Boston Lights A Mage: the Awakening 2nd Edition Actual Play Starring: ‘BestBert: Storyteller swagdog: House CoolStory: Lucius TrafficHazard: Lupin (Compiled by TrafficHazard, and then HerbertIsBestBert) ______________________________________________________________________ Foreword Hello, and welcome to our Awakening 2e Actual Play. The goal is to update at least once a week, or roughly in that area, but sometimes it might take as long as two weeks. The following section will shed some light on our characters (as they are at the start of our chronicle), themes, and the setting. Enjoy! Player Characters Lupin: A younger Mastigos searching desperately for meaning in magic. Not as poised as his Cabalmates. His life since coming to Boston has spiraled, but with his Awakening, things will change. Under the tutelage of the Mysterium, he hopes to find Truth in the Lie. Interested in the nature of Space and sympathy, he’s a prospective member of the Reality Stalkers. 21 years old. Gnosis: 1 Space: 3 Mind: 2 Time: 1 Dedicated Tool: Rune-inscribed brass knuckles. House: A slick Acanthus who makes sure the odds roll in his favor. Whether it’s at cards or at life, he’s determined to be the one steering his destiny. A Boston native, he’s all too used to the city’s underbelly. Surprisingly, a voice of reason. May be why he joined the Mysterium against the wishes of his Libertine mentor. He’s eager to form his own philosophy on Fate. 25ish. Gnosis: 2 Fate: 3 Time: 2 Spirit: 1 Dedicated Tool: Crystal gambling dice. Lucius: A disillusioned academic aspiring to understand the Supernal. Armed with the fires of the Aether, this Londoner Obrimos has been sent by his mentor to Boston, with the hopes that his pupil will cast light on the city’s hidden Mysteries. A natural fit for the Mysterium, and the Eyes of Ain Soph. 28 years old. Gnosis: 2 Prime: 3 Forces: 2 Mind: 1 Dedicated Tool: A ring of petrified wood chased with silver. Boston Consilium Our campaign is drawing from Boston Unveiled, using the setting and characters outlined in the book, but of course, things are different. BestBert has told us that there will be “rejigging”, both with characters’ personal details and the setting itself, and the most significant change from the book as written (that he has shared with us) is that the Nemean is gone. This is the Boston Consilium after the Nemean’s trial and subsequent escape, with all the shakeups that implies. People in new positions, new dynamics, maybe new arrivals, and so on. It’s modern day. Themes and Direction The themes we decided on are very Mage. Mysteries, discovery, an exploration of what magic means to our characters and how it will change them, and how it already has changed them. These characters are hashed out. Backstories, personal ties, interests, and ambitions, their Awakenings and what led up to them. Expect them to be explored as well. The symbolism of lamps, beacons, lights, and actual lamplighters (the people who would light lamps and keep them lit and are vanishingly rare these days) informs the theme of our Mysterium cabal, the Lamplighters. Lights in the dark, camaraderie in isolation, knowledge illuminating ignorance, havens from danger, Truth in the Lie. That’s all the necessary information, I think. More details can be provided on request. Enjoy our rebooted campaign. The Watchman’s Heirloom 1.1 It is the 26th of November, 2017, 7:02 AM, and Lucius is currently thousands of feet over the North Atlantic Ocean. Flying, at the end of the year, towards Boston at the behest of his Master. The weather is bitterly cold, and the old man Grigori has given few instructions to him, other than his presence there is required for the investigation of several Mysteries key to Grigori's work. To add further to the indignity, Lucius must fly on Sleeper transit, and has had to drop all of his matters in London. He holds in his hand, a letter, emblazoned with Grigori's own personal sigil, and the mark of their shared Legacy, the Eyes of Ain Soph. Inside, he has been informed is an introduction and a request, such that Lucius will be granted assistance in his investigations. A claim for Hospitality. Apparently, someone is set to meet him at his destination, but exactly who is not clear. Lucius was thinking about his mentor's request for the entire trip. He was pretty bemused by its vagueness, which could only be intentional, as Professor never overlooked any details when they were important. He was trying to hold back his obvious annoyance at the mundane means of transportation his mentor chose for him. Lucius knew that Professor