I’m kinda wondering what people’s talismans look like. What kind of contingency effects do they use? What do you use your talisman for?
My mage has a long chain with manacles, made of iron, with a red coral bead and a magnet embedded, as well a shield engraved (there are plenty of nasty faeries in the neighborhood).
It is used mostly to provide casting bonus for his defensive spell, when he needs fast-casting (incurring a -10 penalty).
It is also used to provide my mage with various bonus for his Potency magic (Wards). Thus, the main role of his talisman is to either boost Penetration or offset malus from fast-casting.
He has three main effects invested:
- One that extend the duration of his spells
- One that craft from nearby stone 3 stone projectiles, that he can use for his triple multi-cast Vilano’s Sling
- One that reads his mind, so he can fast-cast/multi-cast his Vilano’s effect, and just have to think to trigger the effect that supply him projectiles for the next round.
He has mastered a short range teleportation spell and a spell that raise wall of stone as protective magic. He does not have the skills to invest Leap of Homecoming effect, or powerful healing magic (Deficiency in Creo tend to do that).
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that’s very cool, I was thinking of creating. Rice for my wards. Or holing the concentration of spells. Thanks for sharing
It depends on the Magus/Maga in questions.
I had a Bjornaer Magus who was an Ignem specialist, but since he had Flawless Magic and Deft Ignem, his Talisman, which granted, I didn’t get to explore much, was a clear glass ring, with the ReIm Wizard’s Sidestep, and a plan to invest Veil of Invisibility.
This was mainly because it allowed to have some effects that he had a hard time casting in his Heartbeast, due to the -10 casting penalty (The first, free Mastery, for spells that weren’t ignem was Still Casting).
In general, I look at what bonuses either complemented or enhanced the concept, and then figured out how to work them together into a coherent Talisman.
In another game that ended way too soon, I was playing a Merinita that was fascinated by ghosts, and her plan was to try to find the skull of Hannibal, and turn it into her Talisman, so she could use it to summon a ghostly army of his troops.
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I try to stay away from the munchkin and impersonal “staff-of-thousands-boni” with two dozens stones embedded in it, including vial of mercury, covered with as many symbols and other similar ridiculous stuffs.
A believe a talisman should announce the type of mage that you are as much as a your familiar. Not just be a stack of boni.
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But this should totally be how house Bonisagus members silently brag to each other about their command of magic theory. “Look how much I could bind in a talisman when I made it; imagine how much more I’ve improved since then!”
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I haven’t yet made a Talisman for any magus of my own. While I am thinking a wand or staff, one mage was partial to the idea of a long silken ribbon.
However, in my current saga there is an NPC magus who has a rather impressive looking talisman. Or I should say a former Bjornaer mage now Great Beast. As a human he was over-sensitive about not being respected as much as a proper Latin house mage. Drove him to do a lot of “proper” enchanting, and after becoming a Great Beast he claims his old Sanctuary as a Lair and keeps and uses his Talisman. His heartbeast was a large octopus, and Casting Sigil was seaweed smelling aquamarine coloured candle flame which is seen when his talisman activates.
The talisman is a narwhal’s tooth, with a large piece of carved amber with inclusion held in the tusk’s root, and a bronze(?) pointy cap on the sharp end of the tusk.
As an attack move he throws the Talisman like a spear at an enemy. If it draws blood it triggers 3 effects - 1) A Corpus version with Group Target of “Cripple the Howling Wolf”, 2) casts the CrAu “Wreaths of Foul Smoke”, and 3) an effect to make the talisman fly back to him.
He will often throw it at the same enemy several times, each broken bone injury penalty makes it less likely the enemy survives the foul smoke.
The PCs have also seen the Great Beast use the talisman to rocket through the water, and Levitate in the air. There may be other effects that haven’t been displayed yet, or unable to be activated by a Great Beast.