The Ars Magica Frequently Asked Questions

These pages are dedicated to the roleplaying game known as Ars Magica, currently published by Atlas Games. They are intended to provide answers to common questions concerning its setting, rules, play and community. The collection of information contained in this document has grown rather extensive, so if you are just getting yourself up to speed before joining one of the mailing lists, you might want to start by reading the sections on the most frequently asked questions for the current edition.

Questions are collected from the Ars Magica mailing list(s) and from the Atlas Games discussion forums. I try to keep on top of what questions are being asked at a given time and also to synthesize the gist of the answers being provided. You can make my job easier by submitting questions and (especially) answers. You'll be given credit for answers you write, and who knows, you may even become famous.

What's New?

December 15, 2007:

• Updated Why was (X) changed in (new edition/new supplement)?
• Updated mailing list information

November 11, 2007:

• Updated the Publications FAQ to show Sub Rosa as the new English fanzine; Hermes' Portal is now out of print.
• Updated location of Patrick Murphy's downloadable character sheet on the rules page. Thanks to the Mad Irishman for letting me know!

February 4, 2007:

Added:

• Do Wound and Fatigue penalties apply to Soak totals?
• Do Wound Penalties apply to Recovery rolls?
• Is temporary, magically-created food nourishing?

Revised:

• Differences between Fourth and Fifth Editions
• New Jargon and Abbreviations:
  • HR
  • RAW
• Added The Medieval Underworld to the suggested reading list

November 15, 2006:

Started cleaning up the broken and outdated links. Many are fixed, many still remain.

Added:

• The rules in Covenants say it takes a very long time to reload a crossbow. Are those times realistic?
• Why would anyone want to use a crossbow, when longbows are so much better?
• Where can I find house rules for more combat options, variant weapon stats, and so on?
• What is the "Pink Dot Loophole?" Is there a way to close it?

Updated:

• How does the Faerie Magic Ability (on the Merinita template character, p. 27) work?
• What are the statistics for a shapeshifter (such as a Bjornaer magus or a character with the Shapeshifter Virtue) in beast form?
• Does magic resistance protect against the claws or teeth of a magical creature?
• Isn't there any way for a magus to create permanent magical effects?

March 13, 2006:

Added "What is the difference between Fourth and Fifth Edition?". Updated the entries about crossbows and casting from text.

October 19, 2005:

Added Are pagan gods Magical or Faerie? and How does multiple casting work?. Updated Can I write for Ars Magica?. Updated and re-organized the information on upcoming supplements. Changed formatting of "what's new?" section so it looks worse on my PC but better on my handheld. :-)

June 5, 2005:

Re-organized a little. Added I Need an Official Ruling on (X). Added a question on Faerie Magic and revised the Tremere vampire and White Wolf Storyteller (World of Darkness) questions. Finally added mention of the Official Ars Magica Discussion Forum. Cleaned up numerous, egregious HTML errors on the index page: if the FAQ has been looking funny in your browser, it should be better now.

April 6, 2005:

Updated information about upcoming supplements.