Stranggore Events

This is a listing of important events in the Saga of Stranggore. It includes the activities of the player characters, especially stories, as well as major events in the Stonehenge Tribunal and England.

Note: This page is a timeline of fictional events for the fantasy role-playing game Ars Magica. The game is set in a fantastic version of medieval England. Events in the story line of the game have only slight relation to real-world history and should not be considered factual.

When editing this page, list seasons in reverse chronological order so the most recent events appear at the top of the list.

For each season, first list major historical events (wars, droughts, coronations) if there are any. Most years, there won't be. Next, add links to any stories that occurred. Finally list the publicly-known activities of the player characters.

Anno Domini 1201

Autumn 1201

News of the Realm: His Holiness Pope Innocent III has declared a Fourth Crusade to recapture Jerusalem from the Mohammadeans. The Crusading army will depart from Venice, probably within the year. All Christian men of Britain are enjoined to take up arms. This was announced at the Tribunal of 1201 but the Order of Hermes is not formally involved. No magi announced plans to participate. Neither, apparently, is King John planning to led the English knights and sergeants after the glorious example of his brother Richard.

• Story: Stonehenge Tribunal of 1201

Summer 1201

• Story: Otho's Children
• Story: The Duke's Siblings

Spring 1201

At the end of the season, Sandre eloped with Marie LaMont and she moved to the covenant.

• Story: Ozerk's Revenge

Covenant Improvements

• Joan of Barstow hired village girls to plant a Stranggore Resources#Orchard pear orchard.
• Harry the Shepherd and some other refugees came to Barstow. The covenant acquired some sheep.
• Randolph completed the kennel and acquired two bitches to breed to Amadán

Anno Domini 1200

Winter 1200

• Story: The Shortest Day

Godwyn moved into the covenant, taking Peregrine's old sanctum.

Paul became the covenant librarian.

Renovation of the stable and kennel were completed. The covenant bought hounds to start breeding as a source of income.

Autumn 1200

Godwyn, Paul, and Thomas the Poacher returned from their pilgrimage to Rome.

Covenant Improvements

The covenant acquired four horses, captured in battle from the outlaw Osric the Black. The grogs renovated the stable building to house three of them, and the fourth is at Angus's house in Barstow.

Joan of Barstow hired five local girls from the village to clean the covenant for a whole season. The appearance of the place is much improved, and many old pieces of junk were patched up to usable condition or discarded.

Summer 1200 =

Fredegisa the Quaesitor visited Stranggore for the season to teach the Code of Hermes Ability to Caballus and Sandre.

Spring 1200

King John has made peace with King Philip of France after months of conflict with little actual fighting. The terms of the peace recognize John as undisputed King of England; his nephew Arthur has relinquished his claim. John made major concessions to Philip in return, abandoning his Continental alliances that contained French power. This has earned the new King the nickname "John Softsword" among the nobles of England.

Godwyn embarked with Paul and Thomas the Poacher on a pilgrimage to Rome.

Peregrine left the covenant of Stranggore and moved to Manar House.

Anno Domini 1199

Winter 1199

• Story: You are the Stars

Spring 1199

News of the Realm: A great calamity has struck! Good King Richard has been killed in battle in France, laid low by a commoner with a crossbow. The succession is disputed between Prince John and John's nephew, Arthur of Brittany. War is certain, and the future of the Angevin "empire" hangs in the balance.

• Story: Lost Along the Way
• Story: I Shall Be First

Anno Domini 1198

Summer 1198

• Story: The Rescue of Ozerk

Spring 1198

• Story: Trail of the White Wizard
• Investigation: Godwyn and Paul at Cad Gadu

Anno Domini 1197

Winter 1197

Agnes set up the guest laboratory.

Autumn 1197

• Story: The Pilgrimage
• Story: A Song for Aveline

With great difficulty, Hywel used the spell Freeing the Striding Tree to walk the covenant's enchanted pear tree halfway across Somerset, from the Weld to Stranggore. The tree now stands on the covenant grounds.

George the Bastard married Valera.

Eustace finished his apprenticeship. He is now both a journeyman stonemason and a grog of Stranggore.

Anno Domini 1196

Winter 1196

• Story: Twisted Web
• Story: Judgement for Jonas
• Story: Storm over Barstow

Autumn 1196

Story: Frightened Villagers - introduced Paul

The covenant repaired the third-floor laboratory in the northwest tower. They also constructed a wooden gate across the opening to the rampart around the covenant.

Summer 1196

• Story: Ghostly maga
• Pestilence and Famine strike England. Merewen works tirelessly to alleviate the famine and attendant sickness.
• Peregrine departed for Scotland to search for his love, Ellen. He took Edgar the Good with him.

Spring 1196

• Story: How Hywel Spent his Spring
• Story: Trouble on the Doorstep
• Story: Spring Cleaning

Anno Domini 1195

Winter 1195

• Junior suffered his third Aging Crisis and was forced to retire as "doorman" (chief grog). He assumed the new ceremonial post of Master of the Armory.
• The turb selected George the Bastard to replace Junior as leader of the turb. George proclaimed Bloody Bill as Champion of Stranggore.

