character design and development

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Praesidium Orae
641

Hi silveroak, Aurthor has declared a quest to find his familiar for next year and this is my suggestion:

IBIS, a curious owl
Magic Owl
Name:
Size: -4
Essential Trait: Owl+3
Traits: Curios+4
Season: Summer
Might: 10 (Mentem)
Confidence: 2 (5)

Characteristics: Int +2, Per +2, Pre +1, Com +1, Str ‑6, Sta +2, Dex +1, Qik +6

Virtues (2): Magic Animal (free), Improved characteristics x2, Unaffected by the Gift*, Gift of Tongues (HoH: True Lineages p.105), Keen Eyes, Self-Confident*
Flaws (2): Magical friend, Nocturnal, Slow Power*

  • From Qualities/Inferiorities

Magical Qualities (19): Vis Mastery, Gift of Speech, Minor Virtue (Unaffected by the Gift), Minor Virtue (Gift of Tongues), Minor Virtue (Keen Eyes), Minor Virtue (Self-Confident), Greater Power (Immobilize Prey), Personal Power x2 (Sight Beyond Sight), Grant Minor Virtue (Improved Characteristics), Lesser Power x2 (Leap to Homecoming), Improved Powers
Magical Inferiorities (9): Acclimation Prone, Susceptible to Deprivation, Reduced Might x4, Minor Flaw (Slow Power for Grant Improved Characteristics)

Animal Qualities: Accomplished Flyer, Ambush Predator, Extra Natural Weapons( talons), Keen Eyesight, Sharp Ears
Abilities: Area Lore (woods) 3, Athletics (flight) 5, Awareness (prey) 6, Brawl (dodging) 2, Concentration (powers) 1, Folk Ken (peasants) 5, Hunt (rodents) 3, Penetration (Mentem) 2, Survival (woods) 3.
Attacks:
Talons Init +5 Attack +5 Defense +12 Damage -4
History: Owl has always been fascinated by human beings and observed them hiding among the branches of the trees hidden in the branches of the trees, thanks to the fact that her senses can work remotely. Not long ago he began to understand the sense of the sounds these strange creatures emitted and this has even increased his curiosity, with the desire to actually live among them.

Powers:

Immobilize Prey
0 points, Init +6, Mentem or Animal
R: Eye D: Conc T: Ind
As described in RoP: Magic p.65.
Greater Power (15 Levels, –3 Might Cost, 15xp Penetration, 5xp Concentration, +2 Init))

Sight Beyond Sight
0 point, Init +6, appropriate. Form
R: Per D: Conc T: Vision
As described in RoP: Magic p.39.
Personal Power x2 (20 Levels, –3 Might Cost)

Leap of Homecoming
0 Point: Init +0, Animal
R: Per D: Mom T: Ind
Animal version of the Hermetic spell (ArM5 p.135).
Personal Power x2 (35 Levels, –4 Might Cost)

Grant Improved Characteristics
3 points, Init -12 +1 Round of Preparation, Mentem
R: Touch D: Mom T: Ind, Ritual
As Grant (Minor virtue) in RoP: Magic p.39. The target gains the virtue Improved Characteristics.
Ritual Power (No Hermetic Equivalent, -2 Might Cost)

Design notes: Basically The Wise Owl of the Forest (RoP: Magic p.65) modified (a lot). I could not resist and copied the idea of Grant Minor Virtue (Improved Characteristics) power from Quite Possibly a Cat :smiling_imp: . XP count: 360 + 15 in Penetration (from Immobilize Prey) + 5 in Concentration (from Improved Powers virtue) = 380xp . I don’t understand very well the animal qualities in Magic Animals and I didn’t take in account the scores provided from animal qualities.

A side question silveroak, once bound can a familiar still advance with Transformation? Just curious...

642

go ahead and post this to the wiki and I will review it, it looks fine at first glance.
There is nothing I'm aware of that would prevent a familiar from advancing via transformations.
Animal qualities are covered in mystery cults under Bjorner.

643

For 1122:

Gloriana rolls for Insight for Fertility by examining her daughter Sybilla, _: 1D10 = [10] = 10, ugh! _: 1D10 = [1] = 1, no botch, failure, only gets up to 16, unless studying her own daughter gives a bonus? Only silveroak can say!
Boy, she is a klutz around the lab, for all her super high totals!
Invent spell Echo of the unborn gift. Will risk Experimentation with +3 Risk factor to try and finish in one season! InVi 12 + 3 Int + 5 aura + 13 MT + 1 Lab +3 Risk + simple die _: 1D10 = [3] = 3 + 1 Early riser lab routine = 41, just about done! Now for the chart, _: 1D10 = [8] = 8 + 3 = 11 Modified effect _: 1D10 = [4] = 4 + 3 = 7, use of the spell is restricted in some way, bah.
Aging roll = _: 1D10 = [2] = 2 +4 - 2 Magi standards - 2 Healthy Feature - 1 Good food - 1 Good wine = -0 no apparent aging.

Will advance Sybilla for the season.Year.

Sandor advanced for Spring and Summer. Adventure in Fall done, will advance for the year. Lady A advanced for the year, her adventures are done.
Aging roll: _: 1D10 = [4] = 4 + 4 Age - 2 Wealthy- 2 healthy locale - 1 good food -1 good wine - 14 LR = -12, no apparent aging
Severinus's aging roll: 56: _: 1D10 = [10] = 10 + Age 6 -2 Wealthy - 2 Healthy location - 1 Food - 1 Wine = 0 no apparent aging

Andros has no more adventures, will advance him till Fall, Winter he will invent spells. Invent Spells: Numbness of the Gift 20, Sense the Scale of Magical Power InVi 15 (as Sense the Scale of Divine Power, but R: P, D: Conc, +4 Vision), InVi is 29 + 1 Int + 7 MT + 5 Aura + 8 SRex + 10 Lab + 15/16 Lady A assistance, done, Warping shenanigans:_: 1D10 = [10] = 10, none, finally!
Andros'a aging roll: _: 1D10 = [6] = 6 + 6 Age - 2 magi Standards- 2 healthy locale - 1 good food -1 good wine-3 familiar bond- 6 LR = - 3 nothing happens
Andros is 60! He celebrates!

