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House Bonisagus

“Brothers and Sisters, I bring you the potion that will cure our sorrows and bind our wounds. No longer need we conspire against each other; for now we stand together on the common ground that this knowledge has provided, and we can make peace. May all of you and all your filii use what I will teach you wisely.” — Bonisagus, announcing his invention of Hermetic magic at the first tribunal

Motto: Pertinatia sapientiaque ad cognitionem cursus sunt. (Perseverance and wisdom are the keys to knowledge).

Symbol: Two keys, crossed

The magi of House Bonisagus are the descendants of the two founders of the Order of Hermes: the magus Bonisagus, who invented the Parma Magica, and the maga Trianoma, who used that magical protection to gather the rest of the Order’s Founders. House Bonisagus is a true lineage, meaning that each magus was taught by a magus of the House, and that master-apprentice relationship goes all the way back to the two founders. Members of the House maintain the goals of the original pair. Magi Bonisagi explore the theoretical applications of magic, delving deeper into its arcane secrets and pushing the limits of Bonisagus’s original theory. Magi Trianomae continue the political agenda of their mistress, advocating peace and cooperation among the Houses of the Order of Hermes, and searching for other wizards who might contribute to the community of magi. Both goals contribute to the House’s overall quest for knowledge. Magi Bonisagi are trailblazers in original research. Magi Trianomae operate behind the scene, keeping the political cogs of the Order of Hermes moving, always seeking peace above discord.

Throughout history wizards have aspired to the same goal: to understand nature’s secrets and gain power over them. The magi of House Bonisagus have similar aspirations; the differences are their community orientation and the ﬁrm idea that only peace offers the stability necessary for such discoveries. Of all the Hermetic Houses, House Bonisagus is most pleased with the Order of Hermes, ﬁnding it a safe community that allows for their personal goals. No one has ever heard a magus Bonisagi gainsay the Order.

The following pages detail House Bonisagus, beginning with its Founders and its history before explaining the House’s organization in the thirteenth century. This section also includes information about the Seekers, an informal group of magi exploring the mystical past, who search out legendary and magical sites. Details for the magi of the House follow, beginning with apprentices before explaining the two branches of the House. The House Utilities section contains two systems exclusive to House Bonisagus, House Acclaim and folios, as well as more information on the social skill Intrigue. This section ends with new Virtues and Flaws applicable to House Bonisagus magi. Rules for original research are next, useful for any magus character, followed by example Hermetic discoveries.

Key Facts

Population: 81 (52 magi Bonisagi, 29 magi Trianomae)

Domus Magna: Durenmar in the Rhine tribunal.

Prima: The archmage Murion. An unscrupulous schemer and staunch conservative, Murion leads the House along an ambitious path that will, if successful, re-establish House Bonisagus’s power among the Houses. Favored Tribunals: The Rhine and Roman Tribunals, followed by the Iberian and Provencal.

Famous Figures

Bonisagus, inventor of the Parma Magica and Hermetic magic theory, Founder of the House.

Trianoma, visionary responsible for the Order of Hermes, Founder of the House.

Lucian, Trianoma’s ﬁrst apprentice, the ﬁrst Seeker Viea, Trianoma’s twin, enemy of the Order.

Notatus, ﬁrst Primus, apprentice of Bonisagus, inventor of the Aegis of the Hearth.

Thamus Collis, Primus during the Schism War.

Jovius, last apprentice of Bonisagus, Marched by his parens.

Durenmar: Domus Magna

The domus magna of House Bonisagus is Durenmar, located in the Black Forest in the Holy Roman Empire (modern day Germany). Built on the ruins of a Mercurian temple, it is the site where the Twelve Founders swore allegiance to the Order of Hermes in 767. It consists of three towers, a forum and several outlying buildings standing in one of the forest’s few valleys. The three towers are named after the three most important magi of House Bonisagus. The Tower of Bonisagus houses the Great Library, an unequaled collection of books. The Tower of Notatus contains the living quarters of the resident magi Bonisagi, including the Prima Murion. The Tower of Trianoma is home to the magi Trianomae, Redcaps, and other magi not of House Bonisagus. The Forum of Hermes is where the Rhine Tribunal meetings and the Grand Tribunals are held. Much more information about Durenmar can be found in Guardians of the Forests: The Rhine Tribunal.

History

The Founder Bonisagus

Bonisagus was born in Florence in 690. Unsettled by his potent Gift, his parents sent him to live with his uncle, a deacon in the church Or San Michele, hoping that his soothing presence might cure the boy. His uncle realized Bonisagus’s nature, and instead of suppressing the boy’s inclinations, encouraged them. Outspoken and charismatic, Bonisagus spent his early years reading through his uncle’s library and listening to the wandering speakers who preached from the steps of the church.

Florence was governed by the Lombards, an invading Germanic tribe, notorious for killing outcasts, indigents, and anyone they felt threatened by. Fearing that Bonisagus might draw such attention, his uncle took him to Iozheza, a wizard living in the Florentine countryside. Iozheza was a conjurer of considerable skill. He searched for other wizards, greedy for their magical secrets and willing to kill for them. He readily accepted Bonisagus and taught him his ﬁrst spells. The pair explored the Italian coasts, hunting through the rubble of the Roman Empire for remnants of the lost Cults of Mercury, Dionysus, and Mithras. Bonisagus bore grim witness to several of Iozheza’s evil acts.

In Egypt, the pair found a group of wizards still following the ancient Cult of Osiris. Iozheza persuaded the group to perform one if its most ancient rites, an “incubation” ceremony in which dreaming Iozheza would meet the ancient god Ra. As Bonisagus watched, his master was enveloped in a brilliant, searing light. When the light passed, Iozheza was gone, disappeared from the mundane world. Bonisagus was not sure if the spell failed or worked only too well.

Bonisagus continued the search for lost cults and isolated magi. Rather than speciﬁc spells, Bonisagus was intrigued with the similarities he saw in the different types of spells. Meeting individual wizards was dangerous, so Bonisagus sought cities that had a reputation for magic. He lived in Ephesus for a few years, seeking the lost Cult of Diana and their ecstatic mysteries. When Ephesus was overrun by an invading Muslim army in 717, Bonisagus ﬂed to Rome, the current residence of his uncle. Living in a tower on the Aventine Hill, Bonisagus discovered a nearby well, half buried and long forgotten. Descending into the dry well he found a secret cache of the Cult of Mercury’s rituals.

Teaching himself some of the minor rituals, he discovered commonalities with his own spells, those of the cult of Osiris and others from the temple of Diana. He believed he could create a system of magic that would encompass all of theses types of magic. Funded by his uncle, Bonisagus began a passionate search for more magical texts, roaming the Aegean basin and deep into Persia to retrieve many legendary tomes and magical papyri. His early library was immense, including memoirs of Cappadocian wizards, the secret lore of the Chaldeans, Gnostic, Christian, and Jewish mysteries, and even the magical writings of Moses and Solomon.

Bonisagus also discovered many powerful magi during his travels. His ﬁrst few meetings were disastrous and one encounter nearly killed him. Paradoxically, this same magus would later become one of the Twelve Founders. Bonisagus decided to invent some form of magical resistance to protect him. His efforts were delayed by robbers, who stole a satchel full of his books on his return trip to Rome. Bonisagus followed them to their secret lair, a cave in the Southern Alps, and retrieved his property. Chasing the thieves away, Bonisagus realized that the cave had been a shrine to Hermes before becoming the bandits’ lair. He thought it an ideal place for his research, being both private and maintaining a magical aura. Within a year he had installed his library and laboratory. He began the duel task of formulating a universal magic theory and creating some type of magic resistance. He was not heard from again for ten years.

The Founder Trianoma

Trianoma was born in Thessaly, from a long line of powerful female sorceresses, the same maternal bloodline as Circe and Medea. Thessaly is famous for its potent witches, and Trianoma and her twin sister Viea were no exception. They were trained in magic by their nurse, learning hexes and spell-songs as toddlers. Trianoma was also blessed with visions, strange portents that beguiled and frightened her. She rarely understood the visions, and relied upon her sister’s interpretations to make sense of them.

One night Trianoma dreamt a terrible nightmare. She and her sister had been ﬁghting each other, surrounded by a blazing ring of ﬁre, while a powerful wizard stood by watching. The nightmare ended with Trianoma killing her sister. Viea understood this to mean that the isolated and desperate magi who lived in Europe would eventually destroy the sisters and the world, and that their only recourse was to slay the wizard in her dream. The sisters undertook an epic quest to ﬁnd the wizard, traveling past the limits of Ethiopia to the far end of the world. They found a temple of Hesperidies, guarded by a Massylian priestess, and a Dragon sleeping inside the temple. They woke the Dragon and offered it sacriﬁces in return for wisdom regarding their quest. The Dragon told the women to walk to the snow-capped Alps and ﬁnd a forlorn cave and its forgotten occupant.

A year later Trianoma and her sister found Bonisagus’s hide-away. Following Viea’s advice, the sisters immediately attacked, their long hair loosed and woven with poisonous snakes. Trianoma’s incantations and Viea’s enchanted arrows failed to pierce Bonisagus’s magical protection, and the magus easily defeated the sisters. Bonisagus imprisoned the women, threatening them with slavery if they did not teach him their song-magic. Viea balked at the offer but Trianoma craftily agreed.

Bonisagus’ rough-shod magic theory, still in its infancy, easily incorporated the twin’s spells. As he formulated his theory, he taught it to the sisters. Sharing magical secrets changed the relationship between the wizard and the witches, most notably Trianoma, who started to view the Bonisagus differently. Rather than a threat, he seemed a kind, open-hearted, inquisitive man. As he learned their spells, Bonisagus taught both women some simple formulaic spells, invented under his new system of magic. Still, both yearned for the secret of the Parma Magica. As Trianoma’s ardor grew, Veia became jealous of their relationship. The sisters argued, and after a particularly vicious quarrel Veia left the cave, ﬂeeing in the night with several of Bonisagus’s valuable books. The magus was furious but Trianoma forbade any revenge. She was reminded of her dream that had started this journey. She believed hunting down her sister would drive the world of wizards to a horrible end. Instead, she used her sister’s pilfering to suggest a new order of magi, where theft and murder would not be necessary. Bonisagus was reluctant, but Trianoma spoke of a society of magicians unlike any he had ever seen. He acquiesced and accepted her as his full apprentice, beginning her studies in earnest. Within a year she had learned his Hermetic theory and ﬁnally the Parma Magica.

Story Seed: Legends of the Founder

Many legends surround Bonisagus and Trianoma, and these are only a few of the fantastic stories attributed to the pair. Investigating these legends would make excellent adventures.

Some ﬁnd it oddly coincidental that Bonisagus’s Aventine Hill home in Rome was located so close to the well that contained several lost Mercurian spells. One legend proposes that Bonisagus’s uncle left the spells there for his curious nephew to ﬁnd. The story goes that he was following the command of Pope Gregory II, one of the ﬁrst popes entrusted with the care of the papal library, who ﬁltered some of the Vatican’s more curious texts to the ingenious young magus. Perhaps he hoped that Bonisagus’ theory would lead to the creation of an order of magi loyal to the Church, much as the Cult of Mercury was loyal to the Roman emperor. Is there a link between the Church and the Order of Hermes?

The story of Trianoma’s trip to the Dragon is well known, and yet no one has been able to retrace a single footstep of this mythic journey. Who was this Dragon she awoke, and how did it know the location of Bonisagus, working in isolation? Many suspect it was one of the Old Ones, the great beings of the primordial age who directed the sorceress. If this was true it could mean the Order is merely a pawn of these creatures. Some have tried to retrace the sisters’ journey and failed, but perhaps a new expedition will ﬁnd the truth?

Both Trianoma and Bonisagus developed Longevity Rituals late in their life. During their stay in the Alpine cave the pair conceived a son. The mixing of their magic bloodlines produced a strange boy, strong with the Gift but psychologically fragile. At ﬁve years of age he ﬂed in the night, resisting efforts to be found by his seeking parents. Some say this is why Bonisagus left the cave and went to the Black Forest; he could no longer view the contents of his home without painful emotions. The cave has never been discovered. Some magi think the boy returned there, to what fell purpose no one knows.

The Formative Years

Trianoma set out across Europe, seeking powerful magi to join the nascent Order of Hermes. Bonisagus moved to an ancient Mercurian temple located in the Holy Roman Empire’s Black Forest in 754. Forming the Order was slow work, taking almost thirty years to complete. During that time, Trianoma sent magi to Bonisagus, who worked closely with them to incorporate their magic into his universal theory. Some of the founders were reluctant to join, and it took Trianoma several visits to persuade them. Her constant offer of the Parma Magica to those who accepted her invitation eventually prevailed. In 767, twelve magi stood in the Black Forest and swore fealty to the new Order of Hermes. Trianoma refused to found a lineage herself, preferring the advantages of neutrality by remaining in Bonisagus’ lineage. She promoted cooperation, ﬁghting against the lingering spirit of competition inherent in all magi, and wished her descendants to do the same.

The Order grew rapidly and House Bonisagus was a leader in this initial surge. Magic theory complete, Bonisagus started training apprentices, often doing little else but teaching his new system to eager young pupils. Trianoma too took an apprentice, Lucian. While Bonisagus remained teaching at Durenmar, Trianoma continued to work with the other Founders, helping them set up covenants modeled after Durenmar. Ancient temples and legendary areas proved good locations for covenants, and Trianoma spent much of her time ﬁnding such sites.

As the Order grew, Bonisagus and Trianoma decided they needed help overseeing their particular House. While they both liked the looseness of the Order, and its lack of restrictions regarding Hermetic research, they also wanted to encourage magi Bonisagi to share ideas and important magical ﬁnds. Trianoma also wanted her political agendas maintained. By the beginning of the ninth century the House had formed two inner Circles, one for each branch of the house. The Colentes Arcanorum, “Collectors of Secret Lore”, is a council of magi Bonisagi responsible for the gathering and dissemination of knowledge. The Tenentes Occultorum, “Tenders of Secret Lore”, are four magi Trianoma who oversee the political branch of the House. They see themselves as shepherds, keeping the ﬂock of Hermetic magi safe by making sure none of the information leaving House Bonisagus leaves the Order of Hermes.

House Bonisagus responded unevenly to the early conﬂicts that threatened the Order of Hermes. Magi Bonisagi barely took notice of the calamities, preferring their personal research over any organized reaction. They deemed the Order sufﬁciently capable of handling events without their speciﬁc participation. Bonisagus was often accused of being self-centered and unaware of the world around him, and this perception clung to his lineage. Magi Trianomae launched themselves into these early problems, thinking every conflict could be resolved through peaceful negotiations and dextrous politicking. They realized their mistake with Damhan-Allaidh, who cared little for negotiations and preferred beheading magi to befriending them. They may have fared better in the other early crises, but since Trianoma’s lineage followed her behavior of acting without recognition, their exact involvement is unknown. Those in the Order fond of conspiracy theories claim that magi Trianomae were behind House Tremere’s “Sundering”, although magi Trianomae publicly deny any such claim.

