You mustn’t call them by name ... they are the “good neighbors,”

the “fair folk,” or the “gentry.”

Don’t draw their attention, for those theynotice are drawn into their stories,

which no mortal can survive unchanged.

Stay away from the edges of the dark woods, respect your superiors, and do what society expects.

Or the faeries will come for you!

The faeries of Mythic Europe live according to roles and stories, drawing vitality from mortals who play by their rules. Some vampiric faeries steal vitality from blood, while others draw it from the garlic placed over doors to keep them out. Some fey dragons live by devouring knights and feasting on the fear they create,

while others exist to be defeated, drawing vitality from the knight’s victory. But afterwards, the dead dragon and

the defeated vampire always take on a new role,to continue the faerie story.

What story will they make you tell?

AG

0290 • ISBN 1-58978-105-8

©2009 Trident, Inc. All rights reserved.WWW.ATLAS-GAMES.COM

AG0290 • ISBN 1-58978-105-8 • $29.95

9 781589 781054

52995

2

AUTHORS: Erik Dahl (Faerie Wizardry, Touches of Faerie), Timothy Ferguson (Nature of Faerie, Faerie Characters, Bestiary), Mark Shirley (The Faerie Realm, Touches of Faerie, Faerie Stories)

DEVELOPMENT, EDITING, & PROJECT MANAGEMENT: David ChartLAYOUT, ART DIRECTION, & PROOFREADING: Michelle NephewPUBLISHER: John NephewCOVER ILLUSTRATION: Grey ThornberryINTERIOR ART: Keith DeCesare, Kelly Hensing, Bradley McDevitt,

Jeff Menges, Robert Scott, Grey ThornberryARS MAGICA FIFTH EDITION TRADE DRESS: J. Scott ReevesPUBLISHER’S SPECIAL THANKS: Jerry Corrick & the gang at the Source.FIRST ROUND PLAYTESTERS: Mark Barltrop, Mark Lawford, David

Staveley, Simon Turner; Chris “CJ” Jensen-Romer, Kevin Sides, Luke Price, Lloyd Graney, Peter Hiley, Ben Hayes; Jason Fryer, Matt Dyson, Emily Dyson; Donna Giltrap, Malcolm Harbrow, Aaron Hicks, Richard Love; Angus MacDonald, Sarah MacDon-ald, Brian Watson, Quetta Watson, Wendell BSP Joyner, Steve Woyach, Aja Hodge; Eric Menge, Ann Sasahara, Scott Benfield, Lynn Reed-Kendall, Christopher Day; Nicholas Peterson, Jen-nafyr Peterson, Michael Pisarsky, Kristi Pisarsky; Matthew L. Seidl; Christoph Safferling, Andrew Smith; Carlo Veltri, Chad Vincent, Greg Palechek, Greg Rothwell

SECOND ROUND PLAYTESTERS: Donna Giltrap, Malcolm Harbrow, Aaron Hicks, Richard Love; Angus MacDonald, Brian Watson, Quetta Watson, Sarah MacDonald; Matt Ryan, Alexis K. Heinz, Tobias Wheeler, Mario Cerame, Rob Llwyd; Ulrich Willmünder; Neil Taylor; Sean Winslow; Erik Tyrrell

AUTHOR BIOS

Erik Dahl lives in Davis, California, and would like to dedicate his work on this book to his enchanting wife (who must not be named directly), to thank her for all of her support and encouragement over the past few years. In her honor, he’d like to get a few lame jokes out of his system: this book required some faerie hard work, and for faerie low pay, but writing for it was ultimately faerie rewarding, and it will likely be a faerie good read. Whew, thank goodness that’s out of the way!

Timothy Ferguson lives on the Golden Coast of the Unknown Land in the South. He curates collections of stories, rationing where, and when, and to whom they go. He dedicates this work to his wife, who is even now preparing a garden for their new fa-miliars. He never loses a book, not even this one, and he is awake while you are sleeping.

Mark Shirley haunts the woods near Newcastle upon Tyne. He can be distinguished from other varieties of troll by his bright cloth-ing and four-dimensional hat. His Sympathy Traits include Zoology, Epidemiological Modelling, Ferrets, and Woodcarving. His Tradi-tional Wards are Beetroot, and the Incorrect Use of Apostrophes. Mark dedicates this book to Richard, whose unmitigated and terrify-ing whimsy has helped defined Faerie for him.

