From: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer) To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (Daily automated RQ-Digest) Reply-To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RuneQuest Daily) Subject: RuneQuest Daily, Thu, 17 Mar 1994, part 1 Sender: Henk.Langeveld@Holland.Sun.COM Content-Return: Prohibited Precedence: junk X-RQ-ID: Intro This is the RuneQuest Daily Bulletin, a mailing list on the subjects of Avalon Hill's RPG and Greg Stafford's world of Glorantha. It is sent out once per day in digest format. More details on the RuneQuest Daily and Digest can be found after the last message in this digest. --------------------- From: JARDINE@RMCS.CRANFIELD.AC.UK Subject: Von Brookian Theories Message-ID: <9403161008.AA29965@Sun.COM> Date: 16 Mar 94 09:01:00 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3327 Nick You missed out the obvious extension to the Dara Happan super race. The Lunars rediscovered some of the old high tech equipment which was used to *float* the first yelmic city and used it to raise the Red Moon. The funny way in which the moon appears when approached is probably a product of these (now old and poorly maintained) anti gravity generators. No wonder that some Lunars refer to Illumination as Enlightenment! Lewis --------------------- From: bchugg@leland.stanford.edu (Barron Chugg) Subject: Timelines and Magazines Message-ID: <199403161842.KAA00644@popserver.Stanford.EDU> Date: 16 Mar 94 02:42:12 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3328 I've just gotten back in to RQ (OK, Glorantha) after a long (OK, since RQIII) hiatus and have been slowly rebuilding my Glorantha knowledge base. Sure is a heck of a lot more information in the public eye than in '83! Anyway, I was just thinking about timelines, more exactly future timelines. After reading KoS (which got me back into Gloranthan mythology), and now the Genertela pack, I was thinking about gathering all my material and putting together a time line for the DP/Prax area from 1600-whenever. Then it hit me, blammo, this may not be the Ultimate Original Idea (tm)! So, has anyone put together such a thing? I'll probably do it anyway just so I learn it at a deeper level. I've also seen mention of various magazines that are reprinting useful information. TotRM I have found, but no others. Thanks much. Barron Chugg bchugg@leland.stanford.edu --------------------- From: robmh@aol.com Subject: Rune Formations in Glorantha Message-ID: <9403161356.tn66043@aol.com> Date: 16 Mar 94 18:56:29 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3329 Hi Eric Rowe! Well well, the Urvairinus the Conqueror section of KOS could reflect my singular contribution to Gloranthan lore: a few years ago I wrote Stafford about using Rune formations in combat and then published the piece in A&E. Greg was happy with the idea, it seemed obvious but he hadn't found the idea before. I never did anything more with the idea (except for a short dialogue between Yelmalio and Humakt that I may be able to dig up from ye olde disks) so it's nice to see that the idea has moved into print -- or been created anew, whichever. I stumbled upon the idea while reading military history books and wondering how Gloranthan sages would map out military engagements. With Rune-shaped units, of course. I'm tired of the Lhankor Mhy view of things as the perspective for introducing new ideas, so I nattered at other methods of writing military history, came up with the divine dialogue between Yelmalio and Humakt, and left it at that.; I'll go ahead and free associate on the idea for awhile. For fun, consider the possible uses of the Illusion rune. Three rapidly shifting small formations of troops, maneuvering quickly they might capture the essence of the Puppeteer Troupe's juggling act; perhaps a very small force could seem to be a very large army? The bifurcated Lunar circle seems as natural as the Sky circle. Orlanth's spiral Air rune is less obvious, perhaps it's only fair that it could quickly degenerate into a pointillist non-rune. Maybe the best plan for Orlanthi commanders whose troops are actually disciplined enough to fight in Rune formations would be to move from the Air rune (while gathering Power) to the Movement rune (on the attack). I admit that my favorite anachronistic combination of battlefield runes is "Fire & Movement." I see a small Movement rune at the center of the Sun rune's circle. I think it could be an effective arrangement; I leave it to those who've gloriously reascended with Yelm to supply the name of the Solar Powers whom the formation would suit best. In practice, it might be fair to limit the truly advantageous uses of Rune formations in combat to highly disciplined troops: Ethilrist's Black Horse, Sun Dome Templars, Lunar elites, and others I'd be happy to hear nominated. On the other hand, I think Eric Rowe's PCs did a wondeful thing by improvising with the rune formation in the swirl of battle; I'd encourage Gloranthans to think that using the Runes in battle is wise, even if it didn't provide any game-mechanics benefits. --Rob Heinsoo --------------------- From: robmh@aol.com Subject: Agents of Byzantine Complexity Message-ID: <9403161357.tn66077@aol.com> Date: 16 Mar 94 18:57:48 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3330 Hola, Bryan Maloney: I agree with David Dunham that the bureaucratic screws you're considering inserting into your Lunar PCs' lives are the type of anachronism Glorantha can usually do without. For a fun work of fiction detailing the experience of an espionage agent working for an alternate Byzantine empire, try Harry Turtledove's AGENT OF BYZANTIUM. Turtledove's hero inadvertently contributes to the development of the same bureaucratic tangles you're considering unleashing upon your PCs. And his experience with rival agents from Briton and Persia might reflect well into the Red Goddess' borderlands experience. Speaking anachronistically, I sometimes find it helpful to think of the Lunar Empire as analagous to the United States of America: a relatively excellent place to live for many of the people who live there, but you don't really want to be one of the small peoples sitting in darkness on its borders.. Going further on the Lunar Empire vs. the Peoples Sitting in Darkness tangent before returning to addressing Bryan directly, one of my earliest Glorantha-images was a Heart of Darkness adventure filmed like Apocalypse Now, detailing a young Lunar's mission