Whoops!
> In V2 #154, he considers it a flaw that only Tricksters and Puppeteers get
> illusion magic, lamenting the lost military value.
>
> I consider the restrictions a _virtue_. It makes _cultural_ sense
> that these rare practitioners get illusion magic.
>
> I would very much like to avoid the thinking "hey, it would be great
> if my soldiers could get this, and that, and a little bit of this
> too..." This is just a little too close to the D&D fighter with his
> Boots of Levitation, Ring of Spell Turning, Elven Cloak, Helm of
> True-Seeing..., for my comfort level.
Sorry David to touch a nerve - one of mine! I happen to like the idea of illusions and change and was sore that these get short change IMHO in Glorantha. I have no problem with only those cults that currently have access to illusion being the only ones. The problem I see is that the actual spell mechanics are grossly flawed in result compared to power input required. That is, it takes far too much power to create a certain result.
I think each of the illusion spells is too weak, and having to put so many together to do anything "interesting" makes it weaker. When one can do maximum damage with a sword for 15 minutes using truesword, a Eurmali can create the illusion of pig - without the smell, touch, or sound! Sunspear, Sever Spirit, Resurrection, Swallow : just like a Eurmali creating a fart: with a bit of sound, smell and taste (:-)
> The pattern we see in Glorantha is 'people make the best of what
> they've got.' The Lunars have one of the biggest empires, and they've
> got a lot more than most already. We don't need to go out of our way
> to give them even more.
Unfortunately the "make the best of what we've got" suffers because of the creators of the game. Greg certainly had some preconceptions which had and still do colour the game. His bias against dwarfs (sp?) is a big one. I can't help but suspect something similar vs illusion!
Every games suffers a bit from the creators. I think Glorantha and RQ have the ability to overcome these and move ahead. I have never met Greg but I would hope he similarly can both accept it and be part of it as it moves. RQ3 and RQ4 were/are movements forward. Illusion magic deserves to do likewise rather than just having the spells copied from one of Greg's old articles.
Now, I'll shut up as I have no other option to take its place. I just believe it could be developed through discussion further than it currently has been.
Does *anyone* else agree? or am I the only one right <big :-)>
Robert McArthur
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