by Kevin Hassall
"The devil can cite scripture for his purpose" Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice.
This earthy Saga outline is designed for Ars Magica (any edition), giving a string of linked Stories which involve the characters with a local Priory (a small religious community). The characters may become allies of the monks, or enemies: that's up to them. There's a mixture of intrigue, mystery, diplomacy and violence here - something for all tastes - and these Stories work best if run alongside other campaign-threads and stories.
Full character stats are not included for the NPCs. (Ars Magica has LOTS of statistics, and there's no point taking up space here with game mechanics when we can use these pages to concentrate on the plot, now, is there?)
The idea is that you can play this campaign with just an Ars Magica rulebook. The forces of heaven and hell play a big part in these stories, but all of the obscure drivel in the Maleficium and Pax Dei supplements has been ignored.
A small religious house is established near to the players' Covenant, on land bequeathed to their religious Order by the local Bishop. The reasons for the Priory's establishment are left up to the Storyguide: perhaps there are rumours of dark dealings or spiritual laxness in the area (stemming from the characters' actions?) or perhaps this is simply a political ploy (e.g. the local Bishop trying to gain the support of a religious order by giving them some land).
In any case, the Priory becomes the target of Hell's attentions, as the demon overseer of the region decides to subvert the community in order to win souls for hell and, perhaps, to gain leverage over the characters.
The religiosi who arrive to establish the Priory are a splinter group from the Bishop's own Cathedral Chapter (i.e. they are a group of monks who used to serve in the Bishop's Cathedral), their leader is a pious and determined man (with True Faith) and the local people welcome them.
The players should not be able to peaceably prevent the establishment of the Priory (the people will side with the holy men, and the leader's True Faith should be strong enough to keep him safe from the players' Mentem magics), and blatant attacks on the monks will incur the wrath of both the local Bishop and the religious order from which the monks came.
At this stage the community is very small - just five monks and a few servants. They take possession of the parish church and begin to expand on it, adding a dormitory, refectory and a couple of store rooms and guest chambers. A fish-pond is dug and a herb garden laid out.
The five monks are led by PRIOR MATTHEW. (Intelligence +2, Perception +1, Strength +1, Stamina 0, Presence +2, Communication +2, Dexterity -1, Quickness -1. Skills include Church Lore 3, Church Knowledge 3, Speak and Scribe Latin 3, Folk Ken 1, Diplomacy 2. True Faith (lots), Clear Thinker, Poor Hearing, Decrepit (due to past illness).) Matthew is a young nobleman, about 27 years old, tall and gaunt, but with a haggard and aged face. At the age of 17 he suffered from a long and near-fatal illness, during which he believed that he saw the Blessed Virgin Mary smiling by his bedside, and upon his recovery he insisted upon taking Holy Orders and devoting his life to God and to the Blessed Virgin who had saved his life. His noble breeding, piety and tact have ensured his rapid succession within the Church's ranks, and some suggest that he might eventually become a Bishop or Abbot. Matthew is always intense but amiable, and is filled with an optimistic love of God, but sinners and fools he has little patience with.
Matthew's right-hand man is the older and less likeable BROTHER THEOBALT, whose piety is fanatical. (Age 44. Intelligence 0, Perception +1, Strength -2, Stamina 0, Presence -1, Communication +1, Dexterity 0, Quickness 0. Skills include Church Lore 5, Occult Lore 2, Herbalism 3. True Faith (lots), Lame, decrepit, Intolerance (sin), Fear of Jews (whom he believes to be the devil's pawns), Herbalist.) Everything that Theobalt thinks and says is focused on God, and his manner is aggressively fanatical.
The three other Brothers are THOMAS (an easy-going, burly man, with a gift for healing and a strong faith but a weakness for good ale), ABELHARDT (a nervous youth, filled with self-loathing because of his homosexual impulses and attraction to Thomas) and GEORG (a bitter, grumpy man, with no real piety).
There are three demons involved in this Saga - Custulzas (Hell's ambassador to the region), Azthei'im (his lieutenant and enforcer), and Eigrahb (one of the Lilim, an arch-seducer of men). The first two are encountered directly by the player characters, and so are detailed below.
Custulzas is in command of this operation. In his natural form he appears as a fat, warty creature, with three serpents' tongues and golden puss oozing from his festering sores. He may only appear in the mortal world during the hours of darkness, materialising in any area within "his" region which does not have a Dominion or Faerie aura, and he may take on the appearance of any damned mortal who lives or lived his area (this local region).
