Master Paphos

Retired Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Ad Astera per Aspera
1

Master Paphos, Spring 1220
Characteristics: Int +2, Per +1, Pre 2, Com +2, Str 0, Sta 0, Dex +5, Qik -4
Size: 0
Age: 26, Height: 5'11", Weight: 172 lbs, Gender: Male
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0 (4)
Confidence: 1 (6)
Virtues: Maestro (free), Puissant Craft (free) , Strong Faerie Blood (Dwarf), Hermetic Inclination in (Terram), Good Teacher, Improved Characteristics, Failed Apprentice, Privileged Upbringing, Great Dexterity, Great Dexterity, Forge Companion, Social Contacts (Artists/Patrons), Unaging, Afinity (craft), Affinity (Leadership), Puissant (Terram), Inventive Genius, Well Traveled (apply XP during teen years), Second Sight (free from SFB), Unaffected by the Gift (minor, supernatural)
Flaws: Susceptible to Divine, Noncombatant (things just move too quickly), Optimistic, Proud (Major), Study Requirement, Poor Quickness (studies everything before acting, can represent as freezes in new situations).

Personality Traits: Proud -3, Ambitious -1, Optimistic +1,
Reputations: none
Combat:
noncombatant - freezes in combat. Under some circumstances he may be able to dodge, but generally will not attack
Dodge: -5
Soak: +0
Fatigue levels: OK, 0, ‑1, ‑3, ‑5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: ‑1 (1‑5), ‑3 (6‑10), ‑5 (11‑15), Incapacitated (16‑20), Dead (21+)

[table][tr][td]Ability[/td] [td]Score[/td] [td]specialty[/td] [td](xp pending)[/td] [td]Allocated xp[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Living language (Arabaic)[/td] [td]5[/td] [td]Siculo[/td] td[/td] [td]0[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Italianl[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Nobility[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Guile[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Negotiating[/td] td[/td] [td]17[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Folk Ken[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Townfolk[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Leadership[/td] [td]7[/td] [td]Masons[/td] td[/td] [td]1001.5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Swim[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Ocean[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Second Sight[/td] [td]4[/td] [td]Regios[/td] td[/td] [td]50[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Language, Latin[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Hermetic Usage[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Language, Romany[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Covenfolk[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Area Lore,Sicily[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]People[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Area Lore, Rome[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Art[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Area Lore, Greece[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Art[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Area Lore,Egypt[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Art[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Area Lore, Malta[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Mdina[/td] td[/td] [td]5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Charm[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Women[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Craft: Mason[/td] [td]7+1+2[/td] [td]Enchanting Items[/td] td[/td] [td]1041.5[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Magic Theory[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Lab Assistant[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Artes Liberales[/td] [td]3[/td] [td]Artistic Writing[/td] td[/td] [td]30[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Faerie Lore[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Faerie Crafters[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Bargain[/td] [td]1[/td] [td]Bribes[/td] td[/td] [td]12[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Etiquette[/td] [td]2[/td] [td]Potential Benefactors[/td] td[/td] [td]15[/td][/tr] ][/table]

Arts: Terram 5+2 20

Equipment: hammer, chisel, ego, Items of Quality: Work Glove, Chisel (belong to Tartessos, not present at game start)
Encumbrance: 0 (0)

Advancement:
1220 Spring:
Funky Cold Mdina Adventure 7 xp: 5 xp Area Lore, Malta, 2 xp Bargain
Skorba II Return to Mgarr 1 confidence, Adventure 5 xp: Bargain 5
1220 Summer:
Exposure 2x1.5=3 xp in Craft: Mason
1220 Fall:
Lab Incident/Voyage Home: 5 xp in Bargain, 2 in Guile, 2 Aquam vis to Talus, 5 to transform (unaffected by the Gift), +3 confidence-1 used
Native Wildlife: Craft: Mason 51.5=7.5 (led masonry team rest of season)
Journey to Mdina: leadership 51.5=7.5 (lead masonry team rest of season)
1220 Winter
Exposure 2x1.5=3 xp in Craft: Mason

2

limited magic resistance is a failure in a parma magica, which you would not have, so the flaw is meaningless and needs to be replaced.
Similarly other hermetic flaws such as susceptible to divine should be replaced.

3

Master Paphos, beginning of (failed) Hermetic Apprenticeship

Characteristics: Int +2, Per +1, Pre 2, Com +2, Str 0, Sta 0, Dex +5, Qik -4
Size: 0
Age: 5, Height: 3'6", Weight: 45 lbs, Gender: Male
Decrepitude: 0
Warping Score: 0 (0)
Confidence: 1 (3)
Virtues: Maestro (free), Puissant Craft (free) , Strong Faerie Blood (Dwarf), Hermetic Inclination in (Terram), Good Teacher, Improved Characteristics, Failed Apprentice, Free Expression, Great Dexterity, Great Dexterity, Inspirational, Social Contacts (Artists/Patrons), Unaging, Afinity (craft), Affinity (Leadership), Affinity (Terram), Inventive Genius, Well Traveled (apply XP during teen years)
Flaws: Susceptible to Divine, Noncombatant (things just move too quickly), Optimistic, Proud (Major), Study Requirement, Poor Quickness (studies everything before acting, can represent as freezes in new situations).

