Sceparnius ex Bonisagus

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Sceparnio grew up as Daniel in rural Bavaria, the fourth son of a small peasant family whose father eked out a living as a farmer and forester in the teeming Black Forest. He was mostly allowed to run free as a small child, and found favor with his family by bringing in wild mushrooms, potherbs, and the occasional rabbit. However, the boy was undeniably strange, and there was little food or work for him in the family, so Daniel's father did not long regret the day he allowed a strange travelling "doctor" to take him off as an apprentice. That "doctor", of course, was actually a grog in the service of Alexandria of Bonisagus, a maga belonging to a covenant near Speyer. There he learned that his knack for finding his way in the forest was a special Gift, and was trained further in the lore of the forest and of the Order of Hermes.

However, Alexandria was the keeper of a secret herself. Several generations back in her own magical lineage, her parens' parens had exercised his privilege as a Bonisagus to claim the apprentice of another magus. In general, this would be an event of little import, but this claiming was done in great secret, just a few months before the open declarations of hostilities against House Diedne, and the "apprentice" claimed was 26 years old and finished with her magical training in all but name. For some reason - perhaps a deal struck in exchange for some lost knowledge, perhaps true friendship between magi of two Houses, or perhaps the charming green eyes of the apprentice in question - this Bonisagus magus claimed apprenticeship over a nearly full-trained Diedne maga, and sheltered her long enough through the Schism war that she could be passed off as a new apprentice in her later days. As a result, Alexandria (and Sceparnius) hide the dark taint of Diedne lineage.

This particular form of Druidic magic is no doubt why they express a particular affinity for Herbam and Terram spells. However, they are well-trained Bonisagus magi, and horrified of any rumor of wild, pagan leanings getting out. If anything, Sceparnio has been trained to be exceedingly academic in outlook, the very model of a perfect lab rat. His interests in Herbam appear perfectly academic (even if he does have an embarassing need for real plants to guide his studies); his current ambitions are nothing stronger than to compile a summae outlining the magical uses of a wild variety of trees and herbs, and even when casting a spell such as "Intuition of the Forest" he's careful to treat it as an academic exercise, not some pagan tree-worshipping ceremony. That said, having discussed the matter with his parens, he has long term goals in the Order, of carefully, and with solid Hermetic foundations, working to re-integrate some of the tradition they know into the Order at large, in such a way that fewer and fewer spells of the woods and forest could be said to suggest a druidic past. It will be a long and subtle campaign, but if spontaneous magic can be placed on a firm theoretical background, then perhaps the Diedne tradition mages still hiding within the Order can sleep a little more peacefully at night.

Stats at Gauntlet:

Personality Traits: Curious +2, Dislikes Society +2, Paranoid +2

Stats: Int: 2, Per: 1, Pre : -1, Com: 2, Str: 0, Sta: 0, Dex: 1, Qui: 0,

Virtues:
The Gift (Free)(Hermetic Major),
Diedne Magic (Hermetic Major)
Minor Magic Focus: Communication with Plants (Hermetic Minor)
Inoffensive to Animals (Hermetic Minor)
Free Study (Hermetic Minor)
Puissant Magical Theory (Hermetic Minor, Bonisagus Trait)

Flaws:
Dark Secret: Diedne Origin (Story Major, Comes with Diedne Magic)
Deficient Technique: Perdo (Hermetic Major)
Oversensitive: Botanical Names (Personal Minor)
Susceptibility to Divine Power (Hermetic Minor)
Pessimistic (Personal Minor)

Abilities:
Native Language (German (Botany)) 5 (75)
German Lore (Geography) 2 (15)
Athletics (Running) 2(15)
Awareness (Searching) 2(15)
Stealth (Natural areas) 1(5)
Survival (Forests) 3(30)
Swim (Endurance) 1(5)
Folk Ken (Peasants 1(5)
Hunt (Rabbits) 2(15)
Ride (Cross-Country) 1(5)
Parma Magica (Creo) 1(5)
Magic Theory (Herbam) 3+2 (30)
Latin (Hermetic) 4 (50)
Code of Hermes (Diedne Excommunication) 1 (5)
Concentration (Spells) 1 (5)
Order of Hermes Lore (History) 1 (5)
Fairie Lore (Forests) 1 (5)
Philosophy (Natural Philosophy) 2 (15)
Artes Liberales (Astronomy) 1 (5)
Gaelic (Plant lore ) 1 (5)

Arts: Creo 3 (6xp), Intellego 3 (6xp), Muto 4 (10xp), Perdo 1, (1xp) Rego 8, (36xp)
Animal 3 (2xp), Aquam 1 (1xp), Auram 0 (0xp), Corpus 2 (3xp), Herbam 7 (28xp)
Ignem 0 (0xp), Imaginem 0 (0xp), Mentem 2 (3xp), Terram 6 (21xp), Vim 2 (3xp)

Spells:
Hunt for the Wild Herb (InHe5)
Intuition of the Forest (InHe10)
Shriek of the Impending Shafts (InHe15)
Trap of the Entwining Vines (CrHe15)
The Crystal Dart (MuTe10)
Lord of the Trees (ReHe25)
The Treacherous Spear (ReHe25)
Ward Against Fairies of the Woods (ReHe15)