A walking Atlas

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Ad Astera per Aspera
1

Current SheetType: Magical Object
Name: Walking Atlas
Might: 3
Essential Traits: Informative+3
Personality Traits: Curious+3, Brave-2
Characteristics: Com+3 Int+3 Per+2 Pre+1, Str-3, Qik-2, Dex+0, Sta+0
Magical Qualities: Minor Virtue3, Improved Abilities2, Lesser Power2
Magical Inferiorities: Reduced Might2, Temporary Might
Virtues: Book Learner, Independent Study, Good Teacher
Free Virtues: Educated, Puissant Area Lore, Affinity Area Lore
Flaws: Curious, Lame, Social Handicap (its a book)
Abilities: Latin 5 (Directions), Artes Liberales 1 (Geometry), Area Lore: Rome 1+2 [2] (Churches), Area Lore: Mythic Europe 3+2 [15] (Roads), Area Lore: Mythic Africa 1+2 [2] (Trade Routes), Area Lore: Malta 2 [7] (Libraries), Teaching 3 (Area Lore), Awareness 1 (Terrain), Finesse (Craft Magic) 5, Craft: Cartography 2 (Trade Maps), Area Lore: Mythic Arabia 2 (Cities)
Note: Abilities are written as Ability Score [experience past current level] (specialty)

Powers
Fill the Pages – Level 10 MuIm
0 Points, Init-4, Im
R: Touch, D: Moon, T: Ind
The Walking Atlas's pages appear to be filled with words and text. The contents of which is chosen by the book with each casting.
Base 1 +1 Touch,+3 Moon, +1 intricacy-2 reduced cost.

Pop Up Map – Level 10 CrIm
0 Points, Init-0, Im
R: Voice, D: Diam, T: Ind
A short lived visual image is created. The illusion is clearly supernatural in nature, essentially it appears if a map, but with small objects overlaying it and parts either pushed out or in for elevation. A hill might appear raised and a city might be represented by miniature stone walls around a few tiny buildings. A river might appear to be a small trickle of moving water. A finesse roll and knowledge of the area is required for accuracy of course.

The image generally hangs in the air, but with an increase in the finesse roll one might make it appear to be on or attached to something. A curve can be included in particularly large areas to mimic the earthly sphere's curve although this again would increase the ease factor, nor would it be accurate without actually calculating the curvature.

1 base+1 duration+2 voice, +2 moves at command -2 reduced Cost, +4 Init

Description: The Atlas is a large, but plain, leather bound book. It has two page markers which it can use to hold objects if need be. Actually moving is a slow and difficult process for the book, a kind of shivering motion to pull it slowly along. The inside of the book is nothing put numerous blank pages of parchment.

2

Starting SheetName: Walking Atlas
Might: 3
Essential Traits: Informative+3
Personality Traits: Curious+3, Brave-2
Characteristics: Com+3 Int+3 Per+2 Pre+1, Str-3, Qik-2, Dex+0, Sta+0
Magical Qualities: Minor Virtue3, Improved Abilities2, Lesser Power2
Magical Inferiorities: Reduced Might2, Temporary Might
Virtues: Book Learner, Independent Study, Good Teacher
Free Virtues: Educated, Puissant Area Lore, Affinity Area Lore
Flaws: Curious, Lame, Social Handicap (its a book)
Abilities: Latin 5 (Directions), Artes Liberales 1 (Geometry), Area Lore: Rome 1+2 [2] (Churches), Area Lore: Mythic Europe 3+2 [15] (Roads), Area Lore: Mythic Africa 1+2 [2] (Trade Routes), Area Lore: Malta 2 [7] (Libraries), Teaching 4 (Area Lore), Awareness 1 (Terrain), Finesse (Craft Magic) 5, Craft: Cartography 2 (Trade Maps), Area Lore: Mythic Arabia 2 (Cities)
Note: Abilities are written as Ability Score [experience past current level] (specialty)

Powers
Fill the Pages – Level 10 MuIm
0 Points, Init-4, Im
R: Touch, D: Moon, T: Ind
The Walking Atlas's pages appear to be filled with words and text. The contents of which is chosen by the book with each casting.
Base 1 +1 Touch,+3 Moon, +1 intricacy-2 reduced cost.

