question?

How would magi comunicate over long distances?
An idea I had was flor a form of ham radio.(maybe,not sur e how to make said device)

Would a ham radio be Intellego Animal? :stuck_out_tongue:

By ham radio equilivent I meant the mechanical type(think modern day)
Again this is just a simple question.(the radio example was just a idea of the moment)

groan

By giving their messages to a Redcap who will carry it to its intended recipient. Doing so magically requires an arcane connection, which magi would be wary to give away to others for the sake of mere communication.

We're talking about making a set of walkey-talkies. Or perhaps cellphones.

It's a pair of earing which serve as arcane connections to each other. Each is enchanted to create a copy of a speaker's voice at a volume no greater than a whisper at arcane range.

Or perhaps leave our familiars at home and use them to talk to the mundanes.

There is an issue of trust here. Arcane connections to other Magi are a prime tool for not only striking at range (and possibly beyond retaliation distance) but also for hacking through high Parma.

IMS we have a pair of enchanted devices. Two slate boards. Both arcane connections to each other. Obviously a slight risk but since both are held by covenant magi who trust each other its not so bad. Writing on one chalk board duplicates itself on the other. Its relatively simple, and allows us to send messages from the covenant to the "Away teams" when they are out. Couple with a magic chest that can be summoned/dismissed at distance (another arcane connection) this allows away teams to restock with supplies, vis and items while any distance way from the covenant.

I think the amount of risk is negligable. For one, these sorts of devices are arcane connections to each other, not to individual magi. And for an enemy to get them from the magi in the field, well once you've done that you've got problems regardless of having those specific arcane connections, you know?

But here's a question... two devices are made to be arcane connections to one another, both in the presence of an Aegis. Now, the enchantment built into the device should go through the aegis unaffected. If someone else gets a hold of one of the devices and uses it to cast a spell on the other device which is within the Aegis (not using the device as attended) does that spell still have to penetrate the Aegis?

I'd say no to that one.

You could cast Intangable tunnel, then the desired destructive spell, and Poof!
Would be fun to ruin someones day by destroying the whole Covenant.
:smiling_imp:

doesn't a spell cast using intangible tunnel still get resisted by an aegis?

The actual casting is outside of the aegis so there are no casting negatives to overcome...

no casting negatives, but the spell still has to have sufficent penetration to beat the aegis right?

Our troupe actually had a Companion who had a mystic earring that was linked to 12 other earings for his small army of mooks, I mean red shirts. The earings were based around the zodiac. The companion could call out "Virgo", then speak to the person who had the corresponding earring. The Companion could also hear what 'Virgo" said. The minor earings could only comunicate with the Companion, not between each other. However this could be circumvented by the Companion relaying messages between people. Virgo can't here Sagitarius? Companion listens to Virgo, then repeats message to Sag. Ect, ect.

We were playing with some rather high powered magi and this was our troupes agreed upon compromise to boost the power level of the companion and make the player feel as if on some level he 'approached' the power level of our super magi.

This compromise was a total failure. First the earrings did absolutely nothing to make the companion 'more powerful'. The magi were still magi and the companion was still a companion and each maintained their role in the game.

Second, and this is the most important part. Those damn earrings were probably the most irritating magic item ever introduced into our game. First, they became a technology of dependance and convience. The companion could spread a grog into each and every sub-group that was on adventure. This meant that regardless of where he was, he could communicate with anyone. This allowed him to relay information between just about anyone. The whole premise that one group didn't know another was in danger, or that miscommunication could ruin the players plans got shot down. He could even keep a grog at the covenant, and if an 'away team' was in trouble, ask a senior magi to use the arcane connection that existed in the earing to teleport in anything from food and healing potions, to additional grogs or even wizardly support. To say this made my job as a GM harder is a severe understatement.

These damn earring were the equivlent of a Star Trek communicator and teleporter wrapped into one. Trouble? Call home! Need vis? Call home and have them send us some more! Hurt? Call home and tell them we need a mystic evac ASAP!

As strict I as I am in order to keep the peace between my players as well as keep the game FUN, I was seriously blind sided by the impact these stupid little trinckets would have on the game. I really didn't 'hear' it coming.

At the time we had three rotating GM's and it took my two Co-GM's to do simple things like have a drunk grog misplace his earing. However the companion asked a wizard to use the AC to find it. The second GM (Kryslin) got more clever. After a demonic attack ALL the earings continued to work just like before, but now one could hear 'demonic chatter' in the background. That was ingenious. None of the magi wanted to touch them, let alone try to fix them.

Beyond the details of how a ham-radio/star trek communicator/teleporter work, seriously consider how such a toy will move your game from mythic europe to the 24th Century. Both games have red shirts, but Ars should be free of this plot device. Had I the opportunity to do it all over again I would have VETOED this one on the grounds of Anachronism and GM irritation.

thanks for the ideas!
the basic question was for the purpose of giving others ideas(the earrings would probibly have to have th elimitation of not allowing fast teleportation/maybe a day or so to go threw the motions to activate the teleportation ability?)

If you read what Tuura said, the earrings themselves do not have a teleportation power. It is simply someone using an Arcane Connection-range teleportation spell to the earring's location. They play a purely passive role.

oh, sorry.

IMS (4ed) we talked about having two seashells enchanted with InIm, what was said in one end came out the other end (and a small CrIm effect for the "ring").

But as three of our magi had some mean of casting high level InIm spells, this turned out to be superfluous.
We used arcane connections and summoning the distant image, casted at midday.

/Morten Kay

good idea!

any other ideas for items that allow long-distance conversation?

You either use Rego, to "send" the information, or "Intellego", to "get" the info. I suppose you could "Creo" the message as well, at the other end. Muto... nah, and Perdo is right out.

Then, it's a matter of either Mentem (the thoughts themselves), Imagonem (the sounds/images themselves), or sending some sort of written message, on a tablet or something.

In 4th ed, we had a hollow silver "carrier pigeon" that could teleport small items set inside it to an identical one. It worked well enough (and, iirc, was easier in 4th ed than any imagonem/mentem exchange - tho' maybe that was just for the magi in question. There was some reason we went with that... hmmm...)