Mercurian Aegis contractors - is this remotely plausible?

[Berengar]

@callen

@One Shot

This is the reason, why medieval scholars and astronomers (and in-game Hermetic magi) do define a year by the period of the full circle of the sun around the earth along the ecliptic.

@One Shot

My reading makes sure that an Aegis cast at the right times – on or rather a little after the solstices and equinoxes – always lasts until the sunrise after the fourth following solstice or equinox, that is an entire year.

I hope you see the contradiction above. You say the year is defined by the full circle. Then to get your Aegis to last an entire year you had to switch to a year as defined by sunrise/sunset.

That would be your 'rising/setting year'? No.
Why would I? I would not touch that thing with a rabble when physical or magical durations are involved - and neither would medieval scholars or Hermetic magi, who know the mess of medieval calendars first hand. Medieval calendars are rather the domain of laws, contracts, work obligations and holidays.

So lets take it really slowly.
How much time expires between one winter solstice - the astronomical event - and the next? Exactly one (solar) year Y. So if I cast a Duration: Year Ritual on or a short time T after winter solstice, and if that T is smaller than the time T' between the next winter solstice and the sunrise on it, then the overall duration of my Duration: Year Ritual is: Y-T+T' > Y. OK?

@callen

And it's not my homegrown use of a year, it's actually the everyday western calendar use of a year - a very common use of year. You decided yourself to adopt it above for half your argument. Why were you so quick to use it yourself to try to make your case that it shouldn't be used?

Because I saw somebody dangerously veering towards it.

@callen

@One Shot

that is the definition, as far as the encyclopedia is concerned.

Except the article explicitly says this is not the definition, but only one of many.

It is the definition of Wikipedia for solstice.

Cheers

EDIT: It looks like we were driving a carousel all the way from Saturday December 15th ( catnip & garlic ) - when your 'rising/setting year' was still just a calendar year - through sidereal years and back here. I wouldn't like this to become the second round.