Editing Lineage:Rebellion Lineages (section)

=Order of Judas=

[[Image:Chainbroken.jpg]]

Positive Stereotype:  Relentless harrower.

Negative Stereotype:  Betrayal artist.

Symbol:  Broken shackles.

Signature Spell:  Invisibility.  “Dust and the Wind”.

Magical Style:  Ancient Hebrew, with elements borrowed from the western Hermetic tradition.

The Order traces itself back to the Biblical Judas, although they tell the story rather differently.  According to the Order of Judas account, Jesus was a powerful human agent of Heaven whose reign Judas thwarted by betraying him to the great magical Houses of Rome, including the Julii and Flavii.  The Order of Judas believes that it has a special duty to oppose the servants of Heaven, believing them to be more powerful, and therefore more dangerous, than the servants of Hell.  Apprentices are trained in both theoretical skills intended to help them understand the true nature of reality and practical skills intended to help them survive out on the streets.  Magical training focuses on the art of not being noticed, culminating in the ability to turn invisible.

The Medici church of the Middle Ages and Renaissance feared that the Order of Judas was allied with Hell and relentlessly sought their extermination as heretics.  Throughout history, they have made natural scapegoats and many who have felt themselves betrayed thought that they saw the shadowy hand of the Order of Judas at work, despite little or no evidence.  The Houses of Capet, Stuart and Hapsburg are particularly committed to the view that they were wronged by the Order of Judas in the past, blaming them for their falls from power.

Mortal Politics:  The Order of Judas generally tries to steer clear of mortal politics, on the grounds that it distracts mages from the war on Heaven and Hell.  The Order has no official political stances, although individual members have strong political views.  An unusual number are Libertarians and many are strong supporters of gun rights.

Cost:  22

Skills:  Acting, Exorcism, Fast-Talk, Guns (Pistol), Occultism, Running, Stealth, Streetwise, Symbol Drawing (Hebrew), Thaumatology, Theology (Christian).

Spells:
Light and Darkness:  Blur, Continual Light, Darkness, Gloom, Invisibility, Light.
Meta:  Counterspell, Suspend Spell.
Necromancy:  Death Vision, Sense Spirit, Summon Spirit.

Relations

The Houses

House of Anjou:  Under the veneer of chivalry, you will find a bandit.  Worse, a bandit who wants to be revered.

House of Cain:  They have no more sense of morality than a dog.  They will prey on anyone without a second’s hesitation.

House of Capet:  They love to kill their enemies, but always seem surprised when it happens to them.

House of Carolus:  They went mad with grief and denial a thousand years ago when they lost their grip on power.  Just die, you fools.

House of Flavii:  The finest politicians on Earth.  When they sell you out, you may not even see it happen.

House of Hapsburg:  The dream about universal power, but that requires universal cooperation and people just don’t work together well enough.

House of Julii:  Their arrogance makes them overconfident and that is a great weakness.  They are too proud to see how much people despise them.

House of Lancaster:  They don’t feel any moral obligations to me and so I feel none to them.

Order of Lilith:  It is better to be an outcast in a good cause than out of sheer bile.  The truth is, they hate themselves too much to let others get a close look at them.

House of Medici:  They never let their feelings interfere with their judgment.  Excellent assassins, but not trustworthy.

House of Romanov:  Whoever allowed them to survive the Russian purges did sloppy work.

House of Stuart:  They always mistake us for assassins for hire.  That says a lot about their minds.

House of Trastámara:  They are just asking for it.  They are callous to make themselves appear strong but it isolates them and makes them weak.

House of Ummayad:  Why are you hiding?  Everyone knows where you are.

House of Warwick:  Liars!  Leeches!  These bastards should go to the wall.  Fortunately, their friends are bound to get sick of them sooner or later and do them in.

House of York:  Strength without conscience is worthless.  They would rather be slaves to the Stuart tyrant than think for themselves.

The Rebellion

Order of Boudicca:  They understand that it is possible to be a traitor and a hero too.  They need to learn to let their heads rule their hearts though.

Order of Copernicus:  Teaching people to question the heavens is an excellent idea.  But remember to teach them to question you too.

Order of Darwin:  The more they unravel Heaven’s secrets, the stronger we become.

Order of Eve:  They have felt abused since the dawn of time, but they’ve never found the guts to do anything about it.

Order of Jesus:  How many times must mages be betrayed by this order before they see the hand of Heaven at work?  Can’t they see the bait has a hook in it?

Order of Siddhartha:  If they are too weak to face reality, they need to get the hell out of the way.

Order of Solon:  They are politicians, but they are the best of a bad lot.  At least there is more to their political theory than everyone for themselves.

Order of Spartacus:  They righteously kick ass.  Hoo-Ha!  Alright, so they can be impulsive, but who else can be relied upon to take action, particularly if there is danger involved?

Order of Thales:  They love the sound of their own voice, but I don’t see them doing much.

Order of Utnapishtim:  They are always prepared and always endure.  However, they don’t understand that you can never win a war without taking the initiative.