Post by Admin on Jun 3, 2019 20:18:16 GMT
Adamantine Arrow
Through conflict one purges weakness and becomes greater than one could imagine. Claiming descent from the Ungula Draconis (or "Claw of the Dragon") of Atlantis, members of the Adamantine Arrow say that their Order arose from the Exiles who protected the shards of fallen Atlantis. Carrying both weapons that brought death and instruments that created life. Members of the Adamantine arrow follow the Adamant Way which encourages strength and adaptability. The name "Adamantine" refers to the durability of the order's resolve and illustrious shine of their honor.
Through conflict one purges weakness and becomes greater than one could imagine. Claiming descent from the Ungula Draconis (or "Claw of the Dragon") of Atlantis, members of the Adamantine Arrow say that their Order arose from the Exiles who protected the shards of fallen Atlantis. Carrying both weapons that brought death and instruments that created life. Members of the Adamantine arrow follow the Adamant Way which encourages strength and adaptability. The name "Adamantine" refers to the durability of the order's resolve and illustrious shine of their honor.
The Adamantine Arrow of today has not changed a great deal. They still follow the Adamant Way, and they are almost solely responsible for the training of the ARK's security and military forces, mages or others. Ever vigilant, they watch for any threats to the ARK and its inhabitants
Ranks
Prospect - A mage wishes to join the Adamantine Arrow and is not currently a member of another order must make his intentions known to the ranking member of the order in the Consilium. At that point, the mage is a “prospect.”
Talon - Arrows who survive apprenticeship become Talons. Talons serve the order, protect mages, and uphold justice. Talons are also expected to present the best side of the order to other mages and keep their vows at all times. Their oath is "No Talon Is Alone".
Banner-Warden - Banner-Wardens have been solely dedicated to protecting a special cabal that have been deemed worthy of protection. Their oath is "The Banner Is the Warden's Honor".
First Talon - First Talon is "officer" status in the order. Their oath is "You are a soul in many bodies. Do not defile any part of your soul."
Thunderbolt Guardian - Thunderbolt Guardians are teachers and counselors, versed in several useful fields. At this rank, no additional oath is levied.
Adamant Sage - Adamant Sages are the most accomplished Arrows in the caucus. They have formidable talents, but fall short of the warrior-poet-philosopher ideal that the order sees as Supernal ideal for their order.
Magister - An Arrow who gains enough status to be called a “magister” is truly a force to be reckoned with, but magical prowess and skill in combat do not a magister make. Most Magisters are skilled in various mundane fields of study and among the fittest humans on the planet.
Factions
The Black Tower: The Black Tower believes in the supernal sanctity of the oath even more than the rest of their order. Just and righteous oaths fulfilled in honor brighten this world, even if only in a small way and for a handful of people.
The Council of Dragons: The Council of Dragons believes that there exists another sort of wisdom: the knowing of what is true and the power to act upon that knowledge. They are master tacticians that emulate the virtues of the Atlantean dragon, seeking to transform themselves into supernal paragons.
The Crucible: The Crucible believes in the spirit of heroism and that true heroism is a way to strengthen the Supernal in the world.
Free Council
Modernists in every sense of the word, the Council of Free Assemblies, also called the Free Council for short, claims neither ancient texts nor links to the ancient island of Atlantis. Instead they forge ahead feeling that Sleepers have touched on the supernal through modern ideas, science and technology. By learning these ideas the Free Council hopes to change the face of magic and revitalize it for the modern age.
The Free Council of today are constantly looking to the future. They are not content to dwell in the past, preferring to forge ahead. This tends to be the most vocal group when it comes to space exploration rather than seeking to return to earth
Ranks
Voter- Basic members of the Order
Host- Any voter who donates his space to the order for an Assembly or debate.
Emissary- Mages who act as contacts to the Consilium or the Diamond Orders
Minuteman- Council members that act as soldiers and protectors for the Order
Letter Carrier- Emissaries that travel abroad to consult with other mages
Citizen Agent- Minutemen that act as spies and watchmen for the Order. Their identity is often known, while their missions are kept secret.
Strategos- The Strategoi are the generals, pundits, experts and directors of Free Council Consilii. A strategos represents a willful surrender of democratic power on the part of the people — the voters’ authority is invested in the strategos with the understanding that it will be paid back later. The post is only given in cities that boast an exceptional strong mage (and Free Council) population.
