Character Creation for Nithyn (OOC)

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: The Heir of Laimunt Valley
41

Apologies all, it was an extremely hectic couple of days and I had no time at work to post, and no energy to do so once I got home. Who would have thought that teaching/parenting three tiny humans was hard?!

I disagree still on the whole Personal vs Touch thing, but don't feel the need to keep debating it. I've made a very minor tweak to his spells and bumped it to touch. Problem solved.

That said, I'm working on his first year of history and should be done here shortly. Famous last words I know, but still.

42

Year 1, Spring:

Now a mage, Belisarius knew that he immediately needed to find a covenant. While he was confident that he would have a place waiting for him back in Constantinople, he would have to travel the length of the continent to get there first. Thankfully his pater had arranged transportation for the young magus, having paid for his passage on a Byzantine trading cog. With his Gentle Gift, the Jerbiton magus had no problem fitting in amongst the sailors. Especially when they realized that he possessed the ability to make the barely edible hardtack taste like a feast, guard the ship's stocks from vermin, and heat the frigid sailors without the danger of fire. Thus, upon arriving at Constantinople, more than a few sailors were sad to see the man go.

(+2xp Profession: Sailor, exposure)

Year 1, Summer:

Having returned home for the first time in years, Belisarius made his formal request to join the covenant of Thermakopolis, a request that was quickly approved. Being the filius of the head of the covenant had some perks after all. Recognizing that he would need to improve his understanding of magical theory for his future endeavors, Belisarius took to the library and, after a bit of negotiating with his new coven-mates for the exclusive use of the book for a few seasons, secured the use of a truly excellent summae.

(+15xp Magic Theory, L5 Q15 Book)

Year 1, Fall

Fall continued much as summer, except now Belisarius began to slowly reintegrate himself into the politics of the city. In the intervening years, Andronikos had been swept from power by a popular uprising and was replaced by Isaac ii Angelos. And while said change meant that Belisarius and his family could, if they were so inclined, resume their place in society, most were disinclined to uproot their lives once again and return to the nest of vipers that is Constantinople. Belisarius was an exception, wasting no time in re-integrating himself with the inhabitants of the city.

(+15xp Magic Theory, L5 Q15 Book)

Year 1, Winter:

Fully intending to continue his studies, Belisarius became more than a little distracted upon hearing talk of a master swordsmith plying his trade in the city. The smith in question would have likely been put on the exclusive payroll of one of the most prominent families of the empire but for the fact that he was Muslim. This was, of course, causing him no small amount of trouble with some of the locals, a fact that the magus was quick to offer a remedy for, the patronage and protection of Thermakopolis. While this raised the ire of those amongst the Magi that were devout Christians, upon being shown the quality of the man's work, grudging pragmatism carried the day.

(+15xp Magic Theory, L5 Q15 Book)

43

Sailors are supersticious about magic. They may just as well throw him overboard if he makes such blatant use of magic. :wink:

This season is fine. :slight_smile:

What was his part of the exchange in these negociations? I see 3 seasons of uninterrupted book study, but no payment! :wink:

Otherwise, the book quality is reasonable. I was about to mention the language of the book, but I see Belisarius knows Greek.

BTW, I don't see a native language in his character sheet?

44

Hah, truth enough! He wouldn't be doing anything obviously magic. More along the lines of, here friend, have this drink, it will warm you up sort of thing.

That will be addressed next year when he has to spend a season drilling the covenant's turb/recruiting new members.

Gotta get that Profession: Soldier exposure, right?

Good catch! I've fixed that now, but yes, Greek is his native tongue.

That said, with everything approved, off to year two I go!

45

In that case he should have a score of 5 and must pick a regional dialect (Cappadocian for Turkey, Demotic for Greece itself, Pontic for coastal areas of the Black Sea) as a specialty. He cannot select Hermetic usage as a specialty for his native language.

I would have expected the payment to be made partway, instead of after all 3 seasons of study (or is it more?). Right now we are left wondering what exactly the payment/condition for study is.

46

That's an easy fix, I'll get to it in a bit.

Well, given that it's his covenant and he's more or less 'grown' up here, I figured that they wouldn't be too concerned about taking 'payment' after the fact. That, and let's face it, more likely than not, established magi have outgrown the book, so it's not like anyone else was chomping at the bit.

That said, I don't really care about the order of things, and it's not anything I'm willing to go to the mat over, so if you want the two swapped, so be it. I just won't take an exposure season in the second year to compensate.

47

Oh, I'm not worried about the order of things from a numbers perspective. I'm just suggesting that you give us more information about such things ahead of time.

