The Evil Destiny Prologue

This is the next session for Ars Magica and will lead into two more sessions. This and the second will centre on Sa`id al-Muhibb. The third will combine Sa`id and Akros, hopefully one doesn't take a dislike to the other and murder him.

If you are not playing the PC have a look at the NPCs - including reading the character sheets! - look at their virtues, flaws and personality traits and have a think about who you would like to play.

Sa`id al-Muhibb

The PC of the story

Felix, one of the two senior Magi of the Covenant has requested that you lead a group east to meet Muhammad, an old man you have not met but seen at the Covenant and know of, and a man named Akros. You are to accompany them back to the Covenant. You are to assist Adolfo, a member of the Covenant you have only now met, in any way you can during this trip. Imam Salman is accompanying you because he has told you he wants some fresh warm air and would like to see the coast.

You have a number of weeks to reach the coast and those that you are meeting should be awaiting you in a guest house. Expect frequent stops in towns along the way as Adolfo goes about his business.

The NPCs:

Imam Salman abu Janeeta (Safe father of a Gift of God)

The Humourous but deeply Pious religious man.

Salman is deeply religious, adhering to the pillars of Islam. But he is neither dogmatic nor narrow in his view on religion. In the greatest traditions of Islam he views the Word of Allah as complex and open to discussion and argument amongst the Ummah. He will engage in debate, though always in a good natured fashion, to educate, not diminish, embarrass or provoke, he will joke and use his masterfully wry humour to put others at ease.

Salman’s role is to see to the welfare of those who live and work within the Covenant of Summa Tutela. He has been an associate of both Felix and Celestine, though not close to them, he sees his role as ensuring the safety and security of members of Islam as they fall under the rule of the invaders.

When not taking care of the people of the Covenant Salman has begun careful study of the Infernal, finding books in the library of the Covenant he has began what he terms: “preparatory preventative study”.

The Pillars of Islam

The Five Pillars of Islam (Arabic: أركان الإسلام) is the term given to the five duties incumbent on every Muslim. These duties are Shahadah (profession of faith), Salah (ritual prayer), Zakah (alms tax), Sawm (fasting during Ramadan), and Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca).

Your objectives:

Get to know Sa`id al-Muhibb, he has only just joined the Covenant, recruited by Celestine.

Fulfill your duty to look to the welfare of all those who belong to the Covenant, at the moment this means getting a better understanding of the Infernal, particularly Demons.

Adolfo Eloy

The political can do man of the Covenant

Adolfo was raised within the confines of a Covenant on the northern Spanish coast of the Mediterranean. You are devoted to the magi and to doing your best to building political alliances with all those you meet. Unfortunately all your experience so far has been within the sphere of the Order of Hermes, this will be your first chance to explore the wider world and build some connections for the Covenant on the path to the east coast. Especially in the port city where you are to find an old man known as Muhammad who will be accompanying a much younger Slavic man. You will then bring them back to the Covenant.

Your objectives:

Make contacts for the Covenant on the way to the East Coast.

Fulfill your duty to look to the welfare of all those who belong to the Covenant by finding Muhammad and the Slavic young man.

Teamster Miguel

The man with the horses and mules.

You are loyal to the animals of the Covenant, they are the only ones that you like, and the only ones that for some reason seem to like you. You are so good at your job that everyone else tolerates your morose temperament and you tolerate everyone else, so long as no one mistreats the animals! You cannot abide any form of animal cruelty.

Your objectives:

Keep the animals happy and comfortable on the trip to the east and back.

Seek calculated vengeance on anyone mistreating the animals of the Covenant.

NPC objectives

Muhammad

A once great assassin, Muhammad is now near death. He is not famous and never wants to be, he believes that the best assassins are not famous and do not wish to be.

He his quite a nice man, having sated much of his avarice through his life he remains very unwilling to part with what he has, other than to meet any mission objectives and enjoys socializing, particularly with poets, bards and singers.

Muhammad will not kill outside mission objectives, other than to preserve his life.

Session Objectives:

Personal: Muhammad is dieing and seeking a student to whom he can impart as much know as he can in his dieing days. He hopes that the young assassin Celeste has sent him to find and bring to Spain can be that student.

From Celeste: Find Akros and pass the note from Celeste bearing her seal, which Akros will recognise, halting his mission to kill the Vandelay family head and instead travel to Spain as soon as possible.

Muhammad has enough money to be comfortable in Spain and book passage for both himself and Akros to Spain.

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Missoire Tales

The Bard is still looking for steady work, He wants to wrap up business in Sicily as soon as possible and encourage Babak to depart for Spain.

Missoire is also hesitant to involve himself further in the events on the ship; after all, it was he who swapped the wine glass to the obviously wealthy and well-connected Lady.

Session Objectives:

Find a job where he can sing, perform, compose and entertain while living comfortably.

Get off Sicily without embroiling himself in any more murders

Draft for the next Ars Magica session

The next Ars Magica session will be on Sicily.

The arrival of the boat, minus two passengers has the crew, captain and other passengers eager to spread the word on what they saw, or what they think they saw. Missoire Tales is still terrified, knowing the truth about what happened, but eager to share not should he attract unwanted attention with his words. Captain Babak thinks he knows what happened and is eager to tell the wealthy Merchant Arnaldo Vandaley that the passenger who disappeared from Babak’s ship was seeking him - Missoire has shared a little with Babak but is starting to regret even that now that he is accompanying him to seek out Vandelay. Athamus, Drakon and Kadmos are out of a job and looking for work, concerned that their last employers may seek recompense for the death of their charge, Eris.

Coming ashore separately will be Akos, fleeing the ship after the murder of his fellow passenger he has followed the boat to Sicily and into the harbour, he still has a mission to complete, kill Arnaldo Vandaley.

Once ruled by the Norman Hauteville Dynasty the south German Hohenstaufen Dynasty has ruled Sicily since 1194, Frederick II currently holds the title of King of Sicily.

Ars Magica - the Assassin Sessions

The game tonight will be on a Galley traveling from the Albania to Sicily so I need a Merchant Captain today from Steve D.

On board will be a small number of passengers, a guy who is apparently an Alchemist (Bela), Missoire (below) traveling from Byzantium to Spain to find a Court and steady job or at least opportunities within the growing Christian lands, the Merchant Captain (below) and one or two others along with cargo.

I have Bela's Where are my other NPCs? :-)

The game will commence at 7:30-8pm at Logical choice, meet at Cafe Essen at 7pm.

