Jane wrote about the initiation:
> In fact Greg's one seems to include this one, if I'm
> understanding it correctly. You get to go through the
> entire history of the universe. Including the little
> section we'd picked out. We were thinking far too
> small.
That's a very good point. It is rather interesting that the girls experience so much more of the universe than the boys.
> If there's (say) 1:100 chance of dying, that's pretty
> scary!
I am still trying to figure out what the actual odds of dying are, though.
> > It strikes me that this HQ would have more emotional
> > than physical repercussions.
>
> Very much so - and I suspect that goes for more HQs
> than you might think, too. You're emulating your
> deity, and remember Gloranthans believe this stuff at
> a depth that most of us don't.
That's an excellent point, and one I agree with. I think MANY HQs are about more spiritual/emotional matters than about going off and beating someone up.
> The Spoiler
> I'd thoroughly agree with that. Which is why I've
> wanted to tell everyone about the "Kallyr's son" plot
> ever since I first heard about it (I think that was
> around 1999, possibly earlier). How on earth were you
> meant to narrate the bit of the Shiprise where he
> dies, without knowing what the relationship was?
Well, since they try and make Kallyr so distant you can't tell what's going on with her, it would seem that someone following as published wouldn't have to really worry. But I do remember trying to figure out if they were implying the two were lovers. It was only the "vowed never to be wedded or bedded" that dissuaded me. Presumably this gets revealed later and has some significance, or why hide it? (Even if I don't think you should hide it in the first place.)
> So it's somewhat annoying to find that although AFAIK
> I'm STILL bound by a NDA not to talk about it, some
> part of the secret (not necessarily all) have been
> being chatted about at conventions by Greg. When I
> find out which bits are still secret, which are not to
> be talked about until Dragonrise comes out (I'm
> working on writing that bit at the moment!), and so
> on, I'll be in on the discussion, but at the moment
> I'm just confused :(
That sucks. Hopefully you'll have that cleared up soon.
Donald on the Ernalda initiation
> Of course they're cheating, it's far too important not to. The
> initiate tries to influence the quest to go the way they want,
> while the elders try to influence things to go the way they think
> best for the clan. There's no certainty either will get their way.
Well said, well said. I stand convinced. :)
> >From a gaming point of view I'd let the player boost an ability
> at chargen and spend a hero point if they wanted to make sure
> they succeeded.
Oh, absolutely. If you were running this as a chargen thing, you would have to allow some extra leeway to the player.
> The relationship stuff is going to get some major changes as a
> result of Greg's article. In one sense Elmal is a symbol of all
> those men of whatever cult who think women should stick to
> women's tasks.
True. But since it now seems you have all the Storm Age to work with, you can do lots. :)
> Not so much has power over them, Ernalda would laugh at the suggestion
> Orlanth has power over her. I think it does have an influence in who
> they see as protector and who they'll choose for a husband.
Still, an intriguing concept. Would you think that the girls/women could have some influence on this? After all, Ernalda has many husband/protectors in other cultures. All Orlanthi would think of it as being Orlanth, but that's an Orlanthi all. Does not Ernalda provide some ability to choose her own husband?
(on surviving without magic)
> Greg has said a couple of times to my knowledge that Gloranthan
> communities need magic to survive the way they do. It may not
> be absolutely essential for survival but the chances of surviving
> are substantially reduced without it.
Oh, absolutely. But it just makes things harder, not impossible, in my view.
<on the spoiler>
> It's even worse for a narrator who's trying to narrate with
> Lunar PCs. I know the scenario isn't written for that but a
> bit more information about what's really going on would be
> helpful.
That's just a generally true criticism.
> And doesn't it make him a male heir to the Kingdom of Sartar?
Wow. Interesting point, but I'd have to go back and look at how bloodlines are traced in Sartar. Admittedly, he would have some sort of claim by blood. (This, of course, brings up the question of his dad, which probably IS major spoiler fodder.)
> Except that it was Kallyr who started that fight, and I still have no idea
> why. Well, one of the lists came up with some very good ideas why (LC
> mainly, wasn't it?), but AFAIK that never got adopted by Officialdom.
Nope. Certainly not me. At least, I don't remember any discussion that even got considered for adoption by officialdom.
> P64. "This was a new cult and it appears, this was to be Danar's creation
> story. But it clearly failed. 'It's not easy to become immortal.'"
Yeah, when I read that in the book, I just thought it meant the story of the rebirth of the cult, since on p54 it says, "Both he and Kallyr hope that during the raid Danar can re-establish contact with Penendros so that he can be worshipped again."
But now looking at it it does seem that Danar was aiming higher. Sort of interesting since we've been discussing apotheosis on the RPG list and mentioning that just having big enough stats isn't enough. :)
LC
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