>I ask this because it sounds like Greg believes the characters we play in
>the game are actually the people we are in real life.
John - the rest of your post seems to stem from this premise. This claim ain't so.
This isn't a matter of blurring fantasy and reality. This is a matter of finding meaning from a mythic story that can apply to your own life. Ever read a work of fiction and identify with a character? Find a lesson that helps you understand what you're going through? See meaning that maybe even the author didn't consciously intend?
That's what this is getting at. It's no different from finding meaning in "real" mythology (how's that for an oxymoron? Why is invented mythology less "real" than classical mythology? Lots of Greeks found meaning in their lives by learning the stories of Hermes, Apollo, et al...)
>Role-playing a character that is nothing like us will be replaced with
>playing ourselves in the fantasy/real world.
No. It's roleplay of archetypes that represent something about ourselves, intended or not.
>No matter how much I'd
>like it to be possible for us to be able to acomplish a real world
>heroquest, that fact is... it's not.
I disagree in the strongest possible terms. (I'd love to take this to email. Respond to me if you'd like.)
Consider the Short Lightbringer's Quest as described in KoS. They don't "really" go on the Quest -- but they accomplish it nonetheless. They recreate the story and renew themselves and their world.
Consider a Catholic mass (or any Christian service that blesses and presents the Eucharist). There is a recreation of the Last Supper through a kind of narrative roleplay -- the intent is to renew themselves (and ultimately to gain another world).
And now consider Simon's response:
Simon Hibbs:
> What I can do is attend the
> wedding of one of my best friends in a few weeks time. I will travel to
> the church, take part in the ceremony, give gifts and blessings and
> witness their marriage. In this case it is Ian that is the Hero, following
> an ancient quest to attain one of the greatest of all prizes. If that is
> not magical, what is?
You don't have to follow or agree with any of that to enjoy Glorantha and its Heroquesting premises. But some of us feel you're in for a grander, more meaningful time if you do.
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