Re: The Glorantha Digest V7 #443

From: aelarsen_at_facstaff.wisc.edu
Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2000 22:00:17 -0600

>From: "Alexandre Lanciani" <alexanl_at_tin.it>
>Subject: Uleria: Love or Death?
>
>Andrew:
>> So IMG Uleria has a martial aspect which is generally neglected
>> in most areas because there are other dieties who perform that role much
>> more effectively.
>
> Once I'd have liked to add a character in my campaign who embodied the
>dichotomy death/sex but I was stopped from doing so by runic determinism: if
>Uleria personifies Love and Love is the expression of Fertility and
>Fertility is opposed to Death and Death is expressed (also) by War, how
>would such a character come to term with her two natures?

        The two powers are contradictory, which is another reason why Ulerians are overshadowed as warriors. There are other gods who do a much better job of this than Uleria. But not all violent dieties have the Death rune. Yelmalio doesn't have it and many of his worshippers are professional soldiers. Orlanth has a lot of association with violence but doesn't have the Death rune either.
The Red Goddess combines Life and Death, because she is enlightened and (perhaps) because she is chaotic. Perhaps more importantly, she's been dead and come back, like Yelm, who also has Life and Death runes.

Andrew E. Larsen

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