Grog - Penko, the Dig Foreman

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Ad Astera per Aspera
1

Penko, the Dig Foreman

Characteristics: Int +1, Per +1, Pre -1, Com +1, Str 0, Sta 0, Dex 3, Qik -1
Size: 0
Age: 27, Height: 5'7'', Weight: 162 lbs, Gender: Male
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0 (3) He's has a few close shaves while on dig.
Confidence: No
Virtues: Affinity: Craft, Hermetic Experience, Good Teacher
Flaws: Missing Eye, Wrathful, Motion Sickness

Personality traits: Wrathful +1, Perfectionist +1, Get 'er Done +1, Loyal +1
Reputations: none
Combat:
Dodge:
Fist:
Kick:
Soak:
Fatigue levels: OK, 0, ‑1, ‑3, ‑5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: ‑1 (1-5), ‑3 (6-10), ‑5 (11-15), Incapacitated (16-20), Dead (21+)

[table][tr][td]Ability[/td] [td]Score[/td] [td]specialty[/td] [td](xp pending)[/td] [td]Allocated xp[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Living language (Romany)[/td] [td]5[/td] [td]Excavations[/td] td[/td] [td]0[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Bargain[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Work Gangs[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Swim[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Hold Breath[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Athletics[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Stamina[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Folk Ken[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Work Gangs[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Leadership[/td] [td]5[/td] [td]Masons[/td] td[/td] [td]75[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Order of Hermes Lore[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Items[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Magic Lore[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Items[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Language, Latin[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Labwork[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Language, Arabaic[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Villagers[/td] td[/td] [td]13[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Language, Italian[/td] [td]0[/td] [td]Nobility[/td] td[/td] [td]2[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Craft: Mason[/td] [td]7[/td] [td]Forge Companion[/td] td[/td] [td]99*1.5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Teaching[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Work Gangs[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Profession: Architect[/td] [td]4[/td] [td]Excavations[/td] td[/td] [td]50[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Mason's Guild Lore[/td] [td]4[/td] [td]Making up Ritual[/td] td[/td] [td]50[/td][/tr][/table]

Equipment: Work gloves, hammer, chisel, building plans
Encumbrance: 0 (0)

Penko grew up in the caravan working on various research sites. Over the years he grew from a common laborer to a valued shift foreman and eventually began to oversee the entire worksite. He is very comfortable interacting with outsiders in the context of "his" dig sites, but the thought of having to make his own way in the world without the caravan fills him with apprehension. A self made craftsman, he has worked as a forge companion to Tartessos before, and has stayed with the remnants of the caravan seeking some continuity with the former life. He is slowly realizing that properly building a new covenant could tax his skills to the utmost and possibly take the rest of his life, a challenge he might grow to relish.

Penko's Workhop
Innovation: 0
Raw Materials: 0
Accumulated Labor Points: 24

Advancement:
1220 Spring:
Journey to Skorba 7 xp:5 xp Arabic, 2 xp Italian
1220 Summer:
Exposure 21.5=3 xp in Craft: Mason
1220 Fall:
Exposure 21.5=3 xp in Craft: Mason
1220 Winter
Practice 8 in Arabic

2

Educated or custos would give you access to academic abilities. Hermetic experience would give you access to magic lore, order of Hermes Lore and Latin, but not artes liberals. You also do not actually have forge companion listed as a virtue right now, without that you would not get the bonus 50 xp...
and of course failed apprentice gives access to both arcane and academic abilities...

FWIW I am coming up with this character being age 28 with no bonus experience from forge companion- if you switch good teacher for failed apprentice (maybe a very short apprenticeship?) It would look fine. If you prefer custos or hermetic experience you would have to change a couple of abilities and otherwise be fine. Given your backstory it would seem that hermetic experience and changing (or dropping) artes liberals would seem the closest fit.

3

What does Hermetic Experience do (I don't have that book)?

I don't want to do failed apprentice, I already did that with Paphos and having TWO just seems a little too much, especially if they both can act as forge companions as well. I suppose I could drop the Artes Liberales - it's only there to support the idea of planning digs and making plans/blueprints, such as they are in the 13th century. He is not by any means an academic. I suppose I could explain it as just having an intuitive grasp of architecture and then explaining it verbally to his crew - no writing involved.

