Re: Can anyone help with spirits and possession?

From: Jakob Pape <chaomancer_at_...>
Date: Fri, 25 May 2007 01:12:12 +0100


On 5/24/07, Matt <mattb360_at_...> wrote:
>
> A group of theist Heortlings set out on the Chasing Kites adventure in
> the HQ rulebook. They get to the Madman's Table (p244).
> There are a load of ghosts there.
>
> Can anyone help explain how these theists are going to interact with
> the ghosts...
> Can they see the ghosts? Hear them?
> Does Mykka have to possess someone in order to speak with them?
> What does a theist resist 'dominant possession' with?
> I don't see any explanation in the rules, examples of that as a
> contest or any even remotely sensible skills for theists. Are my
> players meant to dream up 'resist malevolant spirit' by total fluke in
> the narrative method?
> The rules give examples of all kinds of hostile spirits (disease
> spirits etc) and virtually no clue as to how they attack and how you
> resist.
> The section on personal resistance (p99) says people resist magic with
> their best 'relevant ability'. What is relevant to stopping possession?
> The same section says Resist Disease or Healthy could be used to
> defend against a disease spirit? Why?
> Surely those abilities should be used to defend against Brain Fever 5w
> after the possession has already happened.
>
> Sorry if I'd repeated a regular question, but I'm really confused here.
>
> Cheers,
> Matt

I think that your confusion is due to a misunderstanding - there are very few specific rules in HeroQuest, almost everything uses the same system. Spirits are no different, so you resist spirits as you would anything else - with your most appropriate ability. Everyone in Glorantha can resist spirits to some degree. No special 'resist possession' skill is needed.

As to the ghosts in question - they are (mostly) not spirits in the magical sense,

I'd suggest that 'strong willed' would work as a resistance for spirit possession, as would anything else that keeps a character in control of their actions ('self-possessed' would be ideal, of course). My understanding is that it can be anything at all, that would keep you in charge rather than the spirit. With penalties for too far-fetched an improvisation, of course.

Depending on the situation, and the spirit in question, the PCs in my campaign would use a variety of skills. For example 'Stubborn' - Sorcha doesn't want to do what the spirit wants; 'Exert Authority' - Asra is in charge here, thank you, not some little spirit; Ingolf has 'Seen Many Winters' and so knows what to so in such cases. Of course, any of them could call on their gods to help them against the spirits, as mentioned on p. 99. I think that's what Sahziel, the last PC, would need to do.

The example on p.99 you mention is a different case than possession, though. It is about a spirit using it's Brain Fever 5w as an attack (or, perhaps more likely, an animist using his spirit for an attack), which is resisted as any other magical effect. Indeed, given the magical nature of Glorantha, one could suggest that this is the source of most diseases - spiritual attacks leading to illness.

Hope that helps.

-- 
Jakob Pape

"Sometimes subtlety comes in the form of large explosions and jammed open
airlock doors."

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