Whether we have the tower above or below ground (below ground sounds interesting), if we have outbuildings, any Magi who wanted to establish labs away from the tower could have that option.
I am also liking the idea of a reverse tower. It solves a lot of our problems I'm thinking.
I'm curious how people have handled Verditius labs in sagas. Do you say that all their crafting equipement is in the lab proper? Some crafts, like weaving, woodworking, blacksmithing, need a decent amount of space for their equipment, and then more still to store materials. In my table top games, we say a Verditius has a lab, and adjacent to that is a workshop for his craft. This keeps forge companions out of the lab, and allows Verditius to follow all the normal lab rules pertaining to size and refinements.
Well, the best way to do that would be to use the lab development rules in Covenants. Verditius or no, most magi are unwilling to just give up a prime and/or spacious lab. Most would agree to the normal sized lab and allow them to improve as needed.
The lab stat that would most likely apply for this type of accomodation would be Aesthetics and possible virtues and flaws for outfittings and structure.
Of couse if the magi are willing to allow the Veriditians prime spots feel free. Rhodri likely has similar desiress for space and craftsmanship as well.
My guy will probably want to start keeping bees at some point. Also, with a chandler/weaver background, I cover a fair amount of trades. I'm thinking whatever design we go with:
-My sanctum is close to ground level so I don't have to march up and down stairs as much.
-My workshop is kept outside the Tower/Main Covenant building
-Since the stuff I'll be enchanting is fairly portable, I can just bring it to my lab inside the Covenant to do the enchanting portion.
If I have to work on something larger, I might set up a lab in the workshop space. Don't know. Maybe use my 25 points for an extra lab outdoors?
I'm torn with where Bjorn would want his lab. On the one hand, the tower is more secure, and you would probably get less mundane distractions should you lock yourself inside. But on the other hand getting bigger pieces of wood down and up the stairs might not work.
Would an inverted tower go straight down, like a tower would go up, or would it go horizontally some?
An extra lab costs 50 points. Someone has agreed to give back his 25 points already, so if the group approves that could go towards an extra lab on top of the free lab everyone gets.
I'll be honest, that's not the best way to spend those points though.
Here's an idea though. You could buy a spell casting tablet of 'The Laboratory of Bonisagus', Cr Te 45 Ritual (Covenants page 122) for 18 build points, and then spend another 2 build points for the 9 pawns of Vis it costs (you'd have 1 pawn left over) and literally have a very functionable lab with the casting of the spell. It's cost in total, for the vis for 8 labs is 72 pawns (8 labs times 9 pawns per lab), or 15 build points (1 pawn per 5 build points, for 75 pawns of vis), plus the 18 for the casting tablet (2 points per magnitude of the tablet). A grand total of 33 build points, I'd be willing to allow the PCs to each contribute to this total if that's what they wanted.
Drawbacks, that's a ton of vis (likely to be all Terram), the spell would still have to be cast 8 times (even if Agitatus casts it, there is risk). Finally these labs start off with a high upkeep, which could either explain or just be one more part of the fact that you're poor. It's not the best idea maybe, but it's just the type of thing a young group of Magi might make (basically maxing out their credit cards).
The advantage is that you start off with superior labs. You can literally say that your entire Covenant, labs and all, was truly constructed Hermetically (it could lead to a prestigious reputation). Your lab is ready in only one Season (the spell more or less takes care of it immediately, but it takes a Season to attune yourself to it). You would also still have the lab text should you need to build or replace a lab later on.
What do you think?
For ease of reference, it builds a lab with these stats:
Size 0, Refinement 0, General Quality +2, Upkeep +3(!), Safety 0, Warping 0, Health +1, Aesthetics +1
Specializations: Items +2, Vis Extractions +2, Creo +1
Virtues: Flawless Equipment, Flawless Tools, Spotless.
It would go straight down.
Bear in mind that if you go the underground route, horizontally or vertically, the spell would have to be re-invented.
No, if someone gave back their 25 points, it should be used for the group.
I'm just going to deal with the issue in game if it comes up. Maybe a good story might develop out of a "You want me to enchant a mill stone for you?"
Difficult to do that, since we don't have a lab until we cast the spell, get the equipment and spend the two seasons setting it up. Or, if we really wanted an underground tower, we could build temporary wooden structures, putting together only one or two labs (leaving others without one for a year?) so then we could cast the underground tower.
Would it make sense to use some of the given back 25 build points for a Aegis spell or tablet?
What about riffing on LadyPhoenix's idea of the ReCo spell? Could we build a magical elevator in general? A magic platform with a variation on Unseen Porter?
Heh. The world's first freight elevator. That could work.
Looking over people's characters, I don't think we could even reinvent Conjure the Mystical Tower without years of studying to get some arts up. Unless our patron would do it...
Well a lot of things are possible. As a dedicated Covenant you could possibly leverage some stuff without using your patron. But the Patron himself might be able to do a lot. The other Covenants in the Tribunal are basically agreeing to help share the burden and prevent you from failing. Taking poor with this (as has been mentioned) doesn't seem to go well, but I'm willing to work with it.
Just a reminder, taking the Dedicated Covenant option also comes with a Minor boon of Secondary Income (this is likely the reliable, non-story non negotiated amount provided by the Tribunal). This can be Silver or Vis. You have chosen the Poor option, which gives the Boons of Hidden ways (that goes very well with Underground). But the poor option really doesn't specify how or why you're poor, or perhaps you're not poor but have a lot of debt.
A fair, particularly a Hermetic one, is going to be an expensive endeavour. We're going to have to stock items for sale that are costly. Even the mundane "common" items Magi might be interested in shopping for (lab equipment, paper, ink) are very expensive in the Middle Ages. I think we'll be in the red fairly quickly. And let's be honest: we probably won't do a good job with the fair the first couple of times. We might be in the red for a while before we can make it work. IMO, the poor option might fit with this particular dedicated covenant idea.
Large clan costs money to cover and we have to pay for the security of hte fair so we have to spend more on warriors than normal so we will be poor for that.
Expenses will be determined using the Covenants formula, and even though you have the poor option, how poor you are is yet to be determined. There can be things that will help out. If you have two sources of Silver Income (all covenants start with 1, you could potentially have 2) that alone will make a difference.
I see a lot of your poverty going towards your expenditures.
Just to let you know, a lavish festival or two feast days for a hundred participants costs about 1 pound. Your fair could last longer than that, but figure likely a pound per day, probably more initially, then you'll find the best way to run it, and then it will creep up again.
Then on top of that could be expenses for shipping in materials that you will likely sell, or perhaps making materials that you will sell.
Not to mention caravan guards for supplies and guards for things that need to be delivered. Maintenance on two 8 story towers going into the ground, lab supplies, building stone wall around the few buildings we do have above ground.
I do like idea of tubes along side of the main tower that has ReCo enchantment for going up and down and a second without enchantment but block and tackle or pull system for raising and lowering cargo.
Are we thinking of this type of living arrangement within the towers?
Last I recall, if we do above ground, yes. A reverse tower might allow a different take.
Ah, right. If we reverse tower, someone has to reinvent it. So would we want a straight down affair, or something that goes more horizontally? I would assume people would want lab and living quarters on the same level so they don't have to worry about going up and down so much.
What if the circumference of the circle was increased to the point where would could house 3-4 magi on one level? I envision a stair/lift in the center of the structure that leads to a circular landing. At the landing you can walk around the stairs to get to the different doors leading into rooms. This makes each magi's space kinda pie slice shaped (with the center point cut off). It would also allow for room expansion out away from the central stairs.