Re: Element > Element

From: Sandy Petersen <sandyp_at_idgecko.idsoftware.com>
Date: Wed, 21 Aug 96 18:02:02 -0500


Mike Cule
>Isn't Chaos an Elemental Rune (God Learnerism....)

        No. No Gloranthan that I can think of offhand believes that Chaos is an element. The God Learners classified it as a Form.

Tim Ellis lists the circle of dominance, but gets it wrong.

It goes as follows: 

        Darkness defeats Earth
        Sky defeats Darkness
        Water defeats Sky
        Storm defeats Water
        Earth defeats Storm

>I'm less sure about the rest. Certainly the Storm Gods seem to have
>kicked the crap out of quite a few water-related dieties in the
>God's War, but then they fought just about everyone.

        Evidence of Storm > Water dominance is as follows:

  1. The storm gods have captured the clouds and own them as part of their domain.
  2. Certain important water deities, especially Magasta, have married storm gods (i.e., Brastalos).
  3. In the Gods War, the Storm Gods raped or married a number of sea spirits, and the merman even today are generally air-breathers. (The marriages spawned the Cetoi, the rapes the Piscoi; accounting for their different attitudes towards air-breathers)
  4. The wind whips up the waves, and clearly has power over the might of the sea. at least near the surface.

>And is the 'Earth defeats Storm' relationship symbolised by the
>peaceful taming effect of Ernalda on her husband rather than out and
>out violent overthrow? I suspect so.

        More than just that. Consider: the storm gods are known to have been wild, brutal, and dangerous in their youth. Even their adherents admit this. Some storm gods married (almost invariably an earth deity). Those gods were thus rendered _tame_. Their violence has been harnessed into the cause of good. Here follow some fine examples of what I'm talking about --

  1. Orlanth married Ernalda. He is the most "tame" of all, and has gained a great deal of responsibility and respect.
  2. Storm Bull married Eiritha. Though still able to throw a mean punch, his fighting abilities are today directed mostly vs. clan enemies, not anybody at random.
  3. Keraun is the goddess of storm for Pamalt, and she dwells in Pamalt's household -- plainly she has been conquered by him. Most Doraddi say she's a concubine, but sometimes she's called a handmaid.
  4. Vadrus, Valind, Sikkanos, Gagarth, Urain, Tien, Molanni, Xamalk, Solar Storm, and Sea Storm **, are all examples of storm gods who never made an attachment to the Earth, and remain unwed to this day. Note that EVERY ONE of them are not only bad, but vile. Most everybody hates them. I submit that they show us what the storm gods were like before they were tamed. The only unwed former storm god who is more-or-less acceptable is Humakt, who purposely destroyed his Storm connections.

        The only exception I can think of to the above rule is Ragnaglar, who married Thed. Arguably, Thed was some kind of earth goddess. But maybe not. Besides, Ragnaglar was the Mad God.

        _Vadrus, Valind, Gagarth, Molanni_ = see the Storm God's genealogy for explanations of these reprobates.

        _Sikkanos_ = A Pamaltelan bandit sect, regarded as the dry harsh wind from the Nargan desert. Some people say he is Vadrus, yet alive and harmful. Some Fonritian philosophers claim that Sikkanos is Orlanth Criminous, as good an explanation as any.

        _Urain_ = a chaotic berserker-god. Self-destructive rage.

        _Xamalk_ = "Beater", the savage Nightmare Wind of Chaos -- a chaotic god. The Three Blows of Xamalk figure big in East Isles mythology. The First Blow was the murder of the Sun. The Second Blow was the murder of the Golden Emperor (who ruled Vithela). The Third Blow shattered Vithela itself. There was an abortive Fourth Blow, but it failed. Later Xamalk went to Luathela, where he was beaten badly.

        _Tien_ = who later became Thanatar. He was a Storm deity, possibly even a pre-Eiritha descendent of the Bull himself.

        _Solar Storm_ = an opponent of Shavaya (an early Kralori emperor), who was defeated when the Kralori Emperor opened the Storm's blinded third (inner) eye.

        _Sea Storm_ = one of the five Usurpers from Ignorance. All opposed the Emperor and all were ultimately defeated. They came serially, not all in a group.

Sandy P.

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