Healing waters

Freya stumbled slowly through the thick woods, one hand clutching her bleeding thigh. With the other she leaned on the shaft of her broken spear to keep herself upright.

She could feel her strength slowly leeching away. The boar's tusks had torn her leg open, exposing the muscle and slicing through the main artery. She was finished and she knew it. If there had been a skilled physic in the hunting party, they might have been able to bind the wound, and stop the bleeding. But it was just her, Ivar and Halfdan.

Now she was alone. It wasn't the pain that had made her leave them, it was the look of pity on their faces. She could have stood anything but that. They knew it too. They had let her go.

The trees gave way suddenly, the woods parting to reveal a large glade, most of it taken up by a pool of pale blue water. It was surprisingly clear, given it must be stagnant, and it gave the clearing a sense of deep calm. This was as good a place as any to die she thought to herself wryly. Given she probably had less than a dozen steps left in her, she as might as well pretend this was her choice.

Slowly she lowered herself to the ground, propping herself up against the willow tree by the water's edge. The muscles in her ruined leg screamed in protest, but they were more muted once her weight was off it. Even the bleeding stopped a little, now that she was no longer trying to carry herself onwards. That should buy me another minute in this world she thought to herself bitterly.

Dying was surprisingly easy she realised then. She was tired, more tired than she'd ever felt in her life. Too weary to keep her eyes open now she had accepted what was happening. Slowly she let them close, even as the darkness reached out to claim her.

Unseen by the dying orc, something stirred in the deep pool. A tall figure flowed to the surface and then stepped forth from the water. Locks of silver hair hung down over a loose sleeveless tunic and trousers of homespun wool, dyed deep blue and vibrant green. Hair and clothes alike were impossibly dry.

The being's face creased with concern when it saw the orc and it moved with sure grace to kneel next to the body. It extended both hands over the bleeding wound, palms down, fingers spread, allowing droplets of water to fall onto the bloody limb. As the tears fell on to the injury, the bleeding gradually slowed, and then, inexorably, the wound begin to close.

As soon as the wound was healed, the being slipped back into the pool, seemingly eager to be gone before the orc regained consciousness.

Coomarta of the Rains embodies the Spring magic resonances of healing and vitality.

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Overview

At the behest of the Conclave following the request by the Archmage of Spring, Lord Rain has been asked to help the Empire establish a college dedicated to the study and practice of Spring magic.

The eternal is only too happy to help, provided his requirements are met; namely that the College focus on the healing and beneficial magics of Spring, and that it not be used to codify or propagate magic that encourages corruption, ruin, or savagery - regardless of which realm is actually involved.

Ossegrahn can offer little help with the costs of construction, which are always steep with any college of magic. But once established, the presence of his heralds will provide a lasting benefit to the entire territory where it is situated, providing healing succour to all who ask for it. For this reason it will be crucial to decide where the College is built if it is to be commissioned.

The Sanguinarius

• The Sanguinarius would need 45 wains each of white granite and mithril, 90 wains of weirwood, 540 crowns and would take a year to build
• The College would have an upkeep of 20 thrones a season

The Sanguinarius

Commission Type: College of Magic

Location: Any Imperial territory

Cost: 45 white granite, 45 mithril, 90 weirwood, and 540 crowns

Upkeep: 20 thrones

Effect: Creates an ongoing effect similar to (but distinct from) Rivers of Life in the territory

Master of The Sanguinarius

Type: Imperial

Appointment: Conclave Declaration

Powers: Guide the research of the Sanguinarius

Responsibilities: To oversee and protect the Sanguinarius, and to promote healing and discourage violence in the Empire

Lord Rain proposes to help the Empire construct something the eternal calls the Sanguinarius. This commission would be expensive, requiring 90 wains of weirwood and 45 wains of both mithril and white granite. It could be built anywhere in the Empire and would take a year to complete.

Once finished, the new college would need to employ many Imperial magicians versed in the lore of Spring magic, but their ranks would be supplemented by numerous heralds of Brother Harvest. These residents of the Sanguinarius would provide invaluable assistance to the magicians helping them to develop new ritual magic, but would need to be provided with resources, tomes, and crystal mana. As a result this college would have an upkeep of 20 thrones a season.

Magical Research

• The Master of the Sanguinarius would be able to codify new rituals at a rate of 10 ranks of magnitude a season
• The Sanguinarius could codify 20 ranks a season of a Spring ritual
• The college could not codify any ritual that did not meet the approval of Coomarta of the Rains

The staff of the Sanguinarius could be directed to research the formula of a new ritual so that it can be mastered. The ritual would need to already exist in the form of an arcane projection. The college could only work on codifying a single ritual at a time, and the research could take anywhere from a season to several years depending on the magnitude of the ritual and the resources available.

