Tribunal Books

[Berengar]

Here is a quick example for the kind of summary we discussed:

Summary of Tribunal Book Guardians of the Forest: The Rhine Tribunal (GotF) for Campaign Planning

1 Territory of the Tribunal
The book describes the Rhine Tribunal (RT) in 1220, with the Domus Magnae of Houses Bonisagus, Bjornaer and Merinita.
1.1 Its boundaries are the Danube to the South, and roughly the borders of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation (HRE) on the other sides. Rügen is part of the RT, but otherwise the Kingdom of Denmark isn’t.
1.2 A rough historical outline of the HRE is given in GotF. To learn about its organization, the Sachsenspiegel (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachsenspiegel) is a good start.
1.3 The great Forests of the RT are homes to Realm-aligned spirits of often enormous power (up to Might 60 – heed the errata), that can aid, antagonize and teach inhabitants, even powerful covenants.
1.4, 1.5 GotF details two demons plotting over the RT, designed around the Germans’ struggle with Slavic pagans and Scandinavian people. These demons can easily be removed from a campaign.
1.6 The Wild Hunt Faerie Game terrorizes many areas on winter nights: the Huntsmen search and chase the shy, benevolent Holzfrauen, who might seek refuge with humans.

2 The Order - Tribunal Organization
The RT is controlled by covenants founded centuries ago, and by old magi relying on contacts, favors and a tailored peripheral code.
2.1 Effects on Individual Magi
2.1.1 Young RT magi (called journeymen) have few specific obligations, but without friends and contacts amount to very little. They can rely on the terms of hospitality offered by most RT covenants (and determined in detail by the troupe). They are well advised to join a Gild: a ‘lodge’ which represents an established political agenda and provides support to members.
2.1.2 Gilds and covenant hospitality already provide close social control by sodales. So Quaesitores find little to do and are few.
2.1.3 Reputation and merit recognized by their RT sodales in a formal way advance journeymen to master rank. This typically takes 20-30 years. Masters can then strive for archmage rank as usual.
Journeymen are not allowed to take apprentices. Masters each hold two votes at Tribunal, archmages three. Disputes between RT sodales of different rank, which elsewhere could be decided by certamen, are instead automatically decided in favor of the higher ranking mage.
2.2 Effects on Covenants
2.2.1 All existing RT covenants need to approve, before a new covenant is recognized in RT: think pork. Covenants founded for a specific purpose of Tribunal-wide appeal have the best chances. Remote chapter houses can be founded without universal approval as part of established covenants.
2.2.2, 2.2.3 Obligations incurred at founding time will from the onset keep covenants enmeshed with Tribunal politics.
2.2.4 Suitable magical sites removed from the world are likely (troupe decision) taken centuries ago: so most new covenants can expect to have mundane neighbors.
2.2.5 Fast advancement of specific RT covenants would need significant changes in RT peripheral code.
2.3 Factions in the Tribunal
2.3.1 Eichengilde (preserve RT tradition), Weissdorngilde (protect wilderness – includes Bjornaer Wilderists), Eschengilde (smite Order’s enemies), Holundergilde (protect Faerie), Lindengilde (increase cooperation of magi – includes Bjornaer Harmonists), Apfelgilde (improve mundane relations)
2.3.2 Harmonists and Wilderists must come to terms, how House Bjornaer shall protect the dwindling wildernesses from mundanes, and Crintera from Danes.
Two covenants fight for control of the northern seas. In Bohemia two covenants seek to establish different kinds of paganism. The original home covenant of House Merinita might (troupe decision) not be altogether lost, but stay in hiding and plot to retake their House.
2.4 Important Plots for Campaign
The RT covenants around the lower and middle Rhine, together with Normandy Tribunal covenants north of the Seine, will bring a move to the next Great Tribunal: their forming into the new Lotharingian Tribunal. They argue, that to exist among prosperous mundanes requires an adequate peripheral code. Even RT covenants distant from the prospected area of the new Tribunal hope to benefit through trade and chapterhouses from it. But there is also an example of an RT covenant which existed among mundanes and was destroyed for it.

3 Specific Support in the Book
3.1 GotF gives a rudimentary system for Initiations of Virtues by Forest spirits, which especially HMRE develops further.
Gild–related Virtues (quite useful for journeymen magi) and Flaws are provided.
3.2 There is a 22 page mini-campaign about founding a covenant at the middle Rhine.
3.3 There is also a chapter introducing Rhine sagas and their potential in more general terms.

4 Interaction with Other Tribunals
4.1 , 4.2 Both Normandy and Rhine Tribunal are involved with the attempt to found the Lotharingian Tribunal. A covenant on Zealand (formally Novgorod Tribunal) tries to get accepted in RT. The Greater Alps Tribunal is often used by established RT magi as an example for good practice.

5 Miscellaneous Remarks

It is here as an example to show, what could go into a Summary for Campaign Planning, and how it might look. Who was in favor of such information being easily available can now see, whether this is what he thought of.
Detailed contents are then up for change in a second step - and perhaps better at Project Redcap, if Yair's offer still stands, and Atlas does not call for a halt.

Cheers