Product Review
Ars Magica is the game from which
Mage: the Ascension eventually sprung. Its history
is intertwined with that of the early years of White
Wolf Game Studio (at first, White Wolf Magazine),
and one of its creators, Mark Rein Hagen is the same
bloke that created Vampire: the Masquerade and Werewolf:
the Apocalypse. The paths of White Wolf and Ars Magica
(now published by Atlas Games) have long since parted,
but, you can still see their common origins if you
look for them.
Ars Magica is set in a pseudo-historical
realm of medieval fantasy. The setting is based around
middle-ages Europe, assuming that all religious and
superstitious beliefs are real. So, a peasant can
cross paths with a fairy, or even a dragon if he’s
not careful. People know that magic exists, and they
fear it. The Hermetic Order (in a way the same blokes
that you’ll see in Mage: the Ascension, realizing
that some of the Great Houses are fallen, and some
have been born during those passed years) is the mayor
(or sole) magical player in this world; at least on
the mortal front, that is, if we forget fairies, and
Heaven and Hell for a moment.
Most of the current Hermetic Law
already existed back then, though, it seems, Magi
would adhere to the body of that Law more fervently
than nowadays. Oh, how has the Order fallen from its
former glory! Among the Houses, it is impossible not
to notice House Tremere and House Bonisagus. House
Tremere, according to the history of White Wolf’s
World of Darkness, would become Clan Tremere, a house
of vampires that would eventually gain a lot of control
within the Camarilla, the vampires’ major sect.
They’d become bitter enemies of the other Houses.
This mutual hatred would spawn two long and costly
wars, called the First and Second Massasa Wars.
Bonisagus (founder of (unsurprisingly)
House Bonisagus), on the other hand, is credited,
in both cosmologies, for founding the Hermetic Order,
and for creating the Parma Magica. The Parma is a
magical shield, or ‘countermagic,’ which
is learned by all hermetic Magi in Ars Magica’s
day, not so in Mage’s world, but it is, still,
a known procedure.
As for the systems, they differ
quite a lot from Mage: the Ascension’s. In Ars
Magica, you normally roll only one D10 (ten-sided
die), and, if a roll is difficult enough, you may
roll two or three, sometimes more. But, unlike the
massive dice pools of White Wolf’s fame (or
infamy, according to some), the extra dice are just
used to determine how terrible the botch, or how marvellous
the critical hit actually is. The system is similar
to Cyberpunk’s, where you roll a ten-sider versus
a difficulty. As for the magic, it has a nice little
system. Not being as free-form as Mage’s, it
allows you to combine several techniques (Rego, Perdo,
Intellego…) with different areas of existence
(Animal, Corpus, Auram…), in a way that reminds
me of Changeling: the Dreaming’s cantrip systems.
Ars Magica’s major feature,
and what sets it apart from other, similar games,
is that the centre of play is not just a Magus, but
a Covenant, which is like a learning and studying
centre for Magi. So, the main character is actually
a place, a school if you will. The players assume
the roles of several characters within that Covenant,
and their lives purpose is to enrich it. The players
will normally play a Magus, and one or more of his/her
retainers. The Magus may spend decades locked up in
his/her tower studying, or developing grimoires, that
will enhance the prestige of the Covenant.
Covenants come in four flavours,
named after the four seasons. Spring Covenants have
just been created, and are struggling to make a name
for themselves. I think this is the ideal setting
for players, because, on a Covenant such as this,
they are the major players for its growth or doom.
Summer Covenants are like a strong tree; they have
survived long enough to be a noticeable feature, and
are still growing. Autumn Covenants are those that
are growing stagnant, and are slowly beginning their
decline. These are another interesting setting for
players, because they may play that injection of young
blood that could bring the Covenant to yet another
golden age. However, if nothing is done, Autumn covenants
will eventually become Winter Covenants. These are
the ones that are on a steady decline, and will vanish
into oblivion eventually. Their glories are long gone,
their Masters are probably dying, not a pleasant scenario.
But, out of every dead Covenant, a new one may spring.
To summarise, essentially, Ars Magica
is a very interesting game about medieval magic, and
can be a resource for Mage: the Ascension games dealing
with the Order of Hermes and its history. One drawback
I noticed, is that it is not mainly conceived for
one-shot adventures, or so I feel. On the other hand,
it is a pretty complete game with only the hardcover
rulebook, which is always a great plus for any role-playing
game. I must confess that I have not yet put it to
the test of the gaming table, but I hope I will eventually
be able to do so.
Reviewed By Matías Timm |
