2AUTHORS: Timothy Ferguson, Richard Love, Matt Ryan, Mark ShirleyDEVELOPMENT, EDITING, & PROJECT MANAGEMENT: David ChartLAYOUT & ART DIRECTION: Michelle NephewPROOFREADING & ART DIRECTION ASSISTANCE: Jessica BanksADDITIONAL PROOFREADING: Michelle NephewPUBLISHER: John NephewCOVER ILLUSTRATION: Grey ThornberryCARTOGRAPHY: Andrew P. SmithINTERIOR ART: Alan Dyson, Jason Cole, Kelley Hensing, Christian St. PierreADDITIONAL ART: Dover Castles, Dover Dragons and Wizards, Medieval Life Illustrations, Treasury of Medieval IllustrationsARS MAGICA FIFTH EDITION TRADE DRESS: J. Scott ReevesPUBLISHERS SPECIAL THANKS: Jerry Corrick & the gang at the Source.FIRSTROUNDPLAYTESTERS:MarkBarltrop,AlexCoyne-Turner, Mark Lawford, David Staveley, Simon Turner; Jason Brennan, JustinBrennan,ElishaCampbell,RobertMajor;Christian Jensen-Romer,LloydGraney,TomNowell,KevinSides, Luke Price; Donna Giltrap, Malcolm Harbrow, Aaron Hicks; JoanBauzaSoler,AntoniMoreyiPasqual,MelciorParera Mas,VincentPalmerRichardson,GuillemGelabertPerello, LlorenNadalSanso;PelleKofod,ChristianRosenkjaer Andersen, Ronni Fich, Sune Johannesson, Rasmus Andreasen, RasmusStrandgaardSrensen;VolkerBrkel,BjrnOle Mumann, Andrew SmithSECONDROUNDPLAYTESTERS:ChristianJensen-Romer,Thomas Nowell,LloydGraney,AndrewOakley;EirikBull,Karl TrygveKalleberg,Dag-ErlingSmrgrav,KarinLagesen, HeikkiSrum,TorbjrnStirler;DonnaGiltrap,Malcolm Harbrow,AaronHicks;RasmusStrandgaardSrensen, Christian Rosenkjaer Andersen, Pelle KofodAUTHOR BIOGRAPHIESTimothyFergusonisalibrarian,andlivesontheGoldCoast, Australia.Hedliketodedicatehispartofthisbooktohis wifeLinda,andtothankherforrepeatedtripstolocal vampire-themed theater restaurants.Richard Love spends many of his days sequestered in a laboratory. He knows for a fact that the world outside his laboratory is fullofdarkmountains,forests,lightning,thunder,andrain. RichardwouldliketothankhispartnerPaulaforbravely slaying the terrifying mouse.Matt Ryan lives in the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York State. He enjoys hiking and camping the many state parks andforestsinthearea,andshingthemultitudeoflakes andstreamswithhisson,whohasthebettercatchand release record.MarkShirleyisacomputationalbiologistlivinginNewcastle-upon-Tyne,UK.ThisishisfourthTribunalbookforArs MagicaFifthEdition.Hefoundtheresearchonvampires particularly interesting, even though it raised some eyebrows amongtheuniversitylibrarianswhoknewhimtobea biologist.Markwouldliketothanktheusualsuspectsfor their help and support.Ars Magica players participate in a thriving fan community by subscribing to email discussion lists (like the Berke-ley list), compiling archives of game material (such as Project Redcap), maintaining fan-created web sites, and running demosthroughAtlasGamesSpecialOpsprogram.Tolearnmore,visitwww.atlas-games.com/ArM5.Youcanalso participate in discussions of Ars Magica at the ofcial Atlas Games forums located at forum.atlas-games.com.Copyright 2012-2013 Trident, Inc. d/b/a Atlas Games. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this work by anymeanswithoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher,exceptshortexcerptsforthepurposeofreviews,is expressly prohibited.ArsMagica,MythicEurope,andChartingNewRealmsofImaginationaretrademarksofTrident,Inc.Orderof Hermes, Tremere, and Doissetep are trademarks of White Wolf, Inc. and are used with permission.CreditsAgainst the DarkDigital Version 1.03ContentsAgainst the DarkChapter 1: Introduction6A Note on History .......................... 6A Note on Tone .............................. 6A Note on Oppida .......................... 6GEOGRAPHIC PRIMER .......................... 7Mountains ....................................... 7Plains ............................................... 7The Danube and Tisza ........................ 7Coasts & Southern Mtn. Ranges ..... 8SITES FOR NEW COVENANTS ............... 8Kal Valley and Lake Balaton ........... 8Cakoc................................................ 8Gyogy-to ........................................... 8Tomb of Attila .................................... 8Sunken City .................................... 8Isle of Achilles ..................................... 9Seventy-Seventh Island ..................... 10LANGUAGES IN THE BALKANS .............. 10Names ........................................... 10Slavic Names, Male .............. 10Slavic Names, Female ........... 10Hungarian Names, Male ....... 10Hungarian Names, Female .... 11Vlach Names, Male .............. 11Vlach Names, Female ........... 11Cuman Names, Male ............ 11Cuman Names, Female ......... 11Chapter 2: Hermetic Culture12HOUSE TREMERE ............................. 12Armed Force ................................. 12Logistics ........................................ 12Communications ........................... 14Redcaps ............................................ 14Capacity Building ......................... 14TRIBUNAL OVERVIEW ........................ 14The Praeco .................................... 14Oppida and Aediles .......................... 15LEGISLATURE ................................... 15Regulating MagicalSettlement & Residency ................ 15Asclepius and the Privilegesof the Coloniae .................................. 15Coeris and the Privileges of the Cives .. 16Domostron and the Privilegesof the Socii ........................................ 16Diodorus and the Privilegesof the Hospites ................................... 16Pannonia and the Privilegesof the Foederati .................................. 17PUBLIC FINANCIER ............................ 19Stipends ........................................ 19Promissory Notes ......................... 19JUDICIARY ....................................... 19Quaesitores.................................. 19Annual Emergency Tribunals ............ 20Wizards War................................. 20Certamen is a Direct Proxy for War ...... 20Certamen for Love ............................. 21NEGOTIATIONS WITH OUTSIDERS ........ 21Diplomacy .................................... 21Recruitment .................................. 21Vis & Magic Item Sales ................. 21THE OPPIDUM OF COERIS ................. 21History .......................................... 21Setting and Description .................. 22Culture and Traditions .................. 23Politics ............................................. 23House Culture ................................... 24Magi .............................................. 26Primus Poena of Tremere ................... 26Angiola of Tremere ............................ 26Dominic of Tytalus, Aedile of Coeris ...... 26Horatius of Tremere ........................... 27Janus of Tremere ............................... 28Isaac of Merinita .............................. 28Juturnus of Tremere ........................... 28Tatiana of Tremere ............................ 29PLOT HOOKS .................................. 29Allies in Foreign Tribunals ............ 29Culture .......................................... 29Chess ................................................ 29The Laureate ..................................... 29Mortals .......................................... 29Assassination .................................... 29Non-Combatant Evacuation ............. 30Recovery Team ................................. 30Politics .......................................... 31Border War ...................................... 31The Magic Item Tax ......................... 32A New Red Spell .............................. 32A Portrait of Diedne? ........................ 32Housekeeping Letter ........................... 33Submersible ....................................... 34Security ......................................... 34The Killer on the Road ...................... 34Magic Flowers .................................. 34Successions ................................... 34Prima ............................................... 34Primus Past ...................................... 34Primus Future ................................... 34Exarch ............................................. 34Chapter 3: The Hungarians35POLITICAL STRUCTURE ...................... 35Traditional Political Structure ....... 35New Institutions ........................... 35SOCIAL STRUCTURE .......................... 35Serfs and Free Men ....................... 35Castle Folk ....................................... 36Castle Warriors ................................ 36Half-Free .......................................... 36Hospites ........................................ 37Petty Nobles ................................. 37High-Born Nobility ...................... 38Greater Nobles ............................. 38The King....................................... 38THE THREE COURT CITIES ................ 38Esztergorm .................................... 38Szkesfehrvr .............................. 39Veszprm ...................................... 40VILLAGE LIFE.................................. 40THE CHURCH .................................. 41Finance .......................................... 41Law ............................................... 42THE OPPIDUM OF LANIENA ................ 42History .......................................... 42Setting and Description ................ 43Culture and Traditions .................. 44Fector Characters .............................. 44Hermetic Fectores .............................. 44Magi .............................................. 44Lexander of House Tremere ................ 44Murat the Younger,Magus Ex Miscellanea ..................... 44Covenfolk ..................................... 44Bendis ............................................... 44Chapter 4: The Bulgarians45GEOGRAPHY OF BULGARIA ................. 45The Danube .................................. 45Tarnovo ............................................ 46The Stara Planina .......................... 46Ivan Rilskis Cave ............................. 46The Seven Lakes ................................ 47The Plains ..................................... 47Sredets .............................................. 47Starosel ............................................ 48The Madara Horseman ..................... 48The Southern Mountains .............. 48BULGARIAN HISTORY ......................... 48BULGARIAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE ..... 49The Bulgarian Church .................. 49The Bogomils ................................ 50THE OPPIDUM OF EVREDIKA .............. 50History .......................................... 50Setting and Description ................ 50Gela ................................................. 51The Devils Throat ............................ 51Perperikon ........................................ 51Culture and Traditions .................. 52Magi .............................................. 52Oeagrus Ex Miscellanea ................... 52Bozhidar Ex Miscellanea .................. 52Yekaterina of House Tremere .............. 52Covenfolk ..................................... 52THE OPPIDUM OF SEUTHOPOLIS ......... 53History......................................... 53Setting and Description ................ 53The Valley of the Thracian Kings ...... 