The Fallen Temple of Mercury

Sources

The Vision of Hell and Heaven described in this chapter is based mostly on a Middle English poem called Sir Owain, written at the end of the thirteenth century by an anonymous author. It was based on the Tractatus of H., but changed the central character from an Irish monk into the eponymous Northumbrian knight. Details from the Tractatus were also used, along with other examples from the otherworld journey literature of the medieval period, such as the Visions of Tundal, Thurkell, and Gunthelm. The quotes come from Owayne Miles ("Knight Owain"), a later poem of the same story.

This Mythic Location is a ruined Cult of Mercury temple, hidden within a Magic regio. The temple complex is large — the size of a town — and it has lain ruined for centuries. The temple complex is haunted by memories of the long dead priests of Mercury and a number of laboratory texts for Mercurian rituals can be recovered from the ruins. Studying the texts, and repairing crucial parts of the temple complex, leads the player characters to forgotten powers...

The Roman Cult of Mercury, which tore itself apart in internal feuding as the Western Roman Empire collapsed, is well-known within the Order of Hermes. Many magi consider the cult a prototype for the Order of Hermes, and it is commonly thought that Bonisagus' discovery in the eighth century of a secret cache of Cult of Mercury rituals, near the Aventine Hill in Rome, was a crucial step in his development of the theory of Hermetic magic.

In 1220, many Houses in the Order of Hermes claim to know secrets that originate with the Cult of Mercury. For example, many of the few Gifted magi in House Mercere claim to actually be priests of Mercury, and the second Primus of House Guernicus (Fenicil) is said to have gathered a vast collection of Mercurian rituals, which are reputedly now kept in a secret trove at Magvillus.

There were many, many temples of the Cult of Mercury spread throughout the Roman Empire. This particular ruined temple was an unusually large complex because it was a training site and at times a headquarters for the Cult. However, note that this is not the Temple of Mercury (if such a thing could be even said to exist). It is just a temple of Mercury, which was sometimes an important cult center, and sometimes not. In terms of its relationship to the rest of the Cult of Mercury, it was equivalent to a single covenant within the Order of Hermes.

The history that follows is recorded on documents at the temple site itself.

A temple to Mercury was first constructed in this regio during the dying years of the Roman republic by Julius Caesar. Julius' temple was founded in 46 BC (a couple of years before his assassination) and he also stationed a small detachment of legionaries at the site. It is unclear whether Julius actually traveled to the site or merely ordered that the temple be constructed.

The extent of Julius' temple is unknown because in 32 BC, at the height of the civil war between Octavian and Anthony, Julius' temple was destroyed and the regio was abandoned. Later, in 11 BC, Augustus (Octavian's new name), who had recently taken the title Pontifex Maximus (high priest of the Cult of Jupiter), entered the abandoned temple regio through a newly constructed triumphal arch. In the regio, Mercurian priests invested Augustus with the title Antistes Mercuria (high priest of Mercury), and he immediately ordered the construction of a new, massive temple complex.

Augustus' reconstruction of the temple was completed in 3 AD. The title Antistes Mercuria was inherited by Tiberius in 14 AD, but it did not then pass to his heir, Caligula, and thus ceased to be an office of the Roman emperors in 37 AD. However, the temple continued to be one of the most important centers for the Cult of Mercury up until the civil war following the murder of the Emperor Commodus in 192 AD.

From 192 AD records are sparse as the temple appears to have declined in importance. Although the records do not mention the reason, it is likely that the priests at the temple supported one of the factions defeated during the civil war by the eventually triumphant Septimius Severus. When, in 313 AD, the Emperor Constantine made Christianity the official state Roman religion the records cease; the temple seems to have been finally abandoned.

Characters could learn about the fallen temple of Mercury in the following ways:

The characters discover one (or more) of the following books which contain information about the temple of Mercury that was commissioned by Augustus. The characters inherit these books from a dead master, or discover them in an abandoned laboratory, or otherwise stumble upon them. The books could even be found in the hands of mundanes.

Fenicil, The Cult of Mercury (Tractatus, Organization Lore: Cult of Mercury, Quality 8). Contains a brief mention of the fact that Augustus commissioned a temple that became the cult center for a short time. This book was written in the ninth century AD. It's not very widely circulated in the Order and is unknown outside. Fenicil's source seems to be Athenaeus' Edicts of Augustus. Fenicil does not list the temple as one that he has recovered artifacts from. Of course, this doesn't mean that Fenicil didn't find the temple; maybe he wrote his book before finding the temple, or maybe he wanted to keep the temple's location secret.

Athenaeus, Edicts of Augustus (Tractatus, Civil and Canon Law (emperors), Quality 8). Notes the commissioning of the temple, the date of Augustus' investiture, and locates the Roman province Augustus traveled to for the investiture. This book was written in the second century AD. The book is not widely circulated in the Order, and is known of, but neither considered very important, nor widely circulated in scholarly legal communities. Athenaeus seems to have had access to a now lost archive of early imperial correspondence.

Various, The Annals of Mercury (Summa, Organization Lore: Cult of Mercury, Quality 10, Level 3). Contains a detailed history of the reconstructed temple from 11 BC until 192 AD, sketchy details of the original temple from 46 BC to 32 BC, and a few later entries that cease after 313 AD. This book was written by the priests of Mercury and a copy is located at the temple, but it is possible that another copy could be found elsewhere. As this book assumes that the reader is a priest at the temple, the temple location is not actually very clearly described. However, once a character has studied from the book for a season he can make an Intelligence + (appropriate) Area Lore roll against an Ease Factor of 12 to infer the likely location of the temple.

Mercere, Roman Astrological Correspondences of Mercury (Tractatus, Artes Liberales (astronomy), Quality 9). This book, supposedly written by the Founder Mercere, contains a horoscope for Augustus' investiture as a priest of Mercury. A character who knows the exact date of this investiture can use this horoscope to back-calculate the location of the temple (Intelligence + Artes Liberales (astronomy) roll against an Ease Factor of 9). The exact date is given in the Edicts of Augustus and in The Annals of Mercury. This book is rare, but it is known of outside the Order.

While in a church the player characters notice that one of the wall carvings curiously depicts the Roman god Mercury waiting behind a kind of archway. Inspection reveals the stone carving is in a different style to others in the church, which all illustrate biblical scenes. In fact, the carving is a piece of the triumphal arch that leads to the temple of Mercury (see later), which has been recovered and reused on the church.

Do the player characters realize the significance of this find? Do the church records note where the stones for the church came from? The stone source may be close by and known of by the parishioners. Perhaps an Intellego Terram spell can reveal the history of the curious stone carving.

What is Known about the Fallen Temple of Mercury?