Personality Traits: Proud -3, Ambitious -1, Optimistic +1,
Reputations: none
Combat:
noncombatant - freezes in combat. Under some circumstances he may be able to dodge, but generally will not attack
Dodge: -5
Soak: +0
Fatigue levels: OK, 0, ‑1, ‑3, ‑5, Unconscious
Wound Penalties: ‑1 (1‑5), ‑3 (6‑10), ‑5 (11‑15), Incapacitated (16‑20), Dead (21+)

Ability Score specialty
Arabic 5 Siculo
Area Lore (Sicily) 1 Syracuse
Charm 1 Wheedling
Guile 2 Negotiating
Folk Ken 2 Townsfolk
Swim 1 Ocean

Arts: Te 0

Equipment: hammer, chisel, ego
Encumbrance: 0 (0)

Age 6
Winter: Mistakenly "identified" as having the Gift, brought to caravan, begin learning Romany
8 xp Living Language: Romany 8 xp total, level 1 Specialty: Covenant folk
Spring: No one is immediately ready to take a new apprentice, so the covenant begins the process of language and academic instruction. He is expected to apprentice in about a year.
8 xp Living Language: Latin 8 xp total, level 1 Specialty: Hermetic Usage
Summer: 8 xp Living Language: Latin 16 xp total, level 2 Specialty: Hermetic Usage
Fall: 8 xp Living Language: Latin 24 xp total, level 2 Specialty: Hermetic Usage

Age 7
Winter: 8 xp Living Language: Latin 32 xp total, level 3 Specialty: Hermetic Usage
Spring: Taken as Apprentice by Glenia ex Jerbiton who sees a gentle gifted boy with talent and appreciation for artwork - the child is destined to be a rising star in the Jerbiton constellation. She spends the spring Opening his Gift, but only Terram opens, leaving her perplexed and the boy shaken by a major magical experience (gain 3 warping points, just because). Since Paphos didn't work or otherwise do anything, and the season was cut short, he takes his xp practicing language again. Glenia travels to seek advice on what to do about this unusual occurrence. Edit: lets make this exposure, instead.
2 xp Living Language: Latin 34 xp total, level 3 Specialty: Hermetic Usage. Virtue activated: Affinity: Terram
Summer: 8 xp Living Language: Romany 16 xp total, level 2 Specialty: Covenfolk
Fall: 8 xp Living Language: Romany 24 xp total, level 2 Specialty: Covenfolk

Age 8
Winter: Academic education begins with a covenfolk Teaching him Artes Liberales (Has to be Taught, 'cause he can't read the book yet), assume SQ 12
12 xp Artes Liberales, 12 xp total, level 1 Specialty: Geometry. A Miracle! He learns to read fluently in a single season!
Spring: Distraction reigns in the caravan, allowing Paphos to frequently sneak into the library wagon. He is fascinated by Terram and despite his flawed gift, makes quick progress learning from an Hermetic Summa even though his Latin is barely capable of deciphering the text (specialty applies, allowing study from texts at Latin: 4)
23 xp Terram (x1.5 = 34.5!!! maxes out the L7/Q23 Terram summa at 28 xp), 28 xp total, level 7
Summer: Glenia returns and is astounded to see the progress Paphos has made in the Terram summa. Glenia persuades the head of the covenant, Henrus ex Bonisagus, a magua as knowledgeable as he is aged, to take over Paphos' apprenticeship. While negotiating, Glenia Teaches Paphos the basics of Magic theory to test his understanding of what he learned from the summa.
12 xp Magic Theory, 12 xp total, level 1, Specialty: Terram
Fall: While Henrus researches how to finish opening Paphos Gift, he realizes Paphos is not truly Gifted, but presents the appearance of the Gentle Gift due to his supernatural heritage (Dwarf Blood). Henrus notes that Pahos shares many mannerisms in common with earth elementals he has studied - his movements are slow but determined. Despite his misgivings, Glenia convinces Henrus that the Gift can be Opened, due to the Terram capability. Against his better judgement, Henrus attempts an Opening, and fails. Due to greater safety preparation, Paphos only gains a single warping point. Paphos has little time to himself during these controlled experiments, but is Exposed to Magic Theory.
2 xp Magic Theory, 14 xp total, level 1, Specialty: Terram Flaw activated: Study Requirement

