Spirit History
From Gothpoodle
Contents |
Native Period (pre-1776)
The spirits of nature and the elements formed into small broods warring with each other for dominance, forming the many microclimes of the region. On the peninsula, the spirits of sand and fog held dominance and were allied strongly with the Predator King pack there. Abstract and artificial spirits were rare and tended to keep to the small settlements.
Spanish Period (1776-1822)
The arrival of the Spanish brought with it a rise in the number of abstract spirits as well as a new Uratha pack and the next half a century saw the peninsula altered as trees were cut, grasses depleted by grazing, and new, foreign nature spirits introduced to compete with the native ones. In addition, the decimation of the local tribes produced new loci, spirits, and wounds.
Mexican Period (1822-1847)
By the time of the Mexican War of Independence, the spirits of nature and the elements began to see the value in alliance against the intruders. The various small factions began to rally under the spirit of the Bay, one of the older, more powerful elementals and one of the few who was convinced of the need for action. By the start of the Gold Rush, the Court of the Bay was established and had begun to coordinate efforts, as much as the nature of the spirits involved allowed, in fighting the incursions.
Barbary Coast (1847-1906)
The Gold Rush changed everything. New spirits and loci appeared daily of disease, greed, gold, violence, and fire, not to mention those of new structures, vehicles, tools, and other artificial constructs. The Bay Court stepped up efforts, bribing elementals, leading to several earthquakes and fires which had the opposite of their intended effect, waking the spirits of the things they damaged and forming more loci to allow them to flood across the Gauntlet. East of the city, a war began between the sand spirits and newly planted tree spirits, each side backed by one side of the vicious struggle between Pure and Forsaken, with the sand spirits engulfing any new construction and the tree spirits taming them to allow the city to spread. By the end of the century, the Shadow was stained in blood from one end of the peninsula to the other and the Predator Kings made a pact with the spirit of earthquakes which lay slumbering beneath the city, feeding it Essence so it might waken and destroy it.
Reconstruction (1906-1950)
The Great Earthquake and resultant fires destroyed the young spirit of the city and lay waste to Hisil, unleashing a flood of spirits of death, fire, and despair and awakening the Shadow of every major building in the city. In the aftermath, though, the city spirit rose up from the ashes and rallied these newly awakened spirits to it. A massive battle ensued and when the dust settled, two new broods emerged. The Court of the Phoenix consisted of the urban spirits led by the reborn city spirit, while the Court of the Dragon was composed of those members of the Bay Court who refused to admit defeat and dedicated themselves to the destruction of the city, by any means necessary. While neither side could claim complete victory, for the time being the spirits of the city had resisted the attempt to destroy it. The Bay Court, which had hoped to regain control in the days following the quake, was forced to concede defeat. Its remaining members disavowed their previous factions and agreed to cooperate on mutual defense. During Prohibition, the spirits of wine, madness, and intoxication broke off from the Phoenix Court to form the Court of the Vine.
Counterculture (1950-1980)
The various counterculture movements after the Second World War introduced new spirits to the urban court as well as its enemy. The Dragon Court, formerly populated mostly by spirits of nature and the elements, now gained abstract and artificial spirits born of the destructive urges of the Cold War and the various movements hostile to civilization and its trappings. The war between the courts entered its own sort of Cold War, with each side inducting its new members and trying to appear stronger than its opponent. The turmoil of the 60s and 70s also increased the formation of loci, wounds, and verges, giving more opportunities for spirits to cross the Gauntlet and meddle in human affairs than there had been since the Barbary Coast days.
Decline (1980-1990)
The AIDS and homelessness epidemics provided the Dragon Court with just the boost it needed to pull ahead. A flood of new spirits of fear, death, disease, and hatred were born and the spirits of the city weakened under the weight of San Francisco's decline. The Castro became a stronghold for the Dragon Court and their Pure allies. While the urban spirits worked to halt the decline, these allies began to channel the tainted Essence produced by the plague to The Big One. In 1989, they woke the slumbering spirit only briefly, stopped by the Tribes of the Moon before the plan could reach its fruition. However, they did repay their Dragon Court allies by razing the Shadow of the Castro with fire before they were slain. The end of the 80s left the Shadow of the city crippled, bleeding, and infested with new wounds and barrens.
Dot-Com Boom (1990-2000)
While the dot-com boom helped revitalize the city and give a much needed boost to the Phoenix Court, it brought with it the threat of a new adversary: the Silicon Court. Originally the small brood of an inexplicably powerful spirit which appeared in the 70s, they had seen steadily and significant growth throughout the 70s and 80s into an international grouping of spirits connected virtually. Then, almost overnight, they achieved massive power and prominence. With the boom, they flooded into San Francisco, becoming ubiquitous. For the moment, they seemed minimally interested in anything but their virtual world. However, most of the spirits of all three courts worried about their significance and it was undeniable that a fair amount of the city's Essence began to flow through their networks. At any rate, new spirits of wealth, hope, and greed bolstered the ranks of the Phoenix Court, who even managed to come to an accord with their old enemy the Bay Court as environmentalism spread throughout the city's popular culture.
Present (post-2000)
The Dot-Com Bust did little to check the growth of the Silicon Court, but it did birth new spirits of despair, poverty, and decay as well as weaken the Phoenix Court. With the rise in prominence of San Jose, where the Silicon Court is based, many spirits are starting to urge San Francisco to go to war with the impetuous youngster and put this new court in its place. For the moment, though, the city spirit seems focused on its known enemy, the Dragon Court, almost to the exclusion of other concerns. This has allowed two strong factions to emerge to take up the slack: one led by Chinatown and the other by Haight-Ashbury. These two powerful Jaggling both represent interests within the city and they have taken to trying to gather allies within the court to push things their way.
