Divinations...something that has always irked me

[Staffan]

Just because an NPC may be thinking "the bastard deserved it" doesn't prevent the PC from asking the question again, in a different way...or outright asking:

"So, if the bastard deserved it, does that mean that you murdered him?"

Remember that detect thoughts only reads surface thoughts. In a society where such spells are common, those who have things to hide will likely learn not to think of those things when being questioned, especially when a wizard is giving him the hairy eyeball at the same time.

 

[Olive]

If you need to discover something, what's the point of going through all the dramatic and entertaining detective work and drama when you can just go *ZAP* "Ok, He did it in the Study with the +3 Dire Flail."?

And what spell does this prey tell?

Detect Thoughts? Not likely. You still need to know who to ask.

Speak with Dead? Might tell you the person, or what he looked like or whtever, but cleverly constructed mysteries will make this fairly difficult.

As was pointed out above, divinations aren't as powerful as people seem to think!

In fact I think there is a shortage of proper long range divinations for seers to use. IMHO divinations don't actually cover what I'd expect them to cover.

 

[Agback]

In my own opinion, in a world where divination spells are so common, spellcasters would load up on spells and items to counteract such spells.

This would tend to choke up spell slots and make casters less effective in other ways.

Regards,


Agback

 

[Ace]

If thats the way you feel then I would strongly recommend a different game system, only playing levels 1-8, or re-working the high magic assumed D&D setting.

URK. That was harsh but not IMO out of line

IMC the world operates on a cold war footing. Every power (large and small) is always scrying and spying against everyone else. There are societies where everyone is geased into law abidingness, anarachic states and everything else in between

Imagine a world in which every country had nukes and massive surveilellance networks, each country is waiting for a slip on the part of a another and whammo "Inovked Rain of Destruction" Very paranoid and scary

Meanwhile every few hundred years something tries to destroy all life (Cuthuliod Horrors, Lichlords, Hell whatever...)

In this mix there is plenty of room for the PC's to be chainmail rats in the wainscoating of society and slip between the cracks for some adveturing

Basically if they don't know you are there they won't look for you

But when they do (or they think that you are looking for them) then there is measure and counter measures aggogo - lead lined "scif" rooms (spell capable interference a little pun there) and counter spells. The players have em and the adversaries have em too

Meanwhile Joe Peasant worries about scry about as much as regular joes worry about e statelite cameras

 

[ColonelHardisson]

This would tend to choke up spell slots and make casters less effective in other ways.

Yep. There's always a price. It makes the game more cat & mouse.

 

[WizarDru]

Yep. There's always a price. It makes the game more cat & mouse.

And is easily used as one of the many reasons that NPCs don't go slaying 1st-level parties who interfere with their plans.

"Master, some adventurers have killed the basilisk you let loose on Riverdale!"

"Bah! Irritants! Dispatch Morgan and his men to kill them."

"But Master, could you not destroy them with a glance, or use...the beast?"

"Fool. And leave myself open to attack by The Burning Skin? I think not. Always save the last teleport for yourself, boy. Now go!"

And so forth.

 

[Psion]

I don't know about anyone else's games, but IMC we prefer to make the rules fit our game, not our game fit their rules.

Funny, but that's exactly what I was telling you in the post I responded to. If you don't want to play a game that has prevalent magic, then you shouldn't be playing a game that assumes prevalent magic as a central element.

 

[WizarDru]

Alan, had I mentioned how that Illthid avatar has been freakin me out?


Cuz it is.