See everyone there

Akos (White Falcon) Gyuri

Akros’ mission is to find and execute Arnaldo Vandaley who is reportedly currently somewhere in Sicily on business.

Arnaldo is quite short 5’3” and portly, he heads a powerful trading house of which there are three sons and two daughters, he always has bodyguards about him and often travels with one of his sons.

The mission is from your new employer who has negotiated your release from service to the King of Hungary.

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Missoire Tales

Known as friendly at many pubs Missoirie is Famous for having a magnificent singing voice. He also really enjoys telling jokes but they are never good, usually when he starts his comedy routine the pub clears.

He has the ability to find out the truth behind what is going on through and around different areas. He does this by talking to fellow bards and troubadours, of whom he knows many, or he just stumbles on to stuff that he might hear while traveling and performing.

He would like to sell the secrets/information to people to make a good living but he has tendency to tell people the information before he has the chance to sell it. He curses him self every time he does this.

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Captain Babak

Babak wants to become the leading Persian trader within the Mediterranean, as well as free the seas of the scourge of Piracy. He was delivering routine trade goods to Sicily from where he was to pick up additional goods. He has been also been commissioned to deliver his passengers to Spain, a nice bonus.

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Eris (aka Harmonia, Danae and Dione)

Eris’ mission is to find and execute Arnaldo Vandaley who is reportedly currently somewhere in Sicily on business.

Arnaldo is quite short 5’3” and portly, he heads a powerful trading house of which there are three sons and two daughters.

The mission is from your employer a rival trading House, which has declared a Vendetta against House Vandelay.

Charming and extraordinarily beautiful Eris never lets her guard down, except in her drive for sex. Cruel in all things she never demonstrates this clearly unless she knows the one who sees it is about to die.

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Athamus, Drakon and Kadmos,

You are in service to the Lady Harmonia – you do not know her identity - and you will protect her Ladyship with your lives. You also enjoy getting drunk.

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The sailors of Captain Babak are loyal to a man, he pays you well, kills Pirates well and gives you shore leave to drink and womanise.

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Next Session

After some discussion we have three new concepts for NPCs for Ars Magica. hopefully the players will each write-up some quick background and associated information and send it to everyone. I am happy to stat them up though I would prefer people to read up on the rules and learn this better to do themselves.

The next session will be focusing on Bela's Assassin and involve the Merchant Brother of Vandelay and a gossiping Bard. I will need these NPCs to play. I will be doing up some others separately but will need those two.

The School of Wqid is also getting a possessive ghost to join them which will make dealing with them interesting.

Ars Magica Session

Hi All,

See below for the introduction to tonight's session, if you cannot make it let me know as I have a second option vaguely prepared. Start time is 7:30, arrival from 7pm onwards as I have a few more things to prepare before the game.

I am still slowly recovering from Wintercon, all those intense sessions really took it out of me.

See everyone tonight, hopefully we can now get back into regular fortnightly sessions. L. Steve, bring a blank disk and I will burn Spirit of the Century for you so you can start running it for us :-)

Cheers,

Andrew

The Journey of Vandelay and el Viajero

Having lost Viriathus and narrowly escaping wolves Vandaley lies injured, Tanit can perform some magic to ease his suffering but should he attempted to travel at any pace his condition will likely worsen – in the wilds this will likely lead to death.

El Viajero and Jihad are not enough to carry Vandaley. Should Tanit continue casting spells upon him, despite her apparent skill, the likelihood of magic going awry, sending Vandaley into twilight or worse would increase every day that she casts spells.

The travelers have choices; including continuing slowly across the land towards Toledo and their Covenant, wolves possibly at their heels. Or attempt to find a refuge on the road to Toledo, from where they can send a message to their future home - or at least seek assistance – though Tanit’s Blatant Gift, and both Vandaley and el Viajero’s own Gift will make this difficult, as will the runaway slave state of Jihad.

This session is about making sure Vandaley does not die in the woods. If we can get him to his new home that would be good, or just getting to safety.

There are several NPCs, read up on all of them because depending on how the game goes different people will be playing different characters at different times. Both Bela and L. Steve will play Magpie at the same time, we should sort out how this is going to work before the session begins.

PCs:

• Vandaley lies injured after helping drive off the attacking wolves; he wandered into the dark woods alone looking for firewood, owes a debt to a Fae and has several pawns of Vis in his possession - played by L. Steve
• El Viajero, helped push Viriathus into being abducted by the Fae, or fulfil a debt, interested in the Fae realm and has a pawn of Vis - played by Steve X

NPCs for this session:

• Jihad, nice kid but scrawny, non-Magi think he is shifty, people who recognise his description will know he is an escaped slave. He is currently the travelers guide - played by Bela.
  
• Magpie, devoted to Jihad, likes Magi, is he a God of Birds amongst men. He is the devoted friend of Jihad; the two are inseparable - Played by Bela and L. Steve.
• Tanit fillia Ashtart Ex Miscellanea – rumors of human sacrifice area associated with her and she terrifies normal people. The travelers have seen her blast trees into fire, open wounds on attacking wolves and temporarily heal one of Vandelay’s lesser wounds - played by the story-guide.

Potential other NPCs to be played:

• Walchelin already helped el Viajero, though it is a bit hazy for el Viajero; Walchelin is a really nice and helpful guy and member of the Order of Hermes. Always ready to help – for a full write-up go here.
• Euphêmía, Walchelin’s Fae and closest friend, she is very hot stuff and a very friendly Faerie.
• Killer Wolves, always ready to kill and smart about it.
• Dancing water Faeries, they like to dance on rivers, meet new people, lure them into rivers, very beautiful and sing wonderfully
• Yusuf, a shepherd hunting wolves; some wolves killed his sheep and goats, he is wants to know what happened and is relentless in his pursuit.
• Muhammad, a merchant traveling; blunt, suspicious but unerringly honorable Muhammad knows his way around Iberia

Next Session - First Draft

Having narrowly escaped the wolves Vandaley lies horribly injured, Tanit can perform some magic to ease his suffering but should he attempt to travel at any pace his condition will likely worsen. El Viajero and Jihad are not enough to carry Vandaley. Should Tanit continue casting spells upon him, despite her apparent skill, the likelihood of magic going horribly awry, sending Vandaley into twilight or worse, could increase every day spells are cast.

