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It is the Year of Our Lord 1220. Constantinople lies bleeding, its wealth stolen by rapacious Venetians and franks. Crusader states fight the grandchildren of Salah-al-din in the levant, and it is only 8 years since a great victory was, for the last time, publicly dedicated to Odin. Dragons roost in the alps and in the Scottish highlands; wizards study ancient spells and squabble among themselves, as they have for centuries. Among the squabbling nobles and princes, the pious and violent crusaders and priests of Europe, there is another power, the Order of Hermes. Preeminent among wizards, the magi of the order hold themselves apart, studying ancient secrets, fighting among each other, stealing from faeries, and making strange deals with ancient gods. They wield power second only to God Himself. You will be a Magus or a Maga among them. Welcome to The Code of Hermes. This game will be a little different than most CYOAs run around here. It is a game of Ars Magica with only one character, and I will be making a character sheet and rolling dice. No experience with Ars is required, and I will endeavour to make choices reasonably understandable even without a deep understanding of Ars’ mechanics. The first choice here will be who you were before apprenticeship, but also where we’ll be playing. Where we’ll be playing influences what sort of game and what sort of plotlines you’ll be seeing, though it’s not the only thing determining that - who you are, and, next vote, what house you are a part of, will also play a large role. Each option during this vote will have some Virtues and Flaws associated with it. Major virtues cost three points; minor cost one point. Flaws, on the opposite side, provide points. At the end of character creation, Virtues and Flaws will have to balance out, with a max of 10 points worth of virtues and as many flaws. The options presented here are not balanced, but later choices will ensure character creation ends with (at most) 10 point flaws. Each option also has Abilities, essentially skills. I’ll spend xp and math out the exact score after this part of character creation. There are many places of magical, mundane, and theological interest throughout mythic Europe, and many interesting stories of myth, intrigue, and magic. Where is your story set, and who were you before you joined the order? For this vote, vote twice for one option in your preferred tribunal, and once for an option in each other tribunal. The most popular option in the tribunal with the most double votes will win. In the stonehenge tribunal, the lands of wales and England. Here petty-kings and nobles fight each other, paying only lip service to the 13-year-old king. Hermetic law, too, is weak, here on the outskirts of the order, and despite the prohibitions of their code, many magi play at mundane politics, supporting this noble and that in their schemes for power. Besides the politics of warring nobles, this is also a place of ancient magic. The fallen house Diedne, the druids, had their stronghold here, and many secrets remain. Fair folk dance in the glades, and many places are full of faerie magic. It is the land of the most famous wizard in many ages, Merlin, and the legacy of Camelot still lives on in this land - it is said, even, that Arthur himself sleeps under a hill and awaits the time for his return. A story set here is a story about magical history and hermetic secrets, a story of intrigue, lords and politics, and a story of faeries, of Arthuriana, knights, and kings. Who were you, then? A: The 4th son of Hywel ab Lorwerth, marcher baron of Caerleon. Unbeknownst to those not of our line, we have a secret - we are the last descendants of the hero-king, Arthur, by some called Pendragon. I spent my childhood in the relative luxury of the castle, learning etiquette, letters, hunting, as appropriate for a noble child. In theory, I have a claim to the throne of England itself, and if that was ever known in the order or at large, things would quickly be… interesting. Virtues and flaws: Mythic blood (Major) Privileged upbringing (Minor), Self-confident (Minor), Heir (Minor, Flaw) Abilities: Athletics, etiquette, artes liberales, single weapon, bow, survival, leadership, charm, Area lore B: I am the bastard child of a faithless priest, left on the doorstep of a monastery. I’m not sure why, but I often have strange, powerful dreams tempting me to sin, and dogs have always listened to me, except when church bells toll nearby. Growing up in a monastery, I learned reading and writing, latin, theology, and the virtue of hard work. Virtues and flaws: Educated(Minor), Command Animals(Minor), Plagued by supernatural entity(Minor flaw), Pious(Minor or major flaw, depending on further votes), susceptibility to divine power (Minor Flaw) Abilities: Artes liberales, Latin, Theology, Canon law C: I am a changeling child, the foster-child of the famous lady of the lake! I grew up not on God’s green earth, but in a court of faerie beneath a lake. Growing up in faerie, I learnt sword fighting, faerie lore, and old myths. Having spent so long among faeries, I also see more clearly through their glamours and deceptions. Virtues and Flaws: Privileged upbringing (minor), Second sight (Minor), Faerie upbringing (Minor flaw), Faerie Friend(Minor flaw) Abilities: Single Weapon, Faerie lore, Charm, Etiquette, Athletics, intrigue D: I am the simple child of a hunter from Newcastle Upon Tyne. Growing up, I spent my time traveling from place to place with him, exploring the forests and learning to fend for myself. Virtues and flaws: Well-travelled (Minor), Inoffensive to animals(Minor), Ways of the Forests (Major) Abilities: Area lore, folk ken, athletics, survival, animal handling In the Levant tribunal, the holy land. Here, the faithful of two religions shed blood on the hot sands, for glory, for god, and for gold. But here also Muslims and christians meet in the streets and share wine and bread. It is an ancient land, the land of the bible, and here faith matters more than anywhere else, and ancient ruins and artifacts lie buries among the sands - when they are not plainly for sale on the market square. It is a place of greed, sin, and bloodshed, and a place of miracles and faith. Nowhere else does the presence of God lay so heavily upon the land, and he is a god of more than one religion. A story here is a story about biblical magic and biblical times, about faith, religion, and the crusades. And who were you, then? E: The half-blood child of a crusader and a jinn, an ‘afrit of the desert. I grew up with my father’s servants, a disgrace, despised for my firey eyes and horns, but nevertheless baptised and fed by my father, who never acknowledged me as his own. Among servants in his estate, I learned both French and Arabic, as well as some etiquette, and I was otherwise left to my own. My mother’s blood, the blood of the desert, gives me strength and cunning and protects me from all fire, but marks me with fiery eyes and red horns. Virtues and flaws: Strong Magic Blood (‘Afrit) (Major) (As strong faerie blood, but aligned to the magic