Utiseta with New Abilities

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

Utieseta is one of those interesting systems that can sorta go anywhere. Reading the Muspelli I can't help but wonder what sort of Utiseta effect you could make with other Supernatural Abilities not listed in the Muspelli section. Either because a special Muspelli learns or is taught different abilities or some other tradition somehow integrates Utiseta.

What would happen with Utiseti based on some of the Abilites from the core like Sense Magic, Dowsing, or Secound sight.

Or the unique folk witch powers like Healing, or Flying.

Or for the realyl weird what about Heart Beast.

Or if you want to think scary Utiseti using Parma.

2

not sure how another tradition would integrate Utieseta, it is kind of the core of the Muspelli, and almost a religious ceremony. It would be like Judaism integrating communion without becoming Christian...
As to the Muspelli integrating other supernatural abilities, again not sure exactly how that would happen- they discover new Joten? I suppose in theory it could happen, but I'm not sure how much it would change the way the underlying ability works. They might be able to get a really high casting score, but getting a super high score for water divining is still water divining...

3

Well either is a YSMV situation. Though cannonically Hermetic magic at least is all about stripping the religion out of other traditions and leaving "pure magic" behind. And a hermetic integration of Muspelli magic, in the form of a Flexible Ritual Magic virtue, is mentioned in a sidebar. Other traditions attempting to integrate, particularly another ability based tradition like hedge witches, might achieve something much closer to Ustienta.

Well first of all I never got the impression the Patron list was entirely comprehensive. I think there is room for Sg's to create their own Jotun. And is always the option for other cults/traditions bult around other uber powerfull Magical forces who magic works simarlarly to Musspelli. They might be other Cosmokratos or just other "other" things.

Even going with whats presented in Rival Magic I don't believe Musiplli are specifically prevented from engaging in Original or Integration research. They'd have to develope a MT ability. So it would just be pretty touph for them and extremely out of character.

4

Utiseta seems to be only for Supernatural Abilities from Major Virtues. So what other Abilities are there that they could use?

Poking through my books...

Cursing takes a whole season, so it's out. Same goes for Mythic Alchemy. Wouldn't make much sense to ritual-ize something so slow.

Healing is a potential candidate, and I guess putting a Group target on it or an Arcane Connection range could be useful. But apart from that, what could Utiseta do that would be interesting?

Maybe Utiseta healing can be performed without vis, but when used in such a way only gives a bonus to Recovery rolls instead of erasing wounds/fatigue completely.

Not sure where to go with Mythic Herbalism.

Whistle Up The Wind is pretty similar to what they've already got.

Control Fertility seems like a good option. Very appropriate to some titans, and there's lots of room for it to expand upwards. Create plants from nowhere, bless and blight vast areas, impregnate people with magical super-babies, or just make the effects last a long long time.

Comprehend Magic is also a possibility. Maybe for a Muspelli of Prometheus. It could give more information with Utisena, or give information about more things, or give information from farther away.

Dunno what to do with Banishing or Sihr.

Siren Song is a lot like Entrancement, so it'd be easy to integrate. Suitable flavour, too.

So yeah, I'd start with Control Fertility. Maybe go for Healing or Comprehend Magic if I wanted more options.

5

Control Fertility is probably a good start. Remember also that Utiseta increases the scope of the ability dramatically, even granting special powers sometimes (like the lightning calling for Storm's Eye).

I think Greater Purifying Touch would be neat, if you said Utiseta allowed it to cure any disease, with higher difficulties for more serious diseases (as per A&A).
Hell, even Greater Immunity might be cool if you could move it up from R:Personal. Summon an army of thralls, immune to slashing weapons, or fire (and then set them on fire, for extra destruction).
There's also Thief of Emotions (grants the Ability Emotion Thief) (GotF). Stealing murderous rage from someone whose wife you killed and instilling it upon the entire city seems pretty legit, and a slightly different flavour of entrancement.

6

I thougty make one rip-off of thsi system to the Iberian Tempestarii, but they are communal ritualists, so they change the Vis and the shapechanged state to the ncesassary group. Between the euivalent Utiseta effects, Whistle up the wind adquires more strength and the capacity to ward weather effects and weather magic on one area.

7

Could be neat, but you'd have to rework the Utiseta mechanics to make them work without an Ability score.

That aside, it just occurred to me that the Muspelli rules could be reflavoured for Divine or Infernal characters. Utiseta becomes a prayer ceremony/infernal ritual, the etin-mod becomes an angelic/demonic form, the valkyries you fight when you get warping are replaced with demons/angels, and Breaking the Jotnar's Chains affects different auras. If you could pick appropriate Supernatural Abilities for appropriate Divine/Infernal patrons, it'd work pretty cleanly.