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General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Is "Mystic" a bad class name?
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<blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 6660557" data-attributes="member: 42582"><p>They're not synonyms. My point was that, if one focuses on etymology (as did the person to whom I was replying in the post of mine that you quoted), then both mystics and sorcerers are concerned with oracular apprehension of hidden truths.</p><p></p><p>Thesaurus.com gives "sorcerous" as another word for "mystic" used adjectively, but does not give "sorcerer" as a synonym for the noun "mystic" - but prophet, seer, sage, guru, swami, yogi and fakir are all offered as synonyms, and sorcery can certainly connote fortune-telling.</p><p></p><p>Certainly the word "mystic" can be used in the way you describe, especially if one emphasises religious/theological mysticism. That said, "sorcery" need not lack a religious/theological foundation. In the RPG (rather than real) world, Gloranthan sorcerers are also religious/theological mystics.</p><p></p><p>Here is the OED on "mystic":</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">any person who seeks by contemplation and self-surrender to obtain union with or absorption into God, or who believes in the spiritual apprehension of truths which are beyond the intellect; a person who has or seeks mystical experiences.</p><p></p><p>And on "sorcerer"</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">One who practises sorcery; a wizard, a magician.</p><p></p><p>It defines "sorcery" as</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">The use of magic or enchantment; the practice of magic arts; witchcraft.</p><p></p><p>A user of magic or enchantments might certainly be someone who believes in the spiritual apprehension of truths which are beyond the intellect, and who seeks out such mystic experiences! Although they are not synonyms, in the context of fantasy RPGing they don't pick out obviously contrasting archetypes either. The decision to use <em>sorcerer</em>, <em>wizard</em>, <em>warlock</em>, <em>druid</em>, <em>mystic</em>, etc as names for distinct types of magic-users is a technical decision, not one that has its basis in word-meaning (back in the old days, after all, sorcerers, wizards and warlocks were just differing levels of magic-use!).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="pemerton, post: 6660557, member: 42582"] They're not synonyms. My point was that, if one focuses on etymology (as did the person to whom I was replying in the post of mine that you quoted), then both mystics and sorcerers are concerned with oracular apprehension of hidden truths. Thesaurus.com gives "sorcerous" as another word for "mystic" used adjectively, but does not give "sorcerer" as a synonym for the noun "mystic" - but prophet, seer, sage, guru, swami, yogi and fakir are all offered as synonyms, and sorcery can certainly connote fortune-telling. Certainly the word "mystic" can be used in the way you describe, especially if one emphasises religious/theological mysticism. That said, "sorcery" need not lack a religious/theological foundation. In the RPG (rather than real) world, Gloranthan sorcerers are also religious/theological mystics. Here is the OED on "mystic": [indent]any person who seeks by contemplation and self-surrender to obtain union with or absorption into God, or who believes in the spiritual apprehension of truths which are beyond the intellect; a person who has or seeks mystical experiences.[/indent] And on "sorcerer" [indent]One who practises sorcery; a wizard, a magician.[/indent] It defines "sorcery" as [indent]The use of magic or enchantment; the practice of magic arts; witchcraft.[/indent] A user of magic or enchantments might certainly be someone who believes in the spiritual apprehension of truths which are beyond the intellect, and who seeks out such mystic experiences! Although they are not synonyms, in the context of fantasy RPGing they don't pick out obviously contrasting archetypes either. The decision to use [I]sorcerer[/I], [I]wizard[/I], [I]warlock[/I], [I]druid[/I], [I]mystic[/I], etc as names for distinct types of magic-users is a technical decision, not one that has its basis in word-meaning (back in the old days, after all, sorcerers, wizards and warlocks were just differing levels of magic-use!). [/QUOTE]
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Is "Mystic" a bad class name?
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