Living to be 100 years old is a rare event, for humans at least, but among the magi of the Order of Hermes, whose longevity potions grant them unnaturally long lives, it is something that most can expect to achieve. Magi of this age usually have a long list of achievements to their name - they are masters of their favoured Arts, they have trained an apprentice or two, perhaps authored a renowned book on magical theory, and so on. When their one-hundredth birthday comes around, it is customary for a magi to arrange a celebration and invite friends, colleagues, and former apprentices to commemorate the occasion. Magi who were part of the covenant at which the centenarian magus was trained are also often invited. Some magi do invite people who are not members of the Order - usually covenfolk or friendly nobility - but at some point the assembled magi will withdraw from the larger gathering and come together for the giving of gifts.
These events vary wildly in scope according to the personality of the magus, with some being week long parties that consume the attention of the entire covenant's staff, and others being small affairs with only a few close friends - there are few rituals about the event, and it is only as formal as the celebrating magi makes it. That said, people are people, and some will judge a magus who does not go to great effort for their party, and politically it may make sense to invite people the magus would rather not have present.
This is one of the few traditions to have made its way into every Tribunal of the Order, though it originated in Rilea. Once House Jerbiton magi began spreading the idea throughout their House, other magi were quick to accept it.
Traditions
The only constant tradition of the ceremony is the giving of gifts. This is different to giving birthday gifts, which all who attend will usually do in any case, as the host will receive gifts from their seniors and give them to juniors. This part of the celebration is reserved for magi of the Order, and if there were others invited then the host magi and their guests will usually withdraw from the celebrations - often to the covenant's library - for a smaller, more intimate affair. The host will first be given gifts and good wishes by those magi who are older than him, or who have achieved the rank of Archimagus, and always in the form of something related to the Art - a summa or tractatus on a specialty subject, or some other kind of rare book, is the most common and usually the most appreciated type of gift. Then, the host will hand out gifts to their juniors - those magi younger than themselves regardless of rank - and these may be a more diverse range of items, though books are still the most common. Personalised magical items, lab notes from the host magus, and gifts of vis shaped into something pleasing or interesting are also given regularly. Archimagi traditionally both give and receive a gift, if they are younger.
Differences Between Houses
Some Houses of the Order have developed their own ideas about how one should mark the occasion. House Jerbiton magi are certainly the ones most likely to make a great showing of it, with the House's fixation on beauty and love of sharing it leading to elaborately planned galas, where the magus can show off the things they have collected, their magical creations, and their other achievements.
For Bjornaer magi, the celebration is usually held outside rather than at their covenant, and often with all attendants taking the form of their Heartbeasts. In their case, guests tend to be fewer in number, and not to include anyone outside of the Order.
House Tytalus magi invite their Beloved Rivals, a plan that can fall anywhere between awkward and entertaining for the other guests, which has occasionally gone spectatularly wrong, and has so far resulted in a half-dozen Wizard's Wars. This has not discouraged the Tytalus magi from continuing the practice.
House Ex Miscellania magi have, as always, no unified approach to these parties, but they are of note because they are likely to invite a hedge magi or two (or even be one that has nominally joined the Order to avoid conflict). Some magi try to obtain invitations to these events in order to gain insights into hedge magic traditions, and some militant types - commonly House Flambeau magi - like to use them to locate their next target.
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