The travelers have two choices; continue slowly across the land towards Toledo and their Covenant, wolves possibly at their heels again. Or attempt to find a refuge on the road to Toledo, from where they can send a message to their future home - or at least seek assistance – though Tanit’s Blatant Gift, and both Vandaley and el Viajero’s own Gift will make this difficult, as will the runaway slave state of Jihad.

PCs:

• Vandaley, horribly maimed, played by L. Steve

• el Viajero played by Steve X

NPCs for this session:

• Jihad, nice kid but scrawny, non-Magi think he is shifty, people who recognise his description will know he is an escaped slave, played by Bela

• Magpie, devoted to Jihad, likes Magi, is he a God of Birds amongst men? Played by Bela and L. Steve.

• Tanit fillia Ashtart Ex Miscellanea – rumours of human sacrifice, terrifies normal people - played by the story-guide.

Potential other NPCs that may be encountered:

• Walchelin, already helped el Viajero, though it is a bit hazy for el Viajero, a nice guy and member of the Order of Hermes. Always ready to help

• Euphêmía, Walchelin’s friend, very hot stuff and a very friendly Faerie, Walchelin’s friend

• Killer Wolves, always ready to kill and smart about it

• Dancing water Faeries, like to dance on rivers and sing, nice, friendly and cute

• Yusuf, a shepherd hunting wolves; some wolves killed his sheep and goats, he is wants to know what happened and is relentless in his pursuit

• Muhammad, a merchant traveling; blunt, suspicious but unerringly honourable Muhammad knows his way around Iberia

Eleutherios

Eleutherios represents the heart beast that Vendaley failed to find in his failed initiation into the mysteries of the House of his training. Eleutherios is though also a survivor of the Cult of Dionysus and he wishes to rebuild the Cult.

Eleutherios and the Cult he represents had, before their destruction in the Late Republic of Rome, been filled mainly by Gifted or Magical individuals of Italian and Roman origin who worshipped Dionysus for the strengths that he gave them.

Through his powers, Eleutherios has identified a weakness in Vendaley’s ability to cast spells spontaneously and Eleutherios can set Vendaley on the path to self-release if he can be convinced to free himself from his own restraints and embrace the wilds of Dionysus.

Sus scrofa

Description and Personality

Sus scrofa is a huge Boarman, at 6'5" and with bulging muscles, an ugly countenance and bristling hair he looks built for war. Arrogant in his belief in himself but cowardly in the face of danger Sus is a survivor with one driving agenda, achieving what he wants and, generally, when the going gets tough Sus tries to get going as dieing doesn't interest him much. Unfortunately, he is duty bound to the Guild Dean and now Viriathus and cannot seem to escape the coming war.

The Scene for Sus

Sus does not know why he is here and he is feeling very lost. The last thing he remembers is leaving the Market after gaining a favour from Viriathus who the Guild Dean has now pressed into service for the Great War against the invaders. Sus had believed himself on his way to this war when he turned up here. Still opportunity presents itself, a human and some kind of Leopard to speak with and he doesn’t really want to be involved in the war if he can help it; he may get killed and he is far to important for that. Hopefully the Leopard does not want to eat him.

Sadly Sus scrofa was consumed by one of the PCs an NPC figment of his imagination and a follower of Dionysus.

A Mystery Cult

This is the concept for a Mystery for one of the players in our Ars Magica game. I had been working on a script based on the expansion book, I still plan on using the mechanics from this book but the in game acts have now all been developed in-game through the activities of the players. The Cult was to be rebuilt based on the understanding that the player could achieve through meeting one of the few surviving followers of the Magical being Dionysus who has been largely subsumed by the Fae after he was banned by the Romans. The Initiation rite appears so far to broadly involve suffering a medium wound, learning the appropriate Lore from a follower of Dionysus, sacrificing and consuming a Fae, suffering a minor flaw and taking a warping point. The minor virtue of potent magic is also granted, though the player does not know this yet.

The Cult of Dionysus, A Mystery Cult of the Magical Realm

Dionysus (Latin) or Dionysos (Greek), the Thracian god of wine, represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficial influences. He is viewed as the promoter of civilization, a lawgiver, and lover of peace — as well as the patron deity of agriculture and the theatre. He was also known as the Liberator, freeing one from one's normal self, by madness, ecstasy, or wine. The divine mission of Dionysus was to mingle the music of the flute and to bring an end to care and worry.

Imagery, Symbols and Creatures of Dionysus

The bull, the serpent, the ivy and wine are the signs of the characteristic Dionysian atmosphere, infused with the unquenchable life of the god. Their numinous presence signifies that the god is near. Dionysus is strongly associated with the satyrs, centaurs and sileni. He is often shown riding a leopard, wearing a leopard skin, or being pulled by a chariot drawn by panthers and has been called the god of cats and savagery. He always carries a thyrsus. Besides the grapevine and its wild barren alter-ego, the toxic ivy plant, both sacred to him, the fig was also his. The pine cone that tipped his thyrsus linked him to Cybele, and the pomegranate linked him to Demeter.

The Rites of Dionysus

The rites of Dionysus include fire walking accompanied by ecstatic dancing, drumming, and forays into the woods or mountains by participants "possessed by Dionysus", as well as the preliminary animal sacrifice and distribution of meat to the village population.

The Rites had largely been stamped out by the Romans by 1^st Century BC.

Epitaphs of Dionysus

Dionysus sometimes has the epithet Bromios, meaning "the thunderer" or "he of the loud shout". Another epithet is Dendrites; as Dionysus Dendrites ("he of the trees"), he is a powerful fertility god.

The Thyrsus

A thyrsus (thyrsos) was a sacred implement at religious rituals and festivals. It was made of a giant fennel staff covered with ivy vines and leaves and topped with a pine cone.

The thyrsus is a composite symbol of the forest (pine cone) and the farm (fennel). It has been suggested that this was specifically a fertility phallus, with the fennel representing the shaft of the penis and the pine cone representing the "seed" issuing forth. It was associated with Dionysus (or Bacchus) and his followers, the Satyrs and Maenads.

Sometimes the thyrsus was displayed in conjunction with a wine cup, another symbol of Dionysus, forming a male-and-female combination like that of the royal scepter and orb.

How, What, Where, NPCs and Ars Magica

The Ars Magica sessions seem to be going well, I am having fun and everyone else tells me they are too, so that is good.

