Edit: p. B235 says that a character can learn a spell as long as they have at least one point in each of its prerequisite spells. This is a change from GURPS Classic Magic p. 5 where the character had to have skill 12 in every prerequisite spell. This is important for the average mage who needs to invest serious effort to learn a spell at 12.
Quote:
Originally Posted by StevenH
What does the lord do with a mageborn who has an IQ of only 8? Do they spend the extra time needed to get them trained up, or do they assign them only the "easy" spells to learn?
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GURPS Banestorm takes the position that most mages just know a spell or two, while professional wizards are a minority (eg. there are two separate registrations in Trederoy) and that most mages have Magery 0.
I think that the first assumption is plausible and that people will be naturally sorted within their estate and that most people with IQ + Magery less than 10 will never get magical training beyond possibly putting a point or two in one spell that a neighbour knows. In real peasant societies which are not desperately poor, the clever child gets sent out to learn about herbs from his relatives, the nimble-fingered one gets taught embroidery, the slow-witted but strong one gets very good at harvesting grain and moving earth.
Just thinking of the average professional wizard as having IQ + Magery around 12 helps us get in the right mindset and not imagine that the average professional wizard is like a PC mage with IQ+Magery 17.
Because its a rural setting, its likely that most people have multiple skills and sources of income. A peasant who can just cast Light and Continual Light has a valuable skill (candles and oil are expensive!) but probably still tends his or her garden, especially in summer when there is not much demand for magic light.
The second assumption is more a "worldbuilding switch."