Syndic– Orators and politicians that discuss ideas during Assemblies
Factions
The Wrights- Wrights believe that the act of creating is inherently magical and push humans into creating by forming situations of need.
The Historians- The Historians are Libertines that examine their favored era with a surgeon’s discerning eye, looking for the success and the failure in each situation and extrapolating how to use those lessons learned in future situations.
The Cutting Edge- The Cutting Edge (TCE for short) strives to push human innovations to the point that magic and technology become indistinguishable.
Open Source Movement- The Open Source Movement (OSM for short) argues for the freedom of information.
Guardians of the Veil
The Guardians of the Veil are the sons and daughters of Visus Draconis (or "Eye of the Dragon") and serve as enforcers, secret police and spies for the Lex Magica and Consilii that hold to its tenets. Oftentimes social pariahs, they are considered by Awakened society to be assassins. Down through the centuries, disguise and infiltration have been honed to levels unheard of by any Sleeper intelligence agency. They have developed 49 different types of identities, called Masques (in game terms, Masques are based on all possible combos of the seven traditional Virtues and Vices). A favored infiltration/monitoring tactic is to temporarily intercept newly-Awakened who might be better suited among the other Orders and, after passing on some tantalizing question or other fact to the unaligned new mage, release him/her to be formally claimed by one of the other Orders; the other Order thus receives a new recruit who may or may not become a Guardian spy.
The guardians seek to keep the Diamond Wheel (their vision of the sacred path of creation) moving, whole, safe, and in balance; with this in mind they may make the sacrifices other Orders are simply unwilling to make so that all may fulfill the true destiny of magic. They also await the coming of the Hieromagus, who will unify Awakened society, seal the Abyss, and judge the Guardians' sins.
Today the Guardians focus has shifted. They work alongside the Arrow and security forces to monitor the population on the ARK, guarding it from internal threats. They keep watch on the other mages, reacting swiftly to perceived threats. While they no longer guard the veil, they do ensure that information that the council does not want getting out to the general population, doesn't. They also guard/eliminate any potentially dangerous equipment, artifacts, etc, that might be discovered aboard the ARK
Ranks
Neophyte - Mage who have passed the Black Veil and are full members of the Guardians
Emissary - Emissaries act as in-betweeners between the Guardians and the other Atlantean Orders. They also specialize in neutralizing threat against the Guardians
Cultor - Cultors are tasked with maintaining and cultivating Labyrinths
Famulus - Mages who have the responsibility to plan and execute important tasks within the order and to act as propagandists to maintain the secrecy of Guardian activities.
Interfector - Interfectors act as henchmen to a local Consilium, stalking and torturing enemies of the Awakened
Susceptor - Susceptors act as the Order's spies, infiltrating hostile groups and sometimes even other Pentacle orders
Epopt - Epopts guide and direct Labyrinths and the local Guardian forces
Magister - Magisters have mastered their first Arcanum and have to guide the Order morally and spiritually, maintaining the Guardians’ sacrificial integrity in the face of ever-increasing threats to their way of life
Factions
Faceless: Masters of the Masques, the Faceless believe that the Fallen World is imperiled by the actions of vain and careless mages, and the Faceless harbor a deep resentment against each and every mage who's too stupid, irresponsible and vain to adjust her magical practice to reflect the dire reality of the situation. As such, they haunt such mages and try to teach them the errors of their ways.
Messianics: These mages experience their defense of the Veil as a spiritual calling and a religious struggle, and even though it may take a toll on their souls, they believe that their efforts and their pain are for the noblest of all possible causes: the defense of the Fallen World and, ultimately, the defeat of the Exarchs.
Inheritors: As they see it, the Inheritors are the only faction within the Guardians of the Veil really dedicated to keeping the Mysteries from the eyes of the unworthy, and there's little the Inheritors won't do to keep the blindsided from nudging aside the Veil and seeing what they're not supposed to. This definition doesn't distinguish based on whether a person has Awakened or not, it judges others based on their intelligence, prudence, and discretion in dealing with the Mysteries.
Ordeal Keepers: Seekers of perfection that strive to perfect Sleepers via the Labyrinth and guid them towards Awakening. Consequently, they are ardent foes of cronyism or any system of assigning authority in which competence is not the sole criterion for assessing worth and fitness to lead.
