From: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer)
To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (Daily automated RQ-Digest)
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Subject: RuneQuest Daily, Tue, 20 Sep 1994, part 1
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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.
X-RQ-ID: index
6265: =
- Truestone & SB
6266: =
- line
6267: =
- My DM 0.02 on Truestone
6268: =
- Temporary temples
6269: =
- Gloranthan Geology
6270: =
- line,
6271: =
- Re: RuneQuest Daily, Sat, 17 Sep 1994
6272: =
- Truestone, Earth Deities, etc.
6273: =
- line
6274: =
- Fatigue
6275: =
- Blogg'em...
6276: =
- hearthmother tale
6277: =
- 2nd hearthmother story
6278: =
- Re: Truestone, Rune Magic, Carmanians
---------------------
From: JARDINE@RMCS.CRANFIELD.AC.UK
Subject: Truestone & SB
Message-ID: <9409190906.AA01003@Sun.COM>
Date: 19 Sep 94 09:09:00 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6265
Hi All
To repeat (quickly) an article I posted quite a few months ago:-
1) I believe Truestone does double damage to Chaos creatures (like iron does
to trolls and elves).
2) I prefer to think that the original loader of a Truestone does not lose
the spells permanently, but can regain them after they have been cast from the
stone.
3) The Storm Bull cult have a few very special weapons designed for heroes to
use to kill Chaos and also reenact their god's defeat of the Devil. These
are troll mauls with Truestone heads. The Truestones each hold the full
complement of spells of one or more Storm Kahns. The ritual method for
dispatching the Chaos foe is an overhand special (or critical) blow which
crushes the head of the target and piledrives them into the earth.
NB. I would rule that chaots cannot regenerate from damage inflicted by a
Truestone (also it would ignore any chaotic features like +12pt skin armour)!
From a mythical standpoint the close proximity of the Truestone would close
the temperary gap in the fabric of reality which Glorantha chooses to cover
with a chaos monster.
Cheers
Lewis
---------------------
From: swj@liverpool.ac.uk (Simon William Jones)
Subject: line
Message-ID:
Date: 19 Sep 94 09:24:10 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6266
Sorry, just another request really.
Having read about PenDragon Pass, and knowing that it was put as an
article in Tales #6 or #7, which I ain't got, could some-one, anyone, send me the
article- the author- I don't know who ever. I've got a sketchy version of my own,
knowing Pendragon, but, would like to use the version everyone else is using.
Thanks,
Simon
---------------------
From: joe@sartar.toppoint.de (Joerg Baumgartner)
Subject: My DM 0.02 on Truestone
Message-ID:
Date: 19 Sep 94 09:31:29 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6267
Ok, everybody had their say on Truestone, so here's mine.
My exposure to Truestone started with Elder Secrets, so I had little
problem to accept the rules stated there, and repeated in SiP:
If a user of divine(-like) magic finds an unset Truestone, he feels the
overpowering urge to transfer all his divine magic into it. The spells
are permanently lost to the provider, and they are permanently set into
the Truestone. Magic Points are not involved at all under RQ3 rules.
Spells in a set Truestone may be cast by the person holding it.
Afterwards the Truestone knows the spell in the same way a priest knows
a reusable spell he has just cast - it can be renewed at a temple by
performing the spell renewal ritual (a day's worth of prayer).
The advantage is that one doesn't need a priest who can cast this
spell.
If a set Truestone is found, in all likelyhood the spells will have
been cast, and to use it they first have to be refreshed.
This far the picture is clear. Now come possible solutions for the bags
of worms:
- If a one-use (for priests) spell is set in a Truestone, the same
amout of POW must be spent to reactivate the spell.
- If a Warding spell is set in a Truestone, the user still needs to
enchant the rods for the spell.
- If a ritual spell is set in a Truestone, this means the knowledge
about the ritual has been put into it. To perform the ritual correctly,
the appropriate ritual skill has to be used. I'd modify this skill with
a familiarity factor based roughly on the cult relation table (Cults
Book p.18): the number given divided by four is multiplied with the
skill. Minor variations could be allowed for sharing runes or traits of
the other cult.
In the case of Enchant spells, the POW must be provided by the caster.
- Setting a stone: I'd rule that only spells the person touching the
stone could actually cast at that moment are put into the stone. This
would allow priests to retain a minimum of their reusable magic even if
they fill the stone.
- Emergency refilling of set Truestones:
This seems to have been the case in Biturian's encounter with the
Chalana Arroy priestess: Biturian's stone must have been set with his
repertoire of Rune spells already, but they had been cast from the
stone. To activate the stone, Biturian cast his spells into the "slots"
of the stone, and so gave her access to his magic.
- Truestones set with magic of different religions: Refilling the
stone.
