With all of the talk about how wizards will be game changers in Ukraine, its important to note that they’re not just another type of artillery. That’s not to say we dismiss the artillery value of wizards. With the introduction of Palantír Enhanced Ordnance (PEO), wizard strikes now have both range and accuracy.
My point is that Wizards fulfill a soft-power function, as well. Consider the animated toys that guard Putin.
Wizard power is impressive. The Russian pollster Igor Grimsky notes that “if you’re a proletarian in SIberia or Buryata its tempting to say ‘sure I don’t have indoor plumbing and all my boys just died in the Donbas, but our dictator has wizards who give us Cheburashka-themed fireworks.’ Its a compelling message if you’re life is shit and you’re powerless.”
Now we’re straying into areas – like Wizard Control Treaties and palantir proliferation – where this article doesn’t belong. My send-off line is this: the next time a wizard destroys a shopping mall with a bolt of lighting, remember how that lightning strike is playing on Russian media. To them is it a war or a fire-works display?
Links to surreal story about Wizards and International Law which links to AR story about Putin being turned into Cherubuska by a wizard.