Story Seed: The Lost Diary of Polus

Polus was a powerful magus living in the ninth century, who kept diaries of his life as a magus Trianomae. Several of his diaries still exist, residing in the Great Library of Durenmar. Recently one of his missing diaries has been found, containing speciﬁc information about his and other magi Triamonae’s involvement in the Sundering. Besides claiming responsibility, the dairies clearly show how magi Trianomae repeatedly broke their Hermetic Oath by spying on Tremere magi. If this missing diary came to the Order’s attention, it would seriously discredit House Bonisagus and its Trianoma lineage. Player characters are asked to discover whether this diary is genuine or a forgery.

The Founder’s End

Bonisagus continued teaching Hermetic magic throughout the eighth century, teaching with a passion and accelerating magi through apprenticeship. The most exaggerated case was Jovius, a man accepted as apprentice in his twenties and sped through the complete Hermetic course in four years. Regrettably, Jovius lacked the maturity to be a magus even though he possessed the requisite lore, and within a few months of his gauntlet he was convicted of seriously breaching his Oath of Hermes. Bonisagus was forced to March his own ﬁlius, and the experience changed the archmagus. He left Durenmar and never took another apprentice. Rumors of his location and activities occasionally surfaced, but few facts could be determined. He attended the Grand Tribunals of 817 and 832, although he contributed to neither. He was last seen at the regular Thebes Tribunal meeting of 836, recruiting young magi for some secretive mission.

Trianoma continued traveling from covenant to covenant — usually domus magnae — throughout the eighth and early ninth centuries. She always had an apprentice in tow, always accepting another as soon as her current charge took the Oath. She too attended the Grand Tribunal of 832, sharing a meal with her master. After supper, she retired to her private suite and died in her sleep.

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Story Seed: The Founders’ End

Viea was never found, nor was the property she took ever recovered. Some believe that the stolen volumes contained lost details of Bonisagus’s theory, and that their recovery could repair some of the failings of Magic Theory. They claim Viea ﬂed back to Thessaly and began a line of sorceresses whose magic could surpass the limits of Hermetic magic. Bonisagus’s purpose at the Thebes Tribunal in 836 was to raise a band of adventures to ﬁnd his enemy. Player characters could be recruited to explore the Greek islands looking for Bonisagus’s lost books and, perhaps, his grave.

Trianoma did not die peacefully in her sleep during the Grand Tribunal of 832. Knowing the power that those who die before their time leave upon the earth, Trianoma insisted that her mentor murder her, hoping this ultimate sacriﬁce would increase the magical aura of Durenmar. Bonisagus ﬂatly refused, and Trianoma forced her apprentice to perpetuate the grisly deed. This succeeded in permanently increasing the Magic Aura of the valley, but it also imprisoned Trianoma’s ghost within her tower. The top two stories were destroyed in an attempt to remove her spirit, which now haunts the surrounding Black Forest.

The Schism War

The Schism War was the gravest threat the Order ever faced. To House Bonisagus, its cure, the Renunciation of House Diedne, was as welcome as the amputation of a wounded limb. For that was precisely what it was, the sacriﬁcing of one House to save the whole Order. Diedne had contributed her knowledge of spontaneous magic to Bonisagus’s Magic Theory. She was the most versatile practitioner of spontaneous magic ever seen, and her lineage retained this spectacular ability. Magi Bonisagi felt great affection for House Diedne, and magi from both Houses were known to work together on various projects. Magi Trianoma felt quite the reverse. While they couldn’t deny House Diedne’s capabilities, they distrusted Diedne’s lineage. Trianoma’s personal feelings were passed down through Trianoma’s lineage, based on her resentment of the many clandestine meetings Bonisagus and the pagan Diedne held.

Still, neither branch of House Bonisagus was prepared when the Schism War broke out. Initially a series of skirmishes, ﬁghting soon spread throughout the Order. Magi Trianomae worked feverishly to bring peace, rushing to the domus magnae of the Houses to beseech the Primi to rein in their lineage’s magi. The ﬁghting continued. Many magi hoped the regional tribunals of 1004 would help restore order, but individual Wizard’s Wars and impromptu Marches forced cancellations of most of the Regional Tribunal meetings. Finally, House Tremere declared war on House Diedne in 1010. Houses Flambeau and Jerbiton followed soon after and the Order of Hermes teetered on the brink of extinction.

In 1011, magi Trianomae convinced the Primus of House Guernicus to call an emergency Grand Tribunal instead of the Regular Tribunal meetings to deal with the situation. The Primi of House Bonisagus and House Mercere readily agreed. House Mercere offered its aid to quickly reach all the Primi and escort them to Magvillus. The summons went to as many covenants as the Redcaps could safely reach. The speciﬁcs of this emergency meeting can be found in the Guernicus chapter. The end result was the Renunciation of House Diedne and all its members. This decision caused many magi of House Bonisagus to resent their fellows. Destroying one of the founding Houses was hardly a model of cooperation and peaceful community. It was a heavy decision Bonisagus Primus Thamus Collis had to make, and once decided he abdicated his position — the only Primus to ever do so.

Story Seed: A Pair in Isolation

Before the events of the Schism War, a Bonisagus and a Diedne magus isolated themselves from the rest of the Order to collaborate on magical research. Their hiding place was so remote that they missed the events of the Schism War entirely. Growing older, they each acquired and trained an apprentice in the twelfth century, to ﬁnish their research once they slipped into Final Twilight. The apprentices continued their master’s efforts, neither one ever leaving their isolated valley, never attending any of the regular meetings of the Order, waiting until their research was complete before their triumphal return.

Now they have returned, only to ﬁnd their masters’ covenant destroyed long ago, and one of the pair an enemy of the Order. They have invented a staff that can perform spontaneous magic, adding its magical ability to the wielder’s for spectacular results. They can react with the player characters in a variety of ways, depending on the nature of the saga; they may ask for help or be instant antagonists.

House Organization in 1220

House Bonisagus is one of the smaller Houses of the Order of Hermes. Many of its members work independently, and the House has developed organizations to meet its magi’s needs. House Bonisagus has only three levels of hierarchy. The Primus stands at the top of the hierarchy, naturally, and holds considerable power and influence. Beneath him are two Inner Circles, the Colentes Arcanorum and the Tenentes Occultorum, two groups of equal status charged with maintaining the speciﬁc interests of the House’s two sides. The rest of the House consists of regular magi Bonisagi and magi Trianomae. Magi Bonisagi have invented ranks among themselves based on their research achievements, levels of prestige with accompanying titles. Magi Trianomae view themselves as equals. The Seekers are a group of magi intent on discovering the secrets of the Old Ones. They are a recognized group within House Bonisagus, but since they accept magi of other Houses, they sit somewhat outside the regular structure of the House.

The Gender of the Lineage

Some magi theorize that the Order needed both a male and a female founder to begin, that both male and female halves of mankind had to be represented to mirror the act of creation. However, this theory is not used to determine the gender of either branch in the lineage. Men and women are accepted into the House’s two branches regardless of their gender, and are evenly distributed between the two branches. It is just as likely to meet a magus Bonisagi as a maga Bonisagi, and the same holds true for magi Trianoma. Gender discrimination does not exist within the House, although it certainly does in the mundane world a mere stone’s throw away.

House Nomenclature

Due to the House’s dual founders, members have developed titles to differentiate between the followers of each branch. The titles are usually only used inside the House, by members referring to other members, and are not generally used outside House Bonisagus. To the Order at large, all members are proud to be known as ‘Bonisagi’, using the plural of their male founder’s name as a catch all term.

Inside the House, more speciﬁc names are used based on the genitive form of the individual founder’s name, ‘Bonisagi’ or ‘Trianomae’. Thus Tillitus Bonisagi is the correct term for Tillitus follower of Bonisagus, and Glaucon Trianomae is correct for Glaucon, follower of Trianoma. Groups of individual followers of a particular linage are known as magi Bonisagi or magi Trianomae. This seems confusing, since the plural and the genitive forms are exactly the same, but is not in context. If either follows a magus’ name it means, ‘of’ that lineage, if no formal name proceeds the term it means ‘group of.’

The Ranks of Magi Bonisagi

It is easiest to understand the hierarchy of magi Bonisagi from the bottom up. Magi Bonisagi distinguish themselves by a status system based on research. There are four ranks for magi Bonisagi. Their titles are taken from ancient mystery cults, those that fascinated Bonisagus, and are based on the processional order of their celebratory parades. The ﬁrst rank is the boukoloi (“cowherds”), magi a few years from apprenticeship with little accomplished research. The second rank is the daduchos (“torch-bearers”), magi who have shared some of their successful research. They are expected to attend the Grand Tribunal, showing reverence for their lineage and supporting their Primus. The third rank is the cannophori (“reed-bearers”). At this point a maga has made considerable strides in her research and must include her sigil in the pouch that determines the members of the Colentes Arcanorum (see below). They must also drop their current research and undertake a different task if commanded to by the Primus. The fourth rank and ﬁnal rank below Primus is the dendrophori (“tree-bearers”). They must also contribute their sigils to the Colentes’ pouch, but are immune from the Primus’s demands regarding their research. Future Primi are selected from this rank.

The rules used to determine a magi Bonisagi’s rank can be found in the House Utilities section, under House Acclaim.

The Inner Circles

The House has two councils of magi charged with maintaining the smooth functioning of the House. The ﬁrst is the Colentes Arcanorum, a group of magi Bonisagi who are responsible for the collection, compilation, and dissemination of magical lore, theoretical practices, and arcane breakthroughs. Equally important are the Tenentes Occultorum, a group of magi Trianomae who ensure that those same secrets stay within the Order of Hermes. They are also the magi Trianomae who hover around the Order’s borders, eagerly searching out other magical powers and practitioners.

Colentes Arcanorum

The Colentes Arcanorum (‘Colens Arcanorum’ singular) are ﬁve magi Bonisagi responsible for disseminating the recent research of the House to the other lineages. Rather than make each maga responsible for personally sharing her research, the Colentes exist to accomplish this task. A Colens Arcanorum serves for seven years, from one Tribunal to the next. The council members are chosen at random by the Primus. The name of every magus Bonisagi who has attained the rank of cannophori is inscribed on a clay coin and placed in a leather pouch. At some point during the Rhine Tribunal, the Primus draws ﬁve names from the pouch, the names of the next members of the Colentes Arcanorum. Redcap messengers are sent to tell these magi the news. It is possible — and has indeed happened — for a Colens to serve consecutive terms through this random process. This practice has been criticized by other Houses, especially the Tremere, who claim that the randomization of applicants minimizes the committee’s quality. House Bonisagus feels the opposite is true; that random selection forces all magi Bonisagi of rank to remain up to date on important Hermetic projects. It also means that every cannophori must prepare for the chance of selection, which makes the entire House wiser and responsible to its fellows. The Colentes Arcanorum is not a council of elders but a committee of equals.

The chance that a magi Bonisagus character is a Colens Arcanorum is dependent upon the number of cannophori in any particular saga. Normally, half of the magi Bonisagi of a saga have reached this rank or higher. Thus, in a “regular” saga, there are 25 magi Bonisagi eligible for the position, and a player character who has achieved the rank of cannophori has a 1 in 5 chance of being selected. If you wish to begin play with a Colens character, you must select the new Minor Hermetic Virtue: Colens Arcanorum, described at the end of the Bonisagus chapter.

During the seven years of the Colentes Arcanorum’s service, they receive Laboratory Texts and Tractatus from fellow magi Bonisagi, usually delivered by Redcaps but sometimes in person. A Colens reads the material, searching for innovative research that she thinks merits sharing with the Order. This continues throughout her term of ofﬁce, at the end of which she meets with her fellow Colentes. As a group, the Colentes decide which are the most important Lab Texts and Tractatus and compile a volume of this material for distribution. The research is judged primarily on originality and usefulness, but the reputation and rank of the authoring magus are also factors. These volumes are called folios, and rules detailing them can be found in the House Utilities section.

Only the best material is used. Unimaginative or routine Lab Texts are passed over, as are low Quality Tractatus or those written on uninteresting subjects. A third case exists: dangerous research. As they review the material, the Colentes sometimes decide that a discovery is too dangerous to spread. This decision does not come lightly and the Colentes antagonize over each case. If it looks like the material should be banned, the presiding Bonisagus Quaesitor is asked to make the ﬁnal decision. If he decides the research is too dangerous for release, the inventor is ordered to destroy his discovery. Failure to comply will result in a Wizard’s March.

Besides the dissemination of research, the Colentes Arcanorum have two bureaucratic functions. The ﬁrst is the ability to rescind individual research commands made by the Primus. Any maga Bonisagi who has been instructed by the Primus to undertake speciﬁc research may request the Colentes to relieve her of this duty. If a majority of the Colentes agree, she may ignore the Primus’s directive. More importantly, they have the power to change the Primus of the House. They may decide that the House would be better served by a new Primus and can demand the current Primus to abdicate his position. Cause must be presented for such an unprecedented act by a magus Bonisagi of at least the cannophori rank. After hearing the charges, the Colentes must unanimously agree to force the Primus’s resignation. They then select his replacement, determining the new Primus by majority vote. This has never happened in the history of House Bonisagus. Both of these functions occur during the Colloquium Delectorum (see below).

Submitted Texts

A Colens Arcanorum receives from 15 to 30 submitted Lab Texts and tractatus during their seven year term, averaging about 4 submissions a year. These submissions are usually translations of an author’s original Lab Text or copies of her tractatus; they are rarely the original text. Lab Texts must be translated from the author’s shorthand. The Colens are primarily interested in original research, and look for Lab Texts that include experimentation. Well-written tractatus are also sought, but a Colens would rather include a Lab Text over a tractatus. New spells and magic items are certainly interesting, but the emphasis is on knowledge that pushes the boundaries of Hermetic magic.

It takes a day for Colens Arcanorum to brieﬂy scan a submitted text and determine its value. The most valuable will be taken to the Colloquium Delectorum and spread throughout the Order. The other submissions become the property of the receiving Colens.

