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The Council of Iron

by Grant Howitt

Out in the jungles of Erebus, the pine forests of the West and the jin-wood groves of the East, magic is real.

Faith

The Fey – beings from beyond the world of Erebus – stalk the groves at night, stealing the young away from their beds and practicing dark magics. The peoples of the wild lands have held an uneasy truce with the Fair Folk, as they are sometimes called – they leave out gifts of food at night once a month, and they might turn a blind eye to a child that gets lost in the woods and never comes back. After all, life with the Fair Folk is a far better life than any their natural parents can provide.

The balance, though, is becoming unstable. More and more people are disappearing from woodland areas. Communities are being eroded as all the young, healthy men and women are taken away in the night. Even in the cities, where the Fey normally never tread, reports of disappearances are on the increase in outlying areas.

The Council of Iron aims to change all this.

Boons

The Council turns the source of their enemy's power against them. Using spells stolen from books, Fey magic has been condensed into strips of parchment that are attached to operatives’ clothing or equipment with wax seals or short pins. These contain one-use spells that allow users to move as fast as a panther, deliver massive telekinetic blasts or step through walls; powerful weapons in the war that rages under the noses of the inhabitants of the city.

Other standard equipment:

• Reloader with bloodburn and cold-iron rounds
• Cold-iron baton
• knuckledusters
• Anti-Fey Crystal grenade, for special occasions

Anathema

Anyone can work for the council, though they are usually recruited by existing members of the organization for their unique skills. Combat operatives are in high demand, as are researchers and tacticians to help amass new weaponry and plan the attacks and sabotage that the council undertakes. Some unscrupulous individuals might leave the organization, noticing how useful their newly-acquired knowledge might be to the right bidder, but these are few and far between. The Council hunts them down ruthlessly.

History

Once, the Council was a massive underground organization. Back before Erebus was a major city and before Alchemy changed the face of the world, blacksmiths and warriors came together to form a secret society designed to drive back the Fey. A member was found in every town, and wandering groups of men and women armed with cold-iron weapons – anathema to the Fey - kept order in the farms and villages. With the growth of Erebus, though, the organization degraded; the Fey could not survive in the human-infested haven and the Council became unnecessary.

But with the increased attacks, the organization is resurfacing. Cells are being created all over the city, looking to combat the Fey and protect innocent humans. Though most of these are staffed by old men – grandsons and great-grandsons of the original members of the organization– they are bringing in fresh blood and researching new tactics.

Allies

The Skywatchers and the Council are like long lost brothers. Sir Erik's operatives have lent them support in the past, under that "enemy of my enemy" philosophy. The Council has also formed a working relationship with the Ferrymen, because the Fey cannot cross running water.

Enemies

The Fey, obviously, but also the Leopard-Men; their witches sometimes traffic with the Fey. Fallen Legacy also lists the Council among its enemies, on account of their connections to Sir Erik.

Previews - Fiction - Scenarios - Cults - Miscellany