The Yorkshire Septs
The largest Sept in the area is the Three Stanes Sept of the Pennines. The Sept's Caern is one of the most powerful in Britian. It's location is kept as much of a secret as possible by the packs. Amongst the Kindred, only Thorolf knows the whereabouts of all the Caerns, although some of the other Gangrel have visited one or two of them. There are five smaller Septs who are signatories to the Treaty, three in the Pennines, one in the North York Moors and one in the Dales south of Huddersfield. An urban Caern is located in Roundhay Park and maintained by the Glasswalkers there. Because the area is very rich in Caerns and the Garou feel an obligation to protect all of them, the Septs are rather smaller than normal. However, this is countered by the close relationships between the Septs. All the Septs except the Fangdale Beck Sept consider the Three Stanes Sept to be the overall leaders in the area. Three StanesThis is the largest of the Septs, with currently has 22 Garou in 5 packs. The Caern is located on Great Whernside, northeast of the village of Kettlewell. The Caern is unimpressive to those not gifted with Umbral vision, consisting simply of three standing stones of millstone grit. However, the Caern draws its power from the bleak moors around it, concentrating the essence of their strength and endurance into the squat weathered rock of the Stones. It is one of the most powerful active Caerns in Europe, thanks to the lack of human activity in the area. It is a site of pilgrimage for Children of Gaia, who visit the Caern hoping to learn from the peace and prosperity of the Sept. Over the last thirty years Silver Fangs have begun to visit the fief again after giving it a wide berth in the decades folowing the treaty. The leadership of the Three Stanes Sept has been held mainly by the Hainsworth and Ramsgill families since before the Treaty was signed. It was Abel Hainsworth who found Thorolf wandering on nearby Grassington moor in 1712. The current leader of the Sept is a Child of Gaia Philodox, Andy Hainsworth. He has lead the Sept since the last leader, Geoff Ramsgill, was killed during an incursion of Black Spiral Dancers in 1989. Good Fortune in the BlizzardThe smallest Sept which signed the original Treaty of Fountains is the Good Fortune in the Blizzard Sept. This is a purely Fianna Sept, located on the A672 road from Halifax to Oldham, 1½ miles north of Denshaw. It is said that the Sept was founded by Patrick Hughes, a Fianna Garou accompanying a group of his Kinfolk travelling across the Pennines. Caught in a sudden snowstorm, they stopped at the Horseshoe Inn beside the packhorse trail. The Fianna immediately recognised it as a place of great spiritual power and, once he had finished celebrating his good fortune, sent a message to his pack asking them to join him. The Garou bought the Inn and renamed it the 'Good Fortune in the Blizzard'. The name has caused great interest amonst pub historians, to whom the Garou tell long, complicated and entirely contradictory stories about it's origin. The Sept is also known as the Fortune or Snow Sept, although Fianna always relish it's full title. The current leader of the Good Fortune in the Blizzard Sept is Martin Hughes, a Fianna Galliard. The Sept is unusal in that most leaders since it's foundation have been Galliard, with occasional Ragabash! There are only two other Garou in the Sept, Martin Hughes' son, Young Martin and his grandmother, Elspeth Fairchild. Martin's sister Kirsty also lived at the Inn until she left to join the White Scar Sept. The Sept holds an annual thanksgiving to Gaia for the discovery of the Sept, which is attended by Fianna from across the North of England. Every ten years, there is a Celebration of the Storm, which draws Garou from even further afield. The Inn brews it's own Good Fortune Ale, which is consumed in huge quantities at these events. The center of the Caern is the hearth of the main room of the Inn, where a fire is supposed to have burned continually since the foundation of the Sept. A speciality of the Inn is wine or ale mulled at the fire, which is always available for the weary traveller and is renowned for it's cheering properties. White ScarThis Sept actually controls two Caerns, although neither are as powerful as the Three Stanes Caern. The primary Caern is located in the Blue John stone mines 2 miles East of Ingleton. In the World of Darkness the mines are no longer open to the public. This Caern was allegedly discovered by White Scar, a Metis Child of Gaia, after humans began to mine Blue John stone there, a mineral unique to the Caern. Since they took control of the mines, the Children have been carefully expanding them, opening up new caverns. This Caern is one of the most important underground Caerns still free of Wyrm taint. The White Scar Sept has been led by many great Theurges over the years and is noted for the number and loyalty of it's spirit allies. The Gauntlet within the Blue John mines is lower than might be expected for a Caern of it's power and many humans wandering in the vicinity have had inexplicable supernatural encounters. Exceptionally powerful fetishes can be made by binding spirits into items made of Blue John. The Caern is frequently visited by Stargazers, many of whom have been drawn there through Umbral quests. 