TEXT: Sub Rosa 
  The Ars Magica Magazine 
  A Distant Lands Publication 
  www.subrosamagazine.org 
  Issue 9, February 2012 
  
  2 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Out Now and Coming Soon 
  Apprentices  
  Authors: Matt Ryan with Erik Dahl  
  Cover Artist: Grey Thornberry  
  Stock Number: AG0300 | ISBN: 1-58978-128-7 | MSRP: $19.95  
  Format: 80 pages, softcover  
  Release Date: May 2012  
  Legends of Hermes 
  Authors: Timothy Ferguson (Thomae), Mark Lawford (Conciatta), Mark Shirley 
  (Hérisson), Neil Taylor (Fortunata), Erik Tyrrell (Hermanus)  
  Cover Artist: Grey Thornberry  
  Stock Number: AG0297 | ISBN: 1-58978-121-X | MSRP: $29.95 (US)  
  Format: 144 pages, hardcover  
  Release Date: Available Now 
  The Cradle & The Crescent  
  Authors: Niall Christie, Erik Dahl, Lachie Hayes, Mark Shirley, Alex White 
  Cover Artist: Grey Thornberry  
  Stock Number: AG0298 | ISBN: 1-58978-123-6 | MSRP: 32.95  
  Format: 192 pages, hardcover  
  Release Date: Available Now 
  Hermetic Projects 
  Authors: Mark Lawford (Great Tower, Hermetic Shipyard), Richard Love (Burning City, 
  Intangible Assassin), Matt Ryan (Living Corpse, Menagerie)  
  Cover Artist: Grey Thornberry  
  Stock Number: AG0299 | ISBN: 1-58978-126-0 | MSRP: $29.95 US  
  Format: 144 pages, hardcover  
  Release Date: February 2012  
  
  3 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Contributors 
  Publisher: Distant Lands Publishing 
  Contributors: Ben McFarland, Gerald Wylie, David 
  Agnew, Mark Lawford, David Chart, Jason Brennan, 
  Niall Christie, Lachlan Hayes, James Parks 
  Cover art: Jeff Menges 
  Interior artists: Angela Taylor, Jeff Menges, Anoeska 
  Buijze, Jason Tseng, Alexandra Dopp, Kyle Cabral 
  Editor: Ben McFarland, Mark Lawford 
  Design/Layout: Alex White, Mark Lawford 
   
  Contact Sub Rosa 
  Email: subrosa@distantlandspublishing.com 
  Web: http://www.subrosamagazine.org 
  Twitter: @subrosamagazine 
  Snail mail: 
  Sub Rosa Magazine 
  C/O - Mark Lawford 
  119 Royal Sussex Crescent 
  Eastbourne, East Sussex 
  BN20 8RJ 
  England 
   
  Legal Disclaimer 
  Sub Rosa is an independent publication not affiliated with 
  Atlas Games or White Wolf Gaming Studios. Distant Lands 
  Publishing is not affiliated with Atlas Games or White Wolf. 
  Ars Magica is © Trident Inc. d/b/a Atlas Games. Ars 
  Magica, Mythic Europe, Covenants and Charting new Realms 
  of the Imagination are trademarks of Trident Inc.  
  Order of Hermes, Tremere and Doissetep are trademarks of 
  White Wolf Gaming Studios. 
  Ars Magica was created by Johnathan Tweet and Mark 
  Rein•Hagen. 
   
  The intellectual content of Sub Rosa is © and held by the 
  authors. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any issue of Sub 
  Rosa for commercial use by any means without written 
  permission from the Publisher, 
  except short excerpts for the purpose of reviews, is expressly 
  prohibited. 
   
  References to any Trademarks, Registered Trademarks or 
  Copyrights held by any company or individual in Sub Rosa is 
  for promotional and recreational use. Use of these terms 
  should not be construed a challenge to their ownership. 
   
  This issue was laid out using MS Publisher 2010 and makes 
  use of the MagicMedieval and GoodCityModern Plain fonts. 
  Tweets from the foundation of the Order:  
  verditius.com: Rings, wands, swords, and armor all enchanted to order. 
  verditius.com: Prepare your future filius for the turn of the millennium and the 
  end of the world with top-quality enchantments from House Verditius. 
  verditius.com: Need a way to express your conspicuous consumption? Call 
  now for a no obligation visit from our venditor team. Buy now for deep 
  discounts. 
  guernicusrules: @verditius.com Is all this actually above board? 
  This Issue 
  Issue 9 
  February 2012 
  Contents 
  Under the Rose  .................................................. Page 4 
  News from the Line Editor................................. Page 5 
  Storyguide’s Handbook: Covenant Building ........ Page 6 
  By Gerald Wylie 
  Companion Piece: William of Aylesbury.............. Page 16 
  By David Agnew 
  From the Journal of Vulcanis Argens ................... Page 24 
  Secrets of Arabia and Beyond ............................. Page 28 
  By Niall Christie 
  Faces of the Distant Sands ................................. Page 38 
  By Jason Brennan 
  The Lists of Solomon: Jinn Apocrypha ................ Page 44 
  By Lachlan Hayes 
  Off the Shelf ....................................................... Page 50 
  By Ben McFarland and James Parks 
  Index of Texts Mentioned in Ars Magica 5th ........ Page 59 
  By Ben McFarland and James Parks 
  Mappa Mundi ..................................................... Page 67 
  Contribute to Sub Rosa 
  Sub Rosa is made up of fan driven content. Contributors re-
  ceive a complementary copy of the issue their work appears in. 
  To contribute articles or illustrations, visit the Sub Rosa web-
  site (http://www.subrosamagazine.org) and follow the guide-
  lines. 
  Subscription 
  Individual Single Issue: 
  US$4.50 
  Individual Subscription – 4 issues: US$16 
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  Hermetic Projects: Build high for happiness. Really, there are entire sagas just waiting to be built around that book. 
  
  4 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Under The Rose 
  I’ve probably started this 
  installment of “Under the Rose” 
  three times now. You see, despite 
  having worked on every issue, 
  I’ve never gotten to write the 
  opening piece, and I want it to 
  read just right—which is probably 
  why I’ve had to start over more 
  than once. 
   
  I’m really excited to get this 
  issue out to you, and not just 
  because we’ve got so many great 
  articles complementing the recent 
  release of The Cradle and the 
  Crescent. Sure, we boast a quartet 
  of fantastic companions courtesy 
  of newcomer and playtester Jason 
  Brennon, while Ars 
  Magica 
  veteran Niall Christie offers 
  Mythic locations, story seeds, and 
  sects to fill sagas with exotic and 
  mysterious adventure in the 
  distant Mythic Middle East, and 
  Lachlan Hayes cements his 
  reputation as an authority of Jinn 
  and strange creatures. All of that 
  is great, and really the reason 
  you’re probably here. 
   
  However, that’s not all I’m 
  thrilled about in these pages. I 
  won’t lie, we’ve got a lot of great 
  art in this issue—including 
  several pieces from the generous 
  and gracious Jeff Menges, whose 
  handiwork captures a number of 
  locations and events in gorgeous 
  detail. He’s joined by Sub Rosa’s 
  artistic warhorse, Angela Taylor. 
  She continues to amaze us and 
  hopefully you, too. This time 
  around, she puts great personality 
  into not only the tales of Vulcanis 
  Argens, but also the eclectic 
  collection of Hermetic books 
  presented in our “Off the Shelf” 
  series. Combine that with the 
  beautiful turnovers from the 
  expressive Alexandra Dopp, the 
  elegant Anoeska Buijze, the bold 
  J a s o n  
  T s e n g  
  a n d  
  t h e 
  indispensable Kyle Cabral, and 
  you’ll see we barely dipped into 
  the classic woodcuts this time 
  around. 
   
  And while I absolutely love 
  p i e c e s  
  l i k e  
  t h i s  i s s u e ’ s 
  Storyguide’s Handbook, and its 
  system for simplifying and 
  speeding covenant design, or the 
  collection of books I’ve put 
  together as part of National 
  G a m e  
  D e s i g n  
  M o n t h 
  (NaGaDeMon), the real reason 
  this issue has me excited is 
  s o m e t h i n g  a  l i t t l e  m o r e 
  intangible. 
   
  This issue signifies the end of 
  Year one for Mark Lawford and 
  me in our role as managing 
  editors of Sub Rosa. Sure, it’s 
  been a little more than a year, but 
  I’m willing to spot us the month. 
  With issue #9, we show that Sub 
  Rosa is something we can 
  continue to create, distribute, and 
  share with the Ars 
  Magica 
  community, and do so repeatedly. 
  Certainly we cannot do it alone, 
  and have not. This is a labor of 
  love birthed by many hands and 
  minds, but we have shepherded it 
  along the way. I have to thank 
  Mark for being such a brilliant 
  and capable partner in the 
  process. There have been far too 
  many times where I felt like he 
  was doing more than his fair 
  share of the heavy lifting, but he 
  is a consummate professional. 
   
  Which leaves us here, with the 
  far, open road stretching out 
  before us and the promise of the 
  future. In the coming year, we’ll 
  push past issue 11, matching the 
  number of issues from Mythic 
  Perspectives and closing in on 
  Hermes Portal and its fifteen 
  issues. We want continue to offer 
  pieces like our look at previous 
  editions of Ars Magica or our 
  interviews with well-known 
  contributors to the line, like Matt 
  Ryan, Lisa Stevens, and Grey 
  Thornberry. I know both Mark 
  and I want to continue both the 
  Storyguide’s Handbook and 
  Companion Piece series as well as 
  return with at least a covenant or 
  two in 2012. I’m hoping you’ll 
  join us—not only as readers but 
  as contributors. Sub Rosa is an 
  excellent opportunity to both 
  showcase your design skills and 
  give something to the community 
  while sometimes pushing the 
  boundaries of the game with new 
  ideas and mechanics. In that 
  spirit, as one more demonstration 
  of our gratitude for your support, 
  we’re going to release the index 
  of books across Ars Magica 
  s u p p l e m e n t s  w h i c h  w e ’ v e 
  compiled as a part of this issue 
  for the community’s general use. 
  We hope you’ll find it as useful as 
  we do! 
   
  -Ben McFarland. 
  
  5 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  News From the Line Editor 
  Once again, we’ve only managed 
  to get one, maybe two, supplements 
  out since the last Sub Rosa. The 
  Cradle and the Crescent 
  is 
  the 
  sourcebook for the Mythic Middle 
  East, with jinn and sorcerers galore. 
  One aim was to make this area 
  higher fantasy than the core of 
  Mythic Europe, so that it would be 
  an interesting place for magi in a 
  “standard” saga to visit; I hope you 
  think we succeeded. 
  The other book, which I think 
  will be racing Sub Rosa for its 
  release, is Hermetic Projects. This book 
  is entirely devoted to things that do 
  not 
  exist 
  in 
  canonical 
  Mythic 
  Europe, which might seem a bit 
  strange. It is, after all, a canonical 
  supplement. However, these things 
  do not exist because no Hermetic 
  maga has yet created them. They are 
  canonically 
  possible, 
  and 
  the 
  supplement 
  aims 
  to 
  provide 
  guidelines to make it easy for your 
  characters to be the magi who finally 
  make them real. 
  This connects to one of the 
  features that most appealed to me 
  about Ars Magica back in 1988 or 
  so, when I first read it. The game 
  has always supported the creation of 
  things by the player characters, 
  which makes it somewhat unusual. 
  However, there hasn’t been a lot of 
  specific support for that. After all, 
  Hermetic magic can do just about 
  anything, and that level of choice 
  tends to be paralysing. Hermetic 
  Projects, 
  then, 
  gives 
  you 
  some 
  concrete ideas, and works them out 
  in detail so that you can see exactly 
  what a maga needs to do to achieve 
  them. If you don’t like the maths, it 
  helps out by doing a lot of the 
  calculations for you, telling you what 
  Lab Totals you need to create the 
  effects in one, two, three, or four 
  seasons. Of course, there are far 
  more possibilities for each project 
  than the ones given in the book, but 
  I hope that people will find it 
  inspiring. Best of all, it only relies on 
  basic Hermetic magic, as found in 
  the core rules, although using the 
  rules from Covenants to create a 
  specialised laboratory will often be 
  helpful. 
  The book after Hermetic Projects is 
  Apprentices. This is shorter than 
  normal (80 pages in softcover). It’s 
  also had the longest development 
  period of any Ars Magica book; the 
  authors made the original proposal 
  in October 2005. It had four rounds 
  of 
  playtest, 
  and 
  was 
  almost 
  completely rewritten after the first 
  two. It turned out that writing rules 
  for children and apprentices was 
  much, much harder than we thought. 
  One problem with the first draft 
  was that it included rules designed to 
  reinforce the background material 
  saying 
  that 
  magi 
  teach 
  their 
  apprentices one-on-one, and material 
  for use in a Hermetic school and 
  sagas 
  with 
  lots 
  of 
  apprentices 
  running around at once. The rules 
  for reinforcing one-on-one teaching 
  meant that young Gifted children 
  tended to explode with uncontrolled 
  magic when other Gifted children 
  were around. 
  These sections did not play well 
  together (rather like the exploding 
  children), 
  and 
  the 
  material 
  on 
  schools was removed. The rules for 
  explosions also got substantially 
  revised, and a small school would 
  probably work perfectly well with 
  the current rules, but the space was 
  being used for other things by that 
  point. 
  The 
  other 
  big 
  mechanical 
  problem was that apprentices need 
  to learn Hermetic Virtues. It is very 
  well established in the background 
  that magi teach Virtues to their 
  apprentices, and that apprentices 
  acquire Flaws in a similar way. 
  However, it’s also well established 
  that adult magi don’t do this. Oh, 
  and that you can start apprenticeship 
  at 15, or even in your late twenties. 
  The final system manages to be 
  simple, usable for apprentices, and 
  not usable for older magi, without 
  being arbitrary, but it took several 
  iterations to get there. 
  It also took some work to make 
  c h i l d r e n  
  p l a y a b l e  
  w i t h o u t 
  contradicting existing rules. In the 
  end, this mostly became advice on 
  types of stories, and warnings that 
  children 
  are 
  much, 
  much 
  less 
  competent than adults, and so need 
  appropriate challenges. 
  In all, it was a lot of work for the 
  authors, and I’m very grateful that 
  they stuck with the project until it 
  was ready. I really like the final 
  result; it makes me want to play an 
  apprentice. I devoutly hope that all 
  the game’s fans feel the same way. 
  By David Chart 
  
  6 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Despite a dedicated chapter on 
  the creation of covenants in the 
  core Ars Magica rulebook and 
  a n  e n t ir e  s u p p l em e n t  o n 
  supporting rules and options, 
  actually creating a covenant can 
  be a time- consuming and 
  sometimes confusing process. It 
  is also widely acknowledged to be 
  one of the most important parts 
  of playing Ars Magica, as the 
  setting and resources you decide 
  as a troupe at this stage of your 
  saga shape events throughout 
  most of the stories you play. 
  To complicate matters, there is 
  a divide between a narrativist 
  approach, which favors the needs 
  of the story and the characters 
  over a fully-defined starting 
  point, and the simulationist 
  approach that sets out a clear 
  framework within which the 
  saga’s characters operate. 
  This article provides assistance 
  in two ways. Firstly, it simplifies 
  the decisions you need to make at 
  the covenant creation stage by 
  dealing with some of the numbers 
  for you. By making some default 
  assumptions about the points 
  available at certain power levels, 
  we are able to allocate those 
  points to covenant resources 
  according to how important they 
  will be to the covenant. 
  Secondly, it applies that 
  learning to the creation of NPC 
  c o v e n a n t s ,  b a l a n c i n g  t h e 
  narrative impulse against the need 
  for some sagas to operate in a 
  sandboxed environment. The aim 
  is to provide the storyguide with 
  a framework with which to 
  quickly build out enough detail 
  that players are given enough 
  information to make their own 
  decisions with. 
  A Quick Review 
  Covenant creation rules can be 
  found both in the core ArM5 
  rulebook and in the dedicated 
  Covenants 
  supplement, which 
  contains many more Hooks, 
  Boons, resource types, and 
  options. 
  Covenant creation mixes the 
  selection of Boons and Hooks, 
  essentially Virtues and Flaws, 
  with the purchase of specific 
  resources with a pool of points 
  based upon the relative power of 
  the covenant. The Boons and 
  Hooks are fairly straight-forward 
  to select as they are pretty 
  descriptive and the ArM5 
  rulebook places more emphasis 
  on the complex purchase of 
  resources before exploring Boons 
  and Hooks. 
  This article deals only with the 
  spending of Build Points and 
  does not look at boons or hooks, 
  which are entirely down to the 
  narrative. 
  Types of Resource 
  As described in the core ArM5 
  rule book, the standard resource 
  types and their build point costs 
  are:  
   
   
  Covenants 
  The Storyguide’s Handbook:  
  Covenant Building 
  By Gerald Wylie 
  The Narrativist Agenda 
  Story is everything. Why design a library 
  full of books no character will interact 
  with? There is no point in recruiting scores 
  of specialists if they never come into play. 
  And who knows quite what direction a 
  saga is going to take? Sure, the original idea 
  may have been a nice reclusive group of 
  scholars, and you might even initially 
  design your covenant along those lines, but 
  once your troupe starts enjoying stories of 
  mundane interaction and interference, 
  most of the previously chosen resources 
  become little more than wasted time. 
  A better option includes taking a few 
  things here and there to help define your 
  covenant - perhaps an enchanted ferry in 
  which to reach the secluded island, or a 
  few books on Rego left behind by the 
  missing elder. But the rest of the details 
  can be filled in as the saga progresses. 
  Want to build your Imaginem? Sure, have 
  the book and cross off the points. Your 
  library had it all along, but it never came 
  into play until now. 
  And that's the key! Until the story needs a 
  particular specialist or object, it's nothing 
  more than set dressing, and one book 
  looks much the same as another until you 
  pick it up and read it. 
  The Seven Resource Groups 
  Resource 
  Points Cost 
  Enchanted 
  Devices 
  2 points per 5 levels 
  Laboratory 
  Texts 
  1 point per 5 levels 
  Library 
  points according to 
  book type, level, and 
  quality 
  Specialist: 
  Teacher 
  Communication + 
  Teaching + Highest 
  Ability 
  Specialist: 
  Other 
  Highest Ability 
  Vis Sources 
  5 points for every pawn 
  per year 
  Vis Stocks 
  1 point for every 5 
  pawns 
  
  7 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  The Covenants supplement 
  provides many more Boons and 
  Hooks along with additional 
  resource types to spend the Build 
  Points on. The guidelines we 
  introduce here work across either 
  rule sets that you use in your 
  game. 
  The additional resource 
  available to buy are: 
  Money 
  Laboratories: 
  Additional laboratory 
  50 points 
  Major Laboratory Virtue 20 points 
  Minor Laboratory Virtue 10 points 
  Larger Laboratory   
  Size x 20 
  points 
  These resource types represent 
  some key fundamental choices, 
  but with such broad categories 
  and a sliding scale of Build Points 
  to use, it is not clear how to 
  purchase resources to reflect a 
  given covenant’s focus. 
  Designing Your 
  Covenant 
  Using the standard walk 
  through as presented in Arm5, 
  chapter six, the troupe should 
  decide on season, power level, 
  then purchase specific resources, 
  before deciding on the hooks and 
  boons that make your covenant 
  unique. 
  Decide Your Covenant’s 
  Season 
  Season is a measure of how 
  established the covenant is. As a 
  covenant progresses through 
  Spring, Summer, Autumn, and 
  Winter, it grows in influence (if 
  not resources, as we shall see) 
  and political weight, until it starts 
  to decline. A winter covenant has 
  reached some stage of decline; it 
  is old and few consider the 
  opinions of its magi pertinent 
  anymore. Spring usually denotes 
  if not a new site, then a new set 
  of magi trying to bring new 
  Hermetic life to a place. A Spring 
  covenant can expect to ask and 
  repay many favors as it builds its 
  resources, recruits grogs and 
  specialists, and tries to establish a 
  political presence for itself. 
  Moving through Summer and 
  Autumn takes the covenant to the 
  height of its power. Frequently 
  populated by many magi and with 
  robust internal politics that 
  allows the covenant to present a 
  united front at Tribunal. Likely to 
  have been established for some 
  time, the Autumn covenant 
  should have many favors to call 
  The Simulationist Manifesto 
  These are the tools, use them as you will. 
  Defining the covenant's resources in 
  advance does two key things. Firstly, it 
  actually prompts the characters to leave 
  their covenant in search of resources they 
  haven't yet acquired. Secondly, it also 
  brings a certain verisimilitude to the table. 
  By designing the resources at the start of 
  play, a more cohesive covenant design can 
  be achieved, one more closely representing 
  the original troupe concept and driving 
  potential stories. 
  And remember, all the players (including 
  those who also act as storyguides) 
  contribute to the shared experience of 
  designing the covenant. Selected resources 
  chosen by consensus should provide 
  benefit to the player characters in roughly 
  equal measure. Once those decisions have 
  been made, players and their characters 
  must the best utilization of those tools in 
  order to solve emerging problems. 
  NPC covenants follow similar guidelines. 
  Establishing some basis of a covenant's 
  nearby resources allows the players and 
  their characters to leverage those resources 
  and makes the search for the tools they 
  need an active part of the story. Just as in 
  real life, we must often engage in 
  unexpected or unwelcome interactions in 
  order to achieve our goals, so the 
  "sandbox" approach gives the same 
  opportunity to the player characters. The 
  storyguide can't simply dismiss a situation 
  and hand out the toys, because the world 
  has been largely defined. Those predefined 
  choices more accurately model the 
  decisions and consequences we encounter 
  in our daily lives. 
  
  8 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  in and friends with which to 
  work. 
  Magi who are just out of their 
  apprenticeship easily have a role 
  across each of the four seasons, 
  though in Summer and Autumn 
  covenants at least they will likely 
  be subordinates to more senior 
  magi. While this may impose 
  some limits upon the magi, they 
  are likely to enjoy some measure 
  of protection too. 
  Decide Your Covenant’s 
  Power Level 
  Interestingly, the season is not 
  tied to any particular power level, 
  and there are story-based reasons 
  for that. It is easy to imagine a 
  very old Winter covenant having 
  faded so far that it is now a Low-
  power covenant, its resources all 
  lost or stolen, broken, decayed, 
  or so outdated as to have lost all 
  value. The core rule book also 
  defines the resource level as 
  those resources available to the 
  player characters, so a strict 
  Autumn covenant at the height of 
  its wealth may, for its own 
  reasons, restrict the resources 
  that the junior magi may access. 
  What may appear to be a high-
  powered covenant may feel like 
  low-powered to those at the foot 
  of the political ladder. 
  The power level has a direct 
  impact in the resources available, 
  at least throughout the early years 
  of the saga. 
  These levels are described on 
  ArM5, page 71 and they have 
  implications on the points 
  available to spend and the kind of 
  resources available, as shown in 
  the table below.  
  As most of these represent 
  number ranges, we take an 
  assumed number of points with 
  the intention of simplifying the 
  process. Those numbers might 
  look a little arbitrary, but as we’ll 
  see late they will help keep 
  certain numbers rounded. 
  Buying Resources 
  As the points-buy system is so 
  open, the number of points 
  available escalates quite quickly, 
  and there are a large number of 
  choices to make across the 
  resource types, it can be quite 
  daunting to make the covenant 
  you want from scratch. The 
  option we’re taking here then is 
  to provide a framework within 
  which to buy resources. This is 
  based on working out the relative 
  importance of resource types to 
  that covenant. 
   
  A Quick Example 
  A hypothetical medium-power covenant in Iberia 
  has a focus as described by the table to the right. 
   
  It clearly has a scholastic history and is likely to be 
  renowned at least in its Tribunal for the quality of 
  its library and the skill of the specialists it employs 
  to maintain it. This, and the resulting wealth, 
  probably originated in response to the poor vis 
  sources in its area. These may once have been 
  plentiful, but they are diminishing. With poor vis 
  supplies, there has perhaps been little investment 
  so far into enchanted devices and the vis earned 
  has been stockpiled rather than invested. The 
  covenant is likely to feel quite mundane, with 
  limited magic on display and numerous mundane 
  specialists in residence. 
   
  Rank 
  Group 
  Points 
  Equivalent 
  1 Library 
  280 Eight books at cost 25 each and 
  four at 20 
  2 Laboratory 
  Texts 
  240 1200 levels of spells and/or 
  enchantments 
  3 Specialists 
  200 Five proficient teachers, five 
  average teachers, and five 
  journeyman specialists 
  4 Money 
  160 1600 pounds of silver 
  5 Vis Stores 
  120 600 pawns of vis 
  6 Enchanted 
  Devices 
  80 400 levels of enchantment, 
  casting tablets, and/or 
  laboratories 
  7 Vis Supplies 
  40 8 pawns per year 
   
  Build Points Available for Resources by Rank 
  Power Level/
  Rank 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  Total 
  Points 
  Low 
  70 
  60 
  50 
  40 
  30 
  20 
  10 
  280 
  Medium 
  280 240 200 160 120 
  80 
  40 
  1120 
  High 
  560 480 400 320 240 160 
  80 
  2240 
  Legendary 
  1120 960 800 640 480 320 160 
  4480 
  Total Build Points by Covenant Level 
  Level 
  Canon Build 
  Points 
  Assumed 
  Build Points 
  Low 
  0-300 
  280 
  Medium 
  300-1250 
  1120 
  High 
  1250-2500 
  2240 
  Legendary 
  2500+ 
  4480 
  
  9 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  T h er e ar e s ev en  b r o ad 
  categories (some broader than 
  others when we factor in the 
  a d d i t i o n a l  r e s o u r c e  t y p e s 
  provided by the Covenants 
  supplement), but first let’s look at 
  the baseline covenant. 
  The Baseline 
  As described in ArM5, page 71 
  the baseline covenant has an aura 
  of 3, a laboratory for each magus, 
  one grog per magus, and two 
  other specialists for each magus 
  in the covenant. While some of 
  these resources are modified 
  through hooks and boons, most 
  are improved through spending 
  Build Points. 
  Spending Build Points 
  To work out how many points 
  are available for each resource 
  group, assign each group a unique 
  rank from 1 to 7, with 1 being the 
  most important to the covenant 
  and 7 the least. You should 
  already know your covenant’s 
  power level by now, so use the 
  table below to read off the 
  number of points available to 
  spend on each resource. 
  The table above gives you a 
  quick guide on how many points 
  to spend on each category of item 
  according to the resources 
  available to your covenant and 
  the rank you have assigned to the 
  particular resource. The numbers 
  above are based on taking the 
  assumed amount for each power 
  level (see above), so we have 
  allocated the points across the 
  seven groups. 
  Focus 
  The more points you spend in 
  something, the more focused it is 
  likely to be. Paying attention to 
  the table on ArM5, page 71 we 
  can see that only the Low and 
  Medium power covenants really 
  have restrictions on the maximum 
  level of Laboratory Text and 
  Enchantment that can be bought. 
  As we’re trying to provide a 
  strong framework we’ll decide 
  some guides for High and 
  Legendary power covenants too. 
  And as we’re talking about Build 
  Points, we’ll provide the Level 
  and Build Point cost below. 
  Laboratory Texts 
  The table below lists the levels 
  of Laboratory Texts available by 
  rank and covenant power level. 
  Enchanted Devices 
  This covers enchanted devices, 
  whether greater, lesser, or 
  charged items. Each costs 2 Build 
  Points for every five levels of 
  effect (rounded up). The device 
  level also includes all applicable 
  effect modifiers. For example, a 
  hood enchanted with Hunt for 
  the Wild Herb, normally a level 5 
  spell, would cost 3 points if the 
  effect was constant (+5 for Sun, 
  +1 for two uses per day, +3 for 
  triggered at sunrise/set for a total 
  level 14). 
   
  Maximum Lab Total / Enchantment Levels 
  Power 
  Level 
  Maximum 
  Lab. Text 
  Level / Points 
  Maximum 
  Enchantment 
  Level / Points 
  Low 
  25 / 5 points 
  25 / 10 points 
  Medium 
  40 / 8 points 
  40 / 16 points 
  High 
  60 / 12 points 
  60 / 24 points 
  Legendary 100 / 20 points 100 / 40 points 
  Levels of Laboratory Text by Rank 
  1 Build Point for every 5 levels 
  Power / 
  Rank 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  Max 
  Levels 
  Low 
  350 
  300 
  250 
  200 
  150 
  100 
  50 
  25 
  Medium 
  1400 1200 1000 
  800 
  600 
  400 
  200 
  40 
  High 
  2800 2400 2000 1600 
  1200 
  800 
  400 
  60 
  Legendary 5600 4800 4000 3200 
  2400 
  1600 
  800 
  100 
  Levels of Enchantment by Rank 
  2 Build Point for every 5 levels 
  Power / 
  Rank 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  Max 
  Levels 
  Low 
  175 
  150 
  125 
  100 
  75 
  50 
  25 
  25 
  Medium 
  700 
  600 
  500 
  400 
  300 
  200 
  100 
  40 
  High 
  1400 1200 1000 
  800 
  600 
  400 
  200 
  60 
  Legendary 2800 2400 2000 1600 
  1200 
  800 
  400 
  100 
  
  10 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  If you are also using the 
  Covenants 
  supplement, Casting 
  Tablets should also be bought 
  from this points allocation as 
  they have broadly the same 
  function and the same cost (2 
  points for every 5 levels). 
  Ad d itio n al or  en han ced 
  laboratories should also be 
  purchased alongside enchanted 
  devices and from the same 
  points. 
  The table below lists the levels 
  o f  in v es t ed  en ch an t m en t s 
  available by rank and covenant 
  power level. 
  Library 
  As the cost of different types 
  of book differs greatly 
  The tables below provide 
  useful rule-of-thumb guides to 
  the points cost of certain 
  volumes. For ease of book-
  keeping, the Art Summa levels 
  and quality go up in multiples of 
  5. A more complete table is 
  provided at the end of this 
  article. 
  Art Summa 
  Reading off the table below, a 
  Summa on an Hermetic Art of 
  Level 20 and Quality of 22 costs 
  42 Build Points. 
  Ability Summa 
  It isn’t clear whether a Level 2 
  Ability Summa is good value for 
  money where the Quality is 
  greater than 10, but this can make 
  sense for Supernatural Abilities 
  where a given character is 
  penalized by their learning in 
  other Supernatural Abilities or 
  Arts. 
  Tractatus 
  The build cost for Tractatus 
  covering either Arts or Abilities is 
  the same and as the Quality may 
  not exceed 11, the Build Point 
  cost table is rather short and 
  straight forward. 
  Vis Stores and Sources 
  Vis is bought in two ways. 
  Stores held by the covenant, i.e. 
  known pawns already collected, 
  and sources, i.e. specific sites 
  from which vis can be reliably 
  collected each year. These two 
  categories are bought through 
  different costs and from different 
  pools of points. 
  The table below shows the 
  number of pawns held in the 
  covenant’s stores at each rank for 
  each covenant power level. For 
  exam ple,  a Medium - po wer 
  covenant buying vis stocks at 
  rank 4 would have 800 pawns. 
  The table below shows the 
  number of pawns per year gained 
  at each rank for each covenant 
  power level. For example, a 
  Medium-power covenant buying 
  sources at rank 4 would gain 32 
  pawns per year. 
   