Story Seed: The Lost Lance

During the tenth century, Cerularius Bonisagi of the Normandy Tribunal developed the Lancea Magica, a magical attack that could pierce a magus’ Parma Magica and deliver an unresisted lethal attack. Its efﬁciency was frightening, and the Colentes decided that it should be destroyed. Cerularius burned his Laboratory Texts and vowed to never investigate a similar effect. However, recent reports from the Normandy Tribunal suggest that the Lancea Magica still exists, and has been used to slay another magus. The player characters are charged with determining if Cerularius, long passed into Final Twilight, did indeed destroy his discovery. If not, who is using this forbidden lore? If so, is there a new magic that can overcome the Parma Magica?

Tenentes Occultorum

Initially Trianoma alone took care of marshaling the formation and cooperation of tribunals. As the Order grew the task became overwhelming and Trianoma appointed a few of her followers as assistants, dividing Mythic Europe into smaller, manageable areas for them to oversee. Responsibility for relations between tribunals and magi was soon assumed by House Guernicus, and it was redundant for the Trianomae to do what the Quaesitores did so efﬁciently. Trianoma and her ﬁlii began patrolling the borders of the Order, making sure the secrets of House Bonisagus stayed well within it. Several early situations lead to the formation of the Tenentes Occultorum, the ‘Tenders of Secret Lore.’

The Tenentes Occultorum (singular ‘Tenens Occultorum’) are four magi Trianomae appointed by the Primus to serve for seven years, safeguarding the knowledge of the Order. They protect the Order from rapacious mundanes by keeping track of the research of magi Bonisagi. They are itinerant magi, as was their mistress, shepherds of the Order keen on helping the magi Trianomae in their tasks and collecting information about the magic realms of Europe.

Symmetry is an essential ingredient in many Hermetic practices, and the four Tenentes represent the seasons, each one symbolically mirroring the position he occupies. The Spring Tenens is a magus chosen immediately after his gauntlet; the Summer, Autumn, and Winter Tenentes each have more experience respectively. The Primus chooses from the entire line of the magi Trianomae, doing his best to match experienced magi to each position. Sometimes his decision is based on the present location of magi Trianomae, since each season’s Tenens is responsible for a speciﬁc area.

The four areas are based on a Roman conception of Mythic Europe, arbitrarily fashioned after an earlier model of the Tribunals. The Spring Tenens operates in Britannia, the Hibernia, Loch Leglean, and Stonehenge Tribunals, a place where an inexperienced Tenens’s mistakes won’t do lasting harm. The Summer Tenens is responsible for Iberian Provinces — initially the Iberian and Provencal Tribunals and later adding the Normandy Tribunal. The Roman provinces are overseen by the Autumn Tenens and include the Roman and Rhine Tribunals and the Tribunal of the Greater Alps. This is the greatest concentration of magi Bonisagi and interested mundanes and demands an most experienced Tenens. The remaining Tribunals, Transylvania, Thebes, Levant, and the Novgorod, are the responsibility of the Winter Tenens, the most senior magus of the four.

These are enormous areas to cover, and the Tenentes Occultorum depend upon the help of Redcaps and other magi Trianomae. They are also stationed in covenants that can help them, Summer or Autumn covenants that can provide human and magical assistance for the Tenentes. Having a Tenens station at a saga’s covenant can provide ample story hooks dragging the characters out of the covenant.

If a player wishes, her magus Trianomae may begin play as a Tenens. A character must have the Minor Status Virtue: Tenens Occultorum and will most likely occupy the Spring Tenens position, unless he has been advanced using the rules found in the After Apprenticeship section of the Characters Chapter of Ars Magica 5th Edition (page 32).

The Tenentes’s primary responsibility is to keep magical secrets out of the hands of mundanes. They do this by knowing what each magus Bonisagi in their territory is researching, to the best of their ability, and where copies of that research are. Nothing forces the magi’s compliance, and this is sometimes an exercise in futility. The Tenentes Occultorum pay particular attention to Lab Texts and tractatus sent by magi Bonisagi to the Colentes Arcanorum. These texts have been lost more than once, causing the Tenentes considerable concern. If a text goes missing it is the resident Tenens’s responsibility to recover it, ﬁrst asking the assistance of any magi Trianomae in the area, followed by Redcaps or magi from other Houses.

The Tenentes also seek information concerning mundanes exploring arcane mysteries. They have accumulated notes recording the activity of the mundane universities, chapel schools and noble families. Of particular interest are individuals who have sought secret knowledge in the past and possess The Gift. Men of this ilk are closely watched. A Tenens may ask a maga Trianomae to intervene, using either their skills of intrigue to convince the man that he is better off not seeking arcane secrets or by more overt methods.

The Tenentes Occultorum meet at the end of their term of service at the Colloquium Delectorum. The group combines their notes of the House’s magi and troublesome individuals and institutions. These notes are compiled and sent to Durenmar, along with the Colentes Arcanorum’s folio. The Tenentes then relinquish their duties and head back to their covenant, either the one they have been recently stationed in or their original home.

Story Seed: The Belligerent Benedictines

A tractatus on Parma Magica is missing. Sent from a magus Bonisagi to a Colens Arcanorum using a mundane messenger, it has gone missing near an abbey suspected of harboring “forbidden” books. The Autumn Tenens asks the player characters to investigate the abbey and its abbot, known for his resentment towards the Order, and search for the lost tractatus. Since a character’s Gift will certainly upset the situation, the Tenens asks a group of companions to undertake this quest.

Tabula Geographica Magica

Even more fascinating than their directory of magi Bonisagi is the Tabula Geographica Magica, the Gazetteer of Magic, a catalogue of magical sites and regiones discovered in their area. This information is gathered from magi Trianomae, who seek out ancient and powerful sites, and from the Seekers, those dedicated exclusively to this pursuit. At each Colloquium the Tenentes add to the Gazetteer, including newly discovered sites and more information on sites already found. Some of these sites are sources of vis, but the primary intent in gathering this information is to provide a better knowledge of Europe and her magical secrets. The Gazetteer is brought from Durenmar to the location of the Colloquium by a magus Trianomae or a trusted Redcap, and is returned there once the Tenentes ﬁnish their updates.

This resource is reluctantly shared; House Bonisagus feels that its contained knowledge could lead to gluttonous land-grabbing and overzealous avarice, causing strife among the Order’s members. However, since every magus of the House has sworn to share his knowledge with the Order, the Primus has decided that the Gazetteer must be shared as well. Readers are allowed limited access; it is kept under lock and key at the Great Library at Durenmar and is written in the secret code of the magi Trianomae (see Trianoma’s Cipher below).

Colloquium Delectorum

Every seven years the Colentes Arcanorum and the Tenentes Occultorum hold a meeting called the Colloquium Delectorum, ‘Conference of the Committees’, or Colloquium for short. The Colloquium is a traveling conference held at regular Tribunal meetings of one of the thirteen Tribunals. The location of the Colloquium is decided by the nine council members — ﬁve Colentes and four Tenentes — at the start of their appointment, each offering their preferred location (usually their home Tribunal), and the decision made by majority agreement. Since the council members don’t meet until the end of their service, this decision can take a few years, and the Tenentes have been known to inﬂuence the Colentes through their mastery of Intrigue. If a decision isn’t reached within ﬁve years, the Primus chooses the location.

The Colloquium is a week-long conference held after the regular proceeding of the Tribunal hosting it. Much of it is a closed session, with only the Colentes and the Tenentes attending. Both the Primus and the Bonisagus Quaesitor are permitted to attend, although this generally only happens when the Colloquium is held at the Rhine Tribunal. The Tenentes compile their information about fellow House magi, meddlesome mundanes, and magical sites. The Colentes present the research they have received over the previous seven years, comparing Lab Texts and tractatus and deciding which research should be disseminated to the Order. The included authors receive recognition and their status increases among magi Bonisagi. The Colentes include a list of the authors who submitted research, as well. After the Colentes have reached an agreement, they remain at the location and compile the research into a folio. This takes a season, during which the Colentes work closely together editing the material into a single volume. Rules to create a folio can be found in the House Utilities section.

The council of Colentes can be called on by magi Bonisagi, either to remove the Primus (which has never happened) or to relieve an individual magus of a research obligation imposed by the Primus. This happens on the ﬁrst day of the Colloquium, before the councils meet in private to discuss their individual tasks.

The Primus

The Primus of House Bonisagus is an auspicious position, the head of the House and the shoulders which bear the weight of the Order, symbolically if not legally. First and foremost, he is the Praeco of the both the regular Rhine Tribunals and the Grand Tribunal held every 33 years. Like other Praecos at other Tribunals, the Primus has the power to set the event’s agenda and silence, even eject magi. The Primus uses these powers to unfold the Tribunal in accordance with his premeditated political intentions.

Internally, the Primus is responsible for steering the course of the House, directing those members who might need direction and allowing the general whole to enjoy all the rights and privileges a magus of the House expects. It is his duty to randomly select the Colentes Arcanorum. He also appoints four magi as the Tenentes Occultorum, one to represent each of the four seasons. He can direct an individual maga Bonisagi’s research, requesting she abandon her current endeavors and pursue speciﬁed research. This request is dependent upon the magus’s rank in the House. Requested magi do have some recourse if they don’t wish to comply with the Primus’s orders, and a majority vote of the Colentes Arcanorum will release a maga from this duty.

The Primus also appoints his successor, who holds the position for life. There have been seven Primi since the founder, each chosen by his predecessor to continue the direct line of leadership since Bonisagus himself. A Primus can step down from his position, which has happened only once, when Primus Thamus Collis abdicating his position after Renouncing House Diedne. The House has given the Colentes Arcanorum a method for removing a Primus who is abusing his power (see Colentes Arcanorum).

A prospective Primus must meet several qualiﬁcations. First, he must be a magus Bonisagi, since no magus Trianomae would ever dream of overtly leading the House. It is customary for the Primus to be an archmage (see Guardians of the Forests: The Rhine Tribunal), but not necessary. He must have successfully trained an apprentice, personally sharing his knowledge with someone else. He must also be a dendrophori, the highest level of status a magus Bonisagus can achieve. Finally, a prospective Primus must have served as a Colens Arcanorum to experience the House’s organization and bureaucracy. In 1220 there are a half dozen or so magi Bonisagi qualiﬁed to be Primus of the House.

Glaucon, magus Trianomae and Seeker

Characteristics: Int +3, Per +3, Pre 0, Com +1, Str 0, Sta +1, Dex -1

Qik 0

Size: 0

Age: 29 (6 years past apprenticeship)

Decrepitude: 0

Warping Score: 0 (2)

Conﬁdence Score: 1 (4)

Virtues and Flaws: The Gift; Hermetic Magus; Gentle Gift; Affinity with Intellego, Improved Characteristics (x2), Personal vis source, Puissant Intrigue (Free Virtue), Second Sight, Strong-Willed, Study Bonus; Enemies, Painful Magic; Disorientating Magic, Infamous, Palsied Hands, Seeker

Personality Traits: Curious +3, Persistent +3, Selﬁsh +2

Reputation: Grave Robber 4 (Tribunal of the Greater Alps)

Combat: Dodging: Init +0, Attack n/a, Defense +3, Damage n/a

Soak: 1

Fatigue levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious

Wound Penalties: –1 (1-5), –3 (6-10), –5 (11-15), Incapacitated (16-20)

Abilities: Athletics 3 (spelunking), Artes Liberales 1 (Geometry), Awareness 2 (ambushes), Brawl 2 (dodging), Concentration 1 (when wounded), Faerie Lore 1 (mountain faeries), Guile 2 (hiding past activities), Intrigue 2 (+2) (detecting other’s interests), Kingdom of Aragon Lore 2 (mountains), Latin 4 (cartographical terms), Parma Magica 3 (Mentem), Penetration 3 (Mentem), Magic Lore 2 (Mercurian temples), Magic Theory 3 (inventing spells), Ride 1 (distances), Second Sight 1 (ghosts), Spanish 5 (ﬂowery speech), Survival 2 (mountains)

Arts: Cr 0, In 9, Mu 2, Pe 8, Re 3; An 0, Aq 0, Au 0, Co 6, He 0, Ig 1, Im 1, Me 10, Te 0, Vm 7

Twilight Scars: None

Encumbrance: 0 (0)

Spells Known:

Preternatural Growth and Shrinking (MuCo 15) +9

Rise of the Feathery Body (ReCo 10) +10

Palm of Flame (CrIg 5) +2

Reveal the Lingering Spirit (InMe 30) +20

Trust of Childlike Faith (ReMe 10) +14

Lay to Rest the Haunting Spirit (PeMe 15) +19

Lay to Rest the Haunting Spirit (PeMe 25) +19

Pierce the Faerie Veil (InVi 20) +17

Pierce the Magic Veil (InVi 20) +17

The Invisible Eye Revealed (InVi 20) +17

Notes: Glaucon is a Seeker who specializes in scouring mountainous areas looking for ancient Mercurian temples. Casting spells is painful for Glaucon, and he believes that ﬁnding an older source of magic will help him understand the excruciating nature of his Gift. Glaucon shuns other magi of his House, hoping to avoid the regular responsibilities of magi Trianomae. The Tenentes Occultorum are annoyed at Glaucon because he is reluctant to reveal the speciﬁc locations of his travels, particular the location of his secret vis source.

New Intellego Mentem Spell

REVEAL THE LINGERING SPIRIT

R: Per, D: Conc, T: Vision, Level 30

This spell allows you to see invisible ghosts. If the spell penetrates the ghost’s magic resistance, you can see it. This spell does not force the ghost to become visible to others.

(Base 5, +1 Conc, +4 Vision)

Seekers

During the early days of the Order, some magi Trianomae forsook their political bent and became more interested in ﬁnding old magical sites than serving their fellows. Lusting after the secrets of the ancients, they sought old Mercurian temples and ancient magical sites. They searched for the Old Ones, primeval entities who they claim posed as the gods and goddesses of the ancients. The most active seeker was Lucian, Trianoma’s ﬁrst apprentice, who wished to renounce his lineage and begin a line of magi Seekers. The Primus, Notatus, refused his request, thinking the House already divided enough with two lineages. Lucian acquiesced to Notatus’s judgment, but continued to lead an informal group of magi who displayed similar interests.

Seekers are magi who devote themselves to discovering the ancient secrets of magic. They are primarily interested in the Old Ones, but also trace down other mystery cults. These extinguished groups rarely leave straightforward clues, and discoveries usually provide more questions than answers. The Tribunal of Thebes is the favored searching grounds of the Seekers, followed by the Levant, a place rich in mystery. But Seekers do not conﬁne their explorations to these two Tribunals, scouring the far reaches of Europe for any hint of the Old Ones. No conclusive information has been found to support the Seekers’ claims, which seems to spur them on rather than diminish their efforts.

