Vorstallen Magic Preparatory - The Third-Best School for Young Mages in the Nation! Enrol Today!

The weekend began as most weekends started.

Ulos woke up, swinging himself down, feet planting firmly on Madavian's bed. Madavian grumbled for a moment and turned over, going back to sleep. He sprung past Abraham, who was curled up on the floor, wrapped in a large feather-downed quilt inside a oiled canvas sleeping bag. Waking Madavian wouldn't matter, the other boy went back to sleep in seconds anyway, but Abraham was a light sleeper nowadays. Ulos shook his head. After all he'd gone through rooming with Thomas, he could see why.

Usually they studied, but today Ulos had plans. Ordinarily he struggled to better himself, but sometimes you needed to get one over your opponents. Today was for preparation.

Firstly he snuck out, taking his crafting tools with him. He sat down to begin crafting, scratching runes onto bricks, copying the page he had been given onto brick after brick. Ordinarily, he thought, it would be best to recruit the others, let them guard him while he did this, to find somewhere. That way he could activate the first one, and just make sure it went ok. No, best to leave them alone. The bricks were meant to be loud and visible, and he didn't want to attract attention.

He found after a few hours, it came naturally to him. Copying the rune across,

At the end, he sighed. It had been difficult, but he thought he'd activate one, just to make sure.

He concentrated, and put his magic into the rune.

Nothing.

He blinked. He was sure he'd gotten it right.

He focused on the next rune.

Nothing.

He looked at the rune he had been given, and down at the bricks. They looked exactly the same!

Except...

Ah.

"Shit!"

The rune was sketched on a piece of thin paper, delicate and dark ink running across the face of the paper. So dark, in face, it seeped a little through the paper itself, easily visible on the other side.

The side he had copied from.

"Three hours!", he said.

He groaned, and took to the work of smashing the bricks. He ground and threw them against each other, so the rune would not be visible. Best if nobody knew what he'd been doing.


(3 + 10 (Phys) + 10 (Clay Crafting Tools) + 5 Craft (Rune) = 28. Failure. -1 DC to all Clay Runes!)

Later on that day, he took to mapping the dorms again. It was a quick and easy endeavour, as Madavian had quietly written down the names of everyone he was in classes with, and used that information to somehow figure out where the rest of the year took classes. He had spent the week simply studying the others in their year, and Madavian even did a quick sketch with coloured lines the political relationship between various students.

Plan out a prank, see who got mad, who might retaliate, who might feel threatened. It was a pretty solid thing.

(Map Out the Dorms - 99 vs DC 75! Critical success! Gained Map of Dorms (Superior). +25 bonus to pranks and similar actions taken within the Dorms)

(Bonus roll one! 5 vs ???. Something cool missed.)

(Bonus roll two! 66 vs ???. Success! Something cool found!)

It was later on that day that Henrietta came down to meet him, dressed in a conservative grey dress. Sometimes he wondered if she preferred grey, or simply found it easier to avoid notice that way.

"I know you've been mapping out the dorms, Ulos. Preparing for something?"

He nodded.

"You know, I'm not your equal in magical theory. Not yet. But I have an idea."

She looked at him.

"It is possible to enchant your map. I've seen the schema for similar items, they're not especially complicated runic devices. You put life detection runes that need virtually no mana somewhere, and have them each entangled to another set of runes on the map. You need to build the map out of something durable, ideally, maybe steel or stone, but it's not hard to do. It's a pretty basic setup for a defensive laboratory. We could copy the map across to something more durable, and work on runes to link it to each part of the dorms. The runes take a few seconds to recharge, and you can just lean on the wall or something once every few weeks to recharge them."

Unlocked Option - The Magical Map!

---

The next day, Ulos found himself meditating again. Magic that had not been easy to feel previously expanded a little, and he came to realise that even when out of sight, he could sense in the vaguest sense magic elsewhere. Of course, there were simple spells to do the same thing, but there was certainly some value to being able to sense magic yourself.

(Meditation Training (3)*5 = 15 . +2 Arcane Meditation. Current is +6 Arcane Meditation (0/10 next level)

It was later on that day that Madavian returned to the room, and spoke to him.

"Hey, Ulos. Note for you."

He handed over a piece of paper.

Please come to my office within the hour. - Inukar

The Magical Theory building was maybe thirty minutes away by foot. Ulos stood up immediately, and jogged off.

A little while later, he went into Inukar's office.

"Welcome, Ulos."

The barrel-chested man looked him up and down,

"Every term, there's a meeting between the various schools, to discuss magical co-operation and exchange. Bunch of useless tosh, to be honest, but good networking. Good food, too. This year it's held in the Outer Ring College, over next weekend. Every year I take one first-year with me as a gofer, someone to carry my books and get me coffee. I mean, everyone does. They generally pick their most talented students, though. It's you or the Aufstadt girl for me, but after she got caught cheating, well..."

He smiled.

"Henrietta's very good, Senior Mage. We study together, and she's almost caught up with me."

