Sure, while I would not be sorry to formulaic magic go, I would expect some other way to use a lab season to gain a field advantage more flexible than an enchantment. Harry Dresden style gadgets spring to mind. Talisman atunement bonuses are appropriate, but too feeble to substitute for formulaic spells.
I have no idea what such a system would look like, but if one makes a new edition, one really should start with a blank slate, and not assume formulaic magic to start with.
Seconded. Ars Magica without formulaic magic feels (and looks) a bit too much like Mage the Ascension for my tastes.
Exalted 3rd edition for example, has a very interesting idea for high level enchantments, where over a series of die rolls the player & StoryGuide creates some kind of enchantment without the need for nearly as much real world mechanical wrangling. There are some more mechanical pieces to this, but I didn't want to copy and paste the rules wholesale and cause some kind of copyright issue. They don't specificly fit as Hermetic Magic generally has more and less limitations that Sorcerors in Exalted. However, there's room for thought if you were to try and simplify processes in a 6th edition.
Terrestrial Circle Workings: Workings of the Terrestrial Circle are generally rooted in transforming, enhancing, or weakening pre-existing elements of the natural world, rather than directly invoking supernatural forces. When outright supernatural forces are invoked, their intervention is generally constrained or specialized in some significant way. Emerald Circle workings are typically limited either in power or scope. An Emerald Circle working might enchant all the fields of a village, but only with a minor blessingāsomething that would still be a marvel to the inhabitants of the village, but augments the natural properties of that area or protects it against a mundane threat or nuisance, rather than completely overwriting the nature of that region through magic. Conversely, the most powerful workings of this circle are confined to the scope of a single chamber within a larger structure or the transformation of a single character. As a general rule, any sorcerous feat the Storyteller feels should be routine for a Dragon-Blooded or mortal sorcerer should fall under this circle.
Celestial Circle Workings: Workings of the Celestial Circle are miracles of outright supernatural power, either rewriting the laws of the natural world on a relatively large scale or instilling supernatural power into the mundane world. They can have scope sufficient to place powerful blessings or curses upon an entire village or a particular neighborhood or feature of a city, and their power is either an overt manifestation of supernatural magic, or a dramatic and drastic change to the properties of the natural world. As a general rule, this is the circle for sorcerous workings that the Storyteller feels established Lunar and Sidereal sorcerers, as well as accomplished Solar sorcerers, should be capable of achieving without excessive effort, or that an exceptionally potent DragonBlood or mortal might be capable of attaining with great dedication, skill, and risk.
Solar Circle Workings: Solar Circle workings are the height of what can be accomplished by sorcery. They can rewrite the laws of reality, or write new ones into being. Their scale can be huge, encompassing entire cities at the low end of Ambition 1 or the whole of the cosmos at its upper, nigh-unattainable end. Its power can bend time, space, or the boundaries of worlds to the sorcererās will, and manipulate the fine workings of Essence down to the level of changing a beingās very soul. As long as the Storyteller feels that something should be possible through a sorcerous working, it can be attained through workings of the Adamant Circle.
Hi,
Following up on the conversation re spontaneous and formulaic magic....
Although I like spontaneous magic, I think it is critical for the game to privilege formulaic magic:
Speed of play: It takes a lot more time during play for most tables to come up with, reach consensus about and run the math for a spontaneous spell compared to a formulaic spell. It is good that the current emphasis on formulaic magic rewards being kind to the table and to new players.
Character definition and niche protection: It's fine for a game like D&D to allow any wizard to cast any spell, because there is usually only one wizard in a group. (In Exalted, which has been referenced above, a group might not have even a single wizard.) AM focuses on a group of wizards, so it is imperative that each is different. We achieve this largely by imposing costs on generalization, first by making it especially worthwhile to focus on a few favored Arts and then to focus on a suite of favored spells. Other factors matter too, such as personality and other abilities, but to a lesser extent, since so much of the game (and from the perspective of the magi, their lives) is all about the magic. It should be possible to be a generalist, but that must come at a real cost so that it is not an obvious or optimal choice.
I've mentioned elsewhen (both here and elsewhere), that I don't like the Diedne Magic virtue. I previously focused on its weakness at most playable levels and that it bundles in a Flaw whose impact ranges from lethal to inconsequential.
I also see a third problem, in that Diedne Magic provides 3 different power settings, each which is widely applicable, up from the usual two. A better virtue for a character likely to cast a lot of spontaneous magic would make things simpler during play, although not necessarily during downtime. Although LLSM also adds a third setting, it is not one that can be used very often due to the cost in fatigue and the extra consequences of botching (provided Heroic Lineage is not allowed).
Best (for right now, not for what I'd change in AM6) to get rid of it, in favor of something like:
Perfect Spontaneous Magic (Major Hermetic)
When casting spontaneous magic, regardless of circumstance or casting options, you never spend fatigue and never roll a die and can therefore never botch. You always include Magic Theory in your Casting Score (not Total), which you always divide by 2. Because your parens is likely to have emphasized Magic Theory during your apprenticeship, you are not subject to the age-based Ability Score limitation for Magic Theory. You can choose Spontanous Magic as a specialization for MT.
Both this virtue and LLSM can be appended with text along the lines of, "Excellence in spontaneous magic is often associated with House Diedne. Depending upon whether it matters in your saga or whether you want it to matter for your character, you can choose to represent this with a Flaw such as Judged Unfairly, Pagan or Dark Secret, subject to the normal rules for Flaws."
Unpacking the intent here:
Anyway,
Ken
I think that this would be a mistake. Magic theory is already great, it doesn't need to be made even better by being added to spontaneous casting.
I think never botch would be a greater mistake.
I would like to see a 6th edition but I do not see it ever happening. As a change, I would Like to see. Is a more varied Character creation like what was present in the 3rd and 4th editions of the game. the photocopy mage characters' creations were the only real choice for character are art and spells
Just to say, any thought of removing any of the Houses would be strongly disagreed with from me. You may not like particular Houses but others do.