A magus from any House may be a Seeker. They are nominally under the control of House Bonisagus, since the ﬁrst self-declared Seeker was from that House, but controlling them has proven futile. Seekers are competitive and reluctant to share information that would help other Seekers. Seekers who are also magi Trianomae are supposed to submit their findings to the Tenentes Occultorum. They do this reluctantly. Since they are so secretive, it is hard to prove if their information is false, a claim that has been levied against more than one magi Trianomae Seeker.

In 1220 there are approximately 25 Seekers; ﬁve of them are magi of House Bonisagus, the highest concentration from any single lineage.

The Magi of House Bonisagus

Magi of House Bonisagus search for knowledge. Magi Bonisagi focus on their individual efforts and use their results as a foundation for more research. Magi Trianomae focus on the Order of Hermes, viewing knowledge as the glue that binds the Houses together. Magi Bonisagi prefer their privacy, living in safe, isolated covenants where they can follow their magical pursuits without interruption. Magi Trianomae prefer the community as a whole, living in more gregarious environments and enjoying the interplay of Hermetic politics.

Bonisagus magi are separated into their respective strands before training begins. Apprentices follow in their parens’ lineage: magi Bonisagi train future magi Bonisagi and magi Trianomae train future Trianomae. Their interests are not mutually exclusive; several magi Bonisagi are experts in Intrigue — like the current Prima Archmage Murion — while several magi Trianomae are proﬁcient with Magic Theory.

Apprentices

Bonisagus designed Magic Theory to be easily accessible to students. His ﬁrst task was monumental; he had to teach Magic Theory to sorcerers trained in other fashions. His theory had to be ﬂexible enough to incorporate their magic as well as teach them the methods of his theory. Those long years of work created a method of instruction that proved so useful that it was adopted by every House in the Order. Bonisagus and Trianoma proved such excellent teachers that the Founders readily acquiesced to the Oath’s provision that they be allowed to take their followers’ apprentices.

House Bonisagus sees training apprentices as a solemn duty rather than a selﬁsh beneﬁt. Magi of the House believe they honor their Founders with every new magus sworn into the House. It is very rare for a magus of House Bonisagus to depart this world without training at least one apprentice, and common for them to train two or more.

Typical House Bonisagus apprentices begin their training when young. The House displays a bit of snobbery in choosing apprentices, preferring young, bright children to carry on its regal lineage. Otherwise, House Bonisagus follows the standard practices for training apprentices. Once a child has been accepted as an apprentice, the parens notiﬁes his House by sending a letter or messenger to the committee that oversees his branch of the lineage. This procedure is bureaucratic, meant to placate the worrisome Tenentes Occultorum. Hermetic training lasts ﬁfteen years, with the apprentice being taught magic by her parens at least one season out of each year, after which she must pass a gauntlet to become a true maga of the House.

Each branch of the House presents a speciﬁc gauntlet for the apprentice. Magi Bonisagi all must pass the Theoretical Interview, an excruciatingly long verbal examination. It is performed by a magus Bonisagi other than an apprentice’s parens. Parens and apprentice travel to an elder magus Bonisagi’s covenant, where the apprentice undertakes the day-long examination. The Interview is based on Magic Theory and the Arts, and does not including the casting of any spells, focusing instead on a deeper understanding of Hermetic magic. Most apprentices pass their Theoretical Interview, those who don’t return to their covenant and undergo a personal interview with their parens. This second interview is repeated until the apprentice passes the exam.

Magi Trianomae send their apprentices on a solo journey for their gauntlet. Once an apprentice has ﬁnished his Hermetic training to the satisfaction of his parens, he is sent to another magus Trianomae, traveling to a distant covenant by himself. This journey ideally takes two seasons to complete, and proves that the apprentice can survive the challenges of solo travel. Once at his destination, the apprentice is proclaimed a magus and chooses a name for himself. Those who fail return to their parens, shamefaced and defeated, and must attempt the same gauntlet at a later date. There have been apprentices who have never returned from being sent off.

Common Virtues and Flaws

Every magi Bonisagi has the free General, Minor Virtue: Puissant Magic Theory. Other common Virtues and Flaws are:

Adept Laboratory Student. Your parens never left the lab.

Afﬁnity with Art. Your parens encouraged this specialty in you, and you are expected by other magi Bonisagi to make good on his efforts.

Flexible Formulaic Magic. This is ideal for a dabbler, who delights in Range, Duration, and Target changes.

Hermetic Prestige. Your parens was so well-known that his reputation extended outside of the House.

Inventive Genius.

Secondary Insight. You innately understand the Hermetic connections between the Arts.

Skilled Parens. Magi Bonisagi are interested in spreading their knowledge to their apprentices and focus on this activity.

Blatant Gift.

Book Learner.

Deﬁcient Technique and Deﬁcient Form. Two unfortunate side-affects of a parens overspecializing in Arts that interest him or that the apprentice is exceptionally good at.

Driven. You strive to be the expert in your ﬁeld of specialized research.

Every magi Trianomae has the free General, Minor Virtue: Puissant Intrigue. Other common Virtues and Flaws are:

Apt Student. Most of your learning was taught to you by people, not books.

Deft Form. Your apprenticeship offered many opportunities to develop greater control over one of your Arts.

Gentle Gift. You were chosen by your parens because you could interact with mundanes easily.

Linguist. Your itinerant apprenticeship made you comfortable learning languages Long-winded. Constant travel with your parens increased your endurance.

Well-traveled.

Enemies. The constant political interactions of your parens had consequences.

Favors. Another political consequence of your parens’s meddling.

Weak Scholar. Time spent on the road lessened your book learning potential.

Another Magus’s Apprentice

Unique among the Lineages, magi of House Bonisagus may take another Hermetic magus’s apprentice. Reminiscent of Mercere’s initial promise to give his future apprentices to Bonisagus, this practice was adopted during meetings of the First Tribunal to grant the magi of House Bonisagus the right to take others’ apprentices. This was in appreciation for both Bonisagus’s theoretical work, as well as Trianoma’s political maneuverings that constructed the Order. Both magi had spent considerable effort on others, and the other Founders thought giving them the right to take apprentices was ample compensation.

Theoretically, the magi of House Bonisagus use this privilege to get the best and brightest apprentices of the Order. In reality, the magi of the House have a variety of reasons for taking another’s apprentice. Some are lazy and prefer the hard work of ﬁnding and initially training an apprentice to be left to others. Some are covetous and seek to plunder the better apprentices from their fellows. Not all motivations are base; some magi of the House take apprentices from abusive parens, and others will take a neglected or tormented apprentice.

Both magi Bonisagi and magi Trianomae have the privilege of taking another magus’s apprentice. The former are more prone to exercise this right than the latter.

Certain guidelines have developed since the ninth century surrounding this right. While no formal rules exist, magi Bonisagi and Trianomae have learned the hard way that over-exercising this prerogative can lead to trouble. “Apprentice snatching”, as it is sometimes called, is rarely received favorably by the maga loosing her apprentice. To soften the blow, the House has formed suggested rules for its members to follow.

• A magus of House Bonisagus who has an apprentice should not take a second apprentice from a magus.

• A magus of House Bonisagus should never take more than one apprentice from any single magus.

• A magus of House Bonisagus should never take an apprentice to replace a dull or unworthy apprentice.

• A magus of House Bonisagus should exercise this right no more than once every three years.

Magi who abuse this privilege may ﬁnd themselves charged with a low crime depending on the particular Tribunal. Others may face declarations of Wizard War from the apprentice’s former master. Both of these events have occurred in the past.

Magi Bonisagi of rank have an easier time ﬁnding an apprentice than their colleagues. See the House Acclaim section in the House Utilities section.

Multiple Apprentices

There is nothing to say that a Hermetic magus can not have more than one apprentice at a time. Legally, a parens is required to spent a season a year teaching his apprentice. The Arts can only be taught one on one, so a magus could have four apprentices at the most and still abide by the rulings of the Peripheral Code. Of course, such a magus will have no time for his own research. This is the main reason why most magi Bonisagi only have one apprentice at a time.

Some magi Bonisagi will have more than one apprentice at a time. Because of their natural afﬁnity in the laboratory, magi Bonisagi can always successfully use a second lab assistant (see Working Together). If a maga Bonisagi has two apprentices, both can assist her in the laboratory. This means that half of her time is spent teaching her two charges. Still, this situation is satisfactory to many magi Bonisagi, and the second lab assistant’s help offsets the time spent out of the lab.

Fostering

A successful maga Bonisagi needs to be highly trained. She will need scores in several Abilities besides Magic Theory to realize her true potential. Profession: Scribe is necessary for the copious amounts of writing and copy she will do, and a high Latin score is required to read and write books. Teaching is also a valuable Ability and most magi Bonisagi have a score in this as well. Since there are so many important skills, the House has developed a system of fosterage to help train apprentices. This practice has proved more useful than ﬁnding mundane academic scholars interested in working with Gifted students.

Magi Bonisagi can agree to foster each other’s apprentices, a common but not universal practice. It is mutually beneﬁcial; one maga Bonisagi agrees to foster another maga Bonisagi’s apprentice in exchange for that maga fostering her apprentice. A fostered apprentice goes to live with the fostering maga for a year, during which she is taught Abilities alongside the maga’s regular apprentice. The fostering magus spends an entire year teaching both apprentices Abilities, usually Teaching and Profession: Scribe but also Magic Theory and Latin. The apprentices learn together, following all the regular rules for teaching (see ArM5, Long Term Events chapter, Teaching, page 164). At the end of a year, the fostered apprentice returns to his parens, accompanied by the other maga’s apprentice. Both apprentices then undergo the same teaching schedule with the ﬁrst apprentice’s parens. At the end of two years, both apprentices should have scores of 2 in Teaching and Profession: Scribe, as well as improved scores in Latin and Magic Theory.

After this initial teaching the apprentices are exchanged again, this time to help the reciprocating parens in the laboratory. Since both parens took a year to train the apprentices, they are rewarded by having both of their help in the lab for a year (see Working Together). Depending on the distance between magi Bonisagi, sometimes an apprentice will travel to a covenant and stay two years — one being taught and one assisting in the lab — before returning home with the other magus’s apprentice in tow, who will then stay two years fulﬁlling his half of the fosterage bargain.

This practice holds a small amount of danger for the apprentice, since he is under the control of a magus other than his parens. Because of this, fostering is not entered into lightly. Magi Bonisagi ﬁnd it a privilege to exchange apprentices in this way, and tend not to abuse this practice. Because of the risk, however, they are not interested in extending this privilege to magi outside their direct lineage. Fostering is not practiced by magi Trianomae, who do not conﬁne themselves to the laboratory like their House brethren. They do encourage its use, however, since it builds communal ties and further increases the interdependence of House Bonisagus.

Magi Bonisagi

Magi Bonisagi tend to be reclusive, eschewing the company of others as they work uninterrupted in their labs. Even a magus Bonisagi fresh from apprenticeship exhibits this behavior, viewing research as the ultimate method of unearthing the secrets of magic. He is at home in his laboratory, surrounded by tomes, and immersed among bubbling beakers and gurgling pots, the quintessential wizard, incorporating all aspects of magical possibilities and every arcane activity in his laboratory. Nothing magical disinterests him, whether that is familiar binding, item creation, longevity rituals, vis distillation and extraction, or the wide range of spell invention and research. He would rather be surrounded by his formulas and Lab Texts than anywhere else.

Preferring their privacy, individual magi Bonisagi rarely meet. While they may be expected to attend Tribunal meetings, especially the Grand Tribunal, nothing mandates their attendance. Time spent traveling is time away from the laboratory. Magi Bonisagi have learned to interact with each other through written messages, notes delivered by Redcaps or itinerant magi Trianomae, although the later sometimes refuse to carry mere messages.

Bonisagi magi receive infrequent visits from magi Trianomae, who are curious about the magi’s research. The whole House beneﬁts knowing the subject of each magus’s research, so few magi Bonisagi refuse these minor interruptions. Submitting folios to the Colentes Arcanorum increases a maga’s rank, and the safest way to ensure the deliver of folio submission is to placing it in the care of a magus Trianomae.

Optional Rule: Continuous Research

Magi who manage to avoid outside distractions and remain working in their laboratory on a single project — “lab rats” — can slowly gain an advantage over time. Continuous Research is a way for storyguides to reward players who manage to stay sheltered within their laboratory, forsaking all else and remaining dedicated to their research project. This is most evident in larger projects, those that require many seasons of laboratory work.

Continual Research is a beneﬁcial modiﬁer that you can add to your Lab Total while you remain working on a single project. For each uninterrupted season of lab work spent on your project, you accrue one point of Continual Research. Continual Research builds like an Ability. Once you have spent ﬁve seasons on a project, accruing ﬁve Continual Research points, you may add 1 to your Lab Total. You may add this modiﬁer for as long as you continue working on the same project. After ﬁfteen seasons spent in Continuous Research the modiﬁer increases to +2. The advantage continues to grow as long as you do not change research subjects or interrupt your seasonal lab work (see ArM5’s Laboratory chapter, “Distractions from Lab Work”, page 103).

This optional rule has different effects in different sagas. In a slow saga (see ArM5’s Saga chapter, page 218) magi will have to delicately manage their time so that seasonal interruptions can be accomplished without disrupting research. In a fast saga this rule will encourage magi to work on larger projects.

Types of Magi Bonisagi

There are three overall types of magi Bonisagi. These are not ofﬁcial distinctions within the House, but are merely paths that many magi Bonisagi follow. A traditionalist constantly works to reﬁne Magic Theory, thinking this was Bonisagus’s primary motivation. He pushes against the limits of Hermetic magic, searching for ways to break through many of the lesser limits that still inhibit Bonisagus’s system. A dabbler is a magus who enjoys playing with Hermetic magic, using the system to build odd spells and quirky enchanted items. He researches magic for creative combinations of Ranges, Durations, and Targets, enjoying the symmetry of the categories created by his founder. A harmonizer believes that every type of magic can be integrated into Bonisagus’s theory. She enjoys bending other supernatural abilities to Bonisagus’s rule.

These propensities for magi Bonisagi can be used by a character as specializations in their Magic Theory Ability. You may choose traditionalist, dabbler, or harmonizer as a specialization for your Magic Theory (see Specializations in the Abilities chapter of ArM5, page 62). As a traditionalist, each time your research attempts to break a Hermetic Limit of Magic, you may add 1 to your Magic Theory score (see Original Research below). If you are a dabbler, you may apply your specialization each time you invent a spell or magical affect with a changed Range, Duration, or Target that differs from the standard version. As a harmonizer you may apply your specialization each time you invent a spell or enchant an item that mimics a supernatural ability. This applies to original research as well. Your storyguide will be the ultimate arbitrator, deciding if your specialization applies to your research. These new specializations are only permissible for magi Bonisagi characters.

