I imagine restoring the Order (or at least salvaging the players' House before it all comes down) would be the primary goal, but I'm personally curious of the mystery behind the disappearance of Merinita and the rumors that Mercere might be next (which is pretty much meta-confirmed by both Houses being banned from play).
So, solving the mystery would be an overarching plot point for sure. Maybe there's some hidden force at work that fractures the Order from the inside, on top of the obvious issues.
Yes, that sounds interesting. I wonder, in this setting, would Guernicas still have Hermetic Prestige? Or maybe something else? I could see House Guernicas investigating what is happening with a goal of salvaging the Order. That could be pretty cool.
I believe Gerard and I are thinking along the same lines: the characters should have an-overarching goal of some sort uniting us and thus being thematic, while we may have smaller personal goals. That way the thematic part would be character-driven.
It could be a "goal" for one or more of the magi, but it's so significant that solving the mystery would have massive consequences regardless of how many people were initially motivated to solve the thing. I would just think of it as the big "oh crap" moment in a TV show.
(also, love the new forum overlay. It provides incredibly streamlined typing experience.)
Remaining Hermetic Prestige would be useful for investigations. Magi of other houses would likely be more ready to accommodate those with Hermetic Prestige rather than a bunch of magi from another House.
I don't really feel like aiming for the destruction of the Order and salvaging what emerges from the ashes would be something I'd be interested in.
I'd rather have a more positive goal in the long run.
From my perspective, investigating the decay of virtus and the disappearance of House Merenita would give political strength to any change we might want to push at tribunal and would give legal basis for any military action we might want to take.
And the action we take on the battlefield or the tribunal could provide us with additional information that's some kind of virtuous circle.
The scarcity of virtus could also be a driving force.
towards more mundane interaction, because sources on hostile Noble territory could not be left unclaimed
towards sources hard to collect, because there're on the territory of other hermetic tradition, protected by puissant magical being
integrating attunement of faery virtue (like House meranita) or even Infernal vis (like chtonic virtue)
Still, many may be reluctant to answer questions. Who's to say if those pesky Guernici aren't really looking into our House secrets under the guise of investigating the disappearance of Merinita? (And we never like them anyway, so good riddance!)
I'm ok with House Guernicus but I'm not sure Investigating magical phenomenon necessarily mean it's tailored only for Guernicus, that could also be Bonisagus and the gathering the House part could be Trianoma.
Tremere could also fit the goal of opposing the chaos advocating a more integrated Order using transylvanian tribunal as an exemple.As they're responsible for the destruction of House Diedne They could try to show their good will by saving House Merenita.
Flambeau could find the motivation in a sort of chivalrous attitude towards the Merenita weaklings and
could advocate a change for an order with responsibilities based on martial prowess. I dunno.
From my perspective choosing the House will impact mostly the overarching plot points (that is, those big TV moments) and personal drama is just that - personal drama, since magi are people too, no matter the House, and their personal goals will likely veer off the 'main' House goal no matter the House.
That said I'm beginning to lean closer to Guernicus simply because it provides a good excuse to occasionally go investigating and move the main plot along.
Still, many may be reluctant to answer questions. Who's to say if those pesky Guernici aren't really looking into our House secrets under the guise of investigating the disappearance of Merinita? (And we never like them anyway, so good riddance!)
If the structure of the Order is weakened the Guernicus will not have much sway. A Quaesitor can be from any House. I do not trust the Guernicus in any case
to me, Guernicus is the most boring House to play.
We could investigate from any House. If the investigation is the goal then all Houses would have different ways to do it. Some are better than others
OK, so how about we decide on our group goal(s) first? I'm trying to think along some somewhat independent axes. Feel free to add items along these axes or to add new axes. I'm just trying to get this organized in a way to help us.
The Order:
A) Deal with the Order as is.
B) Try to repair the Order.
C) Encourage its fracture for our House to take over in its place.
The mysterious problems:
A) Solve the mystery of the missing House.
B) Solve the mystery of the decaying vis.
C) Ignore those mysteries and just deal with the consequences.
In sort of a hopeful message I figure B as my vote, A if trying for more passive approach.
Priority B to A, but I've got a feeling they might not be mutually exclusive. Getting both of the mysteries sorted is definitely a major goal to strive for regardless of our House, lest we wither away.
I see a lot of compatibility even with different choices. For example, with the A/B choices for the mysteries, they may be related, and even if they aren't, we can do both, with different magi more focused on different ends of it.
Thinking about it, as a player, I'll probably find 2B more interesting than 2A but I also believe they might be related, or at least they're not in opposition. I'll edit above.
There is also the theme of survival, some kind of fortification could be fun, Hermanus style.