10 miles east is the smaller Pen-y-Ghent Caern. Located on the top of Pen-y-Ghent, the Caern orginially belonged to the Get of Fenris. They were driven from the Caern by the Children of Gaia and Fianna after it was discovered that the Get were using the Caern as a base to launch raids on the Kindred of York. The Caern has never been amenable to use by the Children, although the Fianna claim to have held successful moots there. The Get claim that it is protected from it's usurpers by the spirit of Fenris, who guards it until his children can return. After the Get were expelled from Pen-y-Ghent, the Caern and the tunnels beneath it where the Sept members lived were sealed with powerful wards. These prevent the access of Wyrm tainted creaturesm or of anyone not accompanied by a Theurge who knows the secrets of the passages. The current leader of White Scar is the Theurge Kirsty Hughes, younger sister of Martin Hughes who leads the Fortune Sept. Originally a member of the Fortune Sept she was called to the Pen-y-Ghent Caern in 1985 by her totem spirit, the Deer. Only eighteen at the time, she climbed the Caern in the middle of a great storm. There she was taught a new Gift by the spirit of Fenris, although this is bitterly denied by the Get. Soon afterwards, she became the youngest ever leader of the Sept. High PeakThe only Get of Fenris who remained in the Fief after the Treaty was renewed in 1821 were those of the High Peak Sept. At the time, the Get were the majority Tribe in the Sept and they loved the Kindred no more than their northern cousins did. However, the leader of the Sept, Samuel Wolfsson, declared that he had put his signature to the Treaty and he would be damned before Gaia if he broke his word before the leeches did. Many of his Tribe left the High Peak and moved north and today the Get no longer form the majority at the Sept. However, the Wolfsson family have remained prominant in the Sept and there is currently a young Ahroun Samuel Wolfsson, who is viewed by most as a future leader of the Sept. At the moment, however, the Sept is lead by Simon Ambler, a Child of Gaia Ahroun. The Sept is more military in character than most in the area and is usually lead by Ahrouns. Ilkley MoorThis Sept, along with the Roundhay Park Sept are considered urban Caerns, located as it is within a few miles of Bradford. However, in the World of Darkness this area is much less heavily populated than in the real world. The Caern is just south of Ilkley at the Cow and Calf rocks. In the World of Darkness this is not a popular spot for day trippers. Despite this, the power of the Caern has been sapped by it's proximity to humans and is now the weakest Cearn in the area. Garou of the Ilkley Moor Sept are the most likely to be encountered by Kindred of the fief of York as they often travel around the fief seeking out Wyrm-taint before it has a chance to get a firm hold. It is also the Sept which is most likely to be visited by Gangrel or other Kindred of the fief seeking Garou. This is the most mixed of all the Septs as far as Tribe. Although the Sept is usually led by Children of Gaia, there are or have been Fianna, Get of Fenris, Black Furies, Silent Striders, Star Gazers, Glasswalkers and Bone Gnawers at the Sept. The current leader is Alan Schofield, a Child of Gaia Ahroun. RoundhayThe Glasswalkers of Leeds originally arrived with their Hugenot Kinfolk in the sixteenth century. The Sept has always been fairly small as the Glasswalkers have preferred to breed only with their Kinfolks' descendants, many of whom have remained in the area. It might be supposed that the Glasswalker's Caern would make a convenient gate for other Garou wishing to travel to the heart of the fief. However, rumours abound of the strange Weaver spirits which can be found there and most other Garou prefer to avoid the Caern. The Glasswalkers have a reputation for aloofness even amongst other Garou. The Garou of the Sept form a small and closeknit pack. Despite their city location, the Glasswalkers have very little to do with the Kindred of the fief. Those seeking Garou would be better advised to visit the Ilkley Sept. The Glasswalkers are not unfriendly, simply very hard to find. Kindred who have persisted in trying to contact them tend to suffer unexplained difficulties with bank accounts, electrical equipment and vehicles until they abandon their attempts. The current leader of the Roundhay Sept is Mike Cordeux, a Glasswalker Philodox. Fangdale BeckThis Caern is centered on a fresh water spring in the moors about 15 miles east of Northallerton and is one of the more powerful Caerns in the northeast. Although the number of Garou who call themselves members of the Sept is relatively small, the Caern is a base for several free-roaming Garou packs from the North York Moors, the Wolds and the few who live on the plain of York. There are one or two Get of Fenris packs in the area. Althought they are more neutral toward the Kindred than the more northern packs, they are far from friendly. Although only the Fangdale Beck Sept in the North York Moors area is an official party to the Treaty of Fountains, many of the other packs in the region acknowledge the 'friendship' of the fief of York, by virtue of their association with the Sept. As even the closest are all a long way from the Leeds/Bradford area, this has been of little importance prior to the Sabbat invasion. In fact, the friendship of the North York packs is mostly due to the influence of the Guardians. The leader of the Fangdale Beck Sept is Reuben Gaunt, a 64 year old Child of Gaia Philodox who is one of those trusted with the secret of the Guardians existance. Wolfhole CragOne Sept of interest which does not belong to the treaty is the Wolfhole Crag Sept in Lancashire. The Sept is about 12 miles East of Lancaster. This Sept did not sign the Treaty, wishing to continue the fight against Kindred and human encroachment. Since the lands around their Sept were unsuitable for industry or agriculture, they have succeeded in holding their own without outside help. Wolfhole Crag has been at peace with the Yorkshire Septs for many years. However, it had long been suspected that it is through this Sept that the Get of Fenris have gained access to the area. |