Gaming Question Reduxious

[caraig]

So a pen-and-paper gaming question for anyone inclined.

In most RPGs, there's really no difference between 'secular' arcane magic and 'ecclesiastic' divine magic; the difference between the wizard and the cleric is really just the spell list and the cleric is better-armored. I'm trying to find a way to elegantly differentiate the two. Do any of y'all out there have favored ways of doing this, or favored systems, or just plain ideas?

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Re: Damn it, I forgot to log in. Above post is mine. (nt)

[caraig.livejournal.com]

Well, that's the explaination in the Forgotten Realms setting, which after playing on an NWN server for several years is admittedly very well thought-out and quite descriptive! =) I was just trying to move away from the DND paradigm on the system side of things -- are there game systems that make a clear delineation -- mechanics-wise, not just separae spell lists -- for secular and ecclesiastic spellcasters?

This might, of couse, be a loosing battle. Historically, 'secular' and 'ecclesiastic' magic has often been much tightly tied together than most people realize. Even the most secular of 'mages,' John Dee and Roger Bacon, both invoked angels in their magicks; John Dee's entire Enochian system is based on angelic intervention. So even in the 'real world' it's hard to separate secular from ecclesiastic magic.