> In the 1600s, much of Genertela is frighteningly
violent place, and almost everyone must be ready to defend their homes
from (pick from: Chaos, Trolls, KoW, Lunars, any post-Ban expansionist
group, Wolf Pirates, etc).
SOME of Genertela is a violent place. You ignore the vast peaceful populations of Seshnela, central Peloria, Backwater Esrolia, and Kralorela. The violence of the Hero Wars will eventually come to them, but they can't see that yet. It's just that much of the adventuring takes place in the areas of turmoil.
>Certainly only a few would know all the spells PCs usually know (at least
from the RQ2 PoV), but I think many
farmers (especially) and even some city folks would know Bladesharp (maybe
only 1 or 2 points), Protection, Demoralise, Befuddle, Disrupt, etc.
If you're playing that all spells are available to everyone - perhaps. But farmers in Glorantha likely do what farmers everywhere do when faced with invading armies - give up. Farmer Geo is going to be just as dead if he uses Bladesharp in his fight against a squad of soldiers. If he gives up and gives half his grain to the soldiers, then he lives, and maybe only the kids starve. It's pretty brutal, but the Fortunate Succession is full of these kind of events. I imagine Orlanthi history is too - they just don't like to talk about it.
Sure - farmers in the Risklands, near the Footprint, or in the high hills of Tarsh may be more warlike and train as fighters, learning all those adventurer/combat spells. But they are likely to be poorer and more desperate than their lowland cousins because of it. Much of this depends on how you handle magic ecology in your game - how much time do priests have to teach spells, how many spell spirits do they know, can Orlanthi even learn Fireblade, etc.
>Probably a family would spread the spell knowledge around, as
money and time allowed, so that the whole family knows all the spells,
but each member only knows one or two.
Makes sense - magic is a resource, and folk could treat it cooperatively. Jeff Richard was telling me about an idea of Greg's, where the Orlanthi can organize into "War Tribes" or "Peace Tribes" for a year. When in War aspect, they turn the annual rituals from fertility to war. (And, I imagine, study up on the Bladesharp.) This make them more powerful in combat, but the crops suffer and food production is much less. A tribe cannot sustain war condition for too many years and survive. Bug Jeff, and maybe he'll post more about it.
> What Pam argues for, I think, is a world where magic is commonplace, but
the kind of
magic folks use is mundane (to speed the plough, to heal minor wounds,
to bless the fields, to help catch dinner in the forest) rather than
combative (look at most PCs for examples of what should be uncommon
or even rare).
Pretty much. But I can still see that most people, or everyone once in a while, is going to want to play a bruiser adventerer-type. There is nothing wrong with this - one should just be aware that this type of Gloranthan is exceptional, and likely feared by many. More common is a farmer-warrior type, maybe somone from the hills, who should have a good reason for leaving, and some actual farming skills!;-).
Play what you like - but don't overlook the economies of society. Tell your huscarl-players know where their bread comes from! Remember that a Humakti warrior is not going to have women fawning all over him, and that armed strangers are viewed with suspicion everywhere in Glorantha. Woe to the wandering sword-slinger who knows only combat magic, because there's more to life in Glorantha than combat!
Pam
End of Glorantha Digest V2 #481
WWW material at http://hops.wharton.upenn.edu/~loren/rolegame.html
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