A teleportation society

[Kurald Galain]

In 4E D&D, Eladrin are an elf-like race that can teleport themselves, about once every five minutes, over a distance of approximately eight meters. The only requirement is line-of-sight to the destination spot.

What do you think society would be like if everyone could do this? Mind you, this is not 4E-bashing, this is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek examination of consequences.

For instance, there's sport. If you're playing basketball, once you're in possession of the ball and close enough, you can teleport past the opposition and score. Then you get moved to the bench until your power recharges.

Locks on the doors are obsolete, because as long as your house has at least a window, anyone can teleport in there. For that matter, doors are obsolete.

If you're in a car and about to crash, you should be able to teleport to safety before hitting the other car.

Thoughts?

[Spiryt]

So, every Eladrin can do that?

Isn't it 4th level racial power, or something (I don't know 4e much)?

[Kylarra]

Every eladrin can use it as an encounter power.

[Riffington]

Unless Eladrin have a very special relationship to personal property, I suspect that doors just become different. Either make them of teleportation-stopping material (is there one?) or put a trap/alarm on the other side.

Does this work: put lots of string across a corridor? If you teleport across the door into the corridor, you now have string in your legs/heart/brain. But if you open the door and walk through, the string easily moves out of your way.

Whether or not that particular thing works, I don't think short-distance hops change behavior that much. They definitely change the specifics of sports and cars and safety devices and doors. But I suspect that rules of behavior would be fairly similar.

[Morty]

I wouldn't say doors are entirely obsolete; since Eladrin can teleport once in every five minutes, leaving one building and immediately entering another wouldn't be possible this way.

[Kylarra]

Maybe every house is surrounded by 5 squares of pit.

[Kizara]

I see homes where security is an issue having all windows be firmly shuttered, but that's nothing radical.

Certainly, new and different sports would develop with this power in mind.

[Spiryt]

Or some window blinds or stuff would be standard in any house, so nobody could just break in.

[Johel]

Maybe every house is surrounded by 5 squares of pit.

You could still jump and teleport in mid-air.
Better make it 10 squares, with a permanent wind wall.
After all, since the eldarins are "elven, just better", it's reasonable to assume they got the "magic is cheap" option in their society. :smallbiggrin:

[Kylarra]

You could still jump and teleport in mid-air.
Better make it 10 squares, with a permanent wind wall.
After all, since the eldarins are "elven, just better", it's reasonable to assume they got the "magic is cheap" option in their society. :smallbiggrin:
Maybe it'd be better to assume that they just don't need windows anymore.

[Theodoric]

Well, Eladrin are fey beings. I don't imagine their society to be anything like the standard medieval one, or ours for that matter.

[Kizara]

Wait, elves right? So they live in trees, which are more then 5ft apart if they are able to hold buildings.

Also, elves are fairly open in culture and relationships, and I don't think they would have too much of a problem with uninvited guests, and what problem they did have could be dealt with in stride.

[Spiryt]

Well, Eladrin are fey beings. I don't imagine their society to be anything like the standard medieval one, or ours for that matter.

The would be dam pansies, not playin any sports or fightin, just sittin and contemplatin their ear pointyness...

/obviousdwarfjoke

[Kurald Galain]

Maybe it'd be better to assume that they just don't need windows anymore.

That's right, all elves run Linux.

[Kylarra]

That's right, all elves run Linux.
Ouch I ran into that one... though it would suit their holier-than-thou attitudes quite well. :smallamused:

[Indon]

Teleporting with the ball probably counts as traveling.

To the point: No jaywalking laws.

[Eldan]

Well, instead of windows in the walls, like we do, they would probably have them in their ceilings, with a non-accessible roof (Wait, they can just teleport on the roof somehow). Otherwise, they'd have to either live in windowless buildings, or just forget privacy once and for all and keep all their stuff in locked chests.

[Myou]

Teleporting with the ball probably counts as traveling.

