Pere Vilaro Ferrer of Jerbiton (development)

Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Light of Andorra
1

Pere Vilaro Ferrer of Jerbiton
Characteristics: Int +3, Per +1, Str -1, Sta +1, Pre 0, Com +3, Dex -2, Qik -2
Size: 0
Age: 39
Decrepitude: 0 (1)
Warping: 0 (3)
Confidence: 1 (3)

Virtues
The Gift
Hermetic Magus
Puissant Bargain
True Friend: Josep (familiar)
Gentle Gift
Puissant Mentem
Affinity with Mentem
Deft Mentem
Affinity with Creo
Vernacular Education
Social Contacts (merchants)
Personal Vis Source (Creo)

Flaws
Difficult Longevity Ritual
Enemies
Ability Block: Martial
Obese
Greedy (minor)
Weakness (pretty faces)

Abilities
Area Lore: Barcelona 2 (trading houses)
Area Lore: Mediterranean 2 (ports)
Artes Liberales 1 (arithmetic)
Awareness 1 (searching)
Bargain 4+2 (shipping contracts)
Carouse 2 (staying sober)
Charm 3 (seduction)
Code of Hermes 2 (mundane relations)
Concentration 2 (spells)
Dead Language: Latin 4 (Hermetic usage)
Etiquette 2 (merchants)
Faerie Lore 1 (water faeries)
Finesse 1 (Mentem)
Folk Ken 3 (sailors)
Guile 3 (lying to business partners)
Intrigue 2 (rumormongering)
Leadership 1 (intimidation)
Living Language: Catalan 5 (Barcelona, trade)
Living Language: Arabic 3 (trade)
Living Language: French 3 (Langue d'Oc)
Living Language: Ladino 2 (trade)
Living Language: Mozarab 2 (trade)
Living Language: Portuguese 2 (trade)
Living Language: Spanish 3 (Aragonese)
Magic Lore 1 (creatures)
Magic Theory 5 (Mentem)
Order of Hermes Lore 2 (politics)
Organization Lore: [father's merchant company] 2
Parma Magica 2 (Corpus)
Penetration 3 (Mentem)
Philosophiae 2 (natural philosophy)
Profession: Merchant 3 (finding sellers)
Profession: Scribe 1 (copying)

Arts
Creo 14 (3)
Intellego 5
Muto 5
Perdo 5
Rego 5
Animal 3
Aquam 4
Auram 0
Corpus 5
Herbam 2
Ignem 0
Imaginem 3
Mentem 15+3
Terram 4
Vim 5

Spells Known:
Cloak of the Duck's Feathers ReAq 5

The Tireless Soldier MuCo 5 (see description below)

Prying Eyes InIm 5
Personal Aura of Ennobled Presence MuIm 5
Personal Aura of the Sultry Siren MuIm 5

All is Well CrMe 15 (see description below)
Panic of the Trembling Heart CrMe 15
Rising Ire CrMe 15
The Silent Conspiracy CrMe 15 (Net Wizard's Grimoire)
The Welcome Stranger CrMe 15 (MoH p 140)
Perception of the Conflicting Motives InMe 15
Posing the Silent Question InMe 20
Trust of Childlike Faith PeMe 10
Quid Nunc ReMe 15 (NWG)
Aura of Rightful Authority ReMe 20
Mind Trick of the Tremere ReMe 20 (NWG)

Scales of the Magical Weight InVi 5

Spell Descriptions
The Tireless Soldier, MuCo(An) 5 (Base 2, +1 Touch, +2 Sun): The target is better able to walk long distances, gaining a +3 on all Athletics (hiking) rolls. [Spell uses the MuCo(An) spells of Marcus of Criamon (MoH) as loose benchmarks for a ‘minor ability’.]

All is Well, CrMe 15 (Base 4, +1 Eye, +2 Sun): The target is filled with a feeling of calm, overwhelming any other emotions that may be present. The target remains calm throughout the duration of the spell, though he will otherwise react normally (i.e. defending himself if attacked).