Ars Magica players participate in a thriving fan community by subscribing to email discussion lists (like the Berke-ley list), compiling archives of game material (such as Project Redcap), maintaining fan-created web sites, and running demos through Atlas Games’ Special Ops program. To learn more, visit www.atlas-games.com/ArM5. You can also participate in discussions of Ars Magica at the official Atlas Games forums located at forum.atlas-games.com.

Copyright 2011 Trident, Inc. d/b/a Atlas Games. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this work by any means without written permission from the publisher, except short excerpts for the purpose of reviews, is expressly prohib-ited.

Ars Magica, Mythic Europe, The Lion and the Lily, and Charting New Realms of Imagination are trademarks of Tri-dent, Inc. Order of Hermes, Termere, and Doissetep are trademarks of White Wolf, Inc. and are used with permission.

CreditsRealms of Power: Faerie

DIGITAL VERSION 1.0

Contents

Realms of Power: Faerie

Intro: Dreams & Nightmares 7WHAT IS FAERIE? ................................ 7

Faerie & Other Realms ...................7Faerie and the Divine .......................8Faerie and the Infernal......................8Faerie and Magic ............................8

Ch 1: Nature of Faerie 9COGNIZANCE: UNDERSTANDING THE NEED FOR HUMANS ..................... 9

Incognizant Faeries ..........................9Narrowly Cognizant Faeries ............9Highly Cognizant Faeries .............10

GLAMOUR: RULES INSTEAD OF A SOUL .......................... 10

Bodies: Incidental Matter ...............10Ownership ....................................10Stock Characters ...........................11Taboos ..........................................11Pretenses ........................................11The Open Body is Vulnerable to Glamour ...................11

VITALITY: ENERGY TO ACT AND CHANGE ........................... 12

Stories Guide Humans and Faeries .....................12

Expressed Emotion Feeds Faeries .....12Artistic Expression Feeds Faeries .....13Traditional Offerings Feed Faeries ....13Certain Types of Theft Feed Faeries ...13

Spirits of the Borders ...................13Murder & Eating People ...............13Violence .......................................13

WHAT ARE FAERIES LIKE WHEN NOT SEEKING VITALITY? ........... 14FAERIE AURAS .................................. 14

Faerie Presence .............................14Epic Events ....................................14Local Folklore ................................15Legacies and Monuments ................15

Auras Rise and Fall .......................15Traveling Auras ............................15

Aura Conflicts ...............................15Gaining Admittance .......................15Keeping Home Wonderful ...............16

REGIONES ....................................... 16Finding A Regio Entrance ..............16Ephemeral Exile .............................16Faerie Roads..................................17Regio Levels as Acts .......................17Some Regiones Are the Past Made Present .........................18

Time in Faerie Regiones ...............18Withering Away To Dust ..............18

VIS ................................................ 18Encased Vis ...................................18Anchors.........................................18Accrued Vis ...................................19Sleeping Vis ...................................19Abstract Vis ..................................19

Ch 2: The Faerie Realm 20THE THREE WORLDS........................ 20GETTING TO FAERIE ......................... 20

Sources of Threshold Points ........21Geographical Thresholds................21Temporal Thresholds ......................22Personal Thresholds .......................22Artistic Endeavor ...........................23Assistance of Threshold Faeries.......23Assistance of Faerie Magic .............23Arcadian Mysteries .......................23

The Guardian of the Threshold ...23ADVENTURES IN FAERIE ..................... 24

Environment and the Faerie Aura .............................24

The Mother Road ..........................24Glamour .......................................25

Lands of Story and Fable ...............25Vitality and Fable in Faerie ..........25

Gaining Fable Points .....................26Becoming Faerie Through Fable .....26

Creativity in the Faerie Realm .....27Crafting an Offer ..........................27Offer Modifiers ..............................27The Promise of Service ...................28Changes in Environment .................28Changes in Attitude .......................28Changes in Symbolism ...................29An Example of Using Creativity ....29

LEAVING FAERIE ............................... 29

Warping and the Passage of Time ............................30Living in the Story .......................30

SPINNING TALES IN THE FAERIE REALM ............................ 31

Audience Participation .................31Player-Driven Stories ....................31Player-Influenced Stories ................31Pitfalls in Player-Run Stories ........32

