T he . Stormrider Introduction This kit was designed to give you a jump start on playing Ars Magica. Creating characters and designing an adventurecan take a little time, but this kit does the work for you so your first adventure canberun quickly and smoothly. We providecight pro- ‘made characters and a detailed story specifically designed with those characters in mind. Withthis kit, evenagroup of Ars Magica novices can role-play a satisfying game with only half an hour of preparation time. We hope you will useit to jump start your saga and quickly begin to experience the magical, medieval world of ‘Ars Magica. In many ways, this kit is also a tutorial in the art of guiding a story. We have often found ourselvesata loss to describe how one “guides” a group of role-players through a story. It’s not some- thing youcan really teach, for itis atalent rather than skill, anart rather than a knowledge. In this kit we have provided detailed descriptions of how you should present scenes to the players and, have them make rolls. We show you how we guidea story, since it’s so hard to explain. Though your style will certainly vary from ‘urs, we hope you will beableto gain a few new ideasand insights into storyguiding. To properly storyguide (gamemaster) this story, you must have read a few chapters of Ars Magica and have skimmed the others. Read the Introduction to Ars Magica carefully; it gives an overview ofthe gamesystem and background. Besuretoalso have afirm grasp onthe Combatand Magicchaptersbecausethoserules ‘will frequently come into play. Finally, read the Saga chapter to understand the setting in which the story takes place. You need to read this entire kit, from start to finish, before you attempt to storyguide it. Additionally, before you read the main textof the kit, you should skim the eight characters included in the kit, as well as the description of the Stormrider (included on its ‘own separate sheet). Go read that now, and then come back here to finish reading the story itself How to Begin Plot Synopsis ‘The characters discover that the infamous Stormrider is again rampaging through Val du Bosque, and they set off to find and. destroy him. Many of the characters have personal reasons for wanting to slay him and are seeking vengeance. They follow the ‘burning hoofprints the Stormrider leaves behind and witness the destruction that he has caused wherever he's gone. As they journey through the valley, Tomas has recurrent visions of the ‘Stormrider’s life and origin that give clues as to the creature's nature, Finally all the characters "meet" Sante Fabia and they learn ‘even more about the Stormrider. In the final confrontation, the ccharactersasa group choose between attacking theStormrider and killing him out of malice, or trying to reason and talk with him. ‘The story is made more complexby theinteractionsamong the characters. The two apprentices, Lucienne and Caeron, are ene- ‘mies, and each has friends in the party, so they form two distinct cliques. Though these rivals will notactually fighteach other, their rivalry will provide for some interesting role-playing, and addsto the theme of the story. Theme ‘The theme of the story, as you may have already guessed, is centered around the question of what rage is. It deals with the futility of anger, and the destruction a vengeful person can cause themselves, theones they love, and the world asa whole. Through- out the story, try to play out this theme, which is already a dominant motif, and try to encourage the players to role-play this theme out in their characters. Decide what you thinkangeris and interpret the story in your own way, but then let your players decide for themselves what itis about, ‘You will find that the story will become larger than life when you make it more than simply a battle, but a moral lesson as well. Faerie tales, myths, and even Star Trek™ use this technique to make their stories more vivid and compelling. Stories almost always teach a lesson, howeverin good stories, the storyteller isn’t exactly sure what the lesson is. ‘To get your players familiar with therules, first hand out their characters. Give each character outto whomever you think would best suit that persona or would like that particularcharacter most. ‘Youmayalsolet the players choose characters. Try toget the magi into the hands of players who can take charge of the group and keep the story moving, as well as pick up game rules quickly. It's probably better that you choose who plays whom, so youcan make sure thatthe characters getin the right hands, and so that youdon’t haveto wait until all the players have arrived before you hand out some characters.Hand out the briefings as well, and have the players read through them. When all the players are together, read the intro- duction written on one of the handouts, and then give it to the playersto purview at thei leisure. When the players feel comfort- able with their characters as well as the rules briefings, begin the ‘game. (Understanding the characters and setting is more impor- tant than understanding the details ofthe rules, so encourage the players to start play even if they are not sure about all the rules.) ‘This process should take no more than half an hour. After that amountof time has passed, youshould probably begin thestory no ‘matter what, s0 that no one has a chance to get lethargic. ‘Throughout the kit, any words in italics are meant to be read aloud to the players — these include both scene descriptions, and things a non-player character might say. If reading descriptions verbatim works for you, then fine. Some storyguides, however, find that reading text robs their scenes of spontaneity and excite ‘ment, making the plot scem staticand deadening the role-playing. If you don't like descriptive paragraphs, simply take the descrip tions in italics as examples of what you can say, and then put it in your own words, or ad-lib the characters’ words and actions directly. This kit is meant to be a guide to better role-playing, not ‘a guided-tour for gamers. If you have fewer than eight players, distribute the characters as described below. You might have to alter the first scenes ofthe story if not all the characters are being used. 7—Allthe characters, Have Jeremé played by a player with, ‘a companion (probably Tomas). 6 — All the characters, Have Jeremé and Lorine played by players with companions. '5—Allthe characters. Haveall three grogs played by thethree players with companions. Tellhe players that they should mostly role-play their companions. 4—Allthe characters but Clobiand Jeremé. Torlenand Lorine should be played by the players with the remaining companions You role-play the grog Jeremé in the watchtower, but he doesn’t come along because he's too drunk. 3—One player role-plays Lucienne, another plays Ramén & Torlen, and a third plays Tomas & Lorine. Ignore all the informa- tion about the two rival cliques, but emphasize the aggressive, vengeful aspects of the characters. 1 or 2 — Use the characters suggested for three players, but you'll have to help roleplay them. ‘Note: We havemade the visions of Tomas central tothis story Ifyou read the Visions ability as described on p.41 of Ars Magica, however, it may not suggest to you such a primary role. We have taken this virtue beyond its normal role for the purposes of the plot. In the stories which you create, you will find that certain virtues oF flaws of your characters lend themselves to the steady progressionof the plot. In your saga, do not hesitateto usea virtue or flaw inany sensible way that adds tothe story, even in ways not described in the rules. Tomas has alot of visions inthis tory, but At the Covenant Ars Magica in thecontextit makes sense, Inthe next story his visions probably ‘won't play as big a role— but someone else's virtue or flaw might. Ifyou are using your own characters for this adventure, rather than the ones we have provided, you will have to find some way togivethem the visions that Tomas would normally receive. (The same is true if you are using the provided characters but not Tomas.) The best way to do that is to let one of the characters somehow havea cross that once belonged to Sante Fabia (perhaps by giving it to them in a previous story). Whoever has the cross getsthe visions that are intended for Tomas: the player must make a stress roll of5+ (i.e.5 or better to receivea given vision and must make an Int roll of 6+ to interpret the vision. Other than these visions, the story will easily permitany set of characters; you nood only ignore certain examples and phrases which talk specifically about the characters for which the story was designed. Moving Things Right Along Have the players quickly intoduce their charactors to the troupe, describing what the thers might know about them. (They do know eachothersal but Ramin live together atthe covenant) Suggest that they introduce themselves in character suchas “MY rameis Luienne and [dont takeerap from anyone especially not from Caeron Don‘tlet them goon and on abou her characters, but do let them go into some deal. Encourage snide comments and banteramong the players, especialy fit elates tothe charac tors "Oh yeahs Tomas the weakling bookworm who thinks he'ssomething special” Thisis the time when the players should star geting into character. The Two Cliques ‘Ther ae two groups among the characters provided for this story. The groupe ave divided wp by which apprentice they side With the most. ‘Cacron and Lusienne have never realy poten along, but they havestudied at the covenant so long that they have formed fast rendships with some ofthe other inhabitants of the covenant. These fiendships have formed int two rival cliques, which fend to give eachother whatever grit they can, Tell he plyersabout tre twocliques, seat them accordingly one cigue Jn each side ofthe room or table— anv encourage tern to role- Ply out their rivalry. Below isone posible seating arrangement JFnemagiarenearyou(satus) and thesquabblinggogsareatthe farend ofthe table where they wil feel more Feet make twouble Jeremé Lorine Tomas Clobi Ramén Torlen Caeron Lucienne ‘The Storyguide (you) In this section, the characters realize that the Stormrider has returned and set out to find him. Since this part ofthe story takes place entirely at “homebase” (the covenant), there is no danger to the characters, and the players can more easily get into role- playing. In the safe environment of the covenant, the players can earn about who and whattheircharactersare. Thecovenant plays central olein any saga,and beginning thesessionat thecovenant interesting and elegant way to start each story.Jump Start Kit: the Stormrider Encourage as much role-playing as you can; It the players be extravagant and test the limits of their characters. These first scenes are meant to get the players comfortable with their charac- ters, begin some simple interaction, introduce them to the cove- nant tselfand givethem a few practical lessonson the Ars Magica rules. Remember, however, that these scenes set the stage for the ‘upcoming story, so you can't let things got too wild. The Lookouts ‘The story starts with Jeremé and Lorine, who have been on ‘watch at the top of the tower all night long. Read them this description: sJeremé and Lorine, you ar ontop of the tower standing watch — orlen sent you up here as punishment for having aight inthe baracks. is about four in the morning, and all about you inthe darkness ore the last vestiges ofa mighty storm. At times the entire tower shook and the ‘wind blew so hard that jou could hardly ear eachother speak. You are Inuddled on top ofthe trapdoor between the battlements and the strange wooden hut ofthe wizard Vuleris. Luckily she's gone tonight. Ithasbeen 4 miserable night, and not you are cold soaked 1 the skin, and in foul moods. © First you should ask Jeremé if he was drinking or not. Ifthe player doesn’t seem ready to make a quick decision, you could suggest that he or she roll against Jerem¢’s Likes to Drink person- ality trait. Ifthe player rolls a6+ (Gor higher) ona simpleroll ‘anormal ten-sided die) after adding Jereme's Likes to Drink score ‘of 43,then he has been drinking through much of the night. Ifhe has been drinking, tell him that he will get on all his rolls until, hegetsa 10+ ona Fatigue roll sometime during the story. (He'llbe making