Re: a Gloranthan Lex Mercatoria? (was City Orlanthi)

From: John Machin <orichalka_at_LwAQApY08k5UU4MShOh5kavI2aL5Wsyj7FLqqHnEsOaCduPP8ZNIVcfR8mxun0oEJG>
Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2009 18:51:00 +1100

2009/1/6 Jeff Richard <richaje_at_8xObQbLCUMfF-xtyaH436CPjNIrp-N7C1-kbqTdLtfkqbNqlufx3iwsknmtTxi1meDf80X2nyGN3Ag.yahoo.invalid>:
> For what it is worth, Issaries initiates take an oath to treat those
> they deal with fairly and not cheat fellow initiates or outsiders.
> Trade is not the purpose of the Issaries cult - communication is
> (although trade is a very important incidental byproduct of
> communication and is facilitated by it).

Do other "trader/communicators" have similar encouraged behaviours? I seem to recall that Etyries seems really similar to Issaries (Etyries was an Issaries worshipper "before", or something?) but I wondered if other pantheons' had similar figures (there's that Darkness-trading-with-the-surface chap who springs to mind...).

> The Issaries cult was spread far beyond Orlanthi lands in the Second
> Age. You will find Issaries worship even in cultures that do not
> worship Orlanth - for example, there are Issaries cultists in Teshnos,
> Fonrit, and beyond.

I had hoped this was the case! There is reference to "Tradetalk" being widespread and while I can see this is conceivably a handy game-artefact it occurred to me that, being Glorantha, there was probably some mythical cause for its existence and dispersion.

-- 
John Machin
"Nothing is more beautiful than to know the All."
- Athanasius Kircher, 'The Great Art of Knowledge'.