Danaë advanced for the year, excepting the Fall, [strike]waiting on adventure #3[/strike] advanced for the year.

*edited multiple times

644

He has ten extra xp in stealth. I think that brings him up to 360.

I changed his essential trait to rapacious.

645

Hi all,

regarding Aurthor I'm thinking of Hyperborean Magic as his field of study, the 19 Years Duration would be a nice legacy to leave to posterity and a good mean to enhance the status of his lineage among other Magi.

Are there other magi interested in Hyperborean Magic of which I'm not aware?

One more question silveroak, in HoH: Societates pg. 129 at the end of the description of Comprehend Magic ability, I read the phrase "At the option of the storyguide, this Ability might also give an insight into adapting non-Hermetic magic into Magic Theory".

Is this option valid in this saga? If yes, What are the mechanics if I study a source of insight using the Comprehend Magic ability?

646

Hehehe, Gloriana is also interested in the whole thing, but it doesn't mean she has the time or knowledge right now, so you might as well go for it!

Comprehend Magic is not of much help here unless you find an actual Hyperborean wizard or a Hyperborean wizard ghost to study its powers, if I am not mistaken. Insight is a seasonal MT + Int roll vs 18, one would think that actually successfully using Comprehend Magic might give you a bonus to this roll. silveroak is the arbiter of such things, so pay me no mind.

647

you can multiply your magic theory by your comprehend magic before making an insight roll if the source of insight is magical (for example, it would apply to a fertility charm, but not a wall painting)

648

Ok, Aurthor will start his research soon. However I add that Aurthor and Gloriana can integrate different aspects of Hyperborean Magic or collaborate and share their discoveries (or maybe Gloriana is too ambitious for an agreement like this...)

Thanks good to know.

649

Hi silveroak, can I get your ruling on this?:

New Affinity for Mentem Merinita initiation proposal:

silveroak, Gloriana will try to initiate Affinity with Mentem with her Merinita Mystagogue. To recap, the Mystagogue has 6 in HM Lore and 4 Presence. This would be a diff 15 (Mystagogue has the minor Virtue being initiated).

After a season of traveling with and receiving instruction from the Mystagogue, the Initiate has to travel to Mont Blanc on a night of a full moon (may take a guide) and make a grueling ascent, must succeed on 3 consecutive Sta + Athletics rolls vs diff 9, each one representing 6 hours of travel, bearing appropriate signs to honor Diana. The character then enters a faerie regio where the moon completely dominates the sky, and proceeds to have an adventure that showcases the initiate's knowledge, must then exit the place successfully. The initiate then has to spend one year in silence, communicating only with her mind if at all (Mentem or Imaginem, or Animal if so inclined). After this the Initiate owes a season of service to her Mystagogue/cult.

Script: +3 Mystagogue's time (season teaching HM Lore to the initiate), +1 Initiate's Time (1 season serving the Mystagogue or some other House member) + 3 Travel to a specific place and time + X year of silence + Y Sympathetic bonus = 7+X+Y. May be overkill, as the Mystagogue has a +10 and difficulty is 15, so would only be a +5 usually, but it would be awfully convenient to have an exact +5 Initiation. What do you think?

650

Anna just barely manages the familiar bond as Muto Corpus (it matches Fang's Muto Corpus power) by using a nocturnal lab routine. Muto(6)+Corpus(7)+Int(3)+Aura(5)+MT(7)+Nocturnal Lab Routine(2)=30! She'll take three points of bronze chord. It costs all six pawns of her Muto vis.

651

Thought we had agreed the Praesidium pays the first 6 pawns, in this case the whole of the binding.

652

We did? In that case change it to Rego Corpus! Wolves lead packs and Fang's got the paralysis gaze. That's Rego. :smiley: Anna can chip in a corpus and rego vis so she has enough.

653

It was proposed, I have no record of a vote, and I have not removed vis from covenant accounts for any other familiar bindings.

654

Well back to Muto Corpus then.

655

Last I saw of the discussion it was here, and I thought it was agreed, as only Taurus seemed opposed. I think Evandrus used that discount, as he did not have the entirety of the cost covered.

Andros for a fact did, and declared so.

656

Your first link was to the proposal, I never saw a concensus or vote. Since it seems to have been taken as done despite that lack, I need to record what vis has been used- so far I can only find Andros having used the stores being mentioned... 6 rego for Andros, I'm not sure what else.

657

Ignes.Festivus Pazzino would like to take some XP in Code of Hermes ability if possible.

658

you can put 5xp into any ability that was used by anyone during the adventure, rolling or behind the scenes (for example, ride if you took horses, or area lore for the location it was in...), to a total of the earned xp.

659

Ah, thanks for the clarification. I prefer to take 7 XP in Intrigue then. If Ignes.Festivus is fine with it.

660

Evandrus has to experiment for the insight spell:

Extraordinary die roll(1) That's a 'splosion Extraordinary Result Die(2)*2+1=5!
Side Effect(9) Major side benefit!
Silveroak Evandrus has wrangled himself a major side benefit on Introduction of the Male Essence!