Magus: Hadrianus of Flambeau

Name: Hadrianus Flambonis scholae Apromor, filius Traianus
Age: 27 (at saga start)

Characteristics: Int +2, Per -1, Str +1, Sta +1, Pre +2, Com +1, Dex -1, Qik +2
Size: 0

Confidence: 1 (3)
Decrepitude: 0
Warping: 0

Virtues:
The Gift (special), Hermetic Magus (free)
Puissant Perdo (House Virtue)
Flexible Formulaic Magic (Major)
Affinity with Perdo
Fast Caster
Mastered Spells
Improved Characteristics
Inspirational
Puissant Leadership
Flaws:
Deficient Muto (Major)
Ambitious (Major)
Driven (Minor, rehabilitate his pater's name and avenge him)
Hermetic Infamy (free)
Unimaginative Learner
Warped Magic (plant matter shrivels and wilts)
Personality Traits: Ambitious +4, Brave +2, Confident +2, Impetuous +1, Loyal +2

Abilities:
Artes Liberales (arithmetics) 1
Athletics (running) 1
Awareness (searching) 2
Brawl (punches) 4
Carouse (staying sober) 1
Concentration (spells) 2
Craft: Carpenter (framing) 2
Finesse (speed) 1
Folk Ken (townsfolk) 1
Hunt (traps) 2
Leadership (intimidation) 2+2
Language: Occitan (Limousin, native) 5
Language: Latin (Hermetic usage) 4
Language: [strike]Italian (Tuscan)[/strike] Arabic (Andalusian) 2
Magic Theory (inventing spells) 3
Organization Lore: Order of Hermes (House Flambeau) 1
Parma Magica (Ignem) 1
Penetration (Perdo) 1
Philosophiae (moral philosophy) 1
Survival (forest) 1

Magical Arts: Cr 4, In 0, Mu 0, Pe 14+3, Re 0, An 4, Aq 4, Au 0, Co 4, He 0, Ig 4, Im 0, Me 0, Te 0, Vi 0
Wizard’s Sigil: The target of the spell feels slightly flushed, as if running a fever.

Spells:
Image of the Beast (InAn 5) +5
Parching Wind (PeAq 20, casting requisite) +24 -- Mastery 2[sup]+5 xp[/sup] (Multiple Casting, Magic Resistance)
Bind Wound (CrCo 10) +9
Eyes of the Cat (MuCo 5) +4 -- Casting total must be divided by 2 due to Deficient Muto
Grip of the Choking Hand (PeCo 25) +24 -- Mastery 2 (Imperturbable Casting, Penetration)
Blade of the Virulent Flame (CrIg 15) +10 -- Mastery 1 (Magic Resistance)
Veil of Invisibility (PeIm 20) +19 -- Mastery 1 (Quiet Casting)
Maul of Shattering (PeTe 20) +19 -- Mastery 1 (Fast Casting)
Equipment and possessions:
Basic: Clothing, a pair of knives, leather shoulder bag, writing implements
Travel: reinforced leather armor, walking stick, simple trapping supplies (wires and stakes), hatchet, blanket, travel bag

Personality
During his apprenticeship, Hadrianus proved to be a bit of a hot head, getting in trouble more than once due to his haste in proving himself or his certainty that he could handle everything. He was also a bit of a bully as a child, which may have been a defense mechanism so as not to become a victim as his Gift started to emerge.

Hadrianus’ character has settled considerably, thanks to Traianus’ teachings. The death of his pater also influenced him greatly. The end result is that, although still a bit cocky and confident in his abilities, Hadrianus is basically an earnest, brave and loyal young man. He is quite ambitious, hoping to make a name for himself in the Order, and driven to find out who caused the death of his pater.

Appearance
Hadrianus inherited the good looks of his mother Elvira, who had Arabic blood. So the young magus has golden brown skin, deep brown eyes and dark brown lustrous hair which he keeps long enough to tie in a ponytail.

Though not particularly tall, he is well muscled and fit. His knuckles bear some scars from the many fist fights in youth. He doesn’t pay any particular attention to the clothing he wears, though he favours darker colors.