For the maximum game fun I would rule that anybody can refill the
spell, regardless of cult rank in whatever cult, but that this person
would have to do so in a place holy or sanctified to the cult which
gave this spell. Imagine a group of Orlanthi sneaking into a Lunar holy
place to refill their Mindblast spell...
I wouldn't call this refilling a worship of the deity in question; by
binding the deity's spell into Truestone, it is effectively moved
outside this deity's control. If members of appropriate cults (the
original one, associated or friendly cults) perform the refilling, it
would be sort of worship. If enemy cultists perform the refilling,
they'd worship their own deity by overcoming the enemy and stealing its
power. Beware of spirits of reprisal in this case...
Because Truestones hold part of the divine essence of the original
cult, they are considered sacred items of that cult. The cult in
question will do whatever is within its power to recover such a stone.
So, who would profit from Truestone?
Powergamers mainly, I'm afraid, although this includes heroes:
An unset Truestone is very handy if you plan to change your cult. Fill
it with all your magic, and then be excommunicated or not, as long as
you have the stone, you have the magic, and reusably so.
A vile use of it would be to force an unset Truestone upon an
unsuspecting rival, let him fill it, and then take it from him. Saves
you a meeting on the hero plane...
The deathbed filling of unset Truestone would still be powergaming, but
by thesociety, not the individual. It is possible, and it would create
interesting special temple offices as guardians of the stone. Give a
Rune Lord without reusable divine magic or 1D10 DI such a stone, and
you have a very distinguished character, and a tough NPC.
I have used a Truestone only once in a scenario, where the Truestone
was part of the altar at a holy place where no regular worship
occurred. Worship was part of the spell collection inside the
Truestone, to allow also non-Rune levels to perform the holy quest at
this place. I ruled that the questers would refill the stone's spells
by their prayer, except the handy escape spells, which would likely
have to be refilled before the use.
--
-- Joerg Baumgartner joe@sartar.toppoint.de
---------------------
From: joe@sartar.toppoint.de (Joerg Baumgartner)
Subject: Temporary temples
Message-ID:
Date: 19 Sep 94 09:31:41 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6268
David Dunham in X-RQ-ID: 6261
> From my Ralios PenDragon Pass game:
> GUSTBRAN [heat, stasis]
> God of the Forge
[...]
> Miscellaneous: Shrines are very rare.
> (Although almost all clan thanes support a smith, there's no way for enough
> smiths and apprentices to gather to support a shrine by the temple size
> rules.)
This is a typical example for the periodical gathering of specialists.
IMO there will be fairs even in backwater Orlanthi regions, where
something like a Great Market spell of Issaries is turned in its effects
to City Harmony rather than a special case of Warding. Just like Issaries
or other trade gods' initiates can renew spells at such an opportunity,
you will also get craftsmen's aggregations here which will support shrines
or larger congregations, and entertainers and other minority groups will
make their use of these opportunities as well.
In East Ralios there might be horse fairs which will attract blacksmiths
(ok, bronze working horse-shoeing smiths), who will be the local
horse-healers as well, and therefore taken along to give their expertise
on the specimen for sale or for breeding contracts. Excellent background
for all kind of roleplaying activities...
--
-- Joerg Baumgartner joe@sartar.toppoint.de
---------------------
From: swj@liverpool.ac.uk (Simon William Jones)
Subject: line,
Message-ID:
Date: 19 Sep 94 11:46:59 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6270
Good afternoon Gentlemen and Ladies,
Just another request, I'm afraid. The continual mentioning of PenDragon
Pass, has finally spurred to ask, if it's not too much trouble, whether someone
could mail me the rules. I know it appeared in Tales (6 or 7), and as these are
unavailable, this is my only recourse. I know David Hall will be reading this, so if
you object, just yell out. I'm familiar with Pendragon, and use my own draft rules,
but it would be nice to see the "official" version.
Thanks for your time,
Simon.
---------------------
From: sandyp@idcube.idsoftware.com (Sandy Petersen)
Subject: Re: RuneQuest Daily, Sat, 17 Sep 1994
Message-ID: <9409191628.AA07128@idcube.idsoftware.com>
Date: 19 Sep 94 04:28:08 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6271
Martin Glassborow
>Hags get sorcery as their 'magic' according to the Creatures book,
>do Gloranthan Hags also get sorcery?
'Tis my opinion that they get sorcery. Who taught them? It's
likely that _they_ taught the sorcerers first. They're older, after
all.
>Hags can create Shades from darkness simply by expending magic
>points, do people have any ideas/opinions whether they could use
>stored power, i.e crystals etc, to produce whopping big nasty
>Shades?
Of course.
>I used this tactic to bind big, big, BIG Shades.
??? Just 'cause hags can produce big shades doesn't mean they're any
easier to bind.
>I haven't got my various troll supplements to hand, but can Dehores
>(intelligent shades) turn off their fear-shock?
