What is this game ruling on Shape and Material Magical Focuses while enchanting? It doesn't matter what effect I'm putting on them so long as it's a sword? Sword that lets me fly, Sword that shoots fireballs, sword that fills tapped buckets with water?

@A-SG We are going to document the final vetted version on the wiki then once we discuss them?

Also how are we doing companions? Do I need to find a magus that will take my companion on? I was wanting to do an agent that is nominally infernal. So it will take some discussion.

For the Alpha: Am I correct in assuming variant RDTs of standard spells generally don't really need approval as long as the new RDT doesn't significantly change the spell?

For instance a group target "Pillum of Fire" might depend on rulings around whether one can target a single person with all the pillums but that things like a moon duration "Maintaining the Demanding Spell" don't significantly change the spell outside of duration.

For everyone: Those of you with a better idea than me about Sahir magic what might be useful specialized PeVi or ReVi types for spells similar to those listed in the Lineage of Pralix section?

As in those spells using guidelines that include a bit like "Dispel effects of a specific type."

It is canonical, though I'm not really a fan of that ruling. So how about let's say yes, but be conservative with it, such as "wooden wands" being narrow enough that it's not a lot of use outside the purpose or just not enchanting a ton if you want a broad material? More than a few times I've had to figure out what is a reasonable way to apply a limit. That's where my house rule on Faerie Sympathy comes from, for example.


Of spells and enchanted effects? Yes, I will. That will make it easier to stay consistent and easier for others to build similar spells and effects.


I would think someone would be happy to have that companion. We all do choose Hooks, after all.


Correct. If there are some oddball bits to it as a result, it can be worth checking. But if it's a straightforward shift, just go for it.


ReVi wards against jinn. PeVi lowering magic resistance.


Ah, dispelling specific types of magic? Dispelling a Sihr bargain? I'd have to check that particular one, though, if that would get to the point of being a Ritual or if Formulaic spells could do it.

I generally like the house rule that a shape but not a material focus applies. So wooden Wands or swords (might not be minor though) works but metal doesn't. But this is just how I've ruled in a game I was in.



Yes, I don't think I could destroy the bargain as that is not actually mystical, least on the side of the Sahir, seems more an essential feature of Djinn being required to obey bargains. I was thinking more ReVi with a duration to make it so the Sahir can't summon any of its Djinn but it would not interfere with the Sahir from directing any that were currently hanging about them. This would use a similar model as Quiet the Cursing Tongue. Though now I am maybe getting into Spell Approval territory.

In reply to Alpha SG (msg # 228):

So, I have two questions about books. First of all, what Level and Quality is a Root?
Secondly, do all of the books in the pdf from Atlas Games cost 0.1, or are books on certain Abilities there not "mundane"?

The PDF for those who don't have it: https://www.atlas-games.com/pd...ksByAbilityIndex.pdf

Atlas actually published many of them, somewhat implicitly, in Semita Errabunda: Creo, Intellego, Auram, Herbam, Ignem, Vim all at level 6, quality 21. But canonically there are 9, and that's only 6. So I'll include 3 more, but we can decide which ones we feel are best, or I can roll randomly. For the others there are still primers, which should be available for the same price; they're just not up to the point to be considered a true root. I figure those could be level 5, quality 15. I figure the notes about two roots having been superseded is that some of the roots were originally level 6, quality under 21, until someone wrote something a little better. Surely a bit simplistic, but simple can be good in situations like this.


1 lb silver for each book, which is 0.1 p.v.f. apiece, yes. However, that is per book, and some are actually a collection of a number of books. So do double-check the notes on the right. Still, overall they're quite inexpensive compared to Hermetic books.

I was looking at the published books, as well as the skills in the Core Book. It seems that there is a music skill, but music is part of Artes Liberales. My character is going to be a singer, who composes songs on the fly. Since he is composing the songs, would learning music under Artes Liberales go directly under his music skill, or be a bonus to music skill?

And purchasing things at Harco is definitely going to be interesting. Getting Covenants together, then purchasing books and other supplies for the covenant would seem to be the way to go.  My question about that concerns timing. How much are we going to know about our potential covenant site, before we make our purchases?

Music under Artes Libearales is music theory. Stuff about strings and notes' relation to each other, octaves and such. Music ability includes singing or playing an instrument well.

That part of AL is more of music theory and the like as opposed to performance and composition. In the core book Music is the Ability for singing, playing instruments, and composing, and this is reiterated elsewhere. This is what the core book says about the music part of AL:



Yes. That's why I wanted to get covenants sorted out a bit first. Once we've decided groups, I'm going to give a bunch of sites. For simplicity, they'll all have Magic Auras of 5. They'll have some other Boons/Hooks, and some room for some group decisions. You won't know what the vis sources are until you get there and explore, though. And generally speaking there is no building yet.

