Heya,

First post from a long-time Ars Magica player. I recently picked up 5th ed. and have been working my way through it. I have come to the section regarding magical items, and it is maddeningly confusing. Examples refer to sections that you haven't read yet, etc... Compared to the rest of the book, I found this to be very poorly constructed.

So, the dilemma I have hit is this: 1st column, top of page 98 the example indicates that a small wooden object can only contain 2 pawns of vis... The table on the previous page clearly indicates that it should be able to contain 4 (2(x2)=4). The rest of the example appears correct, but this has lead me to believe perhaps I have missed another obscurely placed rule (like the Enchanted Item Example on page 97 that referenced a rule mentioned for the first time on the third column of page 99 but didn't include a reference to it - frustrating!!!).

So, was the example poorly written (should have said 4, even though the maga could only use 2) or did I miss something somewhere?

Thanks in advance,
Chris

I think you've found a mistake that slipped through playtest and was not mentioned in the errata (which is online at the Atlas Web site). A wooden wand is a small item and can hold four pawns of vis: a base of 2 because it's wood, and 2x(base) because it's small (as opposed to tiny).

Good catch.

It's not your job, but if you would be so kind as to post other errors like that you happen to find, there is a good chance they can be incorporated into the errata and even fixed for future printings of the book.

-Your friendly FAQ maintainer