I have a query with this spell. I'm unsure whether it would be a Muto or Rego spell. Muto changes the memory to make a target believe that his is actually on the magus' side. Rego controls the mind to make him believe it. I'm on the side of Muto at the moment. I think.
The Traitors Blade
MuMe20
The target believes that he is a secret agent and spy, placed into the enemies camp as an assassin. He thus immediately swaps sides in any situation he is in to that of the caster. Cast out of combat, a castle guard will conspiratorially tell the caster of the spell everything he needs to know about the castle layout and if a combative kind of person he may offer to accompany them on their mission. Cast in combat on an enemies shield grog it will convince the grog that he has worked for the caster all along and given the danger to the caster, will attack his old master. Although the effects don’t last long, they can be dramatic.
(Base 4, +2 voice, +2 sun)
I too agree with the reasoning. I might require some sort of arcane connection or something to have the spell change the target's loyalties in favor of someone other than the caster, though.
I am surprised it is that high. In fact I would drop the duration to Diameter to make it level 15 and get some extra penetration. Sometimes shield grogs are armed with MR devices.
This kind of spells also make wards against He and Te (and maybe even Co!) a must have for any magus worth his name. And it makes forceless Edge of the Razor a nice spell for your shield grog. If the magus plans on taking on other hermetics, that is.
It also makes giving MR to your shield grog a nice thing to do. I think it was Leiv or Eric Dahl that proposed having "circle parmas", where you could stack your parma to a circle in the ground, so it would protect both the magus and the grog inside it at the expe3nse of mobility. We have implemented it in our saga, making parma not lose any potency of shared by up to 3 people (the circle cannot be THAT large!) under thouse circumstances. Makes preparations fpor combat quite a different thing. We have had 3 epic engagements where it came into effect and it worked very well to give the feeling of what a magivcal ward should look like.
I considered that for combat purposes but decided on the sun duration so that i could get more use out of the spell outside combat.
Imagine going to face a mundane bishop, you've been summoned and don't know why. On the way in you cast the spell on his seneschal and he not only tells you everything he knows (after all, he is your spy) but also arranges a diversion and escape route (possibly under his own initiative) if he thinks it could be a trap.
A jailor might lead you out of the dungeon labyrinth in which you'd been confined.
A woodsman might lead you through the spooky forest to safety along the hidden paths.
All of these take more than diameter duration.
The weakness is that you have no fine control over what your "henchman" will do, but he is likely to act in your best interests. For instance, a cowardly servant would certainly not fight for you, but he probably wouldn't fight against you either, and he may even make things easier for you in a manner you hadn't thought of.
Point taken. Kudos for a cool spell. Pitty myy magus is a wolf mage and cannot use this onm a regular basis Will have to point the more socially-minded magi (Tytalus and Flambeau, go figure...) about this
Umm...how? It is not possible with Hermetic Magic to grant someone Magic Resistance, except through the Parma. There are the parmulae from HoH:TL, but these are exceptionally rare, very costly, and possibly still waiting a breakthrough. I take your second point that there may be house rules regarding how parma works, but certainly not devices.
You can create devices which PeVi incoming spells: I would be harsh, and make the grog trigger the item in his action, which would have to beat the initiative of the caster. You really don't want these as constant effect devices!
Alternatively, a ReVi at R:Voice would suppress the casting total of the magus; again you would have to beat the casting speed.
We have always had in our sagas contant effect ReVi items that duplicate the effects of a stockade parma. ReVi 20 to provide +15 MR to the recipient. Warping is the drawback, but better a warped shield grog than a dead magus.
Such items are th eonly thing that justify the role of shield grogs IMS. Otherwise the magi would drop them instantly and go for ReTe/He/An/Co wards to prevent mundane damage to themselves from attackers.
Yes.. and while they're fiddling about with all those wards to stop your shield grogs putting a sword through their gut, you hit them with a few pilums
That's kinda the point of shield grogs ^^ .. if you have your own shield grogs.. other people can't use the same tactic on -you-
Err.... wards tend to go on contant effect items (designed for the magus, so no warping), Fluffy, not be cast when combat approaches. He can be casting the "hit the head of your protected magus with a large piece of iron" spell on your grog instead.
THAT is the problem. If grogs are a hindrance (and they can be if these things are possible, they have no place outside a covenant. or in the covenant, as a matter of fact. They become a danger to the magi, not an asset. And that is what I find a pitty, since it breaks down the fluff like a casstle made of cards. A magus with a powerful shield grogs would be laughed at, not admired for his defender.
I've been thinking about introducing magic MR talismans IMS too. Maybe granting an MR at half the level of the effect. i.e. ReVi30 gets you MR15.
That way Parma will always be stronger for a mage that could make such an item but it makes Grogs more useful and dangerous. And suddenly everyone would travel with bodyguards with these devices. And i like that.
Also certain Verditii get insanely rich to begin with as all the mages want these talismans for their grogs.
Maybe an NPC in game could come up with a break through.
Will have to point the more socially-minded magi (Tytalus and Flambeau, go figure...) about this