Re: Traditions

> < In SJ you have to buy your helms
> from the Arcane so everyone who's actually in space does have a
> beginning common reference.>
> Wrong.  You can get them second hand from crashed ships, build your
> own, use alternatives to spelljamming helms (such as life jammers,
> Thri Kreen Crystal Thrones, or Furnace helms), use technojammers, or
> high powered magic to teleport and planeshift about.  Not everyone in
> space is neccesarily beginning from a common reference.

Bzzt.  Thank you for playing.  You've just failed.  Furnace Helms are
Arcane creations, they're just older (or older-style, the arcane may
still have access to new ones).  Getting helms second hand works very
rarely (like once in a great while) and isn't reliable.  If you're a
nation, you're going to have to buy them.  If you're attacking other
people for them, you're a pirate.  There is no evidence life jammers or
kreen helms aren't produced by the arcane.  In fact, it is noted that
the neogi have to go through the illithids to get their helms from the
arcane since they've broken too many compacts with the arcane in the
past, which suggests they purchase lifejammers.  Technojammers can't
reach SJ speed, as is clearly noted (most obviously under gnomish helms
where it points out that to date every gnomish helm that "works" has a
true helm at its heart).  If you're teleporting and plane hopping
you're not running around in an SJ ship and the discussion doesn't
apply to you since you're not spelljamming.

The only other producers of helms in SJ lore that are given are the
elves, and they aren't selling helms (and anyone they sold helms to
would obviously have them as a common point of reference, making the
discussion moot again).  There are two other sources of propulsion
known [that can reach SJ speed] that don't use arcane helms at all
(every other type of helm seems to have at least an arcane helm as its
base, even if someone else has modified it):  beholder orbi and spells.
 Even if you accept the idea that the standard spells can be made into
magical items operating as permanent helms (something that is highly
debatable based on the SJ canon) the question still arises as to where
you learned the spell.  From spacefarers?  well then...

So everything you've suggested doesn't bear on the argument at all,
even when it is correct.

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