It still works, and Joerg was exaggerating about early cookery. Having done pre-industrial cookery, I can tell you that the only real trick is keeping the fire right. A properly-built hearth can boil water as fast as can a gas range, if the fire is properly-kept. Roasting is just as fast (and much tastier). The weaknesses of traditional (vs. industrial) cooking are as follows:
Fuel is very inconvenient. If you don't have a proper hearth, even more fuel must be used to maintain the proper level of heat.
Minimum skill is higher--it's more than "turn on the gas and let the pilot light do the work". You have to know how to build and maintain a fire.
Heat is controlled *not* by changing the fire but by changing the *distance* from the fire.
Smoke is a serious hassle.
However, cutting takes no more time. Boiling (if you know how to handle the fire) takes no more time. If cutting and boiling take no more time, that's most of cooking right there (since simmering is low-boiling, so to speak, and frying is high-boiling, so to speak).
Now, if Joerg has taken 20 hours to make porridge, he needs to work on his fire-building and maintaining skills. Furthermore, only a fool would need to start a new fire daily in a sedentary culture. Banking the coals is an important skill.
> Bryan Maloney's comments: yes! Thanks Bryan, nice one!
Understanding Glorantha isn't that hard--you just have to go there and observe what is happening around you.
> The Glorantha Digest isn't the proper place for RuneQuest
> discussions. I believe there may still be a rq-rules list somewhere
> out there in the ether.
So, therefore, by analogy, the Glorantha Digest isn't the proper place for Hero Wars discussions. Thank you for answering my question.
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