Ferakoss - Discussion

[DeeL]

Well, the WotC boards are too busy tricking themselves out to be reliable, and on the other hand my thread there is clearly in a state of anarchic narrative/development, so I figured I'd bring some of the trickier questions over here.  Right now only 2 come to mind, but if anyone else can think of a really good question, or an answer, or both, post away.

Question 1 - what is the Accord?  I've already established that it is a definition of a sentient being and a description of the rights such a being is entitled to, and that as corollary it is a peace treaty, free trade agreement and treaty of extradition between member states.  But what else is implicit in its nature?  Why do Paladins draw their power therefrom?  Its precepts have already been referred to as the Living Law, but what might such law entail?  I've been stumbling around this question for a long time now, and am no closer to an answer than before.

Question 2 - I am determined that psionics will play a role in this setting, but I don't much care for the 'throwaway' role they have in most settings.  Right now, Eberrons approach seems best - have psionics mastery be characteristic of one particular geographic area, and have its development be somewhat limited elsewhere.  On the other hand, it would be in keeping with the work I've done so far for psionics to resonate throughout the worlds history.  Does anyone have any reflections on this matter?

Finally, and this is a bit of an off-topic question - how do you make buttons on the site we're hosted on?  PM me with an answer to that, if anyone has one.  I've been digging a little in various threads and sites, and simply can't find a direct answer...

[Xathan]

on question 2, I hate Eberron's approach. It basically says "well, we put Psionics on this one continent, so it can be ignored if you don't like it, but if you like it, it's there, because we can't make up our mind, so we want to please everyone." I'd give psionics a promintent role. Maybe make it the purview of one organization, that hoards the secrets and comes to 'rescue' children who show psionic ability. Or perhaps only a certain bloodline of races manifests it. Or just make it part of the setting, same as arcane or divine magic (though I feel that cheapens it.) Just my 2cp.

I'm not sure what you mean by the button question...PM me with more details, I'll try to help. )

[CYMRO]

Ditto on Eberron's chickenshit approach to Psionics.

Put it up front and integral, and your players will follow suit.  One thing I did in Altvogge was to make my ninja class psionic.  
If players know ahead of time psionic challenges and treasure will be as common as arcane, they will rise to the challenge.

Question 1 - what is the Accord? I've already established that it is a definition of a sentient being and a description of the rights such a being is entitled to, and that as corollary it is a peace treaty, free trade agreement and treaty of extradition between member states. But what else is implicit in its nature? Why do Paladins draw their power therefrom? Its precepts have already been referred to as the Living Law, but what might such law entail? I've been stumbling around this question for a long time now, and am no closer to an answer than before.

Where do you have a write-up of this?
It seems a little too overarching...


Buttons?

[DeeL]

Cymro, what you just quoted is scattered throughout the Ferakoss thread over at WotC - there is no write up to far, in fact that's partly why I established this thread, to try to get enough focus on the philosophical implications of the Accord that I could eventually write it down.

Thank you both for your input on psionics.  To say the least, it's useful to see such unanimity of opinion.  Anyone else have a perspective?

[wrldcreator]

Question 2 - I am determined that psionics will play a role in this setting, but I don't much care for the 'throwaway' role they have in most settings.  Right now, Eberrons approach seems best - have psionics mastery be characteristic of one particular geographic area, and have its development be somewhat limited elsewhere.  On the other hand, it would be in keeping with the work I've done so far for psionics to resonate throughout the worlds history.  Does anyone have any reflections on this matter?

I am with the two of you as far as Eberrons approach is on psionics. I don't believe you should have it come from particular geographic area. By doing this and the rest of the world not knowing about psionics then you could end up starting a bunch of prosecutions throughout your world of psionist. But what you could do in a twist is make it that at one time psionics was allowed throughout the entire world and some very bad things happenned and caused most of the world to ban psionics. Now in those parts of the world it is practiced secretively and that the psionist only real safe haven is that one particular geographic area.

[Lmns Crn]

I don't like psionics, and part of the reason is that they've always seemed unnecessary. I'd recommend either making them a necessary, integral part of the setting, or scrapping them entirely. If you scoot them over to the side where they can be safely ignored, you are essentially saying: "This is completely unnecessary to the setting." If it's unnecessary, why even include it?

[DeeL]

Here's the basic premise in effect for supernatural forces in Ferakoss - magic evolves.

The first form of magic was Soulbinding, as taken from Tome of Magic.  Dragons developed sorcerous spellcasting - although at the time it was exclusive to themselves - as a unique way of making 'lesser bargains, thus producing more limited but more precise effects.

