Ars Magica

[BobVosh]

I got interested in the system when a friend mentioned it a few years aqo. I now have a chance to try it out, and I am curious which edition I should goo for. 5th ed seems very well recommended, however I always trust the GiTP one more. Any thing that needs to be just ruled out, or over? I know some atlas games have wonky things like that, much less the WotC or WW editions.

Should I just scrap it and go for Mage the Awakening?

Also this would be the very first troupe type game my group has tried, any cautions or information I would be wise to heed?

I must admit I like the elegance of the noun/verb system. The closest I have tried to that is the changeling: the dreaming.

[Knaight]

Don't scrap it for MtA, as they are two very different games, and Ars Magica is better in just about every respect. As for editions - how much are you willing to spend? Some editions are free, some editions aren't free, and most editions are solid.

[BobVosh]

TI have access to Ars Magica 3rd from the previously mentioned friend. I see that fourth is free pdf on the atlas site. And I have no problem shelling out the 18 for a pdf from Atlas for 5ed. Although I may go 35 just for a hardback, as they are always nice.

As for the other 2 editions, if you are willing to make a case I'm willing to try and find them. I didn't bother look for them as I assumed they got better in iteration.

Also I've been informed that Mage Ascension is the better of the two mages so it would have been second choice.

[Andrewmoreton]

Forget about 1st and 2nd editions they are very hard to get and don't offer anything later versions don't have.

4th Ed is an improvement over 3rd edition fixing some problems but it is fundamentally similar. Its big advantage over 5th ed is that it is free. However you can get supplements for it as pdf's these cost money.

5th ed is IMO an improvement over 4th fixing a number of issues with spells and character design. However if you are just trying the game out you may want to stick with 4th as it is free.

When we get to supplements 5th ed has a clear advantage (IMO) there are more of them , they are more internally consistent and their game mechanics are more consistent with the core rules. You can use 4th ed supplements with 5th ed as long as you stick to things like the tribunal books which are more information than rules.

Running the game troupe style is optional. I find it useful for players to have more than one character as there will often be situations where the mage character does not want to go adventuring. I recommend that players design companions which fir with magi other than their own as you want them to be available when that players mage is busy.
Rotating GM's is optional I have run Ars Magica for 20 years and only in the latest campaign are we rotating the GM position .

The two big difference between Ars Magica and most games are
1) mages rule. A beginning semi competent mage can guarantee to defeat a mundane opponent with fairly simple spells
2) Time scale, mages get better with years f study plan a campaign around the mages spending a lot of time in their laboratory try to have plots which will complete in years not days

[Knaight]

The two big difference between Ars Magica and most games are
1) mages rule. A beginning semi competent mage can guarantee to defeat a mundane opponent with fairly simple spells
2) Time scale, mages get better with years f study plan a campaign around the mages spending a lot of time in their laboratory try to have plots which will complete in years not days

I'd call troupe play a larger difference. Everybody has a pool of characters, and they play them one at a time and switch from one to another. If you get tired with one character (or even one general level of play) you can use a different one for the next adventure and come back to the first later.

As for editions, given the new information - if you can spend 35 dollars on 5th edition, do so. The way the post was phrased made it seem like 35 dollars wasn't a huge deal, and I'd only recommend 4th if 35 dollars was fairly significant.

[BobVosh]

35 is the cost of a new splat book from 3.5 anyway, not really a concern.

[LibraryOgre]

I'll toss my hat in. I got started in 3e, but 4e is my favorite edition... less of White Wolf's intentional "oohh, scary, sexy darkness" and none of the "We're building up to the Real World of Darkness."

I don't have any specific objections to 5e, and I still pick up a supplement for it every so often (because they are well-written, and I love the world), but it never set well with me, and I am unsure why. I think I'm just getting old, and my transmission is cranky. :smallbiggrin:

[mint]

I prefer the 5th edition to the fourth. I think it is very well made. More consistent than previous versions. It has less baggage and pretty illustrations.
One of the things I like about Ars Magica is that you can play great games that are great because of the system, even when you don't play it with the conclave as the "main character".

As for the troupe stuff... I guess with the grogs you have to be a bit less sentimental about them. If you play it the way outlined in the books, the story is really about the conclave as a whole. Being detached a bit detached from your magi and trying to make the story of the conclave more interesting rather than having everything go well and "winning" is pretty important I guess.
Taking turns being the MC of whatever is totally good for the game and group imo.

[Andrewmoreton]

The Troupe style is very optional though. I have played Ars Magica since about 1994 and in that time we have only used rotating GM's in the current game, no one has played grogs and companions have rarely taken off.
However it is different for other groups