Sterile Humakti

From: Benedict Adamson <ben_at_cd.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 10 Mar 1997 13:31:49 +0000


Sterile humakti? I think of the gods of a pantheon as a social-class thing, so Orlanthi have the following preferences:

Orlanth for male farmers (karls/ceorls), Ernalda for female farmers (karls/ceorls), Orlanth Rex for male nobles (jarls/eorls/cynings), Humakt for male warriors (huskarls/thegns), Urox for male beserkers (huskarls/thegns).

So I assume a typical Humakti is like a typical huskarl/thegn. I think having them sterile is a bit extreme. Are Ernaldan women to be perpetually pregnant too? I'm sure Orlanthi farmers delight in their fine children, but even they can have too much of a good thing ;-) I think for Humakt HIMSELF to be sterile is proper, but there should be limits to simularities betwwen a god and its worshippers. I doubt many Orlanthi farmers
(PCs excepted, of course!) wander off on quests, but Orlanth himself did so all
the 'time'.

A good source for Humakti in my campaign (if it's ever restarted) would be the recent book 'The English Warrior from Earliest Times to 1066', by Steve Pollington, pub. Anglo-Saxon Books 1996. Apparently, the fighting force
(werod) of a lord (drihten) was considered as being composed of youths
(guguth, I think) and 'doughty men' (duguth, I think). The youths were the main
fighting force, the duguth were the veterans and close companions of the lord. The older veterans were not expected to fight (excpet as a last ditch---read the fine Old English poem 'The Battle of Maldon' for some Humakti heroics), but did estate management of (non hereditry) land grants. The implication is that the youths would not have the survival chances, home or land to raise a family, but the veterans would. Were are the youths to come from, if not the offspring of the previous generation of veterans? I would therefore have Humakti fertile in principal, but not in practice when young.

BTW I completely reject the idea of there being mercenary regiments of Humakti in Dragon Pass. Far too civilised for Viking-like Orlanthi, IMO. In Heortland, perhaps.

Wes thu hal!

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