ARCADIA ......................................... 32The Inhabitants of Arcadia ..........32The Path of Chance .....................33

Typical Arcadian Guardians of the Threshold ............33

Arcadian Stories ...........................33Planning Arcadian Stories .............33

ELYSIUM ......................................... 34The Bible .......................................34Legends of Ancient Greece and Dead Rome ..................34Pagan Legends ...............................34Romances and Märchen .................35A Thousand and One Nights ........35

The Road of Destiny ....................35Typical Elysian Guardians of the Threshold ............35Identification as the Hero ................35

Elysian Stories ..............................36Planning Elysian Stories ................36Adding New Scenes .......................37Running Elysian Stories ................37The Measure of Success..................38

EUDOKIA ........................................ 38The Forking Path .........................38

Typical Eudokian Guardians of the Threshold ............38

Eudokian Stories ..........................38Planning Eudokian Stories .............39

Leaving Eudokia ...........................39Faerie Boons ..................................39

STORY ELEMENTS ............................. 40Title...............................................40

Actors ...........................................40The Pied Stranger ..........................40Grateful Lions ................................40The Captive Princess......................40The Task-Setting Ogre ..................41

3

4

Realms of Power: FaerieThe Mouse-Groom ........................41The Ferryman................................41The Pale Man ...............................41

Props ............................................42The Poisoned Apple .......................42Mjollnir ........................................42The Dragon’s Tongue .....................42The Swan Cloak............................42The Dull Knife ..............................42Snake Soup ...................................42

Scenery ........................................43The Market at the Crossroads ........43Winter ..........................................43The Forbidden Chamber .................43

Summer .........................................43The Glass Mountain......................43The Perilous Forest ........................43The Abandoned Shrine ...................44

Ch 3: Faerie Characters 45PC OR NPC? ................................. 45LEVEL OF POWER ............................. 45

Player Character Faeries Are Designed to Suit Game Play ........45

Maximum Number of Virtues and Pretenses......................45

REQUIRED VIRTUES AND FLAWS .......... 46

Faerie Might Score .......................46Virtues That Affect Might .............46Flaws That Affect Might ...............47

Physical Form ...............................47Equipment Without Encumbrance ...47Regeneration ..................................47Permanent Death ...........................48Magic Resistance Against Faeries ....48

Varieties of Form ..........................48Human and Animal Forms .............48Hybrid Forms ................................48Glamorous, Immaterial Forms ........48Size ...............................................49Virtues For Physical Forms............50Flaws for Physical Forms ..............51

Social Interaction Virtues and Flaws...51Cognizance ..................................52

Virtues and Flaws Concerning Cognizance .................52

Taboos ..........................................52Folk Charms ..................................52Herbs ............................................53Iron ...............................................53Names ...........................................53Payment or Thanks .......................53Places ............................................54Religious Symbols .........................54

OPTIONAL VIRTUES AND FLAWS .......... 54InappropriateVirtues and Flaws....54Modified Virtues and Flaws ..........54

Confidence .....................................54Personality Flaws ..........................54Virtues Granting Faerie Powers ......54Flaws Limiting Powers ...................56Ritual Faerie Powers ......................56Greater and Lesser Faerie Powers ....57Focus Powers .................................60Personal Powers ............................60

PRETENSE: FAERIE ABILITIES ................ 62Player-Defined Pretenses ................63Resistance and Pretenses .................63

Increasing Pretense ......................63FAERIE ADVANCEMENT THROUGH CHANGE .......................... 64

Cognizance ..................................64Vitality .........................................64Creativity .....................................65

Ch 4: Faerie Bestiary 66FAERIES DRAWN TO LIFE STAGES ........ 66

Birth .............................................66Child Killers ..................................66

Lamashtu ...............................66Lamia ....................................68Lamia Variants ......................68Kubu .....................................68

Child Stealers ................................68The Man in Black with a Sack on His Back ...............69

List of InsertsI. NATURE OF FAERIEWhere Did Faeries Come From? ............ 9Story Seed: Base Slander ...................... 11Where Are the Rules for

Faeries Feeding on Vitality? ............. 12Faeries and Truth .................................. 13Does My Character Know This? ......... 14