   
   
  Art Summa Costs 
  Level / 
  Quality 
  22 
  21 
  16 
  11 
  5 
  27 
  26 
  21 
  16 
  10 
  32 
  31 
  26 
  21 
  15 
  37 
  36 
  31 
  26 
  20 
  42 
  41 
  36 
  31 
  Ability Summa Costs 
  Level / 
  Quality 
  21 
  16 
  11 
  2 
  24 
  19 
  13 
  4 
  26 
  21 
  15 
  6 
  28 
  23 
  17 
  8 
  30 
  25 
  19 
  Tractatus Costs 
  Quality 
  Points 
  5 
  5 
  8 
  8 
  11 
  11 
  Vis Stocks by Rank (showing pawns) 
  1 Build Point for every 5 pawns held 
  Power / 
  Rank 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  Low 
  350 
  300 
  250 
  200 
  150 
  100 
  50 
  Medium 
  1400 1200 1000 
  800 
  600 
  400 
  200 
  High 
  2800 2400 2000 1600 
  1200 
  800 
  400 
  Legendary 
  5600 4800 4000 3200 
  2400 
  1600 
  800 
  Vis Sources by Rank (showing pawns) 
  5 Build Points for every 1 pawns per year 
  Power / 
  Rank 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  Low 
  14 
  12 
  10 
  8 
  6 
  4 
  2 
  Medium 
  56 
  48 
  40 
  32 
  24 
  16 
  8 
  High 
  112 
  96 
  80 
  64 
  48 
  32 
  16 
  Legendary 
  224 
  192 
  160 
  128 
  96 
  64 
  32 
  
  11 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Specialists 
  As with libraries, the largely 
  open-ended nature of Teacher 
  and Specialist costs (ArM5, page 
  72) does not make for an easy 
  chart. Instead, the tables below 
  represent costs firstly for 
  individual Teachers and then for 
  Specialists. 
  Bear in mind that the raw 
  numbers do not take into account 
  Virtues such as Affinities or 
  Puissant, so it is for the troupe to 
  decide how they want to include 
  these in their calculations. As a 
  rule of thumb; if the character is 
  important enough to create and 
  progress as a companion or grog 
  then they arguably fall outside of 
  this process entirely. 
  Money 
  Stocks of silver, as presented 
  in the Covenants supplement, are 
  easy enough to work out: 
  10 pounds of silver costs 1 
  build point 
  So, just multiply the Build 
  Points by ten to find your stock 
  of silver. 
  
  12 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Novel Resources 
  Future Sub Rosa articles will 
  deal with particularly novel 
  covenant resources but this 
  section provides a few early 
  examples. 
  Silver and Other 
  Mundane Resources 
  One option to make your 
  silver sound more interesting is 
  to move away from just an 
  abstract amount of wealth and 
  put it into items that matter. For 
  instance, how much is a particular 
  saddle worth? How much money 
  would a given piece of artwork 
  fetch? Your covenant may have a 
  chest of gemstones instead of 
  silver, or perhaps gold. They may 
  even possess an early work by 
  Bonisagus, of little use in learning 
  the current Magic Theory, but of 
  great worth to House Bonisagus 
  or other collectors of such things. 
  There are two key advantages 
  to thinking of money in these 
  terms. Firstly, it adds depth and 
  richness to your covenant - your 
  wealth is visible and tangible, just 
  the way it should be. And 
  secondly, it promotes if not 
  stories, then certainly background 
  events when your covenant needs 
  to release its capital. As an 
  example, we’ve all run stories 
  about grogs going to market to 
  buy supplies, and while there 
  adventure strikes. You can invert 
  that background task by having 
  t h em  t ak e  t h e  s ad d le t o 
  tournament to find a buyer; or 
  taking the gems to city to gain the 
  best price for them. 
  This also allows the value of 
  the goods to vary a little. 
  Nominally, your covenant may 
  have 100 pounds of silver 
  wrapped up in gold goblets and 
  plates and a vast tapestry, but if 
  you want to access its raw value, 
  you may be able to bargain for 
  more when selling your goods. 
  Vis and Items of Virtue 
  Extraordinary Vis 
  Similarly, the Realms of Power: 
  Magic supplement also provides 
  build point costs for the various 
  types of extraordinary vis on page 
  124. The costs given are 
  appropriate for sources that 
  regularly produce vis of that 
  extraordinary type and carrying 
  similar effects. The same section 
  also gives the points calculation 
  for extraordinary vis stocks. The 
  points are spent from the vis 
  source and vis stocks categories 
  respectively. 
  Items of Virtue 
  Items of Virtue, as described 
  in page 124, Realms of Power: Magic, 
  consist of 1 or 2 pawns of vis and 
  require a season of dedicated 
  work to bring out their quality; 
  either a Minor Virtue or a Major 
  Virtue with a Minor Flaw linked 
  to the operation or effectiveness 
  of its Virtue. Unlike for 
  Extraordinary Vis, no Build Point 
  cost is given. 
  Troupes may consider a cost 
  of 5 Build Points to be fair for an 
  item that has not yet been 
  enriched, or 10 points for one 
  that already expresses its 
  particular Virtue.  
  Exotic Magic and 
  Experimental Philosophy 
  Other magical traditions have 
  their own enchantments, devices, 
  and texts, which a starting 
  covenant might conceivably wish 
  to own, especially where the 
  t r o u p e ch ar a c t e r s  i n cl u d e 
  practitioners of exotic magic. 
  Exotic Devices 
  T y p i c a l l y ,  
  e x o t i c 
  e n c h a n t m e n t s ,  s u ch  a s  a 
  Muspelli’s Gandur (see Rival 
  Magic), are purchased with the 
  same points cost as Hermetic 
  Enchantments, i.e. 2 Build Points 
  for every 5 levels of effect the 
  device contains. 
  Storyguides may wish to 
  impose a premium on certain 
  types of device, however. For 
  instance, Verditius automatons 
  are rare and expensive and may 
  be worth more than the sum of 
  their enchantments. Similarly, a 
  Solomonic Binding (The Cradle and 
  the Crescent, page 39) may be so far 
  outside the normal range of 
  Hermetic dealings that they are 
  more expensive to purchase. In 
  these cases, assume 3 Build 
  Points for every 5 levels of effect 
  that the device contains. 
  Exotic Texts 
  Texts on Supernatural Abilities 
  or Arts should be bought as per 
  the standard Ability / Art 
  Summa / Tractatus costs. Such 
  works could be on Goetic Arts, 
  Holy Methods and Powers, or 
  some form of Hedge Magic 
  Theory. All could be valuable to a 
  covenant, either for its own 
  research or by trade with others. 
  Where a tradition makes use of 
  Laboratory Texts, they should be 
  bought from the same pool as 
  Hermetic Laboratory Texts and 
  with the same value, i.e. 1 Build 
  Point for every 5 levels of effect. 
  GG  
  iven the breakdown of Build Points into 
  iven the breakdown of Build Points into 
  ranked areas, it shouldn’t be too time
  ranked areas, it shouldn’t be too time--
  consuming to work out how many books 
  consuming to work out how many books 
  your library contains, or how many devices 
  your library contains, or how many devices 
  your armory houses
  your armory houses  
  
  13 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Relics 
  T h e  
  C h u r c h  s u p p l e m e n t 
  provides a points-based build 
  system for chapels, churches, and 
  cathedrals, which looks very 
  s im il ar  t o  t h at  u s ed  f o r 
  covenants. Of particular interest 
  is the cost for relics. There is no 
  reason that a covenant might not 
  have one or more relics. In fact, 
  any covenant with a chapel 
  almost certainly possesses at least 
  one. 
  Page 49 of the supplement 
  provides the details, but relics are 
  bought based on their Faith Score 
  + 5 points for every power 
  beyond those normally possessed 
  by relics. The base cost is 
  appropriate for churches, but 
  should be higher for covenants. 
  This is represented in the nearby 
  table.  
   
   
  Relic Build Cost:  
  Cost of Faith Score 
  + 5 per Additional Power 
  These points should be spent 
  from the pool set aside for 
  enchanted items. 
  Experimental Philosophy 
  T h e  
  A r t  
  &  
  A c a d e m e 
  supplement introduces Formulae, 
  w h i c h  a r e  t h e  f r u i t s  o f 
  philosophical endeavor that allow 
  the philosopher to alter the world 
  around him in wondrous, though 
  entirely natural means. These 
  formulae are learned through the 
  study of the associated Academic 
  Ability; Artes Liberales, Medicine, 
  or Philosophiae. 
  Any character learned in these 
  Academic Abilities can make use 
  o f  f o r m u l a e  ( a s s u m i n g  a 
  laboratory is available). 
  Formulae are written down in 
  the form of a laboratory text. 
  Unlike the texts used by Hermetic 
  magi for the invention of devices, 
  the experimental philosopher 
  must learn the formula before 
  attempting to use it. For this 
  reason, these laboratory texts are 
  distributed in the form of 
  tractatus on the associated 
  Academic Ability with a Quality 
  of at least 5 (being the number of 
  experience points that must be 
  gained to learn the formula). 
  Each formula has a level, much as 
  a spell has, and this translates 
  into a Build Point cost equal to 
  half that level. This must be paid 
  in addition to the cost of the 
  tractatus itself. 
  The troupe can make a call on 
  whether the points should be 
  drawn from those available for 
  laboratory texts or those put 
  aside for the library. Either of 
  those would be appropriate.  
  Formulae Build Points: 
  (Formula Level / 2) + 
  Tractatus Quality 
  Provisioning a laboratory for 
  an experimental philosopher 
  costs the same as any other 
  additional laboratory space and 
  should be paid for in the normal 
  way. 
  Supernatural Creatures 
  and Unusual Magic 
  A difficult category this one. 
  On the face of it, a supernatural 
  creature might not be considered 
  a resource. Indeed, when we look 
  at the covenant Hooks and Boons 
  (and laboratory Virtues and 
  Flaws) we can see supernatural 
  creatures listed as side-effects of 
  taking a particular Hook, Boon, 
  Virtue, or Flaw. It may be 
  appropriate however to assign a 
  cost to particular creatures to 
  represent their utility to the 
  covenant and its inhabitants. 
  A s  a  r u l e  o f  t h u m b , 
  supernatural entities that are 
  closely associated with the 
  covenant have a build cost of five 
  times their Might Score. Where 
  theses points come from can be a 
  matter of negotiation within the 
  troupe. For the most part, given 
  that such creatures likely have 
  powers that are put to the 
  covenant’s use, they should be 
  treated as enchanted items. 
  However, an ever-watchful spirit 
  that patrols the castle walls at 
  night might be classed a specialist 
  as it’s not really doing anything 
  that a normal guard might do, 
  he’s just able to do it a little 
  better than most. 
  Build Cost for a 
  Supernatural Entity: 
  Might Score x 5 
  Gaining a Reputation 
  While covenants do not have 
  reputations per se, it is useful to 
  give them a little character based 
  up their particular focus. 
  Assuming you’re using the 
  guidelines above to determine a 
  covenant’s focus, give the 
  cov en an t a level 3  good 
  Reputation against their highest 
  ranked focus and a level 3 bad 
  Reputation against their lowest 
  ranked focus. These should apply 
  at least to their Tribunal, though 
  Legendary covenants should be 
  known across the Order. 
  If we look at our Iberian 
  covenant example again, we 
  should give the covenant the 
  following reputations. 
  Excellent Library 3 (Iberian 
  Tribunal) 
  Relic Cost 
  Faith Score 
  Church 
  Build Point 
  Cost 
  Covenant 
  Build Point 
  Cost 
  1 
  1 
  5 
  2 
  3 
  15 
  3 
  6 
  30 
  4 
  10 
  50 
  5 
  15 
  75 
  
  14 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Poor Vis Supplies 3 (Iberian 
  Tribunal) 
  You can see, even without 
  defining what the library and 
  supplies look like, players and 
  characters alike can immediately 
  r e a d  
  o p p o r t u n i t i e s  
  a n d 
  weaknesses into the covenant. 
  Know Your Options 
  The sections above give you 
  some guidance on how to split up 
  your Build Points and even how 
  to spend them within certain 
  boundaries. However, there is no 
  obligation to spend every last 
  Build Point from the outset.  
  Design Everything In 
  Advance 
  There are so many example 
  spells and enchanted devices 
  described throughout the Fifth 
  Edition canon that even if you 
  didn’t want to design every book, 
  vis source, or device yourself you 
  can quite easily fill a score of 
  covenants. 
  But given the breakdown of 
  Build Points into ranked areas, it 
  shouldn’t be too time-consuming 
  to work out how many books 
  your library contains, or how 
  many devices your armory 
  houses. If this is the troupe 
  covenant, assigning responsibility 
  (at least for a first draft) for a 
  given focus to a given player 
  shortens the time it takes to 
  populate the covenant. You could 
  certainly spend all the Build 
  Points up front if you wanted to. 
  Design On Demand 
  The opposite end of the 
  spectrum is that you just get on 
  with playing. You know where 
  your covenant’s focus is so you 
  know how many Build Points are 
  available for each type of 
  resource so you could start 
  playing and fill in the specifics as 
  the players arrive at them. 
  Doing this allows you to get 
  on and play, but at the cost of 
  perhaps disengaging the players 
  from their covenant; they haven’t 
  made it their own yet. 
  Design The Key Elements 
  A decent balance may be to 
  take the design process only as 
  far as you need to get a handle on 
  the covenant and its resources. If 
  your Legendary covenant focuses 
  on Enchanted Devices (that’s 
  2800 levels of enchantment) then 
  you may not want to design all of 
  those devices right now. Instead, 
  work o ut what the most 
  important items are; design your 
  “big ticket” devices up front. 
  These set the identity and scope 
  of the covenant while leaving lots 
  of minor devices that can be 
  designed as and when the need 
  dictates (if you have a Legendary 
  covenant focusing in Enchanted 
  Devices, it’s fair to assume that 
  they have what you need). 
  NPC Covenants: 
  Know your Neighbor 
  It isn’t just the player 
  covenant that needs some flesh 
  on its bones. Their neighbors and 
  other covenants also have 
  resources that may come into 
  play, either by the narrativist 
  c 
  reating a covenant can sometimes be a 
  reating a covenant can sometimes be a 
  confusing process. But it is one of the most 
  confusing process. But it is one of the most 
  important parts of playing Ars Magica
  important parts of playing Ars Magica  
  
  15 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  approach of simply picking a 
  covenant for a particular story, or 
  by simulationist happenstance 
  that a particular neighbor has a 
  particular resource. 
  In this context, knowing your 
  neighbor is not about finding out 
  who lives there; how many magi, 
  how many apprentices, or what 
  their particular focus may be. 
  This is about knowing what kind 
  of resources they have at their 
  disposal. As a storyguide you 
  need to balance the needs of your 
  saga with the need to be flexible 
  and respond to the needs of any 
  given story. What you don’t want 
  to do is spend all your time 
  creating lists of resources across 
  all the covenants in your chosen 
  Tribunal only to find that you’ve 
  painted yourself into a corner. 
  No covenant is ever going to 
  be completely transparent - there 
  will always be something to 
  discover - but by working out 
  some limited details, certainly 
  about the covenants that your 
  players are most likely to interact 
  with, you give the players 
  concrete opportunities. 
  The table provides some 
  important information. Start with 
  the Distance from the Covenant. 
  This is not simply measured in 
  miles, but also takes account of 
  interaction. Take for instance a 
  S t o n e h e n g e  c o v e n a n t .  I t 
  frequently buys fine silks from an 
  Iberian covenant and even 
  maintains correspondence with 
  two of its magi. Despite the 
  distance, the covenants may feel 
  quite close. Contrast to an insular 
  covenant across the border in 
  Loch Leaglean, more interested in 
  mundane affairs than Hermetic. 
  Whatever the player characters 
  know of this covenant comes 
  from distant rumor and hearsay. 
  Chapter houses, or other similarly 
  related covenants should be 
  considered Close, given their 
  political proximity. All others 
  should start at Near and move 
  outward. 
  The second column, ranks, is 
  the order in which their points 
  are spent. Just as with the player 
  covenant, NPC covenants can be 
  represented as having a focus on 
  particular areas. The closer any 
  two covenants are, the more 
  about each others’ specialties they 
  are likely to know. This provides 
  the information to the character. 
  So the first five ranks of focus 
  are known for a Near covenant, 
  and only the first one rank for 
  distant covenants. Others may be 
  guessed at, for instance. Consider 
  Verdi, until recently the Domus 
  Magna of House Verditius. As a 
  distant covenant, most know that 
  it has a focus on enchantments. 
  Those a little nearer know it has a 
  vast store of laboratory texts and 
  specialist craftsmen, and those 
  closer still also know about its 
  u n a s h a m e d  w e a l t h ,  b o t h 
  monetary and magical. 
  The percentage figure is a 
  guide to what you might want to 
  generate (or at least consider) 
  ahead of the players interacting 
  with the covenant’s primary 
  focus. Even for those Immediate 
  covenants, there is probably little 
  value in creating every single 
  resource across all categories. 
  Working out a percentage of 
  interesting items, or income 
  sources, or specialists, or notable 
  b o o k s  a c c o r d i n g  t o  t h e 
  covenant’s principle focus is 
  usually going to be sufficient. If 
  you find that the covenant grows 
  in importance to the saga, you 
  can complete the job. This value 
  is also going to be about the 
  maximum that the NPC covenant 
  is going to be likely to expose, 
  lend, or share with outsiders. For 
  instance, as a distant Legendary 
  covenant with a focus on 
  enchanted devices (2800 levels), 
  the storyguide may want to design 
  140 levels of enchantments to 
  raise some interest in Verdi. 
  The Order of Hermes Lore 
  Ease Factor is simply a guide for 
  players who want to recall or 
  research more about a given 
  covenant’s resources; the more 
  distant the covenant the more 
  difficult it is to discover things 
  with any certainty. 
  What Next? 
  You’ve worked out the 
  covenant power level, you’ve 
  worked out the Build Points 
  you’re going to spend against 
  each resource category, but what 
  now? What is there to help 
  actually spend those points 
  quickly, sensibly, and effectively? 
  Well, elsewhere in this issue 
  you’ll find material on adding 
  historical books to your library, 
  including game statistics, and on 
  using them as hooks for your 
  stories. 
  Future articles will do the 
  same for enchanted devices, 
  laboratory texts, vis sources, and 
  more. 
  Limits on Knowledge of Other Covenants 
  Distance from 
  Covenant 
  Ranks Known % of what might 
  be known 
  Order of Hermes 
  Lore Ease Factor 
  Close 
  5 
  50% 
  9 
  Near 
  3 
  25% 
  12 
  Far 
  2 
  10% 
  18 
  Remote 
  1 
  5% 
  21 
  
  16 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  The Companion Piece series 
  provides detailed characters ideal for 
  use either as companions to 
  individual magi or as associates to 
  entire covenants. The last article in 
  this series looked at a knight making 
  his way in the world through success 
  at the tourney. He was embroiled in 
  courtly politics and served as an entry 
  point for his associated magi into the 
  world of the ruling nobility. 
  While remaining with a knightly 
  theme, this article takes a different 
  approach. William of Aylesbury is a 
  pious knight devoted to the saints and 
  perhaps, should you choose, destined 
  for a life in Holy Orders. He 
  dedicates his martial prowess to 
  God’s work and his strong devotion 
  to the saints and his friendship with 
  magi help the covenant cross the gap 
  between the magical and the Divine. 
  William of Aylesbury 
  Loving son and loyal brother, 
  William of Aylesbury is a good knight 
  and a decent man. The eldest of three 
  siblings, he should one day inherit his 
  father’s lands. But he has given little 
  thought to owning or managing land 
  as he believes he has a higher calling. 
  Always a man of faith, William 
  feels the effects of the Dominion on 
  himself most keenly; from the relic he 
  carries to the gift of absolution he 
  receives through the power of 
  confession and the Mass in which he 
  participates. All these things 
  demonstrate God is watching and 
  that God is the truest sword and 
  shield William could have. Given the 
  strength of his piety, the scion of 
  Aylesbury sees the need to serve God, 
  rather than become a landowner 
  given to feuding with neighbors or 
  preparing for the lean years. 
  William accepts the miracles of 
  God and Creation and finds it easy to 
  reconcile the presence and use of 
  magic in the world, which is why he 
  ultimately becomes comfortable 
  calling magi friends. For him, it is 
  Companion Piece: 
  William of Aylesbury 
  By David Agnew 
  
  17 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  clear God created all things, and thus 
  magic ultimately has a Divine source. 
  His piety and bravery are 
  tempered with the humility befitting a 
  knight in the service of God. He is 
  slow to anger, but he can become 
  frustrated very quickly and has little 
  tolerance for trickery or mockery. 
  Saint Edmund 
  Edmund the Martyr was a ninth-
  century Anglo-Saxon king who 
  fought to repel the Danish Viking 
  raiders from his lands. Betrayed by a 
  newly-wed couple who spotted him 
  after one such battle under a bridge 
  near Hoxne, he was captured and 
  tortured in an attempt to make him 
  deny his faith in Christ. He was tied 
  to a pole or a tree and archers shot 
  arrows into him. Despite the terrible 
  wounds, he would not give up his 
  faith. Ultimately, having survived the 
  arrows, the Danes had his head struck 
  from his neck, whereupon his soul 
  was released to heaven. 
  Miraculously, his head, having 
  been tossed deep into the wood, 
  continued to call out to Edmund’s 
  friends. Following his voice, they 
  found his head between the paws of a 
  wolf, sent by God to stand guard over 
  it. His friends took the head back to 
  his body, accompanied as far as town 
  by the wolf, and buried both head and 
  body together. 
  Years later, when Edmund’s body 
  was to be moved, they found every 
  arrow wound healed, the flesh still 
  soft and pliant, and the head 
  reattached to the body with only a 
  thin red line the only evidence of the 
  prior trauma. 
  Companion Material 
  At the start of play, William does 
  not have True Faith, nor does he use 
  Holy Methods & Powers. He is, 
  however, pious and devoted to the 
  Church and a number of saints. His 
  piety offers opportunities to pray for 
  divine intervention, to petition saints, 
  to participate in pilgrimage stories, 
  and to engage with the ecclesiastical 
  world—all opportunities frequently 
  denied to magi. 
  Also notably, with so many ArM5 
  supplements vying for attention, 
  William provides a focused way of 
  utilizing Realms of Power: The Divine and 
  The Church. 
  William of Aylesbury 
  William’s strengths lay in his Presence and Communication, 
  which supplements his natural charm. 
  Characteristics: Int 0, Per 0, Pre +1, Com +2, Str +1, Sta +1, 
  Dex +1, Qik 0 
  Size: 0 
  Age: 23 (23) 
  Decrepitude: 0 
  Warping Score: 0 (0) 
  Confidence: 1 (3) 
  Virtues and Flaws: Knight; Educated, Inspirational, Puissant 
  Charm, Relic; Pious; Heir, No Sense of Direction 
  Personality Traits: Pious +3, Brave +2, Humble +1 
  Devotions: Saint Edmund +1, Saint George +1, The Holy 
  Mother +1 
  Combat:  
  Dodge: Init -2, Attack N/A, Defense +3, Damage N/A 
  Fist: Init -2, Attack +5, Defense +4, Damage +1 
  Kick: Init -3, Attack +4, Defense +2, Damage +4 
  Dagger: Init -2, Attack +6, Defense +3, Damage +4 
  Long Sword & Heater Shield: Init +0, Attack +10, Defense +9, 
  Damage +7 
  Long Sword & Heater Shield (mounted): Init +0, Attack +13, 
  Defense +12, Damage +7 
  Lance (mounted): Init +0, Attack +12, Defense +7, Damage +6 
  Soak: +10 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-5), -3 (6-10), -5 (11-15), Incapacitated 
  (16-20), Dead (21+) 
  Abilities: Area Lore: The Holy Land 1 (politics), Area Lore: 
  England 2 (personalities), Artes Liberales 1 (rhetoric), Athletics 2 
  (running), Brawl 3 (Fist), Carouse 1 (staying sober), Charm 3+2 
  (invoking saints), Church Lore 3 (petitions), Civil and Canon Law 
  1 (as applies to England), English 5 (poetry), Etiquette 2 (the 
  church), Folk Ken 2 (clergy), Hunt 3 (stag), Intrigue 2 (alliances), 
  Latin 4 (church ceremonies), Leadership 2 (in combat), Ride 3 
  (battle), Single Weapon 4 (Shield, Heater), Theology 1 (biblical 
  knowledge) 
  Equipment: Full Chain Mail, Heater Shield, Long Sword, 
  Dagger, Traveling Cloak 
  Encumbrance: 3 (4) 
  Appearance: William starts as a handsome and athletic young 
  man with even and symmetric features, a cleanly-shaved face, and 
  blonde hair kept short or even shaved for holy days. When not 
  armored, he wears simple rough-spun woolen clothing or muted 
  colors. He is not a member of lay clergy and so does not wear a 
  habit or similar, but he adheres to a simple life and shuns 
  ostentatious clothing. 
   
  You should note that the block above includes entries for his 
  Devotions, a mechanic introduced in The Church, and an 
  important tool in effectively using this character. 
   
  Equipment and Resources 
  William has all the trappings expected of a 
  knight including his arms and armor, three 
  horses, and sufficient funds to see him 
  from tournament to tournament. 
  
  18 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Divine Intervention 
  Magi research their spells, hedge 
  wizards brew their potions and 
  charms, and even the secret diabolist 
  gets to summon, control, and dispose 
  of supernatural resources. In their 
  place, William keeps a deep, faithful 
  connection with the Divine. 
  While William lacks the True Faith 
  virtue, he steadfastly prays for 
  miracles as per the rules in Realms of 
  Power: The Divine (page 60), as he 
  possesses a relic associated with 
  Edmund. To be effective though, the 
  player needs to invest experience in 
  building his Concentration Ability. 
  William can invoke God’s aid 
  directly as per the rules in Realms of 
  Power: The Divine (page 41). Again, at 
  the start of play, his lack of Dominion 
  Lore limits his effectiveness, but 
  experience easily remedies this 
  deficiency. 
  Lastly, William’s devotion to a 
  number of saints makes him able to 
  invoke the aid of saints, as per the 
  rules in Realms of Power: The Divine 
  (page 87). His good Communication 
  (+2), Puissant Charm, and Charm 
  specialty in invoking saints (for an 
  effective score of +6) means that he 
  has a base of +8 before any other 
  modifiers (for the aura, the relic he 
  carries, any donations he makes, etc.) 
  or the roll is taken into account. 
  Given the Ease Factor of 15, these 
  are pretty goods odds his invocation 
  will be met favorably. 
  Pilgrimage and the Holy 
  Land 
  A pious character can be used to 
  introduce pilgrimage storylines, which 
  offers the chance for stories away 
  from the covenant’s local area, 
  potentially bringing in other 
  supplements not normally used for 
  their background information. 
  It also allows the troupe to play 
  Saint Edmund 
  Patron saint of England, the English, East Anglia, County of 
  Suffolk, English Kings, Bury St Edmunds Abbey & Town 
  Suffolk, Wolves, Invoked against Pagans, Danes, Plagues, 
  Torture. 
  Divine Might: 50 
  Areas of Veneration: Stonehenge Tribunal, Provence Tribunal, 
  Normandy Tribunal, Hibernian Tribunal (Normans); relics: Bury 
  St Edmunds Abbey, Suffolk England; churches throughout 
  England also Douai Abbey, Toulouse. 
  Feast: 20th November 
  Personality Traits: Pious +6, Vigorous +2, Regal +2 
  Powers: Apparition, Bestow Fertility, Curse of Ill Fortune, Faithful 
  Wolf, Paralyze Thieves, Rebuke the Unfaithful, The Faithful Made Whole, 
  The Incombustible Shroud. 
  New Powers 
  Bestow Fertility, 3 points, Init +2, Corpus. This power must be 
  petitioned for by leading a white bull on a halter through the 
  streets of Bury St Edmunds, in a solemn procession with the 
  monks. It renders one woman extremely fertile and able to give 
  birth to a healthy child, assuming she is impregnated in the 
  normal manner by her husband that day. (Based on guidelines in 
  Ancient Magic, page56) 
  Curse of Ill Fortune, 4 points, Init -2. Mentem. A couple effected by 
  this curse fall to quarrelling, and there ever after suffer 7 botch 
  dice on any activity performed together, dooming their 
  relationship to last a very short time. This curse only ever effects 
  newly weds crossing Hoxne Bridge who have betrayed their liege 
  or other legitimate authorities, engaged in treason or false oaths, 
  and as such has a rather limited application, fortunately. 
  Faithful Wolf, 3 points, Init -1, Animal. Causes a wolf to became 
  tame and passive, and protect the petitioner and act much as a 
  loyal dog would, becoming in essence an Animal Companion. 
  This power even effects magical and faerie wolves. 
  Paralyse Thieves, 5 points, Init +0, Corpus. A structure where the 
  saints Power has been invoked is warded against thieves, and any 
  trying to break in become paralyzed once inside, unable to move 
  till dawn and trapped in the position they stand in, their guilt 
  obvious. 
  The Intercession of Saints 
  The player of a character to devoted to a saint may be tempted to 
  rely upon that saint rather more than is perhaps seemly. On 
  occasion, this may result in trying to ask the saint for outright 
  guidance or advice. So how should the storyguide respond? 
  Firstly, ensure that all rolls relating to saints are done by the 
  storyguide rather than the player. It is often important to 
  maintain an element of doubt so that the character continues to 
  act in good faith, rather than the character’s behavior be driven 
  by player knowledge of the game mechanics and the outcome of 
  a die roll. 
  Secondly, while the core book specifies that the saint will use one 
  of its specific powers, there will be a tendency for players to 
  stretch the definitions a little. Allow this. Or rather, work with 
  the principle that the saint may not be fully known or knowable. 
  After all, a character praying for guidance or aid may not be 
  thinking of a particular power, just that he is in need of divine 
  aid. If, as storyguide, you need to be firm that the saint has no 
  remit to intervene, you should also help the player find another 
  option. 
  Thirdly, the saint’s help doesn’t need to be obvious and saints 
  can work through the actions of others. The release of a family 
  member could be by divine teleportation, or it could be through 
  a kind-hearted guard who sees the error in his master’s ways. 
  And lastly, obtaining guidance from a saint doesn’t mean that the 
  storyguide needs to give the game away. When a player character 
  looks for guidance on which path or course of action to choose, 
  allow the player to make the choice based on whatever 
  miraculous omen you decide to throw in. While the player has 
  made the choice alone, the character has interpreted the omen 
  and taken the correct path, so temper events in the character’s 
  favor. If you have the opportunity, do something that illustrates 
  how bad the other path could have been in order to heighten the 
  contrast. 
  
