How long do magical animals live?

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

I've been looking at bestiary entries (in ArsM5, in the old Medieval Bestiary from 2nd edition, and in the Sub Rosa fanzine) for magical creatures like the unicorn, dragon, basilisk, to see how long these creatures typically live, and the information isn't there. Now of course, this can be a "however long you want or need for your saga" kind of thing, but I wondered if anyone could tell me:

  • Any references in any of the Ars books for typical lifespans for magical creatures.
  • Any sources for actual medieval beliefs about how long these creatures might live.
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2

Magical creatures are typically unchanging and hence immortal- expected lifespan infinite.

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3

In general, beings with a Might score are immune to aging. So they live until they are killed.
Any type of magic animal without a Might score would presumably live just as long as their non-magical relatives.

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4

The exception is characters who have taken the "Age Quickly" major flaw - there's a slightly modified version of this on pg 47 of RoP: Magic.

5

The book to look in, is Realms of Power: Magic :wink:

6

Though acclimation can shorten that...

7

Thanks everyone!