Go Between

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There are code breakers with lines well tapped

Traces sweeping out across the static night

You are drapped in white

Like the blossoms of the trees

Looking down a glass elevator

At your father signing the papers

Two silver trees, two silver trees

Two worlds in need, two silver trees

-- Calexico --

Intercessors

The Intercessors is a motley of Changelings that has existed for over a hundred years. Members have come and gone but there is one thing they have in common. That is, they intercede in conflicts to de-escalate, repair, solve, or otherwise handle them. Sometimes they are diplomats-for-hire, other times third party arbiters, still others, hostage negotiators. Their motivations are many, and have varied over the ages. They were recruited, somewhat against their better judgment, into creating the Unseelie Accord during The Year Of Blood in 1905. Those days are long past, though...

The Motley and the Courts

Contracts and obligations are so tied up in every part of Changeling life that all Courts have had a place in the motley over the last hundred-odd years.

Summer Court motley members are concerned with enforcement questions. How do you make sure people do what they promise? When does strict enforcement make a situation worse instead of better?

Autumn Court motley members are concerned with investigation of a situation, finding out all the angles before making a fair decision. They bring to the table questions of motivation and intent.

Winter Court motley members are concerned with determining outcomes, finding the best possible target for a situation and working to be sure that occurs. For them, justice and fairness are two different things.

Spring Court motley members bring a passion for communal action and partnership that is fundamental to any agreement. People must be willing to trust, and that's a function of the Spring Court.

Other Changelings and The Intercessors

Because of the very long-standing nature of the motley and its more or less independent status, many motleys and courts know of the Intercessors and are not hostile. The courtless and rootless often look to them for protection and assistance.

Why do it?

Of course individual Changelings have their own reasons for joining the Intercessors, but the collective reason is that chaos and conflict make it easy for the Gentry to do what they want.

What Is The Game About?

The game is about members of this motley, peacemakers thrust into a dire situation, with conflict and danger all around. Not everything that will be done is "motley business". Figuring out what peace even feels like in these circumstances will be quite an accomplishment in and of itself, let alone achieving it.

Character Creation Guidelines

Branches falling down

Sources underground

False identities

Stranded in each single seed

Characters will be made as normal, beginning level Changelings, with the following additions and caveats.

Characters will receive, during the first few sessions of play, the New Identity background at a 2-dot level. You should not spend any points on New Identity, it will be free (XP-wise, of course nothing is really free when you come down to it.)

Characters may be from any era or area, but the game is not about acclimating to modern technology, so don't take the Anachronism flaw. Being from a past time frame is more of a roleplaying note than for the center of the character. (Of course, the character need not remember anything about their mortal life, should the player choose to make them like that.)

Characters have not killed their fetch. Their fetch may have died by accident or natural causes (or being killed by a NPC) during the intervening time, but they are not responsible for the fetch's death. If the fetch is somewhere other than Southern Arizona or Northern Mexico, it is outside the scope of the game.

The characters are members of the Intercessors motley. I will give some details on the exact oath sworn to the motley in the future, but suffice to say that right now the motley is in a "spring" phase, and therefore provides a free dot of Empathy to all members.

The characters have relatively recently escaped from their Gentry (again, given the weirdness of time in the Hedge, this "relatively" should be in bold giant letters). However long it has been, they have not put down roots in the mundane world of Tucson. There are many potential reasons for this, if you have one of your own, great, but if not, I suggest that it's been simply "too hot" - privateers or loyalists on your tail, evil Hedge spirits knocking on your door, and so on. The Intercessor PCs have assisted with Hedge-working Changelings and hob market disputes (strange as they may be), which is an important part of the motley "mission statement". As a result, your Merits for things like Resources, Allies, or Contacts in the mundane world are limited to 1 at most - whatever is left over after you have been gone for however long you were gone.

The motley has a Hollow. The characters won't have to pay for it. I'll provide the stats when it's appropriate. However, it will take some...effort. At any rate you shouldn't spend anything on a Hollow Merit right now.

These Merit restrictions should free up some dots to be used in usual ways and places. Consider taking some stuff from the normal World of Darkness book or inventing a new Merit if you can think of a good one.

Player Characters

Charlie - Ogre Farwalker of the Summer Court, and former Border Patrol officer.
Tweezer - Wizened Gameplayer of the Autumn Court, and (partly unbeknownst to him), former municipal planner.
Melody - Fairest Flowering and music box occupant.
Douglas - Elemental Mannikin and debate-loser.

Important NPCs

False sense of warning - no poisoned cup

Just deception crawling up like a snake

Decay of the blossoms and roots well hacked

Spoil the hidden waters dying at the base

Two silver trees, two silver trees

Two worlds in need, two silver trees

Changelings

Joshua Alonzo, Iraq war veteran, lord of Summer
"Grace", underground railroader and madwoman
Pinewing, Darkling razorglider and former "dark superhero". Thanks to Jim for his idea and portrayal.
Scott Gilmartin - Elemental Woodblood and manager of Trina's House

Other Intercessors

Since the characters are new both to the motley and more or less new to Changeling life, there are several important members of the motley that are mentors and protectors for them.

Bernice Torres, a Summer Court ogress knowledgeable about wards and Hollows
"El Capitan", a Winter Court Earthbones Elemental protector of motley tokens and resources
Bruce Partington, a Winter Court Mannikin negotiator who has been with the motley for many years.

Mortals

Sleipnir And Shapiro - A Tucson law firm, established 1965.
Frankie Mendez - Slimy, crazed privateer and drug dealer.

Places

The Orchards - The major Hollow in Tucson, and symbol of the Great Courts' authority.
Seed And Powder - The Intercessors' Hollow in Tucson, long-established.
Trina's House - A shelter for the homeless and abused.
Sage Creek Films - The Autumn Court's seat of power, and production house for crap horror films.
Verdant Galleries - The Spring Court's seat of power
House of Bone - The Winter Court's seat of power, outside Nogales

Links

Two Silver Trees
This Must Be The Place
Go Between Once, the first 8tracks soundtrack for the game.
The Black Light
Mr. Gone's Changeling download page