2

1st Cycle (1227-1233): Pere travels the Mediterranean, splitting time between his studies and expanding the reach of his father's shipping company

Year 1: +30 (45) Creo, +5 Vim, +5 Penetration
Year 2: +20 Magic Theory, +10 Intrigue, +5 Penetration, +5 Corpus
Year 3: +40 (60) Mentem
Year 4: +20 Magic Theory, +10 Parma, +5 Faerie Lore, +5 Magic Lore
Year 5: +25 (37.5) Creo, +10 Vim, +5 Magic Theory
Year 6: Bind familiar (+2 (3) Creo), two seasons learning spells (+4 (6) Mentem) one wasted season
Year 7: Two seasons empowering bond (+4 (6) Mentem), one season learning spells (+2 (3) Mentem), one season inventing longevity ritual (+2 (3) Creo)

3

Mustering Out: 1234

Companion: TBD

Grogs: Teodor, Barzin

One seven year cycle + Personal Vis Source= 35 pawns

20 pawns spent in Lab (8p longevity ritual, 8p familiar bond, 4p bond enchantments)

Mustering with 15 pawns, minus Hermetic age of 7, equals 8 pawns

Keep 2 pawns as Mentem vis

Spend 6 pawns (24 qp)

  • 18 qp Ring of Purity [InTe 15 (Base 5, +1 Touch, 24/day) – This gold ring, when activated, lets the wearer know the exact composition of any metal object it touches. Pere uses this in Dominion auras to ensure the quality of coinage.]
  • 6 qp for 15 lb silver in jewelry and finery

((familiar details forthcoming))

4

Pere Vilaro Ferrer was born in 1194 to a moderately successful merchant and his young wife. The boy displayed a knack for charming his peers from an early age, though he inherited his father’s love of food and ample girth that came with it. Occasionally his wit would get the best of him, resulting in more than a few thrashings at the hands of his father or other children. He befriended a large servant’s boy named Teodor Capcir at a young age as a protective measure. The relationship they built as children has continued throughout their lives.

Pere’s father ensured he received tutoring in the necessary areas to join the family shipping business. By the age of 10, Pere was accompanying his father to taverns and ships to observe negotiations and develop an understanding of contracts. Within four years he was leading negotiations, displaying a remarkable skill for convincing very surprised ship captains to take questionable deals. The combination of commissions and dockside taverns also fed his appetites, which grew more diverse once puberty took hold.

By the age of 16, Pere’s assistance had allowed his father to buy out his partners in a shipping company. Shortly afterward, Pere finally encountered a merchant who was impervious to his charms – Franc Severel of Jerbiton. Franc recognized the supernatural tricks that Pere was using and quickly determined the young man had no true understanding of them. Franc reported the situation to Farusca and told her to take care of it. After a great deal of arguing with the other magi of Barcelona, she agreed to take Pere as an apprentice rather than run off an unattached person with the Gentle Gift. Convincing Pere to accept apprenticeship was difficult, but she ultimately ‘purchased’ his services from his father and explained the ‘join or die’ concept to Pere. As was his habit, he sent Teodor to neutralize the threat. Teodor was quickly taught an object lesson involving heights and a lack of pants, and Pere’s apprenticeship began.

He resisted Farusca’s instruction for less than a year. Once she demonstrated what Hermetic magic would allow him to do, he dove right into his training with an eye on being the greatest merchant in Barcelona. Convincing him of the importance of the ‘masquerade’ took much longer. He eventually reached a compromise with his parens, learning to employ his magic in subtle ways and accepting that ‘winning’ every single deal would lead to unwanted attention. The second part was based on the idea of longevity rituals. Living for a hundred years or more would allow Pere to lose a few deals now to make more in the long term. It also meant all the drinking and whoring he wanted, since magic would keep him alive regardless. The fact that he was married early in his apprenticeship to a shrewish shipping heiress would also pose no difficulty with the proper spells.

Pere continued to work for his father during his apprenticeship, per the agreement between his father and Farusca. Once he completed his Gauntlet, his father began sending him to ports throughout the Mediterranean to expand the company’s influence. By this time in his mid-30s, Pere was badly overweight and had become reliant on a Jewish physician named Shalev Aguilar to control his gout and other pains. Pere eventually found time in the early 1230s to complete his longevity ritual, but it was not the cure-all he had been led to believe. It was much weaker than he expected and did not alleviate his physical complaints as he had expected. In recent years he has begun chasing rumor of non-Hermetic ways to achieve longevity, with Arabic tales of alchemical solutions being his primary target. The notion of changing his lifestyle has never crossed his mind.

