Stranggore

The official name of the covenant is "the Wizards' Council of the Kingdom of Stranggore". It has a proud and regal heritage and was once one of the pre-eminent covenants of the Stonehenge Tribunal, but has now fallen into the senility and decrepitude of Winter.

Introduction

Stranggore is a very old covenant that has sunk into stagnation and decay. It was once very well-respected and is still admired for the many great historical British magi who once called it home. It has roots that go back to ancient times, before the Order of Hermes arrived in the British Isles. In the early days it was sworn to the service of a royal court. The covenant still has symbols and customs that acknowledge that heritage. Some of these are subtle -- for example, the head wizard of the covenant is called the Chancellor -- and others are overt, like the grogs' green-on-gold livery or the carved wooden throne that stands empty in the council chamber, a reminder of its ancient (and, officially, forsaken) royal allegiance.

The covenant has a certain nostalgia for the ancient Britons, though by now the Britons in England are only a legend, even among wizards. (The remaining descendants of the ancient Britons in 1220 are the Welsh.) Certainly the covenant pays no homage to the heirs of that upstart Norman usurper William the Bastard.

Inhabitants

The living magi of Stranggore are:

Grogs

Grogs are listed in the Category:Stranggore Grogs page.

Covenfolk

Covenfolk are listed in the Category:Stranggore Covenfolk page.

Ghosts

The ancient hall of Stranggore is haunted. The following are the known ghosts:

Covenant Details

See Stranggore Boons and Hooks for an annotated list of the covenant's attributes.

The Living Conditions modifier at Stranggore is +1 for magi and companions, +0 for grogs and covenfolk.

Unlike most covenants, Stranggore has no formal charter. All members swear the Oath of Stranggore and renew that oath each Winter.

Location and Surroundings

Stranggore is located in Somerset, England on the historical site of Maesbury Castle, along the ancient Roman road known as the Fosse Way. It is near several interesting magical sites, including Glastonbury Tor and Wookey Hole Caves.

The Domesday Book online maps the villages of medieval England. The nearest settlement to Stranggore is the fictional hamlet of Barstow. The nearest historical settlements are Shepton Mallet, Charlton, and Doulting.

Our Google map shows the location of the covenant, sites of mystical interest, and the other covenants of the Stonehenge Tribunal.

As far as I can tell (from a cursory browsing of Wikipedia), Somerset is divided into about 700 fiefs, not under control of a single noble. Presumably they are a mix of royal fiefs, ecclesiastical fiefs (controlled by the Bishop of Salisbury and/or the Bishop of Wells), and local barons. Some of these fiefs no doubt are held by great nobles of the realm. The royal fiefs are each maintained by a constable; manors would be maintained by a bailiff.

Neighbors

Village of Barstow
Mericas the hedge wizard
The covenant of Aquae Sulis
The Bishop of Wells
Godwyn's Chase

Map of the Covenant

See Stranggore Maps for interior maps.

Covenant Resources

The covenant is designed with 1250 points of resources, which puts it at the high end of the "medium" power scale. Our objective is to give the player magi enough resources that they can develop and pursue their own agendas, but not so many that they can get everything they need without leaving the covenant walls.

Vis Stocks

The vis stocks are available for use for covenant business. Members may take loans of up to 10 pawns of vis, to be repaid in kind within 2 years, at low interest (one pawn per year).

12 pawns Creo
14 pawns Vim
12 pawns Intellego
20 pawns of Muto
15 pawns of Corpus - Giant Bones
3 Pawns of Rego

Vis Sources

The covenant's vis sources are worth 130 build points.

The covenant does not have a lot of reliable, perennial vis sources. The meta-game reason is that we want to encourage magi to go out and search for their own vis; the vis hunt will not often be a story in its own right, but it gets the magi out into the countryside where they can more easily discover story hooks. The in-game reason is that stable, renewable sources of vis are uncommon in our version of Mythic Europe. Most vis exists as one-off sources that magi harvest and deplete. This enables us to let magi find as much vis as they need, while still making perennial vis sources special and valuable.

Spring Vis Sources

None.

Magi who vis to forage for vis may each collect one pawn. Player-magi may also gain another pawn as a reward for contributing to the Saga (by updating the wiki, running a story, etc.)

Summer Vis Sources

Enchanted Pear Tree (2 Muto): Hywel Mawr moved the covenant's magical pear tree from the distance forest of The Weld onto the covenant grounds in 1197. Fruit from the tree ferments as soon as picked. Anyone who eats one of the pears will be drunk for Moon duration.

Autumn Vis Sources

Moss from Milestones (6 Vim): The magi gather moss from the milestones along the Fosse Way. This provides 6 Vim / year (sufficient to sustain the Aegis of the Hearth). It could be harvested for more but that could diminish or destroy the yield for future years.
Enchanted Pear Tree (2 Muto): The enchanted pear tree also bears fruit in Autumn.

Magi who wish to forage for vis may each collect one pawn. Storyguides may award one additional pawn to magi whose players have earned a bonus for their contributions.

Winter Vis Sources

Oath Blood (2 Rego per magus): Each year the magi renew the Oath of Stranggore and drip their blood onto the arms of the ancient royal throne, which stands empty in the great hall. Due to mystical forces beyond Hermetic theory, the mingled blood ceases to be an Arcane Connection to any of the magi and remains fresh and liquid for the whole year. This yields two pawns of Rego vis per magus per year.