Fiona ex Miscellanea

I doubt Fiona would be all "Oh, come on, baby, you know you want to try it," considering it's not exactly in vogue in period. But she would be flirting, maybe just planting the seed, with the implicit "I'm available if you want to try." And she would find the irony delicious.

I have a couple of questions regarding an idea or two I have for a future lab project for Fiona.

  • The main rulebook (p. 98, first column) says that "you always have an Arcane Connection to your talisman". Does that mean that she will always be able to cast a spell with Range: Arcane Connection on her talisman, regardless of where in the world it is?

  • There doesn't seem to be a ReHe guideline that allows you to teleport wood. However, ReCo has a guideline to ward against humans which is the same level as warding against mundane plant products (Level 15). The level for ReCo to "transport the target instantly to a place to which you have an Arcane Connection" is Level 35. Would it be reasonable (or better, correct) to assume that it would be the same base level to do the same with wood or other plant product? Or would it be lower?

  • If the base level is 35, that gives me a spell allowing Fiona to instantly teleport her talisman to her, with a Base 35, R: Arcane Connection +4, D: Momentary, T: Individual, for a final spell level of 55 (yikes!). That means that it must, by definition, be a Ritual spell (since formulaic spells may not have a level greater than 50, ref: main rulebook p. 114, third column, third bullet point under "Ritual Spells.") Correct? (That would mean that Fiona is incapable of casting the spell.)

This is the exact problem I saw, and I believe I asked about it here too.

1st: Yes.

2nd: I've seen consistency with inert items getting ported at the same level as Corpus throughout the different material on Ars 5, so I would assume that the Talisman would be ported at the base for transporting a human.

3rd: This was the same obstacle I came to also. It's a darned high level spell to transport something to you, rather than you to it. An option would be to make an item that can teleport it to you, because then while the effect is 55+, it is only a Ritual because of its level, so it can be reproduced in an item.

The only other thing I could see would be some kind of discovery, a new affect like the Verditius Enchanted Casting Tools, which allows you to summon and dismiss the tools.

Yep.

Ugh. That seems really high to me, but there's a spell in Covenants that teleports a book, and it uses the ReCo guidelines, so I guess you're stuck with that being the base level.

That is also correct.
As a work-around you can build the effect into the Talisman itself instead. An InMe at R:Arc to listen for a particular set of keywords (say, any two-word command where the first word is 'Talisman'), and a ReHe with a linked trigger to teleport the staff to you. Invested device effects can have effects that are above L50, as long as the level is the only reason the corresponding spell would be a ritual. (This also has the advantage that you can set the effect to expire in 7 or 70 years, figuring your Arts would be better by then, and get a huge boost to your Lab Total.)

There was a discussion a few months back about different ways to do this.

https://forum.atlas-games.com/t/talisman-come-to-me/7388/1

Nice. I hadn't considered the CrIm or ReVi triggering routes. And it would only be a level 35 effect, because you don't add the +4 for Arcane Connection range -- look at "Leap of Homecoming".
EDIT: MoH guidelines apparently say level 25, but I don't have MoH.

So, she would actually have to [strike]invent two spells[/strike] invent a spell and invest an effect in the Talisman, rather than invent an uncastable spell.

The effect would be a Level 35 Rego Herbam (base 35, R: Personal, D: Momentary, T: Individual), to teleport the talisman to her hands. Although, apparently, Magi of Hermes has a Rego Terram guideline to "transport a target instantly to a place to which you have an Arcane Connection" which is Level 25. Which I prefer to level 35, personally. Although I kind of like the idea of having it only being usable by her (to keep someone from grabbing her talisman and sending it to Mount Doom), making it a 38.

The spell would be, say, a Creo Imaginem, base 1, R: Arcane Connection (+4), D: Momentary, T: Individual, for a final spell level of 5. Although it also occurs to me that it could be Rego Imaginem, base 15, R: Personal, D: Momentary, T: Individual, for a Spell Level of 15.

Installing the effect in her Talisman looks like it will take two seasons: Lab Total of Int 1 + Magic Theory 6 + Rego 10 + Herbam 10 + Inventive Genius 3 + Paul 4 + Sheelagh's Int 2 + Sheelagh's MT 3 + Sheelagh's Inventive Genius 3 + Rego Aura 10 + Lab General Quality 2 + Lab Specialty (Enchanting Items) 1 + Lab Specialty (Rego) 1 + Lab Specialty (Herbam) 1 +5 Talisman goodness = 62. She could have it usable 24 times a day (+5), or 6 (+3) if we go the only unable by her route, and not have it take any longer. Or, she could Experiment (gaining another +1 Lab Bonus), and have it done in one season, with it being usable once a day, barring a really crappy roll on the Extraordinary Results table. (And, frankly, if her Talisman is getting swiped more often than that, she deserves to not have one anymore. :laughing: )

Her Lab Total for the Imaginem effect is Int 1 + Magic Theory 6 + Creo 6 + Imaginem 5 + Inventive Genius 3 + Paul 4 + Sheelagh's Int 2 + Sheelagh's MT 3 + Sheelagh's Inventive Genius 3 + Aura 5 + Lab General Quality 2 = 40, vs. a CrIm target of 5. Or, if it's Rego, her LT would be 50, vs. a ReIm target of 15. Either one would probably entail her coming up with another low-level Imaginem spell to invent.

Numbers are all based on her and Sheelagh's current scores, and this is at least a year and a half off anyway.

But does this sound about right?

You forgot a shape/material bonus. Wood gives "+4 to affect dead wood", which would apply.

So that would make her LT a 66, without experimenting. Which is pretty awesome if the base is 25 instead of 35.

