The book keeping is easy I can do it for everyone if they want. For groups that don't want to deal with it I can just do it in the background and poke the SG for your covenant if you are in danger on funds.

The actual bookkeeping is easy. I built a spreadsheet that handles it simply. I suspect that most people don't want to focus on stories related to how the covenant earns mundane cash. Or about recruiting craftsmen or other servants for the covenant.

The cost of labs keeps getting mentioned. Setting up a standard lab costs £5 over two seasons. Maintenace on a standard lab doesn't really cost much, but when you start getting labs with increased Upkeep, they get pricey.

Arguable the entire point of the monetary system is to finance bigger and bigger labs. Possibly financing armies as well.

 I kinda dislike the covenant accounting rules for Ars magica. I think they're *fine*, but then the entire covenant book seems based around them. The lab mod rules are cool but require Upkeep as a balancing factor. The real thing where the accounting rules become weird is when you allow them to change. There are a required number of servants per inhabitants, and there are no rules for what to do if you're below that number.  "Two more magi moved in with a horse, the Cook has suddenly spawned three full grown children to compensate."
 I usually see Companions and Grogs focused on mundane income for a covenant, actually in play.  Though I admit my examples are limited (a few aborted online games, 3 IRL games). I think though, everyone is going to WANT to use the lab rules and the get those extra bonuses, because they make fun labs.

Presumably your chief maid hires someone? I don't see how it is a problem. Not every interaction with the system needs to be an adventure.

In reply to Player 15 (msg # 854):

The servants and such are hired in th background over the season. And the grogs and companion a player has are not the total number f people in the covenant. they just feature the ones that will go on stories with you, or who will spawn stories.

Well, if people have spreadsheets and are willing to do the work, I'd be happy to have more detailed stuff.

Yes, once established you could start hiring locals. Or you might try hiring and shipping in people from afar. I'm trying to set this up with the same player agency so those who want to put more into it can and are rewarded for it, while those who don't want to bother and going about doing other things can get the benefits of those other things.

I particularly like customized labs. Sure, you can do more. But it also makes labs more individual and quirky.

In reply to Alpha SG (msg # 857):

Did you just call my petting zoo a quirky lab?! :-)

What Arts did we decide had a Root of 6/21?
This message was last edited by the player at 22:51, Sun 21 Mar 2021.

Creo, Intellego, Auram, Herbam, Ignem, Vim, Corpus, Rego, and Terram

Was what I found with the search I did.

In reply to Player 13 (msg # 859):

Second question. What will their names be? I'm guessing more than one covenant will have them, and the book that has the Roots doesn't give them any specific names.

In reply to Player 12 (msg # 860):

Authors would be nice to have as well.

If someone names them, let people know. First come, first serve.

In reply to Alpha SG (msg # 862):

Herbam should imo prefigure the Voynich manuscript! Some kind of exploration of plants mundane and fantastic

Unless anyone has better ideas, here are my suggestions for three of the Roots:

Thamus Collis
  Arming the Magus; one volume
    Summa on Ignem, Level 6, Quality 21

Lucian
  Clarity of Thought; one volume
    Summa on Mentem, Level 5, Quality 15

Bonisagus
  The Foundation of Hermetic Magic; one volume
    Summa on Vim, Level 6, Quality 21

In reply to Leander ex Flambeau (msg # 864):

I somehow doubt a book on Vim by Bonisagus would still be a authority for learning the Art of Vim. After all, I imagine Vim as it was back then, and Vim as it is after Conciatta of Bonisagus would be described a bit differently.

Thought that might just be me. The others seem good though.

I think it makes perfect sense - it used to be an authority on Vim, 400 years ago, but Conciatta's discoveries made it into a Root through obsolescence.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:06, Mon 22 Mar 2021.

I think the best canonical book on MT I've seen is

Janus of Bonisagus, Further Notes on Magical Notation, Magic Theory summa, Quality: 14; Level: 7

I'll be around again to post tomorrow. Generally I'm not responsive on Mondays.

sorry for newbie question but what exactly does beta/gamma sg mean?

In reply to Player 10 (msg # 869):

Our Alpha SG can't, and even if he could, it's fair for him, to run many parallel stories for the ~17 magi here. Even if not all of them will be adventuring at the same time.

So Beta/Gamma SG will be responsible for either a particular covenant, or a particular line of stories (ghost stories, sahirs, etc.), and help with other minutiae needed.

In reply to Player 6 (msg # 870):

I see, so the diffrence between beta and gamma is just how broad the line of stories is?

Alpha SG, could you open the Game Wiki entry for the Traveling Covenant? That way I can get our Boons and Hooks and other information listed.

Yes. I was trying to set gamma as relative to beta as beta is to alpha.

In reply to Alpha SG (msg # 873):

I think we all (or some subset, whatever) could be set as "editors" for the wiki, and therefore be more able to create pages and organize info without the need for as much micromanagement of pages.

I think you can already create entries on that first page. Several people had. I'm not sure what making everyone editors will do for the covenant threads, but I could try it.