Chapter 1: Tribunal

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Solitude
61

Cornelius is surprised and troubled to learn that he would be the Chief Quaesitor's successor, "You mean that there are not other Quaesitor in the Tribnal? I knew that your pater had died a few years ago -- my condoleances -- but I was not aware that our presence was so weak here. I understand better now, why I was sent here. I am very junior, and I have much to learn, but I will do all I can do."

He ponders Beatrix' question for a few moments before answering, "I will, of course, need to speak with my sodales before our covenant takes position of these issues. Mundanes have always been a difficulty for the Gifted, my teachers told me. We cannot live completely apart from them, yet it is hard to trust them when they view us with such distrust, envy and fear." He shakes his head a little, "Of course, often our sodales have acted rashly, as I have seen again recently. Are there any strong currents here, on how we should deal with mundanes?"

"Cathars, I understand little of the conflict. I was born far away -- as I am sure my accent tells you -- but I have seen how little 'faith' has really have to do with how people act. Am I understanding that some magi would support one side or the other? I think we should avoid getting involved, but I am guessing that it is not possible for those who live near communities of Cathars. I do not know enough of this Tribunal, I am sad to say."

"Chapter Houses I understand a little better. That is like they do in the Rhine, yes? A covenant with presence far from main covenant? No so different from Normandy, with the big controlling the small. Am I correct in thinking that some fear Coenobium will control more and more? Again, I know not enough of my new Tribunal to understand the implications. But I think there should be some limit, if we want not what is happening in Normandy."

"Would you share your thoughts with me, magistra?"

(OOC: Indeed, Cornelius will bring those issues to the others when he comes back to camp. Hopefully being able to brief them on the current situation will help us avoid some of the political traps of the Tribunal.)

62

Beatrice smiles:
"Mundane interaction is a difficult topic indeed. Unless we retreat into the wilderness, we will have to deal with mundanes. Carefully, of course, but I doubt complete isolation is an option. It might be a good idea to gently direct the flood, work with it, rather than against it. Easier said than done, of course."
"The religious question seems simple to me. The church has existed for more than a millenium, and although the dominion weakens us, we at least know it is opposed to the forces of demonic corruption. All these new faiths and sects endanger the unity of the church. Anyway, there is no doubt that Rome will win, so it's better to be on the winning side."
"As for the Coenobium, it has become huge and bloated, claiming almost a third of the tribunal's lands. I live in a chapter house myself, and I see the need of using multiple sites, but without some limits, they will become ever bigger. It won't be an easy task though, because they are powerful, have the redcaps on their side, and because I have no idea how to phrase a limit. Define chapter house. Define the size of a covenant. Things like that."

She looks at him.

"I hope I'm not boring you. Anyway, if you and your covenant see things the way I do, I can introduce you to Garus. The support of Castra Solis would be invaluable. But it may be a good idea for your covenant to decide where they stand."

(ooc: I recommend you (plural) decide on a general policy, or on agreeing to disagree. Depending on your (plural) political positions, you will find allies among the existing covenants. All kinds of politics and intrigue are possible, of course. You can go into the tribunal without a political program, but that will make it harder to strike political deals).

63

"Thank you, magistra, for sharing your thoughts on these issues. I will speak with my sodales and see what position we take on these issues."

"For the Tribunal itself, what will you need me to do? What assistance can I give you? You have but ask and I will do."

Later, when he rejoins his covenant-mates at the encampment, he shares his discussion with Beatrix, as well as her advice. "What do you think, sodales? What positions will we make our own? What allies shall we seek?"

64

I'd like to talk to Protendus and hear what he has to say about Aedis's point of view on the matter so that we have another view on the expansion and the chapter House matter. It won't be suspicious nor engage our covenant for me to talk to a fellow Tremere after all.

But on religious matter, I believe in neutrality. I don't see what good could come from intervention. On the other hand, there might be invaluable covenfolk that seek protection. That's something we should probably discuss.

65

Protendus flatly refuses to talk while others are within earshot.

66

I wasn't talking to him :slight_smile: but to my sodales

67

Clovis casts his illusions spells, the place now looks like our covenant casting my two illusion spells : The peaceful pit and Phantasm of the Human Form (moon): 1D10+21 = [5]+21 = 26
1D10+21 = [4]+21 = 25

He stares at the illusion satisfied. "I find it a wonderful way to introduce other magi to our home !"

68

The grand hall was really just a larger room than their personal bedrooms; eight paces by four, with adobe benches built into the curved wall. Similarly, the hearth on the far end was simply a larger version of the stone-and-mudbrick stoves common throughout the temporary covenent - although using the venting to heat some of the benches near the fireplace from underneath was clever enough. They had managed to put together a serviceable enough table from the magical firewood that Bastion had conjoured up; enough to sit ten comfortably, so the magi could easily spread out. The fresh hay (reminder: don't feed it to the animals) also made for decent enough cushioning, as long as you covered it with blankets.

