Spell critique please

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

Creo Terram

Level 10

Avner's Temporary Corner Stone

    R: Touch   D: Diameter   T: Ind

As per Wall of Protecting Stone except: makes a wall of granite up to 6 paces wide, 3 paces high, and 1 pace thick.

Note: A caster who has mastered this spell in Multicasting can create, with a successful Finesse roll (Ease Factor 6) and sufficient space, two walls that will support each other.

(Base 3 +1 Touch, +1 Diameter, +1 Size)

2

Here's a critique assuming that you used 5th edition throughout:

(1) Multiple Casting doesn't require Finesse rolls in ArM5, so requiring a Finesse roll for a spell's effect should indeed help to keep the trickyness-modifiers to its level low.

(2) The base individual of ArM5 CrTe spells creating stone is one cubic pace, so the level of your spell would be computed thus:
Base level 3 (create stone), +2 magnitudes (more than 10 times base individual size created), +1 magnitude (R:Touch), +1 magnitude ( D:Diameter), +? magnitudes (tricky effect, with several spells cast simultaneously allowed to support each other).

So the following spell might make more sense for you:

CrTe 10 Temporary Corner Stone

R: Touch D: Diameter T: Ind

As per Wall of Protecting Stone except: makes a wall of granite up to 4 paces wide, 2.5 paces high, and 1 pace thick.

Note: A caster who has mastered this spell for Multiple Casting can create, with a successful Finesse roll (Ease Factor 3 plus 3 per additional copy of the spell cast) and sufficient space, several walls that will support each other.

(Base 3 +1 Touch, +1 Diameter, +1 Size, +0 (SG or Troupe call) Trickyness due to required Finesse roll)

Kind regards,

Berengar

3

Words to Live By:

But leave the Wise to wrangle, and with me
The Quarrel of the Universe let be:
And, in some corner of the Hubbub coucht,
Make Game of that which makes as much of Thee.

4

I wouldn't require that the spell be altered in order to allow multiple castings to form corners. That's what finesse is for; "manipulating spells and performng special feats with them" (p.65).

You could get a very similar affect by just locating the walls in such a manner that the one you do not wish to be toppled is supported by the other (preventing toppling in the direction that you fear most).

I (also) agree with Beringar's treatment of the size modifier

5

After all, that's what you are doing when playing Ars Magica. :wink:

Kind regards,

Berengar