From: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer)
Sender: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer)
Organization: Lankhor Mhy and Associates
To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (Daily automated RQ-Digest)
Reply-To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RuneQuest Daily)
Subject: RuneQuest Daily, Sat, 18 Dec 1993, part 2
Message-ID:
Precedence: junk
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From: sandyp@idcube.idsoftware.com (Sandy Petersen)
Subject: re: RQ Dailiy
Message-ID: <9312171942.AA08839@idcube.idsoftware.com>
Date: 17 Dec 93 07:42:54 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 2678
re: Oasis Folk
Rob Heinsoo says:
>I dunno about these Oasis Folk slaves. It looks like such a bad deal
>for the poor sods that I don't see them having much reason to go on
>living. Seems like they'd need some form of Secret Life to keep them
>going, some religious validation of their miserable lives.
The advantages to the Oasis Folk is that it always polarizes
player-characters and gives them something to ponder. They're pretty
much trapped. They can't fight the nomads, who are more numerous,
more magical, better-led, better-equipped, and better-skilled in
combat. Where would they go if they left the oasis? Another oasis?
Pent? Sartar? They may well have some inner secret that lets them
keep going. On the other hand, they aren't that badly off compared to
some folks -- they're rarely killed or tortured by their masters and
they generally have plenty of food. They're in the position of an
antebellum slave in the American South, who really couldn't rebel
either. I picture the Oasis Folk as having a lot less spirit than an
antebellum slave, tho (who proved plenty belligerent as soon as they
were given a chance to actually fight for their freedom). I figure
since Genert's death, the backbone's gone out of them. Perhaps if
Genert reformed or was replaced, they could do something. Maybe even
Tada could turn the tide.
In any case, the Oasis Folk secrets that you suggest (I especially
like the idea of their being ex-herd men, who have switched members
of other tribes into their place) wouldn't change the way they're
perceived or treated by the nomads.
Tim Beecher sez:
>The heroquest was ... going to [have] one more wave of enemies than
>expected . What would this have done to the heroquest ? I don't
>believe our group would have fit the description of any of the
>groups attacking (Humakt , Wachaza(?), and some Orlanthi Types ) .
You didn't say who your enemies were and who your PCs were. Glorantha
is so full of a web of connections, it's almost impossible NOT to
find some way to fit almost anyone into some heroquest niche (witness
the case in CoP, where a Yelmalion considers an Issaries merchant an
adequate substitute for a storm god).
I would suggest including your PC enemies into one of the waves,
rather than adding an extra waves. The PCs could either replace a
wave entirely, or they could be considered "allies" of the other
attackers.
In heroquests, I always strive to give the personal touch. For
example, if you're on a quest where one station is an encounter with
chaos, the player may expect to encounter a gorp or some similar
thing. But when instead he meets that Lunar Priest that he caused
trouble for last year, the heroquest suddenly takes on a lot more
meaning, both if he wins or loses.
In general, I go for the dramatically appropriate in preference to
the mythologically appropriate. Once a player on a quest needed to
dicker with a Pamalt chieftain. When he got to the chieftain's hut,
the chief's Spear (normally an insignificant bodyguard -- stationed
at the hut to make it hard to bully the chieftain into acquiescence)
proved to be an Orlanthi Wind Lord that had a grudge against the
player. As the player strove to bargain, the Wind Lord kept
whispering into the chieftain's ear, poisoning his mind.
>What happens when something unrelated to the heroquest intrudes ?
This normally can't happen. If your players have no possible way they
can fit into the heroquest, then when they get to the heroquest site,
they'll be at the wrong time or something, and not be involved. Their
best hope is to try to twist the heroquest into a more appropriate
adventure in which they CAN be involved, or to start a second
heroquest, in which their enemy can unwittingly take the part of
victim.
For example, I know of a band of players who wanted to sail the Sky
River on a quest, so they got into a boat to sail off the edge of the
world, planning to land in the river, go through the sky, and
eventually come out at Skyfall Lake. But one of the players, an
Orlanthi, had plans of his own. He made sure that exactly six other
players were present besides himself, and that they brought a healer,
a wise man, a drunken thief, and a translator, plus two other guys.
