Example:
If the Darokin Ambassador in Karameikos had to get a message back to Darokin, that the Duke had rejected their most recent trade proposal, how would that message get back there? I've always assumed it would be by courier, but have any of you done something different? What could be available magically, and perhaps as a service in a large city?
--So am I right that this forum is not searchable? There has been so much good discussion over the years, I'm sure a similar topic would have been covered in the netherworld of the forum.
But also pigeons. Pigeons are exeptionally useful for sea messages, from ship to port. That's why in my Mystara pigeons are breaded by Minrothad, Vilaverde, Slagovich, Hojah and Texeiras. But also others, of course!
Magic is useful o bring a message. In my Mystara it is expecially used in Alphatia, Alfheim, Glantri and old Nithia.
(One of the coolest magic items in the BECMI rules sets, IMO, and one that I'm surprised has never popped up in AD&D or 3E, especially given the message and whispering winds spells in those rules sets.)
Also, the Master of Hule uses those Mirrors of Sending (I think that was the name of them).
We've already established that most rulers have a magist and are supplied with such necessities as amulets vs ESP or potions of ESP. Scrolls of Communication would fit right in there as extremely useful utility items in a high magic world like Mystara.
More magically inclined societies and the most powerful states, have access to magical communication. So in some instances Thyatians, even Darokinians, can communicate instantly.
There are some common systems:
- Small animals as message carriers that are sent to a predetermined location by Teleport spell (no Teleport object or without error in OD&D!)
- For example agents write messages on a paper/parchment in a predetermined place and time, and the central command reads them using a Crystal Ball
There would of course be some unique/rare instances of faultless teleport platforms or "telephone" mirrors, but each of them has to be built from scratch and they are hard to duplicate.
I allowed my PCs to build a "telephone" network in their distant dominions, but each device required a powerful reagent from their early adventures - each must have something to do with communication and transport. The mage had been gathering these for years.
Check out something called the Criers Guild at the Vault (a Mystaran CNN :D )
I imagine that it would be more cost-efficient over time to have mages produce a handful of Helmets of Teleportation to specially appointed diplomats of the DDC than to have to disturb an important local wizard every time an urgent message has to be delivered...?
By the way, this thread made me think about other magical items that rulers and powers-that-be could commission for use by their trusted servants. For example:
A bag of holding for the tax collector! Could be built into the stomach of a huge Iron Golem in a way that the golem swallows the collected treasure and only allows its master and creator to retrieve it later at home. Would make it kind of hard to steal the king's taxes!!
:evillaugh :-) Jesper
(oops! I just noticed that Twin Campaign had my same idea about crystal spheres. Sorry :P)
And don't forget Gate spells...
;)
A bag of holding for the tax collector! Could be built into the stomach of a huge Iron Golem in a way that the golem swallows the collected treasure and only allows its master and creator to retrieve it later at home. Would make it kind of hard to steal the king's taxes!!
Consider that excellent idea stolen
(oops! I just noticed that Twin Campaign had my same idea about crystal spheres. Sorry :P)
;)
And it seems that I also discovered a blind spot in myself. I've been GMing OD&D for nearly 20 years now, and it seems I never properly read the description of Teleport Any Object! I've never noticed that it also allows transportation of the caster him/herself - and without error. For some reason I've always missed this.
Well, you live and learn... I guess I should look at the rulebook from time to time.
So for useful items, there are crystal balls and the scrolls of communication. I like the crystal ball idea; countries with networks of agents (ambassadors, for instance) could have apprentices to the court mage or wizard be required to "check messages" on a weekly schedule. The ambassadors could have special chests, for example, that the apprentices are familiar with, and near the scheduled time, messages are placed in the open chest for remote viewing. This seems more 'cost efficient' as a single crystal ball / apprentice could maintain a pretty large network of communications (one-way albeit...) One of the PC's in the game spends time at the Magician's Guild in Specularum under Teldon, perhaps one of her responsibilities when she is in training is 'scrying duty' and this could be used to help launch a storyline when a key piece of information is retrieved.
The scrolls make a good solution for more secure communication in a back-and-forth manner; when available, they make a good choice for a ruler to give them to someone in a critical position requiring much contact - like a general in the field.
I like the Teleport Any Object method to send messages from a court wizard out to a critical diplomat; once again the use of chests that the wizard is familiar with could facilitate dropping an object right into the chest.
Finally, I'm going to go with courier birds for countries that don't have a lot of sophisticated magic. And countries that have strong clerical traditions would take advantage of speak with animals in conjunction with trained animals. I think it'd be cool to have the Heldannic Knights, or even the Ethangarians, communicate remotely via trained falcons and hawks (and it introduces a whole new world of communications-intelligence, training birds of prey to attack the messengers of the enemy).
So for useful items, there are crystal balls and the scrolls of communication.
As a side note, you might consider that some of these devices and spells may be countered by other magics -- e.g., someone mentioned recently that the main cities in the Known World are shielded against teleportation.
It could be possible to shield against communication as well, or even better to intercept communications to/from specific areas.
Much like the RW, there might be (at least among "advanced" nations) a spy-war going on, with magic-users taking the place of WWII crypto-analysts.
The invisible stalker is restless and inherently invisible (and not so weak, also), so it should be a lot safer method of communication compared to birds and other messengers.
I don't know if the invisible stalker can speak or understand the common language, but maybe it could be possible to have him write some very simple memorized words.
Another nice method may be communicating with fire signals (remember the Lord of the Rings "fast communication system" between Rohan and Gondor?) using some fire elemental creature instead of a common fire. Once you have a being who can change its body shape at will you may induce him to form letters or pictures, or other conventional signs...
I was thinking about another way to send verbal messages: what about summoning an Invisible Stalker forcing him to seek its "victim" but leaving him a message instead of killing him?
The invisible stalker is restless and inherently invisible (and not so weak, also), so it should be a lot safer method of communication compared to birds and other messengers.
I don't know if the invisible stalker can speak or understand the common language, but maybe it could be possible to have him write some very simple memorized words.
Or another spell could be used to attach a "magic mouth"-like effect to the Stalker. Other summoned creatures can also work.
Another nice method may be communicating with fire signals (remember the Lord of the Rings "fast communication system" between Rohan and Gondor?) using some fire elemental creature instead of a common fire. Once you have a being who can change its body shape at will you may induce him to form letters or pictures, or other conventional signs...
Too easily spotted by unwanted viewers, IMO, though it could be used to quickly spread calls for arms and other messages for the general public.
Curiously enough, he mentions using those teleport pads in Alphatia- for a story I was going to write some time ago, I had a zzonga smuggling ring using teleportation circles to move their product around the nation.
Too easily spotted by unwanted viewers, IMO, though it could be used to quickly spread calls for arms and other messages for the general public.
Not if you encrypt the message with some kind of code. :D
Take a fire elemental, for example. He may turn its shape from a bonfire to a column of fire. You may write your personal alphabet building the equivalent of Morse code. A signal on the top of a hill may be something like this:
fire-column-column-fire-column-fire-....
The receiver may easily decipher it, given he has the correct key.
:P
You may write your personal alphabet building the equivalent of Morse code. A signal on the top of a hill may be something like this:
Not that safe. Divination magic may help in guessing the key -- and using a simple Morse-like code would require no magic at all to break.
Even really secure cryptography (one-time random generated pads, for example) would be easily broken by a clairvoyant mage, so magic would still be needed to protect the key.