The Blade & the Flame
The created a secret fraternity dedicated to protecting the innocent, ignorant masses from supernatural threats and preparing them to one day accept the power and promise of magic. To pursue these goals, they enlisted the help of a Great Spirit called the Lord of Underhill. He grants all initiates two powers: one for combating spirits (a "dagger") and one for divination (a "candle"). During the 1960's, an American member of the fraternity became heavily involved with the counter culture. He began a movement away from the academic roots of the Dagger and the Candle, claiming that the cabal had become too far removed from the daily lives of the people they wished to shepherd and protect. The only way to guide the mundanes towards their ultimate destiny was to live and work alongside them. He rejected the academic trappings that had always characterized the society in favor of post-modern occultism and pagan traditions.
By the mid-1970's, most American members had taken to calling themselves "The Blade and The Flame," though they never actually separated from the Dagger and Candle Society. The two groups work together more often than not and rarely ever find themselves at cross purposes. The distinctions are mostly cultural: The Dagger and The Candle still resides primarily in the elite social and academic circles of Europe, while The Blade and The Flame spreads itself throughout America's middle and lower classes. Same song, different tune. Magic The Lord of Underhill approves of the fraternity's goals, but only so long as they maintain their secrecy. The exact nature of each member's magic depends on their pre-existing interests and personal history. The magic molds itself to its wielder in the same way that wild magic creates the Arisen. Blades - Despite their loftier goals, members of the Blade and the Flame spend most of their time hunting monsters. A few are skilled spellbinders, but most rely exclusively on their Spellbound magic. Examples include pyrokinesis, authority over spirits, the ability to exorcise demons, and familiars that can attack incorporeal enemies. Flames - The biggest part of any hunt is tracking one's prey. Members of the Blade and the Flame are guided by divinatory powers like clairvoyance, second sight, tarot card reading, dream visions, and ghostly spirit guides. Members Blade and Flame operatives can't count on much in the way of financial support, but they do have access to an impressive network of personal contacts on both sides of the Atlantic. Mostly, they just rely on their magic.
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Originally
christened "The Dagger and Candle Society," this secret
fraternity has its roots in the history, archeology, and theology
departments of England's most elite universities. In the 1800's,
a wave of public interest in "occultism" swept through
the western world. Many serious scholars were appalled by the common
man's willingness to believe even the flimsiest claims of paranormal
abilities... as well as by the sheer numbers of snake oil salesmen
and quack healers who crawled out from beneath society's rotted
floorboards. Some of these educated men concluded that mankind was
ready for neither the power nor the responsibility of True Magic.
Resistance
came mostly from "old school" members back in Europe.
They viewed the Americans as upstarts who were throwing away a century
of painstakingly crafted tradition for... what? Free love and narcotics,
as far as the academics could see. These traditionalists and their
apprentices embarked upon a campaign of stone walling and social
pressure to try to force the Americans back into the fold, but such
tactics only polarized the iconoclasts' opinions.