Tom’s tongue
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You kind of stretching the definition of human sacrifice. People offer sacrifice to propitiate or gain favor from a god or gods. Your examples, doesn’t really abide this. Even the Pharaoh’s treasures and utinsils because it is essentially owned by the Pharaohs. Slaves aren’t really valued that much at those time either. They are valued like horses or cows, they aren’t really considered much as ‘people’ those days.
Also, as I mentioned before. Human sacrifice is very rare. It might seem common because people just know very few religion. Many could say with some certaintity of knowledge about Christianity and Islam. Some others also are familiar of Judaism and ancient religion of the Greeks and Romans. Some might even recall Buddhism, Hinduism and Mormonism. Anime lovers would know Shinto. Then there are also those dead religions like those of the Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Mayans and Vikings which have some somehow survive as Comic Superheroes (like Thor) and Mythology. But then there are hundreds of tribal religions and other minor religions that are given a blanket name even though these religions are vastly different. Really, people have very limited knowledge about other people’s religions. You will be surprised at whats out there.
Well, several of the Central American groups did actually do human sacrifice.
Very typically it was warriors of the opposing tribe who were captured in battle and then had their hearts cut out in the temple.
Aztecs, Mayans and Zapotec.
I know this because I visited them at various points in time. The sacrificial life forces were enough to power a demon conjuring to get me there.
I loved wearing my great feathered headdress. For some reason though they thought I was rather anthro-serpentish…admittedly, I do have a rather extended torso but calling me a feathered serpent always seemed like a stretch.
I’d promised to come back and visit them, but the next time I had the opportunity, the Spanish had already arrived….
Again you are focusing on those that do human sacrifices but you doesn’t make a mention about those that don’t. This form a bias that makes it apear that human sacrifice is common when it is not. Very similar thing happens to plane crashes. Though it happen far less often than car crashes, media reporting which focuses more on plane crashes (because it is dramatic) make it appear that it happens often. People fear plane crashes while they gladly ride a car when they are more likely to die in the car than in the plane.
Hmmm. There is very little known about why Aztecs and Mayans do human sacrifices. Though I wonder why human sacrifice should power a demon conjuring. How does it work? Also, these sacrifices are for their Gods.
So I am guessing you aren’t getting the feathered serpent reference to myself?
Nor to the Spaniards arriving before I could return?
Aztecs, or the Mejico’s as I called them, for them it was pretty common. Mayans and Zapotec were known to do it…but not as much is known about them as the Aztecs where other tribes could rat them out to the Spaniards…and in fact they admitted to the Spaniards what they did.
I don’t think anyone ever said it was common in every religion…but some did it…there are some religions that practice eating their enemies for religious purposes…not a lot…but it did happen…
But I really don’t remember where this conversation started…
I’m really not getting your point now.
First, even if they do demon summoning, it is really doubtful that such acts are religious. Even if they use human sacrifices or virgin sacrifices it is surely not for religious purpose.
Second, there are many cultures that do eat their enemy’s flesh, a common practice of cannibalism. However, calling it a sacrifice might be stretching it even if it is done for religious purpose.
It started when Maou makes a comment about virgin sacrifices.
Its not clear if you mean my first point or my second point.
If the first point, well, if they do human sacrifice to summon demons, then it is not religious, evidently. Demons are (often) seen as enemies of gods so any offering to them is antireligious.
If the second, well, the practice you indicated isn’t cannibalism. Most don’t eat their enemies flesh as sacrifice to gods but to absorb their enemies strengths and powers.
Well…
No, what I’m saying is that they do it for religious purposes for their gods…according to the history books in your world.
It just so happens, they were not trying to summon me, but if I am out wandering and see something that looks like an invitation to a party…hey…I’ll take it!
And so I just showed up. I suppose not that unlike what happened to poor Verigas when Tom showed up.
Except this was on a low mana plane so they needed a human sacrifice to power the summons, I heard it/intercepted it and voila!
And as I mentioned, I was wearing my feathered head dress at the time, and with my long slinky body, they decided I was Queztlecuatl and so subsequently liked to summon me for parties…
Yes, but something always comes up and I’ve always escaped, diverted them.
I suppose someday I may not be so lucky.
Smody and Sammy really don’t like me. Lillith isn’t a big fan either.
If you had them miffed then you wouldn’t have been able to party.
Repeated offense also wouldn’t cool their heads.
Me?
I am the most honest demon in the Abyss!
Well, yes, they may have been a bit miffed, but they weren’t the first over inflated mana bags that have been annoyed with me.
If I had a silver penny for every time an all powerful individual wanted to wipe me off the multiverse—well, it’d be about the same because i’d have bought Denubian Choco-Coffee(TM) with it…money just runs through my fingers…and I’ve got a lot of fingers for it to run through!
I really suspect the truthfulness of your statements.
Not to mention you would have angered the Gods for appropriating the sacrifice.
[quote=Rosver;1506]Not to mention, poor people, they would have been receiving their god’s wrath because the sacrifices never reach their destination.[/quote]
It might explain why the Mayans suffered those nasty draughts that ultimately lead to their fall*. It certainly sounds like a demon that told them it would be a good idea to throw your sacrifices in your only water source during a draught. And I am sure the Atzecs (and all other native Americans at the time) consider the Europeans and the diseases they brought over to be one hack of a punishment.
* Yes, I am aware this is just one potential theory and there are other potential explanations 😉
(P.S. Why isn’t there a winky smiley?)
😉 That’s a good question. Hmmmmm
It should be addable…I know I can add emoticons…somehow…
I like your theories. I’m going to go ahead and approve them as fact.
Hmm, I don’t have a wikipedia account to publish them as fact…but I suppose I can get one.
That is after all, how facts are established.
“So let it be written in wikipedia, so let it be done” as the Pharaohs used to say.
This is completely unrelated, but is it possible to hack a wizards spell such that they are unaware of the manipulation. While their are likely some defenses their spells are quite automate and most wizards lack linkamancy, so I was curious to know.
That is one of the benefits of wizardry…no…not if they know the spell.
Obviously if they are trying to cast it ad hoc from a book and you altered the words of the spell in the book or changed the ingredient.
But to do so to redirect, would require a lot of planning forethought and knowledge. It is something that someone like Lenamare could probably do as part of a long range sneaky plan (see the discussion of how he got the Book coming in volume 2)
The closest thing to a real time hack is to disrupt the casting, similar to the C.o.D. incident. That’s not directed, just deadly.
Wizards actually know a very great deal about links, they just do it quite differently than say Tom or Maelen. you could in theory try to fool them by giving them a wrong true name…and thus retarget, but a good wizard would probably detect the spell wasn’t working…
OK, now we have said this I am rethinking. Technically, Tom hijacked the summons done by Verigas, that was a ritual which is very much like a spell. So yes, I expect that Tom could hijack a wizard summoning a different demon.
They key here is that Tom is supplying is own power and is actually following an intercepted link to another demon to locate the priest/wizard on the Planes of Man. He’s using the summoning spell as a homing device, and then using the flame and continued chanting like a rope to pull himself there and punch a hole in reality and open a gate.
You notice there are two distinct ways Tom (and other demons) travel. The “fading in and out”, and the “portal” approach. Tom uses the “portal approach” when demons are summoned the wizard is using the fading in and out approach. Same thing when a demon returns to the Abyss upon death in the PoM. They fade out.
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