realm), Greater immunity: Fire(Major), Improved Intelligence (minor), Monstrous appearance (Major Flaw), Vulnerable to folk tradition (Bismillah invocation) (Minor flaw) Abilities: Living language (french), Athletics, etiquette, folk ken, carouse, Survival, area lore, Second Sight F: A lucky pickpocket, living on the street. I did nothing important until I was ten, when I died of leprosy. For reasons I cannot fathom, a holy man found me in the ditch I lay in, put his hand upon me, and by divine grace I was restored to life. Growing up on the street, I learnt to sneak, to steal, to lie and to cheat. Virtues and flaws: Gossip (Minor), Luck (Minor), Affinity for Legerdemain (Minor), Raised from the Dead (Major flaw), Susceptibility to divine power. (Minor Flaw) Abilities: Legerdemain, stealth, folk ken, guile, athletics G: The child of an east roman - the franks, being rather dull of wit, would say “byzantine” - scholar and astronomer, a man who went to jerusalem to study the books of the arabs and study the stars under the clear desert sky. Growing up with my father, i learned both greek and arabic, letters, the artes liberales, and philosophy. Virtues and Flaws: Privileged upbringing(Minor), Clear Thinker(Minor), Affinity for Philosophiae(Minor Flaw), Poor Eyesight (Minor flaw) Abilities: Philosophiae, Artes Liberales, Arabic, Area Lore, Concentration H: The child of a rabbi. I grew up in Jerusalem, listening in on wise men’s wise councils, praying, learning the rituals and the law. Ever since I was little I've been blessed - a guardian angel has watched over me. It answers me when I speak, guides me on spiritual matters, and protects me from harm, as long as I remain pious and observe the law. Virtues and Flaws: Educated (Hebrew) (Minor), Guardian Angel (Minor), Outsider (Major flaw), Pious (Minor or Major) Abilities: Aramaic, Theology: Judaism, Judaic lore, area lore, awareness In Scandinavia, the far north of europe. This is a land unclaimed by the order. its secrets are unknown to the mages of the order of hermes, no covenants have lasted there long. It is beyond the border of the order - for now. Though ruled by Christian kings, it is a land scarcely civilized, its laws only now being written down. Many peasants worship in church, then make offerings to pagan gods. There are still stories of sightings of Odin and other old gods, and trolls lurk in the hills and forests. There are rumors, too, of other magic, runic wizards as powerful as the order itself, conspiring in secret. A story here is a story of the frontier, of the old gods, of the taming of wild places, and of a covenant operating far from hermetic support. And who were you before your apprenticeship, then? I: A troll-blooded warrior’s child. My father was a warrior in service to a Swedish noble, and I spent my childhood preparing to follow in his footsteps, fighting with wooden swords first, then real ones later. My family has always been big and strong, for my great-great-grandfather married a troll wife and troll blood flows in my veins. Virtues and Flaws: Faerie Blood (Troll) (Minor), Tough (Minor), Warrior (Minor), Nocturnal (Minor Flaw), Clumsy (Minor Flaw) Abilities: Great Weapon, Athletics, Survival, Folk Ken, Brawl J: Even before my apprenticeship, I knew I would be a mage, for I was the child of one. My mother was Helusch Swan Feather Ilfetwis bani Bjornaer, a mage of the order. She was a leader and teacher in house Bjornaer, a tribal house of germanic shapeshifters. I grew up in a german covenant of mages and was taught Latin, magical theory, and the lore of the order the moment I could walk. Virtues and Flaws: Covenant upbringing (Minor flaw), Clan Ilfetu (Minor), Hermetic Prestige (Minor), Puissant Heartbeast(Minor), Sheltered upbringing (Minor flaw), Close family ties (Minor flaw) Abilities: Magical Theory, Latin, Organization lore (order of hermes), Concentration, Survival, Artes liberales NOTE!: this option also decides your hermetic house: House Bjornaer. This is a house of germanic wizards who worship their ancestors as ancestor-animals and can change their shape into one particular animal. They are divided further into clans, and you will be a part of the Clan Ilfetu, the scholar-and-teacher clan. K: I was the child of a danish singer, who traveled back and forth between Denmark and Germany, singing and playing at inns and for nobles. In doing so, I learned both languages, I learned of bargaining, singing, and socializing, and I learned the family secret: my mother knew magic songs to enchant and bewitch her listeners! I learned these from her before my full gift manifested and the order found me. Virtues and Flaws: Well traveled (Minor), Enchanting Music (Minor), Gentle Gift (Major), Necessary Condition (Singing) (Minor flaw) Abilities: Music, Enchanting music, German, Carouse, Bargain, Awareness, Stealth, Guile L: I was a simple farmer’s child, growing up on a farm in northern Denmark. But there’s always been something strange about me - i would get wild episodes and see visions of the past and the future, and sometimes I’d see strange little people, trolls, at the edges of the forest. I was a wild child, spending my time in the forests or out wandering, when not working at the farm. I learned to sneak out, to stay aware, to survive in the forest and every nook and cranny of the local forests. Virtues and flaws: Way of the Forest (Major), Second Sight (Minor), Supernatural Nuisance (Minor flaw), Visions (Minor flaw) Abilities: Second Sight, Survival, Athletics, Area Lore, Awareness Welcome to my game, everyone! Now, I know ars magica is a heavy system and there’s a lot of lore and information here. I’ll try to do my level best to teach as we go. You can all ask both setting and mechanics questions. I’ve tried not to overwhelm you too much with mechanics info, but I still want things to be transparent. ____________________________________ CHARACTER SHEET HERE: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15BID7FtPY7sT0z_yH-4YTpemoY1zrI6RiamIFtBrq_4/edit?usp=sharing Magnusth fucked around with this message at 02:35 on Oct 5, 2021 |
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Oct 1, 2021 18:07
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A GG I
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Oct 1, 2021 19:12
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AA E I
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Oct 1, 2021 19:26
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AA G J Edit: Probably worth posting in the Choose Your Own CYOA thread if you want to.
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Oct 1, 2021 19:37
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LL E B
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Oct 1, 2021 20:13
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C EE J
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Oct 1, 2021 22:07
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FF
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Oct 1, 2021 22:25
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also vote once for an option in each of the other two tribunals, please.
