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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
 Posted - 20 Jun 2010 : 17:41:02
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... And hi yet again! Ed just sent me another e-mail, this one bearing a reply to Zandilar's query: "Is it possible to become immortal via the use of magic, but not by "ascending" to become something different (like a celestial), or becoming undead (lich, vampire, etc)? And if it is, does this inherently cause a slow decline into madness too?"
Ed replies:
In most magical theorizing, it is possible, and for some tens of centuries, various powerful spellcasters of many races have tried to achieve this (rather like the real-world alchemical quest for transforming things into gold, or finding the Philosopher's Stone). No one has yet achieved it. The reason is this: if you try to stay mortal, but use spells to "keep going," it's like circulating your energies faster and faster without renewing them. That is, even if you use magic to heal this declining organ or that failing sinew, on an ongoing basis, the precise understanding of how the body ages, and therefore how its energies SHOULD change to either "match" with its aging or stop its aging, hasn't been attained yet. (I suspect it never will be, because more than most mortal lifespans are necessary to accumulate the necessary experimentation and research to reach the understanding.) So, no, immortality requires bodily transformation (ascension into divinity, undeath by various means, and so on. Some mages have sought to slow aging by spending a lot of time in gaseous or other incorporeal forms, theorizing that physical aging doesn't occur while they're in such forms, but it turns out that's not true: the act of turning "solid" or "insubstantial," in either direction, works its own minute aging/degradation on the body. However, I doubt any of this will keep ambitious spellcasters from working on it.
The "best" approach thus far (I use quotation marks because the "best" is very much a matter of opinion) is to jump from borrowed/stolen/compelled body to body (either all sentient slaves/thralls, or eagles, horses, etc.) and live in a succession of them...but even then, the mind starts to fade and fail from all the stresses, over time.
This is a topic I've been exploring in my fiction over the years, and continue to do so in the forthcoming Elminster novels - - because it's endlessly fascinating, both the strivings and the prices to be paid.
So saith Ed. Who, if it needs saying again, really DOES think about all of this stuff, behind the dungeon crawls and new magic items.
love,
THO
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jun 2010 : 17:45:19
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....And I never seem to go away, this morning. 
createvmind, your question is one I can handle myself, instantly, being as I happen to have the notes I made on this years ago, right in front of me, whilst looking up something else:
Yes, there's lockjaw in the Realms. It's rarer than in our real world, though. (So saith Ed, at the time.)
love,
THO |
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GoCeraf
Learned Scribe
147 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jun 2010 : 18:31:57
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I've got an odd one.
What are some of the preferred board games among some of the FR characters? Specifically, I'm curious about Elminster, Shandril, and maybe Alustriel. As always, a 'why' is interesting, too.
Thank you. |
Being sarcastic can be more telling than simply telling. |
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Ashe Ravenheart
Great Reader
USA
3240 Posts |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jun 2010 : 21:22:00
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With greased rungs?
When bored, I find it helps to think of the Seven playing Strip Poker. |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
Edited by - Menelvagor on 20 Jun 2010 21:23:07 |
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Kyrene
Senior Scribe
South Africa
729 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jun 2010 : 22:35:17
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Yes, there's lockjaw in the Realms. It's rarer than in our real world, though. (So saith Ed, at the time.)
love,
THO
And it's called what in the Realms?
*mumbles about THO coming and going, or is that a tautology?* |
Lost for words? Find them in the Glossary of Phrases, Sayings & Words of the Realms
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 02:45:03
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While I suffer from the permanent misfortune of being neither Ed nor THO, I did "sit and observe" a charity Realms D&D adventure Ed ran at a Milwaukee-era GenCon, wherein the PCs visited Elminster's tower . . . and Elminster and Lhaeo were playing a chess-like game (of two opposing armies of "same powers as foe's piece of the same name" carved pieces) that had a 3-level board (Underdark, surface, aerial) and movement between the three levels, plus "spaces" on each board that weren't featureless squares, but areas of different sizes, shapes, and facings to adjacent areas (and so, some spaces were strategic, like bridges or central glades or intersections of routes).
