A few in game questions

[Metis]

5. If there is I imagine visiting it isn't done voluntarily, because that would result in far, far too many questions being asked. Honestly, I think story-wise (if not mechanically) the best dumping ground for unwanted artefacts would be the Emperor's Sphinx. I sure would like to hand her the Book of Deep Shadows and never get within a ten mile radius of it again.

 

6. Y1 has to keep track of which random events already fired to make sure the same event doesn't fire twice, so while Y2 might not care I'm sure it can.

[Schwarzbart]

5) I might be wrong but somehow I remember that even the player had to recover a bad artifact from a farm where the peasant send word to Acadamgica.

[Legate of Mineta]

All;

 

For the questions:

 

1. Can a Y1 imported PC "retroactively" take the "Family is a bunch of Masterers" background?

No.

2. House Kazus is both legally required and honor-bound by their own tradition to expose illegal magic users, but the Captain isn't their biggest fan. Would he investigate people he would be told to investigate by House Kazus, and would he do so immediately, or would the Captain first demand hard evidence before he'll lift a finger?

The Captain would likely treat it seriously, despite his personal feelings.

3. How would the Academagia deal with a student who's parents went underground/were executed for attempted infanticide?

Local laws would apply; it's unlikely they themselves would take action.

4. Is there something like a "totally legit and on the up-and-up" mercenary band in Mineta and/or assassination guilds that accept commissions?

There are many mercenary bands, but no assassination guilds...which are public.

5. Do artifact repositories exist for the common person to dispose of things? (say like, a cursed talking rock..? and Gates artifacts???)

Yes, the Academagia holds one of these.

6. Will Y2 keep track of competed random events done in Y1? Or just adventures?

Both.

[Metis]

1. So much for that idea, but that sounds like it could be an issue. I can imagine that the team isn't as excited at the prospect of being the victim of attempted infanticide as I am, but having that be exclusive to fresh Y2 kids would cost some roleplaying opportunities. Is there no way for the PC's family to be mechanically established as dabbling with Mastery for a Y1 character?

 

BTW, holy gods is that a really bad sentence to take out of context.

 

3. I was thinking about how they'd react to the kid suddenly not having anyone to back him/her up. Loss of financial support, no place to go during the summer vacation, stuff like that. How would the Academagia deal with a situation like that, if at all? I assume there'd at least be a meeting with the Legate and the kid's Regent about tuition.

[Legate of Mineta]

Metis;

 

I don't think so, apart from having the Skills...I'll ask, though.

 

For 3, it really depends on your relationship with your Regent. There doesn't exist any liability or responsibility on the part of the Academy.

[Leon Cross]

Might have already been asked, but will there be some sort of acknowledgement / incentive in year 2 for going above and beyond, using every research mastery bonus, skill bonuses, merit bonus, etc. to get skills to exceptional levels in year 1?

[Svinik]

1. So much for that idea, but that sounds like it could be an issue. I can imagine that the team isn't as excited at the prospect of being the victim of attempted infanticide as I am, but having that be exclusive to fresh Y2 kids would cost some roleplaying opportunities. Is there no way for the PC's family to be mechanically established as dabbling with Mastery for a Y1 character?

 

BTW, holy gods is that a really bad sentence to take out of context.

 

3. I was thinking about how they'd react to the kid suddenly not having anyone to back him/her up. Loss of financial support, no place to go during the summer vacation, stuff like that. How would the Academagia deal with a situation like that, if at all? I assume there'd at least be a meeting with the Legate and the kid's Regent about tuition.

 

Aaran is an orphan, he (sob) gets to stay at the Academagia over the break according to the adventure: The Most Tedious Task in the World. After some help from our hero anyway.

[Metis]

@Leon: Acknowledgement from the teachers I wouldn't count on beyond getting a skill to 10, maybe 11, but if you can get a skill up to like 20 in Y1 I think it'll start at 20 in Y2, which may or may not be worth it depending on what skill level 11-20 unlocks. Mind you it'll probably be faster to get skill level 20 in Y2 proper.

 

@Svinik: For the PC in that hypothetical scenario it's actually not an issue, I was just curious. Seeing as how the Captain takes his job seriously, and seeing as how I doubt any illegal Mastery mage will care to avenge the PC's parents (especially against a PC that just a few days later will be pretty much adopted by House Kazus - long story), that story kinda ends right there. With the PC's parents arrested and executed, but quickly replaced at the same time. Yes, I know that's not at all following the idea of "dramatic, story-changing events happening and allowing the story to continue and play out with those changes", it could have been. I think.

[isadorbg]

@Leon: Acknowledgement from the teachers I wouldn't count on beyond getting a skill to 10, maybe 11, but if you can get a skill up to like 20 in Y1 I think it'll start at 20 in Y2, which may or may not be worth it depending on what skill level 11-20 unlocks. Mind you it'll probably be faster to get skill level 20 in Y2 proper.

 

@Svinik: For the PC in that hypothetical scenario it's actually not an issue, I was just curious. Seeing as how the Captain takes his job seriously, and seeing as how I doubt any illegal Mastery mage will care to avenge the PC's parents (especially against a PC that just a few days later will be pretty much adopted by House Kazus - long story), that story kinda ends right there. With the PC's parents arrested and executed, but quickly replaced at the same time. Yes, I know that's not at all following the idea of "dramatic, story-changing events happening and allowing the story to continue and play out with those changes", it could have been. I think.

 

 

You know if you like that idea so much it's still possible to implement it in some way. Maybe not directly with year 2 lauch (if it lauch before armaggedon at least) but I am sure you and the team can create a special adventure/event whatevs for a blacksheep of mastery family. You only need to add an option in this "adventure" where the PC specifically say that his family are masterer (before meeting the family) and then creating the necessary branched path following this.

