Magic and Democracy

[STARP_Social_Officer]

OK. Here's a way-out-one.
The campaign I'm working on right now is an update of my previous one. It's a steampunky setting with a healthy dose of film noir, so we have a culture based on the United States during the Depression. None of which is really relevant to my point, which is that the home city, and large tracts of the world, are now governed democratically.
Which brings me to my question. How do you have a vibrant liberal democracy when magic can change people's minds so easily? It's possible to use spells like mass charm person, mass suggestion, dominate person, enthrall and fascinate, not to mention bardic music, on the hustings to influence how people vote. What's to stop a candidate casting a few charms when he's on his soapbox? Has anybody done anything like this before and what safeguards were in place (in-game or metagame) to stop this happening? Or did you not stop it happening, and simply have being charmed by a candidate as one of the many interesting quirks of a standard election campaign?

 

[nakia]

My sense is such a society would have rules in place that prohibit such things, with mechanisms to monitor and (if necessary) dispel those effects. You could have a guild of very Lawful Neutral wizards whose job would be to take care of this stuff -- a literal Electoral College.

Your campaign sounds very cool, btw.

 

[shilsen]

I'm running an Eberron game, primarily set in Sharn, where issues like that are definitely taken into account. Keith Baker's Sharn: City of Towers book has a set on law enforcement which specifically addresses such issues.

 

[davidschwartznz]

Sounds like politics as usual to me. What do you think spin doctors do?

 

[jdrakeh]

How do you have a vibrant liberal democracy when magic can change people's minds so easily? It's possible to use spells like mass charm person, mass suggestion, dominate person, enthrall and fascinate, not to mention bardic music, on the hustings to influence how people vote. What's to stop a candidate casting a few charms when he's on his soapbox?

Magic must be a regulated commodity of sorts (much like nuclear power in modern society), I think. That is, I imagine that given its potential to influence others or make others susceptible to influence, there would be very specific checks and balances in place to govern its use. Perhaps a special regulatory commission of some sort, with 'agents' who are equipped with various divination spells.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

In a legalistic society (which a democracy above a certain population threshold certainly is), there are likely some sort of restrictions on the use and abuse on magic. So you will have to think up some sort of regulation system which works some way towards stopping abuse.

I've written up a "spell legality" system for Urbis here. It's perhaps somewhat more restrictive than for a relatively open society (and intentionally so), but you might be able to adapt it.

 

[Arkhandus]

I figure law enforcement, or the local Church of Heironeous/St. Cuthbert/whatever, would keep folks in line when it comes to that kind of stuff. No enchantments or illusions allowed in politics!

Clerics and such who are kept loyal to the Church can keep watch for signs of magic use around politicians and voting areas and whatnot, scanning when necessary with Detect Magic and occasionally using a Dispel Magic or Protection from Evil (remember, it suppresses mind control!) to try and keep folks honest.

I imagine several high-ranking clerics would be present at voting booths and at speeches by the candidates. A summoned Lantern Archon or the like, for its aura, may also be effective. And it would just more effectively give folks the impression that Heironeous or whoever is watching them at those events, giving them the hairy eye through his patrolling archons.

If possible, a high-level wizard may be called on to stand watch by the voting booths or whatnot while surrounded by an Antimagic Field, while the lesser clerics or wizards watch around the perimeter for signs of anyone trying to cast spells (and scanning the crowd with Detect Magic at random intervals or something).

 

[STARP_Social_Officer]

Well, the Mages Guild is supposed to be politically neutral. Maybe they volunteer to be election scrutineers. Actually, that's not bad, because they're supposed to be neutral, but if it's done right there could always be the suspicion that they really are taking sides after all. Intrigualicious! Thanks for the idea.

 

[nakia]

One side of the coin is the possibility for charm and other mind influencing magic, where you can make people believe what is not true and/or unduly influence their behavior.

The other side of the coin is the "must tell the truth" sorts of magics. Would a candidate consent to a zone of truth during an interview? Would detect lie be routine? That makes for interesting possibilities as well.

 

[Quartz]

Mages can affect relatively few people. Even an archmage can only affect 17-20 people (1 person per level). Given the traditional rarity of mages, perhaps it's simply not worth worrying about? And at higher political levels, you'll have meetings conducted in antimagic zones and the like, so ordinary persuasion, blackmail, and other technique are vastly preferable.