Autumn 1195

• Story: Here Be Dragons
• Event: Godwyn's Gambit

Summer 1195

• Story: Simon Says
• Story: The Devil's Snare
• Story: Release the Hounds
• Story: On the Road to Saint Giles

Anno Domini 1194

Autumn 1194

• Story: The Butcher of Blackbury
• The Stonehenge Tribunal of 1194 was held at Stonehenge itself on Salisbury Plain.

Also,

• Eustace received tutoring from Valera, the foreign scholar living in Barstow. She began teaching him Latin. This was Brian the Mad's idea; he noticed Eustace was smart and wanted to learn to read, so he started educating the lad.

Summer 1194

Spontaneous celebrations broke out across England as good King Richard returned from Crusade, putting an end to five years of misrule by his rebellious brother John.

Three young magi were invited to the covenant of Stranggore. They will remain guests of the covenant for one year, after which the current members of the covenant will vote whether to admit them permanently. Exceptional service to the covenant may prompt the council to admit a member earlier than that. Each newcomer is provided with lab space and equipment.

• Hywel Mawr passed his Gauntlet and moved to Stranggore and arrived mid-season, too late to do anything else.
• James (Caballus) joined Stranggore at Argus's invitation. He arrived early in the season and spent the rest of the time studying the tractatus, Parma Magica.
• Peregrine also joined Stranggore at Argus's invitation.

And, the new magi came with grogs.

• Caballus brought Angus and Randolph
• Peregrine brought Edgar the Good and George the Bastard

Also,

• Anges was taught Folk Ken by Eustace

Spring 1194

Story: The Certamen Tournament

Anno Domini 1193

Winter 1193

Story: Highland Holiday

• Edgar the Good received two Medium wounds in the story, Highland Holiday. He recovered but not in time for the Hermetic tournament at Stormwatch early the following season.
• Agnes was taught Latin by Torkel
• Eustace got caught doing repair work at the covenant in violation of Stonemason's Guild rules -- apprentices are not allowed to work on their own. However Eustace's father decided to take over the job and Eustace is allowed to work alongside him.

Autumn 1193

Caballus passed his Wizards' Gauntlet.

• Sandre Paen joined the covenant.
• Godwyn finally prepared his set of leather clothes for enchantment.
• Agnes helped Merewen gather herbal ingredients (Exposure in Apothecary)

Summer 1193

• Story: The Intruding Magus
• Merewen taught Parma Magica to Agnes
• Junior taught Great Weapon to Torkel

Spring 1193

Eustace, an apprentice stonemason from Barstow, began working on maintenance and light repairs of the covenant's main building.

A severe thunderstorm pounded the covenant with wind, rain, and hail. The northwest tower suffered some slight damage.

There was a story this season involving Agnes and Eustace.

• Torkel taught Latin to Agnes
• Godwyn extraced Vim vis.
• Sandre Paen passed his gauntlet.
• Peregrine passed his gauntlet

Anno Domini 1192

Winter 1192

Good King Richard was captured by Duke Leopold of Austria while returning from Crusade in the Holy Land. This is a great calamity for England because wicked Prince John rules as regent, and now the people despair that his tyranny will ever end.

• Agnes helped Merewen invest Unraveling the Fabric of Mentem into her Talisman
• Junior suffered his first aging crisis and was bedridden for a month.
• Godwyn finished setting up his laboratory

Autumn 1192

• Torkel taught Latin to Agnes
• Godwyn extracted Vim vis.

Summer 1192

• Agnes helped Merewen improve her laboratory by adding specimens (potted herbs, roots, and fungi)
• Godwyn studied 1 pawn of Vim vis, substantially increasing his formerly pitiful Vim score.
• Junior taught Great Weapon to Torkel

Spring 1192

• Agnes formally became Merwen's apprentice as Merewen began her tutelage in the Hermetic Arts.
• Godwyn extracted Vim vis in his lab.

Anno Domini 1191

Winter 1191

• Story: Two Faces of Love
• Merewen branded Agnes with the mark of her clan and initiated her into the secrets of Mythic Herbalism.
• Godwyn finished setting up his lab in the cave.

Autumn 1191

• Story: The Horror of Wookey Hole
• Story: A Gentle Abduction
• Agnes is taken by Merewen to Stranggore.
• Torkel taught Latin to Agnes

Summer 1191

• Story: Blood on the Stones
• Story: A Covenant Denied
• Story: Black Beast of the Weld

Spring 1191

The bodies of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere were reportedly found and exhumed at Glastonbury Abbey. Some dispute the claim on the belief that Arthur was transported to Avalon and will one day return, so he could not possibly be buried in England.

• Godwyn studies The Dün and the Weld a two century old book about magical places of Sussex and Wessex.

Anno Domini 1190

Winter 1190

• Story: Of Mice and Monks

Autumn 1190

• Story: Godwyn Sets Out

Summer 1190

• Story: Godwyn's Gauntlet

Spring 1190

Nothing happened. Godwyn was still finishing up his apprenticeship, Torkel was still a prisoner in Faerie, and the covenant of Stranggore was still slowly and stoically crumbling to pieces.

Before A.D. 1190

For events that occurred before the player characters joined the story line, the Stranggore History and Stonehenge Tribunal History pages.

• Spring 1184 - Story: Torkel's Failure