5

Tentative sanctum, using the latest version of Marko's rules...

Pere is taking over an estate in Palma that was formerly owned by a non-Hermetic sahir. I'm thinking of an Arab-style(?) house surrounded by a walled courtyard, with an open archway in each of the four walls. The entire complex is mirrored in a regio that is entered by walking through any of the four archways while performing some simple task related to the elements (carrying an open flame, the wind at your back, etc.). The higher level of the regio is in the mirrored house, where Pere will build his sanctum. There is also at least one higher level of the regio of which Pere is completely unaware. It's harder to access than the other levels and holds some kind of lost knowledge or treasure left by the sahir.

Boons
Journeyman +0
Townhouse +0
Regio +1
Special Feature (decorative walls) +1
Superior Engineering +1
Hidden Resources (in higher regio levels) +1
Private Income (x2) +2
Increased Staff +1
Informants/Agents +1
Local Ally (TBD) +1

Hooks
Urban/City -3
Uncontrolled Regio -1

6

Beautiful. The system is working then?

7

Seems to be. My only 'difficulty' was spending my extra virtue points after adding my hooks. Normally I'd sink them into improving my aura, but with a cap of 3 I had to branch out into other stuff. It was actually a good thing for my character, since he's so involved in mundane society. It might be more of a challenge for the more rural types though.

8

Teodor Mata (shield grog)
Characteristics: Int -1, Per 0, Str +2, Sta +2, Pre +1, Com -2, Dex +2, Qik +1
Size: 0
Age: 40
Decrepitude: 0 (2)
Warping: 0 (4)
Confidence: 0

Virtues
Tough
Social Contacts (criminals)
Puissant Brawl

Flaws
Raised in the Gutter
Pack Mentality (follower)
Afflicted Tongue

Abilities
Area Lore: Barcelona 4 (taverns)
Area Lore: Mediterranean 2 (ports)
Athletics 3 (running)
Awareness 5 (alertness)
Brawl 7+2 (dagger)
Carouse 4 (games of chance)
Charm 2 (seduction)
Concentration 3 (guard duty)
Etiquette 2 (merchants)
Folk Ken 4 (sensing trouble)
Guile 1 (lying to authority)
Leadership 4 (intimidation)
Living Language: Catalan 5 (Barcelona, slang)
Living Language: Arabic 3 (slang)
Living Language: French 3 (slang)
Living Language: Ladino 2 (slang)
Living Language: Mozarab 2 (slang)
Living Language: Portuguese 2 (slang)
Living Language: Spanish 2 (slang)
Organization Lore: Barcelona underworld 3
Profession: Sailor 3 (rowing)
Stealth 5 (urban environments)
Survival 2 (fishing)
Swim 3 (ocean)

Combat:
Dodge: Init +1, Atk n/a, Def +10, Dmg n/a
Fistfight: Init +1, Atk +11, Def +10, Dmg +2
Dagger: Init +1, Atk +12, Def +11, Dmg +5
Soak: +5
In Armor: leather scale (partial) +8
Fatigue: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, ko
Wound Penalties: -1 Light (1-5), -3 Medium (6-10), -5 Heavy (11-15), Incapacitated (16-20), Lethal (21+)

9

Barzin (shield grog)
Barzin was a Persian horse archer in his youth, but was captured after a battle and sold into slavery. He changed hands several times before being thrown in on one of Pere's many successful deals. Pere uses Barzin as a full-time bodyguard, rarely going anywhere without him. Barzin is rather disgusted with Pere, but he knows his master is a wizard and he's unwilling to draw Pere's ire.