53Shipka Pass Regio & Tribunal Site ....... 53Culture and Traditions .................. 54Lictors .............................................. 544Against the DarkRed and Black Libraries .................... 54Mundane Culture .............................. 55Magi .............................................. 55Benilda of Guernicus ......................... 55Caledonia of Guernicus ..................... 55Saturnino of Criamon,Marshal of Transylvania .................. 55Scipio of Guernicus ........................... 56Terencia of Tremere, Lictor, Aedile ...... 56Vigilia of Guernicus .......................... 56THE OPPIDUM OF TABLINUM ............. 58History .......................................... 58Setting and Description ................ 58Exhibition Halls ............................... 58Studying from Exhibits ..................... 59Outside the Exhibits .......................... 59Magi .............................................. 60Nestor, Curator of Tablinum ............. 60Demetrius, Aedile of Tablinum ........... 60Theodora and Theodore .................... 60The Open Exhibits ....................... 61The Art Exhibits.............................. 61The Arcanum Exhibit ....................... 61The Scriptorium ................................ 61The Spell Hall .................................. 62The Chronicle ................................... 63The Chapel ....................................... 64The Curators Sanctum ..................... 64The Restricted Exhibits ................ 64The Mirrored Hall ............................ 64The Dungeon .................................... 64The Empty Halls .............................. 64The Hidden Exhibits .................... 65The Founders Exhibit ....................... 65The Lower Dungeon .......................... 65The Refuge ....................................... 65The Schism Exhibit ........................... 65The Seekers Forum ............................ 65The Warehouse of Ares ..................... 65Chapter 5: The Slavs66OVERVIEW ...................................... 66The Old Ways .............................. 68THE SERBS ...................................... 68Geography .................................... 69Ras .................................................. 69Studenica Monastery ........................ 69Dubrovnik ........................................ 69The Dynasty of the Sacred Roots ....70The Christian Schism ................... 71SERBIAS SLAVIC NEIGHBORS ............... 71Bosnia ............................................ 71Croatia .......................................... 72Knin ................................................. 72Zadar ............................................... 72THE OPPIDA OF HISTRIA ................... 73History .......................................... 73Setting and Description ................ 73Old Histria ...................................... 73Shrouded Bay on Cres....................... 74Culture and Traditions .................. 75Mercere House .................................. 75Naval Stories.................................... 76Diplomacy and Intrigue .................... 76Magi .............................................. 76Accursius Adiran, Chief Mercere ....... 76Leontine Adiran of Tytalus ................ 76Pahniro Adiran of Tremere,Aedile of Old Histria ........................ 77Placido Adiran of Tremere,Aedile of Shrouded Bay ..................... 77Priscilla of Verditius ......................... 77Volante Adiran, Gifted Mercere ......... 77Local Creatures ............................. 78Builders (Divie) .............................. 78Giants .............................................. 78Strigons ............................................ 78Local Dragons .................................. 78Chapter 6: Peoples of theTransylvanian Border79THE CUMANS (KIPCHACKS) ............... 79THE SZEKLERS AND PECHENGS ........... 80The Pechengs .................................... 80TEUTONIC KNIGHTS ANDTRANSYLVANIAN SAXONS .................... 81Origins .......................................... 81Customs and Structure ................. 81The Teutonic Orderin Transylvania .............................. 82Burzenland ....................................... 82Teutonic Knight Characters ......... 82New Virtues ..................................... 82Stories Involvingthe Teutonic Order ....................... 83A More Holy Order ......................... 83A More Profane Order...................... 83Using the Teutonic Order in Your Saga .. 84THE VLACHS ................................... 84Geography .................................... 85Capitols ............................................ 85The Bran Pass .................................. 85The Cult of Zalmoxis ................... 86THE OPPIDUM OF LYCANEON ............ 86History .......................................... 86Setting and Description ................ 87Geography ....................................... 87Structure ........................................... 87Aesthetic ........................................... 87Culture and Traditions .................. 88Manufacturing ................................. 88Staging Area .................................... 89Refugee Camp ................................... 89Mundane Inhabitants........................ 90Lycaneon Wolves .............................. 90Magi .............................................. 90Archmagus Albertus of Tremere, Praeco of Transylvania ..................... 90Arhmina of Ex Miscellanea ............... 90Clement of Tremere............................. 90Phillip of Tremere .............................. 91Archmagus Zalmoxis of Verditius ...... 91THE OPPIDUM OF THE SCHOLOMANCE .. 91History .......................................... 92Setting and Description ................ 92Culture and Traditions .................. 93The Masters of the School ................. 93Magi .............................................. 94Simium Arileins of House Bjornaer .... 94Andrew Melanchthon of House Tremere .. 94Covenfolk ..................................... 95Sebastian......................................... 95Ludmilla ........................................... 95Chapter 7: Networks of Hidden Fortresses96THE HOSPITAL ................................ 96The Zenodochium ........................ 96Unnished Work? ............................. 97Placement of Zenodochia ............. 97The Curantis ................................. 97Zenodochium Items ...................... 98Chest of Good Food .......................... 98Vermin Ward.................................... 98Arms of the Salamander .................... 98The Hippocratic Staff...................... 98The Rite of Healing .......................... 99Universal Poultice ............................ 99Ankh of Moving Forward ................. 99Bowl of the Honest Traveler ............... 99Ward Against the InfernalAgents of Disease .............................. 99Ward Against Mad Dreams ............. 99THE OPPIDUM OF KEZD VLASZ ...... 99History .......................................... 99Setting and Description .............. 100Culture and Tradition ................. 101Magi ............................................ 102Essedarius of House Tremere ............. 102Leona of House Tremere ................... 102Adulio of House Tremere .................. 103Neculai of House Bjornaer .............. 103Chapter 8: Creatures104DRAGONS OF THE TRIBUNAL ............ 104Infernal Dragons ......................... 104Magical Dragons......................... 105Pax Draconis ............................... 106Dragon-Born ............................... 107The Dragon War ........................ 108The Hook: Sparking the Dragon War .. 108The Situations: The War Rages ...... 109The Climax: Renewed Peace,Annihilation, or Worse ................... 110GIANTS AND THEIR MOTHERS ........... 111Giants Mothers .......................... 113Faerie Horses .............................. 113VAMPIRES ..................................... 114Becoming a Vampire ................... 114Precautions Against Vampires ......... 115The Vampire Life Cycle ............. 115Creating a Vampire Character .... 115Vampiric Virtues, Flaws, and Powers .. 116Limitations ...................................... 116Ways to Kill a Vampire .................. 116Vampire Bestiary ......................... 117Vampires That Take Human Form ....... 117Vampires That Take Bestial Form ...... 118Vampires That Take Ghostly Form ...... 118Miscellaneous Vampires .................. 118Infernal Vampires ............................ 120Living Vampires .............................. 121VILAS (WHITE LADIES) .................... 122Wards .......................................... 123Powers Found in Many Roles ..... 123Shapeshifter .................................... 123Enthralling Voice ............................ 123Blessing Dance................................ 123Cursing Dance................................ 123Spirit Away ................................... 124Role-Specic Powers .................. 124Captured Wife ................................ 124Cloud or Storm Maiden .................. 124Cursed Lover ................................... 124Huntress ......................................... 124Temptress ........................................ 124Water Maiden ................................ 124Weaver Witch ................................ 124Woodland Maiden .......................... 125Wise Woman ................................. 125Chapter 9: Hedge Traditions126STORM WIZARDS ........................... 126Storm Wizards and the Order .... 126Storm Wizards and Giants .......... 127Storm Wizard Magic .................. 128Storm Calling ................................. 128Storm Riding .................................. 129Storm Fighting ................................ 129Ice Harvesting ................................. 130VAMPIRE HUNTERS ......................... 130An Inauspicious Birth .................. 1305Against the DarkList of InsertsKlingsohr ................................................... 8Wasnt Achilles Gay andBuried Somewhere Else? ..................... 10Military Saga & Story Seeds .................... 13Logistical Saga & Story Seeds ................. 13The Difference Between House Tremereand the Transylvanian Tribunal .......... 14Story Seed: Book of Places to Avoid ....... 14Triumph of Asclepius ............................... 15Decorations ............................................. 17Manorial Covenants are aSign of Weakness and Poverty ........... 18Legalities of Residency ............................ 18Public Financier Story Seeds ................... 19Judiciary Story Seeds ............................... 20Story Seed: Smuggling Animals .............. 21What is the Gate of Eurydice? ................ 22Hard Power Story Seeds ......................... 23Dragonesti ............................................... 23Soft Power Story Seeds ........................... 25Decennial Story Seeds ............................ 26The Blessings of the Dead ....................... 27The Book of Legacies .............................. 27Keepers of the Silence of the Temple ..... 