Coldeven 4: Regarding Asilky and the Gods (Day 2 Watch)
Still having trouble sleeping. It doesn't help that we didn't do anything for most of the day. After Asilky called upon the "powers of Boril" to partially heal Lo-Kag and Eaora, I was all for pressing on, but Lo-Kag had serious reservations about facing more danger while Asilky couldn't heal, and since he brought up stopping to rest every time we found a room that was half-way defensible, eventually he got his way and we made camp. So, after sleeping fitfully for 8 hours or so, taking a 2 hour watch, and exploring for perhaps 2 hours, I had about 12 hours to sit around in camp and find things to do.
I'm positive that a saint couldn't find 12 hours of productive activity in this empty room, and I'm no saint. I checked and cleaned my gear, played some more cards with Lo-Kag, sparred a bit with Asilky, and wrote (and doodled) in my Journal. At the end of it, totally bored and wondering how much time I still had to fill, I asked Asilky (who, being a dwarf, has much better sense of the passage of time underground) how much time remained until we slept, and he said "About 7 hours".
I'll confess, I got a little resentful of the fact that he couldn't cast any more healing spells at that point. He, of course, reminded me (as usual) that the healing doesn't come from any magic of his own, but rather from the "grace of Boril". But that got me thinking: Where does the limit on his healing ability come from?
Asilky isn't tired. To be fair, he looks as bored as I feel, but he's his usual cocky self, and I mean that in the best possible way.
Matrim's Courage Maxim: Don't Underestimate Cocky.
Anyway, Asilky's not tired. And, according to him, the magic that healed Lo-Kag and Eaora didn't even come from him, but from his god. So why can't he get more? I mean, the god isn't tired, right? Asilky is doing what the god wants, or he wouldn't get his spells every morning. (Clerics are the ultimate victims of Spike's Tool Paradox) So why can't he just kneel down and pray and get a few more healing spells so he can continue doing whatever the hells it is that he's supposed to be doing?
I can't come up with any explanations I'd care to say aloud in front of a cleric, that's for damn sure. But I'll jot them down here so I can think about them some more.
I'm positive that a saint couldn't find 12 hours of productive activity in this empty room, and I'm no saint. I checked and cleaned my gear, played some more cards with Lo-Kag, sparred a bit with Asilky, and wrote (and doodled) in my Journal. At the end of it, totally bored and wondering how much time I still had to fill, I asked Asilky (who, being a dwarf, has much better sense of the passage of time underground) how much time remained until we slept, and he said "About 7 hours".
I'll confess, I got a little resentful of the fact that he couldn't cast any more healing spells at that point. He, of course, reminded me (as usual) that the healing doesn't come from any magic of his own, but rather from the "grace of Boril". But that got me thinking: Where does the limit on his healing ability come from?
Asilky isn't tired. To be fair, he looks as bored as I feel, but he's his usual cocky self, and I mean that in the best possible way.
Matrim's Courage Maxim: Don't Underestimate Cocky.
I used to know a paladin. He was old, and maybe that's why I could tolerate him. Most paladins seem like sanctimonious pricks, and definitely have an air of "better than thou" which pisses me off. Anyway, Matrim wasn't like that. He'd pretty much done with adventuring, his knees were locking up with age, and his "holy missions" mostly centered around handing out advice to those younger and stronger than himself when I met him. Anyway, we had a few long chats over beer, and I was talking about someone I didn't like, and called the guy a "cocky bastard". Matrim says, "Don't underestimate cocky, son. Cocky's what keeps you going when real courage won't serve." Surprisingly smart guy for someone who let himself be sucked into some damn idealistic crusade. Asilky reminds me of him a little.
Anyway, Asilky's not tired. And, according to him, the magic that healed Lo-Kag and Eaora didn't even come from him, but from his god. So why can't he get more? I mean, the god isn't tired, right? Asilky is doing what the god wants, or he wouldn't get his spells every morning. (Clerics are the ultimate victims of Spike's Tool Paradox) So why can't he just kneel down and pray and get a few more healing spells so he can continue doing whatever the hells it is that he's supposed to be doing?
I can't come up with any explanations I'd care to say aloud in front of a cleric, that's for damn sure. But I'll jot them down here so I can think about them some more.
- The gods do get tired.
- The gods don't really care about their followers
- The gods won't because of some obscure moral principle.
- It's a stupid arbitrary rule.
written by Spike
I'm beginning to wonder how old this place is. I've found more papers, many of them ancient and stained. I've decided to bind them all into my journal, even though I cannot understand many of them. But when I leave here, I think I might be able to sell them to some fool scholar with more coin than sense.
In addition, K has been telling stories to pass the time. He's got a funny way of storytelling, probably because his people don't write.
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