Brittany

A rugged spur of crystalline rock juts out into the ocean from the western side of the continent. The prevailing northwesterly winds blow most days and often carry moisture in the form of fog, mist, and rain. The precipitation is greater in the north, the south being drier, sunnier, and warmer. Thanks to the ameliorating effect of the ocean, the region remains frost-free. The coastal Armor ("country near the sea") is very long and indented and there are numerous offshore islands where a covenant might be sited if reliable means of sustenance can be found. Much of the coast comprises high, resilient cliffs cut by flooded river valleys. The large tidal range, which affects all coastal activities, exposes extensive mud flats and rock platforms at low tide. Inland, Brittany's Argoat ("country of the wood") is a plateau broken up by deeply incised river valleys. The hills are mostly covered in forest or, where the trees have been cut down long ago, by moorland. The rocks — granite, schist, and gneiss — yield poor, thin soils and those who live here are among the poorest peasants in the Tribunal. The river valleys have more fertile soils and are sheltered from the winds, so here agriculture is relatively productive and the people live more comfortably. In the sparsely populated upland areas, a covenant might be able to avoid too much attention from mundane authorities.

At first, the country was occupied by powerful faeries, giants, magical creatures, and a few pagan people who served them. Civilization arrived with Roman invaders who ruled for four centuries. When the Romans withdrew, the land was settled by Celtic people from Britain. Numerous saints came over to bring the light of Christianity to the whole country, either traveling alone and settling as hermits, or bringing monks with them to establish a monastery (see the insert for details). Brittany was established by the Frankish King Louis I "the Pious", son of Charlemagne, as a duchy under the leadership of Nominoé in the early ninth century, but the duke defeated Louis's successor, Charles II "the Bald" to gain independence for Brittany. Nominoé's son, Erispoë, assumed the title King of Brittany. The country grew and prospered under Erispoë and then under his cousin Salomon, who took the throne by assassination. The monarchy survived, repelling repeated attacks by Norsemen, until King Alain "Barbe-Torte" (Crookbeard) died in 952. Tussles for power among the nobility brought disorder that lasted a hundred years until Duke Alain IV "Fergent" gained the upper hand. Bonds of marriage and fealty between Breton nobility and other noble families, particularly the ruling house of Anjou and the Norman kings of England, resulted in the addition of Brittany to his other property in France by Henry II of England between 1158 and 1166. Independence from the English crown was achieved fairly recently as a consequence of the rumored murder by King John of England of his nephew, Arthur of Brittany. Peter I of Dreux currently holds the duchy on the basis of his marriage to Alice, a direct descendant of the former ruling house; he holds the post as regent for her son.

Brittany Covenants

Current Covenants: Exspectatio, Fudarus

Ruined, Abandoned, or Lost Covenants: Branugurix, Kerguntuil

Most people in the eastern part of Brittany speak a dialect not greatly different from that of their neighbors to north, south, and east. The majority of the population in the western half of the region speaks Breton, and in rural areas it can be hard to find anyone who understands anything else. It is not often written. See the Appendix on languages for details.

Music here is accompanied by the Celtic harp or Breton pipes, and dances are performed in lines and circles. Games and sports include lifting a heavy piece of wood representing a chariot axle, throwing heavy stones, and trying to make an opponent drop a stick about two feet in length while both players are seated on the ground facing each other, their feet flat against a fixed, inch-high, ten-foot-long board. The most characteristic festivities are the pardons, religious processions preceded by prayers and followed by feasting and fun. These take place at different times of year all over Brittany, each of the older parishes having its particular date, usually linked to the feast day of the local saint.

Breton Saints and the Tro Briez

Regardless of the when and whence of history, popular Breton belief is that Christianity was brought to them from Wales by saintly monks. The most important Welshmen honored as the founders of Breton Christianity are as follows:

• St. Malo (commemorated at St. Malo)
• St. Broch (commemorated at St. Brieuc)
• St. Guirec (commemorated at Perros Guirec)
• St. Paul (commemorated at St. Pol de Léon)
• St. Samson (commemorated at Dol)
• St. Tugdual (commemorated at Tréguier)
• St. Corentine (commemorated at Quimper)
• St. Patern (commemorated at Vannes)

Bretons should visit each of these cathedrals at least once in their lifetime, completing the Tro Briez (Tour of Brittany) or else they will have to complete it after death, moving the length of their coffin every seven years.

The eastern part of the duchy is somewhat softer, drier, and more affluent than the rest. It is largely forested, but contains many strong fortresses used in defense against the Normans and Franks not long ago.

The northern coast, adjacent to the sand and mud flats around Mont St. Michel at the Normandy border (see Chapter 5: Normandy), is low lying and often marshy.

Mount Dol

Mount Dol, a granite outcrop, dominates the area although only 210 feet in height. It was a sacred place to the Gallic druids. Branugurix, domus magna of House Diedne, was here, concealed in a regio (see Chapter 3: Hermetic Culture, Hermetic Landscape). Most Christians keep away from the mount. They tell a story that St. Michael fought the Devil here, casting him down with such strength that the indentation made by the impact and the scars left by his claws are clearly visible on the north side of the mount. Close by is the cleft made by the saint's sword and into which he thrust his opponent. But the Devil reappeared a moment later on the isle of Mont St. Michel, taunting the saint, and the indentation made by the saint's foot when he leapt from the top of Mount Dol in pursuit is still there. In fact, what the story recalls is an assault on Branugurix.

The small town of Dol stands on a cliff on the southern edge of the marsh. Construction of a fortified cathedral dedicated to St. Samson is in progress here. South of Dol is the menhir of Champ-Dolent (Field of Pain), 30 feet high with a roughly square base and tapering towards a point; it marks the place where the final battle of the Schism War took place.

Siting a Covenant

Brittany is the least-civilized, most sparsely populated part of the Tribunal, with many unclaimed vis resources. It contains numerous potential covenant sites — perhaps the PCs will find attractive one of the numerous small offshore islands, a patch of firmer ground in a deserted marsh, or a spot concealed within the forest. There are a great many more menhirs, tumuli, and dolmens scattered throughout its forests and along its coasts than mentioned here, many of which have a supernatural aura. All the land belongs to someone, so however remote the covenant, the player characters will at some time have to find a way to fit into, or evade, the feudal structure, and the enthusiasm of the Church to minister to them.

Dolmen, Menhir, and Tumulus

These large stone features occur all over the western side of the Tribunal, but the landscape of Brittany is particularly rich in them.

Dolmen: One or more fairly flat, horizontal rocks supported by several vertical rocks. Many are giants' tables or meeting places of the fae, while a few are altars of the pagan past.

Menhir: A single standing stone placed vertically, with its base firmly planted deep in the earth. Origins vary: saints, angels, demons, giants, and faeries have all been responsible for erecting some of these.

Tumulus: A rounded hillock. Origins vary. Examples include a lump of earth thrown by a giant and a mound raised by the fae to cover an entrance to their home. If the mound of earth and stones is excavated, many contain a dolmen.

St. Malo

The coast from the western edge of the marshes to St. Brieuc Bay is rugged, rocky, and inhospitable. High cliffs shelter a few small beaches. St. Malo is a small port on the eastern side of the point where the flooded valley of the River Rance flows into the sea. It is close to the settlement of Aleth, where the Welsh St. Maclou converted the local Gauls in the sixth century. The town was extended toward the sea and fortified to defy Viking invasions. When its Church of St. Vincent became the seat of a bishop in 1144, the new town at the point adopted the name of St. Malo, while Aleth took on a dedication to St. Servan.

At the base of the first rocky promontory west of the mouth of the Rance is a cave inhabited by a siren. She guards a natural bridge between the cliffs and Décollé Point but no one has yet discovered why she protects the point. Along the coast, overlooking the estuary of the River Arguenon, are the Singing Stones. Imaginem vis may be harvested here from the metallic sound produced when the pile of rocks is struck in the right way using a stone of the same sort.

Dinan and the River Rance

Dinan, at the southern end of the River Rance, is a small port. A crusading knight erected the Basilica of St. Savior here in the 12th century, to fulfill a vow made concerning his safe return from the Holy Land. The building exhibits elements of eastern architecture otherwise unknown in this part of the world. A short distance upriver, at Léhon, is a castle and the Benedictine monastery of St. Magloire, which was founded in 850 by King Nominoé. The original building was badly damaged by Vikings but was rebuilt soon afterward, and has recently been extended by Geoffroy of Corseul in the new style. About five miles to the west is Corseul itself, site of a Roman settlement, where stand the remains of a temple of Mars. The site has a Magic aura of 3. All that is visible are the walls of a round building of thin Roman bricks, reaching higher than the surrounding treetops. Inside the walls, if one can penetrate the regio boundary, the building is intact and has a Magic aura of level 6.

Lamballe and St. Brieuc

Following the river inland leads deep into the forested hills of Hunaudaye, were streams run in deep ravines and granite boulders lie scattered among the trees. The only trade route through the forest runs between Rennes and St. Brieuc, passing through the town of Lamballe. Lamballe is the seat of the Baron of Penthièvre and has a church to Our Lady and the Priory of Marmoutier. St. Brieuc lies close to the coast on a plateau cut by the rivers Gouet and Gouëdic. It is a small port with a weekly market and two annual fairs. It contains St. Stephen's Cathedral and St. Broch's fountain, beside which the saint lived. Once a week, when leaving the cathedral on a Sunday after attending Mass, a character may dip his right hand into the fountain and devoutly make the sign of the cross to gain a Blessing that gives a temporary change to a Personality Trait by one step, to a maximum of +3 or –3. The trait affected by a negative step is that most likely to lead to sin, and that affected by a positive step is the trait most likely to lead to goodness. The blessing lasts until sunset. (See Realms of Power: The Divine, page 51.)

