Hermetic Projects
Subject and Contents
Hermetic Projects describes several long-running laboratory projects magi can undertake. The projects involve developing a series of related spells and enchanted items that all combine to enable some impressive feat. There are six projects described in detail, as well as a couple of pages on designing your own project[1]
The Burning City
The goal of the Burning City project is to build a covenant inside an active volcano[2].
The Great Tower
The Hermetic Shipyard
The Intangible Assassin
The Intangible Assassin project develops an arsenal of spells with which to attack magi (or other creatures with Magic Resistance from a distance using Arcane Connections[3]. As stated in the first paragraph of the chapter, the main purpose of the project is to be effective at waging Wizard War.
This chapter also contains an overview of Wizard War that looks like it would be sufficient to play through such a conflict in your Saga, even if you don't have the other rule books that describe Wizard's War (namely, Houses of Hermes: True Lineages and Houses of Hermes: Societates).
The Living Corpse
The Menagerie of Magical Beasts
Opinion and Commentary
Reviews
Benefits of This Book
This book can provide a research agenda for an experienced character or an entire covenant. Some of the projects are quite practical and would be useful to dabble in, even if the magi don't pursue them to completion.
The projects can also be used to flesh out non-player senior magi or covenants in your Saga.
This book also contains a considerable number of spells and enchanted items you can use right away, even if your characters aren't pursuing the projects as written.
This Book Might Not Fit Your Saga If...
The main reason a given troupe might not find this book useful is if most or all of the player-magi are involved in mystery cults and devote their energies to the mysteries.
Everything in Hermetic Projects can be accomplished with "plain old" Hermetic magic, so if you are looking for something more exotic, Ancient Magic or Hedge Magic Revised Edition or even Rival Magic might be more to your liking.