Vis Sources

The Covenant's vis sources are recorded here. The Vis Sources are maintained by the Bursar, a member of the Council. Currently, that magus is Lucien.The Animal Graveyard (6 Creo in summer): In wooded area a few miles from the Hill, the corpses of animals are everywhere to be found. In the summer, when the stench of the rotting animals is at its worst, 6 golden maggots spontaneously appear among all the other maggots. If these creatures can be kept alive long enough (they die quickly when removed from dead flesh), each yields 1 pawn of Creo vis. This must be collected in the summer, and currently requires a magus (thanks to the overwhelming stench and the short lifespan of the maggots).

• The Best Spot to See (0-3 Intellego/season): The view from Uisneach is the grandest in Hibernia. When conditions are just right -- the sun is bright and the sky naturally perfect -- tears will form in the eyes of someone surveying the view from the hilltop. These tears contain 1 pawn of Intellego vis. Every season, roll a simple die to determine how many days these perfect conditions appear: 1-2 = 0 days, 3-5 = 1 day, 6-8 = 2 days, and 9-10 = 3 days.

The Branching Tree (6 Muto in Spring): The Branching Tree is a legendary Ash planted by Findail centuries ago. Like all ash, its flowers alternate gender every year. Unlike other Ash, these flowers contain Muto vis. The tree flowers in the spring for 6 pawns.

The Cursed Stones (1 Perdo/season): The stones of Uisneach were cursed by St Patrick so that they could not be used for building. They crumble into useless pebbles when moved or used. Each season, 1 pawn of Perdo vis gathers in the stones.

The Burial Site of Eire (1 Rego/season): One of the patron goddesses of Ireland, Eire is buried beneath the Stone of Division. Quartz nodules spontaneously form in this earth, containing Rego vis. One nodule appears every season.

Milk from Grazing Cows (1 Animal/season): There is a field of white flowers upon which the cows like to graze, and the flowers contain small amounts of vis. If one cow is allowed to consume all the flowers before it is milked, its milk provides vis.

Lover's Violets (4 Corpus in the Spring and 4 in Summer): Between Uisneach and Devlin is a hill covered in thick, deep purple, violets. The hill is a tryst for lovers and throughout the spring and summer it is normal to find couples copulating in the flowers. Each flower contains a tiny amount of Corpus vis; it takes about a wheel-barrow full to make 1 pawn. To gather the vis, Innocentius first uses spirits to frighten away any lovers in the field, then covenfolk gather up as many flowers as can be found in a single night. This routine is performed in both Spring and Summer.

Gorse Flowers (1 Herbam/season): Gorse bushes dot the Hill. There are almost always some in flower, and some of these flowers contain vis. The flowers can be burned in the lab and the vis captured from the smoke. Gorse can also be used as fodder for animals, the flowers are edible and can be used for salad, and the wood is non-toxic and so is a good source for eating utensils. 1 pawn per season.

The Eye of Balor (8 Ignem in Summer): The ash from the Eye of Balor can be collected and sifted to harvest 8 pawns of Ignem vis. Harvested on May 2, the day after Beltane.

The Shout of Victory (5 Imaginem/Summer): The Shout is collected in Summer, when the Baron Delvin holds a championship horse race. The assembled crowds cheer as the winning horse crosses the line. This is the moment when the vis can be collected courtesy of a magic vase in the covenant's possession. The vase must be triggered then, and transforms the Shout it into an equine accented beer for easy storage.

Faerie Battlefield (1 Faerie Terram/season): A few miles from the covenant is a watery field of flowers. Presumably, at some point in the year, elves meet here for war, because submerged in the pools are stone arrowheads, or Elf Shot. Each stone arrowhead contains 1 pawn of Faerie Terram vis.

The Stone of Division (1 Vim/month): The world-navel of Hibernia and the center of all magic power in the island, the Stone is uniquely magical. Moss gathers on its surface, and this moss contains Vim vis. 1 pawn/month.