Quote:
Originally Posted by Farling
On the whole, I see all of this (from a GM point of view) as applying modern-day technology/knowledge to medieval/magical situations.
|
I have to agree with Farling here. I see this thing as Meta/Power-gaming and personally as a GM running a PFS game, within their structure I would simply rule that your character cannot make the leap to Scientific Theory in order to fathom the mechanism. In other words, he can't figure it out. His magical/medieval brain can't wrap itself around the mechanics. Aztecs had wheels on children's toys but never invented carts. If you had asked them about carts, they wouldn't have got it. Their brains were simply not geared to think about carts in an environment where carts wouldn't have been very functional.
My point is, it takes a Eureka moment to leap from one level of science to another and that happens once in a lifetime to one, maybe 2 people, who push the bounds of science forward. Without outside stimulus there is no incentive towards innovation. It is highly unlikely that anyone would make the scientific leap from spring to spring-loaded on such a small scale.
Basically it falls under the category of just because you can think of it, doesn't mean your character can. Afterall, you are, by definition a nerd, who plays RPGs, chances are you are smarter than the average bear, and usually characters are not. I mean afterall, what is your character's intelligence? Can they even fathom the depth it would take? What is their Wisdom? Can they conceptualize and imagine it? How about Charisma? Are they capable of successfully conveying their concept to a smith who doesn't probably have their intelligence and wisdom?
Ultimately, when it is steam engine time, you steam engine. Until steam engine time, and thing that looks like a steam engine is magic under Clark's Law.
Arthur C Clark's Law: Any technology, suitably advanced, is indistinguishable from magic.
What I am saying is; Your character lives in a magical world with wizards, demons, dragons, and the like, you'd have a better chance of convincing your GM of a magic garrote that blinds your opponent as you strangle him.
Folklore is chalked full of magic shrinking neckwear, think magic!
>>tosses 2 cp on the table, shrugs and sits back down