Now well onto evening, the slit windows high in the brownish ceiling no longer let in enough light to see by, and so the fires had been lit - the fireplace (after some last-minute adjustments) finally began to burn properly, and it only took a slight smoke-out to get the chimney properly aligned. But after that episode, the evening meal had been laid out, and the magi were gathered around the table in various states of repose. (The double-door, unfortunately, hadn't been built yet, so there was a bit of a draft.)

But by repose, of course, we mean 'St. Avery was laying on the heated bench near the fire, staring up at the ceiling through his splayed fingers.'

"Eh, mundanes are fine," he mumbled, kicking vaguely towards Emily. (Who deftly ignores her brother's spasms.) "But what specifically are we talking about? Taking over castles and becoming lords? That doesn't sound like fun. Just having the magi go to market more? That also doesn't sound like fun. Running a foster home for...no that doesn't sound like fun, either." He paused. "So I guess I'm for not dealing with mundanes, mainly because they throw rocks at me."

"You need to do research for your projects," Emily said from the corner, looking up from her needlework. "I won't always be here, you know."

"Oh. That's true." He thought a bit more, tapping the wall with his foot. "I think I'll need to know more specifics as to what they're asking, then. What's the other ones?"

"Heretics. Cathars."

"Are we even near any?"At Emily's head-shake, he continued. "Not really our problem, then. Taking any in will probably be more trouble than it's worth - they'll want to go talk to the local townsfolk, and word will get out, and then the Crusaders will show up, and we would have to levitate everyone six inches off the ground again." He frowned for a moment. "Does anyone know what they actually believe? I mean, do they think the pope's a demon, or that the Crucifix should be hung slightly to the left, or something?"

"Probably a bit more the former, and a bit less the latter," Emily said. "I think it has something to do with Church organizational structure."

"Oh, because THAT's a good reason to get killed over," he muttered, then continued. "And I don't even know what a chapterhouse IS - can anyone explain that?"

(OOC - Hermetic Lore? What's that! Also - neither of the St. Averies have Theology or Dominion Lore, so they're clueless about the Cathars. Oh, but Emily does have Immune to the Gift, which is why she isn't freaking out over a room fully of seemingly-sociopathic sorcerers.)

69

" 'I will not interfere with the affairs of mundanes and thereby bring ruin upon my sodales,' " quotes Cornelius. "Some magi would like more freedom to interfere, particularly in matters that they believe strongly in. In Iberia, for example, some Flambeau magi would like to be able to openly participate in the reconquista. Another example would be a covenant that wishes to support a friendly noble against his mundane rival. To some degree, every covenant interferes with mundanes, but too much brings trouble. In each Tribunal, some push to be allowed more freedom to interfere. But this is dangerous."

"In a way," the Guernicus continues his explanation, "the Cathar problem is example of this. Some magi believe that Cathars are heretics. Thus, they say covenants should not have any working for them, as this can bring the attention of the Church on the Order and bring ruin to us. Others already have Cathars as part of their community and wish to protect them from mundane attack."

"As for chapter houses, it is a custom in some Tribunals. A covenant sets up secondary site away from the covenant, with one of more member living there. It is often done to control a resource, like a vis source, or perform some activity, like merchanting. It is a useful tool for large covenant, too, as it helps spread the magi out. It makes them less obvious to mundanes. It can be good, it can be bad. Here in Provence, I understand that some fear the Coenobium is using this to become control too much of the Tribunal. They wish to impose a limit on chapter houses as a way to counter that covenant."

70

"Certainly," says Cornelius, "we should each speak with the members of our respective Houses," he nods to Elizabeth, "or tradition, if any are in attendance. We are new to the Tribunal, so we cannot know for sure what the position of the important members are. Before we take a position, we need to hear the arguments."

"Perhaps. It will depend on how they see themselves practicing their religion. If they keep their faith to themselves, it would not cause trouble for us. But if they are headstrong and do not listen to us, much like the knight did, then I think we do not have place for them." He shrugs, "I am very much a person who -- how do they say -- live and let live? But any person who come live with us must understand that they must live by our rules and not do things that threaten us."

71

It seems to me that no one has a strong opinion about the chapter House, I don't see us creating a chapter house anytime soon, nor a chapter House from another covenant threatening our little territory. So the decision won't probably have a huge impact on us directly. That leave us the choice to make a decision based on principle : what should a covenant be like in our opinion or the political choice support the covenant eager to make more chapter Houses, that is mostly The Coenobium or those who want to restrict them.

I'm not sure we would benefit a lot from Jerbiton and Mercere allies, considering we live in relative seclusion and are not really into getting highly political so I would advice that we vote in favor of a restriction, of course if we agree on this, we should let our opinion be known to covenant sharing this view so that we get officially adopted as soon as possible. We're basically just observer of the tribunal until we get to vote so securing our recognition should be our priority in my opinion.

