Beginning of Summer: 1221
Joseph, Juniper, Karl, and two grogs head out into the principal forest southeast of the covenant to investigate the magic aura that Juniper found in her prior seasons of exploration for vis sources. It's a short trip, but a few hours, and the location is a copse of linden trees. The aura can be felt, measured with a cast spell and a Magic Theory test to determine it to be a rating 3 Magic-realm aura. Examining the place in greater depth, Karl attempts to
Crystal Dart one of the blackberries in the copse, only to see it bounce off the berry. He attempts to touch the berry with his hands, and is completely unhindered.
Rosid the Linden Tree Copse - Genius Loci Autumn 15 - Magic Aura 3
Abilities Civil & Canon Law (Roman) 7, Faerie Lore (forest fae) 5, Finesse (Herbam) 3, Folk Ken (Testimony) 4, Magic Lore (forest creatures) 5, Penetration (Herbam) 3, Rhine Lore (Lorraine) 5
Virtues/Flaws Ways of the Forest; Magical Air, Anchored to the Forest
Qualities/Inferiorities Eidolon, Presence, Ruler of Plants, Linden Shield (MuCo 25; 0pts, R:T/D:Sun/T:Ind, Bestow +2 Soak), Ward from Axes (ReTe 25; 5pts, R:P/D:Sun/T:Ind; Terram Ward); Reduced Abilities x5
While examining, they are interrupted by a 3' grey-blue goblin standing upside-down from a tree, who greets himself as Juniper's father. He then starts berating Juniper for not having gotten married yet, pointing out the perfectly suitable bachelors right there; though he gives a back-handed compliment to Joseph when he turns into a human (enough to father some grandchildren, at least). With the banter between Juniper and Quick-as-Thought, it's mentioned that he feels the copse can be an officiant for the wedding once a suitable partner is chosen.
Quick-as-Thought - Terram Faerie Summer 20
Size -2
Characteristics Int 0, Per +2, Pre -3, Com -2, Str -1, Sta +3, Dex +2, Qik +4
Personality Traits Vengeful +3, Greedy +2, Doting +4
Pretenses Athletics (running) 6, Awareness (underground hazards) 2, Bargain (mortals) 5, Brawl (fist) 5, Craft: Tailor 6
Virtues/Flaws Increased Faerie Might (Major), Immunity from Terram (Major), Improved Characteristics x2 (Minor), Faerie Sight (Minor), Faerie Speech (Minor), Humanoid Faerie (Minor), Lesser Powers x2 (Minor), Personal Powers x2 (Minor); Little (Major), Monstrous Appearance (Major), Traditional Ward: Church Bells (Minor), Traditional Ward: Critique (Minor), Aloof (Minor); Narrowly Cognizant
Powers- Sartorial Magic (CrAnTeHe 20, 0pts, R: Touch/T:Ind/D:Until Dirty; Creates an outfit of masterful construction)
Steal Judgement (Mentem 15, 2pt, R:Eye/D:Sun/T:Ind; Believe any lie, Int EF 6 resist)
Appear Human (MuIm 5, 0pts, constant)
Run (0pts, Base 15, 50 pace 'teleport', restricted to regular movement)
After a bit more debate, Quick-as-Thought agrees that properly, he can't just accept any random schlub to marry his daughter; they need to pass the muster. To which he declares that the man able to bring either of the two magi in the group to unconsciousness with a trout shall be deemed skilled enough to be his son-in-law. As he announces this, ten men with large fish in hand are heard crashing through the woods, all overly gullible in their belief in Quick-as-Thought's claim and assurance that the magi are just pretending their incredulity.
Karl has Flexible Formulaic Magic, which he uses to enhance his Marionette spell to target a Group. The villagers promptly slap each other with fish into senselessness, forced to eat some of the fish, then released from the spell and told to go home. Quick-as-Thought clucks in shame at how pathetic that lot was while Joseph chews on the fish left behind, comments on how the outfits for all of them will go to waste, and promises Juniper that he'll find a suitable partner soon before he zips away.
Thanks to the goblin's banter, Rosid has been introduced and begins a conversation with the magi. It wishes to be a jurist and place of law again after centuries of neglect. If the party can rebuild the stone dais and podium, it will give them access to its vis, active and in potentia.
On their way home, they are accosted by a pack of five wolves (ArM's magical wolf, specifically). The fight is intense, especially after Karl's
Cthonic Mortar (3 pace diameter version of
Earth's Carbuncle) is extended to Diameter duration and fails to penetrate the magic resistance (discovering that the wolves are magic); so the grogs can't approach without risking being harmed. The wolf keeps its group bonus on defense throughout the fight and finds itself unable to get through Joseph's soak. By the time one of the wolves is killed, it slows down enough to curse at Joseph for killing its mate. The party implores that Joseph did no such thing, and agrees to go before the Linden Copse to prove its innocence.
Joseph is acquitted, but the wolf isn't happy and warns him that he'll rip out his throat if he so much as pisses on one of his trees.
At the end of autumn, in the middle of the day, Prokui gathers a bit of a crowd as he wheels out a large sextant onto his balcony and starts taking measurements and makes calculations while looking to the southeast. He then conjures a scorpio, loads it with a solid metal bolt from his robes, then launches it. There is an incredibly loud crack of thunder as the bolt disappears. Prokui then looks to where the ballista was pointing, teleports, teleports back about a minute later, and goes back into his lab. Gotvinus climbs around to get a better vantage point to look in the direction of where the ballista was pointed (
Eyes of the Eagle), and sees a small crater in the side of one of the Vosges Mountains.
They are awoken several days later in the middle of the night by the same thundercrack sound.
End of Summer 1221- Joseph - 2 Ruins Lore, 3 Animal Ken, 5 Animal, 1 Animal Ken (Correspondence)
- Karl - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Woodworking (Correspondence), 5 Rego, 3 Penetration
- Juniper - 2 Ruins Lore, 5 Magic Lore, 3 Second Sight
- Tim - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Magic Theory (Correspondence), 2 Magic Theory (Lab Construction)
End of Autumn 1221- Joseph - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Animal Ken (Correspondence), 21 Corpus (Summa)
- Karl - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Woodworking (Correspondence), 10 Finesse (Summa)
- Tim - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Magic Theory (Correspondence), 24 Terram (Summa, 7 cap)
- Gotvinus - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Parma (Correspondence), 19 Vim (Summa)
- Juniper - 2 Ruins Lore, 4 Bows
End of Winter 1221- Joseph - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Animal Ken (Correspondence), 21 Rego (Summa)
- Karl - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Woodworking (Correspondence), 10 Finesse (Summa)
- Tim - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Magic Theory (Correspondence), 24 Corpus (Summa, 7 cap)
- Gotvinus - 2 Ruins Lore, 1 Parma (Correspondence), Xxx
- Juniper - 2 Ruins Lore, 4 Bows
Vis Total - 6 Creo, 4 Muto, 7 Herbam, 10 Vim