Before Gauntlet
Rainaut was born in a village near the town of Turenne in Aquitaine. His father was the village’s carpenter, but Rainaut inherited the golden skin and lustrous dark hair of his Spanish mother Elvira, whom his father had met during a pilgrimage to Santiago in his youth. He had two younger brothers and a sister.

Rainaut’s childhood came to a crashing end when he was still only eleven. That winter, sickness came to him, sending him into a delirious fever. Soon after, others in the village became sick, including his parents and siblings. When the lord of Turenne’s men came to investigate two weeks later, they found everyone dead but Rainaut. They looked at him with suspicion, thinking that perhaps the boy had been touched by the devil.

Word of the tragedy and its lone survivor came to a magus of the Order, who soon established that the boy had the Gift. Thus did he become the apprentice of Traianus of House Flambeau in Provence. In addition to being in the school of Apromor, Traianus was a believer in leadership, loyalty and discipline, instilling those precepts to the young Rainaut.

Unfortunately, those teachings could not prepare the forthright Rainaut for treachery. Shortly before Rainaut’s Gauntlet, the young man was implicated in a plot that proved to be the downfall of his master. The plot resulted in the death of a Mercere magus by Rainaut’s hand, but since he was still an apprentice it was Traianus who suffered the consequences and was Marched. Seeing this result coming, the Flambeau master gave his apprentice to a fellow member before being brought before the Tribunal.

After succeeding at his Gauntlet, Rainaut took the name Hadrianus. However, the stain of his involvement in the death of two magi still follows him.

Since Gauntlet
(To be added once the saga starts)

Year 1 / 1220 A.D.:
Spring: (activities to be added)
Summer: (activities to be added)
Fall: (activities to be added)
Winter: (activities to be added)[/list]

1. Goals
Hadrianus has the following general goals, which will need to be taken into account when deciding which activities he will undertake.

First, develop his new covenant. This is something he can get to work immediatly. Having a strong covenant is valuable in itself and the right thing to do as a service to his sodales and to the Order. But it will also be useful as a pilotical tool to further his other goals. Exactly how to develop the covenant will depend on its location and setting. Although Hadiranuas may very well become the covenant's leader because of his natural aptitude in Leadership, he will contribute regardless of his actual position in the covenant's hierarchy. This includes building and training with the covenant's turb, establishing and maintaining the covenant's resources, or whatever else he is able to do.

Second, rehabilitate his pater's name. This will be difficult to do from a distance, but correspondance may be a good way to start. Hadrianus would like to discover who was behind the plot, but lack of resources and contacts made that impossible so far. Thus, establishing a base of operation and (re)building his credibility and contacts will be a first step towards that. He also plans on writing a series of books collected under the name of "The teachings of Traianus" covering various subjects that his pater introduced him to (such as leadership and the art of Perdo).

Finally, make a name for himself. Again, how this will materialize will depend on the context of the saga (setting, Tribunal, mundane and magical landscape). This could lead him to develop his combat capabilities (for a role as a Hoplite), his political skills (to achieve a significant role in the Tribunal's hierarchy), find a noteworthy familiar or discover some lost treasure. He will start small, since he knows he is currently in a position of deficit, credibility-wise. But he will always keep an eye on higher steps and is confident of his abilities.

2. Abilities
First, Hadrianus needs to establish himself at his new covenant. One of the things he must quickly learn is a local language, as well as some Area Lore. This will help him interact with locals and search for resources.

Second, improbing his combat effectiveness is someting important, so he will seek to improve his scores in Parma Magica, Penetration, Concentration and various spell masteries. Learning how to handle weapons would also positive, probably for the use of a staff, thus the Great Weapons.

Third, interaction with the covenant's turb will require improvement in Leadership. That will also be useful in establishing better relations with other magi of the Tribunal. Other social skills will be useful there as well, so Bargain, Etiquette, Intrigue and Guile are also on his list of priorities.

Finally, furthering the legacy of his pater will require him to be able to improve himself magically, so improving his knowledge of Magic Theory, Code of Hermes, Organization Lore: Order of Hermes and the various Realm lores (mostly Magic Lore) will be useful.