Characters with the Organization Lore: Order of Hermes, or Cult of Mercury or Roman Empire or similar have some knowledge of the Temple of Mercury. This includes almost all magi.

Known by All

The Cult of Mercury is common knowledge within the Order of Hermes. Practically every magus knows that the Cult of Mercury existed in the Roman empire and effectively disappeared when the western part of the Roman empire collapsed in the late fifth century AD. It is also common knowledge, within the Order of Hermes, that Bonisagus based some of his magic theory on Mercurian rituals for which he found texts in Rome.

Widely Known

It is widely known, within the Order of Hermes that Augustus ordered the construction of a large temple of Mercury, and that this temple was for a number of years the headquarters of the Cult of Mercury. Characters with a special interest in the Cult of Mercury (such as Seekers, the Guernicus guardians of Fenicil's rituals, and Mercere priests of Mercury) have a +1 bonus to this roll.

Uncommon Knowledge

Much of this information is contradictory. The contradictions should suggest to the characters that some information is wrong, but is not clear which is wrong. Characters with a special interest in the Cult of Mercury (such as Seekers, the Guernicus guardians of Fenicil's rituals, and Mercere priests of Mercury) have a +3 bonus to this roll.

• The temple was only occupied for a few decades.
• The temple housed the leaders of the Cult of Mercury up until the fall of the western empire.
• The temple is still functional and inhabited by a vestige of the original Mercurian priesthood.
• The temple was destroyed during a Roman civil war.
• The temple was in Rome and was actually the site discovered by Bonisagus, near Aventine Hill.
• Fenicil (or his agents) discovered and looted the temple in the early years of the Order.
• Harco, the House Mercere domus magna, is constructed on top of the temple ruins.
• There are portals that link to Augustus' temple.
• There are books that contain information that may be used to locate the temple (The Cult of Mercury, Edicts of Augustus, The Annals of Mercury, and Roman Astrological Correspondences of Mercury; see Curious Books, later).

Lost Secrets

The location of the temple is a lost secret, but it is possible that magi have already discovered its location. If the storyguide chooses, a character may already know this, and either know the location himself or know who has discovered the site.

If other magi already know the location of the temple, it is possible that other Hermetic magi may occupy (or at least claim) the site. This is beyond the scope of this material.

A pagan player character receives a vision of the abandoned temple of Mercury and, standing within, a headless statue of Mercury. The vision either indicates a route to the temple, or hints about books that can reveal the location.

Does the character follow up on the vision? What do his Christian colleagues think? Do the visions increase in urgency if the character delays?

The player characters discover an ancient, functioning Mercurian portal which leads to a quiet meadow scattered with bits of ruined stone architecture. There is a faint Magic aura (level 1) in the area.

This is the ruined triumphal arch (see later). Do the player characters recognize what the ruins are? Can one of the characters see into the temple regio? The portal only leads in one direction; can the characters find their way back to the covenant?

The ruined temple complex is in a regio. The regio is entered by passing through the triumphal arch (see later). The arch is itself ruined and must therefore be repaired before the regio can be entered.

When the original temple was founded by Julius Caesar, Rome either controlled or was in contact with most of Mythic Europe. The temple can be easily located within the territory of the late Roman Republic which includes most of the Greater Alps, Iberian, Levant, Normandy, Provençal, Roman, and Theban Tribunals, and (outside the normal territory of the Order), parts of North Africa. The temple might be located along an old Roman road or near a city that was originally a Roman colony. It may even be within an old Roman settlement, perhaps even Rome itself.

However, in your saga the temple does not really need to be within the normal frontiers of the late Roman Republic. In your saga, perhaps Rome expanded more quickly or in a different way. It is also entirely plausible for the temple to be a forward expeditionary camp or colony well beyond conventional Roman settlement, particularly if there are (or were) portals linking it with Rome and other locations.

Choose a place that makes sense for your saga.

The Romans constructed stone triumphal arches over the major entrances to towns and, in large cities, over the entrance ways to important civic spaces, such as forums, and over the intersections of important roads. Triumphal arches were dedicated to generals (or later the emperor) responsible for important military campaigns, and were usually illustrated with carvings to remind the citizens who passed through the arch how glorious Rome and her leaders were.

The triumphal arch at the temple is quite simple and is sparsely adorned with only three carvings. One carving illustrates the naked god Mercury waiting behind a triumphal arch that Augustus (dressed as a Roman general) is entering. Another carving illustrates Augustus (as general) receiving a laurel wreath from Mercury. The third carving shows Augustus (dressed in the hooded toga of a priest) sacrificing a bull in front of a temple. Traditionally, this last image illustrates the victorious emperor making a sacrifice in front of the Capitoline temple in Rome, but the appearance of this temple is wrong, suggesting that another temple is depicted. This detail can be noticed by a Perception + Organization Lore: Roman Empire roll against an Ease Factor of 6.

The arch structure is made of stone and when complete it stands about 25 feet high, 20 feet deep and 35 feet wide. There is a single passage through the middle of the arch. The internal ceiling of the passageway is 15 feet high and 15 feet wide. Above the passageway, the arch attic is solid stone. The carvings are three large panels on the front face of the attic.

The arch is currently lying in pieces, partially obscured by undergrowth and trees.

The area around the ruined triumphal arch, extending for about 100 paces, has a Magic aura of 1. The regio behind the triumphal arch has a Magic aura of 5. To enter the regio a character must merely walk through the passageway of the arch, but for this to be effective the arch must be rebuilt. Merely being able to see into the regio is insufficient to enter this regio: the arch must be present. However, any character who can see into the regio (see ArM5, page 189) realizes that it is necessary to rebuild the arch and has an idea of what the arch should look like (as in the regio the complete arch can be seen).

The important criteria for the arch are the astrological position, orientation, and shape of the arch. This can be calculated by any character who can see into the regio with a successful Intelligence + Artes Liberales (astronomy) roll against an Ease Factor of 9. The exact construction material of the arch is irrelevant, although the characters might not realize this. If a character does realize the irrelevancy of the arch material he has the option of rebuilding the original arch or constructing a new one. A cunning magus might consider devising a nonritual Creo Terram effect to create a suitable arch. Such a spell means that the magus can cheaply create the regio entrance, as required, without leaving a permanent entrance for others to use. An arch created of exotic material (such as bone, ice, smoke, flames, and so on) is also effective.

Passing through the arch, and into the temple regio (magic aura of 5), characters enter what is effectively a Roman town. The town is uninhabited and ruined although, eerily, it is not very badly damaged. A few buildings appear damaged by fire and others appear to have been torn into rubble by powerful and violent forces. Parts suffer from storm and water damage. However, in other buildings wooden floors and furniture still survive.

