Void Seekers

Void Seekers
Singular	Void Seeker
Plural	Void Seekers
Pronounce	VOYD SEE-kuhrs
Other names	Explorators
Nicknames	Seekers
Founded	1325
Disestablished	1897
Faction	Technocratic Union
Parent Org	Exploratory Society

The Void Seekers were one of the Conventions of the Order of Reason. Charged with traveling the boundaries of the world, the Void Seekers were explorators first, seeking to find the still uncharted places within the world.

Paradigm

A new world? Map it. The unicorn? Hunt it. Prester John's domain? Find it. Each new thing or place is a challenge set before man by God. Without those brave enough to dare the darkness, humanity would tremble at its hearth, too frightened to prosper, too poor to survive. We are the builders of the Empire of Man.

Secrets from a dozen lands can be found in the archives of each Explorator lodge. While these Daedaleans prefer to rely upon proven tools — cannons, sextants, charts and captain's glasses — they're pragmatic enough to use whatever works. Prayers tor sunlight, albatross charms, chants to elemental spirits — anything that allows a man to stride into mystery and return alive is good enough for them. When the goal is reached, maps and naming rituals dispel mysteries and make the land safer, if not tame.

While conventional wisdom insists that seagoing women are bad fortune, many Explorators know better. The elements of wind and water often demand a woman's touch, so "sea witches" carry a certain place of favor on many vessels. These enchanters practice obvious sorcery, but when you're alone on a storm tossed sea, any advantage is a boon.

As their name indicates, the Void Seekers are a paradox. Although "Seekers" by trade, they want to find facts to add to their maps, bestiaries and histories. Although they take their name from the void, they seek to fill that void with knowledge. Explorator motivations are a bizarre mixture of lofty ideals and venal principles. To the Church, they "convert the Heathen"; to the monarchy, they "found an Empire"; to their crews and companions, they "seek treasure"; and for themselves... they look. The world is knowable, though not yet known. Void Seekers expand that world by hearing witness to it.

History

Renaissance

The Void Seekers were formed at the Convention of the White Tower from various guilds of explorer-scientists that had persisted since the age of Rome. The Void Seekers worked closely with the Celestial Masters. With numerous European monarchs sponsoring expeditions to reach new trading routes, the Void Seekers often insinuated themselves into courts and worked their magic among Sleepers.

Victorian Age

In 1851, at the Albertan Reformation, the Order of Reason undergoes reorganization and emerges as the Technocratic Union.

The Exploratory Society is a new political Bloc formed by the union of the Celestial Masters and Void Seekers.

By the time of the Victorian Reformation in 1897, the Exploratory Society will be formally merged into a new Convention, the Void Engineers.

Organization

Each ship or expedition functions as a lodge run by a Captain (Magistrate). On a larger scale, permanent lodges occupy major shipping ports and caravan routes; a council of Magistrates and Facilitators keeps operations tunning smoothly there, often with aid from other Conventions.

Guilds

To the end of their travels, the Explorators divide themselves into seven guilds: The Odysseans set forth across the waves, while the Alexandrians journey over land. The Order of the Grail compiles maps and sagas, using mystick rites to seal what has been written; their contemporaries in the League of Paul purge heathen sins, cleanse tainted site and bring Jesus to benighted peoples. An elite warrior guild, the Herculinian Compact, asserts that its "seven labors" include slaying monsters and protecting companions; its brother guild, the Forge and Sail (or Lycians) crafts the skips, instruments and weaponry that aid the other Seekers. Finally, the Scribes of Apollo (or Appolonians) work closely with the Celestial Masters, charting the Earth and stars.

• Alexandrians
• Forge and Sail
• Herculinean Compact
• League of St. Paul
• Odysseans
• Order of the Grail
• Scribes of Apollo

Maximi

The rivalries between Spain, Italy and Portugal keep these positions in constant flux.

Initiation

Each initiate embarks on a journey; he must go somewhere he's never been, return with a souvenir, and chronicle his travels for the lodge be wants to join. At that point, he's given several tests. If be Awakened during the trip, he can pass the tests; if not, he becomes a Brother, It's worth noting that Seekers respect their Brethren as much as they esteem Respondents; courage and wit mean more than Enlightenment.

References

• MTAs: Technocracy: Void Engineers, p. 11-14, 69

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