Untitled - The Secrets of the Mind & Body Shaping

messiah. A kerykes wishing to join the
eumolpids must have a Huntress Lore of
3, and her Initiation grants the Mystery
of Hermetic Theurgy (see The Mysteries
Revised Edition). Eumolpids who prove
themselves loyal to the Huntress and
who further its goals may also be Initiated
into the Mysteries of Names of Power
and Invocation Magic (both described in
The Mysteries Revised Edition), learning the
names of powerful nature-oriented deities
such as Demeter and Kore.
initiation to tHe rank of
euMolPid and tHe Mystery
of HerMetic tHeurgy
Ease Factor: 15 (Minor Virtue known
to the Mystagogue)
Script Bonus: +12
Script Details: On the Ides of August,
the Initiate must either bathe in the waters
of Lake Nemi (in the Roman Tribunal) or
anoint the statue of Diana at Epheseus
(in the Theban Tribunal) with sacred oil
(+3), and must receive a mystical mark
that forever alienates him from the fae
(Supernatural Nuisance Flaw, +9).
HieroPHants
The three hierophants of the
Huntress, who lead the cult, are elected
by the eumolpids. One is always a priestess
of Diana, a second is always a priestess
of Ceres. The third can be either male or
female, but is usually a priest of a pagan
god. Upon being chosen as a hierophant,
a magus is Initiated into the Mystery of
Hermetic Synthemata (see The Mysteries
Revised Edition) by the other two. This
Mystery is vital in the Huntress’s plans, as
with it they hope to be able to control the
messiah when they create him. During the
rite, the Initiate reveals her identity to the
other two hierophants; thus, the senior
hierophant always knows the identity of
the other two, whereas the junior knows
the identity of neither of the others.
The hierophants guard an Initiation
Script for the innermost Mystery of the
cult, Ascendancy to the Hall of Heroes
(see The Mysteries Revised Edition, Chapter
9: Hermetic Theurgy). Once the pagan
messiah has been chosen from amongst
the kerykis, he will prove himself by slay-
Mystery Cults
ing Quendalon, earning in the process
the blessing of Diana, and become the
focus of veneration by the eumolpids as
he reforms the Order of Hermes.
initiation to tHe rank of
HieroPHant and tHe Mystery
of HerMetic syntHeMata
Ease Factor: 15 (Minor Virtue known
to the Mystagogue)
Script Bonus: +7
Script Details: The Initiate is stripped
naked (Sacrifi ce of anonymity, +1). The
Initiate must then track, chase, and bring
down one of Diana’s sacred white stags
in a single day (+3); cloaked in the skin
of the stag she must discover her secret
name, which she gives to the other hierophants
(a Minor Ordeal as described
under the Secret Name Mystery, +3).
initiation to tHe rank of cHosen
of diana and tHe Mystery of
ascendancy to tHe Hall of Heroes
Ease Factor: 30 (Major Virtue
unknown to the Mystagogue)
Script Bonus: +24
Script Details: The Initiate must
undergo a unique Quest to fi nd Quendalon
in Arcadia and slay him (+6). This is
followed by the Sacrifi ce of everything
that he owns or has made
or written in his life as a magus
(+6), and a ritual blinding by the
hierophants (Major Ordeal, +9)
in the presence of
Diana herself
(+3).
The
Magic
of House
Bjornaer
House Bjornaer are as magically
diverse as any other House, although
they do show a distinct bias towards
Muto magic, despite their unease about
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shapechanging. It is believed that magi
of House Bjornaer commonly have a
Defi ciency in Ignem Magic because of
the association of fi re with civilization, a
thing that beasts instinctively fear. This
slander is widespread throughout the
Order, although at least since the Schism
War, it has not been true; some Bjornaer
magi fi nd this accusation insulting.
A follower of House Bjornaer is likely
to have some connection between his
heartbeast and his magic. At least some of
a magus’s spells mimic the mythic properties
ascribed to his heartbeast, or enhance
his natural abilities. Spells that allow him
to do things in animal form that he would
normally be only able to do in human
form are also very popular. Most Bjornaer
magi, for example, know (or are able to
spontaneously cast) Unseen Arm, Arm to
allow them
to open
doors and
turn the
pages of
b o o k s ;
w i t h
o t h e r
s p e l l s ,
many can
create a set
of clothes
for themselves
if they
travel a lot in
heartbeast form.
The members
of House Bjornaer
make much heavier
use of the magical
sense Targets than other
Houses, even those
who have
n o t
Initiated
t h e
S e n s o r y
Magic Virtue (see above). Their version of
Speak with the Living Flame, for example, is a
Range Personal, Target Hearing spell with
a free Mentem requisite, which interprets
the sound of the fi re into thoughts.
There are some spells known to House
Bjornaer that are not widely disseminated
in the Order, but are often found in the
personal libraries of members of House