benefit of the Jade Circle's care. Those forests in the Far East and in Verundhi where the Jade Circle operate typically have only a handful of initiates and one Elder to lead them.
Only pureblood jade elves of lawful neutral or pure neutral are allowed to join the Jade Circle.
History
Like many traditions of the pureblood elves, the origins of the Jade Circle are lost in time. There are many monuments and rings of standing stones that have recorded histories dating back thousands of years. Many of these monuments have markings and symbols currently utilized by the Jade Circle, and many members believe that the Jade Circle built the monuments in the ancient past in order to track the movements of the stars or perhaps to record important events. If these beliefs are true, then the Jade Circle has been around for thousands of years.
The focus of the Jade Circle is on the protection and restoration of forestland, so history and record-keeping does not receive much priority from the membership. The leaders keep accurate details regarding druidic ceremonies and rituals, but other types of information common to other groups, such as membership rosters of lists of deeds, are nonexistent.
Recent history of the order is, surprisingly, similarly vague. The Jade Circle's limited activities with modern society keep it out of purview of most people. Even those who have had dealings with the order are unlikely to known anything about them given the Jade Circle's desire for secrecy.
In the Far East and in Verundhi, outside the area of influence of the Universal �tonist church, the Jade Circle have become slightly more increasingly bold over the past few decades. New leadership, perhaps, has caused them to take a more political and defiant stance. Rather than acting from a defensive position, protecting their forests only when threatened, lately the Jade Circle has been taking a more aggresive role, striking out against those whom they believe would do them and their forests harm.
This more aggressive behavior has been witnessed lately in Ibara, Shang, and in parts of the wasteland near the eastern border of Kovlich where the wraith elves live. Details of these attacks are not known, but survivors report that the attacks were unprovoked, and were particularly viscious, especially against the wraith elves.
Locations
There does not seem to be any physical headquarters of the Jade Circle. Like many other druid circles, they prefer to meet outdoors, in small glades in the center of the forests they protect. Many meeting places are also located near ancient monuments of the past, particularly circles of standing stones, but also obelisks, stele, barrows, and cairns, all of which arguably predate the founding of the Jade Circle.
Most large forests and jungles in the Far East and Verundhi are likely to host at least a small group of 2-3 members of the Jade Circle.
Symbols, Dress, and Practices
There are no specific symbols that the Jade Circle use to identify themselves. There is a secret druidic language which the members of the Jade Circle use. They have also adopted many of the strange carvings found upon the various standing stones, obelisks, and stele that they use during their ceremonies. Some members have turned these symbols into elaborate tattoos, while others have woven the patterns into their clothing and jewelry. While most believe the ancient symbols to relate to astrological events and representations of nature, the symbols often do bear a strong resemblance to goblin imagery.
Similarly to the lack of uniformity regarding symbolism, there are no particular dress requirements for the Jade Circle. While the members themselves adhere to a strict lawful, orderly existence, they believe in simplicity as well. Most members wear robes of earth tones, typically browns and greens in spring and reds and oranges in fall. Other than these very loosely defined color schemes, members are free to choose their own clothing. They must of course conform to the old practices that restrict the use of metal on armor or weapons.
Jade Circle ceremonies are based on a lunar calendar, and are held on the "cross-quarter" holidays of mid-summer, mid-autumn, mid-winter, and mid-spring.
