Solabusca on 4/11/2005 at 23:40
Quote Posted by jtr7
I can't remember for sure, but is there at least one collector mounted on a wall near the starting point in
Shipping... and Receiving?Yep. It's right at the start, and it's what I went to look at when I wanted to get a better feel for it after realizing what it was called - I'd always just thought it another type of light, but really, really like the direction that this is working in - I'll touch on that in a moment, as it ties directly into my next point, and related to Doctorfrog's ideas.
Regarding the Undead, I factor in the varied strata of magical forces in the Thief world.
What, you say? Strata of magical forces??
Reread the Trickster's ritual - he taps into the primary magical forces when attempting to open the Eye: Earth, Air, Fire, Water... and two others, Green (Life?) and Dark (Death?).
Quote:
"Vine grow and twine green and curl chokes and bind
Leaves unfurled thornsie spine tumble wall wreath and
Bine cover all leafsie mine call the vine call the
Green bringsie forth world be seen!
"Storm black and blow swirly gust strain winds flow
Pushing dust storm clouds grow darksie clouds
Lightning throw misty shroud freezie snow call the
Storm call the gray bringsie forth world's old way!
"Flame burning heat fences charred blazie sheet black
And tar manflesh meat melting gears dance and leap
Manfool's fear come to reap call the fire call the red
Bringsie forth past not dead!
"Tide rise and fall river flood rain and squall
Churning mud dam break all sea waves wash swampy
Squall sewer slosh drain pipes stall call the wave
Call the blue bringsie forth world anew!
"Stone grind and quake shatter tile call and shake
Break apile chip and flake darry soil windows break
Earthy toil wall unmake call earth call the brown
Bringsie forth world thrown down!
"Night smother light black brick lamp done with bright
Dew and damp smother tight dark and hide foolsie sight
Stay inside fear the night call the dark call the
Black bringsie forth I call it back!
"Open for me open to me open my way open the path open
For me open!"
We know dark magic animates the dead - just looking at notes from the Mage Towers re: the exiled Hand mage that would become the Necromancer in LOTP.
We also know that magical energies can coalesce and gather (Elemental Crystals) in the Thiefverse.
Extrapolations from these facts:
* Like elemental forces, dark energy can gather in appropriate places (in this case, were death/decay is prevalent). I'd reckon that it's akin to background radiation - when enough dark energy gathers in a corpse, it starts a-walkin'. Artefacts that can tap/focus dark energy (the Necromancer's wand from TDS, and without a doubt the Eye), or mages channelling said forces, can also create undead by direct application.
* Vine arrows may tie into Green energy.
* The Trickster lives in the 'greens-infested Maw' - and refers to the verdant force as Green in the Ritual, and as Leaf in his notes.
Quote Posted by Trickster's notes
Marks the Compass Borning, the Compass Leaf, the Stormsie Compass, the Flamesie Compass, the Compass Tidestream, the Compass Stone, the Compass Darkness.
Weights each Starsie point with Elements of the Compass, with pure truest. Weights the Center with the Eye, fed mansblood, sees the Compasses and the bloodtrail to the trueworld.
It seems somehow appropriate that the Leafsie Lord is closely tied to Green energy. (No solar-power jokes, folks).
[EDIT: Regarding the antennae/electric light - I think you're definately on the right track there, good doctor... wireless transmission of electricity, or a small-scale collector-effect, perhaps?]
[EDIT2: Further extrapolation - we know that Scouting orbs work by connecting
aetherically to Garret's eye (Don't belive me? Read the description in your equipment scree) - perhaps this is the medium that the power for those streetlights is transmitted - and perhaps describes where the elemental forces course and gather before manifesting into the world!!]
Heady with discovery, here. Time to delve further... FOR SCIENCE!!!
.j.
van HellSing on 5/11/2005 at 00:12
So, we've got a system of six magical elements. Which of those do the Hammerites use? First guesses would be earth (stone for building etc.) and fire (needed in forging).
Or, perhaps Hammerite magic functions on an entirely different level?
In the briefing to Strange Bedfellows, Garrett describes the Trickster as one of the Old Gods. This reminds me of Lovecraft, which I think is plausible, considering what can be found in Karath-Din. And in August Derleth's popular version of the Cthulhu mythos, the Great Old Ones are connected with elements. One gets the impression that the Builder is not one of the Old Gods, so it would follow that Hammerite magic isn't based directly on any of the six elements.
jtr7 on 5/11/2005 at 01:42
[SPOILER]Azaran the Cruel found a way to manipulate necromantic/dark energy.
The Hand Mages manipulate the four basic elemental energies of earth, fire, air, and water.
The Hammerite and Mechanist priests manipulate the earth elemental energy, or something.
The ghosts manipulate necromantic/dark energy.
I believe the Hammers technology started a war, of a sort, beginning in the Old Quarter, and then Karras'/Mechanists' technology (and hatred of all life but themselves) blitzkrieged The City's ecosystem.
Maybe the populace of Karath D'in became too civilized. Is the rust gas a chemical warfare weapon, or strong-as-hell weedkiller? What were they doing with it?[/SPOILER]
Solabusca on 5/11/2005 at 02:20
Considering that rust gas eliminates ALL biomatter, as we learn whilst eavesdropping on Truart and Karras, I think it's safe to assume that it was some kind of weapon.
.j.
jtr7 on 5/11/2005 at 02:57
I was disappointed that there's no mention of [SPOILER]the rust gas, cultivators, warfare, scientists/inventors, etc. by the people who lived there. A single note in Va-Toran's(sp?) chambers would've connected things,[/SPOILER] but we barely know how difficult it was to make these games.
:o Just realized I should be tagging potential spoilers!
Emerald Wolf on 5/11/2005 at 05:52
If you're using the compass points from the trickster's ritual as a source of what forms of magic exist, then don't forget about compass borning. I'm thinking its similar to "leaf"-magic and opposite to "dark"-magic in that it represents the live-force of living things.
On topic with regards to moon-power: IIRC in RTC in the observatory there's a pool of water that you bless the holy symbol in, and the accopanying text states that the moon gives the pool divine powers akin to holy water.
jtr7 on 5/11/2005 at 07:38
Ah yes. Forgot that bit.:thumb:
By the way, [SPOILER]does Dyan have her staff in Deadly Shadows?[/SPOILER]
Solabusca on 5/11/2005 at 11:00
Interesting, true - I'll have to take at ground zero and see how many points the Compass has...
.j.
jtr7 on 5/11/2005 at 22:07
I counted seven on the texture file.
Solabusca on 6/11/2005 at 00:19
I did too, jtr7.
So perhaps it's Life/Plant/Earth/Air/Fire/Water/Dark. Interesting...
Okay, onto the small glowballs on top of the streetlamps, and the theory of aetheric transmission of energy vs. the mini-collector theory.
One arguement against aetherial transmission - most Mechanist-based technology utilizes cable and wire. For example, you can follow the length of cable that leads to a watcher to find the deactivation switch, in most instances...
One arguement for it is the aforementioned light in the Cragscleft mine (although it may date back to an older period as well, given that the mine was abandoned before the hammerites took control of it.)
