From: RuneQuest-Request@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RQ Digest Maintainer) To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (Daily automated RQ-Digest) Reply-To: RuneQuest@Glorantha.Holland.Sun.COM (RuneQuest Daily) Subject: RuneQuest Daily, Mon, 11 Jul 1994, part 4 Sender: Henk.Langeveld@Holland.Sun.COM Content-Return: Prohibited Precedence: junk --------------------- From: Urox@aol.com Subject: oops! Message-ID: <9407100211.tn213708@aol.com> Date: 10 Jul 94 06:11:14 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5100 Oops, I let my posting go out unfinished, this is the complete version: Martin sez >I thought I'd go ahead and back you up on the question of how >Megaera can be a virgin when she was gang-raped back in >childhood. Megaera herself thought to avoid the Quest on this rather crucial point. But the wise Tarshite Earth Priestess outwitted her: Puddles continues: Since we had to have the mounts back to get out of the Empire safely, Megeara proclaimed she would lift the curse. "How is it done," she asked. "Show me this Hare and I will wring his neck." "You will undertake this Quest?" said the headman. Before I could stop her, she had pledged us to a HeroQuest to find March Hare. But that night when we were being instructed in our roles for the ceremony, the village Earth Priestess informed us that the only formal role to be played by our group was that of Voria herself. "She must go forth barefoot, with garlands of flowers, as did Voria on the first Day," said the priestess. Several jaws dropped as the full implications of this Myth hit home. "What are you all staring at me for," growled Megaera, "I'll poke your eyes out." Most of the men quickly turned away, but several had to leave the hut to avoid laughing. "You, of course, are the only one suitable to play Voria, Dear," said the Earth Priestess. "What?!" she cried. "You can't be serious." Looking around frantically, her eyes fell upon me. "Puddles would be much more suitable," she said, thrusting me forward. "I'm sorry dear, but Voria must be a human and have connection with the Earth," said the old woman calmly. "Quack!!" I said, ruffling my feathers. "But I'm not a virgin," said Megaera brightly. "You'll have to get one of the girls from the village." "You are the one who pledged the Quest. You must be the one to undertake it." "But I thought we'd just go out, find some big bunny, and hack it to bits. How can I do that with flowers in my hair?" said Megaera frantically. "That is not exactly the purpose of this Quest," said the old woman amusedly. "You say you are not a virgin, have you then known the pleasures of a man?" she asked. "I'd hardly call it pleasure," she replied, scowling darkly and gripping her axe. "The only pleasure I took was in the slow, painful deaths of the scum who raped me. That first and only time I was but 12, there were three of them and I was taken by force." "If someone stole your axe, would that make you a merchant?" asked the wise woman. "Of course not," said Megaera, " but what has that got to do with.. "Then for this quest, your status will do," said the old woman calmly. And she left Megaera slacked jawed and puzzled. So that is why Megaera qualified to be Voria. The most interesting side effect of the quest was that in becoming a Voria Hero Megaera regained that which was lost. When March Hare took some things from her he also gave something back, her virginity in the physical sense, her hymen had been restored. A bit of background. I wanted desperately to play a Babeester Gor character in Bryan's campaign. Because Vinga is not written up in any in-print RQ material I have allowed Babsis in my Dorastor campaign to be more like Vingans as they appear on this Daily. The most prominent being the lusty, bawdy Babsi who came looking for a criminal, had a fling with a troll and is now pregnant with Arkat Kingtroll. But in his campaign Bryan rules Babeester Gor to a be wading-in-lakes-of-blood-killing-healers revenge kind of cult. So he let me create this character and then slowly began maneuvering these changes to see what would happen. In a way (and he may or may not reveal more of this) the entire March Hare Quest was to give Megaeara a real role in the game group. So we we've been sort of making it up as we go with Bryan providing the scenarios and me trying to figure out what Megaera would do next after a lifetime of guarding the temple. --------------------- From: David@snail.demon.co.uk (David Scott) Subject: Convulsion 94 Message-ID: <9407101707.aa01829@post.demon.co.uk> Date: 10 Jul 94 16:12:41 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5101 For those of you out there who are coming to Convulsion we have a special RQ Digest event; Sunday 24th July 1994 12-1pm Meet the Digest Come along to the bar and put faces to names. Naturally we will have Henk Langeveld, administrator of the Digest along to answer questions. Please note that you do not need to bring your computer along to participate in this social event. However we do require that subscribers wear a badge with their e-mail address on it. Looking forward to seeing you... David David@Snail.Demon.co.uk Omission from PR3 - If you are going to Convulsion bring Soap & Towel! --------------------- From: jacobus@sonata.cc.purdue.edu (Bryan J. Maloney) Subject: Even Ernaldi