In the center of the region is Rennes, a small city noted for its resistance to Normandy and currently the capital of the duchy. Inside the walls lies a church dedicated to St. Peter, founded in the sixth century on the foundations of a Romano-Gallic temple, and the Abbey of St. Mélaine. The town is sited on the River Vilaine, which flows southwest between red stone hills. Along the valley is the village of Pléchâtel, close to which are some well hidden caves with a low-level Magic aura and an ancient oak tree, which yields vis in the form of a few unusually large acorns. Further long the narrow valley, the village of Langon stands on terraces on the hillside. It has a church dedicated to St. Peter and a chapel to St. Agatha. The structure of the chapel incorporates walls of what was in former times a Romano-Gallic temple to Venus. The group of standing stones on the moorland close by is related to the temple site. It comprises some 30 standing stones known as the Young Ladies. The local legend is that the young women preferred dancing on the moor to attending vespers and so were turned to stone by God. But the origin of the stones is ancient, being associated with the fate of the women who served at the temple.

Fougères

The town of Fougères lies northeast of Rennes to the extreme east, at what was for so long the border between Brittany and France. A strong castle stands on a spit of land beside the winding River Nançon, between two towering rock faces and overlooked by the town that clings to the steep slopes above it. It is the home of the local baron. It was one of these, Raoul II, who led a band of rebellious Breton nobles against the takeover by Henry II of England. His castle was demolished in the three-month siege that brought the opposition to an end, but Raoul survived and started rebuilding at once. A chapel in the town contains a statue of Our Lady nursing the infant Jesus; some mothers who pray here receive miraculous help. The forest surrounding the town contains an unusually large number of megaliths, even for Brittany.

Faeries' Rock

Southeast of Rennes, in the forest and half way to the Normandy border, is Faeries' Rock, a structure of 42 massive stones of purple schist. A wide, low entrance, which is oriented directly towards the winter solstice sunrise, leads into a corridor and then into a large chamber subdivided into compartments, which is high enough to stand up in. On the night before the winter solstice, a faerie court assembles here to try faeries, and sometimes mortals, whom it considers transgressors of its apparently arbitrary rules. Those summoned to appear are whisked from their beds and conveyed almost instantaneously to the chamber. There they are obliged to listen while anyone present who wishes to, including themselves, has a chance to speak briefly for or against the accusation. The faerie noble in charge of the proceedings decides the final verdict and sentence. Rewards and punishments are as unpredictable as the laws themselves. However long the proceedings appear to last, they end as the first shaft of morning light shines into the chamber. Any mortals still present have to make their own way home.

To the west of Rennes and the Vilaine lies the extensive, mysterious, and dangerous Forest of Brocéliande. Most of the forest has a Faerie aura of level 2 and there are places where it is considerably higher. A small monastery has been established at Paimpont, within the forest, to counter the other influences at work here, but they are making little headway.

The Fountain of Youth and the Stone of Merlin

In the heart of the forest is the Fountain of Youth, a natural spring ringed with stones. Washing one's face in the water of the spring itself can make the skin of an elderly person appear less marked and wrinkled for a few hours, but as yet no one in the Order has discovered how to prolong or otherwise take advantage of this property, which is a faerie glamor effect. Here the wizard Merlin came seeking solitude, but he met the fairy Viviane, known as the Lady of the Lake, and fell in love with her. Before long she tired of him and, to put an end to his attentions, she put him into a deep sleep. Many believe he is still there, asleep, under the nearby pair of rock slabs called the Stone of Merlin. It is said that if you let fall a drop of water from the fountain onto the Stone of Merlin, the water changes to vapor and the air becomes thick with shadows and the rumbling of thunder. This is probably the first step in the ritual necessary to gain access to the Faerie regio where Merlin may be sleeping still. The glade containing fountain and stones has a Faerie aura of level 5. A magus on the Path of Aging may drink from this fountain in the second quest (see Guardians of the Forests: The Rhine Tribunal, page 38).

Lake Comper and the Joyous Garden

Not far away, in the depths of the forest, is Viviane's home, Lake Comper. This is where Merlin conjured for her the Joyous Garden and the Crystal Castle filled with faerie knights, ladies, and maids. Legend tells that she raised Sir Lancelot here. It is probable that Viviane still lives there, within the Faerie regio that hides her estate. Research has indicated that it may be possible to find and enter this regio during the night before Midsummer's Day. However, considering Viviane's past treatment of suitors and powerful magicians, senior magi might run the risk of being detained by her, and a character with Curse of Venus is heading for trouble. The lake itself provides up to 5 pawns of Aquam vis in normal years, but in years of drought a local priest journeys here and dips a cross into the water to bring rain, which will prevent any vis being harvested that season.

Around four miles south of Comper, near the village of Beignon, is the Bridge of Secrets where it is said that Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere first kissed. The consequences of this betrayal suggest that there may be Perdo vis available here on the anniversary of the event, if the right way to harvest it can be discovered.

Barenton and the Valley of No Return

The Fountain of Barenton is about four miles west southwest of the Fountain of Youth. Stories say that water from the fountain, if splashed on a stone here known as Merlin's Step, summons wild storms and a ferocious knight clad in black armor. The fountain was sacred to the druids and is a source of Vim vis, treated as a tropaeum.

About four miles south of Barenton is a small lake used by faeries as a mirror. A little Imaginem vis can be harvested here if the mirror has not been used for a month. Just beyond it is the Valley of No Return. It is a deep valley where Morgan Le Fay, half-sister to King Arthur, imprisoned her unfaithful lover Guyomart. He was trapped here at False Lover's Rock. Legends say that no one who has done wrong may leave the valley, but in fact it is only those unfaithful in love who are held.

This barony extends along the rugged central part of the northern coast, and reaches inland over the forested hills. Population is sparse.

Pink granite forms the moor-topped cliffs between St. Brieuc Bay and Morlaix Bay. Many oddly shaped rocks surround small, sandy beaches and creeks. Many of the rock shapes resemble animals and people, and a few have supernatural origins. Offshore lie numerous islands; most are very small.

Korrigan

Anyone attempting to collect vis or investigate the mysteries of the forest will have to contend with the korrigan (singular: korred). A korred is a hunchbacked manikin about three feet tall with cat's claws on its hands and goat's hooves for feet; with the expenditure of Might, it may take on the form of a beautiful young woman. They are known as dancers and magicians. Since their queen, Viviane, lost interest in the Brocéliande forest and them, the korrigan in this region have become very dangerous. Elsewhere, they may live in forests, caves, or dolmens, where they collect valuable objects. They administer severe punishments to those who annoy them, but periodically give rewards from their treasures. In some places, they like to dance in a circle holding hands under the moonlight at a crossroads and, if they are in a good mood, invite all who pass to join them. Those who accept may be given a gift, but those who refuse are punished.

These statistics apply to the korrigan of Brocéliande. Those encountered in other parts of Brittany are less dangerous; they are more interested in dancing and riches, though still unpredictable and short-tempered.

Faerie Might: Typically 5–10; rarely 15 (Animal)

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

Size: –2

Age: n/a

Confidence Score: 0

Virtues and Flaws: None

Personality Traits: Avaricious +2, Capricious +2, Short-tempered +2

Reputations: Dangerous 3 (local), Tireless dancers 1 (local), Magicians 1 (local)

Combat:

Claws: Init +1, Attack 7, Defense +8, Damage +1

Club: Init +3, Attack +6, Defense +5, Damage +2

Stone (thrown): Init +2, Attack +5, Defense +4, Damage +1

Soak: +3

Fatigue Levels: n/a

Wound Penalties: –1 (1–3), –3 (4–6), -5 (7–9), Incapacitated (10–12), Dead (13+)

Abilities: Area Lore 3 (paths), Athletics 5 (dancing), Awareness 4 (gold, silver), Brawl 2 (claws), Guile 1 (bargaining), Speak Breton 4 (commands), Stealth 4 (hiding), Single Weapon 2 (club), Thrown Weapon 2 (stones)

Powers (not all have this):

Human Form, 5 points, Init 2, Corpus: The more powerful korrigan can assume the form of a beautiful young woman. The transformation lasts for one hour, or until the same amount of Might is expended to reverse it. In human form, the following changes apply:

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

Size (human form): 0

Club: Init +0, Attack +2, Defense +0, Damage +2

Stone (thrown): Init -1, Attack +3, Defense +1, Damage +1

Equipment: Usually none.

Natural Weapons: Claws: Init -1, Attack +2, Defense +3, Damage +2.

Encumberance: 0 (0)

Vis: 1 pawn of Animal vis in hooves

Appearance: A hunchbacked manikin about three feet tall with cat's claws on its hands and goat's hooves for feet.

Bréhat and the Seven Isles

The two Bréhat Isles lie off the easternmost point. They have a Magic aura of level 4. They are each about a mile along and across, though the outline of both is very indented, and where they are closest to each other, the gap is very small. They enjoy an unusually mild climate and little rain. There are cliffs of pink rock on the northern, more rugged isle, lower shores of pink and gray sand and shingle along the east, and all around waters changing through many shades of blue and green around pink rocks that are only exposed at low tide. At the furthest extremity from the mainland is a deep chasm in the cliff. Once a year, a maiden may toss a pebble down here. If it lands directly in the water without touching either side of the chasm, she will be married within the year, otherwise she must wait for a husband as many years as the stone bounced. There is Intellego vis in the thrift plants that cling to the side of the cleft here and up to 5 pawns a year may be gathered, but to take more than 3 ruins the predictions for several years to follow.

