>I don't think the Red Emperor "is" Shah of Carmania. All the potential
>claimants to the Shah's title were wiped out in the course of the Blood
>Kings' Wars, in the First and Second Wanes of the Empire. =
I agree that all the claimants to the old bloodlines were eradicated. =
However, there is no reason to suppose that blood is a definitive road =
to rule or Shah legitamacy. It certainly would help but it would seem =
odd (to me at least) that no-one could usurp the title through military =
means, political means, wealth, popular support etc. IMO, the Shah =
of Carmania is any man who rules Carmania and calls himself Shah =
without being offed immediately :) The rituals would be aided by blood =
but as Greg has discussed and written up in heroquest form, it is quite =
possible to Heroquest back in time to _become_ a member of the blood =
you want to belong to. Hero Wars will be packed with this kind of =
adventure.
>The unique powers of the Carmanian Shahs were extinguished when their
divine >founder, Carmanos, was felled by one of the Four Arrows of Light,=
and they have >neverbeen manifested since. (Cue for much Hero Wars activity, I hope)
Hmm, yes the Shahs took a pasting at the 4 Arrows, yes they lost a lot of= =
power but I doubt that their rituals were expunged completely. I would =
argue that their power _has_ manifested since during the defeat of Sheng =
Seleris by Magnificus. I believe that his weaponry included a significan= t =
amount of Carmanian old ritual, as well as Lunar power. I also think tha= t =
the manifestation of Carmanian magics at a specially selected point large= ly
helped the Lunars defeat the Seleric warband and thus allowed Shengs =
defeat.
>In our Lunar games, we have given Moonson the (originally Carmanian) tit=
le
>of "Padishah of Peloria," among many others. This is a title the
Carmanians
>acquired in the tenth or eleventh centuries S.T., when they saw themselv=
es
>as the dominant partner in a long-lasting alliance with the Dara Happans=
- -
>This is bigger and better than merely being the "Shah of Carmania" -- it=
's
>an equivalent to "Emperor" or "King of Kings" (which are among the other=
>titles in Moonson's capacious armoury).
Yes I think he would be Padishah but in Carmania he would still be Shah =
because Magnificus was Shah and he was the one who led the Empire =
to renewal. Therefore the Carmanians would aknowledge that he is King =
of Kings but also very proudly state that he is THEIR king, or in this ca= se
>Certainly, the Red Emperor can command the Idovanic School, the College =
of
>Magi, and any other Carmanian or Imperial institutions -- if he couldn't=
,
>they would (ipso facto) be rebels against his rule. But I don't think th=
e
>Magi, the Satraps of Carmania, etc. would think he was the "top man" in
>their institutions -- rather, he'd be seen as the only person who can bo=
ss
>around (or intervene against) the Hierophant, the Governor of the West
>Reaches, or others. (Though he would usually be well advised to do so wi=
th
a
>degree of political caution: these are powerful individuals, with many
>resources of their own to call upon).
It depends on the period you are talking about. In the days of Magnificu=
s,
I'd =
say he was truly "top man" but in the days of more...er...."relaxed" mode= rn
Emperors, I think it would be another story. In fact it would be as you say =
regarding the political implications of his actions in Carmania.
Regards
Martin =
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