So I'd suspect that would be an Elminster favorite.
Ed? THO? And what was the game called (I've forgotten)?
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Zandilar
Learned Scribe
Australia
313 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 02:57:38
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Heya,
quote:
Originally posted by The Hooded One
Yes, all mortal bodies wear out, over time, due to the stresses of living (in the real world and in the Realms). Too much magic (life energies, focused and intensified) pouring through a body can overload cells and burn them out, shortening the lifespan of that body or ending it, sometimes very swiftly and abruptly (recall various Ed-penned descriptions of smoke issuing from the eyeballs, mouths, noses, and ears of mages struck by hostile spells).
I'm still confused here. This would seem to preclude the existence of old mages, since they'd all die young due to the energies they channel.
It would also preclude the idea of anything that magically slows the aging process (potions of longevity and the like), since it would be a zero sum game. You slow your aging, but the energy required to do that would counter its effect.
Am I completely on the wrong track here? Is there something I'm missing in my pre-caffinated state?
Also - thank you so much for the reply re: non-transformative immorality.  Interesting stuff. |
Zandilar
~amor vincit omnia~
~audaces fortuna iuvat~
As the spell ends, you look up into the sky to see the sun blazing overhead like noon in a desert. Then something else in the sky catches your attention. Turning your gaze, you see a tawny furred kitten bounding across the sky towards the new sun. Her eyes glint a mischevious green as she pounces on it as if it were nothing but a colossal ball of golden yarn. With quick strokes of her paws, it is batted across the sky, back and forth. Then with a wink the kitten and the sun disappear, leaving the citizens of Elversult gazing up with amazed expressions that quickly turn into chortles and mirth.
The Sunlord left Elversult the same day in humilitation, and was never heard from again. |
Edited by - Zandilar on 21 Jun 2010 02:59:02 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 04:07:54
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Hi again.
Zandilar, casting an anti-aging magic on yourself, as a spell, would indeed be a zero-sum game. However, imbibing a potion of longevity (crafted by someone else or by yourself) would not be a zero-sum game, because this sort of potion exponentially augments the magic put into it.
And no, the wearing out of the body due to handling magical energies doesn't preclude old mages at all. It precludes reckless (or unlucky, or foolishly misinformed about the specifics of magic they're experimenting with) old mages.
Or to put it another way, handling lots of magic doesn't wear out most humans before the end of their normal lifespans, if they do it judiciously. It's the idiots who overload themselves by trying to handle magic beyond their capabilities, or create "super" spells beyond the usual level and school limits by juicing spells by drawing on lightning storms or magic items (intended for other magical purposes) as additional power sources that "scorch" or even "burn out" themselves.
So a human who is careful or plodding or "follows the rules" of taught magic can easily survive for a century or so, more if potions of longevity and vitality or other "fixing the body" magics are available...but they will then, if they want to go on living and have the means to do so, begin to seek a means of lengthening their existences (such as lichdom). A Chosen of Mystra, servitor of Mystra or Azuth (or Savras, or . . .) can last a thousand years or more because of their attunement to the Weave and assistance in their use of it to "fix" their slowly failing bodies.
Yet the aging is inescapably continuing, and is hastened slightly by handling magical energies (or hastened quickly and a lot by MIShandling energies; "overloading"), and eventually the spellcaster (wizard or sorcerer) will die . . . unless they alter their mortal state to something else (again, such as lichdom).
Sorry if I gave the impression that the wearing out is so rapid that only the young can hurl magic, and trade their youth and/or vigor and/or lifespans for doing so. Nuh-uh; it shouldn't happen that fast.
love,
THO |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 09:26:25
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| I still wonder: Do the elves live long becasue of their connection to the Weave? if not, why are elves long-lived? |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
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Zireael
Master of Realmslore
Poland
1190 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 09:29:45
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quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
I still wonder: Do the elves live long becasue of their connection to the Weave? if not, why are elves long-lived?
