>First, I'm trying to get a handle on exactly what utuma is.
An Utuma is a dragonewt shortsword and what they use to commit ritual suicide.
Most odd, however, is [the dragonewt] ability to reappear
in their home nests after being killed in battle or
undergoing a ceremonial suicide called Utuma.
It is also what the Grand Ancestral Dragon did to create the world.
This dismemberment, called utuma, in dragonewt philosophy
is the result of the Grand Ancestral Dragon's willingness to
accept the duty of entanglements which his actions had
brought about and resulted in his fill integration into the
world. By dying he re-entered the world to fulfill his duties.
To have done otherwise would have resulted in a fatal weakness
which would have destroyed the basis for draconic existence.
This is often equated, or confused, with the dragonewt sense
of 'honor'.
http://www.glorantha.com/library/elder/dragonewts-mythos.html
More details of dragonewt philosophy can be found there. The Kralori (human draconic) version of it is:
Utuma is the means by which the Cosmic Dragon created the
world. Ignorant people perceive it as death and make
useless sacrifices to ward against it. When death comes
for them, their error condemns them to a futile existence
as a tormented ghost in several hells before being reborn.
The dragon emperors have taught for centuries that Utuma
is merely a change in spiritual perspective that allows one
to transcend the mortal world and fully behold the Uncreated
Cosmic Dragon.
Glorantha: Intro p192.
The Emperor Dragon and some others have delayed their
ascendance to the Cosmic Dragon so they can teach others
the Draconic mysteries. To do this requires a number of
limitations on their being, such as not assuming draconic
form for example. If their existence becomes too
burdensome, Dragons release themselves through the rite
of utuma and from their mortal shell rises their true
self.
Glorantha: Intro p188.
Kralori who are guilty of some wickedness can still hope
to escape the Archexarch [of Hell, Udam Bagur] through
the ritual of utuma that sunders their draconic nature
from their corrupt bodies and sends them to the Palace.
Glorantha: Intro p190.
The Glorantha: Intro also contains more details about Kralori philosophy. For the methods of the EWF, there's the following passage in King of Sartar:
One day Eurmal found a new way to betray his master. He
found a foolish man, and he split his tongue, the way that
a bird's tongue can be split to make it talk. And he also
split the man's brain, and his heart. That way the man
would understand dragon speech.
KoS p92.
It is my opinion that this operation was performed in the EWF with an utuma. As well as noting Argrath's destruction of the Red Moon through an utuma ritual (for a possible interpretation, see http://www.btinternet.com/~Nick_Brooke/Moonie/triumph.htm ), the utuma is also responsible for the destruction of the EWF:
The empire grew more corrupt until it betrayed its own
draconic existence by being too selfish. Then the Dragon
Emperor of the humans was confronted by an evil spirit
named Utuma who slew him.
KoS p188.
>It all seems ill defined (perhaps intentionally), and I was curious if
>anyone could give me some guidance. We've identified several aspects of
>draconic magic (utuma, dragon fire, use of dragonewt artifacts, dreaming,
>etc.), but don't have much more than these broad categories.
There is Sandy's musings on Dragon magic which can be found at:
http://chmeee.pronetsolutions.com/gd/henk%2Ddaily/msg03012.html
and at:
http://chmeee.pronetsolutions.com/gd/henk%2Ddaily/msg03072.html
These were done for RQ3 and IMO 'newts should still be able to do something similar in Hero Wars.
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