29Monica Ierne of Tremere,Archmaga and Legata .................... 30-31Silexa, a Familiar Wolf ............................. 32Talisman: Flint Wand............................... 33Hungarian Social Classesas Virtues and Flaws ............................ 37Nobility: A Clarication ......................... 37King Belas Finances................................. 38Story Seeds for the Royal Mint ............... 39The Estate of the Wizards...................... 39The Holy Crown of Hungary ................. 40Witches Dont Exist (So Magi AreNot Witches) ...................................... 41The Founders of the Fectores .................. 42Story Seed: Sordid Family Business ......... 42Fectores Versus Hermetic Fectores ......... 43The Aggtelek Caves ................................ 43The Galleries of Tarnovo ........................ 46Baldwins Tower ....................................... 47Story Seed: Trials of Saint Ivan Rilski ..... 47Story Seed: One Groom for Seven Sisters ...47The Boyana Master ................................. 48Story Seed: Starosel ................................ 48Story Seed: The Madara Horseman ........ 49The Mysterious Asens ............................. 49Why Not Thebes? ................................... 51The Silivriak ............................................ 51Story Seed: Territorial Dispute................ 51Saga Seed: Valley of the Thracian Kings....53Story Seeds: The False Kabeiros ............. 57Curators of Tablinum .............................. 59Leap of Homecoming and Regiones ....... 59Exhibit Source Quality ............................ 59Story Seed: Collection ............................ 60Maintaining the Exhibit Halls ................. 61The Laboratories at Tablinum ............ 62-63Story Seed: Church Rites ........................ 64Story Seed: Limitless Temptation............ 64Story Seed: The Szkely Anchorite ........ 66The Weapons of the Slavic God ............. 68Story Seed: Saving the Hermetic Envoys ....70Story Seed: The Kings Sons ................... 70Story Seed: The Impending Crusade ...... 71Story Seed: Diocletians Palace ............... 72Unusual Vis ............................................. 74Story Seeds for the Mercere House ........ 75Mansiones ............................................... 75Saga Seed: Diplomats .............................. 76The Cumans in War ................................ 80A Potential Future.................................... 80Palace of the Giant King ......................... 80Good and Evil Faerie Courts ................... 81The Transylvanian Saxons ....................... 82The Future of the Teutonic Orderin Transylvania ................................... 82New Blessing Guideline .......................... 83Story Seeds: The Teutonic Order ........... 84The Swords of the Teutonic Order ......... 84Story Seed: The Bran Pass ....................... 85Story Seed: The Waters Furious .............. 85Story Seed: The Return of Zalmoxis ....... 86Saga Seed: Providing Solutions ............... 88Gold Isnt Really Worth Much ................ 88The Infernal Aura of Krsf .................. 89Saga Seed: Rapid Response Force ........... 89Story Seed: Covenant Failure .................. 89Education in the Transylvanian Tribunal ....92Storm-Chasers ......................................... 92Playing Gifted Children .......................... 94Story Seed: The Specialist ...................... 94Story Seed: A Snake in the Classroom .... 95A Haunt of Dragons ................................ 95Story Seed: The Plague House ................ 96Casting Tablets ........................................ 97Minor Covenant Hook: Zenodochium ... 98Story Seed: The Disease Trap ................. 98Fort Locations ....................................... 101The Treasure of Decebalus .................... 101Story Seeds for Kezd Vlaszs Magi .... 102Story Seeds for Kezd Vlaszs Environs ...103Upokorituma, an Adaja ....................... 105Danaslepih, a Zmaj ............................... 107Dragon-Born Statistics .......................... 108A Dragon-Riding Storm Wizard ........... 109Georghe and Ladislau, Giant Brothers .... 112Nicoleta, a Giants Mother .................... 112Costache, a Captive Giant .................... 113Fet-Frumos, a Faerie Horse .................... 113Slavic Belief ........................................... 114Story Seed: The Lady and the Vampire .... 114Powers for Vampires ....................... 116-117Magi as Vampire Slayers ....................... 117Human-like Vampire ............................. 118Bestial Vampire ...................................... 118Incorporeal Vampire .............................. 119Gadja ..................................................... 119Vampire Snake....................................... 119Vampire Tree ......................................... 120Broukolak .............................................. 121Thiefs Valerian ...................................... 121Story Seed: House Bjornaer as Enemy .... 122Generic Minor Vila ............................... 122Ecology of Transylvanian Faeries .......... 125Thietmar ................................................ 126Story Seed: The Largest Prey ................ 127Heart of the Storm Initiation ................ 127Storm Wizard Magic Game Mechanics .....128Storm Calling Ease Factors .................... 129Storm Wizard Virtues and Abilities ...... 130Story Seed: The Ice Cave ...................... 130Zuban, a Four-Eyed Dog ....................... 131Black Hawthorn .................................... 131The Talts Legacy ................................. 132The Hunters Arts and Mortal Foes ....... 132Connections to a Foe ............................ 133Penetration and the Hunters Arts ......... 134Relevant Facts About Foes ..................... 137Tibor of Bora ........................................ 137Working Together ................................. 138Sources .................................................. 139The Sabotnik .................................. 131The Glog ........................................ 131The Talts and the Kresnik .............. 131A Dark Parentage ........................ 132The Dhampir .................................. 132The Vampirdzhi .............................. 132HUNTERS ARTS ............................. 132New Virtues ................................ 132Dhampir ......................................... 133(Foe) Art ........................................ 133Scry Art ......................................... 133Slay Art ......................................... 134Ban Art .......................................... 134Hunter Characters ...................... 134Scry ............................................. 134Forging the Initial Connection ......... 134Using the Scrying Connection ......... 135Exploitation of Scry by a Foe ......... 135Ban .............................................. 135Creating a Physical Ban ................. 135Creating a Supernatural Ban ........... 136Creating a Weakening Ban ............. 136Slay ............................................. 136Making the Slaying Weapon .......... 136After Slaying .................................. 137HUNTING VAMPIRES ....................... 138Preventing Vampires ................... 138Killing Vampires ......................... 138Chapter 10: Horror Stories139HORROR PLOTS ............................. 139Savant versus Monster ................ 139Variation: The Complicated Savant ...... 139The Psychopath or Bogeyman .... 139The Horde .................................. 139The Idiots ................................... 140Cult Conspiracy ......................... 140A Conspiracy of Magi .................... 140The Madness of the Frontier ...... 140The Horror of the Human Body ....140Natures Revenge ........................ 140History Repeats .......................... 140Post-modern Horror ................... 141HORROR TECHNIQUES .................... 141One Time, One Place ................. 141Vivid Imagery ............................. 141Implication .................................. 141Violence ...................................... 142Death of Player Characters ........ 142Inversion of Normal Conventions ...142Broken Narrative ......................... 142Supernatural VersusMundane Monsters ..................... 142Props ........................................... 142TRANSYLVANIAN TRIBUNALHORROR STORIES ........................... 142Appendix: Glossary1446IntroductionChapter OneTheTransylvanianTribunalisafantas-tic setting for sagas. It is all that a reader ex-pects.Itisalandofhauntedmountains,of dimly lit forests, of ruined castles and moon-lit roads. Werewolves and vampires ourish, and folk magicians hunt them with silver and prayer and hawthorn and whips.It is also a land beyond what the reader expects. Transylvania is unique. It is not like the Western kingdoms, which have so inu-enced the Order of Hermes. Mundane soci-ety is different here, and its differences favor the magi.Nobles in the Tribunal do not owe fealty fortheirlandorpeasants,somagimaybe nobleswithoutswearingfealty,orbreaking the Code. Magi may use their powers openly since magic is not illegal. Hungarian law al-lowsmagitolivebytheirownCode,with their own courts. The Order in Transylvania doesnothidebehindpetty,puppetnoble-men. The Order rules what it owns: no royal tax collector calls, no minor lord makes triv-ial threats. The people of Transylvania are a mixture. In Hungary, it is unexceptional to meet mer-chants from the Low Countries and scholars from Persia; indeed, there are whole villages populated by both groups. Player characters in Transylvania, even simple ones like grogs, canbedrawnfromatremendousvarietyof communitiesandprofessions.Theinterests of the magi weave through society, not lim-ited by the Western need to avoid any pos-sible offense to the powerful. This creates a plethora of story opportunities.Transylvaniansocietyisconstantlyun-derpressure,asitstraddlestheborderbe-tween the East and West. The king of Hun-garyistherichestinEurope,butperhaps the most foolish. To make his country more Westerninitsarmament,hehasmadehis nobles far wealthier and more independent, and invited Crusaders to garrison part of his kingdom.Heisnowndingitdifcultto controleither.TheemperoroftheBulgars playsadeadlygamewiththeotherclaim-ants to the throne of Constantinople. Lesser leadersseeopportunitiesinthedistractions of the great kings. Regional leaders, like the nobles of the Serbs and Slovaks, have begun to consolidate their power. Magi do not of-ciallypickwinnersinthesestruggles,but asinglespell,perfectlytimed,issometimes enough to win a battle, destroy a nobleman, and shake a kingdom.ThemagiofTransylvaniadifferfrom Western magi also. They have been welded into a great machine of governance and war byHouseTremere.Theirlifeispeaceful buttheirobligationsarefargreaterthanin Western Tribunals. Transylvanian covenants, orwhatthemagiherehaveinsteadofcov-enants,areinterdependent.Theyspecialize in a way not seen in the West.A Note on HistoryThehistoryofthemanyethnicgroups presentintheTransylvanianTribunalhas been cobbled together from the folklores of therealworldnationalitiespresented.No historian, holding any of the many