The first assumption is correct. See Cormanthyr. |
SiNafay Vrinn, the daughter of Lloth, from Ched Nasad!
http://zireael07.wordpress.com/ |
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Menelvagor
Senior Scribe
Israel
352 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 12:37:11
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| Then could one manage to connect to the Weave like the elves? Could an entire race do so? |
"Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly.
How much less them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation in the dust, are crushed before the moth?" - Eliphaz the Temanite, Job IV, 17-19.
"Yea, though he live a thousand years twice, yet hath he seen no good: do not all go to one place?" - Ecclesiastes VI, 6.
"There are no stupid questions – just a bunch of inquisitive idiots."
"Let's not call it 'hijacking'. Let's call it 'Thread Drift'." |
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Knight of the Gate
Senior Scribe
USA
624 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 14:16:16
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quote:
Originally posted by Menelvagor
Then could one manage to connect to the Weave like the elves? Could an entire race do so?
My take: They COULD, though the act of doing so would be a major magic working, which would (itself, because of the magical stresses involved) probably shorten the lifespans of said race back to where they started. Elves are so long-lived because their attachment to the Weave is as natural as breathing to them, or as natural as a breath weapon is to a dragon. I'm reminded of the Xanth books by Piers Anthony- Elves don't so much do magic; Elves are magic.
Or I could be wrong. If so, I'm sure we'll find out soon! |
How can life be so bountiful, providing such sublime rewards for mediocrity? -Umberto Ecco |
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Snowblood
Senior Scribe
Australia
388 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 14:50:57
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Dear Ed & Lady THO...well met,
What kind of society was the realm of Ilodhar? What were some of its social customs, festivals etc. What kind of government did it have and was it a realm or walled city state???? Lastly who were the 3 gold elf clans that fell with the city and was it here that Crystal Lore Spindles were invented? Cheers. |
Aryvandaar, Ilythiir, Arnothoi, Orva, Sarphil, Anauria/Asram/Hlondath, Uvaeren, Braceldaur, Ilodhar, Lisenaar, Imaskar, Miyeritar, Orishaar, Shantel Othrieir, Keltormir, Eaerlann, Ammarindar, Siluvanede, Sharrven, Illefarn, Ardeep, Rystal Wood, Evereska are all available here for download:http://phasai.deviantart.com/gallery/
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Alisttair
Great Reader
Canada
3054 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 17:45:14
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Dear ED and THO,
I was wondering, based on the fact that Gunpowder is available in the Loudwater Apothecary, and with the weave gone, has technology started to go back forward, and any idea at what pace it is doing so (or is it a wait and see)??
sorry if this has been answered elsewhere before. |
Karsite Arcanar (Most Holy Servant of Karsus)
Anauria - Survivor State of Netheril as penned by me:
http://www.dmsguild.com/m/product/172023 |
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X_Ice_X
Acolyte
Portugal
20 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 20:10:20
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On Elven culture - Food, Drinks, Equipment...
Hello I have always heard about Evermead, Elverquist, two famous elven wines/meads, but when I attempted to find more about the litle preciousnesses elves have regarding their typical food, like bread, or cakes, or something they typical carry when traveling in the woods etc... Other famous drinks, or even mundane or low magic equipment that would be widely available for sale in street markets and such.
I have found very little references not to say none about them. Some bits in Complete book of elves in 2ed, but far from satisfactory. i could find about their eating habits, and how vegetables and fruits are preferred but nothing in concrete. Don't they have typical recipes, famous foods, etc??
Could you guys shed some light over this? |
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Malcolm
Learned Scribe
242 Posts |
Posted - 21 Jun 2010 : 23:48:23
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I recall that Ed has provided many recipes and domestic elven details over the years, but TSR/WotC haven't published them.  |
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Blueblade
Senior Scribe
USA
804 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 00:09:42
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Yes, I remember Ed had many "berry jelly" and "fermented berry jelly" elven recipes, but darned if I can remember the elven names he gave for those types of foods...
