Re: Sandy Opines! from Sandy Petersen on 1995-10-27 (Glorantha Digest Vol 02)

From: Sandy Petersen <sandyp_at_idgecko.idsoftware.com>
Date: Fri, 27 Oct 95 16:55:46 -0500

First, one last Dr. Seuss -- promise!

Brian Tickler
>I feel an uncontrollable urge to point out that Dr. Seuss' stories
>are for a completely different age group than the authors you
>listed.

Er, yes. That's what I said. There weren't any good children's books for beginning readers till Dr. Seuss, regardless of the many fine books for kids in their early teens.

A few (out of many) ideas I've stolen from children's books that proved highly cool as scenarios or encounters.

Lloyd Alexanders Prydain books contain a foe called Huntsmen or something like that. They are created when a band of 50 evil foresters band together and perform a dark ritual. They become inured to the cold (like a pine tree) and are otherwise superior outdoorsmen. But their main feature is that when one of them is killed, his strength passes to the rest of them. Over the years, their numbers dwindle by attrition, and so the power of the remainder increases. If only one Huntsman remains from the group, he has the strength and skill of 50 men. Uses should be obvious. Of course, they could just as easily be good guys instead of villains, but then they're somewhat less useful to my GM style.
One of L. Frank Baum's Oz books had a land entirely made of wood. The ground was wood planking. The grass were wooden splinters. The trees were wood, with carved wooden flowers. The inhabitants were wooden, too -- flying creatures with real hinges on their wings. Rocks and stones were knobs of polished wood. A cool Heroquest place, or useful as one of the islands in the farthest parts of the East Isles.
The creatures of Moominvalley, ranging from the terrifying Groke who is, "not particularly large, but she looked as though she were terribly evil and could wait forever. And THAT was awful." When the Groke sits down for too long, the ground freezes, and nothing can ever grow there again; to the Hattifatteners, mysterious electric beings who sail eternally seeking impossible fulfillment; to Little My, who is absolutely the most adorable unlovable urchin of all children's literature ever.

MSmylie
>First off, I have to admit that I am increasingly skeptical of the
>idea of the KoW being a purely mounted force

Well, I now think that the KoW is entirely mounted. HOWEVER, a large portion of their troops -- perhaps the majority -- fight on foot. In other words, they are mounted infantry -- dragoons, if you will. In this way, they imitate Vikings, who mounted stolen horses for fast movement, but dismounted in battle. A Professor Bachrach recently published a scholarly work on medieval warfare in which he claims the same was true of medieval knights -- the classic cavalry charge in medieval times was extremely rare, according to him. I've not yet read the book, and so don't know what to think, but at the very least, from the many examples he lists, it's clear that in the good old days the knights must have _sometimes_ moved up and horseback, and then fought on foot. Anyway, this may solve the "problem" of how the KoW fights entirely on horseback. Note that even the troll factions of the KoW are perfectly capable of learning to ride horses, assuming they're disciplined enough not to eat the poor things. But I'm _certain_ the trolls dismount for battle.

Smylie also reads out a quote from Arthur Ferrill's ORIGINS OF WAR, which I thought was great, and bolstered my contention that the Persians were not inherently inferior to the Greeks.

He also mentions Victor Hansen's THE WESTERN WAY OF WAR, which is a fine book, and comparatively inexpensive.

>I could be wrong, but I believe that the book Sandy suspected was
>the _History of World Warfare_ is titled _the Art of War in World
>History

You are correct. It does cost $30-40, but it lasts a long time. Dupuys & Dupuys ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MILITARY HISTORY is even less reasonably-priced. It's something like $50-60. But you'll never be sorry you own it if you have the least interest in war, ancient or modern.

TIM TORRES
>If I had control of a Gnome, large enough to surround my physical
>form and leave a pocket of breathable air (with or without
>replenishable air supply), and if this Gnome were sufficiently
>intelligent to understand what I wanted (maybe I've put a lot of
>effort into making it a worthwhile familiar), would it be capable
of >transporting me underground?

Yes. However, the gnome is unable to give you a pocket of air. It can totally engulf you and carry you underground, but Earth by its nature excludes Air (i.e., is dominant over it), just as you can't take Fire under Water. You could put air in waxed saddlebags or something I guess, but I doubt it would be all that helpful. The basic situation is that you have to hold your breath while the gnome transports you.

This means that gnome transport is only usable for quite short distances, and true U-Boat tactics aren't all that plausible. Which is good because it destroys any resemblance to ancient warfare. But it's also a handy tool for those special occasions.

Sandy P.