Phaedrus Grimoire

== Spells to research ==
=== Third hand for writing ===
Rego Animal 15
Range: Touch, Duration: Ring, Target: Group
The book, gathering, stack of sheets, or other designated writing surface targeted is kept optimally still and flat, thus freeing the scribe from the need to spend time and concentration on that part of the writing. The spell also turns the pages, presenting each new page in the correct order, when certain areas, designated at casting time, is touched by the back end of the quill. (These areas are usually the lower right and left corners of the book, gathering, or stack.) Casting requisite of the appropriate form is needed if the writing surface is not governed by Animal.
This effect should give a small (+1) bonus or reduction in botch dice, when a roll is needd and a 10% increase in writing speed. (It should also make Phaedrus future experiments with duplicating quill movements viable.)
Level calculation:
 Base 1 Manipulate items made from animal products.
 +1 Touch
 +2 Ring - To keep it working for the whole writing time.
 +2 Group - There is a good chance that the target is not sewn together yet at writing
 time, thus made up of several "individuals".
 +2 Complexity
Thoughts:
# Scribing is such a slow and laborious activity that the actual time saved by magically turning a page is negligable - even assuming that the page instantly jumped into place, rather than the scribe having to wait for it to turn.
# The net effect of holding it still and steady is to prevent accidents, which would be a reduction in botch dice or penalties issued for doing the scribing under difficult circumstances, such as aboard a ship.
# The scriptorium has presumably been set up carefully. The writing surface is smoothed perfectly flat with Rego magic (easy to do), and there is probably magical lighting so that the scribe can work on overcast days without the risk of getting wax drips on his work.
# Spending a season trying to give the scribes a +1 bonus to scribing is of far less benefit than spending the season recruiting one or two more scribes, whose additional output would far exceed Bartleby's small bonus.
# There are some spells regarding scribing, and I shall check them out when I go home.
--James 00:18, 19 April 2007 (UTC)
: What I have read about period writing included using a knife to constantly keep a small part of the document flat to write on. I got the ref from one of you here, don't remember where now. That's the part that would save significant time, turning the pages is a bonus (and necessary to allow the scribe to work...).
::The "knife" is used so that the scribe doesn't touch the parchment with his fingers. This is because the residue of fingerprints discolours the parchment, and the fingers can cause other damage, such as accidentally smearing ink or unsticking gold leaf. The scribe is also using this hand for balance, and I don't see how freeing it up improves the function of his scribing hand. A similar implement is employed when reading the Torah.--James 06:07, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
:::The point here is not what the scribe uses to keep the vellum or parchment or whatever flat. The point is that the scribe will have to spend effort on doing it. Whenever a word is finnished the hold needs to be moved before the next word can be written, think of writing on a free paper outside on a windy day. (That's normal state) Then compare it to writing inside on a paper that has been fixed to the table with clamps. (That's with the spell)
:::The spell to keep the ink from smearing is for another season.
:::--Samuel<Talk> 21:36, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
:Besides even a 10% saving for a competent scribe is not that much. I would like very much if it could add to writing skill (or reduce botch dice) when a roll is needed and give a 10% reduction in the time needed, since that would actually give a bonus to tractatus copying also.
: The main reason to do the spell at all is to enable the duplicated quill movements to work further down the line.
::So, this spell isn't to help a human scribe, but rather to keep materials perfectly still while an unthinking quill is at work? To be honest, this is a secondary effect, and I wouldn't devote your time to it right now, if indeed any attention need be devoted to it. I suggest instead that you proceed directly with the primary effect.
:::Actually this spell is to help a human scribe. It is also to allow for other effects. Learning form trying to introduce practices at work, if it is not obviously usefull for the one doing it it won't get done correctly. Thus it has to be useful for a human scribe. Besides the Duplicated quill movements will not give us any benefit untill it works correctly, this one will at least give some benefit. Besides I have not formulated a good description of the duplicated quill movements yet and when we discussed it last year this was one possible problem with it.
:::--Samuel<Talk> 21:36, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
: Herbam req for parchment? I thought parchment was made from hide (at least that is what the Ars books says) what have I missed? (If you are talking about vegetable tanning I would probably have to add a terram req also to acount for the chalk used to whiten many pages. Either way those ought to be casting req's, right?)
::Strictly speaking, parchment is made from certain plants and vellum is made from animal hide, however there has been a little historical murkiness about the usage of the terms.--James 06:07, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
:::Still, books are usually made from animal hides (right?) thus it is a casting requisite not a inventing requisite, just like using the spell on a book made of sheet metal would need a terram casting requiste and using the "unseen hand" on a piece of wood would require a herbam casting requisite. Right?
