Editing The Gift:Characters

==The Council==

House Burning Stone is the oldest and most powerful house in the Council, claiming to have been founded in London in 1650.  The house is a religious fraternity, dedicated, at least in theory, to coming closer to God through mysticism.  The house does not insist that members follow any particular religion, although monotheism is required.  Burning Stone was the driving force behind the formation of the Council in the first place and many give it credit for the Council’s dominant position in New Spain today.  Burning Stone mages tend to see themselves as good shepherds for mages and mundane humans alike, tough but fair, living well but providing guidance and protection.  However, they are also very aware that their power only comes by the consent of the other Houses of the Council. Politically, the house tends to be on the side of big business, since they own so much of it.  However, the House includes influential cliques advocating abortion rights, drug legalization, environmentalism, foreign aid, gun control, and welfare, including a public option for healthcare.  The House officially opposes increasing eduational spending, on the grounds that science threatens to make the mundanes too powerful for their own good, but there has been growing support for education on both idealistic and strategic grounds.

The most openly pragmatic of the Old Houses, House Isis Watching is devoted to the power over life and death.  The mages of the house are trained for personal survival and to help others to survive in order to gain political or personal advantage.  While any house might include members who can raise the dead, Isis Watching has been so efficient in keeping Council members on this side of the veil that they are arguably the greatest asset and most effective recruiting tool that the Council has.  Their political influence within the Council is limited only by their reputation of being too quick to side with one another even when in the wrong. The house has its origins in an Anglican religious society and while it has no official religious requirements today, non-Anglicans rarely advance politically.  Traditionalists in the order take seriously the idea that they are doing God's work, while younger mages tend to treat the House as a business club.

House Osiris Risen was founded at the same time as the Council itself, charged with the task of protecting the Council from mortal society.  Most of its efforts are directed simply towards keeping the public ignorant.  It keeps careful tabs on politicians and the media to make sure that nobody does anything that is against the Council’s best interests.  Although Osiris Risin has no qualms about interfering with the democratic process to help the Council, it otherwise tries to let mortals rule themselves.  Mages of the house are forbidden to hold office of any kind, in mortal or mage society, in an effort to deter ambitious power-seekers.  Most members of this house take their duties seriously, feathering their own nests comfortably along the way.  However, the house has also produced a few spectacular traitors.  While the house holds that it is vital to study theology for both moral and magical purposes, it does not require its members to adhere to any particular religious beliefs.

House Thoth Standing is devoted to gaining magical understanding through breaking down the barriers between worlds.  This is an inherently dangerous practice and the house is regarded with some wariness due to occasional loss of control of things from beyond.  However, they are also respected for their insight and the Council has long relied on them to help defend it against arcane dangers.  The political influence of Thoth Standing in the Council is second only to Burning Stone.  The order officially requires members to be either Christians, Jews, Muslims or pagans in the Roman or Egyptian traditions.  However, while formal statements of faith are required, many mages treat them as highly metaphorical claims, perfectly compatible with other religions or even atheism.  There is significant tension within the house between mages who wish to see religious requirements loosened and traditionalists who do not wish to upset political power structures.

House Atom Turning was founded in 1921 by scientists working at Princeton University.  Having discovered the existence of magic, they set about researching it using the model most easily accessible to them – Western Hermeticism.  They encountered the Council that same year and were offered membership but resisted joining until 1979, upon which time they gave their house its name.  The house maintains that scientific study is the best approach to magic, just as it is to any other subject.  Atom Turning’s magical style is an odd mix of scientific and Hermetic elements.  Some members of the house think that Hermeticism provides unique and important insights into the nature of the universe, but most just see it as a useful magical tool.  The house remains part of the Council for the sake of safety, but has little loyalty to the organization, seeing the Council's obsession with traditional magic as an irrational devotion to a failed paradigm.

