3EB: Chris Ward points me to a book. Thanks. I really wonder how a metal-worker society works and for sure this will help me.
Pentans:
Peter Metcalfe quotes Glorantha Intro p174.
I couldn't find the quote you mention about Sheng. Unfortunately Multisim have cut some small bits at the translation; too bad for sections on Kallyr, Minaryth and others... Or maybe it was not cut and i didn't search well enough. Is is in the Pentan section? (of course the page numbers aren't the same as well...)
> Therefore it's debatable that a Pentan will still consider himself
> a Freedom Lover even if he did so before Sheng Seleris (which I
> also find improbable considering that they are Solars, not Storm
> Worshippers). Bravery and Loyalty are the cardinal virtues of a
> Pentan
Solar and the concept of freedom do jar with each other, i agree. OTOH, the Pentans are nomads and i think (or feel) nomadism in nature emphasizes freedom. The text that i transcribed seemed to reconcile the two, bringing together freedom as opposed to loyalty, discipline & strict obedience to the leader, and i liked this for the Pentans.
At first, i suppose strict obedience is necessary only for battle. At other times, the nomads follow their beasts on well-defined trails and spend a lot of boring time doing nothing and drowsing on their horses. They never miss an occasion to have fun: They drink kumis. They do riddle contests in the great steppe-wisdom fashion. (What is the greatest thing for a man in life? - Feeling the sun on his skin, his spear through the throat of his enemy, dying for his leader, etc:)). They play dice, jacks, polo. Tribes which became converted to Wind religion may play kite in windy Pent. And the others, don't want to hear about kites, filthy windy thing. Of course, when they've just raided a village or enemy clan, they have a lot of sex.
Then, they have slaves, which is quite solar, but inside the tribe, each man can hope to become a tribal chieftain past a certain age, if he is chosen by the elders among the family leaders. For the Dara Happans, it's unthinkable.
I agree that a Pentan calling himself a "Freedom-Lover" is probably inaccurate, and i shouldn't have transposed the text to the first person unless dropping this term. Maybe "Good Slave" instead. But i think the Pentans are still quite free and love their freedom, it's a strong feeling which their Solar culture may have no words for - and might explain why some of them are attracted by a Wind religion. They wouldn't like to live like the Dara Happan peasants, for sure.
Jerome
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