silly spell

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

spell name-goofy hat(cero animal/herbam)
level-gen
effect you cause a silly looking hat to appear on the subjects head! The higher the level the sillier the hat looks!
range-sight
duration-inst
target-ind
tell me what you think of this spell & IF it could be used in a game or adventure.

2

I'm trying to think what would qualify as a "silly hat" in medieval times...

A lady's bonnet with the latin version of "I Brake for Crusaders" embroidered on it? A skull cap with a pair of big googly eyes attached to the top? A bishop's hat made of orange and purple silk with a big pom pom on the top?

I played in a game once where one of the player's came up with a "Kick Me" spell. Caused the next person who saw the target to try to kick them in the backside. The Storyteller disallowed it after one game where it got cast multiple times on a crowd during a fair. Many botch rolls occured.

I think it sounds like the perfect spell to cast on someone you just defeated at certamen.

3

Well, first, I think how silly something looks should be mostly independant of how hard it is to cast. Creo magic calls on the Platonic forms to create something, and sillyness could be considered juxtiposing things from different forms together in an unnatural way, so maybe adding one magnitude for sillyness, but probably not more than that.

Second, Creo Herbam and Creo Animal have pretty different difficulties. When considering spells to clothe the Bjornaer mage, the linen robe was about three magnitudes easier than the wool robe, so you have better figure out which form makes the base difficulty.

Probably need to increase the duration to diameter, else the joke is not even going to be noticed.

4

YEah, unless it is a ritual, then duration has to be diameter or concentration to get noticed.

Second, level would be fixed: BAse to create materials, +1 or +2 for complexity, +range/duration modifiers. I think it is only individual amount for material.

The complexity modifier handles making hat different every time but silliness is based on imagination of the casting mage.

Definately a fun thing for winning at Creo Animal, Creo Herbam or creo terram certamen with different hats depending on the form.

5

a similar spell could possibly create silly clothing as well(see todays fasions for ideas)

6

any other silly spells out there?

7

Many Monty Python-inspired silly spells have been published in the Fanzine Hermes' Portal.

8

how about he holy hand grenade for those that have piety?