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Oct 1, 2021 22:28
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C EE L
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Oct 2, 2021 10:55
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D GG J
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Oct 2, 2021 23:19
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Magnusth posted:also vote once for an option in each of the other two tribunals, please. D, K
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Oct 2, 2021 23:40
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A GG L
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Oct 3, 2021 01:01
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A EE K
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Oct 3, 2021 07:25
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Also just to confirm A is the only one with a defined gender at the point due to being a noble heir right?
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Oct 3, 2021 13:33
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Rumda posted:Also just to confirm A is the only one with a defined gender at the point due to being a noble heir right? This is correct
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Oct 3, 2021 15:55
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C G II I've always liked the aesthetics of Ars Magica, but the mechanics threw me off and I've never played. Looking forward to this!
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Oct 3, 2021 18:19
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Man why are people voting for anything but being a cool half-jinn
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Oct 4, 2021 03:03
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voting closes in a few hours when i get the time to sit down and make a character sheet.
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Oct 4, 2021 22:15
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AA E L
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Oct 4, 2021 22:38
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Voting is closed! E Wins! Will update within a few days, if all goes well. Might post the character sheet a little later tonight.
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Oct 5, 2021 01:54
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Here's the character sheet. Just got the virtues and abilities for now. Also put it in the first post. https://docs.google.com/document/d/15BID7FtPY7sT0z_yH-4YTpemoY1zrI6RiamIFtBrq_4/edit?usp=sharing For a short explanation of the numbers and the XP: Arabic is your native language. you get it at 5, no XP investment is needed. Second Sight, you get for free at 1, so 5 XP. Further, you get 45 XP for the first 5 years of your life, which have been spent on language, etiquette, athletics, etc. There's a limited list of things these can be spent on, but everything on your sheet, save Second Sight, is on that list. Lastly, you get an additional 15 pr years before your apprenticeship. I've arbitrarily decided that you got found by a mage at 10, so that's five years, or 75 additional xp, which have been spread around to improve your various abilities a little. I've started update writing, but i won't finish tonight, and probably not tomorrow either.
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Oct 5, 2021 02:49
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Magnusth posted:Voting is closed! E Wins! Will update within a few days, if all goes well. Might post the character sheet a little later tonight. 
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Oct 5, 2021 15:54
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You are a child of the hot desert sand, the howling wind, the inferno, the scorching sirocco. And you are a child of a christian, a conquering crusader, a noble lord called Estienne de Villiers, a frankish knight, and it is with his servants you grew up. You know little of your mother. You know your father met her in the desert when he was lost and alone, and that they shared a night together. You know that she rode out of the desert like a whirlwind, carrying you in her arms, and placed you on your father’s doorstep. You don't know her name. Rumor is that, when your father asked what to call her, she said “aliyah al muhriqah,” but that is not a name - it simply means “the burning wind.” Those who saw her when she arrived said she was beautiful, but you do not remember her face. Your father gave you a name, a french one. What name did your father give you? A: A masculine or gender-neutral name, please specify. (This results in you playing a male character) B: A feminine name or gender-neutral name, please specify. (This results in you playing a female character) Ever since, you lived with your father. He never claimed you as his own, nor acknowledged your heritage. He arranged for you to be taken in by one of his servants, an old arab manservant, out of “christian compassion for the poor devil-child.” You do not know, however, if that is the true reason, or if he truly cares for you, or if he simply fears the wrath of your mother should he cast you out. Your father only rarely talked to you, and always in the role of the noble patron checking in on the orphan he has taken in. You get the sense, from your few talks, that he fears you, and his eyes always darted to the red horns sticking out from beneath tufts of hair falling over your forehead. For all his remoteness, however, you have never starved, your bed has been comfortable, and no one has ever raised their hands against you. You father has since been married; his wife does not acknowledge your presence, and your half-siblings, a younger brother and sister, look at you with undisguised disgust when they notice you at all. You lived with Alyasa, your father’s manservant, who took care of your needs and, you think, loved you in his own way. He was quiet and stern and rarely spoke much, but the few times other children beat you up for your horns and your red skin, he gently cared for your wounds, and when everything was too much and you could no longer bare the loneliness and the feeling of isolation, he would cradle you gently in his arms until you fell asleep. Growing up with the servants, you speak Arabic as your native language, and you know common etiquette and how servants think and act. Among the servants to a French knight, you have also learnt french. Travelling with Alyasa, you have learnt something of desert survival, and you are of course familiar with your home town of Acre. When you were seven or eight, strange things started happening near you. Milk curdled, fire flew from your eyes and nostrils when you were upset, animals would bark and spit at you. Once, when Alyasa brought you baklava from your father’s table, you literally glowed with delight. These strange occurrences only made you more isolated and alone, and everyone would always look at you with suspicion. After two years of this, a master mage, a member of the Order of Hermes, came to your father’s door and requested to speak with you. The Order’s existence is not common knowledge, but it is not secret, either, and as a lord your father had heard of them. This mage met you, sized you up without judgement, and spoke with you for a while, asking you about the strange occurances. Lastly, they conjured sugar water and sweetened, frozen cream for you then went to talk to your father. You left with them the next day. The order, you soon learned, is divided into houses, each with their own role within the order, their own rules, the own founder, history, and their own magics. You joined your mentor’s house. Which house was this? This is a question with significant weight, both mechanical and narratively. It’ll inform the game as much as the tribunal you have chosen. Certain houses will have more impact than