Characteristics: Int -2, Per 0, Str +2, Sta +1, Pre 0, Com -2, Dex +2, Qik +3
Size: 0
Age: 29
Decrepitude: 0
Warping: 0 (1)
Confidence: 0

Virtues
Tough
Lightning Reflexes
Warrior

Flaws
Outsider
Continence
Poor Living Conditions

Abilities
Animal Handling 3 (horses)
Area Lore: Mediterranean 3 (ports)
Athletics 3 (running)
Awareness 4 (bodyguarding)
Bows 4 (when mounted)
Brawl 4 (dodge)
Concentration 2 (guard duty)
Etiquette 2 (warriors)
Folk Ken 3 (sensing trouble)
Great Weapon 2 (long spear)
Guile 2 (lying to authority)
Hunt 2 (tracking)
Leadership 2 (tactics)
Living Language: Persian/Farsi 5 ([regional], storytelling)
Living Language: Arabic 3 (tactical vocabulary)
Profession: Sailor 3 (rowing)
Ride 4 (battle)
Single Weapon 5 (sabre)
Stealth 2 (sneak)
Survival 3 (desert)
Swim 2 (not drowning)
Thrown Weapon 2 (javelin)

Combat:
Dodge: Init +3, Atk n/a, Def +8, Dmg n/a
Fistfight: Init +3, Atk +6, Def +7, Dmg +2
Dagger: Init +3, Atk +8, Def +7, Dmg +5
Sabre: Init +5, Atk +12, Def +10, Dmg +8
Short bow: Init +2, Atk +9, Def +5, Dmg +8
Javelin: Init +3, Atk +7, Def +6, Dmg +7
Long spear: Init +6, Atk +8, Def +7, Dmg +9
Soak: +4
In Armor: leather scale (partial) +7
Fatigue: OK, 0, -1, -3, -5, ko
Wound Penalties: -1 Light (1-5), -3 Medium (6-10), -5 Heavy (11-15), Incapacitated (16-20), Lethal (21+)

10

Shouldn't this be, then, a MuCo(An) spell too, based on some animal, like "Eyes of the Cat" or whatever?
All these MuCo base 2 spells follow the same model, enhancing a human by giving him a "minor" animal ability, at the cost of some animal trait. It seems strange that these would be used if the same arts can do just as well, only without the requisite and cosmetic bit (For that, compare to tC&tC p157 which has a Mythic Blood power use ReCo base 10 to give +3 to an Athletics/Ride/Swim specialty)

The ring of purity is a nice touch, background-wise. Very appropriate, I'd never have thought of something like this.

What does "Aura of the Sultry Siren " do? I see the model, guess it must enhance seduction, but can't find a description.

Quid Nunc: No problem with the spell per se, but is it R: Eye or R: Touch? The NWG lists both :unamused:

11

MuCo base 2 is 'Change someone to give them a minor ability'. I don't know why the RAW example spells that use this benchmark assume animal body parts are required to give that minor ability, other than some of the abilities granted could be described as 'unnatural'. In this case, I would argue that the ability Pere's spell grants is a perfectly ordinary human ability that could be created by reinforcing or otherwise altering a human body in 'natural' ways. As for tC&tC, I don't have the book, but our ongoing discussions about how to build a flying carpet seem to demonstrate there are multiple ways to create an effect that may be different levels.

Thanks. I originally gave him an obsession with gold, which is where this came from. I ultimately dropped the gold idea because building up his Te would have weakened his core concept.

It's on the Andorra wiki. It grants 'a +3 bonus in interactions with the appropriate gender concerning charm, seduction, and using their wiles'.

Didn't even notice...let's go with Eye.

12

Thing is, most of Marcus spells you took as exemple only enhance the ability to climb, swim, or the equilibrium.

These could all easily be said to be "perfectly ordinary human abilities that could be created by reinforcing or otherwise altering a human body in 'natural' ways". Idem for spells like "Eyes of the Hawk", and even "Eyes of the Cat" (humans have some night vision, after all).
As far as I can tell, the only spell that could be said as clearly outside that and "unnatural" is the one that makes you slippery.

=> If an animal requisite is needed to enhance these, I fail to see how your spell could be the exception, nor how it could be less "unnatural".

13

Agreed. Basically, if a General ability grants the same bonus (long winded, tough, rapid convalescence, ....) you can get the bonus without the Animal part creeping in. If you can't (+3 to flight, +3 to breath underwater) well, then you'd better have the animal bit creeping in for it to work :slight_smile:

14

I can't say that I agree, but I can say that I'm not going to argue about it. :slight_smile: I'll add the An requisite.

15

For what it's worth, I've taken the time to check, using the spell index as a reference.