When we have completed the prologue - probably four more sessions - all the Player Characters, and more non-Player Characters (NPC) than I had expected - though with so far two notable surprising exceptions - should be at the Covenant. When we have all gotten that far we will write up the prologue, I will be asking the others for their write up on what happened. Nothing to elaborate, as much as people are prepared to write, but it would be good to get some input from everyone before going forward, this way I know what is important to people and get some perspective on what was liked and not liked.

Then we will take a break from the story line of our central cast, if everyone agrees, and progress another related story using just NPCs. This will also give me a chance to get my vague ideas consolidated and some preparation done that incorporates everyone’s input before taking things up at the Covenant. I am keen that we all feel strongly linked to the Covenant so wish to plan this and discuss it with people before hand.

So far, the use of NPCs has gone well with at least one player being much attached to the Mythic Companion he has been playing. Another player seemed to enjoy exploring the capabilities of a specialized Herbam Magi as he endeavored to save villagers from marauding beasts from some unknown “other” place. Unfortunately, this Herbam Magi only was played in one session so he will have to be reprised.

A surprising twist from the NPCs being played by the characters has seen the Mythic Companion abducted or fulfilling an obligation (depending on how you look at it). It is good people are attached to the NPCs but also good that consequences be realized. This NPC did suffer a bit in the end but not just because of his actions, nor just those of the other NPCs; one PC did not act to help as the NPC surrendered, while the second PC was pushing him into his punishment as an experiment. Anyway out of this, very vague I know, came a fun storyline that has directly linked a character the Players are attached to, to some back-story. This has given us the opportunity to progress this story without the hand of the GM forcing things along - or maybe moving it along out of the sight of the players is a better way to phrase it - more on that later. Anyway it brings background unknown story to the fore and into everyone’s hands which is nice. Another NPC was handed over to another Magus no questions asked which was quite funny, poor chubby Gautier. It was much unexpected; the PC did not even bother trying to use his masses of Charm and Wit to save him!

Thus far, people have played Folquet, Viriathus and to a lesser extent Jihad. The characters Gautier, Tanit and Magpie have also been designed as NPCs with the intent that people are able to play them but I am a player down. I am also holding Tanit back as there are some things I am keen to do with the character first and I have been enjoying playing her.

Having people play the NPCs seems to have allowed stories to progress more naturally but still within a broad guideline. With NPCs I have provided some kind of instruction. Except for Jihad who ended up being played by a different player at a different stage in the session than intended, but that can easily be fixed before next session as I had emailed information on him to everyone, everyone just didn’t read it I am guessing. What I haven’t done is switch control of NPCs around yet and will probably do so in the future. Back to the point of this paragraph; the NPCs are there in part to ensure fun and effective characters to go along with the PCs and allow escape from the DnD party which drives many games that I have played and instead bring in the Troupe idea that Ars Magica is designed for. There are other NPCs designed by players, which have appeared as Antagonists, as well as a few yet to appear.

Regarding the approach to the game; broad goals have been stated for each session, or group of sessions, and a key impact that the NPC should have has also be explained along with a broad outline of personality, linked to flaws and traits. Otherwise people have had free reign and it has been entertaining to watch, play and see the storyline progress in unexpected directions.

Say no to railroading! What can I say that just popped out, I have been experimenting in this game to try and ensure everyone is fully engaged and having as much input as they can or want to have and can take the game in interesting directions but within a broad storytelling framework that everyone has a stake in. I had played in quite a long Ars Magica campaign previously but found my enjoyment deteriorating as my rules knowledge expanded but my input into the game did not at all develop, rather I was just along for other people’s stories. Anyway I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen to anyone in this game. For example, with the current three sessions, heading into the final next week, I had been upfront. Storyline objective was to get the PCs and NPCs from point A to B, what happened in the middle was up to the players. They had three Magi who wanted to get from A to B and one NPC who wanted to get from A to B but had a stop over in the middle he wanted to explore. This was pretty much the instruction given I think and the fun has ensued from there. Next session we are minus one NPC but plus another.

I probably have not well explained how I have attempted to do this above so will give it a go. The game is designed to be played in blocks of 2-4 sessions and I have stated up front which PCs characters are to be involved, so will be the stars, and put forth NPC characters for people to play. These will be the supporting cast. By stars this has not meant that the PCs will necessarily obviously be in the driving seat the entire time but the story has been focused on their Virtues and Flaws, especially their Story Hooks, as well as their Personality Traits in an effort to build initial links into the narrative and get every player engaged.

I thought this approach would be useful, to ensure that we are all upfront about spotlight for characters and to ensure that as a group we can make sure that the spotlight is shared around. Not necessarily equally each session but that everybody is assured that their PCs, which people have put much work into constructing, will get their sessions to go forth and engage with the story hooks they have nominated. Or not if they find something else shiny they wish to pursue then that option is there but it all still remains linked to a thread that can keep everyone’s characters engaged.

"All men must escape at times from the deadly rhythm of their private thoughts.

It is part of the process of life among thinking beings."

I stole this quote from here, this part drew me in as it is the core of the quote and what in part roleplaying is about, but the rest of it is very fitting to what I am trying to do with Ars Magica. Plus the Blog is a good read. I will admit I have no idea who Raymond Chandler is.

I tried to use punctuation as a friend is urging me, probably put it all in the wrong places. Oh well better that than the stream of consciousness none of you would be reading.

I also think Railroading can be undertaken by players, not just by a Storyteller or Game Master.

What I sent my fellow gamers

Suvs, Bela, Steve D and Steve X,

This is to fill Suvs in but all should read before the next game as it has a new NPC below. The next Ars session is this Thursday night. So far we have had three sessions.


Background

The first and second got Thierry Ex Jerbiton, his True Friend Louis, Roger the Norman, the Magi Folquet and a mishmash of survivors from Theirry's covenant and nearby village across the Pyrenees with a wonderful, for Theirry and the Faerie, dalliance with the Spring Fae of the pass. There was also the kidnapping of Louis' new Bride and the massacre and destruction of the nicest village and Covenant in all of Europe, watched by the frozen but magically protected Famous Poet Theirry ,while Folquet and Roger tried valiantly to protect everybody. Strange beasts came through portals to do this, Roger the Norman has declared them Beasts from Hell or some such and clearly from their clawed hands, lantern eyes and grotesque old women appearance and willingness to massacre and kidnap in a horribly bloody fashion - including wearing someone's skin - they aren't nice. This was followed by the seizure of one member of Thierry's Coveant - Gautier - by the Magi Batiste, to be his apprentice. Batiste is famous for incorporating magic from the Schools of Islam into Hermetic Magic and infamous for beating, torturing and killing apprentices that displease him. Theirry was well please d to be rid of the annoying Gautier and it was Batiste's right under Hermetic Law - as a member of House Bonisagus - to seize Gautier.