  19 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  with the usual group dynamic; if 
  companions usually play second 
  fiddle, the pilgrimage elevates the 
  importance of their role, given the 
  need to interact with a host of 
  mundane people along the way. 
  Pilgrimage itself also offers a 
  different means of character 
  advancement, expanding the 
  character’s options beyond simply 
  putting experience into Abilities. 
  The Church and Holy Orders 
  Holy Orders and their relationship 
  to the Church is a wide and complex 
  topic, more so when considering their 
  attitudes and relationships with the 
  Order of Hermes. Including a 
  character with aspirations of joining 
  or advancing within a Holy Order of 
  knights provides story potential for 
  the players and political opportunities 
  for the covenant. 
  Over time, the character focused 
  on such growth may rise in rank 
  within his chosen order of knights 
  and bring the saga, the character, and 
  the character’s allies closer to those 
  with significant political power. Such 
  a character must make hard decisions 
  and show leadership in difficult 
  situations where what he considers 
  the right and just path may conflict 
  with the path being taken by his 
  seniors. 
  Advancing William 
  There are two principle means of 
  advancing William during play—
  experience and pilgrimage. 
  Experience 
  William must advance a number 
  of Abilities in order to fulfill his role 
  as bridge between the Church or Holy 
  Orders and the Order of Hermes. 
  These Abilities include: 
  Area Lore 
  To gain authority, 
  William must learn more about a 
  given region. 
  Charm  
  U s e d  
  w h e n 
  invoking a saint’s aid, Charm is 
  essential to William. 
  Church Lore 
  This serves as the 
  default Organization Lore providing 
  William insight into the structure and 
  workings of the Church. 
  Dominion Lore As an Arcane 
  Ability, William cannot take this at 
  character creation. However, it is 
  important for invoking God’s aid, as 
  per Realms of Power: The Divine (page 
  41). 
  Etiquette 
  W i l l i a m  w i l l 
  interact with influential members of 
  the Church and nobility. 
  Intrigue  
  A u t h o r i t y 
  demands understanding of the means 
  and motives of politics. 
  Languages 
  While fluent in 
  Latin, it behoves William to learn 
  another common language, such as 
  French. 
  Leadership 
  He cannot hope 
  to command those subordinate to 
  him or exercise sound military 
  reasoning without Leadership. 
  Organization Lore If William is 
  accepted into a Holy Order, he must 
  learn about their structure to advance 
  in rank. 
  Theology 
  He must capably 
  participate in theological discussions, 
  as his enemies may try to cast a lack 
  of theological rigour in a dangerous 
  light. 
  William’s martial or more athletic 
  Abilities remain notably absent from 
  the list above. His advancement 
  comes from increasing his influence 
  within the Church and its associated 
  organizations. With only so many 
  experience points available, his softer 
  skills demand priority. 
  For those interested in combat 
  capability, remember William has 
  access to Faith Points and can pray 
  for Divine aid, both of which can be 
  spent to increase combat totals, 
  The new seasonal activity of 
  Worship (The Church, page 27) 
  provides a source quality equal to the 
  site’s Dominion aura, which can be 
  s p e n t  
  o n  
  C h u r c h  
  L o r e , 
  Concentration, Music, or other 
  Divine-associated Arts or Abilities. 
  Page 14 of The Church also describes a 
  number of activities generating 
  experience possibly spent towards 
  improving Devotions. A number of 
  these also grant additional exposure 
  experience points possibly spent on 
  other Church-related Abilities. 
  Gaining Virtues through 
  Pilgrimage 
  The rules governing pilgrimages in 
  The Church can be leveraged to give 
  William additional Virtues during 
  play. Remember Puissant (Ability) is a 
  Minor Virtue, requiring a Pilgrimage 
  Total of just 18 (see The Church, page 
  15). 
  For example, a minor pilgrimage 
  taking place over a single season (+3), 
  involving travel to another Christian 
  country (+3), encountering plague or 
  pestilence on the way (+3), facing a 
  trial of temptation (+3), and battling 
  mundane bandits (+6), is enough to 
  grant a Minor Virtue. As a story, it is 
  likely to play out across a single 
  session and multiple characters could 
  undertake the same pilgrimage with 
  William for their own ends. Consider 
  any of the stories presented in Sub 
  Rosa issue 8, “Way of St. James,” as 
  several of the story options presented 
  there begin with Pilgrimage totals of 
  18 and the path to Santiago de 
  Compostela was second only to 
  Rome or Jerusalem. 
  It may be useful to undertake a 
  number of these smaller pilgrimages 
  throughout William’s life in order to 
  gain Puissant (Ability) across a 
  number of Abilities to give these a 
  welcome boost. 
  Introducing William 
  to the Covenant 
  If you wish to introduce William 
  later in your saga, here are a few ideas: 
  William’s favorable disposition 
  towards the Order may actually come 
  
  20 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  from his father. Perhaps the child was 
  tutored at the covenant or by one of 
  the magi for a short time. With 
  William now knighted and returned 
  home, he is keen to resume former 
  friendships with magi and covenfolk 
  alike. And of course, on his return, 
  there is a mystery surrounding a local 
  churchman and suspicion aimed at 
  the covenant. Perhaps William could 
  help. 
  When William’s father fell sick, he 
  came back to tend to him and his 
  family. He prayed for aid for his ailing 
  father and received a sign guiding him 
  to the covenant. Distrusting at first, 
  he soon learns that the covenant is a 
  place of learning, not evil, and that 
  they may in fact hold the answer to 
  his father’s cure. If the magi help him, 
  he will be their most loyal friend in all 
  the years to come. 
  The covenant hears of a young 
  man who claims to have called upon 
  Divine aid to protect his father’s 
  manor from thieves. The thief was 
  apparently found paralyzed at sunrise, 
  unable to explain why he had one leg 
  in the window of William’s father’s 
  locked stable. Hardly notable, except 
  that a very similar thing has just been 
  discovered at the covenant. If this this 
  is the same phenomenon, who did it 
  and why? Perhaps this William of 
  Aylesbury can help. 
  Stories for William 
  William is engaged on a path 
  which ultimately removes him from 
  his mundane family and inheritance 
  and involving him ever-closer with 
  the business of the Holy Orders. 
  Early stories should reflect his 
  mundane connections, including his 
  separation from them, while later 
  stories should reflect his growing 
  influence and authority within the 
  Church’s wider structure. 
  It is important to note that 
  throughout William’s journey, he 
  should remain a friend to the 
  covenant. If words come between 
  them, he should always remember the 
  times they had and while paths may 
  diverge he should always be well-
  inclined to the covenant. 
  Family Matters 
  There is no denying the ties 
  binding William and his family are 
  designed to present challenges 
  through the early years of play. 
  His Sister’s Marriage 
  As the elder brother, William is 
  likely to be consulted on Belinda’s 
  marriage. How does he choose 
  between two suitors? One carries 
  wealth and can provide for Belinda 
  and her future children, but the other 
  is a younger son of a distant baron, 
  given to the tournament and jousting. 
  The choice would seem clear, but is 
  the true measure in the character of 
  the men? Would William rather hand 
  his sister to the arrogant and ungodly 
  landowner, or the dreamer with 
  honorable, chivalric ideals? 
  The Death of His Father 
  When William’s father dies, 
  William finds himself the natural 
  inheritor. If the moment has been 
  prepared for, however, the father and 
  the son may have discussed the 
  inheritance and a charter may provide 
  for Robert in preference to William. 
  The story might span Godric’s failing 
  health, the preparing of the charter, 
  and its subsequent disappearance 
  after Godric’s death. Thomas may 
  then produce a charter showing that 
  all of Godric’s lands go to Alice, with 
  Thomas acting as her guardian. How 
  can William prove the charter a 
  forgery, especially given Robert 
  appears to have signed it too? 
  The Death of His Brother 
  Although Robert finally secured 
  Godric’s lands, Thomas is not done 
  with them. After Robert dies 
  childless, William is faced with 
  fighting to regain Godric’s lands or 
  seeing his uncle take them. Who can 
  he engage to help him and what 
  promises does he make? 
  If he chooses to release the lands, 
  his brother’s tenants come to William, 
  voicing their concerns about Thomas. 
  Does William have the right to 
  intervene? And if so, can he exercise 
  his influence within the Church to 
  dispossess Thomas and ensure the 
  well-being of the land’s tenants? 
  As an additional concern, the story 
  could take on a different tenor if 
  Alice yet lives; what rights does she 
  have and how does William secure 
  her future? 
  William’s Family 
  William’s family provides important 
  background characters easily used to 
  round out William’s narrative within the 
  saga. 
  At William’s introduction, he has a father, 
  mother, younger brother, and younger 
  sister, along with a maternal uncle. Each 
  of these characters easily serves as either 
  background material or hooks for later 
  stories. 
  Father  
  Godric 
  Mother 
  Alice 
  Brother 
  Robert 
  Sister  
  Belinda 
  Uncle  
  Thomas Wallingford 
  Godric’s likely death during the saga 
  means William inherits his father’s lands. 
  If William is devoted to another path, he 
  needs to consider how to manage those 
  lands and provide for his mother’s well-
  being. 
  Belinda requires either a place in a 
  nunnery or a husband, and William’s 
  brother Robert may make rash, politically-
  motivated promises unpopular with the 
  rest of the family. 
  William’s maternal uncle plays a wildcard 
  role. Thomas offers a method to 
  introduce other family members or family 
  politics as needed, and quite possibly both 
  at once. He could be a grasping robber 
  baron sniffing around Godric’s lands, or a 
  wise counselor guiding William where 
  Godric cannot. Easily be developed in any 
  direction, Thomas might even be a 
  member of the Order of Hermes, should 
  it suit the saga. 
  
  21 
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  22 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Pilgrimage Stories 
  As already discussed, pilgrimages 
  are an important factor in playing 
  William. To gain the mechanical 
  benefits (i.e. the additional Virtues, 
  remove Flaws, etc.) these pilgrimages 
  need to be played out as stories within 
  your saga and should not happen “off 
  camera”. 
  Notable 
  pilgrimages 
  for 
  William will include: 
  Bury St Edmunds, where St 
  Edmund’s relics are interred 
  Hoxne in Suffolk, where the tree 
  that St Edmund was tied to still 
  stands. Wood from its branches may 
  serve as relics and the wolf may roam 
  the nearby forests. 
  Canterbury, as the preeminent 
  site of Christian authority in England 
  Rome, as one of the most famous 
  and popular pilgrimage routes 
  Santiago de Compostela, as 
  another of the great pilgrimage routes 
  Jerusalem, as the most sacred 
  Christian site 
  Jerusalem would make an ideal 
  pilgrimage to gain a Major virtue, 
  such as gaining a Guardian Angel or 
  acting as the trigger for gaining True 
  Faith. 
  Taking Holy Orders 
  As a martial man of faith, joining 
  the Holy Orders is a natural choice 
  for William. However, even signing 
  his life over to the service of the 
  Church may not be without its 
  challenges. 
  A Question of Faith: The order 
  he applies to join may question his 
  commitment, his learning, his 
  courage, or his capability. Before he 
  can take up orders with them he must 
  first prove his worth, something 
  possibly constituting a pilgrimage 
  story as described above. 
  Family Business: He may find, 
  upon joining, that sons and cousins of 
  his father’s enemies, the de Clare 
  family, are members of his new order 
  and have spoken against him. It 
  seems his wanton youth has been 
  much discussed and William must 
  find a means to prove the slurs wrong 
  or irrelevant, proving his worth to the 
  order as he does so. 
  Gaining Rank and 
  Influence 
  Very rarely does an unknown man 
  get elevated in station. If William 
  wants to advance in leadership and 
  authority, he must work at it. 
  The storyguide should support 
  this not only through giving 
  opportunities for William to use his 
  Leadership Ability, thereby gaining 
  experience points, but by specifically 
  presenting situations which he can 
  take a stance on. The following ideas 
  provide challenges that, if handled 
  well, can increase William’s positive 
  reputations and/or directly lead to 
  advancement. 
  Devotions: William may spend 
  time in devotion to his patron saints, 
  including undertaking good works in 
  the saint’s name, commissioning 
  works of art in their glory, or 
  sponsoring feast day celebrations, for 
  instance. The saint may also visit 
  upon William, sending visions or 
  making him witness to a miracle. If 
  William can evidence these 
  encounters his influence, or 
  reputation, may grow as people 
  perceive him to be increasingly pious 
  and worthy. 
  Petitioning the Church: The 
  Church supplement provides a set of 
  rules for petitioning the Church as an 
  organization to gain particular 
  outcomes (see The Church, page 46). If 
  a Church is being built over a vis site 
  used by his covenant allies, he may 
  need to petition for it to be moved. 
  Or he may petition to have an enemy, 
  either his or the covenants, 
  excommunicated; or to have a 
  punished friend pardoned; or for any 
  other purpose within the gift of the 
  Church. Why would William do this? 
  Such actions make his name known. 
  A successful petition gives William 
  the opportunity to be seen as active 
  within the Church, and troupes may 
  reward this with a growing reputation. 
  Pilgrimage: We have already 
  taken a quick look at the mechanics 
  of pilgrimage and it is worth stating 
  that the troupe may allow increases in 
  rank within the order to be triggered 
  by events that happen on or surround 
  a particular pilgrimage. 
  The High Ground: Every man of 
  influence has enemies and William 
  But isn’t Death Usually Quite 
  Sudden? 
  While Ars Magica models the slow decline 
  into old age and infirmity, death through 
  old age occurs by dint of a bad die roll. In 
  many ways that’s probably appropriate, 
  but it does not necessarily make for a 
  pleasing narrative; there is little 
  opportunity for the character to tie up 
  loose ends and set his affairs in order. 
  There are options however. Firstly, as the 
  character ages the player and storyguide 
  can decide in advance when he is going to 
  die. This allows the troupe to play through 
  some thematically-appropriate stories and 
  wrap up that character’s particular tale. 
  Secondly, when that fateful roll finally 
  happens, the troupe can choose to have 
  the character rally enough for one last 
  story. They need not be an active 
  participant, of course, but he or she is at 
  the center of it. And once that character’s 
  narrative has concluded, there is only the 
  final curtain to fall at last. 
  This can also be applied to magi as they 
  edge towards Final Twilight and it’s always 
  worth making a moment of any 
  character’s exit from the saga. 
  The Holy Orders 
  Chapter seven of The Church has a useful 
  breakdown of potential Orders that 
  William could join: 
  The Knights Templar and Hospitaller can 
  be used in pretty much any Tribunal, 
  whereas the Teutonic Knights and those 
  of Calatrava are region-specific, which 
  limits where you can relocate William to. 
  As a small order, the Order of St Thomas 
  of Acre provides a realistic opportunity 
  for taking an accelerated path to authority. 
  
  23 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  should be no different. Placing a 
  junior in opposition to a higher-
  ranking knight is a classic scenario. 
  Take for instance a tactical decision 
  ahead of a battle. What can William 
  do to make his commander see the 
  dangers? And what if he can’t? How 
  can William limit the damage and 
  rescue the day, to say nothing of the 
  lives of his brother knights? And even 
  when he is proven right, he is faced 
  with the temptation of letting his 
  failed and dangerous commander die 
  upon the field or rescuing him. These 
  scenarios are richly-filled with moral 
  c h o i c e s  a n d  l o n g - r a n g i n g 
  repercussions.  
  Position of Authority 
  Stories do not stop when William 
  gains a position of authority, such as 
  Provincial Commander, Master, or 
  any of the other senior roles as 
  described in The Church, chapter 
  seven. If anything, the stakes should 
  be higher and William may find 
  himself protecting the men under his 
  command from betrayal or corruption 
  from within, jealousy from the 
  Church over his power and influence, 
  and the need to send his knights to 
  the Holy Land. 
  Betrayal from Within: William 
  may need the covenant to help him 
  root out those within his order who 
  are seeking to undermine him, to 
  have him removed, or to have him 
  murdered. And with his journey to 
  the holy land barely a season away, 
  time is running out. 
  Corruption from Within: Worse, 
  he may turn up what looks like 
  evidence of infernal corruption from 
  within his very own chapter. Unsure 
  who he can trust, he needs to call 
  upon his old allies within the Order. 
  What happens if he finds corruption? 
  Does he try cut out the poison? What 
  if the corruption is too widespread? 
  On the other hand, what if there is no 
  corruption and instead William and 
  his magical allies have been misled, 
  and they now risk discovery by 
  William’s superiors? 
  Conflict with the Church: As 
  commander, William will be involved 
  in the highest levels of politics across 
  his country. He may have his own 
  ideas with regards to Church wealth, 
  responsibility, influence upon the 
  crown, connections with foreign 
  powers, etc. He may not be easily 
  removed, but his decisions determine 
  the influence that his order has in the 
  longer term. He could easily damage 
  the order’s reputation or standing, 
  which has implications for support, 
  income, and recruitment. 
  The Hard Decisions: As a 
  commander within a holy order, he 
  must be prepared to commit his men 
  to battle in defense of the holy land 
  and its pilgrims. As a man of faith he 
  should trust to God, the holy 
  influence of his chaplains, and the 
  blessings of his relics. But he is a 
  worldly man with connections in the 
  Order of Hermes and he knows the 
  kind of magic they are capable of. 
  Importantly, he knows the kind of 
  arms and armor they could create. 
  Does he take the worldly path and 
  buy the services of a Verditius or does 
  he rely upon his faith? Whatever he 
  chooses, he must still lead his men, 
  make the correct tactical decisions, 
  and perhaps defend them against 
  younger and ambitious juniors. 
  His Final Years 
  Assuming he does not die in battle 
  or through the machinations of his 
  political opponents, William dies a 
  natural death well into old age. This 
  may not be the end for him, however. 
  His reputation lives on and his former 
  enemies may now be in the position 
  to besmirch his good name. They 
  might do this by uncovering links to 
  the covenant, and throwing his 
  friendship with magi and scholars 
  into the light of witchcraft and 
  devilry. The covenant must protect 
  their friend’s memory as well as 
  themselves against an inquisition 
  headed by determined knights in the 
  service of God. 
  On the other hand, if William feels 
  his death drawing close, he may set 
  out to make provision for his passing. 
  He may anoint a successor, which the 
  covenant might need to protect until 
  he can be invested. He may set down 
  his final will and testament—
  declaring this successor, which his 
  enemies may steal in the weeks before 
  his death. He may even wish the 
  covenant to help him come to peace 
  with his enemies so that he can leave 
  the world behind him without a stain 
  upon his conscience. 
  Using William as an 
  NPC 
  As an NPC, William can be used 
  at any point in his development. As a 
  young open-minded man of faith, he 
  can still act as the bridge between 
  church and covenant. Encountered 
  later, he may be faced with following 
  the orders of others, perhaps 
  impacting upon the covenant, despite 
  having misgivings about them. 
  Later still, when the covenant 
  faces conflict with the church and its 
  military cousins, an honest man of 
  faith might be persuaded to hear the 
  covenant’s side of events. 
  The covenant may also be 
  wrapped up in events surrounding 
  William’s family, a situation that 
  presents William in a different light. A 
  companion knight with a fancy for 
  William’s sister may get a grilling from 
  William, something that carries weight 
  if William arrives at the covenant with 
  an entourage of Templars. 
  With thanks to CJ Romer for allowing us to use 
  his write-up of Saint Edmund, taken from his A 
  Saint a Day for November! thread on the Atlas-
  Games forum. 
  Here’s the link to the thread: http://forum.atlas-
  games.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7951 
  And here’s the link to the full post detailing Saint 
  Edmund: http://forum.atlas-games.com/
  viewtopic.php?
  f=4&t=7951&start=45#p115626 
  Please do take a look if you haven’t already 
  checked through the thread, there’s a lot of 
  useful content in there. 
  
  24 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Being 
  the 
  journal 
  of 
  Vulcanis 
  Argens 
  of 
  House 
  Verditius, discovered during 
  the Vernal Inquisition after the 
  fall of Donum Chanuti. Let its 
  secrets inform the Order: 
  B e n e d i c  c e d e d  t o  o u r 
  concerns, accepting that co-
  opting the veneration of Saint 
  Edwin to further the aims of the 
  Sherwood spirit is an intolerable 
  situation. We chided him roundly 
  for the absurdity of the idea. 
  Mercifully, Roger agreed to 
  spend time in composing song 
  and verse to laud the spirit 
  directly. Both spirit and Benedic 
  were amenable and the deal was 
  settled. 
  There is still time, if I am 
  quick, to return to Donum 
  Chanuti and continue the 
  experiments I left behind. Lumen 
  suggested I lower my Parma 
  Magica so she might use her 
  magic to transport me. I 
  explained I would rather sleep the 
  night and leave refreshed in the 
  morning for I did not wish her to 
  learn about my lack of control 
  over my Parma Magica. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  It has been three months since 
  I returned from Sherwood and I 
  have not seen Conrad in all that 
  time. Normally I might enjoy the 
  respite, but I grow concerned. 
  Not for Conrad, as I understand 
  him to be working out of Rye, 
  but for my business.  
  So far I have been reduced to 
  the same status as an apprentice, 
  simply studying and learning from 
  books. Although I am making 
  great strides in my knowledge 
  regarding the basis of our magic, 
  I yearn to apply the theories to 
  my work. Yet I cannot afford to 
  craft the devices I see in my mind 
  without first crafting the devices 
  others wish for themselves. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  Autumn is rarely the best time 
  for travel and this autumn is no 
  different. Constant rain plagued 
  us every day for the last three 
  weeks. And yet it is now Roger 
  decides his works to be ready for 
  their first public performance. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  Roger’s performance was 
  sublime. Aided, I must add, by 
  my own tethering of a spell to 
  e n h a n c e  h i s  l u t e  p l a y i n g 
  throughout the night. 
  If only Roger was a man of 
  means I might offer to craft him 
  a charm that would always 
  enhance the music he played. As 
  it is, I do not think he could 
  afford the prices my House 
  imposes.  
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  Benedic arrived back at 
  Donum Chanuti this morning. He 
  stayed longer in Sherwood than I 
  in order to gauge the success of 
  Roger’s composition. 
  It seems the locals have taken 
  to mimicking the actions the song 
  described and it further seems the 
  spirit accepts these actions, 
  guiding the locals safely about 
  their way. 
  Our efforts have apparently 
  secured us a portion of the vis 
  produced by the forest, shared 
  with Schola Pythagoranis and 
  Voluntas. The share is meagre to 
  start with, as Benedic himself 
  admits, although we have every 
  confidence that the yield will 
  increase over time. 
  As for the potential vis source 
  at the site of the regio in the 
  Oxeney forest, I have been 
  sending Halbert and Tostig each 
  day this last week to look for 
  signs of its location. There is 
  nothing so far, but tomorrow I 
  shall go and see for myself. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  I write today of good news 
  and bad. Firstly the bad, I think 
  and then the small items of good 
  news to cleanse the palette. 
  Over the course of the last 
  week, the upcoming council has 
  threatened to cause endless 
  problems. Legalitus wishes to 
  make a move for the position of 
  Princeps, that same position still 
  officially held by my parens, 
  Aurifex. He asked for the support 
  of both myself and Valeria, as 
  well as Bellatorius, although 
  Bellatorius chose not attend him 
  when called. 
  I was entirely honest when I 
  told him that my vote was for 
  sale and the price I asked was 
  simply the vis sources currently 
  held in the name of Aurifex 
  From the Journal of Vulcanis 
  Argens 
  
  25 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Antigonus. As Legalitus wants to 
  hold the Princeps position in 
  trust until Aurifex returns, so I 
  should collect from those vis 
  sources until he returns. I 
  received tacit agreement from 
  Legalitus in this. 
  Valeria however seeks to 
  s e c u r e  
  h e r  
  p o s i t i o n  
  b y 
  diminishing the opportunities of 
  others. She has some plan to rob 
  me of Aurifex’ vis sources and 
  distribute their fruits to the 
  covenant. Of course, I stand to 
  lose and she stands to gain. I was 
  worried that she might gain 
  support from Legalitus in this but 
  my concerns waned after the 
  events of yesterday. 
  I find myself having to secure 
  the resources I desire by any 
  means necessary. I approached 
  Benedic. 
  The cost of my information 
  and my cooperation with his aims 
  is simply that his patron votes to 
  assign those sources I want to 
  me. In which case, if Legalitus 
  takes his prize, I should be repaid 
  for my support. If Charonicus 
  defeats the motion, again I 
  should be given recompense. It is 
  a dangerous line to take but in 
  truth I can think of little worse 
  then either of the two Elder Magi 
  taking the controlling votes. 
  But, at the time I write this, I 
  still am not sure how Bellatorius 
  will vote. I attempted to taint his 
  view of Legalitus’ claim by trying 
  to buy his vote on behalf of 
  Legalitus in such a poor and 
  insulting way that perhaps he will 
  be inclined to abstain or to vote 
  against. Of course, I cannot 
  account for any approaches made 
  by the others. 
  Now for the good news. 
  V a l e r i a  
  c a u s e d  
  g r e a t 
  consternation and brought her 
  own judgment into question. It is 
  a fortunate misstep. 
  The purpose of the French 
  heralds and messengers seen 
  about the covenant these last 
  days has become clear. A noble’s 
  daughter has come to seek 
  sanctuary on Oxeney. It seems 
  that Legalitus had already known 
  of the girl’s trouble and had in 
  fact been working towards a 
  diplomatic solution that did not 
  i n v o l v e  d i r e c t  o f f e r s  o f 
  
  26 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  protection for the girl. 
  Perhaps if Valeria’s judgment 
  can be found wanting in this 
  matter, her self-centered grab for 
  my vis could be seen as similarly 
  ill-judged. 
  The other news of note is that 
  the tree at the base of the regio in 
  the Oxeney forest has borne fruit. 
  I found five gold-sheened winter 
  acorns that had apparently 
  formed overnight. Tostig swore 
  that they had not been there the 
  day before when he had checked. 
  I harvested the acorns and kept 
  them with me for when I formally 
  announce the site at the council 
  meeting. 
  Depending on how the council 
  progresses, I may need this gift to 
  soften any potential blows. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  The young visitor continues to 
  cause disturbance across the 
  island. Or rather, Benedic carries 
  the burden of this disturbance for 
  the rest of us. 
  But I have now been dragged 
  into  events , an un willing 
  participant thrust forward by my 
  own curiosity. Of course, there 
  may yet be a way to turn these 
  events to some use. 
  In brief, Benedic chanced 
  upon Humbert, son of Huw the 
  Steward, abroad in the Oxeney 
  Wood engaged in intrigue. 
  Humbert reportedly passed a note 
  to an unknown messenger with 
  apparent instructions that the girl 
  should receive it. We can only 
  assume that the girl was the noble 
  visitor who has already been the 
  cause of so much activity. 
  Exercising a little leverage, I 
  spoke to Humbert. Though he 
  was in no position to outright tell 
  me of the plot, I gained the 
  distinct impression that Legalitus 
  gave him the note to pass on. 
  Later last night I dined with 
  Charonicus, Benedic, Valeria and 
  Bellatorius. We were guided to 
  the underground chambers by 
  Bernard, who lit the way with an 
  enchanted torch. I recognized the 
  handiwork of course as that of 
  my parens, Aurifex Antigonus. 
  Throughout the meal, Charonicus 
  took pains to establish this minor 
  device, active as it was and not 
  expended or broken, proved 
  Aurifex still lived. 
  I think all took the point and 
  Valeria engaged with Bellatorius 
  in discussion over whether 
  enchanted devices outlive their 
  creators. Of course items take on 
  a longevity of their own unless 
  granted a mortal span by the 
  smith. But the question was 
  specifically whether the torch was 
  definitive proof Aurifex yet drew 
  breath. 
  My Gift shares many of the 
  same traits as my Parens but I 
  think perhaps not all. I could not 
  and still cannot answer that 
  question with any confidence. 
  And his sudden reappearance 
  would fill me with relief, dismay 
  and fear in equal measure. 
  Bernard says he cannot safely 
  get into Aurifex’s Sanctum – I 
  have no reason to disbelieve him. 
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  I chanced upon the girl this 
  morning as she was leaving, 
  accompanied by an armed guard. 
  I bade her good journey, waited a 
  decent time and then told one of 
  the village children, who was idle 
  at the time, to inform Valeria the 
  girl had departed. I remembered, 
  later of course, the girl had asked 
  for a message to be passed on to 
  Valeria as a matter of importance. 
  Ah, well, the moment is passed. 
   
