"I stand ready to help, of course," Lucas adds. "But I'm not sure that my magic theory is sufficient to help find a solution to your conundrum."
"Or maybe it is," Lucas says abruptly. "It depends on how good you are at coordinating assistants in the lab." He takes a wax tablet from his belt and starts scrawling numbers on it. "If Horus and I helped you," he says, looking up. "And maybe an apprentice if I can scare one up, that would get you over half of the way there. You'd only need to get another two assistants to make the project workable in a reasonable amount of time." He smiles. "Of course, I'd go crazy if I was trying to coordinate five extra people in my lab. But that's just me."
I bet with five assistants you could get your LT up to 90, which would get a level 60 enchantment done in 2 seasons.
This... This could work.
I tend to overwork things, looking too far into the future, but your stable idea could save us three magnitudes on the wand.
We couldn't use a Group target, sadly, not unless we want precise control. Not that this changes much*. This could work for unleashing all our servants on a given aggressor, though.
And I'm loathe to put a 7-years expiry. For such a project, this is a waste of time, in my opinion.
70 years is more like it. Hopefully, either we or our successors will be able to do something better, and, at worst, we'll leave a laboratory text behind.
Sigh... This is a little far from my plans. I wanted eternal guardians, but, sadly, I am not yet up to the task. This will have to do, I figure.
Wand: Base 5, +2 voice, +1 concentration, +0 ind = level 20, and then +6 for 50 uses a day, +5 to maintain concentration, +3 for only allowing people attuned to the aegis to use it, +8 for 16 penetration = 42.
With a lab total of around 63, this makes 21 more points, which becomes 42 with a 70 years expiry... JUST!!! She can to it as a lesser item.
The room will be more difficult, though, since she can't count on spell familiarity to boost her lab total. So she'll either need some help, or do it as a greater one.
This is another possibility. Knowing the spell "Voices from Hollow Spaces", I can bind ghosts to circlets we'd put around each elemental's head, and even instill that in an item, easily. In fact, I had ideas around this 
But then, unless dealing with amicable ghosts, like former covenant members, we'd need a way to compel the ghosts, and a means to give them control over the elementals. All of these are certainly possible, but, as far as I can see, only on a case-by-case basis, meaning we'd have to enchant each and every circlet. Unless I'm missing something, of course... 
You can see that arachné is clearly tempted to try it...
Alas. Walking all around the covenant, any freak occurrence* could ruin the casting, bringing disastrous results over us. I can risk my own life and safety, but not that of my sodales, our covenfolks, or our home.
- a botch. Walking at 10 paces per round, even assuming that a circle encompassing the castle would only be 500 paces to walk (about 80 meters radius), this'd mean 50 checks. Even assuming only 1 botch die, that's about 40% chances of at least one botch, which would botch the spell. This is where Cautious with Concentration would be awesome
.
Arachné laughs wrily.
I can. Barely*, but I can.
- Leadership 4, specialty lab work meaning 5 (and I don't remember if we house ruled whether the familiar counts or not towards that limit)
Any volunteers? 
When would this be? I would need to rearrange Fleurs schedule, but with her MT of (depending on when) anywhere from 8+2 to 10+2, her int of 3, and her familiar with a lab bonus of 6 she would offer anywhere from +19 to +21 to the lab total.
If you can wait until Elena is a bit more trained, then Lucas, Horus, and Elena could bring up to +27 to the mix.
63+48: lab total of 111
wow
I think that would handle getting it done in a season.
If we use Fleurs lab there is a +3 mentem bonus...
In 1239.
By then, she will have increased her terram score and... Oh shit. Oh shit. She'll have installed a Greater Focus/Feature in her lab, but she's really paranoid about this (She's got a fake lab, with the real one been buried underground and accessible only through Rego Corpus), so we'd have to do it in another laboratory, possibly Vulcanus old one, since it ain't used at the moment as far as I know? +4 Quality, +2 Items, +1 Rego, +2 Terram so it might be a better deal.
Maybe I'll reorganise her scedule. If we can hit 120, we can do the uber item as a lesser one.
If not, we might still be able to rock.
I'll try to compute her lab total by then when I can.
Lucas doesn't open Elena's Arts until 1241. So he can't bring in an apprentice to help in 1239. Besides, in 1239 he's busy creating the Wand of the Giant Soldier and inventing Grog's Sidestep.
