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An online Ars Magica session


Adrian

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we will be targeted for crusade and jihad as we defy both, though the divine race would most likely be pleased by it.

I think those divine angels would tell the pope not to crusade on us in that case.

 

Well a flying city is very vulnerable to a Perdo Vim (destroy magic) spell from anyone with a grudge, yes!

... Oh well! Suck for whoever we will crush land on. :D

 

Although I do hope we fly high enough that we have like 12 hours to fix the floating or pilot it toward the sea as we sink descend.

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Well, I am thinking of slow decent like a emergency featherfall spell instead of plummeting toward the earth.

 

Edit: Alternatively, we could be an floating island on the sea and travel by sea that way.

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Ah, well maybe the city flies through magic no one understands. I don';t think it can fly too high - as if you go to high the Aerial Spirits, demons of the upper air who cause natural disasters will get you. I think I can do something with this though... What if the city was not created by the magi, but discovered by your parens, that is the magi who trained you? They colonized it, and founded a covenant on it, but much about it's history is a complete mystery to them. People of all races, speaking every known tongue, and many not, have carved out little enclaves in the city, and endlessly haggle in the bazaars, brawl in the alleys and consume perfumed narcotics in the dingy bars? All are prisoners on the city, unable to find a way back to the land below, though every few decades someone tries to escape by leaping on to a passing mountain (or dragon). Most fail and fall to their deaths, but one survivor was found gibbering by some magi in Loch Leglean (Scotland) half frozen on a mountain top. After establishing where he had come from, the magi decided ot give chase and explore the city!

 

Using a spell to levitate a small boat in to the air they pursued the city out over the ocean, and landing gained an Arcane Connection to the City of Ivory and Jade (first name I came up with), allowing those who hold it to teleport back here, using a spell called "Leap of Homecoming". A few years later a group of very brave magi from various Tribunals formed a covenant on the city, even as it drifted over the Atlantic Ocean. They can't control it's flight, but they have traveled the known world and beyond on it, and have become it's rulers, respected and feared by the 1001 citizens of the floating city.

 

Something like that OK?

cj x

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OK, I think for this setting you had best all be magi. Two of you have already sent me characters; for those who asked about House Criamon (two of you) there is a write up in an Ars 5 book called Houses of Hermes: Mystery Cults by a mysterious fellow called Timothy Ferguson, but don't worry about all that for now. Just go with your take on the material you have seen, and that will be fine, until such a time as you feel like acquiring that fine book (if ever!) The computer game won't be using the suppllemntary material as much, and it really is not necessary for what I have planned to know much. Now if the rest of you email me just a vague idea of what kind of magician you would like to be and some sort of background story to chrisjensenromer@hotmail.com I'll try and help you do the game stats stuff :) And d get involved in creating the covenant - are you all happy with the flying city idea?

 

cj x

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Looks great to me. No need to worry about fuel, got a teleport spell to escape if it ever sink, and we will have secret unexplored section of the covenant for adventure and maybe tutorial.

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hmm... a flying city? really?

I don't know, but isn't Ars Magica great because of its deep historical roots in European medieval history? do you really want to start with a bombastic hollywoodian three-ring circus?

I remember when I was co-mastering Ars Magica, with a Covenant in Sicily during a complicated period of the Norman domination, the main master studied with a great deal of detail the history and the culture of the island in order to convey the most realistic experience possible, and that was the best part!

 

I must say also, for a more fundamental issue, that a very important and exciting part of AM is Tribunal politics: Covenant alliances, conflicts, tribunal meetings... a moving covenant deprives instantaneously of this part of the game (which is essential IMO). Not to mention that it will be completely disjointed from the economic and commercial network, from the local mundane powers, and one essential part of the medieval society - insularity due to the difficulty and danger of travels - will be lost. After all, Ars Magica, with its cycle of seasons, link to a physical Covenant, is a territorially static game. IMHO, with a flying city you will lose the very essence of this particular RPG.

 

I'm playing the devil's advocate here, but I hope you get my point... this more extrovert idea of magic is not intrinsically bad, and it would suit some other similar RPG (as for example Mage: the sorcerers crusade, the middle age-renaissance version of White Wolf's Mage: the Ascension). I just don't think it corresponds to AM's nature.

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Hi Fortis, all very true. The flying ship constructed by the players in my latest saga completely changed the tone of things, as they rushed around Mythic Europe doing stuff. It was handy in a playtest group like mine, and indeed the example covenant on the Atlas site Simitae Errabunda (I think) has similar powers, but it does make for a different kind of Ars game. However Ars can handle all kinds of games, and I'm happy to go with this if that is what the players want. I try to say "yes, but..." if need be when Storyguiding. Anyway keep discussing it, and do email me some thoughts on a character, or your character. As I believe we are scheduled for this Saturday we are running out of time! I will be away from my computer for a while now

 

cj x

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hmm... a flying city? really?

