>Yelm is the ideal Emperor for Orlanthi Society as it is now. IMO,
>the original archetype of the evil ruler in Orlanthi Society was
>the harsh clan tyrant rather than the foreign solar ruler. Lokaymadon
>comes closest to this in modern orlanthi mythological terms.
I agree in part, given the fact that his history has been mainly forgotten, but his myth survived told by Harmast and successors. The historical Lokamayadon actually faced some of the harsh clan tyrant types in the Second Council. I dislike profoundly what he did to the cult of Orlanth - not so much Heort's cult, which he used about as much as his native Lakinsti cult of the Storm King (Oralanatum, was it?), but what he did to all the other local cults. Unity in diversity! Not the boorish Harmast stew, either...
>Given that Ernalda is the wife of the Evil Ruler who is now married
>to Orlanth, it has struck me that perhaps the Evil Ruler was originally
>somebody related to her. Now there is a mythical figure called Erlandus
>who is known and detested by the Dara Happans and he apparently comes
>from Brolia which Erlanda, Lokaymadon's wife, also originates. So
>perhaps the original evil ruler was Erlandus or Ernaldus or even
>Ernanth.
Foreign ruler yes, though not necessarily solar?
I know that Loky claimed that Erland was the same deity as Orlando or even Humath (at least where Maklaman Ironblade did not interfere, i.e. among the Vustri). Prior to this equation, were Erland and the Heortling "Orlanth" even related mythologically?
If so, he might be one of many candidates for this de-solarized version of the Evil Emperor myth:
"Young Orlanth" enters the court of his "evil" uncle, who has disinherited his father, or at least this is what after several redefinitions of the religion has been left in the myth. He challenges the uncle to three contests, and is cheated by the judges (followers of the uncle) twice before choosing a contest where no cheating judges are possible. Then he takes the wife of the uncle and rules in his stead, attempting to be wiser, and listening to her advice rather than overruling her.
Note that the harp was claimed by "Umath" in one of the King of Sartar myths. Young Orlanth's first contest was harp (harmony) vs. horn (call to battle/hunt, i.e. conflict - not quite disorder, but close enough). Part of all of this was a generation conflict, after all...
Does this mean that the evil uncles were all common in early Orlanthi myth? Think of the initiation myth in KoS. The names given might well be later God Learner influences.
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