others, but they’ll all be defining for the story. Each house comes with a particular virtue, which represents the benefits of the house, some of which are magical, some of which are social or academic. For this vote, we will do Approval Voting. Vote once for every house that you approve of. A: House Bonisagus, the house of Bonisagus, founder of the order, inventor of hermetic magic. House Bonisagus is the foundation of the order’s scholarship and magic, and is made up largely of scholars, researchers, academics and masters of magical theory. Its work is invaluable, and as the first house, they have certain special rights - the right to claim another wizard’s apprentice. As the scholars, they have a duty to share their work with the order. The House is one of the four True Lineages in the order, each member trained by another member of the house, all the way back to Bonisagus himself. Many Magi Bonisagus work tirelessly to push the boundaries of magic, and many visit ancient ruins and tombs for scraps of lore to incorporate in the order’s magic. Others track down foreign wizards to bargain, steal, or cheat for their lore. Still others simply confine themselves to laboratories and libraries and experiment tirelessly. The house has a strong culture of academic competition and prestige, and new books on Magic Theory, new, inventive spells, or, much more rarely, extensions pushing the limits of hermetic magic, bring great prestige and status within the house, which otherwise does not have a strong hierachy. Gives you the virtue Puissant Magic Theory, which helps with most your lab work, such as spell invention, magic item creation, making a longevity ritual, bonding with a familiar, conducting experiments, etc. Ab: House Bonisagus, but the lineage of Trianoma, his apprentice. Still a part of the house Bonisagus, those trained in the lineage of Trianoma, his first apprentice, focus on hermetic politics and intrigue. They travel far, and make sure that conflicts do not get out of hand and threaten the order, they foster cooperation and make peace. Many are skilled academics with a great deal of magical knowledge, and all are masters of intrigue and diplomacy. Gives you the virtue Puissant Intrigue, which helps with all intrigue rolls, which help you with gossiping, diplomacy, and other courtly matters. B: House Bjornaer, a Germanic house. The house is a mystery cult descended from a gothic tradition, one which worships animal ancestors and reveres the wilderness and the forest. Each Bjornaer possesses a heartbeast, an animal shape which is just as true as their human form. Seen as savage by much of the rest of the order, which descends from roman and latin traditions, the house has close-knit ties of mythic kinship. Internally, they are split in clans, some wise teachers, some stouch defenders of the wilderness and its magic, others diplomats and loremasters working with more civilized people to preserve and protect. These clans are split into “Wilderists” and “Harmonists,” which describes their relationship to nature and their view of the relationship between nature and humanity. Wilderists are defenders of the wild places, ready to drive back civilization; harmonists are looking for ways for humans to live in harmony with it. Their rituals are hidden from the rest of the order, but involve ecstatic trances, communions with beasts and spirits, and deep personal transformation. Elder bjornaer do not simply become bears, but mythic beasts, creatures of fire and lightning, or other majestic expressions of their inner selves. Gives you the Heartbeast Virtue. This grants you the Heartbeast ability, which lets you transform completely into a specific animal, your Heartbeast. For unknown reasons, this also makes it impossible for you to have a familiar. Deeper mysteries can transform, refine, or ennoble this animals; others teach you arts of divination, expand your magic while a heartbeast, and other, stranger things. C: House Criamon, an enigmatic and philosophic house, strange even to the Order. The Criamon are philosophers obsessed with metaphysics, time, and ethics. They tattoo themselves, live ascetic lives, and contemplate The Enigma, a mystery left to them by their founder. This mystery is wound up in beliefs about cyclical time, rebirth, and morality, and it leads most of them to be gentle pacifists. Their insights are foreign and strange to all other magi, but they give them an understanding of twilight - the result of warping and casting too much magic - that is matched by no other. Their deeper mysteries allow them to draw on their strange Enigmatic Wisdom to gain knowledge or mystical senses, to modify and strengthen their body in strange ways, and to manipulate the boundaries between the mystical and the mundane. Gives you the Enigmatic Wisdom virtue, which influences your Twilight rolls and helps you understand mysteries and enigmas. D: Ex Miscellanea, the house out of hash. This is the only house added after the order’s formation, and is a Societas, a simple society of mages. Ex Miscellanea is a rag-tag house, made up from diverse hedge traditions working together, and contains within it a wide variety of small traditions. These include, but are not limited to, roman diviners, jewish holy sorcerers, shapechanging irish magi, Weather-witches and greek chthonic pagans, christian exorcists, orphic cults, herbalists, and iberian Sahirs, a tradition dealing with Jinn. Of these, it is rumored among magi that there is a great, dangerous order in the middle east, and only a small part was absorbed by the house. The magi of ex miscellanea are often looked down upon by the rest of the order as barely-hermetic hedge wizards. Yet each part of the house has its own particular magic, which often cannot be easily replicated by other wizards, and the traditional core of the house, descended from its founder, rival or surpass the magi bonisagus in their ability to comprehend and integrate foreign magic. Of importance, the iberian Sahirs of the house have tried to make contact with sahirs in the levant and middle east, but have not yet succeeded. This grants you a free major and minor virtue, as well as a major flaw, all of which depend on the tradition. This will be up to a seperate vote. E: House Flambeau, the warrior house. A house of warrior-wizards, magical knights-errant, honorable masters of fire and destruction. Founded by a warrior of the reconquista, the house is famous for its martial outlook and its eager persecution of the order’s enemies. Its members divide themselves up into several smaller, internal societies, and have perfected several schools of magical combat. While they do not all care greatly about honor, the house has a strong honor culture, a culture of bravado and independence married to an ideal of warrior-service. As a warrior elite, think the flambeau, it is their duty to persecute the order’s enemy and protect those less fortunate than themselves. The House Flambeau is also famous for its crusading spirit. Many of its members are devoted christians, and they have inhereted from their founder a view of the Sahir, muslim sorcerers, as enemies of the order. Many are willing to break, or at least bend, the Code’s prohibition on interfering in mundane matters to give aid to the crusaders and strike against their enemies. This grants you a minor virtue related to your school of combat. This is most commonly Puissant Ignem and Puissant Perdo, which improve your fire magic or your destructive magic, respectively. Will be included in your vote for general magical ability, next post. F: House Guernicus, the investigators, lawyers and judges of the order. House Guernicus is a cornerstone of the order, more important than any other house, save perhaps Bonisagus. Like that house, it is a true lineage, each member taught by another member, all the way back to the founder. The house is also sometimes called