Spirit Hunting

From: James Wadsley <wadsley_at_cita.utoronto.ca>
Date: Mon, 9 Jun 1997 16:13:24 -0400


Shaman spirit hunting must depend largely on how you envision the spirit plane. In any event, the answer lies in the geography of the spirit plane. I see (at least) two possible interpretations:

You can be simplistic with spell spirits being effectively a 'game mechanic' with all that crap about them squealing back to the source of the spell to get another dose and otherwise doing nothing unless someone rips it off them again. This would mean that you have to hang out 'near' a source of the appropriate spell. For example, to get heal spells, you could hijack spirits on the highway that links Chalana Arroy spell teaching temples and their source. This might raise the ire of the local healers of course.

Alternately, you can play that most spirits are not just 'entities who exist to provide spells to players' but have a more complex reason for existence. I prefer to play it that 'spell spirits' and so forth do not really exist and all spirits tend to be spirits of some dead creature or have some mythic origin. You can argue that a tree spirit may be very little different to a POW spirit when it comes to the bottom line, or that a 1000 year old spirit who has repeatedly been beaten up for his heal 6 may recall no other reason for existence.

These spirits would have favourite haunts. A ruined wind temple would be a great source of 'Orlanth list' spell holding spirits. An experienced shaman should know the geography of the spirit plane to a degree that he can go to a likely spot and sift through the local fauna or population for an appropriate spell holder. This is much better than random. I suggest you use the random roll but adjust the spells known for the local spiritual geography. A location of important religious or mythical significance would also be more likely to house very dangerous spirits of course.

This raises several interesting questions which I would love to hear comments on. Firstly, can any spirit combat result in the victor taking spirit spells from the vanquished? (My feeling is yes, perhaps limited to one spell) and secondly, where do spirits go to get their spells replenished? Can any spirit go there? Can shamans go there? If ghosts can not, does this mean weaker ghosts will be stripped of their spirit spells over time?

James Wadsley.


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