The Third session saw Viriathus, Mythic Hero and Redcap, arrive in a town on the coast of Iberia to escort three newly Gauntleted Magi to their new Covenant. Before this could occur the townsfolk rose up to drive these suspect individuals from their fair coastal town, the Magi and Viriathus left as quickly as they could after terrorising the town with a Demon Horse and sending the local Priest packing in fear after he attempted to drive the demon's from the town. The four indivdiuals are now trecking across the countryside with only meager supplies, chicken theft and nabbing the meager belongings of shepherds their main sustenance. They are apparently being stalked by a wolf while Viriathus guides them towards his own objective prior to depositing them at their new abode.


What has been going on

I have been organising the sessions so that their are two PCs played by players and at least one NPC played by a player. The NPC has some broad goals that I am keen for the player to pursue as well as some personality guidelines but otherwise people play them as they see fit. This allows rules to be learned by people playing lots of different kinds of characters as well as hopefully getting everyone engaged while spreading the PCs out so they are not a DnD party wandering the countryside. I have an NPC that I am hoping you will be keen to play for the next two sessions. The current program is to get everyone's characters to the Covenant. Each group of two to three sessions should be seen as running in parallel. While Thierry and Roger do battle and make their way across the Pyrenees the current group are moving west across Iberia.

Next session will commence at the border of the forest that Viriathus has been guiding people to. The central cast will be the Italian Ex Miscellanea Magus (Steve D.) who hunts beasts, a Merinita Magus (Steve X.) with an interest in drugs and the fae. With them are an Ex Miscellanea Carthaginian Maga who terrifies most normals she encounters and Viriathus the Numantine (Bela), Mythic Hero, Redcap in the service of House Mercer and the Order of Hermes and Bloodcap, born on the fields of the final massacre by Rome of the Numantians. In addition they will encounter young Jihad (Suvs) and his magical Magpie (NPC).


Young Jihad

Jihad ran away from his Master, Zaid, a landholder on the East Coast of Iberia, when he was eight – this occurred within hours of Zaid getting him home. Jihad has been on the run ever since gradually working himself westwards across Iberia in the hope of finding his home and parents. Zaid long-ago gave up looking for his run-away slave, he was cheap and a suspicious little Berber anyway, but he has reported him to the authorities and should he hear of the boy he will come looking.

Brave in the face of threats to animals, stoic about his life, Jihad has become adept at hiding and trapping animals to survive. He is particularly adept at finding locations to hide that no one seems able to find. He found that sometimes he gets a tingling sensation and he perceives entryways that apparently escape the notice of others, he slips into these entryways and easily escapes his pursuers. Though he does not know it, he is currently using a Magical Regio inside a forest as his base of operations. Whenever he feels at threat, he slips into this area. His powers are magical in origin.

It goes against his nature but Jihad keeps to himself, his fear of others finding him and returning him to slavery ensures Jihad continues to hide. However, of course a greater fear may push him towards people that he may perceive as similar outcasts.

Ameliorating his curiosity and desire to associate with people is his only friend a Magpie, which Jihad rescued from a particularly ferocious cat and brought to one of his hiding places to nurse. The animal and Jihad have grown close, it troubles the young boy not a bit that the Magpie and he chat endlessly about Iberia, scavenging and other topics of mutual interest.

Some things the players should know about Jihad to help along the story:

• Jihad shares some interesting abilities with the Mythic Hero Viriathus.
• Jihad has just been scared out of his wits by a huge group of what he first thought where merchants but on closer inspection appeared to be animals walking upright, bringing carts of goods and animals arriving in his hiding place.
• The Magpie quite likes Magi, though his first loyalty is to Jihad.

Jihad's character sheet looks long but that is only because I have cut and paste the information on each of his Virtues and Flaws into the sheet for ease of reference.

I finally got to use this young slave, developed from this joke character, in hopefully a fun form.

Tanit fillia Ashtart Ex Miscellanea

Some background on Tanit:

A Pagan Tanit comes from a small but powerful heritage in Utica, descendants of the Carthaginians. She is a worshiper of Moloch the God Ba'al. Her House joined Ex Miscellanea to enable it to maintain it's proud histories while using alliances with members of the Order of Hermes to aid in defending themselves against the Schools of Islamic Sorcerers who surround them in North Africa.

Moloch the God Ba'al, the Sacred Bull, was widely worshiped in the ancient Near East and wherever Punic culture extended. Baal Moloch was conceived under the form of a calf or an ox or depicted as a man with the head of a bull. Hadad, Baal or simply the King identified the god within his cult. The name Moloch is not the name he was known by among his worshipers, but a Hebrew translation. The written form Moloch (in the Septuagint Greek translation of the Old Testament), or Molech (Hebrew), is no different than the word Melech or king, transformed by interposing the vowels of bosheth or 'shameful thing'. He is sometimes also called Milcom in the Old Testament (1 Kings 11:5, 1 Kings 11:33, 2 Kings 23:13 and Zephaniah 1:5)

Viriathus the Numantian

Viriathus has been bound to House Mercer by oath and to Celestine by favour and he can break neither. This though is no great chore; with House Mercer he pursues his role as redcap on the expanding boundaries of the Order of Hermes while with Celestine he receives interesting and profitable missions.

Viriathus personal ambition is to acquire wealth that will support him. This he will achieve through the acquisition of ever better magical items trough the Order of Hermes and his membership of the Redcaps.

Born on the ancient bloodied battlefield of Roman conquered Numantia Viriathus is a throwback to the Arevaci, a Celtiberian Tribe with close ties to both the Faerie and Magical Realms.

the Who and the Where

I have been happy with the progress of this game. I will post a write-up of the first two sessions when I have put all my notes together. I really enjoyed both sessions and hopefully the players did too. This is what I sent out as the prelude for the next two to three sessions. I have more information on the Mycthic Hero NPC for one player and would have liked a name for the other players Magus before sending this out but otherwise this is where we will be starting.

the Who and the Where

The next two to three sessions will focus on el Viajero de Merinita and Logical Steve’s Magi – Magus X until named - along with the Mythic Hero Viriathus the Numantian and the Maga, Tanit fillia Ashtart Ex Miscellanea. The three Magi find themselves in a coastal town between Valencia and Barcelona awaiting their escort to the Covenant that has invited them as new member. They are on the wrong side of the blurry but fought over border between the Order of Hermes and the different Schools of the Islamic Sorcerers. All the Magi are together in a hostel where their respective Covenants of apprenticeship had arranged a night’s room and board through the Redcaps. There is currently a truce between the Order and most of the Schools so the Magi should be safe, but maybe a little tense as they await the arrival of their guide.

