[Glorantha] Re: Rune Magic

Ian writes:
> One of my key issues is this paradox between most-common and rare, coupled with the loss of cults as the source of magic for most people, not the existence of foci, which others seem to believe upserts me but doesn't.
Yea, until I see otherwise I am assuming that by "common" they mean "wide-spread". In other words, rune artifacts can be found anywhere in Glorantha. (Do "runes" always come from gods, or can they also come from spirits and essences? Is this question even relevant in MRQ?) The locally popular form of "common magic" might well differ from place to place. YGWV.

Is HQ common magic really all that cult related, though? To me, it appears to fall more into the "communal knowledge" area. "Uncle Fred showed me that if I say a quick prayer and toss some bread in the river then the river's spirit will tell its children to support me as I swim across."

As for the rarity of magic issue, I am not sure "Battle Magic" was all *that* common in the old versions of RQ. It cost money to learn, and the vast majority of individuals are fairly poor. Perhaps the book prices were inflated for adventurers, but it still looked relatively expensive. How much excess capital would your typical farmer have on any given day? Without looking at the numbers, I would say that magic in RQ was a perk of relatively well-to-do commoners - a case of the rich getting richer. Those living hand-to-mouth might never have any personal magic. They might occasionally scrape together enough to pay a more prosperous neighbor to cast a spell or two for them, though.

My hope is that this "rune artifact" thing is an addition rather than a replacement for other forms of personal magic. As an addition it would be one more interesting way that Glorantha is magically active, in the same general category as power crystals and truestone. As a replacement it would mean Glorantha is a bit less "alive". Time will tell.

~Kevin McD Received on Mon 12 Jun 2006 - 16:47:49 EEST