I'm not sure that's a good assumption. Here's what Marko said when I was making up my familiar:
That's 775 points worth of Attributes, 55 points over for an Autumn creature. But I have a question, why does she start out as an Autumn Creature? So far as I know, familiars (or proto-familiars) start off as Summer creatures. Horus is certainly a Summer creature.
I missed that. Easily fixed. Does he still get the free Native language or no?
It'll be 720 once I get the bases un-based, as above.
Went with Autumn because of what I see as Semsuhfaw's role: kind of a mentor/teacher as well as a good friend.
So. Revised Abilities list:
Language must be paid for.
What was Horus' base Might? I think he went with base 10 summer, as did Vocis with Celeste and Roberto with Cidito. Solomon went with base 15 Spring I think. Not sure.
Would you be fine with base 5 Autumn?
Or base ten with Improved Abilities five times plus Reduced Might for more Improved Abilities and/or Ability Virtues?
Yea, Horus went for 10 Might, Summer.
ponders I'm kind of attached to the Autumn mentor/teacher role, for some reason. If we make Semmy a Companion level with a Medium saga-power-level, that would give him a base Might of 10 (12 when you factor in his Size), or 5 more than he has now.
Paying for French: 5 and putting the skills where they were before means an additional 205 xp in Abilities, which would use four of the five new Magic Might (with a little shuffling on the abilities). Dunno what to do with the extra MM, though. Maybe a Personal Power that allows him to levitate, basically a Rego Animal base 5(?), R: Personal, D: Concentration +1, T: Individual, for a spell level of 10. Base Might Cost is 5, but with three Mastery Points from the power would reduce that to 2.
Would that work? And would having him be Companion level be more in keeping with my (the player's) goal of making him a Familiar down the road?
So, after the discussion over on the General Table Talk thread and actually reading the saga guidelines for Familiars, I think I'm going to overhaul Semsuhfaw. Make him a Summer Character (360xp) with a base Might of 10 (which would be 12, after adjusting for his Size).
Definitely going with the Do My Will Power, though, but I am undecided about the "Leaping Legless Lizards, Lenny!" one. I'll have to dig out my Hargreave's and see what powers snakes supposedly had.
For what it's worth, fine by me. I like this.
Or maybe, that's what he tells Guiverna. He may just enjoy the attention 
Serf's parma, looks like it.
But with Base Might 05
You could give it a corosive spit, or extra extra extra soak. Or a stealth power. Or a ritual self-healing power ("shedding his old skin"). Or a "growing" power, like the waimee.
Ooo...I like the self-healing power...and depending on what magnitude it winds up being, it would take (probably) a couple of hours, which seems about right.
Qu'est-que c'est "waimee"? Je ne sait pas cet mot, et je ne peux pas trouver avec Google.
Only problem is, it'd be a Ritual Power, so cost Might Score, although he could substitute Confidence*. Add Vis mastery for the ability to spend 1 vis as confidence, add self-confident to have more confidence AND spend 2 pawns as confidence.
Take the Restricted Powers flaw to represent the fact that it takes time and requires him to shed his old skin
It's a monster in... Tales of power.
Un serpent géant qui grandit, grandit, jusqu'à pouvoir enserrer l'alliance dans ses anneaux.
I disagree. They will replenish naturally at a rate similar to stories. They won't "over stack", if that is what you mean. But I think it would e acceptable for the players to use Fortune this way if the character has the aforementioned Quality.
Have his "Shed My Skin" power statted, I think.
[hr][/hr]
Shed His Skin (CrAn 35, Ritual)
This Power allows Semsuhfaw to shed his skin, thereby healing him of all his wounds.
Base Might Cost 7, Base Init -13
He has 15 Levels left from his Ritual Power, which he applies as 3 Mastery Points to reduce the Might Cost of the power to 4.
Base 35 ("Heal all wounds", R: Personal, D: Momentary, T: Individual.
I'm thinking, purely as fluff, that every time he does this, he adds ½ inch (1 cm) to his length. I don't see it happening enough to actually increase his size anytime in the next century, but it's still cool.
Semsuhfaw v2.0
He's now built as a Companion-level Summer character for a Medium-power saga, which gives him base 10 Might (12, when adjusting for size) and 360 xp for Abilities (510 when factoring in Improved Abilities x3). He is also exceptionally large for a (European) snake, measuring over 10½ feet long (3.25 m) and weighing about 19 pounds (8.7 kg).
[hr][/hr]
Magic Might: 12(Animal)
Characteristics: Int +2, Per 0, Pre 0 (-6/+3), Com +2, Str -4, Sta +2, Dex +2, Qik +1.
Size: -2
Season: Summer
Virtues and Flaws: Magic Animal, Lightning Reflexes, Unaffected by the Gift; Infamous.
Qualities and Inferiorities: Ambush Predator, Gift of Speech, Greater Power (Do My Will), Improved Abilities x3, Minor Virtue (Unaffected by the Gift), Ritual Power x2 (Shed My Skin),Venomous; Acclimation Prone, Loathsome Appearance, Susceptible to Deprivation.