:::By the way could you give me a ref to the herbam parchment? I have never heard of any "paper" based on plants except for papyrus (and modern paper) before.
:::--Samuel<Talk> 21:36, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
:About an "ideal" scriptorium... One possible lab specialization is texts, that one gives (among other things) a bonus to scribe skill while copying and language ability when writing labtexts and books. (p 112) Should we detail the scriptorium as a laboratory?
:--Samuel<Talk> 16:33, 19 April 2007 (UTC)
::I think James' main point here is not that this spell wont work, but that it wont provide any special bonuses - either due to the fact that we are not using those rules, or just because it doesn't do anything special enough. The immediate question if you are inventing a spell which does something which is just as easily done mundanely - spend a season inventing a spell which pours the wine for you - is why bother? However, if you are simply inventing this spell as a way to get a bonus on a future, more useful spell, then the point becomes clear. However, it looks like the actual benefit which comes from this spell alone - eliminating the need to put a knife on your paper apparently - is negligible. --Perikles 04:42, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
:::I thought that laboratory specialisations affected your lab score, which plays no part in the scribing of texts. A specialisation in texts relates to laboratory activites involving a laboratory text, though might also be applicable to enchanting books, etcetera.--James 06:07, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
::::Adding to the lab score is the main use for the specialization in texts yes, but it also adds a little to scribe and language skill. --Samuel<Talk> 21:36, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
The point of this exercice is twofold:
* To improve the writing speed of our scribes. By adressing several different troubles I ought to be able to increase it significantly. (keeping the vellum flat/fixed is the first, keeping ink from smearing is another, alowing easy removal of mistakes is a third.)
* To allow an "independent quill" that copies the movements of an other designated quill.
Regarding recruitement, if Phaedrus should spend a season recruiting it would either have to be played out, and then we could expect to have more scribes some time this autumn or christmas, or rolled for and with the Gift that seems like inviting failure.
--Samuel<Talk> 21:36, 20 April 2007 (UTC)
=== The independent quill ===
ReAn ??
Range: ?, Duration: Ring, Target: ?
Makes a quill copy the movements of another quill.
To be continued...
=== Don't smear ===
ReCo ??
Range: Touch, Duration: Ring, Target: ?
A variant of "Ward against the curious scullion" that keeps anything of Corpus form from directly touching the target(s).
To be continued...
=== Ward agains stains ===
ReAq ??
Range: Touch, Duration: Ring, Target: circle
Keep anything of Aquam from touching the target except if it is put there by a quill.
To be continued...
=== The wellbehaved ink ===
ReAq 15
Range: Touch, Duration: Ring, Target: Circle
Keeps ink from missbehaving.
Any ink within the circle stays put wherever it is placed. It stays in the ink-bottle, does not evaporate, until someone takes it out (or spills it, that would be beyond "extremely gentle"). When transfered to a quill it stays on the quill untill it the quill edge touches something, then it flows gently onto the surface. The ink stays on the surface untill the quill once again touches the ink in the ink-bottle. (Even when the quill and bottle are "empty" there will be a small amount of ink coating them.) Once the ink seeps into the parchment it stays put and evaporates slowly even if things (like another piece of parchment) rubs against the surface.
This should give easy corrections when needed. (Both increasing speed and quality since there will be less mistakes to "hide")
It should also give a higher writing speed since the scribe can depend on there not being any drips and since there is no need to sand and wait for the ink to dry before starting the next row, colour or page.
 ReAq 
 Base 1 controll a liquid in an extremely gentle way, it merely keeps the ink from moving when it 
 (most of the time) would not move anyway.
 +1 Touch
 +2 Ring - To keep it working for the whole writing time.
 +0 Circle target, affects all ink inside. (Be sure to bring enough ink...)
 +1 Slightly unnatural
 +2 Complex effect.
 The mechanics effect should be a +1 bonus and one less botch die 
 when the skill needs to be rolled for and a 15% saving in time when not.
Regarding "preventing acidents" in a whole season of writing even the most skilled scribe will make mistakes, reducing them should save time.
=== Save my notes ===
ReIm 40
Range: Touch, Duration: Ring, Target: Group
The image of the top of the book stand and everything on it is displaced to a position relative to a designated quill as the actuall book stand is to a speciffied quill close to the book stand. Whenever the quill is brought close to a horisontal possition the image is temporarily returned.
 Base 5 displace an image up to 100 paces.
 +1 touch
 +2 group
 +2 Circle duration
 +2 change with a changing image.
The point of this one is both to make sure labnotes survive any accident and to keep them handy.
To be continued...