You see, you just explained something that I had missed previously -- the fact that this was the covenant where he was apprenticed. My fault, since I don't always have time to read everything. But it shows that repeating a few things to provide context for a specific season (or year) can save time to look it up for those reading the advancement.

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Year 2, Spring:

Come spring, it was time to repay his covenmates for their hospitality. With the Gentle Gift, and his martial background, Belisarius was the perfect choice to handle the matter of expanding the covenant's turb. Though in truth, expanding might have been something of a misnomer, as the turb at that point largely consisted of a handful of old and complacent shield grogs. So it was more a matter of entirely rebuilding itthan anything else.

Of course finding willing men was easy enough as all things considered, it was a pretty plum assignment. Good pay, no long marches through the elements, little to no possibility of being forced to engage in any sort of real fighting. Of course, you had to put up with all the weirdness that came with magi, and this would send more than a few of the recruits packing. Still, by the end of the season, the covenant's turb had been reinvigorated, and officers chosen from among them. It would take some time until they were molded into a proper fighting force, but the groundwork had been laid, and that was all that mattered.

(+2xp Profession: Soldier, exposure)

Year 2, Summer:

After the excitement of spring, summer was fairly tame by comparison. Continuing his correspondence with the Flambeau Primus Garus, he had received a handful of lab texts that the archmage felt would be useful to his onetime pupil. Thus, texts in hand, Belisarius would spend the season in his laboratory, inventing spells. Beyond that, the magus continued to assist with training the new turb, though his role was far more limited than last season given the time constraints forced upon him by his laboratory activities.

(Learn Wizard's Leap, ReCo 15, The Warrior Disarmed ReCo 5,+2xp Rego, exposure)

Year 2, Fall:

Fully intent on spending the season in the lab once again, fall's adventure happened purely by accident. Out at a dinner with the peerage, Belisarius overheard boasts about a most wonderful owl that his host had come into possession of. Immediately intrigued, it became readily apparent from the man's boasts that this was no mundane creature. His attention well and truly piqued, Belisarius quickly excused himself and tore the villa apart looking for the bird. Not particularly subtle, it was only his mastery of magic that allowed him to go unnoticed. Well, that and the fact that most everyone was occupied with the evening's festivities.

Once he finally located the bird, a brief conversation ensued, confirming the magus' initial theory about the nature of the creature. Freeing the creature (which had since introduced itself as Harpasus, Belisarius made good his own escape, and returned to the covenant. That was the end of things, or so he thought at any rate. To his surprise, the next day, Harpasus tracked him down and their conversation resumed. This process would repeat every day for months, as the two struck up an unlikely, but rather close friendship.

(Adventure Rewards: Potential Familiar, +2xp Rego, exposure)

Year 2, Winter:

Having grown rather fond of one another during the intervening months since their introduction, it took little convincing on Belisarius' part to convince Harpasus to consent to the familiar bond. After all, it meant that the two had even more time to converse at length as the magus worked in the lab. Beyond this however, Winter, much as Summer before it, was a fairly uneventful affair, marked more by discourse and academic pursuits than anything else.

(Bind Familiar, +2xp Rego, exposure)

New Spells:

The Warrior Disarmed
ReCo 5
R: Touch, D: Dia, T: Ind
The target loses control of their arms for the duration of the spell, as their arms hang uselessly by their side.
(Base 2, +1 Touch, +1 Diameter, +1 Affects Two Body Parts)

Technically it's a custom spell, but in reality, it's more or less a slightly altered version of Spasms of the Uncontrolled Hand.

Also, I'll get to work here shortly and stat up the familiar given that he too can advance during the seasons ahead.

1 Like
49

The last two spells are unknown to me. What are their parameters and description? I see you put the descriptions at the end of the post.

Still, I also tend to think that custom-designed spells should be created by the magus as a full lab activity, rather than provided as lab texts from some other magus. Even an altered version of a standard spell is still a custom spell.

A season finding a familiar is its own reward. Only exposure experience is gained during that season. Sorry if that wasn't written down somewhere, but that is what was applied to Wolfgang. (I have just added a line in the Post-Gauntlet Advancement Rules.

50

Belisarius development seems nice so far. =]

Just to help me keep track of the narrative, which year is year 2 (or rather, how many years before the fall of Constantinople are we)?

If I'm tracking right, his ReCo lab total is 21?

Which mastery? Fast cast, I assume?

If so, may I prompt us to get back to that discussion regarding fast-cast spells and usage of other spells in the same round? Just to make sure everyone is in the same page? And that the final decision regarding that be added to the houserules, if needed?

51

Adjusted.

Thanks! So the fall is going to be his Year 9 I want to say off the top of my head? If it's 1206 now that is.