The town is laid out in a regular grid. The triumphal arch is at the southern end of a wide north-south street. The street is paved, about 5 paces wide, and has a slight slope up towards the center of its width (allowing rain to drain into shallow culverts along either side of the street). This street, the Decumanus, is 500 paces long and perfectly straight. At the center of the town the street is bisected by a similarly sized street, the Cardus, running east-west.

The intersection of these two main streets divides the town into four quarters. Each quarter is further divided into smaller blocks, 25 blocks (5 by 5) to a quarter (for a total of 100 blocks). Each of these small blocks is separated from its neighbors by a narrow alleyway about 1 pace wide. Most blocks have a three-story building (an insula) built on them. The insulae are each divided into a dozen or more apartments. Near the center of the town, with entrances along the main streets, ten blocks are instead each occupied by a large single storied house (a domus). The nine blocks in the northwest corner are occupied by a small amphitheater. In the center of town are several large buildings: the temple to Mercury, a bath complex, an open forum, several warehouses, a granary, and a domed basilica. An aqueduct enters the town at the eastern end of the Cardus and a system of fountains and channels carry water to most parts of the town. Very large channels carry water to the basilica and bath complex. The aqueduct is dry.

The town occupies the entire regio and it wraps around itself, so a character who leaves the town on the eastern side merely finds himself entering again on the western side. The exception is the triumphal arch at the south end of the Decumanus; passing through this leads back to the mundane world. The arch in the regio is currently standing, and the condition of the arch in the mundane world does not matter. If the arch in the regio is destroyed it is impossible to leave the regio via this exit until the arch is replaced. The aqueduct contains an alternative exit (see later) and it is possible to use Leap of Homecoming type effects to exit (or enter) the regio regardless of the condition of the arches.

Insula

The 66 three story apartment blocks appear sufficient to house a total of at least 4000 people. Most are relatively undamaged by the passing centuries, and many contain furniture, decaying clothing suitable for men, women, and children, and even children's toys. The ground floors of the insulae seem to have been public spaces: communal kitchen and dining areas and shops. Each insula could comfortably house half a dozen Hermetic laboratories with plenty of living space for servants. However, there is no evidence that the insulae were used as laboratories by priests of Mercury.

In the north-western quarter, near the amphitheater, the insulae were occupied virtually exclusively by adult males and a number of weapons and pieces of armor are stored in some apartments. It is likely that these apartments, which are the most damaged in the town, were barracks for a garrison of legionnaires.

In the north-eastern quarter the insulae appear to have housed groups of individuals living in simply furnished communal rooms, segregated by gender. Shackle points mounted on the walls indicate that the inhabitants of these apartments were slaves.

Domus

These ten, single-storied houses are each based around a central courtyard with a narrow street entrance. The internal rooms each open up into the central courtyard, which contains a shallow pool fed by the aqueduct. Each pool is created in a slightly different shape, which remind characters of curiously antiquated Hermetic voting sigils. Each domus appears to have luxuriously housed a small number of people, and their servants. These were clearly the houses of the Mercurian priests (and perhaps also housed the ranking officials of the town). Each domus could comfortably house several magi with laboratories and space for grogs, but it seems that only a single Mercurian priest resided in each house.

Three of these houses have been burnt to the ground, all that remains are blackened stones and broken terracotta tiles. The other houses are largely undamaged, but all show signs of having being looted: forced padlocks on chests, smashed doors, and floors littered with shattered amphora.

Amphitheater

The amphitheater in the northwestern corner of the town is a circular arena surrounded by tiered stone seating. The seating at the southern end of the amphitheater has been shattered and the debris have been widely splayed throughout the town; several large chunks of stone have fallen through the roofs of the nearby barracks insula. Although any spell traces have long since decayed, to Hermetic investigators this looks very much as though a gigantic version of The Earth's Carbuncle targeted the amphitheater structure.

The arena floor is a wooden platform which has collapsed at the ruined southern end of the amphitheater. The collapsed floor reveals a labyrinth of passageways, cages, and trapdoors beneath the arena.

Story Seed: The Beast in the Maze

The labyrinth of cages and passages beneath the arena once housed lions, tigers, and other exotic beasts that were used to stage bloody arena battles. These are now all nothing but piles of bones and teeth, but one immortal arena beast remains. This magical gladiator-creature is a minotaur. The minotaur has forgotten his life before he was captured to fight in the arena, and even the functioning arena is now only a dim incoherent memory. Over the lonely centuries the minotaur has explored most the town, but he still makes his lair in the broken ruins of the labyrinth beneath the arena.

Maze Beast

Magic Might: 10 (Animal)

Season: Winter

Characteristics: Int –2, Per 0, Pre –1, Com –1, Str +6, Sta +2, Dex +3, Qik 0

Size: +2

Confidence Score: 1 (3)

Virtues and Flaws: Magic Human; Improved Characteristics, Tough, Puissant Ability (Great Weapon), Warrior; Magic Monster; Reclusive, Visions

Qualities: Gigantic, No Fatigue; Lesser Power, Personal Power (Sense of Self)

Personality Traits: Reclusive +3, Angry +1

Reputations: None

Combat:

Pole-axe: Init +1, Attack +21, Defense +13, Damage +14

Short-sword + Buckler: Init +1, Attack +16, Defense +12, Damage +11

Gore with Horns: Init 0, Attack +16, Defense +11, Damage +7

Soak: +5

Fatigue Levels: None, tireless.

Wound Penalties: –1 (1–7), –3 (8–14), –5 (15–21), Incapacitated (22–28), Dead (29+)

Abilities: Animal Handling 3 (arena beasts), Area Lore: Temple of Mercury 3 (arena), Athletics 4 (running), Awareness 5 (finding), Brawl 9 (gore), Dead Language: Latin 4 (archaic), Great Weapon 10 + 2 (pole axe), Hunt 5 (tracking), Living Language: Greek 4 (archaic), Magic Lore 2 (Mercury), Single Weapon 9 (short sword), Stealth 5 (maze), Survival 5 (town)

Powers:

Bellow, 5 points, Init –10, Mentem: This anguished and lonely cry chills, dims, and quiets the mind of any who hear it. Affected characters have a –6 Penalty to any Quickness based roll (including combat Defense and Initiative). (Base 4, +2 Voice, +1 Diameter, +2 Group)

Sense of Self, 0 points, Init 0, Animal: This constant effect power allows the minotaur to always find his way from his current location to any other place he can remember. (Base 3, +2 Sun; +4 constant effect)

Equipment: Pole-axe, sword and buckler.

