First things first - I don't think you cane always directly extrapolate effects on Glorantha from the Runequest magic rules. Runequest is designed to allow adventuring in Glorantha. The fact that bound undines can be used to make perpetual motion water wheels is realy taking those rules out of the context they were intended for. Even here though, RQ is far less susceptible to such abuses than many games.
Magic is very important to Gloranthans, but in many cases the beneficial effects are canceled out by opposing forces. The classic example is healing magic, which is largely canceled out by the active forces of destruction, disease and death which are also present in the world. For every person resurected in Sartar, how many are killed by Ghosts, Wraiths or other Undead?
I remmember lewis Pulsipher's article well. He was talking about AD&D, where magicians can cast all kinds of different magical effects at practicaly no cost to themselves at all, pretty much as often as they like without any viable countermeasures.
Yes, a party of Wind Lords can teleport into a Lunar camp at night, but surely any important location would be well protected by Wardings (surely a compulsory spell fo all Lunar military chaplains) and bound spirits? The magic of captured victims can be neutralised using slave collars, etc.
I have not doubt that there are discrepancies in the way the magic in the game and the way things work in Glorantha, but this is what GM's are for. The alternative is shelf fulls of rules. If you're taling about inconsistencies in Glorantha itself I'd be interested to hear them.
Simon Hibbs
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