Working Together

Magi Bonisagi are not as interested in working together in the lab as other magi generally think. The main bone of contention is that a magus would much rather be the primary researcher than the assistant, since the primary researcher gains all the notoriety of the research and the assistant only gains exposure experience and minor House recognition. After the daduchos House rank, no magi Bonisagi wants to be considered an “assistant” any longer. Bonisagus is remembered for Magic Theory and Parma Magica, not for assisting Tremere in inventing certamen. While magi Bonisagi don’t mind sharing ﬁnished Lab Texts and tractatus, they are hesitant to commit to another’s research in a perceived subservient role.

Two exceptions exist: newly-gauntleted magi Bonisagi who have not yet achieved any House rank, and magi returning to their parens’s lab. These magi will work with a more experienced magi Bonisagi, forfeiting personal endeavors for the slow accumulation of House status and exposure experience points. Newly-gauntleted magi are expected to lead their own research by the time they have achieved the rank of daduchos. Magi can work with their parens up to the rank of cannophori without shame, but at that point they should be pursuing their own research. Magi who were fostered can include their fostering maga in this second category (see Fostering Apprentices).

When magi Bonisagi do decide to collaborate, they work well together. Their natural afﬁnity for the laboratory helps them, and they ﬁnd they can overcome many of the constraints of a shared lab space that other magi ﬁnd limiting. Their practice of fostering apprentices adds to their ability with multiple assistants. Because of this natural proclivity, magi Bonisagi can always have one more lab assistant then the normal ArM5 rules would allow a magus character to have. This only applies to magi Bonisagi, their apprentices, and their familiars. For example, without a score in Leadership a maga Bonisagi can have two laboratory assistants besides her familiar.

Story Seed: The Land of Women

A magus Trianomae visits the characters’ covenant seeking assistance. He says he has discovered distant Amazonia, a fabled land inhabited only by women. He has a captive with him as evidence, a woman whose right breast has been removed. Her mind is addled and impenetrable to Mentem spells, a consequence of him magically defeating her, he says. He believes the Amazons’ island kingdom is ruled by powerful sorceresses and asks the characters to return with him. Something about his manner is unsettling, reminding the characters that magi Trianomae are masters of intrigue and possible duplicity. Has he found the Land of the Amazons or is some evil afoot?

Magi Trianomae

The other branch of House Bonisagus specializes in Hermetic politics, the volatile sea of inﬂuence, advice, and circumspect negotiations. The energies that their magi Bonisagi pour into internal research are mirrored externally by the magi Trianomae, who concentrate on protecting the Order by promoting tribunal cooperation and resourcefulness. Magi Trianomae use their political skill to further Trianoma’s dream of a peaceful Order. Throughout their apprenticeships they are taught ways to cajole others into acceptable behavior, not through laws but by dialogue and analogy. Magi Trianomae focus understanding and inﬂuencing human nature.

Magi Trianomae characters begin play with the free Virtue: Puissant Intrigue. While some children may possess an inclination for Intrigue before apprenticeship, this Ability is taught to and honed in the student throughout the ﬁfteen years it takes them to become a magus. An apprentice watches his parens at work, masterfully exercising his political prowess. He also hears stories about his founder’s life and the various ploys Trianoma used to convince the Twelve Founders to form the Order of Hermes. By the end of his study, he too will be an expert in the subtle art of Intrigue.

Many followers of Trianoma lead itinerant lives, exhibiting the same wanderlust that gripped their founder. They circulate among the Order of Hermes, speciﬁcally visiting magi Bonisagi and generally keeping a watch on Hermetic magi. They are occasionally asked by the Tenentes Occultorum to monitor a nosy mundane or retrieve a missing text. They satisfy their adventurous cravings by searching for magical secrets, wizards or areas not included in Bonisagus’s theory or Trianoma’s Order. They are not interested in conquest or battle, as magi of Flambeau and Tytalus might be. Instead they are curious to ﬁnd the secret knowledge that still exists within the less populated and unknown areas of Europe. They search for magical auras and explore magical regiones, all in this quest for knowledge. This information is passed to the Tenentes Occultorum. Some magi Trianomae become enthralled with this quest for ancient magical lore (see Seekers).

Magi Trianomae have left Mythic Europe, seeking distant wizards and their magical knowledge, all in an effort to expand the model of a peaceful community of wizards. They serve as Hermetic emissaries, carrying the ideals of the Order to the farthest corners of the world, and have undertaken expeditions to Mythic Cathay, India and Africa. By 1220, no emissaries have reported any degree of success, either through failed efforts or by not returning at all.

The Politics of Trianoma

Magi Trianomae are expected to continue the political agenda of their founder. Not all do; some use their training to advance their own careers and ambitions. Those that do adhere to the founder’s plan follow these major political concerns.

Keep the Order of Hermes at peace. This is the prime directive of the House and the rubric under which all other guidelines fall.

Keep the stream of knowledge ﬂowing. Magical knowledge is the glue that binds the Order and this information should be shared to all who are entitled to it.

Keep the Houses equal. It is important that no Hermetic lineage overpower another. The Order of Hermes is a society of equals, not a hierarchy of tyrants.

Keep the Tribunals equal. No Tribunal should grow in numbers so that it becomes central to the Order. Magi Trianomae strive to convince their fellows to disperse throughout Europe. Interestingly, this applies to their own House as well, and the Tenentes Occultorum are pleased that House Bonisagus and the Rhine Tribunal have lost their political importance since the Schism War.

Keep the Houses bickering. Trianoma learned early on that a certain amount of squabbling is good for the Order. It keeps the members engaged with each other, even if that engagement seems harsh at times. Squabbles also prevent two or more Houses from permanently joining, which would upset the balance of the Order.

The Cipher of Trianoma

During the early days of the Order, Trianoma found it very useful to send messages to her ﬁlii written in code, so that if these notes were intercepted they would not prematurely reveal any of her political plans. The easiest way to do this was to teach her ﬁlii her personal shorthand, the abbreviations she used when creating Lab Texts. This tradition continues with magi Trianomae using similar shorthand for their Lab Texts as they do for the clandestine notes they send each other. This script is not exact; individual magi do have slight variations of the cipher.

Magi Trianomae use this code to send messages to each other and to the Tenentes Occultorum. Sometimes these messages are individual parchments. Other times they are notes inscribed at the end of Lab Texts or books. The most common method is to include a coded message in the margins of a magus Bonisagus’s Lab Text that is in their possession at the time. This is then sent to another magus Trianomae along the regular routes. Magi Trianomae are trained to look for these coded messages.

There are two ways for a magus from another lineage to decipher this code. The ﬁrst and easiest method is to acquire a Lab Text written in Trianoma’s cipher. Decoding this Lab Text works exactly like decoding any magus’s Lab Text (see Ars Magica 5th Edition’s Laboratory chapter, Translating Laboratory Texts, page 102).

The second and harder method is to decode a secret note. Decoding a note takes a day. To decode Trianoma’s cipher you make an Intelligence + Latin + stress die roll. If this roll is higher than 6 + the author’s Communication + Intrigue, you succeed. Individual magi Trianomae’s ciphers are only slightly different. Having decoded a previous cipher adds 3 to your decoding rolls.

Decoding Trianoma’s Cipher: Intelligence + Latin + Stress Die Vs. 6 + Author’s Communication + Intrigue

House Utilities

House Acclaim: Status in House Bonisagus

Magi Bonisagi have developed a system of recognition within their branch of House Bonisagus to indicate the accumulated rewards of their research efforts. Magi advance through the ranks of this system based on their ﬁnished research efforts. This system of rank is called House Acclaim, and each type of laboratory activity is worth certain amount.

House Acclaim is a free Reputation that every magus Bonisagi character receives at character generation. Only magi Bonisagi are actually interested in this Reputation. Magi Trianomae understand that it is a measure of their brethren’s status, but aren’t overly concerned with it. Magi of other Houses have differing opinions. Some ﬁnd itoverly pedantic, an arrogant practice by an already pretentious lineage, while others think it a practical device that encourages original research, from which the entire Order beneﬁts. Outside the House it has little relevance; inside House Bonisagus, many magi Bonisagi are obsessive about it, measuring themselves against their fellows by their rank within the House.

House Acclaim is increased by Acclaim points. Different types of laboratory research are worth speciﬁc numbers of Acclaim points. House Acclaim increases like an Ability, propelling magi through the ranks of the House as it grows. House Acclaim is a community-based Reputation, and research ﬁndings must be made public for any House Acclaim points to be awarded. Reputation spreads by word of mouth, a slow process in the Middle Ages. Typically it takes a year per gained Acclaim point for the reputation to spread. Having a submitted text — either a Lab Text or a tractatus — included in a folio both quickens and magniﬁes the reputation. The lucky author gains twice the Acclaim points listed on the following table if his research is included in a folio.

There are four ranks of magi Bonisagi. In order, they are the boukoloi (“cowherds”), the daduchos (“torch-bearers”), the cannophori (“reed-bearers”), and the dendrophori (“tree-bearers”). Magi Bonisagi fresh from their gauntlet have no rank, and the Primus is above the ranks. These ranks and their responsibilities are explained in the Magi Bonisagi section.

The House uses this system of rank to determine who is above who, a snobbish pecking order of magi. Much like the noble status of the feudal mundanes, the rankings of magi Bonisagi determine the relationships between the reclusive Hermetic scholars. Magi will only foster their apprentices with magi of equal rank. Furthermore, magi Bonisagi would prefer to have their apprentice gauntleted by a magus of a higher rank than themselves.

A magus Bonisagi may add his House Acclaim score to any social skill roll that involves interacting with another magus of House Bonisagus, including magi Trianomae. A good rule of thumb is to add a character’s House Acclaim score to any roll that involves her Presence characteristic. This advantage is only added when the magi involved are from House Bonisagus; magi of other lineages are not as inﬂuenced by Bonisagus status as House members are. Magi Trianomae ﬁnd it harder to inﬂuence magi Bonisagi of rank than those of lesser status, and a magus Bonisagi may add his House Acclaim score to any Intrigue or Guile roll used to resist a maga Trianomae’s inﬂuence.

House Acclaim does not add to a magus’s Presence during bouts of Certamen, a method rarely used to settle disagreements among members of House Bonisagus.

A magus Bonisagi of rank has an easier time ﬁnding an apprentice. You may add your Acclaim score to your roll to ﬁnd an apprentice (see ArM5, Laboratory chapter, Apprentices, page 106). If the result is 12+, you ﬁnd one as normal. If you fail this roll, you still ﬁnd one, taking an apprentice from another magus as is your right. If your roll fails by 5 or more points, you have antagonized a fellow magus who will need some form of compensation to be placated. If you botch this roll your enemy is so vehement that you gain the Major Story Flaw: Enemies.

Research and Acclaim Points

Type of Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Acclaim Points

Write an Art tractatus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Quality/2

Write an Art summa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Level/2

Invent an original spell . . . . .................. . . .1/magnitude of spell

Invent an original spell using experimentation . . . . .2/magnitude of spell

Create a Talisman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .2

Bind a familiar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .Magic Might of familiar/5

Train an apprentice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .3

Assist a magus of higher rank in the lab . . . . . . . 1/project

Stabilize a breakthrough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/magnitude of spell

Achieve a minor breakthrough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Achieve a major breakthrough . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

House Acclaim Points and Score
Acclaim Score	Acclaim Points to reach	Acclaim Points to increase to	Title
1	5	5	Boukoloi
2	15	10	Daduchos
3	30	15	Cannophori
4	50	20	Dendrophori
5	n/a	n/a	Primus

Folios

Folios are collections of Laboratory Texts and tractatus compiled by the Colentes Arcanorum the season after the close of the Colloquium Delectorum. They are thick volumes containing many pages of parchment, and at a glace can be confused with a weighty summa. Rather than an encyclopedic examination of a single topic however, folios contain information about a variety of topics. Having received submitted texts from other magi Bonisagi during the last seven years, the Colentes select the best submissions to include in the folio. Folios also include a smattering of information about the various authors, as well as the Colentes’s insights and opinions. Coveted by magi throughout the Order, folios provide a wealth of information in a single binding.

Once the Colentes have decided on the exact material to be included in a folio, they spend the next season compiling it, staying on at the covenant that held the Colloquium Delectorum. Folios are titled by the year in which they were made, ‘The Folio of 1123’, for example. Once completed the folio is taken to Durenmar, where it is copied three times. The ﬁrst copy is made for House Guernicus and sent to Magvillus in an overt display of House Bonisagus sharing its research. The second copy goes to the covenant that housed the Colentes during their season spent compiling, as reimbursement for their hospitality. The third copy is sent to Harco, domus magna of House Mercere. This copy circulates throughout the Order, carried from covenant to covenant by the Redcaps, along a predetermined route. Each covenant negotiates with House Mercere for their position on this waiting list, as well as for the length of time the folio stays. Naturally, the Redcaps charge for this service.

Writing Folios

It takes a season to create a folio. The Colentes Arcanorum’s combined Magic Theory scores are the maximum total of Lab Text magnitudes and tractatus Qualities that can be included in a single volume. For example, if the 5 Colentes have a Magic Theory score of 7 each (including their Puissant Magic Theory Ability), the folio can have a total of 35 magnitudes of Lab Texts or tractatus Qualities.

Folios: Colentes Combined Magic Theory = Sum of Lab Text Magnitudes And/or Tractatus Qualities

Once the total number of allowable items has been determined, individual texts are copied to the folio. The regular rules for copying Lab Texts and tractatus apply. Lab Texts are always submitted to the Colentes with the author’s abbreviations and shortcuts omitted, so that they are written understandably. An individual Colens may either copy Lab Texts or tractatus. A Colens may copy 12 magnitudes of Lab Texts per point in Profession: Scribe into a folio. A Colens copying tractatus may copy them carefully or quickly, depending on the number of tractatus included. Since quick copying reduces the tractatus’ Quality by one, this is rarely done.

The Colentes Arcanorum receive Exposure experience for the season spent creating the folio, which can be placed in Magic Theory or Profession: Scribe.

Example Folio

Five Colentes have decided which items will go into a folio. Their combined Magic Theory score is 35. Their ﬁnal choices are a tractatus on Herbam Quality 8, a tractatus on Magic Lore Quality 10, a Lab Text for Stone Tell of the Mind that Sits (magnitude 6), a Lab Text for Ball of Abysmal Flame (magnitude 7), and a Lab Text for Veil of Invisibility (magnitude 4). The Lab Texts were chosen because the inventing magi used experimentation, and each spell has a beneﬁcial side-affect. One of the Colens has a Profession: Scribe score high enough to copy all of the Lab Texts into the folio herself, and two other Colentes can copy the tractatus. The remaining two stay to assist their colleagues.

