> Another you guys are talking about that I don't get - the great
> compromise froze the god's ability to change?
Basic theology : the gods exist in eternity, which is by definition outside time. Therefore, from an Inner World POV, they are unchanging, hence cannot act, hence have no free will.
However ...
> They don't have free
> will? Really?
Not really. In fact, they do retain some small measure of Free Will, and ability to act within time. In HeroQuest, this usually manifests as a GM fiat to narrate acts of divine intervention ... ;-)
("small" of course being a relative concept : in a game, the effects of such divine intervention can be literally mind-boggling in scope ... )
Also, they retain the ability to designate certain mortals as being "destined" to become their adepts, although there would naturally be some debate as to whether this might not be some quasi-platonic psychopomp deal, where the dead person gets to choose as whom he will be reincarnated.
Less controversially, mortal Heroes lend their free will to the gods in exchange of magic : the Heroes act according to ritual structures, therefore losing part of their Will, whilst the gods gain the ability to act via these mortal avatars, and can act therefore inside Time.
This exchange is called "Magic".
As you can see, this is not a simple question ... :-D
> So what do they do all day? Are they in time now? Or
> still outside and looking in?
Yes, No, and Wrong Questions, glasshoppah ...
These questions are rendered hopelessly complex by Gloranthan cosmology, and it depends entirely on your worldview whether the gods are immanent or not.
What do they do all day ? I can only recommend that you search heroquest-rpg.com for Greg's *excellent* essay, The World is Made of Everything.
They do Everything.
Are they in Time now ?
Depends. Are you a chronomancer ?
Yes and No and Wrong Question.
> Can they talk?
According to Plunder, and other similarly hoary OOP sources, they even have their own language. (!!)
> Do they "want" / "need"?
Definitely. Desire isn't a function of Time, but a consequence of cosmic destruction. And Uleria is Everywhere. So YES.
> I just don't see how a sentient being can't change.
They can, and they do, but it's just a very weird process.
The relationship of the gods with the Inner World is a highly complex process (NOT static) that cannot be accurately described using the binary functions of normal Western logic.
Although Greg has on occasion given it a pretty good shot ... ;-)
> Can the gods talk to each other? I am not so much concerned with
> whether they manage to get dates for Saturday Night as much as I
> wonder what the weltanschauung is... How does Malkion deal with there
> being all these pantheons wandering about? Do the Kralori dragons
> interact with the Praxian deities...?
Greg ?
I don't think anyone else has the right answers for this last paragraph ...
Unless some of the answers are in HQ:RiG ?
Julian Lord
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