Aether Revolt as Told by Flavor Text

The Consulate recruits its best pilots from the League of Aeronauts. Many go on to command entire fleets.

Gremlins in the wild feed on nodules of pure aether, which are also prized by miners.

"Supplies inbound. Keep that pressure on."

"Sure, you know the law. But I know the streets."

"This little critter can turn all of you to scrap in under thirty seconds! Come on, who wants to be the first to go? Try and stop me!"

Headquartered at the Bastion of the Honorable, the Consulate's enforcers are charged with the impossible task of keeping the peace.

The "leaking spire" stands for liberation from Consulate control.

While hunting aether, a gremlin may ignore other stimuli, including threats to its own life.

"The workshops are silent. Our creations have been seized. They have killed what made us alive." —Pia Nalaar

"There is no greater coward than one who believes in nothing."

"Go forth and cause trouble, my little one!"

"It came to rest upon the angel's arm, and then the weight of their gazes fell upon me." —Aeronaut's journal

"It seems there's even better hunting down here."

"A key weakness in the design is its vulnerability to repeated, forceful blows."

"With spy thopters all around, how can the consuls be so blind to Tezzeret's manipulations?" —Gideon Jura

A living invention born of a grand design.

The loyalty of a felidar is hard won but worth the effort.

Many airship captains keep pets that share their love of the sky.

Dwarves' tools are priceless heirlooms handed down through generations.

"I can no longer sit in my workshop and ignore the events outside. My hammers strike for the people of Ghirapur."

"As this conflict grows, it gets harder to prevent the city from breaking down. How much longer can we keep this machinery balanced?"

"It's important to always have the right tool for the job. This one is for picking my teeth."

The Consulate's eyes—unblinking, unsleeping—are everywhere.

"To survive up here, I've learned when to use my harpoon and when to just enjoy the view." —Kadhu, skywhaler

"The echo of silence is music to my ears."

"Get out of my way."

"This armor transcends the limitations of mere flesh and bone."

"How easily your flames are quenched." —Baral, Chief of Compliance

As renegade forces closed in on the Aether Spire, Consulate blockades failed one by one.

For some of Ghirapur's aerowrights, building thopters is a byproduct of larger construction efforts.

"As a kid, I dreamed of flying on those wild drakes. They inspired me to build wings of my own." —Nadja Cloudtoucher, aerowright

"Slow the Consulate with whatever you've got!" —Jasi Ganin, master siphoner

"When everything hangs on a single moment, be sure you choose the right moment." —Jace Beleren

The daredevil racers of the Derby Crows, long at odds with the Consulate, were quick to join the renegades in open revolt.

"Give me eight walkers, I'll give you the city." —Dovin Baan

"Too little, too late. The machine is in motion." —Tezzeret

"It is fascinating to see how the people of this plane replicate magical techniques without a natural gift. Also frustrating." —Jace Beleren

"Let's just broaden its surveillance lens."

The Hold, an illegal research facility in a derelict merchant ship, became a wellspring of renegade intelligence.

A hermit crab goes through many shells in its lifetime, and not all are natural in origin.

Conflict breeds opportunity.

Shipwrecks do wonders for the local fauna, providing both shelter and aether.

Escapes should always be daring.

"You can tell me what I want to know, or you can talk to the Chief of Compliance. Why don't you make it easy on yourself?"

"The tools of the past will help us forge the future."

Small aeronaut societies like the Wind-Kin had little to lose by siding with the renegades, and much to gain.

"You never know what day might be your last."

"This is bigger than you. All of you." —Tezzeret

Bitter the bite of a demon's steel, and deep the abyss it opens.

Living so close to death gives the aetherborn an unusual perspective on risk.

"I didn't survive that crash just so I could fall to the likes of you."

"Success is found where others fear to look." —Ara, renegade smuggler

Its buzzing is easily mistaken for the hum of a thopter's wings.

Renegades run the gamut from lofty sages to petty thieves.

A few aetherborn have discovered a way to sustain their own existences at the cost of an insatiable hunger for the life essence of other beings.

"I am confident that all our enterprises can benefit from this little revolution."

As the rebellion spread, renegade ingenuity outpaced the Consulate's greatest fears.

"Death might come tomorrow, but today—today I am alive."

Comrades in life. Comrades in death.

You can't fight what you can't find.

When the salvage team brought in the shattered gearhulk, a wave of excitement swept through the renegade foundry.

There is no shortage of illegal salvage in Ghirapur, nor of those who are willing to profit from it.

Some aetherborn joined the rebellion for profit, others for the sake of their freedom, still others for revenge.

"The time for subtlety is over, darling."

"The Consulate pushed me to my limit, darling, and this is the result."

Chandra was driven by her anger, directed particularly at the man who had taken her father from her.

"I don't think they'll appreciate my . . . adjustments." —Karavin, renegade saboteur

"A well-made wrench is a versatile, indispensable tool."

When fighting spilled over into Giant's Walk, the aether weapons and swooping airships angered the normally placid creatures.

The dragons perching in Freejam's towers symbolize the zone's fierce independence.

"Will you be strong and stand with me?"

In the hold of the Heart of Kiran, Chandra answered Dovin Baan's sabotage with an explosive retort.

Gremlins can change from pest to problem to plague in the span of a moment.

Aboard her ship, the Dragon's Smile, Kari follows no one's rules but her own.

"I was made for this!"

Travelers to Lathnu, high on the Devra Cliffs, need not fear the political strife of Ghirapur . . . but they have other dangers to worry about.

"Catch me if you can."

Pia's passion was directed at the big picture—at making real, lasting change.

"Hit where it hurts, and always hit first."

"Let's add just a bit more stopping power."

