Dawn hearth magic
The wearing of favours
A favour is an effective talisman that can ward off enchantments but only if worn openly. The greater the affection that the donor feels for the recipient, the more effective the Hearth Magic becomes. Favours are also sometimes used to deliver curses, and there are plenty of tales of a stolen favour bringing ruin to the one who loses it.
Love
Love is a powerful force in Dawn, and its inclusion in magic can make effects more potent but also more unpredictable. Romantic love is the most powerful and most unpredictible, but filial love and even platonic love between friends have a power of their own. Dawnish tales talk of lovers or friends who return from death for a few moments to offer comfort or protect their loved ones, or to encourage them to seek vengeance on their betrayers. Love that is betrayed is said to give rise to curses of its own accord. Finally, love is said to be the one force that can bind souls together in the Labyrinth, and bonds of love may mean that two souls are reborn and driven to seek one another out through multiple incarnations.
Girding
Armour and shields are a hearth magic conencted with identity in Dawn. Donning ones' armour and girding oneself with weapons and armour before a battle, particularly with the assistance of friends and trusted companions, is seen as a way of "donning" a glorious persona. A knight becomes larger than life by girding themselves in armour, and in a similar way a Senator may "gird" themselves with fine robes, documents and a short dagger before addressing the Senate to create a powerful persona so that others can see their glory.
There are stories of people who put on another's armour - again engaging in the ritual of girding themselves - and who either gain the strength of the person whose armour they are wearing, or perform some other great deed in their name, or who are mistaken for the person whose armour they don despite the unlikelihood of that actually happening. Most of these stories are romantic in nature, although several are tragedies in which someone dies in the place of their lover. A rare few are cautionary tales in which a villain masquerades as the hero to bring ruin down on her head after she has carelessly left her panoply where it may be stolen by her foe.
Heraldry
Heraldry has a hearth magic which goes further than simple custom. Using the heraldric devices of another house, or to using those that one is not permitted to use, is to court disaster. Again stories and tragedies told by troubadours often tell of terrible errors and the misfortunes that emerge from them and it is considered inappropriate to do so knowingly.
Heraldry actively defines the identity of the bearer. It is believed that they take on the characteristics of the creatures or devices that are presented on their arms and through this achieve even greater feats of glory. Dawn has a very different approach to the Marches as to what is suitable for such heraldry. Whereas the Marches focus on mundane creatures and objects, Dawnish preference instead is for the fantastical and legendary. If a Marches blazon were to be a Snake then the Dawnish equivalent might be a Dragon or similar.
The Knight of Roses
The Dawn Egregore, the Knight of Roses, is a mysterious soul that shares Dawn's close ties with the Eternals, and is the only Egregore known to travel to the Hall of Worlds. Throughout Dawn's history it has had several incarnations, though in recent years appears most often as a warrior resplendant in plate armour bearing the National heraldry on its surcote ('The Lady of Roses') or in full court dress with a musical instrument ('The Lord'). Although the Knight does not usually initiate or set challenges itself, it offers advice and guidance on the subject, and always acts to remind the Dawnish of their glorious history, and the greatness that is theirs for the taking. It seems especially drawn to Troubadours, and as it moves through the camp encourages them in tales of nobility, hospitality, heroism and virtue, to inspire the nation to match and exceed these tales in turn.
The Egregore does not confine its attentions to the nobility, and can be a vocal supporter of yeomen wishing to rise to take their test of Mettle. Unlike many other Egregores, the Knight of Roses can be quite vocally critical if it believes the tradition of the Test of Mettle is being misused - although what it considers "misuse" is anyone's guess. It has been known to intervene on behalf of two lovers petitioning its aid, particularly in its incarnation as The Lord of Roses. The Knight makes no secret of its contempt for Jack-of-the-Marches, embodying the tensions between the two Nations.
It is said that on a few, rare occasions, the Knight of Roses has given and accepted a favour from a mortal - legends tell of Knights so valiant and devoted to their nation and the Empire that the Knight was moved to acknowledge and return their devotion. Although it still wears what are said to be these favours, it will not speak of those who gave them, neither confirming nor denying the legend.