Intelligence (devious) +4, Perception +4, Strength +1, Stamina +3, Presence (confident) +2, Communication (authoritative) +2, Dexterity +2, Quickness +1.
Infernal Might 35
Skills include all social skills, social talents, casual knowledges and formal knowledges 4, Local Area Lore 15.
Special Powers: TAKE THE SINNER'S FORM (1 point per hour): He can disguise himself as any person from the local area who has died and been damned to hell, or any living person with weighty sins which they have not yet confessed and done penance for. (Stop and think for a moment: how many of the player characters have committed major sins - theft, murder, fornication, gross pride - for which they have not yet done penance? Custulzas could disguise himself as any of those characters!) CALL UPON HELL'S AID (1 point per 2 points of the summoned creature's Might; no cost to summon Azthei'im): He may call up any lesser demon to serve him in the mortal world - e.g. Eigrahb. Such a creature is obliged to respect Custulzas' authority over this area of the earth, but is ultimately loyal to its own Prince and overlords. SEE THE INDIVIDUAL'S SINS (1 point): By staring into a person's eyes for a round, the demon can see any sins which they have committed in the past (treat as a level 30 Intellego Mentem). BLIGHTED LAND (0 points): Wherever Custulzas travels, the area within a mile takes on a haunted, creepy aspect; shadows seem strangely dark, the wind seems to whisper in the branches, crows and other cruel animals gather while gentler beasts flee, etc.
Azthei'im naturally appears as an 8-foot tall creature, covered in scales, with tufts of black fur. It has a dog's head (with no eyes, but fires burning constantly in its eye sockets) and hoofed feet. It cannot come to the mortal world unsummoned, and cannot disguise its appearance.
Intelligence -1, Perception -2, Strength +5 (to 0), Stamina +6 (to 1), Presence +1, Communication -1, Dexterity -1 (to +4) , Quickness -1 (to +4) . Size +1 (to -1).
Infernal Might: 30.
Skills include: all combat skill (brawl, all weapons, etc.) +6, Intimidation +6.
In combat Azthei'im's claws rake for +30 damage (to +5).
Special Powers: RECURRING WOUNDS (0 points): If a mortal is injured by Azthei'im, then the Storyguide should keep a secret note of those wounds. Any time that the character engages the demon in combat in the future, the wounds seem to reopen, very painfully. The recurring wounds actually cause Long Term Fatigue to the character - not Wounds - healing swiftly as Fatigue is regained. Only characters who have True Faith, or have very recently made Confession (and have not sinned since), or have attended Mass in the last few hours are immune from their wounds recurring. ONE MADE MANY (0 points): Azthei'im may divide his body up into 2 to 6 identical - but smaller - versions of himself. It takes one whole round for his body to divide or remesh, and all of his many bodies share the same mind. Infernal Might is divided equally between bodies. Strength and Stamina fall by one each for every copy made (e.g. if there are four Azthei'ims, then Strength is 3 lower, at +2). Damage should be divided by the number of bodies (e.g. if it has split into two, each body's claws inflict 30/2 = +15 damage). Quickness and Dexterity, conversely, rise as the number of bodies increases, rising by 1 per additional body (to +4 for 6). EYES OF THE CAT (0 points): as the spell. SULPHUROUS DEATH (0 points): if any one of bodies is Incapacitated or Killed, it explodes in a shower of black fat, scalding sulphurous steam, and shards of bone: anyone within 3 yards takes damage based on the creature's Infernal Might (e.g. +30 damage if it only had one body, +5 if 6 bodies), and is blinded for a number of rounds equal to the number of Body Levels lost. If such a Soak roll is botched, the victim is permanently blinded. FLAMING TOUCH (1 point): Azthei'im may ignite any one ordinarily flammable object that it touches (as a level 5 Creo Ignem spell). Ignited items burn as usual.
The idea is that, through the saga, events unfold as follows.
1) The priory is established and, being asked to help investigate a theft, the characters are first involved with the new foundation. This is the first Story, below.
2) Hell's pawn, Robert of Munchen, joins the community, with the characters' aid. The second story.
3) Hell's forces engineer the death of the Prior, and Robert of Munchen's selection as his successor. This is not detailed below: Storyguides will probably want to run this as a murder-mystery adventure, and will thus want to write it to suit their own players' characters' temperaments, intelligence, etc. Ideally, the players' characters should work out "who dunnit" but shouldn't be able to prove their case without admitting to the mundane authorities that they have supernatural powers. ("So, let me get this straight. You say that unholy powers murdered the Prior? And you know this because you have unholy powers...?")
