Telescope Making I (sage ability)
Telescope Making is an amateur sage ability that permits the character to fashion a mirror and telescopic frame for a light-mounted magnifying device. The best type of telescope that can be made is a harbour telescope, which is between 24 and 48 inches long, with a best magnification of 32x (times). The telescope is commonly used for identifying incoming ships to port, as their sails rise above the horizon. Lesser telescopes can also be designed and made. The equivalent of modern binoculars would equal a magnification of 6x-7x.
The time required by the ability to make a telescope is equal to 1 week, +1 week per 6x magnification desired. The length of the telescope being made will equal 10 in. per 8x magnification. For example, a 6x magnification telescope would be 7½ in. in length. A harbour telescope would require a little more than 6 weeks to construct. These figures are a matter of gaming convenience, and are not meant to accurately describe the real time needed to make a telescope in the 17th century, as such figures are unavailable.
The type of telescope that is made is a refracting telescope. "Magnification" indicates the apparent diameter of the object being viewed; for example, the moon appears to the naked eye to be the size of a large coin; in a harbour telescope, it would appear to be as wide as 32 coins placed side-by-side. Naturally, a telescope's small field of view can mean that not all of the object being viewed can be seen at one time, if the magnification of that object is sufficient enough.
Characters using a telescope can obtain details about far ranging things, view messages sent by flags, clearly see distant artillery being loaded, watch ships adjust their sails or gain useful information about the size and number of the enemy in the outdoors.