Ed? THO?
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rjfras
Learned Scribe
261 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 04:42:51
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quote:
Originally posted by X_Ice_X
On Elven culture - Food, Drinks, Equipment...
Hello I have always heard about Evermead, Elverquist, two famous elven wines/meads, but when I attempted to find more about the litle preciousnesses elves have regarding their typical food, like bread, or cakes, or something they typical carry when traveling in the woods etc... Other famous drinks, or even mundane or low magic equipment that would be widely available for sale in street markets and such.
I have found very little references not to say none about them. Some bits in Complete book of elves in 2ed, but far from satisfactory. i could find about their eating habits, and how vegetables and fruits are preferred but nothing in concrete. Don't they have typical recipes, famous foods, etc??
Could you guys shed some light over this?
check your scroll X_Ice_X, i posted one of Ed's replies on the subject |
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Jakk
Great Reader
Canada
2165 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 05:41:33
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quote:
May 27, 2006: Hi again, all. This time, the Sage of the Greenwood looks at RevJest's recent query: "In the supplement "The North", on page 12, it states that a stone plaque was found on the Star Mounts with the inscription: "iqebaest Vhalraetaerl". Can you shed some light on what this means, and what it's all about?"
Ed replies:
I'm afraid not. That NDA still firmly applies. Sorry.
I found this while I was perusing the "Questions For Ed" archives looking for something entirely different... what that was is now forgotten. I thought I'd see if this NDA had acquired any wiggle room in the past four years... (he says, snickering at himself all the while)
The Star Mounts have always fascinated me, almost as much as the characters of Halaster and Larloch... about either of whom I will say no more, as I know NDAs are fresh and tightly sealed there. Hopefully that means we'll be learning something more about those two soon...
Many thanks again! |
Playing in the Realms since the Old Grey Box (1987)... and *still* having fun with material published before 2008, despite the NDA'd lore.
If it's comparable in power with non-magical abilities, it's not magic. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 07:26:18
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| In ancient Elvish it says "If you can read this, you are TOO DAMN CLOSE!" |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Kyrene
Senior Scribe
South Africa
729 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 08:09:08
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quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
In ancient Elvish it says "If you can read this, you are TOO DAMN CLOSE!"
Although literally of course (and if he could see this Dagnirion would have a fit), “iqebaest Vhalraetaerl” translates as: “See you Damn too close”.
“iqe” – to see; to look upon
“baest” – vernacular use (as opposed to the formal “Ai”) for “you”
“Vhal” – “damn”; to be cursed
“rae” – (a contraction of “arae”) too much; overflowing
“taerl” – to come closer (as opposed to “tham”) |
Lost for words? Find them in the Glossary of Phrases, Sayings & Words of the Realms
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Zireael
Master of Realmslore
Poland
1190 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jun 2010 : 09:28:27
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quote:
Originally posted by Kyrene
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
In ancient Elvish it says "If you can read this, you are TOO DAMN CLOSE!"
Although literally of course (and if he could see this Dagnirion would have a fit), #65533;iqebaest Vhalraetaerl#65533; translates as: #65533;See you Damn too close#65533;.
#65533;iqe#65533; #65533; to see; to look upon
#65533;baest#65533; #65533; vernacular use (as opposed to the formal #65533;Ai#65533;) for #65533;you#65533;
#65533;Vhal#65533; #65533; #65533;damn#65533;; to be cursed
#65533;rae#65533; #65533; (a contraction of #65533;arae#65533;) too much; overflowing
#65533;taerl#65533; #65533; to come closer (as opposed to #65533;tham#65533;)
Nice. Where is Dagnirion, btw?
And the question about gunpowder interests me too. |
SiNafay Vrinn, the daughter of Lloth, from Ched Nasad!
http://zireael07.wordpress.com/ |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2010 : 02:19:17
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He's playing Mafia Wars on Facebook lol
Less stress, I suppose.
