What to see at a mage fair?

[Victor Ograygor]

What to see at a mage fair?

I am a
DM, and my player´s a going to this larg mage faiir in Arabel.

What are there to see there. plzx come with some iders

 

[darthkilmor]

Lots of vendors selling exotic spell components and magic items.
Probably a couple mage duals i'm sure.
Maybe casters showing off new spells/golums/magic items for sale.
Lots of bodyguards.

 

[Stormborn]

The obvious are booths upon booths of magic items, potions, etc. Also there will be speciality tents for mages:
-A booth where a wizard can pay to copyspells from a spell book.
-A booth where a wizard can hire or arrange to hire bodyguards ranging from ordinary warriors up to Troll Barbarians bound by spells to serve the mage.
- Booths that sell material components - perhaps special ones that act as metamagic feats when used.
-Mundane equipement booths that can be purchased or specially ordered, ranging from cauldrons and lore books to contractors who can build towers, lairs, and dungeons for the right price.

For entertainment:
- Duals held in a special arena. Some of them probabbly very serious, some with "non-lethal" spells being used.
- Contests to create artistic illusions
- Pit fights between summoned monsters, with lots of betting here.
- Combats between golems or undead and other created minions.
- Tournaments a la Harry Potter, where magic has to be used to cross a finish line
- Lectures on magic theory, planar mechanics, etc.
- Races of magic beasts and vessels
- Demonstrations of magical items and possibly their construction


Overall:
- lots of politics and social manuevering
- lots of chances for making contacts
- Mage Only Areas for stuff they don't want the commoners to see and other areas where peopel can gawk or pay money to have magical entertainments.
- Spell casting rules, possibly including areas where a mage's fingers have to be bound to interfear with somatic components
- High level security everywhere to keep things from getting out of hand
- Temporary shrines set up to Gods of Magic - with services and evangelsists working to convert all commers.

 

[BlackMoria]

From various FR sources and novels:

Mage Fairs in the realms are held in isolated in areas due to the high potential for collateral damage if things get out of hand.

Entry is allowed only to someone who cast an arcane spell without any item. Even a cantrip is acceptable. The entrant is allowed to bring only one mundane (non-caster) with him. Typically, this is a bodyguard or servant.

Mage fairs are generally ringed with a magic field to keep out pry eyes of the mundanes. It is neutral ground and enemy mages can only confront each other in duels.

The mage fair is where mages can meet and renew aquaintances, where young mages or old mages can negoiate apprenticeships, and where spells and components (and artrifacts) are traded or sold.

The fair is typically segmented into a housing / food area, a mage duel arena, a vendor area, a "demonstrations" area and a "games" area.

The vendor area will be the area where spells, components, and strange creatures can be sold via barter or normal sales.

The demonstration areas is where lectures on magic theory or demonstrations of new spells are performed.

The 'games' area is where various one man upmanship games are done. Typically, such games are fireball hurling (biggest, most damaging, furthest) and other games. Two such games described is one in which the participate teleports to a given height above ground and then casts as many spells as he can before doing a emergency feather fall at the last moment. The flasher the spells, the bigger the points.

The other game is where the player cloaks himself in darkness, teleports up some distance and then must feather fall or arrest his fall somehow before hitting the ground, which he can't see uprushing due to the darkness spell. The mage who manages to get closest to the ground without going splat before deploying feather fall or whatever is the winner.

Read "Elminster at the Mage Fair", a short story in Realms of Valor to get a better idea of the sights and sounds of a mage fair.

 

[painandgreed]

What to at a mage fair?

Who is throwing it? Why? How fantastical is your world?

I imagine that it will be thrown by wizard's to get together and meet. The main attraction for wizards will be a chance to get together and talk and exchange knowledge and spells. This will probably take place inside the hosting wizard's (or cities) buildings away from the public and for wizards only. Even then, some of the major talks will probably be for invited wizards only while other talks will be for all wizards or even including the public. mages will be given a place to meet, talk, discuss business, and copy spells without interuptions from the public or each other.

Outside, there will be others looking to do business with the mages. The mages themselves might have tents set up to do business. They can sell potions and scrolls, or even take commisions for magic items. Some might be looking for apprentices and reviewing children for those of promising above average intellects (or of high birth and money whose parents can pay). it will also be a prime time and place for wizards who need it to find training. Important wizards will need their meat shield so fighters and the like might be looking for work.

The fair grounds will have a lot of stuff that has no game effects. Spell comonents, clothing, staves, and other items of all types will be for sale. If allowed, people will want to wander around just to look. With the public will come the food vendors and other vendors who will see the large population as a chance to sell their non-mage related wares too. Craftsmen will probably also be there to show off their masterwork items in hopes to get contracts to make things that will later become magic items. In the crowd will be preformers and entertainers trying to make money. There might even be a stage set up for them.

In the inns and taverns of the city, business will be in the works. Adventurer parties might arrive to buy or sell magic items, let their wizards join in, or even to look for a new wizard. Wizards will be meeting and discussing plans. Other important people will be there to do business with the wizards. Any groups of wizards might arrive and take care of business if they do not meet very often.

If you have a fantastical world, anything goes. Wizards and illutionists showing off spells. People selling exotic animals and monsters both live and dead. Wizards could be walking around wth golems, exotic familiars, and other displays of power. Some intelligent monsters may show up, especially if they have wizard like abilities. Depending on how accomodating the city or kingdom is, they might walk openly, in disguise, or suffice to have agents do their bidding. Displays of power, duels, or magical games might be played for both prestige of the wizards as well as entertainment of the crowd. Some duels might settle old vendettas or start new ones.

 

[Rabelais]

If it's anything like the Ren Fair I went to a couple of years ago... there will be some drunk guys singing WAY off key...

some people dressed up like Drow elves

lots of kids dressed like pirates and mega-gallons of really BAD MEAD

Seriously though, don't ignore the people that really shouldn't be there. Non-magic folk aren't muggles. There are going to be plenty of non-wizards on site, whether as vendors or just plain curious folks.

 

[smootrk]

Eat... what else?

 

[Woas]

I would actually think a lot of non-magical stuff would be at a magic fest.

When I think magic fair in a fantasy setting, I would think of a lot of booths and tables set up with common folk who are trying to sell snake-oil potions, Jebidia's Elixar of "Longevity", beauty salves, perfumes, incense/scented candles, colorful baubles and hand carved charms that keep away evil spirits... etc.
Pretty much all sorts of non spell-casters using the name of "Magic" to earn a quick buck. I'd picture very few actual real spell-casters to take part in them since they "know" what the real deal is and know to avoid all of this since it is targeted at the non spell-casting population.

 

[Victor Ograygor]

I am a DM, and my player´s a going to this large mage fair in Arabel.

 

[Victor Ograygor]

I give you a chance to create a tent at my mage fair. Please desribe the tent, what's it is doing there and how is responsible for the tent. Are they selling somthing ore showing somthing stage material. Is the tent dark reed, and smell´s strange. ? Let me hear about your tent ?