Once they were on the river sailing along, the quest started to go
wrong. Suddenly the other players realized that the Orlanthi had
organized an impromptu Lightbringers' Quest and that they were going,
not to the Sky River, but to Hell. But it was too late. He'd set up
the mythological paraphernalia and they were trapped.
re: Orlanth vs. Storm Bull quest.
The full quest includes defeating all Orlanth's brothers as potential
rivals to the kingship, thus proving your might as an Orlanth Rex.
Thus, you must beat Vadrus in combat (usually Gagarth raiders stand
in), enslave a huge sylph (Umbrol), etc.
Robert MacArthur inquires:
>how do blue lunes differ from regular lunes? I have sort of
>imagined that regular lunes were black, not red. Is this
>less-than-right?
I've always played Lunes as red in color. I expect they're dimmer
when the moon is less than full.
Re: blue lunes. You're not gonna like this. I no longer remember. It
might be in my big pile o' stuff to be unveiled someday, but all I
recall is that they're different. Sorry. Same hit points n' stuff,
though. But they aren't affected by the moon phase. You can only
summon them if you have Blue Moon rocks (nyuk, nyuk, nyuk) or if you
cast your spell while the Blue Streak is visible. So the problem
isn't likely to come up.
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From: staats@MIT.EDU
Subject: Chaos and Illumination
Message-ID: <9312172020.AA01007@al-burro.MIT.EDU>
Date: 17 Dec 93 20:20:38 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 2679
Greetings!
I'm confused! I first ran across Illumination in Cults of Terror.
Illuminated folks are accepted amongst some groups such as Lunars and somewhere
I remember reading that the Aldrami accepted them as well.
Is illumination truly a way of integrating Chaos into the natural
order of Glorantha or is it just some "cheaty" Chaos trick? I've never been
able to resolve this question. But, then again, that Gbaji/Nysalor was never
one to inspire trust! ;-)
Thank you in advance!
In service,
Rich Staats
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From: ddunham@radiomail.net (David Dunham , via RadioMail)
Subject: Sog's Ruins
Message-ID: <199312180033.AA08887@radiomail.net>
Date: 18 Dec 93 00:33:47 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 2680
Sandy wrote about Sog's Ruins.
In my campaign, the city was founded by the Waertagi, now the vast ruins of
a once-thriving port. Not having a good map of that part of the world, I
assumed it was in marshy land, and some of the old shrines have fallen
underwater.
The players found lots of old Sea Pantheon temples, as well as mosquitoes,
leeches, frogs, and other nasties.
In Eyrbyggja Saga, there's an Icelander named Thorbjorn Kjalki. First time
I read it, I thought there was an "r" in the nickname...
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From: tom@scumby.clipper.ingr.com (Tom Granvold)
Subject: Unsubscribe request
Message-ID: <199312180044.AA04014@scumby.clipper.ingr.com>
Date: 18 Dec 93 00:44:37 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 2681
Henk,
Please unsubscribe me from the RuneQuest mailling list and the RQ IV
mailling list. I'm changing jobs and will be without an email account for
a short while. I'll resubscribe once I know my new email address.
Thanks,
Tom Granvold
tom@clipper.ingr.com
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From: carlf@panix.com (Carl Fink)
Subject: Ragnaglar
Message-ID: <199312180135.AA29356@panix.com>
Date: 17 Dec 93 15:35:18 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 2682
Sandy the Great and Powerful writes:
>...Ragnaglar's relationships are
>unclear, but he is probably not one of Umath's sons (though he's
>almost certainly a descendant), which are traditionally five in
>number: Umbrol, Vadrus, Storm Bull, Humakt, and Orlanth. Of course,
>in Orlanthi kinspeak, just like in ancient Hebrew, "son of" can be
>used to mean "descendant of".
Ragnaglar is also referred to as the Brother of Storm Bull, and one of
the stories in King of Sartar definitely makes him Orlanth's and
Humakt's and the rest's brother, although he is not named as I recall.
--Carl
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