The Seven Isles is an archipelago off the east side of Trégastel Head, toward the western end of this stretch of coast. It is far enough from the mainland to be disturbed only by seabirds that nest on the high cliffs, and seals that live on the rocks below. The clear waters are home to feathery weeds and many colorful sessile creatures, which typically yield 6 pawns of Herbam vis and 5 of Animal vis each year, plus eels, crabs, lobsters, and crayfish. The archipelago has a Magic aura: one isle with level 4, one with 3, two with 2 and three with 1.

Mainland Armor and Argoat

About half way along this north-facing stretch of coast is Tréguier, set on terraces along the sides of the River Jaudy and River Guindy, with its Church of St. Tugdual. Further on, the coast turns to form the northern-most part of Brittany, as a series of massive rocky headlands divided by deep clefts. A dolmen lies on the largest of the islands close to this stretch of coast. The rocks there are blue rather than pink because a giant dragged the whole isle here from southwest Wales long ago.

The Dolmen of Kerguntuil, believed to be a petrified giant, stands on a hilltop overlooking a west-facing stretch of the Trégastel headland. A Diedne covenant named after the giant was founded here in 920 and was obliterated in 1007 (See Chapter 3: Hermetic Culture, Past, and Present Covenants of the Normandy Tribunal). The members of Kerguntuil were particularly interested in the many Breton tales about giants, and many of their covenfolk were larger-than-average humans. It is rumored that a Quaesitor suggested to the Templars that they build along this coast to cleanse the region of the diabolic taint of the Diedne. They constructed a round chapel at Lanleff in the 11th century and, in the 12th, built Brélévenez Church at Lannion, a small town on the River Léguer. Quellen Marsh, covering 55 acres, lies behind dunes to the north of the Léguer estuary.

Yaudet

Local people report that, on the south side of the estuary, at a rounded hilltop overlooking the sea called Yaudet, they have sometimes caught sight of strangely dressed men and women. The hummocks and ditches mark the site of a Romano-Gallic settlement and locals occasionally stumble into a regio there. A little further round the coast, at Plestin-les Grèves, are the remains of a Romano-Gallic bathhouse. There is a more reliable entrance to the Yaudet regio there, in the alcove where, according to the inscription on the wall, a statue of Teutates, or Mars, once stood.

Inland, the hilly countryside is almost entirely forested, with a few small, scattered settlements. The small market town of Loudéac, situated centrally and at a crossroads, serves as the commercial hub for a wide area. A fair for sale of animals is held here twice a year. Moncontour is a market town overlooked by a castle constructed on an outcrop where two valleys meet. Two miles southeastward is the chapel of Our Lady of Haut, where an unusual number of saints are petitioned for healing: St. Mamertus (colic), St. Livertin and St. Eugenia (headaches), St. Leobinus (eye diseases), St. Méen (madness), St. Hubert (sores), St. Houarniaule (fear). The chapel is decorated with offerings, mainly in the form of wooden carvings of the formerly afflicted body part, and has a Dominion aura of 5. In Quintin, another small market town, flax is grown in the valley of the River Gouët and the buildings occupy terraces on the valley sides. The main church houses a statue of Our Lady of Deliverance, where expectant mothers come to pray for her protection in childbirth. On a hilltop close by stands the Long Rock menhir, which has a temporary Faerie aura at unpredictable intervals, and there is a small castle a mile to the south, at Robien.

There are a few religious foundations hidden away in the depth of the forest including Cistercian monasteries at Boquen, Quenécan, and Gouarec, a Benedictine monastery in the Lorge Forest, and a chapel at Bourbriac, where St. Briac is petitioned on behalf of those subject to fits.

This northwestern extremity of Brittany is a region of woodland and bleak moors, surrounded on three sides by a coastline of muddy estuaries and exposed beaches, with a scattering of islands. Quite rightly, the western extremity is known as Finistere — that is, Land's End.

St-Pol-de-Léon, home of the count, is a bishopric founded by St. Paul the Aurelian, to whom its 12th century cathedral is dedicated. The saint established a monastery on the nearby island of Batz after he subdued a dragon that was terrorizing the island. He used his stole to capture it and led the nowdocile creature to a pit, which is now covered by a low rock shelf known locally as the Monster's Hole.

When St. Paul had Christianized the local area, he asked the ruler, Duke Mark, to let him have one of seven bells used in his castle to summon attendance. The Duke refused, but soon afterward a fisherman caught a huge fish with a bell in its mouth and he gave the bell to St. Paul. This and the other bells have been lost.

Across the estuary, to the east, is Barnenez tumulus, an immense heap of stones, some greenish and others pink and gray. No way inside is visible, but should characters investigate they find entrances on the southeastern side, each leading to a passage some 20 to 40 feet in length and opening into one of 11 chambers. Further west, on Pontusval Point, Men-Marz menhir stands, surmounted by a Celtic cross. From time to time, prayers are said here. The area has a reputation for lingering pagan practices linked to the frequent shipwrecks along this stretch of coast.

Ankeu

Death may appear at night in any part of mainland Brittany in the form of a skeleton in a white shroud, wielding a great scythe, and driving a spectral, creaking cart (Karrig an Ankeu) piled high with the bodies of the dead. Around the islands, he arrives in a boat (Bag Noz, the night boat). To hear the creaking of his approach is a very bad omen, indicating the imminent death of a loved one, and to meet him is almost certain death as he cuts people down with the scythe and flings the bodies on the cart.

The coast of this region comprises flooded river mouths and small sandy beaches with a great many islets and offshore rocks, many submerged at high tide. Strong westerly winds often sweep over the land, carrying salt to poison the soil, so it is very hard to make a living in the west of the region and population is sparse. The town of St. Renan, set well inland, is where Ronan, an Irish hermit, settled for a while in the fifth century. The most westerly of the north coast villages is Plougerneau, where the church was built directly over a pre-Christian cairn. The originally Romano-Gallic town of Tolente, which once stood in this location, vanished in 875 while under attack by Viking forces. It is highly likely that druids used magical means to hide it in a regio. The Quaesitores will investigate anyone known to be seeking a way into this regio. There is now no settlement on this stretch of coast until one reaches the village that has grown up around the abbey at St. Matthew's Point. The Benedictine monastery there, founded in the sixth century, once had the head of St. Matthew but it has not been seen for hundreds of years. The relic has the power to quell storms at sea. About 12 miles or so off the coast is the island of Ushant, where the Covenant of Fudarus is located.

Brest is a port at the mouth of the estuary of the River Élorn, and lies on the northern shore of a largely enclosed bay, well protected from the adjacent Atlantic Ocean. The Romans fortified the site and a castle was constructed in the same spot during the 11th century. It has been strengthened recently. At Daoulas, on the east coast of the bay, is an abbey founded in 500 by followers of St. Columba, destroyed by Viking raiders in the 10th century, and recently rebuilt. It is home to a few men living according to the Rule of St. Augustine.

The Crozon peninsula forms the southern side of the bay. Its cliffs are high and steep, battered by the ocean waves and worn into pinnacles, arches, and offshore islets. At the eastern end is Landévennec, where St. Guénolé established an abbey in the fifth century. Close to its western extremity lies the tiny village of Camaret, where pilgrims disembark on their way south to the shrine of Our Lady at Rocamadour (located close to the boundary between the Normandy and Provençal Tribunals). They can give thanks for their safe sea passage at the tiny chapel. Close by is an array of 143 menhirs, standing in a level 3 Magic aura. On the south side of the peninsula, at Morgat, are numerous caves, many having vivid natural coloration on the roofs and walls. One group of large caverns includes a cave known as the Devil's Chamber. The other group of large caves includes one known as the Altar. Numerous small caves are accessible only at low tide.

The highest part of the duchy reaches in an arc around the south and east of the County of Léon. Mist and fog often shroud the hills. The rounded summits reach to a little over 1200 feet in height at most, and are largely forested. The deciduous forest, home to deer, boar, and wolves, is particularly rich in mosses and ferns, which thrive in the damp air. Breaks in the tree cover are provided by a few bare, rocky summits worn into sawtoothed crests, gorse and heather moors where trees have been cleared, and a few fields in sheltered spots. Small, widely scattered communities mix Christian and pagan practices.

At Huelgoat there are piles of boulders that accumulated when the inhabitants of the adjacent hamlets, Plouye to the south and Berrien to the north, were at war and tossed the large stones at each other, only to have them fall in the middle. Rock formations in the vicinity include the Devil's Cave, the huge Trembling Rock (which rocks when pushed in the right place) and the Virgin's Kitchen. In the same area is a chasm where the River Argent disappears underground, a pool frequented by the fae, and a cave where King Arthur once slept. At Brennilis, an entrance to Hell known as Youdig is reputed to lie in the Yeun Elez, a peat bog that extends eastward from the foot of St. Michael's Mount. The entrance is only accessible in winter, when mists blanket the bog. Not far north is Mougau-Bihan, a giant's tomb in the form of a 45-footlong covered walkway of megaliths.

Civilization is kept to the edges of this region. There is a Cistercian monastery to the east, at Abbey du Relecq, a castle overlooking the Elorn river valley to the northwest, and, on the southeastern fringe, a small church where King Salomon was martyred in the ninth century. Nearby is Landernaeu, the main port of this inland region, at the head of the Élorn estuary.

