The Plot

[E L L E, Queen Mab]

And what say is your purpose, is your reason?

For centuries Yale's secret societies have existed in quiet - yet destructive -harmony with the school domain around them. Founded by renowned scholars, politicians and the world elites, these factions appear to be little more than selective members clubs to the outside world. But for those in the know, they are so much more than that.

Each of the ancient eight, save for the House of Berzelius was founded on a form of the arcane arts. Necromancy, Logomancy and Therianthropy to name a few. Those lucky enough to join the ranks will find themselves gifted with knowledge that can shape the very fabric of humanity. To stop future conflicts, predict trends on the stock exchange or even rig an election.

In an effort to protect the secrecy of these societies and to prevent their rituals from harming the innocent, the Ninth House of Lethe was formed. Their duty is to ensure the knowledge of the arcane remains hidden, and to regulate the societies in their use of magic. The work of Lethe will also bring them closer to understanding the line between the living and the dead - known as the Veil.

While this RP is heavily inspired by Leigh Bardugo's Ninth House, it will not follow the plot exactly. The role-play takes place on Yale University Campus and in the surrounding town of New Haven. Characters may be inspired by the book but should not directly lifted from Bardugo's work. All characters created in the rp are to be human, though they may be imbued by magic in the event that they are selected to join the societies. We may introduce ghost characters (Grays) as the story progresses, and potentially even demons at a later date.

Prospective members of Lethe House are the only characters who can possess innate magical ability, hence why Lethe has taken an interest in them. This is not mandatory however, and they may also be selected for other reasons such as legacy or academic prowess (much like the other societies.) The magic abilities they possess would be considered soft-skills such as mediumship, clairvoyance, psychic readings etc... and claims have been made available for these.

While you are encouraged to create characters who are (or will become) members of the secret societies, this is at it's heart, a university RP. Each society will have a limited number of spaces, and as such it will good to see other characters enjoying the normality of Yale schooling, attending their classes and enjoying their time with friends. Not everyone is expect to divine the future from rabbit intestines.

The central plot of the rp will evolve around the deaths of several innocent people on the university campus and the disappearance of others. It is not known at this time if any of the eight societies were involved, if a ritual went wrong or if some form of magic got out of hand. In an effort to ascertain what happened, Lethe house will be setting it's new recruits on the case. If you wish to have a character become a victim, please speak to a mods and we're sure that can be arranged.

The eight societies will continue to get their instructions from the Dean which will give them numerous tasks to complete throughout the rp, these will be included in the Society Memo's thread. But for the most part, just attend your classes and maybe don't look too hard at the shadows in the corridors.

[E L L E, Queen Mab]

Rules as dictated by the plot (as in you can break these my dudes)

• The societies (known as the Houses of the Veil to their delegates) are something of an open secret. What you must remember, is that while this is the case, no students outside of the societies know about the magical activities that take place within them. For those who are not in the know, the societies are considered to be nothing more than choosy members clubs made up of legacy students, wealthy heirs and particularly gifted individuals.

• Lethe House is a secret organisation. Only those inducted into the house, and the secret societies whom Lethe preside over are aware of their existence. Regular students do not know of them and so Lethe scholarship students will need to come up with excuses in order to keep their cover around their roommates. While first years have the option to sleep in the Lethe safe houses, it is better for them to sleep in their dorms to avoid suspicion. No one outside of Lethe members are allowed in the Hutch, or Il Bastone.

• All societies welcome delegates of differing ages, although most are expected to be seniors. Society Presidents and Vice-Presidents, should ideally be senior students. Each of the houses of the Veil take on eight students in total (though we may increase this if demands are high). Again Lethe is the exception here. It finds its applicants based on their endeavours and any innate magics they possess. As such, their numbers vary from year to year. The job also comes with its stresses and dangers, meaning many have left or have ceased to work with Lethe for varying reasons.

• All rituals have to be agreed ahead of time and a Lethe delegate must be present to ensure the correct procedures are put in place. Failure to do so, will result in fine or possible removal of premises from a society. Magic should not be performed outside of regulated society buildings, but obviously if no one from Lethe sees you, you might just get away with it.

• The societies are all highly competitive, and very guarded about their magics and abilities. As such, there is a lot of resentment between the groups and fraternising with other society members may land you in trouble with your society president. Using magic, rituals or potions on individuals who are not part of the societies may result in your exclusion from the society but also from Yale itself.

• All societies, including Lethe, report directly to the Dean. She produces the memos based on the requirements of the Yale benefactors and ensures they are sent out to correct parties. On occasion requests may come from outside of the Dean. You should not accept these. Though funding for each of the societies is important, completing these rituals may land you in a heap of trouble with Lethe.

• If a society is holding a party in which they are asking non-society students to attend, they should provide a definitive cover reason. Ideally picking a holiday in which to base the party around, Halloween, Winter Formal to name a few. We understand that Manuscript often uses these parties to replenish it's energy stores, but we'd like to remind you that drugging other students is not allowed.