On Books and Teleporting/Portals.

[aroes]

So the issue came up of where exactly one can teleport to/from, so I just have a few questions.

The way I understand it the more familiar with a place the mage is the more likely he or she is going to land in the intended spot from a teleport. For example if I am teleporting home after a long day of maging it up, the odds that I'll land in next door's bathtub is somewhat unlikely. If I try to teleport to Orgimmar from looking on a map though or a vague knowledge of the area...said mage could end up in the side of a mountain.

So basically.

1. Are the only IC teleports that are recognized the ones to cities?

2. Is this book considered IC? http://www.wowpedia.org/Thinking_with_Po ... rtal_Usage

3. Would creating a portal to anywhere besides what is in the book be punishable by death under kirin tor law?

I personally do not think so, but I'd love to hear what you all think.

[Jason]

1. Are the only IC teleports that are recognized the ones to cities?

A regular mage can teleport themselves only to anywhere they can easily recall. They would have had to have been there, and probably for some time.

2. Is this book considered IC? http://www.wowpedia.org/Thinking_with_Po ... rtal_Usage

As it is, all books are IC. If you find it in game, it will be IC. I can't fathom why it wouldn't be.

3. Would creating a portal to anywhere besides what is in the book be punishable by death under kirin tor law?

It is. As stated in the IC book. I know much OOC knowledge is drawn from books within the WoW world, or otherwise the novels presented by quests or novels on the Warcraft universe.

[aroes]

I really don't get the part about that book, I think it was created as a joke by blizzard as that book replaces the spawn of one of thes 7 or so books one must read in dalaran for an achievement.

[Jason]

All of the books are accurate pertaining to Lore. That's really all that needs to be said.

[Kaghuros]

I think, from the comment about ley lines needing to be rebuilt (As per highways in real life), that this is a joke. However, I would also say that there are interesting things to think about in what it puts out. For instance: There is a component of the spell that keeps water from passing through. Different magical spells react violently together. The Kirin Tor has convoluted and strict rules about the use of some kinds of magic by wizards it certifies and trains (Which shows why people want to study abroad or become a Warlock for less restraint).

Blizzard loves it some comedy, and I enjoy that greatly. I don't think the Kirin Tor is going to send a death squad after a guy for making a portal somewhere strange. Neither do they set up road crews to dig up and maintain ley lines.

[Piroska]

Like Kaghuros, I'm of the opinion that the book is a bit of a joke; it's obviously a reference to the game Portal.

So, to better answer your question, Aroes, I do what I always do when I want to find more information about the Warcraft universe -- turn to my handy-dandy roleplaying guides!

Teleport
Level: Mage 5
Casting Time: 1 standard action (ie, less than six seconds)
Range: Person and touch
Target: You and touched objects or other touched willing creatures
Duration: Instantaneous

This spell instantly transports you to a designated destination, which may be as distance as 100 miles per caster level. Interplanar travel is not possible. You can bring along objects as long as their weight does not exceed your maximum load. You may also bring one additional willing Medium or smaller creature (carrying gear or objects up to its maximum load) or its equivalent per 3 caster levels. [...] All creatures to be transported must be in contact with one another, and at leasrt one of those creatures must be in contact with you.

You must have some clear idea of the location and layout of the destination. The clearer your mental image, the more likely the teleporation works. Areas of strong physical or magical energy make teleportation more hazardous or even impossible.

[...]

Familiarity: "Very familiar" is a place where you have been often and where you feel at home. "Studied carefully" is a place you know well, either because you can currently see it, you have been there often, or you have used other means (such as scrying) to study the place for at least 1 hour. "Seen casually" is a place that you have seen more than once but with which you are not familiar. "Viewed once" is a place that you have seen once, possibly using magic,

On Target: You appear where you want to be.

Off Target: You appear safely a random distance away fromt he destination in a random direction. [...]

Similar Area: You wind up in an area that is visually or thematically similar to the target area. Generally, you appear in the closest similar place within range. If no such area exists within the spell's range, the spell simply fails instead.

Mishap: You and anyone else teleporting with you have gotten "scrambled." You [...] reroll on the chart to see where you wind up.

The table is as follows:

[table=tablebg table1][tbody][tr=bg1][td=1,]Familiarity[/td][td=1,]On Target[/td][td=1,]Off Target[/td][td=1,]Similar Area[/td][td=1,]Mishap[/td][/tr]

[tr=bg2][td=1,]Very familiar[/td][td=1,]01-97[/td][td=1,]98-99[/td][td=1,]100[/td][td=1,]--[/td][/tr]

[tr=bg3][td=1,]Studied carefully[/td][td=1,]01-94[/td][td=1,]95-97[/td][td=1,]98-99[/td][td=1,]100[/td][/tr]

[tr=bg3][td=1,]Seen casually[/td][td=1,]01-88[/td][td=1,]89-94[/td][td=1,]95-98[/td][td=1,]99-100[/td][/tr]

[tr=bg4][td=1,]Viewed once[/td][td=1,]01-76[/td][td=1,]77-88[/td][td=1,]89-96[/td][td=1,]97-100[/td][/tr][/tbody][/table]

While familiarity with the location is beneficial, you can see that even if you've seen the location once you still have a fairly high chance of being able to arrive safely and without mishap. Nor, by the roleplaying game's conventions, are you likely to end up in the middle of a mountain; you teleport to a similar place in range. If one doesn't exist, the spell fizzles and the mage is left looking fairly silly.

Two notes, however! One, a level five mage is a fairly high leveled mage. World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game caps a character's progression in a particular area at nine levels; once reaching that point, there really isn't anything left to learn! As a result, the spell would probably be best (and most logically) used by those with fairly extensive training and experience. You may want to keep that in mind when/if you apply this knowledge in-game. Remember what Grakor said earlier at the Meet and Greet: you may want to have a good reason explaining why your character possesses or knows how to use an ability.

Secondly, the roleplaying game should guide you, not restrict you! If you want to do something entirely different such as having a spell fail horribly with catastrophic results, go with it! In this situation, the potential for roleplay clearly trumps the guidelines established by the book and it doesn't substantially change the nature of the spell. I plan on doing something similar in a future event (teehee, Mi~ah!) and I have no qualms with deviating from this information.

Also, one last thing! While things that are displayed in game can (and probably should) be considered real, it's sometimes best to take everything with a grain of salt. So, for example, this book with which you are so concerned. Is everything stated in it correct? Oh, goodness, no! However, the author of the book clearly believes so. He might be wrong, but that didn't prevent him from writing it.

It's how I approach a number inconsistencies. The NPCs in game might say something that contradicts what we know is true; they might believe they're right, but they could very well be wrong. Or sharing their own opinions. Or relating something that they only tangentially know.

[aroes]

Once again Piro you have outdone yourself with the answer and I can't thank you enough for it. Thank you for clearing that up so quickly.