Aegis kai Doru

The Aegis Kai Doru

Status: Aegis Kai Doru

Aspis (•): Named for the shields of the Greek warrior, you are a student, often assigned to carry gear, to rush first into battle, and to perform the tasks no one else wants to do. You own at least one relic, and you have experienced the First Initiation into the secrets of the Aegis Kai Doru. You can purchase the Relics Endowment. Xiphos (••): Named for the Greek soldier's short sword, you are considered a useful tool: capable and a rising star, though you haven't quite made a name for yourself. Your experience has demonstrated to other Aegis which faction you fit best in. Choose on faction, and gain the free Specialty associated with that faction. You also learn a factional Secret. Doru (•••): Named for the Greek warrior's spear, you are an elevated warrior and teacher. You're good at what you do, though you don't necessarily operate at the highest levels of the Aegis' luminaries. You've spent so long doing research that it's second nature to you. Choose a Relics specialty in Academics or Occult. Take that Specialty, and the Interdisciplinary Specialty and Area of Expertise Merits. Kopis (••••): Named for the curved Greek sword that is both war blade and sacrificial knife, you are a local regent to all Aegis hunters, and a judge of monsters. You're a regional authority of one of the Aegis territories worldwide. You're also a judge of the known monsters in your territory. You've spent years handling relics and other antiquities, such that you can read a bit of their nature and history. You gain the Psychometry Merit. Sagaris (•••••): Named for the Minoan double-headed axe. The Sagaris are the "epic heroes" of the Aegis, the foremost Guardians and those from whom the Inner Circle's leadership are chosen. You've experienced the Second Initiation; your senses don't work the same way. You can sense the ancient enemies of the Aegis. You gain the Unseen Sense Merit related to mages or werewolves. You gain the Mage or Werewolf Specialty in Occult or Weaponry (which the Interdisciplinary Specialty Merit applies to).

The Aegis Kai Doru are an order of relic hunters and monster-killers, dedicated to snatching up the strange magics that are so often the terrible downfall for people. They are also skilled werewolf and witch hunters, with a long and tangled history involving such dangers.

Endowment: Relics. Those objects that the Aegis do not lock away into vaults, they apportion up among their agents to aid them in their hunt. Aegis agents find or are assigned items of power which their secrets allow them to wield even when other mortals cannot touch the magic in them.

Headquarters: The Athens Labyrinth

In Athens, beneath the ground, lies an expansive labyrinth. The maze itself is peppered with small chambers with a variety of purposes. At its center are the ancient vaults of the Aegis, home to its most powerful Relics and artifacts. Only the most senior agents ever see it, and only the Panoply know the secret for navigating it.

Organization

The Aegis is led by the Panoply, and divide the world into a number of territories. Each territory has a Temple, which serves as headquarters, training grounds, and vault where relics are sequestered away.

Leadership: The Panoply

An inner council of nine–five women, four men–who lead the Aegis as a whole. They are the monitors of a comprehensive list of artifacts, and keepers of a trove of items of unmatched power. The members of the Panoply do not relinquish the Vigil: they continue to hunt still, and are justly feared for both their skill and the power of their relics.

The Factions

There are three major faction within the Aegis Kai Doru, each an operational group based on a division of tasks.

• The Sword: Occult (Identifying Magic). The Sword goes after the monsters, first and foremost. They're expert hunters to witches and shapechangers. They are warriors, and their Relics are usually weapons.
• The Temple: Crafts (Traps). The Temple are the guardians of the vaults, who stand guard over safehouses and labyrinths. They monitor and defend.
• The Scroll: Academics (Research). The Scroll are the researchers and academics within the Aegis. They are the smallest group, but the most knowledgeable. Their purpose is to catalog Relics, to map out monstrous territory, and to keep rosters of monsters. They also test out newfound Relics to discover their traits, and whether they should be assigned to agents, or buried in the vaults.

The Vow

The Aegis Initiation involves several steps.

Walking the Maze

First, the aspirant is made to walk a maze, often while under the effects of a hallucinogen or similar intoxicant.

• System: To begin walking the maze, the aspirant must spend a Willpower dot. If they manage to solve the maze, they recover the Willpower dot.

The Oath Stone & the Vow

Once the maze is walked, the aspirant is brought to an Oath Stone, a relic that sanctifies the oath taken and grants power to the members of the Aegis in accomplishing that oath. A cut to the hand, which is placed on the stone, and then the repetition of the oath are part of the process, the stone drinking the blood given to fuel its power.

• System: The oath-taker receives 1 lethal wound from the cut and blood loss. They then gain the following benefits:
  • Any roll in pursuit of a Relic: +1 die
  • Any roll to cause physical harm to a mage or werewolf: +3 dice.
  • The initiate is empowered to use Relics.

Violating the Vow

If the initiate breaks their vow, the Oath Stone strips power from the initiate and takes its revenge.

• System: If the oath-taker violates their vow, they lose the benefits above, and gain the following traits:
  • Relics no longer function for the initiate.
  • Any roll to cause physical harm to a mage or werewolf: -3 dice.
  • Any roll by a mage or werewolf to harm the oath-breaker: +3 dice.