The Black Dog

If the spirit of a deceased family member refuses to leave the house, a locally known folk ritual can trap it inside the body of a black dog. This involves taking the dog inside the house, tying a favorite article of clothing belonging to the dead person around the body of the dog, and making the dog eat a fist-sized gobbet of meat stuffed with scraps of plants gathered in the cemetery. The dog is drowned as quickly as possible, to release the spirit from its ties to the world of the living. The Black Dog is only different to a normal dog between the completion of the folk ritual and the death of the dog. If the dog is killed in any way other than drowning, the spirit remains tied to the world in the place the dog expired. Similar creatures with an Infernal Might can arise if the deceased person was a notable sinner, or even more rarely with a Magic Might if the deceased was a pagan. The Might of the dog containing the spirit is typically 5, but may be as high as 10 if the deceased was especially holy or evil. Some rare black dogs are almost as large as a person (Size 0).

Divine Might: 10 (Animal)

Characteristics: Cun 0, Per +2, Pre –4, Com 0, Str 0, Sta +2, Dex +1, Qik +2

Size: -1

Confidence Score: 0

Virtues and Flaws: Improved Characteristics, Long-Winded, Sharp Ears, Reckless

Qualities: Domesticated, Keen Sense of Smell, Pack Animal, Pursuit Predator, Vocal

Personality Traits: Loyal +3, Reckless +3, Brave +2

Reputations: Terrifying +3 (local)

Combat:

Bite: Init +2, Attack +8, Defense +7, Damage +1

Soak: +2

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

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

Abilities: Athletics 3 (distance running), Awareness 3 (keeping watch), Brawl 3 (bite), Hunt 4 (track by scent)

Natural Weapons:

The weapon statistics for a dog's bite are Init 0, Atk +3, Def +1, Dam +1.

Powers:

Fearsome Bark: 1 point, Init 2, Animal or Mentem; as the spell Panic of the Trembling Heart but with Range Voice.

Dreadful Howl: 3 points, Init 2, Animal or Mentem; as the spell Weight of a Thousand Hells but with Duration Sun and Range Voice.

Vis: 1 or 2 pawns in the tongue when the dog dies by any means other than drowning. A drowned dog contains no vis.

The domus magna of House Tytalus is the westernmost of Normandy's covenants, but its influence spreads out like a web across the whole Tribunal. Fudarus is the former home of three of the Order's most prominent members — Tytalus the Founder, his filia Pralix who was founder of House Ex Miscellanea, and the infamous Tasgillia who was corrupted by demons in the 10th century. Few non-Tytalan members of the Order have set foot within its halls, although many have succeeded in landing on the island that bears it. Fudarus has acquired a sinister reputation thanks to this secrecy and the nefarious schemes perpetrated by its members.

A quarter of a century ago, Buliste, the then-Prima of House Tytalus, was declared to have entered Final Twilight, and Harpax was chosen as her successor. However, Buliste returned from her Twilight a few years later, and the two magi have battled for the leadership of the House ever since. The majority of Tytali in Normandy have declared loyalty to either Buliste or Harpax, but have allowed the Primi to settle the issue between themselves without interference. As the two are equally matched in power, it could be a long time before either is declared the sole Primus of House Tytalus. Until this day comes, both Primi are afforded equal respect and leadership of the House, and the rulership of Fudarus.

In 798 AD Tytalus was introduced to Hariste, the apprentice of his former pupil Pralix. He fell in love with Hariste and stole her away, building Fudarus as a defense against the vengeful Pralix. He trained Hariste himself in record time, raising her to a full maga in just five years. However, his refusal to demonstrate his love for Hariste drove her away in frustration, and Tytalus occupied his magically-raised fortress alone. When Tytalus disappeared, Hariste claimed Fudarus as her own, and became the first Prima of House Tytalus. It has been the home of the Primus ever since.

Just under two hundred years later, Fudarus found itself at the center of a crisis. In 961 AD House Guernicus had discovered that Prima Tasgillia had been corrupted by Infernal powers, and had captured her far from Fudarus along with a substantial fraction of House Tytalus. When the Quaesitores and Flambeau hoplites arrived at Fudarus aiming to search it for further evidence, the new Prima refused. All of the current membership of the covenant had already been discovered to be free of diabolic taint, and Prima Kalliste insisted that House Guernicus had no right to invade the privacy of magi who had been found innocent. She was forced to relent under political pressure, and yet the Quaesitores who entered the covenant found nothing suspect.

Fudarus has been attacked just once in its existence, during the Schism War. House Tytalus was considered to be a threat by House Diedne, and a force of magi approached Fudarus from the sea. The physical location and the magic of those trapped inside proved sufficient to prevent the Diedne ingress, so they besieged it instead. Primus Klynoites and his sodales were assailed for several months by three mighty spirits summoned by the Diedne, until the Primus was able to wrest control over the spirits from the Diedne and command them himself. Once Klynoites had wiped out those who opposed him, the spirits were bound into the walls of the covenant and protect it to this day. Prior to the Schism War, members of Fudarus attended meetings of the Stonehenge Tribunal along with other covenants in Brittany. As the only Breton covenant to survive the Schism war, Fudarus's defection to Normandy in 1018 effectively placed the rich resources of vis in its hands, and the domus magna was treated favorably by the Tribunal in the division of spoils.

The Isle of Ushant lies 10 miles off the westernmost tip of Brittany. The seas around Ushant are treacherous, having swift currents arising from unexpected directions, and reefs that mariners swear move about at random. The bleak, storm-wracked mainland that faces Ushant has no inhabitants. Ushant is a small island, about four miles by two and a half miles, but its almost vertical cliffs rise 180 feet out of the sea, and its top surface is virtually flat. There is a small fishing community on the western side of the island where the cliffs are less steep, but it is otherwise deserted save for Fudarus.

Anyone approaching Ushant from either the sea or the land is assailed by the magical defenses of Fudarus: three mighty spirits (see insert) are bound into the walls of the covenant, and take it in turns to protect Fudarus from accidental discovery. Invited visitors and Redcaps are told to stand facing the island, with feet together and hands raised; upon uttering a password (which changes periodically) whichever spirit is currently protecting the covenant opens up a tunnel in its defenses in a straight line between the visitor and the covenant. From any direction, magic is essential to scale the cliffs, for there are no steps or ropes provided, and few are capable of climbing such a height unaided.

Fudarus is a sprawling fortress crouching on the very edge of the landward-facing cliffs of the island, where there is a Magic aura of 7. It is entirely enclosed by a high wall of gray stone in a semi-circular sweep. Not content with its precarious placement on the cliff edge, the covenant actually extends down the face of the cliffs; its "towers" are upsidedown, attached firmly to buttresses at the top of the cliff, but extending downwards like the petrified tendrils of an immense ivy. Most of Fudarus's inhabitants live in the fortress that spills over the cliff edge, and only one of the towers is usually occupied at any time, by the Primus. By tradition, upon the death of each Primus his tower is sealed by his successor, and a new tower built for him. The tower of Primus Harpax has been under construction for the last two decades, and, thanks to Prima Buliste's constant interference, it is not due to be finished any time soon. Likewise, Harpax has been devising more and more intricate ways to seal the tower of Buliste and deny her entrance to her own sanctum. There are nine other towers, one for each of the eight former Primi and one for Tytalus himself; all are sealed and (apart from Tasgillia's) no one has entered them since the passing of their owners. Some are still believed to be inhabited by the ghosts or Twilight-transformed remnants of the Primi.

Immediately to the left of the gates of Fudarus is a clear circle of grass, marked because the area around it is blackened and blasted. This is the site of the martyrdom of St Nerius (Realms of Power: The Divine, page 91), and has a Divine aura of 1. Every year on the anniversary of that event, a single blue flower of an unknown species blossoms in the permanently burnt sward. Several pious magi come to witness this event every year, and they do not allow anyone to pick the bloom, which lasts only one day. The magi of Fudarus do not prevent magi coming on this pilgrimage, and do not interfere with the ceremony. Some have even joined them in the past, taking part in the solemn devotions with appropriate gravitas.

The Three Great Spirits

The three spirits of Ushant are called Mogidell (a spirit of mists and sea-fog), Kerseenn (a spirit of misdirection), and Arnev (a spirit of stormy weather). They obey the bearer of the Circlet of the Primus (see below), although this item itself does not compel them; rather, the age-old pact made with the spirits by Fudarus's theurgists has made them genii loci of Ushant.

Magic Might: 40 (Auram)

Characteristics: Int +2, Per +4, Pre +5, Com +3, Str +3, Sta +2, Dex –2, Qik 0

Personality Traits: Watchful +5, Capricious +3, Playful +3

Virtues and Flaws: Ways of the Island

Powers:

Incorporeal, 0 points, Init Constant, Mentem: All three spirits are both invisible and intangible, and cannot be influenced by the physical world. Magic may only directly target a spirit if the caster can sense its existence.

Presence, 0 points, constant, Mentem: The spirits are aware of everything that occurs on Ushant.

Mastery of Mist, 1 – 8 points, Init 0, Auram: Mogidell can duplicate any non-Ritual spell of 40th level or lower pertaining to mist and fog, at a cost of 1 Might point per magnitude of the effect.

Mastery of Misdirection, 1 – 8 points, Init 0, Imaginem: Kerseenn can duplicate any non-Ritual spell of 40th level or lower pertaining to misdirection and concealment, at a cost of 1 Might point per magnitude of the effect.

