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Aeliana

Page history last edited by isaac 5 years, 8 months ago

Description

 

Timeline

Google Sheets character sheet, timeline & XP tracker

 

Current Location

Alexandria, which is in Smyrna, much to everyone's confusion.

 

Important NPCs

  • Zora - Apprentice, Flambeau - daughter, apprenticed to Stanislaw. Aeliana sees the best of herself and Pyrrhus in her daughter, and letting her go off to be apprenticed has been incredibly difficult. She feels somewhat guilty that she can't be to Zora what Theodora was to her, but she also wants what is best for her daughter. Aeliana is only beginning to understand that she's the one who may not be strong enough to survive the separation.
  • Theodora - Summer, Guernicus - mater & mother, currently part of the Inner Council in Magvillus. Aeliana was very lucky to have been found by a genuinely kind maga, and as Theodora took her from her family as an infant, Aeliana certainly loves her as a mother, beyond her loyalty to her as a mater. Were it not for the plague, Theordora would happily have lived out her years providing support and legal council from Paximadia, but with the loss of so many leaders in the House, she now serves as part of the Inner Council in Magvillus, shaping the future of the order. Aeliana privately thinks that having a voice of compassion in the Inner Council is the Lord at work.
  • Stanislaw - Summer, Flambeau - general all-around good dude, if cursed by a fairy to always be poor. Aeliana doesn't know Stanislaw as well as she might like, but having seen him at his best and worst while fighting the forces of Hell, she knows he is someone she can trust, and that at his core he is a good man. 

 

Aging

  • In 1360, Aeliana begins using her Longevity Potion at the age of 40. 
  • In 1371, Aeliana is 51 and looks 50. She has 1 Aging Point in Presence and a Decrepitude Score of 1. She has eight uses left on her Longevity Potion.

 

Creation Questionnaire

What is your name?

Quaesitor Aeliana of Guernicus, filia Theodora

Note: named for Claudius Aelianus

 

What covenant were you apprenticed at?  Describe a strange rule or custom of that covenant. 

Paximadia  in Thebes. (More or less, see timeline.)

 

What Tribunal was this covenant in?  Did you go to Tribunal in 1342, with your master?

Thebes. Of course I went! Tribunals are important part of the education of any Guernicus / Quaesitor.

 

Who was your master?  What was your relationship like?  Do you know if they are still alive? 

Her Mater is Theodora of Salonika, a Summer maga when she first found the infant Sipara and was well into her Autumn when Aeliana was Gauntleted. Having literally grown up with Theodora, and with the added trauma of being basically apprentice-napped, the two of them have a much more emotionally entagled relationship than most think wise, and Theodora has had to be very careful to get other people involved in Aeliana's training. All the same, while she doesn't mind spending seasons out of the year in other covenants and assisting other magi, it took the Black Death to get Aeliana to move out.  

 

What is your house?  What is the house you wish you had been apprenticed into?  What is the house you are glad you were not apprenticed into? 

Guernicus. She might wish to be Bonisagus, as then she'd have more freedom to do what she wants to do rather than serve the Order, but she sees the role of Quaesitor as a necessary one and isn't entirely sure what she'd be studying anyway. She's glad that she's not in Tremere, as then she would have even less freedom, and also because she's worried that she would be too tempted (and encouraged) to use the laws of the Code for evil and selfishness.

 

Who was another adult who looked after you when you were an apprentice?  What was your relationship like?  Do you know if they are still alive?

"Looked after" is a strong word, but the mage Ordelafo took and trained her for two years. She was very young and doesn't remember much of it, other than that she was always in trouble either with him or with others in the Covenant, he was always asking her questions, and that the only way she could please him was to tell him secrets of the rest of the Covenant. 

 

You were apprenticed in the same covenant as at least one other PC.  Which PC?  What is your relationship like?

She spent her childhood with Flora and Fauna, possibly sharing a wetnurse among the grogs. 