Each and every MuCo spell that uses that base has an Animal requisite, whatever the effect. I though I had found an exception with Ears of the Hare, but when I looked at Apprentices to see the difference, I found out that there is one, it's just unlisted in the index (and IIRC, that spell just gives +1 to hearing rolls, which is far from exceptionnal, especially compared to the other MuCo spells. Maybe that's because, contrary to the other spells, there are no physical quirks?).

If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say that improving your sight, smell, equilibrium... would fall under Creo, or maybe sometimes Rego, but that muto alone can't do it: changing human to human only gives human, so it needs to "borrow" from something else. This is also probably why these are so easy compared to Creo stat increase, or even the base 10 (which may be non-hermetic, although I'd allow it) used by Rego Mythic Blood to increase Athletics specialties.

So, taking from published works, it seems roughly to me that:

  • CrCo base 35+ can raise an entire stat by +1, which is the wider bonus
  • ReCo base 10 can maybe (based only on mythic blood) give +3 to an Athletics, swim (and maybe another, I don't recall) specialty.
  • MuCo(An) base 2 can usually give +3 to a skill or a minor non-human ability, but you gain a physical quirk. Maybe a higher bonus for a specialized field (based only on slippery of the eel)
  • MuCo(An) base 2 can give a +1 to a skill without a physical quirk (based only on Ears of the Hare), maybe +3 for a specialized field (based on nothing, but that'd seem logical and fair)
16

Updated sanctum, using the April 2014 version of Marko's rules...

Pere is taking over an estate in Palma that was formerly owned by a non-Hermetic sahir. The estate is an open square in the Moorish style - three 'wings' surrounding a courtyard lined with decorative archway entrances. The centerpiece of the courtyard is a large fountain topped with a marble statue of a beautiful woman, rumored to be modeled after the Moroccan goddess/demon Qandisa. The house is duplicated in a regio, in which Pere has his lab, sanctum, and various mundane valuables he hides from his business partners. In addition to the higher regio level which links to Sa Dragonera, there is also at least one higher level of the regio of which Pere is completely unaware. It is harder to access than the other levels and holds some kind of lost knowledge or treasure left by the sahir.

Boons
Journeyman +0
Manor House +0
Strong Aura +3
Controlled Regio +1
Special Feature (statue of Qandisa) +1
Hidden Resources (in higher regio level) +1
Private Income (x2) +2
Increased Staff +1
Informants/Agents +1
Local Ally (TBD) +1

Hooks
Inland -1
Urban/City -3
Uncontrolled Regio -1

17

looks good. The thing with the regio, that went sideways on me. Not my intent, but a great idea anyway :smiley:
So we keep it.
If we are all set, I might trim the thing down to just the stuff we wound up using and simplify the whole thing.

18

Which thing with the regio? Other than the unknown regio level, I was just trying to describe the setup you defined in the boon/hook rules. If I got something turned around, let me know.

19

No, no. You are fine.
My intent was for everyone to be in a regio, based of an idea you gave me awhile back. The idea was to choose a Boon or a Hook that defined that regio (Controlled or Uncontrolled). I expanded it to have an option for a free Hook (Partial Control) based on PoB's idea for the Sharky Cave. I meant for it to be taken one time to define the one regio; controlled, partially controlled, or uncontrolled.
But I like your idea of a second regio that has nothing to do with the direct pipeline. A side regio of sorts. So keep it. I like it. Otherwise what you describe is Partial Control, a Free Hook. But you have a balanced Minor Boon & Minor Hook. It works, it is fair, and offers interesting opportunities if we want to grow and expand this concept down the road.

20

Recalculation of Pere's mustering to reflect his Personal Vis Source virtue turning into Mastered Spells...

Mustering out, take 2

Companion: TBD

Grogs: Teodor, Barzin

One seven year cycle = 21 pawns

8 pawns spent in Lab (longevity ritual)

Mustering with 13 pawns, minus Hermetic age of 7, equals 6 pawns

Spend 6 pawns (24 qp)

  • 18 qp Ring of Purity [InTe 15 (Base 5, +1 Touch, 24/day) – This gold ring, when activated, lets the wearer know the exact composition of any metal object it touches. Pere uses this in Dominion auras to ensure the quality of coinage.]
  • 6 qp for 15 lb silver in jewelry and finery