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Message: <blockquote data-quote="barsoomcore" data-source="post: 330775" data-attributes="member: 812">Re: CampaignsWell, there's some value in this sort of thinking but to my mind it ignores some fundamental differences between magic and political power. I did a lot of thinking about this when setting up my campaign and especially in contemplating the effects of high-powered spellcasters on world events.Thing is, any nuclear (or otherwise political) superpower is dependent on certain social/economic realities. That is, their power only exists within a socioeconomic context. Take the context away (Viva La Revolution!) and the power disappears.Magic's not like that. A spell-casting wizard with meteor swarm is NOT like the USSR. For the USSR to, say, invade Pakistan, is a huge commitment of time and resources. It will take years to organize their forces (which they will have to draw from other fronts, leaving them vulnerable there), and world history proves over and over that NO superpower is ever assured of victory, no matter what the odds look like. It's expensive, risky and hard to recover from.But if super-wizard teleports in and Meteor Swarms a fifth-level party, what has that cost him? A couple of spell slots? Big deal. Why on earth would he go to all the trouble of finding and hiring mercenaries to take care of this problem when he can do it himself in literally minutes? At no cost or risk to himself? He's not dependent on any sort of socioeconomic context -- he doesn't care if the peasant revolt or East Germany kicks off the traces. None of that affects HIS power at all.This is big difference between magical power and political power -- separation from any context that might limit the power. That has drastic consequences that I've never seen a D&D campaign (aside from mine, of course) address.Well, not necessarily. But you'd sure want to be careful. On Barsoom, only the nastiest, cunningiest, most ruthless, paranoid and thorough freaks ever survive to become high level. This ensures that they're a bunch of constantly-terrified cowards who never reveal themselves if they can possibly avoid it. That does make it easier for an adventuring party to get along to some degree -- and if they fight off one attack it tends to send their enemy scampering for the hills, afraid to risk another attempt.It gets pretty funny when 40th-level demigods are afraid of 5th-level Rogues. Heh.EDIT: formatting</blockquote>

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