Anyways, I got a doozy of a question for Ed, concerning his L-List post about his original Anchorome (I'm currently mapping that chain). Just 2 things that I'm a little confused with - when he says go SW diagonally one panel, and continue one full panel over - does that mean two panels to the left of Evermeet total? (and down one - I got that part)
Then the Anchorome chain (starting with Sarambril) starts in the 3rd panel from there - two 'blank' sea panels between that and Evermeet (same as whats between Evermeet and the Moonshaes). So just to clarify, the Islands begin at about the same distance from Evermeet, as Evermeet is from the Swordcoast, correct? Evermeet being smack-dab right in the middle, as it were?
And secondly, is the scale on the 'Old Grey Box' maps the same as it was on Ed's originals?
That would make it about 2992.5 miles to 'Wash Rock' from the Swordcoast, and about 3825 miles to Evermeet! 
I know the planet is plenty big-enough to support that, but we are talking about close to 8K miles from the Swordcoast to those islands, and he mentions the Nelanther Pirates being busy in that region. They are active THAT FAR?
Sorry if it sounds like I'm nit-picking, but really I'm just trying to get this as accurate as possible, and want to make sure I understand Ed correctly - thanks. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 23 Jun 2010 02:21:45 |
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2010 : 18:44:20
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Hi again, all. I bring a reply from Ed to Markustay:
Hi, Markustay! Yes, you have matters right: one panel directly south and then two panels west of Evermeet.
And yes, the Old Grey Box maps are close to the scale of my originals; the distances ARE that large.
Here's the thing, though; it's not all that far for the Pirates, because they can ride currents: a southerly one (south of Toaridge-At-The-Sun's-Setting, which serves many as a fresh-water refilling, repair harbor and dry docks, and provisioning point, just by using the flora and fauna and springs of that largely deserted isle, a current sweeps west from mainland Faerun and then curves to the northwest...and well to the north of that, and of Evermeet, another current runs west to east, then northeast [moderating the climate of Waterdeep and Neverwinter, hence the name of the latter city]). So a pirate ship with masts and sails down, steering with its rudder, can reach those parts of the ocean with no particular trouble (remember I talked, long ago, about PCs nursing a storm-damaged ship from isle to isle of the Anchorome chain?). This gives many pirates and others places to run to and sources of lumber, etc.
If it wasn't for storms, someone could conceivably use a raft to travel from Anchorome to Faerun...
So saith Ed. Creator of the whole shebang.
(No "she bang" jokes, please; I've made them all myself, already  )
love,
THO
Hope this helps. :} |
Edited by - The Hooded One on 23 Jun 2010 18:46:12 |
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Hoondatha
Great Reader
USA
2449 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2010 : 19:57:28
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| That's really intersting. Ed, how long would such a trip take, just using the current? And how much would it speed up by a ship using its sails? |
Doggedly converting 3e back to what D&D should be...
Sigh... And now 4e as well. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 23 Jun 2010 : 23:09:09
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Thank you very much, Ed (& THO).
@Hoondatha - tides were discussed not too long ago. The Ocean current runs clockwise in the Western ocean (with Evermeet at the center) - you can see that on the large map that came with the Maztica product, as well as being discussed on pg. 47 of the Maztica Alive! booklet that came with same product:
quote:
"Cordell and the Golden legion made this crossing in some forty days, which is about typical for the Sword Coast to Maztica route. It takes about sixty days to sail back, due to the easterly current. A northerly route of return can save fifteen days on this trip, but requires sailing dangerously close to the random teleporters surrounding Evermeet."
Wind, on the other hand, is another matter, and changes with the seasons. 'Most' of the time a NE wind runs up the Swordcoast, meaning that coastal vessels will travel faster heading north then south.
What this means is that if you throw a log into the water in Waterdeep, it will slowly drift down the coast and eventually across the sea. If you put a small, make-shift sail on the self-same log, it would instead travel north (a bit faster then the sluggish water-current would take it), and end up in Neverwinter, or beyond.