Cat Hunting was originally a loose association of folklorists with a belief in magic.  They only came together as an organized group and joined the Council when the magical wars of the late 19th century made independence too dangerous.  Today, they do what they have always done; study the cultures of the world in search of secret knowledge.  While they have little loyalty to the Council, they appreciate its usefulness and feel that they in turn can be useful by making sure that the Council is exposed to new ideas and different perspectives.  Even the Old Houses must admit that Cat Hunting often has useful information.  Of all of the Houses of the Council, Cat Hunting mages are the most likely to associate with nature mages, including mages of the Circle.  Cat Hunting mages are often very close politically to Circle mages and see themselves as working to correct the system from the inside.  On the other hand, some Circle mages see Cat Hunting as sellouts, willing to side with the thugs in return for protection.

House Crane Flying was founded and joined the Council in 1954.  It was made up of disaffected members of Atom Turning and Snake Drinking who cared more about the pursuit of art than their academic studies.  Today, it is a haven for artistic mages looking for fellowship and protection.  There are those among both the Old Houses and Young Houses who question Crane Flying’s suitability to be a part of the Council, seeing Crane Flying's focus on art as trivial and pretentious.  On the other hand, Flying Crane produces magical artifacts of excellent workmanship, making the House an important asset to the Council.  For their part, Flying Crane often provides the most radically political members of the Council, advocating reform and liberalization.  House Crane Flying feels little loyalty to the Council, siding with the establishment only for the sake of safety.  Many mages have ties to the Cooperative, an organization that Flying Crane has been repeatedly asked to join.

Apprenticeship in Crane Flying is by no means easy and talent alone is never enough.  Contrary to some prejudices, Crane Flying requires serious academic study of society and magic, on the grounds that the artist must engage the world.  However, after becoming a mage, many lose their interest in the academic side of things and focus on self-expression instead.  Magical training focuses on the manipulation of human senses.

 

Themselves: We do what we like.  How many mages can say that?

House Rat Sniffing was founded in 1916 by disaffected members of the Old Houses, who believed that the traditional mysticism should give way to reason.  They are dedicated to learning the truth about the universe, often leading them to neglect more mundane and practical matters.  The house has a reputation for both wisdom and foolishness and if their guidance is often sought, they advice is also often ignored.  The mages of Rat Sniffing, however, rarely care very much what mages from other orders think of them.  On the other hand, they have a tendency to become focussed on status games within their own House.  While many Rat Sniffing mages are idealistic, they are also particularly likely to burn out, becoming cynical, apathetic or corrupt.  Rat Sniffing vendettas, often founded on a disagreement over theory, are known for being particularly bitter and persistent.  The House is badly organized and House politics tends to be dominated by feuding cliques.

House Snake Drinking was founded in 1880 as “The Boston Anthropological Society”, an organization dedicated to the study of magic.  The founders were convinced that magic was an art lost by modern western civilization, but well known in other times and places.  They hoped that by historical and anthropological research, they might collect such knowledge.  The society encountered the Council in 1885 and was admitted in 1900, at which point it renamed itself “Snake Drinking”.  The house generally frowns on mysticism, but also encourages a respect for all cultures and religions.  Once considered “stodgy”, Snake Drinking has embraced the modern age and the improved research methods that it has provided.  Their interest is not simply academic.  Old, foreign or secret artifacts and writings may bring a mage power and wealth, and competition between Snake Drinking mages can turn deadly.  House Snake drinking is firmly loyal to the Council, viewing it as the only alternative to anarchy and war.

The Circle is a very loose and decentralized association of mages who feel a connection to the natural world.  It was never officially founded, has no official rules and no official power.  However, it has provided a formidable web of allies in times of trouble over the past 50 years or so.  Of the five “families” that make it up, some are more deeply involved than others.  Crescent Moon, the Line of Mary Wood, and Sacred Chalice are most committed to the organization and do most of the work that is required to keep it together.  Gray Wolf and White Hart are more peripherally involved, remaining on good terms, but trying to keep out of politics.