The objective is to get the Magi to the Covenant overland. This is a war zone, conflict is everywhere, the Magi do not have to fight but that will depend on what they do along with their escort as they make their way to the Covenant.

The PCs:

El Viajero de Merinita awakens in the world from his gauntlet with a note clasped in his right hand that reads:

“My Filius, congratulations on the passing of your final gauntlet, you are now a Magus of Merinita and a member of the Order of Hermes. I do not know what visions you have had in your wanderings under the influence, nor could I discern meaning in your ramblings but you will find yourself in a fishing town. Wait here for the Viri, you will know him by his name, remember your Latin my Filius. He will guide you to your new Covenant, the Covenant of Summa Tutela (the Covenant of the Guarded Height). Do not hesitate to write me should you have questions, news or insight to impart on the ways of the Fae.

Your Parens”

In your left hand is clasped a small bag of Soma that if prepared by a skilled Herbalist or Apothecary can produce a drink that will affect the consumer an entire season. In your pocket are two small yellow berries of the Mandrake plant which when consumed provide an intense hallucinatory effect that lasts as long as a formulaic or Spontaneous spell casting and can be used prior to casting.

Magus X has gotten himself to the town through the use of one of the vessels of his family. They were more than happy to drop him off after his unwelcome return to them by his Parens at the conclusion of his Gauntlet. Magus X has three pawns of Vis given him by his Parens as a parting gift, one of Vim in a Griffin’s Talon, itself valuable, one of Animal in the dried heart of a Crow and one of Muto in a mosquito trapped in hardened tree sap. He too has a note:

“Filius, you have passed your gauntlet. Trivial spells already for you in the realm of animal.

May you find what you seek within the Order of Hermes. I offer only the advice that you be wary of hunting to much these beasts you have taken such a proprietry interest in. Some hunt back and while we may not be close I would prefer you not come to an unnecessarily untimely end.

Listen to Felix Achaemenus Scholae Bonisagus and do not anger Celeste, you can learn much from both. Finally make yourself useful if you can.

Parens”

The NPCs:

Viriathus is a Redcap messenger and problem solver for House Mercer and the Order of Hermes. He is a brutally terrifying descendent of the Numantians, who successfully fought the Carthaginians and for a time the Romans. He is a direct descendant of one of these Celtiberians greatest leaders, the original Viriathus, legend has it that the original Viriathus had been borne of the union of the Fae of the Celtiberians who ruled a region that existed in parallel to the mundane Iberia and a Magical Wolf who ruled Celtiberia during the War against the invading Romans and Mercurian Magi. This Viriathus may or may not be much like the original, but he was conceived on the battlefield of the final massacre of the Numantians by the Romans and brought forth with the death of his mother. He is consequently both a Hero of Mythic Origin and a terrifying Bloodcap.

Tanit fillia Ashtart Ex Miscellanea is a Carthaginian Maga, she has a reputation as a Hedge Wizard and most Magi would consider her little more than a witch and coming from a magical tradition that is believed to have conducted human sacrifice in it’s past – something possibly still done now in secret, though the PCs may not know this depending on rolls.

None of the four characters have met each other yet.

The Scene.

The Magi have been told to await their escort who will meet them in the town and escort them to the Covenant. All the characters are currently in Al Andalusia, neither the Reconquest nor the Order of Hermes having stretched this far. But there is a truce between the Order of Hermes and several of the Schools of Islamic Sorcery, though not between the Christians and Muslims.

The Magi are waiting in a Travelers rest house, used by those who are dropped here by ship, or those awaiting a ship to depart. El Viajero de Merinita doesn’t know how he got here, though he was guided by a watchful and helpful Redcap by the name of Walchelin. Magus X knows how he got here, on a family ship, a one time favour to get their least favourite son out of Italy. Tanit traveled here on foot by herself, avoiding contact with people as much as she could, though more often than not they fled and barred their doors at her approach.

Viriathus has arrived on the outskirts of the town and has made himself ready to enter the town, find the Magi in the Hostel – the location of which he knows – and depart hastily. Viriathus wears a helmet to disguise his terrifyingly horrifying monstrous visage and has steeled himself for the potential illness and disquiet he feels when passing through towns, villages and hamlets – he also plans on avoiding any churches or clergy, they particularly distress him; no doubt the Divine Aura that is stronger where they preach and reside.

Walchelin the Redcap, redone

Personality

Walchelin attempts to charm all those he meets, not out of any personal desire but because he is genuinely Friendly and Generous. Dedicated to the pursuit of his Redcap Duties and Music he in Compassionate in his dealings with others and he is more than willing to lend his support to those in need whom he meets upon his travels. He constantly endeavours to draw the threads of his music, duties and passion together in his life as a Redcap and Troubadour.

Apprenticeship

Recently becoming a Redcap Walchelin had been a student of the Universitas Magistrorum et Scholarium in Paris. He graduated first from the School of Arts, and then attended the School of Theology. While at the University, he was also a member of the Normandy Nationes and an apprentice to the Mercer Redcap Mireille LaCroux of Marseille, a Goliard who took more interest in the Order of Hermes’ affairs within Paris and the Schools of the University than traveling the paths between Covenants. Walchelin’s apprenticeship and education has therefore been a full one - if somewhat minimal regarding skills to survive in the outdoors, focusing more on interpersonal skills, performing, composing and achieving a broad education.

As a member of the Normandy Nationes and a student within the Schools of Arts and Theology Walchelin was always rowdy and boisterous during his revelries, but at all times remained articulate, charming and passionate, especially towards his studies within the University; something he has carried with him into his Redcap duties. His time in Paris also paralleled the University riots and strike.