was a much wiser man, after all. Lucius's annoyance was seemingly only to get worse, as the trip had been particularly annoying with a particularly obnoxious set of Sleepers travelling with him. As the cabin crew announced they were about to make their final descent, the end seemed in sight. And yet he still had to put up with the annoyance of waiting for every single Sleeper to exit the flying coffin they had shared, Lucius's seat placed riiiiiiight at the back. Disembarking from the plane, and travelling through customs was somewhat simple, at least, as he had no questionable baggage. "Bloody hell, finally..." he sighed with relief when the examination was over. At least the weather reminds me of home... he thought to himself as he entered the airport building. Lucius immediately notices someone looking directly at him, carrying a name-card with his Sleeper persona on it. Directly underneath the name, is both the Sigil of the Mysterium in High Speech, and another that he had not previously seen in the same context, a Gryphon holding a Sword. The individual himself is somewhat handsome, but with rugged short hair, he's standing stock still, and wearing clothes a bit too fancy to seem like a normal driver. In his other hand, he's carrying a large take-away cup of Coffee. Must be my chauffeur. Lucius thinks to himself, as he activates his Mage Sight for a brief moment, approaching the man, content to finally be out of the flying coffin. As Lucius walks towards the man, and flickers his Mage Sight on, he sees the man is coated in some kind of Forces effect. Approaching, the man seems to relax, and nods towards him. With a closer perspective, the man is obviously part-Asian. "Morning. I'm... Harold. Let's get out of here. You shouldn't keep the Hierophant waiting.” The man doesn't even offer his hand to shake. His expression is while not rude, at least dismissive. Leading Lucius to his fairly middle of the line car, he jumps into what is obviously the wrong side of the vehicle, and indicates for Lucius to get into the other. As soon as he drives off, Lucius is also shocked by the fact that he's driving on the wrong bloody side of the road. “My name is Ikazuchi, member of the Exalted Knights of the Gryphon. The Hierophant, Aurem has been appraised of your arrival. Do you have your letter?" the man asks. "Pleasure to meet you," Lucius answers, cold but ineffably polite. "I do." Ikazuchi gestures for Lucius to hand it to him, while he drives with only one hand. The trip across Boston takes only a short while, a short while over the bridge brings them into a highly developed part of the city, covered in Skyscrapers. Lucius gives the driver his letter, and proceeds to look out of the window in silence. _______________________________________________________________ Towards the west end of the city, Lupin is crashing in his Brighton apartment, only to be startled from sleep from his phone vibrating loudly on his nightstand. His business phone. He jerks awake, and checks the caller ID with bleary eyes. “What?” "You didn't even touch head to pillow last night, did you? We're out of mason jars." House says. "Out? What do you mean, we're out?" "We have no more. Boston might be tapped for hipster storage receptacles. We have no more mason jars for the tass. I just scooped the last of what we had into a jar but we are fresh out, and I'm not putting this in tupperware. It's disrespectful." House had a terribly annoying demeanor this early in the morning. Lupin checks the time. "It's fucking seven in the morning, man. Go out and buy jars." Lupin is just as annoyed. "Where am I going to go buy mason jars at seven in the morning? It’s Sunday.” "Wal-Mart? I don't know, buy pickles and dump out the jar." "I'm not buying pickle jars from Wal-Mart for our literal actual tass." "Oh, but for our metaphorical fake tass it's fine?" "Look, you got any?" "I don't know, I'll look." Lupin tosses the phone aside on his bed and clambers out of bed. He looks around for a jar. After hunting through his apartment, throwing aside piles of clothes and junk, Lupin finds a fairly serviceable jar. He picks his phone up off the bed. "I found one, I’m coming.” "Well, bring it here." The clatter through the phone tells Lupin that House is up to....something. "Fine, I'm on my way." Lupin grumbles, deciding that he's going to take his sweet time. He goes through the motions of getting ready. Shower, brushed teeth and clean clothes. He figures he’ll just go back to sleep at the sanctum (his bed there is more comfortable anyway) and wake up mostly ready for the day.