 

During your apprenticeship your master was friends with the master of at least one other PC.  Which PC?  What is your relationship like?  Did you visit their covenant or meet somewhere else?

My Mater was friends with Ladislaus's Pater, the Archbishop - I imagine that she was from this area, and may have apprenticed at Sase herself back in the day. Theodora and Sipara came to visit a few times, especially after being recovered from the Bonisagus, to make sure that Sipara's soul had not been endangered (and because Theodora had to work off some debt for the peaceful return of her apprentice). In the years following, Sipara would come for a few more spattered seasons as part of her scholarly and spiritual studies. And to give Theodora some space. Ladislaus visited every now and then as well, to take in some warm Mediterranean air, learn logic/Code of Hermes/etc etc, and to trade with the Verditius.

 

Who have you seen die?  Did you try to save them or did you push them into death?

Aeliana was exposed to the violence of magical life early. She was taken from her intended mater when five years old by a Bonisagus named Ordelafo. At seven, Ordelafo was killed by three magi who declared Wizard's War on him at once after they invaded his sanctum and struck him down in front of her. It might have been possible for her to set the three of them fighting amongst themselves on purpose, but she was sufficiently traumatized that it never occurred to her, and she just whispered the location of the chest where Ordelafo kept his most valuable items to the first one who happened to be kind to her, and they fell to infighting all on their own, and two of them were killed in quick succession. At that point Ordelafo's covenant detained the survivor, a Quaesitor arrived and Sipara's future was decided at the Tribunal of 1328. The experience taught her very clearly the importance of the rule of law over individuals with great powers. 

 

And of course since then, she has seen and adjudicated other Wizard's Wars, Marches and deadly magical mishaps.

 

You are a Christian.  Do you follow the Western Rite or the Eastern?  When was the last time you went to church?  What happened?  (recall that in the Changed Rules wizards are harshly effected by divine auras)

Aeliana was raised in the Western Rite, but her Mater is Eastern and educated her in the Eastern approach during her apprenticeship, in an effort to foster understanding with and greater ability to work among magi of both traditions. The spread of the plague caused a crisis of faith in Aeliana, and she's filled with such anger and despair that she cannot speak within a church or Divine regio. In a desperate bid to protect herself from the Infernal, she writes the Pater Noster on herself before her morning ritual, which she then wraps with bandages to hide her unorthodox ways.

 

What covenant do you call home?  THIS IS NOW UPDATED TO REFLECT HER MOVE TO ALEXANDRIA

In 1353, after the birth of her daughter Zora, Aeliana moved to Alexandria, which is in the same Phyle as Paximadia in Thebes. The covenant is herself and two Mercere (one gifted, one non-gifted), 

 

Describe three vis sources of this covenant.  Which one is currently too dangerous to collect from?

 

Describe three grogs who live at the covenant.  How has the magic of the covenant warped them?  Are there more grogs than these, or just these three?

Unless otherwise noted, at Warping 1, all grogs gain the Minor Flaw, Dutybound (lying)

Unless otherwise noted, at Warping 3, all grogs gain the Minor Flaw, Proud

Unless otherwise noted, at Warping 5, all grogs gain the Minor Virtue, Clear Thinker

 

 

Describe the other magical inhabitants of the covenant.  Is he or she another magus?  A magical beast?  An angel, demon, or faerie?  Something else?  Are they your friend or rival?

 

Describe three quirky rules or customs of the covenant.  

 

What Tribunal is your covenant in?  

 

After your apprenticeship you went on an adventure with another one of the PCs, one who you have not previously had a relationship with.  Who was it?  Were you out for your own gain, or to help someone else?  Describe your adventure. 

This is technically before we were gauntleted, but she and Pyrrhus had a whole adventure that I will write more about later.

 

Describe the object that you found during the adventure.  What magical power does it have?  Do your adventuring companions know about it?

