Tired of "Mana"

[The Mad Kaiser]

I hate it when RPG designers needlessly invent new terms for the same ol' stuff. Like Hollyhock God for gamemaster

That's really my biggest gripe. Same ol' stuff. If it's already been written, do something new. But if you must rehash "tap magic energy" for the billionteenth time, at least make it smell different.

 

[WayneLigon]

I think you'd best grow to accept that Mana is going to mean that from now on; the usage is so common, it's not going to change anytime soon. It may not have meant that originally, but it's come to mean that. It's certainly not 'plagerizing' the word, and it's not laziness to use it.

 

[Turanil]

I hate it when RPG designers needlessly invent new terms for the same ol' stuff. Like Hollyhock God for gamemaster

Don't play Castles & Crusades then, as the GM (Game Master) has been replaced by the CK (Castle Keeper)...

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Hmmm, my detect troll is going off...

MK is suggesting switching to an unfamiliar term rather than one that is easily understood, not a great idea in my estimation, and it seems likely that the argument is why he posted it in the first place.

The Auld Grump

 

[Graf]

Hmmm, my detect troll is going off...

-If- this is a troll the poster deserves points for coming up with it. (assuming there is a troll type contest going on with the poster getting points for every additional post on the thread etc).

This is honestly an issue with the RP world. Initally when games came out you had to have names for things. Now that we have progressed to the point where experienced people have played a lot of games in their teens and twenties and are getting sick of seeing "systems" that are basically the same old system.

Personally I loath calling the DM anything other than the DM. I understand the need for the term GM but all the rest of that Keeper/Storyteller/Hollyhock God/blah is just a waste of space. On the other hand when WW first launched vampire the "you're a Storyteller!" was like a rallying cry. I'm sure that's different for other people.

Honestly I think that terms like Mana (which also show up constantly in video games) are a great all-purpose-term and part of the general lexicon now. It sounds better than magic points.... I say keep it.

 

[Tonguez]

I'm not sure how they are being used out of context, but they also have synonyms. PC, Mac, CPU, Mainframe, URL, web content, HTML file, etc.

From wikipedia

Originally, the word computing was synonymous with counting and calculating, and a computer was a person who computes

the word has grown beyond this orignal meaning to what we understand now. That same argument also applies to Mana

NB that Mana is derived from my native language and in New Zealand still carries much of the original meaning (as well as the new meaning).

Anyway thanks for the comment on my Verve suggestion and as you explain it further I can sympathise with your sentiment, although I don't consider it major enough to actively campaign for a different word to be used...

 

[Numion]

Just getting a big gripe off my shoulders, but I have become weary of the word Mana being used to describe "magical energy" in RPGs and card games. Larry Niven was clever to borrow it from the Polynesians, but the word has slowly become my prime buzzword for "creative sloth."

I'd be happier if designers spent their creative juices on coming up with something thats really original, rather than avoiding being called "creative sloths" and making new names for old stuff. Coming up with new names for old stuff is much easier than coming up with actual new stuff.

But whatever, I think you already got what you wanted from this thread. Which we shouldn't call a thread .. thats so mis-applied word, it's got to do with sewing not with messageboards, nah, scrap that, a board has nothing to do with computers, it's a flat piece of wood ..

 

[mythusmage]

When I was growing up (a tad past mid-century) I read a bit on Polynesia and learned about 'mana'. This a decade before Niven first used it.

Other words for 'magical power' include 'chi' (Chinese), heka (ancient Egyptian), baraka (Berber), orgone (20th century occultism), and vril (20th century occultism). There are more, but danged if I can remember them.

Is mana overused? Don't think so. It's a familiar word, a word people know. Most folks in the hobby have a good idea of what it means, and can quickly explain it to newcomers and those outside the hobby.

The subject of new terminology is another matter. I will say that such as 'storyteller', journey master' etc. are meant to apply to a specific game or system. BTW, Robin Laws uses "Game Moderator". I like his argument for it, so I've adopted it.

 

[Starglim]

Just getting a big gripe off my shoulders, but I have become weary of the word Mana being used to describe "magical energy" in RPGs and card games. Larry Niven was clever to borrow it from the Polynesians, but the word has slowly become my prime buzzword for "creative sloth."

If you are a game author or DM and need a word for "magical energy," please take a few days to research a new name to describe it. Stop squeezing blood from the vultures which fed on the dead thieves who mugged The Magic Goes Away.

Good, now I know who to blame for this. I've been slandering Steve Jackson for many years. I found this usage annoying when I first saw it and it has by no means grown on me.

I favour 'mojo' or just 'FX'.

 

[Kaos]

When I was growing up (a tad past mid-century) I read a bit on Polynesia and learned about 'mana'. This a decade before Niven first used it.

Other words for 'magical power' include 'chi' (Chinese), heka (ancient Egyptian), baraka (Berber), orgone (20th century occultism), and vril (20th century occultism). There are more, but danged if I can remember them.

Didn't the original Mythus/Dangerous Journeys list a whole bunch at one point?