Mythic Bloodline of Tim the Enchanter

Years ago I was working on a Mythic Bloodline, but I seem to have lost my notes, and all I can find is https://forum.atlas-games.com/t/teleport-and-spell-levels-generally/7089/16.

As we all know finding "historical" wizards to provide Mythic Blood is somewhat difficult.
Many of us mine the Matter of France and the Matter of Britain tales for wizards such as Morgana, Merlin, Maugris, Atlantes, Alcina, et al. Some of you may know that one of the later Arthurian tales, involving the Quest for the Holy Grail, introduced the character of a mighty Enchanter named Tim.

Like the writings that introduce Gandalf the Grey, Tim isn't shown to use many different magics. If I recall correctly, Tim is only known to cause fiery explosions, and to disappear and re-appear across the field in front of King Arthur and his knights.
In fact, it looks like Tim's magic is mostly short-range teleportation, and a variation of Jupiter's Resounding Blow with an Ignem requisite.

So if we made a Mythic Blood descended from him, I suppose one of those two spells would be the inherent power, and the minor magical focus would be either self-teleportation or create flames (sub set of CrIg).
Though what would be the personality flaw? Humble?
Which would be the more likely? Or have I misinterpreted how Mythic Blood comes about?

Personally, when designing Mythic Blood powers, I prefer to use MuVi effects, or some self-affecting power, so as not to need to use up any of the levels in penetration. Also, when designing MuVi effects, I like to use the "kinda like a minor magical focus" theory of grouping - that is, you don't have to keep MuVi effects inside the same Form, as long as there is a similarly-tight grouping involved. As such, I'd say you could design your as an automatic "adds in an Ingem effect at no charge to any spell" MuVi effect. Or alternately "boosts any teleportation spell by one magnitude, automatically". Finally, I like to use the implied "it's not actually a hermetic power, so it doesn't actually need to follow all the hermetic rules" idea - so you can ignore some of the fiddly bits of spellcraft, if it's getting in the way. (Hey, you're paying for it - you may as well get something out of it!)

That being said - yeah, your interpretation sounds about right, although I'd qualify your MMF to "self-teleportation" or "human teleportation" or "living teleportation", as (technically) just teleportation in general would be a Major MMF, most likely.

On other things: note that Mythic Blood probably is kinda mediocre for a Major hermetic virtue; it grants the following:

  1. Don't loose fatigue if you -10 a spell.
  2. Automatic mastered inherent fast-cast spell
  3. Automatic MMF in related area, and
  4. An automatic personality flaw.

That's basically 3 minor virtues and a minor flaw....or you could just take 3 minor virtues that do these things (Withstand Casting, Strong Parens, and MMF), and not have to take the flaw.

The general math I use to determine if a Major virtue is worth is the balance between Minor Magical Focus and Major Magical Focus - which technically makes a MajMF five times better than a Minor. (Minor covers half a TeFo; Major covers half a Form). However, I usually take that to mean that a major virtue should only actually be worth 3 decent minor virtues, and 2 kinda crappy ones - as a major magicl focus usually has some stinkers that you don't actually want.

So, personally I would re-write Mythic Blood to be more interesting; for example, add in "I can spend fatigue as though it were pawns of Vis for my MMF", or a sot of Farie Sympathy "Emulating Ancestor" ability. Or boost the existing elements, somehow; making it a major Magical focus would probably be a bit much, but having a more generous minor one (worth 3 regular MMF's, for example) would probably do it.

Remember that Mythic Blood provides another benefit: access to Heroic Virtues and Flaws.

Sub Rosa #14 & #15 have two piles of mythical wizard bloodlines. I was pleased with them, but I'm the author and so I'm biased. I tried to go by regions, so that might help.

The reviews for 14 are here and here and here.

The review for 15 is here.

