Reactions

Not every magus is going to congratulate a menagerie's owner. Driven by jealousy, revenge, ill-temper, past slights, or other resentments, some magi may despise the menagerie and its owner. The degree to which such a magus acts against

the menagerie varies. A magus mindful of his Hermetic Oath will do nothing more than slander the owner, unless he is willing to declare Wizard's War. Legally, a magical menagerie should be considered the property of the owner and protected by the Code of Hermes. Tampering with a menagerie is a crime. However, magical menageries are likely a new idea in most tribunals, and few have enough experience with them to have legal precedents. While protected, the question is to what degree. Is stealing a magical chicken as legally wrong as stealing a maga's chicken familiar? Probably not. The punishment could be no more severe than a slap on the wrist.

For those willing to illegally interfere, there are many ways to wreak ruin on a menagerie, and every step that the owner undertook to construct a menagerie can be undermined. Barns can be burned, livestock let loose, feed fouled, and pets poisoned. An enemy does not have to act personally; staff can be bribed to do great damage without the magus ever setting foot in the menagerie. Considering the time and stories necessary to construct a menagerie, the storyguide is almost guaranteed that some magus somewhere feels slighted or threatened by the menagerie, and his revenge could be the source of many stories.

A magus who wishes to remain within the law can always declare Wizard's War against the menagerie's owner. His intent could be to destroy the menagerie, instead of killing the owner. If the maga is weak and unable to stand against the attacking magus, she will be hard-pressed to protect her menagerie. In a Wizard's War, her property is a fair target. She could ask for help. Will other magi be willing to step in and assist her, willingly placing themselves between the menagerie and a legal attacker? Attacking the attacker is a breach of an ally's Oath of Hermes. How does an ally manage helping the maga and not break his Oath? Perhaps the maga decides to go into hiding for the length of the Wizard's War and take her menagerie with her. A storyguide could construct a story that revolves around the maga leading her herd of magical animals in a desperate escape from a more powerful Hermetic aggressor.

It is true that magi are individuals, and their behavior is not determined by their House. With that in mind, here are some suggestions on how some magi might react, deriving their response from their House, rather than their personalities:

• • A Tytalus magus considers it a supreme challenge to create a persona so convincing that he can freely mix with the menagerie staff, and ultimately fool the magical beasts themselves. Taming and training a magical beast under the very nose of its owner is his goal.
• • A powerful Merinita archmagus takes

great affront at the sale of magical animals for familiars, saying that it perverts the emotional bond between magus and beast, decreasing the beast's honor and heightening the magus' weak character for refusing to find his familiar in the wild.

• • A trio of Flambeau hunters sees the menagerie as depleting the stock of their favorite quarry, and wants the animals released immediately. They promise to take matters into their own hands if their demand is not granted.
• • A confraternity of Verditius magi claims that the sale of a certain beast that mimics the enchantment of their preferred magical devices is threatening their livelihood, and promise to take the claim to the next tribunal if

+5 freedom from restraints