fatigue rolls throughout the story.) The reason Lorine has not reported Jeremé’sdrinkingisthat shehasbeon waiting untilhe {gets really drunk so that it will be even worse for him when she does report him. (The player running Lorine can come up with ‘another reason for not having reported him if he or she wishes) ‘Once you know whether Jeremé has been drinking, ask both playersto makea Perception + Alertness roll. Tellthemtolookon their character sheets for their Perception scores (a characteristic), and then look for their Alertness scores as well (an ability). See if Lorine’s player notices that her specialty is “on watch,” which means she gets an additional +1 bonus forthis oll. Point it out to herifshedoesn’t) Now havethem makea simpleroll (hatis,adie tenread normally) and then add both scoresto the oll. Lorine will, have #2 for Perception, +1 for Alertness, and another +1 for her specialty; Jeremé will have 2 for Perception and +2 for Alertness. IfJeremé has been drinking, have him subtract 2from his roll If either one of them gets a 6+, they notice something in the valley below, Read to them the description of what they see. Read the description aloud so all the players can hear —even though the other characters know nothing oityet. I’'smorefun becauseitets, everyonebe involved inthe story. Ifneitherofthem saw anything, have them get into another litle tiff —this time over who gets the blanket when it starts to rain again—and then let them both make another Perception + Alertness rol. ‘The sky suddenly clears, and you can per down into the valley. You see a small, ferocious cloud hovering over the village of Javele, with lightning shooting fromthe ground tothe shy. Youaretakenaback y this, sight foritisone ofthe things you were tld tolokfor bythe grog sergeant Toren. You realize that lightning shooting from the ground tothe sky could oly be caused by the infamous Stormrider. But what do you do? You can go down one flight of stairs to tell Clobi the captain of the watch, ‘about this, or perhaps you could sneak past him and go tll someone else this news.« This is important news indeed, news in which many people might be interested. IfJeremé sees the lightning, tell him that: ‘You know that Caeron would be very pleased if he were the first to learn about this. Torlen should be alerted, ofcourse; that's your duty. But Caeron's study is on the way to the courtyard where Torlen is, and it wouldn't take long to let Cacron know about it. Caeron would probably ‘be even more interested if Lucienne never found out about ita al If Lorine sees the lightning, tll her that: ‘Torlen i the one to whom you should report, but Clobi is a friend 1s well. Lucienne would probably be the most willing to go after the Stormrider, which would give you the best chance for revenge, but she is busy studying. Torlen would probably tell her anyhow if you brought the news to kim.» Ifonly one of the grogs saw the lightning, and that one wants to leave guard duty to tell someone else, the player will have to come up withan excuse o tell the other grog. Leaving guard duty isa serious breach of conduct ifthere’sno good reason for it. Have them role-play it out. If both saw it and both want to leave, they mightargueabout who gets to go, because having both grogs eave the watch is an even more serious offense, especially with the ‘Stormrider about. “Torlen considers it a serious offense to abancdon your post. By all rights only one of you should go, unless i is something very important.» Ifthe grogs leave, ask them what they intend todo about Clobi, who is in the guardroom below. ‘They can tell him what happening and thus try to get permission to leave and tell others, or they can try to sneak by him. Ifthey talk to him, let Clobi’s player decide how to deal withit, bbut remind the player that someone should be on watch at all, times. Clobi knows that it is his duty to see to it that Torlen is, alerted about the Stormrider immediately. Lucienne would also like to know, most likely. Ifa grog tries to sneak past Clobi, the player should make a Dexterity + Sneak roll, while Clobi makes a Perception + Alert ‘ness rol. Ifthe grog beats Clobi’s roll, heor she sneaks to thespiral staircaseat thecenter ofthe tower and from therecan get anywhere inthecovenant (probably two fights down to Caeron’sstudy, four fights down to the library where Lucienne is studying, or to the courtyard where Torien can be found). IfClobiat least matches the {gr0g's roll, hecatchestheother character. Let Clobi's player decide ‘what to do with the litle sneak. Tell Clobi: You are very angry to see this grog deserting his/her post just because the storm: was a little rough. It would be best if you hauled this pile oferap down to see Torlen.* Finding the Two Apprentices If Lorine, or someone else, alerts Lucienn this to her: ‘You are holed up in the library studying for the apprentice's ‘gauntlet that you will s00n have to undergo. It will ba rigorous series “of exams covering Hermetic magic theory, Hermetic history, and magic the library, eadability; and you are quite worried about it. Not only has the storm hurt your concentration, but you've been repeatedly interrupted. One of the ‘covenant scholars is still rustling around in the back ofthe lbrary loking {forsome tome or another, and you're getting annoyed. Suddenly you are interrupted yet again, this time by a knock on the door. After Lucienne is told about the Stormrider, tell her: ‘You are stunned by the news. It has been so long since the ‘Stormrider rode the winds that you thought he was gone forever. You, of course, want to pursue him, but frst you will hve to get permission from ‘a magus — and the only one lef at the covenant is the demented Felix down in his caverns. Let thecharacterscontinue torole-play fora while. IfLucienne looks out ofthe library windows to sce the valley for herself, she sees the lightning fork from the earth to the sky. After Lucienne decides to leave the library, tell the character ‘Tomas that he heard the whole thing: ‘While you were looking for your book, you heard someone come into the library and tell the apprentice Lucienne thatthe Stormrider had been sighted. You've heard of that strange creature; it's a legend of some local notoriety — you've even had dreams about him lately. Hmmm, Caeron ‘would be very intrigued by this information. You ould probably find kim in his room. This is, ofcourse, how Caeron can learn about the Stormrider, if he doesn’t know already. If he does know, then have Tomas bump into him in the hallway as he goes down to see Felix. Tomas ‘might end up accompanying Caeron there. If someone goes to Caeron’s room, read to him: ‘*Caeron, you are in your tiny room working on a potion, as you are unable to sleep during this aweful storm, when you hear footseps on the stairway and then a knock on the door.* ‘Once Caeron is told the news, tell him that while he thinks chasing after the Stormrider might be an amusing lark before heis ‘made a magus and leaves this covenant forever, he will have to go tohis master, Felix, to get permission to go. Felixistheonly magus left in the covenant, and only a magus can authorize a dangerous mission. You mightalso want tomention that hecould achievereal fame for himself if he could prove that the Stormrider is not an elemental and disprove Grimgroth’s famous treatise. In other ‘words, thisisan opportunity ofa lifetime, and not something to be passed up. Petitioning Felix ‘The only wizard who is left at the covenant is the infamous Felix Necromius, so if the apprentices want permission to seck the ‘Stormrider, they will have toask him. It will not bea pleasant task speaking with that strange, twisted man, but they have little choice. Inhis laboratory buried deep beneath the covenant livesoneof the strangest wizards at Mistridge. Felix Necromius is obsessed with death and scemsto be unableto thinkoflifeinany otherterms than in relation to death. He has a strange, quavering voice, and rarely does he speak an entire sentence without at least one reference (however oblique) to death. Ifthings workout right, Caeron and Lucienne willboth rushto Felix seeking permission to go after the Stormrider. You should ‘manipulate things so that somehow both of them find out about the news. One apprentice, however, may reach Felix’s lab before Ars Magica The Art of Narration AAs the two grogs go to tell their particular friends of what they have seen, you will have to employ narration and overt manipulation to get everything to work out the way you wantitto. In ater stories, after youhave thehang, of intro’s, you can let the players tell you where they arein the covenant and what they decide to do. For this story, however, you will have to tell them where they are, what they aredoing, and suggest actions for them to take. Try to sgivethe playersas much freedom ofchoiceas youcan,even ifit screws things up a litte bit. But to make things work ‘out, you'll have to take charge of things. If someone gets, ‘miffed about the lack of freedom in the first few scenes, tell them it only lasts until the moment they step out of the covenant (or that the authors were jerks). Ifevents turn out that only one of the two cliques has bbeen alerted to the Stormrider so half of the characters are going to be left out, there are several methods to use to ensure that both apprentices find out about it. * A charwoman can overhear what’s happening and, spread the news 0 that everyone in thecovenant knows of it. This creates such excitement that even Felix learns of it. ‘+ A character from the clique that is being left out ‘observes the earth-to-sky lightning on their own. ‘+ Felix can refuse to let either apprentice brave a confrontation with the Stormrider alone. theother oneeven hearsabout the Stormrider. Ifitisatall possible, _getas many characters, even companionsand grogs, to go to Felix atonce, so that therich detail ofthe laboratory will not be “wasted” ‘on only oneor two characters. Some of them may be driven by a morbid curiosity, a curiosity they will most likely regret. Because ‘of Caeron’s bad experiences with Felix, it may be very difficult for ‘him to aska favor of his master. Remember his curse; he hears the moansof thedead, sohe willbe very uncomfortablein his master’s laboratory. (That's why he no longer lives with his master.) When a character descends the spiral staircase to the lowest level of the covenant and arrives at Felix’ lab, they find the large door to his lab closed and locked. * You make your way down the spiral staircase into the rock ofthe hill, ‘and then walkdowna short tunnel towards Felix’s lab. Beads of water run down the walls ll bout you. Eventually you find yourself in front ofa ‘huge oak door reinforced with heavy bands of bronze, set deep into the ‘granite walls. Strange inscriptions cover every inch ofthe metal, and there isa huge bronze knocker in the shape ofa person's hand. At first there is no response if they knock. Only after second ‘knock will they hear a thin, wavering voice say: + “Be you living or be you dead?” ® If the character says, “Living,” Felix says, "Go away!” The character will haveto ask to belet inand plead abit before thedoor will open. If the character says, “Dead,” Felix will pause a bit and then say, “Begone, petty liar, or you'll be dead soon enough.” Ifthe character persists in asking to come in, the door will soon ‘open (under control of a spel), and Felix’s voice will say: "Come in young one. Welcome to my little tomb.” + ‘As the characters walk in to his laboratory, they will likely beJump Start Kit: the Stormrider taken aback by what they sce. + Felix’s laboratory is a large, rough-hewn cavern scattered with tables piled high with assorted equipment and books. There are glass boul, brass pipes, small braziers, and hundreds of little pots and vials filled with all manner of herbs and magical ingredients. Much of his ‘research takes place ina large vat of mud at the center of the room Dried ‘animal bodies line the walls hanging by chains. Next ta reading stand is Felix, still and pale as a corpse, in loose white robes. IfCaeron is here, tell him: ‘There must beat least adlozen corpses inthis room, and scores more in the catacombs beyond. First, you hear a whisper almost too soft to detect. Then it grows, and you realize it is the moans of many dead. The different moans mix, swell, and fall like wind in the trees. Youknowit will only get worse until you leave. The dead have found a sympathetic ear, and they will tear you apart with their cries if you do not leave soon. What's worse, you suspect Felix hears them too, only he enjoys it. © If the characters do not ask about the experiment Felix asks them by way of greeting: ©” Still alive Ise, your body looks well. Well, what do you want?”