Elves, with their long lives and subtle tool using perspective, understood the advantages and began to enact similar transactions with the gods they worshipped - and thus clerical magic began.

Soon after, someone - probably the elvish powers - realized that permitting spells to be cast by non-worshippers, and true sorcerous power was developed... you get the idea.

More later - suddenly, time presses.

[CYMRO]

Magical evolution is good.  Very good.
I hope to see more when time is pressing less.

[DeeL]

Where was I?  Ah yes...

Sorcerous powers were developed when someone decided that spellcasting shouldn't be limited to the favored worshippers of the gods.  Halfling discovered wizardly spellcasting when they found that non-sorcerers could read simple sorcerer-written scrolls.

Ferakoss incorporates both the incantation and the 'team spirit' rules, which are logical outgrowths of Soulbinding.  

That leaves two supernatural forces unaccounted for - Incarnum and Psionics.  I'm determined to include both.  Incarnum is actually pretty easy as yet another refinement of 'transaction' style supernatural phenomena, a la Soulbinding.  But psionics is a whole other kettle of fish.  Perhaps it should be the very first power, the power of 'it's supernatural just because it is'.  Or perhaps it was developed by casters and mystics who didn't like the idea of all their power coming from a kind of bargaining with some unknown intelligence.

Anyway, that's the context in which I'm trying to settle this question.  Does that clarify things?

[DeeL]

Perhaps something a little simpler.

Here are the supernatural schema I hope to include -

Inherent supernatural abilities and spell-like abilities (This one is obvious, and requires little serious thought, although the specific evolution of a particular supernatural ability might be entertaining.)
Sorcerer spellcasting
Bard spellcasting
Clerical spellcasting (This includes Favored Souls from Complete Divine)
Druidic spellcasting
Wizard spellcasting (This includes Duskblades spells from the PHB2)
Psionics (I see no reason to break the approach taken by different psionic classes down, but I am open to the idea.)
Warlock Incantations
Pact Magic (as seen in Tome of Magic, and which I erroneously referred to as Soulbinding in the post above.)
Shadow Magic (again, Tome of Magic)
Truenaming
Spellthief Abilities
Spirit Shaman spellcasting (this includes the Shugenja class, both described in Complete Divine)
Dread Necromancer (From Heroes of Horror)
Archivist (")

Every other spellcasting class or tradition of abilities arises from one of these areas of expertise.

So that's it.  Now they have to be arranged in order of their chronological use.

[DeeL]

Well, let's start with a somewhat smaller question - psions, erudites, or psions and erudites?

[DeeL]

Okay, perhaps I should clarify - the Erudite is a variant psionic base class found in the Complete Psionic, which appeared first in Dragon Magizine (can't recall the issue).  In essence, the Erudite acquires most of his psionic powers by studying other psionic users and items.  They can then use a limited number of such powers per day.  In essence, an Erudite can function as a Wilder without the wild surge type abilities, but gets to choose a new set of powers from one day to the next.  This gives them tremendous versatility if they have learned lots of powers.

So the question is, can they coexist effectively with Psions, or should they replace them where they appear?

[SDragon]

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like that?

[DeeL]

Well, I finally worked it out, kind of.  I'm now thinking that psionics was the first form of magic, and that erudites were the most recent form of full manifestor.  Pact magic would be next, having started out as a kind of psionic discipline...

[DeeL]

In the real world, consciousness has been a somewhat contentious subject in scientific circles.  Even in modern research, it is approached by many otherwise solid empiricists in almost spiritual terms.  Only very specialized thinkers are willing to accept the most probable explanation - that something resembling what humans call consciousness is an inevitable result of sufficient intelligence combined with sufficient sociability.  

The reason for this is simple - in all of the animal kingdom extant or previous, only one species has been able to articulate its own consciousness in terms that humans can understand, and that is h. sapiens itself.

But in the various worlds of D & D, things are different.  Other humanoids are just the tip of the iceberg - dragons, thri-kreen, umber hulks, flumphs, you name it, it can articulate itself more or less comprehensibly.  Given the right spell, even inanimate objects can give you their perspective on things.  Consciousness becomes simultaneously a more precise and a more elusive concept.  

The definition of consciousness in Ferakoss is as long as involved as it is in the real world, just with less theoretical content.  The description of consciousness as it applies to the law, however, is terribly simple - an entity is considered a member of a conscious people if it is capable of saying, 'I am conscious' without magical assistance.

I anticipate what I suspect will be a resounding silence, but eagerly solicit opinion.  And alternatives - how does the law treat consciousness, as it exists apart from specific races?  Which races would be likely to accept someone from a different race as a member of the same society, and upon what grounds?