[ignoring the manifest confusion between sobjectivity of myth and wanting of roolz to describe mythic conflicts - they are NOT the same thing]
>Moonbroth is a classic case where superior Lunar manipulation of myths
>was crucial when they "proved" that Oakfed was the son of Lodril and
>turned Oakfed's powers on the Praxians. How did they do that? And on
>a lower level, how can we simulate such events in our campaigns?
The lunars 'proof' that Oakfed was the rebellious son of Lodril is *not* the objective view of what happened. It was the Lunar viewpoint of how they accounted for their victory. The Oakfed shamans would have given a different explanation of their defeat had they survived the battle. They would have not recognize Lodril's victory as Lodril proving that he was the father and would explain it in terms of the Lunars re-enacting the myth of the Devil corrupting Oakfed for that was their understanding of how Oakfed can be defeated and twisted against them.
Objectively what happened was the Lunar summoned their own god and used it to subdue the spirit of Oakfed. They had probably done this in the past with similar fire spirits in Peloria and elsewhere. The Lunars view the act of subdual as Lodril asserting his paternal rights (with a big stick). It arises out of their own philosophy that the multitude of [type] spirits are really sons and daughters of the One True [type] spirit whom the Lunars worship. Thus Yelm is the One True Sun, Lodril is the One True Fire God and so forth. A God Learner would describe the Lunar Technique as a Control spell. Yet the Lunars do not *perceive* the contest as Lodril deciding to cast 'Suppress Oakfed' but rather a struggle familiar from their own myths.
The Praxians didn't have any prepared countermagics to ward of the Lunar attempt to subdue Oakfed (an obvious myth to use would have been Waha defeats and tames corrupt Oakfed). Oakfed simply had his own innate resistance and he failed his roll. If the Lunar attempt to subdue him had failed (IMO it is *not* automatic), then the Lunars would have viewed it as 'rebellious Oakfed blocked his ears to his father's remonstrations and then kicked the seven different types of crap out of him'.
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