>It was my interpretation that henotheism does indeed have weaker
>magic than a more pure approach. This is one reason the Abiding Book
>spread so fast.
It depends on what you mean by henotheism. The Stygians who are the only henotheists that we know of with anything approaching "weaker magic" held up pretty well against the Rightness Crusaders compared to the Loskalmi who were not henotheists. Furthermore the introduction of the Abiding Book into Seshnela in King Bretnos's time indirectly caused the barbarian conquest of that same nation.
I know the Seshnegi Kings list speaks of the Abiding Book as having "proclaimed the One God, and monotheism was rediscovered by the Malkioni" but that does not mean that before the Book, they were anything like today's Stygians.
An indication of what society might have been like before the Abiding Book is contained in the entry for King Lofting's time:
Circa 200 the True Hrestoli Way seized control of the Malkioni Church and outlawed tapping and all the other corrupting pagan ways of the Serpent Kings. Though sporadically enforced among the nobility, many peasants continued their simpler pagan ways.
i.e. the rulers and their retainers are Malkioni while many peasants maintain simple shrines to pagan gods. This pretty much describes Jonatela today and would have been true of pre-Abiding Book Loskalm, Seshnela and most of Jrustela. Given the devoutly Christian Emperor Theodosius (who ruthlessly enforced the Nicene Creed and kicked Arian butt) ruled over an Empire with a similar pattern of belief, I have a hard time using "henotheism" in such circumstances.
I do not believe the pagans of Jonatela have a "deliberately weak" magic. Instead their magic is weak because the church (and some of the rulers) prohibit them from building temples or making big sacrifices to the gods. The Stygians OTOH practice intentionally weak worship to the gods for occult benefits and so one would find "paganism" throughout Stygian society, although the only true pagans might be found among the peasants.
What the Abiding Book brought back IMO was a vision of the Land of Logic where _everybody_ abided by God's Laws, not just the rulers and their retainers. It was in this sense that the Malkioni rediscovered monotheism. A monotheistic society would gain some blessing from God as a result of its monotheism but I don't believe a Loskalmi Knight is magically stronger as a result of his country's monotheism than a Jonating Knight.
>*However*, henotheism gives you a lot *more* magic, so in some ways
>it balances out (the pre-monotheist westerners didn't do so bad).
I can't see how henotheism gives people more magic, since the wizards are also able to manipulate the elements and duplicate the deeds of the theists. Most pagans of impure Malkioni societies are only able to worship farming deities and the like.
>And the temptation to have it both ways no doubt inspired the God
>Learners -- powerful, focused magic (and Solace) AND lots of variety.
And do the modern Malkioni have any less variety in their magic than the God Learners or Stygians? I'm not so sure.
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