Prophets: Information brokers and mystics, they are the most open faction within the Order
Mysterium
Lore masters who hold (or seek) all the keys to all the doors, the Mysterium seeks out knowledge for its own sake. The Mysterium comes from the remains of Alae Draconis (or Dragon's Wing), the research and development branch of Atlantean society. Now they seek to reclaim the lost lore of the world and remember the lessons of fallen Atlantis.
Given their predisposition for finding knowledge it would be logical to assume that mystagogues and Guardians of the Veil would have a natural animosity to each other, and indeed the two groups have heated debates over the fate of particularly interesting subjects. However, the Mysterium does make a point of making sure querants are worthy of receiving secrets in question, which mollifies the Guardians somewhat. The Mysterium mages are keenly aware that some secrets were hidden for a very good reason. In some cases, the object of the search was not so much 'lost' as 'contained'; even the Lords of Atlantis were faced with powers and creatures they could neither tame nor destroy, and the only answer available was to simply imprison it until such time as a more permanent solution could be discovered. The secrets of the Mysterium aren't made free to the general public at large. There is usually a price to be paid, more often than not including tests of discretion and loyalty as well as requests for goods and/or services. Knowledge without wisdom is meaningless, and few hold this truth as deeply as the Mysterium.
The Mysterium today still seek out knowledge, often for the sake of knowledge. A small faction within the Order has been a surprising supporter of a small, but growing faction on the ARK, looking to explore more of space, rather than to remain where they are and return to earth when/if it becomes habitable again. The vast majority would however like to reclaim much of the information that was lost on earth. Mysterium legends tell of vast facilities that hold artifact of great power.
Ranks
Exemplum - New initiated members who have yet to learn anything about the Atlantean Mystery
Acquisitor - Field agents that travel the world to unearth Supernal knowledge
Neokoros- Members who have mastered the Mystery of the Principle
Censor - Safekeepers of artifacts who protect them from abuse by unenlightened hands
Theoricus - Members who have mastered the Mystery of the Soul
Savant - Mages who train in a certain field (one supernatural, one worldly) to preserve its knowledge for the Mysterium, in case that an Athaneum that confined this knowledge is destroyed
Daduchos- Members who have mastered the Mystery of Nightmares
Curator - Keeper and custodian of an Athaneum
Philosophus - Members who have mastered the Mystery of Misfortune
Hierophant - Members who have mastered the last Golden Mystery
Heliodromus - Archmages that have chosen to retain ties to their former Order
Factions
Archaeomancers - Archaelogists that seek to uncover lost or forgotten Mysteries
Archivists - Librarians that seek to protect and preserve the store of knowledge already amassed by the Order
Bricoleurs - Innovators that seek to combine the knowledge found in the archives of the Order and inventing something new
Egregori - The Egregori are dedicated to preserving supernal impressions that cannot be written down, like feelings or sceneries
Reclaimants - Thieves that seek to retake knowledge and bring it into the safety of Mysterium Athaneums. This group is the most impatient to return to earth
Silver Ladder
Silver Ladder is a humanist Order dedicated to the ideal of lifting every human soul to its natural level of enlightenment, healing the Fallen World under their leadership of course.
Today the Silver ladder looks to subtly shift control of the council to themselves. While they do not openly defy the council, or openly undermine it, the do take the opportunities present to showcase their greater leadership capabilities
Rank
Neophyte - Neophytes are the salespersons, advocates, messengers and lawyers of the Order that have been recently introduced into it are not yet accustomed to its secrets.
Acolyte - Acolytes are junior members of the order that perform mainly menial tasks.
Famulus - Famuli hold positions of power, administrate the ranks and efforts of the Consilium and generally direct the exertions of the order toward Ascension. To become a famulus, reaching the adept level of a singular Arcanum is necessary.
Lictor - Lictors are traveling mages that spread the Elemental Precepts, further the agenda of the Silver Ladder, and act as judges for any Consilium they pass through.
Claviger - Claviger are responsible for maintaining the Silver Ladder's ideological purity and recruit other mages for the Order.
Deacon - The Deacon is all things to all théarchs: leader, lawgiver, priest and chief representative. He organizes the caucus, calls in Convocations and presides over the regional Lex Magica.