Dehores are more than just intelligent shades, and there is a
whole spread of different Dehori. I don't think they can turn off
their fear-shock, but the trolls could hide in a Shadow, of which a
semi-intelligent species lives in Dagori Inkarth.
Nick Eden:
>According to the G:CotHW books, the Pol Joni number about
>Five thousand. This makes them smaller than the independent tribes
What you must remember is that the Pol Joni all live in
Prax. The bulk of Rhino Riders, Morocanth, etc. live in the Wastes.
Nomad Gods only shows the Praxians who happen to be in Prax at the
time -- easily 80-90% are off gallivanting around Graydust Flats or
the Demon's Quarter.
Tarry Higgins:
>On the whole though the way that Sandy looks at truestones makes
>them little more than divine magic matrices
In my own defense, this is only true when the crystal is used
for the relatively mundane purpose of storing Rune spells. I play
that _anything_ can be stored in a Truestone -- skill points, POW
(regenerable), INT, knowledge, _anything_. A person wasting his
Truestone on Rune spells would be condemned in most areas I know.
Joerg:
>Are there Morokanth Storm Bulls?
Yes, but probably not many, since the main berserker cult
among the Morocanth is a variant on Zorak Zoran.
>What gear do they use?
Same as other Morocanth warriors -- i.e., claws, maces.
>do they mix with other Storm Bulls?
Not much -- there's no reason for Storm Bull Berserks to lose
all their prejudices and racial hatred just because that bastard
Morocanth has managed to sniggle his way into the cult of the Bull.
>Do the Pol Joni Storm Bulls worship at the block, or do they
>dominate the Stormwalk Mountain altar?
The latter. While the Praxian Storm Bulls violate many cult
dogmas, if the Pol Joni showed up riding their horses there'd be
enough squabbles and fights that it wouldn't be worth the trouble. Of
course, every once in a while the Pol Joni Storm Bulls get a flea in
their ear and a couple of hundred of them charge over to the block en
masse to worship there "as is our right" and get in a huge brawl and
have a grand old time.
---------------------
From: rstaats@mail.lmi.org
Subject: Truestone, Earth Deities, etc.
Message-ID: <9408197799.AA779999836@mail.lmi.org>
Date: 19 Sep 94 16:37:16 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6272
Greetings!
I have always played Truestone as being the frozen blood of the
gods/desses and took the frozen description one step further. In
Truestone, time is frozen. When you cast a spell into the Truestone,
it remains inside, half cast until ultimately released. So, the
caster cannot regain the magic.
On the subject of Earth Deities, after Arachne Solara cast out her
web and whilst Taron keeps the world in balance, the Earth gods/desses
are less tied to their ground than they were in the Godtime. Even
with great amounts of worship and much magic point sacrificing, the
ground in a wasteland won't improve much. Things occur in a linear
fashion now (for the most part). Too much intervention by a deity
would be taken as a breach in the Great Compromise, and even the gods
are not interested in seeing Glorantha destroyed.
Just some random thoughts,
Rich
---------------------
From: swj@liverpool.ac.uk (Mr S.W. Jones)
Subject: line
Message-ID: <199409191548.QAA27238@uxe.liv.ac.uk>
Date: 19 Sep 94 17:48:23 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6273
PenDragon Pass
Sorry, but I've just got a request that I'm hoping you can help
with, having seen PenDragon Pass mentioned quite a few times, and knowing
it to be printed in Tales 6 or 7 (which is sadly out of print)- I was
wondering if any of you generous souls could furnish me with a copy of
said article. I have my own version, but would still like the "official"
version (hope there's no complaint from David Hall).
Thanks for your time,
Simon.
---------------------
From: DCOWLING@UTMEM1.UTMEM.EDU
Subject: Fatigue
Message-ID: <01HHAR7XS1PK8Y5OC1@UTMEM1.UTMEM.EDU>
Date: 19 Sep 94 07:47:00 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6274
Does anyone have any material on the amount of fatigue lost to encumbered and
unencumbered individuals when travelling? By foot, horseback, everything? If
not, what are your rulings on this(I might compose a chart based on your
experiences with this).
PS: How often does the Digest come out? And how often do people receive Codex
magazines? I ordered some and the check was cashed over a month ago, but I
haven't seen anything yet. Anyone help me out here?
Thanks,
David Cowling
dcowling@utmem1.utmem.edu
---------------------
From: 100270.337@compuserve.com (Nick Brooke)
Subject: Blogg'em...
Message-ID: <940919202000_100270.337_BHL97-1@CompuServe.COM>
Date: 19 Sep 94 20:20:00 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6275
Devin asked about the Bloggom Marshes, one possible end location for Jon
Quaife's scenario "Queen Ogzag's Hall", in Tales #13.