"That's as may be, but I'm not enthusiastic about her character. So, how about it?"

Inukar has invited you to the Yearly Vorstallen Magical Co-operation and Exchange Conference.

[ ] Yes, go - Next weekend will not have any Actions taken, instead being replaced with a minor Adventure. Who knows what could happen? Meet other mages, explore another campus, and try not to start a feud between your school and another! You will, however, need to hold your tutoring session earlier in the week.

+ Adventure has all sorts of boosts if successful. Networking opportunities, intrigue, diplomacy, and maybe even combat! Probably not combat.
+ Possible major boost to Inukar relationship.
- Only two Actions next week, as you need to Tutor Abraham and Madavian earlier.
- Next Weekend has no Actions for obvious reasons.

[ ] Argue For Henrietta - Henrietta is a major fan of Magical Theory, and setting her up to meet and spend time with Inukar means she'll be able to impress one of her teachers. Low chance of success, as Inukar doesn't think much of her. Arguing for her and failing will have Inukar move on to his third choice - you cannot take this choice, fail, and then go yourself.

+ Henrietta gets a minor boost with Inukar as well as bonuses from the Adventure.
+ Major boost to your friendship with Henrietta.
- Don't get to go on an (albeit minor) Adventure.
- Low chance of success.

[ ] Don't Go - Just stay and do nothing. Henrietta doesn't deserve to go anyway. Cannot be taken due to Trait: True Friend or No Friend.

A note as well. Willpower reserves can be spent on Adventures for bonuses to rolls or to take superior alternative actions. Spending them all may not be wise.

---

You presently have 2 Willpower. 2 Willpower is locked behind your Locked Action, Tutoring Session: Magical Theory. 1 Willpower is locked behind Tutor Your Friends, giving Ulos a total of 2 Willpower per week. The pool will regenerate after this turn.

Ulos will take 4 Actions, but one of these is locked in as Tutor Your Friends. You cannot unlock this without abandoning the Tutoring Sessions entirely. As such, only 3 Actions will be taken from this list.

If the thread votes to go the Conference, only 2 Actions will be taken from this list.

Temporary/One-Off Actions:

[ ] Appraise your Artifact - Sure, you can't do it, but you can find someone who can. Knowing what that Artifact does might be key to either keeping it or selling it for a good sum. Roll Cha vs DC (Moderate). Success offers information about Artifact. Failure offers no information. Critical failure offers completely false information. Roll will be hidden. Action is removed once either a success is rolled
or a critical failure is rolled.

Offensive/Defensive Actions:

[ ] Scout out your Rivals - Pretty standard. Go spy on your enemies. Roll vs your Rival's roll to avoid being scouted. If you beat their Roll, gain +20 on all Actions against them (defensive or offensive) for the remainder of the week.

[ ] Launch an Assault! - You have Itching Powder now, you can do something terrible (ly amusing)! Make your enemies itch in class to humiliate them, douse their clothes in it to force them to miss valuable learning sessions, or even convince onlookers they have some sort of disease. Roll vs your Rival's roll to succeed. A regular success will cause an automatic failure on their next Action. A major success will cause an automatic failure on their next Action and their classes for that day. A critical success will cause both these effects and cause them to be humiliated, reducing all Relationships with anyone who observes this humilation by one step.

[ ] The Brickworks - Use your newfound tools and knowledge to carve up some sweet, sweet Slumbering Bricks. Litter the walkways with them, put them anywhere you tend to go as long as they can be reasonably hidden. Offers a chance for any confrontation to involve a Slumbering Brick that you and your friends can activate. Slumbering Bricks allow an automatic escape from almost any situation, or alternatively a free attack on your opponent. Will take a lot of time and effort. Roll against DC 40 vs Craft: Rune up to 4 times, or until you fail. The first four successes (this Action may be taken multiple times - successes refers to number of successes on all Brickworks Actions) will offer you and your three friends a small brick apiece, which offers a 50% chance to withdraw from a hostile situation. Each success after that offers a +5% chance for any confrontation to involve a Slumbering Brick, which will offer an automatic withdrawal from hostile situations. Willpower upgrade - By focusing hard on this task and working to discover the best ways to etch runes in clay and bricks, all Clay Rune DCs are reduced by 1.

Training Actions:

[ ] Start Studying (Write-In Subject) - You have your textbooks. Next step is reading through them. Sort of nerdy, but hey, aren't you here to learn? Gain a Training Roll associated with the subject you choose. Willpower upgrade - spend 1 point to gain 2 Training Rolls. -1 to all Training Rolls of this sort due current roommate penalty.

[ ] Relentlessly Practice Magical Combat - Use some of your little magic to practice your Spellweaving. Abraham will help you, using his progidious Magic Pool to help you deal with, avoid, and retreat from spells. Gain a Training Roll on the lower of Combat: Evasion and Combat: Retreat, as well as a Training Roll vs Channeling. This will help Abraham practice his own Magical Combat. Willpower Upgrade offers a second Training Roll for the applicable Combat Skill. Shooting at you with fireballs is not easy for Abraham, who will spend 1 Willpower undertaking this Action.

