Heortland

From: Peter Metcalfe <metcalph_at_bigfoot.com>
Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 20:25:22 +1300


Joerg Baumgartner:

>The Hendreiki "tribe" should be called a nation - even its four tribes
>are the size of a federation of tribes under a prince/warlord in
>ordinary Orlanthi terms.

The biggest organization that the Orlanthi know of is a kingdom, not a nation. And tribe is perfectly alright in that it's traditional and not used at any other level by the Heortlanders themselves.

>Volsaxar itself is somewhat undefined. The 30,000 Volsaxi of the three
>Whitewall tribes are only a third of the Heortling population of
>Volsaxar.

I do not believe that the Volsaxi number a quarter of the kingdom's population. Secondly there are four tribes in Vosaxiland as can be seen from:

         Volsaxiland designates the area around Whitewall,
         whose tribes (the Volsaxi, plus the tiny Bacofi,
         Curtali and Sylangi) formed the Volsaxar
         confederation.
                 Barbarian Adventures p8

         The Bacofi once ruled wide lands.  King Hroar
         helped the Empire when they invaded because he
         wished to reclaim lands that the Volsaxi had
         seized from him.
                 BA p8

They are also shown as living to the Southwest of Whitewall along the Marzeel River according to the map on p5 of the same. In addition, the unknown population of the Kitori should also be included in the Heortland population.

>They have a tribal confederation similar to the Sartarite city
>rings, probably thanks to Tarkalor's meddling with the trolls.

The government of the Volsaxar is based on the Kingship rituals of Vingkot as the ultra-traditionalist Broyan worships all three subcults of Vingkot (TR p6). They also predate Tarkalor AFAIK so the statement in KoS p196 is not be the whole truth.

>The Whitewall Volsaxi rebelled against the Kitori domination (which
>may have been imposed by the Pharaoh).

I don't think the Pharoah whose stated aim was to free the land from Darkness would have countenanced imposing his subjects to the same force.

> > I've heard contradictory statements on whether [Rikard]
> > is an Aeolian or not (first he was, then he wasn't, now it
> > seems he is).

>As king he did become head of the state church. Whatever his
>personal agenda, his underlings took action on their own.

What state church? The Aeolian Church was not the state faith of Heortland in Pharaonic times, Orlanthi worship was. Secondly by declaring the Kingdom of Malkonwal, Rikard has gone beyond simply being the head of existing institutions or allowing his underlings free reign, he is instituting a reform from above.

--Peter Metcalfe

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End of Glorantha Digest

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