I hadn't updated with a few changes, check the character sheet for the adjusted version. I'll make sure to keep it updated year by year.

Speaking of, with our decision about casting in melee etc, I've gone ahead and tweaked his virtues slightly. No need for Quiet Casting x2, so I've picked up Unaging and Cautious with Concentration.

Also, I'll try to get his familiar designed tonight so that I can move forward with both of them at the same time.

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Used the Wise Owl of the Forest out of RoP:M as a starting point and adjusted it to better fit the idea I had in mind. I feel like its powers are all rather thematic and fitting, but let me know what y'all think. Oh and no promises that I'm 100% spot on with my calculations, I've had tiny humans climbing all over me and screaming for attention while trying to do this.

Harpasus the Owl

Magic Might: 5 (Animal)

Int +2
Per +2
Pre +1
Com +1
Str -6
Sta +2
Dex +1
Qik +5

Size: -4
Season: Summer
Confidence: 1 (3)

Virtues and Flaws:

Gift of Tongues
Keen Vision
Second Sight
Wilderness Sense

Busybody

Magic Qualities and Inferiorities:

Gift of Speech
Improved Abilities (x2)
Improved Characteristics (x1)
Lesser Power (x2)
Minor Virtue: Gift of Tongues
Minor Virtue: Second Sight
Minor Virtue: Wilderness Sense
Personal Power (x8)
Unaffected by the Gift

Susceptible to Deprivation
Reduced Might (x8)

Personality Traits: Loquacious +6, Owl+3, Inquisitive +3
Combat:
Claws: Initiative +5, Attack +5, Defense +12, Damage –4
Soak: +2
Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: –1 (1), –3 (2), –5 (3), Incapacitated (4), Dead (5+)

Abilities:

Animal Ken 4 (Forest Animals)
Athletics 4 (Flying)
Awareness 4 (Alertness)
Brawl 3 (Dodging)
Faerie Lore 2 (Regiones)
Hunt 4 (Tracking)
Magic Lore 2 (Regiones)
Second Sight 4 (Regiones)
Stealth 4 (Natural Areas)
Survival 4 (Woods)
Wilderness Sense 4 (Resources)

Powers:

Ears of the Bat
InIm 30
As per Eyes of the Eagle, but affects hearing, not sight.
(Base 3, +2 Sun, +4 Vision, +1 Constant)
Personal Power, 30 Levels, -3 Might Cost

Eyes of the Eagle
InIm 30
As per the spell in ArM on pg 145
(Base 3, +2 Sun, +4 Vision, +1 Constant)
Personal Power, 30 Levels, -3 Might Cost

Eyes of the Treacherous Terrain
InTe20
As per the spell in ArM5 on pg 153
(Base 2, +2 Sun, +4 Vision)
Personal Power, 20 Levels, -2 Might Cost

Hands of the Magical Animal
ReTe 15
As per the power in RoP:M on pg 39
(Base 3, +1 Touch, +2 Sun, +1 Constant)
Personal Power, 15 levels, –2 Might cost

Intuition of Nature
InHe10
As per Intuition of the Forest in Arm5 pg 136, but with Au, and Te requisites.
(Base 1, +1 Touch, +2 Sun, +2 Group)
Lesser Power, 10 levels, -1 Might Cost

Sailor's Foretaste of the Morrow
InAu20
As per the spell in ArM5 pg 127
(Base 4, +1 Touch, +2 Group, +1 size)
Lesser Power, 20 levels, -1 Might Cost

True Sight of the Air
InAu 15
As per the spell in ArM5 pg 127
(Base 1, +2 Sun, +4 Vision)
Personal Power, 15 levels, -2 Might Cost

Ward Against Rain
ReAu10
No rain falls on the caster, no matter how bad the weather.
(Base 4, +2 Sun)
Personal Power, 10 Levels, -1 Might Cost

Ward Against Wind
ReAu 15
Protect the target against the effects of even the most violent wind.
(Base 5, +2 Sun)
Personal Power, 15 Levels, -2 Might Cost

1 Like
53

Year 3, Spring:

After spending most of the year cooped up in the lab, Belisarius was happy to stretch his wings and get a breath of fresh air as it were. Even if it was little more than training with the covenant's turb. The soldiers had spent the past year acclimating to life at the covenant and working as a group, so now with Belisarius' aid, came the opportunity for them to take their training to the next level and learn how to blend magic and steel.

While Belisarius busied himself with the training of soldiers, Harpasus too was undergoing training of his own as the magus had contracted for the services of a well known tutor. Upon arriving at the covenant and meeting his pupil for the first time, the teacher was taken aback. If only for a moment. That said, it wasn't the weirdest request he'd ever had. Not by a long shot. This was Constantinople after all. For his part, Harpasus proved an excellent student, picking up the basics of academia rather quickly, and it wasn't long before the familiar was capable of both reading and writing.