Events in Paris

In March 1229, on Shrove Tuesday, Paris's pre-Lenten carnival began and Walchelin, along with a band of Normandy Nationes associates began their revelries at the tavern of Les Yeux d'Émeraude (the Eyes of Emerald) in the suburban quarter of Saint Marcel. Walchelin and the other students drank heavily, got rowdy, and Walchelin undertook a lively and spirited performance of a large number of drinking songs, ballads and poems to an increasingly raucous audience. Eventually a dispute broke out between the band of students and the tavern proprietor over the bill, which led to a physical fight. The students were beaten up and thrown into the streets, Walchelin and his associates returned to their college. However, word of the dispute and beating had somehow quickly spread and the next day, seeking revenge, students arrived at the tavern in large numbers. Armed with wooden clubs they broke into the tavern, beat the offenders and destroyed the establishment. Other shops were damaged in a subsequent riot that spilled into the streets.

Because students are exempt from the king's courts, angry complaints were filed with the Pope's courts. The Pope's courts knew that the University tended to be very protective of its students and they were trying to approach the matter carefully. However, the secular ruler, Blanche of Castile, the ruler of France, stepped in and demanded retribution. The University authorized the city's police to punish the student rioters. The city guardsmen, known for their rough nature, found a group of students – including Walchelin - and with an unexpectedly heavy hand, killed several of them. After attempting to do what he could for his bloodied Compatriots, which was sadly very little, Walchelin eventually fled the retribution of the guard and made his way back to the University and his Parens to continue his studies and apprenticeship.

The strike and the results for Walchelin

Unfortunately, the response from the University was immediately to go on strike. Classes closed and striking students either went to other universities such as Rheims, Oxford or Toulouse, or returned home or found employment elsewhere. Faculty ceased to teach. Walchelin finally completed his apprenticeship and on the suggestion of his Parens and a newly discovered friend, he decided to head towards Provencal to seek a home, perform, fulfill his Redcap duties and possibly learn from any Troubadours that survived the Crusade.

The role of Euphêmía

On the night of the riot, during a break in his performance at Les Yeux d'Émeraude, a beautiful young woman, by the name of Euphêmía, befriended Walchelin. With her striking green eyes, he was immediately attracted to her and he performed to the best of his abilities, attempting to engage her with a passionate performance. During the ensuing songs, he performed the full spectrum of his repertoire, including a beautiful and original tale of Hades and Perspehone, which referenced the unmatched work of Ovid – it was especially successful in the satirical targeting of Hades in-ability to control his stolen wife Persephone – a tale Walchelin himself made up. The performance, ultimately unfortunately, attracted some unexpected attention from a quarter that Walchelin has yet to realise – Hades himself, who did not appreciate the satire. Additionally the performance had a substantial impact on all of his audience who, rather than become friendly and happy towards each other became rather unfriendly, and extraordinarily passionate in their unfriendliness – not only those in the audience but Hades himself had quite an adverse reaction. Unknown to Walchelin a well-intentioned member of his audience had botched her intervention in the events of the night. During his performance the young woman he had met led a dance amongst a number of the crowd but unknown to her this dance had not only failed but gone completely awry having the reverse of her intention of friendliness amongst all who heard the performance, instead unfriendliness, leading ultimately to fisticuffs and bloodshed ensued over the following days.

Nevertheless, the magnificent performance of the Troubadour Walchelin won the undying adoration of Euphêmía who proceeded to spend much time with the young Walchelin, arriving at all his performances and taking part in many dances with the crowds who attended. Eventually she revealed her true form of a Fae Muse to Walchelin – who had already guessed – after she collapsed minutes after a particularly long and frenetic performance and accompanying dance. Euphêmía is now accompanying him south to continue her dancing, carousing and enjoyment of Walchelin’s art. For his part Walchelin appreciates the beauty and dance of Euphêmía and her ability to exhort the crowd, he suspects that she enhances his Music through her own performances, but little suspects that her dancing is Faerie Folk Dancing that requires another to be performing in order for it to succeed in having any effect.

The Curse of Hades

Unfortunately, Hades took great umbrage at the young Troubadour’s performance and he is biding his time to exact revenge. Hade’s plan is that when the Troubadour finds himself truly in love the Faerie God has decided that he will steal the object of the Troubadour’s affections away to Hades. As he has done with a number of young loves in the past, and then, at every opportunity, Hades will taunt the forlorn Minstrel with his powerlessness in the face of the Fae God.

Beliefs and Patron Saints

Walchelin is a firm believer in the Divine and tries to be a good Christian. He venerates Saint Cecilia, patron Saint of Musicians and Poets, for the beauty she has brought to the world in offering song and music in praise of the Divine and the protection she offers to those who continue to perform and compose music and poetry. Walchelin has been considering a pilgrimage to her Church in Rome in the hope of being able to perform in her honour on her Holy Feast Day on 22 November. He annually celebrates her feast day to as large an audience as he can muster. He also venerates Saint Christopher, patron Saint of Travelers, Bachelors and Storms, for his compassion and aid to travelers. Walchelin always celebrates Saint Christopher’s Feast Day on 25 July with a performance for the Saint, even when on the road pursuing Redcap duties and finding himself without an audience. He sees both these Holy figures as inspiration for his own actions as he moves through the world helping others by working for the Order of Hermes and composing and performing to bring joy to audiences.

Music Style and Genre

Walchelin prefers a style of playing and singing that consists of rich dialogue varied by refrains, the melodies to which have the character of folk music, and are spontaneous and tuneful but overlay elaborate and complex compositions that are harmonious. Normally he performs trobar ric, though increasingly trobar leu has exerted influence over his music. Very rarely Walchelin plays the more restrictive trobar clus. When playing, two of his favourite genres are Descort and Tenso; though he finds the combination of challenge and foolishness that is the Sestina occasionally driving him to attempt this more difficult genre. He prefers to play the Mandolin but is also skilled with other stringed instruments, as well as wind – such as the Bagpipes - and percussion – particularly the Tabor.

Styles

Trobar leu

The trobar leu, or light style of poetry, was the most popular style used by the troubadours. Its accessibility gave it a wide audience.

Trobar ric

Distinguished by its verbal gymnastics trobar ric, or rich form of poetry, has always played a secondary role to trobar leu.

Trobar clus

Only an elite few truly appreciate Trobar clus, or closed form, troubadours for their more discerning audiences’ use this style of poetry. Marcabru developed it extensively, but by 1200, its inaccessibility is leading to its disappearance.

Genres

The poetry of the troubadour songs covered many topics, from the profound to the humorous and from war at home to the crusades. However, they are best known for expounding on the theme of fin' amors, or courtly love.