Magister - Every Magister is a deacon, but not all deacons are Magisters. Together, they form the Magisterium: the Convocation’s supreme Council. Least Convocations have small Magisteria, often composed of the only two attending deacons. Tradition encourages the Magisterium to have at least one member of each Path, but smaller gatherings don’t have the numbers to permit it.
Great Magister - There are honorary Great and Grand Magister titles given to deacons who’ve served the order with special distinction, though technically these are meant for mages who actually gather Great and Grand Convocations. There are allegedly a few real Great Magisters left from the European Convocation of 1900, but these super-centenarians are said to be either bedridden and senile, or have cracked the secrets of Archmastery and hidden themselves away.
Ranks
Prospect - A mage wishes to join the Adamantine Arrow and is not currently a member of another order must make his intentions known to the ranking member of the order in the Consilium. At that point, the mage is a “prospect.”
Talon - Arrows who survive apprenticeship become Talons. Talons serve the order, protect mages, and uphold justice. Talons are also expected to present the best side of the order to other mages and keep their vows at all times. Their oath is "No Talon Is Alone".
Banner-Warden - Banner-Wardens have been solely dedicated to protecting a special cabal that have been deemed worthy of protection. Their oath is "The Banner Is the Warden's Honor".
First Talon - First Talon is "officer" status in the order. Their oath is "You are a soul in many bodies. Do not defile any part of your soul."
Thunderbolt Guardian - Thunderbolt Guardians are teachers and counselors, versed in several useful fields. At this rank, no additional oath is levied.
Adamant Sage - Adamant Sages are the most accomplished Arrows in the caucus. They have formidable talents, but fall short of the warrior-poet-philosopher ideal that the order sees as Supernal ideal for their order.
Magister - An Arrow who gains enough status to be called a “magister” is truly a force to be reckoned with, but magical prowess and skill in combat do not a magister make. Most Magisters are skilled in various mundane fields of study and among the fittest humans on the planet.
Factions
The Black Tower: The Black Tower believes in the supernal sanctity of the oath even more than the rest of their order. Just and righteous oaths fulfilled in honor brighten this world, even if only in a small way and for a handful of people.
The Council of Dragons: The Council of Dragons believes that there exists another sort of wisdom: the knowing of what is true and the power to act upon that knowledge. They are master tacticians that emulate the virtues of the Atlantean dragon, seeking to transform themselves into supernal paragons.
The Crucible: The Crucible believes in the spirit of heroism and that true heroism is a way to strengthen the Supernal in the world.
Free Council
Modernists in every sense of the word, the Council of Free Assemblies, also called the Free Council for short, claims neither ancient texts nor links to the ancient island of Atlantis. Instead they forge ahead feeling that Sleepers have touched on the supernal through modern ideas, science and technology. By learning these ideas the Free Council hopes to change the face of magic and revitalize it for the modern age.
The Free Council of today are constantly looking to the future. They are not content to dwell in the past, preferring to forge ahead. This tends to be the most vocal group when it comes to space exploration rather than seeking to return to earth
Ranks
Voter- Basic members of the Order
Host- Any voter who donates his space to the order for an Assembly or debate.
Emissary- Mages who act as contacts to the Consilium or the Diamond Orders
Minuteman- Council members that act as soldiers and protectors for the Order
Letter Carrier- Emissaries that travel abroad to consult with other mages
Citizen Agent- Minutemen that act as spies and watchmen for the Order. Their identity is often known, while their missions are kept secret.
Strategos- The Strategoi are the generals, pundits, experts and directors of Free Council Consilii. A strategos represents a willful surrender of democratic power on the part of the people — the voters’ authority is invested in the strategos with the understanding that it will be paid back later. The post is only given in cities that boast an exceptional strong mage (and Free Council) population.
Syndic– Orators and politicians that discuss ideas during Assemblies
Factions
The Wrights- Wrights believe that the act of creating is inherently magical and push humans into creating by forming situations of need.
The Historians- The Historians are Libertines that examine their favored era with a surgeon’s discerning eye, looking for the success and the failure in each situation and extrapolating how to use those lessons learned in future situations.
The Cutting Edge- The Cutting Edge (TCE for short) strives to push human innovations to the point that magic and technology become indistinguishable.
Open Source Movement- The Open Source Movement (OSM for short) argues for the freedom of information.