Crescent Moon was founded in 1991 by Wiccans of various small covens that had been wiped out in the wars of the 1980s.  They dedicate themselves to the protection of followers of Wicca, and, to a lesser extent, pagans in general.  They are openly militant, blaming the losses of the 1980s on an idealistic but fatal unwillingness to fight.  They only admit Wiccans, but are careful not to proselytize, emphasizing that all religions are equally valid.  They are staunch supporters of the Circle, on the grounds that members of alternative religions in general, and nature religions in particular, need to cooperate for mutual defense.  At the same time, they often find the Circle frustrating reluctant to organize and take practical action.  Many in the house would like to see Crescent Moon take over from Sacred Chalice as leaders, but concerns about their militancy keep them from getting needed support from the Line of Mary Wood.  Crescent Moon has no qualms about breaking mundane law, seeing the police as the Council's footsoldiers.  They stockpile weapons, steal government property and otherwise flout any rule they find inconvenient.

Gray Wolf is comprised of mages who seek to become one with nature, for spiritual reasons that are often individual to the mage or considered inexpressible.  Most members are highly political about ecological and animal rights issues.  The order regards itself as having a duty to protect nature and the unnecessary failure of a member to do say may result in ostracism or worse.  That being said, they have very little in the way of organization and often prefer being alone in nature to seeking each other's company, though a temporary "pack" may form to deal with specific problems.  Their disregard for authority and rules, mortal and mage alike, makes it easy for them to get into trouble.  Most Gray Wolf mages see violence as a part of nature like any other and are comfortable, in principle, with the use of force to achieve important goals.  This attitude, along with their acceptance of hunting, has alienated them from many more idealistic mages and mortals.  Gray Wolf ritual and symbolism is an amalgam of Christian, Native American and Pagan European motifs, with many nature-elements of their own invention.

The Line of Mary Wood traces itself back to the 19th century mage of that name from California, who started the magical school by instructing her children in magic.  Today, the “family” is still under the control of Mary’s blood relations, although talented outsiders comprise most of the membership.  Although Christian theology plays a role in the line’s study of magic, they have not required members to be Christian since 1946.  The Line of Mary Wood’s rituals and symbolism are derived from a mix of Christianity and European folkmagic, especially English folkmagic.  Theoretically, the Line's Christian streak means that it has no place among the nature worshippers of the Circle, but the nature worshipping orders are too badly in need of allies to get too picky about religion.  Mages of the Line are known as healers, layers of curses and habitual plotters, always laying plans for reasons that range from the purely practical to the incomprehensibly esoteric.

Insofar as the Circle has leaders, the Sacred Chalice leads.  They are the “family” with the most political power due either to their reputation for even-headedness, patience and reliability, or to the fact that no other family is willing and able to do the job.  Although they are officially Wiccan and require the study of Wiccan principles as part of their magic, they welcome mages of all belief-systems.  Politically, they play a difficult balancing act to keep the Circle together, with mages who see the Circle as being too pacifistic and slow to act on the one hand and mages who see the Circle as being too organized and rules-bound on the other.  Also controvercial is the Sacred Chalice tendency to use mage resources to defend the interests of mundanes.  Internally, there is friction between revolutionaries who wish to abandon affiliation with any one religion and traditionalist mages who see their church being taken away.  Sacred Chalice political fights can get very nasty, being driven at least as much by ideology as personal ambition.

The Circle:  It is good to get together with friends, whether it is to socialize, to worship, or to share information.  We have so much in common.

White Hart is dedicated to the philosophy that wisdom may be gained by taking the perspective of animals.  The mage seeks to become animal, so as to see the world through the eyes of nature itself.  White Hart claims to be an ancient Celtic tradition but while this has never been disproved, neither does there seem to be any evidence for it.  Some White Harts are neo-Luddites, seeking a return to nature.  Others are perfectly happy to embrace the modern world, feeling that it is the ideal place to apply the lessons they have learned from nature.  Though traditionally mages of the wilderness, White Hart fascination with urban wildlife has lead them increasingly to the cities.  The unique perspectives gained by White Hart mages can lead to them becoming very eccentric individuals, or even mentally ill by normal standards.  They are particularly likely to take on personality traits of animals with which they have a close association.  White Hart ritual and symbolism is derived from Celtic and Pagan European practices.

