(TFT) Thoughts on Earth Elementals as sensor nets

[Ed Thorn <prophesor@yahoo.com>]

I don't know if this is 'traditional' folkloric
wisdom, or some designers conceit, so I offer it with
a scruple of salt gathered 'tween tide and dry sand.

Earth elementals supposedly are only summonable from
'natural' earth, that is, undug/unfurrowed/unfarmed
soil, natural rock faces, and the like.  They could
not be summoned from a mine tunnel, where all of the
available earth surfaces are 'worked'.  You _could_
summon one in a mine, at the site of a cave-in, where
the rock face is again 'natural'.

If this line is followed, and if an earth LMN is
assumed to swim/fly/phase/whatever through natural
earth...

Then it might be reasonable to assume an earth LMN
cannot _move_ through worked earth, period.  Thus he
has to smash down a fieldstone wall, not phase through
it.  (This seems to game better, too.)

So a guardian LMN might fly orbits around a point of
interest, probably becoming aware of any digging
nearby, or certainly of any new mining that obstructed
his path.

Since most mining is of the dig-then-let-fall sort,
the elemental could probably manifest right near the
miners, as suggested by the Hiquet gazetteer.  It
might be possible to mine carefully in such a way as
to deny a suspected elemental guardian enough raw
earth 'window space' to manifest.  But then, some
guardians might be able to cause cave-ins or such even
if unable to manifest.  But then, careful shoring
could prevent even that...
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