I'll check XP later and think about actually taking FC

4

Hermetic Experience means you have spent a lot of time around magi, and gives you 50 xp to put into Order of Hermes Lore, Magic Lore, and Latin- you are not able to spend other experience on magic lore or Latin however... right now the point total in the 2 is 45, if you assume 5 of it is in Order of Hermes Lore and drop Artes Liberales that would put you at age 24.

5

Well, I'm re-working him pretty severely. I'm going with both Hermetic Experience and Forge Companion (trying for the magic 15 to add 3 as a FC, and to be able to produce Excellent quality goods.

Question 1: Can we add Verditius Lore to the list of skills Hermetic Experience opens? If so, I'll choose the 50 points as Latin 3, Magic Lore 2 and Verditius Lore 1. If not, I'll go OOH Lore 1

Question 2: Since the caravan has presumably been stationary for a period of time, can my masons have already set up workshops? How about a single innovation increase in a workshop (would cost 2-3 seasons of labor points). One year older, trading setting up the workshops for the 15 xp normally gained for that year? I understand that I will likely end up moving workshops to the covenant site, but it strikes me that having a relatively nearby workshop would help immensely in physically building the covenant structure. More importantly, Penko could hit the magic 15 for excellent construction. This means he could build an Excellent Stone tower in two seasons, or a whole castle (read: non fortified hospital structure) in five seasons. What exactly would a +1 mean in the case of a tower or castle?

6

I'm fine with verdituous lore as a synergy of Forge Companion and Hermetic Experience.
The caravan has been stationary for a year now, and expecting to pick up and leave at a moments notice for (depending on who you ask) a great deal to most of that time. It is unlikely that it's current location will be where the covenant settles.
An issue with your masonry ability- there is a limit to abilities at 5 for this character's age, which is raised to 7 with affinity, but I don't see how you justify an 11...

7

darn, forgot about that limit. Maybe I will make him the failed apprentice and not Paphos. I'm heading off to work soon, so I'll think on that and get back to the crunchy stuff tomorrow morning.

8

Made some changes, see first post

9

Remember hermetic experience gives 50 points to be used in Order of Hermes Lore, Latin, and Magic Lore. Verdituous lore was allowed as a synergy with forge companion which you don't have now. If we change Verditious lore over to Order of Hermes Lore we still end up with your age at 23 2/3.
Also I would point out that having both your people having craft in masonry I going to reduce the savings as even one will probably start up against the limit- you will probably want to change one of them to woodworking/carpentry.

10

Makes sense, I'll change it.

I'm going to keep them both as Masons. While we could save more money by spreading the type of skill, this way they form the nucleus of a very formidable Forge Companion circle, with ability to grow built in. I think I'll start my own Masonic Lodge.

Not sure where I went wrong on points, but if he has 5 left over, let's take those 5, advance him three years, and add all fifty points into Organization Lore: Fraternity of Free and Independent Masons at level 4.

11

Freemasonry appears to have begun in the 17th century, though there are some documents which are refereced and which some claim relate to its founding as early as the 15th. I have no problem with you talking an organizational lore for a mystical organization, but we need to be clear this is not the historical freemasons, and decide if this is something you 'researched' independently or if it a small organization from somewhere on your travels, and if so where... There are no Europe-wide non-hermetic mystical organizations like this that you would have been able to gain access to...

12

I presume he was referring to C&G page 59, which presumably is the international predecessor to the FreeMasons?

13

yah, C&G stated the guild was international, and while I'm aware it really has nothing to do with modern day Freemasonry, it amuses me to see it as a "guys club" where the masters gather to drink beer, shoot the breeze and talk shop. Penko is a Master Mason and I'd rather he be part of that culture than taking a flaw to cut him off from it.

It gives me some story seeds to complicate the life of magi who just happen to be living in HIS building...

14

Then lets jut call it the international guild of masons, which also means it is a non-initiatory (at least in terms of mystical initiation) guild.