II. THE FAERIE REALMExample Threshold .............................. 21Trods..................................................... 21New Power: Spirit Away ...................... 23Faerie Adventurers ................................ 23The Power of God in the Faerie Realm ... 24Consequences of Creativity ................. 29Leaving by Using Merinita Mysteries ... 29The Subjective Nature of Time ............ 30Example Plot Devices ........................... 31Example of Arcadian Story Creation ... 32Hermetic Legends ................................ 35Example of Elysian Story Creation ...... 36A Twist to the Tale ............................... 37Example Story Themes,

and Virtues & Flaws.......................... 39Example of Eudokian Story Creation ... 40Further Ideas for Actor Story Elements ... 41Further Ideas for Prop Story Elements ... 42Further Ideas for Scenery Story Elements ... 43Ten Thousand More Story Elements.... 44

III. FAERIE CHARACTERSQuick Start Guideline .......................... 46Scale of Typical Might Scores .............. 47What Do Size Scores Represent? ......... 49Unspecialized Role ............................... 52An Exemplary Catalog of Faerie Powers ... 55Faerie Power Virtue Comparison Table ... 55Constant Powers .................................. 56Conversion ........................................... 57Powers of Transformation .................... 60Power Design: An Example .................. 61Player-Defined Pretense

Example Chivalrous Combat ........... 63Story Seed: Advancement .................... 64Using Abilities On Faeries ................... 65Why Isn’t My Faerie a

Genius At Every Ability? ................. 65Two Borders .......................................... 66

IV. FAERIE BESTIARYStory Seed: The Battle of Child Eaters .... 67Story Seed: The Tortoise Game ........... 70Happily Ever After is Just

a Pleasant Sort of Death .................. 73Story Seed: The Deluded Hero ........... 85Story Seed: Po!udnica .......................... 87Saga Seed: Escape, Then Fortify .......... 96Story Seed: Searching For Sanctuary ... 96Story Seed: A Monstrous Protector ..... 97Story Seed: The Covenant’s Reputation ... 97Story Seed: The Mother of Vis Sources ...101

V. TOUCHES OF FAERIESympathetic Influence ........................ 103Tinting an Aura ................................... 104Examples of Charmed Virtues ............ 105Faerie Blood and the Soul ................... 107Faerie Powers for the Faerie Blooded ... 107Story Seeds: Faerie Blood ................... 109New and Modified Virtues ................. 111Example Greater Benedictions ........... 113Example Lesser Benedictions .............. 114New and Modified Flaws .................... 115Example of Curse-Throwing .............. 116Sin-Eating ........................................... 117Story Seed: The Sorcerous Scapegoat ... 117

VI. FAERIE WIZARDRYFaerie Ranges, Durations,

and Targets ............................ 122–123Beguile Guidelines .............................. 125Conjure Guidelines ............................ 126Dream Guidelines .............................. 126Grant Guidelines ................................ 127Portage Guidelines ............................. 128Ware Guidelines ................................. 129Weal Guidelines ................................. 129Woe Guidelines .................................. 131Summoning Faeries ............................ 132Faerie Bargains .................................... 133

VII. TELLING FAERIE STORIESMistakes To Avoid .............................. 138The Thirty Six Dramatic Situations ... 141

5

Realms of Power: FaerieFaeries that Prey on New Mothers ...69Nursery Terrors .............................69

Gorgon .................................70Mormo ..................................70

Protectors ......................................72Toy Soldier ...........................72

Reason ..........................................72Guides to Adventure? .....................72Faerie Animal Companions ............72

Adulthood ....................................72Entrapping Lovers ..........................73

Lesser Nymph .......................73Nymph Variants....................73

Sexual Predators............................73Faeries Who Eat Their Spouses ......74

Ghula ....................................74Ghula Variants ......................74Glanconer .............................74Glanconer Variants ...............75

Faerie Spouses Trapped by a Trinket .....................75Guarded Spouses............................75Mentors .........................................76Exceptional Servants ......................76

Centaurs (Hippocentaurs) ....76Centar Variants .....................77

Rivals ...........................................77Mastery ........................................77

Creatures Designed to Die in Combat ...........................77

Fachan ...................................77Fachan Variants .....................77Knight (Minor) .....................78

Masters of Skills ............................78The Barking Beast .................78Barking Beast Variants...........79