Encumbrance: 0 (3)

Vis: Two pawns of Animal vis; one in each horn.

Appearance: The maze beast is a bullheaded man, who carries a large battle axe. He has lost the memory of his past. His name, his original home, his lover; it is all misty and obscure. His sleep is plagued by broken, incoherent visions of loud arena fights and of the town when it was filled with bustling Romans.

The minotaur is lonely but frightened when the player characters enter the regio. He has not seen a living soul for centuries. How he reacts to the player characters is uncertain. If matters do not escalate to violence he may make a good covenant servant.

Forum

The forum is a large open-roofed rectangle, with a floor of large marble flagstones, and surrounded on all sides by a columned corridor. This was a meeting area and market place. The northern end contains a raised pulpit. The forum is not damaged.

Warehouses and Granary

Near the forum are several of large buildings that appear to have been warehouses, and which now contain shattered pottery amphora, crates of exotic cloth, and ingots of iron and tin. Next to the warehouses is a granary. The granary is roughly the same height and size as the insula, but does not have fixed internal floors; instead it has a number of wooden mezzanine style platforms, some of which have collapsed. The granary's wooden floor is elevated (about a pace off the ground) with numerous vents to allow air to circulate under the floor and through the main structure of the building.

Basilica

The basilica is a large three storied building that has a central domed hall flanked by offices. The offices housed administrators for both the Cult of Mercury and the garrison of legionaries stationed at the town. The following offices are of particular note:

Salary Office: Contains pay records (in Latin) for the legionnaires stationed in the town. The accumulated pay records can be studied as an Organization Lore: Roman Empire Ability tractatus of Quality 7. It seems that, including auxiliaries, the number of legionnaires at the town varied between 100 and 1000 soldiers. The largest numbers were stationed at the town during the early 1st century AD and the late 2nd century AD. The largest set of records are for a brief period of two years between 190 and 192 AD where the pay of around 10,000 soldiers was processed at the salary office, implying that the town was the headquarters of a much larger force, presumably billeted in the surrounding provincial towns and fortresses.

Library: It seems the library was hastily looted. What remains scattered on the floor are a number of Lab Texts for Mercurian rituals (see Mercurian Rituals) and a complete copy of the The Annals of Mercury (see Story Seed: Curious Books, earlier). There are also documents on Roman Law. A compilation of these documents can be read as Summa of Level 7 Quality 7. The relatively low quality represents the fact that parts of some documents are missing.

Correspondence Office: This office contains correspondence between the priests of Mercury and their colleagues at other sites. The accumulated correspondence can be studied as a Organization Lore: Cult of Mercury Ability Summa of Level 3, Quality 10.

In addition, a character can use the correspondence to infer the location of other temples of Mercury, by trying to calculate distance by reply-time and noting any clues to landmarks and cities in the content of the correspondence. It takes a week of study to attempt to find one other temple of Mercury in this way and requires a successful Intelligence + Organization Lore: Cult of Mercury roll against an Ease Factor of 9. The storyguide needs to decide precisely how many different temples this temple was in correspondence with, as once all such temples have been located no new attempts can be made.

Municipal Office: The city records contain maps of the city and a map of the aqueduct system both within the city and the route taken by the aqueduct to reach the source spring (see Aqueduct). The municipal records also contain taxation information for the merchants entering the town. Goods from all around the empire made their way to the town, including wool from Britain, olive oil and wine from Greece and Italy, and ivory from North Africa. These records indicate that the town had a fairly stable population of several thousand between 3 AD and 192 AD. The records after 192 AD are poorly documented and rather haphazardly kept. The accumulated city records can be studied as an Organization Lore: Roman Empire Ability tractatus of Quality 7.

Scrying Office: This office contains a large shallow pool connected to the aqueduct network. The pool is currently damaged, and dry. It is not immediately obvious what the pool is for, but a character who studies The Scrying Pool ritual (see Mercurian Rituals) recognizes the pool as a component of the ritual. The pool must be repaired and filled with aqueduct water before the ritual can be cast.

The "books" in the basilica office take the form of sequences of scrolls, and many are scattered. It takes several days to assemble all the books, and some scrolls may be missing.

The final, short entry in the annals reads: "We thought that we would go on forever."

Aqueduct

The aqueduct system enters the regio through an elevated, enclosed, concrete pipe at about head-height on the eastern arm of the Cardus. The aqueduct network consists of both open culverts and closed pipes and by careful arrangement of the levels allows water to flow throughout the town. The aqueduct is dry and there is some damage to parts of the system within the town. The damage means that, even if water was to enter the head of the town aqueduct network, the two western quarters of the town would not receive any flow.

The aqueduct pipe that enters through the extreme eastern side of the town is in fact another regio entrance. The pipe is a bit under 2 feet in diameter, which is just big enough for (non-claustrophobic) characters of Size 0 to wriggle up. Smaller characters can climb the pipe more easily. In the mundane world, the aqueduct travels for about 20 miles (or further, depending on where the temple is located) partly underground, partly overland, until it reaches a mountain spring.

The reason that no water comes down the aqueduct is that it is also damaged in the mundane world. Repairing the aqueduct is simple, but labor intensive. It requires 20 man years to repair the aqueduct, that is one character working 20 years for an equivalent of two seasons a year. This could be achieved in other ways, say 20 characters all working together for two seasons. Note that this is just repairing the existing aqueduct; originally constructing the aqueduct would have required considerably more labor.

Once the aqueduct is repaired it must be maintained, by clearing it of silt and debris (and maybe ice in winter), and plugging leaks. Maintenance occupies 5 characters every season, and the work must be done every season. If maintenance is not done for a season, at the end of that season roll a simple die against an Ease Factor of 3 + 1 for each consecutive season for which maintenance has been neglected. If this roll is failed the aqueduct is clogged by silt and the flow stops. If less than 5 characters' worth of work is done in a season, then it counts as a season without maintenance. Once maintenance has been neglected, for every season of neglect it takes 1 man year (i.e. two seasons of work) to catch up on the maintenance, with a maximum requirement of 20 years work (at two seasons per year). This repair work is in addition to the normal 5 characters' worth of work per season. The flow does not resume until the extra repair work has been done.

This bathing complex contains separate pools for different temperatures, which are heated by a furnace and an underfloor venting system. The complex is ruined and the bathing waters are supplied by the aqueduct. See Chapter 2: Bath in this book for more information about Roman baths, if required.

