>> really, only pretty vaguely. At the 'present' (c.
>> 1621), the
>> closest you'd get would be a warband constructed
>>around a core
>> of Humakti devotees, which would look very, very
>>different, IMO.
>
> I think that there aren't enough Humakti to
>form regiments. Most Heortling mercenaries belong to
> Orlanth Adventurous or Hedkoranth (sp?) but Humakt
>is much too demanding for most people. OTOH the idea
>of a mercenary warband such as the Silver Daggers of
> Katherine Kerr's Deverry series is enticing.
>An exiled, disgraced warrior looking for redemption i
>is a perfect candidate for the cult, IMO. After all
The "duties" for Humakt, Orlanth Adventurous and the
other warrior gods have a bit of overlap. Namely they
all do guard duty, all fight then clan enemies, all
patrol the borders etc.
In Runequest the Humakati gathering places were
frequently mercenary hiring halls. Hey... if you're
religiously bound to deal out death you may as well
get paid for it.
The Humakt's with a nearby powerful enemy may consider
it a matter of honor or have a hero cult related to
fighting the foe. Like the Lysander (sp?) / Greydogs
who have it in big time for the undead in the swamp.
I see "regiment" magic being along the same lines as a
hero's subcult. The power comes though from the
collective history of the regiment.
The term regiment is being used as a convention and
not necessarily to reflect a 1,000 to 2,000 being
force.
The "maneuver unit" feat mentioned for instance would likely entail/get bonus for using items from the regimental regalia, like the banner. You can probably see how this feat would work. A leader/champion waves the banner and everyone in the subcult (aka the regiment) knows to turn to do a wheeling maneuver. Keep in mind that the Celtic methods where basiclly charge, or sneak around and then charge. Doing a wheeling maneuver could be seen as magic... particularily if using the regalia as above.
> an outlaw in Heortling society is already more
> or less dead, no?
Outlawing is significantly different cultural aspect.
The outlaw isn't mourned but shamed.
The Humakti intiation ritual is one of severance for
the honored dead. I like the "free of wereguild"
aspect since it makes sense. The Humakti is when alive
(that is prior to the initation) was part of the clan
and so is considered like an honored ancestor who is
dead in the conventional sense.
Outlaws are shamed, targetted for suffering and have a
god all their own... for those who wish to turn away
from their current god to one who will help survive
and inflict suffering back.
Brian Laxson
aka Agnar
Powered by hypermail