* If the characters tell Felix that they want to pursue the ‘Stormrider, he will first try to discourage them, telling them that they are valuable to the covenant and should not be risked on such adangerousmission. Naturally, thecharacters will persist. Atthis point, if appropriate, the apprentice other than the one already in the lab should show up, just to slow down the process of getting, permission. To Necromius, the safety of these two is not really important enough for him to waste his time over, so he soon ‘concedes: "Very well, you may give chase to this fellow, but you must promise ime something first. You must record the lat words of ll those who die con your little expedition. I keep a journal of such things. The characters must agree to this stipulation or Felix, who really cares nothing for the Stormrider, will not let them go. And that is that "So, are we agread?”* ‘Once it is decided that the characters are to go, he will warn them: ©" You must ensure thatthe folkof the valleydo not thinkthat you are with the Stormrider. They've blamed us for things like that before, and it isdecay,puredecay. The good name of Misridge is in your hands;do not Letit oose its fragrence Do make myself understood? Good, Iwill order that preparations be made; you will leave soon no doubt. Now get out of my laboratory... Ihave work to do."« If the two apprentices argue over which one gets to go, Felix will say: *#"Enough of this bickering; you both shall go. Perhaps you will balance each others’ faults.”* Getting Underway The characters must now make preparations to get underway. Read to them the following + With the permission of Felix Necromius, preparations to get underway arebeing mate. The grogs are putting on thelr armor, packing Supplies (suchas rope) and readying their weapons. But how are the rest, of you going to prepare yoursloes? I there anything special ay of you tant fo do before you depart? « Felix's Lab ‘Thereare many strange things the characters might sce in Felix’s laboratory, especially when they are not busy speaking with him. Ask the players who are not direct} involved in this part ofthe story toadd in whatever details to the laboratory they find appropriate to enhance the ‘mood and fecling ofthis scene. Below arelisted a few idea's of some strange things that characters can notice as they look around. ‘A dead cat hanging upside down by strings over a table. It's been shaved, its legs are bound in bronze wire, and its eyes are sewn shut. One of Felix’s less successful experiments. (On Felix’s reading stand is an open book; in it one can, sce a diagram that seems to describe how to remove the ligaments from a person’s leg without tearing them. ‘A very human-looking hand rises from the vat of mud. in the center of the lab. Felix notices what the characteris looking at and quickly casts a spel that pushes whatever it was back down in the mud. Do not encourage them to do anything special or delay depar- ture, but if they think of something they want to do, help them along. Information About the Stormrider ‘The charactersknow certain thingsabouttheStormrider. Before the characters leave Mistridge, call their attention to the descrip tion of the Stormrider: on one of their handouts, perhaps even reading it aloud. Characters who are able to make Intelligence + Legend Lore rolls of 7+ will also know the following: * The Stormrider is said to be a demon those presence heralds the beginning ofaplague, famine, or war. Some say heisone ofthe Horsemen ofthe Apocalypse. Whatever he is, he is a mighty warrior who neverthe- less can be felled with the blows of mortal blades. He is able to control the winds, hurl lightning from his lance, and summon trolls from running water. His sted can breathe ire, but cannot fly at will. © Ifthecharacters think oft, allow them look for information on the Stormrider in the library. They don’t have much time before the grogs have gotten their equipment and are ready to leave, half fan hour at the most. They will need to make an Intelligence + Scribe Latin roll of 8+ to learn anything at al. ‘Themain item they will discover is Grimgroth’streatise on the ‘Stormrider, which has some very interesting information in it. ‘According to Grimgroth, the Stormrider is an air elemental, the ‘essence ofthe rageof thestorm itself. When the storm ist its most ferocious, the most magical part ofit takes the form of ablacksteed ‘andits rider, and it touches the earth in that form to cause yet more destruction and sorrow. This treatise has been the basis of much thoughton the nature of elementals, and many wizards have used hisideas in their own theories. Themagus Vancasitum statesinhis own widely known tome on magic theory that Grimgroth’s trea-tise has become the centerpiece of the Order’scurrent understand- ing of elementals. Ifthecharacterscan makea Perception + Scan roll of 10+, they will discover an old, yellowed letter tucked between two pages. It is addressed to Micrina at Lariander covenant and signed by Grimgroth, but obviously never sent. Grimgroth mentions that after looking into some old legends abouta young knightin Valdu: Bosque, he became suspicious that he might be wrong about the Stormrider. He suggests the possibility that the rider might actually bea human who was exhibiting some deep inner rageand, ‘was gaining magical powers from that rage. Near the end of the letter he states that atthe first available opportunity he was going, to check into it (Grimgroth did in fact investigate the Stormrider further and found him to be human, though his mount did appear to be an clemental. It would have been so embarrassing to have his famous treatise shown even partially incorrect, that Grimgroth quickly “lost” his letter, and buried the whole matter ofthe Stormrider in his past. He hopes only that no one else will ever investigate the rider and that it will remain his secret. About this whole matter he is not proud, but itis simply something he did.) Tomas's Visions At this time, while the characters are sill at the covenant, have ‘Tomas roll to sce whether he hasa vision. First describe where in the covenant heis;it should be some time while he is proparing to leave, perhaps while he is looking out the window in his quarters down into the valley. (This helps set up the mood; these visions On the Fiery Trail Ars Magica should be special things). Have him add his Visions score +3 (for thecovenant’s magical aura). His total bonusis +8. [fhe rolisa 12+ he has the “Beautiful Maiden” vision; give him the slip of paper with the vision on it. (The visions are found on one of the center two pagesof the booklet. Remove these pages and cut the visions ‘out so you can hand them oneata timeto Tomas during the story.) Tell the player not to flip the paper over, atleast not yet. (The interpretation of the vision is written on the other side, and the player should not soe it yet) Encourage the player of Tomas to role-play out what Tomas says as he has his vision. Tomas has gotten into the habit of speaking out loud during his visions so that he won't forget them. “I sce a woman, a beautiful young maiden, And she is eating berries...” If the player role-plays it out, it can add a lot of depth to the story; plus it allows all the players to be informed as to the nature of the visions. Even if he doesn’t roll high enough to get a full vision, you should tell him part of the vision. For this, simply read the first three lines of the description to the player. In this case, however, do not give the player the slip of paper. If Tomas receives the full vision, have the player roll for an intorpretationnext: astress die + Intelligence + Visions. Ifthe oll is 9+, allow the player to flip the slip of paper over and read the interpretation printed there. Ifyou let the players keep these slips ‘of paper, they will have an easier time remembering them and picking up clues from them, but if you want to make it harder on the players, tell them to give theslips of paper back once the vision isover. Atleast take back the visions for which Tomas fails to get theinterpretation so that they arenotaccidentally flipped overand read during the game. Setting Off Though the storm has mostly passed, i is still drizzling, and whenever the characters get near the Stormrider, the rain will pour a litle faster, the winds will rise, and they will enter the storm again. It is not a nice day, and the characters are likely to be iserable because of it. When the characters are preparing to leave Mistridge, tell ‘Ramén that he thinks crossing theriver directly between Mistridge and Javielle is the only way to reach the village in a reasonable amount of time. If the characters choose to go by way of the ford (an extra three hours of walking), they can cross the river more safely (though still with some effort), but they will bemuch farther ‘behind the Stormrider than normal. To guide them toa good place to cross the river, Ramén must makea Val du Bosque Lore + Perception stress ollof8+. Since his specialty is “lay ofthe land,” he gets an extra +1 bonus so his total ‘bonus is +6. This means he is s0 good that he will miss only ona rollof0(since youcannot rolla 1 ona stress die). Ifhe does in fact ‘miss, hetakes the group toa bend inthe river where the water runs faster and all the ease factors for anyone in the water (swimming, forexample) will be2 points higher than what is described below. Crossing the River After finally leaving the covenant, the characters must cross therriver, which is now flooded, They must use either their spells or wits or both to cross. This scene is a thinking exercise for the players. Can they invent an efficient, fast, and safe way to get acrossthe river? Thebest wayis for Caeronto usea spell ofhis, but other ways work as well. Keep the action moving; don’t let the players contemplate forever. Ifthey get bogged down, give them some help. Don’t allow them to waste hours trying to get across. Read to them this description: + You climb over the trunk ofa fallen tre and come out ofthe woods onto the bank ofthe river. Before you rushes atorrent of muidy water ten yordsacross.Itisawash withbranches that have been torn from tres, and 's you look, a large elm comes racing down the center ofthe chanel. Its ragged branches spread out before it like grasping hands. Quickly it ‘moves past you and goes out of sight dowonstream, turning around and ‘around all the while. © Now the characters have to managea way across. Ifthey ever are about to try something really stupid, you can give a hint to ‘Torlen; this help represents his long years of experience (and his ‘Common Sense virtue). Listed below area couple oftheir optionsJump Start Kit: the Stormrider and what is likely to happen in each case. Don't be surprised if your players think of something else entirely. Caeron can use his spell Twist the Living Tree to bend a tree on this side toward the opposite bank and a tree on the far bank toward this one, so that they meet and intertwine their branches in the middle. Ask Caeron for his Perception + Finesse scores and roll this secretly to represent how well he shaped the branches. If hebotches,thereisa flaw and the first person whotries tocross will fall, Ifherolls a 12+, he's done such a good job that everyone gets +#2on their Climb rolls when crossing. Atleastonecharacter might haveto climb across unaided (requires a Dexterity + Climb roll of 6+ or slip and fall), but if that character brings a rope across, the other characters shouldn't have any problems. ‘Cacron could attach a length of rope to a branch and use his spell Piercing Shaft of Wood spell to maketthe branch stick into a tree on the far shore (requires a Targeting roll of 8+). Crossing by rope requires a Strength + Climb roll of 6+ if the rope is high enough that the character is out of the water, ora roll of + ifthe characteris in the water. Any character who fails the roll falls into theriver and must