Guardians of the Veil
The Guardians of the Veil are the sons and daughters of Visus Draconis (or "Eye of the Dragon") and serve as enforcers, secret police and spies for the Lex Magica and Consilii that hold to its tenets. Oftentimes social pariahs, they are considered by Awakened society to be assassins. Down through the centuries, disguise and infiltration have been honed to levels unheard of by any Sleeper intelligence agency. They have developed 49 different types of identities, called Masques (in game terms, Masques are based on all possible combos of the seven traditional Virtues and Vices). A favored infiltration/monitoring tactic is to temporarily intercept newly-Awakened who might be better suited among the other Orders and, after passing on some tantalizing question or other fact to the unaligned new mage, release him/her to be formally claimed by one of the other Orders; the other Order thus receives a new recruit who may or may not become a Guardian spy.
The guardians seek to keep the Diamond Wheel (their vision of the sacred path of creation) moving, whole, safe, and in balance; with this in mind they may make the sacrifices other Orders are simply unwilling to make so that all may fulfill the true destiny of magic. They also await the coming of the Hieromagus, who will unify Awakened society, seal the Abyss, and judge the Guardians' sins.
Today the Guardians focus has shifted. They work alongside the Arrow and security forces to monitor the population on the ARK, guarding it from internal threats. They keep watch on the other mages, reacting swiftly to perceived threats. While they no longer guard the veil, they do ensure that information that the council does not want getting out to the general population, doesn't. They also guard/eliminate any potentially dangerous equipment, artifacts, etc, that might be discovered aboard the ARK
Ranks
Neophyte - Mage who have passed the Black Veil and are full members of the Guardians
Emissary - Emissaries act as in-betweeners between the Guardians and the other Atlantean Orders. They also specialize in neutralizing threat against the Guardians
Cultor - Cultors are tasked with maintaining and cultivating Labyrinths
Famulus - Mages who have the responsibility to plan and execute important tasks within the order and to act as propagandists to maintain the secrecy of Guardian activities.
Interfector - Interfectors act as henchmen to a local Consilium, stalking and torturing enemies of the Awakened
Susceptor - Susceptors act as the Order's spies, infiltrating hostile groups and sometimes even other Pentacle orders
Epopt - Epopts guide and direct Labyrinths and the local Guardian forces
Magister - Magisters have mastered their first Arcanum and have to guide the Order morally and spiritually, maintaining the Guardians’ sacrificial integrity in the face of ever-increasing threats to their way of life
Factions
Faceless: Masters of the Masques, the Faceless believe that the Fallen World is imperiled by the actions of vain and careless mages, and the Faceless harbor a deep resentment against each and every mage who's too stupid, irresponsible and vain to adjust her magical practice to reflect the dire reality of the situation. As such, they haunt such mages and try to teach them the errors of their ways.
Messianics: These mages experience their defense of the Veil as a spiritual calling and a religious struggle, and even though it may take a toll on their souls, they believe that their efforts and their pain are for the noblest of all possible causes: the defense of the Fallen World and, ultimately, the defeat of the Exarchs.
Inheritors: As they see it, the Inheritors are the only faction within the Guardians of the Veil really dedicated to keeping the Mysteries from the eyes of the unworthy, and there's little the Inheritors won't do to keep the blindsided from nudging aside the Veil and seeing what they're not supposed to. This definition doesn't distinguish based on whether a person has Awakened or not, it judges others based on their intelligence, prudence, and discretion in dealing with the Mysteries.
Ordeal Keepers: Seekers of perfection that strive to perfect Sleepers via the Labyrinth and guid them towards Awakening. Consequently, they are ardent foes of cronyism or any system of assigning authority in which competence is not the sole criterion for assessing worth and fitness to lead.
Prophets: Information brokers and mystics, they are the most open faction within the Order
Mysterium
Lore masters who hold (or seek) all the keys to all the doors, the Mysterium seeks out knowledge for its own sake. The Mysterium comes from the remains of Alae Draconis (or Dragon's Wing), the research and development branch of Atlantean society. Now they seek to reclaim the lost lore of the world and remember the lessons of fallen Atlantis.