The Temple of Mercury

The actual temple to Mercury is a large structure, built on top of a podium with a floor area of about 3000 square feet. The podium is about three paces high with a steep flight of stairs at the front. The temple has four pillars along the front and seven pillars down each flank. The pillars are twenty paces high and about a pace in diameter. The pillars are topped by a peaked roofed pediment and the front pillars enclose an open porch area, of about 1700 square feet. The back pillars enclose a single chamber, the cella, which has an area of about 1300 square feet. In the dark cella stands a decapitated marble statue of Mercury, that stands twice the height of a man. The god's head is nowhere to be seen.

Hermetic investigation (for example, with Intellego Terram) reveals that the statue was decapitated hundreds of years ago; probably at about the time that the town was abandoned. The statue can be reconstructed either through Creo Terram rituals or the work of mundane craftsmen.

Story Seed: The Godhead

To Second Sight, the god Mercury is not as headless as it appears to the mundane senses; the statue has an invisible head. This head is a demon who has somehow infiltrated the regio and replaced the true head of Mercury. The demon is a member of the Order of False Gods and manipulates Hermetic detection effects so that he appears to be a Magic creature.

The demon claims to be an avatar of Mercury and attempts to corrupt the souls of the player character magi. The demon's main strategy is to offer the player characters rewards in return for committing sins, although obviously he disguises this as "Mercurian Rituals." Examples of the demon's bargains are:

Tasks

De-consecrate a Christian church and raise an image of Mercury over the altar.

Make a human sacrifice at the foot of the decapitated statue of Mercury.

Steal the tithe from a parish church and offer it to Mercury instead.

Rewards

Death Prophecy: The Godhead gives the character a Death Prophecy, which acts exactly like the Virtue (ArM5, page 41). However, the Death Prophecy is a lie. Of course the character does not discover that the demon has lied until it is too late.

Puissant (Art): The Godhead grants the character this Hermetic Virtue (ArM5, page 48). This also causes any effect cast by the character, that uses this Art, to be tainted with the Infernal. However, the demon uses his Shroud the Stench of the Pit power to prevent this taint from being detected.

Pawns of Vim vis: The vis is tainted by the infernal (see Realms of Power: The Infernal page 18-19). The demon's Shroud the Stench of the Pit power disguises this fact, until the vis is used.

The player characters probably eventually discover that the Godhead demon is not really Mercury. Once they do, the demon proposes a new pact: he offers to continue to use his Shroud the Stench of the Pit power to hide the character's infernal transgressions and in return the characters must sign their souls over to him. The demon's proposal is tempting, because it is very likely that the Order of Hermes will March the player characters if the earlier "accidental" pacts are discovered. Claiming to have only accidentally dealt with a demon is a very shaky defense, particularly if the characters have been performing the demon's tasks. The demon is, of course, sure to point out how the magi need him to hide their infernal taint.

The Godhead

Order: Prince of the False Gods

Infernal Might: 40 (Terram)

Characteristics: Int +3, Per 0, Pre +1, Com 0, Str +4, Sta +4, Dex +4, Qik +4

Size: – 1

Confidence Score: 3 (9)

Virtues and Flaws: Arcane Lore, Piercing Gaze

Personality Traits: Arrogant +6

Reputations: False Mercury 5 (infernal)

Hierarchy: 9

Combat:

Bite: Init +4, Attack +12, Defense +12, Damage +7

Soak: +10

Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious

Wound Penalties: –1 (1–4), –3 (5–8), –3 (9– 12), Incapacitated (13–16), Dead (17+)

Abilities: Awareness 3 (the Gift), Brawl 5 (bite), Bargain 7 (pacts), Code of Hermes 3 (infernalism), Guile 5 (Mercurians), Intrigue 5 (infernal)

Powers:

Coagulation, 4 point, Init –1, Terram: Allows the demon to form a physical body (see Realms of Power: Infernal page 31). The physical body manifested by the demon is an invisible stone head. When in his spiritual form the demon is also invisible and can neither be physically damaged nor targeted or detected by Hermetic magic.

Envisioning, 1 point, Init 0, Mentem: Allows the demon to appear in the dreams of a character (see Realms of Power: Infernal page 32).

Grant Magical Power, 2 points, Init 0, Vim: Permanently grants a character the Puissant Art Virtue, but only if the character first performs a task for the demon. This taints the Art with the infernal.

Obsession, 1 point, Init –5, Vim: Whenever a character sins in the presence of the demon it can use this power to infect the character with the Personality Trait: Arrogant +1; see Realms of Power: Infernal page 31.

Shroud the Stench of the Pit, variable, Init +3, Vim: Allows the demon to disguise from Hermetic detection any of his other powers. This disguise costs the same number of Might Points as the original power and lasts indefinitely or until the demon lifts the shroud.

Vis: 10 pawns of infernally tainted Terram vis in stone brains.

Appearance: The Godhead is an invisible stone head about twice the size of a human head. The head can float around if he chooses. As he is a demon and without virtue, the Godhead is a coward. So if wounded either with magic or physically, the Godhead abandons his physical (but invisible) form and instead adopts his spiritual form.

The Library in the Basilica contains a number of Mercurian Ritual Lab Texts. These are written in Latin and with difficulty (the texts must be translated into Hermetic terms) can be used to reinvent Hermetic versions of the rituals.

Any character who can read Latin and has a score in Magic Theory can discern from the Lab Texts roughly what each Mercurian ritual is for. It takes a day to study each Lab Text in this way, and the character learns the Form and Technique of the ritual, the magnitude of the effect, and an idea of what the ritual actually does.

Briefly reading the Mercurian Lab Texts in this way does not allow the character to cast the ritual or even use the Lab Text to reinvent the ritual. This is because the Lab Texts are non-Hermetic and must be translated into Hermetic terms before use. This brief reading can however be used by the character to judge whether the translation effort would be worthwhile.

Story Seed: Book Selfers or Book Reevers

Other magi learn that the characters have access to lost Mercurian rituals and ask for copies. The characters can choose to sell or give away copies, or keep access restricted to the player characters alone. If the characters restrict access (or charge too high a price), other interested magi try to steal the Mercurian lab texts.

Note, this issue may arise even if the player characters do not actually bother to translate the rituals.