house quasitores, for nearly every member is also a Queasitor, a part of the order’s internal investigators and enforcers, who root out corruption and present it before the tribunal. Their founder designed much of the Code, and his hermetic descendents, as well as select magi from other houses, have investigated and prosecuted those who commit crimes against it ever since. Some are specialist investigators, others advise the tribunal - which is the final decider on each case - on legal precedent, or serve as appointed lawyers and defenders. They are highly respected among the rest of the order, and abuses among the guernicus are nearly unheard of and punished severely. As quasitores, they have certain privileges which aid them in the course of their duty, and they carefully guard the conduct of their members lest they be revoked. In terms of magic, Guanicus magi are often specialists at investigatory magic, divination and truth-telling magic. Their founder, the taciturn and fatalistic Guernicus, descended from a line of earth-mages, the terrae-magi, and thus many of the house are also quite competent with the art of Terram, earth-magic. Some have even formed a minor cult passing on secrets of earth-magic and divination. This grants you the minor virtue Hermetic Prestige, which gives you a Reputation with a score of 3 within the order. As a Guernicus, this is a reputation as a guasitor or a member of house guernicus, and reflects the prestige of the house. G: House Jerbiton, the house of artists, nobles, and refined taste. They are urbane magi of refined taste, interested in beauty and taste. While sometimes seen as foppish and vain socialites, their obsession with beauty comes from a deep appreciation of magic and the beauty of the world. Founded by an east-roman christian, the house sees magic as a gift from god. Indeed, it was their founder who convinced Bonisagus to name the gift of magic “The Gift,” and the arts of magic, “the Arts.” The house is a loose society, united in their appreciation of taste and beauty and, more often than not, in heartfelt religious feelings or noble blood. Since being social and polite is beautiful and tasteful, the house also serves as the diplomats of the order, maintaining good relations with the church, and handling the delicate situations of noble-born magi and fearful barons. The house’s traditional stronghold has been in Constantinople, and the house has been deeply, powerfully wounded since the fourth crusade and the sack of Constantinople, the greatest city in the world and the shining jewel of christendom, by a ruthless army of excommunicated crusaders. This choice grants you one minor virtue related to art, scholarship, or interaction with mundanes. The exact virtue will be a part of the next vote. Common virtues include affinity for art-related abilities, Book Learner or Good Teacher for more scholarly types, Social Contacts, or Subtle Magic. H: House Mercere, the house of heralds and heroes, the lifeblood of the order. House mercere is an oddity among the order, the only house that admits unGifted members, and yet perhaps the most important house of the order, save only Bonisagus. The unGifted Mercere, called redcaps, are the messengers of the order; they summon magi to the tribunal, they carry books from covenant to covenant, they deliver declarations of war and requests for peace. It is house Mercere which keeps records of all the magi of the order, and if there is a dispute about Vis sources, it is Mercere records that are consulted at tribunal. If a magi needs to buy or borrow, they ask a Mercere, if they have found new resources, they register them with the Mercere. If they need a book or magical resource, the Mercere will know who has it and what their price might be. The magi of house Mercere are not expected to act as simple messengers, but have an insular and cultish culture of their own. Each is descended from another magus of the house, by blood as well as training. The culture of the house is one of wanderlust, hero-worship and pagan rituals, as well as service and devotion to the order and respect for the ungifted redcaps. Mercere was a specialist of creo and muto, and many mages within the house specialize in those arts. His children also founded distinct lineages, and the house is divided into inheritors of ancient mercurian magic, hero-worshiping mages seeking those with the blood of heroes, and mutantem, who have mastered their spells beyond the usual limits of hermetic magic. Since the magi of the house are all related by blood, choosing this option means that either your father was an unwitting descendant of mercere - which is not unlikely, since magi of the house sire and birth many children in their travels - or you are an illegitimate, though recognized, member of the house, a bastard twice over. This gives you the virtue Puissant Muto or Puissant Creo, improving your magic of changing or creating/healing, respectively. I: Merinita, the Faerie House. A mystery cult dedicated to the study and understanding of faerie magic and of nature, the house is a diverse group of magi, cults, and lineages united only by their interest in the realm of Faerie. Many, but certainly not all, are pagans, worshippers of ancient faerie gods, whether Lugh, Wotan, or Zeus. Others are of faerie blood and explore their heritage, and yet others are simply interested in the powers and illusions of the faerie realm. Their founder, Meritina, was a specialist in nature magic, and taught the order to bind familiars, and Merinitae maintain secrets of familiar binding, and of faerie charms, of doing magic by the art of storytelling, of folk charms, and of illusions and glamour. Some, it is said, travel to arcadia or become faeries themselves. A small minority of the house have no interest in Faerie magic, but follow the mysteries of their founder, of nature magic, which has since been displaced in the house by the interest in faeries. This choice gives you the virtue Faerie Magic, which allows you to use certain special ranges, durations, and targets, and lets you initiate into deeper mysteries through the game. J: House Tremere, a house of politicians, soldiers and duellists. They are a highly hierarchical and military house, and follow a doctrine of discipline, meritocracy, respect for one’s betters, military preparedness, and centralized control. The magi of house tremere hand their sigil and voting rights over to their elders, until they can regain them by duel or by the death of their mentor, and advance in the ranks of the house through service and mastery. The tremere believe in self-sacrifice for the whole and in the utility of centralized authority. They unabashedly seek power to transform the order in their image. While generally seen as power-hungry bastards, most tremere are true believers, or close enough, and willingly turn over their voting rights to their parentes and act willingly in service to the house. The house is also the master of Cartemen, a form of magical duel by which those in the order can settle disputes, and use it to great political effect. Despite the obvious ambition of the Tremere, they are not ill-regarded in the order. There has been one war in the order’s lifetime, and the Tremere were ever on the front line; more than half of their house died on the battlefield against the outcast house Diedne, and in the eyes of most magi of the order, that counts for a great deal. This choice grants you the virtue Minor Magical Focus (Certemen), which doubles the lower of your form+technique during Certemen, formal duels. This is a pretty significant advantage. K: House Tytalus, a house that thrives on conflict. The ambitious mages of house Tytalus believes that growth comes through conflict and strife. They constantly seek to better themselves in all fields, fighting fiercely on the battlefield, and in tribunal, often for the love of conflict and the