Aura Manipulation Items
[Note: Hermetic Architecture is VERY expensive in terms of time and Vis. All of the items in this post were created in the prequel years of our saga. They took roughly 55 seasons and five queens of Vis for two Archmagi to create.]
A core part of the founding of Landen Covenant was two Archmagi's desire for testing and experimenting with manipulating a Regio through Hermetic Architecture. The two Founders spend over two decades selecting the site, building up stores (especially a massive stockpile of Vis), enchanting many of the items described below so that they could be installed rapidly, and finding other Magi who were interested in providing some aid to such a grand experiment. This post will cover the core of items enchanted for manipulating the Regio.
Regio Access
While the means of traveling between the tiers of the Regio is fairly easy, entry into the Regio was through submerging into a pool fed by a spring within some very rugged terrain surrounded by dense old growth trees. A much much more accessible means of entry was required and the first manipulation installed upon arrival. The links between the varies inhabited tiers and to seal the first tier were installed later.
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The Portal Stones (5x sets of 8)
Re(Mu)Vi, Level 45, A/M/I, Base 15 "Connect Regio Levels", RDT 4, Unlimited +10
Each set of eight pillars is constructed using "Conjunction of the Mystic Veils" (TMR, p. 101). They are very expensive, requiring a total of 49 pawns of Vis each for Magi skilled enough to create them as Lesser Enchanted devices. When their password is spoken they open a portal between tiers of the Regio, affecting the area rather than people traveling through them (so do not inflict Warping on users). How they function served as inspiration during the creating of the Landen Portals.Each of the five sets has their own password and links two points allowing two-way travel between them. The password for the first four are generally known by the population, while the one for the fifth set is known only to the Magi. The links are between the Gazebo and Entry Courtyard (mundane to 1st tier), three groups within the Portal Gardens (1st to 2nd, 1st to 3rd, and 2nd to 3rd), and the group used to travel to the Council of Trees (Council Hall on 3rd linked to Special Lab on 5th). The Magi will visit the Council of Trees at least once every year.
Until a Bonisagus researcher was finished finalizing his research into Aegis of the Regio, the Founders felt that the Covenant was vulnerable even with an Aegis of the Hearth. Many beings with Might could see through the veil and cross over on the edge of a tier, beyond the edge of any Aegis. It would also require at least three castings per year making it an extremely expensive proposition (An extra 20 pawns per year for the original AotH without the breakthrough). So the following set of enchanted items was created and installed. An apprentice of the Magi who created the modified AotH is a member of the Covenant.
- The Barrier Stones (set of 8 Invested Enchantments)
Mu(Pe)Vi(Te), Level 79, T/S/B, Base 35 "Shrink Regio to 1/128th", RDT 7, Connection Only 1, Constant +4
Another extremely expensive enchanted set (160 pawns of Vis total), these eight rune covered stone pillars are spaced out around the first tier. Constructed using a modified "Closed Privacy of the Enchanted Regio" (TMR, p. 100). The first tier was originally about 98 paces across and this collection of items is sufficient to work on anything even slightly smaller than 128 paces. Their effect is to sever the 1st tier connections, meaning only Portal Stones or AC travel magic can be used to reach it.
[Group Discussion Notes: As a group we decided that if the connection was severed, it would not return even if the 1st tier grew larger than 128 paces as long as this enchanted item was not destroyed. Since there was no connection it would not grow larger even if the tier did. YSMV]
Regio Manipulation
While the Regio tiers were a decent size to begin with, the Founders wanted to both experiment with stretching a Regio and ensure there was enough space to house all of the experiments they would allow in exchange for support of their project. One set was created and installed on each of the inhabited levels.
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The Expansion Stones (3x sets of 8)
Mu(Cr)Vi(Te), Level 49, T/S/B, Base 10 "Regio Diameter x8", RDT 7, Constant +4
Constructed using a modified "Enchantment of the Magnified Regio" (TMR, p. 100), each set requires 50 pawns of Vis for someone skilled enough to create them as Lesser Enchanted devices. Each set of rune covered stone pillars will octuple the diameter of a Regio originally 100 paces or less, to a maximum of 800 paces in diameter (liner growth, increasing Area by a factor of 32 and Volume by a factor of 64).Note that any natural growth in size after they are installed is not multiplied or limited by the expansion size limits. The area enlarged is static in size,while the Regio is growing larger past it.
[Note: This is a Mystery effect that works exactly as described within the book. The size of the original Boundary must be only large enough to cover the area before it grows in size. With Size 1 you could start with a Regio 333 paces in diameter and expand it to a diameter of nearly 2,667 paces.]
Additional Information
Many of the oddities of the Covenant came about as part of the experimental nature of its founding. The heavy focus on Roman design (testing if recovered Roman technology and design were better than modern design), the agriculture and livestock areas (an attempt to Aspect a Regio tier to Herbam and Animal), and the modified Aegis to effect all of a Regio are just a few.
An offer of open practice of their faith throughout the Order resulted in many Pagan Covenfolk requesting and being allowed to immigrate to the new Covenant (this also allowed other Covenants to get rid of the odd Covenfolk who practiced a religion different from their majority and claim to be aiding the experiment). Their right to practice their rituals and festivals is written into the Covenant Charter.
While originally the Regio contained four tiers, it was decided to inhabit only the first three. The deepest level contained the Natural Tethers which the Regio formed around as well as a Council of Trees (awakened and with Might). To protect the core that had formed the Regio and because the varies manipulations would make the Regio unstable it was decided to leave the deepest tier wild. This has proven to be a wise decision, since the deepest tier has been extremely active including splitting in two. Many times this would have inflicted multiple points of Warping on all beings without Might, such that any Magi here would have been send into Twilight nearly a dozen times over the last century.
With the 5th tier now the deepest, the 4th tier has become stable. The Magi have decided since they are entrenched on the 3rd tier, it was not worth the effort to move there (moving from Aura 5 to Aura 6 in a far more cramped area). Instead it has become a strange "Vis" orchard, in which the Covenant's collection of Plants of Virtue have been transferred along with the pool of Carp of Virtue and the rookery housing the murder of Crows of Virtue. This has freed up space on the inhabited tiers for other uses.
While the Founders have passed on, their apprentices and the apprentices granted entry in the beginning carry on with the experiments to a greater or lesser extent to this day. One has Hermetic Architecture and it is only recently that he is approaching the level of power the Founders had.