House Ex Miscellanea

House Ex Miscellanea is one of the Houses of the Order of Hermes. Its domus magna is Cad Gadu, in the Stonehenge Tribunal.

Ex Miscellanea is a Latin phrase meaning "out of hash." House Ex Miscellanea is a loose collection of magi from many different magical traditions. In Ars Magica Fifth Edition, it is considered a Societas.

Non-Hermetic Magic

Members of House Ex Miscellanea are (usually) full Hermetic magi. However, they possess additional powers that fall outside traditional Magic Theory. These powers and abilities are remnants of magical practices from before the Order of Hermes was founded. In game terms, such magic is usually represented by Supernatural Virtues and Flaws rather than Arts and Spells.

There is no exhaustive list of the traditions within the House, and likely there never would be. Practically any hedge tradition can find a comfortable place within this variety. HoHS does, however, provide eight of the larger traditions, as well as eight less-detailed (and presumably smaller) traditions. It further provides examples of utilizing the same mechanics to represent other traditions. The mentioned major traditions are:

The Columbae, masters of warding from Wales.
The Donatores Requietis Aeternae, a young tradition of magi with religious background and connections, to be found mainly in the Normandy Tribunal.
The Cult of Orpheus, a Mystery Cult within House Ex Miscellanea that draws on the ancient mysteries of Orpheus (although more on his deep connection to his beloved Eurydice than on his music).
Pharmacopoeians are master herbalists and healers, employing Mythic Herbalism.
The Lineage of Pralix, a tradition focused on the integration of exotic magi into the Order of Hermes. Note that it seems unlikely that this is truly one of the largest traditions within the House.
Rustic Magi are folk-magicians that usually reside in rural communities. Note that there are "...few Rusticiani in the Order.. ", yet they are counted amongst the largest traditions of the House.
Hermetic Sahirs are Islamic wizards of Iberia.
The Seirenes are magae that continue a form of lyrical magic that dates back to the sirens of legend.

In addition, the following (probably minor) traditions are mentioned:

Beast Masters, feral magicians that summon and control wild beasts.
Damhadh-Duidsan, a lineage related to Damhan-Allaidh, the Gaelic arch-nemesis of the Order, and detailed more in Realms of Power: The Infernal.
Hermetic Haruspexes, diviners and seers (relying on Divination and Augury from The Mysteries Revised Edition).
Karaites, a heretical Jewish sect whose magi utilize several Virtues and Flaws from Realms of Power: The Divine.
Malocchi, an Italian tradition utilizing Entrancement.
Scinfolk, Gifted Companions acting as herb-wives and faerie-doctors through the use of the Fertility virtue. Although common in Mythic Europe, such hedge wizards may be rare in the Order.
Tempestaria, a tradition of Germanic weather-witches.
Witches of Thessaly, the former tradition of Trianoma, it is related to the Infernally-tainted Daughters of Erichto as described in Realms of Power: The Infernal.
Koldun, shamanic Slavic sorcerers who have abandoned their role as volkhvy (pagan priests); these were extensively described in The Dragon and the Bear (the Fourth Edition sourcebook).
Trollsynir, Giant-descended wizards of Scandinavia and Iceland.
The Corrguineach, Irish wizards with great powers over elemental spirits.
Breton bards with great powers of enchanting music.
Roman necromancers that terrorize the locals.
Taltos, a Magyar tradition of skinchangers and herbalists.

References

HoHS 101-139 provides the extended canonic description of the House, including several traditions and guidelines on making new ones. It was written by several authors: Erik Dahl (Columbae, Rusticiani), John Post (Donatores, Pharmacoepians, Seirenes), Mark Shirley (general Ex Misc, Pralicians, Sahirs), and Nick Simmonds (Cult of Orpheus).

Legacy Page

The history of this page before August 6, 2010 is archived at Legacy:house_ex_miscellanea