downfall of their rivals, of whom each has many, more than to champion any particular cause. Each Tytalus carries themselves with confidence won from a tormenting master, and many spend their careers as bitter and beloved rivals of their parentes. The culture of the house is one of conflict, of rivalry for rivalry’s sake, and of deep friendships with your most hated foes. As the other Societates of the order, the house has within it several mystery cults and other groups, most of which fight each other for the improvement of both. The common magic of the house is magic of debate and politics, magic of intrigues, schemes and plots. It is tradition for each member of house tytalus to name themselves after a Titan, or to invent a similar name. This option grants you the Self-Confident virtue. This virtue improves your confidence score. Confidence score determines how many confidence points you have, and confidence points can be used to improve most rolls in the game. L: House Verditus, a house of crafters and enchanters. Verditius is a mystery cult dedicated to the crafting of magical items. It combines the runic arts of Wayland the smith with the cultic secrets of the ancient cult of Hephaestus. More secular than other mystery cults, the house nevertheless reveres the act of creation, of putting yourself into the things you make. As a price for their great skill at forging and enchanting, each member of the house becomes increasingly hubristic the further they descend into the house mysteries, as was the founder of their house. Despite this, the culture of the house is generally gregarious. When disputes arise, the house solves it through a tradition of vendettas, non-lethal contests where each magus seeks to outdo the other and interfere in their lives. The deeper mysteries of house verditius all relate to magical items. They learn to empower their rune, craft magical automata, repair magic items, and more. This grants the Verditius magic virtue, which allows you to apply your mundane crafting skills to your enchantments and craft things that could not have been made by mundane tools. This comes with a flaw as well, which requires you to use particular items, crafting tools, when casting formulaic magic. That was a lot huh! I know this is a lot of information, but since house is so important, i encourage you all to read it and to vote, even if you vote on no other question
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Oct 7, 2021 03:10
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ACDL
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Oct 7, 2021 03:31
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BCIL
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Oct 7, 2021 03:56
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B Jeanine BEGL
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Oct 7, 2021 09:11
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Jeanine is a pretty cool name ACEIL
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Oct 7, 2021 15:32
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A Prosper AAbFHJ
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Oct 7, 2021 17:28
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B Cateline CDEJL
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Oct 7, 2021 21:03
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B Constance Kind of like Constantinople, I was thinking it's a regal enough name which also sounds a bit foreign. Suitable for a bastard kid born in foreign lands. DGL
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Oct 7, 2021 23:49
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Wallet posted:B Cateline +1 i
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Oct 8, 2021 22:18
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I'd like to get a few more votes in, but if nothing changes i'm closing voting tomorrow and writing over the weekend.
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Oct 9, 2021 05:56
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B Jeanie BEDL
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Oct 10, 2021 01:13
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You are Jeanine de Villiers, of house Verditus. Your master found you at the house of your father in the levant, and whisked you away to a covenant. This covenant was a strange place. It was like a noble’s household, but strange and twisted. Physically, it was built entirely of seamless basalt, an imposing black manor clinging to the side of a small volcanic mountain in lesser armenia. Around it there were smaller buildings, each likewise made of seamless basalt. When you asked your new master about them, they simply smiled and told you that they had been raised from the ground by magic. Within, the place seemed even stranger. Despite the walls of black rock, the inside was homey, almost cozy. Windows and openings were cleverly arranged to keep the place well-lit, and an inner courtyard full of plants and flowers spread sweet smells throughout the covenant, carried by a constant light breeze. Off in the manor’s wings were servant’s - your mentor told you they were called “grogs” here - quarters, and in another wing, the quarters of the magi, who lived as lords, with their own rooms, separate meals, and complete mastery over the covernant’s servants. In addition to the courtyard and wings, there were several other strange buildings and rooms. One tower was entirely dedicated to a great library, with books in Latin, Greek and Arabic, along with many, many scrolls, all in Latin. Another tower held a storehouse of strange things - Metallic feathers, impossibly large claws, a crystal eye, a stone inscribed with strange symbols and runes, a bottle of wine, glowing with its own inner light; the lowest level of that tower held a stair down into a natural cave where one of the wizards would practice strange alchemy with the herbs and flowers from the courtyard. There were other basements, too. One of them was your master’s. It was called a laboratory, but it was more like a workshop and forge. A large natural cave had been shaped and expanded - by magic, your mentor told you. One end, close to the entrance, was full of tables, ink, paper, books, candles, pots of strange things, jars of water, measuring scales and spoons, silver, sand, charcoal, and all sorts of strange powders. In the corner was a large armillary sphere and a drawer full of retorts, alembics, glass flasks and other strange things. In the other end of the lab was your master’s strange forge. A large rift in the ground was open, and from it, intense heat rose into the lab, funnelled into a forge set directly over the rift. Once, you peered over the edge of that rift, and far below, you saw molten rock, glowing red. Beside the strangeness of the place, the people themselves were also strange indeed! The servants - grogs - walked around with their heads high and looked their masters in the eyes when they spoke, even disagreeing with their superiors in front of other grogs with no punishment! An no-one seemed to mind the snakes living in the garden. Once, walking past one, you asked your master about it and the snake looked up at you and, in perfect french, accused you of being rude and stupid to boot, which gave your master quite a laugh. Strangest of all were the magi and their companions. One wizard, an old byzantine scholar, spent all his time in his laboratory conjuring up strange spirits. Another, a young arabian man, would spend days in the basalt desert around the covenant in the shape of a great wild goat, and a third was busy translating arabic texts to prove something or other about some ancient greek philosopher. and then there was your master. This question will grant you a virtue and/or flaw dependent on your master, and will obviously be a recurring npc. Who was your master? (This question follows approval voting rules) A: