Scott Beattie Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 The status of religion in the TtB/Malifaux world is pretty ambiguous, which I'm guessing is a deliberate design decision. While there are witch-hunters they don't seem particularly religious and, unlike the real world, there are actually dangerous spellcasters around not just a bunch of pagans and elderly women to persecute. I think Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is an interesting example of a world where magic is real and the church seems to co-exist with it - maybe not happily but in a way that is different to actual history. I'm interested to see how other FM's are dealing with religions and churches... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Druso Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 The Guild tends to allow all the stuff unless that hurt their politics so as long as there are not problems o stealing their money (like Ressers and Arcanist do stealing soulstones profit) the will not have problems. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solkan Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 48 minutes ago, Scott Beattie said: The status of religion in the TtB/Malifaux world is pretty ambiguous, which I'm guessing is a deliberate design decision. While there are witch-hunters they don't seem particularly religious and, unlike the real world, there are actually dangerous spellcasters around not just a bunch of pagans and elderly women to persecute. Are you aware of the Guild's use of the term "witch" to mean an unsanctioned or unauthorized user of magic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Beattie Posted February 5, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 Yes, more 'criminal' than 'heretic'. And to be fair to the fascists, with Soulstones being a thing, there are going to be a few despicable sorcerers around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Beattie Posted February 5, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 1 hour ago, Druso said: The Guild tends to allow all the stuff unless that hurt their politics so as long as there are not problems o stealing their money (like Ressers and Arcanist do stealing soulstones profit) the will not have problems. The corporate version of the humanist dream of the enlightenment gone sour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solkan Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 25 minutes ago, Scott Beattie said: Yes, more 'criminal' than 'heretic'. And to be fair to the fascists, with Soulstones being a thing, there are going to be a few despicable sorcerers around. No, I think you're missing the point. The Guild witch hunters have everything to do with enforcing the Guild control of magic, and nothing at all to do with religion. That's why they "don't seem particularly religious"--they're not. Witch hunters are a tool used by the Guild to enforce the Guild control of magic. And in the current setting, it's been 90 years or more since the Guild won the Black Powder Wars. Do you think the Guild is going to put up with freelancers or outsiders trying to interfere with that? No, they're not, so any other use of the term is going to be, at best, a quaint anachronism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeeblee Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 The only religious bit I've seen in Malifaux is the Exorcist, and they work "for" the Death Marshalls. The Guild seems to be seculor, but doesn't mind religious folk as long as their goals line up with Guild business. Witch Hunters just flag anyone with unregistered/sanctioned abilities regardless of faith. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 *floats past in a balloon* Exorcists are described in more detail in the upcoming Under Quarantine book...! They have an Advanced Pursuit and everything! *floats away* 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Druso Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 Exorcist their own Advanced Pursuit? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6MlaIe1ljs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason Posted February 5, 2016 Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 23 minutes ago, Druso said: Exorcist their own Advanced Pursuit? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6MlaIe1ljs Aaron demanded that we have an Advanced Pursuit that was good at killing undead in the book about undead. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Beattie Posted February 5, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2016 7 hours ago, solkan said: No, I think you're missing the point. The Guild witch hunters have everything to do with enforcing the Guild control of magic, and nothing at all to do with religion. That's why they "don't seem particularly religious"--they're not. Witch hunters are a tool used by the Guild to enforce the Guild control of magic. And in the current setting, it's been 90 years or more since the Guild won the Black Powder Wars. Do you think the Guild is going to put up with freelancers or outsiders trying to interfere with that? No, they're not, so any other use of the term is going to be, at best, a quaint anachronism. I'm not arguing the Guild are religious, just that the terminology and iconography that they use is one of the few traces of religious imagery in the rulebooks. As powerful as the Guild is, I doubt that religion or churches are just going to vanish from the world. If they have, there is going to be an interesting story in that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solkan Posted February 6, 2016 Report Share Posted February 6, 2016 3 hours ago, Scott Beattie said: I'm not arguing the Guild are religious, just that the terminology and iconography that they use is one of the few traces of religious imagery in the rulebooks. As powerful as the Guild is, I doubt that religion or churches are just going to vanish from the world. If they have, there is going to be an interesting story in that. Once upon a time, the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church was that the earth was at the center of the universe. Then Copernicus published a dissenting paper. The Roman Catholic Church still exists and religion didn't vanish from the world because it was forced by circumstances to adapt its doctrine. That's not to even bring up all of the other religions in the world who don't have a notion of witches or witchcraft. Or to bring up the multitude of non-Catholic Christians, because they don't have their own city in Europe. Edit: Or, back to the point, the existence of a purely secular definition of witch and witch hunter, that being "Exactly what the Guild says it is", doesn't have anything to do with removing religion or religious beliefs from anything. It means that the previous definition, the one with religious connotations, is archaic (as far as the setting is concerned), and that the use of the word with the archaic religious overtones would be anachronistic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeperColony Posted February 8, 2016 Report Share Posted February 8, 2016 In a world where magic has always been real, is coming back from the dead so miraculous? Because so little has been printed about Earth in the Malifaux universe, we are forced to assume that it is more or less analogous to our own reality in those ways that are not otherwise elaborated upon. So I think it makes sense to assume that the world's major religions all exist in Malifaux, that the major political or ideological movements have at least some proponents (witches unite, you have nothing to lose but your chains!) and that most prevailing social and culture conventions persist. But I personally think that given the profound implications of magic, we could definitely benefit from a book that focused solely on what Earth is like. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.