   
  Extract from the journal of 
  Vulcanis Argens: 
  I have just returned from the 
  council and I can scarcely contain 
  my excitement. I achieved, I 
  think, all I wished to achieve, and 
  paid very little in return… I 
  think. 
  Firstly, a surprise. I expected 
  Valeria to vigorously oppose my 
  claim to collection rights over 
  Aurifex’ vis sources. I believe she 
  sensed I possessed sufficient 
  support, or at least insufficient 
  opposition, and chose to save 
  face rather than suffer defeat. 
  But of course, this covenant 
  being what it is, there is scant 
  information on just where the 
  sources are. We maintain 
  sufficient records to ascertain 
  whether a discovery is actually 
  part of an existing known site or 
  whether it is indeed new but not 
  enough detail to act as directions. 
  I shan’t know whether Aurifex 
  left enough detail until I gain 
  sight of the covenant records on 
  these sources. A job for 
  tomorrow I think. And I believe I 
  may have offered Benedic a 
  reward for any help he gives me 
  in finding the sources. 
  I think in part, her opinions 
  were coloured by what I consider 
  a shrewd motion on my part. I 
  had previously harvested a 
  handful of acorns from the vis 
  source granted to us by the 
  powerful entity in the regio above 
  O x e n e y  
  W o o d .  
  W h e n  
  I 
  announced the find, by way of 
  registering the site, I did it in the 
  name of the covenant as a whole. 
  No sooner had the words 
  tumbled innocently from my lips 
  than Valeria did pounce on them. 
  No, she countered, these gifts 
  were not given to the covenant, 
  but to us, the younger magi of 
  Oxeney. I looked around for 
  support in this and quickly 
  conceded defeat to Valeria in case 
  any did choose to support me. In 
  
  27 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  one move I had shown both my 
  openness and my selflessness 
  while exposing Valeria’s natural 
  greed. She could not now so 
  easily object to others making a 
  claim to the detriment of others 
  when she had so publicly shown 
  herself doing the same. 
  Valeria’s motion, suggesting 
  covenant vis stocks should be 
  distributed amongst the magi 
  rather than wasted in indolence 
  gained strong support. But this 
  was not as far reaching as I think 
  she first intended. She wanted the 
  collection rights on all unclaimed 
  sites to revert to the council, 
  which would then appoint a 
  custodian. Of course, the debate 
  on this issue ranged from how 
  long a magus must be absent 
  before his resources might be 
  collected by the council to how 
  exactly the council were to collect 
  on the sources if so little 
  information was supplied as to 
  their location or manner. 
  I think the council will discuss 
  this first part again next year, but 
  as for the second, I seem to have 
  been volunteered to imagine 
  some device that will keep a 
  magus’ secrets and only reveal 
  them where he cannot return to 
  keep the device silent. I am not 
  convinced that such a device 
  would be workable without 
  breaking several tenets of the 
  Code. Still, I agreed to consider 
  the matter and return my 
  thoughts to the council. At least 
  they agreed to fund the research 
  and development of the device. 
  And of course, in order to 
  conduct this research I claimed 
  the unused barracks. The council 
  agreed that I could move my 
  sanctum into this building. 
  Another significant gain; the 
  building stands alone and while 
  there is much repair work to be 
  done in the future it is sound and 
  will allow further expansion. 
   
  Benedic’s claim for vis was 
  less successfully received. He 
  wanted to collect, with no tribute 
  to the covenant so I understood, 
  all vis he found within Oxeney 
  Wood which was not already 
  claimed by the other magi of the 
  covenant. Now, I owe Benedic 
  for his support, but in truth I 
  cannot see his justification. 
  Oxeney Wood is communal land, 
  held by the covenant. To simply 
  allow him to collect what he 
  wishes from our land just because 
  he feels some affinity for the 
  woods is not acceptable. 
  But to the meat of the council; 
  the grasp for the leadership. As I 
  predicted, the first motion was to 
  remove the mundane council 
  members from the chamber while 
  discussions. This was defeated 
  much to Legalitus’ displeasure. I 
  think I will need to build bridges 
  with him once all this is done. 
  Charonicus, quite simply, 
  objected to Legalitus taking the 
  leadership. He was able to point 
  to the recent intrigues with the 
  nobility as reason to distrust his 
  judgment and bar him from the 
  position.  
  I will admit to being somewhat 
  concerned when Humbert was 
  brought before the council to 
  explain his part in the plot. I did 
  my best to protect his secrecy and 
  my own. After all, if I can show 
  that I am willing to protect as 
  well as exploit him perhaps 
  Humbert will be better prepared 
  to help me in the future. 
  But the discussions went on, 
  with neither senior magus in any 
  danger of being granted the 
  leadership votes. The final vote 
  on the matter was ultimately 
  inconclusive. Somewhat fitting, 
  though not palatable. 
  So, in short, I have been 
  granted collection rights to 
  Aurifex’ vis sources; I have been 
  given leave to make my sanctum 
  in  t h e  o ld  b ar r ack s ;  t h e 
  machinations of the Quaesitor 
  have been confounded; and I 
  have been commissioned to 
  investigate the devising of a new 
  device. And still the covenant is 
  without effective Hermetic 
  leadership. Not a bad day’s work. 
  
  28 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  The writing of an Ars Magica 
  supplement is a collaborative 
  endeavour. Multiple authors 
  contribute to the manuscript, material 
  goes through changes ranging from 
  minor revisions to complete rewrites, 
  and in addition, much gets cut. 
  In this article I would like to 
  present some of the material kept 
  from the final draft of The Cradle and 
  the Crescent for various reasons. At 
  times, it was felt it was too hard for 
  storyguides to work into sagas, while 
  at other times it simply had to be cut 
  for the sake of the limitations. 
  However, by presenting it here, I 
  hope to provide additional material 
  players and storyguides can easily 
  incorporate into sagas, enhancing 
  their forays into the Mythic Middle 
  East. 
  Medina 
  The following is intended to flesh 
  out the material provided for the city 
  of Medina and its holy sites. 
  The Mosque of the 
  Prophet 
  The Mosque of the Prophet (The 
  Cradle and the Crescent, page 110) is the 
  holiest place in Medina. Once the 
  Prophet’s house, it now serves as the 
  site of the tombs of Muhammad, his 
  daughter Fatima and the first two 
  caliphs Abu Bakr (r. 632–634) and 
  ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (r. 634–644). 
  The building takes the form of a 
  rectangular central courtyard, built 
  around an open hall with rows of 
  slender columns supporting the roof. 
  A green dome over the tomb of the 
  Prophet adds color to the otherwise 
  flat roof. As in most mosques, 
  geometric patterns, vegetal motifs and 
  quotations from the Qur’an decorate 
  the walls, while carpets cover the 
  hall’s floor. A Dominion aura of 9 
  blankets most of the mosque. 
  The tomb of the Prophet lies near 
  the south-east corner of the mosque. 
  Shaped like an irregular pentagon, 
  with one point directed north so that 
  no single face lies opposite Muslims 
  who pray in the mosque as they face 
  towards Mecca; it was deliberately 
  designed to discourage anyone from 
  praying to Muhammad and hence 
  inadvertently engaging in the sin of 
  polytheism. A blue cloth with white 
  patterns covers the tomb. An area at 
  the north-west corner of the tomb is 
  curtained off; stories claim Gabriel 
  used to alight here when the 
  archangel visited the Prophet in his 
  house. 
  The area between the tomb and 
  the minbar, a pulpit consisting of a set 
  of stairs with a seat covered by an 
  awning at the top, at the front of the 
  mosque, is known as the rawda. It is 
  said to be an earthly manifestation of 
  Paradise. The tomb, the area 
  immediately surrounding it, and the 
  rawda are areas of immense sanctity; 
  the Dominion aura here has an 
  overwhelming score of 10. Spending a 
  Diameter or more in these areas 
  causes the gain of two (Divine) 
  Warping Points. While insufficient in 
  itself to have a lasting effect on 
  mundane characters, characters 
  subject to Twilight, Divine Ascent or 
  other such responses to Warping 
  must check to see if they suffer such 
  an experience. Visitors may pray by 
  the tomb or in the rawda for any of 
  the Saint Powers associated with 
  Muhammad (see Invoking Baraka in 
  the Haram Mosque, in the section on 
  Mecca). 
  One of the columns on the 
  southern edge of the rawda contains a 
  piece of a palm wood implanted in it. 
  From one of the columns originally 
  supporting the mosque before it was 
  rebuilt, the wood is carved from palm 
  trunks. The Prophet used to lean 
  against this trunk when giving 
  khutbas (sermons). However, when 
  the mosque finally had a minbar 
  constructed, on the first occasion the 
  Prophet prepared to climb into it, the 
  trunk whimpered softly and trembled, 
  only becoming calm when the 
  Prophet put his hand on it or 
  embraced it. The piece of wood is a 
  Muslim relic with a Faith score of 3, 
  and may be used to invoke the Saint 
  Power Grant of Serenity, soothing 
  agitation and dispelling Mentem spells 
  or similar magic affecting the wielder. 
  The southern side of the rawda 
  includes the original mihrab, a prayer 
  niche indicating the direction of 
  Mecca, constructed by the Prophet, as 
  well as a reading desk on which there 
  is a copy of the Qur’an locked in a 
  case. The Qur’an is one of the first 
  ever produced and is another 
  important relic, in this case bearing a 
  Faith score of 5. It may be used to 
  i n v o k e  t h e  S a i n t  P o w e r s 
  Secrets of Arabia and Beyond: 
  Supplemental Material for The Cradle and the 
  Crescent 
  by Niall Christie,  
  edited by Ben McFarland 
  To the right of the venerated [tomb of the 
  Prophet] the noble pulpit stands forty-two 
  paces away from it[…]the small rawda[…]
  lies between the venerated tomb and the 
  pulpit.[…]Tradition declares [it] to be one 
  of the gardens of Paradise[…]Into this 
  rawda men throng to pray, as indeed it is 
  meet and proper that they should. 
   
  Muhammad ibn Jubayr (d. 1217), 
  Travels 
  
  29 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Acknowledgement of Evil, Expel 
  Demons, Resist Temptation, Grant of 
  Serenity, The Incombustible Shroud, 
  Straighten the Crippled, The Faithful 
  Made Whole and Celestial Immunity. 
  Bordering the rawda to the west is the 
  minbar of the mosque, again the 
  original one used by the Prophet, 
  which has a loose silver ring around 
  one of the awning supports. The 
  Prophet’s grandsons, al-Hasan and al-
  Husayn, used to play with this ring 
  while he was delivering his khutbas. 
  Powers of Fatima, Abu Bakr, and 
  ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab 
  In addition to the tomb of the Prophet, 
  the Mosque of the Prophet also contains 
  the tombs of Fatima, Abu Bakr, and ‘Umar 
  ibn al-Khattab. Visitors may pray at these 
  tombs for baraka. All three figures have 
  Divine Might of 75, and the following 
  Saint Powers are associated with each of 
  them: 
   
  Fatima: Apparition, Celestial Immunity, Cure 
  Blindness, Grant of Serenity, Mass Healing, 
  Sanctuary of Virginity, Straighten the Crippled, 
  The Dutiful Shepherd, The Faithful Made 
  Whole, Tomorrow’s Bounty 
  Abu Bakr: Acknowledgement of Evil, 
  Apparition, Grant of Serenity, Resist 
  Temptation, The Dutiful Shepherd, The Leap of 
  the Faithful, Tomorrow’s Bounty, Rebuke the 
  Unfaithful, Terrify the Unbeliever 
   
  ‘Umar: Acknowledgement of Evil, Apparition, 
  Celestial Immunity, Expel Demons, Resist 
  Temptation, Scourging of Snakes, The Dutiful 
  Shepherd, Humility of Caesar, Rebuke the 
  Unfaithful, Smiting of the Lord, Terrify the 
  Unbeliever 
  
  30 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Other places of particular note in 
  the Mosque of the Prophet include a 
  trapdoor in the floor next to the tomb 
  of Abu Bakr. This leads to a tunnel 
  running from the mosque to Abu 
  Bakr’s house, which his daughter 
  ‘A’isha, one of the wives of the 
  Prophet, would use to travel between 
  the house and the mosque. In 
  addition, the courtyard contains a 
  small orchard cultivated by Fatima; its 
  trees bear unusually large and tasty 
  fruit. Finally, built by the caliph 
  ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan (r. 644–656), a 
  square yellow stone with a shining 
  surface is implanted in the south wall 
  of the mihrab. A small casket hangs 
  on a nail; these are the mirror and 
  drinking cup of Khusraw II Parviz (r. 
  589–628), the Persian emperor, who 
  rejected the message of Islam. Both 
  were taken from the emperor’s palace 
  after the Muslims conquered the 
  Persian capital of Ctesiphon in 637. 
  The Houses of ‘Umar and 
  Abu Bakr 
  Next to the Mosque of the 
  Prophet stand the houses of Abu 
  Bakr and ‘Umar. A tunnel links the 
  house of Abu Bakr to the mosque. 
  ‘Umar’s house includes a garden with 
  fruit-bearing trees and four streams 
  running through it, reminiscent of the 
  Garden of Paradise. The atmosphere 
  is supernaturally calm, the fruit 
  nutritious and the water refreshing; 
  anyone staying here while recovering 
  from wounds or debilitation receives 
  a +9 bonus to Recovery rolls. A fierce 
  fighter for Islam, ‘Umar felt this 
  garden was an important haven for 
  him when he needed to recover from 
  wounds sustained in combat. 
  The Mosque of Quba’ 
  Two miles south of the main city 
  of Medina, in a village called Quba’, 
  stands the first mosque ever built. 
  The Prophet laid its first stones 
  during his emigration from Mecca to 
  Medina, and his followers 
  subsequently completed it. Quba’ also 
  hosts the site of a well filled with 
  sweet water; this water became sweet 
  after Muhammad spat into it. Also 
  notable, the caliph ‘Uthman lost the 
  Prophet’s seal ring in the well in 650, 
  an event followed by a tragic 
  downturn to his reign and ending 
  with his assassination in 656 by 
  disgruntled troops from the Muslim 
  armies. 
  The Mosque of Abu Bakr 
  Named after Abu Bakr rather than 
  built by him, both he and the Prophet 
  before him used to perform prayers 
  here on the Muslim feast days. This 
  custom continues to be observed by 
  many Muslims of Medina. 
   
  The Battlefield of Uhud 
  The Prophet’s war with Mecca 
  involved three major battles: the 
  Battle of Badr, to the southwest of 
  Medina, in 624, which was a Muslim 
  victory; the Battle of Uhud, a hill to 
  the north of the city of Medina, in 
  625, which was a defeat for the 
  Muslims; and the battle of the 
  Trench, when the Muslims 
  successfully defeated an assault made 
  on Medina by the Meccans, in 627. 
  The battlefield of Uhud remains an 
  important site for Muslims to visit, 
  for in the wake of this battle there 
  were revealed to the Prophet 
  instructions on the treatment of those 
  Story Seed: The Mirror and 
  Drinking Cup of Khusraw II 
  Parviz 
  What is the nature of these items? Are 
  they Zoroastrian relics of some sort? On 
  the other hand, given Khusraw’s 
  reputation for cruelty, greed and 
  arrogance, could they represent something 
  more sinister? 
  When a thief takes these items from the 
  mosque, the imam asks the characters to 
  track them down. However, in order to do 
  so effectively, they must discover what 
  powers the objects hold and how those 
  powers might be neutralized. 
  Story Seed: The House of ‘Umar 
  While traveling in the Hijaz, a member of 
  the troupe sustains a wound or contracts a 
  disease from a supernatural source. All 
  attempts to heal the injury fail, even those 
  using magic, but the characters hear of the 
  garden at the house of ‘Umar, which 
  offers hope. However, in order to stay in 
  the garden, the characters must to 
  persuade its guardians to give them access. 
  The keepers of the garden, however, 
  demand a favor in return. 
  Story Uses: The Prophet’s Seal 
  Ring 
  What became of the Prophet’s seal ring 
  remains unknown, but if recovered, the 
  ring would be a powerful relic for a 
  Muslim, with 7 Faith points and the Saint 
  Powers Acknowledgement of Evil, Expel 
  Demons, Resist Temptation and Terrify 
  the Unbeliever. Perhaps it lies at the 
  bottom of the well in a Divine regio, 
  simply waiting for one worthy enough to 
  recover it. Maybe the depths of the well 
  hide something more sinister, like an 
  Infernal regio populated by agents of Hell 
  who have hidden the ring and seek to 
  keep it from human hands. Perhaps it fell 
  into a Magical regio, and a powerful 
  magical spirit now holds it. Although the 
  spirit doesn’t place any actual value on the 
  ring, it demands a price for its return. Or 
  maybe the ring is now hidden somewhere 
  else in Medina, though the well contains a 
  clue to set the characters on its trail. 
  Story Seed:The Mosque is Closed! 
  It is the evening at the end of the last day 
  of Ramadan, and with the sunset the ‘Id al
  -Fitr (Feast of the Breaking of the Fast) 
  will begin. As the sunset approaches a 
  large number of Muslims gather at the 
  Mosque of Abu Bakr only to find the door 
  jammed shut and a sign with “Prayers 
  cancelled today” nailed to it. The crowd 
  asks the characters to investigate, and they 
  soon discover a group of Faerie Jinn are 
  having a joke at the people’s expense, 
  maybe gaining vitality from the frustration 
  and despair felt by the crowd. How can 
  the characters resolve this? A violent 
  solution would be looked on dimly by the 
  people and is unlikely to work anyway, 
  given the prevailing Calm Temper Trait of 
  the Dominion aura. Will the characters be 
  able to negotiate a solution, persuading the 
  mischievous Jinn to relent? Or will they 
  find a way to outwit them? 
  
  31 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  who had died in the holy war, 
  including in particular the 
  requirement that they should be 
  buried where they fell. Thus a large 
  number of Muslim fighters are buried 
  on the battlefield, including the 
  Prophet’s uncle Hamza ibn ‘Abd al-
  Muttalib, a great hero and fighter for 
  Islam. Many of these graves are now 
  marked with shrines and are visited 
  by Muslim pilgrims to Medina; 
  Hamza’s grave in particular has a 
  mosque built over it. 
  Cemetery of al-Gharqad 
  To the east of Medina lies the 
  cemetery of al-Gharqad. Many 
  important figures in Islam’s history lie 
  buried here. These include various 
  immediate family members of the 
  Prophet, including his aunts and 
  uncles, most of his wives, his son 
  Ibrahim (who died in infancy), and 
  his grandson al-Hasan; four of the 
  Shi’i imams (spiritual leaders); various 
  important companions of the 
  Prophet, including the third caliph 
  ‘Uthman; and several important 
  religious scholars including Malik ibn 
  Anas and the famous Qur’an-reciter 
  Nafi’ ibn Abi Nu’aym. Thus the 
  cemetery is something of a “baraka-
  hotspot,” in that if characters wish to 
  pray here for baraka, they are likely to 
  find someone at whose grave they 
  may pray for a specific Saint Power. 
  Storyguides may simply wish to rule 
  that the entire graveyard counts as a 
  Muslim holy forebear with a Divine 
  Might of 75 and access to all the Saint 
  Powers listed in Realms of Power: The 
  Divine, pages 88-89. A Dominion aura 
  of 5 covers the cemetery. 
   
  Story Seed: The Spear of Wahshi 
  Hamza was slain by an Abyssinian slave named Wahshi ibn 
  Harb, who killed him with a javelin that inflicted such pain 
  on his opponent that Hamza was unable to strike back 
  before he died. Wahshi himself later became a Muslim, but 
  the javelin remains buried somewhere in the city, 
  abandoned by its owner after his conversion, and with 
  good cause: the javelin is an Infernal item that inflicts 
  debilitating pain on those whom it strikes (PeCo 25 (Base 5, 
  +1 Touch, +3 Moon)). It also gradually causes its wielder 
  to become more and more sadistic. 
  The characters recover the item and learn of its pain-
  inflicting power, without learning of its Infernal nature or 
  its side-effect. They may, however, notice a gradual change 
  in one of their companions’ behavior over time, and any 
  further investigation reveals its true nature. Yet the javelin 
  remains a very useful item, despite the risk of corruption 
  that it brings… 
  Story Seed: Torture at Jiddah? 
  Another of the generous deeds of this Sultan close 
  to God Most High, and of the memorials he has 
  left in happy remembrance of him both in religion 
  and in the world, was his annulling of the customs 
  duty imposed as tax on pilgrims.[…]They were 
  compelled to pay the fixed tax, which was seven 
  and a half Egyptian dinars, or fifteen mu’mini 
  dinars, a head. Those who could not suffered the 
  most painful punishment.[…]Among the various 
  inflictions devised was hanging by the testicles, or 
  such foul acts. May God protect us from the abuse 
  of His decrees. At Jiddah there were similar 
  tortures and worse for him who had not paid the 
  dues. 
   
  Muhammad ibn Jubayr (d. 1217), 
  Travels 
  By the end of the 12th century, pilgrims 
  complained their passage through Jiddah 
  subjected the devout to inflated customs 
  taxes, with torture being employed against 
  those who could not pay them. Saladin 
  abolished the taxes, instead providing 
  funds for free food for the pilgrims. 
  However, some of the Infernally corrupted 
  customs officials simply continued their 
  nefarious practices in secret, making their 
  victims sacrifices in diabolic rites. Relatives 
  plead for the characters to investigate the 
  disappearance of a pilgrim to Mecca. The 
  trail leads to Jiddah, where they find 
  evidence of diabolic rituals going on; was 
  the pilgrim a victim of an Infernal cult? 
  What does the cult hope to achieve with its 
  practices? Are the diabolists hoping to 
  subvert the Divine power of the tomb of 
  Eve? 
  And so, at the time and on the day we have 
  mentioned, we came to God’s venerable Haram, 
  the place of sojourn of Abraham the Friend of 
  God, and found the Ka’ba, the Sacred House, the 
  unveiled bride conducted (like a bride to her 
  groom) to the supreme felicity of heaven, 
  encompassed by the deputations (pilgrims) of the 
  All Merciful. 
   
  Muhammad ibn Jubayr (d. 1217), 
  Travels 
  
  32 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Badr 
  About 80 miles southwest of 
  Medina, Badr was the site of the first 
  major Muslim victory in their war 
  against Mecca. Here, in 624, 
  Muhammad and 313 companions 
  defeated an army of 1000 Meccans 
  through the aid of an army of angels,  
  scattering the Meccans and taking 
  much plunder and prisoners. The 
  event imprinted upon the site, and 
  every Friday the sound of war drums 
  may be heard rolling across it, while a 
  Invoking Baraka in the Haram Mosque 
  Since characters may invoke any Saint Power in the Haram 
  Mosque (The Cradle and the Crescent, page 112), mentioning baraka 
  may also be invoked at certain sites from Muhammad, Abraham, 
  Hagar and Ishmael would seem rather superfluous. However, it 
  may make sense either mathematically, when calculating 
  Invocation Modifiers, or from a roleplaying standpoint, as there 
  may be a good reason for a character to invoke a particular 
  figure. 
  The statistics for the various holy forebears whose baraka may be 
  invoked in the Haram Mosque are briefly summarized here. 
  Statistics for Muhammad and Abraham previously appeared in 
  Realms of Power: The Divine, pages 104-105: 
   
  Muhammad: Divine Might: 100 
  Places where baraka may be invoked: Various sites in and 
  around Mecca and Medina, plus the Dome of the Rock in 
  Jerusalem 
  Powers: Apparition, Acknowledgement of Evil, Expel Demons, Resist 
  Temptation, Grant of Serenity, Cure Blindness, Tomorrow’s Bounty, The 
  Incombustible Shroud, Straighten the Crippled, The Dutiful Shepherd, 
  Sanctuary of Virginity, The Faithful Made Whole, Celestial Immunity, The 
  Leap of the Faithful, Mass Healing, Raise the Dead, Humility of Caesar, 
  Terrify the Unbeliever, Ignem Domini, Rebuke the Unfaithful 
   
  Abraham: Divine Might: 75 
  Places where baraka may be invoked: Tomb at Hebron and 
  the Maqam Ibrahim 
  Powers: Apparition, Celestial Immunity, Grant of Serenity, Mass 
  Healing, Raise the Dead, Resist Temptation, The Dutiful Shepherd, The 
  Faithful Made Whole, The Incombustible Shroud 
   
  Hagar: Divine Might: 75 
  Place where baraka may be invoked: Tomb in the Hijr Isma’il;  
  Powers: Acknowledgement of Evil, Apparition, Celestial Immunity, 
  Grant of Serenity, Sanctuary of Virginity, The Dutiful Shepherd, The Leap 
  of the Faithful, Tomorrow’s Bounty 
   
  Ishmael: Divine Might 75  
  Place where baraka may be invoked: Tomb in the Hijr Isma’il;  
  Powers: Acknowledgement of Evil, Apparition, Celestial Immunity, 
  Resist Temptation, The Dutiful Shepherd, The Incombustible Shroud, The 
  Laborer’s Boon, Tomorrow’s Bounty 
  Story Seed: The Drums of Badr 
  While the sound of drums seems to 
  commemorate of the Battle of Badr, 
  perhaps the thrumming sound does not 
  mean exactly what one might imagine. 
  The appearance of the Divine aura strips 
  away the concealing glamour of a Faerie 
  regio, where the occupants are engaged in 
  a ritual re-enactment of the battle. The 
  Faeries of the regio draw vitality from 
  their involvement in this story and the 
  occasional wanderers unknowingly drawn 
  into participating. Characters may find 
  themselves asked to join or even pressed 
  into service if gaps in the armies’ ranks 
  must be filled. 
  
  33 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Divine aura of 5 occupies the area. 
  Jiddah 
  Sprawled across the Red Sea coast, 
  Jiddah is the site of a number of holy 
  places, including mosques built by the 
  caliphs ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab and 
  Harun al-Rashid. In addition, the 
  town is also particularly associated 
  with Eve; she appeared near here 
  after her expulsion from the Garden 
  of Eden, and the town contains a 
  domed shrine within which she is 
  buried. Most pilgrims traveling to 
  Mecca from the west pass through 
  the port of Jiddah. 
  Mecca 
  Mecca (The Cradle and the Crescent, 
  pages 111-13) is home to a veritable 
  plethora of supernatural sites. A few 
  of these are detailed here, beginning 
  with additional details on the Haram 
  Mosque. 
  The Haram Mosque 
  Outside the Haram Mosque, to 
  the east, are two hillocks known as al-
  Safa and al-Marwa. As part of the 
  pilgrimage ritual, Muslims run 
  repeatedly between these two hillocks 
  as a commemoration of the story of 
  Hagar, who ran repeatedly between 
  these hillocks looking for water when 
  Ishmael was still a baby. Eventually 
  the angel Gabriel aided her, striking 
  the ground with his staff and bringing 
  forth a spring now feeding the well of 
  Zamzam (see CatC, page 112). Many 
  generations of pilgrims have visited 
  the site, wearing a path between the 
  two hillocks. The Dominion aura here 
  has a score of 7. 
  Within the courtyard of the 
  Haram Mosque are a number of 
  important Muslim holy sites in 
  addition to the Ka’ba and the Well of 
  Zamzam. There is also the Maqam 
  Ibrahim, a stone upon which the 
  patriarch stood while he worked to 
  build the Ka’ba, which still bears the 
  impression of his feet. Muslims may 
  attempt to invoke baraka from 
  Abraham here. The Gate of the Banu 
  Shayba is one of the original gates of 
  the mosque as it was at the time of 
  the Prophet, before subsequent 
  reconstructions by later rulers; the 
  Banu of the clan of Shayba still hold 
  the key to the Ka’ba. The semicircular 
  marbled wall, known as the Hatim or 
  the Hijr Isma’il, is about four feet 
  high and encloses the graves of 
  Ishmael and Hagar—whose baraka 
  may also be invoked here. 
  The Grave of Abu Lahab 
  The power of Abu Lahab will perish, 
  and he will perish. 
  His wealth and gains will not exempt 
  him. 
  He will be plunged in flaming Fire, 
  And his wife, the wood-carrier, 
  Will have upon her neck a halter of 
  palm-fibre. 
  Qur’an 111: 1-5 
  On a high pinnacle of rock on the 
  outskirts of Mecca stands a cairn of 
  stones. People avoid it as the cursed 
  resting-place of Abu Lahab, one of 
  Story Uses: The Grave of Abu 
  Lahab 
  The grave of Abu Lahab is a site best 
  avoided at all costs, but storyguides should 
  be able to find ways to make characters 
  visit it. A member of the troupe may be 
  kidnapped and imprisoned in or on the 
  grave, requiring the characters to rescue 
  him. The troupe may learn that an 
  important item or clue may be found at 
  the site (perhaps the tent pole survives 
  and has supernatural powers). Or an 
  associate of the characters may contract 
  the disease, and the troupe learns that the 
  only way to heal her is through a charm 
  left by Abu Lahab’s sons on their father’s 
  body. 
  
  34 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  the Prophet’s uncles and also one of 
  his bitterest persecutors. Abu Lahab 
  died in 624 after being struck with a 
  tent pole by his sister-in-law, who 
  split his head open. The wound 
  turned septic, and eventually a disease 
  spread throughout his body, covering 
  him in pustules and running sores, 
  from which he expired in great pain a 
  few days later, a death regarded by 
  many as retribution from God. Abu 
  Lahab’s family left his body exposed 
  for days, fearing they might contract 
  plague from it. However, eventually 
  they were persuaded to move it, and 
  his sons placed it on this high place, 
  throwing stones over it until it was 
  completely buried. 
  The grave of Abu Lahab bears an 
  Infernal Aura of 4, and in addition 
  characters remaining in the Aura for a 
  Diameter or longer must make a 
  Stamina check against an Ease Factor 
  of 9 or take an Incapacitating Wound 
  as they contract Abu Lahab’s disease. 
  The Path of Thorns 
  Abu Lahab’s wife, Umm Jamil, 
  was also an enthusiastic persecutor of 
  the Prophet. In particular, she used to 
  strew thorns along paths that he 
  would often walk barefoot along, 
  including a certain pass between the 
  hills leading from the Prophet’s house 
  (now his mosque) to the al-Ma’la 
  cemetery, so he would injure himself 
  en route. Due to her actions, this path 
  is now Infernally tainted. While it 
  appears to be clear, soon after 
  characters step onto it over-sized 
  thorn bushes spring from the earth, 
  entangling their ankles and scratching 
  their legs. Treat this as the equivalent 
  of the Rego Terram spell Hands of 
  the Grasping Earth (AM5, page 156) 
  that also inflicts +10 Damage for 
  each round of contact. However, the 
  thorns only have a Soak of +15 and 
  are obviously affected by Herbam 
  rather than Terram magic. The whole 
  site has an Infernal Aura of 2. 
   
