Mage History
From Gothpoodle
Contents |
History
Native Period (pre-1776)
No formal cabals existed, but individual shamans among the Yeluma practiced magic.
Spanish Period (1776-1822)
Several of the Yeluma shaman formed a cabal to fight the oppression of their people, but Banishers backed by the Catholic Church protected the Mission and then wiped them out.
Mexican Period (1822-1847)
A small group of Dionysian cultists established a cabal around a powerful hallow in Sonoma, across the bay, forming an alliance with the local werewolf pack which protected the locus on the same location. The Banishers learned of the cult and tried to stamp it out but were killed to the last man.
Barbary Coast (1847-1906)
With the flood of immigrants came mages and three cabals formed during this time. The first was the Chosen of Ti-Tsang, Chinese alchemists who set up shop in Chinatown, tending to the needs of their countrymen and drawn by the proximity of death and material greed. The second was founded by Mary Pleasant, a voodoo practitioner from New Orleans who founded the Children of Olorun to tend to the needs of the small black population. The last was a cabal called the Watchers, who were sent by the Seers of the Throne to monitor occult activity in the new state. With the first two being community-centered and the latter concerned only with observation, magical matters were mostly peaceful save for the occasional belligerant outside mage.
Reconstruction (1906-1950)
The three cabals weathered the earthquake and fire and continued to operate much as they had. More mages arrived as the city grew, but generally formed small cabals which didn't last more than a decade or two. The only permanent organization to form in the area was the Rosicrucian cabal in San Jose in 1915, which kept to itself, collecting artifacts, exploring mysteries, and sharing mystical knowledge among its members.
Counterculture (1950-1980)
The influx of new agers, mystics, and weirdos during this period included several mages, including several of dubious ethics and practices. The established cabals began to take more of an interest in the activites of the newcomers. The Watchers, in particular, decided that observation wasn't sufficient and reformed as the Sandmen. Quietly, they began to remove or drive off the more destructive of the mages and also made inroads to allow them to suppress the new wave of mysticism. Despite the efforts of the Seers, two new cabals formed during this period: the Temple of Ama-no-Uzume and the Pink Elephant Commune. Both shared a more outward focus than the previous inhabitants, with interests in shaping the world and changing its perspectives, and so made contact with the two Pentacle cabals and heralded the formation of an actual magical community.
Decline (1980-1990)
Tensions mount as the Sandmen expand their influence and begin to intrude more into the affairs of the established cabals. Paranoia mounts and defenses are strengthened. A degree of stability occurs when three Benandanti arrive in the city and establish a cabal dedicated to protecting Sleepers from spirits and dark magic which they call the Knights of St. Francis. They quickly establish a relationship with the Seers and end up acting as liaisons, not just between the Seers and Pentacle mages, but also between mages and the other supernatural entites in the city. To the north, a young hispanic vinyard hieress inherited control of the old Dionysian cult, renaming it the Court of the Huntress and quickly becoming a power in the North Bay.
Dot-Com Boom (1990-2000)
Spiritual Switchboard Collective
