That's assuming you're casting only fastcast spells that round, and doesn't address what happens when you've cast spells normally that round already. Hence the quandary.
Total derailment - but the new Bardic class sloop looks awesome!
It's been a couple months since callen posted; I'm calling him MIA at this point. Will write a convenient explanation as to Rhodri's absence, along with an equally convenient way for him to show up again if/when callen returns.
Chico has also been gone a while (though that's more normal for him); we'll say Aequi is currently experiencing a Twilight event. Shmuel forged Aequi's signature on a document formally claiming him as his apprentice, so it may take a while before the Order becomes suspicious as to his absence 
Well, as far as I understand, this is not a problem, since fast-casting doesn't stop the action from beginning, it just manages to stop its results atthe last minute. So if someone casts a BoaF and you fast cast a defense, the BoaF still goes of, you just disappear, erect a stone shield, destroy it through PeVi... Whatever.
So, if blasting someone with fire as a fast-casting "defense", this means you don't stop his action (since it has already began), but manage a mutual kill, so it's not a bother to me. He cast his fireball, you fast cast yours, you're both toast.
For exemple, Hiems could have:
- Fast cast a defense to stop the sword at the last moment
- Fast cast a damaging spell to hurt the man at about the same time as he himself is hurt. Just like 2 guys skewering themselves.
First choice, please 
Exactly. Which means that there's an advantage of going first, which is logical:
If you go first, you cast a spell, and then have a chance at one (or more) fast cast
If you don't go first, you have a chance at one (or more) fast cast, but if you fail, you then lose your chance at a "normal" casting.
Which also answers Arya's question about spells already cast that round
???
What are you talking about?
With all due respect, the idea was to "greatly reduce the amount of light", which, as we are in a tavern (and medieval homes are faaaar from brightly lit), should be enough to plunge us into darkness so that cygna, and maybe Hiems, could flee.
I don't think the book has rules for fighting in obscurity, if you're asking 
.
It has no rules for fighting an invisible opponent either, even under the relevant spell. Yet we learn in HoH: S that even if you perceive your ennemy, you have a penalty.
If this is just going to dim the lights so that we are just in a slight penumbra, this is utterly useless, and I would have used a wall of stone instead. Or a Call to slumber. Or a ReCo spell. Anything else, really.
There's no ill will, this is slow, and I understand that you may have misunderstood my intent (which was clear to me, but not clearly stated, so this is my fault, too), but then...
New limited edition ship available this month on Puzzle Pirates. Haven't played in a while, but I'm still on the mailing list. Just like Bryn Gwlad and various SCA heralds' lists.
waves I'm still observing the game. I just wanted to lend some clarity to the fast-casting discussion.
Per page 174 of the rule book says a magus may make cast a spell normally and also fast cast a spell during a round of action. It even leaves the possibility open for multiple fast casting for very fast magi. Marcus, my exercise in pushing the bounds of that rule, has a high quickness and ok finesse: 4 and 3, respectively. On an average roll of 5 he can fast cast two, perhaps three spells a round, with average die rolls. Assuming a die roll of 5, he can fast-cast at initiative point 12, and again at initiative point 6 (assumes a die roll of 5 and the -6 for a second fast casting), and possibly even at initiative point 0 (die roll of five and -12). Note, those numbers can change if he casts some masterd spells because he has quick casting for a few. Depending on the situation, on an average roll, he could even possibly get a 4th spell off, at a negative intiative point (which can happen).
Also, there is nothing to prevent MAD (mutually assured destruction) situations. If a player, say Marcus, were to receive a killing blow, he could conceivably respond with his own killing blow (this is how it played out in Lost Boys, yes, I diced the scenario out before involving the players). Make the fast-cast roll, make the spell roll, and boom, done. Since combat round actions are resolved simultaneously, both are dead (or incapacitated, or badly wounded or some combination) at the end of the round. The only way to prevent damage is to Rego a weapon away with a fast cast defense, or the magus makes some sort of Leap, or Leaps the opponent.
Now, I'll go back into the shadows.
Yeah, that bugs me 
Anyway, yeah, I got that the intention was to make it easier for Cygna to escape, but she clearly ain't leavin' without her man, who clearly ain't leavin' without his girl. I thought it should have some effect anyway. Gloom describes making it gloomy and filling with long shadows, but since it doesn't extinguish light sources (otherwise there would be no way to cast shadows) I reasoned, there has to be enough light to make out where people are. That's why I went with extra botch dice, since it seemed consistent with occasionally stubbing your toe when you get up to pee in the middle of the night.
For clarification, it's about 4:30am, and the common room had been pretty well lit (by medieval standards), as the family had been baking bread and making cider and whatnot.
If there's a consensus on some other effect that feels more realistic, mechanically, we can establish it officially without this chapter creating precedent.
I didn't know Hiems was nobility.
groan
Yeah, I guess I asked for that.
Ah, I understand.
I looked at the guidelines description, you looked at a spell.
For what it's worth, I would have used the guidelines for invisibility in HoH: S, giving everyone a defense and stealth bonus depending on the amount of light available and thus the difficulty to see your opponent. Whether it's because he's invisible or the lack of light to see doesn't matter much in this regard.
This was my goal, anyway 
make us harder to see, and thus harder to hit and to spot while we'd flee.