   
  Sacred Sites around 
  Mecca 
  In addition to the sacred sites 
  within Mecca, there are also 
  numerous important sacred sites 
  around the holy city. These include 
  the points visited on the pilgrimage: 
  Mina, Muzdalifa and the plain of 
  ‘Arafat. Also worthy of note is the 
  Cave of Hira’, on the Mountain of 
  Light three miles to the north-east of 
  Mecca, where the Prophet began to 
  receive the divine revelation; this site 
  is usually visited by pilgrims to the 
  city. The Cave of Thawr, on Mount 
  Thawr, about five miles south of 
  Mecca, is the spot where Muhammad 
  and his friend Abu Bakr hid from 
  Meccan pursuit during their 
  emigration from Mecca to Medina. 
  They escaped pursuit because God 
  made a spider spin its web across the 
  narrow cave mouth, while a pair of 
  pigeons nested there; the Meccan 
  pursuers, observing these, concluded 
  that no-one could be in the cave, thus 
  failing to find the Prophet and his 
  companion. In addition, the entrance 
  is also subject to the supernatural 
  effect that no illegitimate child may 
  enter the cave through it. The cave 
  may also be entered by a doorway in 
  the opposite wall, miraculously 
  created for the Prophet after his 
  pursuers departed. 
  Variations on Islam 
  As noted in CatC, the followers of 
  a number of different forms of Islam 
  make their home in Arabia. The 
  following two groups enjoy particular 
  prominence. 
  The Zaydis 
  Followers of Zaydi Shi’ism are 
  found in various places in the Muslim 
  world, but there is an important Zaydi 
  community in Mecca, and they are 
  also particularly common in the 
  Yemen. They take their name from 
  Zayd ibn ‘Ali, a great-grandson of the 
  caliph ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, who rebelled 
  unsuccessfully against the Umayyads 
  in 740. Thereafter they continued to 
  maintain leadership of the Muslim 
  community rightfully belonged to any 
  descendent of either of ‘Ali’s sons 
  (the Prophet’s grandsons) al-Hasan 
  and al-Husayn, provided it was 
  someone who had the piety, learning, 
  and inclination to rebel against the 
  existing, unjust authorities. In 1220 
  the Zaydis follow a living imam 
  descended from al-Hasan, though 
  they do not ascribe supernatural 
  inspiration to him, nor do they regard 
  any of their imams as being hidden, 
  unlike a number of other Shi’i groups. 
  Currently two figures in the Yemen 
  claim the position of Zaydi imam: 
  Yahya al-Hadi ila’l-Haqq (r. 1217–
  1248) in the north and Muhammad al
  -Nasir (r. 1217–1226) in the south. 
  The Ibadis 
  As indicated in CatC, the majority 
  of Muslims in ‘Uman are Ibadis, 
  followers of a branch of Islam with 
  links to supporters of the fourth 
  caliph ‘Ali who later opposed him. 
  They take their name from one of 
  their founders, ‘Abd Allah ibn Ibad 
  (d. c. 700), who was active in Basra at 
  the end of the 7th century. They 
  Story Uses: The Path of Thorns 
  The Path of Thorns is a nasty surprise for 
  storyguides to inflict on characters and is 
  best used as part of a chase scene, with 
  the characters only discovering the trap 
  that they have strayed into after they have 
  pursued someone (or been pursued by 
  someone) onto the spot. Local people in 
  Mecca know and avoid the site, but they 
  may not immediately share their 
  knowledge with strangers, especially if 
  some of them are obviously foreign, non-
  Muslim and Gifted. A cunning villain 
  pursued by the characters may have a way 
  to cross the site without touching the 
  ground (such as flying), so that the danger 
  is not immediately apparent to his 
  pursuers. 
  Alternatively, the characters may be 
  approached by the city authorities, who 
  want their help because the Path of 
  Thorns appears to be spreading rapidly. 
  What (or who) is causing this spread, and 
  how can it be prevented or reversed? 
  
  35 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  maintain the rightful imam of the 
  Muslim community should be elected, 
  and his followers should obey him as 
  long as he rules according to correct 
  law and practice; should he deviate 
  from this, and not repent when he is 
  informed of this, his followers have 
  the right to depose him. The Ibadis 
  give great respect to religious 
  scholars, expecting them to guide the 
  electoral process. Ibadis are a quietist 
  movement, rejecting violence, 
  advocating tolerance of other 
  m o n o t h e is t s  a n d  al l o w in g 
  intermarriage with non-Ibadis. They 
  allow concealment of one’s faith in 
  order to preserve one’s safety. They 
  also accept that it may be necessary to 
  suspend the election of an imam in 
  unfavorable circumstances. One such 
  case occurs in 1220, while ‘Uman is 
  ruled by the Nabhanid dynasty of 
  kings (who nonetheless profess to be 
  Ibadis). Their theological doctrines 
  are very similar to those of the 
  Sunnis. Probably the most important 
  difference lies in their belief that the 
  Qur’an was created at the time of the 
  Prophet, contrary to the Sunni 
  assertion that it is eternal. 
  Non-Muslims in the 
  Middle East 
  The Middle East is home to a 
  number of different non-Muslim 
  groups, including Christians, Jews and 
  Zoroastrians, who in most cases live 
  as subjects of their Muslim overlords, 
  paying a poll-tax, accepting certain 
  restrictions on their behavior and 
  enjoying protection from their 
  overlords in exchange (see the 
  Dhimmi Flaw in Realms of Power: The 
  Divine, pages 115-116). 
  The Jews are for the most part 
  orthodox Rabbinites, though some 
  Karaites do still live in the region. The 
  Exilarch, the spiritual head of the 
  Jewish community, lives in Baghdad, 
  theoretically making it an important 
  city for the Jews. 
  The situation with regard to the 
  Christians is rather more complex, as 
  there are a large number of different 
  Christian groups living in the region. 
  The following are the most 
  significant: 
   
  Melkites (Greek Orthodox): 
  I n  4 5 1 ,  t h e  e m p e r o r  o f 
  Constantinople called a great council 
  at Chalcedon, during which a 
  statement of faith, the Definition of 
  Chalcedon, was drawn up affirming 
  that the Incarnate Christ had two 
  natures, one human, one divine, in 
  one Person. A number of churches 
  rejected this doctrine, but the 
  Melkites accepted it, remaining in 
  communion with the see of 
  Constantinople. Melkites are most 
  often found in Byzantine territory and 
  the Levant, but there are some 
  scattered communities further east, 
  
  36 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  left over from the days when the 
  Byzantines controlled territories in 
  the northern Jazira, Armenia and 
  Georgia. 
   
  Jacobites (Syrian Orthodox): 
  A number of Christian groups 
  rejected the Definition of Chalcedon, 
  asserting that Christ had but one 
  nature, usually both human and 
  divine, a doctrine that became known 
  as Monophysitism. This is the 
  doctrine adopted by the Jacobites, so 
  called for their founder, Jacob 
  Baradaeus. Jacobites are most often 
  found in Syria and the Holy Land, but 
  some Jacobites may be found in 
  Arabia. 
   
  The Ethiopian church, 
  originally founded in the fourth 
  century, is also Monophysite. Since 
  the Muslim invasion of Egypt, the 
  Ethiopians have been cut off from 
  other Christians. However, in the past 
  Ethiopian Christianity made some 
  inroads into Arabia, and some 
  communities may remain there. 
   
  Armenians: The Armenians 
  became Christian in the fourth 
  century, but they also rejected the 
  Definition of Chalcedon, and 
  founded their own national church. 
  They are reputedly Monophysites, but 
  have never entered into full 
  communion with the other 
  Monophysite churches. 
   
  Georgians: Georgia has been a 
  Christian country since the fourth 
  century. Originally ruled from the 
  patriarchate of Antioch, its national 
  church has been independent since 
  the eighth century. 
   
  The Church of the East 
  (N estori an s) :  Being mos t 
  significantly represented in Iraq and 
  Persia, the church of the east was 
  outside the Roman and Byzantine 
  empires, and so took no part in the 
  great church councils held there. The 
  church’s attitudes towards the 
  Definition of Chalcedon are 
  ambivalent, as it has a different 
  understanding of what constitutes the 
  Person of Christ. The Nestorians lay a 
  particular emphasis on the humanity 
  of Christ and the reality of his moral 
  choices. 
  Tensions between these various 
  branches of Christianity and Judaism, 
  and indeed between different groups 
  of Muslim and Zoroastrian believers 
  as well, could lead to stories as 
  members of different factions attempt 
  to employ the characters in order to 
  gain an advantage over their rivals. 
  Divides over points of doctrine can 
  easily flare up into violence, especially 
  if supernatural forces become 
  involved. 
  Al-Sind and Beyond 
  Regarded as the easternmost 
  extent of the Islamic Caliphate, the 
  
  37 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  land known as Sindh lies at the mouth 
  of the great Indus River on the shores 
  of the Arabian Ocean. Known as 
  Sinthus to the Greeks, Abisind to the 
  Persians and Sindus to the Romans, 
  the lands beyond the desert of 
  Makran were conquered in 711 by 
  Syrian Arabs, led by Muhammad bin 
  Qasim, who defeated the Hindu ruler 
  Raja Dahir. As al-Sind, it is currently 
  ruled over by the Ghurid dynasty, 
  their will enforced by Turkish ghulam 
  from the steppes beyond Persia. 
  To the wonderment of natural 
  philosophers in Mythic Europe, 
  crocodiles can be found in the 
  shallows of the Indus river, giving rise 
  to speculation that the Indus and the 
  Nile are the same river and that 
  following the Indus upriver will lead a 
  traveler to the lands of Egypt. 
  Across the river to the east lies the 
  fabled land of Hind, Mythic India … 
  Daybal 
  The gateway of Al-Sind, this port 
  lies in the creeks and mangroves of 
  the Indus delta. It is a confusing mix 
  of cultures from across the Caliphate, 
  although European travelers are rarely 
  seen. Founded by a fisherwoman 
  named Mai Kolachi, this town was 
  known as Krokola to the Greeks and 
  marked the spot where Alexander the 
  Great’s army encamped prior to their 
  return to Babylonia. 
  The original shipyards of 
  Nearchus, Alexander’s admiral and 
  biographer, lie past the sand spit on 
  the island of Manora (Morontobara) 
  concealed within a small Faerie regio. 
  Al-Mansura 
  (Brahmanabad) 
  The original misr, or Arabic 
  capital, of Sindh was named after the 
  second ‘Abbasid caliph, al-Mansur, r. 
  754-775. Originally home to large 
  numbers of the hereditary brahman 
  caste, it is a cosmopolitan mix of 
  outcasts and renegades from across 
  the Islamic Empire. Long since 
  abandoned, these ruins once stood as 
  proud temples of forgotten Faerie 
  gods. Now they dominate the 
  swampy outskirts of the newer, 
  concentrically constructed city. 
  Mythic Sites near 
  Bukhara 
  Hoja Ismail 
  To the north of Samarkand lies 
  the small shrine of Ismail al-Bukhari 
  (810-887 CE), the exiled Muslim 
  scholar of the hadith considered one 
  of the greatest authorities in Islam 
  after the Qur’an. His shrine can be 
  invoked for baraka like other Islamic 
  forebear— al-Bukhari is considered 
  to have Divine Might of 25. His 
  powers relating to wisdom and truth 
  are: Acknowledgement of Evil, Grant 
  of Serenity, Resist Temptation, 
  Rebuke the Unfaithful. 
  Shahr-i-Zindah 
  To the east of the old city of 
  Marakanda lies Shahr-i-Zindah 
  (“tomb of the living king”), a street of 
  tombs named after its central shrine, 
  the grave of Qusam ibn-Abbas. As a 
  cousin of the prophet Mohammed 
  who brought Islam to Sogdia, Qusam 
  can be invoked for the following 
  baraka like other Islamic forebears at 
  his shrine: Acknowledgement of Evil, 
  Celestial Immunity, Expel Demons, 
  R e s i s t  T e m p t a t i o n ,  
  T h e 
  Incombustible Shroud, Rebuke the 
  Unfaithful, Terrify the Unbeliever. 
  See Realms of Power: the Divine, for 
  further details regarding baraka. 
  Qusam is considered to have Divine 
  Might of 50. 
  The Scholar Al-Biruni 
  Al-Biruni (Alberuni) was a Persian 
  polymath born in the Khwarazmian 
  capital of Kath in the eleventh 
  century. A contemporary and fellow 
  physician of the great Ibn Sina 
  (Avicenna), he is considered once of 
  the great scientists and one of the first 
  to represent the earth mathematically. 
  His travels took him far to the east 
  and he studied the religion and 
  philosophy of in a distant land, which 
  he believed was far Hind, beyond the 
  Indus. He penned his famous work 
  Ta’rikh al-Hind (“Chronicles of India”) 
  while staying there, although 
  Hermetic scholars doubt the veracity 
  of his claims and many believe he 
  unwittingly crossed into the Faerie 
  Realm during his travels. 
  In Mythic Europe, al-Biruni may 
  have been an unGifted member of 
  the Tulab Ibn Sina tradition of 
  Elementalists (see Hedge Magic: Revised, 
  pages 30-32), although he is best 
  known for his non-magical works. 
  Understanding Astronomy [Arabic and 
  Persian] 
  Summa: Artes Liberales 
  (Astronomy); Level 3, Quality 10 
  Kitab al-Jawahir (“Book of Precious 
  Stones”) 
  [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae; Quality 
  10 
  Ta’rikh al-Hind (“Chronicles of 
  India”) [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore (Arcadia); 
  Quality 10 
  “Critical study of what India says, 
  whether accepted by reason or refused”
   
  [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae; Quality 
  10 
  The Mas’udi Canon 
  [6 books, 
  Persian] 
  4 Tractati: Artes Liberales (2 on 
  Astronomy, 2 on Mathematics); 
  Quality 10 
  2 Tractati: Area Lore: Mythic 
  Middle East; Quality 10 
  An extensive encyclopedia in 
  Persian on astronomy, geography, and 
  engineering, this work is named after 
  Mas’ud, son of Mahmud of Ghazni. 
  Like other encyclopedia (see Art & 
  Academe, page 26) it consists of a 
  number of books and can be used for 
  research. 
  
  38 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Any campaign must be peopled, 
  and one set in the Mythic Middle East 
  is no different. To make such a task 
  easier, these four characters are 
  offered—a Magical jinn, a faerie, a 
  sahir, and a Zoroastrian mystic. These 
  characters might serve as allies, 
  companions, or even potential rivals. 
  Nawar Al-Mayia 
  Nawar is fairly typical Magic-
  aligned jinn, but unlike most genius 
  loci, her interactions with humanity 
  are generally positive due to her focus 
  comprises as an important communal 
  resource. Interacting with the 
  populace helps Nawar protect herself 
  from the ravages of Acclimation. 
  However, like most magic-aligned 
  creatures, Nawar remains somewhat 
  aloof from human affairs, and she 
  keeps her generally benign 
  interactions with neighbouring human 
  communities to a minimum. 
  Respected by the travelers who 
  partake of her water, most of the 
  sahirs she’s bargained with thus far 
  have dealt with her fairly. 
  Nawar spends most of her time at 
  her focus, a small oasis in the Nefud 
  desert, but her locus can be changed 
  to another desert with minimal 
  changes. Additionally, she is known 
  to a number of sahirs who might 
  summon her to other regions of the 
  Mythic Middle-East. 
  Story Seeds for Nawar 
  Story Seed: Bound to Please 
  To fulfill a Duty owed to Khalid, a 
  sahir has summoned Nawar away 
  from her locus, leaving it vulnerable 
  to al-Qayli’s designs. Communities 
  dependent upon the oasis for their 
  livelihood approach the characters for 
  assistance in either freeing Nawar 
  from the unscrupulous sahir or 
  preserving the nourishing pool from 
  the insane desert jinni. 
  Story Seed: A Tale of Two 
  Jinniyyas 
  The tales told about Nawar have 
  given rise to a faerie version of the 
  gentle oasis spirit. The faerie seems 
  innocuous at first, but as it grows 
  more powerful it will attempt to 
  usurp the magic spirit’s position, 
  exposing her to the ravages of 
  Acclimation. Simply destroying the 
  imposter won’t work because it 
  doesn’t conclude Nawar’s story, 
  which will continue to draw other 
  faeries to the role. Instead, the 
  characters must try to change the 
  stories told about the oasis to provide 
  as satisfactory ending. 
  Story Seed: Idol Chatter 
  A local holy man has begun 
  preaching against the evils of idolatry 
  and has promised to rid the local 
  oasis of its wicked spirit. If the man 
  truly possesses holy powers, then he 
  may very well be able to carry out his 
  dire threat. Can the players convince 
  him that Nawar’s presence is 
  beneficial to the community before 
  it’s too late? 
  Hamiq Al-Bakr 
  Narrowly Cognizant, Hamiq 
  himself isn’t completely sure why he 
  wanders the scorching deserts of 
  central Arabia, assisting both stranded 
  caravans and lost travelers find their 
  way back to civilization. What he does 
  know is that he derives great 
  satisfaction from reminding settled 
  folk about the importance of 
  hospitality. Hamiq’s role requires him 
  to keep to the outskirts of society. 
  Nevertheless, he remains a well-
  known figure in the towns where he 
  replenishes his Might between 
  journeys. A number of townsfolk 
  suspect at Hamiq’s true origins, but 
  he seems well-behaved so they don’t 
  persecute him. 
  Hamiq, as written, might be 
  encountered virtually anywhere in the 
  Arabian Peninsula, but by changing 
  his (Area) Lore he can be adapted to 
  work in other inhospitable regions. 
  Of course, he could also be 
  summoned up by sahirs operating 
  virtually anywhere in the Mythic 
  Middle-East. 
  Story Seeds for Hamiq 
  Story Seed: No Good Deed… 
  A group of merchants Hamiq 
  rescues from a Zawba’a are, in fact, 
  bloodthirsty brigands who proceed to 
  terrorize the entire region. Can the 
  characters stop the bandits before 
  Hamiq’s role is redefined as the leader 
  of a group of faerie highwaymen? 
  Story Seed: Family Ties 
  On one of his routine visits to the 
  character’s covenant, Hamiq is 
  accompanied by a young girl whom 
  he claims is his daughter. Whatever 
  the truth of the matter, the child not 
  only exhibits signs of Jann blood, but 
  also The Gift. Can the characters 
  convince their ally to let them take his 
  daughter as an apprentice, and if so, 
  what boon might he ask in return? 
  Faces of the Distant Sands 
  By Jason Brennan 
  
  39 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Story Seed: The Lost City 
  During his travels, Hamiq comes 
  across the ruins of a once-grand city 
  half-buried in an enormous sand 
  dune. His effort to explore the ruins 
  having been thwarted by powerful 
  magical wards, the jinni seeks out the 
  characters for assistance in excavating 
  the site. What magical secrets might 
  the ruined city hold, and will Hamiq 
  even be able to locate it again?  
  Yusuf ibn Rashid al 
  Halqa 
  The third character in this 
  offering, Yusuf is a fairly typical, 
  although somewhat unfocused Gifted 
  sahir. Despite his eager embrace of 
  the call of jihad, Yusuf recognizes his 
  role as a scholar, and not a warrior. 
  By embracing this difference, he has 
  selflessly dedicated himself to 
  discovering effective stratagems for 
  combating hermetic magic. To his 
  brethren in the Suhhar Sulayman, 
  Yusuf is best known for his 
  passionate devotion to driving the 
  Frankish devils out of the Middle-
  East for good. Common folk, 
  however, recognize him only as a 
  wandering scholar who occasionally 
  supports himself by working as a 
  tutor. 
  Yusuf travels extensively and 
  might just as easily be found 
  researching forgotten magical secrets 
  in Baghdad or interviewing survivors 
  of a hermetic raid in the Levant. 
  When not pursuing his pet project, 
  however, he can often be found at his 
  home in Yamama where he has 
  established a laboratory. 
  Story Seeds for Yusuf 
  Story Hook: Lost and 
  Founder 
  While researching method of 
  combating magic-resistant foes, Yusuf 
  comes across an ancient and badly-
  singed book about magic resistance 
  which promises to revolutionize the 
  suhhar’s understanding of the topic. 
  He seeks to enlist the characters’ aid 
  in adapting the techniques to work 
  with Solomonic Magic, but who is 
  “Flambo” and how his book came to 
  be in the buyut’s great library in 
  Baghdad? 
  Story Seed: School Daze 
  After a student of his falls victim 
  to a mysterious curse, Yusuf finds 
  himself accused of witchcraft. Will 
  the characters be able to discover the 
  source of the curse and unmask the 
  true culprit before their friend is 
  convicted and beheaded? 
  Story Hook: The Devil You 
  Know 
  The characters are approached by 
  a group of infernal jinn who propose 
  forging in alliance against a powerful 
  group of western diabolists. Can the 
  corrupted spirits be trusted, and why 
  have they lead the characters to a 
  Templar stronghold? 
  Firuz I Arash 
  Finally, a Zoroastrian Mythic 
  Companion of unquestionable 
  religious devotion, Firuz is also a 
  loving husband and father. Indeed, 
  his eldest son’s recent investiture 
  freed him from his spiritual 
  responsibilities and permits him to 
  pursue his personal goals. As a 
  mobed, Firuz enjoys the respect due 
  his position within the Zoroastrian 
  community and strives not take it for 
  granted. Likewise he has the ear of 
  Muslim leaders, who consider him a 
  representative of his community. 
  Outside of Kirman, Firuz is not held 
  in any particular esteem or hated, but 
  tends to wear disguises anyway. 
  Firuz spends most of his time at 
  the agiari in Kirman fulfilling his 
  priestly duties, but his determination 
  to rediscover the secrets of his 
  magian forebears leads him to travel 
  throughout Mythic Persia and 
  beyond. Thus he might be found in 
  the Levant or Thebes tribunals or 
  even mysterious Sind! 
  Story Seeds for Firuz 
  Story Hook: Name Game 
  Firuz appears on the character’s 
  doorstep seeking aid. A group of 
  Mulhidun (Realms of Power: The Infernal, 
  page 136) have stolen a scroll 
  containing the True Names of many 
  powerful spirits. Can the characters 
  help him track down the thieves and 
  recover the artefact before the 
  diabolists have a chance to utilize 
  their newfound knowledge? 
  Story Hook: A Dish Served 
  Cold 
  One day a powerful jinni arrives at 
  the agiari seeking revenge against the 
  (long-dead) mobed who bound him 
  to some tedious and humiliating task 
  many centuries ago. Frustrated, the 
  spirit vents its rage upon the 
  Zoroastrian community as a whole. 
  Terrified locals petition Firuz, a direct 
  descendant of the jinni’s tormentor, 
  for assistance. Can the characters 
  convince the jinni to abate its wrath 
  and leave in peace? 
  Story Hook: Matters of Faith 
  When a local mufti publicly 
  questions Zoroaster’s status as a 
  prophet, members of the nearby 
  mazdean community find their status 
  as ahl al-kitab threatened. The official 
  responsible bears no ill-will toward 
  his Zoroastrian neighbours and 
  decries any injustices done to them, 
  but is sincere and uncompromising in 
  his belief that the Avesta is not 
  divinely inspired. Can the characters 
  convince him to reconsider his 
  decision? 
  
  40 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Nawar Al-Mayia 
  Magic Might: 20 (Aquam) 
  Season: Summer. 
  Characteristics: Int +1, Per 0, Pre +2, Com 0, Str 0, Sta 0, Dex 
  0, Qik +2 
  Confidence: 1 (3). 
  Size: 0. 
  Virtues and Flaws: Magic Spirit; Jinni; Magical Master; Ways of 
  the Desert; Puissant Ability (swim) Second Sight; Enemy (al-
  Qayli), Greater Malediction (must honor the terms of any bargain 
  struck); Compassionate, Visions. 
  Magical Qualities and Inferiorities: Focus Powers x3, Gentle 
  Air, Greater Power x2; Improved Abilities, Improved Recovery. 
  Personality Traits: Determined +2, Honest +1, Merciful +4*, 
  Reclusive +1. 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: Initiative +2, Attack N/A, Defense +3, Damage N/A 
  Fist: Initiative +2, Attack +1, Defense +3, Damage 0 
  Kick: Initiative +1, Attack +2, Defense +3, Damage +3 
  Soak: +0. 
  Wound Penalties: –1 (1–5), –3 (6–10), –5 (11–15), Incapacitated 
  (15–20), Dead (21+)  
  Abilities: Arabic 5 (poetry), Nefud Desert Lore 6 (trade routes), 
  Bargain 3 (magical bargains), Brawl 1 (kick), Finesse 2 (Aquam), 
  Magical Meditation 3 (preventing acclimation), Penetration 2 
  (Aquam), Second Sight 4 (jinn), Swim 5+2 (underwater), 
  Theology: Islam 2 (jinn). 
  Powers: 
  *Crafter of Water, Variable points, Init -3, Aquam 
  Duplicates any effects of non-ritual Creo Aquam or Rego Aquam 
  spell of 20th level or less at a cost of 1 might point per 
  magnitude of the effect. 
  Donning the Corporeal Veil, 0 points, Init -1, Corpus 
  As per Realms of Power: Magic 
  *Manifestation, 4+ points, Init (2 – points spent) 
  As per Realms of Power: Magic 
  *Presence, 0 points, Constant, Imaginem 
  As per Realms of Power: Magic 
  Vis: 4 pawns of Aquam Vis in her heart. In addition, 2 pawns of 
  Aquam Vis can be harvested from her oasis each year by 
  gathering the ice that forms on the pool’s surface on the night of 
  the winter solstice. 
  Appearance: When she invokes her Donning the Corporeal Veil 
  power, Nawar appears as a nubile woman clad in a flowing blue 
  gown. Her oasis consists of a cool, clear pool of water with a few 
  young date-palms to give shade to travelers. 
  An Oasis Spirit of moderate power, Nawar is in almost constant 
  conflict with Khalid Al-Qayli, the jinn of an erg that aspires to 
  consume her lands. Despite the desert spirit’s superior Might, 
  Nawar has thus far been able to resist his advances due to a 
  series of alliances with local tribes, other jinn, and even sahirs. 
  She would dearly like to forge a Spiritual Pact so she could work 
  against Al-Qayli more directly, but is not powerful enough to do 
  so yet. 
  
  41 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Hamiq Al-Bakr 
  Faerie Might: 20 (Vim) 
  Characteristics: Int 0, Per 0, Pre -1, Com 0, Str +1, Sta +2, Dex 
  +3, Qik +1 
  Size: 0 
  Virtues and Flaws: Jinn, Observant, Passes for Human; Focus 
  Power, Greater Power; Faerie Sight, Faerie Speech, Humanoid 
  Faerie, Improved Characteristics, Improved Might x3, Improved 
  Powers, Lesser Power, Skinchanger; Greater Malediction (must 
  honor the terms of any bargain struck), Might Recovery Requires 
  Vitality; Dutybound (hospitality), Incognizant, Traditional Ward 
  (Bismallah). 
  Personality Traits: Kind +3, Humble +1, Pious +1. 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: Initiative +1, Attack N/A, Defense +4, Damage N/A 
  Knife: Initiative +1, Attack +8, Defense +5, Damage +3 
  Thrown Knife: Initiative +1, Attack +11, Defense +8, Damage +3 
  Soak: +2 
  Wound Penalties: –1 (1–5), –3 (6–10), –5 (11–15), Incapacitated 
  (15–20), Dead (21+) 
  Pretenses: Animal Handling 4 (camels), Arabia Lore 7 (towns), 
  Artes Liberales 2 (grammar), Brawl 3 (Knife), Faerie Speech 5 
  (Storytelling), Finesse 2 (Terram), Folk Ken 2 (merchants), Ride 
  3 (long distances), Survival 7 (deserts), Theology: Islam 3 (jinn), 
  Thrown Weapon 6 (knife) 
  Powers: 
  The Leap of Homecoming, 4 points, Init -4, Corpus 
  As per ArM5, but with Group target so he can affect multiple 
  travellers. 
  Ruler of Sand, Varies, Init -3, Terram 
  This power duplicates the effects of any non-ritual Terram spells 
  of 20th level or less, so long as they affect sand, at a cost of 1 
  might point per magnitude of the effect. 
  Quenching the Parched Throat, 0 points, Init -9, Aquam 
  This power fills up to 10 containers with cool fresh water. The 
  water created by this effect is temporary, but is nourishing for as 
  long as it remains and Hamiq is careful not to allow the power to 
  lapse until his target(s) have had a chance to consume real water.  
  (Base 2, +1 Touch, +4 Faerie, +2 Group) 
  Equipment: Robes, canteen, knives, camel 
  Vis: 4 pawns of Vim in his eyes. 
  Appearance: Hamiq appears as a middle-aged Muslim 
  gentleman, clearly well-prepared for the rigors of desert travel. At 
  times he travels with a dromedary camel (an extension of his own 
  glamour) carrying a large waterskin on its back. 
  Hamiq is an unusual sort of jinn who involves himself in the 
  morality tales of Arabian Peninsula. He wanders the major trade 
  routes searching for lost travelers whom he can then lead back to 
  civilization (secretly employing “The Leap of Homecoming”) 
  drawing vitality from the sense of relief and gratitude felt by 
  those he helps.  
  Due to his faerie nature, Hamiq can only draw vitality from 
  humans (and thus recover Might) when he is acting in a 
  supporting role. Therefore, he must be careful to avoid acting as 
  Deus ex Machina in those stories he enters. At most, he might 
  transport a traveler to within a few miles of town and provide 
  him with water and directions. 
  
