Ars Magica: Difference between revisions

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[['''Ars Magica]]''' is a role-playing game set in Mythic Europe, a quasi-historical version of Europe around AD 1200 with added fantastical elements. It typically centers on the lives of Magi, powerful wizards belonging to the Order of Hermes, and the various [[Muggles|mundane]] folk in their lives. While several details about the world change, sometimes drastically, from edition to edition, the same basic premise applies: the Order is a secret society in a world that believes in magic, founded by the apprentice of a wizard who first developed a unified magic theory and a general defense against magic, the Parma Magica. There are twelve Houses (with a missing thirteenth), each focusing on a particular area of study that the House founder excelled in originally:
 
'''Bjornaer''': Shapeshifting magi who can change into form of their "Heart-Beast" (or, in the case of an inanimate, natural object, a "Heart-Shape"). They are descended from a Pomeranian Bear-witch name Birna and practice secret magical rites at their Domus Magnus Crintera every twelve years
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The Order of Hermes itself is richly political, with laws governing how Magi must conduct themselves toward each other while at court (Tribunal) and just in general, with secrecy and the right to power being primary tenets of the vow taken by mages at the completion of their apprenticeship.
 
It was one of the first examples of a Troupe system: early editions recommended that the players collaborate to create the campaign world and story. Each player would have an opportunity to be the [[Game Master|Story Guide]], and each player would have more than one character, so that if they felt their main character would not go on an adventure (for example, if they were busy with their research) a secondary character may be used. The game was developed by Jonathan Tweet and Mark Rein·Hagen of ''[[Old World of Darkness|World of Darkness]]'' fame and if you look, you will find traces of [['''Ars Magica]]''' in the Classic WOD - particularly the Order of Hermes mages and the Tremere vampires. The magic system of [['''Ars Magica]]''' is generic, based on a combination of Forms and Techniques (to create fire, you'd use the form Ignem for fire and the Technique Creo for create together) and very intuitive. It's also one of few magic systems that allowed for spontaneous spellcasting, allowing the player to use magic off the top of their head to perform specific tasks, rather than limiting magical ability to a shopping list of immutable conditions and effects.
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=== [[Ars Magica]] provides examples of: ===
 
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* [[Beware the Superman]]: Mages are well within their rights to torture [[Muggle|Muggles]] to death.
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* [[Beware the Superman]]: Mages are well within their rights to torture [[Muggle|Muggles]]s to death.
** They have one Crime for this, loosely referred to as Interfering with Mundanes. No wizardly court on the planet will convict you for less than bringing actual harm to other mages, however, and not even then if you have enough political power to stop it.
* [[Cloudcuckoolander]]: Criamon. In later editions, they're the only ones who have access to the Enigmatic Wisdom Virtue, which gives bonuses to understand things that normal logic can't process. The classic joke?
{{quote| How many Criamon does it take to light a candle?<br />
Fish. }}
* [[The Commandments]]: The Order of Hermes has a Code of Conduct which (among other things) forbids dealing with demons, endangering the Order, interfering with secular governments and spying on or killing other mages.
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* [[Kill It with Fire]]: The Flambeau approach to most things.
* [[Large Ham]]: one of the advantages of playing a 'grog' as opposed to a major character, according to the 5th edition rulebook, is that it's acceptable to chew on the scenery a little.
* [[Magic aA Is Magic A]]
* [[Medieval European Fantasy]], The game is actually a fantastic medieval Europe, with the typical campaign starting spring A.D. 1200 but oddly it more subverts this trope that supports it, due to the level of detail and 'reality' the various campaign source books looking at medieval politics and society. The supplement books that don't focus on the Order and its magic are about as accurate and informative as any regular general-history book, 4th edition's ''Ordo Nobilis'' in particular.
* [[Mystical Plague]]: The spell "Curse of the Unportended Plague" starts a plague in a city over a period of 6-126–12 months.
* [[No Eye in Magic]]: Some spells have the range "Eye", which means the mage must make eye contact with the target for the spell to take effect.
* [[Our Werebeasts Are Different]]: Includes were-bears and were-lynxes.
* [[Point Build System]]
* [[Robe and Wizard Hat]]: House Mercere, commonly called Redcaps because they wear silly-looking red pointy hats. The robe is optional, but common, since most major places know not to mess with the guys in the doofy red stooge cap-- thosecap—those guys have friends.
* [[Shapeshifter Mode Lock]]: Mages who remain in animal form too long can have their human personality replaced with the animal's.
* [[So Beautiful It's a Curse]]: The Curse of Venus flaw, which makes the character very attractive to people he or she does not WANT to attract, and who won't take no for an answer.
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[[Category:Tabletop Games]]
[[Category:Ars Magica]]
[[Category:Tabletop GameGames]]
[[Category:Tabletop Games of the 1980s]]