Death ...........................................79Psychopomps.................................79

Valkyrie .................................79Wolf Mount ..........................80

Returned Dead ...............................80Ancestral Spirits ............................80Life Stages for Magi.......................80

FAERIES INTERESTED IN SOCIAL DISTINCTIONS ....................... 81

Bringers of Riches or Humility ....81Brownies ...............................81Brownie Variants ...................81

Liberators of the Underclass............82Courtly Faeries .............................82

Faerie Monarchs ............................82White Lady (Dame Blanche) ....................82Faerie Noble: The Privy Counselor ............83Champion: Sir Excelsis .........84

Lesser Courtly Faeries ....................85Sprites ...................................85Regional Courtly Faerie Variants ......................85

DIVISIONS OF TIME .......................... 86Summer and Winter: Fertile and Infertile .........................86

Cailleach Bheur (Cally Berry) .........................86

Spring and Autumn: Sowing and Reaping......................86

Po!udnica ..............................86Christmas ......................................87

Kallikantzaro ........................87Kallikantzaro Variants ..........88

DIVISIONS OF SPACE ......................... 88Roads............................................88

Faerie Hounds .......................88Faerie Hound Variants ..........88Kelpie (Water Horse) ...........89Kelpie Variants .....................89Licho .....................................89Road Faerie Variants .............90

Waterways ...................................90Tritons ...................................90Triton Variants ......................91Selkie King ...........................91Selkie King Variants .............91Seal Statistics ........................92

Marsh ...........................................92Fool’s Fire ..............................92

Rivers............................................92Lakes and Wells .............................92

Wastelands ...................................92Forest ............................................92

Great Lezi .............................92Great Lezi Variants ...............93Fauns .....................................93Faun Variants ........................94Satyrs ....................................94

Mountains.....................................95Snows ...........................................95

Koerakoonlane......................95Koerakoonlane Variants .......95

The Entrances to the Earth .............96Dwarfs, Gnomes, & Goblins ..............................96Dwarf, Gnome, & Goblin Variants .................97

THE BORDERS OF SUPERNATURAL SPACES ...................... 97OFT-REPEATED FORMS ...................... 98

Giants and Other Gigantic Humans ..................98Giant Variants .......................98Giants in Combat .................99Orms and Other Dragons.....99Dragon Variants ..................100

Ch 5: Touches of Faerie 102SYMPATHY ..................................... 102

Sympathy Traits .........................102Increasing Sympathy Traits ........102

Faerie Rank .................................103SYMPATHETIC INFLUENCE ................. 103

Tinted Auras ...............................104CHARMS ....................................... 104SYMPATHETIC MAGIC ...................... 105

Folk Charms ...............................105Hermetic Charms ......................105

FAERIE BLOOD ............................... 105Varieties ofFaerie Blood .............106

Bloodcap Blood ...........................106Brownie Blood .............................106Dwarf Blood ...............................107Ettin Blood ..................................107Faerie God Blood .........................107Ghul Blood ..................................108Goblin Blood ...............................108Huldra Blood ..............................108Nymph Blood ..............................108Padfoot Blood ..............................108Satyr Blood .................................109Selkie Blood .................................109Sidhe Blood .................................109Undine Blood ..............................109

Changelings ...............................110Retrieved Changelings ..................110Faerie Upbringing........................110Linked Lives .................................110Milk Brothers ..............................111Nympholepts ...............................111

VIRTUES AND FLAWS ....................... 111New and Modified Virtues .........111

Beguile.........................................111Bonding.......................................111Captivating .................................112Ceremony ....................................112Conjure .......................................112Curse-Throwing ..........................112Dismissing ...................................112Dream .........................................112Empathy .....................................112Enchantment ................................112Evocation ....................................112Faerie Background .......................112Faerie Blood.................................112Faerie Doctor ...............................112Faerie Legacy ..............................112Faerie Sympathy .........................112Familiarity with the Fae ...............113Frightful Presence ........................113Grant ..........................................113Greater Benediction ......................113Lesser Benediction .........................113Portage........................................113Strong Faerie Blood .....................113Summoning .................................113Ware ...........................................113Weal ...........................................114Woe ............................................114

New and Modified Flaws ...........114Faerie Antipathy .........................114