  42 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Yusuf ibn Rashid al Halqa 
  Characteristics: Int +1, Per 0, Pre +4, Com 0, Str -1, Sta +1, 
  Dex -1, Qik +1 
  Size: -1 
  Age: 40 (35) 
  Warping Score: 4 (0) 
  Confidence Score: 1 (3) 
  Virtues and Flaws: The Gift; Sahir, Wise One; Sihr; Educated 
  (Islamic), Good Teacher, Great Presence, Greater Magical 
  Defenses, Inspirational, Puissant Sihr; Driven (remove crusaders 
  from Muslim lands), Restriction (must be barefoot); Disfigured 
  (ass’s ears), Magic Spirit Companion, Small Frame 
  Personality Traits: Proud +3, Cheerful -3, Condescending +1 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: Initiative +1, Attack N/A, Defense +1, Damage N/A 
  Fist: Initiative +1, Attack -1, Defense +1, Damage -1 
  Kick: Initiative 0, Attack -1, Defense 0, Damage +2 
  Soak: +5 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: –1 (1–4), –3 (5–8), –5 (9–12), Incapacitated 
  (13–16), Dead (17+) 
  Abilities: Arabic 5 (scholars), Artes Liberales 2 (alphabets), 
  Bargain 4 (jinn), Concentration 2 (maintaining spells), Faerie 
  Lore 3 (folk tradition), Leadership 3 (jinn), Magic Lore 3 (spirits), 
  Medicine 4 (sanguine diseases), Parsi 3 (storytelling), Penetration 
  5 (Sihr), Philosophiae 4 (reagents), Teaching 5 (Solomonic Arts), 
  Theology: Islam 4 (magic), Yamama Lore 3 (jinn) 
  Sihr: 12+2, Alchemy: 8, Astrology: 6, Physic: 7, Storytelling: 
  6, Travel: 8 
  Naranj Known: 
  Move along, move along (Storytelling, 10/+10) 
  Nawar al-Mayia (Sihr, 20/+18) 
  Scald the heathen sorcerer (Alchemy, 10/+12) 
  Sow the seeds for a crop of betrayers (Storytelling, 25/+10) 
  Touch of Bahtyshu (Physic, 30/+15) 
  Walk the secret path (Travel, 25/+17) 
  Appearance: Yusuf is a slight man in plain, but clean robes and 
  a tall yatu-like hat (to conceal the long, fuzzy set of ears he 
  received from a disgruntled jinni, earlier in his career). His beard 
  is long, but neatly trimmed and he is usually seen either barefoot 
  or wearing simple sandals that can be quickly removed if 
  necessary. 
  Yusuf is a rather typical Gifted sahir with the possible exception 
  of his strong counter-crusader sympathies. Despite possessing 
  The Gift, Yusuf earns his living as a teacher (his Storytelling 
  ability granting a net bonus of +1 to social interactions). When 
  he’s not supporting himself through his teaching, Yusuf is busily 
  researching methods to bypass magic resistance. 
  New Naranjs: 
  Scald the heathen sorcerer 
  Solomonic Alchemy, Level 10 
  Alteration: Substantial 
  This naranj instantly heats a volume of sand to such a 
  temperature that any character exposed to it suffers +10 damage. 
  Some sahir have been known to use high-level variants of this 
  effect to cover Muslim retreats by creating patches of super-
  heated earth in the path of pursuing armies. 
  (Base 4, +2 Substantial) 
  Touch of Bakhtyshu 
  Solomonic Physic, Level 30 
  Potency: Mighty 
  This naranj confers a +12 bonus on the patient’s recovery rolls 
  for the targeted wound. This spell represents a more potent 
  version of Balm of the Barmakids. 
  Walk the secret path 
  Solomonic Travel, Level 25 Ritual 
  Delay: Season 
  This naranj, allows the caster to create a magical doorway to any 
  location that he has an active Arcane Connection to. The portal 
  is usually only wide enough for one person to pass through it at a 
  time but it remains open for as long as the jinn maintains 
  concentration, allowing a virtually unlimited number of 
  individuals through. The spell is most typically employed during 
  sieges, allowing the defenders to provision their garrison or 
  evacuate wounded as necessary. 
  (Base 25)  
  
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  Firuz I Arash 
  Characteristics: Int +2, Per 0, Pre -1, Com +3, Str 0, Sta 0, Dex 
  0, Qik -1 
  Size: 0 
  Age: 40 (37) 
  Warping Score: 2 (0) 
  Confidence Score: 1 (3) 
  Virtues and Flaws: Mazdean Priest, Outsider; Adjuration, 
  Invocation, True Faith, Wonders; Ceremony, Magian Lineage, 
  Puissant Invocation, Strong-Willed; Driven (recover Mazdean 
  magical secrets); Animal Companion, Poor Eyesight.   
  Personality Traits: Honest +2, Pious +3, Determined +2. 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: Initiative -1, Attack -, Defense -1, Damage - 
  Fist: Initiative -1, Attack 0, Defense -1, Damage 0 
  Kick: Initiative -2, Attack 0, Defense -2, Damage +3 
  Soak: +0 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: –1 (1–5), –3 (6–10), –5 (11–15), Incapacitated 
  (16–20), Dead (21+) 
  Abilities: Adjuration 5 (yazdan), Arabic 3 (insults), Artes 
  Liberales 2 (Astronomy), Avestan 4 (myths), Ceremony 4 
  (Adjuration), Dominion Lore 3 (yazdan), Invocation 6+2 
  (Wonders), Kirman Lore 3 (Zoroastrians), Leadership 1 
  (Ceremony), Mobed Lore 3 (initiations), Parsi 5 (Baloch), Stealth 
  2 (hiding), Theology: Islam 1 (prophets), Theology: Mazdean 5 
  (sacraments), Wonders 5 (fire). 
  Appearance: Firuz is a robust man with slightly graying hair and 
  a scraggly-looking beard who appears to be in his late 30s. He 
  generally wears the vestments and kusti of a mazdean priest, but 
  frequently wears a heavy woolen robe while traveling (both to 
  protect his good robe and to avoid any potential harassment). He 
  is usually accompanied by a small dog with spotless white fur 
  save for two dark patches situated above its eyes. 
  Firuz is currently scouring Mythic Persia looking for magical 
  artifacts created by Zoroastrian magi of old in the hopes of 
  restoring the mystical supremacy of his faith. 
  Sample Effects: 
  Call Forth the Named Spirit 
  (Invocation, Adjuration, Level 25) 
  Range: Arcane Connection. Duration: Momentary. Target: 
  Individual. 
  This effect causes a spirit, to whom the Mobed must possess an 
  arcane connection, to manifest itself in the caster’s presence. This 
  invocation confers no special protection from the summoned 
  spirit, however, so the summoner will need to prepare any 
  safeguards beforehand. 
  (Base 5, +4 Arcane Connection) 
  Yoke of Faith 
  (Invocation, Adjuration, Level 35) 
  Range: Touch. Duration: Fire. Target: Individual. 
  This effect forces a supernatural being to obey a single command 
  from the caster for as long as a specific sacred fire (selected when 
  the invocation is performed) continues to burn. 
  (Base 15, +1 Touch, +3 Fire) 
  Avenging Flame 
  (Invocation, Wonders, General) 
  Range: Voice. Duration: Momentary. Target: Individual. 
  This effect summons up a bolt of holy flame that inflicts damage 
  equal to: (Level – 10 ). Thus, for example, a Level 15 invocation 
  causes +5 damage. 
  Blessing of Ohrmazd 
  (Invocation, Wonders, Level 20) 
  Range: Touch. Duration: Sabbath. Target: Individual. 
  This effect conjures forth a dazzling fist-sized orb of light which 
  provides illumination equivalent to bright daylight within an area 
  10 paces across. 
  (Base 5, +1 Touch, +2 Sun) 
  
  44 
   
   
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  Imprisoning Jinn 
  Several Supernatural Abilities 
  in Mythic Europe may be used to 
  imprison jinn, and all of them 
  originate from the same art 
  practiced by sorcerers long before 
  the birth of Christ, utilizing very 
  sim ilar con cepts.  Existing 
  differences spring from methods 
  for compelling jinn. 
  Binding: this Goetic Art 
  binds a spirit regardless of Realm 
  to an object or person and is an 
  Infernal power. It grants no 
  further control over the bound 
  j i n n i  u n l e s s  t h e  A r t  o f 
  Commanding is also used. 
  Binding and Commanding are 
  both aligned to the Infernal. 
  (Realms of Power: the Infernal, page 
  114-115) 
  B o n d i n g :  
  A  
  s e c o n d 
  application of this Faerie Art 
  allows the summoner to bond a 
  Faerie spirit such as a Faerie jinni 
  to an object (bottle, ring, lamp or 
  other object chosen by the 
  summoner) and draw upon the 
  powers of the bonded spirit. 
  (Realms of Power: Faerie, page 130) 
  (Elemental) 
  Summoning 
  and Controlling: Jinn associated 
  with a specific element (Aquam, 
  Auram, Ignem, or Terram) 
  regardless of Realm alignment 
  can be summoned and held 
  within a container where it 
  remains under the summoner’s 
  control until released. Although 
  usually aligned with Magic, this 
  form of Summoning can be 
  aligned with Faerie or the 
  Infernal although the related 
  Elemental Art of Controlling is 
  always aligned with Magic. (See 
  Hedge 
  Magic: 
  Revised 
  Edition, 
  Chapter 2: Elementalists). 
  Sihr: sahir can use this 
  Accelerated Ability to summon 
  and bind jinni regardless of 
  Realm alignment to their service, 
  enforcing a bargain which may 
  include imprisonment in an 
  object. In effect, Magic jinn are 
  convinced to shift their locus to 
  the prison object, Infernal jinn 
  are forced to occupy the 
  container and Faerie jinn of 
  s u f f i c ie n t  Co gn i za n c e  ar e 
  persuaded to invest the proffered 
  prop with some of their spiritual 
  The Lists of Solomon: 
  Jinn Apocrypha 
  By Lachlan Hayes 
  Edited by Ben McFarland 
  
  45 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  essence, replacing one of their 
  existing Virtues with the External 
  Vis Virtue. Such bargains are 
  generally distasteful to the jinn 
  however, and impose a +6 
  penalty to the Ease Factor of the 
  bargaining attempt. Further 
  details on Sihr are given The 
  Cradle and the Crescent. 
  In addition, the Hermetic Arts 
  of Rego Vim can be used to 
  imprison jinn of a specifically 
  nominated Realm, compelling 
  them to service using spells 
  similar to Voices from Hollow 
  Spaces used by House Tremere to 
  entrap ghosts within places and 
  objects (Houses of Hermes: True 
  Lineages). The Hermetic Sahirs 
  developed spells enabling them to 
  imprison elemental Magic jinn 
  within containers inscribed with a 
  Ring (the mouth of a bottle, the 
  inside circumference of a metal 
  band, the spout of a lamp). 
  A p p l i c at io n  o f  t h e U n t il 
  (Condition) Duration granted by 
  the Faerie Magic Mystery 
  similarly allows Merinitia magi to 
  imprison Faerie jinn within sealed 
  objects until their prison is 
  opened. None of these methods 
  i m p a r t  c o n t r o l  o v e r  t h e 
  im p r iso n ed  s p ir it ;  f u r t h er 
  application of Hermetic magic or 
  non-magical bargaining and 
  compulsion is required to entreat 
  further service. 
  (Form) Jar of Solomon 
  R: Voice, D: Ring, T: Ind, Re 
  Aq/Au/Ig/Te Level 35 
  These spells, one for each 
  elemental Form (Aquam, Auram, 
  Ignem, or Terram), allow a 
  Hermetic Sahir or other magus to 
  imprison an elemental jinni 
  regardless of Realm within a Ring 
  placed upon common object such 
  as a lamp, earthenware jar, 
  gemstone or metal band as 
  appropriate, imitating a lost non-
  Hermetic ability of the tradition 
  passed down from the magic of 
  Solomon. The spell does not 
  compel the imprisoned jinni to 
  serve willingly however and in 
  many cases angers the bound 
  jinni, resulting in a +6 to the 
  E a s e  
  F a c t o r  
  n e e d e d  
  t o 
  successfully strike a bargain with 
  the spirit using the Sihr Ability. 
  The jinni may still be commanded 
  with Hermetic magic normally. 
  Variants of this spell that 
  affect jinn aligned with the 
  Herbam Form may exist and it 
  would be possible to design a 
  similar Rego Vim spell that 
  targets a subset of jinn aligned to 
  particular Realm. For example, a 
  Jackal (Thos) 
  Characteristics: Cun +0, Per 0, Pre -2, Com -4, Str -3, Sta +2, 
  Dex +3, Qik +3 
  Size: -2 
  Confidence Score: 0 
  Virtues and Flaws: Improved Characteristics (x2), Long-
  Winded, Sharp Ears 
  Qualities: Fast Runner, Keen Sense of Smell, Pursuit Predator, 
  Sharp Ears, Tireless 
  Personality Traits: Friendly +3 
  Reputations: Scavenger (local) 4 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: Init +3, Attack na, Defense +6, Damage na 
  Bite: Init +3, Attack +10, Defense +8, Damage -2 
  Soak: +2 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0/0, -1/-1, -3/-3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-3), -3 (4-6), -5 (7-9), Incapacitated (10-
  12), Dead (13+) 
  Abilities: Athletics 5 (distance running), Awareness 3 (smell), 
  Brawl 3 (teeth), Hunt 4 (track by smell), Survival 3 (desert) 
  Natural Weapons: Teeth: Init 0, Atk +3, Def +1, Dam +1. 
  Appearance: smaller than a wolf with shorter legs, the jackal is 
  slighter in build with a longer body and a shorter tail. 
  Predominantly reddish-yellow in color, some individuals have 
  black highlights or even grey fur. 
  Unlike the wolf, the jackal or ibn 'awa (wawi), is not a pack 
  animal and usually hunts alone or in mated pairs or scavenges 
  near the edges of human settlements.It is more friendly to man 
  than its cousin the wolf and can be domesticated and even 
  trained to act as a guardian but not for hunting. 
  Black jackals are also considered symbols of Anubis, the 
  Egyptian god of embalming and the dead. The black jackal is also 
  a common shape assumed by both Faerie and Infernal jinn, 
  particularly members of the Ghul tribe, probably due the animal's 
  scavenging tendencies and habit of lurking near cemeteries. 
  All jackals are fast runners and gain +3 on all rolls involving 
  running, able to pursue prey for long periods over considerable 
  distances if necessary. 
  
  46 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Hermetic magus could design a 
  Vim version of the spell that 
  could affect Faerie jinn regardless 
  of elemental affinity but would 
  need to design separate similar 
  versions of the Vim spell to 
  affect either Magic or Infernal 
  jinn. 
  Sahir who imprison jinn 
  regularly are likely to gain a 
  negative Reputation with jinn as a 
  Slaver, the score of which 
  subtracts from all their rolls to 
  bargain with jinn. If the caster 
  botches the spell-casting roll, 
  they may be imprisoned within 
  the object instead of the targeted 
  j i n n  a t  t h e  S t o r y g u i d e ’ s 
  discretion. 
  (Base 15 (control a spirit in an 
  unnatural manner), +2 Voice, +2 
  Ring; special: incorporates some 
  non-Hermetic elements) 
  Recalling and Reciting 
  Suras against Jinn 
  The memorization and recital 
  of the Qur’an and the associated 
  hadith is an integral practice in 
  t h e  I s l a m i c  
  f a i t h .  
  T h i s 
  recollection of whole verses and 
  even suras is reflected in play by 
  using rules similar to the New 
  A b i l i t y :  A r t  o f  M e m o r y , 
  introduced in The Mysteries: Revised 
  Edition, pages 25-26. As a 
  technical subject falling within 
  the bounds of Theology: Islam, 
  an Islamic character may use this 
  technique without knowing Art of 
  Memory but the character must 
  make a stress die + Intelligence 
  roll (with three extra botch dice) 
  against an appropriate Ease 
  Factor. 
  If not using the Art of 
  Memory Ability, the character 
  must roll both to memorize and 
  recall the desired sections: 
  memorize one of the short suras 
  or a short collection of verses 
  from one of the larger suras 
  (taking no longer than 5 minutes 
  to recite), memorize a full section 
  or juz of the Qur’an (equivalent 
  to a collection of 50 or less verses 
  (an ayat) that takes less than 1 
  hour to recite), memorize 5 full 
  juz (comprising a collection of 
  verses that take less than half a 
  day to recite) or memorize the 
  full Qur’an (a task that takes 
  nearly a full day to recite). 
  The “Bismallah”, the “Four 
  Quls” and “the Throne Verse” of 
  the 2nd sura “al-Baqarra” are all 
  considered short selections taking 
  less than 5 minutes (2 Diameters) 
  to recall and recite. 
  New Virtue: Hamil 
  Major General Virtue 
  A hamil (“one who carries”) is 
  the medieval title of an individual 
  who has memorized the whole 
  Qur’an and thus earns the right to 
  be a respected qari’ (“reader”), a 
  person trusted to accurately recite 
  the Qur’an at times of prayer or 
  during Ramadan. Even if you 
  possess no other applicable Social 
  Status Virtue, you are considered 
  a minor official of the religious 
  elite and treated accordingly with 
  a positive Reputation of Qari’ 2. 
  You begin play having memorized 
  the entire Qur’an and likely know 
  several long tracts from the 
  collected hadith and books on 
  Islamic Law. 
  You may recall and recite 
  sections of the Qur’an of various 
  lengths using your Theology: 
  Islam score instead of an Art of 
  Memory score, as noted above. 
  As part of this Virtue you gain 
  the benefits of the Educated 
  (Islamic) (Realms of Power: the 
  Divine, page 115) and Puissant 
  Theology: Islam Virtues at no 
  cost and may purchase Academic 
  Ab ilit i es  d u r in g ch ar a ct er 
  creation. You must purchase an 
  Arabic score of at least 6. You do 
  not have any other remarkable 
  memorization abilities on topics 
  outside of Theology: Islam but 
  may purchase a score in Art of 
  Memory separately. 
  Other Supernatural 
  Creatures of the 
  Mythic Middle East 
  The ghaddar (ghad-DAHR) or 
  gharrar (ghar-RAHR) is a hideous 
  creature found in Yemen, ‘Asir 
  and the southern Hijaz. It takes 
  the form of a huge but immensely 
  ugly woman, with razor-sharp 
  teeth, and enjoys frightening and 
  torturing its victims, usually by 
  devouring their genitals (Infernal 
  or Faerie). 
  The dilhan (dil-HEHN) looks 
  like a human being but eats 
  human flesh. It lives on the 
  islands around the Arabian coast 
  and rides on an ostrich. Its cry 
  paralyses its victims (Infernal, 
  Magical or Faerie). 
  The shiqq (SHIQQ), in its 
  true form looks like the bottom 
  half of a human, cut off at the 
  waist. It often uses powers of 
  illusion to make itself appear as a 
  whole, complete and attractive 
  human being, and it can also hum 
  an enchanting melody that makes 
  its victims more likely to obey its 
  desires. It is said that nisnases are 
  born from the union of a shiqq 
  and a human being (Infernal, 
  Magical or Faerie). 
  The hatif 
  (HEH-tif) is 
  invisible, but its voice may be 
  heard giving advice or warnings 
  to those in need (Divine or 
  Faerie). 
  Beastly Shapes of 
  the Jinn 
  The following creatures can 
  commonly be encountered in the 
  Mythic Middle East, and their 
  forms are often used by shape-
  changing jinn. 
  
  47 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Ass (Donkey) 
  A common site in the Mythic 
  Middle East, the ass is used as a 
  beast of burden within cities and 
  near more populated areas as it is 
  ill suited to desert crossings. The 
  sterile mule or hinny, cross-bred 
  with the Arabian horse, is 
  commonly used as a pack animal 
  or mount and more resilient to 
  long journeys. 
  Ostrich, Arabian 
  Although more commonly 
  found in Egypt, a slightly smaller 
  version of this flightless bird 
  ranges throughout northern 
  Arabia and the Levant. Similar 
  specimens can even be found in 
  parts of Uman. Valued for their 
  feathers, leather and less so for 
  their meat, they roam the semi-
  arid plains in great flocks but 
  avoid the deep desert. Ostrich 
  hunting remains a favorite 
  pastime of nobles and rich sahir. 
  Waral 
  Giant specimens of these 
  lizards are sometimes used as 
  mounts by desert jann or even 
  sahir, using modified saddles and 
  harness although they must be 
  kept separately to horses, camels 
  and other beasts of burden as 
  Ass (Donkey) 
  Characteristics: Cun -3, Per 0, Pre -4, Com -4, Str +4, Sta +4, 
  Dex -1, Qik -2 
  Size: +2 
  Confidence Score: 1(3) 
  Virtues and Flaws: Ferocity (consumed by lust), Long-Winded; 
  Noncombatant 
  Qualities: Defensive Fighter, Domesticated, Hardy 
  Personality Traits: Lustful +3, Meek +2 
  Reputations: Brutish (local) 2 
  Combat: 
  Hooves: Init +0, Attack +5, Defense +4, Damage +5. 
  Soak: +4 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0/0, -1/-1, -3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-7), -3 (8-14), -5 (16-21), Incapacitated 
  (22-28), Dead (29+) 
  Abilities: Athletics (climb) 3, Awareness 3 (predators), Brawl 
  (dodge) 4 
  Appearance: These statistics describe a typical domesticated ass 
  or donkey. 
  Rare Bjornaer magi born in the Levant have been noted with a 
  donkey Heartbeast of melancholic humor with a choleric aspect, 
  but such individuals always take the wild versions of these 
  animals, the onager, known as the koulan in the Mythic Middle 
  East (see below), as noted in Houses of Hermes: Mystery Cults, “The 
  Heartbeast”, pages 18-24. 
   
  Donkey Variants 
   
  Koulan (Onager or Wild Ass) 
  Lose the Domesticated Quality and Noncombatant Flaw. Add 
  the Herd Animal Quality. Change the Personality traits to: 
  Jealous +4 and Wild +3. Add the Envious (Minor) Flaw. Add 
  Survival (desert) 5. The koulan’s hooves have the following 
  combat statistics: Init +0, Attack +5, Defense +4, Damage +5. 
   
  Mule 
  Add Improved Characteristics x2, increase Strength and Stamina 
  to +5, decrease Dexterity and Quickness by one each. Add the 
  Tireless Quality and an extra Fatigue Level. Gain the Great 
  Bearer and Tough Virtues and suffer the Pack Mentality / 
  Follower Flaw. Change Personality Traits to Stubborn +3 and 
  Plodding +2. Reputation changes to Hardy 2 (throughout Mythic 
  Middle East). Soak is increased to +8 and a mule’s kick has the 
  following combat statistics: Init -1, Attack +4, Defense +3, 
  Damage +6. 
  
  48 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Falcon (Saqr) 
  Characteristics: Cun -1, Per +3, Pre +1, Com 0, Str -6, Sta +2, 
  Dex +1, Qik +6 
  Size: -3 
  Confidence Score: 1 (3) 
  Virtues and Flaws: Ferocity (swooping attack), Keen Vision, 
  Long-Winded; Fragile Constitution 
  Qualities: Accomplished Flier, Extra Natural Weapons, Fast 
  Flier, Keen Eyesight, Imposing Appearance x2, Pursuit Predator, 
  Tireless 
  Personality Traits: Fierce +3 
  Reputations: None 
  Combat: 
  Talons: Init +5, Attack +6, Defense +12, Damage -4 
  Beak: Init +6, Atk +6, Defense +9, Damage -5 
  Soak: -2 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0/0, -1/-1, -3/-3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-2), -3 (3-4), -5 (5-6), Incapacitated (7-8), 
  Dead (9+) 
  Abilities: Athletics 5 (swift flight), Awareness 4 (spotting prey), 
  Brawl 2 (talons), Hunt 4 (game birds), Survival 3 (desert climates) 
  Natural Weapons: The weapon statistics for a falcon’s talons 
  are Init -1, Atk +2, Def +3, Dam +2. The statistics for its beak 
  are Init 0, Atk +3, Def +1, Dam +1. 
  Appearance: These statistics are for a saqr (referred to as a 
  “saker” by the Franks), the falcon most prized by Bedouin 
  sheikhs and nobles. 
   
  Like all falcons, saqr are fast fliers and gain a +3 bonus to rolls 
  involving speed. 
  Ostrich, Arabian 
  Characteristics: Cun -2, Per +2, Pre -1, Com -2, Str +0, Sta +2, 
  Dex +2, Qik +3 (1) 
  Size: +0 
  Confidence Score: 0 (0) 
  Virtues and Flaws: Improved Characteristics, Keen Vision, 
  Perfect Balance, Sharp Ears; Fragile Constitution 
  Qualities: Camouflage, Defensive Fighter, Fast Runner, Hardy, 
  Herd Animal, Keen Eyesight, Thick Feathers 
  Reputations: None 
  Combat: 
  Dodge: +3, Attack N/A, Defense +6, Damage N/A 
  Kick (as hoof): Init +5, Attack +8, Defense +7, Damage +0 
  Soak: +2 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-7), -3 (8-14), -5 (15-21), Incapacitated 
  (22-28), Dead (29+) 
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (running), Awareness 4 (predators), Brawl 4 
  (dodging), Survival 5 (home terrain). 
  Natural Weapons: the weapon statistics for an ostrich’s kick are 
  Init +2, Atk +2, Def +0, Dam +0. 
  Appearance: this large bird has a long neck and legs with huge 
  eyes. Males are typically black with white tail plumage whereas 
  females are a more discreet grey color. 
   
  Unlike other birds, an ostrich cannot fly or even glide but can 
  run as fast as a gazelle if needed. Similar to horses, an ostrich gets 
  a +3 to all rolls involving running. 
  Larger versions of these birds are kept by some jann o use 
  instead of horses or to trade with nobles and sahir who favor a 
  more exotic mount to impress the common folk. Such specimens 
  are typically Size +1 or larger and may have additional Virtues 
  such as Great Quickness, Perfect Balance and Unaffected by the 
  Gift. Some jann have bred their flocks to have magical powers 
  dealing with travel and distance. 
  
  49 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  they unsettle normal animals. The 
  statistics above represent a typical 
  oversized jann steed, but the 
  more common smaller versions 
  can be encountered throughout 
  Arabia, Mesopotamia, Persia and 
  the eastern deserts either in the 
  wild or in the menageries of 
  nobles and sahir. 
  Local stories from the Kyzyl 
  Kum tell of smaller, more 
  intelligent waral that can stand on 
  their hind legs, manipulate tools 
  and perhaps even perform limited 
  magic. Whether these creatures 
  are merely advanced specimens of 
  the great lizards, Faerie jinn that 
  feed of the fear and mystery of 
  humans by assuming a hybrid 
  reptilian form or are a type of 
  dragon-kin is unknown. 
   
   
   
  Waral (Varanus) 
  Characteristics: Cun +2, Per 0, Pre –6(+3), Com -2, Str +5, Sta 
  +2, Dex +2, Qik –1 
  Size: +2 
  Confidence Score: 1 (3)* 
  * due to Ferocity Virtue, when defending food or a fresh kill 
  Virtues and Flaws: Ferocity (defending food), Greater 
  Immunity: Poison, Tough; Depressed, Poor Eyesight 
  Qualities: Aggressive, Crafty, Grapple, Hardy, Loathsome 
  Appearance, Keen Sense of Smell, Thick Scales, Tough Hide, 
  Venomous 
  Personality Traits: Languid +2 
  Reputations: Dangerous (local) 2 
  Combat: 
  Bite: Init -1, Attack +11, Defense +6, Damage +9* and poison 
  (see below) 
  Grapple: Init -1, Attack +7, Defense +4, Damage special (see 
  ArM5, page 174) 
  * Includes a +3 bonus from Crushing Jaws 
  Soak: +5 
  Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, Unconscious 
  Wound Penalties: -1 (1-7), -3 (8-14), -5 (15-21), Incapacitated 
  (22-28), Dead (29+) 
  Abilities: Athletics 3 (running), Awareness 3 (food), Brawl 5 
  (bite), Survival 3 (desert). 
  Powers: 
  Venomous Bite, 0 points, Init 0: when a waral attacks, compare its 
  Attack Advantage to the victim's armor Protection (not his 
  Soak). If the waral's advantage is higher, the victim suffers the 
  effects equivalent to an exceptionally debilitating poison (Stamina 
  roll against Ease Factor 12, Incapacitating), regardless of whether 
  the bite inflicts an actual wound. Unlike smaller venomous 
  creatures such as the adder, a waral's special attack is not 
  hindered by high leather boots or other simple measures and it 
  can use the venom to great effect on a victim it has already 
  grappled with its locking bite. 
  Appearance: these large grey lizards can become aggressive 
  when provoked, lashing their tail when aroused. Their size and 
  color varies depending on their habitat, with some specimens 
  growing over 8 feet long. Although slow in gait, the creature's 
  powerful jaws can snap closed quickly to lock around its prey and 
  prevent escape. 
  
