Using street children in ceremonial magic [Magic/Thaumatology]

[AlexanderHowl]

While street children are not useful for much in the labor market, they are sources of FP, meaning that street children could be hired for a fee to participate in ceremonial magic. They could easily provide 48 FP/day, meaning that they could earn $24/day at a rate of $0.5/FP, allowing them to support a Status-1 lifestyle with 15 days of work per month. As they would be able to support themselves in some small comfort, this would make them contributing members of society.

Have you ever had mages in your settings use street children as assistants in ceremonial magic? If so, how did it work out? If not, what is the reason for avoiding a potentially productive source of energy (especially since providing FP would be a lot better than the other forms of potential employment for many of them?

[Plane]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

what is the reason for avoiding a potentially productive source of energy (especially since providing FP would be a lot better than the other forms of potential employment for many of them?

I wonder if it's possible many might have an inborne fear of magic that might lead to occasionally oppose these ceremonies and cancel out 5 contributors?

[The Colonel]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

While street children are not useful for much in the labor market, they are sources of FP, meaning that street children could be hired for a fee to participate in ceremonial magic. They could easily provide 48 FP/day, meaning that they could earn $24/day at a rate of $0.5/FP, allowing them to support a Status-1 lifestyle with 15 days of work per month. As they would be able to support themselves in some small comfort, this would make them contributing members of society.

Have you ever had mages in your settings use street children as assistants in ceremonial magic? If so, how did it work out? If not, what is the reason for avoiding a potentially productive source of energy (especially since providing FP would be a lot better than the other forms of potential employment for many of them?

Heh, Lord Varys ... we have a call from Myr for you, shall we put him through? I seem to recall there was a bit in basic about using huge assemblies of people in ritual magic and it being ... tricky. Probably depends on how tricky it is to contribute FP to ceremonial magic - if it requires talent, literacy or concentration you may have problems. Granted the pay will be an important motivation, but based on experience, training volunteer modern kids with a decent education to take relatively simple roles in a show is hard enough in its own right.

Realistically, "street kids" are probably what ceremonial magic mooks are before they become temple acolytes, cultists or whatever... they then get filtered and trained. And probably washed somewhere along the way as well.

[Prince Charon]

Originally Posted by The Colonel

Realistically, "street kids" are probably what ceremonial magic mooks are before they become temple acolytes, cultists or whatever... they then get filtered and trained. And probably washed somewhere along the way as well.

Also, some of them are found to be mages, and a smaller number to be high-potential mages, and thus they become students and apprentices. Could be a useful backstory.

[transmetahuman]

Might be motivation for a mage, or mages, to sponsor one or more orphanages back in the Victorian/Dickensian days. Probably with an adult to keep them in line (and no doubt exploit the situation and the children somehow).

[David Johnston2]

I tend to assume that ceremonial magic assistants should have more than purely pecuniary motivations. Otherwise they'll just go through the motions.

[AlexanderHowl]

The assumptions behind the ceremonial functions of Agrarian Magic in Fantasy are purely pecuniary, as the livelihood of the peasants depend on the success of their crops. Anyway, children can be quite devoted to an idea when it is presented in the right fashion. If you have a street child who risked death, exploitation, and/or violation on a daily basis, they would likely be ferociously loyal to any organization who provided them with a safe place to sleep, three meals a day, and some spending money. As long as the organization did not put them under the supervision of a predator, they would likely be quite willing to chant for six hours a day, five days a week.

Of course, a fantasy society where street children provided a valuable service rather than serving as a pool of victims for perverts would likely be a much better society than what existed in our past. For ecample, if they were helping a mage with Shape Earth-15, they could easily move 600 cubic yards of hard earth in an hour (doing the equivalent work of 810 ST 10 men, 405 with picks and 405 with shovels). Since the men could be occupied with more productive pursuits, the children would not only be doing the work of eight men each, they would be improving the economy overall.

[Alden Loveshade]

Originally Posted by transmetahuman

Might be motivation for a mage, or mages, to sponsor one or more orphanages back in the Victorian/Dickensian days. Probably with an adult to keep them in line (and no doubt exploit the situation and the children somehow).

We do this at St. Bassard's School and Home for Disadvantaged Youth.

[Donny Brook]

Children who can support themselves at a Status -1 level are not street children.

[Gold & Appel Inc]

Originally Posted by Donny Brook

Children who can support themselves at a Status -1 level are not street children.

True story. I consider myself Status -1 with a small apartment and old vehicle.