Full Version: Pendragon update?
| QUOTE (FrankTrollman) |
| Members of the Black Lodge are spirits, which explains the "pure magic" BS, the "teleportation", and the fact that the Penultimate Master no longer shares an astral contact with his fellows. The rite of ascendance to the title of Penultimate Master is actually simply an inhabitation ritual that leaves the lodge member's skills in the hands of a powerful spirit. Penultimate Masters never die, because they are already dead. -Frank |
Thanks for making the Black Lodge more than "just another evil magic cult".
I don't know all that much about it, but I'll investigate it further now. 
The following section is a summary of what was dropped from the Game Info section of Loose Alliances on the Vigilia Evangelica. It remains unpublished and hence unofficial. I've been saving it in the hope of returning to the Vigilia and the Lodge some day but... I'm not sure I'll be able to revisit them anytime soon, so here's a peek at what I was thinking.
BLACK SECRET
One exception to the Vigilia Evangelica's rule of absolute secrecy is the Black Lodge, for the Lodge and the Vigilia share a secret history. Unbeknownst to anyone outside the order, the Lodge's founders were once the caretakers of one of the original Aquinae Vaults. Some time during the Middle Ages, a brief mana spike released something caged within one of the relics under the Vault's care. An ancient spirit was unleashed and insane from millennia of captivity went on a vengeful rampage, ravaging the abbey it was kept under, killing many of its Black Monks (Cistercians, yep that's where the "Black" in Black Lodge comes from) and Templar knight wardens. However, having depleted its energies, the entity was forced to take refuge in one of the survivors by possessing him and merging their minds as the spike began to ebb.
During convalescence the man became privy to flashes of insight, memories of a secret history of the world. Visions of an Age when the remnant spirit had been a rebel, a Prometheus who had challenged the immortal powers that had then ruled the world and had been brought low and chained for eternity. The monk dreamt that those powers had also survived into this world and were destined to one day return. The spirit weakened urged him to warn the others, to warn the world. Other survivors found enough confirmation of his visions in documents and pre-Classical relics at the Vault that they decided to take the revelations to Rome.
When the then-Pope granted audience and allowed the survivors to speak, the weakened spirit attempted to reveal itself to the Pontiff to warn him of the impending danger. The Pope hadn't realized this was a case of possession and ordered his guards to detain the possessed man and those brethren that had been exposed to him — so that the Inquisition and the Vigilia could perform an exorcism. The Papal Guard was unprepared for even the weakened spirit and his nigh-invulnerable host. Killing several guards, the man escaped using the spirit's power to influence his brethren to flee with him. The fugitives returned to the Melk vault* ahead of their pursuers and took everything they could, convinced that given time Rome would understand the true danger… meanwhile someone must prepare for the war that would follow the return of the Immortals. The escape cost the spirit much of its remaining energies and before falling semi-dormant it offered a Spirit Pact to its vessel, one that would ensure it would be survive to execute its revenge.
Meanwhile, the Vatican did not come round, and the Pope ordered the "traitors" hunted down and burned at the stake. The Vigilia, stung by the betrayal of its sacred duty, obliged bringing all its power to bear. The purges that spelled the end of the original Knights Templar are well known, the inquisition of many Cistercians less so. Despite their best efforts, the possessed and his brethren escaped with the help of friends in the regular clergy… escaped to plan the future, the spirit's pact keeping the man with the vision alive to become known as the Penultimate Master of the Black Lodge.
So it came to pass that the Black Lodge was ready for the return of magic. It has built its own far-reaching shadowy network of influence, fear and power in preparation for a shadow war against the returning Powers. It has manipulated and maneuvered its pawns and agents into positions of power and influence in the highest circles of political, corporate, and of course thaumaturgic power—after all fire can be fought with fire. It has crushed opposition and innocents in its path to power, seeing them as lesser casualties and collateral damage in the great war to come.
Unfortunately for the Lodge, the true story of the schism with the Vigilia has become buried in centuries of bad blood and enemity. Long-forgotten the reason for the Lodge's "treason" all that remains is the memory of the betrayal, to the point that the Vigilia and the Church continue to hunt down the Lodge wherever they come upon its interests — and remain fearful that the Lodge may make a move for one of the remaining Aquinae Vaults and the secrets they harbor.
* The references to the destruction of Melk abbey (both here and in Loose Alliances) are historical, but they're also a tip of the hat to one of my favorite books, one which was inspirational for a lot of the material on the Vigilia.
BLACK SECRET
One exception to the Vigilia Evangelica's rule of absolute secrecy is the Black Lodge, for the Lodge and the Vigilia share a secret history. Unbeknownst to anyone outside the order, the Lodge's founders were once the caretakers of one of the original Aquinae Vaults. Some time during the Middle Ages, a brief mana spike released something caged within one of the relics under the Vault's care. An ancient spirit was unleashed and insane from millennia of captivity went on a vengeful rampage, ravaging the abbey it was kept under, killing many of its Black Monks (Cistercians, yep that's where the "Black" in Black Lodge comes from) and Templar knight wardens. However, having depleted its energies, the entity was forced to take refuge in one of the survivors by possessing him and merging their minds as the spike began to ebb.
During convalescence the man became privy to flashes of insight, memories of a secret history of the world. Visions of an Age when the remnant spirit had been a rebel, a Prometheus who had challenged the immortal powers that had then ruled the world and had been brought low and chained for eternity. The monk dreamt that those powers had also survived into this world and were destined to one day return. The spirit weakened urged him to warn the others, to warn the world. Other survivors found enough confirmation of his visions in documents and pre-Classical relics at the Vault that they decided to take the revelations to Rome.