3. Spells
There is a great many spells that Hadrianus will want to learn or invent from scratch. These can be categorized under combat spells, utility spells and information-gathering spells. Combat spells can further be qualified as offensive and defensive spells.

His current offensive spells (Parching Wind, Grip of the Choking Hand and Blade of the Virulent Flame) are already pretty good, particularly combine with Flexible Formulaic Magic and his spell masteries. But there might be additional offensive spells that might be useful for some special situation. Opening the Intangible Tunnel (ReVi gen) is a spell with good offensive potential, which should be mastered both for penetration and magic resistance. Dust to Dust (PeCo 15) might be a good idea, particularly with a necromancer amongst the covenant members, and is a spell that he can invent in a single season if the aura is 3 or more. An instant-kill spell such as Clenching Grasp of the Crushed Heart (PeCo 40) is currently out of his reach but eventually he will want to learn one. Other specialized spells for the various forms might also be useful, but these will depend on the covenant's surroundings. There are many spells that might be useful there, such as Creeping Oil (CrAq 15), The Wound That Weeps (PeCo 15), Invocation of Weariness (PeCo 20), Incantation of the Milky Eyes (PeCo 30), Twist of the Tongue (PeCo 30), Plant's Withering Bane (PeHe 20), The Great Rot (PeHe 25), Heat of the Searing Forge (CrIg 10), Winter's Icy Touch (PeIg 10), Pit of the Gaping Earth (PeTe 15) and a variant of Demon's Eternal Oblivion (PeVi gen). Many of these spells might be mastered for Magic Resistance, rather than actually used for offensive purposes.

Two of his current defensive spells (Curse of the Rotted Wood and Rusted Decay of Ten-Score Years) protect him from common mundane threats. His third spell (Veil of Invisibility) is more passive. All of them offer good flexibility for other uses. Other spells that he could learn to cover other Forms and other situations include Decay Fur and Hide (PeAn 10), Quiet the Raging Storm (PeAu 20), Endurance of the Berserkers (ReCo 15), Wizard's Leap (ReCo 15), Soothe the Raging Flames (PeIg 20), Fist of Shattering (PeTe 10) and Stone to Falling Dust (PeTe 20). Against magical threat, various versions of Unravelling the Fabric of {Form} (PeVi gen) and a more general Wind of Mundane Silence (PeVi gen) would both be useful. Of course, all of these spells should ideally be mastered for fast casting.

Information-gathering spells that might be useful include True Sight of the Air (InAu 15), Discern the Images of Truth and Falsehood (InIm gen), Dispel the Phantom Image (PeIm gen), The Invisible Eye Revealed (InVi gen), Sense of Magical Power (InVi 2), Scales of the Magical Weight (InVi 5) and Sense the Nature of Vis (InVi 5). Most of these are low-level spells, since his knowledge of Intellego is ono-existent at the moment.

There is a wide array of utility spells that might appeal to him, depending on the location of the covenant. These would include Comfort of the Drenched Traveller (PeAq 5), Cloak of the Duck's Feathers (ReAq 5), Chamber of Spring Breezes (CrAu 5), Purification of the Festering Wounds (CrCo 20), Eyes of the Cat (MuCo 5, An), Rise of the Feathery Body (ReCo 10), Lifting the Dangling Puppet (ReCo 15), Lamp Without Flame (CrIg 10), Dispel the Phantom Image (PeIm gen), Words of Unbroken Silence (CrMe 10), Trust of Childlike Faith (PeMe 10), Snap of Awakening (ReMe 10) and Unseen Arm (ReTe 5).

4. Talisman
A talisman is a good way to help Hadrianus boost his magical capabilities, particularly with regards to penetration, but also for effects to be used in deleterious auras. A wand or staff would make a lot of sense because of its basic shape bonuses (+4 to control/destroy things at a distance, +3 project bolts and other missiles, +2 repel things). Materials of interest are Hornbeam, Topaz, Ruby and Silver. Further thought will be required before he undertakes that project.

5. Familiar
Although Hadrianus does not have immediate plans to bind a familiar, depending if the opportunity arises he will do so. So, if a suitable creature is discovered near the covenant or during an outing, he will investigate it to determine if it is suitable for him.

