Re: Common magic

From: Andrew Solovay <asolovay_at_...>
Date: Thu, 03 Feb 2005 16:10:53 -0800

John Machin wrote:

>

> I would have thought that an ancestor from a theistic society would
> have offered feats (i.e. theism-aspected magic) not talents. It seems
> a trifle harsh to cut people off from their ancestors' gifts when they
> concentrate their magic in the traditional manner (e.g. Heortlings
> concentrating in Theism).

As I understand it, Flesh Man taught the Heortlings how to cope when the gods won't help you (because, say, they're dead). Thus, he taught them how to make use of their own innate power (i.e. talents). Waha did a similar thing in Prax, teaching people how to survive without the help of spirits (the "survival tricks").

While that's useful, one could say there's something a little impious about it. It's hedging your bets, as it were--it's saying "Sure, I worship Orlanth, but you never know when he's going to die again or something. Better to have a back-up plan, just in case."

So given that, it seems reasonable that people who devote themselves to Orlanth should have to renounce those back-up options. By devoting yourself, you're throwing your lot in with the gods even more than a typical Heortling does. So when Flesh Man says to you "Here are some other options, just in case the gods crap out on us again", you have to say "thanks but no thanks".