Bump experimentation (+3, +1 is for weaklings and diednes) and something else to give you a +1 (like a better combo of materials) and you get a 70 LT for a one season experiment even with a level 35 effect. Oh, you got inventive genious so just experimenting gets you from +4 to +6, so no problem boosting it all to 70.

Remember, it can be risky, but it is certainly fun.

Plus, her apprentice also has Inventive Genius. So, experimenting adds +6 all told (plus the simple die, plus risk factor) instead of +3.

Upcoming Enchantments, just to be (a) I have it written down somewhere and (b) so I don't miss anything.

[u]The Thrusting Stone[/u]
[tab][/tab]Rego Terram, base 3 ("Control or move dirt in a very unnatural fashion"), +1 Stone, R: Personal, D: Concentration +1, T: Individual, final Effect Level 5. Usable 24 times a day +5 , Device maintains Concentration +5. Final Enchantment Level 15. As I understand it, she is able to give verbal commands to vary the frequency of the godemiche's thrusts (faster or slower) without having to reactivate the enchantment.

[u]The Unseen Porter i[/u][/i]
[tab][/tab]Rego Terram (Animal, Corpus, Herbam, and Vim Requisites) base 3, R: Touch +1, D: Concentration +1, T: Individual, final Spell Level 5. Usable 6 times a day +3. Final Enchantment Level 8.

Lab Total:Int 1 + Re 10 + Te 5 + MT 6 + Inventive Genius 3 + Paul 4 + Sheelagh Int 2 + Sheelagh MT 3 + Sheelagh Inventive Genius 3 + Rego Aura 10 = 47. Note that I'm not including the +5 Talisman bonus for the Unseen Porter lab total, just to make things easier. As it is now, she has a high enough Lab Total to be able to do both enchantments in one season

[u]Accio Talisman[/u]
[tab][/tab]Rego Herbam, base 5, R: Personal, D: Momentary, T: Individual; final effect level 5. Unlimited Uses +10, only usable by Fiona +3; final enchantment level 18.

Lab Total: Int 1 + Re 10 + He 10 + Magic Theory 6 + Inventive Genius 3 + Rego Aura 10 + Paul 4 + Sheelagh's Int 2 + Sheelagh's MT 3 + Sheelagh's Inventive Genius 3 + Talisman Bonus 5 + S/M Dead Wood (affect dead wood) 4 + Lab General Quality 2 + Lab Specialty: Enchanting Items 1 + Lab Specialty: Rego 1 + Lab Specialty: Herbam 1 = 66.

In case anyone's interested, I uploaded an old floor plan of Fiona's cottage, from before Viscaria made stairs and a basement for Moire, Seumas, and the kids. Not sure where I'd put the stairs down, but they're there somewhere.

Apparently I already had Fiona advanced through Winter, including her aging roll. For Spring, she's inventing a couple of Muto Corpus spells: La Petite Mascarade and a variant of The Succubus's Trick (Houses of Hermes: Societates, p. 97) that has a +1 modifier for size. (And random die roll says that when Fiona perfects the latter spell, when he looks down, he nods and says, [color=blue]"Not bad. Not bad at all."

The total of the two spells is 25. Her Lab Total is Int 1 + Muto 17 + Corpus 15 + Magic Theory 6 + Inventive Genius 3 + Paul 4 + Sheelagh's Int 2 + Sheelagh's Magic Theory 3 + Sheelagh's Inventive Genius 3 + Lab General Quality 2 + Lab Specialization: Muto (Still) 1 + Aura 5= 62.

The two Exposure xp, she's putting into Magic Theory.

I think I know what to put in Fiona's talisman the same season that she's installing the Accio Talisman. Basically, Repel the Wooden Shafts (p.138). However, it's a Voice Range. I seem to recall something in the enchantment rules that if an item has an effect that's Voice range, it has to be able to make noise, but I can't find it. If it's measured from the wielder's voice, saying the command word, then I can install the effect with 24 uses a day and use up all the remaining levels. If not, I'm going to have to come up with something. Anybody else remember this and can point out where it is, or am I daft?

Main book, P. 112, column 1, under "Voice": "Magic items use the wielder's voice: independent items need to be given a voice (CrIm) to use this range."

This does not, however, preclude you being daft. :smiley:

Silly me, thinking it would be in the laboratory section. :unamused: But, since this is a magic item and not an independent item, I should be good with what she's doing, then. R: Voice, using Fiona's voice.

(Alexei will be so proud the first time she whips that out at fighter practice :smiley: )

And anyone who has the theme to Danger Mouse stuck in their head multiple times every day can't be all there, right?

So, something Fiona said in her conversation with Korvin (no, not that conversation, this one was actually relevant) got me to wondering.

The only Muto book we have, In Flux Veritas is "only" Level 12. I can't find Fiona's start-of-play character sheet, but she had a Muto score of 10 when she was Gauntleted, 26 years before the game started. So, she most likely already had a Muto in the 13-15 range, and thus has never been able to read that particular book since the game started.

Now, since she has a Muto of 17 now, she would gain no benefit from reading In Flux Veritas. But you can't write a Commentary on a book unless you've read it.

Would the troupe be amenable to stipulating that Fiona has read the book and thus can write a commentary on it, or would they have Fiona read the book (with no gain)? (She would gloss it, as well, and she may anyway, but someone beat her to it :smiley: )

The description of In Flux Veritas starts with "Written by the apprentice of Mutante of Mercere, this is often considered to be an essential book on the Technique of Muto." Seems to me that it would be widely available; it's not a stretch to think that Fiona read a copy during her apprenticeship even, or early on in her Hermetic life.

I'd be fine with her wriring it.