During the investigation, she recovered a small icon that the diabolist maga had thrown into a cesspit. (Rego terram to the rescue!) After the trial resolved, it was agreed that she could take it along with her payment of vis. It's therefore not a secret that she has it, but she doesn't think anyone else realized that once a day, when asked a question it will indicate yes or no by nodding. It also sometimes smiles or weeps, but she hasn't yet figured out what this indicates.

 

Virtues/Flaws

Clear Thinker - You think logically and rationally. You get a +3 bonus on all rolls to resist lies, confusion, befuddlement, and subterfuge — whether magical or mundane.

Common Sense - Whenever you are about to do something contrary to what is sensible in the game setting, common sense (the storyguide) alerts you to the error. This is an excellent Virtue for a beginning player, as it legitimizes any help the storyguide may give.

Greater Immunity, Disease -You are completely immune to one hazard which is both common and potentially deadly. For example, you might be immune to fire or to iron (and only iron) weapons. You may not take immunity to aging — see the Unaging Supernatural Minor Virtue (page 50) instead. This immunity applies to mundane and magical versions of the thing. If you are immune to fire, you are also immune to magically created fire.

Second Sight - You are able to see through illusionary concealment and disguise, including invisibility, and can also see naturally invisible things such as spirits and the boundaries between regio levels (see page 189). Choosing this Virtue confers the Ability Second Sight 1 (page 67).

Self-Confident - You have firm confidence in your own abilities, and have a Confidence Score of two. You also start with five Confidence Points, rather than the usual three. (See page 19 for Confidence rules.)

Strong-Willed - You cannot easily be coerced into activities, beliefs, or feelings. You get +3 on any roll which may require strength of will.

 

Higher Purpose - Let others concern themselves with petty matters, you have a nobler goal. This purpose should be altruistic, like freeing an oppressed people or bringing peace between the Order of Hermes and society.

NoncombatantYou have no interest in combat, nor do you have any ability with it. You might be unreasonably afraid of combat, or a complete pacifist, or prone to freezing and doing nothing.

Restriction - You cannot cast spells at all under certain uncommon conditions. These might refer to your state, such as touching the earth directly or having no beard, or to the target, such as birds or glass, or to your location when you use the magic, such as on a small boat or in a storm. The Restriction also applies to effects generated by any enchanted items you create. Spells cast remain in effect even if the Restriction comes into play. Thus, if your Restriction is that you must not have a beard, you cast a spell with Year duration, and then grow a beard, the spell does not fail.

Temperate - You do not over-indulge in any sensual pleasures.

Unimaginative Learner - You have trouble figuring things out for yourself. Subtract three from rolls when you study from raw vis.

Vow - You have sworn to do something difficult, and breaking your vow is a serious matter. Example vows include never raising a weapon, never speaking, or living in poverty. If you do fail to uphold your vow, you must perform some kind of atonement, whether it be religious penance or coming to terms with your failure in some other way. Furthermore, your Confidence Score drops by one until you atone. Depending on your vow, some people may respect your dedication, giving you a good Reputation of level 1 among those people.

 

 

XP Tracking

Childhood: Native Greek to 5 (free), 45xp for Abilities: 15xp - Awareness 2, 15xp - Folk Ken 2, 5xp - Charm 1, 5xp - Guile 1, 5xp - Stealth 1

Youth: 20xp for non Magical stuff: 15xp -Latin 2, 5xp - Ride 1

Apprenticeship: 240xp for Abilities and Arts

60 Latin 5
30 intrigue 3
15 code 2
30 magic theory 3
15 parma 2
15 artes lib 2
5 civil/canon law 1
5 concentration 1
5 Philosophae 1
5 Penetration 1
14 intellego 4
2 muto 1
9 perdo 3
14 Vim 4
14 Mentem 4
2 Terram 1
240 Total XP  

Pre-Start XP: 20xp per year x 11 years = 220xp

 

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