compet-ingviews,wouldagreethatourhistoryis correct.Further,somereadersmayndthe way we have mangled their national history offensive. We apologize for this.The competing national histories of the Balkanstatessimplycannotberesolved, withoutoffense,becausesomanyofthem containmaterialthatisfalse.Wechoose not to judge which these are, and instead we haveselectedthepiecesoffolklorewhich best suit a game manual. This setting, there-fore, includes groups who may not have been inanydesignatedareahistorically,toallow playersbroaderscopefortheircharacter designs.Similarly,folklorewithstorytelling potential from nations which make no claim toa13th-centurypresenceinTransylvania, liketheRomaandTurks,hasoccasionally been allowed to sneak into the work.A Note on ToneTransylvaniaissynonymouswithhor-rorformanyreaders.Thehorrorstoriesset there are, however, not really set there at all. TheTransylvaniaofhorrorstoriesisatidy version of England, with German names. To sate readers who bought this book expecting horror,thereischapterabouttellingstories of fear. This is not, however, a book about the Transylvania of the Western imagination. Its about Transylvania as described by the peo-ple who lived there. It has horric elements, but they are not the focus of this book.A Note on OppidaTransylvanianmagicallthelegalenti-ties they are members of covenants, but the physicalplaceswheretheyresideoppida,or camps (sing. oppidum). Many covenants out-side Transylvania call the multiple places of residencewithinasinglelegalcovenantits chapter houses but this term is of Jerbiton invention,andisbasedonametaphorical similarity to the way monks meet in Western monastic dependencies.Transylvanianoppidadifferfromchap-terhousesintwoways.Chapterhouses areusuallydependantonamotherhouse. ThissoundsliketheHermeticfeudalismof theTytalus-dominatedNormandyTribunal, which from the Tremere perspective is so po-7Against the Darklitically inchoate that no further evidence is needed of its wrongheadedness. Oppida are independent. Theotherdifferenceisthatmembers ofanoppidadontallneedtobemembers ofthesamecovenant.Thevecovenants of this Tribunal are more like classes of citi-zenship than the covenants of the West. Its perfectlynormalforanewsettler,withthe colonist covenant, to live in the same camp asamagushiredtomakemagicalitemsfor the House, who is a member of the crafters covenant.ThecampmaybeledbyaTre-mere, who has a different covenant again.Further detail is given in Chapter 2.Geographic PrimerThe Transylvanian Tribunal includes the lands of the Carpathian Basin, the mountains thatcradlethemexcludingtheAlps,and some additional areas to the west and south. TheseaddedterritoriespushtheTribunals borders out the Adriatic and Black Seas. The Tribunals southern border lacks any geologi-cal basis. The boundary is entirely political, based on the location of vis sources claimed by magi on either side.Localfolkloreandfurthergeographical detailsaregiveninthechaptersforoppida in each of the Tribunals regions.MountainsThe greatest features of the Tribunals to-pography are the mountains, the rivers, and the plains. The Carpathian Mountains form a great crescent, divided by many passes and valleys, which shields the mundane kingdom atthecoreoftheTribunalfromEasternin-vaders. A series of other mountain ranges, in the west and south of the Tribunal, complete thebasinsedges.Themountainshavefew inhabitants,buttheminesforsilver,gold, andsalt,whichsupporttheroyalcourtand muchofthecountryseconomy,arehidden amongthem.Withintheboundaryofthe mountains lies the Great Plain.PlainsTheGreatPlainisafertilebutood-pronearea.Inareaswithsufcienteleva-tion and drainage, grain crops and vineyards thrive.ThesoilinthisTribunalis,onaver-age, far more fertile than that in other parts of Mythic Europe. Settlement on many parts ofthe plainisdifcult, because thereslittle timber or stone to build with. The plain, in places, is a sea of grass, lled with folkloristic monsters and ancient cairn graves.Onmostpartsoftheplain,oodingis common. In these areas, livestock grazing is themostcommonfarmingmethod.Among nobles,horsestudsareasignofstatus,and asourceofwealth.Smallpartsoftheplain are infertile, and come close to being desert. People who live in the cities tell many folk-talesabouttheplainthegreat,emptysea of grass because people travel through the plain all the time, but few travel to the moun-tains.Theplainisdivided,andperiodically ooded, by the rivers.THE DANUBE AND TISZAThe Danube is navigable through much of the Tribunal. It was, in ancient times, con-sideredthephysicalembodimentofagod-dess, and faeries from as far away as Ireland claimtobeherchildren.Theriverandits many tributaries Tisza, Alt, Sava, and Pruth are great avenues for trade and travel. Most of these lesser rivers also have faerie embodi-ments: the two major rivers in Transylvania, the Olt and Maros are, for example, sisters.Some Hungarian writers suggest that the riverscanbeusedtogivetravelersanidea oftheirdegreeofsafetyontheplain.The areatothewestoftheDanubeiscivilized andcomparativelysafe,wheresuchthreats astherearecomefromhumans.Theland between space between the Danube and the Tiszaisstillpopulated,butmoresparsely, andcharactersherearemorelikelytoen-counter faeries. The lands to the east of the Tisza are a shield against eastern raiders, and nightmarecreaturesfromthemountains. There is great wealth, but great danger there.8Against the DarkThe Coasts & Southern Mountain RangesThe Tribunal has settlements outside the greatbasinofthePlain.Theseoppidaare usually alien covenants that have joined the Tribunal.Theseserveasgatewaystoother Tribunals, and provide services that the Tre-mere and their allies nd useful.Sites ForNew CovenantsPlayerslookingforsitesfornewcove-nants or oppida might consider the following:Kal Valleyand Lake BalatonTheKalValleyisasecludedregionin the west of the Tribunal. It is suited for sagas that want to have a base near the major cities of Hungary and Italy, while still being in the wilderness. In folklore, it is remarked as be-ing perhaps the most boring place on Earth. Its name is a clich for the back of nowhere, but this means troupes can put whatever they like here, without disrupting those pieces of real history which they wish to keep. ItsalsoclosetoLakeBalaton.Thiswa-tercourse is the gateway to the Tribunal from the west. The lake is never more than three metersdeep,andissurroundedbyfertile farmland. A settlement here is on major trade routes, and story hooks can literally walk by.CAKOC Thistownhassomestrangefascina-tion for dragons. Saint George slew a black beast here, centuries ago, to destroy the lo-cal custom of feeding it maidens. In 1220, a green dragon lives in the mountains nearby. It does little harm beyond terrifying people and stealing their sheep, so its not clear if it is Infernal in nature. It can speak, but doesnt oftendeigntotalktohumans,beyondin-structing the occasional shepherd to restrain his dog, lest it be eaten.GYOGY-TOEuropeslargestthermallakeisinthis area, and it supplies both Ignem and Aquam vis. It is not linked, insofar as is known, to Hell,asmanyoftheseplacesare.Thesite is just far enough off the main route to the Redcap settlement in Histria that it has no Redcapcoachinghouse(ormansio,asthey arecalledinthisTribunal).Theressome evidenceofRomanandpre-Romanmagi-cal practice. This lake is next to Heviz (see page 36).TOMB OF ATTILASomewhere along the length of this riv-er, Attila, king of the Huns, ancestor of the Magyars and founder of Buda, is entombed. After his death, his servants diverted the wa-teroftheriverTiszawithacanal,andbur-iedhimwithgreatceremony.Hiswarriors all slashed themselves so that they bled, and rode circles about his corpse, reciting dirges. Theythenenclosedhimincasketsofiron, silver, and gold, and killed the laborers who had played any part in his burial, so that the location of his corpse should pass from mem-ory. His grave goods may include the Sword ofMars,amagicalweaponwhichfellfrom the sky and gave him the power to scourge the world.Sunken CityThisisaRomancitythathasfallen, mostlyintact,intotheBlackSea.Itwas connected,inancienttimes,withastron-omersandtheirMysteries.Itgivesthe player characters easy access to Greek cul-KlingsohrIn1207,theMargraveofThuringia heldacontesttondthegreatestbard intheworld.Thenestmusicianscame fromacrossEurope,andwereallowedto nametheirownprize.Theyagreedthat meregoldwasaninsulttotheircalling, andthatthewinnershouldbegiventhe title of king of poetry, the homage of all other poets, and a crown of bay leaves. To mark the earnestness of this musical war, it wasagreedthatallwhocompetedforthe crown, but failed to win it, would be so dis-consolate that it would be a mercy to have them put immediately to death.Only two bards dared to present them-selves for the battle. Henry of Ofterdinged sang rst, of love and its consolations, but hewasbestedbyWolframvonEschen-bach, who sang rousing songs of Crusader valor.Henrypreparedforhisdeath,but noted that it was a pity that the only bard he knew of ner than he had not attended. Wolfram was incensed, because this meant hisvictorywasincomplete,andwiththe Margravespermission,allowedHenryto search for this bard.HenryknewthatthepeopleofHun-garyseemedtolearnsongsbyastrange osmosis.Themusicofthehiddenbard echoes through the whispers of the leaves, iscarriedbythebirds,andwaftsthrough thestormcloudsofHungary.Itsettlesin themindwithouteffort,andislearned almostwithoutthought.Henryfollowed these hints and clues.HefoundKlingsohrsingingtoan emptyeldnearTisza.Klingsohrwasut-terlyuninterestedinwealth,andfeltno needtobetoldhewasabetterpoetthan others. He eventually did agree to return to Wartburg, because he wanted to save Hen-rys life. Klingsohr sang of his deep love for theplainsofHungary,andWolframvon Eschenbachgavehimthecrownofbay. Klingsohr asked that the other bards not be killed, for that was simply foolish, and then sangaprophecyconcerningthefutureof the Margraves family, which has been cor-rect in every detail.Klingsohr still lives somewhere in this area,wanderinginpeasantclothes,and singing Hungarys beauty to itself. He pre-dictsthefuturetothosewhoneedit,or are kind.9Against the Darktureandtrade,totheTribunalsheartland, and to the non-Hermetic lands of the East. ManyoftheislandsintheBlackSeaalso have odd myths surrounding them. Players seekingthissiteonmodernmapsshould look for Karvana.ISLE OF ACHILLESIntheBlackSea,thereisasmallisland onwhichAchilles,theherooftheTrojan War,wasburied.Thetemplestohimhave fallennow,butduringRomantimes,some uniquemysticaleventtookplacehere,and sinceithasbeeninhabitedbythespiritsof Achilles, Helen, and some of their retainers.The spirits of the island forbid any wom-an to ever set foot upon its shores, and per-mit men to visit only during the day. Those who wish to visit for more than a single day must sleep on their ships. Some of the sher-menoftheBlackSeaknowtheislandasa secure anchorage during storms, but few are willing to trust their lives to the whims of the spiritsashore.Achillesmurdersanyvisitor ofTrojandescent.Trojanprincesfounded RomeandsettledasfarawayasBritain,so who can say if he has Trojan ancestors?Tremeremagi,andtheircompanions, sometimesseekoutAchillestodiscusswar-farewithhim.Hisspiritislessangryand