Grand Tribunal 2026 Programme

Friday Evening

The Widow in the Garden

Ars Magica • GM: CJ Romer • Up to 7 players

1220. The beautiful Covenant of Jardin lies in the heart of Occitania, surrounded by vineyards, troubadours and dangerous politics.

As the crusade against the Cathars tightens its grip upon the south, rumours of heresy and witchcraft threaten the studies, safety and lives of the magi.

The covenant faces dangers from every direction: crusaders, spies, faerie intrigues, divided loyalties and hidden enemies. When a mysterious widow arrives seeking sanctuary, events begin to spiral beyond anyone's control.

Can the magi evade discovery, uncover the truth behind the widow's arrival and survive the threats gathering both within Jardin's walls and beyond them?

A classic Ars Magica scenario of mystery, diplomacy, magical investigation and political intrigue set against the Albigensian Crusade.

Friday Evening Ars Magica 1220 Up to 7 Players Investigation Political Intrigue

Saturday

Saturday Morning

The Garden of Love

An Ars Magica Freeform

GM: CJ Romer • Three hours • Up to 24 players

Summer, 1220. Deep in the vineyards of Occitania lies the Covenant of La Jardin, renowned for its beauty, hospitality, fine wine and mysterious Garden of Love.

Knights, troubadours, noble ladies, priests, merchants, magi and wanderers gather beneath the summer roses seeking friendship, patronage, romance, political allies or something more dangerous. Somewhere within the gardens lies a faerie realm said to reveal a visitor's Heart's Desire.

As the Albigensian Crusade threatens the County of Toulouse, old rivalries, forbidden romances, hidden loyalties and dangerous ambitions collide during one extraordinary morning.

No knowledge of Ars Magica, medieval history or the Albigensian Crusade is required. Characters will be cast with players' experience and preferences in mind. The game will be light-hearted, with an emphasis on conversation, intrigue, romance, comedy and a little magic.

Medieval or fantasy costume is warmly welcomed if practical or desired, but it is entirely optional.

24 Players Beginner Friendly Romance Comedy Intrigue Costume Optional

Saturday Afternoon

Children of Avalon

Ars Magica • GM: Anna • 2–6 players

1276. The prosperous Covenant of Avalon has built its reputation on hospitality. Unfortunately, hospitality attracts visitors—and visitors rarely arrive without problems.

Avalon's younger magi are expected to earn their vis by helping a succession of desperate petitioners, solving strange magical dilemmas and ensuring their grateful guests eventually leave.

A light-hearted Ars Magica adventure about magical problem-solving, awkward visitors and the occasional impossible request.

This scenario was played once in 2026 but ran out of time. Returning players are very welcome to see how differently events unfold.

Ars Magica 2–6 Players Light-hearted Returning Players Welcome

Brother, Why? Magical Marginalia

GM: Andrew Oakley • One to three hours • 3–6 players

You are a monk in a medieval scriptorium, painstakingly copying holy manuscripts. Unfortunately, somebody has been filling the margins with utterly ridiculous illustrations.

As the Abbot demands an explanation, you will need quick wits, shameless bluffing and a silver tongue to convince everyone that the impossible rabbit siege, sword-wielding snail or bewildered demon was someone else's fault.

Inspired by genuine medieval manuscript marginalia, Brother, Why? is a humorous social card game of storytelling and outrageous excuses. Andrew is presenting a special Ars Magica edition, set among monks in Quimper Cathedral during the events of his earlier game The Cathedral and the Bizarre.

The game may be played as a light, replayable one-to-two-hour session or expanded into a full three-hour scenario involving characters and magical mishaps from the original adventure.

Find out more about Brother, Why?

3–6 Players Replayable Comedy Social Game Beginner Friendly

The Chanctonbury Horror

Conspiracy X, First Edition • GM: CJ Romer • 3–6 players

October 1994. During a spectacular meteor shower, the teenage son of a local Member of Parliament disappears while camping on Chanctonbury Ring in the South Downs.

That same night, Ministry of Defence radar stations detect an unexplained return over Sussex. While the tabloids scream “UFOs over Worthing!”, Whitehall quietly assembles an unusual team of experts to investigate before panic spreads.

As rumours of alien visitors, secret government projects and ancient mysteries collide, the investigators must discover what really happened on Chanctonbury Ring—and whether the truth is something humanity was ever meant to know.

A classic investigative conspiracy thriller using the original Conspiracy X roleplaying game, blending UFO folklore, government secrecy and supernatural horror.

