To recap--the Outsiders were starting to integrate themselves into the world, with two significant exceptions. Nerlo's illusionary temple seemed to work just fine for him to contact his trickster-god; he made no attempt to integrate with any local religion, and the more they knew him, the less the locals wanted much to do with him. Kastallanos remained at the lay level of worship at the Uleria temple.
>From a mechanics standpoint, these two characters came equipped with
some sorcerous powers, and had an innate reserve of magic points
(which I termed an aura) to call upon. That made them able to use
both spirit magic and their sorcery effectively. Nobody else in the
group had any magic point storage, and with only one Rune-level (Tobi
the "troll"), casting any spells hurt their resistant POW. As such,
they had multiple strong reasons to integrate themselves with the
local cults: reliance on divine magic made recovering it vital; the
local cults had the expertise and resources to help them shore up
their weaknesses; since most of them were comparable to Rune-level
locals, proving themselves offered additional power and resources.
While there might be plenty of theological concerns about integrating these outsiders (especially those who already worshipped foreign gods), nobody in Pavis (except maybe Lunars or Lhankor Mhy) had any particular interest in these details. These people were powerful without clearly being chaotic or out of control. As such, any temple which could draw them into the fold could make use of their abilities and knowledge. In other words, politics and economics, at least as much as faith, drove the heads of local cults to accomodate and support these outsiders. The results of faith--true service to a deity and that deity's ideals, as well as the cult and community--would come as a byproduct (and arguably, came in spades by the end of the campaign).
So I'd offer that as a comment on the discussion about gods, worship and cults. These practical human (or Elder Race) considerations ought to drive religion in the world as much or more than any other element or factor.
The Outsiders remained interested in looking around for signs of the White Moon's followers, and they wanted to understand what Gloranthan Chaos was in the hopes that they could determine whether the White Moon had been tainted by its association with a Pocharngo in another world. When word spread that something strange had happened to the Broo based out of the garden near Griffin Gate, Sebastian and Bothari volunteered the group to go and investigate.
Unbeknownst to them, most of Highhowler's Broo band had been destroyed by agents of the White Moon. Highhowler, away at the time, had no idea what force had destroyed his flunkies. Something seemed to be wiping out Chaos cults in the Rubble (the ogres had already suffered a massive defeat), and the returning Pocharngo Shambler was flexing its metaphoric muscles to force limited cooperation between the cults.
So an uneasy alliance of local Chaos luminaries gathered to scout out the Griffin Gate area and see if they could determine how the Broo had been slain. Each cult expected strange magics which might benefit them individually; no cult trusted the others much. No cult leader wanted to risk sending a follower and having exotic magic fall into that follower's hands. So a small band made up of the heads of several local cults (Thed, Thanatar, Krarsht) and a powerful shamanic lackey of the Shambler travelled through the tunnels to sneak into Highhowler's place. Highhowler himself accompanied them.
The stage was set for an unexpected collision. Initial PC investigation uncovered broken stone shaped like Broos, suggesting the White Moon's involvement in an attack, but the evidence was inconclusive. They kept searching for any indications showing that magic or Beholder powers were responsible. As chance would have it, the PCs had just discovered the secret entrance leading to a tunnel beneath the garden as the Chaos faction approached it.
The first two PCs down the ladder saw the approaching Broo. Neither group recognized the other; each assumed the other might be the force responsible for the attack on the Garden; neither was prepared for or desired a major fight.
>From these seeds proceeded one of the most wonderful battles I've ever
run. The players rushed into the tunnel to support the two already
present; the Broo tried to press the tactical advantage, hoping to
overwhelm these two scouts and then fall back. The result was a
desperate escalation of force, with each group desperate to retreat
but unwilling to do so until they'd gained a tactical advantage.
Magics flew, as each side reluctantly called upon their divine
resources while avoiding use of their most dangerous spells. In the
close quarters of the tunnel, swordplay proved difficult. Meanwhile,
the Pocharngo shaman, a SIZ 2 specimen named Reductus, simply watched
with amusement as the others fought.
The irony of both sides desperate to disengage but unable to gain enough advantage to do so, unwilling to pull out their strongest and most lethal magics because they didn't want an all-or-nothing fight under these circumstances, was matched by the clear awareness by all at the gaming table that nobody wanted to fight but the tactical situation made flight too dangerous an option. As the battle raged, the slim chance of Divine Intervention weighed on the minds of all concerned (all capable of such a thing, at least), but the cost was high indeed...
Finally, the players managed to gain an advantage, dropping the Guardian of the Thanatar priest, and the Chaos cultists fled, convinced they had encountered a new and dangerous foe. Both sides were grateful to survive the fight, and the resources spent promised a brief lull as both sides recovered their strength.
Sadly, outside events would not permit time to pass quietly... To be continued.
David
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