Putting together a story - need some ideas :)

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

Hi,

Next session, the magi will go off on their biggest adventure yet, and I thought I'd ask for some additional ideas and input on the story. If any of my players are lurking around in this forum, please stay away from this thread :slight_smile:

The background is like this:
The magi of the covenant Vindilis (on the island Bell-Ile off the coast of Brittany) have befriended an eremite magus living in Broceliande Forest, near Paimpont. This strange magus of Ex Miscellanea (Lineage of Pralix) is a collector of exotic magics and traditions, and a bit of a rebel in the Order. He's also an ally of the Boar King, who let's him live in peace and protects him from certain faeries in the forest. Anyway, one having Hyperborean Blood, learned of the Temple of a Thousand Pillars (from Ancient Magic), and the group wants to go there. This is far away, but the eremite took them to a strange feast at the Boar King's castle and told them that they could try to win back a magical horn the eremite had lost to the Boar King earlier. This horn, if sounded above the clouds, would summon a "mode of transportation" the magi could use to reach their destination quicker. The magi won the challenge, who involved hunting a magical boar.

Now, this is where they are now. They do not know exactly what kind of transportation they will summon, and when we ended last session, they were debating how they would get the horn above the clouds. One of the characters, the one with Hyperborean Blood, can transform into a crow, but he won't be able to carry the horn, which is made out of an auroch's horn.
Anyway, I think the horn will signal to the People of the Clouds from RoP: Magic, since they're a friend of the ermite, and gave him this in the first place, but I'm open for other ideas here. The transportation must be able to carry the magi to the Temple of a Thousand Pillars in a very "epic" way. A flying ship fits the bill here, I think.

I need ideas to make the trip eventful. Creatures of the air, maybe harpies (are these faeries or magical creatures) could attack the ship, and if any of the crew are lost, the ship will start to fall, since the magic of the air is in the crew, not the ship, if I'm correct?
The ship might crash land in some mythic area or even the Magic Realm. Haven't worked out the details around this yet.

Also, their destination, the Temple of a Thousand Pillars, is this based on the Temple at Delphi? I take it that the Temple of a Thousand Pillars are made up by the authors of Ancient Magic, but I had a look at some pictures of Delphi, and might use that as a reference.

Well, long post. If anyone's still reading, I would love some extra ideas to put into this story. Remember, this should really have an epic and mythic feel to it. Think movies like 300 and Troy for style. :slight_smile:

Cheers,

Eirik

Edit: Seems I haven't read the Hyperborean chapter in Ancient Magic for some time, so any reference in the post above for Temple of a Thousand Pillars is actually meant as Basilica of Ten Thousand Columns (again from Ancient Magic). :slight_smile:

2

If you want some exotic transport give them a big ancient flying cart with one or more Babylonian winged bull which pull it in the sky.

Or an ancient Greek ship with slave ghost oarsmen. Check the net for pictures. There is a whip near the rudder for speed control and they have to whip the slaves if they want to fly faster.
The slaves beg for their freedom in exotic languages. If they break the ghost shacklaces they will disappear and the ship will move only using its sail.

3

The ship is forced to crash land on a mythical floating island. The captain of the ship needs time and supplies to repair the ship, and the characters must go retrieve them. While on the search, they discover that the island is a realm of forgotten gods, and there is a problem. (What it is, I'm not sure... you get to figure that out). One of the gods drove them to the island, and charges the PCs to fix it. They're rewarded with a mythical magical item, and they also are granted with Knowledge -- They leave the island having learned a dead language that could help them on their quest. If they choose to return here and tell stories to the gods, this could be a regular source of vis as well (not to mention further quests).

4

The group reached the Basilica of Ten Thousand Pillars last session and are about to spend their first night there, having camped in the ruined monastary. They have yet to discover the ghosts and spirits. I was thinking that the character, a Bonisagus Magus with Hyperborean Blood, will get a feeling of remorse for what Trianoma and Tremere did to the place, and abandon his house and defect to Ex Miscellanea, after having a conversation with a ghostly Hyperborean priest. The player wanted to change houses anyway, and it's better to make a story around it rather than just do it without reason. The real reason was that he didn't read up on the special oath Bonisagus Magi makes, and their responsibilities to the Order. Frankly, he's a Seeker, but he doesn't want to share his discoveries with anyone. Not cool for a Bonisagus. :slight_smile:

What I need is something huge and epic to happen in the Basilica next session. :slight_smile:

E.

5

... well at least tell us the story about how they got to the temple! What epic aerial means did you use? Were you happy with how the story went?

6

Voluntarily changing houses from Bonisagus is real tricky because of the implications to the actual Oath he swore to the order. The tribunals and other covenants can require him to live up to given oath (with bonisagus provisions to share the magic) even if he is nominally of a different house.

You have a whole new adventure as he tries to get approval to modify his oath to escape the provisions of Bonisagus.

7

Exactly - the Oath was not "as long as I claim House Bonisagus as my own", it was "I shall..."

So long as it doesn't rewrite history too much, and considering that it's a new player, you could just let him change the character and handwave it - you don't want his gaming experience to be ruined, punishing the player because of an OOC mistake his character would not have made.

Or, as suggested above, you could use it as an opportunity for an opportunity to introduce the players to... (dum, dum, dummmmm)... TRIBUNAL POLITICS! (That's punishment enough.)

~IF~ you want the saga to go that way. It would be a good reason for that mage to ingratiate himself with nearby Covenants, give a strong incentive to go out and interact positively, gain some support for an upcoming vote (and maybe get a labrat out of the lab?). Then, get creative with the final ruling - big threats and lots of fear and dread - lots of directions that you could go there.

("House Bonisagus" is not someone to be taken lightly by any Tribunal making a ruling - so I'd go with something like "7 years of service, then your oath is dismissed" or so. At the very least a full accounting of every spell and discovery up to that point, certified by a Quaesitor - and those services paid for by a fine!).

8

The character got to the Basilica by using a magical horn that opens up a gateway to the Sky Sea where the People of the Clouds live. Or rather, it opened up to a regio I called (roughly translated to English) the "Sky Pier" where the ships of the People of the Clouds dock onto mountain tops that pierce into the Sky Sea. There they met a captain of one of these ships, and since he owed a friend of them a favor, they could select one destination, and they chose the Basilica, or rather Delphi, and then traced the way to the Basilica from there, using Eyes of the Eagle to fly over a pathway and scout for magical columns along the way.
The journey itself was rather epic, and I didn't have to add conflict or disaster to set the mood. They did try to take some readings of the stars along the way, but didn't manage the Artes Liberales (Astronomy) ease factor (is it right that this should be 15 to get a correct reading).

Anyway, when they got there, the Bonisagus Magus with Hyperborean Blood began to feel remorse for his kin slaughtered there by Trianoma and Tremere, and this will be reinforced when they meet a ghost of one of those who died. He will then renounce his House in some way, and possibly join Ex Miscellanea. This will cause conflict, of course. Lots of it. Possible because he is Bonisagus at the time he discovered the Basilica and the Insights there. The characters will start to feel shame and an internal conflict will begin (that will soon get external). Good story elements all around :slight_smile:

Eirik