Alyates of House Jerbiton

Alyates is a Greek magus born in the Tribunal of Thebes. He was apprenticed in Constantinople and, upon completing his Gauntlet, remained within the City of Cities. Throughout his career, Alyates had been interested in theology, especially the Credo (Latin, "I believe"), the fundamental beliefs of a Christian and how those beliefs differ between the Roman Church of the west and the Greek Church of the east. He has long thought that magic might be able to permanently affect a man's mental faculties and change his beliefs. As a result, he has focused on Mentem magic and the medical and philosophical properties of the human mind. Alyates' first explorations into man's beliefs were benign. He hoped to bind the Christian cleavage between east and west. Arrogant but passive, Alyates had great hopes for his future.

The Latin conquest of Constantinople in 1204 dashed those hopes to the ground and covered them in blood. His covenant, Thermakopolis, was destroyed defending the city. Most of the covenant members were slain, and Alyates was severely wounded. He disappeared into Anatolia to recover from his wounds, but he never announced that he had survived. Alyates blamed the crusaders' crimes on the Roman Church and its head, Pope Innocent III.

To bring about the Church's end, the magus decided to force the pope into a war with the Holy Roman Emperor, a long-term enemy of the bishop of Rome. He clandestinely searched the remains of his old covenant and retrieved the Cup of Carbonius. This enchanted item creates a mystical link to a target, with a high Penetration bonus, through which Alyates could cast spells. He then went west to Rome to bring about the pope's downfall.

Alyates knows that spells leave telltale sigils, making him hesitant to overtly destroy his targets with magic. He has found that subtle manipulation worked better, and that precise control of a target can be managed with a less powerful spell whose sigil fades faster. Alyates is a master of planting suggestions and creating decisions in a target's cognition, the part of the mind that determines what choices a person makes. Small suggestions are also easily destroyed with Perdo Mentem magic, removing the evidence of an implanted suggestion.

By manipulating the pope's decisions, Alyates has exacerbated the animosity between the pope and the emperor. Never casting spells whose consequences would be too obvious, Alyates managed to keep the two men enemies for years. He hoped to strain the relationship to the breaking point and create war between the most powerful western prince and the Roman Church. He nearly succeeded, but his efforts unraveled when the pope died.

Undaunted, Alyates wants to continue his plan using a new target. Through prior efforts, he has an Arcane Connection to Romano Bonaventura, the leading Guelph candidate sequestered in the Septizodium. He watches the daily proceedings through Bonaventura's eyes, but without Arcane Connections to the other cardinals, he cannot make them vote for Bonaventura. He cannot obtain them himself because of the Septizodium's Faerie aura and the faeries living inside, against whom his magic is especially weak. Alyates cannot even enter a Faerie aura without become disoriented and physically ill. He must have Bonaventura acquire and somehow deliver the necessary Arcane Connections. As the player characters enter Rome, Alyates has decided to force Bonaventura to grab Arcane Connections from the other cardinals and throw them from the Septizodium's balcony. Disguised as a fishwife selling lunch to the soldiers outside the building, Alyates hopes to snatch up the falling Arcane Connections.

Besides his skills with Mentem spells, Alyates can also create flawless magical disguises called personae (see Houses of Hermes: Societates, page 90). He has created detailed histories for these personae, each of which has a Reputation of 3. "Malgarita Ramberti" is a fishwife, a local Roman merchant. Alyates' second persona has been intentionally left undefined, so a storyguide can create a specific persona that works well for his group.

Alyates knows that another wizard, a member of the Augustan Brotherhood named Buonacorsus, lives in Rome. After a few casual inquiries, Alyates assumes this wizard is more charlatan than magician, and is unconcerned by his presence. Alyates will use this knowledge if it serves him (see "Catching Alyates" later).

CrMe 15

R: Eye, D: Sun, T: Ind

This spell implants a thought in the target's mind to meet the caster at a time and location specified when the spell is cast. The thought lasts until the spell expires.

(Base 4, +1 Eye, +2 Sun)

ReMe 35

R: Eye, D: Sun, T: Ind

This spell allows the caster to implant a complex suggestion into the target's mind, which the target then completes to the best of his ability.

(Base 20, +1 Eye, +2 Sun)

InMe 30

R: Arc; D: Conc; T: Ind

The caster can see through the eyes of anyone to whom he has an Arcane Connection (Art & Academe, page 33).

(Base 5, +4 Arc, +1 Conc)

PeMe 20

R: Eye, D: Mom, T: Ind

This spell removes a specific event from a target's memory. The event can be up to a day in length and may involve multiple elements.