Reading Folios

Essentially, a folio is nothing more than a collection of Lab Texts and tractatus, and the same rules used to read those materials still apply. Having a folio provides you with a handful of choices for your personal study. Each individual Lab Text or tractatus must be read for an entire season, just as if it was a stand alone text.

The Colentes Arcanorum include biographical data on the author as well as brief accounts of their opinion of the text. Once you have ﬁnished a particular item included in a folio, you receive one experience point in Order of Hermes Lore.

Copying Folios

Folios are combined copies of Lab Texts and tractatus, organized and edited by the Colentes. Once combined, they are easier to copy than their individual parts. Copying a folio is very much like copying a summa, and can be done carefully or quickly. If a scribe is copying a folio carefully, he accumulates points equal to 6 + his Profession: Scribe score in a season. Once his accumulated points equal the combined Magic Theory score of the Colentes Arcanorum who created the folio, the folio is copied. If he copies the folio quickly, he gains 18 + 3 times his Profession: Scribe score in accumulated points per season. Quickly copying a folio will reduce the Quality of every included tractatus by 1 and delete the additional Order of Hermes Lore experience points. It will not affect the Lab Texts.

Editorial Disagreements

Magi Bonisagi do not always readily agree on what submitted texts should be included in a folio, and disagreements are hotly debated. One magus will argue to include a text, while one or more of his fellows may resist. Space in a folio is limited, and arguments occur more often than not. These are sometimes settled politically. One magus may decline to push for his text if another agrees to foster his apprentice, for example. The Colentes Arcanorum make these decisions in a closed session of the Colloquium, so they are not shy about making petty arguments that may seem beneath their station.

If character magi are involved in such a decision, the storyguide may ask the characters to make stress rolls against each other to see who wins the argument. Characters may choose to loudly shout down a disagreeing opponent or eloquently counter their opponent with a crafty argument for a text’s inclusion. Loud characters may make a Presence + Leadership stress roll. Crafty characters may make a Communication + Artes Liberales stress roll. Both types of arguers may add their House Acclaim score to their roll. The character with the higher total wins the argument.

Intrigue

Magi Trianomae begin play with the free Virtue: Puissant Intrigue, the time-honored method of scheming and plotting. This Ability is deﬁned in the core rules of ArM5, but character magi might require more information. The following rules detail when an Intrigue roll is called for and exactly what a successful result means.

Whenever a character magus Trianomae seeks to influence a non-player character, they may make a Presence + Intrigue roll. If they are seeking information they may make a Communication + Intrigue roll. The social consequences of The Gift affect this roll, penalizing it by –3, –6 if the maga has the Blatant Gift. Ignore this penalty if both parties are under the protection of a Parma Magica. Because of the nature of suspicion and deceit, this roll should always be a stress roll. The necessary Ease Factors for success are listed on the following chart.

Inﬂuence a Non-player Character: Presence + Intrigue Vs. Variable Ease Factor

Interrogate a Non-player Character: Communication + Intrigue Vs. Variable Ease Factor

Intrigue Ease Factor and Situation:

6+ Accurately ascertain someone’s overt political goal; make a person continue a political course they are currently following 9+ Determine a person’s political allies; arouse suspicion in a person; delay a person’s current course of action; make a person agree to meet with a rival

12+ Determine a person’s unstated political agenda; turn ambivalent allies against each other; alter a person’s course of action; help antagonists settle minor disputes

15+ Determine a person’s silent partners; sever an alliance between trusted allies; turn a person to a course of action ultimately detrimental to their interests; help antagonists settle major disputes

Politics is rarely a static arena, and sometimes a magus Trianomae character must make Intrigue rolls against another active participant, either a player or non-player character. In such a case, the magus Trianomae rolls Presence + Intrigue + a stress die against the target’s Communication + Intrigue + stress die. The target may elect to use her Guile Ability instead of her Intrigue Ability. Success is determined by the situation and the amount by which the victor’s total exceeds the loser’s.

Victor wins by Result :

3+ Determine if the person is a possible ally or antagonist; encourage a person to continue a course of action

6+ Rattle a person’s composure; force a minor secret to be divulged; inﬂuence opponent to a new course of action

9+ Purposefully embarrass a person in public; force a major secret to slip; force opponent to betray an ambivalent alliance

12+ Completely expose any secrets the opponent may hold; force the opponent to betray a trusted alliance

15+ Force a magus to act against the best interests of his House

Intrigue contests are not rapid events, and the course of an exchange may continue throughout dinner, a day’s joint activity, or even an entire Tribunal. As the exchange nears its end, the Storyguide should call for an Intrigue roll.

For example, Glaucon Trianomae visits the covenant of Semita Errabunda and dines with Moratamis of House Guernicus. Moratamis suspects that Glaucon snatched the golden rabbit, one of the covenant’s vis sources. Glaucon hopes to allay Moratamis’s suspicions by suggesting that someone else abducted the rabbit. As the meal ends, the storyguide asks both players to make an Intrigue roll. She determines that Glaucon needs to roll a 6+ advantage to succeed in changing Moratamis’s mind. Glaucon’s Presence (0) + Intrigue (4) is 4 and Moratamis’s Communication (+1) + Intrigue (3) is 4: an even match. Unfortunately for Glaucon, their stress die rolls also match, and he fails in his attempt to change the Quaesitor’s mind. Moratamis suggests they continue the subject at the next Tribunal.

Folk Ken and Guile

Social skills can be used to complement roleplaying rather an as a substitute for it. Whenever a player character interacts with an important non-player character the storyguide may make a secret Per + Folk Ken roll. From this roll the storyguide should give the player appropriate commentary on the subject’s behavior. A roll of 6+ allows for basic insights, the subject’s general character. A roll of 9+ allows for more speciﬁc insights, the player can be told if the character appears not entirely honest or acting out of character. A 12+ allows the player to know which statements are likely to be deceptive. Higher rolls allow more surety of impression.

Folk Ken can be countered with the Guile skill. A character attempting to deceive rolls Com + Guile. A Guile roll of 9+ allows the deceiver to put on a reasonable front, the character can lie without being obvious. If 12+, the deception appears near perfect, but a higher Folk Ken roll will reveal the cracks. A guile roll of 15+ is perfect, unless the observer knows someone is lying he will not be able to tell. Just because a character rolls well on a Guile test, does not mean the opponent believes what he is told. Folk Ken impressions are important, but the wise do not rely on them exclusively; they may not believe someone who tells them that grass is blue, even if they cannot tell that he is lying from his demeanor.

Folk Ken and Intrigue are complementary. The former allows the character to judge the behavior of individuals and the latter allows the character to judge the interactions between these people. A series of Folk Ken rolls at Tribunal allows a bonus or penalty to an Int + Intrigue roll of between –3 and +3 at the storyguide’s discretion. Like a Folk Ken roll this should be made in secret. A roll of 9+ allows for a fairly basic understanding of the main factions and their agendas. Higher rolls allows for greater understanding. Lower results give increasingly misleading impressions.

New Virtues and Flaws

Over the years House Bonisagus has included many members with particular Virtues and Flaws. Since the House can select other magi’s apprentices, youths who exhibit these powers are often adopted into the House. However, this does not mean that Bonisagi are the sole recipients of these boons. Virtues and Flaws marked with an asterisk depend on the structure of House Bonisagus, and so are exclusive to the House. Others are not.

Minor Hermetic Virtues

Colens Arcanorum*: You are a member of one of the inner circles of House Bonisagus, the Collectors of Secrets. You begin the game with the House Bonisagus rank cannophori. During your seven year tenure you will receive Lab Texts and tractatus from other magi Bonisagi, which you may keep. At the end of your service you must attend the Colloquium Delectorum and decide which of these submitted text will be included in a folio. You must also contribute to the folio’s construction. This Virtue is not appropriate for magi Bonisagi fresh from their gauntlet; you should have passed your apprentice’s gauntlet at least ten years ago.

Tenens Occultorum*: You are a member of one of the inner circles of House Bonisagus, the Tenders of Secret Knowledge. You have been chosen by the Primus to occupy one of the four Tenentes Occultorum positions. Your exact position is depending on your experience, judged by the numbers of seasons since your gauntlet. If you are a younger magus you will be the Spring Tenens. Certain responsibilities accompany this Virtue.

Minor Supernatural Virtue

Figurine Magic. You have been taught the art of Figurine Magic, which allows you to construct small wax or wood ﬁgurines of power, whose beneﬁts may assist you or others. You may either be a Gifted magus or a nonGifted practitioner. Taking this Virtue confers the Ability Figurine Magic 1. See the optional example in the Example Discoveries section for more information.

Minor General Virtue

Linguist. You are extremely proﬁcient learning new languages. All Study Totals for any Language are increased by a quarter, as any experience points you put into any language at character generation. Both Living and Dead languages are augmented with this Virtue.

Minor Hermetic Flaw

Stockade Parma Magica: Because of your restricted understanding of Parma Magica, you cannot suppress your Parma once it is erected. Any friendly spell or magical affect must penetrate your Parma Magica to affect you, just as if it were a hostile spell.

Minor Personality Flaw

Seeker: You are a self-proclaimed member of the Seekers, a loose organization of competitive magi searching for ancient magic and arcane artifacts. Much of your life is spent in pursuit of these items. Your interests may occasionally clash with other interests of your House.

Minor Story Flaw

Fostered Apprentice*: You were fostered as an apprentice, brieﬂy serving another magus in his laboratory. You have a lasting relationship with this magus, similar to the relationship you have with your parens. You also have a connection to another magi Bonisagi that you trained with. Either of these people may ask favors of you, which you feel obligated to perform.

Original Research

It is the deepest desire of many Bonisagus magi to invent something new, something never before seen within the parameters of Hermetic magic. Many feel that original research is the core of Hermetic magic, the true passion of a magus Bonisagi, continuing the founder’s inventiveness by pushing the limits of magic. Several, too, think this is the best way to fulﬁll the speciﬁcs of their Hermetic Oath, their duty to fearlessly explore the untold mysteries of magic. Still others push the limits of magic for vainglorious reasons, hoping to attach their name to a discovery that will last long after their longevity ritual has failed them.

Of all the Hermetic Houses, House Bonisagus is the most compelled to augment their Founder’s Magic Theory with original research. This does not make magi Bonisagi any better at it than other Hermetic magi. It does mean, however, that many magi Bonisagi make at least a beginning stab at original research.

A magus may begin original research at any time in his career. Some wait, increasing their knowledge of the Arts to bolster their Lab Total, while others begin as soon as they leave apprenticeship. There are no minimum Art or Ability requirements for undertaking original research and the process is the same whether the magus is a wizened archmagus or a fresh-eyed youth. Bear in mind that you will eventually teach others any Breakthrough you have achieved, either through individual instruction or written tractatus, so a high Language or Teach Ability may be useful.

Breakthroughs

By undertaking original research you are attempting to achieve some goal that has not been reached previously by Hermetic magic. These achievements are called Breakthroughs and there are three types: Minor, Major, and Hermetic.

A Minor Breakthrough is something that is immediately usable and teachable in the existing framework of Hermetic magic. A new spell Range or Duration is a good example of a Minor Breakthrough. In many sagas, Minor Breakthroughs happen often enough that a maga can expect to achieve this goal once or twice during her lifetime. Minor Breakthroughs could be more common, but are few because most magi Bonisagi have loftier goals. Why invent a new Range when you can attempt to break a Hermetic Limit? Grandiosity usually propels magi toward harder projects.

A Major Breakthrough pushes the limits of Magic Theory without actually breaking them. These sorts of Breakthroughs are often Hermetic Virtues that can be taught to the Gifted. Incorporating types of non-hermetic spell casting into Hermetic magic is another example of a Major Breakthrough; these then becoming teachable Supernatural Virtues. A Major Breakthrough can also allow you to adapt a standard application of a Hermetic idea in a variable way. Notatus’ development of the Aegis of the Hearth was a Major Breakthrough, a variable spell based on Bonisagus’ Parma Magica. Major Breakthroughs make a magus famous. With persistence, a troupe playing in a fast speed saga could realistically see a player make a Major Breakthrough.

A Hermetic Breakthrough is a new Arcane Ability or the breaking of a Lesser Limit. Nearly anything is possible; this is magic in its most uncharted state. A new Arcane Ability could be the practice of sending mental images from the mind of one magus to another (crude telepathy) or the ability to walk through different levels of regiones without the use of spells. Breaking the Lesser Limits of Hermetic magic is also a viable goal. Depending on the sensibilities of the troupe, any of the Lesser Limits could be violated, which would deﬁnitely change the shape of magic in your saga. In a canonical Ars Magica setting, the Parma Magica is the only Hermetic Breakthrough that has occurred in the 450 years of the Order of Hermes.

It is important to discuss your idea and the speciﬁc Breakthrough you are attempting with your troupe. Does the group want a Lesser Limit broken, for example, or will a teachable Hermetic Virtue upset the nature of the game? If the Limit of Creation is broken, then magi will be creating permanent items out of thin air, without the necessity for vis, which could undermine many of the storyguide’s upcoming stories.

Seeking the Unknown

Once you have determined what sort of Breakthrough you would like to accomplish, you must invent something Hermetically that somehow incorporates your idea. This can be a spell or a magical enchantment, either a lesser enchantment or a charged item. Detail the effect fully, as per the normal rules found in the Laboratory chapter of Ars Magica Fifth Edition. Since you are searching for clues aimed at surpassing regular Hermetic theories, you must experiment, using the rules found in the Arcane Experimentation section of the Laboratory chapter, including choosing a risk modiﬁer for your experiment and rolling on the Extraordinary Results Chart.

For your original research to be fruitful you must roll the Discovery result on the Extraordinary Results Chart. Fortune plays a large roll in the research process. However, you can hedge your bet with original research in a way that you can not with regular experimentation. Instead of calculating your risk modiﬁer into your Lab Total during the season, you use that modiﬁer to adjust your roll on the Extraordinary Results Chart. The risk modiﬁer still runs the range of +1 to +3, but you are restricted in your choice by your Magic Theory score. For every ﬁve points or fraction thereof of Magic Theory (including Puissant Magic Theory) you may choose a risk modiﬁer of 1. Thus, to chose a risk modiﬁer of +2 your Magic Theory must be 6 or higher, and a risk modiﬁer of +3 requires a Magic Theory of 11+.

Risk Modiﬁer: +1 Per 5 Points of Magic Theory Or Fraction Thereof, Up To +3

Consult the Extraordinary Results Chart as normal to determine the effect on your spell. However, you may also add or subtract all or part of your Risk Modifier in order to get a Discovery in addition to the normal effect of experimentation. Thus, if you had a Risk Modifier of +3, and rolled an 8, you would get a Modified Effect. You could also subtract 1 to get a Discovery in addition. The effect of the spell is still modified. You cannot use the Risk Modifier to get a supplementary result other than a Discovery.

