White Wolf Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Getulio Vargas São Cristóvão bani Tytalus was the representative of the Order of Hermes to the Council of Nine Mystic Traditions from 1943 until 1998, when he was transformed into a statue of solid gold by the Ascension Warrior[1]. He also was First Master of the Bold Searchers cabal in chantry Relampago and Master of Enochia bá Pymandre.

Biography[]

A pity you do not have the education to see things from my perspective.
  — São Cristóvão

Early Life[]

At 15, the university student São Cristóvão, always fascinated with sailing vessels, stowed away on a slave ship headed to Brazil's sugar plantations. Upon arrival, he was captured by Frenchmen and sent north to work as a slave near a French-owned cannibal colony. Whipped, scorned, scurvy-ridden and spat-upon, São Cristóvão's attitude toward life became permanently scarred.

A Portuguese raid saved him from his eventual fate in a cannibal's pot. Left gravely wounded, he Awakened as he crawled to the nearest sugar plantation, where his countrymen attended to him and, thinking him part of the raid, heaped praise on his valiant effort in the massacre. His story was blown so out of proportion that he soon found himself telling it to the king and queen back in Portugal, who bestowed upon him his own sugar plantation for the fiction that he, by now, almost believed himself.

Hermetic Master[]

Educated, Awakened and independently wealthy, São Cristóvão was gradually inducted into the mysteries of the Hermetic Order by an acquaintance. His flaws made him an able student and a simple pawn. Noting his skill at certamen, several cabals within the Order set him up as a figurehead for their own covert interests, which included grooming the Council for eventual Hermetic leadership. By 1714, though still not a personable man, São Cristóvão had freed the slaves on his plantation and was working for the abolition of slavery throughout the world, a cause he still pursues to this day.

This does not, however, make him an egalitarian man; it was São Cristóvão who insulted an Iroquois delegation so badly that half of the Native American Dreamspeakers left the Council in 1756, and it was he who encouraged the Ahl-i-Batin to do the same by proclaiming "Once you had great promise, my brothers. But in an age brought about by your peoples' own examples and arts, they themselves gather in filthy streets and stink of sheep dip and camels." This did not endear him to other Council representatives; his election in 1943 to the seat he now holds fanned outrage that has kept the Order out of favor – and out of plain sight – in Council politics since. Behind his annoying facade, São Cristóvão's masters plot their takeover.

When Mark Hallward Gillan bani Flambeau uncovered evidence of the corruption of the Consanguinity of Eternal Joy, São Cristóvão used his influence on the Grievance Committee to silence him. Gillan, however, had Porthos Fitz-Empress as an ally, and in 1996 the conspiracy was blown wide open and Sao Cristovao forcibly removed from his Seat of Forces by Porthos, who teleported him back to Brazil with a spell. Fitz-Empress predicted that São Cristóvão would soon be forced to resign the Seat of Forces over his involvement. This had not yet happened by 1998, when the Ascension Warrior appeared in Horizon. He transformed São Cristóvão into a statue of gold, an act that set in motion the Conflagration in Doissetep.

Appearance[]

São Cristóvão is a Portuguese man, roughly 5'6" and 125 lbs. Despite his 395 years, he seems like a battered 50. Mastery of the Arts has not healed his withered, bony face, misaligned nose and hunched back, nor the whip scars on his neck and hands. Perhaps his view of himself has set his image for life. Though a skinny, insignificant slip of a man, São Cristóvão carries himself like royalty.

Personality[]

São Cristóvão's harsh life made him an expert at finding and exploiting the vulnerability of other people, and for him helping them to surpass their weaknesses is just worthy pursuit as long as they respect his contributions. He hates suffering because it reminds him of his days as a slave, so Sao Cristovao avoids it by avoiding anything that he feels unpleasant. He likes to keep people guessing his true intentions by throwing out ambiguous facts that might obscure or simplify an issue, then undermine their position through a side attack. When alone, Sao Cristovao asks himself what price he'll end up paying for his position. But anyway, he declares and swears that his days of helplessness, however, are over.

Abrasive, haughty and too powerful to ignore, he became the "Bad Hermetic", symbol for all the Order of Hermes had become. Disgraced and removed from his Council seat by Porthos, he left a bad taste among the mages of the Order in spite of many good deeds he performed.

References[]

Advertisement