Of course that will need a lot of works but it's still doable.

[Metis]

Thing is that I'd want it to be defined mechanically as well, otherwise I'll easily end up contradicting some other part of the PC's family. I do still intend for the whole Black Sheep path to exist, just not with the variant path of the family of Masterers. it might take until after Armageddon for me to actually finish it, but I intend it.

[Legate of Mineta]

Leon;

 

There's a small acknowledgement, but nothing major.

[Metis]

Quick confirmation of what I'm sure was asked before but can't find: Items enchanted with Gates magic before the Chaos Factor mess started are 100% safe, at least insofar as that they don't trigger the CF, right?

[Schwarzbart]

Even items enchanted now are working 100% the same every time. The chaos factor is only trough the enchanting so your not sure what effect your item will have in the end but when finished the item can reproduce its effect accurate and without error.

[isadorbg]

Yup. And this why Enchant is the best.

[freespace2dotcom]

I'm probably not going to be on too much over the next few days. My main PC got sick with a virus that locks it up. Even safe mode doesn't work well. I can thankfully move my critical save files, and 95% of my data is not on my windows install drive so it's fairly painless for a complete reformat. Even so... It's not something I am particularly interested in doing. I'm on my ol trusty laptop until I can get it back up, which is where I first played Academagia! Even found old save I haven't touched in... a while. (god I sucked back then)

 

so keep typing away. I'll be back whenever I get my PC issue sorted.

[Legate of Mineta]

Whoa! Hope your computer gets better soon!

[Adrian]

Best of luck Freespace!

 

Edit;

 

I think I failed to actually post a question I had a time ago, so here it is:

 

How restricted is airship routes and trade? I understand that it likely varies a great deal from place to place, but, say in the Empire of Man.

There are no-flight zones (around the school if I recall) but is there more? - like...

goods control (I would assume so, if primarily due to taxation) but also to keep out illigal goods?

Restrictions on actual flight routes? As in, you can't set up a route or trade in certain cities unless you pay a fee for a "licence" or so

Restrictions on how well maintained a ship is to travel with goods, or people even?

If some 10-year-old found a wonderful stash of neverending-pies and made a shipping route, would he be allowed to do so or would his never-ending suppy ruin so many other that they could band together and keep him from ever making a permanent route anywhere important?

Would the noble families have enough pull to "force" some captains to stop in their cities and trade their goods and/or are there forces keeping this from happening? Merchant legues and such?

[Leon Cross]

Accounting for the bonuses and such, and assuming a 10 cap for each year, can we expect that a top mark graduate has somewhere around a 50 in the fields they excel at, "Geniuses" have somewhere around a 55-60, and true masters in the world may hit between 70-80 in a skill before equipment and location bonuses?

[Schwarzbart]

Now I personal expect 50 by year 5 is what only absolute masters will reach as it will get more and more difficult to hit the cap.

For the NPC Students I even expect that not a single one hit even 40 in a SS at the end of year 5

[Legate of Mineta]

The questions:

 

How restricted is airship routes and trade? I understand that it likely varies a great deal from place to place, but, say in the Empire of Man.

It used to be much stricter than it is now; with a board of trade for the Empire as a whole. These days, any local lord can issue trade patents, so it can be fairly confusing.

There are no-flight zones (around the school if I recall) but is there more? - like...

goods control (I would assume so, if primarily due to taxation) but also to keep out illigal goods?

Restrictions on actual flight routes? As in, you can't set up a route or trade in certain cities unless you pay a fee for a "licence" or so

Restrictions on how well maintained a ship is to travel with goods, or people even?

If some 10-year-old found a wonderful stash of neverending-pies and made a shipping route, would he be allowed to do so or would his never-ending suppy ruin so many other that they could band together and keep him from ever making a permanent route anywhere important?

Would the noble families have enough pull to "force" some captains to stop in their cities and trade their goods and/or are there forces keeping this from happening? Merchant legues and such?

Yes, to all, but now governed by local lords. Noble families certainly do have such pull.

In regards to:

"Accounting for the bonuses and such, and assuming a 10 cap for each year, can we expect that a top mark graduate has somewhere around a 50 in the fields they excel at, "Geniuses" have somewhere around a 55-60, and true masters in the world may hit between 70-80 in a skill before equipment and location bonuses?"

I am not sure what the final cap will be- likely to be a bit over 50, but you never know.

[Adrian]

Many thanks!

[freespace2dotcom]

Are there Mastery spells out there that use 100% legal phemes? Say, If you combine a Glamour with some certain 'Revision' phemes you aren't going to accidentally run afoul of the law by any chance? As an omni I just want to be aware of the dangers...

[Legate of Mineta]

Free;

 

*Probably*.

[Schwarzbart]

Given that many Gate and Mastery knowledge like Pheme got changed to other schools of magic I even think this danger is not all that uncommon if you try to put the wrong Pheme together.

[freespace2dotcom]

1. Have any of the current legal pillars have any bans proposed before?

 

2. Historically, People would collect ice in the winter and store it in insulated places for later use in the year. Does this happen in Elumia or does magic make that pointless?

 

3.

Draigh;

It's not impossible, certainly, but it will be very hard to learn both Gates and Mastery in a single year- leaving aside random sources of the knowledge, I am not sure that you even could!

There are enough random ways to get to these, though, that if you spent a year searching I bet you would succeed. There are some interesting things that arise from doing this.

Care to hint even a teeny tiny bit on this?