4) How far the demons want to spread their influence from here is up to the Storyguide - if, indeed, the player characters haven't already killed Robert. If Robert is now Prior, then the devils may just use the Priory to corrupt these holy men and their recruits, or they may extend their influence into the surrounding area - tormenting and tempting the magi, for example.
The names are Germanic: Storyguides may wish to change these for their own sagas.
While the Priory is being established, as the local peasants and itinerant labourers are working to help build the new buildings, the monks have no where to sleep but in barns or on the floor of the church. And the Priory's limited wealth is stored in an iron-bound chest amongst the Brothers' personal luggage.
One night, a labourer named Gerwas disappears - taking with him the Brothers' box of treasures. Unable to determine where the fugitive has fled to, Prior Matthew sends Abelhardt to fetch aid from the nearby castle/tower/wise-men/manor - basically, from the Covenant, though he wont know at this stage that the characters' community is a mages' lair; if the Covenant is well hidden or unknown, or seems so unremarkable that no Prior would seek there for aid, then Abelhardt is sent to a nearby tavern to look for mercenaries, foresters, or anyone else who might be able to track the thief down: in this case, a number of characters are conveniently sat in the Inn this morning as Abelhardt enters.
The characters are brought to the Prior, who explains about Gerwas and the box's disappearance, and begs their aid in retrieving the treasures. There is cash in the box (enough to pay ten labourers two weeks' wages), but more importantly there is a holy Relic - the hand of Saint Marcellus. Prior Matthew will pay cash to have the treasures returned (he assumes that the Bishop will cover this cost), but he expects nobles, foresters and others to aid him for free - as they have a Christian duty to protect the Church, and a secular duty to uphold the law. Those who agree to retrieve the treasures as a favour come off better in the end anyway, as Prior Matthew's friendship and gratitude is probably more useful that a few shillings.
The other labourers remember Gerwas as a quiet, sad man, with a couple of nasty warts on his nose and greasy hair. They felt sorry for him, and had no inkling that he would turn to theft; he seemed an honest sort. His few possessions - bedding roll, bowl and spoon - are still in the barn where he was sleeping, but his travelling cloak and a set of clothes have gone.
Gerwas should be easy to follow. A good Tracking roll or magic (e.g. The Inexorable Search) should allow the characters to follow the wretch through the woods to a travellers' Inn three hours walk away.
Gerwas sits in the Inn, having arrived several hours ahead of his pursers. He is slumped over a table, sodden with ale, sobbing pathetically. The only other customers are two local farmers (who have only just arrived, and are breaking their journey hear for half an hour) and a band of really nasty looking Brabantine mercenaries who have been carousing here for a couple of days.
Gerwas is pretty incoherent. He just sobs that "she isn't here, she isn't here..." over and over. If the characters are obviously interested in Gerwas (try to move him or talk to him, etc.), one of the mercenaries strides up and slaps a hand on one of the characters' shoulders with a hearty "So do you know Prior Matthew, then?": if the character says "yes" then the mercenary slams a dagger into his back....
The situation is this:
The ugly, lonely Gerwas had been visited over the last few nights (or was it all just a dream?) by a beautiful young woman called Isobelle, who claims to love him and has indulged his frustrated desires to their full. She wants to marry him, she said - but first she demanded that he prove his love by retrieving a family heirloom which had been stolen from her parents by a greedy monk. And of course, the heirloom is the relic, the Hand. She promised that if Gerwas "reclaimed" (stole) the hand, and went to wait for her at this travellers' Inn, then she would come to meet him here.
The mercenaries were hired by a nobleman called "Sir Steffan" to wait here for an ugly labourer who would be carrying a box. They were told to tell him that Isobelle sent them and to take the box: inside, they were told, would be a hand which they should hurl into a nearby river, and some money which they could keep. They should then wait in the Inn, kill anyone who pursued Gerwas, and leave before dusk. They know that Gerwas took something from a Prior Matthew, but that's about all. They were given money up front, and were promised significantly more if they completed their mission and returned to meet their employer in a nearby town.
So, Gerwas stole the box as ordered, and had it taken from him by the mercenaries on entering the Inn. There is no sign of Isobelle. The mercenaries ridiculed him when he asked after her. He has been drowning his sorrows since, hoping that she hasn't deserted him. The mercenaries have taken the cash, leaving the empty box in the corner of the Inn, and - too lazy to walk down to the river - have thrown the hand into the midden pit under the Inn's privy (the characters WILL enjoy retrieving that, won't they!).
