Post/Author/DateTime	Post
JulesCARV 02-28-07, 09:31 AM	In Eberron, arcane magic is supposed to be continually in progress, at least in Galifarian society. Therefore, it seems possible that a level 6 wizard today has access to a broader array of spells, and possibly a broader array metamagic feats, than a level 6 wizard in, say, 600 Y.K., who in turn has wider access than a level 6 wizard in 200 Y.K. Do you think this is the case, or do you think that progress in the arcane arts in Eberron is manifested solely in item creation (such the use of dragonshards) and in the broader diffusion of low-level magic through magewrights? If the arcane spellcasting of wizards, sorcerers, bards, etc, has advanced how so? For example: -Although divine mages have long known the secrets of animating the dead as zombies or skeletons, the arcane means of such necromancy was not discovered (at least in Galifarian society) until 787 Y.K., when Tolor Wafan, a gnome mystic theurge of the Shadow, successfully found a way of duplicating the effect of divine necromancy with arcane fomulae. -The first Galifarian recorded use of bardic magic for healing was in 412 Y.K., when the halfling bard Marhana d'Jorasco secretly studied the sonic resonance of a Syberis shard that she had attuned to her Mark of Healing. Reverse-engineering the verbal components needed to cast the spell from the tune of the dragonshard, she was able to develop a spell that channelled her bardic magic into healing. (Some Dhakaani goblins claim that her work was wholely derivative of Dhakaani bardic magic. While it is true that Dhakaani bards developed similar healing spells earlier than 412 Y.K., most scholars agree that Marhana d'Jorasco's work was independent and was not influenced by Dhakaani bardic magic.) -Although Charm Monster has been known for millenia, Charm Person was first developed, as a simpler, more widely accessible alternative to Charm Monster, in 30 Y.K. by the Arcane Congress, during the Galifar-Lhazaar war in an attempt to ameliorate a shortage of spellcasters capable of wielding the enchantment magic used in interrogations of Lhazaar prisoners.
The Fireballed Mage 02-28-07, 11:44 AM	Despite what some have said, magic is not science. Barring edition changes, the power it takes to generate a 3rd level spell (like fireball), is the same across the ages and the times. No matter how hard you try, no matter what mystic theories you uncover there is no way to create a 20ft radius blast of fire with long range, 1d6/level damage and reflex 1/2 and make it level 2. You have to put just as much effort into learning to cast fireball as did you teacher, and her teacher before her. In the Age of Demons, fireball was a 3rd level spell. In the Giant Empires of Xen'drik, fireball was a 3rd level spell. In the modern age, fireball is a 3rd level spell. So you can never make magic easier to access... only more creative, or access it in a different manner (ie: command activated items). Certainly the idea that metamagic feats and some spells are new is acceptable (and understandable because of new materials being introduced via new products). However, even in the widespread Eberron world, knowledge of the workings of magic is more limited than science is today for us. It's quite easy to lose mystic knowledge when disasters happen, or for creators to horde knowledge to themselves so it doesn't reach many people. I see thumaturgical knowledge as a cycle of discovering it, using it, losing it, and then the next group discovering it again. One reason why plundering old tombs is so lucrative... why bother to spend 30 years researching a new spell when someone might have already done the work for you. Sure, some things are new and unique: the Lightning Rail is a great example of a new piece of magical development. But compare that to the Teleport Network that the Giants (probabaly) had in Xen'drik. Khorvaire magicial knowledge is great... but it's still a 2nd grade picturebook compared to the advanced university texts of others.