Belisarius: +2xp Profession: Soldier, exposure
Harpasus: +15xp Artes Liberales, teaching

Year 3, Summer:

With spring coming and going, and the heat of summer rapidly becoming oppressive, Belisarius retreated to the relative safety of the covenant's library, where he was joined by his familiar Harpasus. Ensconcing themselves comfortably in a corner, the pair tore voraciously through their chosen reading materials, and would spend the remainder of their days arguing back and forth about all manner of topics. This won them no friends amongst the staff of the covenant, especially those assigned to keeping the library tidy. But cleaning up bird excrement often has that effect.

Belisarius: +15xp Finesse, L4Q15 book
Harpasus: +15xp Magic Theory, L5Q15 book

Year 3, Fall:

Fall continued much as summer had, with the pair well and truly having taken over a corner of the library, dirty dishes and piles of books marking their 'claim'. Complaints, once a dull murmur continued to mount in intensity as Belisarius and his familiar continued to study. For now at least though, nobody was willing to confront the pair openly, instead settling for thinly veiled comments about how the pair must be getting cooped up, and wouldn't they like to go out and stretch their legs? If either actually understood the true meaning, it didn't show, and there was little the staff could do other than grind their teeth and murmur complaints under their breath.

Belisarius: +15xp Finesse, L4Q15 book
Harpasus: +15xp Magic Theory, L5Q15 book

Year 3, Winter:

By this point the library staff was ready to mutiny. Finally reading the room (albeit with a good sharp nudge from his pater), Belisarius thanked the workers profusely for their indulgence, and promised that the pair would take a good long trip next year, earning an audible sigh of relief. Not that it solved the grog's problems for the long dark months ahead, but still, it was a light at the end of the tunnel as it were.

Belisarius: +15xp Finesse, L4Q15 book
Harpasus: +15xp Magic Theory, L5Q15 book

54

Might 15 is above the range for a grog-level familiar. Even taking into account the adjustment for Size, this means it started at Might 11. Grog-level familiars are limited to a maximum Might of 9.

(Note that the maximum Might is before any adjustment for Size, virtues and flaws.)

If you want a higher Might, then you'll have to convince one of the other players to design your familiar as a companion.

55

It sounds like there are some unspoken assumptions here that I think I need clarified for myself (since I have a familiar I haven't yet designed as well). Is there a reason that the Might would be capped at a certain point beyond the lab total? And/or a requirement for another player to play them as a character? I mean ... having a player play them (if we all say took one to do for someone else in turn) would be good/fine (fun even). But why require it?

Just getting the feeling here there is a sense of propriety and/or process here that I don't understand and/or am not familiar with.

56

RoP:M p.34 gives rough guidelines for might according to the role of the character.

In this table a might of 10+ implies a companion level character, requiring a player to play said character as a companion. The discussion for reaching this number is spread in other topics, probably Plot_Device's or Sthephen's if I recall correctly.

That's why I asked before if anyone wanted to play my familiar as a companion. If there is no interest then I'll just design him at grog level and keep him mostly assisting at the lab and catching mice. ^^

Note that if the sole purpose of the familiar is to be a lab assistant, any might at all (and any stat beyond it's magic theory) is pretty much irrelevant, so the discussion is moot. If, OTOH, it should do something else, we do need a power level estimate.

57

This seems rather a restrictive interpretation. Requiring a us all to round robin and play familiars for one another for them all not to be creatures explicitly on the weak end of things. Which really there isn't even a hard rule about who plays a given Companion tier character or the like. The rough guidelines on Might are nominally true (though they are just guidelines). The requirement that this means someone else has to take on the character however is something else additional, affecting all of us.

Which already I kind of was watching Nithyn at work and thinking he made a tradeoff that I didn't. He bound a familiar early in his post gauntlet time so it would have some progression time built in. Which the tradeoff I was thinking there was that he had a lower lab total and it would be weaker thereby when he did it. Whereas I waited until later to make it bigger by having a higher lab total when I did it near the end of my post time.

58

Agreed. Can we please get clarity on the expectation here? Is the expectation that all 'companion' tier characters must be played by someone else?

59

Yes.

60

To complement:

ArM p.4, Basic Ideas:

player characters are divided between central characters (magi and companions) and supporting cast grogs). A player would normally only play one central character at a time

And then, p.17, on Companions:

Although each player has a magus and a companion, they are almost never played together, and thus should not be linked to each other.

So in general, if a companion level familiar and a magus are to have any meaningful interaction, they are better played by different players.