...
> There may not be much formal democracy but I have no doubt that
> Heortlings can and will make life quite unpleasant for a chief who
> makes too many unpopular decisions ("No one can make you do
> anything", "There is always another way" and even "Violence is
> always an option" suggest the sort of thinking).
...
It's even worse than that for an unpopular Chief. An important Orlanthi myth is The Slaying of Yelm, which was justified because Yelm did not give Orlanth the freedom, respect and honour he was due. An overbearing Chief risks a mytho-magic identification with Yelm. Any young clansman who then takes a dislike to the Chief can fairly easily kill him by identifying with Orlanth. And if the Chief fights and wins... well, Orlanth initially lost against Yelm, so the set backs just increase the mythic resonance. My guess is that the mythic identification would also protect the Chief slayer from kin strife (Yelm was Orlanth's grandfather).
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