Isles of Darkness Venue Style Sheet

Premise

Through various means, a number of British mages have become aware of a location outside of Crickhowell, Powys, Wales which seems to have very old, very powerful spells cast upon it. Not long thereafter, the Guardians of the Pentacle Hallows began to receive dreams and visions, calling for them to gather the mages of Britain together with signs and portents that a great treasure is to be found.

Calling the mages to gather at Trefecca Farm, which they have rented out and arranged to have unstaffed for the event, the Guardians of the Pentacle Hallows set out to organise the exploration.

Theme

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science."

-- Albert Einstein
In the years of the Great Diaspora, many mages worked to preserve the knowledge and wisdom of Atlantis against the ages. In many cases, those attempts which have been found have created more questions than answers. Often times, it seems that the legacy of the ancients is one of enduring mystery as the words and deeds of Will workers of old fade into the mists of history and the darkness of the Lie to become nothing more than fodder for fairytales and legends. Every now and again, however, a find of tremendous importance is made and, for at least a moment, the mysteries become clear#

It is for these moments, these finds, that countless mages over the millennia have searched, studying old tomes, crumbling maps and deciphering millennia-dead languages, hoping to catch a glimpse - however brief - of the world that was before the sundering.

Mood

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke

"Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology." -- Larry Niven

The mood for our event is one of mystery. Whilst there will be space for those who wish to engage in purely social play, the focus of this event is active exploration, with a touch of pulp adventure.

Setting

The primary setting for the event is Trefecca Farm, a bed and breakfast and self-catering holiday accommodation in Brecon, Powys. (http://www.trefeccafarm.co.uk/)

The secondary location is a hill near Llandetty, Powys on the banks of the River Usk.

Storytelling mechanics

Visiting Character Guildelines

Visiting characters guidelines:

We will be operating this event on the honour system. A complete character sheet must be provided on request of a storyteller, or during any PvP activities.

Proxy guidelines

Due to the nature of the games at the Isles of Darkness National Event, no proxies to the event itself will be accepted. Downtime proxies or investigations prior to or after the event are accepted, and should be sent to the lead ST in good time (at least a week prior to the event) with an attached character sheet.

Travel Risks

There are no particular mundane travel risks to reach the in character meeting point in Powys.

All forms of supernatural travel to the site must be brought to the attention of a storyteller, preferably in advance of the event. Players informing the storytellers of their intent to arrive via supernatural means on the day may find their time-in delayed while we work through the various start of game events.

Travel via the Shadow represents a particularly difficult means of transport, players should be aware that this may result in character injury or death.

Travel via Space magic (Portal/Teleportation) will be considered as part of the characters pre-cast spells and is assumed to be a vulgar effect unless mitigating circumstances are provided.

Mana and Tass

Characters will start on half their total mana pool (rounded down), plus the combined rating of the Hallow merit on their sheet, plus their Composure statistic if they are in a Legacy. Mana bleed subtracts from this as normal.

Players with the appropriate Prime Arcarna may allocate success to gain extra mana on a one for one basis, up to their Prime rating.

No forms of tass will be permitted to be brought to the event without prior approval, for approval please contact the lead storyteller.

Pre-Game Spell casting

Characters will receive Stamina x Gnosis successes to be allocated to pre-game spells as described in MET: Awakening. This includes teleportation spells to get them to the site as well as Divination or other 'one shot' pre-game spells.

All spells must be recorded on the characters sheet, which must be presented to a storyteller upon request.

Experience award guidelines

Attendance and Downtimes - As per the Isles of Darkness Addendum.
Roleplaying a Flaw - As per the Isles of Darkness Addendum.
Roleplaying a Derangement - As per the Isles of Darkness Addendum

Arcane Experience - As per the Isles of Darkness Addendum