swim (see below). Another danger is that trees aresstill coming down the river, and if one comes by while a rope is strung across, it will catch the rope and no doubt break it or pull it free. (Good luck to anyone on the rope at that time.) ‘Thecharacters could constructa raftoutof fallen trees, perhaps. using spontaneousMuto Herbam spells. (Caeron’s spell, Twistthe Living Tree, doesn’t work onan uprooted tree.) Spontaneous Rego Herbam spells could also propel the raft across the torrent. ‘The water is over twenty feet deop at this portion of the river, soitisnot possibleto ford it. A swimming character must attempt Strength + Swim rolis of 9+ (with double the character's Load counting as a penalty). An unsuccessful roll means the character loses one fatiguelevel for each point of Enccarried and is swept ten paces downstream. Any character who falls unconscious drowns, (A heavily encumbered character, therefore, is likely to drown quickly.) Each character must continue to make ros until two are ‘successful, at which point the character has reached the opposite shore. ‘At some time during this scene, possibly at an exciting point, ‘Tomas might have a vision. If he is able to roll a 12+ on Visions, _give him the “Grove of Pines” vision. Otherwise ust read him the first few lines from the description. As always, he must make an Intelligence + Visions roll of 9+ to read the interpretation on the other side. Other Side of the River When they finally get to the opposite bank of the river, tell them that they have to scramble up a small, muddy slope to get to level ground, whereupon they will ein thegroveoftrees thatruns along the river. As the characters get across, have each make a fatigue roll, due to accumulated exhaustion, or once they are all over, tell them: «# The excitement of departure has left you, and now your weariness finally begins to hit you. All of of you were up for much of the night, ‘catching only scattered snatches of sleep because ofthe ferocity of the storm. Everyone make a fatigue roll. Have them look on their character sheets for their fatigue totals. Ifthey rolla 12+, they do not lose any fatigue and feel fresh and ready to go. Ifthey rolla3to 1, they feel abit tired froma lack of rest and nervousness and Jose one long-term fatigue level. If they get 2or under, they lose two long-term fatiguelevels. Long- term fatigue cannot be recovered without sleep. ‘Then skip the Ford section below and go to the Bus The Ford Ifthe characters cross the riverat the ford, they can cross safely, though they will get soaked. For the remainder of the story, however, this group will be about two hours behind the schedule they otherwise would have had they crossed the river where Ramn old them to. You will have toadjust the story accordingly: the tree will have mostly burned down, the villagers will haveleft the church, and though the Stormrider will stil be at the caste, it ‘will bein partial ruinand ts inhabitants will be half mad from rage caused by the encircling Stormrider. Ifthe characterssave the day, the castle inhabitants will not really notice, and the Baron will not ‘emerge to speak with them. ‘Oncetthey are across the ord, tell them they hike through light forest, and then through farmland. They wor’t see the burning, trce unless someone makes a Perception + Alertness roll of10+, in which case they will see a strange red glow off in the distance towards the river. The Burning Tree ‘Once the characters have made it across the river, they see a burning tree in the distance. Under the troe they find the body of ‘a squire who has boen mortally wounded by the Stormrider. The squire’s dogs are still near his body, and they put up a fight ifthe characters approach. Here the characters discover where the ‘Stormrider began his rampage, and gain theirfirstclues. Itisatest of how the characters will deal with an unusual and possibly dangerous situation. From here they can follow the Stormrider’s tracks into Javielle. Since such powerful and elemental magic was, at work near the tree, the Dominion no longer holds sway and it ‘temporarily hasa +2 magical aura. The wizards get +2 o all their magic rolls. ‘Just as you climb up the river bank, you notice inthe distance atree ‘enveloped in flames. Through the mist, it looks like a giant candle, Everyone make a Perception + Scan roll. After everyone has made a Perception + Scan roll, tell them ‘what they see, The higher they rol, the moredetailsthey see. Each detail is listed with the minimum number required to see it. The ‘other details will become apparent only as the characters ap- proach. ‘Automatic: A burning tree in the distance. St: A ring of foot-high flames encircles the tree. 8+: Dark, shadowy dog likecreaturesareleaping about inthering. 11+: A human body lies at the foot ofthe tree, not moving. 114+: The grass and other plants on the ground around the tree for fifty paces have been flattened, blown down to the ground in the direction away from the tree. Botch: ‘They might perceive the black shadows of demon dogs dancing under the flickering light of the burning tree and tearing the flesh from a stil living maiden. ‘The ring of flames is made up of scores of flaming hoofprints. Tree.‘The Stormrider must haveridden around the tree again nd again, and finaly ridden off towards the village of Javielle (where one set ‘of hoofprints leads). Thereareno hoofprints leading tothe flaming tree. They seem to have simply appeared. ‘Ramn, the tracker, can find out a variety of things if helooks closely. Ifhemakes Track + Perception rollof4+ after just looking, briefly at the tracks he can tell they are a horse's. If he carefully looks atthe entire ring and makes a Track + Perception roll of 8+, hecan find where they started, and that they aremuch deeper than the other tracks, indicating that the horse came down from ajump when it began making the flaming hoofprints, ‘These flaming hoofprints cannot be stamped out, and ifdirtis piled on top of them they still flame on top of the earth. They will continue to flame until the Stormrider’s horse leaves the earth, {goes back to the sky, and loses its corporeal form. Inside the ring of flames are five dogs, each wearing a collar (though thecharacters won't notice that at first). Asthe characters approach the tree, you might want to portray the dogsas demonic and horrific. Actually the dogs belong to the dying squireand are franticwith terror. They cannot leave the ircleof flame, outof fear, yet the circle intensifies their every emotion. (See the pull-out description of the Stormrider for its effects. Generally speaking, it doubles the passions of a person or animal within it) IFanyone centers the circle, the dogs will attack them in an effort to protect their master. A fairly simple combat should ensue involving the dogs — a ‘good introduction to the combat system. Since the dogs won't crossthe circle of flames, thecharacterscan alwaysrretreat fromthe ‘meleeto rest or to make better plans. They can also simply kill the dogs with missiles. However, since these dogs are half mad, they will ferociously attack anyone within the circle. Soe the pull-out fromthe middieof this booklet for thecombat stats ofthe fivedogs. Remember to have the characters rll for fatigue after they change from one strenuous activity to another, and at the end ofthe battle. If anyone is fatigued, this will be short-term fatigue that can be recovered much quicker than the long-term fatigue they rolled for earlier. Remind Ramén that he cannot bear to seeanimals suffering, so if these dogs are to be killed, he will want them killed as quickly and painlessly as possible. Under thisancient oak, knownas the Loving Oakby thelocals, the characters will find the half-dead body ofa young man leaning againstthetrunk. He suffers from several sword woundsand from a horrible burn on his face and chest; at first the characters assume he is dead. He wears the blue and gold tunic of Baron d’Uverre and has a broadsword lying at his side, but he is not ‘wearing any armor. In his right hand he clutches a scrap of black cloth. His nameis Brien, and he is the son ofa minor local lord, Sir Guifré, and is being trained as.a knight at the Baron’s castle. In the grass, fifty paces from the tree, his horse lies dead, killed by a severe burn. After some person comes upto himand triesto speak with him, the squire will whisper the name of his beloved: "Marie, my poor Marie."« ‘Then he groans and falls into unconsciousness. Unless either Torlen or Jeremé can quickly heal him by making a Chirurgy + ‘Quickness roll of 14+, the squire will die. (Torlen gets a +1 on his Ars Magica roll because of his specialty.) As soon as the squire dies, Caeron, because of his curse, will hear the corpse groaning in mortal agony and will not be comfort- able within a dozen feet of it. If Lucienne uses her spell Whispers ‘Through the Black Gate, they can talk with this dead man, but ‘even so hes still in great torment and not very coherent. Mumble and garble what he says othe players havetroubleunderstanding, ‘you. Ifhe lives, he will say the same things to the characters, also garbled, ‘The squire says: ‘" Hesaid to me from his black charger ~'IfTeannot have ker, then no ‘one can. She is one thing you cannot have brother.” — Iwas confused , Tam not kis brother! I moved to protect my Marie, to defend her honor. But lightning flew from his lance, and Iwas thrown to the ground. Then {from his horse, the cowardly knave cut medowon every time Iattempted tostand up. As lay helpless he grabbed up my poor, Marie and took her sway. I can hear her screams still. Oh please find her for me. And if he ‘has harmed one hair on her head, I beg you please, find that horrible creature and make him suffer!" ‘The scrap of cloth that Brien holds tightly in hisright hand was torn from the Stormrider’s cape. Be sure to point it out becaus is very important to the story. The characters will have to pry it from Brien’s clenched fist if he is dead, but if Tomas touches it, he will feela surge of rage. If Tomas has the cloth, he will receivea +5 ‘bonuson visions related tothe Stormrider for the remainder ofthe story. You may have to manipulate Tomas nto touching thecloth, such as suggesting to his player that he is the one most capable of figuring out what itis. Do whatever it takes to get this cloth into Tomas’s hands. If Cacron uses Speak with Plants and Trees to talk to the burning tree it will only “scream” in pain as it slowly dies. With 1 Perception + Scan roll of 5+, he may hear it mutter: +” Why does he torture me 0, one who has seen so much love. This isnot true to my nature! 11am the one who creates love!”