>My interpretatoion of the rule about stacking more than three active
>magical
>effects as basically being a guideline distinction between 'at-hand' magic
>(that can be brought online at the drop of a hat or thereabouts, in
>response
>to an immediate threat) and the sort of serious, ritualised 'powering up'
>that requires significant preparation, effort, communal support and proper
>timing to bring into full effect.
I agree Luke. Jane pointed out to me in the rules that it says that for rituals you can pretty much use whatever you have. Basically the new rule I use is that you merely have to be able to explain how you got all of the magic off for the contest in question. If it's a short simple contest with little or no time for spell flinging, then it stretches belief to allow all spells to be used. I think that's the intent of the limit, to prevent that break in believablility.
So as long as you keep that rationale in mind, it can inform your decisions. Do they have all day to prepare? Then allow them to augment with whatever. No time at all and the contest is over in an instant? Then perhaps only charms or at most one magic ability.
Magic is really no different than anything this way, it just consistently takes time (with the exception of charms). If you wanted to augment yourself in a fight with "Sharpen Sword" it would no doubt require that you have some time to prepare before the contest (unless the narrator was nice enough to allow the "I just sharpened it a few minutes before as we were resting" dodge). It's all a matter of what the ability is, and the situation. At least that's my reading of it.
I like to offset the possibility of having charms get stolen with the fact that they work instantly and always.
Mike
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