As Bonisagus based Hermetic magic partly on Mercurian magic it is relatively straightforward for magi to use these Laboratory Texts to reinvent the rituals. The procedure is:

• The magus must first translate the Mercurian Laboratory Text into a Hermetic one.
• Translation of the Mercurian rituals requires a laboratory. If the character chooses he can experiment (ArM5, page 107), which may change the ritual slightly, but not in a predictable manner.
• For each season of translating the Mercurian Laboratory Text, the character accumulates a number of points equal to tthe amount by which his Lab Total in the appropriate Arts of the ritual exceeds the level of the ritual. When the character has accumulated points equal to twice the level of the ritual he has translated it. This process produces a Hermetic copy of the ritual. These rules mean that in order to translate a Mercurian ritual the magus must have a Lab Total greater than the ritual level. In order to translate the ritual in a single season, the magus requires a Lab Total equal to three times the ritual level.
• Once he has translated the ritual the character can then invent the ritual from the Hermetic version of the Laboratory Text using the normal rules for inventing spells from a Laboratory Text.
• Any Hermetic magus can use the Hermetic copy of the Laboratory Text to invent the ritual, even if he does not have access to the Mercurian original.
• The rituals are non-Hermetic and so must be invented exactly as described in the translated text — the Range and so on cannot be varied. If the magus experiments (see ArM5, page 107) then, obviously, some parameters may potentially change (at the discretion of the storyguide).
• Each Mercurian ritual must be translated separately. However, if the character has translated some Mercurian rituals, he receives a bonus to subsequent translation Lab Totals equal to the highest magnitude of the Mercurian rituals he has already translated. This bonus does not apply to the Lab Total for invention; it only applies to the translation.

Vis Source: The Aqueduct Spring

The water source for the aqueduct is a distant mountain spring. This is an Aquam vis source. The first gallon of water to bubble up at the dawn of Summer Solstice contains the vis. It takes about four and half hours for this water to travel down the aqueduct to the town (if the aqueduct is functional). The vis can be collected either at the source, or at the town, or somewhere in between.

The source provides 5 pawns of Aquam source per year. Adjust this total depending on how significant the troupe wants this source to be, and the size of the vis economy in your saga.

Project: The Wizard's Aqueduct

The player characters could invent (or commission another magus to make) an item to magically transport water from the aqueduct source to the temple of mercury complex. This bypasses the troublesome need to maintain the remote aqueduct system, but the current owners of the vis source will become annoyed.

An alternative project is to invent a spell that can be cast periodically to magically clean the aqueduct system.

Story Seed: Already Claimed

The aqueduct's water source is already claimed as a vis source by the magi of another covenant, who are unaware of the aqueduct. Can the player characters negotiate for access to the water? Perhaps the issue can be resolved via a Certamen challenge, or by a swap for another vis source.

Once a magus has translated and invented the Mercurian rituals he can cast them as if they were Hermetic rituals of the appropriate Arts. The effects may be dispelled as if they were Hermetic. However, the rituals obviously have a non-Hermetic origin to any observer who has an Ability Score in Magic Theory.

These rituals can be recovered and reinvented as Hermetic rituals by following the process of translation and invention.

Purification

CrCo 40
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Individual, ritual

This ritual may only be cast on another character who has a Decrepitude Score of 1 or higher. The caster cannot cast it on himself. During the ritual the target must be bathed in water, in a consecrated temple of Mercury.

The target's apparent age is reduced by 5 years and his Decrepitude Score is reduced by 1. The player also removes up to 5 Aging Points currently allocated to the character's characteristics.

Assuming that the vis is available, and the caster is willing, the ritual may be cast multiple times in quick succession (to reduce a high Decrepitude Score to a much lower value). The ritual has no effect if the target character has a Decrepitude Score of 0. Note that the ritual does not reduce the actual age of the character, so it has no effect on the Aging Roll.

Commentary included in the Lab Text suggests that the Mercurian priests used this ritual in a similar manner to the way Hermetic magi use the Longevity Ritual. The ritual is compatible with the Longevity Ritual.

This ritual breaks the Hermetic Limit of Aging.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

The Scrying Pool

InIm 20
R: Arcane, D: Concentration/Special, T: Individual, Ritual

This ritual allows the caster to see an image of the target and his immediate surroundings in the surface of the pool of water in the Scrying Office (in the Basillica). The ritual is specifically designed for this pool; another similar pool cannot be used.

If Wizard's Communion is used to cast this ritual, then it only expires when all of the casting magi cease to concentrate. Individual magi may cease concentrating and rejoin later. In this way, by taking shifts, the ritual may be prolonged for hours, days, potentially even years. Only magi who participated in the Wizard's Communion may join or rejoin the ritual. This effect is a special feature of how this ritual was originally designed to interact with Wizard's Communion, these rules do not apply to other spells.

Casting this spell on a member of Order of Hermes is illegal scrying. Of course, the casters might not be bothered by this.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

RAISING THE AUXILIARIES FOR A DAY

CrMe 35
R: Voice, D: Sun, T: Group, Ritual

This ritual cast from the porch of a consecrated temple of Mercury (see Consecration of Mercury's House), on a group of up to 100 characters, gives the characters a +1 bonus to Attack and Defense rolls and allows the characters to fight together in trained groups, assuming that there are sufficient officers available to lead the groups.

Characters who are already affected by this ritual do not gain additional benefit from subsequent castings.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

PENETRATE THE REGIO SKIN

Cr(Re)Vi 25
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Individual, Ritual

This ritual creates a new entrance through a Magic regio boundary. The entrance is up to one pace in diameter, and a successful Dex + Finesse roll against an Ease Factor of 6 is required to precisely control where the entrance physically is. The caster must be able to sense the regio boundary in order to cast this ritual and the storyguide may rule that some regio boundaries are impervious to this ritual.

It seems that this ritual was used create the Aqueduct entrance.

Note that this ritual only penetrates Magic regiones; different versions may be discovered for other sorts of regio.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

BLESSING OF MERCURY

CrVi 30
R: Touch, D: Year, T: Individual, Ritual

This ritual may only be cast in a consecrated temple dedicated to Mercury (see Consecration of Mercury's House).

The target gains +3 to all Casting and Laboratory totals for the duration of the spell. If a character is already affected by this ritual, successive casting have no effect except to reset the duration.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

TRANSFORMATION OF FLESH TO SPIRIT

CrVi(Co) 60
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Structure, Ritual

At the climax of this ritual, which must be cast within a consecrated temple of Mercury, the caster kills herself and if she is powerful enough the aura permanently increases by 1 (to a maximum of 10).

To determine whether the aura increases two criteria must be met: the caster must have no Art Score with a value less than twice the current aura level, and the Penetration of the ritual must exceed five times the current aura value.

If this ritual is cast using Wizard's Communion then only the leader of the ritual must kill herself, and only the values of her Art Scores are significant.

If a character learns of this ritual it may occur to her (Intelligence + Order of Hermes Lore roll against an Ease Factor of 3) that the reputed sacrifice of Trianoma to increase the aura of Durenmar may have been a version of this ritual (see Houses of Hermes: True Lineages, page 8).

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

WIZARD'S INITIATION

CrVi(Co) 75
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Individual, Ritual

This ritual may only be cast in a consecrated temple dedicated to Mercury (see Consecration of Mercury's House).

The target of this ritual gains The Gift.

