Ang Concordia ng Sariaya

PROVINCE OF QUEZON

In 1841, Spanish authorities executed Apolinario Dela Cruz, a 27-year old mystic and preacher who led a rebellion in Tayabas. After the death of 'Hermano Pule', his followers were deemed heretics by the Catholic Church, and scattered to the towns and villages in and around Mount Banahaw. Almost two centuries later, his legacy lives on in the religious sects that still reside in Tayabas, now called the Province of Quezon.

Even for mages, Hermano Pule remains an elusive figure. Some claim he was a sage who Ascended, or an aspiring philosopher-king touched by Silver Ladder ideology. Others are more interested in Dela Cruz as a tragic revolutionary arrayed against church and state. Still others value his symbolic importance to democracy and the Libertine creed. Did the Paternoster deem his teachings a threat to their hold on the Catholic Church and so, engineered his downfall? Or was the charismatic prophet betrayed by jealous Diamond mages? MYSTERIES IN QUEZON

Mount Banahaw

Quezon is wedged between the ocean and Banahaw, a holy mountain to locals even before the advent of colonial rule. It was on Banahaw that Dela Cruz and his four thousand-strong army took their last stand, and where other rebels sought refuge from Spanish and then American persecution. To the Awakened, the Gaunlet runs thin on and near Banahaw, spontaneously creating locii and gateways to and from strange places. Other sacred places exist - groves, waterfalls, and caverns - dubbed pwestos by the locals. With the encroachment of villages and towns, hostile spirit activity has increased, eliciting the interest of willworkers. The Awakened will be pulled into the secrets of the mystical mountain as they defy or consort with the strange and dangerous denizens of the Shadow.

Holy Men and Heretics

Banahaw and its environs are also home to fringe sects that fuse Catholicism with native mysticism. Some of these colorum sects - a bastardization of the Latin phrase 'saecular saecolorum' spoken during their rituals - even embrace Hermano Pule and Jose Rizal as messianic figures. Ecstatic visions and miracle healings are rife among their congregations, and some cultists even speak of the Santong Boses - a divine entity that whispers mystical revelations to the initiated. Delving into the Temenos might yield illuminating or terrifying answers.

Furthemore, the local caucuses have been studying the colorums for decades, hoping to manipulate them within their grand designs. In the past, the Guardians of the Veil have used some sects as experimental Labyrinths to the protest of the Silver Ladder who wish to adopt the colorums as Cryptopolies.

Anting-Antings

The use of miraculous talismans - called agimat and anting-anting in Tagalog - trace their history back to the animistic beliefs of the native population. By the time of the religious uprisings by the Confradia and other similar groups in the 1800s, many such charms were said to protect their wearers from harm or even death. Libertines prize the cultural legacy of these anting-antings, and the local Silver Ladder is said to secretly guard a Proximus family with the ability to craft true talismans of power. For their part, the Seers alternately suppress true knowledge of the anting-antings, or flood the market with fakes, debasing their sacredness with cheap trinkets and souvenirs. The Mysterium will do what it takes to save true relics from Pancryptia, and may seek assistance from both Alchemists and Theurgists.

ANG CONCORDIA NG SARIAYA

In 1892, prominent mages from Tayabas (now Quezon) met in the town of Sariaya to establish a Consilium to study Mount Banahaw and the cults that sprang up after the Confradia Rebellion. Today, the Concordia de Sariaya continues to administer Lex Magica in Lucena City, the municipios of Lucban, Infanta, and Candelaria, as well as disparate parts of the province. By tradition, Hierarch Balani and his council hold office in Sariaya although in recent years this conservatism has been challenged by the local Libertines.

Moreover, under Balani the Concordia has increasingly become isolationist as it strives to prevent inquisitive outsiders from venturing into its jurisdiction. Missives from Sariaya are few and terse, worrying even its sister Consilium of Manila. With Balani and his council in absentia in the last Convocation, Awakened from elsewhere have arrived with questions of their own.

INTEREST GROUPS

Three different factions founded the Concordia, each claiming a different interpretation of Hermano Pule's legacy. Using sheer political will, Balani has managed to bring order to the factions even while barely hiding his contempt for the Free Council. Outsider mages will have to deal with the politics of the Concordia should they wish to pursue Mysteries in Quezon.

Ang Ikatlong Tipan

The Third Covenant reveres the semi-divine Hermano Pule, and espouses his messianic ideals. Theárchs within the faction believe him to be a mage who intended to Awaken the masses. A few Covenanted Guardians of the Veil secretly wonder if Pule was an incarnation of the Hieromagus. To the Covenant, all mages are equal - but to establish an enlightened society, some must be more equal than others.

Ang Di-Malupig

The Unconquered are a dying breed. One runs the amateur military museum in Candelaria, and collects anting-anting. Another is descended from the World War II hero, General Guillermo Nakar, and defends Mount Banahaw from trespassers. The Di-Malupig venerate the Awakened Hermano Pule as the John the Baptist of the Philippine Revolution. His irrepressible heroism will always be remembered.

Ang Pamana ni Narcisa

Narcisa Lontoc was a peasant-turned-prophetess who claimed kinship with Pule. More than his controversial career, it was the legend that formed around him that fanned the flames of democracy half a century later. Real or not, it is the idea of a Hermano Pule that matters. The Inheritors take regular men and shroud them in greatness or martyrdom. They actively pursue progressive reforms within the Concordia, which have so far been blocked by Balani.

The Orders in Quezon

The strange occurences in Mount Banahaw, the proliferation of cults, and the trade on mystical talismans has made the Mysterium the most prolific Order - and Balani the most influential Mystagogue. They're equally spread out among the Brigade and the Inheritors. On paper however, Hierophant Masalanta runs Mysterium affairs.