  50 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Books are an essential part of Ars Magica — 
  magi write them, seek them out, and study from 
  them to increase their Arts. The titles are often 
  fanciful, reflecting important magi in a saga or the 
  focus of the material. To provide a Storyguide with 
  a few historical and fictional manuscripts, we offer 
  this list of thirty-two titles. While some were 
  previously posted on the Atlas forums all have been 
  revised and fully described to provide sagas with 
  more books to fill the libraries of your magi.  
  There are several types of books described in this 
  list, 
  such 
  as 
  folios, 
  quartos, 
  octavos, 
  and 
  sextodecimos. These varieties can be identified by: 
  A folio volume is typically 15 in (38 cm) or more 
  in height, the largest sort of regular book.  
  A quarto volume is typically about 9 in (23 cm) 
  by 12 in (30 cm), roughly the size of a modern 
  magazine. A sheet folded in quarto is folded in half 
  twice at right angles to make four leaves. 
  An octavo volume is typically about 5 to 6 in (13 
  to 15 cm) by 8 to 9 in (20 to 23 cm), the size of a 
  modern trade paperback. A sheet folded in octavo is 
  folded in half 3 times to make 8 leaves.  
  A sextodecimo volume is about 4.5 in (11 cm) by 
  6.75in (17 cm), the size of most mass market 
  paperbacks. A sheet folded in sextodecimo is folded 
  in half 4 times to make 16 leaves. 
  There are also many types of bindings, such as 
  Coptic, Islamic bookcover, or woodbinding. A 
  Coptic binding is characterized by one or more 
  sheaves of pages sewn through the folds, which are 
  then chain stitched to each other across the spine. 
  Islamic bookbinding has a large leather flap which 
  closes over the front of the text, protecting the 
  pages. Finally, woodbinding might have the sheaves 
  either stitched through the wooden cover board, or 
  have the boards attached to the outer most pages 
  with glue and then covered with leather. 
  Some books, however, are simply kept as scrolls 
  or metal sheets. Magi, of course, tend to approach 
  the art of bookbinding with a creative eye, going to 
  great lengths to make their text unique and artful 
  through the use of exotic materials in the cover, 
  inks 
  or 
  even 
  the 
  parchment 
  which 
  might 
  complement the subject matter further, aiding in 
  study. It is possible a magus might augment the 
  quality of his next manuscript, adding +1 or +2 to 
  the Source Quality by incorporating materials from 
  an irreparable book on a similar subject matter. 
  Regardless, these particular tomes may be no more 
  attractive than another on the same topics, but 
  provide color for a covenant’s library. At a 
  Storyguide’s indication, however, particular pieces 
  of plot relevant information may only be available 
  through the study of a specific title. 
  Mundane Texts 
  Addendum to Galen 
  [Latin] 
  Summa: Medicine; Level: 3, Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 19 
  Possible Locations: a collection in Palermo, 
  with a traveling physician, in the library of a 
  monastery in Egypt. 
  Description: Authored by an unknown physician 
  who mentions Palermo and several sites in the 
  Levant, such as Aleppo and Damascus, this text 
  discusses a number of treatments for long-term 
  illnesses and details practices for long-term recovery 
  from serious wounds. The author seems to have had 
  access to unknown or unpublished works of the 
  Off the Shelf 
  By Ben McFarland 
  with James Parks  
  Entry Format 
  Texts are written in Latin unless otherwise specified. Some texts 
  are specifically designated in Latin when there is a possibility of 
  copies in other languages. For texts with multiple volumes, 
  additional languages may be specified if a subcomponent is 
  written in another language. The format for these entries is: 
  Book Title 
  [Number of Books, Language written] 
  Type of book: Topic (Specialty); Level: X, Quality: X 
  Covenant Build Points: The number of build points that the 
  book costs to buy during covenant creation. 
  Possible Locations: A short list of places this book might be 
  found. 
  Description: Details on the book and its subject matter. 
  
  51 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  great Roman physician, Aelius Galenus. This quarto 
  is fashioned from fine sheep vellum, and the writing 
  surfaces have been dyed white with chalk. The text 
  is scribed in a small but very legible handwriting, 
  using a blue ink. The book’s many illustrations are 
  rendered in black and red ink. Measuring roughly 12 
  inches tall by slightly more than eight inches across, 
  faded blue silk wraps the oaken cover boards. 
   
  Anabasis 
  Tractatus: Ancient Greek; Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Babylon); Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 20 
  Possible Locations: Hidden in a desk in a 
  Crusader castle within the Levant, carried by an 
  advisor to an imam in Turkey, bundled between 
  cloaks in the saddlebags of a dead camel. 
  Description: Written by Xenophon, this is the 
  Hellenistic writer’s most famous work. The journey 
  that it narrates is his best-known accomplishment. 
  It is written in Ancient Greek on a group of six very 
  long papyrus scrolls fitted with brass rods on either 
  end. The papyrus has been well cared for and is still 
  quite supple for its age. They are kept in a long, 
  pine coffer stained black and lined with a soft, grey 
  fur; each scroll has its own niche. 
  Xenophon accompanied the Ten Thousand, a 
  large army of Greek mercenaries hired by Cyrus the 
  Younger to seize the throne of Persia from 
  Artaxerxes II. Although victorious in a battle at 
  Cunaxa in Babylon, Cyrus died and the expedition 
  rendered moot. Stranded deep in enemy territory, 
  the generals were subsequently killed or captured 
  due to treachery. Xenophon played an instrumental 
  role in encouraging the 10,000 to march north to 
  the Black Sea. Abandoned in the middle of the 
  hostile Anatolian plateau, without anything other 
  than what they could obtain by force, the 10,000 
  fought northward, making ad hoc decisions as to 
  their destiny. Ultimately, this "marching republic" 
  reached the shores of the Black Sea with their 
  famous cry: "thalassa, thalassa" (Greek: the sea, the 
  sea!). "The sea" meant the army could buy passage 
  on the merchant ships back to Greece and safety.  
   
  Commentarii de Bello Gallico 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Gaul); Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Latin; Quality: 8 
  Covenant Build Points: 24 
  Possible Locations: carried by a Redcap for 
  personal trade, in the backpack of a wandering 
  trobairitz, kept in a noble family’s collection but 
  inside another book binding. 
  Description: This folio is written on a series of 
  vellum sheets about 18 inches long and 10 inches 
  wide, then stitched together and pressed between 
  two polished boards of cedar with a leather spine 
  dyed a deep burgundy. The corners are braced with 
  lead fittings and closed with a brass clasp. The text 
  is written in a very blocky script. 
  The Commentarii de Bello Gallico (Latin: 
  Commentaries on the Gallic War) is an account 
  written by Julius Caesar about his nine years of war 
  in Gaul, describing the battles and intrigues. 
  Focusing primarily on the Helvetian War in 58 BC, 
  Caesar describes Gaul and the campaign against the 
  Helvetii. The Helvetii forged an alliance of tribes to 
  fight him. The conflict drew the Romans out of 
  Provence and into northern Gaul. Later books are 
  about the campaigns against the Veneti, the 
  Aquitani, the Germanic peoples and the Bretons; 
  Caesar’s invasions of Britain; the insurrection of 
  Gaul, and the defeat of Vercingetorix at Alesia. 
  
  52 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
   
  De Excidio Britanniae 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (England); Quality: 6 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore; Quality: 3 
  Covenant Build Points: 9 
  Possible Locations: in the rectory of a recently 
  and seriously damaged church, with a Templar’s 
  personal 
  effects, recovered as salvage by 
  a 
  fisherman after a storm. 
  Description: Scribed on vellum and bound in 
  oak wrapped with leather, this is a sixth-century 
  diatribe written in Latin by the monk, Gildas, which 
  gives some insight into "dark age" Britain and the 
  situation following the departure of the Romans. 
  The pages of this octavo are a bit swollen, and its 
  binding is loose. This has reduced its Qualities both 
  by 4. A season of repair by a bookbinder restores its 
  Qualities to 10 and 7. It measures five inches by 
  nine inches. 
   
  De Fide Trinitatis 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Latin; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus (Commentary): Theology (Christian); 
  Quality: 8 
  Covenant Build Points: 24 
  Possible Locations: a private collection in 
  Palermo, with a traveling physician, hidden in a desk 
  the library of an abbey in France. 
  Description: Alcuin of York had a long career as 
  a teacher and scholar, first at the school at York 
  now known as St Peter’s School (founded in 627 
  AD) and later as Charlemagne’s leading advisor on 
  ecclesiastical and educational affairs. From 796 until 
  his death he was abbot of the great monastery of St 
  Martin of Tours. This book is Alcuin’s commentary 
  on the Bible. It is an octavo bound with yew boards 
  wrapped with black dyed linen. Its edges and clasp 
  are fashioned from bronze crafted with an angelic 
  motif. 
   
  De Vita et Moribus Iulii Agricolae (The Life 
  and Character of Julius Agricola) 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Britain); Quality: 11 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore; Quality: 11 
  Tractatus: Latin; Quality: 11 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Roman Empire); 
  Quality: 11 
  Covenant Build Points: 44 
  Possible Locations: in a Venetian bookseller’s 
  shop, wrapped in a cloak and placed in the wall of 
  London house, in the possession of a merchant in 
  Orleans. 
  Description: In this work by Tacitus, the tone 
  of the 
  Agricola recalls the style of proud 
  Roman laudationes funebres (funeral speeches). 
  After considering Agricola’s career prior to his 
  mission in Britain, Tacitus details the conquest of 
  the island, discussing geographical and ethnological 
  considerations, taken not only from Agricola’s notes 
  and recollections but also from the De Bello 
  Gallico. Tacitus shows how Agricola attended to 
  matters of state with fidelity, honesty, 
  and 
  competence 
  as 
  both 
  Governor 
  and 
  General. 
  Critiques of Emperor Domitian 
  and of his 
  repressive, intrigue-filled regime dominate the 
  conclusion. Tacitus makes no clear implication 
  whether Agricola’s death was natural or ordered by 
  Domitian; however, he mentions rumors suggesting 
  the Emperor ordered Agricola poisoned. 
  A thick quarto with eight sections of quality 
  parchment sewn with a copper thread, its cover is 
  leather, embossed an axe wrapped with a bundle of 
  rods and affixed with copper rivets. This book 
  measures slightly less than nine inches by eleven 
  inches. 
   
  Flesh Revealed (Sarka Apokalypto) [Greek] 
  Summa: Chirurgy; Level: 4, Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Dead Language [Ancient Greek]; 
  Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Medicine; Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 42 
  Possible Locations: in the possession of a 
  student in Paris, for sale by a local physician with 
  serious debts, lost in the library of a Turkish 
  monastery. 
  Description: A text from antiquity by Ctesias of 
  Cnidus, this is a series of seven thick papyrus scrolls 
  folded in a concertina style and kept in a fur-lined 
  box of polished cherry wood 15 inches by 9 inches 
  and 5 inches thick. The lid of the box is marked 
  with a stylized skull surrounded by carved ivy 
  leaves. A trio of brass clasps and a long hinge 
  connect the lid to the box. 
  Written in Greek, this is one of Ctesias’ detailed 
  texts regarding the body, its proper form and 
  function, and methods for best repair. It is often 
  considered complementary to texts by Galen. 
  
  53 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
   
  Llyfr Du Caerfyrddin 
  Summa: Faerie Lore; Level: 3, Quality: 6 
  Tractatus: Welsh; Quality: 5 
  Covenant Build Points: 20 
  Possible Locations: clasped to a skeleton’s 
  chest and hidden by a large stone, in a parish 
  priest’s rectory, wrapped in oilskin and part of a 
  parcel intended for a noble. 
  Description: This sextodecimo book is scribed 
  on parchment comprising many of long, narrow 
  sheets of fairly thin rabbit hide which has taken a 
  deep beige tone. Two planks of birch wrapped in 
  emerald linen form the cover. A small Celtic knot of 
  silver is pressed into the front. Three tin clasps 
  close the book on the top, side and bottom. It is 
  four inches across and eight inches tall. Written in 
  Welsh, much of the material in this text is 
  concerned with the figures of the Dark Ages—
  Myrddin, Arthur, Urien, and Taliesin all appear 
  here—but there are also a number of religious 
  poems within its pages. 
   
  Persica  
  [23 Books, Greek or Arabic] 
  Summa: Area Lore (Persia); Level: 6, Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Dead Language [Ancient Greek]; 
  Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore; Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 48 
  Possible 
  Locations: 
  In 
  a 
  Greek 
  island 
  hermitage, forgotten in a chest within a Crusader 
  castle, stacked inside a broken scriptorium desk. 
  Description: Written by Ctesias of Cnidus, this 
  is a history of Assyria and Persia in 23 books, 
  called Persica, written in opposition to Herodotus in 
  the Ionic dialect. The first six books told of the 
  history of Assyria and Babylon to the foundation of 
  the Persian Empire; the remaining seventeen went 
  down to the year 398 BC. These books are often 
  referenced by Photius, and fragments are preserved 
  in Athenaeus, Plutarch, and especially Diodorus 
  Siculus, whose second book is mainly from Ctesias. 
  Many ancient authorities valued Persica highly and 
  used it to discredit Herodotus. 
  All of the tomes are quartos, measuring eight 
  inches across and ten inches tall. They are bound in 
  the Coptic style with copper reinforced leather 
  bands and cover boards of lacquered and brightly 
  polished white field maple. The volume number of 
  each book is engraved in Roman numerals with 
  woodburning in the upper right corner of the front 
  cover. 
   
  Regarding Rivers (Schetika Me Potamos )
   
   
  [Greek] 
  Tractatus: Ancient Greek; Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore (River Fae); Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 20 
  Possible Locations: For sale at a caravanserai, 
  the prized (but stolen) possession of a Greek 
  peasant 
  family, 
  in 
  a 
  bookseller’s 
  shop 
  in 
  Constantinople. 
  Description: Regarding Rivers was also written 
  by Ctesias of Cnidus. It is scribed on a series of 
  parchment sheets wrapped around thin planks of 
  birch. The planks are held together by a group of 
  six bronze D-shaped rings. The cover plates are of 
  hammered bronze with a riveted leather clasp. 
  Written in Ancient Greek, this is one of Ctesias’ 
  detailed texts regarding rivers, their currents, their 
  redirection and their inhabitants, including what can 
  be eaten, which ones are worth avoiding, known 
  additional uses, as well as their natures and spirits in 
  
  54 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Antiquity. 
   
  The Synod of Whitby 
  Tractatus: Latin; Quality: 4 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore; Quality: 6 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (British Isles); Quality: 7 
  Covenant Build Points: 19 
  Possible Locations: In a Scottish deacon’s chest 
  of family heirlooms, kept in an English abbot’s 
  office, being carried by a Redcap for trade. 
  Description: This is scribed on vellum in Latin, 
  bound with poplar planks thickly wrapped in leather 
  and stained by both water and some darker liquid. 
  The covers are held closed by a simple iron clasp. 
  This is Bede’s account of the council in 664, at 
  which the Roman church established its primacy 
  over the Celtic church. At issue was the method by 
  which Easter should be dated. 
   
   
   
  Vita Karoli Magni (The Life of Charlemagne) 
  Tractatus: Latin; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Leadership; Quality: 8 
  Covenant Build Points: 16 
  Possible Locations: the family library of a 
  Marcher count in the Pyrenees, in a small church’s 
  rectory in Northern Iberia, in the personal 
  collection of a Hospitaller knight seeking passage. 
  Description: Written by Einhard, this biography 
  provides 
  much 
  direct 
  information 
  about 
  Charlemagne’s life and character. In composing this 
  Einhard made full use of the Frankish royal annals. 
  Einhard’s literary model was the classical work of 
  the Roman historian Suetonius, the Lives of the 
  Caesars. His work is biased in the sense that it was 
  written to praise Charlemagne—he glossed over 
  certain issues that would be of embarrassment to 
  Charlemagne (such as the morality of his daughters), 
  and we are not necessarily able to believe that 
  Charlemagne was really a giant. However, in 
  comparison to other contemporary sources it 
  appears to be a fairly accurate description of events. 
  Penned in a flowing, artistic script with a black 
  ink, this book is written in a folio format with 
  supple vellum sheets. The polished lacewood cover 
  is engraved with the words Karolvs Imperator 
  Avgvstvs, with a gold clasp and corner fittings. The 
  letters are blackened with soot and a quartet of 
  dried bloody furrows stretch ominously down the 
  inside back cover. 
   
  Hermetic Texts 
  Acts of Arcubalista  [5 scrolls] 
  Tractatus: Perdo; Quality: 7 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Iberia); Quality: 7 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (North Africa); Quality: 7 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Levant); Quality: 7 
  Covenant Build Points: 28 
  Description: This bundle of five, long paper 
  scrolls are each affixed and wound around lead rods 
  capped with brass knobs. The edges are trimmed in 
  gold leaf and the collection is tied with a red silk 
  ribbon. The triangular stack of scrolls is kept a lead 
  coffer inlaid with cinnabar. Transcribed in a slanted, 
  heavy handwriting with a blue ink, the manuscript 
  details the experiences of a notable Flambeau, 
  Arcubalista, 
  who 
  took 
  part 
  in 
  the 
  Spanish 
  Reconquista and the First Crusade. A strange series 
  
  55 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  of lines is drawn over the back of each scroll. When 
  all five scrolls are laid out in parallel, these lines 
  form a map for entering and navigating a regio in 
  Iberia. 
   
  Battle for Jerusalem 
  Tractatus: Perdo; Quality: 9 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Levant ); Quality: 4 
  Tractatus: Living Language (Arabic); Quality: 4 
  Covenant Build Points: 17 
  Description: Wrapped in an Islamic binding of 
  black leather and closed with a cedar peg, this heavy 
  folio of thick, cream colored paper is penned in a 
  red ink. The text is a smooth, careful calligraphy, 
  but small water droplets occasionally mar the 
  lettering.  The material recounts the experiences of 
  a Tytalus who took part in the First Crusade, 
  beginning with his departure from Provence to his 
  preparations in Constantinople and eventual arrival 
  at Jerusalem. It details the deaths of a score of 
  companions during the campaign and the deep loss 
  each inflicted upon the author. 
   
   
  Book of Nightmares 
   
  Summa: Muto; Level: 8, Quality: 11 
  Summa: Faerie Lore; Level: 4, Quality: 9 
  Covenant Build Points: 40 
  Description: A quarto book bound in graying 
  yew boards wrapped in oddly pebbled red and black 
  hide strips, a heavy iron clasp secures the cover. Its 
  paper pages are glued in a recto-verso format to 
  thin, but very strong, sheets of an unidentified, 
  ashen-colored wood sewn together with a faintly 
  pink sinew. The text is scribed alternately in blue, 
  green, red, and black ink with handwriting that 
  shifts erratically, sometimes between words in the 
  same sentence but without the stroke of the pen 
  leaving the paper. The author (authors?) details 
  faerie and mundane methods for instilling and 
  perpetuating fear, for causing despair, for eroding 
  hope and twisting dreams into betraying nightmares.  
   
  Book of the Black Flame 
   
  Summa: Ignem; Level: 12, Quality: 6 
  Covenant Build Points:  18 
  Description: Barely qualifying as a codex, this is 
  a thin book of parchment wedged between two 
  scorched iron sheets and stitched with a braided 
  wire cable. Seven inches across and ten inches high, 
  a simple triangular symbol of cut onyx inlays both 
  of the metal cover slates. The author is uncredited 
  and discusses the philosophical nature of fire and its 
  potential applications in a very concise but eloquent 
  manner. It smells faintly acrid and smoky.  
   
  Codex of Alberius, The First 
  Summa: Mentem; Level: 8, Quality:  12 
  Summa: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes); 
  Level: 2, Quality: 13 
  Covenant Build Points:  39 
  Description: Wrapped in grey kid hide, the folio 
  measures twelve inches by fourteen inches. The 
  inside cover has Alberius of Bonisagus’ sigil 
  engraved into the poplar wood and painted a shade 
  of cobalt. The whole book shines with a faint, sky-
  blue light when left in a dark room. The text 
  discusses the nuances of rational thought compared 
  to emotional response while considering the nature 
  of memory.  An appendix considers the Sundering 
  and its impact on the Order. Hermetic investigation 
  reveals the book has been opened as an enchanted 
  device, but has not been clarified. 
   
  Codex of Alberius, the Fourth 
  Summa: Ignem; Level: 6, Quality: 12 
  Summa: Code of Hermes; Level: 2, Quality: 13 
  Covenant Build Points: 37 
  Description: Obviously crafted by the same 
  artisan as the First Codex, this folio is wrapped in 
  tanned and oiled brown leather.  The inside cover 
  has Alberius of Bonisagus’ sigil engraved into the 
  poplar wood and painted a shade of cobalt. The 
  whole book shines with a faint, sky-blue light when 
  left in a dark room. It also appears to have been 
  opened as an enchanted device, but has not been 
  clarified. The manuscript discusses the practical and 
  social uses of fire and the role of light within the 
  Art. An appendix investigates the consequences of 
  violence against mundane society by Hermetic 
  wizards, particularly in situations involving Ignem. 
   
  Cursed Sura of the Jackal 
  [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Vim; Quality: 13 
  Tractatus: Penetration; Quality: 13 
  Covenant Build Points: 26 
  Description: The deep burgundy-colored leather 
  
  56 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Islamic binding of this book is embossed with the 
  profile image of Anubis and closed with a polished 
  piece of yellowing hippopotamus ivory carved with 
  the symbol for Vim. The text measures seven inches 
  across, ten inches tall, and three inches thick. The 
  ink is a vibrant combination of black and blue with 
  gold highlights written on carefully prepared camel 
  vellum. The material reviews the nature of Vim and 
  the philosophical manner in which the fabric of 
  magic can be pierced. The author states in the 
  dedication that he has purposefully omitted his 
  name from the work, only revealing he was a 
  member of Ex Miscellanea. Possession of this text 
  in Muslim lands is exceedingly dangerous. 
   
  The Destruction of Da Derga’s Hostel 
  Tractatus: Rego; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Perdo; Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Dead Language (Gaelic); Quality: 8 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore; Quality: 8 
  Covenant Build Points: 32 
  Description: The Destruction of Da Derga’s 
  Hostel, or Togail Bruidne Dá Derga, is an Old Irish 
  language epic written in a neat hand on a parchment 
  palimpsest of sixty pages bound between two 
  polished boards of yew and trimmed in copper. 
  Notes in the margins are written in eloquent Latin. 
  A simple leather cord holds the book shut. It 
  recounts the birth, life, and death of Conaire Mor, a 
  legendary High King of Ireland, who is killed at Da 
  Derga’s hostel by his enemies when he breaks 
  his geasa. 
   
  Elegy of Geraint 
   
  Tractatus: Corpus; Quality: 5 
  Tractatus: Welsh; Quality: 5 
  Tractatus (Glossed): Faerie Lore; Quality: 6 
  Covenant Build Points: 16 
  Description: This takes the form of a weathered 
  text written on a series of long, rolled, scraped goat-
  hides sewn end to end and kept in a tube fashioned 
  from a hollowed out thigh bone of a bull painted 
  black. It is sealed on either end with an embossed 
  brass plug. Composed by an unknown author, it 
  details The Battle of Llongborth (c. 480) in an 
  English translation of a sixth-century Welsh poem. 
  Notes detailing some points relating to Faerie who 
  may have taken part in the conflict are written in 
  the margins. These are clearly claimed by a certain 
  Heraclax of House Merinita. In its current form, the 
  text is considered damaged and its Qualities have 
  been halved. 
   
  Master and Slave 
  Summa: Rego; Level: 7, Quality: 9 
  Covenant Build Points: 16 
  Description: Penned in a tight, small script on 
  carefully maintained parchment, this is a fairly dry 
  text examining the Aristotlean ideal. The author, 
  who is unnamed but seems to be a member of 
  House Guernicus, argues about the use of Rego, and 
  certain ways the controller is affected when 
  performing magic on the controlled. Strangely 
  bound in the Islamic style, its overlapping flap has 
  been partially removed, and it is written with the 
  spine of the book serving as the top of each page. 
  Some claim this is the author’s attempt to subtly 
  control the reader.  
   
  Necronomicon Keltoi 
  Tractatus: Mentem; Quality: 7 
  Lab Text: Ring of Warding Against Spirits 
  (Level 20) 
  Covenant Build Points: 7 (library) 
  Covenant Build Points: 4 (laboratory texts) 
  Description: A study of Celtic spiritual beliefs 
  and legends regarding death and the afterlife scribed 
  in a scratched and weathered leatherbound codex, 
  this manuscript is written with a faint black and 
  silver ink in a very petite handwriting. A silver 
  button embossed with knotwork and affixed to the 
  cover allows a leather lace to tie the tome shut. The 
  book is an octavo format, measuring five inches by 
  eight inches. A warning has been hastily scribed on 
  the inside back cover, indicating "she won’t stop 
  until she has it back!" 
  Story Seed: The Hidden Name 
  A magus wishing to repair the Elegy of Geraint needs to find a 
  scribe who knows both Latin and Welsh, likely entailing a trip to 
  Wales. In 1220, the Welsh border with England is often hostile, 
  with raiders or skirmishes between Marcher lords. A maritime 
  approach is no less dangerous, as Irish, Scottish, and Faerie 
  pirates ply the waters between Hibernia and the Loch Leaglean/
  Stonehenge tribunals. Restoring the text takes one season of 
  work for a scribe with a Profession [Scribe] ability of 3 or greater. 
  Add an additional season for abilities less than 3. With the Elegy 
  repaired, the text reveals arcane connections to the Faerie 
  detailed in Heraclax’s notes and provides the location a cache of 
  vis hidden by Heraclax in a fae regio. 
  
  57 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
   
  Pagan Rites of Minos [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales; Quality: 11 
  Tractatus: Magic Realm Lore; Quality: 11 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae; Quality: 11 
  Covenant Build Points: 33 
  Description: Written on smoothly finished 
  parchment pages dyed uniformly ochre, the author 
  of this book had a very fluid and artistic 
  handwriting enhanced by the white ink used to 
  scribe the text. A Coptic bound folio measuring 
  nine inches by ten inches, its pages are stitched 
  using a thick, black thread of unknown source. The 
  cover is bereft of any ornamentation. It has 
  numerous illustrations of various arcane ritual 
  shapes and fantastic creatures, also completed using 
  the brightly contrasting ivory ink. 
   
  Requiem of Hypatia 
  Summa: Intellego; Level: 10, Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: 
  Artes 
  Liberales 
  (Mathematics), 
  Quality: 10 
  Summa: Theology; Level: 3, Quality: 13 
  Covenant Build Points: 52 
  Description: Written on fine papyrus wrapped 
  in three gilded scroll cases showing scenes of 
  Hypatia lecturing, gold leaf reinforces the edges of 
  these scrolls. Scribed using blue ink and written in a 
  very relaxed hand, the text details methods for 
  gleaning insights from the world around the reader, 
  while correlating those methods to specific passages 
  of apocryphal Gnostic scripture and excerpts from 
  Archimedes. The metal tubes are fourteen inches 
  long and three inches in diameter, bound together 
  with leather belt stained dark with moisture. 
   
  Seeds of Persephone 
  Tractatus: Herbam; Quality: 8 
  Lab Text: Twist the Living Tree (Level 20) 
  Covenant Build Points: 8 (library) 
  Covenant Build Points: 4 (laboratory texts) 
  Description: This narrow tome, bound with pale 
  green linen trimmed with purple, has a wheat sheaf 
  painted on the cover.  Its pages are sheaves of stiff 
  vellum scraped smooth save for a framing rectangle 
  of rough hide. The text is five inches across and 12 
  inches high. The manuscript itself is written in a 
  bright emerald ink and includes many detailed 
  illustrations of various flowers in black ink, 
  discussing the important uses of floral essences and 
  tinctures. The lettering often takes the form of 
  vines, leaves, trees and other plants. 
   
  The Book of Dogs 
  Tractatus: Animal; Quality: 6 
  Lab Text: Commanding the Harnessed Beast 
  (Level 30) 
  Covenant Build Points: 6 (library) 
  Covenant Build Points: 6 (laboratory texts) 
  Description: A faded, grubby codex with many 
  pages slightly smudged or bearing inky fingerprints, 
  this book has an iron clasp worked like a snarling 
  dog holding its tail. The parchment sheaves are a 
  faint cream color and the edges are reinforced with 
  a silver thread. The book discusses methods for 
  raising dogs and the possible ability possessed by 
  some dogs which permits them to sense magic. The 
  author alludes to membership in House Merinita, 
  but does not outright claim it. 
   
  The Death of the Sybilline 
  Tractatus: Intellego; Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 10 
  Description: This is a square book, ten inches 
  on a side with its cover fashioned from two pieces 
  of dark, lead-trimmed slate. There is an inscription 
  along the outer edge of the metal which reads, "To 
  Magdalena, whose insight inspires." The perfectly 
  smooth sheaves of bone white parchment are bound 
  in a Coptic fashion and a port-colored strap of 
  leather protects them while joining the stones with 
  brass rivets. The whole tome smells faintly musty. 
  The manuscript is penned in a silver ink difficult to 
  read in any illumination greater than candlelight.  
   
   
  The Erinyes Apocrypha 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore; Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Parma Magica; Quality: 10 
  Covenant Build Points: 20 
  Description: Building from the works of Virgil, 
  the author of this text describes the three named 
  Erinyes, Alecto ("unnameable" who appears in the 
  Aeneid), Megaera ("grudging"), and Tisiphone 
  ("vengeful destruction"), and possible ways in which 
  one might accidentally garner the attention of these 
  beings. It discusses known encounters with spirits 
  or genus locii claiming to be Erinyes and the 
  
  58 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  outcomes of those involved. It investigates the 
  merits of a strong magical defense and considers the 
  need for practiced caution and consideration when 
  encountering such creatures. The text has a cover of 
  polished laurel wood set with a silver gorgon’s face. 
  Fashioned from fine, stiff cow’s vellum, the 
  manuscript is written in a purple ink. 
   
  The Megiddo Codex 
  Tractatus: Perdo; Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Living Language (Greek) Quality: 10 
  Tractatus: Living Language (Hebrew); Quality: 6 
  Covenant Build Points: 26 
  Description: This book is a florilegium written 
  on a thin but supple paper, providing a secondhand 
  perspective regarding early Christian apocrypha. 
  Although the author is unnamed, he was a brilliant 
  writer and drew upon a wide variety of sources. His 
  insights into the art of Perdo mix a number of 
  religious allusions and examples, showing how 
  righteous action sometimes demands destruction. 
  Its cover is linen dyed an orange tint and wrapped 
  over pine. The book measures seven inches across, 
  and ten inches tall. There is a brown-black smear on 
  the inside title page, obliterating the dedication. 
   
  The Morituri Codex 
  Tractatus: Mentem; Quality: 5 
  Tractatus: 
  Organization 
  Lore 
  (Order 
  of 
  Hermes); Quality: 5 
  Covenant Build Points: 10 
  Description: This unusual tome consists of a 
  stack of thirty thin metal sheets bound on brass 
  pegs. It contains the memories of three recently 
  deceased Flambeau magi, who perished in the 
  Levant in the 11th Century while engaged in both 
  secular and Crusade related business. The text 
  appears smoothly written in metal, rather than 
  hammered 
  into 
  place. 
  The 
  Verditius 
  author 
  discusses methods for manipulating a foe’s mind 
  and will, as well as organizational methods for magi 
  attempting to engage the enemy without drawing 
  undue attention.   
   