Mastery of Storms, 1 – 8 points, Init 0, Auram: Arnev can duplicate any non-Ritual spell of 40th level or lower pertaining to high winds, rain, and other bad weather, at a cost of 1 Might point per magnitude of the effect.

Vis: The presence of these spirits causes 12 pawns of vis to manifest on Ushant each year, four each of Creo, Auram, and Imaginem. Only the inhabitants of Fudarus know what form this vis takes.

Appearance: To those who can see them, each of the three Great Spirits of Ushant are immense, filling the sky. Mogidell appears as a huge gray bird; when she unfurls her wings the sea mist descends upon Ushant. Kerseenn is constantly shifting shape between weird amalgams of human and beast. Arnev takes the appearance of an immense serpent with the head of a horse.

The Isle of Ushant belongs to the Heusaff family, who own the sole settlement on the island, a small fishing community on its south coast called Lampaul. The income from this minor industry is the main source of Fudarus' supplies. The fishermen are unaware that Lord Heusaff is a magus, nor do they know that his castle is a magical place, for they have very little to do with the ancient Breton family.

Members of the Order who are not followers of Tytalus have to earn the right to enter Fudarus, and if they fail or refuse they are housed in a dilapidated house just outside its walls. The challenge presented to visitors is set by the Primus, and is different for every magus; it typically involves conflict, in keeping with the philosophy of House Tytalus. Typical challenges are given in the nearby insert. By virtue of having passed the Apprentice's Gauntlet of the House, all Tytali are considered to have already passed the required challenge, and are free to enter.

Unlike some domus magnae of other houses, there is no particular cachet for a Tytalan magus in being a member of Fudarus. The philosophy of House Tytalus does not allow for empty gestures of pre-eminence and prestige; every magus is expected to make others recognize his superiority based on his actions. Consequentially, the membership of Fudarus is open to any member of House Tytalus that has sufficient reason to join, and sufficient puissance to force the current members to accept his right to join. Fudarus is an autocracy; the Primus is the leader of the covenant and makes all decisions on its behalf. Members are expected to act own their own initiative, but if the Primus feels that his authority has been usurped he can exact swift punishment using the enchanted Rod of the Primus.

Fudarus currently has two vassals, one of which is also found in Brittany. This covenant, Exspectatio (see Finistere) has a vassal of its own in Burgundy called Atramentum Renatus. These vassals are currently bound into harsh contracts of obligation to Fudarus, and must compete hard at the Tourney to afford the feudal debt. Fudarus repays this loyalty with generous political support. Fudarus has a long history of taking on vassals that win their independence, many of whom founder soon after they sever their ties. It shows no especial preference for vassals of House Tytalus.

Challenges to Enter Fudarus

It is a matter of chance which Primus is informed of the presence of visitors, and therefore which Primus sets the challenge of passage. Challenges are assigned according to the abilities of the magus requesting entrance; to be set a task that is too easy is a subtle insult of the kind appreciated by Tytali, and indicates the type of reception the visitor is likely to receive. Conversely, a difficult challenge is a compliment, and a visitor who fails the challenge but comports himself well in meeting it may still be invited into Fudarus.

Bulliste's Challenges

Buliste's challenges are most often of a philosophical or overtly magical bent:

• Present a convincing argument that the Code of Hermes is outdated and detrimental to the Order;
• Persuade one of Lampaul's residents to do something he finds morally repugnant;
• Cast an unknown ritual spell from a casting tablet without falling unconscious;
• Open the main gate of Fudarus without moving a muscle.

Harpax's Challenges

Harpax's challenges are usually of the physical kind:

• Fight a magically created beast;
• Achieve a pin in a wrestling match against one of Fudarus' grogs;
• Catch at least seven of a dozen spears cast at the character from the ramparts;
• Retrieve an item from Lampaul before a water clock runs dry.

For the last twenty-five years, Harpax and Buliste have been the only magi who live at Fudarus. When it became clear that the two Primi would not be capable of settling their dispute quickly, the other magi of Fudarus quietly left the covenant, leaving them to battle it out undisturbed. They moved to a vassal covenant of Fudarus in Brittany that they renamed Exspectatio after ousting its former inhabitants. The magi of Exspectatio are technically still members of Fudarus, and they return on a regular basis to retrieve covenant resources such as books, or conduct some laboratory activity in Fudarus' superior aura. Kybella (see below) casts the Aegis of the Hearth each year on behalf of both Primi, as neither will trust the other to do it. Harpax and Buliste have resorted to a pettiness that may be considered demeaning behavior for a Primus; but this is merely how they express their rivalry within Fudarus' walls. The feud they pursue on the stage of the Order is as vicious as any other pair of beloved rivals. For more details of these schemes, see Saga Ideas.

Story Seed: Color Blind

A covenant sponsored or favored by Fudarus may receive a "gift" of some of its grogs. The Lesser Malediction that they suffer with regards to blindness to certain colors can be an annoyance, but anyone who knows their weakness (such as Fudarus itself) can exploit it to lethal effect.

Prima Buliste of House Tytalus

Age: 84 (Apparent age mid-60s)
Personality Traits: Petty +3, Generous +2, Caring –1

Buliste filia Bulcis was Prima of House Tytalus for twenty years before she suffered a protracted Twilight episode that caused her to appear dead. She was wearing the Circlet of the Primus at the onset of this Twilight, and Harpax was unable to remove it from her body so she wears it still. She uses the invisible spirits commanded by the circlet to harry her rival; they remove stones from his uncompleted tower, add ground glass to his food, sew up his clothing, and commit hundreds of other petty annoyances that can verge on the lethal. More importantly to the House, Buliste controls Fudarus' vast agency of spies, and can mentally communicate with several key players in that network due to her puissance with the Art of Mentem and her collection of fixed Arcane Connections. This allows her to maintain respect and authority within the House, although she is largely impotent in the Normandy Tribunal.

Buliste is a woman apparently in her sixties, of regal mien and corpulent yet not obese physique. She wears rich clothes of violet satin and white Breton lace. She has very expressive features, and the most obvious of several Twilight scars is that her kindness and her anger are both palpable — one gentle, the other painful.

Primus Harpax of House Tytalus

Age: 70 (Apparent age early 50s)
Personality Traits: Mercurial +3, Impulsive +1, Sincere +1

Harpax filius Bulcis has forever felt limited by his elder "sister," and fought her with great vigor for the leadership of House Tytalus, only to lose to her in the end. He barely hesitated when she had seemed to pass on, but burst into her sanctum and stole the Rod of the Primus and the identity of Lord Heusaff (see Houses of Hermes: Societates, House Tytalus for more on deep cover disguises). Harpax uses the rod of his office to torture Buliste with distractions; one day her sanctum may be so hot that her candles melt, the next she might have to break the ice on her wash basin.

Harpax has a better grasp of the politics of the tribunal and the plots of his fellow Tytalans than does Buliste. He governs the wealth (in terms of both vis and coin) of the covenant as Lord Heusaff, and maintains the oaths of fealty of Fudarus' two vassals. However, without access to the agents of the covenant, he is limited to how much of the House's business he can control; he is more powerful than Buliste in Normandy, but she has the edge in the Order as a whole.

When playing the role of Lord Heusaff, Harpax uses his magic to change his appearance to that of the young lord, a dashing nobleman. However, Harpax played this role too well, and has had to develop some unpleasant personal habits to discourage the attentions of women of marriageable age. In his role as tenth Primus of House Tytalus, Harpax is a distinguished man apparently in his fifties, stick-thin and somewhat arthritic. He maintains several other disguises, and it is possible that he will be first met as a butler, or a sentry, or a tinker, or any number of other roles. His obsession (and sigil) of plurality has expressed itself on his body through Twilight scars; the style of his clothing shifts gradually over the course of a day, while remaining the same signature color of forest green.

The Rod and Circlet of the Primus

Fudarus owns two magical items that are of particular note, for as well as controlling aspects of the covenant, they are also the symbols of the leadership of House Tytalus. They were crafted long ago at the direction of Hariste.

The Rod of the Primus is used to control the physical environment of the covenant. It has a number of powers that are all tied to making any particular room a pleasant or uncomfortable place to be in. What is more insidious is that the rod can cause these effects to trigger at the presence of a particular person, so that every room that someone enters is freezing cold or plunged into darkness. The rod is owned currently by Primus Harpax.

Control Environment of Fudarus

Variable Technique, Form, and Level Pen: 0, unlimited uses per day R: Touch, D: Conc, T: Structure

The rod has six similar enchantments that use the same spell parameters, but have varying Arts and final levels. The rod can maintain any number of these effects simultaneously, but can only activate one per round.

• Vary light levels from total darkness to unbearable brightness. MuIg base 1, final level 25
• Vary temperature from below freezing to baking hot. MuIg base 1, final level 25
• Open archways or close portals between rooms. MuTe base 1, +1 stone, final level 30
• Create intense smells, either pleasant or putrid. CrIm base 1, final level 25
• Create noises, either soothing or clamoring. CrIm base 1, final level 25
• Change textures of furnishings to feel as soft as down or as sharp as thorns. MuIm base 1, final level 25
• (variable base, +1 Touch, +1 Conc, +3 Structure; +10 unlimited uses, +5 item maintains concentration)

The Circlet of the Primus commands the spiritual servants of the covenant. Although they can rarely be detected, every room has several invisible spirits within it that perform the simple, menial tasks of the covenant. The servants normally perform whatever task to which they were last set, and the wearer of the circlet is the only individual who can change the commands of a spirit. Prima Buliste currently wears the circlet.