Unfortunately, this ritual does not work (see insert for details). If a character attempts to cast the ritual, then regardless of Casting Score the ritual does not work. In addition, roll an extra botch die in the case of a possible botch.

There is no way of discerning that the ritual does not work, other than by reading (and trusting), the Mercurian literature on the subject (see insert) or attempting to cast and failing.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

Consecration of Mercury's House

CrVi 55
R: Touch, D: Momentary, T: Structure, Ritual

This momentary ritual opens a temple shell to habitation by Mercury. This creates a level 1 Magic aura within the temple precinct (which may be then swamped by a larger aura of a different sort). As this is a momentary Creo ritual, once the ritual has been cast the aura remains and cannot be dispelled. If the temple already has a Magic aura the existing aura is not increased by the casting of this spell.

Another effect of this spell is that the temple has the magical property that it is consecrated to Mercury, which is important for some of the other recovered Mercurian rituals. The consecration can be detected by Hermetic Intellego Vim magic (as an effect of eleventh magnitude) and this effect can also be dispelled with Heremtic Perdo Vim (even though the aura itself cannot be dispelled). If the consecration is dispelled the ritual can be cast again to restore this property.

The final effect of this spell is that any characters with Faith Points whom are within the Structure at the time of casting (including the caster) lose 1 Faith Point. This Faith Point may be regained in the usual ways.

The temple shell must be built to the same plan as the ruined temple (just the temple itself, in the center of the town). The temple can be a different size to this exemplar temple, however. The ruined temple is not currently consecrated.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

Commune with Mercury

InVi 20
R: Personal, D: Concentration, T: Individual, Ritual

This ritual, cast within a consecrated temple of Mercury, allows the character to communicate in their mind with the god Mercury; or at least someone claiming that he is. Whether the god has anything useful to say is up to the troupe.

The god exists somewhere in the Magic realm and seemingly has no knowledge of Mythic Europe since the adoption of Christianity by the Emperor Constantine in 313 AD, and has only a hazy understanding of Mythic Europe under the pagan Roman Empire. The god is conscious and if contacted several times he remembers the earlier contacts, although he seems to experience the passage of time differently from the characters. Depending on the needs of your saga, the god could have an agenda, such as the re-establishment of a pagan empire or the recovery of artifacts. Alternatively, the god may not care much at all about the world and activities of the player characters.

Note that this ritual does not need to Penetrate to have an effect.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

Wizard's Communion

MuVi 5, MuVi 10, and MuVi 20
R: Voice, D: Momentary, T: Group

These Mercurian "rituals" translate to Wizard's Communion (ArM5, page 160). There are first magnitude, second magnitude, and fourth magnitude versions. Note that these are not actually rituals.

Obviously, as Wizard's Communion already exists in the Hermetic repertoire there is little point translating this text. The fact that there are already existing Hermetic versions suggests that another magus has translated similar rituals gathered from another site. Perhaps this was some of the work that Bonisagus did at Aventine Hill.

(Base Effect, non-Hermetic)

Story Seed: Integration of the Mercurian Rituals

The magi could embark upon an integration breakthrough (see Ancient Magic page 7, or Hedge Magic: Revised Edition page 14) to fully incorporate the guidelines behind these Mercurian rituals into Hermetic magic. If this is done versions of these rituals with new Ranges, Durations, etc could be developed.

Apart from a functioning Wizard's Initiation (discussed elsewhere) the following breakthroughs might be achieved:

CrVi 50 ritual guideline that creates a Magic aura of 1. The base level for this ritual is Touch, Momentary, Room and the ritual may only be cast with Room, Structure, or Boundary targets. Versions of this guideline for other realms might be invented too. Breakthrough Points Required: 30. Insight Sources: Consecration of Mercury's House ritual, the temple structure at the heart of the regio, any other site with a Magic aura.

CrVi 55 ritual guideline that increases a Magic aura by 1 to a maximum of 2. An additional magnitude increases a Magic aura by 1 to a maximum of 3, a further magnitude will increase Magic aura by 1 to a maximum of 4 and so forth. An aura cannot be increased to a value greater than 10. The base level for this ritual is Touch, Momentary, Room and the ritual may only be cast with Room, Structure, or Boundary targets. Versions of this guideline for other realms might be invented too. Breakthrough Points Required: 30. Insight Sources: Transformation of Flesh to Spirit ritual, the regio aura, the aura at the Durenmar covenant.

Cr(Re)Vi 20 guideline that creates an entrance to a Magic regio. Must be cast at the regio boundary, which must be sensed by the caster. Versions of this guideline for other realms might be invented too. Breakthrough Points Required: 30. Insight Sources: Penetrate the Regio Skin ritual, the aqueduct regio entrance, the main triumphal arch regio entrance.

The rituals might also integrated to "discover" the Mercurian Magic Virtue (ArM5, page 46). This requires 45 Breakthrough points.

Saga Seed: The Failure of the Wizard's Initiation Ritual

The Wizard's Initiation ritual does not work. To Hermetic eyes, there does not seem to be anything wrong. It just fails when cast.

The Mercurian priests were aware of this, and their commentary on the ritual indicates that the ritual began to occasionally fail in the early first century AD and seems to have been totally unusable by the fourth century. This problem did not just affect the priests at this temple; it was a problem across the empire, and it is often mentioned in the correspondence between temples (which is stored in Correspondence Office).

The Mercurian priests identified the cause of this crisis as the passing from the astrological Age of Aries into the astrological Age of Pisces, which was occurring at this time. Something about the ritual is incompatible with the Age of Pisces and the priests also noticed a change in the balance of power between the realms with the changing astrological age. The Mercurian priests were unable to repair their initiation ritual and the failure of the priests to solve this problem certainly contributed to the collapse of the Cult of Mercury.

The player characters may decide to attempt to repair the ritual for the Age of Pisces. The pay-off for doing so is fantastic, both in terms of power and Hermetic prestige. Developing a functioning version of this ritual is an integration research project (see Ancient Magic page 7, or Hedge Magic: Revised Edition page 14) that requires 60 Breakthrough points and adds the following guideline:

CrVi(Co) 75 ritual guideline. Gives the target, who must be human, The Gift. The target of this ritual must be Individual.

Apart from the non-functioning version of the ritual at this temple, slightly different (but equally non-functional) versions of the ritual might be recovered from other temples and used as sources of insight. Any research notes of the Mercurian priests may also be used as sources of insight. Accessing sources of insight requires discovering the location of, and exploring, other temples to Mercury, and other sites of interest to the Cult of Mercury. It is also quite likely that some of the Mercurian priests' research notes are in the possession of other Hermetic magi. These magi may or may not be aware of the notes' significance, and may or may not be willing to share. Astrological texts and calculations that concern the astrological ages may also be used as sources of insight for this project.