When the then-Pope granted audience and allowed the survivors to speak, the weakened spirit attempted to reveal itself to the Pontiff to warn him of the impending danger. The Pope hadn't realized this was a case of possession and ordered his guards to detain the possessed man and those brethren that had been exposed to him — so that the Inquisition and the Vigilia could perform an exorcism. The Papal Guard was unprepared for even the weakened spirit and his nigh-invulnerable host. Killing several guards, the man escaped using the spirit's power to influence his brethren to flee with him. The fugitives returned to the Melk vault* ahead of their pursuers and took everything they could, convinced that given time Rome would understand the true danger… meanwhile someone must prepare for the war that would follow the return of the Immortals. The escape cost the spirit much of its remaining energies and before falling semi-dormant it offered a Spirit Pact to its vessel, one that would ensure it would be survive to execute its revenge.
Meanwhile, the Vatican did not come round, and the Pope ordered the "traitors" hunted down and burned at the stake. The Vigilia, stung by the betrayal of its sacred duty, obliged bringing all its power to bear. The purges that spelled the end of the original Knights Templar are well known, the inquisition of many Cistercians less so. Despite their best efforts, the possessed and his brethren escaped with the help of friends in the regular clergy… escaped to plan the future, the spirit's pact keeping the man with the vision alive to become known as the Penultimate Master of the Black Lodge.
So it came to pass that the Black Lodge was ready for the return of magic. It has built its own far-reaching shadowy network of influence, fear and power in preparation for a shadow war against the returning Powers. It has manipulated and maneuvered its pawns and agents into positions of power and influence in the highest circles of political, corporate, and of course thaumaturgic power—after all fire can be fought with fire. It has crushed opposition and innocents in its path to power, seeing them as lesser casualties and collateral damage in the great war to come.
Unfortunately for the Lodge, the true story of the schism with the Vigilia has become buried in centuries of bad blood and enemity. Long-forgotten the reason for the Lodge's "treason" all that remains is the memory of the betrayal, to the point that the Vigilia and the Church continue to hunt down the Lodge wherever they come upon its interests — and remain fearful that the Lodge may make a move for one of the remaining Aquinae Vaults and the secrets they harbor.
* The references to the destruction of Melk abbey (both here and in Loose Alliances) are historical, but they're also a tip of the hat to one of my favorite books, one which was inspirational for a lot of the material on the Vigilia.
see, one of the things I liked most about this was the old rumors that the master/leader of the lodge always cast out of a grimoire, which ties in nicely with 4th age magic grimoire casting, especially if the possessed monk wasn't himself magically active.
And just because I forgot: my thanks to Ancient History for several of the 4th Age tie-ins suggested in the text.
Forgot to comment. Thanks for posting that Synner. 
I've been using the Lodge very quietly (following Mike's directions) in the game I have set in Europe right now. This little extra bit of insight has helped a lot in what they may be capable of, and what motivates them. Ran a great game off of this info and some stuff Otaku Mike shared. Defintely good stuff. Thanks again Synner, and Mike, where ever you are man.
Nice!
More! 
We might have to wait 
Not much more to offer at this point. Fistandantilus was nice enough to forward my followup message back to me, so here it is:
As to who or what the spirit is... a while back, Ancient History suggested that the Penultimate Master was the last of the ED Denairastas line. I really liked the idea, since it explained the Lodge's bias and why it was out to seize control of the world (because it doesn't want the IEs and particularly the GDs to). But, as is often the case with me, I thought it was too linear and straightforward—a renegade human imortal surviving into the present like the IEs and the dragons—it needed a twist. So pack in the Fourth World, the Denairastas lost their final battle and the rebel's soul was caged for all eternity in punishment...
As to the spirit's demeanour and motivation - he's probably more than a little paranoid and insane for being locked up in an artifact for 7000 years, not that he wasn't already slightly the megalomaniac (an inherited trait I'd say). His grasp of the past isn't as good as he thinks it is and he's prone to being overly cautious when it comes to dragons and the Church. He's got something of a Messiah complex too. As with the ED setting some nice parallels could be created with the modern Promethean and Luciferian myths...
As to who or what the spirit is... a while back, Ancient History suggested that the Penultimate Master was the last of the ED Denairastas line. I really liked the idea, since it explained the Lodge's bias and why it was out to seize control of the world (because it doesn't want the IEs and particularly the GDs to). But, as is often the case with me, I thought it was too linear and straightforward—a renegade human imortal surviving into the present like the IEs and the dragons—it needed a twist. So pack in the Fourth World, the Denairastas lost their final battle and the rebel's soul was caged for all eternity in punishment...
As to the spirit's demeanour and motivation - he's probably more than a little paranoid and insane for being locked up in an artifact for 7000 years, not that he wasn't already slightly the megalomaniac (an inherited trait I'd say). His grasp of the past isn't as good as he thinks it is and he's prone to being overly cautious when it comes to dragons and the Church. He's got something of a Messiah complex too. As with the ED setting some nice parallels could be created with the modern Promethean and Luciferian myths...
Thanks once again.
makes since to me. Now i know how to ground the lodge in my game a bit more as well as IOND.
OMG!!! huge click goes off in my brain. Damn either make sure that becomes canon or is never contridicted that not only explains the Black Lodge for me nicely but sorts out what is going on with a players ideas...
you had an apiffany huh?
no just a cool idea of how to screw with a player. Plus it was early and I was easily excited.
I didn't have an epiphany either.
I didn't have an epiphany either.
LOL yeah I need to learn how to spell but its all good.
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