driventhanitwasduringlife.Othersseek out his love, Queen Helen, to discern the lo-cationsofancientcitiesandtemples.Some researchers suggest that Achilles and Helen, 10Against the DarkastheparagonicManandWoman,arethe coreofamysterycult,butHouseTremere has no record of this.SEVENTY-SEVENTH ISLANDThe77thislandoftheBlackSeais plungedindarknesssothickaspooncan standinit.Inthemiddleoftheislandare threereeds,andtrappedinsidethecenter reedisamaiden,saidtobethefaireston the Earth. The other two reeds contain her handmaids.Theyareguardedbyawitch, who must die the instant the Reed Maiden isreleased.Thedarknessissothickthat onlyamountrearedondragonmilk,fed burningcoals,andgivenretodrinkcan penetrate it.Languages in the BalkansTheSouthSlavoniclanguagecoversa familyoflanguageswhichinthe13thcen-turyarepoorlydifferentiated.Themain groupsareBulgarianandSerbian,withthe formerhavingthemostspeakers.Bulgar-ianprincipallyusestheCyrillicalphabet, whereastheSerbiangroup(whichincludes Slovene,Bosnian,andCroatian)ismostly writtenwiththeLatinscript.ChurchSla-vonicisadialectofSouthSlavonicusedin theOrthodoxChurchinSlaviclands,and uses the Glagolitic alphabet.VlachisspokenbytheRomanians,and itisavariantoftheVulgarLatinspokenin thelateRomanEmpire.SpeakersofLatin nd some mutual compatibility between that language and Vlach. The Aromanian dialect is spoken in Illyria and northern Greece.The dominant language in Hungary and Hungarian-occupied Transylvania is Magyar (pronouncedMORD-jor),atongueun-relatedtoanyotherintheregion.Magyar hasitsownalphabetcalledRovasiras,but since the start of the 11th century, it has of-cially been transcribed using the Latin script. Popular use of Rovasiras persists, particularly among the Szekely. The Transylvanian Sax-onsinBurzenlandspeakLowGerman,and variousdialectsofHighGermanarecom-mon among the Teutonic Knights.The Cumans speak Kipchak and the Pech-enegsspeakOghuz,bothTurkiclanguages thatarealsorelatedtoOghur,thedeadlan-guageoftheancientBulgarpeople.Neither languagehasanativewrittenform,anduse instead the Rovasiras or Latin alphabets.South Slavonic (Bulgarian, Serbian,Church Slavonic)Vlach (Romanian, Aromanian)Oghur* (Bulgar)Oghuz (Turkish, Turkman, Azerbaijani, Pecheneg)Kipchak (Cuman, Kipchak)Magyar (Hungarian, Transylvanian)Low German (Saxon) *Dead languageEvenwithoutknowingaspeciclan-guage,acharacterwhoknowsalanguage thatiscloselyrelatedtoanotherlanguage can still potentially understand a speaker:LANGUAGESPENALTY*Same language, different dialects1Vlach vs. Latin 3Kipchak vs. Oghur or Oghuz2Low German vs. High German2Low German vs. English3*Penalty is to both speakers.So, a native Bulgarian South Slavonic (Bulgarian)5hasaneffectivescoreof6 whentalkingtohiscountrymen,butcan stillconversewithaSerbianwithaneffec-tive score of 4. However, even if literate, he cannot read Serbian unless he is also familiar with the Latin script.NamesThefollowingnamesareappropriate tocharactersintheTransylvanianTribunal. Whereappropriate,Englishequivalents havebeengiven.TheSlavicletteris pronouncedassh,andorzhispro-nounced like the s in measure.SLAVIC NAMES, MALEAleksandar,Andon,Andrej,Bartol, Bogdan,Boris,Borislav,Boidar,Branimir, Branislav,Branko,Dalibor,Darko,Dejan, Djordje(George),Dragan,Drago,Draen, Dubravko,Duan,Emil,Goran,Grigor (Gregory),Grozdan,Hristofor(Christo-pher),Ivan,Javor,Jovan(John),Kaloyan, Kiril(Cyril),Kreimir,Ladislav,Ljubomir, Matej (Matthew), Mikhail (Michael), Milo, Miroslav, Mladen, Nemanja, Nenad, Obrad, Pavel(Paul),Petar(Peter),Radomir,Ra-doslav, Stanislav, Stjepan (Stephen), Stoyan, Todor(Theodore),Vasil(Basil),Vladan, Yavor, Yoan (John), ZoranSLAVIC NAMES, FEMALEAdrijana,Agata,Albena,Anastasiya, Anna,Bisera,Branislava,Branka,Ceci-lija,Danica,Doroteja(Dorothy),Dragana, Dragica,Dubravka,Ekaterina(Katherine), Elena,Elisaveta(Elizabeth),Eva,Grozda, Hristina (Christina), Irina, Jadranka, Jagoda, Jelena(Helen),Kalina,Magdalena,Marija, Nadeda,Polina,Radmila,Radomira,Rosa, Sneana, Suzana, Svjetlana, Tatiana, Tereza, Toma, Vesna, Vinja, Zhenya, ZoraHUNGARIAN NAMES, MALEAdorjn,goston,lmos,Ambrus,An-dor, rpd, Blint, Bartal, Bla, Bertk, Csa-ba,Dezs,Dmtr,Edvrd,Elek,Endre (Andrew),Fbin,Ferenc,Gbor,Gergely, Gza, Gyrgy, Ignc, Imre, Istvn (Stephen), Jnos,Jen,Klmn,Kroly,Kornl,Lajos, Lszl,Mt(Matthew),Mihly(Michael), Mikls, Nndor, Orbn, Rikrd, Sndor (Al-exander),Tams(Thomas),Tibor,Tdor, Vencel, Zoltn, ZsoltWasnt AchillesGay and Buried Somewhere Else?The best known version of the story of Troy, the Iliad, certainly has him bur-iedelsewhere.Philostratus,Maximusof Tyre, Pausanias, and, of course, all the lo-cal people, believe the story given here. 11Against the DarkHUNGARIAN NAMES, FEMALEAdl, gnes, gota, Aliz, Amlia, Anasz-tzia, Angyalka, Anik, Anna, Aranka, Beta, Blanka,Borbla,Csilla,Edina,Emese,Erz-sbet,Gizella,Hajna,Ibolya,Ilona,Judit, Luca,Lujza,Margit,Natlia,Rhel,Rzsa, Sra, Szandra (Alexandra)VLACH (ROMANIAN) NAMES, MALEAlin,Andrei,Anghel,Ctlin,Claudiu, Corneliu,Cosmin,Decebal,Dorin,Doru, Emilian, Flaviu, Florin, Ghenadie, Haralamb, Horatiu, Horea, Iancu, Ion (John), Iuliu, Lu-cian,Lupul,Marku,Mihai,Mircea,Mugur, Neculai(Nicholas),Ovidiu,Petru,Rzvan, Sorin, Tibor, Valeriu, Viorel, Virgiliu VLACH (ROMANIAN) NAMES, FEMALEAdela,Adelina,Aurica,Brndusa,Cam-elia,Catalina,Crina,Diana,Doina,Emilia, Estera,Flavia,Ileana,Ionela,Ionut,Lumi-nita, Magda, Mihaela, Mircea, Mirela, Nuta, Oana, Otilia, Sabina, Stefania, Tatiana, Uza-na, Violeta, Viorica, ZahariaCUMAN/PECHENEG NAMES, MALEAdem,Alp,Altan,Asil,Aslan,Aydin, Bari,Berk,Berkant,Berker,Bulut,Burak, aatay,Can,Coskun,Diren,Ediz,Emin, Emir,Emre,Ender,Engin,Erdem,Eren, Erol, Firat, Gker, Hakan, Hikmet, brahim, lhami,lker,lkin,Kadri,Koray,Kudret, Levent,Metin,Murat,Musa,mer,Onur, Osman, Ozan, zgr, Savas, Selim, Serhan, Serhat,Serkan,Soner,Temel,Tolga,Tun, Turgay, Ufuk, Umut, Volkan, Yakup, Yavuz, ZekiCUMAN/PECHENEG NAMES, FEMALEAsli,Aygl,Aylin,Aye,Aysel,Aysu, Aysun,Basak,Belgin,Berna,Bilge,Burcu, Canan,Ceren,Deniz,Derya,Dilara,Dilek, Ebru,Ece,Eda,Ekin,Elif,Elmas,Emel, Emine, Esen, Esin, Fidan, Filiz, Gizem, Gon-ca,Gzde,Gl,Glay,Glbahar,Glistan, Hande,Havva,Hazan,Ipek,Irmak,Kele-bek, Kiraz, Meryem, Mge, Nergis, Nesrin, Nilfer, Nuray, zge, zlem, Pembe, Pinar, ebnem, Sevda, Sevgi, Simge, Tlay, Tutku, Yamur, Yeter, Yildiz, Yonca, Zeynep 12TransylvaniaismorethanHouseTre-merescenterofpower:itsmagibelievethe Tribunalisapracticaldemonstrationofthe validityofHouseTremeresethos.House Tremere believes that magi should work to-gether to create a better world. This sounds idealistic,butthemagiofTremerearepa-tient and pragmatic. This Tribunal is the best way of living they have implemented so far, but they havent nished yet.The Tremere believe that life in Mythic Europeisfarharderfortheaveragemagus even the average peasant than it needs to be. Europe is awash with petty nobles and childish magi who gradually but continually are making things worse. Its possible that, by workingtogether,magicanhaltthepoint-lesschaosthatkeepsplungingEuropeback intowar,famine,andpoverty.Thereseems little likelihood of rapid change. HouseTremere,throughcenturiesof struggle,believesitcanredesignsocietyso thatitbecomesaperfectvesselforhuman achievement.Eventuallyskillandglacial persistence might wear down the vapid, the greedy, the insular, and the ignorant. It will take many generations. It will de-mand heartbreaking sacrices. It will require terrible acts.In Transylvania, it has already begun.House TremereHouseTremerespoliciesandethosdi-rectlyaffectthelifeofeverymagusliving inTransylvania.Thissectionreviewsthe parts of Transylvania society over which the House retains direct control.Armed ForceHouseTremereisthecoreofOrders militia during crises. The Code must be en-forced to be effective. House Tremere is the mostcrediblethreattothedominantcove-nants in any of the regional Tribunals. Some magiseeHouseTremereasaguarantorof the stability of the Order.TheTremerecapabilitytothreaten thedominantcovenantsofotherTribunals makes some of these covenants hostile. The Housedoesnotstationitsmembersinthe Tribunalswhereitspresenceisunwelcome. TherearefewTremereintheGreaterAlps, Normandy,Theban,andNovgorodTribu-nals.Thiscreatesaconcentrationofforce inTransylvania,whichmakesneighboring Tribunals cautious. LogisticsTheHouseisonlyabletorespondto crisis if it has the supplies necessary, and the transportation required to deploy them. The manyresourcesusedbyTremeremagiin peacetime, detailed in House of Hermes: True Lin-eages,areelementsoftheTremerelogistical system that are surplus to prudent insurance. Hermetic CultureChapter Two13Against the DarkMilitary Saga & Story SeedsHouseTremereisalwayslookingfor allies,andthisletsplayercharactersbe-come involved in House Tremeres military skirmishes. The House seeks allies because itcantcommititsresourceseverywhere, because in distant Tribunals theres no easy way for it to garrison territory, and because itseesitsmilitaryalliesaspoliticalassets. They are people used to the Tremere mind-set and way of operating, who have tasted successwithTremeresupport.Alliesalso haveunusualabilities,whichextendthe options of Tremere eld commanders.SAGA SEED:THE FIRES OF WINTERTheplayercharactersencounterin-creasinglypowerfuldemonsastheirsaga progresses.Afterseveralencounters,the playercharactersgoontheoffensiveand captureadiabolist,whotheydiscoveris tiedtoaWintercovenantintheirTribu-nal.Thecharacterspresenttheirinforma-tion to the Quaesitores, and an emergency Tribunalisheld.TheWintercovenantis Renounced and a Wizards March declared.Theplayercharactersareapproached by the Quaesitores with a problem: none of the major covenants in their Tribunal wants totaketheleadinprosecutingtheMarch. PerhapstheWintercovenantslocationis tooremoteandwell-defended,orperhaps the Tribunal is fractious and its members feel thataweakenedleaderwouldfallpreyto theothers.TheQuaesitoresasktheplayer charactercovenanttoactascoordinator for the March, since it has clashed with the Wintercovenantbefore,andhasdeeper motivation than the other covenants. They will, of course, be due the resources of the Winter covenant, when it is brought to heel.HouseTremereoffersassistancetothe player characters. They can provide vis and magicitems,ifthatsalltheplayercharac-tersrequire.Alternatively,theTremerecan providecombatants.Iftheydothis,House Tremeredemandstheleadershipofthe campaign,andusestheplayercharactersas scouts and auxiliaries. STORY SEED: DISASTER RELIEFHouseTremeresskillatorganization andlogisticscanbeusedinpeacetime, fordisasterrelief.Inthisstoryseed,a plague, ood, or famine has descended on alargeswathofMythicEurope.Theen-dangered section includes the player char-acters covenant. The Tremere are initially notwillingtointervene,becauseitmay causetroublewiththenobilityandtheir resourcescanprobablybebetterused elsewhere.Characterswhoframetheir argument for intervention using elements oftheTremereethosaboutmaking theworldabetterplace,wheredisasters can be countered by skill and cooperation canconvincetheTremere.Aidmay take the form of physical goods or magic items, which the player characters can use to end the crisis, or may take the form of skilledassistants,whomtheplayerchar-acterscommand.Theplayercharacters theninvestigateandremedy the cause of the