The Veiled Alliance

The Veiled Alliance exists to protect preservers from physical, mental, and magical attacks by all enemies: sorcerer-kings, templars, defilers, the general citizenry, and even the dragon. Preservers automatically earn its protection, but not all automatically acquire membership. A wizard must earn affiliation. Other characters may join under certain circumstances. These “auxiliary” members also gain protection. Defilers cannot join the Alliance. Only good or neutral characters may join. The organizations undertake many varied activities, yet all serve this relatively narrow purpose. If anything threatens a preserver or preserving magic, the Alliance vows solemn opposition. Conversely, the organizations (as opposed to individual members) care nothing about threats to others. No Alliance takes official action to free ordinary slaves, for example, nor to provide disaster relief, nor to battle monsters. Vigorous Alliance chapters exist in all seven city-states. Minor Alliances, or sometimes single contacts, also exist in the village of Altaruk and a few other scattered villages and oases. These typically take orders from the nearest city-state chapter. No known Alliance chapters exist in the Crescent Forest, on the islands of the Sea of Silt, nor in other remote areas.

Short-Term Assistance

Most preservers belong to the Alliance. If a member identifies a non-member preserver, the member teaches the signs for “I seek contact” and “Need help” without mentioning the Alliance. “The signs are presented as a general, “If you’re in trouble, try these.” This means that when an Alliance member helps a preserver, the member doesn’t even know whether he rescued wizard belongs to the organization. After giving the help, the member may try recognition signals or subtle questioning to find out, perhaps with the idea of recruiting the rescued wizard. More often the member simply departs.

Recruitment

The Alliance, of course, constantly seeks new members. Secrecy makes recruitment a slow, delicate matter. Make this process a deeply mysterious, atmospheric event in the campaign. First, the recruiter drops subtle hints that “others like you live in this city.” To non-wizards (known associates of a preserver) the recruiter may say, “Others like your friend could use your help.” If the candidate shows no interest, the attempt usually ends there. Given even tentative interest, the recruiter says, “If you wish to learn more, go about your business. For some time we will watch you. If we like what we see, we’ll contact you again,” and never mentions the Alliance by name. Next come days of observation. A candidate need never become aware of the scrutiny, and members don’t: help the candidate except in grave danger. The observers look for evidence of non-evil alignment, non-defiling magic, useful skills, or simple bravery. After an interval, a second contact leads to a formal invitation. The recruiter names the Alliance, describes its mission, outlines the local chapter’s doctrines, and stresses the policy of requital – a candidate who accepts membership and later quits becomes a fugitive marked for death. The candidate can refuse now without prejudice. As a formal courtesy, the recruiter asks the candidate to keep the meeting secret, but this promise does not bind the non-member. The same candidate may even receive later invitations from others of different cells. If the candidate accepts the invitation, the initiation begins on the spot.

Initiation Ceremonies

All Alliance chapters begin initiation with the same first step, but thereafter each follows its own procedures. Initiation tests two criteria: first, that a candidate-wizard uses preserving magic; second, that the candidate shows intense commitment to the cause. In the first step, called “the Green Test,” heavily armed members of a cell take the candidate wizard to a grassy or forested area, where entry may entail great risk (for instance, getting into the sorcerer-king’s gardens). They cast illusions and protect themselves from observation. Then, surrounded by vegetation, they ask the candidate to cast a spell. If the wizard claims not to have any memorized spells, the members allow the candidate to study an elementary spellbook entry suitable for apprentices, such as a cantrip or light. If the wizard refuses to cast a spell, the members may attack or simply leave, depending on circumstances and suspicion level; in any case, the candidate fails the test. Of course, if the candidate casts a spell and vegetation dies, the members attack the defiler.

Illusions

Now that defilers have begun infiltrating the Alliance, most members inspect Green Test candidates more alertly. They question every spell effect as a potential illusion; they may recruit psionicists to check for psionic manipulation; they sometimes frisk the candidate for concealed magical items. Discovery of deceit usually leads to confrontation.

The second step

Non-wizards, and wizards who pass the Green Test, now receive a mission – a proof of their commitment, the “Test of Action.” The Alliance may ask the candidate to steal a local defiler ‘s powerful magical item, rescue a captive preserver, or undertake some other dangerous adventure. When they fulfill the mission, the candidates take oaths in a solemn ceremony and become full-fledged Alliance members. Groups form their own cells; individuals may join an existing cell or start their own.