(Base 15, +1 Eye)

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

Size: 0

Age: 90 (47)

Decrepitude: 0 (1) Warping Score: 7 (1)

Confidence Score: 1 (3)

Virtues and Flaws: The Gift; Hermetic Magus; Gentle Gift; Affinity with Mentem, Educated, Improved Characteristics, Persona*, Premonitions, Puissant Mentem; Driven (to destroy the pope), Dark Secret (not actually dead, and an Oath breaker); Susceptibility to Faerie Power, Visions

Personality Traits: Cynical +3, Egotistical +2, Rigid +2

Reputations: As Malgarita: Successful Manager 3 (merchants of Rome)

Combat:

Dodge: Init +2, Attack n/a, Defense +2, Damage n/a

Soak: +3

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

Wound Penalties: –1 (1–5), –3 (6–10), –5 (11–15), Inc (16–20), Dead (21+)

Abilities: Animal Handling 2 (horses), Area Lore: Constantinople 3 (city covenants), Area Lore: Rome 3 (abandoned temples), Artes Liberales 3 (grammar), Awareness 2 (determining magical effect), Bargain 2 (books), Code of Hermes 3 (mundane interactions), Concentration 5 (spell concentration), Etiquette 2 (court), Finesse 5 (Mentem), Folk Ken 2 (priests), Greek 5 (witticisms), Guile 2 (elaborate lies), Italian 4 (merchant slang), Latin 4 (Hermetic usage), Magic Theory 8 (Mentem), Organization Lore: Order of Hermes 1 (politics), Parma Magica 6 (Corpus), Penetration 5 (Mentem), Personae 2 (Malgarita and one other), Philosophiae 2 (ceremonial magic), Premonitions 3 (personal danger), Scribe 2 (copying lab texts)

Arts: Cr 18, In 5, Mu 5, Pe 15, Re 16; An 5, Aq 5, Au 5, Co 18, He 5, Ig 5, Im 5, Me 27+3, Te 5, Vi 7

Twilight Scars: Elongated forehead Equipment: Clothing typical of his current persona

Encumbrance: 0 (0) Spells Known:

Curse of the Unruly Tongue ReCo 5/+33 Meet Me at Midnight CrMe 15/+47 Rising Ire CrMe 15/+47

Convince a Man He Has an Enemy CrMe20/+47

Memory of the Distant Dream CrMe 20/+47 Weight of a Thousand Hells CrMe 25/+47 Perception of the Conflicting Motives InMe 15/+34

Posing the Silent Question InMe 20/+34 Borrow the Ears of Another InMe 30/+34 Borrow the Eyes of Another InMe 30/+34 Peering into the Mortal Mind InMe 30/+34 Loss of but a Moment's Memory PeMe 15/+44 Loss of a Lasting Day's Memory PeMe 20/+44

Blessing of Childlike Bliss PeMe 25/+44 Passion's Lost Feeling PeMe 25/+44 Black Whisper PeMe 40/+48 The Call to Slumber ReMe 20/+45 Trust Me ReMe 20/+45 (Houses of Hermes: True Lineages, page 73)

Aura of Inconsequence ReMe25/+49 (Houses of Hermes: True Lineages, page 73)

Forcing the Undecided's Decision ReMe 35/+45

Enslave the Mortal Mind ReMe 40/+45

Shroud Magic MuVi 20/ +11

Appearance: Alyates is an average-sized man with dark hair and a full beard, dressed in ostentatious robes of blue and gold. Malgarita is a stocky woman with large hips and shoulders, a crooked nose, and graying hair, dressed in the traditional clothes of a fishmonger.

CrMe 20

R: Touch, D: Moon, T: Ind

This spell convinces the target that he has an enemy, selected at the time of the casting. The target does not remember why the selected person is his enemy and naturally assumes that the origin of the dispute happened long ago. This spell does not dictate a target's response to his enemy, but merely installs the notion of enmity in the target's mind.

(Base 4, +1 Touch, +3 Moon)

ReVi 83 Pen +52, 3/day

R: Arc, D: Conc, T: Ind

The Cup of Carbonius is a gold chalice that creates a mystical link from the activator to the target, using the Hermetic spell Opening the Intangible Tunnel. The owner places an Arcane Connection inside the cup and triggers it with a command word, at which point the cup activates the spell. The created link stays open as long as the owner desires, with the cup itself maintaining the concentration needed to keep the link active.

The owner, or anyone else who can peer into the cup and see the Arcane Connection, can cast spells through the link. Only spells of level 30 or lower can be cast through the cup at the target. The cup's power must Penetrate the target's Magic Resistance to establish the link, and every successive spell must also Penetrate. The cup's Penetration was determined in its creation; any spell cast through the cup's mystical link must determine its Penetration in the usual way. Remember that the Arcane Connection used also adds a modifier to a spell's Penetration multiplier (ArM5, page 84). Only Hermetic spells can be cast through the mystical link, and just as with the spell Opening the Intangible Tunnel, spells can be cast back through the cup, from the target to the bearer.

This is a powerful effect and causes Warping to the target. Because this effect is so strong, of much greater magnitude than any spell that can be cast through it, Carbonius' sigil is the strongest lingering identifier.

(Effect: Base 25, +4 Arc, +1 Conc; +2 frequency, +5 maintain concentration, +26 Penetration)

ReCo 42 Pen 0, 3/day R: Touch, D: Mom, T: Ind

This magical silver bracelet instantly transports the wearer to a location to which he has an Arcane Connection. The wearer must touch the Arcane Connection to the bracelet and speak the command word at the same time for the item to function.

(Effect: Base 35, +1 Touch; +2 frequency)