To the point: No jaywalking laws.

Are you calling me an eladrin?! D:<


The UK has no 'jaywalking' laws you see. :3

[1of3]

We played through an adventure featuring an old eladrin temple. The basic architecture were floors without stairs, but holes in the ceiling with mirrors. The basic assumption was that the believers would meditate before teleporting to the next floor.

[Indon]

You know, there is the possibility that it might not be that much of an impact.

What if teleporting is an effort, comparable to sprinting at full blast (thus why you rest afterward)? Our society isn't built around the assumption that anyone goes around sprinting 40-foot stretches every 5 minutes.

[Lysander]

Doors and windows wouldn't obsolete. You'd just close the curtains when you're away to prevent someone from seeing inside. Most medieval windows are shuttered anyway since glass is rare.

This would change prisons though. Any prison cell wouldn't use bars, they'd use entirely opaque stone and metal walls with no peep holes. They'd need to use a double door system to enter, so a prisoner can't teleport out as soon as the door is open. They'd need to blindfold prisoners securely when moving them. Or they have a prison with bars for other races that Eladrin guards can easily enter and leave without having to open doors or gates.

I suppose in terms of construction that they could do away with a lot of bridges. People could just teleport across small chasms, which would be useful when moving between treetop dwellings. They could also store their valuables in a vault that has no entrances beyond a single inch wide peephole. Other races can't enter without teleportation spells.

[Sir_Elderberry]

You know, there is the possibility that it might not be that much of an impact.

What if teleporting is an effort, comparable to sprinting at full blast (thus why you rest afterward)? Our society isn't built around the assumption that anyone goes around sprinting 40-foot stretches every 5 minutes.

Also, it is a move action. It may take as long, once you factor in pre-teleportation concentration, plotting courses through the weird side of reality, etc, as actually walking.

[AllisterH]

Doors and windows wouldn't obsolete. You'd just close the curtains when you're away to prevent someone from seeing inside. Most medieval windows are shuttered anyway since glass is rare.

This would change prisons though. Any prison cell wouldn't use bars, they'd use entirely opaque stone and metal walls with no peep holes. They'd need to use a double door system to enter, so a prisoner can't teleport out as soon as the door is open. They'd need to blindfold prisoners securely when moving them. Or they have a prison with bars for other races that Eladrin guards can easily enter and leave without having to open doors or gates.

.

Actually you wouldn't see much difference. Medieval prisons didnt use bars but actual doors mostly.

A simple prison would be to build a pit deep enough that the jumping+teleporting option isn't viable. Prisoners are brought down via a crude pulley system and voila, you have an eladrin proof prison.

Hell, any medieval village's well would serve the purpose if you think about it.

[Sebastian]

Ouch I ran into that one... though it would suit their holier-than-thou attitudes quite well. :smallamused:

No, that would be Mac. ;)

Anyway I imagine houses built upon trees but without stairs or other means to reach, if you are an eladrim you can teleport in and out, if you are not you have no business entering anyway.

[warrl]

Remember, it isn't just five minutes between use, it's also a short rest. Walking doesn't qualify. Riding a wagon does, although I would assume this is a wagon that is moving at a normal steady pace - if the creatures pulling the wagon panic and run, that would likely not do.

Oh, and you can't do two halves of a short rest either.

So even in an all-eladrin society, fey step is not going to be a routine way of entering/exiting most buildings. And while it might be used in place of ONE bridge in an area, it will not likely be used in place of MANY bridges in an area.

(High-security areas are a whole different subject.)

And if a town and its environs are even 10% non-eladrin, it's likely that fey step will be even less relied on.

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Yesterday in game, a boy was following our party through the streets. My eladrin stepped behind him and asked why. The kid was so startled he dropped the message he was trying to deliver (to a member of the party whose player wasn't there yesterday) and ran.

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How would you like to be parent to an eladrin three-year-old?