| From: | Luke Kendall <luke@********.CANON.OZ.AU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | General problems with grounding explanation |
| Date: | Mon, 11 Apr 1994 09:20:46 +1000 |
> [...] read SRII page 149-150, Spells and Astral Space.
>
> Once you are done, com back and tell me why you can ground spells
> through quickenings. "DLOH says so" does not count.
Well, I've read through those sections. The basic idea is that an
active Focus, or astral perception, opens a channel from the magician
into astral space, and that an astral mage or spirit can use this to
`ground' a spell out from astral space into the mage. If the spell
is physical and is an area-effect spell, the effect even spreads out
past the `lightning rod'.
Let's leave aside the idea that mana based spells (like Sleep, or Mind
Probe), work by affecting the spirit and not the brain. (Honestly,
they do assert that.) Let's leave it aside because it would only
complicate an already complex situation.
Now consider:
1) A mage on the street casts a spell at someone he sees.
This is done, they explain, because he makes the spell ground out
from astral space into the person's body by making the spell aura
`synchronise' with that of the victim.
Conclusion: the same technique should work for an astral mage.
2) If this is how spells work, then magicians can handle inhuman
levels of complexity. Imagine an area effect spell like Sleep,
affecting 8 people. The magician apparently synchronises the
spell's aura 8 different ways, in 8 different places, at the
same time. That sounds _much_ harder than juggling 8 tricky
objects at the same time. And of course, you could have 20
people or more affected like this, in a crowd.
3) You don't have to be astrally perceiving to cast a spell; in
fact, it would be unusual to do so. So how do you see an
aura to synchronise your spell with it?
4) SRII's description of Spells and Astral Space doesn't mention
quickenings. Let's assume that they just forgot about them when
they were writing this up. So, because there's this open link
to astral space, spells can be grounded through it.
Conclusion: exactly the same logic applies to anyone maintaining
a spell, or having one maintained on them. So, a magician Healing
someone, holding up Armor, running Clairvoyance - a spell could be
grounded out on the magician or the beneficiary of the spell by
something in astral space.
I find it hard to believe that FASA forgot to mention that you
could ground through a spell.
So, for these reasons, I'd have to say that the dissertation on pages
149-150 doesn't help a great deal - mainly because the explanation
doesn't really work.
In my opinion it reads like a (brave?) attempt to justify the rules after
the fact, not a model they used when they were designing the rules.
It's up there with the decision that astral perception can see through
glass as though the astral plane is lit by photons of visible light!
It's an attempt at justification that just doesn't bear close scrutiny.
I may sound like I'm running down the magic system, so I'd like to add
that I actually like it a lot. It's just frustrating that the model
that they give you breaks down so easily.
So, in my opinion the question `Can you ground spells from astral
space through a quickening' requires a decision from FASA.
Looking at it from the point of view of game balance and tension,
I'd say: sure - any opening to astral space leaves you open to attack
like this.
Comments? In particular, does anyone have an explanation that _does_
hold up and which can be used to resolve arcane disputes?
luke
