Workspaces

[Tush Hog]

Help me get a handle on Workspaces - how and when they come into effect.

For example, I'm a wizard with mediocre (+0) Resources. My lab isn't very impressive. Does it limit my thaumaturgy in any way?

[iago]

For example, I'm a wizard with mediocre (+0) Resources. My lab isn't very impressive. Does it limit my thaumaturgy in any way?

It'll mean you don't have the materials or books on hand to do a lot of research. You'll have to go out to other arcane libraries or bookstores, talk to spirits and demons, etc, when getting your research together during preparation.

[Simon Hogwood]

You'll have to go out to other arcane libraries or bookstores, talk to spirits and demons, etc, when getting your research together during preparation.

"Adventure Hook" sounds a bit to tame for this prospect. "Adventure Coat-rack"?

[Korwin]

It'll mean you don't have the materials or books on hand to do a lot of research. You'll have to go out to other arcane libraries or bookstores, talk to spirits and demons, etc, when getting your research together during preparation.

As described in Scholarship (see page 142), the quality of a workplace determines the highest possible difficulty of a “question” or project that you can pursue there.

The quality of these workspaces determines the hardest possible question you can answer within them (so a question of Good difficulty requires a Good library or better).

I'm still unclear how the quality of the workplace and the hardes possible question relate to Ritual complexity.

I'm thinking of multiplying the effective Lore with the qualitiy of the Workspace to get the maximum complexity of an Ritual...

[Deadmanwalking]

They don't interact at all. Research and Ritual Preparation are entirely different actions that have nothing mechanically, and not necessarily a whole lot conceptually, to do with each other.

[Korwin]

It'll mean you don't have the materials or books on hand to do a lot of research. You'll have to go out to other arcane libraries or bookstores, talk to spirits and demons, etc, when getting your research together during preparation.

They don't interact at all. Research and Ritual Preparation are entirely different actions that have nothing mechanically, and not necessarily a whole lot conceptually, to do with each other.

So a Wizard doesnt need an Workspace?

Not for Research? Not for Item Crafting? Not for Thaumaturgy?
What is an Arcane Library good for? (Researching Catches and Weaknesses only?)
What is an Arcane Sanctum good for? (No idea???)

Seems like an waste of place if those things doesnt do anything usefull...?

[JosephKell]

Help me get a handle on Workspaces - how and when they come into effect.

For example, I'm a wizard with mediocre (+0) Resources. My lab isn't very impressive. Does it limit my thaumaturgy in any way?

It means you can't reliably make declarations using Resources (YS 262, 2nd bullet under making up the lore deficit on complexity).

But as Fred said, you can use Contacts to visit other people's collections.

Combining Craftsmanship with Resources to build "complex" props could give you reliable ways to make declarations for tagging.

Dresden does this with Little Chicago.  Craftsmanship, Resources, Investigation (to keep it current), Survival (scavenging parts), Stealth (not getting caught taking a hammer/chisel to buildings).  5 skills?  Keeping it current means Dresden can easily tag for +10.  Granted it requires a mini-scene for each skill in order to keep tagging it for free.

Maybe Stealth should be replaced with Burglary (casing, specifically)?

I'm still unclear how the quality of the workplace and the hardes possible question relate to Ritual complexity.

I'm thinking of multiplying the effective Lore with the qualitiy of the Workspace to get the maximum complexity of an Ritual...

Fred was talking about the ability to make Declarations to make up shifts for complexities (you start with a number of shifts equal to your lore).

There are 4 ways (you can mix and match) to "augment" your Lore to meet the complexity of a spell:
1.  Tag your aspect (spend a fate point).
2.  Make a declaration with another skill as a mini-scene.  Declarations create new temporary aspects.  And when a temporary aspect is created, it can be tagged once for free (no fate point).
3.  Accept or inflict consequences.  Yes, you can torture other people to compensate for a high complexity.  This is why stealing mortals is so popular (I view trolls snatching and eating children as a sort of ritual to feed themselves, they inflict a mild, moderate, severe, and extreme consequence on the child for +20 to their "lore"--the extreme consequence is "OMG HE IS EATING ME!!").  "Mortals, we got what Nevernever craves.  We have Free Will!"
4.  Skip a scene for a +1.  But not just a scene, a scene you could participate in.

[Korwin]

It means you can't reliably make declarations using Resources (YS 262, 2nd bullet under making up the lore deficit on complexity).

YS 140:

You use your Resources to set up the tools you need for your job. Your home may have, for free, a single library, lab, workshop, or arcane library or sanctum of a quality equal to two steps lower than your Resources.

Sorry, but my question is specifically:
What is an arcane library and an arcane sanctum for?

If its only fluff backround so that you can describe for your char an big library it should say so, but I get the impression (from the rule text) it should do something...

[Deadmanwalking]

YS 140:
Sorry, but my question is specifically:
What is an arcane library and an arcane sanctum for?

If its only fluff backround so that you can describe for your char an big library it should say so, but I get the impression (from the rule text) it should do something...

It lets you do Lore based research. That's...actually that's awesome. Think of how much of Dead Beat would've been infinitely easier if Harry'd had a copy of the book on the Erlking, just for example. Or how hard it might be finding out all the stuff about his various foes with a library on his level (really low) if he didn't have Bob.

Research is important and awesome...but it's not usually necessary for Thaumaturgy.

[Korwin]

You are talking about the arcane library?
And with reasearch you don't mean preparation for an ritual?
Or do you mean exactly that?

And what is an arcane sanctum for?

[Deadmanwalking]

Yeah, I'm talking Arcane Library.

And by research, I mean precisely that: Research. "What the hell was that that just attacked me?" "Where do Trolls usually live if there aren't any nearby bridges?" "What the heck do Rakshasa have in the way of weaknesses?"

That kind of thing. Nothing to do with ritual preparation, but quite useful.

As for an Arcane Sanctum, I'm not actually sure. Maybe it's an artifact from an earlier draft of the spellcasting rules, or maybe you can use it to enhance your spellacasting somehow. The only thing I'll guarantee is that it doesn't act as a restriction on your spellcasting ability.

[crusher_bob]

Won't a rating 3 workspace give you a 'no time' declaration for Thaumaturgy?  If you are working on something, you can just root around in your workspace for a minute and come up with the right tools for the job, right?

[JosephKell]

A workspace of X might cap your rating in another skill.

For instance even if you have a Lore of 5, if you only have a library of resource 3, you might roll at 3 instead of at 5 (assuming you are looking for reference book level of detail).