Ars Magica

Setting

The setting, Mythic Europe, is primarily based on Europe of the 12th and 13th centuries; the geography is the same, and the mundane (non-magical) politics are practically identical. However, in Ars Magica the "Medieval paradigm" - the way the world was described or understood in that time period - is the literal truth. In this setting, Faeries actually do steal lost children, Demons cause disease and crop failure, Angels help the righteous, and dragons and other Magical creatures are real.

Player characters typically alternate between the role of a magus, a companion (Consors), and a grog. 

Magi belong to the Order of Hermes, a society of magically "Gifted" humans. Termed 'Hermetic Magic' for its roots in the Greek deity Hermes, upon which the ancient Roman Cult of Mercury was based. Over the centuries magi who quit or refuse to join the Order have been hunted down and destroyed.

Companions are select skilled non-magi who help wizards conduct their affairs.

Grogs are usually skilled peasants, often bodyguards or watchmen.

The wizards gather in specialized strongholds called covenants, which are often built in places of power. A covenant is typically a 'home base' where the magi are in charge.

Each of the Order's twelve Houses maintains a distinct tradition in pursuing knowledge and power, the Order is also divided into Tribunals, each defined by a geographic region of Mythic Europe. Each Tribunal holds a gathering of its magi once every seven years. Once every 33 years, each Tribunal sends a representative to the Grand Tribunal at the site of the Order's founding in the Black Forest.

The Tribunals loosely correspond to groupings or portions of modern-day nations.

Greater Alps - including Switzerland with the Alpine regions of Austria and northern Italy.

Iberian - the precursors to Spain and Portugal.

Normandy - Northern France and what will soon be known as the Low Countries

Provençal - Southern France

Roman - Italy

Theban - Greece, Bulgaria and Western Asia Minor

Transylvanian

Rhine - centered on the Rhine River, core of the Holy Roman Empire

Novgorod - the broader cultural region known as Rus', including Poland

Stonehenge - England and Wales

Loch Leglean - Scotland

Hibernian - Ireland

Levantine - lands of the Eastern Mediterranean known as the Levant

Realms of Power

The overarching premise of the Ars Magica setting is that the "mundane" world of ordinary, physical existence is a place where four great supernatural forces have varying degrees of influence and presence.

The Divine realm

This is the supreme, holy force of Creation - God as represented by the scriptures of the Abrahamic religions, and his agents in the world. Divine influence diminishes anything not attuned to it (i.e. anything of a Faerie, Infernal or Magical nature) and is opposed to all things Infernal.

The Infernal realm

Satan and his demonic forces. The Order of Hermes have been forbidden from entering into agreements with Hell's minions. Anyone in the Order found guilty of diabolism is expelled and hunted down.

The Faerie realm

Creatures of traditional fairy tales. Magi are allowed to associate with the Fae as long as they do not incur their wrath and thereby endanger their fellows.

The realm of Magic

A mysterious arcane force, to which all magi (among other rare entities) are inherently attuned. This is the power almost exclusively used to cast spells and enchant objects.

Magic system

The Ars Magica system of Hermetic Magic consists of 15 Arts, divided into 5 Techniques and 10 Forms. This is sometimes called a "Verb/Noun" system: the Technique is the verb (what effect the magic has), and the Form is the noun (the entity, object or substance that is affected or brought forth). These 'verb-noun' combinations can be used to cast 

Formulaic spells (which are recorded in texts, are learned through study and mastered through experience, and have known, fixed effects) and 

Spontaneous spells (which a caster improvises with no prior knowledge other than the Arts themselves, giving the potential results greater flexibility but lower potency).

Each Technique is named by a first-person singular present tense indicative Latin verb:

Creo ("I create") brings objects and substances into existence from nothing, or makes an already-existing target a "more perfect" version of itself (e.g. healing magic, as healed bodies are nearer perfection than wounded bodies).

Intellego ("I perceive") detects or reveals, enhances a target's natural senses or conveys supernatural ones.

Muto ("I transform") alters the nature of a being, object or substance, adding unnatural traits and/or removing natural ones.

Perdo ("I destroy") decays, disintegrates or otherwise diminishes the target, making something a worse example of its kind (i.e. the opposite of Creo).

Rego ("I control") involves manipulation of the target in any way that does not alter its nature, e.g. direct a target's movement, put a creature to sleep, or force a tree to bear fruit out of season. This is the main Technique used in spells of protection or 'warding'.

Each Form is named by a singular accusative Latin noun:

Animal affects "all natural living things that are not plants or humans, doing to animals what Mentem and Corpus spells do to people" as well as "things made with animal products" such as leather, wool, cheese, silk, etc. Since bacteria were unknown in medieval times, illness (e.g.) was considered either a form of possession or an imbalance of 'bodily humors'; thus, magic dealing with disease is relegated variously to Creo, Mentem and/or Vim effects.

Auram affects lightning, wind and gaseous substances; other weather effects typically require an Aquam requisite (see below).

Aquam is used for any liquid, with the exception of blood (which requires Animal or Corpus magic to affect); non-liquid forms of water will involve requisites (see below).

Corpus (the incorrect declension Corporem was used in older editions) applies to the human body, making it crucial to longevity formulas.

Herbam primarily involves plants, but applies equally to any organic matter, living or dead, that is not of animal origin.

Ignem involves light and heat, and is heavily represented in the fire spells of House Flambeau.

Imaginem (previously Imagonem) deals with images, sounds, and other sensory stimuli (thus is involved in most illusionary effects).

Mentem deals with emotions, memories, thoughts and spirits.

Terram involves earth and minerals: mere soil is the simplest target, while stone, metal and gems require progressively greater investment of spell levels to achieve the same effect.

Vim ("power") involves magic itself, as well as demons (the overlap is not widely understood, but the fact that there is one is a significant obstacle to the Order's 'public relations', particularly concerning the Church).

A mage's skill when casting a spell is the sum of their scores in the appropriate technique and form.

Some spells involve more than one Technique, and/or more than one Form at once; each Art used in addition to the basic pair is called a requisite. All relevant Art Scores are compared: the caster's lowest Technique and lowest Form are used, reflecting the limiting of the caster's magical knowledge.

Regardless of how high one's Art Scores may rise, there are outer boundaries to the application of Hermetic Magic (whether Formulaic, Spontaneous or Ritual). 

The two 'Greater' Limits are:

1. Magic cannot influence a pure manifestation of the Divine.

2. Magic cannot permanently change a target's Essential Nature.

Additional statistics for every spell are 

Target (what or whom the spell is directed at),

Range (how far the Target may be from the caster), and 

Duration. 

For reasons of balance, some spells require the expenditure of "vis" - magical essence in physical form - which all magi and covenants tend to make a point of hoarding and/or trading.

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Another game called Hunter the Reckoning feels like

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