given that there was no effect on DeAngelica for experimenting, and she was probably told this was a reward for her years of service rather than "hey, we want to experiment with you" it will result in a gain to loyalty
Deangelica has Monstrous Blood, so she's now aligned with the Magic Realm. She has no supernatural abilities, though, so is her LR is ½ level?
she is considered supernaturally aligned, the same way a magus is (though obviously different in details). Nicola also has monsterous blood and gets the same benefit.
I have a question: Can Experimental Philosophy perform Original Research?
I suppose so, but the breakthroughs will be far less dramatic.
Hi, silveroak,
What's Gloriana's Insight for Fertility in 1119? https://forum.atlas-games.com/t/character-design-and-development/10935/513
look 2 posts below where you linked to
Somehow I thought that was Evandrus's insight. Derp. Wait, then what's Evandrus's insight?
Hi silveroak, that was Evandrus's Insight.
I edited my update post after you had responded to Quite Possibly a Cat.
*edit, and Quite Possibly a Cat already has the item proposed in the custom spells section, so this is definitely Ev.'s Insight.
it appears that darkwing is considering dropping this game, and I am not planning to run the game with 2 players...
You could try posting a new thread in the recruitment section. I kind of like this fast play thing, but you might need to relax the rules for introducing new magi...
Otoh, evandrus could take a new apprentice and even anna could use a lab assistant.
Just brainstorming...
Yeah, no kidding, I like this sort of play, it's strange and an exercise in bookkeeping, but that's a big aspect of Ars.
Andros is ready for an apprentice, but I guess he doesn't look that attractive as a teacher, bummer. I didn't like him when I started out, but after guiding him for nearly 15 years in-game, he's grown on me!
However most of the people who've expressed any sort of interest in playing have simply fled when they grokked the nature of the Saga (super-long year-by-year advancement 'til eventually, actual play with the Arch Magi we advanced, can't really choose Magi but what's in the covenant already). I don't hold out much hope in that regard. Love to be proven wrong, though!
I am definitely interested in the campaign, though I can certainly understand if you feel that two players is untenable.
Hi guys, I've been busy the last week and am in no position to make a serious effort to catch up for another 6 days. When I was just doing Aurthor and Pazzino I could keep up with the book-keeping, but adding in Giovanni and Mercurio has made it tougher (I've made a right mess of Mercurio and he's only seven) and I'm falling further behind. And as for keeping track of vis....
I feel dropping out is my best option at the moment, sorry if I'm making the covenant unviable for you guys.
I just saw the ad and may be interested in getting involved. Things seem quite elaborate! What's the best way to get my head around the saga?
Similarly, I saw the post in the 'Looking for Players' forum, but the post is a bit sparse on information. Since I'm new to forum-games and Ars Magica specifically, there are a lot of questions I'd have;
how often do you expect the players to post? How quickly do you advance through time in play? The post mentioned you were accepting both Apprentices and established teachers, but do you have preferences? Are your active mages looking for apprentices? How many mages are around and how many players are you looking for? What sort of stories does the Covenant get itself involved in? Is there a post or spot where all my randomly-thrown-together questions are already answered that I missed?
I'd do more digging on my own, but I'm browsing at work. I am, as may be obvious, interested.
Hey everybody! Welcome.
The basics: silveroak is the SG.
Praesidium Orae is the covenant. It's in Southern Italy.
The current Magi are: Evandrus of Merinita, a Founder of the covenant: Taurus of Bjornaer, a Founder also: Andros ex Flambeau (about 36 years post Gauntlet), and Aurthor ex Miscellanea (a Pralician variant, also about 30 years post Gauntlet): Danaë of Mercere, a Mythic Redcap; Anna Romano ex Miscellanea, recently Gauntleted, apprenticed to Aurthor; Gloriana Sentis ex Merinita, recently Gauntleted, apprenticed to Evandrus. Current apprentice: Giovanni, to Taurus.
There are currently 4 Companions, and due to a Ritual botch, a lot of women became pregnant, including the Magas, and so there's a batch of 7 year olds including Companions in training.
Currently silveroak is running Taurus (though I'm sure he would cede that to whomever wishes to run him), Quite Possibly a Cat has Evandrus and Anna, and I (Ignes.Festivus) am running Andros, Danäe and Gloriana.
The concept of the Saga was "create your apprentice and your parens, another player will run the parens you created. Use the home-brewed Fast Advancement Rules to move from the beginning in 1100 to 1220. In 1220 your Apprentices will now be Arch Magi, most probably, and the slow Saga, with the role-playing and all begins. By this time, the parens must be dead or in Twilight; even if alive, they will be unavailable. If a player abandons the game, another person will be recruited, and must run the abandoned character." Right now, not sure what silveroak is planning on relaxing or adding to this last bit.
