Post:Thoughts on the Paladin 'theme' - 06/25/2014 - 01:34

Re: Thoughts on the Paladin 'theme' · on 06/25/2014 01:34 AM CDT	1264
>>The main point, however, was that I could find no IC way of disproving outright the hypothesis that there are multiple sets of Immortals governing their own solar systems rather than there being only 13 for the whole universe. This is, again, a situation where modern astrological knowledge is vastly different than what DR knows. Are there other solar systems in the Elanthian universe? Do other stars have planets? While in the real world we have some decent answers to those questions those answers are extremely recent and based on technology so far beyond what Elanthia has access to as to that they would be deemed magic. Wait. No. That was a bad example. These questions take on a deeper meaning if you remember a discussion from the Moon Mage forums a couple of years back about the nature of Starlight vs Sunlight. Modern science has answers. The Sun is a star. It has a specific set of properties, but it's most definitely a star. It just happens to be our star and proximity makes all the difference. Does that mean in Elanthia the Sun is a star and they just lack the technology to prove that? That's a difficult question complicated by the fact that much of what is known at Elanthian cosmology comes from magical observations, not technological ones. What magic does tell us is that Starlight and Sunlight different in several dramatic ways. To a Moon Mage the Sun is largely a background element. It provides mana, it has prophetic potential, and you can focus its light in blunt ways that require heat and flash (Burn or Dazzle) but it's not terribly useful otherwise and it certainly isn't elegant. I cannot be used to make a Moonblade or Cage of Light and its of no use when crafting illusions. While stars provide no notable mana it's entirely possible that's a function of distance (Almost no living mages can sense Er'Qutra magically either, but it provides mana to those who can sense it). They certainly have prophetic potential like the Sun but their light is even more useless to Moon Mages. There is one important exception; the Stellar Magic spellbook. This spellbook is a loose collection of spells with long and largely forgotten histories. They are not a core part of the guild's teachings and they interact with aspects of the Heavens usually neglected by Moon Mage magic. From this we know that Starlight is a fine tool when shaping illusions and in sharp contrast to Sunlight manifests as a very cold substance. This link between Starlight and cold is reinforced by some of the creature from the Plane of Probability (see Nimbuses or the Arbiter in Darkness). Of course, Moon Mages do not represent all that Lunar magic has to offer, much as the Guild would have you believe otherwise. Trader magic, as has been suggested, will spend a lot more time exploring Starlight. What does that mean for our theoretical exoplanets? Who knows. -Raesh
This message was originally posted in The Paladins \ Paladin Suggestions, by DR-RAESH on the play.net forums.