Control Spirit

Rego Vim 55
Pen: 20, unlimited uses per day
R: Arc, D: Conc, T: Ind.

This power allows the wielder to command a single task of any spirit in her presence, or to whom the wielder has an Arcane Connection. The commands are issued mentally, and the circlet itself is inscribed with the names of (that is, Arcane Connections to) all of Fudarus' servant spirits. Any spirit whose Might is less than the Penetration Total of the circlet can be affected by this power.

(Base 5, +4 Arc, +1 Conc; +10 unlimited uses, +5 item maintains concentration, +10 for Penetration Total of 20).

Most of the menial tasks of the covenant are performed by invisible spirits under the command of the wearer of the Circlet of the Primus. These spirits do all the cleaning, repairing, lifting, food preparation, and so forth of the covenant, although there are a few human servants for performing skilled tasks, such as a chef and craftsmen. Due to these thronging spirits (it is never clear how many there are, other than "just enough"), Fudarus has little need for serving folk, laborers, or teamsters. This makes the covenant seem to be empty and silent most of the time.

Fudarus employs a small cadre of specialists: an alchemist and glassblower to maintain the laboratories; a barber-surgeon who governs the regimen of health of the covenant; and two craftsmen. The covenant has a large turb of grogs, who have divided equally into two camps based on their loyalty to either Harpax or Buliste. They wear swatches of cloth indicating their allegiance, and thanks to the Warping effect of the aura, do not even acknowledge the presence of anyone wearing a substantial amount of the opposing color (such as a hood, tunic, or cloak). Thus, Harpax's grogs cannot even see Buliste, or anyone wearing any purple clothing, and vice versa. This is not just affectation; someone removing a green hood can surprise one of Buliste's grogs by seeming to appear out of nowhere, and someone wearing a green cloak could stab one in the chest without resistance. Wearing both colors seems to nullify the effect; a grog of Fudarus does not ignore someone appareled in their own color.

Story Seed: Iasper's Family

Iasper's close relationship with his mundane family is a potential cause for trouble. The Foutins are a large clan of local roustabouts and ne'er-do-wells; who, while not actually criminal by nature, have a knack of getting into trouble. One of the player covenant's grogs may be one of Iasper's cousins, or end up on the wrong side of a fight with one of them. When Iasper is called upon to smooth over matters with the local authorities, he manages to implicate the PC magi in a grandiose plot of mayhem to destabilize the region. He then approaches the PCs in contrition, and tries to assist them in untangling the mess he has created without revealing his own role.

The rivalries pursued by Tytalan magi are highly personal and private; when it became clear that the feud between Harpax and Buliste at Fudarus was not going to be resolved quickly, the other magi of Fudarus looked around for somewhere else to stay. Their eyes fell upon the newly established vassal covenant of Atramentum, sponsored just one year previously. It was a convenient distance from Fudarus, so the elder Tytali evicted the two founding magi and took up residence. The new name means "waiting in hope or dread" — certainly a fitting name!

Exspectatio is found in a secluded valley in the Arrée Mountains of Brittany, about three days' journey from Fudarus. There are six magi living at Exspectatio, all members of House Tytalus, and all but one are at least four decades from apprenticeship. Although legally a vassal of Fudarus, the Oath of Fealty is very generous, having been drawn up in part by the magi of Exspectatio, and it is not uncommon to find one or more of Exspectatio's members absent at any one time, visiting Fudarus to use the library or a specialized laboratory. The two most prominent members are Adanos and Kybella.

Story Seed: Iasper's Seeming Death

Seeking membership of the Cabal of the Leaden Cart (see Sagas: Plots of House Tytalus), Iasper attracts the interest of a crossroads faerie who governs the transition between life and death. The faerie blurs the border between the living and the dead, causing corpses to walk again and the living to fall into a death-like pallor. The player characters happen across the affected region, and must free Iasper from his death-state to break the faerie's spell.

Adanos Lutorum of House Tytalus

Age: 57 (Apparent age 41)
Personality Traits: Humorless +2, Unswerving +3, Loyal to Harpax +3

Adanos bears the blood of an earth spirit, and has a strong affinity for soil, stone, and clay. He is over seven feet tall and totally hairless, and his skin is the texture of rock. He is the youngest of the founding magi of Exspectatio and is a staunch supporter of Harpax since Buliste refused to take him as an apprentice. His signature tactic in conflict of any type (physical, verbal, or magical) is to allow his opponent to expend her energies fruitlessly against his impenetrable defenses, then to strike with a crushing blow once she is exhausted.

Kybella of House Tytalus

Age: 68 (Apparent age 48)
Personality Traits: Loyal to Buliste +3, Suspicious +1

A leading member of the Titanoi, House Tytalus's cult of theurgists (see Houses of Hermes: Societates, House Tytalus). She is responsible for maintaining the enchantments that hold Fudarus's spirits in check, and is a close friend of Prima Buliste. She specializes in genii loci, and carefully inspects every place she stays for evidence of such spirits. Kybella's current interests revolve around her involvement of the Cabal of the Laden Cart (see Sagas: Plots of House Tytalus).

Iasper filius Adanos of House Tytalus

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

Size: 0

Age: 26

Decrepitude: 0

Warping Score: 0 (4)

Confidence Score: 2 (6)

Virtues and Flaws: The Gift; Hermetic Magus; Flexible Formulaic Magic; Affinity with Rego, Clear Thinker, Harnessed Magic, Magical Focus (Turmoil), Puissant Concentration, Puissant Terram, Self Confident*; Chaotic Magic, Meddler; Close Family Ties, Incomprehensible, Weird Magic.

* House Virtue

Personality Traits: Argumentative +2, Self-Disciplined +2, Brave +1

Combat:

Fist: Init –2, Attack +1, Defense 0, Damage 0

Soak: +2

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

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

Abilities: Artes Liberales 3 (literature), Brawl 2 (fist), Breton 3 (arguments), Concentration 2+2 (Rego), Finesse 2 (Terram), Etiquette 1 (politeness), French 5 (Norman), Latin 4 (Hermetic), Leadership 1 (brow-beating), Magic Lore 1 (earth spirits), Magic Theory 4 (Terram), Normandy Lore 1 (hostilities), Parma Magica 1 (Mentem), Penetration 1 (Terram), Philosophiae 1 (debating)

Arts: Cr4, In 2**, Mu** 2**, Pe** 2**, Re** 10**; An** 2**, Aq** 6**, Au** 6**, Co** 3**, He** 0**, Ig** 3**, Im** 5**, Me** 5**, Te** 6+3**, Vi** 4

Spells Known:

Chaos of the Angry Waves (ReAq 30/+24) Confusion of the Insane Vibrations (ReIm 30/+22) Confusion of the Numbed Will (ReMe 15/+22) Crest of the Earth's Wave (ReTe 20/+21) Panic of the Trembling Heart (CrMe 15/+11) Prying Eyes (InIm 5/+9)

The Earth's Carbuncle (ReTe (Mu) 15/+13) Wielding the Invisible Sling (ReTe 10/+21)

Appearance: A thin man with long shaggy black hair and an unshaven face. In contrast to his unkempt features, his clothing is always impeccably turned out.

Iasper is the youngest member of Exspectatio, having passed his Gauntlet just four years ago. He is a study in contrasts, since his magic is simultaneously tightly harnessed and unpredictable. He prides himself on his self-control, and yet has a natural affinity for turmoil and chaos, and delights in its execution. Given his master's interests in Terram, he is fairly competent with this Art as well. Iasper is interested in reined chaos, which he believes is the route to self-understanding. Unlike many of his house, he provokes conflict beyond his capacity to control, seeing the vagaries of chance as a learning experience. There is no malice in his actions, although he rarely considers the implications of his actions for others.

Cornouaille covers a broad peninsula with projecting points at both the south end and the north, and a landscape of wooded hills and valleys inland. Locronan is an unusual pilgrimage site, where visitors retrace the path up the hill that was the daily walk made, while fasting and barefooted, by St. Ronan. A Benedictine monastery close by provides accommodation for pilgrims. It is sited in a forest once held sacred by druids and is used as a place of retreat by brothers from other monasteries needing a change of scene. Quimper is the main town of Cornouaille. King Gradlon founded it when he lost his former capital (see the nearby insert). Its first bishop, St. Corentine, lived off a magical fish that was caught daily from the river. He ate half of it and threw the rest back. The next morning the fish was whole again. The fish, which had a Divine Might of 2 (Animal), may still be somewhere close by, and might make itself available should any deserving person seek it.

The northern projection of the Cornouaille peninsula ends at Raz Point and Van Point. These two promontories lie on either side of the feared Bay of Troubled Souls, where the bodies of those drowned in shipwreck are most likely to be washed ashore. The bodies of druids who died on the mainland were put in boats here to be ferried over to Sein Island; its reputation as a druid burial site keeps local people away. This island is so low-lying that it is submerged at the very highest tides. There are two menhirs and a dolmen on Sein Island. The Roman historian Pomponius Mela claims that nine virgin witches with the power to raise winds and storms lived on it.

Between these rocky promontories and the cliffs of Penmarch, the southern extremity, the desolate coast is a twelve-mile-long shingle beach. Half way along it, an annual ceremony to bless the sea is held, involving a torchlight procession.

