Looks extremely promising. Looking forward to read it 
Cheers,
Xavi
in Italy we have a very bad delivery/distribution service and always a book arrives with three months of delay... I am still waiting for The Lion and the Lily and I can't wait, I want Art & Academe too!!!
Talk about that. My LFGS does not KNOW that the HoH:MC book was RELEASED. Let alone having it 
Let's hope they will end up with copies of A&A
Xavi
Well, my preorder only just shipped a few days ago and has to get to Oz.
So on a somewhat Art & Academe related note:
There's an exhibition on illuminated medieval manuscripts opening at the State Library of Victoria 28th April to 15th June:
www.slv.vic.gov.au/goto/medieval
Admittedly this is only useful if:
- You live in Australia
- You live in Melbourne, Victoria
Since I'm currently living in rural Victoria, this probably limits possible Forum attendees to perhaps Alex White... and possibly Timothy if he can cadge the airfare.
Regards,
Jarkman
On a similar note, I was recently on Nodnol for a job interview at UCL and took the opporunity to stop in at the British Library and look at their Treasures exhibition.
It was astounding. I looked at books older than my country, illuminated in gorgeous, glowing colours and thought, "This is what Dinas reads." (Dinas being my primary character). So, for anyone who can make it to London, however distasteful it may be, I reccommend visiting the display. There's little as humbling to a scholar as a manuscript older than your university which is not only legible but understandable and beautiful as well.
Just got my copy last night. <> Looking forward to digesting this!
-K!
Arrrgh!! I keep falling further behind!
I gotta get a second job to support my Ars Magica habbit.
Heck, a first job that actually pays me when they say they're gonna would work wonders!
The victoria and Albert museum also has a nice collection of historical treasures if you are in that area of London.
It's hit central London at last and I have mine. It's going to need a lot of reading and understanding but I suspect it will be well worth it.
Got mine! Amazing amount of stuff in there. Very well done.
Though...one thing did jump out at me after a skim...
It appears that Pharmacy can Restore Fatigue. Not mitigate, not ignore...but restore.
I don't have the book in front of me (at work), but the ramifications of this are HUGE if it works like it appeared to.
It was said (possibly in the design notes or somewhere like that) that each magical tradition would basically have one limit they could break, which Hermetic Magic breaking the "Limit of Universal Magic Resistance". It would seem that here's the one that breaks the Limit of Energy.
Now if only my FLGS would hurry up and get my copy... 
The problem is that Pharmacy isn't a magical tradition. It's simply a mundane application of the Medicine skill.
Meaning, ANYONE could use it, Gift or no.
MWAHAHAHAHAH!!!!! 
:gramble: :gramble: Flaunt you new books, why don't you. :arrg:
Can restore fatigue? wow. Heh, i'd recommend a new flaw. Addicted to fatigue restoration potions 
Using a blue pill format?
Xavi
I'd say a black bitter fluid format
Before people get too excited about this, let me clarify. Yes it can, but it's difficult. Making a theriac is expensive and time-consuming. The weakest restorative (the Tonic of Gold) can restore one fatigue level if only one fatigue level has been lost. This is a level 5 theriac, requiring an Int + Medicine total of 5 (no die roll, and very few other modifiers).
More potent restoratives can still only restore one fatigue level, but do so in a patient which is more seriously fatigued - add five levels for every fatigue level past Winded. This means that more powerful restoratives are almost impossible for all but the most skilled.
Even if you know the recipe for this theriac, it takes you a season to make one. If you have a lab text, you can make possibly two a season, three if your Int + Medicine total (again, no roll) is over ten. That's a lot of effort for an effect which saves you a few minutes of rest.
Finally, there is the cost. Theriacs cost labor points; which directly translates into the need to maintain a good herb garden and apothecary store, which detracts time (or money) once again from other activities.
Whilst the ramifications could be big, this is a cottage industry rather than a mass production. I imagine restorative theriacs are kept as standbys, rather than used on a regular basis.
Mark
An addendum to my previous post: Hermetic craft magic could of course duplicate the creation of a theriac, as mentioned in the chapter. This is a remarkably simple spell, but requires a very high Finesse roll: to duplicate the Tonic of Gold would require 5 (level of the Theriac) +3 (craft magic) + 6 (a season's work in a moment) = 14. Not impossible, but reserved for the highly skilled. The cost in materials would also remain the same.
It might be worthwhile for a specialist, but won't catch on as a Order-wide trend for avoiding fatigue.
Mark