Moral power sources OTHER than Good/Evil, Order/Chaos?

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by hari

I think I might actually have an original one. I skimmed everything else and didn't see it anyways, but still, correct me if I'm wrong. That would be Fate vs. Free Will. What's everyone think about it?

That's excellent. Adherence to the idea that there's one "correct" future containing a correct place in the world for everyone and everyone must accept that and not rebel versus the apostles of self-determination. Of course in the end, isn't that a form of Order and Chaos?

[Vaevictis Asmadi]

Originally Posted by Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2

How about "Deism" (the concept that everything is God)

I thought that was pantheism?

[Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2]

Originally Posted by Vaevictis Asmadi

I thought that was pantheism?

Sorry - my Religious History course was over 20 years ago.

[Verjigorm]

I would just like to say...I hate you all. I skimmed this thread last-night, before headign to Wikipedia and preceding to look into Manichaesim, Zorasterism, Ismailism, Sufism, Abrhamic religions in particular, and my favorite: hypostases. So I stayedu p two hours later than I wanted to, because you guys put a hair up my butt to go read about religion. Thanks, Guys. :)

[Lord Carnifex]

Originally Posted by Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2

How about "Deism" (the concept that everything is God) vs "Nihilism" (the concept that the universe should be wiped out)?

A gentle correction, if you don't mind. As these terms are typically used and defined, 'deism' is a belief that the divine exists and created the known world, but does not interfere with the operations of that world since its creation. Most deists believe that morality emerges from human's ability to reason about their place in the world.

'pantheism' is a belief that "everthing that is, is God". It's the belief that the divine participates somehow in all living things (or in all things living or non living) or that the sum total of everything is the divine. Pantheisitic morality tends to center on the idea that any harm done to another is essentially harm done to the divine.

I suppose one could be a pantheistic deist, if one chose :-)

[martinl]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Sure they are. But is that relevant?

Spock does supernatural stuff (telepathy, precog, that nerve pinch thingy) with "logic" as a moral power source.

[Landwalker]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

Sure they are. But is that relevant? The subject was Moral power sources. As in the stuff which gives you -20% off the cost of your woo-woo powers. In order to work as a Moral Power Source it has to be attached (in pact-like fashion) to a 15 point disadvantage (Fanaticism works, but so does Sadism or Sense of Duty) and have an opposing power. And you actually have to have advantages to be discounted.

Just because something hasn't traditionally been considered a supernatural power source doesn't mean it's incapable of being so. If the GM wants "Rationalism" to be such a powerful force that some abstract/supernatural ideal of "Rationalism" is capable of conferring power to noteworthy adherents, there's no reason that it can't do so -- it wouldn't be any different than "Nature" granting such powers, or "Good", "Evil", "Law", or "Chaos." The same goes for "Technology vs. Magic" or "Science vs. Magic" -- if the GM decides that there is a universal "force of science" and a universal "force of magic" that happen to be diametrically opposed and are powerful enough in their world to supernaturally impact its inhabitants, then bam: there they are.

Cheers.

[capnq]

Originally Posted by David Johnston2

"Rationality" on the other hand doesn't make a bad Moral power source except...what supernatural powers would you get from it?

Neutralization/nullification/countermeasures such as Neutralize and Static.

"I disbelieve the illusion."

Grey Murphy in Piers Anthony's Xanth novel Man from Mundania.

Dibunquer the Skeptic in Bruno the Bandit.

[Refplace]

Dharma vs. Adharma
Ma'at vs. Injustice?

[Vaevictis Asmadi]

I like those two.


The opposite of Ma'et was called Isfet in Ancient Egyptian.