Lords of Men Chapter One: Introduction
See Also
- The Ars Magica Reference Document
- The Lords of Men Open Content page.
- The Lords of Men product page on this wiki
Chapter One: Rule by the Sword
Mythic Europe is governed by a warrior caste. To be noble is to expect the call to arms; to gain the esteem of other nobles, a lord must draw forces together and massacre his enemies. Nobles are wealthy, so they may live sumptuously and patronize the Church and the arts, but the thirteenth century is a time of strife. Those who kill, rule.
Realms still need their armies, for virtually all have recently been burned by war, but many nobles feel their state is in decline. Kings and the Church chip away at the status of the warrior caste. Its great mission the liberation of the Holy Land — seems in disarray. The merchants of the cities are increasingly demanding, as well, and have the money to field armies of mercenaries. The nobility cannot conceive of a world in which it does not rule, but rule is harder to maintain than in earlier days.
And at the edges of society, the nobles know, a mysterious Order of magicians lurks. The wizards are forbidden to meddle, it's said, but rumor states that little stops them. Are the wizards potential allies, or already active enemies? Is magic a threat, or an opportunity? The 13th century is a difficult time to be a nobleman, as challenges, as well as chances for glory, abound.
Noble Characters for Many Styles of Saga
This book provides resources for sagas of varying styles, whether realistic, high fantasy, political, or otherwise in orientation.
It includes material for a realistic mundane world, to allow sharper contrast with the four Realms. Troupes playing this style of saga should consider the new options for massed combat. Characters may now lead armies into battle, or lay siege to the castles of their enemies.
It also supports sagas with a high fantasy tone, aiding the design of stories that contain the elements of medieval ballads. For sagas with characters suited to Arthurian fantasy, the sections on leisure, love, and single combat are particularly appropriate. Mass combat is supported with a narrative resolution variant, which puts a stronger focus on the actions of the player characters.
Political sagas are also catered to. A skilled diplomat can lead his alliance to war, or prevent bloodshed through a fearsome Reputation and the armed support of powerful friends. The use of Reputation allows diplomatic nobles to judge the goals of their enemies, and threaten them with regional factions of supporters. Earning noble titles is described, with each title's military and economic resources quantified to allow for the rapid design of political and military antagonists.
Sagas in which a nobleman acts as a servant and spokesman for a covenant are also supported. Nobles who reside primarily at covenants may be fleshed out using material on how members of the military class think and act. Land ownership and vassal maintenance are also detailed. A chapter describes the crude and unpleasant life of serfs, and contains many story seeds that can hook player characters from peasant backgrounds into sagas. The relationship between the Order and nobles is also described, with a comprehensive explanation of what most nobles know about the Order.
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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