First, I like the searchlight hypothesis. I'm assuming the Red Moon fundamentally has two faces, which spin around, and different places outside the glowline see different phases at different times. Because of this, from the Silver Sultanate the moon is always seen, from the bottom, as being two-faced/half-full. I think it's a mistake to think of the Red Moon as only being the Red half. The moon is made of light and the dark halves, and I think the dark face is just as real, important, and powerful as the red, in its own way. This is in very much keeping with the essential duality of the Lunar religion. Their ultimate symbol (the moon), in its ultimate form (The Crater), should be a symbol of a religion of balance and creative tension, not uniformity. In the outside world, the moon is imperfectly in balance, because its balance varies througout the week. The closer to the center, the more constant it is in its harmony.
And this nicely solves the problem of why the Moon rune looks the way it does. From far away, it looks like the rune halfway through its cycle. From directly under it, it looks exactly like the rune, if you are facing correctly. If the moon was fully dark or light from the center of the empire, the rune would probably look like Darkness or Fire. Bear in mind the founders of the post-apotheosis lunar church, who presumably created the rune, were presumably in the Silver Sultante, and the rune should reflect this perspective
As for the equality and balance between the red and black faces of the moon, this would be a neat Inner Secret of the empire. I dimly remember some rumor of Lunar magicians who were powered by the dark face, not the light, and who would be especially feared outside the glowline. If such folks existed, and the moon were always full inside the glowline, they would be weak as all get out at home, which seems inappropriate. Instead, if the moon is at full power, at both halves, inside the glowline, dark side magicians would be as powerful as the normal kind. Anyone remember who these folks were, or care to speculate what they're like? Blue Moon trolls seem an obvious choice, and I suspect they get scarier and more inexplicable from there. Could be a neat narrative hook for a Lunar campaign - exploring the politics and spirituality of the Dark Side.
And, of course, the Star Wars parallels would be compelling.
Anyone care to speculate if the White Moonies are trying to turn the whole thing white, or just the red side?
Does this seem like a good solution for anyone?
Ben Waggoner
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