Hello Greg:
I want to write my current opinion about Arkat through HQ heroquest
description, if you don't like it or let me read "Seralos Deguys" and <3007.
Arcane Lore: Heroquests and Heroquesting> before I say something, please
stop me before I go too far or I misunderstand the rule of HQ. But at least,
I can say futility from only materialistic profit (and advantage bonus in
rule) about heroquest. (Please distinguish difference of capital letters, hq
(actions of characters) and HQ (rule). Three types of hq presented in HQ
rule... see p.191)
<Greg: I'd suggest that anyone setting off on a HQ with swinder's data is doomed. I mean, you must have the correct data to succeed, or else be incredibly lucky. >
Arkat failed several times in HQ, and his method was (at least sometimes) experimental. (See changing paths in HQ p.201) and chose unknown (at least in his contemporary cult he belonged) "stations" several times in Otherside. Of course arkat(i) can prepare enough with gathered information, but if you went same place in other cult, still unknown factors are present.
(For example, if you meet Honorable Blue Knight and challenged in One
Station, as hrestoli knight or humakti, you might have to accept his
challenge, but if you are ZZni, you might want to ambush the foolish hooman
rider and torture him freely for extracting his secret....)
I think each consequences of hq don't need to tell all of themselves for players, and I want to all of Good or Bad should be told from End of History or Saga, for great hq is too serious matter to be solved from only an aspect of rule. For example, once Arkat was wounded poisoned spear and that damage couldn't be healed without help of us, sorry, uz. And in that consequence, Arkat joined uzdom. You would think that reversely if he wasn't wounded, he might not have joined Uz Army.
(Or more familiar term, if Orlanth killed Eurmal on his way to Underworld in
LBQ, Orlanth would have failed, even if you don't like my suggesting about
relation of Frodo and Gollum in LOTR.... In Game Term, D&Dishly narrator can
give freely bonuses and Heropoints after success of each quests, but I think
it is better way to give something unknown things, like "Blue Hawk Eyes" or
"Bright Stone String" for future playing. )
<Greg: No. Magic is a non-countable thing. You can answer it with a value of "how many," just "how much." The numbers given are approximate, variable and indefinite. At least, in the Glorantha I know of. It is mythic, not mathmatical.>
I suppose that is why mystic rule was failed in HW rule. :-) it tried to
induce storytelling part into characteristic bonuses in rule.
(You can freely Original Duck Rule that all teaching of Durulz are true and
right, and others are wrong, but it seems that no one want it, even
Quackbeth Hueymakt. )
I think Heroquest isn't always performed for material gain, some are destined to be failed from start, and its participants don't need to want something. I suppose some want to lost something in Otherside, (like cleasing curse, destroy One Ring, killed over Hill of Gold etc...)
<Me: Most dangerous swindler believes own deceit with sincerity, IMO that's why "fanatical" Arkat could easily allure and seduce his companions even after many of his betrayals.>
Success or failure is very subjective matter for characters cannot see their own abilities. :-)
Arkat might be flexible and at one point, said "I went to Otherside for getting "Eye of the World", but I got "Hand of Annilla" as a substitution and it is more useful." And you might have called him "Bugger! We are tricked!" and left him risking his revenge. Arkat called Questioners spreading pestlence in Seshnela "Servants of Deceiver" (But what occured if they succeeded in preaching?). thus Arkat continued to call Nysalor "Gbaji" even after he left Seshnela.
But only flaw and lie for followers of Nysalor was that Nysalor could not defeat Arkat, so failed, and Arkat was called by that Deragatory term (like krjalki) by Dara Happans and other betrayed people once followed Arkat. I merely think that this sarcasm is enhanced if Arkat didn't intentionally betrayed all of his con games. Of course, MGMV. But again, all was told from winner and the end of Saga.
<Greg: You might. You probably would, in order to speak the language of
whomever asks the question.
Alternately, you may say "To speak with me requires that you have purged
your souls to the quantity of sand flakes upon the beach of Logic, and you
have dedicated to Him We Cannot Know all the tribulations of you and before
you could talk to me."
Or I might just hit you with a stick. >
At least, I can say HQ rule doesn't tell "Aeolians perform Misapplied Worship, thus they all go to Hell in afterlife." rather I want to call this penalty is "imposed by St Aeol as test of sincerity to his worshippers". Heroes who achieved Mystical Goal (like Great Orlanth, see HQ p. 109) doesn't tell about themselves after they are removed from game. And they might know that godlearners / lunars / nysalorians told truth that "all religion is same in goal but its way is different." even though HW / HQ rule told us that Three Worlds are totally separated and this maybe told us that we also should be separated and fight each other as in Gods War.
(Or peace is possible only over Surface, or in total Darkness of Nakara, or
in Chaos, or all dominated demonologically by Sorcery, or all of Three
Worlds equally created by Somash, or turning into dragon and eat your own
tail.....Nysalorians are dead and his teaching is lost....)
Maybe Arkat simply found Rage inside of his essence Dancing Shiva / Kali / Zorak Zoran before Creator.....If I understand Selfrock Teaching correctly, it binds practitioners to the part of Middle World, (perhaps similar to dragonewts bound to their eggs...) If they die in Such Status, maybe they turn into Landscape Demon some kind of Mystical Existence, though their mixed spirit / essence / soul is never revealed in Life. But concerning such
is beyond the scape of rules that make bridge between normal daily usual life and Harrek the Berserk.
I dare to say that rules should be method to help imagination rather than to hinder it, is that change of conversion of principle from HW to HQ?
Even though I think skeleton of mechanical mythology induced in Three Worlds made some old diehards familiar with RQ mythology much similar to RW process of change in mythology (including syncretism, euhemerism, etc....that entertained long mythologists like Greg in Entekosiad.) uncomfortable, (for such distinction can be difficult to find in RW parallels.) it is good for game playing and stopping nonsense of TI in GD.....:-) I think Common Magic tried to mend the gap at least in lower level of heroes and succeeded.
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