Did someone have a spreadsheet for calculating book costs?

Puissant MT Doesn't increase the Vis you can use because the Vis Limit is not actually a total? Trying to assign my last virtue point.

The vis limit is a total, even if it isn't labeled "total." More importantly, it is an actual use of Magic Theory.

From the errata:


So not I guess it's a bit up in the air of your score is with ot without the 2+2 from Puissant.

Some thoughts / questions on economics.  We're starting from scratch, and while we can buy silver, and some ready cash will be handy, more easily transportable, and tradeable, commodities will come in handy.

The "classic" response is Touch of Midas, but that's basically an open invitation to robbery, social destabilization, and sundry evil shenanigans by whoever is running the story.  The basic principle is sound, however.

What do people think about a modified version, making a valuable, but less attention-getting commodity?  Salt is a good pick, as a CrTe two-three levels lower (depending on whether you rate salt as stone or base metal) than ToM makes about a cubic yard, which is about a ton of Platonically perfect salt.  Salt is valuable, but is commonly traded in bulk, and is MUCH less attention-getting than pure gold.  CrHe equivalents to make spices (saffron, pepper, cloves) are also good options.  If we're setting up one covenant (conveniently, the one my Magi is in) in a coastal city / Mercere base, trading opportunities shouldn't be too hard.

I figured I should check in with the group, however, on how much of this kind of thing we want to pursue. I'm game to "sacrifice" a few of my starting spell levels for the cause, but don't want to upset any apple carts.  Any thoughts?

FMB

The idea there is that it doesn't matter if it's a total. The question is if you're using the Ability. You are in this case. So the Ability counts as 2 higher and you can work with more vis in a season.

In reply to Player 16 (msg # 239):

In a coastal area you can get salt via Rego without spending vis.

It's here: https://docs.google.com/spread...Phs/edit?usp=sharing

Was thinking that my Demonic Blood Companion could have a Decrepitude transferring power. It would technically allow him and anyone else to live forever (you would eventually have to deal with a terminal aging crisis every winter but you'd still be kicking)? That is how shucking off Decrepitude would actually resolve?

It would be pretty unambiguously evil since you are eventually sapping decades off of other people every year (or dumping them into cancer patients or something) in an act of pure selfishness.

Otherwise I figure he would be a capable field agent. A sneaky knife in the dark type.

Technically there is nothing stopping him from being a Redcap? Maybe a misguided Mercer making deals with the devil for off spring. Can't take Demonic Blood and a Story Flaw for having a Gifted Twin out there or his parents needing to send him away to Africa. But Tragic Life sort of covers the whole gamut...


@MT IMMA just going to saddle this gift horse and ride into the distance.

@$cashmoney$ I was just going to magically fill a chest with silver coins. I didn't drag this fortress out of the ground and fill it with magi and bound spirits so it would be so darn easy to rob.

It's low enough level that you can probably spont it without spending fatigue (ReAq 4)
Details in TME, p. 129

Sorry if it's a dumb question, but how do I add the profile of a character?

In reply to Player 6 (msg # 245):

character detail top left, view profile of (name) and then edit description is how I did it, might be a better way
This message was last updated by the player at 21:53, Fri 26 Feb 2021.

In reply to Player 16 (msg # 239):

Fun part is that most of Europe's gold comes from parts unknown Africa. Perhaps mined by giant ant people, perhaps from King Solomon's mines. Facts are, if we are going to unload gold for goods, we are in the right place to do it, while attracting the least attention.

One of the Character generation rules is that no starting character can have Might, and Demonic Blood grants Infernal Might of 5. Now, our Alpha SG may allow an exception.

Assuming you did have a Decrepitude transferring power, and you chose to forgo a Longevity Ritual, yes, every year you'd get an aging crisis, and some stat declines, but you'd stay alive. This is going to pick up Warping, both from restoring stats and from mitigating crises, unless you cast them on yourself.

Note that if you had say, a Decrepitude score of 3 (30 aging points) and you get 22+ on the roll, you just picked up 20 Aging points, which is going to cause several stat declines.

For my companion I'm thinking I might do a Pawnbroker-style Redcap from the Roman Tribunal. Heavily interested in finding new sources of vis to ship back to the Roman, Alps, and Rhine Tribunals where he can earn higher rates of return (Assumption being this is hopefully a vis-rich area and so there will be less incentive to trade vis, I'm aware that the rate is likely standardized so # of trades is where the profit is). I'll probably give him Second Sight and Magic Sensitivity, snag magic items that give him more detailed info on the vis he finds (art, for instance) and move from one physical object to another. If this steps on the toes of anyone's character idea, let me know.

I have a couple of ideas for a Companion. Before I get into that, who is planning on playing a Redcap, and what kind of Redcap?