He has no specific idea at the moment, but RoP:M p.57 suggests the following animals as having an affinity with the art of Perdo: "asp, hedgehog, salamander, shrew, weasel, any venomous animal." I don't see his familiar being the companion-level character of another player, but am not adverse to the idea

Using his current stats, his Familiar Bonding Lab Total would be 26 + aura (Pe 17 + Form (An/Aq/Co/Ig) 4 + Int 2 + Magic Theory 3). Since his form scores are so low, this lab total could increase quickly with a few seasons of study.

Simply to ask a few questions as well as check my assumptions about the various spells that Hadrianus knows, his spell masteries and the major virtue Flexible Formulaic Magic (FFM). This may seem like a lot of questions, but I want to make sure that he has a correct knowledge of his capabilities.

  1. Does FFM allows him to modify a T:Ind spell so that it can effect a target of Size +2 or +3 (essentially adding a +1 Size modifier to the spell's Target parameter)? I've seen people arguing on either side of this, so I'd just like to know which side of the fence we will be in this saga.

  2. If a T:Ind spell is boosted to T:Part through the use of FFM, would it allow it to affect a (reasonably small) part of an individual of Size +2 or above? For example, would Hadrianus be able to use Curse of the Rotted Wood to destroy the base of a larger tree so that it falls down?

  3. When I selected the spell Blade of the Virulent Flame to be mastered for Magic Resistance, I assumed that it would help protect him from any spell that creates flame to damage, including but not limited to Pilum of Fire, Arc of Fiery Ribbons and Ball of Abysmal Flame. After all, all of these spells have the same basic effect of creating flames, so they would be considered as Similar Spells (ArM5 p.101). Am I correct in this assumption?

  4. Since he has the spells Curse of the Rotted Wood and Rusted Decay of Ten Score Years mastered for fast casting, I assume these will be useable as fast cast defensive spells in combat. Both his specialty in Finesse (speed) and the virtue Fast Caster will allow him to get those off in time to protect himself and others.

  5. With FFM, will he be able to change the duration of Grip of the Choking Hand from Conc to Diameter if he wants to? This is technically not "raising or lowering the level of the spell by five" (from the description of FFM), but I think that would fit the spirit of the virtue.

  6. If he boosts the duration of Parching Wind to Conc (or Diameter), am I correct in assuming that mean the target will suffer +10 damage each round? If he multiple cast that same spell at the same target, I also assume that the target will need to soak multiple attacks at +1 damage, potentially suffering multiple wounds in the same round?

  7. If he modifies the target of Parching Wind from Part to Group, I assume that he will inflict damage on each individual of the group?

In the FFM interpretations I've always thought the virtue needs to be generous to be worthwhile. An errata on its powers would be great.
Imo:
1/ yes,
2/ yes as long as the base effect and design still is logical for the target.
3/ no. The MR protects against the same effect not all flame effects. AoFR is very different from PoF. But it's not breaking to say yes either.
4/ yes
5/ yes
6/ yes
7/ yes

The heart of the issue is, what does constitute "same effect" in CrIg?

Is the Base 5 "Create a fire doing +10 damage" a different effect from the Base 10 "Create a fire doing +15 damage"? Is "Create a fire doing +X damage" a different effect from "Create a fire doing +X damage in an unnatural shape"?

IMHO those are all the same general effect of "Create a fire", as opposed to "Create light" or "Heat an object" or "Ignite something". Those four are basically all of the effects that CrIg can produce, I think.

After reading p101 I totally agree it's a yes now.. And damn it I've been letting my own magus with FFM in another game not use that.

Well, that one was about spell mastery and had nothing to do with FFM. :wink:

I'm thinking about replacing some of my standard spells with this one. Comments are welcome.

Maul of Shattering (PeTe 20)
R:Voice, D:Mom, T:Part
Part of a non-living object breaks apart in small pieces. The target must be a base Individual or smaller, so a section of stone can be up to a pace across while a section of metal can only be one tenth of that volume in total. A casting requisite may be required, of the Form appropriate to the target.
(Base 3, +2 affect metal or gemstone, +2 Voice, +1 Part)

This would replace both Curse of the Rotted Wood and Rusted Decay of Ten-Score Years. The last 5 levels would be obtained by reducing Unravelling the Fabric of Imaginem to level 5.