practice sophistry Message-ID: <9407101951.AA07392@sonata.cc.purdue.edu> Date: 10 Jul 94 09:51:18 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5102 Megaera "qualified" as a virgin due to my own interpretation of Orlanthi culture: That it doesn't have a tradition of treating women and women's bodies as property. Thus, rape does not damage "virginity", since it was not a willing act. The woman's body may have been injured, but that does not make her a "non-virgin" from a legal or religious sense. The particular argument the Ernalda priestess used on Magaera was this: "If someone steals your axe, does that make you a weapon merchant?" --------------------- From: jacobus@sonata.cc.purdue.edu (Bryan J. Maloney) Subject: Yelmalio and Elmal Message-ID: <9407102007.AA07434@sonata.cc.purdue.edu> Date: 10 Jul 94 10:07:56 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5103 I'm handling the whole Yelmalio/Elmal thing this way: Yelmalio is a recognized member of the Solar Pantheon of Dara Happa. He also happens to be or be very close to a deity who was a good friend of High Elf King during the Greater Darkness. Elmal is the original sun deity of the pre-Godlearner religion of Kerofinela. Now, are they "one and the same" or two different gods. From the point of view of my players, it's utterly and absolutely irrelevant for the following reason: Changing from one cult to the other seems to bring no retribution. Why this might be the case is unknown. Anyway, Yelmalio is worshipped in Sartar, Pavis, and among the more citified tribes of Prax. Orthodox Praxians worship Sun Hawk if they feel solar-ly inclined. This is extremely unusual, however, and most of the sun worship of the Praxian tribes is as a subcult/helper cult of Waha. It is also not unknown for a Praxian tribe that honors/worships the Sun-Dome inspired "Yelmalio" to integrate him into the religion as an "adopted god" who now follows the Way of Waha and gives his light powers to Waha to use. (Much like non-beast-riders can theoretically be adopted into the tribe if they prove themselves worthy.) He still has very few direct initiates in these tribes, and they aren't very "Yelmalic" according to a Sun Domer--especially since Yelmalio often plays a trickster role in these tribes. (He does ride a horse, after all--only a trickster/backwards person would do something like that.) Thus, Yelmalio is known for his cleverness and wit--after all, Zorak Zoran stole all his real power. Anyway, enough Prax. In my Sartar/Tarsh campaign, Yelmalio is well-known in Sartar, where his worship has pretty much replaced Elmal. Yelmalions ARE conscious of this change. How do they explain it? "We are but feeble mortals, and prone to error. Monrogh be blessed for discovering the truth and setting us on the right path." In Tarsh, Elmal worship is still common, but the Lunar authorities are actively promoting Yelmalio. The PCs have encountered a Tarshite who is travelling through Sartar to the Sun Dome there. He was sent there by his village to find out more about these "revelations" and bring information back to the elders. Now, if you were to cast a divination as an Elmal priest asking "Are you truly Yelmalio?", the answer would be "the sun can be seen all over the world". If you were to cast the same divination as an Orlanth priest, Yelm priest, Yelmalio priest, etc. Same answer. Of course the latest stir among the Sartarite Yelmalions has to be the ministry of Turnip Boy. --------------------- From: klyfix@ace.com (Klyfix) Subject: Illumination, Gifts, Geas, and such.... Message-ID: <9407101930.0.UUL1.3#25274@ace.com> Date: 11 Jul 94 00:30:29 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5104 V.S.Greene here, with my first post here. Hopefully not a horrid one. I noticed a bit of discussion on the joys of Illumination, and have some questions and thoughts for the various sages here. First off, while an Illuminate will not show up as chaotic, and is immune to spirits of reprisal, is he or she able to keep cult benefits? It strikes me that Humakti and Yelmalian gifts and geas are a lot different from reprisal spirits; in a real sense I think that you can use your gift because you keep your geas, they are connected in you. I suspect that those famed illuminated Humakti broos would be more honorable than many humans. How much does Illumination blind the gods? Could an Illuminated elf become a Kigor Litor follower, and a troll a follower of Aldrya? My suspicion is that there needs to be a certain amnount of empathy between follower and deity and even an illuminated broo priestess of Chalana Arroy will be pacifistic and compassionate. Has anybody else suggested that Illumination is actually the Gloranthan character realising that he's a fictional character and thus doesn't really exist? :) V.S.Greene | klyfix@ace.com | Boston, Mass., I think... --------------------- From: jewahr@hts.dude.pp.se (Jesper Wahrner) Subject: RQ-list Message-ID: <773875903.AA01032@hts.dude.pp.se> Date: 10 Jul 94 12:46:00 GMT X-RQ-ID: 5105 There have been several references to the RQ-4 list recently. Can someone tell me how I should do to get onto it. I have some postings I would like to make that might be better suited for that list, since people in general don't seem to want to discuss rules on the daily. Thank You, Jesper ---------------------