I'm not sure I agree with this one. I've seen it used in many different ways.
Annual services, a single service per N years. Various degrees of membership, where young magi had to work to prove their value to the covenant, but the established magi where considered to have already "paid their dues" etc.
In 3rd edition, I ran a covenant that theoretically required a service each year, but the 'Council of Magi' (meaning, the magi) could vote to exempt each magus from this obligation in a given year. The elder magi had routinely done so, for decades, which was part of the reason the covenant was falling into Winter. The elder verditius was furious when he was actually required to perform a covenant service once again - due to clever politicking by the players.
And obviously, there was always the opportunity of trying to get the other magi to agree that you didn't need to do a service in a given year, or that something you'd already done would count for that year's service - or the next year's. And ofcourse, there was the younger verditius, who played a game of 'don't get caught', where he'd just decided not to do his covenant services, and see if he'd get called on it.
Plenty of story and RP material there I'd have thought?
Yes, obviously. But compared to what? Other magi in the same saga, which are really the only relevant units of comparison?
Wait, you impose a charter upon your players? Shouldn't those be either 1) Troupe decissions or 2) imposed by elder magi in a non-spring covenant, specifically to give characters/players something to resent and work against?
In fact, doing so is (IME) rather easier than motivating why covenant services are indeed required.
On the surface, yes. But how often does the house require a command performace in your sagas? And since House Tremere might well demand a service such as "Get better at your tines!" or "Get your Arts up so that you can take an apprentice for the greater glory of our [strike]pyramid scheme[/strike] House", things could be worse.
Yeah, I can see where this is comming from. But then, like Christian, I see apprentices as a way of getting covenant services done without having to do it yourself.
I also recall seeing a charter where teaching your apprentice was considered a valid covenant service. Remember, it doesn't have to be a story, if you're a little smart about how you write that charter.
..again, not sure I agree ![:wink: :wink:](https://forum.atlas-games.com/images/emoji/apple/wink.png?v=12)