Bernice filia Johann ex Verditius, a weapon-smith and devout christian. A member of the so-called confraternity of Roland, Bernice is a master of sword-smithing, making blades of great power and selling them to crusaders. Frankish and devout, she is in the levant to make weapons of war and fight for the christian faith. Gives you the virtue minor magical focus (Swords) and the Major personality flaw Proud B: Dulcitius filius Theophania ex Verditius, a byzantine glassblower and an old master of his craft. Dulcitius is a scholar and an artist, making excellent mosaics and glassware, magic bottles and other glass products. A masterful wizard and artist, Dulcitius is no warrior nor weaponsmith, and is, in fact, softhearted and kind. Gives you the virtue Skilled Parens (which gives you more xp and spells) and the Major Personality Flaw compassionate. C: the infamous Lanius filius Augustinus, also known as the Butcher, who marched upon his own Parentes with twenty automatons, and slew every grog in his old master’s covenant. A ruthless and cynical man, he initiated you at once into the mysteries of automata, seeing you as little more than a tool in his plans. Gives you the Major Virtue Craft Automaton, a house mystery, as well as the major flaw Tormenting Master and the minor flaw Infamous Parentes, which gives you a bad reputation in the order. Will also mean that some skill points will be spent on craft: automaton. D: Anoush filia Evaristus ex Verditius, an Armenian gemcutter, goldsmith and jeweler. An outsider in the order as a muslim, she makes beautiful jewelry for muslim lords and ladies, as well as for other members of the order, most of which creates illusions and pleasing images. Her strange crafts have limited her magic somewhat, however, and that magic has passed on to you, along with her excellent craftsmanship. Gives you the virtues Affinity with Craft as well as Affinity with Imaginem. Further grants you the minor flaw Spontaneous casting tools, which means that you need your verditius casting tools even for spontaneous magic. E: Sofia filia Aurora ex Verditius, a venetian inventor and researcher. A master of several house mysteries, she has invented a plethora of strange and excellent artifacts. She for the last decade before she found me, however, she has been obsessed with what she believes is an ancient greek art which could give mechanical objects true intelligence! Her genius and obsession mirror each other, however, and she has passed both on to you. Gives you the minor Virtue Inventive Genius and the major flaw Obsession. You need not be obsessed with your Parentes’ project, and your exact obsession will be a subject to a later vote. F: Ishaq filius Antonio ex Verditius, a syrian nestorian christian. Ishaq is a master smith from the city of damascus, making beautiful weapons, armor, tools and more out of the famous damascus steel. He is also a skilled alchemist and a deep-thinking philosopher, drawing powerful magic from his deep understanding. Ishaq is not one to do things by halves, and remained interested in you after the end of your apprenticeship. Gives you the minor virtues Puissant Philosophiae and Skilled Parens, as well as the minor flaw Mentor. (This is a flaw because it creates story opportunities, not because it’s bad for you). You’ll also know the secrets to damascus steel, if you’re a smith. Studying under your master, you had a varied and complex curriculum. You mastered reading and writing Latin, as well as French and Arabic, languages you already spoke. You read books on history and the liberal arts (grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, music, geometry, astronomy), not to mention latin grammaries and even poetry. More, you learnt, of course, magical theory. Bonisagus invented the magical theories of the order, and they are highly complex, alluding to platonic and aristotelian philosophy, using both pagan and christian imagery, and involving many charts of correspondence between elements, materials, astrology, senses, aspects of the mind, body parts, and on and on. As a member of house Verditius, you had a particular schooling in craftsmanship and Natural Philosophy, which aid you with your house magic. Most important, of course, was your craftmanship. Magi Verditius are most commonly smiths, but if you showed promise with some other craft, your parentes spared no expense in getting you a proper teacher The next few questions will be about spending points. You will have 120 for abilities and the same amount for your art. I’ve spent 90 for the recommended minimum abilities; you have 30 remaining for crafts, philosophiae and other skills. Skilled Parens gives you more xp, which i will divide equally among arts and abilities, unless there’s a strong preference otherwise. Affinity for X means you get more bang for your buck - XP spent on an art or ability with affinity counts for one-half as much. (i.e. if you spend 10 xp, you get 15 xp’s worth). I’ll spend at least 15 on one crafting skill, for a score of 2. Which form of crafting did you specialize in? This vote is approval voting. G: Blacksmithing, as is traditional. I learned to smelt iron, to forge weapons, armor, and tools, to repair knives and horseshoes, to tend a forge, to sharpen swords and to forge strong mail and armor. H: Glassblowing. I learned to make objects of glass, bottles, windows, chalices, goblets, and more. To colour glass, to make beautiful mosaics and other glass decorations. I: Woodworking. I learned to make simple furniture as well as intricate tables and chairs, carved bookshelves and other things of wood, like tools, frames, and other instruments. J: Jewelry. I learned to cut gemstones, to melt gold and silver, to make necklaces, broches, pendants, rings and other fine and beautiful things. K: Tailoring. I learned to make beautiful robes and cloths, of silk, of cotton and wool, as well as other things of fabric - draperies, curtains, rugs, blankets, and so on. L: Something else? Write in. In addition to crafting, you had the chance to learn many, many other skills, many of which are essential to the work of a magus. I’ve made full options for the ones recommended by the game or relevant to your characters, but you can write in other skills if necessary. You have three points, which you may spend as you wish. Unless there is a significant front-runner, the top three skills will have xp evenly divided among them. Which other skills did you practice? M: Philosophiae, the study of philosophy, including metaphysics, natural philosophy - which includes study of the elements, of cosmology, and the working of the different kinds of atoms - and ethics. As a member of house verditius, knowledge of philosophy will let me improve my enchantments by strengthening the inherent virtues of my materials with runes. O: Concentration - the ability to concentrate hard on something for a long time. A lot of magic requires concentration to be maintained, and concentration allows me to maintain that concentration. P: Finesse. This is the ability to be precise with my magical spells, to target my spells, to lift things gently with magic, to be precise in altering memories, or any other element dependent on finesse, gentleness, or precision. Q: Penetration. This is the ability to pierce magic resistance when casting spells. When casting spells, I need to roll higher than the level of my spell to pierce magical resistance, if targeting someone with magical resistance, such as hermetic magi, magical creatures, and holy people. The penetration ability adds a flat bonus to that roll. R: Order of hermes lore. This is how much I know about the order I am a part of, its culture, organization, history and general operation. S: Profession: scribe. This is scribal skill, necessary for copying lab texts and books. While not necessary for a magus, it is nevertheless useful, since only those with training in magical