Age 9
Winter: Henrus declares the apprenticeship failed and washes his hands of the boy. Glenia still seeing potential in the boy apprentices him to Foreman Penko, a young Mason working the dig site, who begins Training Paphos in what he needs to know to be a grog. Penko, at age 17, is one of the youngest team leaders in the caravan. Penko continues Paphos' language training while he prepares his workshop for an apprentice. Assume Training SQ to be 9
8 xp Living Language: Romany 36 xp total, level 3 Specialty: Covenfolk
Spring: On the job training begins in earnest as Penko works the dig site and Trains Paphos in the art of Masonry
9 xp Craft: Mason (x1.5 = 13.5) 13.5 xp total, level 1 Specialty: Excavations
Summer: 9 xp Craft: Mason (x1.5 = 13.5) 27 xp total, level 2 Specialty: Excavations
Fall: Now that Paphos has some minimum capability in Masonry, he is placed to work on the excavation. From here on out he will work (exposure) 2 seasons, be trained a third, and have the fourth relatively free.

Age 10
Winter: The dig is mothballed for the winter and the grogs are left to their own devices. Paphos lurks in the library when the magi are not around, but cannot decipher any of the other arcane texts. He finds a Latin-Arabic dictionary and an Artes Liberales book and has the mind shattering realization that there is an alphabet for his native tongue. He eagerly learns enough Artes Liberales to become literate in Arabic. He is mesmerized by the cursive and artistic Arabic alphabet. Artes Liberales Summa L5/Q20
20 xp Artes Liberales 32 xp total, level 3 Specialty: Artistic lettering

In Progress... Planning to take him to age 20is at least.

4

Okay, I was rushing a bit to document this character, all the others besides low magic resistance look good.

5

Are you going to fix the low magic resistance?

6

yah, just having trouble making a decision. Leaning toward Visions, but just haven't been able to commit. Anybody have a suggestion for a magic/supernatural related flaw that would fit well in this concept?

7

unruly air?

8

Hehe.... You just want to use that to get me in trouble! But it kinda fits, so let's do it.

9

Should have caught this earlier, but there is a limit of 5 minor flaws.

10

darn. Is it too late to convert Study Requirement back to a major, then? I don't see it hindering him as much as a major should, but I think it's the only major I took.

11

I'll allow it. While it only affects the one score, it is the only score you will want to advance, and that limitation is most significant at high levels. Given the region up to about level 15 should be fairly straightforward, but after that you will probably need to find somewhere else to study, possibly a mountain range if you start getting well up there in the art of terram. And it's not like you have the option to study techniques instead...

12

You are aware that the Maestro virtue already gives access to all categories of abilities, so taking failed apprentice gains you very little...
the inventive genius ability similarly applies primarily to lab totals, there may be some places in art and crafts that it might apply to, but you would be getting very little out of it.
I am also calculating you have 19 points in virtues (puissant craft is free), where you have room for 20

13

It gains little in skills, but I intend, somewhere WAY down the line, for Tartessos and Paphos to work together on a Great Work, something as artisticly cool as it is hermetically awesome. For this they need to be able to work in the lab together, preferably better than just as a forge companion. It also explains why he has access to Terram summa to begin with. If you feel this would be better explained another way, I'd be happy to oblige.

14

You still have one more virtue point to use, and if you are doing seasonal advancement well traveled does not mesh well: the effects of travel will be inherent in your development.

15

made a bunch of changes, see first post

16

You gave up free expression and kept inventive genius?
I have to wonder about the thinking behind that...
[strike]I'm getting an age of 20.75, ignoring the seasonal advancement. Part of this may be the fact that you get your first level of second sight for free, you would be age 21 otherwise.[/strike]
never mind, was calculating as if you still had the wealthy virtue

17

Free Expression increases the Aesthetic Quality of art, which I currently have between (takes twice as long to make art). If I have FE, the total increases to 23 which takes three times as long to make the art.

Inventive Genius applies to his magical endeavors when making a new piece, and thus applies both his Hermetic Inclination in Terram invested items (I think he's going to specialize in make Lesser Features for labs), and also as a lab assistant.

Basically I'm trying to match the time for art to match the time for magic. Right now it takes one season to make a small work of art (2/season times 2x time=1 season), and one season to enchant a magical effect.

My current totals based on this build:
Crafting: Dex+5, Craft+10, Workshop+0, IOQ(Glove)+4, IOQ(Chisel)+2 = 21, allows Excellent +3 items
Art: Dex+5, Craft+10, Aura presumably +1, IOQ(Glove)= 20
Magic: Dex+5,Craft+10+1 for specialty, Aura presumably+3, Terram+7, IOQ(Glove)+4, IOQ(Chisel)+2 = 32, can make any base 4 Terram effect (R: personal, constant effect)

18

I wondered in part because if your goal is to have him become a might based character he will eventually want an AQ of 30...

19

I think it requires AQ of 33, but it wouldn't do to hit that too soon, otherwise it'll slow down gaining Reputation points based on quantity of art made.

20

Well, the character certainly is fine then.