Art of Memory: Casting Tablet

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

With the Art of Memory ability from The Mysteries (Revised) you are able to memorize days long lectures or 100 page messages with just a roll.

Using a spell you are able to memorize a book (Memory Palace of the Sage TMRE 27).

It seems to me that a magus should be able to memorize a casting tablet. I think for game balance it would need to be a spell to memorize it but a casting tablet is much smaller than 100 pages so I can certainly see an argument for it being just a roll (those rills are self limiting since you can only store so many perfect memories any way.

Is there a place my logic went astray? Is there something actually intrinsic to the physical tablet that makes you able to cast the spell, meaning you need more than just a perfectly flawless copy to use it?

2

It’s valid. Tyrell mentioned this a while back and I think it’s a great little hack for Mentem mages.
https://forum.atlas-games.com/t/flaws-in-my-plan-to-power-ritual-magic/10643/7

3

Casting tablets have some pretty severe restrictions, like set penetration levels and heinous botch risks.

4

And like fixed R/D/T parameters.

It seems viable (they are defined as just the cast-that-spell-for-dummies step by step instructions, with nothing special about the tablet itself), but quite dangerous. I'd never do that, but I would love to see it in practice. Botches will probably be epic.

5

I'm not proposing that it is some sort of cheese to get around knowing formulaics. Just that it could be useful if you don't have time to learn the spell and don't want to carry a tablet.

He was using the ritual in that thread, but it seems like that might not be necessary?

6

I agree that it can be done. However, it is not an interesting choice as the risk/reward far favors the risk, while the reward is almost meaningless.