Breakthrough: Roll Discovery On the Extraordinary Results Chart During a Season of Arcane Experimentation

Risk Modiﬁer: Do Not Add Risk Modiﬁer Into Lab Total. Add Or Subtract Risk Modiﬁer From the Stress Die Rolled On the Extraordinary Results Chart

You are hoping for a Discovery. If you do not roll a Discovery, your spell or item is still affected by the Extraordinary Results Chart. Most likely you will end up with a slightly odd Hermetic effect. If your original research involved a spell and that spell is ﬂawed or difﬁcult to cast, you may reinvent the spell using the rules found in the Arcane Experimentation section of the Laboratory chapter. If your research involved an item and that item is ﬂawed, you may attempt to reinvent that item, but all vis used in the initial experiment is lost.

If your spell or enchanted item research takes more than a single season to complete you must continue to roll on the Extraordinary Results Chart for each season. Having deciding how you will use your risk modiﬁer in a previous season, you must continue to use it in the same manner for consecutive seasons. If you subtracted 1 from your initial roll on the Extraordinary Results Chart in your ﬁrst season, for example, you must subtract 1 from every additional roll on the Extraordinary Results Chart in additional seasons until the item or spell is completed. You may accrue odd and weird results as your research progresses, but may continue to experiment providing you don’t receive a Complete Failure or Disaster result.

If you do achieve a Discovery during your experimentation then the original research was a success. Ignore the Discovery sub-chart of the Extraordinary Results Chart; that chart applies to those not investigating the deeper mystery of Hermetic magic, instead discovering something more intimate about their personal connection to magic and the Arts. You, however, have found that elusive element of magic that you started your original research searching for. Now you must stabilize that experimental process to better understand your discovery.

Each spell or magical enchantment can only lead to one discovery. You may continually invent the same spell or enchantment experiment until a discovery is rolled, even if the experiment was a success. Thus, you may accumulate many usable versions of the same spell in process of your research. However, once a speciﬁc experiment yields a Discovery, you may no longer explore that spell or magical enchantment for further discoveries.

Stabilizing the Unknown

After you have achieved your Discovery, you must stabilize that process through exact repetition. You must repeat the experimentation, continuing for the same number of seasons and using the exact Lab Total and risk modiﬁer that you used to ﬁnd your Discovery. If you used vis during your process you must repeat the amount used. You must roll again on the Extraordinary Results Chart, and you must modify your roll in the same direction as you did to make the Discovery. This means that if you added your risk modiﬁer to your roll your must add it again; if you subtracted your risk modiﬁer from your roll you must subtract it this second time.

During the stabilization season you do not need to roll a Discovery to succeed. As long as you do not roll a harmful effect (Disaster, No Beneﬁt, Complete Failure) you stabilize your discovery. Ignore any beneﬁcial result you might roll. If you do roll a harmful affect your stabilization process fails. Your spell or magical enchantment is unaffected, having already been created in the previous season, but you have lost the chance to stabilize that Discovery.

Original research is the process of accumulating stabilized discoveries until a Breakthrough is achieved. If your stabilization season succeeds, you gain a point per magnitude of the invented Hermetic spell or enchanted item that you may use towards your Breakthrough. You also create a Laboratory Text that explains your discovery. When these points reach a certain threshold number, you succeed; your research has achieved a Breakthrough.

Magnitudes of Stabilized Discovery Equal Breakthrough Points

As a side affect to this stabilization process, you receive Warping Points from your attempts to understand this new magic. The number of Warping Points gained is the magnitude of the effect — a simple die. If you gain 2 or more Warping Points you must roll to avoid Wizard’s Twilight, as explained in the Wizard’s Twilight section of Ars Magica 5th Edition’s Hermetic Magic chapter (page 88). You can obviously mitigate the chance of gaining Warping Points by experimenting with lower magnitude effects. However, this lengthens your original research process, since it is your accumulated effect magnitudes that ultimately add up to your Breakthrough. Experimenting with higher magnitude spells hastens you toward your Breakthrough and increases your risk of Wizard’s Twilight.

Warping Points Gained: The Magnitude of the Stabilized Discovery Minus a Simple Die

You receive Warping Points whether you succeed or fail at stabilizing your discovery. If your stabilization attempt fails, you may spend another season and try it again. You may continue to stabilize your discovery until you succeed, providing you spend consecutive seasons until you succeed and you do not suffer some dire event along the way.

Surpassing the Limits

Once the accumulated points of your stabilized discoveries reach a certain number, you succeed and invent a Breakthrough. A rough rule of thumb is 30 points are needed for a Minor Breakthrough, 45 for a Major and 60 for a true Hermetic Breakthrough. This is only a guide, however, and your storyguide will set the exact number of magnitudes necessary for your Breakthrough.

It is vitally important that the player not know the number of points necessary for her Breakthrough success. The reasons for this are twofold. First, this long process is fraught with disappointment and failure, and only the truly passionate will continue once repeated seasons spent in the laboratory fail to yield a Discovery. Not knowing the target number of needed magnitudes reﬂects the uncertainties that lie within original research.

Secondly, this allows the storyguide to minutely adjust the target number off the cuff, as you work through your original research towards completion. If she feels that you are nearing your Breakthrough too quickly, she can raise the target number a little. Conversely, she may also lower the target number, if success would increase the pleasure of the game or add an interesting turn of events to the saga. This slight recalculation should be used for the overall beneﬁt of the saga, and not as a tool to reward or punish players. The intent of the original research rules is that Breakthroughs are difﬁcult and take a long time to achieve.

Original research is long and arduous and does not have to be done during consecutive seasons. You may work at a Breakthrough for a while and then stop, returning to it when you are reinvigorated or better learned in the Arts. Each individual experiment must be worked through to completion, and if a Discovery occurs you must proceed directly into the stabilization phase. You may certainly take breaks between experiments.

Multiple Laboratory Texts

There is nothing in the original research process that stops multiple magi from working together on a Breakthrough. Some small hindrances present themselves; the magi must be willing to share and each must be able to read the wizardly script of the others’ Laboratory Texts (see the Translating Laboratory Texts section of the Hermetic Magic chapter in Ars Magica 5th Edition, page 102). Rather, it is usually personality conﬂicts, selﬁshness, and self-centeredness that keep magi from working together on Breakthroughs. Even in House Bonisagus, which has an atypically high level of intra-House cooperation, magi are reluctant to share original research notes.

Bear in mind that cooperation is not the only way to gain someone’s stabilized Laboratory Texts. Like any other valued Hermetic commodity, they may be stolen, bartered, given in gift or taken on March. Since it is such a lengthy, laborious process, Laboratory Texts of dead magi may also be recovered, perhaps in a mysterious location or as part of a mythic treasure. Your storyguide may include original research Laboratory Texts as an inducement to an adventure, a pivotal ﬁnd midway through a story, or as reward for a completed story arc.

If you are lucky enough to have another maga’s Laboratory Texts, and they concern the same Breakthrough you are exploring, you may incorporate them into the accumulated points necessary for your research. You must successfully break the author’s code and spend a season reading the Laboratory Texts and following the experiment, requiring a Hermetic laboratory. You accumulate points equal to your Lab Total in the Arts concerned. Once your points equal the level of the Lab Text’s described experiment, you may add the magnitude of the effect to your total points. In effect, each researcher has a total accumulation of points. The Breakthrough will not happen until a single practitioner amasses enough points to reach its target number. Thus, if two or more magi are researching the same Breakthrough, the ﬁrst to reach the target number makes the actual Breakthrough.

A magus does not gain Warping Points by reading another maga’s original research Laboratory Text. This is another powerful incentive to gain these valuable notes.

Breakthroughs in Play

Once you have accumulated enough points from your original research, you complete your task and invent a Breakthrough. If you have created a Minor Breakthrough, it is instantly usable and understandable by Hermetic magi. You may incorporate it into your next invented spell or magical enchantment, and this is the usual path of transmission to your fellow magi. For example, magus Tillitus invents a new Range ‘Horizon’. He then invents a spell using Horizon as the Range and offers the Laboratory Texts of this spell to the Order. Those reading the Laboratory Texts both learn the spell and understand the new Range at the same time. They can then use this new Range in exactly the same way they can use any spell Range.

Major Breakthroughs are more involved and must be taught to other magi, either by personal instruction or writing a tractatus describing the Breakthrough. Both of these instruction methods follow the standard Teaching and Books rules found in the Long Term Events chapter of Ars Magica 5th Edition, page 163.

Learning a Major Breakthrough is similar to learning a supernatural ability, with two important distinctions. Major Breakthroughs still work within the Hermetic system of magic, and are often Hermetic Virtues, so that learning one is not as difﬁcult as learning a supernatural ability. You do not have to subtract your total Hermetic Arts score from the Source Quality of the teaching source. A second exception is that, although Major Breakthroughs will most likely teach a Hermetic Virtue that does not have an associated Ability in game terms, they may still be taught in this manner.

A Hermetic Breakthrough is a legendary event and its transmission depends on the nature of the Breakthrough. If it is an Arcane Ability, like the Parma Magica, then it must be taught just like any regular ability. If the Breakthrough exceeds one of the Hermetic limits of magi, then it must be taught like a Major Breakthrough, either through personal instruction or a written tractatus.

Hermetic Integration

Ultimately, a magus researcher wants to completely integrate his Breakthrough into Hermetic theory. A perfect system of magic would let every practitioner perform every type of magical act without any necessary Virtues or Supernatural Abilities. This is easily accomplished with Minor Breakthroughs, but more difﬁcult with Major Breakthroughs. Hermetic Breakthroughs represent their own problems of integration.

Minor Breakthroughs, by deﬁnition, work within Hermetic parameters and are instantly integrated into Bonisagus’ theory of magic. Major Breakthroughs create Hermetic Virtues, which must be learned, granting the use of the Virtue with an accompanying Ability. Breakthroughs may be further researched to allow a magus access to the Virtue without learning an Ability. Thus, making a Major Breakthrough on an existing Major Breakthrough will change the nature of Hermetic magic.

For example, a maga achieves a Major Breakthrough and invents the Hermetic Virtue Life Boost. She can teach this ability to other magi, granting each the Hermetic Virtue Life Boost once they learn it. A second Major Breakthrough would integrate Life Boost into regular Hermetic magic, meaning that every practitioner taught Magic Theory using this new technique would be able to use Life Boost.

Example Discoveries

The following four discoveries are examples of original research. Storyguides may use them as innovations already present in the Order, as goals designed for players to invent, or simply as examples to base their own creations on. None of these should be considered canonical; rather they are mere examples and possibilities of recent House Bonisagus additions to the corpus of Hermetic knowledge.

Exempli Gratia: Original Research

Fresh from his gauntlet and newly installed in the covenant of Semita Errabunda, Tillitus Bonisagi decides he wants to break the Limit of Vis, which states that Hermetic magic cannot change the Art to which raw vis is attuned. The storyguide and the troupe decide that this is essentially a Muto Vis operation, and agree that any experimentation in these Arts, as well as Intellego, may lead to this discovery. Eagar for fame, Tillitus begins immediately.

Since there are so many general magnitude Muto Vim spells, Tillitus decides to invent them all, one at a time of course, experimenting along the way. This works well with his generalist nature. His ﬁrst attempt is to invent Wizard’s Reach for the Art of Animal at level 5. His Lab Total is 20 (Intelligence +5 + Magic Theory 3 + Puissant Ability [+2] + Muto 5 + Vim 5). He chooses a risk modiﬁer of +1 to inﬂuence his roll on the Extraordinary Results Chart; his Magic Theory isn’t high enough to allow a larger risk modiﬁer.

Tillitus’ Lab Total easily doubles the spell level and he invents his ﬁrst Wizard’s Reach spell. He rolls a 5 on the Extraordinary Results Chart. Cursing his ill-luck, Tillitus continues through the Forms, inventing Wizard’s Reach level 5 for each. He could keep inventing the same spell, but he would rather have several variations of Wizard’s Reach. He keeps the same Lab Total and uses a +1 risk modiﬁer throughout, adjusting it up or down to suit his needs. Finally, during his experimentation with the spell for Ignem, he rolls a 9 on the Extraordinary Results Chart, which he can move to a 10 for a discovery.

He spends the very next season repeating the experiment hoping to stabilize his discovery. Using the Lab Total and risk modiﬁer, he must roll again on the Extraordinary Results Chart. His stress die rolls 1 and then 4, for an 8: Complete Failure. He must apply the risk modiﬁer in the same manner as he did during his experimentation season, which changes his 8 to a 9, saving him from the Complete Failure and stabilizing his discovery. He has achieved an important ﬁrst step towards his ultimate goal.

During the stabilization season, Tillitus must roll a simple die and possibly collect Warping Points. His pedestrian approach is fairly safe, at these small magnitudes, and he has little to fear; a magnitude 1 spell — any result on the simple die will not yield Warping Points at this stage. After seven seasons of experimentation, Tillitus has produced a stabilized discovery of magnitude 1. He can’t believe his good luck!

Arma Magica

The Arma Magica, or ‘magical defenses’, are based upon Bonisagus’s unique Parma Magica ritual. Bonisagus discovered that the Parma Magica could be stretched to protect others. This thins the protective energies of the shield and weakens its overall resistance, but is an excellent way to protect companions and apprentices. Arma Magica uses Parma Magica in similar ways, pressed back or “folded” the ﬁeld of resistance upon itself for a variety of effects, called folds. Each fold is a Major Breakthrough, since each creates a new way of using an already existing Hermetic effect. There are six Parma Magica folds; inventing one is a grand accomplishment and inventing all six would make a magus legendary.

A magus may know a number of folds equal to his Parma Magica score. The ﬁrst fold learned is always the basic encompassing of another. Additional folds must be taught by a teacher, who may a teach a single fold to a number of students equal to her Teach Ability. She may always teach a single student a single fold even if she has no score in Teach. Magi Bonisagi would willingly teach these Parma folds, some even declining offers of compensation.

Parma Magica Folds

Many of these new defenses alter the magus’ Parma Magica score. Some reduce it, usually by half, while others augment it or diminish it by a speciﬁc amount. To determine the magic resistance of a magus using these new folds, always change the original Parma Magica (rounding up) before multiplying it by 5 and adding speciﬁc Form bonuses. Despite subtraction and division, a reduced Parma Magica can never fall below 0. A magus always receives his Form bonus against magical attacks.

