[Glorantha] Re: Mongoose's Rune Magic

[Ian Cooper]

>I don't know to what extent these physical foci are a part of Greg's Gloranthan vision but they seem to have made it into all the paper >RPG incarnations of the world in some form, this just looks like a new and slightly different form. 
I accept that Mongoose are producing a game and may want to tilt things to create interesting play.

But for me this difference feels more than 'slight'. These are not simply foci or talismans, they are magical items that confer additional abilites beyond the capacity to cast spells, and must be taken from their current possesors or bought at high price. Despite differences we have had a fairly consistent view of magic across various incarnations of Glorantha:

Folk magic: taught by individuals to other individuals; empowered by the individual (common magic, battle magic)
Spirit magic: Magical power from alliances with spirits; 
God magic: Magic obtained from worshipping the gods (rune magic, affinities, feats)
Sorcery:  taught by individuals to other individuals; empowered by the otherworld (sorcery)
Draconic Magic: Mystical dragon secrets
Mysticism: still vague.

Rune Magic is something new, because it does not come from individuals but from the possession of artefacts. While the magical abilities might be reminiscent of 'folk magic' the magic comes from a different source - the blood of the gods. 

If the objective is just to create gameplay around picking up these artefacts then my problem is that it does not feel very Gloranthan. For me one key aspect of Glorantha is that magic flows from belonging to a community. One constant has been that people who had folk magic without any cult ties were rare or exceptional. For example, in HeroQuest most common magic is associated with a community even though it doesn't have to be. That seems to be lost here as the suggestion seems to be that an artefact without community approach is common.

It is not that I would mind folks ramping up magic crystals as an in-game item, associating them with runes, and making them a part of play, but removing the fundamental connection between magic and community bothers me somehow. Deciding to worship the Lunar way instead of following the Storm Tribe becomes a bit less meaningful if most people get their magic from the blood of the gods which they picked up by killing the person who owned it before them anyway. "Hey Jonrik now you are 16 it is time to pop over to the neighbours and murder a few of them so that you can take their magic." Glorantha as 'kill people and take their stuff'.

If they really wanted to enhance this aspect of play why not look more to how we think people acquire feats and the like now, by heroquesting to the other side?

I'll wait, but I suspect I may not be the market for this one. I've never really been part of the 'kewl powerz' collecting brigade and I doubt its  going to enhance my Gloranthan gaming to become one. It feels like a fundamental change in the way people in Glorantha behave.


Ian Cooper