Greenfount's heralds could only help research a Spring ritual. For this reason, a ritual of any other realm could be codified at the rate of 10 ranks of magnitude each season until complete. If the Master of the Sanguinarius opted to research a Spring ritual, then the rate would be significantly increased, to 20 ranks of magnitude each season. At the completion, the Master would receive a ritual text to use in mastering the ritual.

Coomarta of the Rains will not permit their aid to be used to create new magic that unleashes devastation, destruction, violence, bloodshed, or anything similar. It would not be possible to codify a ritual that did not meet the criteria set by the Cupbearer - anything they judged to breach those restrictions would simply not be codified, no matter what realm of magic it used. If the Master could not provide an acceptable alternative then no ritual would be codified that season.

Bogfearthan's Childer

• The Master of the Sanguinarius could expend ambergelt to more swiftly codify Spring rituals

Ambergelt
Ranks	Total Cost
5 ranks	21 ambergelt
10 ranks	53 ambergelt
15 ranks	96 ambergelt
20 ranks	150 ambergelt
25 ranks	215 ambergelt

If the Master had enough ambergelt available they could use this to empower the heralds of Bogfearthan, making it easier for them to access the eternal's powers and help with the research. This would require the Master to expand ambergelt. The more ambergelt used, the faster the work would proceed.

The first five ranks of additional research in a season would cost 21 measures of ambergelt. The next five ranks will cost a further 32 measures (for a total of 53 measures). The next five ranks will cost another 43 measures, and so on. The table shows the total amount of ambergelt needed for the additional ranks of codification in each season.

This benefit would only be available for researching Spring magic - Bogfearthan's Childer cannot help with the codification of rituals of other realms.

A Primal Source

• The Sanguinarius would produce a constant magical effect akin to Rivers of Life in the territory it is in

The presence of the Sanguinarius would provide a source of powerful healing magic for people in the territory. Heralds of the Tarnfather would move around the territory, infusing rivers and lakes with the healing power of the Spring realm. They would carry with them healing waters drawn from the pool at the centre of the Sanguinarius, and provide them to any who needed them. If someone was wounded or in need of healing, then they would bring healing to them provided they could reach them in time.

Bogfearthan is quite insistent on this point. His heralds will attempt to heal anyone they find who is in need of aid in the same territory as the Sanguinarius, regardless of who they are, how they got injured or fell sick, or whether they are fighting for the Empire or against it. If someone needs healing, then Coomarta of the Rains is going to try and help them.

According to the civil service, this means that Sanguinarius will produce a magical effect equivalent to the ritual of Rivers of Life in the territory where the college is built. This effect will be constant, it will last as long as the Sanguinarius continues to function. This effect of the Sanguinarius is different to the ritual - it wouldn't provoke the vallorn in the way that Spring ritual risks. Nor would it be cancelled by Rivers Run Red - in fact the power of the Sanguinarius is such that it would simply negate all effects of both Rivers of Life and Rivers Run Red if either ritual curse (or something similar to them) were placed on the territory.

Ossegrahn is the bringer of healing and gentle rain.

Alignment

• The Sanguinarius would lose all powers if the Conclave placed Ossegrahn under enmity or if the eternal withdrew their support

The Sanguinarius would need the assistance of the Lord Rain to function at all. It would permanently lose all powers if anything prevented the heralds of Ossegrahn dwelling there. This would happen automatically if the Conclave placed the eternal under enmity, but it would also happen if the eternal withdrew their aid. Experienced magicians caution that this is likely to happen if the Empire commits some great atrocity, such as unleashing cataclysmic curses, employing unforgivably bloodthirsty tactics across an entire campaign, or deliberately attacking the innocent and the helpless. Armies fighting each other will not trigger Ossegrahn's revulsion; it is the slaughter of those who cannot defend themselves that earns the ire of the Bogfearthan, and if the Cupbearer discovers the Empire has done something on this scale, the eternal will withdraw their aid.

If that happens then the Sanguinarius will no longer be able to research any magic. Any ongoing research would be lost; it could not be transferred to another college of magic. The Sanguinarius would be useless until the Empire found a way to restore the favour of Cupbearer. The healing power emanating from the college would likewise be lost.

Limitation

• The opportunity to commission the Sanguinarius is only available at the Autumn Equinox

The opportunity to commission the Sanguinarius is only available at the Autumn Equinox. After that, it will require more negotiation with Ossegrahn to create another opportunity and there is no certainty that the Sanguinarius would be offered again.

Resolution

The Imperial Senate declined to commission the Sanguinarius during the Autumn Equinox. If the Empire wishes to do so in the future, it will require further negotiation with Ossegrahn.

Further Reading

• Ossegrahn
• College of magic