I don't know, but isn't Ars Magica great because of its deep historical roots in European medieval history? do you really want to start with a bombastic hollywoodian three-ring circus?

Yes. It's my taste to have a deep historical roots in European Medieval history to include a flying city.

 

most realistic experience possible...Tribunal politics: Covenant alliances, conflicts, tribunal meetings... IMHO, with a flying city you will lose the very essence of this particular RPG.

Here's my view on realistic experience in a fantasy game: The author create a realistic representation of the European Medieval history, then introduce magic lore into the equation. This mixture in turn create an alternate fantasy European culture that the author created as realistic as he could think of in reference to actual history.

 

This magical European world with magical politic along with material wealth politic is what I want to experience in Ars Magica. So no matter what newer magical equation are introduced into the setting, I agree it will disjoint the equation a lot, but it doesn't mean it will be worst nor will it remove the very essence of the thing that mentioned. At least introducing magic into a European History didn't make the game lose the very essence of its realism right?

 

Not to mention that it will be completely disjointed from the economic and commercial network, from the local mundane powers, and one essential part of the medieval society - insularity due to the difficulty and danger of travels - will be lost.

And again, I disagree with this. Having a flying city is just an extra piece of land. War changes lands all the time and disjoint economy and local power worst than this, and as cj.23 mentioned, Aerial Spirits, demons of the upper air who cause natural disasters will get you on high sky, so we are in more danger since we have to deal with sky demon along with terrorist mage that want to ground you.

 

this more extrovert idea of magic is not intrinsically bad, and it would suit some other similar RPG (as for example Mage: the sorcerers crusade, the middle age-renaissance version of White Wolf's Mage: the Ascension). I just don't think it corresponds to AM's nature.

I think you want to play a realistic European Medieval history political game, which is fine, but most of us here want higher fantasy magical gaming here.

 

Edit: I am up for any kind of covenant really, but since no one else have any suggestion, it just ended with my idea.

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I got a couple questions about the floating island and the covenant in general.

1. How big is the island, like is there a small village on it and the majority being wilderness or the other way around?

2. What is the common language/culture of it?

3. What class is the magi who live there? (do the magi live like nobles and the common people tend to their needs, the common people and magi are on "equal" level, or something else)

4. What animals if any can be found on the island?

5. Does the island have it's own tribunal or is it apart of another? (like when the tribunal from where the parens came from starts all magi leave the island to participate)

6. Who are the important mundanes and magi of the covenant?

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Please tell me I didn't miss this when my computer crashed.

 

...Assuming I can still get in, I have fifth edtion and I don't have the apprentice book (it's in the mail). While a flying city sounds like fun, I would rather work up to building it (Hermetic Projects is also in the mail). I'd prefer to start a little closer to the ground, an old monestery in the Alps perhapse. That said, I am happy to invent hydroponics in an effort to feed our flying covenent. I assume we can adapt the original research rules...;D

 

Sending email with House request and basic character concept now as well.

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I got a couple questions about the floating island and the covenant in general.

Pretty sure we are deciding those unless gm want to keep some secret.

 

Please tell me I didn't miss this when my computer crashed.

Nah, the first game will on Saturday 12 GMT noon. You are good with just sending your char idea to the email.

 

Now help figuring out what covenant we are starting in.

 

Edit: I believe we would be hanging in irc://irc.synirc.net/wizardbase

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Now what is your covenant (the place your magi live together) like? Everyone chime in - where do your magi live? Is it a castle, a cave system, another dimension accessed through a faerie lake, a collection of houses in a town, disguised as a monastery, an island in a marsh, hidden among the clouds, a floating palace of ice in the North Sea filled with strange icy creatures who act as servants - you need to agree this between yourselves now. :) Play with ideas! And then I'll work out the game stats for it :) So start plotting, and I'll guide you through the process of creating your home here on the forum!

 

 

cj x

 

CJ: you don't have time to negotiate this: just use some fiat to force the story along.

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OK cool... I have an opening planned, and am happy to run. We will be using standard starting characters, with one exception - they have a score of 0 with 4xp in Parma Magica (a ritual which gives your magus protection against magic).

 

Right: if you are playing tomorrow, I may well have seen your character, or you may be working on it tonight. If you don't have rules, give me an idea of the kind ofperson you want to play and drop me an email on chrisjensenromer@hotmail.com and I'll make you a character. If you have made your character, and for some reason I have not seen it, email me. I shall have some time tonight.

 

I still have to download an IRC client and test it. MIdnight GMT I'll be about if we meet up on it if you have questions, but which channel. Adrian do we have a channel for the game?

 

I've decided to use the flying city idea as you are keen on it, and then add a few twists to mean you will have to interact with mundane society a little, and work for all the fun of the flying covenant too. You will see what I mean. I won't define much about it in advance, we will discover things about it in the first few sessions.

 

Any questions, do ask here, or by email. Noon tomorrow we start :)

 

all the best

cj x

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