So, the mercenaries attack the characters (it should be a tough fight), and then flee to meet with their employer. Captives tell all that they know in return for any promise of freedom or leniency. If the characters don't bother taking prisoners they probably won't find the hand.
If the characters retrieve the relic or the cash Prior Matthew is grateful. If they manage to get both back, and give some sort of explanation of what was going on, he will be indebted to them.
If arrested, Gerwas will be hung for theft by the local Baron. The characters cannot trace anyone matching "Sir Steffan" or Isobelle's names or descriptions. The mercenaries flee to meet with their employer, loitering as arranged in the market square of a nearby town - but Steffan never contacts them: he has tempted them into abusing a relic, stealing, and committing sins of anger (violence), which was his real intention anyway.
Both Steffan and Isobelle were demons, who were trying to dispose of the relic and spread a bit of lechery, greed, theft and murder along the way.
Marcellus the Centurion was a Roman soldier who became a Christian and thenceforth refused to fight. He was executed for insubordination and was thereafter revered as a martyr - as any character making a Church Lore roll of 12+ (or flicking through some hagiographies) will know. The relic is a mummified hand. It has 3 Faith Points, no demon who hasn't got an Infernal Might above 30 may approach within five paces of it, and anyone carrying it is safe from the attacks and powers of all Infernal foes so long as she does not first attack them. (It is the hand of a Christian pacifist: it aids those who act without violence.)
A year or two passes uneventfully. The Priory gains a fine reputation for the good work it does amongst the poor - Thomas's healing, the Prior's generosity to beggars, and its hospitality to travellers, etc. Two teen-age Novices (apprentice monks, basically) are recruited from the local area (perhaps one is related to one of the grogs?).
The Prior refuses to co-operate with known "magicians" (though he always remains polite), and Theobalt may limp up to the Covenant to rant and scream about how those who use "dark powers" (i.e. magic) imperil their souls.
If the characters seem like good Christian folk (mere "astrologers", "healers", noblemen, etc.), then they might find fine allies in the Priory. They might trade herbs with Theobalt or receive medical attention from Thomas, and they could easily win the Prior's friendship by donating inoffensive books (Church Lore, Local Area Lore, Humanities, even Fantastic Beast Lore) to help him establish a small library.
One or two years after the first Story, a group of characters (probably grogs) are returning to their Covenant. If there are any magi with the group, they should be relatively week - the fights with Azthei'im should be a challenge. The characters' mission has been routine and uneventful: perhaps they have been to a town to buy lab equipment, which would have the added interest that they would have to guard the equipment while everything else is going on. They should expect nothing unusual.
But as dusk falls they are still a couple of miles from the nearest Inn. As they travel through the dark the woods around them seem unusually dark, with crows' calls and strange whisperings filtering through the trees. Soon pairs of red lights - like dark candles - begin to dart around them in the trees, keeping pace with them and closing in: these are Azthei'im, who has split into six bodies to harass the characters as they approach the Inn.
Azthei'im follows the characters, trying to scare them into a run, chasing them towards the Inn. All the time Azthei'im mutters "is it he... I can't see... no, no... but should we kill them anyway?" etc. As the characters approach the Inn, the Azthei'ims start to close in on them, emerging from the tree-line. The six Azthei'ims should be able to defeat three or four laden grogs, but they don't want to kill anyone (why should they?). The creatures just aim to wound the characters, maybe setting fire to a shield or two.
When the characters reach the Inn - probably pursued by the creatures - they find the door barred from inside. Play this for tension and drama. The people barricaded in the Inn know that there are "things" outside and aren't eager to open the door; the creatures are closing in on the characters.
Eventually the characters talk or smash their way into the Inn, and the Azthei'ims throw themselves against the Inn in attack after attack (ripping in through the thatched roof, setting fire to doors to get in, etc.) until all are dead. Through the fight the characters must lead the defence of the Inn. There should be a couple of other travellers in the Inn, too - a peddler, a wandering labourer, and anyone else whom you want. The only other significant individual here is Rudolph of Seckau, a high-born Austrian German who has spent the last eight years studying Theology and Philosophy in the great University of Paris. He is now travelling to the court of the local Bishop, who has offered Rudolph a place in his household as a secretary and advisor.