· Alba: The Alba is a song of the morning, used by the troubadours. It concerns the departure of a lover in the early morning.

· Coblas: This poem or song is composed of several strophes, each a pair of stanza of alternating forms. A band is also a Coblas.

· Descort: The Descort is a song of disagreement used by the troubadours. The subject matter is one of disagreement and this is emphasised by unusual metric structures and irregular rhymes.

· Devinaill: No clue on what this Genre is about.

· Estampida: The Estampida is the Occitan equivalent of the French Estampie. The Estampie is a melody without words with a complicated melodic progression. This does not seem to have been a universally accepted definition however; the song Kalenda Maia by court troubadour Raimbaut de Vaqueiras describes itself as an Estampida.

· Pastorela: The Pastorela is a poetic genre used by the troubadours. It concerns the meeting of a knight with a Shepherdess, which may lead to any of a number of possible conclusions. They are usually humorous pieces.

· Planh: The Planh is a funeral lament used by the troubadours, modeled on the Medieval Latin Planctus. It differed from the Planctus in that it is performed for a secular audience.

· Retroencha: This is a classical song of praise.

· Sestina: Of all the poetic forms, the sestina is perhaps the silliest. The troubadour Arnot Daniel almost certainly invented it and had the good sense to write only one. Created using six key words, the sestina has six stanzas of six lines each with a concluding three-line stanza at the end. The six key words appear at the end of one line each in the first stanza, and we shall call the order they occur in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. In the second stanza, each line again is concluded with a key word, this time in order 6, 1, 5, 2, 4, 3. In the third stanza the words are shuffled the same way, so that the order is 3, 6, 4, 1, 2, 5. This continues until six stanzas have been completed. The six words are then used in the concluding three-line stanza, with two key words per line.

· Sirventes: a satirical poem devised to a melody.

· Tenso: A Tenso is a song style favoured by the troubadours. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position on a topic relating to love or ethics.

Al-Andalusia and the Iberian Tribunal

The Covenant of Summa Tutela

Summa Tutela stands tall atop a hill overlooking the Tagus River. The Tagus flows from east to west dissecting Iberia and forming the border between the Christian re-conquests and Islam. This border closely reflects the extent of authority of the Order of Hermes in Iberia. The Covenant is situated close to the Roman Road known as the Via De La Plata, passing from the far-north of Iberia, crossing a nearby stone bridge, before heading south into Muslim Andalusia

Designed and built by the Muslim Sorcerer Abdul-Aleem in the late 9^th Century – to take advantage of the trade passing down the Tagus and the Via De La Plata – Abdul-Aleem used large well cut stones and founded the buildings of the Covenant on the ruin of a Roman Temple to Mercury. The Covenant is imposing in its height and strength of simple but confident fortifications. Nonetheless it is a bright and cheery place, especially when silhouetted by the sunny blue sky.

It has been made home by the two magi who took it, and the guards and household staff they brought with them. As you look the Covenant is busy with activity, armed men quietly patrol atop the fortifications and maids, servants and other members of the household busy themselves finishing up tasks before the midday meal.

Several buildings make up the covenant which stretches along the ridge of a hill. First, at the ridge’s western edge stands the Keep – housing the rooms and laboratories of the Magi – then, as you move east, comes the library, then the kitchen, workshop, stable and finally quarters for the guard, household and guests.

Inside the buildings the rooms have unusually high ceilings that are both light and airy throughout summer – although the temperature can probably drop in winter. Beautiful wooden furniture and the occasional Persian rug fit out the mostly wooden floored complex – presumably left behind by the last occupants. Adding the final touch is an outdoor heated bath.

As well as the Via De La Plata the Covenant is close to the road from Toledo to Merida – where a Chapter of Knights has recently been founded. The Covenant has the task of standing on the frontier between the growing Iberian Tribunal and the Islamic Sorcerers who contest this, while also managing interaction with the mundane world which frequently passes along the nearby roads and river.

Founded atop the ruin of a Roman Temple to Mercury, the Covenant lies within a powerful Magical Aura that extends across the entire hilltop. Fortified and guarded the inhabitants have all that is necessary for their purpose – though few luxuries.

Run by Celeste Otrera ex Tytalus and Felix Achaemenus Scholae Bonisagus the Covenant is also home to other Magi such as you, fresh from their gauntlets and newly recruited to hold and expand the frontier.

Iberia or Al-Andalusia 1210; the mundane and arcane political backdrop

Iberia has been reclaimed in part by Christian forces from the north. But the forces of Islam continue a staunch resistance. The Muslims have reportedly fragmented into a number of smaller Kingdoms which, while still managing to do battle, appear to be gradually falling.

The Order of Hermes has been taking advantage of this, some suspect provoking the violence, in order to expand the borders of the Order forcefully.

• Magi of House Flambeau are in the vanguard of bringing new members into the Order, or destroying them.
• House Tytalus is also taking advantage of the conflict to recruit, and rebuild their damaged name.
• Members of House Bonisagus appear to be attempting to learn what they can from the Witches, Sorcerers and Cabalists that can be found in the Peninsula, using a variety of means.
• House Ex Miscellanea is growing fast with new members not fitting into Tytalus of Flambeau finding a home here.
• House Merinita has taken an unusual interest in the Peninsula, many are unsure why, most don’t care.
• Jerbiton continues to work with the noble mundane, some think too closely, to retake the Christian lands of the Iberian Peninsula.
• The Tremere – as soldiers – are closely involved in the conflict on the border, though they are not as in touch with the political activities as they would like; their Covenant in the Pyrenees now far from the expanded border.

Within Andalusia is a rich and diverse heritage of magic, including Islamic, Jewish, Christian and Pagan Traditions. All but the Pagan flourished under the generally benign auspices of the Muslim Caliphs. These other traditions are pursuing a variety of responses to the growing influence of the Order of Hermes and it’s incursion into Andalusia: some are joining, even converting to Christianity, others are hiding or fleeing into North Africa, while others, interests intertwined with the Islamic Kingdoms, mount a staunch and complex defense of the Islamic world. To the north refugees from the Albigensian Crusade are also starting to cross the Pyrenees, currently only in small numbers but should the conflict worsen more could be expected.

The Magi will find themselves in a newly founded Covenant that is set to lead the incorporation of the rest of Andalusia into the Iberian Tribunal. They will be under the direction, and protection, of elders within the Covenant though still having plenty of seasons to pursue their objectives within this growing Tribunal.