Note that the typical Parma Magica takes two minutes to perform and lasts until sunrise or sunset, which ever comes ﬁrst. Except for the Parma Ablativa, all of the Parma folds follow this procedure. A magus may suppress his Parma, not cancel it, so in most cases the same Parma Magica fold initially performed stays active until the ritual itself expires, or is dispelled. A magus can not change folds as the need arises. Extending the Parma Magica to other characters is one exception, and the Parma Restricta (see below) is another. Since performing a Parma Magica is an essential part of being a Hermetic magus, it becomes a routine act at every sunrise and sunset.

Parma Ablativa: The ‘ablative shield’ creates a much more powerful shield that weakens over time. Double a magus’s Parma Magica score when calculating magic resistance. However, Penetration totals of resisted spells must be subtracted from the resistance. For example, if a magus’s Parma Ablativa magic resistance was 40 and resisted a spell or magical effect with a Penetration of 10, his magic resistance would be reduced to 30. Designed for combat, this fold offers a stronger initial protection than regular Parma Magica. This fold takes ten minutes to perform, longer than the two minutes it takes to perform a regular Parma Magica. If the Parma Ablativa’s resistance is completely destroyed — magic resistance falls to zero — the magus may perform another Parma Magica fold. This is the sole exception to the rule of only one Parma per sunrise/sunset.

Parma Absorbea: The ‘swallowing shield’ accepts incoming spell attacks and traps them in a mystical pocket that holds the magical energy for a single combat round, just long enough for the magus to use that energy to empower one of his own spells. Divide the magus’s Parma Magica in half (round up) to calculate magic resistance. Incoming spells that are resisted are held brieﬂy. A magus may use this trapped energy to increase the casting total of his next spell. If the magus makes a Stamina + Concentration stress roll higher than the Penetration value of the trapped spell, he adds one half of that spell’s Penetration to his next spell’s casting total. If his next spell is the exact Technique and Form as the imprisoned spell, including requisites, he may add the entire Penetration value to his next casting total.

Parma Condensa: The ‘thick shield’ protects a magus against a particular Form, chosen when casting it. Double the Parma Magica score against the speciﬁed Form, but divide it by two (round up) against all others. This can be particularly effective against known enemies or in specific Realms. The magus must have a score of at least double his Parma Magica in the Art he chooses.

Parma Custodia: The ‘guarding shield’ protects against physical attacks rather than magical ones, slowing down weapons and physical hazards and ensnaring them in a sort of magical net. The magus adds twice his Parma Magica score to any Defense totals in combat. It does not protect against magic at all, though Form scores still add to magic resistance.

Parma Repercussa: The ‘reﬂecting shield’ allows the magus to manipulate his Parma so that it reﬂects spells back at their caster. The magus’ Parma Magica score is reduced by half (round up) to calculate his magic resistance. If the Parma Repercussa stops an incoming spell or magical power, it is bounced back, guided by the active mental direction of the magus. The magus must be able to see the target he wishes to repeal the incoming spell towards. The Penetration total stays the same.

Parma Restricta: The ‘holding shield’ allows the magus to enshroud another with a protective mantle through which magical powers may not pass. Much like a magical cage, the Parma Restricta surrounds a target, and any spell which the targets attempt to cast through the cage must penetrate the magus’ resistance. The magus’s Parma Magica Ability is decreased by 3. The target must be close enough to touch. It takes two minutes to invoke a Parma Restricta, hardly an instantaneous effect. If successful, both the magus and his target are protected. However, his Parma acts as a suppressor to the target, who must penetrate it to cast any spell of a range greater than Personal. This has often been used as a successful means to suppress a creature’s magical ability.

Parmulae

The Order has long sought a means of protecting its mundane members from magic. Redcaps would be especially interested in such a discovery. Parmulae are an example of one possible answer to this quandary. They are ‘little shields’, small objects like a broach or comb, which provide the wearer with Magic Resistance. Parmulae have two major liabilities; the shields are not permanent and they allow no variation in the level of magic resistance. Also, the Order as a whole would balk at accepting them, fearing that they could unduly harm the Order if they fell into the wrong hands. Paradoxically, the House that would be most resistant to Parmulae is Bonisagus, the same House could very well be behind their development.

A Parmula is a lesser enchanted device that will provide the wearer with a magic resistance of 30. To make a Parmula a magus must spend an entire season in the laboratory, instilling the magic within an appropriate vessel, typically a silver brooch or other jewelry. Its base level of effect is Rego Vim 30. Its effect requires constant use, which adds two magnitudes and four levels to the ﬁnal level of effect, for an total effective level of 44. As with all lesser enchanted items, it must be constructed in a single season; the creator’s Rego Vim lab total must double the level of the effect. The magus receives a +4 from the Shape and Material Bonuses Table for instilling the effect within a piece of jewelry. It costs ﬁve pawns of Rego or Vim vis to enchant a Parmula. Once completed, the Parmula offers Magic Resistance of 30. Possessing a Lab Text describing the creation of a Parmula would be helpful for the inventing magus.

Parmulae: Lesser Enchanted Device That Provides a Magic Resistance of 30. Total Level of Effect Is 44.

This sounds too good to be true, and it is. A Parmula only lasts a year before its protective magic dissipates, and experimentation hasn’t been able to alter this temporal limit. Secondly, a more powerful device has not yet been invented; the original research provides for only this level of magic resistance from a Parmula. These limitations have not been adequately accounted for, and seem an anomaly of the process. A Parmula would be considered a Minor Breakthrough. They are based on the Rego Vim work done by Notatus, the first Primus of House Bonisagus, and his Major Breakthrough, The Aegis of the Hearth. Changing their length of duration or the level of magic resistance would require a Major Breakthrough.

You should discuss Parmulae with your troupe before allowing them into your saga. Parma Magica is the only type of universal magic resistance known in 1220, giving Hermetic magi a decisive edge in monopolizing the magical landscape of Mythic Europe. It could be safely argued that Parma Magica is the primary reason the Order of Hermes has been so successful. Including Parmulae in a saga would diminish the dominate position of Parma Magica, and the Order might hesitate to circulate devices that could loosen their monopolistic control. A troupe must consider the impact of these protective devices upon their view of Mythic Europe before allow Parmulae into a saga.

Figurine Magic

Figurine Magic is an ancient tradition, the practice of installing magical affects into a carved ﬁgurine meant for a single recipient. Through these ﬁgurines wizards create lasting magical affects for others, typically mundane folk, those who could most beneﬁt from these minor artifacts. Several forms of this type of magic exist, from antiquity through the Middle Ages, and Figurine Magic is one such form. This is an example of a non-hermetic practice of magic being integrated into Hermetic magic through a Major Breakthrough, making a teachable Supernatural Virtue.

Figurines are small ﬁgures, constructed from wax or wood, that may be enchanted with Hermetic spells and effects that mirror Minor Virtues. Since the magus must make the ﬁgure himself, they are usually made from wax. The recipient of the ﬁgure must be determined before construction begins, since astrological charts particular to the subject must be drawn. Every magus knows how to generate astrological charts because astrology is one of the seven liberal arts covered by the Artes Liberales Ability. Since each ﬁgurine is made for a speciﬁc individual, the magus can not have a ready supply of ﬁgurines that can be easily doled out as the need arises.

Constructing a ﬁgurine takes a month for a wax ﬁgurine or two for a wood ﬁgurine. The simplest ﬁgures are wax, and three can be made in a season if the crafter wishes. The difference in materials is the length of enchantment. Wax ﬁgures hold their magic for six months (two seasons), and wood ﬁgures for a year (four seasons). Regardless of the length of enchantment, if a ﬁgure is ever damaged or destroyed its magic ceases immediately.

The better the ﬁgurine the stronger the magical attachment, so extreme care is taken constructing a ﬁgure. As the process begins, the magus must succeed with a Dexterity + Craft: Sculptor + stress roll against an Ease Factor of 6 for a wax ﬁgurine or 9 for a wood ﬁgurine. Failing this roll means the ﬁgurine is too crude to represent the target and the time spent constructing the ﬁgure is wasted. Botching this roll means the magus inadvertently constructed this ﬁgurine for someone else. He will not realize her mistake until the item fails to affect the target at the completion of the construction.

Making a FIgure: Dexterity + Craft: Sculptor + Stress Die

Ease Factor: 6 for a Wax FIgurine, 9 for a Wood FIgure

Remember that if a character does not have a score in Craft: Sculptor she may still make a roll, treating it as if she had a score of zero in the Ability and rolling three extra botch dice if necessary.

Once the ﬁgure is carved it may be imbued with magic. Hermetic magi may enchant the ﬁgurines with Hermetic spells. They may also enchant the ﬁgurine with Minor General or Supernatural Virtues. The original practice only allows the enchantment of Minor Virtues. Integrating Figurine Magic into Hermetic magic allows the enchantment of Hermetic spells as well as the Virtues. The magus decides what sort of power the ﬁgurine will have at the beginning of the process. At the end of the ﬁgure’s construction time, the magus rolls an Intelligence + Figurine Magic + Aura Modiﬁer + stress die roll against an Ease Factor based on the magic imbued.

Enchanting a FIgure: Intelligence + Figurine Magic + Aura Modiﬁer

Imbued Power and Ease Factor:

Base 9

Minor General Virtue +3

Minor Supernatural Virtue +6

Hermetic Spell +1/magnitude

Figurines imbued with a Supernatural Ability that requires a score, like Premonitions or Second Sight, allow the Figurine bearer to act as if she had a 1 in the speciﬁc Ability, which is then modified by any certain Characteristics according to the Virtue’s description. Some General Virtues from the core ArM5 rules are inappropriate; they include Educated, Faerie Blood, Gossip, Improved Characteristic, Large, Latent Magic Ability, Privileged Upbringing, Protection, Relic, Skinchanger, Social Contacts, Student of (Realm), Troupe Upbringing, True Love (PC), Warrior, and Well-Traveled.

Hermetic spells installed within an Figurine must have a range of Touch and a Target of Individual. The Duration of Sun is required, which is extended to constant use in the enchantment process, much like in the regular Laboratory rules section. The magus must be able to cast the desired spell he wishes to install within the ﬁgurine. Unlike a normal lesser enchanted item, the enchantment is not permanent. The ﬁgurine will hold the enchantment for a length of time dependent upon the material of the item, and the magic will eventually cease operating.

Magi who can perform Figurine Magic prefer it to lesser enchanted items for three reasons. First, these creations do not require Vis to construct, merely time and effort. A magus’ magical resources are not depleted when creating ﬁgurines. Secondly, they are quick to construct, requiring only a month instead of the usual season of laboratory time. Lastly, though they can be potent, they are an ephemeral magic, short-lived and ﬂeeting. They are too weak to pester a magus, whose Parma Magica protects him from the ﬁgurine’s magic. Enchanted ﬁgurines have a penetration total of zero.

It would be interesting to move Figurine Magic out of the Supernatural Ability category and ﬁrmly incorporate it into Hermetic practices, allowing magi to simply make ﬁgurines without needing a corresponding Ability. Such an event would be a Major Discovery, inventing a degree of enchanted item lower than a Lesser Enchantment.

Non-Hermetic practitioners of this art still exist, nonGifted individuals who imbue ﬁgurines with magical enchantments. They follow the same rules as described above with one important distinction; they can not enchant a ﬁgurine with a Hermetic spell and are regulated to only enchanting Minor General or Supernatural Virtues into such items.

Realm-Aligned Spells

Hermetic spells are inﬂuenced by the realm within which they are cast, suppressed by the Divine and Infernal Realms and slightly enhanced by the Faerie Realm, which also intensiﬁes the probability for botches. Realm-Aligned spells are spells created to avoid this otherworldly inﬂuence, invented so that they remain unaffected when cast in the aura to which they are aligned. Not breaking any of the Limits of Magic, this is a Minor Breakthrough. It would be another Minor Breakthrough to include this as another of the special abilities available for mastered spells.

In practice this is a simple procedure; when inventing a realm-aligned spell in the laboratory, you reduce your Lab Total by limiting your Magic Theory Ability score to the level of your appropriate Realm Lore. You then follow the procedure as described in the Inventing Spells section of the Laboratory Chapter of Ars Magica 5th Edition, page 95. When complete, the spell you have realm-aligned, or ‘ﬂavored’ towards a speciﬁc realm, will be immune from that realm’s inﬂuence.

When casting a realm-aligned spell in the correct realm, you may replace the Realm Interaction Table located in the Realm Interaction section of the Realms Chapter with the Realm-Aligned Spell Interaction Table listed below. Furthermore, botch dice are reduced by the level of the caster’s speciﬁc Realm Lore Ability that was used as a requisite to their Magic Theory score.

Each realm-aligned spell invented is ﬂavored to one of three Realms; Magic, Infernal, or Faerie. Hermetic magic can not remove the powerful inﬂuence of the Divine Realm. It may seem odd that a magus would create a realm-aligned spell ﬂavored to the Magic Realm, since a magic aura adds to the spell casting roll, but bear in mind that realm-aligned spells greatly reduce the possibility of botching by lessening the botch dice. This reduction is in addition to any other botch dice reductions a magus may receive through spell mastery and Virtues, and may reduce the number of botch dice to zero.

Realm-aligned spells can be cast in Realms other than which they were created for. In this situation, use the Realm-Aligned Spell Interaction Table as per usual, using the ﬂavor of the cast realm-aligned spell to determine the Realm’s inﬂuence.

For example, Glaucon the Seeker wants to invent a realm-aligned version of Sight of the Transparent Motive ﬂavored for the Faerie Realm. His Magic Theory of 3 is reduced by his Faerie Lore of only 1. He still easily invents the spell in a single season. his player makes a note that this spell is a faerie realm-aligned spell with –1 botch die in a faerie aura or regio.

Realm-Aligned Spell Interaction Table
Aura Type	Magic spell	Faerie spell	Infernal spell
Magic	no bonus	+(1/2 aura)	- aura
Divine	-(3 x aura)	-(4x aura)	-(5 x aura)
Faerie	+(1/2 aura)	no bonus	- aura
Infernal	- aura	-(2 x aura)	np bonus

Bibliography

Burkert, Walter. Ancient Mystery Cults. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1987.

Luck, Georg. Arcana Mundi. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1985.

Meyer, Marvin W., ed. The Ancient Mysteries. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1987.

Tweet, Jonathan. The Order of Hermes. Lion Rampant, 1990.

Editor's Note: This text includes Errata.

Attribution Based on the material for Ars Magica, ©1993-2024, licensed by Trident, Inc. d/b/a Atlas Games®, under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license 4.0 ("CC-BY-SA 4.0"). Ars Magica Open License Logo ©2024 Trident, Inc. The Ars Magica Open License Logo, Ars Magica, and Mythic Europe are trademarks of Trident, Inc., and are used with permission. Order of Hermes, Tremere, Doissetep, and Grimgroth are trademarks of Paradox Interactive AB and are used with permission.

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