Rhine Tribunal

The Rhine Tribunal is described fully in Guardians of the Forest. The main point for a Rhine setting is incorporating the workings of the Soterists and the Wächter into the structure of the guilds of this Tribunal. Relisius, of the Soterists, is known for his intentions regarding the Dominion and the mundane, and fits best with the Ash Guild, as do most of his supporters. They no longer want to hide and be kept down by the Dominion, but neither do they want to wage war. Some Apple Guild members silently agree, without taking an active part. They are more likely to accept Holy Magic as a way of meeting the Church halfway. The Ash Guild, on the other hand, pushes for making some Breakthrough to avoid the Dominion's limitation of and detrimental effects on magic, without sacrificing personal power and freedom as how to use magic. This is especially true for Relisius.

As the official mission of the Oak Guild is to reclaim the grandeur of the old days, quite a few support Relisius' cause on a personal level, rather than as a direction the whole guild is taking. If magi can harmonize with the Dominion and the mundanes, they can step out from the shadows and achieve great things indeed. It is very important for Relisius to achieve some sympathy here, as he needs to recruit ingenious researchers from House Bonisagus and Durenmar if he is ever to succeed in actually harmonizing magic with the Divine. However, the Oak Guild maintains the status quo, resisting any great change. This group is a major hurdle for Relisius and the group he is most interested in swaying. Their conservatism might be what

keeps both the Soterists and Wächter from succeeding, rather than the factions that actively oppose them. The Linden Guild is often in active opposition, not so much for ideological reasons, but because they strive for peace and cooperation between magi.

Relisius has among his supporters some masters and perhaps even an archmage, and some of them control key positions in the Tribunal and have a great deal of power among the Quaesitors. They cannot give Relisius carte blanche to get away with blatant violations of the Code, but some magi might be loath to open that can of worms, give Relisius' side the benefit of the doubt, or simply drag proceedings out to give time for the situation to change, as things might look different if the opposing faction takes drastic counter measures.

The Wächter hail from both the Hawthorne and Elder Guilds, depending on whether they are Bjornaer or other nature-oriented magi or if they are Merinita or other faerie supporters. The two guilds were originally one, but split over the importance of ancient magical areas, untouched by human hand, versus the faerie areas born of human imagination, stories, and belief. The new threat of the Soterists has partly led them back together, but they remain split over many details, and their lack of unity is from the biggest obstacle to a decisive victory in the conflict. United they might be able to drag out the Soterists' plan, exhausting the support of all but the most fanatical members. As with the Soterists, the Linden Guild often spoils the Wächter's plans, for the sake of keeping the peace. Iselin probably has more direct sympathizers than Relisius has, but the lack of politically powerful and important magi coupled with the split attitudes on the magic versus faerie issue is to her disadvantage.

Special attention should be paid

to the Guardians of the Forest Peripheral Code ruling (see Guardians of the Forest, page 18) on stopping precisely this kind of mundane expansion. The storyguide should use this to best effect, to enforce the drama and scale of the conflict. It provides support for the Wächter if they take action against mundane expansion, but it must be interpreted in the light of the clause in the Oath forbidding interference with mundanes. Although it puts the Wächter on stronger legal ground that the Soterists, it does not clearly decide the issue.

The player magi are, at the intended age and power level, most likely to be Masters, and they might have trained one or more apprentices, who have joined the ranks of Journeymen or even risen to Master status themselves. These filii may play a role in the story, depending on the saga. The differing positions of the guilds on this question add more depth to the conflicts faced by the characters, particularly if members of the covenant are members of different guilds. Masters are likely to be influential in their guilds, and the threatened vis sources may even be of particular interest to one guild or another. The events of this story could serve to strengthen a magus's link to his guild, or to drive a wedge between them.