6

Realms of Power: FaerieFaerie Heritage.............................114Faerie Metamorphosis ..................114Faerie Upbringing........................115Greater Charm .............................115Homunculus Wizard ...................115Lesser Charm ...............................115

FAERIE ABILITIES ............................. 115Ceremony ....................................115Curse-Throwing ..........................115

Learning Faerie Abilities ............116FAERIE DOCTORS ........................... 117

Faerie Doctors as Mythic Companions ..................117

HOMUNCULI WIZARDS .................... 118FAERIE WARPING ............................ 119

Sources of Faerie Warping .........119The Faerie Realm .........................119Faerie Auras ................................119Faerie Powers ..............................119Botches ........................................119

FAERIE CALLING ............................. 119

Ch 6: Faerie Wizardry 121RITES OF FAERIE ............................. 121

Performing Faerie Rites ..............121Hermetic Rites ...........................121

FAERIE METHODS ........................... 122Evocation ...................................122Enchantment ..............................123Empathy .....................................124

FAERIE POWERS .............................. 124Beguile........................................125Conjure ......................................125Dream ........................................126Grant ..........................................127Portage .......................................127Ware ...........................................128Weal ...........................................128Woe ............................................130

FAERIE BARGAINING ........................ 131Ars Fabulosa ...............................131Summoning ................................131Bonding ......................................132Captivating ................................133Dismissing ..................................134

PAGAN TRADITIONS ........................ 134Borrowers ...................................135Ollamhain ..................................135Volkhvy ......................................136Wise Folk ...................................136

Ch 7: Telling Faerie Stories 137REVEL IN ANACHRONISM & APPROPRIATION ........................... 137

Anachronism ..............................137Appropriation ............................137

Be Topical ...................................137USE OTHER STORIES ...................... 138

Dissecting Stories ......................138STORY FLOW ................................. 139

The Hook ....................................139The Trigger..................................139The Setting ..................................139The Twist ....................................139The Resolution ............................140The Consequences ........................140

DRAMATIC ELEMENTS ...................... 140Dramatis Personae .....................140

The Hero .....................................140The Villain ..................................141The Donor ..................................141The Helper ...................................142The Princess ................................142The Task-Setter ...........................142The False Hero ............................142

Acts ............................................142Interdiction ..................................142Reconnaissance ............................142Trickery ......................................142Villainy ......................................142Receipt ........................................142Transference .................................143Struggle .......................................143Pursuit ........................................143Ordeal ........................................143Imposture .....................................143Reconciliation..............................143

Appendix: Bibliography 144

7

Realms of Power: Faerie is an overview of the Faerie realm of Mythic Europe, written for Ars Magica Fifth Edition. It addresses everything from the otherworldly place where faeries apparently originate to the people who use fae influence to fulfill their own desires, and includes all manner of fa-erie beings that live on the border between these two extremes. These are the things that characters with knowledge of Faerie Lore are likely to know, and depend upon to get along with faeries and those who associ-ate with them.

There are seven chapters to this book, loosely organized into four parts. The first part, Faerie Visions, describes the many roles that faeries play on the world’s stage, and the places and things over which faeries have the greatest influence (Chapter 1: Nature of Faerie and Chapter 2: The Faerie Realm). Faerie Envoys, the second part, describes beings with Faerie Might and how to design and play them for a saga (Chapter 3: Faerie Characters and Chapter 4: Faerie Bestiary). The third part, Faerie Vessels, develops hu-man characters who have been invested with

the power of the Faerie realm and draw upon it to work different types of faerie “magic” (Chapter 5: Touches of Faerie and Chapter 6: Faerie Wizardry). Finally, Faerie Tales, part four, is intended to give players ideas for playing and running stories that involve faer-ies and the Faerie realm (Chapter 7: Telling Faerie Stories).

What is Faerie?Faerie is the realm of power in Mythic

Europe most associated with human be-lief. Conscious and subconscious hopes and fears give the realm its strength, and many think humans actually become faeries through their exposure to the realm. If this is true, Faerie might be described as visions and nightmares made real, fantastic beings given a physical existence and purpose by those whose lives ultimately sustain them. However, while dedicated belief in super-

natural beings may cause them to come about through the power of Faerie, it is clear that ceasing to believe in them does not drive them away again. Perhaps, then, Faerie is simply a supernatural repository for human myths and legends that grows stron-ger as they circulate, but does not weaken if they do not. More information about Faerie — specifically how the power of the realm defines and manifests in beings with Faerie Might — can be found in Chapter 1: Nature of Faerie.

