My posting might be erratic for the rest of the year - Christmas is taking its toll - I am going on a tour of the country, staying with people who share my genes, but not my taste in quick and reliable internet access. I'll do my best - but don't be disappointed. 2010 is coming.
No worries, this is to be expected at this time of year.
Me, i wont have internet from december 27th till january 2nd.
Happy holidays!
reporting for duty 
Gutes Neues Jahr!
Back after a long break and much traveling.
I assume you spend winter at Dankmar. Otherwise you'll have to return through the forest with your wounded grogs (and then have less study time left). Try to think of how you can use the season. Use your next source to
You get 4xp for the forest adventure (+1 for jebrick because he posted the most). You can aslo use the season at Dankmar for reading (if you can get books), teaching each other, or practising, or exposure, for additional xp. You can ask for a lab (invoking the peregrinatores clause of the peripheral code), but you'll have to see what conditions there are.
Anyway, befriending people at Dankmar might help.
I suggest you use your next post to look for learning opportunities and exploring Dankmar.
From looking through the Core Rule book, I can not tell if I would need a lab to study a spell for mastery or not.
spending XP as Exposure XP would not require a lab or study time. right?
at jebrick:
p. 164 says 5 practice xp for spell mastery. I think that no lab is needed. Depending on the spell you may need one or more guinea pigs though (not for an elemental attack, because you can target things, but sereral if you want to master something like healing, gutting living animals or moon duration mind control)
Arturous will approach horst and ask him if he can train him in magical theory. but first – dinner
Perhaps something more interesting will come up…
Rabanus will try to make some conversation here and there during the season using Folk Ken/Charm/Intrigue to make our group shine in a favorable light and gain some support should we need it at a tribunal meeting to found our new covenant. But nothing particular i would want to play out.
Considering advancement the 4xps will go into raising Mu from 3 to 4.
For the seaon, Rabanus will study the art of mentem from raw vis. According to Guardians of the forest, Dankmar has a +5 faerie aura. Should you want a different value in our saga, i will correct the equation. Else he will gain xps as follows:
Mentem score at the start: 2
Pawns of vis used: 1
Number of xps gained: advancement roll for studying from mentem vis in Dankmar (1d10=3) + aura bonus 3 + free study 3 + study bonus 2 = 11
Mentem score after studying: 4(4)
Arturous will stay silent for the most part during the feast, and leave the talking to Rabanus.
Regarding the season – if Horst in not up for teaching, he will spend the season practicing spell mastery.
Hildegard will also go for magic theory druing the season (because I don't want Artuourus to get the +6 bonus for single student. She'll put her 4 adventure xp into spell mastery.
zlofik and jebrick can still change their minds about Horst's offer (10xp Magic Theory) or stick to their original plans. If both magi proceed as you planned in the first palce, both Arturous and Hildegard will get the +3 bonus for 2 students (for an amazong total of 13 xp).
The grogs can either gain 4xp at chirurgy or 2xp at charm/folk ken or sth you can do in hospital (only 2xp for charm, because the nurses are not naughty...), plus their 4 adventure xp.
Not wanting to spoil to the party for anyone, but Horsts offer is atractive to Rabanus. Im afraid it will only be 10xp per magi then. Sorry Gozer.
He will save the vis for later use then and learn some magic theory instead.
Im also ok to fast forward to the end of the season or even Durenmar.
Then you can all edit your character sheets.
Here endeth the prologue. I'll jump to the summer season and covenant founding
Edited.
I spent the 4 adventure xp in Visions of the infernal terrors spell mastery.
Honorus will take up Horst's offer for Magic theory. He will spend the other 5 Mastering his Ward vs Cold spell that he casts every day on himself.