Re: [HoE] Re: Templar Observation

["Steve Crow" <crow_steve@hotmail.com>]

>Jeez...
>
>While no doubt I'm not aware of all the details, it sounds to me like the 
>Templar
>stopped being a hero pretty early on in that adventure. I appreciate the 
>points
>about him role-playing his character according to his concept--but that 
>doesn't make
>him a hero.
>

Well, some might recall that was the point I touched on a while back.  Much 
of what Templars in general do don't make them "heroes."  I'm not really 
inclined to make them more "heroic" than they're portrayed in the various 
source materials.

>I'm with MG as to what a child could do to make a Templar decide she wasn't
>innocent--or at least guilty enough to kill. Also, the posts about the 
>Servitor
>being a "major" evil are also correct in my opinion.
>

Well, don't recall if I mentioned it, but the kid was a Syker (that extra 
mental energy was what the Servitor was drawing on).  So let's just say that 
what she was doing either defensively, or while being provoked by the 
Servitor, was a bit more extreme than throwing rocks.  :)

>I mean, if you follow the Templar's reasoning on his actions to the 
>extreme, but
>logical, conclusion, isn't the best way to defeat the Reckoners then to 
>just kill
>everybody on Earth? I'm sure he's not thinking that way, but most fanatics 
>start out
>with a fairly reasonable premise--then slowly everything warps to justify 
>"the
>cause." Granted Templars have a cause, but they are supposed to be 
>heroes--and there
>are at least a couple of examples of Templars who went too far in pursuit 
>of it and
>are now pawns of evil (e.g., Modeen and Aiken).
>

Don't know about killing everybody.  But in case, sacrificing one 
apparently-not-so-innocent girl to save a community of hundreds from a 
Servitor seems well within the guidelines of an organization that has Stern 
as one of their patron saints, and accept that some of their Templars do 
stuff that are going to get Stern's approval.

>Were it to have occured in my game, I'd not only deny the power--I don't 
>think
>sharing his meals with a bunch of heroes qualifies him as a part of the 
>"group that
>defeated the Servitor" in this case--I'd give him the mutation draw. 
>Personally--and
>I am heavy-handed--I don't do the card draw to see if the Reckoners 
>"noticed"; if
>it's bad enough to warrant a check, I give the old guys the benefit of the 
>doubt and
>move right to the mutate phase. ;-)
>

Well, it was a little more than sharing his meals.  He healed them after the 
battle (both sides of the group were reasonably mellow after-the-fact, 
despite the harsh words exchanged later), sucked up a ton of the Servitor's 
damage during the battle, etc.

I guess the problem is...well, the Templar SB doesn't present the Templars 
entirely as "heroes".  You could play a character who is more heroic (i.e., 
Ritter in "Something About a Sword").  Or you could play a character 
who...shall we say? tends more in attitude towards folks like Jo and St. 
Stern.  :)

But just to clarify, it never got _quite_ to the point where the Templar 
actually stepped aside and let the Servitor have his way.

>Now, I know that is contrary to the rules as written, but I'm one of the 
>first to
>say, "It's your game..." and guess what? It's my game too. ;-)
>

Couldn't agree more.

>I guess what I'm saying is in my opinion there are times when you have to 
>put the
>smack down. I think in this case the Servitor mutations are a good way to 
>do it.
>And, from the situation you described, there's no way in Hell I'd let him 
>have a
>greater reward.
>

Well, I suggested it, so I'm glad we're in agreement.  :) My only concern 
is...well, he didn't actually get around to doing it.  As such, it seems to 
me like the Greater Reward deprivation (but with the eventual chance to 
redeem himself) and the Night Terrors are better, because they're more 
accurate reflections of what the Saints and the Templar's own subconscious 
know were in his heart, rather than what he actually, physically did.  Does 
that make sense...?

>Just my two cents,
>
>John "Vengeful bastage" Goff
>
>
>
>
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---

Steve Crow

"Worm Can Opener Extraordinare"

Check out my website at:  http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/4991/

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