From: Curtis Shenton (curtiss@netcom.com)
Date: Thu 08 Jul 1993 - 06:06:35 EEST
>
> Kralorelan magic always struck me as awkward. Not the Emperor
> worship thing: the magic where everyone can spend POW for
> sorcerous effects. I would strongly be in favor of coming up with
> something different, which better captured the "magic of the East."
I quite agree. In fact more and more of the sorcery cultures are
striking me as akward. Just what definition of sorcery are we using that
can encompass the Mostali, the Malkioni, the East Isles, etc?
>
>
> JRUSTELI MAGICAL PHILOSOPHY
> By my understanding, Curtis Shenton and Loren Miller are both
> correct. There are not only three magic systems, there are more.
> But, there is only one magical meta-system.
I quite agree.
>
> Loren's comment today is not God Learner, it's anti-God Learner. It
> is the GLs who originally classified all the things they found into
> neat, tidy categories. Mostali sorcery is not the same as Kralorelan
> magic, but because they operate on principals more in common
> with each other than with Spirit or Divine Magic, they are classified
> together.
Are they really that similar? I begin to think the reason the are seen
as similar is because they were shoehorned into the same box, sorcery.
Now I know someone who used to live up in SF and played with Greg and
the Chaosium crowd. He said Greg didn't use the sorcery system in his
game, he'd looked through i, didn't like it, and never bothered to learn
how it worked. Now if this is still the case I think we can begin to
start taking the random magic odds and ends that have gotten shoved into
sorcery and start treating them as unique magic systems in their own
right.
>
> >From what OJ has told me:
> There is one meta-magic. The individual practitioner learns to
> manipulate it in a certain way. However, in doing so, he loses the
> magical sensitivity to do magic in other ways. That is why Sorcerers
> can't be good Shamen.
>
> I guess this also means that there are as many magic systems are
> there are individual practitioners...
While I think any given shaman would have much more in common with any
and all other shaman rather than with a sorceror I kind of like the idea
that each individual is different. Maybe a meta magic system would allow
us to create a structure where this is possible. I'd really like to run
the idea that everyone has a proto fetch and each magic tradition uses
it differently, the shaman awakens it, the sorceror binds it to this
world as his Presence, and the priest uses it to tie a bond to his god.
If this it true it would be a great starting place for a magic system
that would be flexable enough to encompass the wide array of gloranthan
magic. Look how many exceptions to the normal magic systems there have
been. Loads of people have had odd magic powers. Rather than having to
write a new rule/exception everytime someone uses a kind of magic that
fits well into the gloranthan mythos but not the three RQ magic pigeon
holes wouldn't it be nice to have a system that could encompass these
things?
>
> * BUT *
> I for one do not want to see a meta-magic system. I am a God
> Learner Sympathizer, and I am perfectly comfortable having Spirit
> Magic, Divine Magic and Sorcery. I like calling them separate things
> and identifying their differences concretely.
I don't see this as an argument about one system instead of three. I see
this as an argument about contless systems instead of three. I'd like to
see Spirit magic, Divine magic, and at least a token amount of "sorcery"
in the Core Rules(I'd also liek RQ Lite but that's another argument) but
mention that their are many, many other magical practices in Glorantha
and these three are just the main ones in the area detailed so far. If
the Core Rules were centered in Kraloria instead of Sartar I'd want
Godunya magic, Dragon(dragonnewt at least) magic, and the East Isle
variety of "Sorcery" and maybe spirit magic. And then a Magic Pack that
would cover the meta rules for magic, how to personalize a magic user.
the basics on many other magic systems, plus idea/suggestions for coming
up with your own unique, reginal magic systems for your campaign.
>
> The idea of one magic system instead of three is so heretical that I
> think the game it appeared in might not be RQ any more. Couple
> this with changing the skill resolution and weapon damage systems
> too much, and you've got a completely different game.
>
> This might not be such a bad idea. I might play such a game, but I
> might not. I don't know right now. But, I would buy it if it were a
> Gloranthan game.
Hmm here's another interesting topic. What's the minimum in a game that
you would need to be able to play Glorantha? Assuming it doesn't have to
be RQ compatable how similar would it be to the current RQIV draft?
>
> -David Cheng
> (The RQ-Con Pre-Reg book is coming along nicely...)
>
>
-- Curtis Shenton curtiss@netcom.com internet & 4@3091 WWIVnet "At the GM's option, strategic nuclear weapons may be considered 'magical'"-From the CyberCthulhu rules in Interface 0,,
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