Re: Are 3 worlds and concentration a "new truth"?

From: flynnkd2 <flynnkd_at_...>
Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2005 22:55:14 -0000

• In HeroQuest-rules_at_yahoogroups.com, Jane Williams <janewilliams20_at_y...> wrote:
  > > What precisely is your problem? Concentration is
  > > not a necessity and
  > > most gloranthans get along fine without it.
  >
  > Because the Roolz mean that unless you're concentrated
  > (as you say, most Gloranthans aren't), affinities
  > suddenly cost twice what they did in HW. And they were
  > expensive enough then. I'm not familiar enough with
  > animism or sorcery to know what it does to them, but I
  > bet it isn't good.
  >
  >
  No they dont, to be exact, they say that people who concentrate pay half as much... the difference being that people who commit themselves to a particular way of life find it easier to learn the skills related to that way. You can specialise or you can try to be a jack of all trades. Specialising (concentrating) allows you to learn a subset of skills more easily, at the expense of sacrificing the rest of the set. And putting aside rules, the committment to concentrate is also a faith based action, I agree to follow one chosen god/s, and in return for that faith my life is easier in some areas.

I dont think you can separate the rules from the theology of Glorantha easily. Some rules are based on theological restrictions... a catholic priest doesnt have sex (well isnt meant to), this is a rule plus it is a way of life they accept to persue a concentrated/specialised career path.

Yearning back to RQ days you couldnt be in Rune Lord and Rune Priest mode at the same time until you became really powerful and achieved RuneLord/Priest status. You had to make a choice which speciality/concentration you wanted to be in, and this changed your powers.

> > If you want to mix magic,
> > you can. It's like RQ3 initiates being able to
> > learn sorcery at the
> > cost of being ineligible for priesthood and the
> > like.
>
> Unless they happened to be in Chalana Arroy, as I
> remember, where certain non-aggressive spells were
> allowed.
>
> But even so, that made life awkward for the high-end
> specialists, not for normal people. Hardly ever
> game-relevant. This concentration rule hits the
> standard PC where it hurts.
>

What do you mean by 'standard' pc. IMG it had no effect whatsoever as everyone began as a devotee.

Apart from the half cost HPs benefit and improvising effects there is nothing to stop a character remaining unconcentrated and being a jack of all trades and mixing all the magics together. Yes it costs lots more (for the magic, not for normal abilities, so they are still going to be up there in combat skills etc) but they get to mix and match.

People who concentrate gain a cost benefit but also a restricted set of options. This seems perfectly fair to me.

Again it comes back to the theology of Glorantha, ignoring the 'rules' and looking at the world. In Glorantha the gods are "REAL", they are proven and a fact of life. Thus when you worship a god it has a REAL effect, and when you spurn a god it has a "REAL" effect.

You cannot be in both the Lunar AND the Orlanth camps, these gods are in a life and death struggle for control of one area of power and there is ONLY room for one winner. There will not be a compromise, this is NOT possible. Thus the struggle between Lunar followers and Orlanthi followers is a death struggle also. Humans are less intense than gods so we can make compromises, we can 'get along' if we want, but eventually we all have to chose sides because one of our gods is going to vanish.

Concentrating, and committing to a single faith, is a 'real' choice you make. It isnt a rule that says 'you pay half HPs', its an act of devotion and a committment to faith, for which you are rewarded. The fact that your magic becomes restricted as well is more a side effect.

Possibly the rules made a mistake in under simplifying the choice to concentrate. Personally I think it should be up there with becoming an intiate and becoming a devotee, there should be ceremonies and rituals associated with it, if only to make it less 'rulz' and more 'real'.

Hmm, this got a bit long, sorry, work is quiet at the moment. :-)