From: tcbruno@athena.mit.edu (Tom Bruno)
Subject: Re: Techonological D&D
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 12 Aug 1992 15:42:49 GMT

In article <1992Aug12.092553.7646@wam.umd.edu> overlord@wam.umd.edu (Identity Unknown) writes:
>In article <56588@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> jacobus@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Kirsten C. Jacobus) writes:
>>In article <1992Aug11.203913.16160@athena.mit.edu> tcbruno@athena.mit.edu (Tom Bruno) writes:
>>
>>Simply put, if you want to preserve how modern weapons would work in a fantasy
>>setting, it's very simple.  If you've got VERY high-level mages, AND the
>>fantasy side gets surprise, it might be an even fight.  Otherwise, the
>>smart money is on modern military hardware.
>>
>>
>>The only way to make it "work" is to wimp out the modern hardware so much
>>that it has no resemblance whatsoever to the real thing.
>
>Ever heard of Protection from normal missiles?

That's what I was thinking.  In the Best of Dragon, Volume 5, they talk about
the effects of magical protection against modern arms, and at times I think 
they've overestimated technology.  'Protection from normal missles' should be
able to stop ANYTHING non-magical propelled in your direction, though the 
article says something about higher calibers and exploding rounds getting in.
(I'm trying to remember what I've read here.)  Likewise, the article talks 
about heavy artillery and high-explosives able to bring a 'wall of force' down.
I wasn't under the impression that a 'wall of force' COULD go down, unless
dispelled by magical means.  To make such a powerful spell vulnerable to 
nothing more than an explosive, high-velocity shell of metal seems ludicrous,
doesn't it?  

I keep thinking that the reason that it's an uneven fight lies not in the
lethality of technology, but in the watering-down of magic in the AD&D world.
Since magic was the technology of the fantasy world, it too has to be 'wimped
out' to give the poor fighters, orcs, and kobolds a fair chance.  They did the
same thing with dragons, originally... but the 2nd edition has done a little to
make them as powerful and deadly as fantasy and legend portrays them.  

For instance, take a Wand of Lightning Bolts with the command word, 'Bo.'  
If the spell has already been 'cast,' and awaiting discharge through the word,
what's to stop an enterprising young mage, encountered by a dragon, to point
his wand and say, 'Bobobobobobobobobobobobobobobobobo!'  I let a character
get away with it in one of my campaigns-- though it was a real nasty evil 
cleric and not a dragon-- since I thought it was kind of clever, really.  I
made command words longer after that, though...  =)   

I've tried to give magic a little more of its Sturm und Drang in my new
campaign, throwing out most of the 'rules' involving spell acquisition and use.
Since the campaign is mostly nonmagical, it works well, and makes
an encounter with a mage TERRIFYING, since they have no idea what this person
is capable of.  For example, any accomplished mage can use as many 'cantrips'
or cantrip-like spells when ever he feels like it.  It's absurd that a mage
should be required to memorize the simplest magical manipulations he learned
as an apprentice.  But I'm moving out of tecnhology, aren't I?


>
>
>overlord@wam.umd.edu
>UMCP, the Bermuda Triangle of AD&D players.


tom bruno
archaeology
mit