Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="FrozenNorth" data-source="post: 9331617" data-attributes="member: 7020832">This is a circular argument.« There wouldn’t be magic stores that sell magical weapons »« Why not? »« Because the sale of magical weapons would be highly restricted «« Why? »« Because the sale of magical weapons is analogous to the market for real world jet fighters and tanks »« In what way is the market for magical weapons similar to the real world market for tanks »« Because it is highly restricted with limited buyers and sellers! »Let’s look at why the real world market for tanks isn’t analogous to the market for magical weapons.Let’s start with the big one.  Highly restricted markets are an outgrowth of the modern administrative state with a large bureaucracy that has both the will and the means to effectively regulate the sale of products.  This isn’t the case in many fantasy settings.Second, one thing that makes tanks and fighter jets easy to regulate is their size and cumbersomeness.  It is a lot easier to regulate the transport of a tank when shipping it to a location requires a dedicated aircraft and a team of 20 people.  This isn’t the case for a magical sword which may be indistinguishable from a non-magical sword, or, even if obviously magical, is more easy to conceal than a tank.Third, the creation of a tank or a fighter jet requires a tank factory, support infrastructure and hundreds of skilled labourers.  This makes it very easy for a state to know what is being built within their borders, and have a good idea what is being built outside their borders.  A spellcaster with a couple of apprentices is sufficient to run a magical shop, so they could operate with a kingdom without the leaders ever being aware.Finally, magical weapons aren’t as dangerous as fighter jets or tanks warranting highly restrictive regulation.  A commoner with a magical sword is less of a threat than even a mid-level fighter, and a mid-level fighter is dangerous regardless of whether they are wielding a magical sword.Assumption 1: Magical items are relatively expensive and relatively difficult to produce.Assumption 2: PCs are rare.Assumption 3: Only PCs are making magical items.Assumption 4: Only PCs would purchase magical items.No, it isn’t.  Assuming that magical items are rare, expensive and valuable is ONE paradigm.  Your mistake is assuming that it is the ONLY consistent paradigm.It’s the fallacy of the excluded middle:  either magic is so extraordinarily rare that a magical shop is impossible or it’s so omnipresent that kingdoms have ready access to teleportation circles to transport their army safely and effectively across the continent.  It ignores the possibility of magic being common enough for there to be the occasional shop that sells magical items, but rare enough that powerful people can’t reliably call on the power of high level wizards.Could a level 11 mage with a couple of apprentices run a magic shop?  Probably.  Does this imply that they are the most powerful creature in the kingdom?  Of course not.Can a djinn based on the Elemental Plane of Air have teleportation circles that lead to his palace where his sells some magical trinkets?  Yes.  Does this mean that every fort on the Material Plane has a teleportation circle inscribed that enables the army to teleport from place to place? Not necessarily.Selling weapons to two factions and then goading them into fighting each other seems right up the alley of Asmodeus, as god of lies.  Also seems on brand for any god of greed.The claim was that such gods don’t exist.  They do, in many published D&D settings, including Forgotten Realms (Cyric’s another good contender for running this scheme).The fact that you personally think they are unrealistic is irrelevant.</blockquote>

Verification