disaster.Logistical Saga & Story SeedsHouseTremerestransportationand supply network can provide hooks for sto-ries, when it fails or extends, and can pro-vide ways to get characters to stories, if they are distant or in inhospitable environments.STORY SEED: RESCUEHouseTremerehasmarvelousdevices whichallowtravelnotmerelythroughin-accessiblewoodlandsandacrossthesea, butthroughtheair,undertheearth,or submergedintheoceans.Abasicproblem forHouseTremereisthatapercentageof alljourneysintohostileenvironmentsgo wrong.Contactislostwiththevoyagers, and rescuers need to be sent. For this, Treme-re magi prefer outsiders. They know that the members of their House tend to study magic along similar lines, and assume that whatever has caused the sailing ship, tunneller, airship, orsubmersibletolosecontactisnotbest handled with Rego or Mentem magic, which the crew must have had available.SAGA SEED:FOR WANT OF A NAIL Aplagueofviolentfaeriesbesetan-other Tribunal. Three covenants fall to the raiderswho,scatteredsurvivoraccounts seemtoindicate,canignoretheAegisof the Hearth. While the most potent magi in the Order gather at Durenmar to consider whatresponse,ifany,issuitable,House Tremere summons its allies and any young magi who owe it favors. The House plans to prepare a base for heavy deployment, in case the Tribunal votes for retribution. The player characters aid the Tremere in creat-ingsecret,wardedplacesthroughoutthe deployment zone, which can act as rest and resupply points for warrior magi. They also supervise shipments of war material, which thefaeriesaresometimesskilledenough strategists to anticipate and intercept.While doing this, the player characters seekthefewsurvivorsoftheattacks,to gain eyewitnesses of the enemys methods. If this is used to start a saga, these survivors could be the player characters. The Treme-re learn that the new faeries can ignore the Aegis of the Hearth if invited in by some-one given a token at the yearly ritual, and iftheygainsuchatoken,theycaninvite others in themselves. From this, the player characterscandevelopnewsecuritymea-sures, like Aegis tokens that are implanted in the skin and disintegrate if removed.When the war begins, the player charac-ters keep channelling useful supplies to the combat forces, their success in stories being directly mirrored by the success of the magi ghting the faeries. If the player characters sufferaserioussetback,thenfaerieraiders breakthroughthecombatforcesandinto the armys rear zone. The player characters needtoholdthefaeriesoffuntilthecom-batforcescanreformandrelievethemor, better, use the stores of logistical material to crush the faeries between the logistical team and the combat forces. The saga ends when the player characters discover the source of the new faeries, and destroy them, or recruit them for their own purposes.14Against the DarkPlayer characters can access these resources directly if they are members of the House, or can convince a Tremere magus to aid them. HouseTremereisalwaysinterestedinhav-ing promising young magi owe favors.CommunicationsHouseTremereisstrongestwhenits manymembersactinconcert.Thisrequires anexcellentcommunicationsnetwork.Itis obvious to the House that any attacker would attempt to disrupt its communications. In re-sponse, the House has developed multiple, in-dependent communication networks, backed by a series of contingencies for lost contact.REDCAPSNon-secretcommunicationswithinthe TribunalaresentbyRedcap.TheTremere considerRedcapsespeciallyusefulbecause theycarrytheideasthatreinforcetheTran-sylvanianculture.Theyarealsoguidesin war, since they are familiar with the mystical terrainofEurope.Redcapsarenotjustmail carriers; they disseminate news, art, and pro-paganda on behalf of the House. House Tre-mere would like there to be far more Redcaps in the Order than there are at present, which isasourceofhistoricaltensionbetweenthe two Houses. For story seeds relating to Red-caps,seethelaterchapteronHistria,which describes the Mercere House for this Tribunal.Capacity BuildingTheHousewantstheresourcesofthe Tribunalslandstobefullyandefciently utilized.Thereisavexillationofmagiand Redcapswhoareprimarilyresponsiblefor this.ThegroupwasinstigatedbyTremere himself, under the name the Earnest Sons of the Grid and Chain.TheEarnestSonsscoutingteamslack the killing power required to tame the dan-gersoftheTransylvanianwilderness.Their initial assessments are fed back to the groups leaders,whosendmorepowerfulmagito secureareas,orseektheaidofnearbyop-pida. The group also identies areas suitable for the foundation of new oppida. They pass these recommendations to the Prima of Tre-mere,whointurndirectsthePraecotore-cruitsuitablemagiforthetask.ThePraeco preferstooffertheroletotheapprentices of allies of the House, and may gather them from several Tribunals.Tribunal OverviewTheTremereviewtheOrderasfragile butuseful,sotheysupportit.Theybelieve the Order to be, for now, the best tool avail-able to prevent magi in other Tribunals from slaughteringeachother,makingpactswith Satan,ordeclaringthemselvesgods.These aberrations of good sense, they believe, hap-pen regularly when magicians are left to de-cide their own fates. The Order allows suf-cient peace for the Tremere to build strength and evangelize.House Tremere dominates the Transylva-nian Tribunal, but does not need to corrupt it. The Tremere method of block voting ensures thatitsmemberscangetwhattheywant, entirelylegallyanddemocratically,within theOrdersstructuresandtraditions.House TremereseestheTribunalasavaluabletool for the maintenance of the society that it has constructed. House Tremere wants the Tribu-nal, as a legal institution, to ourish.The PraecoThePraecoisthetheoreticalleaderof the Tribunal, although the Prima of Tremere actually makes policy for Transylvanias gov-ernance.PraecohoodinTransylvaniaisnot earned by age; it is assigned by a democratic vote.ThisallowsthemagiofTremerepick whoever they like. The Praeco of Transylva-niaisaservantofHouseTremere,butstill hasfarwiderauthoritythanhisequivalents in other Tribunals. A magus does not become Praeco in Transylvania without the approval ofthePrimaofTremere,anddoesnotstay Praeco if he angers her. The current Praeco is Archmagus Albertus of Lycaneon.TheTransylvanianPraecoisanexperi-mentincedingpowerfromtheHouseto thewiderpopulationoftheTribunal,but Story Seed: The Book of Places To AvoidTheEarnestSonspreciselynotethe locationofplacesthatresistthepresence ofitsassessmentteams,andthenatureof theobstaclefaced.Overcenturies,these reportshavebeencompiledintoagreat book.Thisisperhapsthelargestlistof places it is considered unwise to go in all of Mythic Europe. The bookfascinatesmagi who would like to make a reputation as kill-ers of magical beasts and tamers of wild fa-eries. These candidates send details of what sort of thing theyd like to face in combat, or what kind of problem they wish to solve, and the vexillation scours its records for a suitably challenging site. This sort of com-bat tourism isnt ofcially sanctioned by the House or Tribunal, but has become a rite of passage for some young magi, and is popu-lar with those seeking magical components from particular spirits.The Difference Between House Tremereand the Transylvanian TribunalHouseTremeredoesnotdirectly controleveryaspectoflifeinthisTri-bunal,althoughitsinuenceisubiq-uitous.TheHousedirectlycontrols theresourceswhichitrequirestofeel secure.Thatis,itcontrolsdirectlythe thingsitfeelsitneedstorespondto prepare for emergencies and rebuild af-terward. It uses its allies and the Tribu-nals primary ofcer, the Praeco, to con-trol those resources which are vital for theprogressofTransylvaniansociety, but which can be reconstructed after an emergency passes.15Against the Darkitsaverycarefulexperiment,doneinslow and reversible stages. House Tremeres lead-ershopethat,eventually,enoughmagiwill think as House Tremere does that it will be possible to invest the Praeco with real pow-er.MuchastheRomanseventuallyoffered citizenship to the urban classes of the entire empire,so,oneday,theOrdersPraecones will be worthy of respect and empowerment. OPPIDA AND AEDILESMagiofthevariousTransylvaniancov-enantsliveintermixedinsettlements,which in this Tribunal are called oppida. The mem-bership of an oppidum is more uid than the membershipofaWesterncovenant.Many magi change oppida as their personal projects concludeortheinterestsofHouseTremere change.Someoppidaarestatic,butmany change location as their tasks are completed.The Tribunal has made a series of binding rulings concerning oppida. Every maga must, insomesense,belongtoone.Everymagais required, in a broad sense, to be aware of the activitiesofallothermembersofheroppi-dum.Nooppidummayhavefewerthantwo members. Every oppidum must have a cives, de-scribed later, as a member. No oppidum may have members exclusively from one House.Thenaltworulingseffectivelymean everyoppidummusthaveatleastoneTre-merememberandonenon-Tremeremem-ber. This odd member, appointed to prevent corruption in House Tremere, and treason in thenon-Tremereoppida,iscalledanaedile. Aedileshavenoparticularduties,butthey havearighttoemergencyaudiencewith thePraecoandchiefQuaesitor.Thedisap-pearance of, or declaration of War upon, an aedileisconsideredseriousbytheQuaesi-tores. In oppida with even numbers of cives and non-cives, there are two aediles.LegislatureThe Transylvanian Tribunal, as a lawgiv-ingbody,hasmanyroles.Theprocessof votingatTribunaloncontentiousissuesis similar to all other Tribunals, as described in Houses of Hermes: True Lineages. In Transylvania, Tribunalmeetingsarequickandshort,and partiesattempttoreachconsensus.Atten-danceishigh,butthisisbecauseTribunals offeropportunitiestosocializeandmake agreements outside the formal meeting, most ofwhichisreadingforegoneconclusions intothePeripheralCode.Criminalmatters areusuallydealtwithseparately,aspartof theemergencyTribunals,describedinthe Judiciary section, later.Regulating Magical Settlement & ResidencyIn Transylvanian, the Praeco, as represen-tative of the Tribunal, enters a written agree-ment with each resident magus, which grants him his place in Transylvanian society. Each agreementmustbewitnessedbyaQuae-sitor, and they are formally entered into the PeripheralCodeatTribunalmeetings.This agreementiscalledthemagusprivilege. Therearevebroadstylesofprivilege,al-thoughindividualsmayhaveslightlydiffer-ent rights and duties, depending on the nego-tiations which preceded the signing. Further differences may be added as punishments or rewards. Each privilege permits membership of at least one of the ve covenants.AftertheSundering,theTransylvanian Tribunals expansion was checked by a Grand Tribunal ruling, limiting it to ve named cove-nants. In the intervening centuries, all of these covenantshavemovedlocationorchanged theirstyleofmembership,butlegallythey persist. Magi do not generally live at the main site of the covenant of which they are a mem-ber.Mostliveinvariousothersettlements, calledoppida,asnotedearlier.Themagiof Tremeredonotwishtorevisittherulings punishing their House for the Sundering, be-cause that would worry other magi needlessly. Other magi do not wish to agitate for change because theres no advantage in success.ASCLEPIUS AND THEPRIVILEGES OF THE