Covens and the Current Situation

Since the signing of the accord, Wytches have met occasionally to discuss affairs and events that affect all of magical society - such as the effort to cover up the rogue Wytches who plunged London into smog toward the end of the 19th Century, or to discuss a reaction to Hammer laws like the restriction on travel imposed in 1937 - these meetings are known as Covens.

Invited to these Covens are any and all magic users in the United Kingdom, with no restriction placed on ranking or authority to attendance. However, as the five societies of Apocrymancers, Aeromancers, Geomancers, Hydromancers and Pyromancers split and became more self-sufficient, the attendance at Covens dwindled to the point where they were hosted and attended solely by a few of Bedivere Hall's Apocrymancers.

The Hammer is believed to be entirely unaware of these secret meetings of Wytches, and to ensure this, archmages have always been present to maintain security, with a mysterious artefact held to prevent magic from being usable within the room the meeting is being held in.

(See also HM Magical Regulator > The Death of the Grand Inquisitor)

On the 29th of March, 2014, everything changed: in a huge explosion near Glasgow, the Grand Inquisitor of the Hammer, Sir Henry Doubleday, was killed. An explosion that to the trained eye was almost unmistakeably magic. The media swarmed, investigating exactly which department of the Government Doubleday worked for, eventually revealing the existence of the MI6 branch known as HM Magical Regulator: The Hammer. The secret was revealed: magic is real - and so the existence of Wytches and the work of the Hammer was revealed to the world.

The public was in uproar: reactions ranged from fear, to joy, to calls for wytches to be round up and imprisoned. The government had to react, appointing a new Grand Inquisitor: the stricter, more forceful Joseph Morton.

Now, with the appointment of Morton, there's talk of changing the laws, the Hammer is cracking down on wytch activities and their operatives are growing in audaciousness, making arrests where they would have turned a blind eye before and rumours of much worse to come.

In reaction to this, leaders of each of the factions have called for members to meet together again at the next Coven at Bedivere Hall to discuss the situation and work out a plan of action. Those that attend, as ever, need not be the most qualified to deal with the situation, but a call is made for any and every Wytch who can and cares enough to turn up, have their say, plan for and deal with this new threat.

The first coven following the Doubleday Incident was held on 29th April, 2014, in Bedivere Hall, Oxford.

The second coven following the Doubleday Incident will be held on 10th June, 2014, in the Magic Sphere Conference Room, Hillside Theatre, Bristol.

The third coven following the Doubleday Incident will be held on 22nd July, 2014, in the Phoenix Movement HQ, Central London.

The fourth coven following the Doubleday Incident, and the first with Joseph Morton deposed, will be held on 2nd September 2014, in a secret Islanders' Meeting Location in Scotland (directions provided).

The fifth coven following the Doubleday Incident, will be held on 14th October 2014, in the Walpole Stately Home, Devon.

The sixth coven following the Doubleday Incident will be held on 25th November 2014, in Cor Tewdws College, Wales.

The seventh coven following the Doubleday Incident will be held on 6th January 2015, in a conference room in London, hired out by a collaborative fund from Bedivere Hall, Marischal College, Cor Tewdws College, The Magic Sphere, The Heritage Trust, the MacDoddigan family, the Croft Institute, the House of Ashen, and the Phoenix Movement.

OOC: the seventh session of Maleficarum will be held on 10th June, 2014, and not in London! See When and Where.