72

"Ah, but being of the same body and soul as mundances we are forever linked, truly it could be said the Order relies on the service of mundanes, and those that serve us rely on us. There are many exceptions that come with the code and I believe it would be foolish to dismiss all instances of mundane affairs as dangerous, apathy can be much the danger as impulsiveness."

73

"Certainly," replies Cornelius to Bastion, "the Code does not say we should avoid all interaction with mundanes. Just that interference -- such as meddling in their politics and taking sides in their conflicts -- which brings ruin to our sodales is to be avoided. Not all assistance is banned. Providing a longevity ritual to increase the lifespan of a noble ally would pass off unnoticed in most cases. Providing blatant magical weapons to be used against rivals would certainly not be."

"In the same way," the Guernicus continues, "letting it be widely known that we offer shelter and protection to heretics would anger the Church and might provoke it into action against other magi, not just us. That would be interference. But offering shelter to a few of them, discretely, would be fine under the Code."

74

"As for the matter of the Chapter Houses, and ambitious covenants. Well the order should work together, covenants should have a well established border and respect the borders of other covenants, we cannot allow ourselves to be tied up in petty land grabs lest the order fracture into warring communities of magi who think for no one's well being but their own."

"Such a scenario is unlikely to ever play out in our lifetimes but we must not let the seeds of disunity grow under our watch."

75

St. Avery continued to stare though his fingers at the ceiling, as his sodales rambled on about something that was really kind of boring. What do I normally do when people are boring? Leave, usually. But I think it's impolite to leave right now.

Yes, it's impolite, Emily said in his mind.

Emily! You've finally developed telepathy! I knew that experiment wasn't in vain!

No, this is just your often-unused sense of decorum taking the most common form you're familiar with, not-Emily said again.

St. Avey was momentarily devastated at this continued failure, but filed this data point under 'still pending'. Fine. What should I do then? This is incredibly dull.

What do you normally do in times like this.

Talk to myself. Count the scratches in the ceiling. figure out how many housecats I can levitate at once without anyone noticing. Or I try to do...

"RESEARCH!" he yelled, jutting up from the warming bench, almost scattering his sister's (who was sitting juuuust out of flailing range) knitting. "Thanks, Em!"

"Certainly," she said. "What did the version of me in your head say this time?"

"Research is interesting! We can do research." At her level gaze, he continued. "I mean, we need to talk to people. Our people. Or I mean, the people that aren't in this room that are our people."

"You mean house members."

"Yes! Those kinds of people. Ask them what they think, why they think it. Call them out for heresy, I think?" He paused momentarily, thinking. "Pretty sure that's how you start a debate. With a monk, anyway, and we're sort of a scholastic order. So that'll work."

"How about you put together a general list of questions to ask everyone that doesn't involve starting a Wizard's War on your first day of this Tribunal."

"Well, I suppose," he mumbled. "But those kinds of tests yield the most interesting results!"

"Truly, Triamoria missed an opportunity for its finest member with you, didn't they," she replied, but sat her sewing down. "I'll get the quill and parchment."

76

"Well, I think we should stay out of conflict between Dominion sanctioned groups. Not so sure if we should let the Church go after covenfolk though. The chapter house issue seems tricky. I mean there are a bunch of legitimate reasons to have a house somewhere, but we don't want them to get used as some stupid legal tactic either. So I don't know enough about it to say either way. Really power is in magi, books and vis, so if one Covenant is getting too strong you either need to teach some apprentices, start building up the library, or... well vis is trickier, but there have got to be undiscovered vis sources somewhere out there."

77

"That's a bit of a loophole, though," replied St. Avery as he busied himself writing up a census. "If you say 'we're not going to interfere, but don't touch our covenfolk', then people who want to interfere will find excuses to hire lots and lots and lots of Cathar covenfolk. Like, entire community's worth of Cathars."

"I suppose you could put some sort of awkward limit on it," he continued, "like 'all covenants have a non-transferrable right to hire 2 Cathars and their immediate blood-relatives per magi, but are still obligated to not bring ruin on their sodales". That justifies hiring people, but keeps from having large numbers of them in your covenant (unless you have dozens of Magi, of course.)

78

"At the moment," comments Cornelius, "we have no Cathar covenfolk, so question is of little importance to us. More a philosophical question than one of real impact. Something we can support, or not, as bargaining chip."

"Now, on practical side of things, should I tell Beatrix that we wish to meet with Castra Solis to gain their support for our covenant? Or do each of you want to talk to relations in your Houses first?"

(OOC: I am still to see any action with regard to getting info from each of your magi's contacts, and it's been a week since Cornelius brought this subject forward. All philosophical discussions aside, we need some action!)

79

Elizabeth will see what the House ex Misc situation is at the tribunal. Any members of her zany lineage? Any other new magi? That sort of thing. Try to socialize a little. Talk about the silly politics. See if anyone knows how chapter houses work in this tribunal.

80

(ooc: information gathering was made in pm for Clovis)