So...
Int 02 + Reg 21 + Terram 13 (by then) + MT 07 + Aura 05 + similar spell bonus 04 + Wand 04 (control at a distance) + Bronze 03 (Terram) = 59
Her familiar adds another +9, so that's 68
Do it in Vulcanus lab and that's another +9, for 77
She's got an effective leadership score of 5 in the lab, meaning 4 person, 5 if her familiar doesn't count (I don't recall the rule here).
Fleur is monstrously effective (Gotta love these bonisagi 
), so let's add her and her familiar for +20 and 97.
Ideally, we need to find another 23 points of lab total, between 3 (at best) and 2 (at worst) people.
Since Lucas is busy in 1239, we can wait until 1240. This leaves her 2 choices:
- Increase her Leadership score by 1 (she lacks 25xp), in which case the whole lucas-horus-elena gang go do the difference, or another mage. This is very probably the best bet.
- Study Terram like crazy. She can bring it to 16 in 3 seasons, gaining 3 more points. She can gain 1 more Rego point by reading Lucas tractatus. That leaves at worst Lucas and Horus for 19 points, 18 if Fleur expects all previsions.
For reference, Erik Tyrell considered Hermanus had, with help, a lab total of 64 before adding Technique and Form. Well done, Andorra!
Lucas and Horus alone can get +18 (+9 each) I can rearrange things for 1240 if that's all that works for Arachne.
But as I said, I open Elena's Arts in Winter 1241. If 1241 works for people, I can bring her into the mix. Elena will give at least a +5, maybe a +6 or +7, depending on what season it is.
1241 I can retain the apprentice and have that bonus as well, if you raise your leadership. I'll put off refining my lab...
Whose Lab are we assisting in? If Arachne, Carmen offers to help. Int +4 & MT 7.
Vulcanus' forge is currently occupied by Antoine; however, he likes and trusts Arachné, and will offer it for her use, and his assistance if it helps. If it doesn't, he'll just read that season.
Edit: Int +4, MT 7 for enchanting, +3 from Inventive Genius.
if Antoine takes down his sigil and Arachne is the lead, then there is little social stigma and Carmen will offer her aid.
No, your familiar doesn't count - you can always have your familiar helping you in your lab, no matter your leadership or however many other assistants you have. Also, if you have no leadership (not that this applies here), you can still always have at least one helper. So a mage with no (or 1) leadership can get the help of their apprentice and familiar, for example, and more leadership just lets you lead larger groups than that.
If we're doing this any time after Winter of 1237, when Guiverna arrives and has found her Regio, she adds Int + MT of 5 (6 if it's for inventing spells). The first two seasons, she was building her own lab, but if she's needed (and if this counts as Covenant Service with the bonus pay), she can set that aside for a few months.
Thank you very much, sodales. I appreciate it immensely.
It seems that, ideally, if Fleur and Lucas both help, we can manage in a single season a 11th magnitude effect. If I push my Terram studies, we'll be able to craft the rod I detailed above. Yes, the one that'll allow us to have independant Stone Guardians
But... (and she smiles a little maniacally, barely supressing a giggle) it seems that, should Antoine assist us in our efforts, we can push this to a 13 magnitude effect*. Well enough to do an even better version of my previous idea, one that could allow us to have a potentially infinite number of Stone Guardians*.
See, we just need to weave a little more vis into it, and it won't be limited to 25 elementals. Any number will be possible!**
She shows her covenfolks a few charts, that appear to be slightly modified versions of the ones she displayed in the previous reunion.
Since several of your numbers have projects from 1241, we could do it either in 1240, or in early 1241.
So, the question is: Fleur, Lucas, Antoine... Are you ready to make Andorra history?
- Arachné, Intissar, in Vulcanus lab, crafting a Bronze rod = 77.
Add Fleur and Familiar for +20, to 97
Add Lucas and Horus for +18, to 117.
Add Antoine for +14, to 131. Take that, hermanus!
** Base 5, +4 AC, +3 Moon = lvl 40, +10 for unlimited uses per day, +3 sunrise/sunset trigger, +3 restricted to magi attuned to the Aegis, +8 for Penetration 16 = 64, times 2 = 128. We might even be able to push the Penetration to 20, potentially allowing control of even bigger elementals
I favor 1241.