THE ORDER OF KAMAR-TAJ
The Order of Kamar-Taj is an order of sorcerer monks which can trace its lineage at least as far back as the founding of the Shaolin temple in 465 AD, although there is evidence the order has existed in some form for millennia. Nestled in a remote location in the Himalayan Mountains along the Nepal-Tibet border, the Order's primary monastery is home to its leader, a centuries-old man known alternatively as the Master and, more commonly, as the Ancient One, a title apparently given to the Order's leader regardless of age (see
Ancient One).
The Order in its current incarnation is named after the Ancient One's home village; there is circumstantial evidence that the monastery stands on or near the site of this lost village. The Order also owns a few dozen locations worldwide through a heritage site foundation it has set up to handle the Order's mundane affairs; of note among the Order's holdings are a Buddhist temple in Hong Kong, a Roman villa in Italy, a lake in Wales, and the four story brownstone at 177A Bleeker Street, New York City (see
Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum).
Most of the Order are not sorcerers, but instead are a support staff who handle mundane affairs for the roughly fifty sorcerers at the main template and spread abroad. The main temple is home to not just the Ancient One but a dozen or so sorcerers, their apprentices, roughly twenty martial artists and warriors who protect the temple from demonic assault, and a collection of muggle servants who handle the mundane chores of cooking, cleaning, and maintaining their wireless network. Away from Kamar-Taj proper, every sorcerer who is a member has at least one servant who acts as a connection between the sorcerer and the Order.
There are cases where a member has been ejected from or voluntarily left the Order. The most notable of these is Karl Mordo, who left the Order on bad terms with the Ancient One and the Ancient One's intended successor, Dr. Stephen Strange (see
Doctor Strange;
Mordo, Karl). It is not yet known whether those who voluntarily leave the Order may still benefit from their services, although those ejected from the Order are not permitted to do so. Presumably those who leave the Order by turning against it are unable to benefit from its perks.
Naturally, the Order is not the only organization of sorcerers on Earth, but they are the largest and most organized with worldwide support.
Strange: "What's this, my mantra?"
Mordo: "The wifi password. We're not savages."
– Doctor Strange (2016)
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Order of Kamar-Taj
Mission Statement: The Order of Kamar-Taj is an order of sorcerers under the leadership of the Ancient One who have dedicated themselves to protecting Earth and its people from mystic threats.
Capabilities
TL: 8.
Members: 400.
Wealth: Wealthy.
Contacts: Administration-15 [2]; Magical Skills-18 [15].
Member Traits: Claim to Hospitality [10]; Magery 3+ [35].
Notable Resources: Most of its members' sanctums are owned by the Order rather than the sorcerers themselves, giving the Order significant land holdings in places of power across the world.
Reaction-Time Modifier: +0.
Costs and Values
Startup Cost: $101,088,000
Resource Value: $505,440
Patron Value: 10 points
Enemy Value: -30 points
Ally and Dependent Value: The Order consists of roughly fifty sorcerers worth between 500 and 800 points, a few dozen apprentices, martial artists, and warriors who are roughly in the 250 to 400 point range, and a few hundred paper-pushers under 100 points.
Social Attributes
Type: Fraternal, Occult, Secret, Teaching.
CR: 2.
Loyalty: Very Good (+3)
Rank: Organization Rank 0-2 [2 per level] for non-sorcerers. Sorcerers who are part of the Order will more likely use the variant rules in
Social Engineering: Pulling Rank for requesting assistance from the Order.
Income Range: Average ($2,600/mo) to Very Wealthy ($52,000/mo).
Reputation: +0. The Order of Kamar-Taj is not that well known anywhere.
Notes
Only a quarter of the Order's members are sorcerers or servants who serve the sorcerers directly, while the remaining members are the order's support network – most of whom are not normally magically inclined – who take care of mundane matters so the sorcerers can focus on more pressing arcane matters.
I know, it's a little out of order, but I figured I'd handle the behind-the-scenes stuff before working on the bulk of the characters themselves.
In the comics, it's never really stated how many sorcerers Dr. Strange is friendly with. Some creative teams basically assume that the Ancient One had only two students: Mordo and Strange; others give friendly (or at least non-rival) sorcerers all over the place, from Hong Kong to London to Atlantis. My intent here is to give Strange more sorcerers he, Clea, and Wong can call upon in a pinch while not giving him a true "team" (beyond the later creation of the Defenders in Year Two or Year Three).