"I've made some fine acquisitions of late, so I'm planning to make commensurate improvements to my security systems. I have a consultant coming tomorrow." —Kurna Majan, Luminary League

Illegal street races turned out to be perfect practice for avoiding Consulate patrols.

"Being an inventor means knowing how to use the tools at hand to make something great—or to bring it down." —Pia Nalaar

The tools of invention became the weapons of revolution.

Perfect for getting through to the consuls.

The residents of Embraal were never known for finesse, just for getting things done.

Gremlins are loyal to nothing but their next meal.

Its frill inspired the design of efficient aether collectors.

"The wild tangle of the Cowl provides sanctuary to life that watched the first buildings rise."

Subtlety is not a necessary part of sabotage.

"I will not rest until every vestige of the Consulate—every banner, flag, and standard—has fallen."

"Wherever the strong would harm the weak, I will be there." —Ajani Goldmane

In the cellars beneath Narnam House, a strange and deadly garden grows.

"If nothing else, the Inventors' Fair taught us that we're only beginning to discover aether's true potential." —Kershan Danil, Highspire artisan

"It was made, yes, but that does not mean it cannot grow."

"I do not ask you to be tame. I only ask you to be true." —Rishkar, Peema renegade

The best engineers recognize when a problem has already been solved.

"Regards from Peema." —Rishkar

"I do not need to pierce your heart to still its beating."

"It is folly to believe your precious inventions will endure. All things return to the soil." —Nirav, Tirahar elder

"The Great Conduit connects us all."

It is the nature of the strong to survive.

"Each creature holds a solution to a problem, a lesson to be learned." —Oviya Pashiri, sage lifecrafter

"Aether is the soul of Kaladesh, and all souls should be free."

"Control the Great Conduit? You might as well try to divert a river with your hands."

"It was right here a second ago . . ."

Elvish weavers use spidersilk to make everything from tapestries to rappelling ropes.

"If the Consulate has abandoned restraint, so too shall the wilds." —Surash, keeper of the Cowl

"Until all have found their place, I will keep watch."

The vibrant forest of Peema is awash with aether. Its animals are stronger, faster, and more aggressive than their counterparts elsewhere.

"This fight belongs to us all."

Many veterans of the Ovalchase racetrack turned their talents to the renegade cause.

"It's natural, it's all around us, and it's there for the taking. Just try and tell me what I'm doing is wrong."

"After I examine your cargo and check your papers, you can be on your way."

"Let's err on the side of glorious mayhem."

The streets of Ghirapur have become dangerous. It's good to have a dependable companion.

When you have taught an automaton how to build others of its kind, it is a small step to make it build itself.

"The Consulate sought to crush us. Let's give them a taste of their own medicine." —Venkat Dasai, renegade commander

Duplication is neither thievery nor flattery. It is efficiency.

"It's like they planted another Bastion right in the middle of the harbor." —Bes Tavani, Bomat merchant

"Our watchtowers are well positioned. Why don't we arm them?" —Enforcer-Chief Ranaj

"All buildings are subject to search. Resistance will be punished." —Enforcer-Chief Ranaj

"The most harmonious designs are based on relationships found in nature." —Venand Kapur, the Gearherder

"They never tire, they never complain, and they never ask questions. Build more." —Ivash, Consulate inventor

Despite the magic that sustains Gonti's life, the crime lord is often described as heartless.

The renegades mounted an aether disruptor aboard a lightweight thopter to destroy Tezzeret's Planar Bridge.

A dream of fire lies coiled inside, waiting for its glorious awakening.

A tool to see the unseen.

A mystery in metal.

Ghirapur's most celebrated inventors have been immortalized in clockwork.

"We've been through a lot together."

"Inspiration is found by looking outward." —Oviya Pashiri, sage lifecrafter

"If you can build it, we can move it." —Bes Tavani, Bomat merchant

"One head watches for Consulate enforcers. The other watches for renegade thieves." —Crime Lord Gonti

"You want to know what we are fighting for? Look at the wonder in that child's eyes." —Pia Nalaar

The Consulate had access to thousands of innovative devices displayed at the Inventors' Fair. A few small changes transformed some of them from marvels of ingenuity to instruments of oppression.

"One look at this glorious item convinced me that Kaladesh deserved my full attention. Sure enough, my time here has yielded exquisite fruit." —Tezzeret

"Peace? Its sole purpose is fear." —Saheeli Rai

"It is finished. Now the real work can begin." —Tezzeret

The Scrappers, an underground group with a passion for automaton brawls, had renegade leanings even before the Consulate's crackdown. It didn't take long for them to lend their best brawlers to the conflict.

"We have safe houses in every zone, but you'll never find one without this."

Renegade supply lines are, by necessity, mobile and difficult to disrupt.

The Consulate prizes innovation when it is dependable and replicable.

"A few drops of this, and the trickiest problems simply melt away." —Thamaz, Weldfast inventor

Rules and rails are made to be broken.

"A perfect fusion of nature and artifice." —Irsi, Kujar gardener

"Before we can destroy our enemies, we must find them. We must peer into every wretched hovel and every teeming market." —Baral, Chief of Compliance

Most of the constructs the renegades used against the Consulate weren't originally intended for combat. But some didn't require much modification.

A beacon of prosperity to some, a shadow of oppression to others.

"This is about more than aether or inventions. Tezzeret's schemes must be stopped!" —Ajani Goldmane

"I will go where the lion-man leads."

Beyond the chaos of Ghirapur lies a vibrant world where aether flows through nature.

"You can't hope to comprehend the plans that are in motion." —Tezzeret

Its elaborate designs reveal secrets of aether's flow.

Tezzeret's command of living metal has nothing to do with intricate gearcraft or aether supplies.

Aether currents in the sky mirror water currents below, including the deadly rapids.