Given their predisposition for finding knowledge it would be logical to assume that mystagogues and Guardians of the Veil would have a natural animosity to each other, and indeed the two groups have heated debates over the fate of particularly interesting subjects. However, the Mysterium does make a point of making sure querants are worthy of receiving secrets in question, which mollifies the Guardians somewhat. The Mysterium mages are keenly aware that some secrets were hidden for a very good reason. In some cases, the object of the search was not so much 'lost' as 'contained'; even the Lords of Atlantis were faced with powers and creatures they could neither tame nor destroy, and the only answer available was to simply imprison it until such time as a more permanent solution could be discovered. The secrets of the Mysterium aren't made free to the general public at large. There is usually a price to be paid, more often than not including tests of discretion and loyalty as well as requests for goods and/or services. Knowledge without wisdom is meaningless, and few hold this truth as deeply as the Mysterium.
The Mysterium today still seek out knowledge, often for the sake of knowledge. A small faction within the Order has been a surprising supporter of a small, but growing faction on the ARK, looking to explore more of space, rather than to remain where they are and return to earth when/if it becomes habitable again. The vast majority would however like to reclaim much of the information that was lost on earth. Mysterium legends tell of vast facilities that hold artifact of great power.
Ranks
Exemplum - New initiated members who have yet to learn anything about the Atlantean Mystery
Acquisitor - Field agents that travel the world to unearth Supernal knowledge
Neokoros- Members who have mastered the Mystery of the Principle
Censor - Safekeepers of artifacts who protect them from abuse by unenlightened hands
Theoricus - Members who have mastered the Mystery of the Soul
Savant - Mages who train in a certain field (one supernatural, one worldly) to preserve its knowledge for the Mysterium, in case that an Athaneum that confined this knowledge is destroyed
Daduchos- Members who have mastered the Mystery of Nightmares
Curator - Keeper and custodian of an Athaneum
Philosophus - Members who have mastered the Mystery of Misfortune
Hierophant - Members who have mastered the last Golden Mystery
Heliodromus - Archmages that have chosen to retain ties to their former Order
Factions
Archaeomancers - Archaelogists that seek to uncover lost or forgotten Mysteries
Archivists - Librarians that seek to protect and preserve the store of knowledge already amassed by the Order
Bricoleurs - Innovators that seek to combine the knowledge found in the archives of the Order and inventing something new
Egregori - The Egregori are dedicated to preserving supernal impressions that cannot be written down, like feelings or sceneries
Reclaimants - Thieves that seek to retake knowledge and bring it into the safety of Mysterium Athaneums. This group is the most impatient to return to earth
Silver Ladder
Silver Ladder is a humanist Order dedicated to the ideal of lifting every human soul to its natural level of enlightenment, healing the Fallen World under their leadership of course.
Today the Silver ladder looks to subtly shift control of the council to themselves. While they do not openly defy the council, or openly undermine it, the do take the opportunities present to showcase their greater leadership capabilities
Rank
Neophyte - Neophytes are the salespersons, advocates, messengers and lawyers of the Order that have been recently introduced into it are not yet accustomed to its secrets.
Acolyte - Acolytes are junior members of the order that perform mainly menial tasks.
Famulus - Famuli hold positions of power, administrate the ranks and efforts of the Consilium and generally direct the exertions of the order toward Ascension. To become a famulus, reaching the adept level of a singular Arcanum is necessary.
Lictor - Lictors are traveling mages that spread the Elemental Precepts, further the agenda of the Silver Ladder, and act as judges for any Consilium they pass through.
Claviger - Claviger are responsible for maintaining the Silver Ladder's ideological purity and recruit other mages for the Order.
Deacon - The Deacon is all things to all théarchs: leader, lawgiver, priest and chief representative. He organizes the caucus, calls in Convocations and presides over the regional Lex Magica.
Magister - Every Magister is a deacon, but not all deacons are Magisters. Together, they form the Magisterium: the Convocation’s supreme Council. Least Convocations have small Magisteria, often composed of the only two attending deacons. Tradition encourages the Magisterium to have at least one member of each Path, but smaller gatherings don’t have the numbers to permit it.
Great Magister - There are honorary Great and Grand Magister titles given to deacons who’ve served the order with special distinction, though technically these are meant for mages who actually gather Great and Grand Convocations. There are allegedly a few real Great Magisters left from the European Convocation of 1900, but these super-centenarians are said to be either bedridden and senile, or have cracked the secrets of Archmastery and hidden themselves away.