Faerie & Other RealmsFaerie’s most powerful influence is over

the mundane realm, where it does not clash with the other supernatural powers. Gener-ally, Faerie is weaker than the others; it is easily dominated by the Divine and often subverted by the Infernal. The penalties that faeries and those who practice faerie wizardry suffer in these auras are worse than those suffered by Magic creatures and

Introduction

Dreams & Nightmares

8

Realms of Power: Faerie

practitioners of magic like Hermetic magi. In places that have no other supernatural presence, however, it is common for faeries to move in and thrive, especially if there are human beings living nearby — human set-tlements in Mythic Europe rarely go with-out an aura for very long, and if they do not have a Divine aura, they usually develop a Faerie one.

FAERIE AND THE DIVINE

While the Divine realm tends to treat other powers as either good or evil depend-ing on how they are used, Faerie has an ad-ditional disadvantage when compared to Magic in that the Faerie realm is generally perceived as more alien and unnatural, es-pecially by followers of the Divine. Many of them believe that faeries only serve to lead mortals into sin and temptation, and see little difference between them and demons. Of course, the Divine actively discourages the pagan worship that tends to go with Faerie powers. However, since the Dominion protects many places where people experience intense emotion and concentrated belief, there are many faer-ies that live within it, despite the penalties they endure there, and some faeries even participate in Divine worship. It would seem that the Divine realm encourages this, in some circumstances allowing such faeries to set up small Faerie auras within the Dominion (see Chapter 1: Nature of Faerie, Traveling Auras).

FAERIE AND THE INFERNAL

Faeries are terribly vulnerable to the power of the Infernal realm — not as much as they are weakened by the Divine, but the Infernal actively seeks to undermine and cor-rupt the power of Faerie, and once a faerie has been subverted by demonic influences, the Divine will cease to distinguish between the faerie and the devils that have marked it. The Infernal realm also takes grim delight in destroying anything and everything, and fa-eries are often caught in the path of maraud-ing demons. Some faeries oppose the Infer-nal, and a few unite with it (many people fear demons, and faeries can prey upon that fear), but most faeries are simply unable to under-stand it. Faeries are amoral by definition; they simply play a role as it is envisioned for them, and rarely choose a side in the struggle between Heaven and Hell. More interesting to faeries is what human beings want, and also what they believe. The Infernal only regards these concerns as means to turn hu-manity against the Divine, and thus it tends to treat faeries the same way.

FAERIE AND MAGIC

The Faerie realm has more in common with Magic than with either of the other realms. Like Magic, Faerie rarely concerns itself with morality and immorality. Faerie powers are more compatible with Magic, in that faeries are not penalized by Magic auras, and in fact derive a small benefit from them.

However, Magic tends to favor subjects that are old and rooted to the natural order of things, while Faerie often prefers those that display the vitality of youth and fanciful no-tions born from imagination. Magic beings strive to improve themselves over time, grow-ing more powerful as they enhance their de-fining characteristics, and losing their power if they stray too far into the mundane; faeries must adhere to the rules that surround their identities, and have little incentive to change at all, advancing themselves only by encour-aging others to advance, and gaining more power only when their defining role changes in an artistically satisfying way.

Many believe that beings of Faerie and Magic opposed each other in the past, fighting great wars between gods and monsters such as the Olympians versus the Titans, the Tuatha De Danann against the Fomorii, or the Æsir and the Vanir versus the Jotnar. Some think that the two realms were once a single realm, and that perhaps it was this struggle or some other cataclysmic event that separated them. As those well-versed in the lore of Faerie know, however, this theory is very difficult to prove — or rather opposing theories are impossible to disprove. Faeries draw upon human stories to form themselves, so it is not uncommon to find faeries playing the parts of beings that seem magical, because those beings appear in the stories that produce faeries. Just as there are thought to be faeries that resemble the an-cient gods Zeus, Lugh, and Odin, faerie ver-sions of their fabled opponents Cronos, Balor, and Ymir almost certainly exist somewhere in the Faerie realm as well.