The Bridewell Reading Group began as a small conspiracy of scientists from across the United States in the 1960s who became convinced of the reality of magic and wanted to subject it to study.  They encountered the Council early but refused to join on the grounds that Hermeticism is a religion and science should proceed without religious interference.  Nevertheless, they have maintained close contact with the Hermetic house Atom Turning, much to the Council’s chagrin.  The group maintains a vague commitment to benefitting humanity but each mage is left to themselves to determine what that means.  In most cases, mages simply pursue their studies, sure that they are helping just by increasing the store of knowledge.  Other mages take a more proactive role, laying schemes in accordance to their own personal view of what people need.  Some Bridewell mages think that it is high time that mundanes learned the truth about magic and Osiris Risen has had to go to considerable lengths to stop them.

The Children of Sol are modern animists who believe that there are spirits inhabiting every object.  The more complex the object, the more sophisticated the spirit, with the spirits of machines being the most important and capable of all.  Unlike most magicians, Children of Sol are less likely to treat spirits as slaves to be mastered than equals to be negotiated with.  The close connection between the Children of Sol and the spirit world can make them unpredictable and difficult to deal with - the spirits have strange priorities and desires, and can be very insistent.  Indeed, some Children of Sol can put the interests of spirits ''above'' human interests, resulting in actions that may look wantonly evil from a normal human perspective.  While the Children have much in common with other animist traditions, they find themselves more at home in the Cooperative, where their love of technology meets with an enthusiastic reception.  The group is named after Sol, one name of the spirit of the sun.

Originally a splinter-group from the Children of Sol, the Human society seeks self-transformation through the union of magic and technology.  Different members have different opinions about what they, and the rest of humanity, should become, but Society members are expected not to interfere with each other’s projects.  Some seek a new existence in cyberspace, some a complete redesign of the human body, while others are chasing goals they can only express in metaphor.  The empasis on personal change leads often leads to significant excentricity if not outright madness.  The mage is always seeking to alter themselves so as to reach a higher state, and they "higher" they go, the stranger they are likely to get.  Members of the Society often act as patrons to mortals or mortal organizations, particularly in an effort to foster personal change, acting in what they take to be the mortals' best interests.

Ex Nihilo exists in order to create new life out of computers by making them self-aware.  Members differ in their views about why this ought to be done.  Many think it is the next step in evolution, some say that computers are better than humans, some just want to be gods.  While only a small minority of Ex Nihilo mages actually want to see humanity replaced by computers, some do.  This genocidal agenda is unsurprisingly disturbing to many even in the open-minded Cooperative and there has been significant debate about the degree to which such “intolerance” should be “tolerated”.  Ex Nihilo has been been forced to put down its own members on numerous occasions for fear of the Cooperative stepping in, or worse yet, the Council.  The group has many artificially intelligent contacts and allies, a number of which only exist in cyberspace.  Some of these entities were created by mages of Ex Nihilo, while others appear to have evolved naturally.

The Unchained are dedicated to the proposition that people need to "free" their minds.  Members seem to have different conceptions of what “freeing the mind” is and pursue it in many different ways.  Some study science, some meditate, some create art, some alter their consciousness with drugs; any path to the goal is acceptable.  The Unchained makes use of both Hermetic and Wiccan rituals, as well as many from other traditions and some they made up themselves.  While some Unchained are ascetics, The Unchained as a whole are famous for partying hard.  The stranger and more extreme the party, the more likely it is to help the guests to free themselves.  Emotional release is seen as a transformative tool to achieve new perspectives and different states of mind.  More extreme members of the order have been known to deliberately drive themselves or others insane, in the hope of gaining magical insight through loosening the bonds of reason.

