London Common Cabals

At any given time, there are a handful of cabals unsponsored by an Elder Cabal. These are referred to as the common cabals, and while they are permitted in the city, they are not part of its already-vast Consilium. Thus, they are granted no protection from depredations by the Consilium. Most common cabals are, however, allied with one of the Orders. The vassal cabals tend to keep an eye out for the common cabals when they can — or, when it is advantageous to do so.

Many of the Orders, however, make a point of keeping a cabal or two around made up of non-Consilium magi, for when they need someone who can take action against Consilium magi without endangering their own standing in the Consilium. This is a common but unacknowledged way of operating, one which the Hierarch is careful to watch carefully for — anyone who is overt enough in their machinations for him to discover it faces serious censure and the full extent of the Tetragramaton of Punishment.

There are no multi-order cabals considered to be common — if a cabal is not closely aligned to an order and the cabals within it, they are considered vagabonds.

• Cavalcade of Masks: Guardians of the Veil • Holborn, the City. On the darkened stage of a tiny Central London theater called the Harlequin's Round gathers the Cavalcade. They stand, masked, cloaked and facing away from one another, speaking in the code of the Guardians. They tell of their successes and make requests of one another, and then disappear without glancing back at whence they have come.
• The Red Monks: Guardians of the Veil • The Square Mile, the City. In the ruins of Blackfriar Monastery along the Thames in Downtown London, the Red Monks meet at the dark of the moon, if they are alive and not working on a mission. Should one of their number disappear, they will never seek to find him or her — they are simply lost, without investigation.
• Hope of Apollo: Mysterium • Lambeth, South London. This cabal of artists is based out of the Canterbury Music Hall, in Lambeth, South London.

Rumored Cabals

• The Hampstead Watchers: Adamantine Arrow • Hampstead, the Hills. The exact purpose of the Watchers is not publicly known. It is know that they claim as their territory the multiple asylums and hospitals of the Hampstead area. Some believe they are healers of minds and bodies, while others believe that they focus on rooting out an ancient legacy of the Mad from this place, or otherwise explore the Mysteries behind madness and insanity from among the many inmates in these places.
• Defenders on the Thames: Adamantine Arrow • Up and down the Thames. Another Arrow cabal, the Defenders on the Thames are all boatmen and skilled marines who focus on protecting the powerful ley line that runs along the Thames from those who might corrupt it. They are said to include members of the Tamers of Rivers legacy. Their sanctum is rumored to be located on a houseboat usually moored somewhere on the Fulham docks, somewhere in the West End.
• The Book and Crown: Silver Ladder • Brompton, the West End. Though still a Common Cabal, general wisdom suggests that this cabal will be next to be sponsored as a Vassal. Named for the pub they operate, the entire basement of the pub's space is open only to mages, and includes a large backroom that is not only warded, but is a Demesne the cabal is happy to allow others to use for small favors or coin. They also maintain mages on hand with skill at preparing space for the Duel Arcane, and rumors say that on nights of the full moon, they host dueling competitions for entertainment. The cabal is very clear about its goals - they wish to acquire the means to establish a new university intended for public education, and they are quite near their final goal thanks to years of favor-peddling.
• Society of the Steel Ley: Mysterium • The Square Mile, the City. A strange cabal of mages with an interest in odd Mysteries that seem to be attached to railways, the Society is largely reclusive, and has thoroughly infiltrated the infrastructure in London that oversees rail travel of all types. In recent days, they came into conflict with the Seers of the Throne, pridefully resisting getting assistance from the Consilium until the Praetorian Seers had nearly wiped them out. Though no one is sure if it is a sanctum or not, it is known that a member of the Society can always be found at the Broad Street rail station in the Square Mile.
• Thearchs of the Royal Courts: Silver Ladder • St. Giles, the City. It is known that those magi who would seek to use their arts to influence the outcome of law in the city of London had best do it the way everyone else does: through the retaining of a good law firm. Though no one knows if they are a single cabal or simply members of the local Silver Ladder caucus, the Royal Courts of Justice are protected by a variety of Silver Ladder skilled in sniffing out Awakened (and those who've been enchanted by their magics). It is known that their primary goal is the protection of London's law structure from infiltration by the Seers of the Throne, but that they also do not hesitate to prevent any of the Awakened from unduly influencing the rule of law.
• Hackney Union Cabal: Silver Ladder • Hackney, the Hills. This Silver Ladder cabal keeps mostly to itself, being involved only to the extent that they must be with the local caucus. They simply call themselves the Hackney Union Cabal, and claim to be based out of the Hackney Union workhouse. Their goal is simple: to put Silver Ladder philosophies into direct practice, seeking to use their sorcery to elevate the lives of the working poor in Hackney and Clapton districts there.
• The Clapton Hammers: Adamantine Arrow • Clapton, the Hills. A recently formed cabal, the Hammers are made up of a small collection of Arrows with connections to the Hackney Union Cabal. Upon seeing both the problems that cabal faced as well as its intended goals, the Hammer quickly formed to provide defense and mutual assistance in the so-called Great Undertaking of the Hackney Union cabal. Whispers claim that the two cabals have toyed with the idea of declaring Consilium for themselves, but publicly both the Hackney Union Cabal and the Hammers have been clear: they seek less involvement in Awakened politics, not more.