I think the colour Purple associated with them is meant as a giveaway that
these Marshes are on the shores of Luathela. But if your campaign is better
served by locating them near Slon, or Winterwood, or any point in between,
put'em there. The point is, they're very, very far away. JQ said he wrote
them in because he liked the Voyage of the Dawn Treader so much, if I'm
remembering his comments straight.
They are off the map.
I'd hope for a ship of passing Wolf Pirates (in an amiable mood), or maybe
idealistic Loskalmi explorers (Boldly Going, etc.), myself. Or Barran the
Monster-Slayer, if you want a fully-fleshed-out crew and a tie-in to
"Strangers in Prax"...
This ship's very next stop is wherever you want your players to end up.
(Perhaps by way of a couple of God Learner islands inhabited by Silly Old
Men, etc: I can name you a good source for these).
====
Nick
====
---------------------
From: SMITHH@A1.MGH.HARVARD.EDU (Harald Smith 617 724-9843)
Subject: hearthmother tale
Message-ID: <01HHAX2RX0H0S5WGL3@MR.MGH.HARVARD.EDU>
Date: 19 Sep 94 11:27:00 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6276
(A short tale from Imther)
The Death of the Hearthmother
by Harald Smith and Peter Michaels
In the days when Lodrem wandered on and within the earth, he had many
children. One was called Enveria, a goddess of fire. When Yelem fell
from the sky, the people called upon Enveria for help and she aided
them for Enveria was the Communal Fire. She lived both among the
people on the world below and among the gods in the world above.
Among the people, she lived in every fire they lit: the hearth, the
candle, the bonfire, etc... She helped and aided the people,
providing them with a spirit of community as well as with tools to
warm themselves with and to guide themselves thereby.
One day, Orlantio espied her and desired her for himself. He came to
Enveria as a gentle breeze, but she shied away. He came to her again,
winds swirling around, but she tried to escape and eluded his grasp.
Finally, he came to her to show her his great majesty* with a cape of
huge clouds and a mighty flail which he waved around himself. Enveria
tried to run from this terror, but the storm was too great. The
ground tore up around her and she tripped upon an uprooted tree.
Orlantio, in his lust madness, did not see that she had fallen. He
brought his flail down upon the tree and Enveria, destroying her very
being. Orlantio howled in fury, but it was too late. Enveria fled
upon the path of Yelem and finally escaped from Orlantio's clutches.
But upon the earth, the people were left without fire and they grew
cold and hungry.**
* amongst the southern clans: Orlantio comes to her engorged with
lust.
** amongst the northern clans, especially along the border with Tork,
a variation is told:
Enveria ran into the Darkness in an attempt to escape Orlantio. In
her panic, she ran into a horrible demon named Bagog. When Orlantio
saw what Enveria had met, his lust left him and he quietly slunk away
amidst the shadows. Bagog devoured, enslaved, and perverted Enveria,
forcing her to become the community focus for her terrible children.
Upon the earth, the people were left without fire or a sense of unity,
and they grew cold, hungry, and isolated.
---------------------
From: paul@phyast.pitt.edu (Paul Reilly)
Subject: Re: Truestone, Rune Magic, Carmanians
Message-ID: <9409192136.AA29946@minerva.phyast.pitt.edu>
Date: 19 Sep 94 21:36:07 GMT
X-RQ-ID: 6278
Paul here quoting Henk quoting Jonas Schiott:
>As I've implied before, I want Truestones to just 'freeze' cast spells,
>keep them in Stasis (closely related to Law) if you will, until they are
>called for. This would mean that the person filling the stone _has_ cast
>the spell (and can thus regain it as normal), it just hasn't taken effect yet
Henk replies:
...
>Sudden surge of insight: The Truestone acts as a portal in time
>between the original caster and the eventual user of the spell.
...
>Now originally, I resided in the latter camp, but I think
>Jonas' model is so good that I'm tempted to switch.
I'd support this also. We use something that is functionally similar
but not so elegantly described... Truestone as a piece of the "old world".
Souls are another such piece.
I give blank Truestones an effective POW - they only have so much 'potential'
to be 'set'. Combining this with Jonas' description and Henk's addition,
we would have something with
a) Game balance - you don't have 'excess' Rune Magic appearing from nowhere.
b) A nice elegant description, very Gloranthan
c) A nice conceptual model - the truestone acts like a 'time portal' but
is only so 'wide'. And its channels are in a set shape... this makes more
sense if you subscribe to the model that all uses of a Rune Spell are echoes
of the First use of that spell.
---------------
This brings up: Rune Magic.
I run that the 'primitive' form of Rune Magic is gotten by personal questing,
through known methods. (And sometimes unknown). For Trickster, this is
the only way. For some primitive cultures, it is a way.
In more complex societies, the process gets formalized and comes under temple
(or at least priestly) control.
Oh, have to go, more later.
[-paul