Responses have been positive. Here's the entry for Morgana Le Fey from #15:

Morgana Le Fey
Morgana is a creature of conflicting and mysterious heritage. She is a queen of Avalon, she is the sister of King Arthur, she is a student of Merlin, and she is the mother of Oberon by Julius Caesar. All of this implies she is mortal and yet she is also Faerie, contemporary to King Arthur and yet predates him. Morgana was said to be the wife of King Urien and the mother of Yvain, some stories make her the mother of Modred. She dwells either in Avalon with her lover, King Guingemart or in an equally mysterious realm known as the Perilous Vale, where she trapped Sir Lancelot and other knights of the Round Table several times. She hated Guinevere for exposing her affair with Guingemart and chased Lancelot, both because she had feelings for him and to hurt Guinevere. Morgana kept many lovers, though, including the knights Accalon of Gaul, Helians, Kaz, Gui, and Corrant. She fashioned several items in attempts to disrupt Arthur’s court- a mantle which set its wearer ablaze, a false Excalibur, and a drinking horn which only spilled its contents when the bearer was unfaithful. She also provided healing potions to several knights before leaving Arthur’s court and helped carry King Arthur away to Avalon to sleep and heal his wounds after the Battle of Camlann.

This bloodline is also appropriate for wizards with Faerie Blood (minor).

Possible Powers:
Speak & Gesture: ReCo 30 The Restless Servant Persists (R:Touch, D: Moon, T: Ind) As per The Walking Corpse, ArM5, page 135, but this has a Moon duration.
Speak: ReCo 25 A Leaf on the Breeze (R: Pers, D: Sun, T: Ind) The caster may fly about quickly, as per ArM5, Wings of Soaring Wind on page 126, but does not require a Finesse roll or Concentration.
Gesture: InMe 20 Frosty Breath of the Spoken Lie (R: Eye, D: Conc, T: Ind) As per ArM5, page 149.
Neither Speak nor Gesture: MuCo 15 Disguise of the New Visage (R: Touch, D: Sun, T: Part) As per ArM5, page 131.
Possible Minor Magical Foci: Curing madness, flying, illusions, necromancy, revealing lies (deceptions), shapeshifting.
Possible Personality Flaws: Ambitious, Compulsion: Vindictive, Faerie Upbringing, Proud.

It's important to note there's a story element to Mythic Bloodline that adds something beyond the mechanical benefits-- your wizard is part of a heritage, a line of wizards traced back to powerful ancestor, and therefore an heir of sorts. That may have a currency in some situations, far more than if you just had the Virtues and Flaws. It means that a wizard's provenance can mean something in the game, and you'd like the Storyguide to consider that when creating the stories.

I agree with kevinsSchultz in his analysis.
It's not a good virtue. Hyperborean decent is way better as it also grants an aging bonus and allows you to take speak Hyperborean. A language that apparently most spirits and magical beings understand. Since it's magic.
Curiously we have an NPC Tim the enchanter in our saga. He's a Verditius who specializes in explosions, trapped items and wands of blasting and such.

I largely agree will all this post, but wanted bo comment on this bit particularly...

My own analysis of Major Virtues (usually with an eye to creating a new one, to match a player-concept not well-represented in the RAW) is that they should encompass 3(ish) Minor's PLUS a bit more; often something otherwise-unavailable, a "unique" element not to be gained via mere "Minor Virtue." Sometimes the "Major" doesn't really match well to a superset of Minor's; while I can eyeball these cases and go with my gut, I'm less satisfied with the play-balance of those.

Of course, we all know the "play balance" of the V&F system favors some Virtues & Flaws over others, so I don't sweat it too hard!

An hermetic magus of Dark Ages: Mage has only access to 4 forms (pillars): one of magic, one of life, one of mind and one of forces. To solve the problem this system has with teleportation, in my group we liked the idea that a DA:M hermetic teleportation is turning yourself into light and mighty fire and traveling at the speed of light just to recover your human form in the middle of an explosion of flames. Just like Tim. :slight_smile:

Focus on fire and light, then use Mu(Re)Co(Ig) to teleport. Impractical but funny (and terrifying).