COLONIAEThis covenant was initially a settlement of Daciansorcerers,onthesitenowinhabited byCoeris.Itsoriginalmembershiphasnow been completely absorbed by House Treme-re. Its modern members are young magi from other Tribunals, who have come to settle the Tribunal.TheleadershipofAsclepiusisan honoraryposition,andisawardedannually by acclamation of the covenants members.Thecoloniae,orsettlers,areyoungmagi fromotherTribunalspermittedtodevelop underutilized sections of the Tribunal, under tight agreements. Coloniae may expect:Aid in war or disaster.Free use of resources negotiated in their privilege.Aproportionofnewresourcesdiscov-ered, as negotiated.Triumph of AsclepiusFollowingtheSundering,Tremere heldtheTribunaltogetherbyoffering concessions to the leaders of the other cov-enants.Eachofthecovenantsalsomade various binding contracts with the others, to make secession unprotable. These re-sourcesarestilldispensed,althoughthey arenowcollectedanddistributedbythe Tribunal. The leadership of this covenant, and the resources granted to the leader as part of Tremeres concession, are called the Triumph of Asclepius.Eachyear,themembersofthiscove-nant elect a leader. The Primus invites the leadertoCoeris,andthengrantshimor her the annual payment promised by Tre-mere after the Sundering. This includes 16 pawnsofvis,threepoundsofpuregold, six requested books copied from a certain library,anedinner,andseveralother minortokensofesteem.Inexchange,he owes several minor duties to the leaders of the other three covenants. These tasks are usuallynothingonerous,nothingsohor-rible that a person would decline the Tri-umphifitwasofferedagain,butenough to use up two seasons in various stories.Magi of Tremere, Mercere, or Guerni-cus,bytradition,belongtothecovenant now led by their House, but they have of-tenbeenselectedasleaderofAsclepius. All covenants allow this dual membership. Similarly,theTribunalpermitstheTri-umph to be awarded to non-residents.16Against the DarkColoniae may not:Select their aedile.Act in scandalous ways.SeekofceintheTribunal,saving aedilehood.Use the title archmagus.Take apprentices without permission.Invite other magi to visit the Tribunal, ex-cepting Quaesitores, Redcaps, and hoplites.Wear shoes at Tribunal meetings. Origi-nallythismeanttheyhadtoattend meetingsinbarefeet,butcustomnow allows them sandals and slippers.Wear anything that looks like a Decora-tion to which they are not entitled.EatanyaphrodisiacduringTribunal meetings,includingbutnotlimitedto shellsh, carrots, trufes, and pepper.COERIS AND THEPRIVILEGES OF THE CIVESCoeriswasTremereshome,andisruled by his direct successor, the Prima of Tremere. It was originally on the site of the oppidum of Lycaneon, but after the Sundering it was moved to its current location, which at that time held theCovenantofAsclepius.Allmembersof House Tremere are automatically members of thiscovenant,althoughtheymayresignand resume membership at whim. This is necessary since some foreign covenants demand Tremere magi belong to only one covenant. Magi with the cives privilege are offered membership of the covenant as well. A cives, or citizen, is usually a Tremere magus living asaTremeremagusshould.Somemagiof other Houses are granted the status of cives asasignofesteembytheTribunal,which effectively means the House. Citizens are permitted to: AccessHouseTremeresmethodsof assistance,asperHousesofHermes:True Lineages.Be represented at Decennial meetings of HouseTremerebyaTremeremagusof their choice.StandforanyofceintheTribunal,in-cluding Praeco.Raise apprentices within the Tribunal.Relocate from camp to camp as desired, if non-Tremere.Ifnumericallydominantinanoppidum, select the aedile. This effectively must be a non-Tremere, because the aedile needs to come from the non-dominant group.Dress in black or grey at Tribunal meetings.Citizens are required to:Live as a Tremere should, if Tremere.Live in a way that Tremere persistently ad-mire, if non-Tremere. This includes coop-erating with the House, performing useful work, mustering for war, paying taxes, and acting in an unobjectionable way.Not wear Decorations to which they are not entitled.DOMOSTRON AND THEPRIVILEGES OF THE SOCIIThis covenant was founded by Tremeres Hermeticallies.Itsinitialsitewaslaterde-stroyedbyraidersfromThebes.Itscurrent membersarealmostalloftheTribunals Quaesitores, Merceres, and hoplites. Its legal leader is the senior Quaesitor of the Tribunal, but it doesnt generally meet as a covenant. AllofDomostronsmembershavethe Sociiprivilege.Thesocii(allies)arenon-Tremeremagitreatedinmanyrespectsas iftheywere.AllRedcaps,Quaestiores,and dedicated hoplites are automatically socii, if they are not civitates.Socii may:Be supported in their tasks by dedicated resourcesandbyextraordinarytaxesin times of crisis.Expect military protection and aid.Stand for any ofce in the Tribunal, ex-cept Praeco.Raise an apprentice within the Tribunal.Relocate from camp to camp as required by their duties.If numerically dominant in an oppidum, select a list of at least three worthy can-didates for aedile, from which the Prae-comustchoose.Iftherearefewerthan threepossiblecandidates,thePraeco may select whomever he likes.Wear designs that look like Decorations.Socii are required to:Fullltheirduties,orrenegotiatetheir covenant. Dedicated hoplites who cease in their role as lictors, for example, lose this status.Avoiddoingthingswhichwouldmake the average magus believe a declaration of Wizards War against them is reason-able, as determined by the Praeco.Seek permission before founding oppida.Provideaediles,onatemporarybasis, when others cannot be found.Wear prominently their badges of ofce while at Tribunal.DIODORUS AND THEPRIVILEGES OF THE HOSPITESThis covenant initially housed the follow-ersofMuj,afaeriemagicianwhosefollowers now form an odd little sect of House Tremere andaremembersofCoeris.Itscurrentmem-bers are all magi living in the Transylvanian Tri-bunalashospites.Hospites(sing.hospes)means guests, and most of them live at Lycaneon.Thehospiteselecttheirownleader, subject to the approval of the Praeco, every sevenyears.Thisrolehasfarmorehonor thanpower,butitdoesgetanannualcon-cessionsimilartotheonedescribedearlier fortheTriumphofAsclepius.Thepayment isfarsmaller,andisoftendividedwiththe leaderssupporters,buttheresponsibilities canbecompletedinaweekofmeetingsas Tribunal, or fobbed off to younger magi paid with copying rights, gold, or vis.These are magi hired to practice particular skills on behalf of House Tremere. They have few rights, but are paid well for their services.Hospites may:Receivefairpaymentfortheirwork,as negotiated.Usesuchresourcesasareallottedto their tasks.Expect protection if Wizards War is de-clared on them.Ignore many of the taxes placed on other magi.Expect not to be asked to join the Wiz-ards Marches.Hospitesareusuallyrequiredtoseek permission before:Seeking ofce in Tribunal.Taking a new apprentice.Binding a new familiar.17Against the DarkCreating a new talisman.Founding oppida.Changing oppidum.Votingforaparticularpersonastheir oppidums aedile.Wearingthingswhichlooklike Decorations.A hospes may have such permissions rati-ed in her initial covenant, but this affects the payment she receives, as a greater proportion of her time is spent on private projects.PANNONIA AND THEPRIVILEGES OF THE FOEDERATIPannonia was founded as a fortied Tre-mere House covenant near what was then the border among the Transylvanian, the Greater Alps,andtheRomanTribunals.Theauraof Pannonias site was destroyed by the founda-tion of a powerful monastery at the springs of the river which the covenant used for water. ThemagiofPannoniawerethersttodis-perse into oppida, or camps. Their magical resources are now primarily collected by the magi of the oppida of Histria.Somecovenantsintheneighboring Tribunals,exhaustedbypoliticalinght-ingorWizardsWar,havesoughtsanctu-arybyjoiningtheTransylvanianTribunal. Transylvaniacannotacceptnewcovenants, soallmembersofthesecovenantsbecame members of the Covenant of Pannonia. The magiofthesecovenantsusuallynegotiate anagreementinwhichtheyarepermitted to continue their local customs, even if they areoffensivetoTremeremagi,provided they do not breach the Code or damage the society of the Tribunal. Magi from such cov-enantsarecalledfoederati,(sing.foederatus) or confederates.Whenonlyonegroupofoutsidersare Pannonians, it operates much like a foreign covenant,althoughthePraecoofTransyl-vania has the right to deny any changes to thePannonianwrittencovenant,orreturn it to its original state. The Pannonian Cov-enant and the Peripheral Code are designed so that if there are ever no suitable outsid-ers,severalmagifromothercovenantsau-tomaticallybecomePannonians,butretain their membership of, and privileges of, their earlier covenant. This ensures Pannonias le-gal continuance. Pannonia is currently led by the Orphic cultdwellingintheTribunalssouth.The leaderofPannoniadoesnot,unfortunately for him, receive the concessions of Tremere given to the other covenant leaders. Centu-riesagothemembersofPannoniasoldal-most all of these rights away to the leader of the Transylvanian Merceres.Foederatihaveindividuallynegotiated agreements,butusuallytheyincludethe right to:Expect military protection and aid.Retainexclusiveuseoftheresources heldatthetimeofconfederation,even if they move to a different oppidum.Retainspeciccustoms,detailedin theirprivilege,despiteTribunalrulings against such customs. Such customs may be limited to their oppidum, however.Train apprentices.Expecttheireldestapprenticetobeac-ceptedasafoederate,underconditions comparable to those of the magus.DecorationsDecorationsareornamentaljewelry pinnedto,orpatternsembroideredinto, therobesofmagiwhohaveperformed serviceswhichtheTribunalwishesto particularlynote.Somemagiweartheir decorationsdaily,whilemanythinkthat ostentatiousandwearthemonlyforTri-bunal meetings. The expression and place-ment of the decoration varies at the whim ofthewearer,althoughTremeremagi prefer subtle designs. Decorations are not repeated. If a magus performs the actions requiredtoearnadecorationtwice,itis notawardedasecondtime.Characters withalesserdecorationreplaceitifthey dosomethingnotableenoughtoearna higher decoration.Laurel: This decoration is offered to a ma-guswholeadstheTribunalinacam-paignagainstfoeswhocoulddestroy theOrder.Noonecurrentlywears this decoration.Myrtle:Thisdecorationisgiventothe generalofacampaignagainstafoe who could not have destroyed the Or-der, but required more than one magi-cal battle to subdue. Several magi have this decoration.Oak: This decoration is given to a general whomasterminds,butdoesnotght intheeldforthesignicantbattles of, a Myrtle Campaign.Grass: This decoration is given to magi who save other magi from death. It was orig-inally presented to those who defended key covenants against the Diedne, and has a cultural link with sieges.Parsley:Thisdecorationisawardedfor landingthemortalblowuponama-gusexpelledfromtheOrderbythe Tribunal.18Against the DarkWear designs that look like Decorations, if these designs are part of their tradition before joining the Tribunal.Changeoppidaasoftenastheywish, buttheymustnotifytheTribunalthey are doing so.SeekanyofceintheTribunal,al-thoughthedemocraticnatureofthe