Re: Re: Hsunchen & Puma People

From: Alex Ferguson <abf_at_...>
Date: Tue, 23 Sep 2003 23:23:20 +0100

Roderick and Ellen Robertson wrote:
> To my mind, it's as "magical" as a troll's Darksense or a merperson's
> ability to hold her breath for half an hour. It's a natural ability
> (for the species), and shouldn't really be called magical at all, nor
> need to follow the rules for magic. it's a pity that it was equated
> with magic at all. The text should have just said "Puma People have
> the ability Shapechange to Puma as a natural ability" instead of
> calling it an Innate Talent.

But surely, if I read the intent of the innate magic/talents in HQ correctly, and extrapolate from talents in HW (with all due caution), that's pretty much the same thing? i.e., isn't a talent supposed to be something that's in some sense magical (e.g., it's impossible in the RW, or has a mythic origin/meaning), but functions exactly like an 'ordinary ability'? Hence my suggestion as to the most slimline (and also the least proscriptive) 'fix' to this.

Andrew Solovay wrote:
> ...or, for that matter, as "magical" as a human's ability to derive
> sustenance from bread and meat. That's a magical ability, after all
> ("everything is magical"), and if you ask the tribal elder/shaman/deacon,
> he'll tell you the myth that explains how humans got this ability. But when
> you concentrate your magic, you don't have to give up your "metabolize
> starch" talent...

Yes. Exactly. What Andrew just said.

Now, are 'talents' consistently treated this way in HQ? I'd not suppose so, I must admit. Flesh Man in particular seems to be quite the Talent powergamer. ;-)

Cheers,
Alex.