Two Dimensional ring on a Three dimensional staff

If i cast a ring spell to do something funky (doesn't really matter what) how high can the ring affect?

If i cast the ring around a building, it makes sense that it would affect the whole building.

But how about if i cast it on a metal ring and then placed that ring around a quarterstaff?

One could imagine a host of effects cast on metal rings which are then shrunk around a staff (to make them stick on tight).

Ignoring for a moment what effects you'd put on the rings/staff, does this seem to be something that is possible?

The rules do not say. There are two schools of thought here:

  1. Up to the lunar sphere, down to the centre of the earth.
  2. Within a sphere whose equator is the ring.

Yes, althouth if you adopt interpretation 2. and the building is tall and slender, and the ring is too "tight", you might leave the upper floors out.

The general consensus is that moving rings should not work. Several people seem to be willing to make an exception for rings that are static relative to some pretty large moving object, such as a ship or flying castle. Few people are willing to accept rings on small movable objects, like bells or crates. Very few people are willing to accept tiny moving rings affecting anything "wearing" them.

[quote="ezzelino"] The rules do not say. There are two schools of thought here: 1. Up to the lunar sphere, down to the centre of the earth. 2. Within a sphere whose equator is the ring. [/quote] All the canon "wards vs faeries of the ___" are clearly described of the sphere type, but some SG's/Troupes interpret other rings as infinitely high cylinders - but I'm not sure there is any canon support for such. If not, then it's just convenience and intentional memory lapse, so that "ring" effects can block a square hall or encompass a tall tower, etc. [quote="GribbletheMunchkin"] If i cast the ring around a building, it makes sense that it would affect the whole building. [/quote] Another limiter is the actual drawing of that ring - Concentration rolls/etc. Even if using a pre-fabricated physical ring (of stone, of metal, magically carved, etc) that only helps the drawing - the ring must still be physically, [u]manually[/u] drawn (houserules and Hermetic breakthroughs aside).

Extremely preferable. And the one most implied by RAW.

I like to go with the sphere myself. And it makes it easier when a clever magus traces a ring on a vertical surface: that still creates a sphere, no problem.

I like the sphere as a default, but I also like the idea of a column when a ring is inscribed on the floor (or ceiling) of a reasonably-sized room or hallway. I think both could be possible in Hermetic theory - at worst needing to be fixed at spell design.