Tribunalmeansthatthisismerelya matter of form.Foederatiareusuallyrequiredtoseek permission before:Ceasing whatever duties are written into their covenant. That is, the Tribunal usu-allyacceptsfoederationthebasisthey have something to offer; this is detailed preciselyinthecovenant.Theseduties canonlybechangedwiththepermis-sion of both the Tribunal (as represented by the Praeco) and the signatory magus; they cannot be changed simply by vote of Tribunal.Using the title archmagus.Founding new oppida.Inviting other magi to visit the Tribunal (for example, to copy books or trade). Trading vis with outsiders (although the sociioftheTribunalarenotconsidered outsiders).Sellingmagicitemstooutsiders(al-though the socii of the Tribunal are not considered outsiders).If numerically dominant in the oppidum, selecting a particular person as their op-pidums aedile.Manorial Covenants area Sign of Weakness and PovertyHouse Tremere believes that the way magi live in many other Tribunals is inef-cient.Covenants,intheforeignsense, aregenerallymanorialstates.Resources, manufacturing,anddefenseareprovided foreachcovenant,byeachcovenant. True specialization is rare, and dreary rep-etitionofmediocrefacilitiesiscommon. Thisisduetothecapriciousnessofthe senior magi in other Tribunals, who prefer free but stunted lives to cooperating with eachother.InTransylvania,specialized magicalsettlementsworktogetherina single economy.Legalities of ResidencyTheagreementbetweenamagusand theTribunalcannotoverwhelmamagus rightsundertheCode.Technically,the GrandTribunalcouldrulethat,despite amagusacceptingaprivilege,heisnot bound to forsake rights which are granted him by the Code, such as the right to train anapprentice.Thishasnotoccurredfor several reasons:Nomagushasevertakenthisissueto the Grand Tribunal. The Grand Tribu-nallimitsthenumberoftopicswhich can be debated, and its members tend tobepotentatesofotherTribunals. Thatamagushassignedadealand thenwantstogobackonit,without negotiatingwiththeTremere,has never seemed signicant enough to the participants to be discussed.Many Tribunals have rules of residency, orproscribeparticularbehaviorfor members of different covenants. A chal-lengetotheTransylvaniansystemthat also threatened the residency regulations in other Tribunals could not succeed.Veryfewmagiformallychallengethe residency rules. In part, this is because they know what they are letting them-selvesinforwhentheyrstbecome residents,andsomagiwhobristleat theverythoughtofregulationdonot settlehere.ThePraecoisalsowilling to reach private agreements with magi, to prevent cases reaching judgment.Manyoftheborderoppidajoined Transylvaniatoescapepoliticaldif-cultiesintheiroriginalTribunal.The residencyrulesmaybeinconvenient, butatleastCoerisdoesntraidtheir vis sources. Some foederati offered the status of cives decline, so as not to lose thespecialdispensationsofferedin their covenant.SeniormagiinotherHousesandTri-bunalstacitlysupporttheTransylva-niansystem.Currently,everyTremere oppidum has at least one outsider who has a legal duty to reveal corrupt prac-tices.IftheTransylvanianresidency system were overturned, House Treme-remightcastallofthesemagiout.A resentful, insular House Tremere, with fewinformalchannelsofcommunica-tion and no foreign observers, is not in the interests of the other Houses.MembershipoftheTransylvaniansys-tem is voluntary. A magus can leave the Tribunal at any time. If he was hired for aparticulartask,hemayneedtogive backsomeorallofhispayment,but beyondthistheresnopenalty.Magi wholeavetheTribunalandtakepow-erfulmagicalitems,largequantitiesof vis,orothertreasureswiththemare legally pursued by the Tremere. Other regionalTribunalshavecometovari-ousconclusionsconcerningthelegal-ity of the privileges. Some magi feel that offering a restric-tiveprivilegeis,itself,illegal.The magus has no obligation to do what is described in his privilege, and since the resources were offered to him as part of the commission of a crime, their return cannot be demanded.Some magi believe that the privilege is afaultycontract,andonlythefaulty clausesarestruckout.Thistendsto mean a magus must complete the other tasks promised, but gets to keep his en-tire payment.Somemagibelievethattheprivilege is not a true contract, so the results of thelaborofthemagusreturntohim, and the resources offered for that labor mustbereturnedtotheTribunal,or such mutual compensation as is just.Somemagibelievethattheprivileges are binding contracts. If you hire a ma-gus to make a longevity charm next sea-son, and he instead trains his apprentice, heowesyouyourfeeback,pluscom-pensationforyourtrouble.Magiwho breakprivilegesimilarlyowetheorigi-nal resources given, plus compensation.19Against the DarkPublic FinancierThe Praeco collects and distribute taxes for a range of projects that the Tribunal has approved. The projects assigned to the Prae-cobytheTribunalvaryaftereachmeeting, and so the taxes she is permitted to levy are alsoadjusted.Civitates,socii,coloniaeand somefoederatiarerequiredtogivereason-ableaidtothePraecosprojects.Atmini-mum, a large vis source has been set aside for the use of Praeco. This income was originally intendedtoprovideforthemaintenanceof the wards of the Tribunal site, but the Quae-sitores now fulll this duty. StipendsThePraecoalsocollectsthestipends given to the Redcaps and Quaesitores, and distributesthem.Theresourcesusedto providestipendsaredescribedinthePe-ripheral Code. Collections are made under theauspicesofthePraeco,andRedcaps underherdirectionmakethedeliveries. ThislegalseparationallowstheTremere to monitor how much vis the Redcaps and Quaesitores are claiming without spying. It also allows the Quaesitores to state that the stipendsarenotavastannualbribefrom House Tremere.Promissory NotesThe Praecos current method of funding heractivities,throughreservedvissources and specic taxes, sits alongside an older sys-tem that is still used for diplomacy and trade. BeforethePraecowasgrantedtaxingpow-ers,shefundedherprojectsfromreserved vis sources, but was permitted to take loans againstthatincome,issuingletterspromis-ingpayment.Promissorynotesarestillis-sued, and some ancient notes are still traded, havingneverbeenredeemed,becausethey act as a high-value currency.JudiciaryAneffectivesystemoflawisvitalto themembersofthisTribunal.Therolesof Praeco,Quaesitor,andHoplitearetreated with respect and given extra powers and du-ties in Transylvania. Where the law is weak, as in some Western Tribunals, magi need to huddleincastlesthatdefendtheirgreatest resourcesfromraiders.Transylvanianmagi refuse to live fearful, stunted lives.Quaesitores The Quaestiores have little to complain of in this Tribunal. The Code is followed con-sistently, even if the interpretation is hetero-dox and the concentration of Tremere votes makestruedemocracyrare.Powerssome QuaesitorshavebeenseekinginotherTri-bunals, to levy taxes and demand aid against renounced wizards, have been granted them here. In this Tribunal, the senior magi do not Public Financier Story SeedsCOLLECTING STIPENDSThe oppida of the Tribunal are expect-edtohelpthePraecotocollectstipends on behalf of the Quaesitores and Redcaps. Usuallythisisnteitherdifcultortime-consuming,butmagicalandfaeriesites attract strangecreatures,andsecuringthe stipend can require be challenging. These small,self-containedstoriesmakegreat ller for when only part of a troupe is avail-able,andtheydecidetheydontwantto push the main story forward until the next game session.INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTFor many years, magi have been discuss-inghowusefulitwouldbetohaveaMer-ceres Portal link the oppidum of Old Histria with its chapter house in Venice, in the Ro-manTribunal.TheTribunalnallydecides uponthis,andthePraecoischargedwith the completion of this task. This may affect the player characters in many ways. The player characters may:Need to nd extra vis to pay a special levy to the Praeco.BedraftedasguardsfortheRedcaps carrying levy vis.Aid an allied colona, which is unable to meet the levy.AccompanythePraecosmessenger, with a promissory note, to Harco.AccompanythechiefRedcapofOld HistriatoHarco,toarguewithhis housematesabouttheimportanceof the project.Accompanytheinvestedarchfrom Harco to Old Histria.FORGED PROMISSORY NOTEForgingpromissorynotesisacrime inTransylvania.Itsconsideredaformof fraud that intends to deprive a magus of his magicalpower,bytakingvisherightfully owns.Whilecleaningoutthelaboratory of a magus who has passed into Final Twi-light, the characters discover a rather fool-ish forgery of a valuable promissory note,. Someone has instilled the face value of the note into its fabric. This is silly, because if the vis in the note is used, the parchment is destroyed,thusvoidingtheadditionalvis due to be paid upon its presentation to the Praeco for redemption.Thenote,though,isntaforgery.Its genuine. As the magus was trying to extract thevisofafaerieprince,itmoveditsan-chortothepromissorynote(seeRealmsof Power: Faerie for more on anchors and exter-nal vis). This allowed the faerie to survive theextractionprocess,althoughitisnow trapped,unconscious,inthenote.Aside effect of this is that any character holding thenotecanseeafaintglowaroundraw vis. This effect has a Penetration of 0.Thetrappedprinceisslowlyand subconsciouslyattemptingtorebuildhis body.Charactersmaydiscernthiswith anIntelligence+FaerieLorerollagainst an Ease Factor of 12, once they notice the effect the notes presence is having on the environment.Woodenobjectsonwhich the note rests become brittle, and trails of sawdustleadtothenote.Nearbymilkor beer,ifleftuncovered,vanish.Smallfaer-iesmaytrytostealorconsumethenote, rescuing the prince, or stealing his role.20Against the DarkviewtheQuaesitoresasinconvenientbarri-ers to their plans, but as valuable supporters of society. Tremere magi prefer Transitional-istQuaesitors,becausetheydonotseethe Order or the Code as strong institutions.ANNUAL EMERGENCY TRIBUNALSQuaesitoresarepermittedtocallemer-gency Tribunals to deal with legal matters in all Tribunals, but only in Transylvania do they call them annually. A group of advocates from House Tremere hold proxies for all their Tran-sylvanianhousematesattheseTribunals,so the nal vote always suits House Tremere. The purpose of these Tribunals, from the perspec-tive of House Tremere, is to keep their allies comfortablewiththeTransylvaniansystem. Concessions are often made that would not be in other Tribunals, where the person with the most votes gets exactly what he wants. Some Quaesitores have, in the broadest sense, never approved of the Orders system of trial by jury. A crime should not be forgiv-enbecausethepoliticalconnectionsofthe magus protect him from the enforcement of the Code. The Code is, however, a practical document: magi are only guilty if the people who will have to perform the lynching agree upon that guilt. In this respect, Transylvania is no worse than anywhere else. House Guer-nicus could, if sufciently annoyed, ask that aGrandTribunalreopenacaseconcluded by the Transylvanian Tribunal. The problem for the Quaesitores, though, is that unless an overtbreachoftheCodeoccurs,Tremere block voting is perfectly legal.Wizards WarIt is the distinct preference of the major-ity of magi in Tr