According to the Ars Magica 4th edition rulebook, an individual player has control of more than 1 character at a time. I'm not going to make you create more than 1 character, or even follow all the steps, because this is a quest and as such needs different methods to work best. Without further ado:
Your character is a member of the Order of Hermes, basically THE magical society of 13th century Europe (which is when and where the quest takes place). The Order is divided into 12 subdivisions called houses, one of which you are a member of:
[] House Bjornaer: These Magi concern themselves with the animal world, even forgoing the use of familiars. Instead they can shapeshift into an animal, which they call "Heart-beasts."
[] House Bonisagus: Members of House have a proud history, it's namesake having invented the Hermetic theory of magic and his apprentice having invented the Hermetic order itself. As you might expect, these are (or at least its members believe) the elite of magical society.
[] House Criamon: Possibly the most mysterious house, these mages seek the "Enigma", some sort of mystical experience related to the true nature of magic itself
[] House Ex Miscellanea: As you would expect from the name, this house is home to many magi that do not quite fit in with the other orders. Most of it's membership used to be peasants.
[] House Flambeau: These are the magi who like blowing stuff up. They specialize in fire magic and aggresive magic in general. The order values them when they need to fight.
[] House Jerbiton: Perhaps the magical order most invested in the non-magical world, these magi are responsible for keeping the nobility and clergy on the Order's side. The membership is often drawn from the nobility
[] House Mercere: A very unique house, it's founder lost his magical abilities but continued to help the order even afterward. Thus, it even accepts Magi who do not actually possess the gift of magic.
[] House Merinita: This house interacts primarily with the fae. They are very isolated from the non-magical world and even from other members of the Hermetic Order.
[] House Quaesitoris: It's actually named House Guernicus but due to its members roles as judges and justices of those who stray from the Order's precepts, they are non as Quaesitoris: Inquisitors.
[] House Tremere: A highly hierarchical house, they have recently been rocked by a major scandal: Many of its high-ranking members had become vampires in order to gain immortality and power.
[] House Tytalus: This House is a very competitive one, constantly seeking to prove their superiority in all sorts of conflicts. Around 300 years ago, its leaders attempted to bargain with demons to prove their superiority over them. It didn't end well.
[] House Verditus: Most mages of House Verditus are very skilled in creating enchanted items, though most are unable to actually cast spells without the aid of magical foci.
In addition you must create your background:
[] Age: No younger than 15,
[] Place of Birth: Write-in
[] Gender:
[] Personality (Write-in)
[] Origin: (Write-in details about characters life thus far. Include what your childhood was like, how you found a master to teach you magic (or more likely how a master found you) and anything else you'd like to include.)
Vote in Plan Format for this section. Know that you can be as succinct or in depth on the write-ins as you desire. Know also that the write-ins will indirectly determine your abilities, virtues and vices, which I will pick so as to make character creation simpler and quicker for you. I understand I'm still asking a lot, so you can also vote [] Pregen character in place of this section. If enough people vote for the Pregen character, I will create 5 different characters for you to choose from, although you will still have to determine what house they belong to and later on where their magical abilities lie.