* ‘This treeis important to the Stormrider for it was here that he originally saw the fair Fabia, the maiden whom heloved aboveany other. On this night, the Stormrider happened to see a squire ‘wooing his lover under this tree. The sight brought back torment- ing memories and he flew into a rage. He began to think that the squire was his brother and the woman was Fabia. So he came down from the clouds, slew the squire, and carried off the woman to Javielle (where the characters will later find her). ‘Tomas may have a vision at this spot, but only if he moves to investigate matters further. He must either touch the squire,or go inside the circle of flame. If he does something special, like look into the squire’s eyes, you might want to give him a bonus to his roll. Ife has the scrap of cloth, he receives a +5 bonus as well. If hhedoes rolla 12+ (remember to give him a +2 because of the magic aura), give him the “Rage” vision. At some point characters will probably decide to follow the flaming tracks to the village. No tracking rolls are necessary because the flaming trail is $0 easy to follow. If at this point, or at any time, the characters get far off the suggested course of theadventure, you might want toad lib some encounters for the rest of the session and then continue the story described here the next time you play.Jump Start Kit: the Stormrider Javielle ‘The characters see the damage the Stormrider has done to Javielle and help the squire’s lover, who hasbeen wounded by the Stormrider. Dominion: In this town, since it isa holy day (the feast day of Sante Fabia), the Dominion is 3. Magi must subtract 3 from all magic rolls, and make three extra botch rolls every time they zero ‘out on such a roll. (See Ars Magica, p. 72) ‘The sun has come up, but the storm clouds obscure it, soit isa grim morning. Up ahead of you i the village of Javielle, dark and forsaken in the rain and drizzle. As you walkthrough its outskirts, you notice that the storm has hit these people hard. Three cottages are collapsed, their timber walls lying crashed on the ground, and two others no longer have their thatch roofs. The tracks ofthe Stormrider continue straight down the road. Do you continue to follow them? ® Do not encourage characters to search the houses; there is nothing here of interest. Ifthey do lookaround, however, ellthem that the houses are normal serf’s dwellings, made of timber and wattle with only simple belongings inside. (Most cottages have benches or stools; chairs are a luxury.) The characters will find no signs of life, though there are dead bodies inside one of the cottages. Thereare no people or animals tobescen. The storm and then the Stormrider frightened them off. ‘In the middle of the village there are thee oak trees, under which are «a numberof overturned tressel tables and benches — this is where many ofthe older people of the village spend their evenings; it's the village tavern. Plates, tablecloths, and mugs scattered about indicate that the tavern had been in full use the previous evening. To the right of the trees is the small stone church, with its double doors shut. You can hear the sound of chanting coming from inside.» ‘When the characters get closer tell them: ‘All kinds of decorations and flowers lie about the compound. The villagers were obviously celebrating some sort of festival. Lying in the ‘mud are a number of white banners with red roses sewn on each one, as ‘well asa numberof wreaths of flowers. There isalsoalarge wooden board ‘with a crudely carved and painted picture of a woman on it. Hoofprints burn om the surface of the board. # Ifthey look closely at the wooden board, they will notice some details: “eC 9 ‘The woman is in white robes, has a halo, and carries three roses in her right hand. * Anyone who looks at it can make a Perception + Val du Bosque Lore roll. To those who roll 5+, read tl * You recognize this woman as Sante Fabia, the patron saint ofthe valley. © ‘Thereis no one in the center ofthe village. Most of ables have been flipped over, while there is still a warm mug of ale on one of the two tables that still stands. The oaks shed many branches during the storm, and green boughs lie everywhere. ‘The church is a small, white-washed building with a small steeple. Thedoorsare firmly barred from within, and the windows have barred shutters. About fifty villagers are crowded inside, chanting; they will not come out. Any player who listens to the chanting can make a Perception + Sean roll. Those who get a 6+ can hear a young boy’s voice chanting in Latin, and then a man’s voice preaching about fie, the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the coming end of the earth. He seems to be preparing the villagers for imminent Armageddon. Thetracksof theStormrider never go near the church. They always remain more than ten feet from it. The Dominion is +4 within this small area. (Remember that Ram6n is afraid of large buildings.) If anyone moves so as to be able to see what is on the far side of the three oaks, read them this description: A maiden lies wounded in a puddle onthe far side ofthe three oaks rear the church. A ring of burning hoof marks appear inthe dirt allabout the puddle. She is weeping, and is covered with mud. ‘The characters will have to decide how to deal with the ‘wounded maiden. Sheis Marie, the lover of he squire, and shehas been through a great ordeal. Her face has been burned and needs to be treated, but the characters will have to calm her before they ‘can treat the burns. Ifa man tries to comfort her, she will become hysterical and scream, though shedoesn’t really have the powerto fightanyoneoff. Only f someonecan makea Presence + Folk Ken roll of 10+ will shecalmdown. (Lucienneand Lorineget+4 on his roll because they are women and therefore seem less threatening. to Marie.) If someone rolls a 3 or less while trying to comfort her, she will cream n terror—remember she has been sittinginacircle of flaming hoofprints for hours. If Ram6n tries to come near her, she will recognize him as “the wild man” and become even more terrified (-2 on all future rolls that attempt to calm her down). Remember that characters who step into the burning ring to help the woman will have their passions doubled. They simply double whatever personality trait rolls they get. People tend to get ‘extremely angry /frightened sad when they are within a circle of flaming hoofprints. Whoever tries to treat her burns will realize that they take the shape of a palm and fingers, as if someone had slapped her with a burning hand. Her wounds will never fully heal naturally, which isa shame, for one can tell that she was once very beautiful. Any characters who makes a Perception + Val du Bosque Lore roll of 8+ will know sheis Marie, the young daughter of hecarpenter and, last year’s Mayday Queen, If questioned, she will slowly and tearfully tell her story to a character she trusts, +" Feattacked myamour. [fear he isdead. My poor Brien. Have you seen hi?" ® Ifthe characters ask her more questions, she will be persuaded to tell more ifthe person speaking with her makes a Communica-10 tion roll of 7+. (Clobi may add his +1 Gentle score and Lucienne may add her +3 Moved by Suffering score if they make this attempt.) Ifmore than one person tries totalk with heratonce, you ‘may wish to have them all make a roll, and not have any of them succeed unless everyone succceds. +" Teas secretly meeting with good Brien Guifré asquireat thecastle, We were meeting under the Loving Tree, but we had been there only a short time when suddenly a storm: arose. Then a black rider flew down {from the clouds astride a black steed spouting flame and fear. “He struck Brien down, and Ifear him dead. He then carried me off “L remember no more, until he threw me down in this puddle, shouting, Yow are not her!" He began to ridearound me again and again, coming closer and closer meaning to kill me. He seemed toenjoy my fear, He trampled on all the decorations forthe feast, and even desecrated the image of Sante Fabia."« If she is asked how she survived, when it seemed he meant to kill her, have her say: *#" feared myself doomed, but then I picked up some flowers from the ‘mud for I meant fo pray to Fabia. He looked down at me, gave a growl that twas both like a laugh and a cry, and then rode away.”* Inthe church areall the inhabitants of the village who have not fled into the countryside. Ifthe characters make Marie scream, three brave young men will unbar the double doors atthe front of the church and look out to see what is happening. They will most likely assumethat the wizards had something todo with theattack fn the village, and one turns to tell the others in the church what they see. While they will certainly yell at the characters and tell them to leave the young woman alone and get out of the village, but under no circumstances will they leave the church, However, Father Lloreng (see Ars Magica p. 136) will eventu- ally emerge from the church and say to the characters: "Begone demons, and leave that poor gil alone. The Kingdom of God is at hand, and soon your kind will no longer be welcome amidst my urbe flock."® Hewill ignoreall that they say, and ifthey do not leaveatonce, he wall again tell them to leave. If they still do not go, he will bravely walk forward to bring the girl into the church. If the characters makeany moveto threaten him, he will curry backinto the church like a mouse back into its hole. ‘The best thing for the characters to do is probably simply to leave without getting angry atthe villagers. Unless they are very persuasive speakers (such as making Communication + Charisma rolls of 124), they will ust make things worse by trying to talk to them. The villagers will connect thecharacters with thestorm and the Stormrider, and this will harm the reputation of Mistridge, Warn the apprentices that the older wizards will be very angry if this severely damages relations with the common folk. If the characters continue to follow the tracks, they will find ‘that the tracks weave erratically through the village and then head. north towards Castle d'Uverre. Eventually the characters will follow these hoofprints and leave in search of the Stormrider. When they do so, tell them: ‘You have been affected in some way by what you have seen and heard inthe village. Some of you may have been profoundly moved and angered; ‘others of you may want simply to get on with the job. Make a personality roll by rolling a stress die and adding it tothe first personality trait on your li Look at the insert called Rolling for Personality to sce how ‘emotional the characters get. When they tell you what they roll, Ars Magica read to them the result indicated on the chart. Now you must watch the players carefully to see how they role-play out their ‘emotional state. Later on, you will have to judge how their characters feel, so you will need to watch their role-playing closely. The Old Hag ‘Thecharacters follow the Stormrider’s hoofprintsas they twis and turn down the road until they arriveata shrineto Sante Fabi In front ofa nearby hut sitsan old woman who is wise despite her crazed babbling, and has much of value to say to the characters. ‘She has devoted her life to Sante Fabia. The shrine is a holy place: Dominion 3 in the immediate environs. As they approach the shrine, read them this description: + As you follow the flaming tracks to the north towards Castle 'Uverre, you se a small stone shrine built beside the road. It isa large stone cross atop a huge stone slab. Hundreds of lowers lie scattered in front of it. Sitting cross-legged infront of the hut isan old hag crooning to herself and rocking back and forth. ‘The flaming hoofprints of the Stormrider encircle the shrine many times, and the eerie light oftheir flames casts an evil shadow on the face of the hag .« ‘Theold hag who sitsin front of her hut seems unaffected by the power of thelaming hoofprints. She seems neither influenced nor led by her passions; she is as calm as ice. While she is a holy ‘woman, it is in fact the effects of the Dominion around the cross itself that havenullified theemotionaleffectsofthe circleof lames, No characters who go insidetthe flames tosee the shrinecloser will be affected by their strange magic. Any character who can make a Legend Lore + Int roll of 6+ knows that this isa shrine to the patron saint ofthe valley, Sante Fabia, who performed her first miracle here. Anyone who gets a 9+-0n that roll knows that a knight was killed here by his jealous brother, and then was restored tolifeby Fabia while she held three rod roses, Anyone who looks closely notices that the woman is very old, dressed in rags, and is missing her right leg from the knee down. Anyone who looks closely at the shrine itself notices that there is bunch of red roses laid on a small stone altar in front of the cross. (These were brought by the old crone herself.) ‘The woman will ignore the characters unless they show some sort of angeror emotion. When they doshe will looktowards them and say: "You have the same anger in you that he does. The same anger indeed. You areas tainted with the sin of maliceas the fiend himself. The fiend who dared to lay a hand on a womsart of God.” © Ifthey respond, she willsay nothing. Only ifthey goinside the circle of flames will she will say: *" You undisciplined toretches, I know who you are. You are the ‘dwellers in the mist. So does that make you the same as the rider of the ‘mist? Answer me that.” # If they treat her with any semblance of civility, she will begin tospeakwith them. You should ad-lib what shesays. Thisold hag sees Sante Fabia as the ideal model for human behavior, and since thecharactersare far from this example, she sees no real difference between angry magi and an angry Stormrider. Sheis unimpressed by youthful bravado and self-satisfaction. Ifthe conversation gets bogged down a bit, you might want her to say:Jump Start Kit: the Stormrider “Anger you have indeed, like the rider for whom you search. But you must dismount from your own steed of rage, before it consumes you. Until you do, you will never find what you search for — do not make the same mistake he did. The fies of damnation will burn in anticipation if _you are notable to find peace.”