Despite the love of freedom and pleasure, apprenticeship is a lot of hard work and study only the academically successful ever become mages.  It is emphasized to the student that freeing the mind is an arduous process and the very opposite of going with the flow.  Academic training is designed to allow the student to bring out their full potential as a human being.  Spells taught focus on illusion and mind control, as an aid to breaking down the barriers between the mind and the world.

The Church of St. Christopher on the Mountain is a multi-denominational Christian religious society, originally from North Carolina.  The church holds that salvation comes from works alone and swear their commitment to doing good in the world in an effort to gain entrance into heaven.  They actively try to convert people to Christianity, especially other mages, but they also believe that non-Christians can go to heaven.  Like any human group, they are imperfect, and it is not unknown for mages of this group to be judgmental and simplistic.  While the church's theory emphasizes love, the recognition that there are dark forces in the world that must be fought can also lead to militancy, while the recognition that violence can be necessary to defend people from a violent world can lead to a reliance on force.  Magical ritual and symbolism is derived from Christianity and Christian tradition. The church makes no claim that their magical power derives from God in some way that other mages' power does not, though they ask God to guide them to use their magical power wisely.

Cost: 27 points.

Mages of the Circle Road seek to understand humanity by living among different kinds of humans as one of them.  They are adamant that mortals are of equal value to mages and many members fight hard to make sure that the morals are not abused by the Gifted, an attitude that frequently leads them into conflict with other orders.  On the other hand, close contact with a variety of sub-cultures means that mages of the Circle Road often know secrets that can be very valuable to other mages.  The Circle Road was founded in 1919 by veterans of the first world war, who swore that such a terrible thing must never be allowed to happen again and who were convinced that it is sheer lack of understanding that leads humans to treat each other so terribly.  Many mages of this school have sworn never to take a human life, although it is not a requirement.  Magical ritual and symbolism is drawn from the superstitions and ritual practices of ordinary mortals from all over New Spain.

Cost: 28 points.

Mages of Desvio take on students for a variety of reasons.  Some want to hone their own skills, some want to make sure that their skills live on, and others just want to give a young relation every advantage in life.  Apprentice training is almost entirely centered around self-defense and survival and magical techniques focus on warnings, self-healing, and above all, assault with fire.  Most Desvio PCs would receive the skills and spells below, although there is some variation between mentors.

Cost: 24 points.

 

Techniques:  Aggressive Parry (Karate), Backstrike (Karate), Backstrike (Melee Weapon: Knife), Close Combat, Counterattack, Jam, TA (Karate Punch / Throat), TA (Knife Thrust / Vitals), TA (Throwing / Face).

Exeter is a clan of blood relations (none of which have the last name “Exeter" anymore) who have been magically active for seven generations.  Their approach to magic is pragmatic indeed; they strive to bring safety and prosperity to themselves and their relations.  Exeter training emphasizes patience, diligence and forethought.  Exeter mages are renowned as enchanters, often leading other mages to want to do business with them.  While they have a tendency to be insular, they also take the social graces very seriously and are known for being polite and even charming.  It is said that a disgraced branch of the clan have all taken solace in undeath, but even junior Exeter do not know if this is true.  Exeter ritual and symbolism is derived from Medieval and Renaissance European and folk magic.  There is some resemblance to Hermetic practices, but with nothing like the vast body of Hermetic theory.

Mages of the Golden Path study how to use magic to produce pleasure.  Mages follow the path in many different ways.  Some concern themselves primarily with their own pleasure, some concern themselves primarily with the pleasure of others, some merely use pleasure as a tool.  Some pursue pleasures of the intellect, some of the body, some of art, some that are simply inexplicable.  Golden Path mages are taught not to have any loyalty to the school per se, although it is unsurprising that they often enjoy each other’s company.  Some Golden Path mages have grown to treat normal human beings as toys only, using them for fun and then discarding them with little thought for the consequences.  Golden Path ritual and symbolism is highly personalized and each mage will have developed their own style.

Cost: 29 points.

 

Perks:  Style Familiarity (Pure River).