Personality Traits: Deceitful 2, Fond of Guiverna 3, Proud 2
Combat:
[table][tr][th]Maneuver[/th]
[th]Init[/th]
[th]Atk[/th]
[th]Dfn[sup]1[/sup][/th]
[th]Dmg[/th][/tr]
[tr][td]Dodge[/td]
[td]+1[/td]
[td]n/a[/td]
[td]+3[/td]
[td]n/a[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Fangs[/td]
[td]+1[/td]
[td]+5[/td]
[td]+4[/td]
[td]-4[/td][/tr][/table][sup]1[/sup] +6 bonus when Defending against Grapples.
Soak: +2
Wound Penalties: -1 (1-2), -3 (3-4), -5 (5-6), Incapacitated (7-8), Dead (9+).
Fatigue Levels: OK, 0, –1, –3, –5, Unconscious.
Abilities: Brawl i[/i] 2, Charm i[/i] 2, Egyptian i[/i] 4, Egyptian Theology i[/i], 5French i[/i] 5, Guile 4, Hunt 4, Latin i[/i] 4, Penetration (Do My Will) 1, Stealth (stalking prey) 4, Teaching i[/i] 5.
Powers:
Venomous Bite, 0 Points, Init 0, Animal.
[tab][/tab]When Semsuhfaw attacks, compare his Attack Advantage to the victim’s armor Protection (not his Soak). If Semsuhfaw's advantage is higher, the victim suffers the effects of his venom (equivalent to Adder Bite, as listed in the Poison Table on page 180 of ArM5), regardless of whether the bite inflicts an actual wound. The Storyguide may adjust the required Attack Advantage for special circumstances: for instance, high boots might offer an effective Protection +3 against his special attack even though they don’t protect against normal attacks.
Do My Will, 1 point, Init -10, Penetration 9. Mentem.
ReMe 35, R: Eye, D: Sun, T: Individual. (Base 20, "Give a person one complex command, which he tries to carry out to the best of his ability", +1 Eye, +2 Sun)
[tab][/tab]Upon making eye contact with the target, Semsuhfaw can give him a verbal command, which the target must carry out to the best of his ability. The command may be very simple ("Run.") to quite complex ("Go to your master's chambers, find the garnet ring, and bring it here.") The only caveat is that it must be carried out by the next sunset or sunrise.
[tab][/tab]Base Might Cost is 4, Base Init is -6. The 15 points left over translates into 3 Mastery Points, which is used to reduce the Might Cost.
Shed My Skin, 4 points, Init -13. Animal.
CrAn 35, Ritual, R: Personal, D: Momentary, T: Individual. (Base 35, "Heal all wounds")
[tab][/tab]This Power allows Semsuhfaw to shed his skin, thereby healing him of all his wounds. Each use of the power incidentally increases his overall length by ½" (1 cm).
[tab][/tab]Base Might Cost 7, Base Init -13. The 15 points left over translates into 3 Mastery Points, which is used to reduce the Might Cost.
Vis: 2
I'm not sure about it. I like the Confidence HR, it is a good one IMO, but I get the feeling that it isn't supposed to automatically be refreshed from story to story in the RAW, making substituting Confidence for Vis a tougher choice than this.
Now, replacing that by fortune... I'm not sure, but I think that this may be a good idea.
But whatever
The length thing: Sure, cool!
Note that, as it is, it only take one round, allowing it to do some Orochimaru-style regeneration (before the serpents thing)
It does? flipflip Huh. I don't know why I assumed it would take as long as a Ritual Spell (i.e. an hour and 45 minutes).
Would Restricted Power be suitable for making it take that long? It doesn't really fit with any of the things listed for the Flaw (performing some special ceremony to activate, only functioning on a limited class of targets, or in specific circumstances), but it seems to me it's similar enough.
The special ceremony is shedding his skin while "sleeping", like emerging from a cocoon.
Guiverna's Quarter is located in the basement of an manor house owned by the merchant captain Ramon de Montoya, with his Laureta and children. There is a passageway that, if one enters it with their eyes closed and continues on the same way, will lead them into the Regio. (The children had discovered it playing hide-and-seek, but their parents never believed their tales). The tunnel entrance, from the Regio side, is the mouth of a cavern that appears to have been worked into an isosceles trapezoid at the base of a low bluff overlooking a wide river. The entrance is about 450 yards/meters from the riverbank, and the land slopes gently toward the water.
One of the curious features of the tunnel is that it is as wide as it needs to be, and doesn't always seem to be the same length. That is, if one is simply walking through the tunnel with their arms outstretched, they could quite easily run their fingers along both walls; if they were carrying a large bed, however, the entire bed would easily fit into and through the tunnel, even though it doesn't seem like it would fit through the entrance.