* Ifthe characters specifically ask who the Stormrideris, she will say: 1 “She befriended him, but he was nota holy man, nora gentle man, nora virtuous man, and he was filled with much anger. He loved he, he loved her with a fiery passion, but he could not understand her ddica- tion." If she is asked how to defeat the Stormrider she will say: *#"If you cannot control the storm, you cannot harm kim. But do not look tothe storm above, but to the storm within.”® ‘And if she is questioned about the shrine, she will say: "This is a shrine to brotherly hate; this is there one brother killed ‘another. Are you rally all that different? You are ofthe same home, yet you squabble like enemies.” « This should hit close to home, assuming, of course, that the characters have indeed been arguing (as they are “supposed to”). She will shake her head and, after letting them speak fora moment, will interrupt with: "This is where Fabia performed her first miracle; she healed the brother ofkis wounds. She brought him back to life, fori tas not yet time forkimtodie, Ihave built many shrines to my blessed virgin saint always in places sacred to her. Always hoping that folk suck as you will find peace."+ This woman is a dedicated devotce of Sante Fabia. She has spent most of her lifein service to the memory of this aint. Though she lives in the woods around this shrine and survives on the offerings of food by wayfarers, she has traveled over the valley, building small altars to Sante Fabia. Somehow she always is able tobuild them ina placeimportant to Sante Fabia. Sheis soold and ‘weak that she could be killed with a single blow, but she is not afraid of death. If Tomas thinks to enter the circle of flame, automatically let him havethe vision of “The Miracle” [fhe doesnotenterthe circle, he will not have the vision. He still needs to roll to interpret the The Stormrider Attacks [As the characters follow the trail, the Stormrider suddenly speeds past them, striking one of thecharacters. This scenelets the characters confront the Stormrider and get a feel for his power without risking a full-scale battle. It also further develops their anger towards this evil marauder. Find ways to encourage active hostility toward the Stormrider, such as emphasizing his taunt or pointing out how badly the characters handled the attack (if they indeed handle it poorly). ‘This is your chance to get the players angry, if their characters don’t seein to be enraged already. *# You are walking along when suddenly to your lft you hear a great rushof wind and the approaching sound of falling rain. Through the mist, {you see the dark shape of an armored warrior astride a black steed. He bursts out ofthe trees and gellops toward you. Quickly, what do you do? '=Go to each player in turn and ask them what their characters are doing. Don’t give them much time to think about it. Let each character take one quick action, for the Stormrider will soon be rr Rolling for Personality This story has much to do with the raging passion within an individual. Not only does the Stormrider exhibit sgreatangerand rage, but some of the player-characters wll as well. To help players role-play this out, the characters have personality traits. Incertain circumstances, youshould ask the players to rol for their reactions to important events, if they are not already role-playing their reactions out. Lucienne, Lorine, and other characters may have savage reactions to hearing some accounts of the Stormrider’ deeds. Indeed, iby the climax, some charac- tersarenotangry,thestoryasa whole willnot workas wel. You will find that the more your players role-play the ‘emotions of their characters, the better their role-playing ‘becomes. Emotions may bein fact the basis of good role- playing, so encourage them to be emotional. ‘The chart below describes the intensity of feeling a character will have, depending on how high they rol. Use itto explain to a player how their character feels, but tll them i's guideline, not the law. Botch Youre filled with strong feeling opposed tothe trait you were rolling for and find it hard to control your actions. You dont feel very emotional. You are feeling emotional, but you are stil in control of your actions. If you can find a good ‘excuse, you will gladly follow your feelings. upto4d 5t07 You feel highly emotional, and you can only control yourselfif thereis something very strong, holding you back, such as personal danger or a vital duty. ‘Youarefilled with intense emotion and can hold. yourself back only if someone important to you. ‘confronts you and stops you from taking an action, ‘You are completely consumed with passion and are out of control. Only severe measures or threats to your life will stop you. ‘You should find some way of rewarding players who forcefully role-play their passions out. There are many different ways youcan do this, but we suggest that you give them an extra Whimsy Card as a reward for their role- playing. (Whimsy Cards are a role-playing aid available from Lion Rampant.) If you aren't using Whimsy Cards in this story, you can you can give them an extra Confidence point for the duration of this story. (Rationalization: fol- lowing your emotions completely and purely gives you ‘moral strengthanda sense of purpose.) Otherwise just give them a quick smile and pay them extra attention. upon them, and any characters who hesitate can do nothing atl. ‘The Stormrider rides by at great speed and swings his sword ‘atone ofthe characters on the edge ofthe group. (If possible, have him strike Clobi, who is most likely to survive the attack) The Stormrider gets a +2 bonus to Atk and Dam for his superior12 position (mounted and racing by), and even if his blow is parried, its force will knock the target to the ground. Only the character attacked and those nearby can strike the Stormrider with melee ‘weapons, and all attacks against him are -2 because he moves by so quickly. The Stormrider laughs maliciously the whole time he rides past the characters, and may even taunt them. ‘Give yourself to me, brother. Iam too great for you."® Without pause, the Stormrider races nto the woodstothe right of the party and is gone. He holds no malice for the party, so he does not bother to destroy them. He is merely wandering around, causing damage at random while he slowly approaches Castle d’Uverre. The characters have one round to fire arrows at the ‘Stormrider as he flees, but it's hard shot through trees and wind, ‘Anyone aiming at the Stormrider must roll 15+ to hit. Anyone aiming at the horse must roll 13+ to hit. Anyone aiming at the two of them in general must roll 12+ (then roll adie: 1-6 hits the horse and 7-10 hits the Stormrider). For spells, the ease factor ranges from 6 to 12, depending on the spell. A Piercing Shaft of Wood is affected by wind and trees, so the ease factor would be 12to hit the ‘Stormrider, while the Earth’s Carbuncle is not affected by trees or ‘wind, and has large target (the horse), so it's ease factor is only 6. ‘Tomas might have a vision at the very moment that the Stormrider attacks. Tell him that he feels a vision coming, but that heknows he will be helplessly in a trance ifhe hasit. Hecan try to fight it off, orhhecan accept it. Ifhe fights it, hestill must make the rollforhavingit, butcan subtract from hisroll. I-hewantsto have it anyway, he gets a +3 to his roll because of the Stormrider’s presence. Ifhegetsa 12+ on his roll, then givehim the slip of paper with the “Storm” vision on it. He gets the normal chance to interpret the vision. If the characters (through some miracle) manage to put an end to the Stormrider here, have Sante Fabla appear and tell the Stormrider’s story, followed by the ending described at the end of thestory. Youshould probably fudgethedicetomakesurethat the ‘Stormrider escapes and allows the rest of the story to continue as laid out here. ‘You might want to remind Torlen to treat the wounded char- acter, if there is one. He can let the wounded character recover a ody level by making a Chirurgy + Int roll of 9+ (subtract the wound penalty of the character). Ifthe characters were disorgan- ized, remind Torlen that he feels responsible for coordinating a strategy for facing the Stormrider and thata plan would be useful. (He has the virtue Common Sense, so hints to him are perfectly legitimate) While characters have little choice but to continue to follow thehoofprints, thereis muchelse they can talkabout,ifonly to sharetheir ideas on whoand what the Stormrideris. Encourage them to have a council of war, to plan on what to do when they ‘meet the Stormrider again. ‘Things happened too quickly during the encounter for the characters to be able to get angry. The Stormrider simply rushed by. But for this next encounter the anger of the characters will make a big difference in the outcome of the battle. One of the ‘Stormrider’s powers is having double his normal Soak against anyone who is angry. Ifa characteris enraged by the Stormrider, they will do less damage. The characters will need to learn to control their own anger, if they are to hope to defeat him. ‘At this point, go from character to character and judge how ‘emotional that character is according to how they have been role- played. The players should have been guided by their personality rolls earlier, and may have been influenced by this last meeting Ars Magica with the legend. Don’t judge thecharacterson the overt emotional stateof the player; instead lookathow they role-played and decide ‘whether that suggests they are angry or not. The Baron’s Castle ‘Again the characters confront the Stormrider, this time as he is attacking Castle d’Uverre. He will fle from the characters across theriver, calling up water elementals to attack the party as he does Dominion: 2. Asthe group finally reaches thecastle, read them the following description: ‘You see the mighty castle of Baron d’Uverre looming over the river ‘ona rocky outcropping. The roof ofa building inside the wall ison fire, ‘and you hear the frantic shouts of people in the castle. Riding around the castle is the Stormrider, adarkcloaked figure riding a black horse dressed in armor of an outdated style, and carrying a lance whick has lightning flickering up and down its length. His coal-black horse not only lezoes {flaming hoofprints but snortsflamesas welt its spiral horns glisten in the light. The hoofprints already encircle the castle several times.