Duration: Approximately 3 hours.

Conspiracy X 1994 UFOs Government Conspiracy Investigation

Respectfully dedicated to the memory of my fallen friends: The Truth is Out There.

Saturday Night

Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition — Blood on the Mojave

Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition cover

GM: Kyrie Crawford

A group of vampire neonates are tasked with appeasing a sleeping Methuselah—and run into hurdle after hurdle.

Set beneath the desert night of the Mojave, this Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition scenario sends the characters into a dangerous tangle of ancient grudges, impossible demands and the sort of complications that only become worse after sunset.

Vampire: The Masquerade Horror Intrigue Ancient Vampires

Moonwashed College Halls

Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition • GM: CJ Romer

Brichester University, 1987. Five very different students—four of them in love with the same girl—are living in a hall of residence where none of them quite fits in.

When a macabre mystery begins to unfold around them, rivalries, obsessions and secrets threaten to drag them into something far worse than student drama.

A Call of Cthulhu scenario of isolation, desire and creeping horror.

Content note: Horror and adult themes.

Call of Cthulhu 7e 1987 Horror Adult Themes

Sunday

Sunday Morning

The King is Made of Glass!

Ars Magica • GM: Anna • 2–6 players

1396. King Charles VI of France has long believed himself to be made of glass. This time, however, it appears he truly is.

You shall be as your passion,
A fragile reflection,
Till her bones are returned.
They shall not strike,
They shall not reap.
Pilgrimages and penance
Shall not abate this state.

With England threatening to renew its claim to France, the kingdom cannot afford a monarch who might shatter at the slightest touch. Can the curse be broken before history itself is changed?

Any Ars Magica character is welcome within reason, although investigative talents may prove particularly useful. Pregenerated characters are available.

Duration: Approximately 3 hours.

Ars Magica 2–6 Players Investigation Pregens Available

The Dunwich Candidate

GM: CJ Romer • Call of Cthulhu

A scenario of eldritch politics, investigative journalism and unspeakable seaside horror.

Summer 2026. Popular man of the people Arthur “Frogface” Gilman has called a by-election in Dunwich-on-Sea after claims that he received large amounts of undeclared cash from offshore sources.

All major parties withdraw, leaving only comedy candidate Count Buckethead to oppose the leader of the Resurge UK Party.

The investigators are journalists from The Guardian—plus one Spectator columnist, so there is plainly no political bias here—sent to cover the election in the depths of the Suffolk coast. What begins as a peculiar political assignment soon leads towards ancient secrets, sinister local loyalties and horrors that should have remained beneath the sea.

Note for non-UK visitors: until 1832 Dunwich, Suffolk, was a notorious rotten borough that returned Members of Parliament despite having largely fallen into the sea. This scenario deals with those historic constitutional issues and absolutely nothing else.

Call of Cthulhu Political Satire Investigation Seaside Horror

Sunday Afternoon

Magical Kitties Save the Convention!

Magical Kitties Save the World • GM: CJ Romer • 2–6 players

The convention is under threat!

Sinister villains are plotting to unleash chaos and mayhem across Cheltenham, and only a team of magical cats can stop them. Use your extraordinary feline powers, outwit the forces of evil, rescue your humans and save Grand Tribunal before it is too late.

Based on the charming Atlas Games roleplaying game, this light-hearted adventure is perfect for families, younger players, complete beginners and anyone who enjoys heroic cats, outrageous villains and a healthy dose of humour.

Everyone is welcome. No previous roleplaying experience is needed.

Family Friendly Atlas Games 2–6 Players 2–3 Hours Beginner Friendly

A Foray Through Xanth

Fantasy Adventure • GM: Anna • 2–6 players

Welcome to Xanth, where shoes grow on trees, every human has a unique magical talent and centaurs insist that they possess no magic whatsoever.

You have a problem, and Good Magician Humfrey probably has the answer. Unfortunately, reaching him means crossing a jungle filled with animated objects, bizarre creatures, magical mischief and an alarming number of puns. Even after you arrive, Humfrey traditionally demands three challenges—and usually a fee—before dispensing his wisdom.

Characters are created quickly by choosing a unique magical talent, a professional skillset, a hobby or former interest and a personal weakness, using the Code of Steam and Steel rules.

Expect adventure, absurdity and a considerable risk of puns.

Duration: 3–4 hours.

2–6 Players Fantasy Comedy Quick Character Creation Puns