[ ] Study Group - The Study Group needs to get going if you're going to dominate your subjects. Get your books, get your bag, and head on over to the Library to get the librarians to let you into a study room. Gain a Training Roll for Lore: Theory of Magic or Lore: Six-Fox Pact. 20% chance for Relationship improvement (DC 80). Willpower upgrade - spend 1 point to gain two Training Rolls. Can only be taken twice per Week max.

[ ] Practice Spell (Write-In From Spellbook) - Time to practice a spell. Get better, cast faster, cast cheaper. Roll against DC (??? depends on Spell). Takes ??? Magic Pool, where ??? is equal to a Spell's cost times 5. Character gains an additional Training roll if they still have more mana after practicing. Willpower upgrade - spend 1 point to gain an additional two Training Rolls if you have enough mana for it.

Diplomacy and Discovery Actions:

[ ] Hang Out With A Friend (Write-in Friend) - It's good to spend time with people you know. Maybe take a break, and hang with one of your friends. Available options include Madavian Junotrin, Henrietta Aufstadt, Lucy Firefield and Abraham Quincey. Increase Relationship by one step. Roll against DC (Variable, depending on friendship level). On success, increase Relationship by another step.

[ ] Madavian's Speed Dating Agency - With Madavian here to help you, you'll have an easier time of meeting new people. Gain two Diplomacy Rolls. Madavian's presence also offers one reroll, mitigating any unpleasant social consequences (reroll will be taken after both rolls, reroll will prioritize Critical Failures over regular Failures). Willpower upgrade - Spend 1 point to gain a third Diplomacy Roll.

[ ] Go Exploring - It's a big campus, and you haven't seen the half of it. Who knows what you could find? Roll 1D100 vs ???. Success offers ???, failure offers ???. Willpower upgrade - spend 1 point to gain a second roll. Spend 2 points to gain a third roll.

[ ] Study your Magic Pool - You need to learn to meditate, focus, and understand what is happening in the Ether, and in yourself when you draw from it. Gaining such inner understanding may shed light on your Curse's functionality. Gain a Training Roll for Skill: Meditation versus Willpower.

[ ] Suck Up To Inukar - Figure out what they like. Do the research. Then suck up. Not hard in theory. Roll against DC 40 (depends on teacher) vs Cha and Lore: Magical Theory. Success increases teacher's Relationship by one step and future DC of this Action sharply. Locked for all teachers who are not Inukar (insufficient Relationship).

Crafting, Gathering & Shopping Actions:

[ ] Gather Mushrooms - Unlocked by your knowledge of the Secret Mushroom Colony. Self-explanatory. Roll against DC ??? using either Lore: Alchemy or Lore: Magical Plants. On success, gain ???.

[ ] The Magical Map - You and Henrietta, working together on a magical map. Henrietta has done some research, and you have a good map to begin with. This Action will roll initially versus Lore: Runes to begin figuring out what to do and where. DC is ???. Once the research roll is complete, you may begin construct the Magical Map. The Magical Map offers awareness of living creatures within the Dorms. This means you can reliably target empty (or full rooms), offering new and powerful options when engaging in an attack. It also offers perfect awareness of people coming towards your room. It will be made of stone, clay, or metal. Offers a Roll vs DC 70 to improve Relationship one step with Henrietta.

[ ] Go to the Marketplace - You have money to spend and items to sell. You need to spend some time gearing up, finding tutors, spells, artifacts, items, and more. Activates Shopping Mini-Turn with more Actions within it (including "Find a Buyer" for your items), allowing the buying and selling of items and services.

[ ] Search for Ingredients - You don't know about a whole lot of Alchemical Ingredients, but you can go looking. Even if you don't find exactly what you're looking for, you can scout out good places. Roll against DC ???. On success, find Ingredients. On critical success find a Location with Ingredients.

[ ] Map out the Dorms - So you've got a pretty decent map of the Dorms. You can do better, right? Get the more obscure students' details, look at their timetables as best you can, figure out what routes people take... really get the map going.. No skill gains. Roll against DC 75, on success gain Item: Map of Dorms (Finished). +20 bonus to pranks and similar actions taken within the Dorms. Replaces Map of Dorms (Unfinished).

[ ] Family Money - Madavian would be happy to send away for money on your behalf (or spend some of his money on you and then replenish it later). However, he'd need a good reason to do so. Reason must be written in if no reason has come up in the thread. No Skill gains. Madavian rolls Cha vs DC (Variable) to gain a Variable number of Coins.

Locked Actions:

[ ] Craft Alchemical Recipe (Write-In) - Time to get your Alchemy on! Get in there and make something useful! Roll against DC ??? (depends on Recipe). Success adds Recipe to Inventory. Locked. Requires at least 1 rank in Craft: Alchemy. Requires access to Alchemical Equipment.