* ‘Anyone who watches the horseand makesa Perception + Scan roll of 8+ will notice that: -The horse handles beautifully for the Stormrider, moving gracefully ‘with the slightest nudge, but it seems to have an evil, aggressive tempera ment. © ‘As the characters si atthe top of the hill looking down at the castle, give Tomas a chance to roll for a vision. He suffers a -2 penalty on his tress roll + Visions because of the Dominion (but he ‘may get other bonus for special actions, or for holding the scrap of cloth). Ifhe succeeds, give him the “Oedipus” vision. Fighting the Stormrider ‘The characters havea round or two to discuss the situation as, they watch the castle burn from the top of the hill. 1f Tomas having a vision, he stands completely still and stares into space. ‘They have the chance to get down out of sighton theside ofthe hill ‘opposite the castle. Then the Stormrider rides out from behind the fortress. If they have hidden themselves, the characters will have all the time they need to plan their actions, but if they are stil standing atop the hill, the Stormrider sees them and charges at them headlong, his lance crackling with lightning. (Ifthe charac- tershave hidden, he will chargethem oncethey show themselves) ‘Thecharacters will havea chanceto use missile weaponsasthe Stormrider approaches, though high winds make accuracy diffi cult. Ifthey have hidden and are firing at him by surprise, they get a free shot (and can takea round to aim, so they get +3 on the roll) ‘The Stormrider flees immediately if he is wounded in th battle, turning his steed and charging for the river. ‘The first round that he charges (or for the surprise shot), they ‘must roll 18+ to hit. Reduce this and all following ease factors by 2iifa character aims at the horse and by 3 for characters aiming at the horse and rider together (in which case you must roll another die: 1-6 hits the horse and 7-10 hits the rider). For spells, the targeting ease factor is anywhere from 9 to 15, depending on the spell and the target (horse, rider, or both.Jump Start Kit: the Stormrider Onthe second round, they must roll 12+, 0r 6+ 1094 forspels. ‘Then the Stormrider looses a bolt of lightning at one of the characters, probably an archer. He needs 9+ tohitat thisdistance (since wind does not affect the bolt’s accuracy.) (On the third round, they must roll only 9+, ora 3+ to 6+ for spells. Atthat point, heis nearly on top ofthecharacters. anyone has charged out to meet him, theycan fight thisone round. Then Sante Fabia appears behind the characters in sight of the Stormrider. Unableto face her, the Stormrider rears hishorse, turns and heads southeast for the river at top speed. The characters are unlikely to notice Sante Fabta at frst because they are paying attention to the Stormrider, buteach charactercan makean Alertness + errollof 6+ to notice light coming from behind them. Those who make the roll can turnin time to see Sante Fabia standing there, a woman of indeterminate age in white robes, sporting a halo and holding three roses in her right hand. Just as afew characters catch sight of her, she disappears. ‘The characters can fire on the Stormrider as he eaves, but he calls up a swirling wind (the characters will see a huge whit! of mist) behind him, so characters need to roll 18+ to hit him, or 12+ to 15+ with spells. ‘Then the Stormrider reaches the river. The River, Once Again ‘The Stormrider will ideacross the river, hishorse gallopingon top of the water. The horse's hooves leave a line of large steam clouds, from whicha number of water elementals form. Afterthey are defeated, a way must be found over the river. ‘The Stormrier seems to hesitale for a moment, but suddenly he lashes at his horse and moves towards the flooded river. Then ke simply rides his horse tothe bank and begins to cross over — on top ofthe water As the Stormrider gallops across the river, large clouds of steam rise up from wherever his black steed steps, and slowly, from each steaming Fhoofprint, green misshapen arms rise up out of the water. Give the character one more chance to do something — fire arrows (a 17+ tohit, theswirling windsare gone) orcast spells (11+ to 14+ to hit). They can attempt to shoot at the creatures in the water, difficulty of 19+, and -3 to damage because the water will probably slow down most shots, or 12+to 16+ and-3damage with spells. ‘The Stormrider disappears into the woods that cover the foothills of [Mt. Tierné,and the arms inthe river slowly sink ack beneath the surface Baron D’Uverre ‘As the characters cross the field toward the river where the ‘Stormrider has fled, an enormous man in chain mail and a plumed helmet rides out of the castle gate with throe well-armed knights and approaches the characters. He takes off his helmet, and they see the mane of white hair and the embroidered eyepatch that ‘mark him as Baron d’Uverre. The Baron thanks them, and then asks them who they are and where they are from: + “Thank you for driving away that mad creature, Tisa shame, that hedid fle, Together I think we could have slain kim onceand forall. But 13 do not understand why he came here again, and what he wants from me. If questioned about what he knows about the Stormrider, the Baron will say: "He's a creature of dark passion. He has come tothe castle before, ofcourse. My grandfather used to tll me ofthe day the Rider came down {from the sky and slew his grandfather infront ofthe caste gates. He has ‘come tothe castle three times since, and each time he shouts challengesand screams threats.* If asked about what the Stormrider said, or if he is questioned further about what occurred, the Baron will say: "He kept yelling up atthe walls, ‘Come down you cowardly knave! Come down and face me!’ He also shouted other things, but Ido not understand what he meant by thems.” © ‘After the characters ask him to continue, he tells them: "He sai, ‘Tis your turn now brother, come and face me. You had no right tosteal her from me; she was all had. You took everything from me, everything.” Heis, ofcourse, mad. Sucka creature could not be ofthe dUverre family”® If the characters ask for help crossing the river, the Baron will tell them that there are boats at a dock near the castle. The characters are welcome to use one. If they ask for help in tracking the Stormrider down, the Baron says thatall hismen areneeded to fight the fires that the Stormrider started. Unless the characters haveimportant thingsto say orask, the Baron willsoon thankthem for their help and return to his castle to fight the firesand assess the damage. As the characters approach the river to cross it, the river trolls will attack them. The River Trolls When more than three people get nearer than ten fet from the river, the river trolls (whose arms they saw earlier) will come out of the water toattack them. (This means that the characters cannot cross the river in the boat until they have dealt with the troll, because the trolls will attack them at the dock.) *# You see the bulbous heads of many hideous troll-lke creatures pop up from the water, scattered clumps of weeds serving as hair. They begin 10 crawl from the water towards you. You notice that they clutch large rocks in either hand. They aren't here fora party. ‘Though these creatures look loathsome enough, they should rot be difficult for the characters to deal with, for when they are struck with edged weapons, they break open and turn back into water. ‘Thecharacters will haveone round to fire missiles or use spells before the first trolls close with them, but then the melee begins in ‘earnest. On the first round, eight trolls will attack the characters, followed by another cight the next round. If the characters are doing exceptionally well in these first rounds, you can throw a third wave of trolls at them, but you don’t want to do so much, damage that the characters will not be up to a climactic battle against the Stormrider at the end of thestory. The rolls pop when hit by edged weapons, but the water that results soon floods the battlefield. Atan appropriate time in the fight, announce that the water from the dead trolls has made the bank so slick that every- ‘one must roll an extra botch after rolling a 0. The trols, at least ly, will have the advantage of numbers, and the characters14 will have to fight quickly to reduce the trolls’ numbers to a ‘manageable size. If more than one troll attacks a single opponent, use these rules: ‘The defender must split up the Defense score among the attackers, with a separate roll for each. (E-g. Clobi could split his +45 Def into +2, +2, and +1 to protect himself against three oppo- nents) To make matters worse, the trolls get +1 to Attack and Damage for each troll attacking a single opponent (if there are at least two), so those three trolls attacking Clobi would each get +3 toAtkand Dam. Asyoucan see, outnumbering an opponent isan ‘excellent strategy. The Last Push ‘Tocrossthe river, thecharacterscan useoncoftheboats docked near the castle (hopefully after the trolls have been dealt with). Also, there are two trees standing on opposite sides ofthe river 50 paces downstream that Caeron can form into a bridge with his ‘Twist the Living Tree spell. Make crossing the river swiftand easy (unless the trolls haven’t been dealt with yet). The pace picks up at this point, and to slow things down with pointless details could ‘dampen the excitement. ‘Once they get to the other side ofthe river, Tomas, of course, hasachance to havea vision. Ifherollsa 12+, givehim the "Young Boy” vision. Afterthe vision ask thecharactersifthey continuetofollow the flaming hoofprints. Ifso, describe how they make their way upthe foothills *You slowly and torturously follow the flaming hoofprints, till you reach a point where you can look back over the valley. The storm has abated somewhat, and you can even see Mistridge to the southwest. ‘Above you, however, on the higher slopes of Mount Tierné the storm sill rages. Iffact, on a hill alittle to your righ it appears as ifthe storms is lashing out rather fiercely. © Sante Fabia As they walk up the foothills of Mount Tierné, following the flaming tracksof the Stormrider, they meet up with theStormrider’s ‘would-be lover (the one in all of Tomas’s visions), who turns out to the be none other than Sante Fabia. Dominion: 5 Describe tothe troupe how they hike up the foothills of Mount Tierné, and then describe the small grove of pines they see off to their let “Toyour left, youseea grove ofpine trees. This would not beunusual, excep for the light that shines down on them through an opening inthe storm clouds. The sunlight dances upon the tops of those green boughs in a dramatic contrast tothe grayness of the morning around you. # Have Tomas make a Perception rollfhe gets 7+, tell him that this is definitely the grove he saw in his visions (assuming he had. the Grove of Pines or the Rage vision). Ifthey walktothe grove, they find ita welcome respite fromthe fury ofthe winds and the rain. Inside the grove, it still rains, but it isa gentle, warm rain, and the pure evergreen smell ofthe pines fills the air. In the middle ofthe grove ‘isa small open glade with a small stone altar inthe center surrounded by Ars Magica rose bushes. Roughly constructed of mountain rocks piled one on op of ‘nother, the altar hasa simple and unaffected beauty. A wooden cross sticks up from itand thre roses lia its base.» (Once the characters have had time to look around a itl, tell them they see the ruinsofa stonecottagcat the frend ofthe glade. Ifanyone puts three roses on top ofthe altar, Sante Fabia will appear before them. ‘Before you stands a woman, where oly an instant before there was ro one. Sh is dressed ina long white dress, she caries thre red roses, and therearescurson her lft chek. Overherhead ther hangsahalo, You are struckby her gentle but determined stare. Shes looking directly at yous Tomas will immediately recognize her as the woman in his visions, she who befriended “him,” and Clobi recognizes her as Sante Fabia, to whom he is devoted. She addresses all the people in the party equally, focusing no special attention on the magi, Tomas, or Clobi. She says to them: * This has gone on to0 long. The boy I once knew is gone, and in his place sa beast. He has much rage within him, and it has destroyed him. The horror and destruction which he spreads must stop; and though you ‘have theangeras well it must he you who stophim. Nothing canbedone, but toend hs struggle. Pease gto him now, and send hi to me. Send hime to me. Twill be waiting, “When you se im, tell him this: it was mothe who Killed me, it was the storm. Though it was his anger tha caused the storm, he did not do the deed." ‘After saying this she disappears. After the blessed saintleaves,everyonein he group gainsback a levelof fatigue, whether t is shortorlongterm. Tellanyone who prayed at either her shrine in the valley or at this one, or who showed Sante Fabiaany sort of special devotion, that they arecom- pletely healed ofall wounds and that they areno longer weary (ll body and fatigue levels restored. Tomas missed one or more visions during the story, let him ‘experience one of them now, without having to rol for it. He will, have to roll normally forthe interpretation. ‘When the characters decide to continue with their limb say The remainder of your climb is uneventful. After another half an hour of hiking, you reach the fot ofthe hill where the storm still ingers — the culmination of your journey. As you lookup atthe hill you see lightning forking from the ground tothe sky. You have found him; soon you will meet facet face. Stormrider’s Last Stand This is the climactic scene of the story, and it is here that the characters finally are able to confront the Stormrider. Depending ‘ontheir mood and actions, they can slay theStormriderina vicious battle, dispatch him as a final act of mercy, or convince him to dis- ‘mount and come with them to see Sante Fabia. As you reach the top ofthe hill, ou se the Stormrider screaming up ‘at the clouds aboce him, still astride his horse. Around him lie scores of trees, all of them either uprooted or snapped in half like twigs. Branches ‘and leaves lie everywhere, creating a scene of such destruction that i is hard to imagine, * There are three different possible outcomes for this scene, depending on how the characters decide to approach it.Jump Start Kit: the Stormrider 1) Ie the characters are angry and attack the knight, he will ‘become the Stormrider in rounds and begin to attack them. The characters will have quite a battleon their hands. The Stormrider will use every trick in the book to slay them, and will probably ‘encircle them with the flaming hoofprints in order to make sure they tay angry and not completely rational. Ifacharacterisangry, donotgive them any timeto thinkormakedecisions —forcethem to.act as soon as you ask what they are doing. Allow characters ho are not angry, to make plans and speak with other non- emotionalcharacters. ThoughtheStormrider willnotleavethetop ofthe hill ifthe characters are dead or have run away, he will ly ‘upto the clouds on his evil steed —to return another day. Ifthey {all him, his horse will leap into the air and fly up tothe storm clouds above. An immense storm will ensuea minute later —the characters only havea short timeto get offthe top ofthe ill before the lightning really begins to crash. 