How to Break the Game - A Storyguide's Innoculation

[Ovarwa]

Hi,

@Birbin again

@Chameleon

I have never heard of a character with "item creation" as a magical focus.

This may happen if someone chooses something for focus like wooden wands. I mention this because this minor magical focus is official from a supplement. The magus can enchant any effect in wooden wands using this focus. But there are very few spells a magus can create using this focus.

I find that odd, because the RAW explicitly state that you cannot be focused on a laboratory activity.

Anyway,

Ken

[callen]

@Ovarwa

I find that odd, because the RAW explicitly state that you cannot be focused on a laboratory activity.

The focus isn't a laboratory activity, it's wands. But focuses apply to laboratory activities. Just like a focus in birds of prey would apply when enchanting the familiar bond with your eagle, a focus in wands would apply when enchanting a wand. Foci cannot be laboratory activities, but foci do apply to laboratory activities. Another example from the books is Major Magical Focus in Familiars (which most of us seem to agree should be minor).

Chris

[Ovarwa]

@callen

@Ovarwa

I find that odd, because the RAW explicitly state that you cannot be focused on a laboratory activity.

The focus isn't a laboratory activity, it's wands. But focuses apply to laboratory activities. Just like a focus in birds of prey would apply when enchanting the familiar bond with your eagle, a focus in wands would apply when enchanting a wand. Foci cannot be laboratory activities, but foci do apply to laboratory activities. Another example from the books is Major Magical Focus in Familiars (which most of us seem to agree should be minor).

Chris

Thanks!

Anyway,

Ken

[Marko_Markoko]

@Ovarwa

Hi,

@Marko Markoko

That is something I am strict about. You can only start play with a single Major Hermetic Virtue.
Though more can be gained later

I'm curious which combination you find dangerous enough to be strict. (Or maybe it's not about restricting a magus' power?)

It isn't about power. Its about keeping the other players from screaming at me because I let one guy get away with something
Its also about avoiding unforseen complications. Finally, I want to motivate players to seek out more major virtues through mysteries or Twilight.

[DIREWOLF75]

Secondary Insight? Not a good virtue to begin with, because it doesn't work with Exposure or Adventure.

Since its totally useless if it doesnt, id long since forgotten that stupid restriction(never even considered it from start). Same goes for Elemental M..

If it did... awesome.

Actually no. Decent yes, but far from awesome. The fun there starts when you use correspondence, because thats a separate XP source, means you are triggering SI twice per season at best.

Elementalist + Secondary Insight? Now I can see how this might offend someone: Spend a season learning a Technique. This provides one xp in each of four Forms. Ooh, look at that--four elements! So the total xp earned from these two virtues is 16. Nice.

Ehm, no... You make sure you get XP for one of the elements and then do correspondence to get more XP for the same or another Element, triggering the bonus XP from both SI and EM, why ever would anyone with this combination try to study a Tech(if they are trying to max out the use of the virtues at least)? That would be silly as long as there isnt a lack of material to study for the elemental forms.

So you can get 2 XP in Techs(from SI) and 3 XP(from EM) in (Elemental) Forms twice per season, making 40 XP extra per year(8 in each Tech/Form if the same ones always picked). If you want a highend elementalist, this can be very effective. If you can also do this by studying highquality books it means you can raise the amount of XP gained by perhaps 25-50%. And if what sources you have access to is inferior, this combination can potentially give you more than the studying.
And of course, if all this is based on books as sources, add Book Learner and be a very happy elementalist.

(lets say 5 years studying each element like this with good, quality 10 tracts...
(10+1[Correspondence]+3[BL])20 for studied element, 220 other elements and 2 Techs...
Each element 280+40+40+40=400, Score 27
Each 2 Techs 40+40+40+40=160, Score 17
even with zero previous XP
That gives you an Arts total of 44 for 8 of the 50 combinations and an absolute minimum of either 17 or 27 for the rest)

Even with RAW you can do this. We restricted so that only one source can trigger the bonus XP per season.
OTOH, we also improved the virtues as well(SI works with magical Abilities as well, and always gives 1*3 XP in the two categories(Tech/Form/M.Abilities) that didnt gain the XP that triggered the bonus).

I imagine that things would if these magi tried to develop a rival organization, and looked as though they might actually succeed. (Who are you going to trust with your vis and important messages, Redcaps who have a 500 year history of loyalty and reliability or these new guys?)

So what? Who -ing cares? These new guys could have the magical version of free of transport conveyor belts going between any places they could set it up reasonably safely.

[callen]

We include the extra 1 point from correspondence along with the rest of the season, not as separate from it. Still, we are also more lenient with those two virtues.

Chris

[Ovarwa]

Hi,

@callen

We include the extra 1 point from correspondence along with the rest of the season, not as separate from it. Still, we are also more lenient with those two virtues.

Chris

What is this correspondence thing? In a book that I missed?

Anyway,

Ken

[callen]

It's in Covenants, on page 90. If you don't have it, I highly recommend picking up Covenants. Even if you decide to skip a lot of the details about costs of labor and the like, it's still well worth it.

Chris

[Ovarwa]

Hi,

@callen

It's in Covenants, on page 90. If you don't have it, I highly recommend picking up Covenants. Even if you decide to skip a lot of the details about costs of labor and the like, it's still well worth it.

Chris

Ah, I do have it. Thanks.

Anyway,

Ken

[DIREWOLF75]

@callen

It's in Covenants, on page 90. If you don't have it, I highly recommend picking up Covenants. Even if you decide to skip a lot of the details about costs of labor and the like, it's still well worth it.

Chris

Plenty well worth it indeed! I just wish i had it when i modelled my own alternative/additional books rules "long long time ago".