The hills of the Black Mountains are softer and lower than the Arrée Mountains, which lie to the north on the other side of the broad valley of the River Aulne. Some of the early Christian missionaries lived as hermits in the woods that still cover the hills. Ménez-Hom, an outlying summit to the western end of the range, provides a view over a very wide area encompassing the coast from the Cornouaille peninsula, across Crozon, over the bay where Brest lies, and as far as St. Matthews Point, plus the inland view over the two ranges of hills and the intervening valley. Another summit, further east, is known as Karreg an Tan, meaning Fire Rock; Ignem vis is found in the rust-colored lichen that slowly forms on the rock. In the east of the Black Mountains, at Rostrenen, is a hawthorn bush dedicated to Our Lady which blooms all year round and is a source of Divinely tainted Herbam vis. Carhaix-Plouguer lies in the valley between the two ranges of hills, at their eastern end, and is the only sizable settlement for miles around. It grew up in Roman times where seven roads meet, and was named Vorgium. Further east is Bulat-Pestivien, where there are healing springs, and Burthulet, a desolate place said to be so frigid in winter that a demon died of cold there.

The Town of Is

In the sixth century, Gradlon was King of Cornouaille and his court was based in the beautiful town of Is. It was protected from the sea by a dyke with huge gates. The king held the key to these floodgates. His daughter, Dahut, was seduced by the Devil, who disguised himself as an attractive young man. He persuaded her to steal the key for him while her father slept. When he opened the floodgates at high tide, King Gradlon fled on horseback with his daughter. He soon realized the horse could not outrun the waves. A voice urged him to throw off the wicked woman so, reluctantly, he threw his daughter off into the onrushing tide. At once, the waves retreated sufficiently to allow the citizens to escape to the mainland, but Is was submerged. As for Dahut, she was transformed into an evil siren known as Marie-Morgane. She still sings her deadly songs, drowning sailors and using them to people her sunken city. It is said that if Mass is celebrated in one of the drowned churches on a Good Friday, Marie-Morgane will be banished.

Corong and Toul Goulic Gorges

At the Corong Gorge, a river disappears beneath a mass of rocks and flows out lower down in a series of cascades. Toul Goulic Gorge, where another river disappears beneath tumbled rocks, lies further east. Each is home to a temperamental genius loci (see Realms of Power: Magic). The pair has been locked in a feud for so long that neither knows why it started. The river owned by the one with the upper hand flows above ground. Both would be glad to end the fight and would reward anyone who can accomplish this without either appearing to back down.

Inland, this region comprises low, forested plateaus broken by numerous rivers that open out into wide, drowned estuaries when they meet the western coast. Crops are cultivated in sheltered valleys but food from the sea is very important too. There is a fountain at Ste. Hélene, beside the bay that forms the mouth of the River Étel, which is renowned for its prophetic powers: if a sailor's wife throws a scrap of bread into the fountain, she can tell by whether it sinks or floats if her husband will return safely. Also near this bay is the chapel of St. Cado where deaf petitioners may spend a night on the stone bed, resting on a stone pillow, in hopes of a cure.

The most striking coastal feature is the almost land-locked Gulf of Morbihan, fringed with mud and salt marsh and scattered with a great many small, low islands. It is about 12 miles across and reaches nine miles inland. Peter Abélard, the renowned philosopher and theologian, retreated to St-Gildas-de-Rhuys, a monastery founded by St. Gildas in the sixth century and situated on the southern arm protecting the Gulf of Morbihan. He found it a wild place beset by dangerous animals, the language strange and horrible, and the monastic community unruly (see insert in Chapter 7: Ile de France, Abélard and Héloïse).

Tumiac Tumulus

The decisive battle between Julius Caesar's troops and the strongest tribe of Gauls, the Veniti, took place to the southeast of this stretch of coast. Over two hundred Gallic sailing vessels and some great Roman galleys met as Caesar looked on from his vantage point on the Tumiac Tumulus, on the arm of land round the southern side of the gulf. It is highly likely that interesting artifacts still lie on the ocean bed.

Gavrinis Tumulus

A more interesting tumulus is that named Gavrinis, on an islet not far from the mouth of the gulf. It is a small hill about 20 feet in height made of stones piled over a covered passageway that leads to a chamber. Both passage and chamber are roofed with huge slabs standing on large supporting stones decorated with carvings of serpentine spirals, cup shapes, and rings. The chamber is constructed of eight huge slabs of a dark, fine-grained rock not native to the area. It has an evil reputation, with rumors circulating of dark magic practiced in here in the past, but it has a Faerie aura of level 3 and under the right circumstances acts as a gateway to a dark Faerie realm. On the isle of Er Lanic, just to the south of Gavrinis, stand stones in the shape of a figure eight, one circle of which is submerged at high tide; a Magic aura of level 5 covers the immediate area.

Rhuys' Megaliths

Toward the end of the Rhuys peninsula, the arm of land that forms the west side of the Gulf of Morbihan, at Locmariaquer, is an outstanding assemblage of ancient stone monuments. The greatest of them, originally over 60 feet in height, stands broken in two. The stones, known locally as the Merchants' Table, are decorated with carvings of crooks and one ox, so the place is likely associated with ancient animal magic. Also in this vicinity, Er-Grah, Mané-er Hroech, Mané-Lud and Mané-Rethaul, Kerlud, and Flat Stones are other dolmens of immense dressed stones, many carved. Most take the form of a covered passage leading to a large chamber and were probably the homes of giants.

Quiberon

An elongated island, Quiberon, which is separated from the mainland only at high tide, has dunes on the north end, a stretch of rocks, cliffs, caves, and reefs where the sea pounds savagely along the oceanward western side, and wide, gently curving sand beaches on the sheltered eastern side. A stone called Roh-en-Aod, situated at the north end of the western cliffs, has five cup-shaped indents, which, if tapped with hammers at night by women, will ensure favorable winds for their husbands' boats. Auram vis can be obtained here, but only by females. Almost half way along the eastern side of Quiberon stand 22 menhirs in rows.

Story Seed: Jean and Jeanne

Two menhirs stand on a gorse-clad moor towards the north of Belle-ile, one of pale granite and one of darker schist. They are named Jean and Jeanne, and are the petrified forms of a young, betrothed couple who could not wait until they were wed. A suitable Hermetic ritual could free them from the enchantment. Once returned to flesh, the pair are keen to join the covenant since the world they knew is long gone. The woman is pregnant and her child is due three months after the petrification ends. The child is Gifted and has a close affinity with Terram magic.

Belle-ile

The largest Breton island, Belle-ile, is five miles out to sea from Quiberon. It is a schist plateau cut deeply by fast-flowing streams that end in creeks or small beaches, and is frequently swept by strong winds and rain from the west. Trees only grow in sheltered spots. On the southwest coast at Port-Goulphar, in the clear waters in a deep, sheltered chasm, brightly colored algae collects on the rocks; this is an unusual form of Herbam vis. A little further along the coast, at rocks called the Needles, the turbulent waves generate a great deal of foam that is a source of Aquam vis.

One of the most powerful magical sites in Mythic Europe, Carnac haunts the imagination. Over a thousand menhirs, aligned in a broken pattern of great avenues of stone, cover the heath near the village of the same name. Constructed on a scale that dwarfs Stonehenge, the rough unworked stones completely dominate the landscape, and the feeling of ancient magic hangs heavy in the air here.

The stones, mute guardians to forgotten secrets, range from the height of a child to well over twenty feet. By day, a Magic aura of strength 5 covers the heath, one of the largest Magical auras known to the Order, and in many places it is far higher. The location is vivid, brighter, and somehow more real than the surrounding heath; so strong is the magic that even the birds, flowers, and animals that live here display unusual intelligence, strange powers, or sometimes the ability to converse with intruders. Once within the stones themselves and on the avenues, the aura is generally 6 or even higher, and many regiones are known to exist. Yet few would wish to come here at night. As the shadows lengthen the Magic aura fades away, and at night an Infernal aura replaces the magic. Then the sinister cackling of the hideous guardians of the stones ring out across the heath. It is for this reason that no covenant has ever been constructed here, and it is doubtful any ever will.

The legends of the Order place the meeting of Trianoma with Diedne the Founder here, on a bright summer's afternoon. Some say that the Diedne knew the secrets of the place, but who can tell? Here a fleeing remnant of the pagan magicians was hunted down and killed. Some say the blood of that battle is what has led to the curse that haunts the area to this day, in the form of its strange and hostile inhabitants. Other disquieting legends hint at Diedne fleeing into the regiones, or even suggest that the stones may have magical portals, not dissimilar to Mercere Portals, which allow transportation to other groups of far-distant standing stones. Will the Diedne who escaped return through them one day, seeking revenge?

The ignorant locals blame fairies for the construction, and some are so foolish as to use hedge magics and ancient charms to try to command them to build houses for them in a single night, for the faeries can not stand the light of day. Others, more pious, claim that St. Cornelius was chased across the heath by the evil faeries, and as the ox cart he drove neared the sea he finally turned and prayed fervently, and God miraculously turned the pursuing faeries into the stones. Yet most who live near the stones are sure of one thing: demons, not fairies, haunt this place at night.

