> However, does anyone know the approximate date of when
> Argenteus dies and fails to return? The reason I ask is
> because from my understanding, the rise of the Brown Dragon
> and destruction of the Temple of the Reaching Moon in Sartar
> causes immense mythic and magical damage to several solar
> interests.
This "little mishap" certainly helped the Lunar authorities to decide that it was time to move on to another mask. The disappearance of the Red Emperor falls into the decisive stage of Argrath's (or rather Argraths') struggle with Kallyr, after the Battle of Sword Hill and after the re-lighting of the Flame of Sartar.
The absence of stability in the Empire surely helped the Tarsh civil war to grow out of the usual proportions.
It might even be the case that the disappearance of Argenteus brought Moirades back from his debauchery path of mysticism into the job of governing his kingdom. His disappearance (KoS has it as death) coincides roughly with Argenteus' rise.
> Most notable is how the celestial dragon Burbustus takes a bite
> out of Shargash, several stars are dimmed, and the Dragonrise
> causes general chaos(?!) in the sky realm. Being that the
> Red Emperor has many solar-associated powers and aspects, as
> well as his Lunar ones, this was no doubt the equvalent of a
> tactical nuclear strike.
Now, the Red Emperor also has many chaos-associated powers and aspects, which might have profited from the destructive force of the missed ritual. The real magical victim was Yara Aranis, whose reaching claw was chopped (or rahter chewed) off unexpectedly.
> Being that Kallyr's conspirators plotted this for years, it
> could well be that Kallyr and her people were planning a mythic
> counterattack against the powers of their enemies. Something
> rather un-Orlanthi (to my knowledge, the Tarshites did not
> attempt to attack the Lunar myths or gods on the Heroplane
> whilst they were being conquered), but given the nature of folk
> like Minyarth Purple and Kallyr (with her connections to Pole
> Star), not unreasonable.
Unlike the Tarshites, the Sartarites had a fairly good idea what they were up against. Kallyr's family's friendship to Palashee surely helped her in devising a way to counter this magic.
I wonder whether Phargentes had to rebuild the Tarshite Temple of the Reaching Moon from scratch. I think it is a fair bet to assume that its precedessor had been swallowed by the earth when Palashee threw out Philigos.
> Could the Dragonrise have had only the secondary objective of
> destroying the Temple of the Reaching moon, but the primary
> objective of assassinating the Red Emperor, magically?
If you find any Lunars among the conspirators, yes.
I don't know if any were involved, or backing up some members of the conspiracy. If you want to play Lunars (upright provincial zealots) to hunt for the great conspiracy, go for it. I am certain that they will find a villain who can be accused of setting these things in motion.
Tarsh does play a peculiar role in this entire affair. Remember that Moirades is a direct descendant of Hon-eel, who was (will be) involved in the removal of the old mask. (Probably the second time around, if you count the Night of Horrors as well - conspiracy dudes will.)
> Could this have been a very oblique re-enactment of "Orlanth
> Slays the Evil Emperor"?
As the template for efficient removal, this is a bad choice. After all, the sun shines again.
> Or could the failure of the Red Emperor to reappear be an effect
> of the Dragonrise, if not the objective?
I guess that without the Dragonrise, neither the death of the mask nor the failure to reappear would have occurred in that manner.
> Thank you for entertaining speculations...
Thanks for pointing to interesting possibilities.
Any comments on the role of Moirades, anyone?
Joerg
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