Well I hope you will at least lurk and see how the game works out. If at anytime you reconsider and want to give it another try you are always welcome to join us.
Everyone,
I know the game can be tough to get started in. I would hate for anyone to quit and miss out on the fun because of the frustration a new system can cause, so if anyone is having problems I can help you. Just explain to me the kind of character you are going for and I can give you a couple of simple builds (or even a complete character) to get you playing.
Once you start playing the rules will become much easier to grasp. Many of you have expressed concern that you are building a "useless" character. Do not worry about this. It is not as big of a concern as it would be in D&D. If there are any egregious problems I'll catch them and help you sort them out before play starts.
Another thing to consider...Your characters will play through decades of game time and will grow and change more than the typical D&D character does. They could end up very different than when you started. Plus if a character is not working then you can just create another!
The campaign centers on the covenant not a single group of characters. The covenant is one big pool of characters, some come and go, others hang around the whole campaign. It's never a problem to add more. Each player can really have as many different characters as they like.
So my point is don't worry so much about the little details. Just make a character that seems fun and give it a try. If it doesn't work out like you think, then toss it out and try something new! Ars Magica can tolerate the constant replacement of characters, take advantage of that if you need to.