Pop Up Map – Level 10 CrIm
0 Points, Init-2, Im
R: Voice, D: Diam, T: Ind
A short lived visual image is created. The illusion is clearly supernatural in nature, essentially it appears if a map, but with small objects overlaying it and parts either pushed out or in for elevation. A hill might appear raised and a city might be represented by miniature stone walls around a few tiny buildings. A river might appear to be a small trickle of moving water. A finesse roll and knowledge of the area is required for accuracy of course.

The image generally hangs in the air, but with an increase in the finesse roll one might make it appear to be on or attached to something. A curve can be included in particularly large areas to mimic the earthly sphere's curve although this again would increase the ease factor, nor would it be accurate without actually calculating the curvature.

1 base +1 duration+2 voice, +2 moves at command -2 reduced Cost, +4 init

Description: The Atlas is a large, but plain, leather bound book. It has two page markers which it can use to hold objects if need be. Actually moving is a slow and difficult process for the book, a kind of shivering motion to pull it slowly along. The inside of the book is nothing put numerous blank pages of parchment.

3

Any misc stuff the book has acquired.

4

Life History: I see two possibilities. This book is supposed to be a relic of the Romans. Its not sure quite how it came to exist, either by accident or by ritual, but it wasn't given the details. We currently have two threads where it might appear, the lab incident or the attempt to go buy books. If we have the book in the mundane world its hiding afraid of being burnt to death as some sort of demon book. Its already had one close call. Right now its just disguising itself as a harmless book. The other possibility is it was taken on a exploratory mission by a roman mage or scholar to the covenant's current location. The book either fell into the Regio on its own, or the entire group was sucked in and failed to escape. In the later situation the Area Lore: Malta, should be changed to Area Lore: Unnamed Regio.

If its a book from the mundane world the magi won't realize its a book until they scan for vis or the book resists some spell or another. The book might reveal itself it if figures out the people who purchased it are magicians too.

Thoughts?

5

You have 2 points in flaws and 3 points in virtues.
I believe social handicap would fit, since most people do not routinely interact with books in a social sense.
It occurs to me that "found left in a tent" could fit this character, especially if it had a falling out with the previous owner...
to have an ability at 1+2 with an affinity requires 4 points, not 2 (21.5=3, 31.5=4.5, 4*1.5=6)
2+2 would require 10 pts
3+2 would require 20 pts

unless I misreading how you are writing this character...

6

Social handicap would work, I meant to put in one handed since it would only have one book marker, but social handicap makes more sense. Gonna do that.

Oh and the abilities are written up as Ability Score [extra xp] (specialty). So something with 35 experience in it would be written "Ability 3 [5] (something)", I'll make a accounting of all the experience. I've put a note in how the experience is formatted. I have horrifically inconsistent formatting. Also I've rounded DOWN on the affinity experience because I think that's how you wanted it?

7

Total Experience = Educated+Spring+improved Abilities*2=50+120+270

Experience Spending
Latin 75xp
Artes Liberales 5xp
Area Lore Rome 5xp, becomes 7 xp with affinity
Area Lore Mythic Africa 5xp, becomes 7xp with affinity
Area Lore Mythic Europe 30xp, becomes 45 xp with affinity
Area Lore: Malta 15xp, becomes 22 xp with affinity
Teaching 30xp
Awareness 5xp
Finesse 75xp
Craft: Cartography 15xp
Area Lore: Mythic Arabia 10xp, becomes 15xp with affinity

Total Spent=75+5+5+30+15+30+5+75+10=250???

Ha! I knew it would happen eventually, I'm 20 xp short on spending.

8

looking over the powers:
I do not see a need for intricacy for a map- finesse should suffice, as the maps are simply not that intricate.
range should be self to change the appearance of your own pages.

Pop up map: can this image be projected or does it pop from the pages of the book? If the later it should be range touch instead of voice. The movement would add intricacy, but should not be counted twice, it should be a total of 2 magnitudes, not 4.

9

The map is projected into the air. I was thinking like a "pop up window" appear directly in front of someone's face. The +2 maginitudes of intricacy were removed, 2 magnitudes of reduced cost were removed as well. These were replaced with +4 init. And I moved teaching up to 4 which should fix he experience spending.

10

actually you were at 270 the first time, you left one +5 and one +15 out of your calculation at the bottom.

11

Oh nvm then. :slight_smile: Oh it didn't save in the first place. Well I put the spell fix back in.