down to Pavis to retrieve a Kurtz-style officer who'd gone native in the Big Rubble. Nothing like the MOB & Co. adventure that appeared in ToRM recently, but it was fun to see that the same association had taken root elsewhere. --Rob Heinsoo --------------------- From: robmh@aol.com Subject: David Dunham's Aphorism: Message-ID: <9403161358.tn66082@aol.com> Date: 16 Mar 94 18:58:13 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3331 "Don't believe all that Dara Happan propaganda. After all, it was written down, and thus can't change with reality." Wonderful line, David, I'll use it often. For your good turn of phrase I give you one of my own. The pen is mightier than the sword: strategy. The sword is faster than the pen: tactics. Any nominations for who would say that in Glorantha? Ethilrist? --Rob Heinsoo --------------------- From: robmh@aol.com Subject: Yelorna and the Eunuch's Horn Message-ID: <9403161355.tn66025@aol.com> Date: 16 Mar 94 18:55:38 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3332 I've caught up with the January and March RQ Dailies, skipping February for now, so it's Comment Time. Yelorna first. I don't really care to get so deep into the intricacies of who hasn't done it with whom or a unicorn, but I'm reminded of an image I never did anything with: the were-virgin, who becomes a virgin again every full moon. I suppose it takes on new meaning in a world with a Red Moon, though the utility of the concept still escapes me. The idea didn't occur to me in game terms, 'were-virgin' accurately described someone I knew in high school. Their transformation seemed to endure, newly virginal every new moon, but I dunno if that's how you'd want to play it in a gameworld. --Rob Heinsoo --------------------- From: robmh@aol.com Subject: Dickison's Happy Greenie People Message-ID: <9403161357.tn66063@aol.com> Date: 16 Mar 94 18:57:11 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3333 Hiya, Mike: I hugely enjoyed your expandio et absurdem of the notion that Aldryami are plants. Visceral work, a fine of Gloranthan phenomena I can imagine being portrayed without distortion by Monty Python's Flying Circus. The humor of the piece is so effective because your basic assumptions are in harmony with much of Glorantha. I fully agree that the 'elves' are no fun compared to the Elder Races and could use some shaking up. About four or five years ago I played a similar 'elves are plants' tune in the pages of Alarums and Excursions, but I didn't liven it up anywhere near as well as you have. My piece focused on the idea that in the Green Time all the Aldryami could photosynthesize, but that they'd lost the ability to feed solely on Sun and Earth and Water while sleeping through the Dark with Ernalda. Of course some Protectors had remained awake, and I think I called them evergreens, much like another recent post I haven't uncovered yet in my reading of the lists....? Ah, now I remember: I said that modern day elves had to eat plants in order to get the precious Green in their skins that enables them to photosynthesize. They feel a bit guilty about having to eat their fellow plants, and many Heroquesters try to return to the Green Time and bring back the power of unaided photosynthesis. When an Aldryami stays Green without having to sing Food Song and eat plants they've circled far back on their personal cycle towards Aldrya. Not a bad idea, but not an idea that did much to make Aldryami more intersting. Back to your work: most of the jokes were hilarious and acceptably timed, but I agree with the commentator who thought that Ignite shouldn't be so dangerous to an active (moist) elf. Hope you continue your heretical ways! --Rob Heinsoo --------------------- From: codexzine@aol.com Subject: Trying to reach BEATRICE KAMBER Message-ID: <9403162131.tn78973@aol.com> Date: 17 Mar 94 02:31:49 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3334 Hello all. Sorry to bother the digest readers with this. I seem to be unable to get email to Beatrice Kamber in Switzerland. She has sent me email several times, but my replies must be getting eaten by Arachne Solara, because I don't even get back mailer daemon messages. I think she is on some sort of system that does not use standard ASCII, since I notice odd blanks and such in her messages and .sig line. If anyone in Europe is willing to try, please let her know I have attempted to reply. Jeorg? How about you? I have also never hearg back from anyone in Sweden who asked for information, for example, a fellow whose email started off as "jonask". There are others as well. If you have sent off for codex info and not received it from me, then please try again, with as many variant addresses as you can think of. A note to the nationalistically-inspired American RQers: the British response to the impending UK release of Codex has put the american response TO SHAME. (Like by a factor of 6) Good Rune Lords & Ladies on the left of the Atlantic--please subscribe before I start to reconsider if I should even bother to print an american run. (It really is that bad.) Sorry for the interruption. Mike --------------------- From: eco0kkn@cabell.vcu.edu (Kirsten K. Niemann) Subject: Missing addresses Message-ID: <9403170248.AA24111@cabell.vcu.edu> Date: 17 Mar 94 02:48:16 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3335 Duh. I expected the AOL mailer would list all the addressees. It did not. The address for Beatrice Kamber that I have is: Beatrice.Kamber@bcu.unil.ch bkamber@ulys.unil.ch Thanks in advance. Mike -- ------- Gloranthophiles need to contact me at codexzine@aol.com for information about Codex Magazine. "Inquiries into the nature and secrets of Glorantha" . ------------------------------------------------------/_\ --------------------- From: rowe@soda.berkeley.edu (Eric Rowe) Subject: Raiding Zebras Message-ID: <199403170721.XAA02451@soda.berkeley.edu> Date: 16 Mar 94 15:21:33 GMT X-RQ-ID: 3336 It seems certain unruly Waha followers in my current campaign have taken a liking to Zebra-hide for their first real tent. Unfortunately, baring carelessness on the part of a Zebra patrol these beasts are a notoriously difficult raid. Does anyone have any suggestions for dragging a few Zebras out of Zebraside or Zebra Fort without being hunted down and killed like dogs? Their current plans incude such brilliant tactics as stuffing a broo in a barrel to be sent to Zebra Fort to lay waste to the Zebras. Please help them. eric ---------------------