I would guess available is Taurus Bjornaer, his apprentice Giovanni Bjornaer, and Aurthor ex Miscellanea. All of the Magi are excellent teachers, my character Andros is the only one without an apprentice, was planning on taking one in 1130 (which any of you could design and run, but be taught by Andros)
The way we play involves a lot of book-keeping, can't deny that! 
Each year we declare seasonal activities, including adventures (you often can sneak an adventure even if studying or writing books), and the SG rolls for adventures as well, using the characters' Story flaws and the Covenant hooks, and then we again get to declare who is going where and with who. Then silveroak rolls for difficulty, adventure theme, length, etc, and we resolve this. Each player is responsible for rolling (we are using Coyotecode) and narrating to some extent the adventures his/her players have initiated or are the center of (due to some Flaw). As for the other adventures, where multiple Magi show up and are covenant Hooks, somebody must volunteer to become responsible for, as well as the results, from those Fast advancement home-brewed rules I mentioned. These adventures are posted here
So I think those are the basics. The ideal is to advance 1 year each week, we are in 1119 currently.
The rest are things to pick up if you decide to play. We have a Google doc page to post the seasonal activities, and a wikidot with everybody and everything in the Covenant.
silveroak will surely correct me if I have missed anything.
Really hope one or both of you can stay and enjoy this Saga. One often gets to talk about advancing characters all the way to Arch Magi-hood (-dom?), but seldom gets the chance.
*edited to clarify and post what silveroak offered in the advert:
So yeah, you can make new Magi! Cool!
Holy Infodump. That's pretty much everything I was looking for, thank you.
As far as characters, I'd need to figure out how the Fast Advancement rules work. I always feel strange trying to pick up other peoples' characters, but I'd be willing to do book-keeping and background stuff for those characters - the rapid pace of the game means less focus on the roleplaying aspects of the background characters which may help. As far as what I'd be interested in, I'm relatively new to actually playing Ars Magica (my groups have been rather insular) and prefer younger and newer characters. Recently Gauntleted and Apprentices are good things for me. I'm certainly happy to pick up children to build into apprentices or companions.
I'm also really bad at figuring out and handling hermetic politics. My current game is out in the depths of nowhere to avoid having many tribunal issues.
Most of the politicking is background stuff. The Magi have been pretty neutral or friendly to each other, we seem to have no Infernalists or Holy men. Adventures with politicking (we have the Rival, Hermetic Politics, and Mundane Politics Hooks, mind you!) are part and parcel, but as long as the adventures are resolved favorably, don't tend to have much impact, though silveroak's using the actual history as events that affect the sort of adventures that occur, there's a sort of continuity there.
The covenant is extremely wealthy in terms of vis and riches. We have extremely competent servants, lots of teachers, the grogs are writing books in their spare time! Most of the Magi themselves are also writing books. The Library is pretty good! So the later apprentices will have some very strong resources later on.
The Fast Advancement Rules are pretty simple and straightforward, here.
That's inside the wikidot, basic page here, if you want to check out the characters (of course you do! ), over here
Pazzino is a Companion in very high demand: he's a lawyer, can fight, and a while back got a mighty LR, so he'll be around (and warped!) for a long time. He's currently available, I believe.
Mercurio is one of the little kids, son of Aurthor, being groomed as a Companion. Also free.
You'd probably have to update either one a bit.
Of course, you can invent and run your own Companion!
The major thing I want to avoid at this point is playing with myself- in other words have an NPC magus and apprentice linked together. If nobody wants to take over Giovanni we can scrub him from the game (Mythic Europe can be so lethal) and either remove Taurus or have him get a new apprentice if someone wants a Bjorner who is not Giovanni. (If both go they will probably relocate to the Rhine)
As an incentive anyone taking over an existing companion and magus (either master or apprentice) can also get a faerie mythic companion.
available existing magi are: Taurus, Aurthor, and Giovanni. Pazzino and Mercurio are both companions who are available (though as noted Mercurio is 7- which might make him easier to take over)
Well, the other interested party hasn't chimed in yet so I don't want to steal any of his options. I would at least let him look before I started making final choices. That said, I'd be happy to take (at the least) Mercurio or Giovanni. Or I'd also gladly pick up an apprentice when Andros goes looking. I'm cautious about picking up a character with as much history as Taurus, or Pazzino. Also happy to build a new character to get sent/banished/taught at the covenant.