theory can copy magical texts - and texts are the most valuable thing in the order. T: Code of hermes. This is my knowledge of the code of hermes, the order’s own internal set of rules and laws. It is knowledge of the general rules, of local rules in different tribunal, as well as precedent and the structure and principles of hermetic legal procedings. X: Second Sight. Born to an ‘Afrit, I see through illusions and changes and into secret otherworld regions. This is the ability I use when doing so. In addition to all these (mostly) mundane abilities, you also learnt the 15 hermetic arts, the skills by which hermetic magi practice their Art. They are seperated into 5 techniques, and 10 forms. Each spell depends upon your stamina (to channel magical energies safely,) and your skill with the form and technique in question. Which arts did you train the most? For this question, you have 5 points, which you may distribute as you wish. After voting is done, I will distribute 120 xp in accordance with the votes as well as possible. If you vote strongly for one art, most of your xp will go there; if the vote is more spread out, the xp will be more spread out. For reference, each score of each art costs its level in xp. going from 0 to 1 costs one xp; going from 1 to 2 costs 2 xp, and so on. Going from 0 to 2 costs three (1 to get to 1, 2 to get to 2). I will ensure that you don’t end up halfway between scores, say, at mentem 6 with 5 xp invested towards 7. Creo: Meaning ‘i create,’ this technique makes things into better versions of themselves, including creating them from nothing. Creo magic can create light or fire (combined with ignem), storms and lightning from nothing (combined with Auram), a sword from nothing (with Terram). Combined with mentem or ignem, it can create thoughts, false memories, or insubstantial images. Since Creo makes things better versions of themselves, it is also the technique for healing or making people and animals stronger and better, within the natural limits of what they are. For this reason, Creo is also important for the order’s longevity magic. Intellego: Meaning “i perceive,” this technique is the art of perception. Combined with Vim, it senses magic; combined with Corpus, it can tell you if there are humans nearby, or if someone is sick. Combined with ignem, it tells you what object a pile of ashes used to be, or lets you converse with the fire. Combined with mentem, it tells you emotional states, lets you know a target’s memories, or reads minds. Muto: Meaning “I transform,” this technique lets you remove a target’s natural qualities or grant it unnatural ones. Muto magic can make wood as hard as iron, turn a fire into ice, turn dirt into stone, transform yourself into an animal, and so on. Perdo: Meaning “I destroy,” this technique is the technique which makes things worse versions of themselves. It also destroys the natural properties of things. For example, Perdo Ignem can destroy fire or heat, but it can also destroy fire’s ability to burn things. This is also used for aging and wounding, for obvious reasons, for rusting metals, or for quieting down winds or storms. With Imaginem, it can make things soundless or invisible. Rego: Meaning “I rule,” rego is the technique that lets you control things, changing its state to another state the target could naturally have. It moves things around and controls living things. Rego Terram can move stones around or shape it; Rego Corpus can take control of a person’s body or make them levitate. Rego Herbam can make a tree bloom, or ward away the wooden shafts of arrows. combined with Imaginem, it can make you appear to be elsewhere or trap someone’s voice. Animal: meaning “animal,” this form covers animals, living and dead, wheather birds, mammals, lizards, worms or any other kind. This also includes animal products, such as leather, bone and ivory. Aquam: meaning “water,” this covers water and all kinds of liquids, as well as the properties of liquidity. Auram: meaning “air,” this form covers air, wind, and weather. All weather phenomena are in auram, including rain and lightning. Corpus: meaning “body,” this form includes human bodies, living or dead. It also includes magical or faerie creatures in human shape. Herbam: meaning “plant,” this form covers plants and trees, as well as wooden objects, cotten linen, and other forms of dead plant matter. Ignem: Meaning “fire,” this covers fire, light, and heat. Imaginem: Meaning “image,” this forms concerns “species.” These are what senses respond to, and are constantly emited by every object. Some, like those for taste or touch don’t travel very far. Others, like those for sound and sight, travel much further. Imaginemen manipulates them; creating them for nothing, moving them around for scrying or hiding, deleting them, and so on. Mentem: Meaning “mind,” concerns minds, memories, thoughts, and spirits. Since non-corporeal spirits, such as ghosts, are maintained by will alone, it also affects them. Terram: Meaning “earth,” this form concerns earth, stone, and solids, such as iron, metal, glass etc. Vim: Meaning “power,” this form concerns magical power itself. It is used for dispelling magic, for twinning your spells, for manipulating Vis (magical power in physical form), and so on. While each form governs spirits of their own form (i.e. ignem covers fire spirits, auram air faeries, etc), Vim can cover all spirits of a single realm (Faerie, infernal, divine, or magic). Once more, that was a lot! I’m always open for lore or mechanics questions, if you want to know more about the specifics of hermetic magic, its possibilities and its limits. I’ll update the sheet just after I post with the minimum abilities I mentioned above. This post will be most of your apprenticeship xp. Next post will be about making sure your flaws and virtues balance out, as well as choosing spells. I’ll probably have a look at your characteristics on your own, since I'm not sure how I'd structure the vote and also which way you go with abilities should be informative. I might ask you to prioritize between 2-3 different characteristics once I've dealt with the basics. Magnusth fucked around with this message at 21:10 on Oct 12, 2021 |
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Oct 12, 2021 17:42
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ADEF G PTX Creo Muto Rego Ignem Terram
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Oct 12, 2021 18:44
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Are we supposed to be just regular voting on the crafting form or is that approval voting too? DEF Edit: JK OPX Creo Intellego Muto Mentem Vim Wallet fucked around with this message at 23:48 on Oct 12, 2021 |
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Oct 12, 2021 20:37
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Wallet posted:Are we supposed to be just regular voting on the crafting form or is that approval voting too? That should've been approval voting too, let me quickly change the update. Also, for the last question, you are welcome to vote for one art more than once, if you wanna stack all your points on creo or whatever.
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Oct 12, 2021 21:02
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BDE HJK PSX Creo Imaginem Muto Ignem Vim welfarestateofmind fucked around with this message at 02:06 on Oct 13, 2021 |
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Oct 12, 2021 21:47
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ADF GHJ MX Muto Ignem Terram Vim Vim
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Oct 13, 2021 00:16
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| # ? Jun 10, 2024 09:44 |
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AF G OPX Creo Muto Ignem Terram Rego
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Oct 13, 2021 08:12
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