Rudolph is a plain man, with unruly, short hair, wearing a clerical tonsure but the tunic and sword of a nobleman. (He is a minor cleric, and expects to be ordained as a full priest on entering the Bishop's household, but his faith is mild and his present authority nil.) He is usually self-confident, but has been quite disconcerted by these events. His loves are debate and philosophy - and he isn't used to cowering from dark creatures in rural Inns. He reoccurs later in the Saga, so make sure that the characters have a chance to befriend or antagonise him here. (Stats. for Rudolph include Intelligence +4, Perception +1; Church Knowledge (Doctrine) +4, Debate (theology) +3, Humanities (Philosophy) +3, Church Lore +2, Etiquette +3).
After the creatures have been destroyed there is a lull - though the woods are still alive with strange sounds and shifting shadows. Let the characters swap stories with the other guests (all were chased on their way in), and the Innkeeper (who had noticed nothing strange until dusk began to fall). Let them organise the defences and arrange scouting missions. They should be a good long way from any help.
... Meanwhile, out in the woods, Custulzas re-summons Azthei'im, and with his human dupe, Robert of Munchen, he prepares to make his dramatic entrance to the Inn....
After a short while, the characters spot another one or two little Azthei'ims in the woods. And then two figures run out of the darkness pursued by the creatures (6 of them, again): the figures are of a tall, gaunt Templar (the surcoat is very distinctive) with one ear, and a shorter, chubbier man in nondescript clothing. The two holler for entrance, and if the characters don't open the doors for them they scramble onto the Inn's roof and start hacking their way in through the thatch. The creatures do not try to follow in. They circle around in the woods, and shout threats and insults, demanding that the characters "hand over the fat one" or "kill him and save yourselves" - or else "face the wrath of our masters".
The characters are besieged. Their new companions introduce themselves as Brother Bertran of the Knights Templar (this is Custulzas), and Robert of Munchen. Bertran claims to be escorting Robert, on orders from a very much more senior Templar: characters who know of local clerical or military matters might test him on this, and though he gives very little away he seems to know many of the local senior nobles, clergy and Templars (Local Area Lore 15!); he hints that Robert is somehow "blessed", but says no more. Robert himself is arrogant, and behind his veneer of piety is a cruel streak.
Robert is, in fact, a poor shoe-maker who has dabbled in the Occult and pledged his soul to Hell in return for worldly power: Custulzas has promised to make him the Prior of a religious house within five years, "and that will be but the beginning...." He is not a local, as is clear from his accent, and he claims to be of minor noble birth. If pressed, he says that "prophesies" accompanied his birth.
The demons outside (Azthei'im) continue to demand that Robert be handed over to them or else slain. The devils' plan is that through this pretence, Robert should gain much fame, making people think that he is a man whom the forces of hell are desperate to destroy, who is protected by the orders of the Masters of the Templars.
If the Storyguide wants to pad this adventure out, have the characters hear the cries for help of another traveller coming through the woods, so that they can go out and rescue him from the creatures (Azthei'im) who circle around.
Eventually, the demons set fire to the Inn (it is wooden and thatched), in order to drive people out of it. When the characters, Robert and the other guests emerge the creatures charge them, seemingly trying to kill Robert: but "Brother Bertran" (and hopefully the characters) fight bravely to destroy the creatures.
As soon as they are clear of the Inn "Brother Bertran" asks (effectively orders) the characters to take Robert to the Priory: "He must join a religious house, and that has been selected for him. He will be safe there. I must return to my superiors immediately, to tell them what has happened. You must take him. This is God's work." And so the "Templar" disappears in the opposite direction from the characters.
If the Storyguide wishes, Custulzas might summon up Azthei'im again and send him after the characters - perhaps with Azthei'im in only 2 or 3 bodies, and Custulzas himself joining in, leading the demons, in his natural form. That's up to you, and it depends upon how badly injured the characters are, and how bloodthirsty the players are.
And so Robert arrives at the Priory, introduced by the characters, and soon becomes a full Brother. He proves hardworking and ambitious, but otherwise unremarkable, and soon his arrogance begins to annoy Prior Matthew and the others.
No trace can ever be found of "Brother Bertran", and in the confusion and chaos surrounding the burning Inn, even his tracks cannot be distinguished leaving the area.
From here on, events will depend upon the Storyguide and players.
Rudolph is indeed appointed as secretary to the bishop, and ordained as a priest. He is subsequently made an Inquisitor in order to investigate any dubious activities around the Priory and Covenant - so the way in which the players' characters treated him this first time that the met will have far-reaching consequences.
Whether or not the Prior's death is solved, and whether Robert is appointed to his successor, will depend upon the player characters - and, of course, it will be more difficult f or hell's forces to exert their influence over the Priory if the player characters returned the stolen relic.
And whether the demons target the characters specifically (tempting and offering to "help" them) is up to the Storyguide.