Gary V. Foss wrote:

> The reason I was interested in this question is because I figured
> there must be some sort of reason why the Sword Mage, the Eyeless One
> and the Wizard (to a certain extent) go to such lengths to keep their
> identity secret. I don't think it is coincidental that these guys
> also happen to be the evilly aligned mages in Anuire....

A lot of the more powerful good and neutral mages keep their exact
identity and power secret (the Fae, Greencloak, the Swan Mage) and I can
not immagine them using the magic jar spell that way. The main reason
for keeping an identity secret is probably to prevent others using
specific long range attacks like nightmare and magic jar, to make spying
easier and to hinder divination magic. I remember reading in a novel
(not Birthright, I think it was the FR novel Horselords) a conversation
between the Khan and a priest. The priest asked the Khan why he did not
use magic to scout. The khan pointed out that for divination magic to
work the diviner had to know where he was looking for. The problem is
that most ruling regent can not afford this secrecy, since it also allow
easier abuse by others. Since knowbody knows who you are, somebody could
more easily pretend to be you after all.