I wouldn't even begin to guess what havoc the various Elven protections wreak with the weather-patterns in the center of the Sea, but I'm sure it takes a very experienced captain to take advantage of all the shifting winds. 'Drifting' just may be the safest - albeit slowest - method of crossing.
So sayeth Mark, who spends way too much time studying the science behind an imaginary world. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 25 Jun 2010 00:01:19 |
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Malcolm
Learned Scribe
242 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2010 : 02:44:52
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I vaguely remember hearing a TSR staffer of the day (Jeff Grubb? Tim Brown?) say something about internal designer discussions re. this, recounting Ed telling them about pirates sailing NE across The Sea of Swords to Luskan, trading and dumping cargoes and reprovisioning and so on in that port, then slipping south along the coast using conjured winds in their sails (they would hire wizards in Luskan to provide the spells, which were small-scale so as to affect just one ship, not have wider effects that would anger other sailors). The wizard would get transport down to Tharsult, and the pirate ship would then slip away to do piracy in the southerly waters...
Ed? I have this right, don't I? |
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Kyrene
Senior Scribe
South Africa
729 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2010 : 09:03:30
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quote:
Originally posted by Malcolm
I vaguely remember hearing a TSR staffer of the day (Jeff Grubb? Tim Brown?) say something about internal designer discussions re. this, recounting Ed telling them about pirates sailing NE across The Sea of Swords to Luskan, trading and dumping cargoes and reprovisioning and so on in that port, then slipping south along the coast using conjured winds in their sails (they would hire wizards in Luskan to provide the spells, which were small-scale so as to affect just one ship, not have wider effects that would anger other sailors). The wizard would get transport down to Tharsult, and the pirate ship would then slip away to do piracy in the southerly waters...
Ed? I have this right, don't I?
Not Ed (obviously), but you are correct. A ship's wizard was also used in such ways in Under Fallen Stars (the second in the Threat from the Sea trilogy).
SPOILER: Two ship's wizards took 'watches' to conjure winds (and possibly other spells) strong enough to propel the 'commandeered' (hi-jacked) vessel up the River Chionthar against the current. This was part of an escape plan after the attack on Baldur's Gate. |
Lost for words? Find them in the Glossary of Phrases, Sayings & Words of the Realms
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The Hooded One
Lady Herald of Realmslore
5056 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2010 : 17:39:09
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Hi again, all.
Ed now makes reply to part of a question createvmind posed back on page 29 of this thread: "Would a Orc Shaman or leader consign a comatose warrior to death rather than trying to nurse him back to consciouness. Would this be seen as a weakness of the afflicted orc?"
Ed replies:
Well, the answer really is "it depends." On the circumstances (or perceived circumstances) in which the warrior became comatose, and on the personal character of the shaman or leader, and the traditions and prevalent views of the orc clan, family, or community they both belong to.
In some cases, it would be seen as a sign of the gods consigning the comatose warrior "to themselves" (so he should be left to them, i.e. abandoned but not otherwise harmed), in others, that the orc should be gently conveyed to an altar, temple, or sacred spot and left there for tending or "to the mercies of the gods," and in still others that he should be forthwith "sent to the gods" (i.e. executed, promptly, as is), either as punishment or reward.
My underlying point here is that orcs are as complex and varied in their views as humans, so there is no single "right" or "will almost always do thus" answer.
(I understand that you posted this not so much as a direct question but as an illustration of what you were trying to learn [my thinking, rather than "rules"] when you posed questions to me in this thread. So take this as an illustration of my usual thinking, which is "this, but on the other hand that, with complicating elements being A, B, C, and D, so there's usually not a definitive answer, but we can suggest this much" . . . which, I suppose, suggests why some real-world government decisions seem to take so long, be so complicated, and sometimes fall so short of dealing with perceived problems.)
So saith Ed. Who, as you can see, thinks and thinks until his thinker gets sore.
(Or so I thunk, anyway.)
love,
THO |
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Questions for Ed Greenwood (2010)
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