The regio (which Guiverna has dubbed "Douât") extends at least as far as the horizon and is and (mostly) mundane-looking, if exceptionally beautiful. There are rivers, islands, fields, lakes, mounds and caverns, but there are also fantastic features such as a lake of fire, an iron hill, and a turquoise tree.
Guiverna's house (which will be at least as large as the house that contains the regio entrance) and laboratory will be built a short distance downstream from the regio entrance, and about half-way between the bluff and the river. Outbuildings scattered around the main house will contain storage rooms, guest cottages, and several shrines to her gods and goddesses.
[hr][/hr]
[u]Shared Boons and Hooks[/u]
[hr][/hr]
[u]Personal Boons and Hooks (+6/7)[/u]
Regio: Minor Boon. There are likely many ways into Douât. The tunnel beneath Ramon and Laureta's manor is simply the one that Guiverna and Horus found.
Status: Journeyman i[/i]
[u]Aura[/u]
[tab][/tab]Strong Aura (+3), increasing the Quarter's Aura to 3 and covering the whole area.
[tab][/tab]Favorable Aura (+1): Douât's Aura is aligned with Corpus.
[u]Location[/u]
[tab][/tab]Inland (+0), about half a mile (760 meters) from the Badia de Palma.
[tab][/tab]Difficult Access (+1): the entrance to Guiverna's Regio is located in the basement of a house in the city.
[tab][/tab]Healthy Feature (+1): Douât grants a total bonus of +2 to Aging and Recovery rolls.
[tab][/tab]Urban/City (-3): The entrance to Douât is located in a major city (Palma).
[u]Construction[/u]
[tab][/tab]Special Feature (+1): a 70 foot (21 meter) tall obelisk stands to the east of Guiverna's laboratory. It is positioned in such a way that when the sun is exactly half-way up in the sky, it forms a nimbus around the tip of the obelisk (as seen from the window of her laboratory).
[tab][/tab]Important Building (+1): a large mauselum, with several small rooms in addition to the main burial chamber, is being erected to the west of the main building, in a straight line from the obelisk.
[u]Inhabitants[/u]
[tab][/tab]Guiverna is only using her base allotment of 10 points of inhabitants; unbeknownst to her, several are actually in the services of Arachné, who has employed them to keep an eye on Guiverna and to report to her should she show herself to not be as trustworthy as she seemed.
[hr][/hr]
Thematically, I am basing Douât on Duat, the Egyptian underworld...at least, as far as physical description goes. As much as I would love to have the occasional demon/monster accost people in Douât, or have a wondering sphinx or something, that might be pushing it a bit 
.
Am I correct in my understanding that I can only take the [strike]one[/strike] Boons and Hooks, etc. listed in the Sa Dragonera creation rules for Guiverna's Quarter?
I will check this out closer when I get a chance, but so far it looks good.
Guiverna's laboratory is situated in a large marble single-story building half a stone's throw from her house in Douât.
The laboratory structure is oriented not quite east-west, with the main entrance facing west-ish. The main door is a large archway, with a pair of statues mirroring each other on either side of the door, depicting a life-size woman standing with a looped cross in her outside hand.
The doors themselves are heavy wood, with brass ring handles, which are engineered so that they take little effort to pull open or closed, despite their obvious bulk. Her Sanctum Marker is carved onto the archway.
The laboratory itself is immaculate, and incredibly well-organized. The air is a little cooler than one might expect, and the room is rather well-lit. One large window adorns the eastern wall, with a view of the obelisk. One section of the room is dedicated to a pallet (Lesser Feature), surrounded by equipment apparently dedicated to advancing her knowledge of Corpus.
All of the tools and equipment are obviously well-made.
[hr][/hr]
Location: Douât Regio
Size: +3(3)
[tab][/tab]1000 sq ft (92.9 sq metres)
Refinement: +0
General Quality: +2
Upkeep: +4
Safety: -1
Warping: +1
Health: +0
Aesthetics: +7
[u]Virtues[/u]
Dedicated Building (Free Structure): Aesthetics +1, Upkeep +1; Rego +1.
Gateway (Minor Supernatural): Aesthetics +1, Safety -1; Rego +1.
Grand Entrance (Free Structure): Aesthetics +2.
Highly Organized (Free Outfittings): General Quality +1.
Lesser Feature: Pallet (Minor Structure): Aesthetics +1; Corpus +1.
Regio (Free Supernatural): Size +3, Warping +1.
Superior Construction (Free Structure): Aesthetics +1, Safety +1.
Superior Equipment (Free Outfittings): General Quality +1, Safety +1, Upkeep +2; Extracting Vis +1.
Superior Tools (Free Outfittings): Safety +1, Upkeep +1; Enchanting Items +1.
Well Insulated (Minor Structure): Aesthetics +1, Safety +1.
[u]Flaws[/u]
Thoroughfare (Free Supernatural): Safety -1.
[u]Specializations[/u]
Corpus: +1
Enchanting Items +1
Extracting Vis +1
Rego +2
Is that a Virtue we can just declare we have in a new lab? I thought you needed to get it through Refinement.
