Stranggore

The official name of the covenant "the Wizards' Council of the Stranggore".

Covenant Overview

Stranggore is a Winter covenant that has been in a long, slow decline and now has dwindled to just three magi, one of whom is in Twilight at the start of the Saga. It has a proud heritage and descends from a line of wizards older than the Order of Hermes itself.

Location: Symbol: Or, a dragon passant vert. (a green dragon standing with the right foreleg raised, on a golden field)

Characters

See also the Character Index for other characters who don't reside at the covenant.

Magi

• Argus
• Merewen
• Orzek

Companions

• Agnes, apprentice to Merewen
• Cedric the raven, familiar to Argus
• Maggie the cat, familiar to Merewen
• Torkel

Grogs

• Harold the Mad
• John the Peddlar
• Junior, a.k.a. Paul, the man-at-arms

Covenfolk

• Bertha the Cook
• Brian the Mad, aged autocrat of Stranggore covenant
• Katherine the Chambermaid

Neighbors

• Godwyn
• Thomas the Poacher
• Village of Barstow
• Village of Shepton Mallet

Other Player Characters

• James (will be joining shortly)

History

(Personality - Regal )

Barrestow Keep (888- present)

The current location of the covenant is Barrestow Keep (now spelled "Barstow" by mundanes). It is an ancient hill fort located in the real-world location of Maesbury Castle.

Within the keep, there is a compound made up of a central tower surrounded by four smaller buildings in varying states of disrepair. The tower itself was created through Conjuring the Mystic Tower two decades after the Wizards' Council's arrival in the area by (TBD).

Tower appearance:

As per the spell, Stranggore's main tower is a monolithic structure carved out of solid rock. It is 80 feet high, 30 feet wide, and its foundation reaches 20 feet into the ground.

Sub-Basement

The sub-basement contains the vis stores of the Covenant. It is accessible through an enchanted trap door in the basement floor; only magi who are members of Stranggore can enter.

Basement

Wine cellar and larder.

Level 1

Council chamber.

Level 2

The council chamber is two stories high, with a mezzanine at the second-story level. At one point the mezzanine widens into a railed platform where musicians or additional guards can be placed, depending on the occasion.

Level 3

Library and scriptorium.

Level 4

Formerly an unoccupied sanctum, now a cluttered storeroom full of disused furniture, rusted coats of mail, moth-eaten cushions and tapestries, and the like.

Level 5

Sanctum, owned by Ozerk.

Level 6

Sanctum, currently occupied by Merewen and her apprentice.

Level 7

Sanctum, currently occupied by Argus.

Level 8

Observatory. This is currently used by Argus, who seems to consider it a de facto part of his sanctum.

Attic

Rookery. There is also a doorway out to the parapet of the tower.

Past Locations

The covenant of Stranggore has moved twice since it was first formed as an assembly of court wizards.

Winchester Castle from c. 600-888

After Stranggore as a kingdom ceased to exist, the wizards migrated (some would say they fled) to the site of what is now (in the late twelfth century) Winchester Castle. They preserved the claim that they were stewards of the Kingdom of Stranggore.

When the wizards of the British Isles were offered the opportunity to join the Order of Hermes, the Wizards' Council of Stranggore resisted. They were reluctant to renounce their allegiance to the ancient throne. Eventually they were persuaded to swear the Code of Hermes, but only by threat of violence. As a condition for their acceptance into the Order, the wizards were compelled to relocate. They secretly brought the ancient throne with them when they moved.

Keepers of the Heirs of Stranggore Lords of Wessex

Shortly after the fall of Camelot and the dissolution of Arthur's Britain, the Wizards' Council was founded by the newly-independent petty king of Stranggore. Stranggore was sooner or later absorbed into Wessex.