With FFM, the new spell could be made easier to cast by reducing it to T:Ind, or boosted to T:Group to affect multiple objects at the same time. It could also be used to weaken a larger object by blowing a hole through it.

Made the following changes to his spells:

  • Removed Curse of the Rotted Wood, Rusted Decay of Ten Score Years and Unravelling the Fabric of Imaginem.
  • Added Maul of Shattering (described in the previous message) and Eyes of the Cat.
  • The spell mastery xp was redistributed, with 5 going to Maul of Shattering (Fast Casting) and the remaining 5 xp going to Parching Wind (with no extra specialty gained).

Let's say that Hadrianus wants to invent a spell to dispel any one of his own spells, regardless of the Form. What guideline should he use?

At the moment, the following guidelines exist in Perdo Vim:

Now, the first guideline (which is used for Unravelling the Fabric of [Form]) is probably too narrow, as I doubt the all of a caster's magic could be considered to be a "specific type". Or could it? After all, since a magus' sigil is present in all of his spells, then there must be a strong commonality in one's magic. That's one option, which I submit to the troupe.

If not, then the only other existing guideline is the second one (used for Wind of Mundane Silence), but that seems much too broad.

Another possibility can be found when one looks at the Rego Vim guidelines:

So if the existing Perdo Vim guideline (specific type) is considered too narrow for all of one's magic, then I would have a tendency to use a guideline similar to the one from Rego Vim. Does that make sense?

I think you need to stay within PeVi as the different Vim guidelines don't match in their difficulty. And when saying type I think it means Hermetic Art, or Shaman style, or a hedge style; and not a specific person.
It means using the second Gen guideline you listed as the right one. Half level. Otherwise the one above it wouldn't have been made.

Although using ReVi to surpress the spell till it has expired is a valid choice too.

So you think that all of a person's magic doesn't have some common factors that would make it easier to affect them by a single spell? You'd fall back to the same guideline as Wind of Mundane Silence, which can dispel any magic regardless of its nature?

I was thinking that perhaps there might be a middle ground between the two existing guidelines. I was simply using the ReVi guideline as an analogy, to show that Hermetic Magic does recognize that one's magic is different from other's. And I am a firm believer that guidelines from other Forms (or techniques) can be used to inspire us when existing guidelines in a Te+Fo combination have a gap between them.

But certainly not the preferred choice of a Perdo specialist, that's for sure! :stuck_out_tongue:

I'm more or less with IronBound here. I think you have a case that there maybe should be a middle guideline, but in its absence I think it makes sense to work up a mundane silence type spell. Dropping the range to personal and the effect to individual should make it a fairly useful spell even with the half guideline, and if you want you could use some of your mastered spell points to grab a level or two of mastery with unravelling.

Note too that WoMS reworked still needs to be Touch to affect your own spells active on you, or Voice to cancel an effect upon another.

At Voice it's still half level +10 +roll vs the spell to be cancelled. That's still darn potent.

Edit: I went digging and looked at other spells. The Heathen Witch Reborn affects a style of magic, not a caster and does so "at Level".

The InIm spell to Discern Own Illusions does not use a General guideline and is instead level 1 base. So there is a precedent for magic being able to differentiate the caster's spells from other spells. It's only in Imagonem that I can find that.

I'm thinking now that the " at Level" guideline might be ok for only your own spells.

Agreed, I am also of the opinion that you need R:Touch to affect a spell, although there are precedents for using R:Pers to ward yourself against something (though that is essentially in Rego). Searching through the various sourcebooks, there seems to be a single Perdo spell that affects something outside of the caster at Personal range: The Laundress' Clothesline (Apprentices p.47), which dries the caster's clothes.

The differentiation of own's own spells (as opposed to those of others) is why I mentionned the ReVi guideline. Rego Vim has two general guidelines to sustain or suppress spells: spells you have cast (less or equal than level + 2 magnitudes) and spell that others have cast (less or equal than half of (level + 5 magnitudes)). And ReVi seems a lot closer to PeVi than InIm is. :wink: