Kitori, psychopomp

From: SinMissing_at_aol.com
Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997 10:49:34 -0500 (EST)


carlf_at_panix.com wrote:

>"Psychopomp" means "the god that takes the spirits of the dead to
>their destination." Clasically it refers to Hermes, it can be taken
>to mean spirits like the Valkyr -- but it doesn't appear to apply to
>Kyger Litor.

  I thought psychopomp translated as spirit guide.   Are we talking about Greeks or Gloranthans? Hermes is also the god of communication, perhaps moreso than being the guide of the dead, so does that mean Argan Argar is the psychopomp? Or are you saying that Hermes is sort of the everyman?
  Jeset the Ferryman was never, ever, alive. How would he be recognizeable to the newly dead? He would scare them, surely. The spirit guide is essentially someone identifiable as of your own kind. Jeset may no more be recognizeable as a person than a stick in the Styx. And since we are talking about TROLLS, we might as say that Jeset is analagous to Prometheus because he built the first tool (the boat) and therefore is a civilizing aspect. This was later copied by his son(?) Kogag.   I might continue on that Jeset is a precursor to Argan Argar who was a more sophisticated god than Jeset or Kyger Litor. A "passing of the torch," if you will, between primitive troll and advanced surface troll. :-)

David Cake wrote:
>I think you underestimate the Argan Argar cult . . .

  Certainly, Argan Argar is a complex character with more to him than can be summed up in a "AA is ______," format. I couldn't agree more. Im also with you on Voraz Kitor as a cult hero. My only intention in defining Kitori religion was to define inter-tribal relations between humans and trolls on a more equal ground. It certainly is possible to play humans as toadies to their larger troll counterparts but I don't think this is a satisfying role to play. It is already enough to say that troll society is ruled by the fittest. It is mom's way or the highway, and no human is going to change a trolls mind. More likely, the humans would adopt that same mentality, or submit to subjugation.
  And on another note, what sparked me on this whole tip was a desire to discourse on Kitori in general. I am desirous to exchange material on such matters, and get more information for my campaign as well.   For example, I have recently learned that grasshoppers do not propel themselves through the air with muscle alone. The muscle builds gradual mechanical tension, this energy being stored in the hindlegs by distorting the tibia. The sudden release of this energy, sometimes with and audible pop, sends them through the air. Now what my question is, if you have a giant grasshopper with a tibia six or seven feet in length, isn't insect technology at a level to recognize its usefulness as a composite bow?  Trollpak mentions few technologies involving insect parts and I'd liked to share ideas for more.

Arthur Reyes


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