Nain

Infernal Might: 10 (Animal)

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

Size: –2

Age: n/a

Confidence Score: 0

Virtues and Flaws: None

Personality Traits: Sadistic +2, Lustful +2, Energetic +2

Reputations: Demonic 5 (local), Tireless Dancers 2 (local), Magicians 1 (local)

Combat:

Claws: Init +1, Attack 7, Defense +8, Damage +1

Stone (thrown): Init +2, Attack +5, Defense +4, Damage +1

Soak: +3

Fatigue Levels: n/a

Wound Penalties: –1 (1–3), –3 (4–6), –5 (7–9), Incapacitated (10–12), Dead (13+)

Abilities: Area Lore 3 (Carnac), Athletics 5 (dancing), Brawl 2 (claws), Folk Ken 4 (temptation), Guile 1 (lying), Speak Breton 2 (yelping), Stealth 4 (ambushes), Thrown Weapon 3 (stones)

Powers:

Glittering Treasure, 2 points, Init 3, Terram*.* Creates a number of silver coins that shine in the moonlight and tempt the greedy amid the stones. The coins vanish at dawn, but are usually used as a lure to bring the victim into an ambush.

Deadly Dance, 2 points, Init 3, Corpus. A group of up to 10 victims is compelled to dance wildly with the Nains until sunrise. Each hour's dancing requires a Stamina stress roll against an Ease Factor of 6, and failure results in the loss of a long-term fatigue level until the dancer falls unconscious, after which Light Wounds are taken. A botch results in two levels being lost per 0 on the botch dice; if the victim is unconscious, the Wound increases by one level per 0. Many have danced themselves to death before dawn comes.

Magician's Desire Denied, 1 point, Init 3, Vim. Makes a pebble, leaf or other object appear to radiate magic as vis would to an InVi spell. If Sense the Nature of Vis is cast upon it, or dawn breaks, the "vis" collected simply vanishes.

Equipment: Usually none.

Natural Weapons: Claws: Init -1, Attack +2, Defense +3, Damage +2

Encumbrance: 0 (0)

Vis: 1 pawn of Animal vis in hooves

Appearance: Child-sized deformed humanoid creatures, with filthy heads of long hair, goat-like bandy legs, and eyes of burning red fire.

Nains usually attack in untrained groups of three per victim, relying on superior numbers to overwhelm their enemies if their magic fails to defeat them.

What are the secrets of the stones? Investigation and a Hermetic Breakthrough may perhaps allow some of the mysteries of the stones to be decoded. Magi with an interest in the mysteries of Hermetic Geometry and Hermetic Astrology often come here seeking new insights, while others are convinced the remains are associated with Fertility Magics, but no one is sure.

Magi fear the region, and no covenant has been established here because of the terrible denizens of the stones. The Nains are small, deformed, imp-like creatures with filthy heads of long hair, goat-like bandy legs, and eyes of burning red fire. They are the guardians of the mysteries of the stones, and can read the strange magical characters traced on the rocks, although these are only visible by starlight on moonless nights. Their unholy night is the first Wednesday in May, and it is said to be suicide to enter the vicinity of the stones then, when they conduct blood sacrifices and the Infernal aura rises to 6.

Jacques Vert of House Merinita once speculated they are the dreams of the dead Diedne, taken living form in faerie flesh. No one believed him, or if they did they did not care to investigate. He vanished amid the stones on a moonless night some fifty years ago, while seeking the legendary treasure of Carnac — a treasure the very nature of which is unknown. Such treasures are dubious, however, as the Nains are know to have the power to create magical silver in the shape of modern coins that vanish in the light of day. More disquietingly, they can create fake vis that radiates magic to a simple Intellego Vim spell, but on further inspection to ascertain the Form, simply melts away. The Nains love to tempt fools into their clutches by playing on their victims' greed.

Malicious, cruel, and deceitful, the Nains dance in orgiastic rituals among the stones, yet always vanish into hidden regiones by the dawn. Those who try to treat with them sometimes find themselves compelled to join their weird dances, and to dance long after fatigue has rendered them unconscious. If the light of dawn does not arrive in time, the ensorcelled victim dances himself to death.

As well as the Nains, many magical spirits haunt the ruins, and locals frequently report long processions of the ancient dead. They take shelter in the Church of St. Cornelius, bar the doors, and pray till dawn each Midsummer night, when the Infernal aura reaches 5 even in the churchyard. Long ago the Nains were Korrigan, faerie creatures, but their wickedness corrupted them and today they are clearly aligned with the Infernal realm. Nains attack in large groups, and are often accompanied by even darker, more horrific demons.

The largest urban settlement, Vannes, stands on the River Marle, close to where it flows into the Gulf of Morbihan. It was Nominoé's capital of the kingdom of Brittany in the ninth century. The cathedral in Vannes is dedicated to St. Peter. Inland are the Lanvaux Moors, a crescent of largely bare, hard, flaking rock dotted with megaliths. The town of Ploëmel lies beyond the inland side of these rocky hills. It was founded by St. Arthmael, who defeated a dragon here, and to whom the main church is dedicated. Northeast of Ploëmel is the petrified Giant of Kerderf and an isolated pillar named for St Cado, which women wishing to conceive a child rub their bodies against. It is a source of Creo vis, and possibly also a link to a form of magic that can overcome the sterility brought on by longevity rituals. The pillar would be of interest as a source of insight into fertility cult practice (see Ancient Magic, page 54).

The Statues of Josselin and Castennac

The castle of Josselin is to the west, on the banks of the River Oust. A wooden statue of the Virgin Mary was once discovered near Josselin, in a bramble bush. One day, a scruffy beggar woman came to the village asking for water, but the local women drove her off, sending their dogs to chase her away. At once, their cruel shouts turned to dog-like howls. It was Our Lady in disguise, who had come to test their charity and found it lacking. Every year, at the feast of Pentecost, the local women must beg forgiveness in front of the wooden statue or else the curse will return.

Close to the border with the county of Cornouaille is Castennac, where a statue of a very different sort was discovered. It is obviously that of a woman and is known locally as their Venus, being used as the focus of pagan, sexually charged rituals. It has been thrown into the river on several occasions by the local churchmen, but so far has always turned up again.

Folk Tales

Tales now told across Brittany contain many memories handed down about the mysteries of the region, and may give magi ideas of where to look for adventure and vis. The following crop up in folk tales across the duchy, so there is probably truth in at least some of them.

Two trees fighting; if spoken to in the right way, they turn back into an argumentative husband and wife.

A stranded fish that is king of all fishes, a trapped bird who can command all birds, and a bound demon king, each of which, if saved, will give help in return.

Three hermits, each of whom gives one piece of advice that builds into a solution.

Lushly fertile land where emaciated horses or cattle graze, beside barren land supporting plump, healthy animals.

A crust or loaf of bread that never diminishes, though eaten.

A silver whistle that brings help from birds.

A shirt which, when put on, keeps an importunate would-be lover frozen immobile through the night.

Apples that cause irresistible drowsiness.

A honey cake that, when eaten, can make a girl give birth to a magical cat that will help her win a good husband, despite the shame of her pregnancy.

A piece of cloth enchanted to serve food and drink when spread.

Story Seed: Princess in the Tower

A young woman from the covenant is stolen away to be a companion to a beautiful young lady, who gives herself the title Princess of the Shining Star. Her father, to prevent her having any contact with other men, confines the princess to a tower. Female servants wait on her, but cannot communicate, so the princess is very happy to have a companion. The tower is part of a large castle of greenish, translucent glass, held in the air by gold and silver chains. The whole place is in a Magic regio.

Story Seed: Too Much Wind

An air elemental decides to take an interest in the covenant — perhaps someone there has upset it. A strong wind blows round the covenant all the time, causing great inconvenience to all the inhabitants. Help may be available from a bearded old woman with long teeth who tends her fire in a cottage in the forest. She is the Mother of Winds and has four giant sons, whom she keeps in order by threatening to trap them in her sack.

Story Seed: The White Fox

Characters from the covenant meet a white fox, near a menhir or a dolmen with a Magic aura. It is a Magic creature and, if they talk to it politely and promise to do it a favor, it gives them an ivory ball. If dropped, the ball rolls along the ground a little way, always in the same direction. If followed, it leads to a hermit dwelling in the forest.

The city of Nantes and the immediately surrounding area is, in some ways, hardly part of Brittany. There are few Bretons there and the Frankish population feels an affinity with Anjou and Poitou. Nantes, which stands on the River Loire, was an important location in Roman times and before. Now it is a political and ecclesiastical center. The cathedral is a site of martyrdom, where pagan invaders massacred the bishop and his whole congregation in 843. King Alain Crookbeard established this as the capital of the duchy.

The main road inland heads to Rennes, through forest, with very little settlement. At Blain, two minor trade routes cross. That trending northeast to southwest was important in Roman times, so is a much better road than might be expected. There is a small castle here, and a busy market. A leper hospital is hidden not far away in the Gâvre Forest. The River Vilaine's highest port accessible by sea-going craft is at Redon where the Abbey of St. Savior was established in 832. Several rivers meet at Redon, so it serves as a distribution point for trade over a wide area. On the higher ground close to the village of St. Just, north of Redon and to the west of the river valley, are several groups of gray stones in a small Magic aura of level 3.

Deep layers of peat, trapped behind coastal sands, form an immense expanse of marsh between the estuaries of the rivers Loire and Vilaine. Fish, eels, and wildfowl are abundant, but hardly anyone lives here although a few patches of firm ground rise above the swamp. On one, Kerbourg, located to the southwest, stands a covered alley of megaliths with a low Magic aura. The fortress of Ranrouët, which is under construction, guards the area on the north side of the marsh. There is also a settlement overlooking the marsh on the southwestern edge, at Guérande, where the church of St. Aubin stands on the site of a baptistery used during the conversion of the pagans here. In the crypt is a Merovingian sarcophagus. A ridge of rock forms a peninsula on the seaward side of the salt marsh that lies between the village and the ocean. Salt extraction takes place on a small scale here.