2) If the characters attack the Stormrider, but do so in cold blood without feelings of revenge and rage in their hearts, they haveancasierimeofit. They willnotactuallybattletheStormrider, ‘but willcombat his mortal selfinstead —Fallemon. Thoughhehas, special powersovertheelementsto employ against them, his heart will not bein it, and of course he will not have the strength and stamina of the Stormrider to sustain him. As the characters, prepare to give their fina blow tothe Stormrider, he will take off his helmet and say, "is time; do the ded." And with that he will die. If they do not strike him, he will attempt to fll on their sword or will grab a dagger and stab himself, As hedies his steed willimmediately lap intothe airand fly towards the storm clouds. A huge storm will begin soon afterwards. 3) Ifthey try to speak with him, they can persuade him to get off his horse. He can be persuaded to listen if they say or do a number of different things. First, if they do not behave aggres- sively towards him he will remain in his human form — this is ‘essential if they wish to convince him to set aside his anger. Second, if they tellhim hedid notkill Fabia, i will help him resolve some of his felings about himself, and he will calm down. Third, they must somehow persuade him that it is time to let go, that he hasno reason to be angry anymore. Let them try almost anything, andas ongas they are forthrightand direct, whateverthey try will likely succeed. Ifthey aretoo obviousabout trying to gethim todo as they want, he will probably become angry. Ifthe Stormrider does begin to listen to what they have o say, his horse will bogin to paw the ground and snort flame. If he ac- tually does get off of the horse it pushes him aside (afterall when, he's not the Stormrider, he's an old man) and attacks the charac- ters. A battle will then ensue with the Storm elemental — which is in the form ofa horse. ‘When the characters kill the evil steed, its shadow will dance off, accompanied by the crack of thunder. ‘The characters can see this strange shadow riseto join the storm cloudsabove. But t will leave behind its spiral horns — worth 10 Auram viseach. (Thisis the reward for figuring out the story, and battling the true enemy, and not simply a pitiful victim of his own anger) ‘The characters should take the Stormrider to the mountain shrine to sce Sante Fabia. See the Denouement section below. If they do not take him to the shrine he will soon die, if not of his wounds then ofhisdecrepitude, for until nowt was his anger that has kept him alive. 15 In conducting the battle, you are mostly on your own. You have had most of this story laid out for you, but now you must think about how you are going to conduct this battle. Use some of theidieas we used carlierin the kit, and come up with some of your ‘own. It is up to you to make it interesting. Carefully read the description of the Stormrider, especially the powers he has when, he is no longer the Stormrider. Then figure out a way to give the battlea litle flavor. Some things which we suggest you use are: + Extra botch rolls because of the terrain (felled trees every- where) and the weather. * If the characters make Fallemon angry in any way, he will, overthecourseoftwo rounds, again takethe form ofthe Stormrider. Only ifthey come to him in the most unpassionate of ways will he fight them as his normal self. « Ifyour players really don’t wanta battle, but want to resolve problem entirely peaceably, make it easier for them to per- suade Fallemon to dismount and see Sante Fabfa, When he does so, the mount attacks, but Fallemon fights it as well. It will be a quick battle with Fallemon and the characters victorious. + IfLorineusesherfather’sbroadsword tobattletheStormrider, and shes still fullof vengeance, she gets +1 toher attack and +2to hher damage. This is due to the mystical significance of poetic justice. (This isan inherently magical world, remember?) When the Stormrider dies however, the sword will crack, and will thereafter be unusable. Denouement Ifthe characters take Fallemon down to the mountain shrine, Sante Fabia will appear, even ifthey only bring his corpse. She will thankthe characters and then bend to comfort the man. Butas she tends to him, she will explain to them who the Stormrider is, her relationship with him, and will answer any questions that shecan. From her pointof view, the Stormrider wasa confused boy who had powers that he was neither wise nor strong enough to use ‘without harming himself. His anger got the better of him, he lost control, and from his anger his magic flowed. It was his magical rage that destroyed him, and for her partin it she is sorry. She did rot mean to confuse him, or to let him think that she ever looked ‘upon him in but the most chaste of ways. She thinks that the ‘wizards have the same problem as Fallemon did; they are not wise enough to control their magical powers. She pities them as she pities the decrepit Stormrider lying in her arms. IfFallemon is still alive, hedies ofold age orof his wounds here atthe shrine—hereatthe place wherehe first went intoa rageover Fabia. If you want to be very poetic, you can describe what happens as he dies. * The old man opens his eyes, smiles upat Fabia, and whispers, “lam rot angry anymore.” His face goes slack and you hear a low rattle from his throat, he is dead. Slowly from his supine body you see his shade rise upand touck the hand of Fabia. Hand and hand with Fabia, he begins to climb up in the air, never giving a backward glance. They climb higher «and higher, buoyed up by alight coming dou from the sky. Finally, they disappear througha sunlit crackin the clouds, an brilliant opening inthe _grayness ofthe sky that suggests the gateway to Heaven itself. After they ‘are gone, it begins to drizzle again, but you se that where the t20 of them ‘walked in the air, a rainbow slowly forms.* ‘The characters then return to Mistridge and celebrate their victory (or lick their wounds, if they have failed). Speed through,16 the description ofthis return and simply describe the grogson the covenant walls hailing them heartily as they walk the path up to the gate, meoting them in the courtyard, and helping them take off their packs and armor. But when they got back tothe covenant they have to decide ‘What they will do about Grimgroth. Grimgroth’s famous treatise calls the Stormrider an elemental, but he was actually a magical human. Do they embarrass him, or do they keep the identity ofthe Stormridera secret? IfCaeron keepshis mouth shut, he will make himselfa friend of Grimgroth for life —and perhaps of Lucienne as well. Ifyou plan to use the characters in your saga, orifyou simply want to demonstrate more rules fr the characters, take some time to discuss reputations. Have the players talk about what their characters are likely to remember about the other characters. Will they remember Cacron as “haughty” or Lorineas “fiery?” lfthey ‘an come to a consensus, give the characters appropriate reputa- tions. Reputation locales could be “among the magi,” “among the ‘0gs” oF “Mistridge,” and so on. Then think back to important nomplayer characters and give the player-characters any other reputations they may have picked up. Theapprentice who di the most talking to Baron d’Uverre, for example, might get a reputa- tion at his castle. See p. 28 in Ars Magica.) Then explainand hand out experience: 3 pointsfor theappren- tices,2for companions, and I for grogs. Tellhe players they only put experience on abilities which they used at some point during the story (but not necessarily made a roll using it). Remind the ‘ones playing the apprentices that they cannot use experience points to increase their arts, but they can increase their affinities (See Ars Magica p32) The Never-Ending Story The characters used in this Jump Start Kit can actually be used by theplayers when you begin the saga, if youare going touse Mis- Ars Magica tridge. Lucienneand Caeron will both become full magi beforethe next adventure, and, if used by someone in the troupe, they will have ined Mistridge covenant. Ifyou want to use Mistridge with your own characters, Lucienne and Caeron will go elsewhere and ibecome non-player characters, perhaps taking the others with them. If the characters remain in the covenant, be careful that the ‘competition created in this story does not endanger or seriously ide the covenant as the saga progresses. Encourage the players to bury their differences and develop their characters towards some semblance of friendship. After all, they did survive the ‘Stormrider together. Ifa serious schism remains after two more stories, have the older magi at Mistridgeintervene;itisnot in their interests to have the younger magi as well as the covenfolkat each others’ throats. If push comes to shove, they will go as far as banishing the two trouble makers. In this story, a great deal has occurred and the characters have ‘met a number of figures of great importance in the valley — the Baron d’Uverre, Sante Fabia, and the Stormrider himself. One temptation you may have is to make the stories you run after this one justas grandiose. This isthe firs story inasaga,and soitstarts theplayersout witha bang. Allatoncethey areintroduced to some of the leading individuals and myths of Val du Bosque. For your next story, you should tone down the intensity level as much as you dare, and makethe whole setting much more mundane. You ‘can slowly build up from there, creating a saga with as much mythical resonanceand magical mightas suits youand thetroupe. But if you let the saga get out of control from the start you'll never be in control again. Remember, mundanity gives scope to the magnificent. ‘We hope you enjoyed reading this story, as much as we enjoyed writing it — for us it was a completely different kind of adventure. Itis our hope that you find ita source of ideas as well as, perhaps, inspiration. But don't just read this story, tel it. ‘Adventures can be more than we ever imagined. Feel free to write us with any comments or criticism; we'd love to hear from you. PAX! Credits Story Design: Mark Reins Hagen Development Jonathan Tweet, Lisa Stevens Character Design: Jonathan Tweet Cover Art: Doug Schuler Tile Design: Todd Berreth Interior Art: Exc Hote ‘Cartography: Jonathan Tweet John Nephew Editing: Lisa Stevens Nichole Lindroos John Nephew Jonathan Tweet ‘Art Coordination: John Nephew Lay-Out: Kirsten Swingle Jonathan Tweet [Nicole Lindroos ‘Special Thanks to: Darin “Woody Eblom, Derek Greco, Doug Jones, Michael Lach, Joel Wegnet and the staff ofthe Carleton College ‘Computer Center. Playtesters: Toda Berreth, Marty Dennis, Nils Dybvig, Woody Eblom, Derek Greco, Kris Hagen, Steve Halligan, Robin Jenkins, Chris Kempke, Chad Lindroos, Nicole Lindroos, John Nephew, Tim Rozycki, Lisa Stevens, Kirsten Swingle, Jonathan Tweet, Buddy Wiese, and a ‘slew of people at Origins 89 Lion Rampant PO Box 621, Northfield, MN 55057 Dedicated to Jonathan Tweetiets oo ure O f phen fits anveris.¢3 e e =