The Harbingers are the mysterious, eldritch beings that run the House Games. The Harbingers can take many forms, no two are the same. They recruit new high rollers, facilitate the “monster of the week” scenario, and give out gifts for victory; doing so all while seeking some unknown goal for an unknown employer.
Playing a Harbinger
During play, each storyteller is encouraged to flesh out their own harbinger. We encourage you to play it up. Act like a truly larger than life character. Likewise you’re encouraged to be both charismatic and manipulative. “Hiring” sometimes unwilling-participants is part of their job description.
Keep in mind that Harbingers are all powerful, reality bending beings. They are quite literally above our mortal concerns. Whilst roleplaying, remember you are the most powerful person in the room. You don’t ever need to roll dice for a harbinger’s action. You just do it.
During a character’s session 0, your role as the Harbinger is to get the PC to become a highroller. A good rule of thumb is to play the role of the devil, trying to sell a Faustian bargain. Ultimately the goal is to get them to play the games. Tempt the PC with the gifts and rewards they could earn by playing. Give them that first hit, but not enough to sustain themselves.
It can be effective to make a show of power. Stop time around a character so you can have a private conversation. Bend reality in a way that shouldn’t be possible, just because you can. Reference things that should be impossible for any stranger to know. Show them all the kingdoms of the world, and say it could be theirs if they just play.
Nature of the Harbingers
There has been some debate on who harbingers are from a lore perspective, with no agreed upon answer. The 1.5 Wiki’s page is completely unfinished. The Historical Document puts forth that they are marauders, a villain archetype from Mage: the Ascension. They do so with an air of “ we really ought to have settled this by now so here’s my answer”.
In the 8th gen revision our stance is as follows. Who the harbingers are does not matter. Who the Harbingers serve do not matter. The Harbingers are a plot device. They give a diegetic reason to the gameplay loop of House Games and frequent story tellers a chance to flesh out a narrator.
Who they are and what are their goals is a mystery better left unanswered. Any answer we could provide wouldn’t be as good as the one you come up with. Whilst playing, we encourage you to play with your answer in mind, whichever role you happen to be acting.