The Dresden Files > DFRPG
Comments thread for "The Laws of Magic: Part 4 of 8"
iago:
--- Quote from: mikeryan on June 30, 2007, 03:12:21 PM ---Someone mentioned that knowing a True Name is required for a transmission (again going by WN). But that isn't really a defense for non-Wizards. Regular folk aren't that protective of their Names. You could pick up a bunch without really trying.
--- End quote ---
I don't know about the "without really trying". Learning how someone *else* says a name, precisely, isn't exactly easy. The one guy we've seen do it with casual ease in the books was Mister Ferro -- Ferrovax, one of the very few True Dragons in the world. And he did it with a fragment. Getting someone's *full* name, spoken from their lips, pronounced accurately, with every nuance correct -- that, to me, isn't something any human could pick up "without really trying". IMO. :)
hollow49:
--- Quote from: iago on June 30, 2007, 03:38:57 PM ---I don't know about the "without really trying". Learning how someone *else* says a name, precisely, isn't exactly easy. The one guy we've seen do it with casual ease in the books was Mister Ferro -- Ferrovax, one of the very few True Dragons in the world. And he did it with a fragment. Getting someone's *full* name, spoken from their lips, pronounced accurately, with every nuance correct -- that, to me, isn't something any human could pick up "without really trying". IMO. :)
--- End quote ---
Mind you, a trained wizard probably learns to memorize any name he hears, and if someone without any middle names introduces themselves formally - they've given him the key to their psyche - as it stands now. (Of course, mortals having free will, their true names do gradually change along with their nature - the Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden of WN is not the same person as the young boy adopted by Justin DuMorne, and his pronunciation of his Name has changed subtly as well. Harry has gone into detail about this before, but in WN shows how he can make adjustments to the name to allow for such changes to get it to work. Whether he could do the same without some idea as to what the other had experienced over the years since the Name was given, is another matter.)
Out of interest, how common is it now for people to have no middle name or (in some parts of the world) go by both first names, and so be unprotected? At work we use our initials for logins, but about 1 in 10 of us is stuck with X or Q as a dummy middle initial instead. Is this a modern trend, and is it more or less common in the US than here in the UK? (OTOH, my father's side of the family runs to multiple middle names - my dad has 5 names, my uncle 4 and my new nephew has 4 as well.)
mikeryan:
--- Quote from: iago on June 30, 2007, 03:38:57 PM ---I don't know about the "without really trying". Learning how someone *else* says a name, precisely, isn't exactly easy. The one guy we've seen do it with casual ease in the books was Mister Ferro -- Ferrovax, one of the very few True Dragons in the world. And he did it with a fragment. Getting someone's *full* name, spoken from their lips, pronounced accurately, with every nuance correct -- that, to me, isn't something any human could pick up "without really trying". IMO. :)
--- End quote ---
I think this is another one of those matters of interpretation things again. I'm focussed on the first chapter of Storm Front. Monica doesn't want to give Harry her name because she's afraid he can use it against her. He admits she has a point. So it can't be too terribly hard to pick up names.
If someone isn't on guard against wizards (because that's just make believe), they'll give up their name without thinking. Hang out in a church or other semi-formal gathering and introduce yourself formally ("Hi, I'm Mike Ryan.") and people will respond in kind. And if you're paranoid about giving up your own name, use an alias ("My name is Guy Incognito") on the assumption that your victims won't be.
If you want to go to silly extremes, an evil wizard could pose as a census taker or hang out in a court of law, listening to people state their full names for the record.
The question is how much damage can an evil wizard do to someone without all their middle names? I figure if it's a wizard like Harry, not too much. But against John Q. Public who doesn't even believe in all that mumbo jumbo, probably a heck of a lot.
NevynK:
--- Quote from: hollow49 on June 29, 2007, 05:11:20 PM --- (click to show/hide)When Harry sent a mental message to Elaine, he needed to use her True Name.
--- End quote ---
No he used her true name to snap her outta the funk she was in cause
(click to show/hide)of the white court vamp that was trying to kill her
the rest of the time they simply willed and viola insta comlink short range though.
--- Quote from: iago on June 30, 2007, 03:38:57 PM ---I don't know about the "without really trying". Learning how someone *else* says a name, precisely, isn't exactly easy. The one guy we've seen do it with casual ease in the books was Mister Ferro -- Ferrovax, one of the very few True Dragons in the world. And he did it with a fragment. Getting someone's *full* name, spoken from their lips, pronounced accurately, with every nuance correct -- that, to me, isn't something any human could pick up "without really trying". IMO. :)
--- End quote ---
Hmm maybe its just cause I'm polylingual but names are pretty easy,say it wrong on purpose a couple of times and you'll have more than enough to go on as people tend to repeat their name tow to three times before they say yeah sure thats it.The only names I have trouble pronouncing are middle eastern names. Too many syllables too close together. But anyways a even a linguistically challenged human could gather plenty of true names even just with a mini recorder and hand them off to a wizard.
mikeryan:
--- Quote from: NevynK on July 04, 2007, 04:54:59 AM ---No he used her true name to snap her outta the funk she was in cause
the rest of the time they simply willed and viola insta comlink short range though.
--- End quote ---
Good point.
Thinking about this some more, I figure it can be spun in one of two ways.
WN Spoilers
(click to show/hide)
1. It seemed to me that Harry didn't cast a spell to create the link when he wanted to talk to Elaine. He just called on a pre-existing link. Perhaps they both needed to be actively participating in order to create such a link in the first place. Once the link was built, either could initiate contact. Since they are each voluntarily giving the other the key to their brain, it could be argued that it is not an "invasion". This line of reasoning could lead to comm-links between PCs, as well as using volunteers to practice mental defense (as discussed earlier in the thread).
Alternatively,
2. The link was created when Harry and Elaine were studying under Justin. It is entirely possible that he suggested the idea of the link (either subtly or overtly), maybe even helping out in construction, in order to draw them into working with Black Magic.
It really boils down to deciding if we (as individual GMs) think it is more fun to allow telepathic communication between PCs, or to discourage such communication.
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