If it is undertaken, repairing the Wizard's Initiation ritual (and dealing with the consequences if the magi succeed) may become a significant part of your saga.

Astrological Ages

An astrological age lasts for about 2160 years, and is named after the position of the sun on the vernal (spring) equinox. The sun's position moves slightly each year, and from the rate of movement it appears it takes about 25,900 years to travel through all the signs of the zodiac. In 1220 the sun is near the middle of Pisces on the vernal equinox, thus 1220 is near the middle of the Age of Pisces.

Despite this general definition, there are different schools of thought (both amongst mundane astrologers and Hermetic magi) on precisely when the vernal equinox can be said to have left one zodiac sign and arrived in the next. However, most agree that, rather than a sharp break, there is a period of several centuries during which one age fades as its successor grows. This slow transition between the Age of Aries and the Age of Pisces occurred sometime between the birth of Christ and the collapse of the western Roman Empire.

Some Hermetic theorists believe that magic behaves differently in the different astrological ages. However, due to the Order's lack of practical experience with ages other than Pisces this is a very theoretical, abstract concern that few magi bother themselves with.

As described, the temple of Mercury is relatively empty of inhabitants and is undiscovered. The intention is that this allows the troupe the space to tell the story of how the player characters react to and interact with the location. However, some story seeds that provide opponents who could also try to interact with the location, and thus interfere with the player character's plans, include the following.

A group of young magi, and their retainers, independently discover and arrive at the temple to Mercury. These magi have either discovered a portal that leads to the heart of the temple town, or have discovered the regio entrance. The young magi are seeking Mercurian rituals, which they plan to recover, translate, and adapt to Hermetic casting methods. The expedition also considers founding a new covenant (or chapter house) at the site, especially after the importance of a consecrated temple of Mercury to many of the rituals is realized.

If this expedition arrives when the player

characters are absent, the young magi may not realize that others have discovered the temple. In any case, the player characters need to either compromise and share the discovery, or attempt to assert a prior legal claim, or merely eliminate the new arrivals.

Use a selection of the magi templates in ArM5 (page 24–28) to represent the young magi. The expedition could be acting on orders or guidance from older magi at a distant covenant. The distant covenant may even be in a different Tribunal.

There is no graveyard within the town, and there are no bodies to be found. This is strange, but could be for a number of reasons. Perhaps the dead were removed at some point, or have decayed to dust, or maybe the graveyard is outside the regio (beneath a field near the ruined arch). Another option is that there is another regio present, which contains a necropolis.

The necropolis regio (Magic aura 7) is identical to the temple regio (that is, it is a dark mirror of the town), but the necropolis is in quite good repair, and it is always night. However, there is still weather (storms and so on) in the necropolis. The main way to enter the necropolis is by dying within the temple regio. Upon death, the character's corpse disappears and reappears (along with his ghost) in the necropolis. Once within the necropolis, the character's ghost remains until his corpse has decayed to dust, which usually takes several centuries (in the conditions within the necropolis), at which point the ghost finally departs. The ghosts cannot normally leave the necropolis regio, but any character who can see through the regio boundary (see ArM5, page 189), including a ghost, can cross the regio boundary.

As it is so long since the temple was occupied that even the ghosts of the Roman priests and citizens have departed. However, the necropolis may contain the ghosts of others (including magi) who have found, and died within, the temple in the last few centuries. This could include a Founder.

Rules for Ghosts

See Realms of Power:Magic pages 115– 118 for rules concerning characters who have become ghosts.

Alternatively, if the troupe does not have access to such rules, assume that a ghost in the necropolis is immaterial (that is, cannot touch living things), has a Mentem Magic Might equal to his highest Ability or Art Score, and can no longer earn XP points. A necropolis ghost also has no Fatigue and although he can be wounded (with suitable magical weapons) all wounds (except fatal ones) are recovered at the beginning of the night when the moon rises, which is every 12 hours in the necropolis. The ghost can be destroyed by destroying his Might, by inflicting a "fatal" wound, or by destroying his corpse. The ghost also has the Leaving the Crypt power.

A ghost of a magus may cast spells as usual, but as he has no Fatigue he may not cast Fatiguing Spontaneous magic, and he only succeeds in casting Formulaic spells if his Casting Total equals or exceeds the spell level. The magus ghost cannot directly tar get the living with spells, but the living can still be affected by his spells. For example, a wall created by a ghost magi's spell impedes a living character, but the ghost cannot target a Pilum of Fire on a living target.

Leaving the Crypt: Init +1, Vim, 1 Might Point: For a duration of 1 Diameter the ghost may physically affect the living with his body, weapons, and (if applicable) may target spells at the living.

The temple location is already known to a Mystery Cult, and traveling to the temple to perform rites in the forum, bath, and temple is an important component of the cult's Initiation rituals.

An Initiate of the Mystery Cult arrives at the temple to perform a ritual, and is surprised to find the player characters present. The cultist is evasive about the purpose of his visit, and very suspicious that the player characters are attempting to discover the cult's secrets. He attempts to persuade or force the player characters to leave the site, either via negotiation, or Certamen, or hostile acts. If he is obviously hopelessly outnumbered or outclassed, the cultist first gathers fellow cult members as reinforcements.

The Mystery Cult need not be directly connected to Mercury, as the temple site is a place of magic power that could be important to the cult for other reasons. For example, if the temple is located in the Rhine (beyond the normal territory of the Roman republic) then the site could have previously been important to the Germanic cults that eventually became House Bjornaer. This could then mean that the Roman construction of the temple of Mercury on this site (denying it to the Germanic priests/ shape-shifters) was originally an early move in Rome's attempts to conquer Germania.

The temple can become a recurring location for the saga in the following ways:

• The temple site is large and may take several visits to fully explore.
• The characters may decide to restore and consecrate the temple as required to cast some of the Mercurian rituals.
• The characters may mistake the Godhead demon for Mercury and make pacts to return to the temple for rewards after completing the demon's tasks.
• The characters may discover that they can commune with the real god Mercury (or a faerie, magical, or demonic imposter) using the Commune with Mercury ritual. Pagan characters may thus decide to return to the temple for seasonal religious festivals. This might form a part of initiation rituals.
• The characters could colonize the temple site and use it as their covenant location or as a chapter house.
• Members of the Cult of Mercury, Seekers, or Guernicus agents may learn of the temple and ask the characters for guidance to the location. If the player characters have already colonized the temple then these visitors may try to assert a superior legal claim to the site, or wage Certamen or Wizard War for exclusive access.