making new mystery cults

I'm trying to come up with sets of virtues suitable for a few new mystery cults. (And, yes, my players can make suggestions - this much isn't hidden from the players even if the characters don't know much about these cults.)

1st cult: Mage Smiths. I don't want them to be identical to Verditius, but I do want them to be equal in power when fully trained up. I see them as more descended from Norse/Magical Dwarves rather than the Verditius Greco-Roman tradition.
I have the first virtue - Mage Crafter, (from 4th ed Grimoire) which allows a magus to add a relevant craft ability to their lab total when making a magic item as long as it is a durable object and they make it themselves.

What would be suitable 2nd/3rd/4th virtues for an item-making tradition? Ideally, I'd like the 2nd and 3rd tier virtues to have alternatives for players to have some choices to make as well. Golem-making is too Jewish, but Sacred Architecture could be a top-level virtue. Possibly some sort of automatic engine-making capability eg elaborate dwarven traps that reset themselves - but how to describe it in AM terms?

2nd cult: Tempestarii (Wind and Water, Storm Magi - based on a real-world tradition from Frisia (Northern Netherlands)).
Virtues I've thought of so far:
Starting virtue: Affinity-type bonus to ReAq and ReAu spells only.
Minor extra bonus: 'Storm', 'Waterway' and 'Body of Water' as ranges/durations/Targets (from RoP:Magic)
Combat virtue: penetration bonus for ReAq and ReAu spells only, where the Tempestarius doesn't subtract the level of the spell (based on the 4th ed penetration mastery virtue).
Top virtue: combined Auram and Aquam forms, ie xp spent in one gives equal amount in the other. Should be powerful, but should take a long time and dedication to get it!

This needs several middle-ranking virtues, partly to postpone anyone getting the top one.

3rd 'cult', actually the Gypsies! Fortune-telling, sex-magic (ie emotional manipulations NOT anything perverted!), travelling magic, animal handling.
Starting virtue: faerie magic ranges/durations ('road', 'bargain', 'until'). Ability to use ley lines - acting like auras to give a casting or lab bonus. Of course, travelling around all the time will limit any Hermetic lab work!
Middle virtues: Charm Magic (HoH:MC, p96 - but I'd rather not use the Story and Symbol magic virtues listed there);
Divination (TMRE p58);
Travelling Lab - how to set up a lab to make potions, wands, etc, so it can be used on a wagon (would still need to have a real lab for proper enchanted items). This might not need to be a virtue, just knowledge of how to do this.

What else would be suitable?

Gilarius

Hi,

The elaborate traps seems more like D&D dwarves than Norse dwarfs. Perhaps focus on smithing, rather than crafting in general? A minor focus with iron, maybe a major immunity, and at the end, perhaps the stuff they produce Awakens and can only be broken or disenchanted with an epic story.

You need a new mechanic for that, since Affinities in AM5 apply to Arts and the mechanic doesn't make sense as you describe. Perhaps you mean a focus? Like a Major Focus in weather? Or a minor focus in storms? In general, if I cannot easily describe a concept like this in terms divorced from game mechanics, it's probably not a good focus. Thus, "self-transformation" is nice but "ReCo" is probably not, nor is "controlling the human body."

This last essentially means that this character will always penetrate. It's a bad idea. Adding the magnitude of the spells to Penetration is more reasonable.

Note that this makes the virtue worthless, unless it applies retroactively. (That is, the xp already gained in these two Forms are lumped together, resulting in a new score.) After all, by the time the magus gets here, he must already have awesome scores.

There's always "Special Circumstances: During a storm," and Weather Sense and Puissant Auram or Aquam.

Fortune-telling is divination, straight from TMRE. Faerie Magic for the ranges and for dealing with faeries... great. Why not the 'perverted' stuff? :slight_smile:/324253150 Emotions for a Major Focus, straight out of the main rules, or sex and lust as a Minor Focus that crosses into Corpus. Ley lines... they don't exist canonically, and if they do, Auras arise from them; the Aura game mechanics represent things that are real in the world. Also, ley lines have absolutely nothing to do with real gypsy traditions.

Ok.... Although those last two virtues do fit the theme.

Wands aren't proper enchanted items?

Perhaps Mythic Herbalism fits. There are a few virtues that allow magic items to be created without a Hermetic Lab. Amulet Magic, Craft Magic, Mythic Herbalism.... The standard rules don't really allow a Hermetic Lab to fit in a wagon.... Covenants for details. Of course, you don't have to use those rules in your saga, and there are good reasons not to.

If your character has a spirit familiar, it might be able to create a regio in the wagon, justifying making it a lot bigger on the inside.

Anyway,

Ken

The Rom, or "gypsies", didn't hit Europe until the mid 1300's at the earliest. Colorful to think otherwise, so don't let that stop you. Just saying.

Thanks, Overwa.
This sort of constructive criticism was exactly what I was looking for. Unless anyone comes up with better suggestions, I'll be using most of yours!

Just a couple of points:
Wands - as charged items anyway (I know they can be 'proper magic items' too), used up like potions are, I see as feasible in a travelling lab. That's why I listed them.

Would a spirit familiar's regio be movable? I'm not aware of any officially mobile regios, but I'm not claiming to be an expert.

(And I do know that the Rom didn't arrive until later, but they were around in the Byzantine region (Theban/Transylvannian Tribunal areas) from the 800's ish. I think. Plus, they should be fun to have around!)

Gilarius

In relation to your penetration bonus idea. Perhaps permit storms act as a temporary arcane connection to anyone or anything in them - although that is a pretty powerful option of course.

Hi,

Woohoo! :slight_smile:

Ah. You might want to check out Craft Magic and Amulet Magic. Also the Witch Hedge Tradition.

Well... if the familiar has the Presence and Regio powers from RoP:M, limited to a Structure rather than a Boundary, and the Structure moved, I'd say everything moved with it. This is how you get ghost ships and such, so why not a wagon?

You can always use my regio rules. :slight_smile:

Anyway,

Ken