I've just read the chapter about Hermetic Architecture in TMRE and I have some questions and thougts about this Virtue.
First of all: if you want to enchant a forrest or a glade or a lake, can you do it with this Virtue and a Boundary target?
Second: Do I realy nead at least 128 Vis for the smallest boundary only for opening the component devices? In other words: am I realy foreced to open 8 different items with at least 16 Vim vis? Ok with Craft and Astrology you can save a big amount of Vis, but it seams very much.
Third: Am I overseeing some rule or is the enchantment of rooms and structures via Hermetic Architecture and his extreme need of Vis and time only... bullshit? Why I have to build 5 to 7 Component Devices with touch range spells, when you can do it with a simple hermetic item that can affect rooms and structures via ... Touch range? Such an item needs less, vis, less time, doesnt require any Mystery or Ritual and it can be moved to any room/structure of a proper size, not only the one it was designed for!
Fourth: are the new guidelines for powering up a magical aura only usable with the Component Divice system or can you invest these guidelines into normal items?
And last one: can you enchant a boundary Component device with Aegis of the Hearth?
Sorry but on the last one, unless this mystery breaks the hermetic limits I can't see how you can invest any ritual (such as Aegis) into ANY device. Not having read TMRE I can't know for sure, but would be certainly interested if someone could give me the details of such a breakthrough.
Hmm with Hermetic Architecture you can invest Boundary spells into an item, the question is if Aegis of the Hearth is an ritual because of its effect or its Target: Boundary. In the first case you cant use it with Hermetic Architecture, in the second case you could.
Aegis is a ritual because of year duration. To change any parameter of this spell requires a hermetic breakthrough just as WolfOfCampscapel stated.
However, the questions about Hermetic Architecture you asked occured to me as well. I would think you could use an effect with room target and touch range to heighten the aura in the room. An example may be the "Mage-Stones" mentioned in Guardians of the Forest. They were bulit by Verditus and given to Bonisagus. Now three of them were given to the convent in Lubeck (Oculus septemtrionalis). It is said that today it is unkown how to accomplish such a feat with Hermetic Magic. But this was written before TMRE was published...
Maybe someone can state what benefits Hermetic Architecture does give besides changing aura strength and regio size. However, this alone is worth getting initiated.
Ok, good with an Aegis it would be too powerful.
But I am confused a bit more since I read the chapter the last time: in all exampels earth has a multiplier *2, but in the tabula it is statet that soft sone/earth has a multiplier -3.
But besides this: imagine an artifact that has Sun/Boundary versions of weather control, vermin killer, Bountiful Feast, demon destroying/expelling (this one with unlimited uses and one activation every 6 seconds) and so on. After I calclated the costs of these ritual spells I am now think that a Vis rich covenant should indeed use this Virtue to make itself to an earthly paradise.
Well, noble's parma, but I beleive there's a mystery that allows you just that.
...
Checked: Hermetic Empowerment, although It wouldn't work on a non-totally hermetic spell like the Aegis.
Already done, although on a room. Level 5 DEO, level 60 penetration.
You just sit and wait half an hour to see if the new guy is bursting into flames or not. Who said hermetic magic couldn't detect demons?
