Misapplied Magic

From: Nick the Nevermet <nick.the.nevermet_at_uctgrBCl8hzXqs6jEpT18VF0tq58eTWrybP6WmREzTcaQF68kmWkaMaH1M>
Date: Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:38:18 -0000

I got into Glorantha with HQ1, and the setting I fell in love with was the Trader Princes & Wenelia (and I am terribly jealous of those with awesome campaigns, but that rant is for another thread).

Because of these two things, I have a question about misapplied magic:

Was misapplied magic purely a mechanical artifact of HQ1, or was it an attempt to mechanically "model" something that an extant element of the setting? In other words, was there a previous, in-setting idea that venerating Orlanth as a saint was fundamentally inferior to making sacrifices to him as a god?

I realize this question skirts the edge between setting question and rules question, but I wanted to ask the setting oriented piece of it first. Also, it is strangely fitting that a question that emerges from syncretism has problems cleanly fitting into a particular list category ;)

Thanks

Nick