The Adamantine Arrow is Quezon's frontline against hostile spirits, incursions by the Abyss, and the Seers of the Throne. They share an interest in acquiring rare and powerful agimat and anting-anting to use in their fights against the Seers. The Arrows maintain a war shrine in the town of Candelaria.

Quezon's Theárchs work in two fields: Cultivating different cryptopolies among the colorums sects, and steering the enterprises of Sleepers along the lines of the Lesser Elemental Precepts. They are the slim majority within the Covenanted, and are prone to flaunting it. A number of Silver Ladder mages stem from old rich families, and still maintain opulent ancestral homes across the province.

The Guardians of the Veil are a small group, mostly working as an internal affairs agency of sorts. They operate closely with the Arrows during guerilla strikes on the Seers, and regularly establish and disestablish Labyrinths. The Silver Ladder is their rival in influence among Banahaw's cults.

In recent years, the Free Council has grown in influence, openly challenging the traditionalist bloc. Libertines immerse themselves within grassroots communities - farmers' cooperatives, church outreaches, and artist circles - to find new emanations of cultural magic. By principle, Ang Pamana ni Narcisa has a strong Libertine streak. Quezon's Free Council also sponsors the annual fiestas especially the famous Pahiyas in Lucena, and wishes to open Banahaw to all visitors.

It was the Paternoster, says the Concordia, who deemed Hermano Pule a threat to its hold on dogma - and engineered his downfall. Modern Seers of the Throne want to keep the local population petty and ignorant, relying on the favor of an alternating cast of politicos. The Ministries ultimately reward patience as they orchestrate a grand campaign of Pancryptia to seize and suppress the mysticism of the colorums, and the sanctity of Mount Banahaw. They sponsor the picturesque new gated communities and resorts encroaching on its hills. They smother the local festivals in corporate sponsorships. Their most dangerous enemies however, remain each other.

EXPLORING QUEZON

Quezon remains a nostalgic yet mysterious destination haunted by history. Its ancestral houses look out to towns spilling over their old limits. Ancient churches hold silent vigil across the eras of Spanish, American, and Philippine rule. Hermano Pule, once condemned for heresy and rebellion, is celebrated as a local hero. Mystical Banahaw teems with holy shines and mostly-forgotten cults alluring to Sleepers eager to investigate esoteria.

Awakened from Manila or elsewhere might be drawn to Quezon because of the pull off its strangeness. Others might look to acquire powerful anting-antings, or climb Banahaw to consort with its spirit courts or the Beasts of the Primal Wild. Still there are those sent by their societies; after all, the Confradia de San Jose, in a way, served as an inspiration for other mystical congregations. Manila's Consilium might dispatch a cabal to monitor the goings-on in Sariaya. Expect local leaders to be less than pleased by outside interference.

Hierarch Balani and his Mysterium council are extremely protective of their domain to the point of xenophobia. He considers the colorums their sole Obsession, and the secrets of Banahaw off-limits to any but the sanctioned few. Winning his trust is difficult, but not impossible for Diamond mages especially fellow Mystagogues. Libertines however are considered rabble rousers at best, and anarchists at worst.

PERSONS OF INTEREST

Balani, Hierarch of Tayabas: A Thyrsus Mystagogue who has a special interest in keeping outsiders from entering his domain. Bullish and ravenous in accumulating knowledge. He has no love lost for the Free Council.

Masalanta, Hierophant of the Mysterium: Balani's second-in-command and leader of the Mysterium, Hierophant Masalanta studies the magical phenomena of Quezon. Obsessed with acquiring anting-antings of great power.

Natalie Isidro: A local folklorist and curator of the Candelaria War Shrine and Museum. Knowledgeable about Quezon's history and the life and times of Hermano Pule.

Renato 'Mang Rene' Giginto: A junk shop dealer descended from a long line of Proximus Sleepwalkers. Concerned with passing his knowledge of crafting and empowering anting-antings to his grandson, Joseph. Has access to Prime, Forces, and Matter Blessings.

Joseph 'Sep' Giginto: 22-year old IT graduate who spends most of his time playing at a cybercafe in Lucban. The unwilling scion of the Giginto Proximus Dynasty. A person of interest by both the Pentacle and the Seers.

Milagrosa 'Nanay Milay' Tapayan: High priestess of the Iglesia Providencia de Maria, a colorum sect with several hundred followers. Prone to visions from the Santong Boses, which also grants her the power heal.

Ka Boyet: Commander of a local squad of the New People's Army, a Maoist insurgent group scattered in the parts of Quezon. Ka Boyet has recently lost some good men and women of the Kilusan to an unnameable threat. Quiescence convinced him it was ambush by the Philippine Army. Scrutiny might prove otherwise.

Kalaguyo, Kawani ng Kilusan: Mastigos Libertine. A member of the Pamana ni Narcisa (The Inheritors) who works with a farmers' cooperativa. Seeks to break Hierarch Balani's control of the Concordia's affairs. Will seek the assistance of PCs.

Pangil-na-Puti, Teniente de Brigada: Thyrsus Admantine Arrow. An aging lieutenant within the Di-Malupig who monitors Banahaw for trespassers - both those intruding from within and without. Concerned with appeasing its great and powerful nature spirits, while hoping for a glorious death.

Sacripante, Silver Ladder legate: Moros Silver Ladder. Sacripante mainly stays in Sariaya close to the Concordia, and serves as an expert on Lex Magica. While a solitary, he fluidly moves from faction to faction, providing insight. Possibly the oldest mage in the Consilium of Quezon.