I really wonder if it is correct to compare RL medieval society with
Cerillia. There are just plain simple to many shattering differences
between the two worlds:

1) Clear and accepted polythism (even in Ghamoura or Zikala they accept
the fact that there are more gods).

2) The leading priests (and in some games almost all priests) have
obvious spell powers, that includes curative powers. Would have a
tremendous effect on agriculture and medicine!

3) Wizardly powers is a fact, not myth! You know for a fact that the
court wizard might turn the average peasant into ashes with a few words.
A magic missile will most definitely kill the average peasant! Even a
weak spell as feather fall or flaming sphere are mightly impressive to
see. Or how useful do you think a whispering wind would be on the
battlefield?

4) Bloodlines are real, their is such a thing as the divine right to
rule and bloodpowers are quite a physical evidence for that.

5) While horrible monsters are only stories for most peasants (in Anuire
or Brechtur that is, in Khinasi, Vos and Rjurik awnsheighlien and their
monstrous servants are more common), but many of them are first-hand
stories, which leads to the fact that they are very tangible. I think
the average peasant would fear the Gorgon or the Spider much more then
in RL the average French peasant feared the Germans or the English.

Of these especially fact 1 and 2 would create a huge difference.
Afterall, in RL medieval times people believed in monsters and magic.
One cure disease/day might not have prevented the black plague, but
would most definately have lessened the effect a lot and I doubt Healyn
or Nesirie would stop a priest from mass casting these spells or punish
them for not asking money. It would most certainly reduce child and
mother death in the noble families by a huge factor. In fact, priest
power might have been even larger then in RL.

I think, that direct comparisons might be a guide line, but should never
be seen as a strict rule. NATO-like alliances might seem unlikely, but
what if those nations have no controll over their wizards and by pulling
resources they can do such a thing? Determining society of Cerilie would
be as much a historians task as a scientist specialized in the behaviour
of humans (don't know the English term).

Pieter SleijpenTo unsubscribe from this list send mail to majordomo@lists.imagiconline.com
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