I had defined Hiems faerie blood particularity to be his blue hair, but I don't mind him having blue blood too
Or maybe he hasn't before, and just discovered the change. What does this mean? What could have provoked this?
Oh yes, Arya, if this inspires you (or anyone else), I'm interested by any story among these lines
Oh, this is definitely a new development. Muahahahaha.
Great! 
This is interesting
I honestly don't think Wound penalties affect Initiative unless the character is wounded going into combat. E.g. if Herculon has a 9 initiative, but suffers two Light and a Heavy wound, his Initiative doesn't drop to 9-1-1-5=2. If he rolled a total of 9, but was still recovering from a Medium from a combat earlier in the week, though, his initiative would drop to 6.
I am too.
Yep, Initiatives are rolled upon entering combat and don't change. The exception is Certamen, which gets new initiatives every round; the inconsistency there bugs me.
Regarding dice rolls-- technically those are supposed to all be made by me. I started the saga before I knew about invisible castle, and it makes combat situations flow much more smoothly. On top of that, hidden rolls avoid certain things that bug me...
"You're walking along in the woods. Roll an Awareness check."
"I botched."
"OK, you don't notice anything."
"I spend an hour searching the woods."
"..."
-or-
"The creature rears up, snarling. You've definitely never seen anything like it. Roll a Faerie Lore check."
"I rolled a two."
"Okay, you don't have any idea what it is."
"Shit. I run away and talk to the Merinita."
These are all things that have happened before. Hidden rolls avoid that. If I roll an Infernal Lore for you when you visit the Baron, either you get some piece of relevant knowledge when you succeed, or you don't.
I don't really expect anyone here to make metagaming faux pas, but I chose hidden rolls so that no one ever would. I also feel like it makes fpr a lot less clutter in threads, and helps keep things in character-- better suspension of disbelief.
I hate it when someone takes a swing, rolls the best roll possible but doesn't affect the opponent, and the runs away. Your character doesn't know the difference between missing because you rolled a 2 and the other guy rolled really well and spent a Confidence point, or missing because that guy is actually an ancient Roman soldier cursed to walk the earth forever, who's now had six hundred years to hone his technique.
There are certain occasions where I've asked players to make certain rolls, primarily for certain heroic or otherwise pivotal moments, but these are the exception and not the rule.
Anyway, folks have been assuming invis castle was the rule rather than the exception, and it's my fault for neither explicitly changing the policy nor squelching it.
The black die (NPCs) and the green die (PCs) go with me everywhere in my purse. My coworkers are convinced that I am superstitious and rolling them is some kind of luck thing. I have not bothered to correct this assumption
Would you prefer that you make all the rolls unless you ask us to make them, or to make our own rolls using Invisible Castle (when it's up)?
I prefer to make all rolls except when asked. Lab experimentation, aging rolls, and other downtime housekeeping are fine on Invisible Castle, but I prefer to keep in-character threads as in-character as possible.
I've gone along with the player rolls for a while since there have been a few times y'all have made rolls when I was away from my desk and wasn't reasonably getting back to the dice any time soon (and invis cas is a PITA on iphone browser) but i can just pick up a dice rolling app and problem solved. Also the Chinese guy I sit next to can stop looking at me funny for rolling real d10s (he really wants to ask, but never does).
You run up to a giant and say you need to find a cow, or a sheep, or some pigs or goats pdq? Know what?
This is an excellent question.
I figured that, as wound penalties apply to all your rolls, they should apply, but this effectively means recalculating init in mid-battle, so what you're saying is probably better and simpler.
Okay, I understand.
Perception/Knowledge rolls always had this problem. I got around by asking premade rolls from the player (which has the drawback that you need to keep track of them), but the GM rolling these is a common solution, too
OOTH, if it may reassure you, you don't need to do that for known, opposed rolls, at least in an open-ended system like Ars (if all the dices were non-stess, things would be different). That is, the soldier's defense roll may be even better than yours. Of course, after a few rounds, you may get a clue
EDIT: I thought about this a little more, from the viewpoint of an Amber GM, so here's to you and interested people:
While having players roll perception/knowledge skills require trustful players (and thus, I quite understand you on this), for opposed, known rolls (like trying to hide, or in battle), I think it is, on the contrary, better if the player knows his rolls result.
Why? Because, if swinging a blow, in game, the character knows he did well (good roll) or was sloppy. So if his enemy parries, this teaches him something.
I'd go even further: I'd tell the player something his character would notice, such as "he slips, luckily avoiding your blow" (exploding roll, low skill), "He block your strike, albeit barely" (similar skill, defense roll within 2 points of the attack roll, say) or "He parries your strike effortlessly, already positioning himself for his next blow" (Outmatched PC).
This is similar in debate ("His arguments are confuse, but suffused with passion, moving the crowd" vs "he deconstructs your arguments effortlessly"), or hide vs seek ("he stumbles upon your hiding place" vs "His sharp eye pierces the shadows, as he instantly looks right at you"): For everything where the character knows his effort's value and can perceive his opponent's reaction, he should be able to determine if the opponent's success is mostly due to skill or luck.
Just my 2 cents, anyway
Just as a note, female soldiers are not unheard of in Wales, but they're still pretty damned uncommon outside of Hermetic covenants.