  The Spinning Pearls 
  Summa: Vim; Level: 18, Quality: 7 
  Summa: Magic Lore; Level: 2, Quality: 6 
  Summa: Magic Theory Summa; Level: 4, Quality: 
  6 
  Lab Text: Winds of Mundane Silence (Level 25), 
  Lab Text: Suppressing the Wizard’s Handiwork 
  (Level 45) 
  Covenant Build Points: 55 (library) 
  Covenant Build Points: 14 (laboratory texts) 
  Description: This tome is treasure-bound in 
  elegant black leather, with five pearls decorating the 
  front cover and brass clasps reinforcing the corners. 
  It smells faintly of cinnamon and appears very well 
  maintained. The three letters, "AQF," are artistically 
  scrawled on the inside cover within the diagonal of 
  a "#" symbol. The pages are cut from high quality 
  vellum, and the text is written in a neat, flowing 
  script with an orange-gold ink. The first text within 
  the book is glossed in a different handwriting, using 
  a red ink which highlights a number of clever 
  applications and insights regarding the Art and 
  Hermetic theory in a wide margin intentionally 
  preserved for just such a purpose. 
   
  
  59 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  There are a vast number of historical, theological, 
  philosophical, and fictional books mentioned across the 
  Ars Magica Fifth Edition canon. This index is an 
  attempt to list all of those works and provide pointers to 
  players and storyguides who need books to improve their 
  characters’ learning and standing within society and the 
  Order. 
  The format for these entries is: 
  Source Reference 
  Book Title, Author Name (if known) [Number of 
  Books, principle language]; page number 
  Type of book: Topic (Specialty); [Language, if 
  different from the rest of the book]  
   
  A “*” indicates subject matter isn’t mentioned and is 
  inferred from the description or context. In addition, 
  many books actually consist of multiple volumes. Where 
  this is the case, each volume that has a different topic is 
  listed. 
  Art&Academe 
  Categories, On Interpretations by Aristotle, page 136 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales  
   
  De Anima [3 books], page 136 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Metaphysica [3 books], page 136 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae x2 
  Tractatus: Pagan Theology 
   
  Nicomachean Ethics [10 books, Ancient Greek], page 136 
  Summa: Philosophiae (Moral)  
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (Moral) [2 books, Latin] 
   
  Physics [8 books], page 136 
  Summa: Philosophiae (natural philosophy) 
   
  Prior Analytics, Posterior Analytics, On Sophistical 
  Refutations, page 136 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  Topics, Aristotle; page 10 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  De Inventione, Cicero; page 136 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  De Arithmetica, Boethius; page 14 
  Artes liberales (arithmetic) 
   
  Heptateuchon, Thierry of Chartres 
  Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 
   
  Liber Abbaci, Leonardo Fibonacci 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 
  Herbam Breakthrough points 
   
  De institutione musica, Boethius, page 15 
  Summa: Music 
   
  Musica Mundana, Musica Humana, Musica 
  Instrumentalis 
  Tractatus: Music 
   
  Elements, Euclid, page 15/136 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 
   
  Optica, Euclid; page 136 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  Practica Geometriae; page 15 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 
   
  Almagest, Ptolemy translated by Gerard of Cremona; (page 
  15/136);  
  Summa: Artes Liberales (Astronomy) 
   
  Timaeus, Plato; (page 15/136)  
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (Astronomy) 
   
  On the Dream of Scipio, Macrobius; page 136 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (Astronomy) 
   
  Etymologies, Isidore of Seville [20 books]; page 26 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (natural philosophy) x2 
  Tractatus: Medicine 
   
  Natural Histories, Pliny the Elder [37 books] 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (metaphysics) 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (moral philosophy) 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (natural philosophy) x5 
   
  Aphorisms, Hippocrates 
  Tractatus: Medicine x2 
   
  Index of Texts Mentioned in Ars 
  Magica Supplements 
  
  60 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Bibliotheca, Photius 
  Tractatus: Theology x2 
  Tractatus: Church Lore (history) 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Europe) [History] 
   
  Quadrivium, Boethius [6 books] 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (quadrivium) x2 
   
  On the Division of Time, Bede 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (arithmetic) 
   
  De Ordinis Hermetici, Quaertus Bonisagus 
  Tractatus: Code of Hermes x2 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes [history]) x2 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes [geography]) 
   
  The Canon of Medicine, Avicenna; page 36/138 
  Summa: Medicine 
   
  On Urine, On the Pulse by Aegidius Corboliensis; page 51 
  Tractatus: Medicine* 
   
  The Book of Poisons, Ibn Whashiya; page 64 
  Tractatus: Profession [Apothecary]* 
   
  On Empirica, Galen; page 67* 
  Experimental Formulae 
   
  The Incoherence of the Philosophers, al-Ghazali; page 88 
  Tractatus: Theology* 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  The Incoherence of the Incoherence 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  Hortus Deliciarum (“Garden of Delights”), Herrod of 
  Hohenbourg; page 117 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (natural philosophy)* 
   
  La Mort le Roi Artu (“The Death of King Arthur”); page 118 
  Tractatus: England Lore 
  Tractatus: Magic lore 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore 
   
  Enneads, Plotinus; page 137 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
   
  Isagoge, Porphyry; page 137 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  The City of God [22 Books], St. Augustine; page 137 
  Summa: Divine Lore 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  Ars Grammatica, Donatus; page 137 
  Summa: Artes Liberales 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales  
   
  De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii [9 books], Martianus 
  Capella; page 137 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae x2 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales x5 
   
  Consolation of Philosophy, Boethius; page 137 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Corpus Juris Civilis (“Body of Civil Law”), Justinian; page 137 
  Summa: Civil Law 
   
  Institutione Grammaticae [16 books], Priscian; page 137 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (grammar) 
   
  Dialectica, Alcuin; page 137 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales (logic) 
   
  Periphyseon (About Nature); John Scottus Eriugena; page 137 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  De Salibus et Aluminibus, Al-Razi; page 138 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
   
  Lumen Luminis, Al-Razi; page 138 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Liber Septuaginta, Al-Razi; page 138 
  70 Alchemical Formulae 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
   
  Fountain of Life, Avicebron; page 138 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
   
  Cur Deus Homo, St. Anselm; page 138 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  Proslogion, St. Anselm; page 138 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  Decretum, Gratian; page 138 
  Summa: Canon Law 
   
  Scito te Ipsum, Abelard; page 138 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (ethics) 
   
  Collationes, Abelard; page 138 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  Sic et Non (“Yes and No, or For and Against”), Abelard; 
  page 138 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  Cosmographia, Silvestris; page 138 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Philosophia Mundi, William of Conches; page 138 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
   
  Questiones Naturales, Adelard of Bath; page 138-9 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (metaphysics) 
   
  The Book of Sentences, Peter Lombard; page 139 
  Summa: Divine Lore 
  
  61 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
   
  A Guide for the Perplexed, Maimonides; page 139 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  De Sphera (astronomy), De lineis, Anguilis Et Figures 
  (arithmetic), Grosseteste; page 139 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  De Luce (“Light”), De Accessione et Recessione Maris 
  (“Tides and Tidal Movements”), De Iride (“The 
  Rainbow”), Grosseteste; page 139  
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Hexaemeron (“On the Six Days of Creation”), Grosseteste; 
  page 139 
  Summa: Philosophiae (moral) 
   
  Bible 
  Summa: Theology 
  Summa: Church Lore 
   
  Ancient Magic 
  The Roman History, Ammianus Marcellinus; page 5 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
   
  Phoenican History, Philo Byblius; page 35 
  Summa: Area Lore (Canaan) 
   
  The Syrian Goddess, Lucian of Samothrace; page 35 
  Summa: Area Lore (Canaan) 
   
  Praeparatio Evangelica, Eusebius 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Canaan) 
   
  Natural History, Pliny; page 41 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  Laws, Plato; page 41 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  Republic, Plato; page 41 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  First Book of Enoch:  The book of Watchers, Enoch; page 
  65 
  Tractatus: Divine Lore* 
   
  The Enigma and the Sons of God, St. Nerius; page 68 
  Tractatus: Divine Lore* 
   
  Book of Jubilees, Unknown; page 69 
  Tractatus: Divine Lore* 
   
  Automata, Heron; page 79 
  Summa: Mechanica of Heron 
   
  Automaton Theatre, Heron; page 79-80 
  Tractatus: Mechanica of Heron 
   
  Catoptrica, Heron; page 80 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Dioptra, Heron; page 80 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (astronomy) 
   
  Metrica, Heron; page 80 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
  Tractatus: Mechanica of Heron 
   
  Belopoeica, Heron; page 81 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Mechanica, Heron; page 81 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
  Summa: Mechanica of Heron 
   
  “On Astronomy, Astrology, and Mathematics” Hypatia; 
  page 83 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (astronomy) 
   
  The Geography, Ptolemy; page 89 
  Summa: Magic Lore (sites)* 
   
  Peri Hyperboreaon, Hecataeus of Abdera; page 103 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  Philopseudes, Lucian; page 103 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  The Ruin and Conquest of Britain, Gildas; page 133 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (England)* 
   
  The Saga of Erik the Red, Unknown; page 136 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  Guardians of the Forest 
  Works of Hildegard of Bingen, Hildegard; page 121 
   
  Scivias (Know the Ways) 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  Liber Vitae Meritorum 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Liber Divinorum Operum 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  Physica 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
  Tractatus: Medicine 
   
  Causae et Curae 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
  Summa: Medicine 
   
  Ordo Virtutum (Play of Virtues) 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
  
  62 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  Symphonia Armoniae Celestium Revelationum (Symphony 
  of the Harmony of the Celestial Revelations) 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales 
   
  Hedge Magic: Revised Edition 
  Rasa’il Ikhwan as-Safa’wa Khillan al-Wafa (“Epistles of the 
  Brethren of Purity”), Unknown [4 books, Arabic]; page 30 
   
  Book 1, Mathematical Sciences 
  Tractatus: Artes Liberales x14 
  Summa: Elementalist Air 
   
  Book 2, Natural Sciences 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (Natural philosophy) x 17 
  Summa: Elementalist Water 
   
  Book 3, Psychological and Rational Sciences 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae (Moral philosophy) x10 
  Summa: Elementalist Fire 
   
  Book 4, Theological Sciences 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) x 11 
  Summa: Elementalist Earth 
   
  The Comprehensive Epistle 
  Summa: Philosophiae (metaphysics) 
  Summa: Philosophical Refining 
   
  Houses of Hermes: Societates 
  Ars Flambonis; page 9 
  Summa: Ignem 
   
  Ultor 
  Summa: Penetration 
   
  Liber De Lumine 
  Tractatus: Ignem 
   
  De Magia Sympathetica 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory 
   
  De Potestate Et Obligatione 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Paradoxigraphia of (Edward the White)*, Unknown; page 48 
  (Weight and Distance)* 
   
  Analects of Tytalus, Unknown; page 73 
  Summa: Organization Lore (House Tytalus) 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes) 
   
   
  House of Hermes: True Lineages 
  Memoirs of Cappadocian wizards, the secret lore of the 
  Chaldeans, Gnostic, Christian, and Jewish mysteries, The 
  magical writings of Moses and Solomon; page 5 
  Tractatus (Glossed): Magic Theory* 
   
  Diaries of Polus; page 7 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes)* 
   
  Folio of the Colentes Arcanorum, year XXXX; page 10 
  4/year for 7 years 
  Sum of the Magic Theory scores of the 5 Colentes in levels or 
  Tractatus qualities 
   
  Tabula Geographica Magica; page 13. 
  Tractaus: Magic Lore* 
   
  Duresca Scrolls 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Order of Hermes) * 
   
  Travels of Fedoso 
  Tractatus: Organization Lore (Cult of Criamon)* 
   
  The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory* 
   
  Legends of Hermes 
  The Application of Vim to the Supernatural Humors, 
  Unknown; page 12 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory 
   
  The Life of Currito, Unknown; page 22 
  Tractatus: Organizational Lore (Order of Hermes) 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
   
  The Books of Al-Mu’taman, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Artes Liberales* 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory* 
   
  The Tome of Binro, Unknown; page 27 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory* 
   
  “Incomplete Texts of Conciatta” page 30 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory 
  Tractatus: Vim 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
   
  “Essence of Conciatta” page 39 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore 
   
  The Mastery of Principles; page 51 
  Initiation Script for Puissant Principles Lore 
   
  Plutonic Beginnings; page 52 
  Initiation Script for Minor Magical Focus: Commanding Spirits 
   
  The Myth of Aerius and Pluto; page 53 
  Initiation Script for Major Magical Focus: Spirit Magic 
  
  63 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
   
  The Myth of  Heiro and the Cave 
  Initiation Script for Spell Binding 
   
  The Myth of Heiro and the Haunted Graveyard; page 54 
  Initiation Script for Hermetic Empowerment 
   
  Principles for a Better Life, Fortunata; page 55 
  Tractatus: Principles Lore 
   
  Heroes of Greece, Unknown [Ancient Greek] 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Ancient Greece)  
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
   
  Heroes of Greece—Revised 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Ancient Greece) 
   
  The Myth of Andros and the Tree, Unknown [Ancient Greek] 
  Initiation Script  
   
  Andros and the Tree 
  Initiation Script for Spirit Familiar 
   
  Principles of Life as a Magus; page 64 
  Tractatus: Principles Lore 
   
  Principles of Power 
  Tractatus: Principles Lore 
   
  De Disciplinae Fortunata 
  Summa: Principles Lore 
   
  On a Pilgrimage To Jerusalem 
  Initiation of Sense Holiness & Unholiness 
   
  The Myth of Aquila’s Eyes 
  Initiation of Improved Characteristics (Perception) 
   
  Heroes of Olympos, translation by Julius of Nicomedia 
  Tractatus: Magic Theory 
   
  Heroes and Gods, Polymos [Greek] 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore  
   
  Piraeon, Unknown [Greek] 
  Tractatus: Piraeon Lore  
  Latin Translation by Fortunata 
   
  Cult of the Wanderer: Revised Edition 
  Tractatus: Cult of the Wanderer Lore [Greek] 
  Latin Translation by Fortunata 
   
  Heroes of Rome, by Caius of Mediolanum 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
  Tractatus: Mediterranean Lore (history) 
   
  Ionian Isles, by Fortunata 
  Tractatus: Mediterranean Lore  
   
  The Names of Ghosts, by Fortunata 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
   
  Magi of Hermes 
  Ormurin Langi (“The Long Serpent”), Unknown 
  [Norwegian]; page 70 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Norway)* 
   
  Realms of Power: The Divine 
  The Bible, Apostles; page 86 [Greek or Latin] 
  Summa: Church Lore 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  Quatuor Libri Sententiarum, Peter the Lombard; page 86
   
  [4 books, Latin] 
  Book 1 
  Summa: Divine Lore 
  Book 2-4 
  Summa: Theology 
   
  The City of God, St. Augustine of Hippo; page 86 [Latin] 
  Tractatus: Church Lore 
   
  Consolations of Philosophy, Boethius; page 86 [Latin] 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae 
   
  Caelestis Hierachia, Dionysis the Aeropagite; page 86 [Greek 
  or Latin] 
  Summa: Dominion Lore 
   
  The Book of Solomon, Apollonius; page 97 [Chaldean, Greek, 
  Hebrew, Latin] 
  Tractatus: Ars Notoria  
  Tractatus: Divine Lore (UnGifted reader) 
   
  The Keys of Solomon, Apollonius; page 97 [Chaldean, Greek, 
  Hebrew, Latin] 
  Tractatus: Ars Notoria  
  Tractatus: Divine Lore (UnGifted reader) 
   
  The Qu’ran, God via Muhammed; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Summa: Dominion Lore 
  Summa: Islamic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Jam’ al-Bayan ‘an Ta’wil al-Qu’ran, Muhammed ibn Jarir al 
  Tabari; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Summa: Islamic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Kitab al-Luma’, Al-Ash’ari; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Al-Risala, Muhammed ibn Idris al-Shafi’i; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Islamic Law 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Al-Sahihan, Al-Kukhari, Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj; page 110 [2 
  
  64 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  books, Arabic] 
  Book 1, Sahih al-Bukhari 
  Summa: Islamic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Islam) 
  Book 2, Sahih Muslim 
  Summa: Islamic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Al-Sira al-Nabawiyya, Ibn Ishaq; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
  Tractatus: Islamic Law 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Ihya’ ‘Ulum al-Din, Abu Hamid al-Ghazali; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Summa: Dominion Lore 
  Summa: Islamic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Tadhkirat al-Awliya’, Farid al-Din ‘Attar; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) 
   
  Kitab al-Irshad, Al-Shaykh al-Mufid; page 110 [Arabic] 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
  Tractatus: Theology (Islam) 
   
  The Torah, God via Moses; page 127 [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Judiac Lore 
  Summa: Rabbinic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Judaism) 
   
  The Talmud, Moses et al.; page 127 [Aramaic or Hebrew] 
  Summa: Judiac Lore 
  Summa: Rabbinic Law 
  Summa: Theology (Judaism) 
  Tractatus: Canaan Lore 
   
  The Nevi’im, Various authors; page 127 [Hebrew] 
  Tractatus: Dream Interpretation 
  Tractatus: Theology (Judaism) 
   
  The Ketuvim, Various authors; page 127 [Hebrew] 
  Tractatus: Dream Interpretation 
  Tractatus: Rabbinic Law 
  Tractatus: Theology (Judaism) 
   
  The Mishneh Torah, Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon; page 1127 
  [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Rabbinic Law 
   
  The Guide to the Perplexed, Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon; page 
  127 [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Philosophiae 
  Summa: Theology (Judaism) 
  Tractatus: Gematria (for students with appropriate levels of 
  Gematria) 
   
  Sefer Yetzirah, The Biblical Abraham; page 128 [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Kabbalah 
   
  Sefer Ha-Bahir, Provencal Kabbalists; page 128 [Hebrew] 
  Tractatus: Ceremony 
  Tractatus: Kabbalah 
   
  Sefer Ha-Razim, Angel Raziel via Noah; page 128[Hebrew] 
  Tractatus: Ceremony 
  Tractatus: Craft Amulets (with benefits for Shape & Material 
  for magi) 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
  Tractatus: Merkavah 
   
  Sefer Raziel, Angel Raziel via Adam; page 128 [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Intervention 
  Summa: Gematria 
  Summa: Merkavah 
  Summa: Transcendence 
   
  The Hechalot Texts, Various mystics; page 128 [Hebrew] 
  Tractatus: Merkavah or Summoning 
   
  Sword of Moses, Anonymous Jewish magicians; page 128 
  [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Infernal Lore 
   
  Sefer ha-Masa’ot, Benjamin of Tudela; page 128 [Hebrew] 
  Summa: Area lore [Mediterranean (Jewish Communities)] 
  Summa: Theology (Judaism) 
  Tractatus: Gematria (for students with appropriate levels of 
  Gematria) 
   
  Realms of Power: Magic 
  Physiologus, Unknown ;page 66 
  Summa: Artes Liberales* 
   
  Realms of Power: Infernal 
  De Initio Creatureae by Aelfric; page 26 
  Dominion Lore* 
  Infernal Lore* 
   
  De Operationus Daemonium Dialogus; page 41 
  Summa:Infernal Lore 
  (also Tales of Mythic Europe, page 163) 
  Tractatus: Infernal Lore 
   
  Rival Magic 
  “On Fatigue and Hermetic Theory,”* Bonisagus; page 43 
  Notes on restoring Fatigue using Hermetic magic 
   
  “On Amazon Arts and Hermetic Theory,”* Viea; page 43 
  Notes on integrating Amazon magic into Hermetic theory 
   
  The Eclogues, Virgil; page 49 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore* 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore* 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  
  65 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  The Aeneid, Virgil; page 49 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Ancient Mediterranean)* 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Ancient Rome)* 
  Summa: Latin* 
   
  The Bucolics, Virgil; page 50 
  Tractatus: Faerie Lore* 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
   
  De Naturis Rerum, Alexander of Neckam; page 72 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  Otia Imerialia, Gervasius of Tilsbury; page 72 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  Fadet Joglar, Guiraut de Calanso; page 72 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  Epistolata, Conrad of Querfurt; page 73 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  The Book of Roger, Unknown; page 110 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Mediterranean and Africa) 
   
  Tales of Mythic Europe 
  Deus et Magus; page 40 
  Tractatus: Theology 
   
  De Operatione Daemonum; page163 
  Tractatus: Infernal Lore 
   
  Liber Apologeticus 
  Tractatus: Infernal Lore 
   
  The Lion & the Lily 
  The Babble Within Thought, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Mentem 
   
  The Dismal Itch, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Corpus 
   
  De Lapii, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Terram 
   
  Insights from Twilight, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Magic Theory 
   
  Mirrors of the Soul, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Imaginem 
   
  The Mole’s Work, Unknown; page 23 
  Lab Texts for four Terram Spells 
   
  The Peril of Phoebos, Unknown; page 23 
  Tractatus: Ignem 
   
  The Primal Power, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Aquam 
   
  Research Notes on the Aegis of the Hearth, Unknown; page 
  23 
  Tractatus on Spell Mastery, version of the spell 
  Subtle Knives, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Penetration 
   
  Unveiling the Tempest, Unknown; page 23 
  Summa: Auram 
   
  Historia rerum Anglicarum, Unknown; page 55 
  Summa: Area Lore (England) 
   
  The Ecclesiastical History, Unknown; page 55 
  Summa: Area Lore (Normandy) 
  Summa: Area Lore (England) 
  Tractatus: Civil and Canon Law 
   
  Historia Normannorum, Unknown; page 55 
  Summa: Area Lore (Normandy) 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (England) 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Normandy) 
   
  History of the Normans, Unknown; page 55 
  Summa: Area Lore (Normandy) 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Normandy) x2 
   
  Legends of Brittany, Unknown; page 108 
  Summa: Faerie Lore 
   
  Arthur Among the Britons, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Brittany) 
   
  The Books of Taliesin, Unknown; page 108 
   
  The Life of St. Efflam 
   
  The Life of St. Illtud 
   
  The Llancarfan Saints’ Lives, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
   
  History of the Britons, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Britain) 
   
  History of the Kings of Britain, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Area Lore (Britain) 
   
  Annals of Wales 
   
  Concerning the Ruin of Britain 
   
  The Life of Merlin 
   
  The Lais of Marie de France, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Charm 
   
  Arthurian Romances, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Etiquette 
   
  
  66 
   
   
  Sub Rosa 
  Perceval, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
   
  Joseph d’Arimethie, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Dominion Lore 
   
  Parsifal, Unknown; page 108 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore 
   
  Roman de Brut, Perceval Continuations, Perlesvaus 
  Lancelot Grail Cycle (“Vulgate Cycle”), Unknown; page 109 
   
  The Mysteries: Revised Edition 
  De Compositione Alchemiae; page 44 
  Summa: Organization Lore (Order of the Green Cockerel) 
   
  De Civitas Dei (City of God); page 47 
  Summa: Theology* 
   
  Greater Introduction to Astrology 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (Astrology)* 
   
  Centiloquium 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (Astrology)* 
   
  Picatrix 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (Astrology)* 
   
  On Divination, Cicero; page 58 
  Summa: Artes Liberales* 
   
  Policraticus 
  Summa: Artes Liberales (Astrology)* 
   
  “Reims Spirit Manuscript”; page 64 
  Summa: Magic Theory* (Spirit Magic/Theurgy)* 
   
  Key of Solomon; page 75 
  Summa: Theurgy* 
   
  “Ancient Greek & Egyptian Texts” 
  Summa: Theurgy* 
   
  De Theoria Magica, Bonisagus; page 91 
  Summa: Magic Theory 
   
  Clementine Recognitiones (Also the Clementine Homilies, 
  Clement [20 Books, Greek]), Tyrannius Rufinus; page 122 
  Tractatus: Church Lore x3* 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae x2* 
   
  Lapidary, Marbode of Rennes; page 131 
  Tractatus: Philosophiae* 
   
  Parzival, Wulfram Von Eschenbach; page 132 
  Tractatus: Magic Lore* 
  Tractatus: Knights of the Green Stone Lore* 
  
  67 
  Sub Rosa 
   
   
  Ars Magica is widely acknowledged, 
  and since you’re reading this we’ll assume 
  you’re inclined to agree, to be simply the 
  best game and setting available today. 
  Okay, it’s one of them and we concede 
  other games and game designers have 
  much to offer to the discerning Ars 
  Magica player. And that’s what this issue’s 
  Mappa Mundi is all about; resources that 
  make a great companion to the Ars 
  Magica player and storyguide which aren’t 
  actually designed for the game. Just to 
  make it clear, this is not an exhaustive list 
  by any means, but it should make a decent 
  start. 
  Fief & Town 
  With Lords of Men and City & Guild 
  on your bookshelf, you’d think you have 
  enough content to run with the mundane 
  side of life. Fief, and the follow-up, Town, 
  provide game-agnostic historically-accurate 
  details adding further depth to your game. 
  Even simple things, like genuine price lists 
  for food, livestock, goods, and services, to 
  taxes, tolls, and inhabited bridges are 
  available to provide extra verisimilitude. 
  Together they provide an additional 250 
  pages of research. 
  www222.pair.com/sjohn/fief.htm 
  Chronica Feudalis 
  As a roleplaying game set around the 
  turn of the 12th century, you might 
  consider Chronica Feudalis a competitor 
  to Ars Magica, but given Chronica 
  Feudalis’ two-page treatment of 
  witchcraft it is safe to say that the two 
  games serve different purposes. 
   
  The PDF download is a charming 
  read and has an interesting step-die 
  mechanic for conflict resolution. The little 
  touches serve as the draw, however, such 
  as the illustrations and the way the text 
  presents as a period document. You’ll also 
  find some interest in its “Explore” section, 
  which covers geography and history, 
  including such things as the Order of the 
  Hatchet, and the Nineteen Year Winter. 
  www.chronicafeudalis.com 
  Pendragon 
  Looking for inspiration for a saga set 
  before the Order? Want to blend 
  Arthurian legend with high medieval 
  politics? The Pendragon RPG will sort 
  you out. The game is older than Ars 
  Magica but seems criminally niche with 
  far fewer supplements than it deserves. 
   
  The game’s focus on family, legacy, 
  politics and inheritance makes for 
  interesting reading for those investing in 
  companion characters or whose magi 
  maintain supportive bonds with their 
  extended families. 
  www.gspendragon.com 
  Mouse Guard 
  Perhaps the most surprising resource is 
  the Mouse Guard RPG, utilizing the 
  Burning Wheel system with content 
  based on the Mouse Guard comic book 
  series by David Petersen. Enterprising 
  storyguides can mine this book for any 
  number of grog-level stories, simple hooks 
  and tasks, such as patrolling, delivering 
  messages, escorting, maintaining borders 
  etc. 
   
  Methods for dealing with the player 
  characters are a demonstration of 
  simplicity. There is a temptation in picking 
  Ars Magica Virtues and Flaws to max out 
  a character’s allocation. After reading 
  Mouse Guard, you may reconsider the 
  strategy and choose less over more. Giving 
  grogs, and even companions and magi, a 
  single defining attribute sets them apart 
  from their peers. Similarly, giving just one 
  weapon-based Ability adds to their 
  distinctiveness. 
   
  Additionally, every session, each 
  character has a goal to fulfil. It doesn’t 
  matter how small the character, or how 
  small the goal, but such goals provide a 
  very useful tool to promote character and 
  player engagement. It is worth 
  experimenting with individual goals for a 
  few sessions in your Ars Magica saga. 
  www.mouseguard.net/books/role-
  playing-game/ 
  Rune 
  Based on the Ars Magica rules system, 
  Rune offers the chance to play Viking 
  warriors. Not the historically-accurate 
  Vikings who invaded England, Ireland, 
  France, and beyond before integrating into 
  these new lands becoming farmers and 
  nobles; these are steroid-fuelled, axe-
  swinging, monster-slaying Mythic 
  barbarians. If they invade your town, it 
  stays invaded! 
   
  So what does it provide? Imagine 
  taking a step back into Ars Magica history, 
  to the dawn of the Order. What if your 
  early Hermetic magi had to deal with 
  magically-augmented Vikings? What if you 
  wanted to play out the violent heritage of 
  your Bjornaer apprentice as he releases his 
  heartbeast? Or what if you wanted to tell a 
  Beowulf-like tale of man against monster 
  as the backdrop to your next story? This is 
  the game that is going to do that for you, 
  and with a very limited learning curve. 
   
  And it’s competitive! The Viking 
  warriors in your party compete to gain 
  points as they go through their adventure. 
  And it’s collaborative! Everybody brings an 
  encounter to the table, so your players can 
  be as devious as they like, throw as many 
  threats and monsters into the mix as they 
  can to ensure that the blood and glory 
  keeps flowing. 
   
  While the game is out of print, 
  Atlas-Games still offer a set of web 
  resources online for those who want to 
  give it a go. This is a bit of an overlooked 
  gem, so it’s worth giving it a look. 
  www.atlas-games.com/rune  
  A full jumpstart guide is also available: 
  www.atlas-games.com/pdf_storage/
  rune_jumpstart.pdf  
  Mappa Mundi 
  
  Subscribe to Sub Rosa 
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  the magazine their work appears in. Unsolicited contributions are welcomed. 
  See our website for details on how to contribute. 
   
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  The Sub Rosa website is updated regularly with news about the magazine and exclusive web-only content. 
  You can also email Sub Rosa for more information. 
  www.subrosamagazine.org 
  @subrosamagazine 
  In the Next Issue 
  The Storyguide’s Handbook: The Dramatic Journey 
  Where is your saga heading? What journey do your protagonists take throughout the saga? We look at ways to make 
  the stories you tell support the vision you have for your magi and the world they live in. 
   
   
  Stormbreaker: Ship of the Otherworld 
  When the sky cracks open, life in the covenant may never be the same again. 
   
   
  Twilight Scars 
  A Collection of Marks to Make the Lives of Magi More Interesting 
   
   
  ...And much more... 
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Ars Magica [multi]/5th edition/Sub Rosa fanzine/Sub Rosa Issue 09.pdf