Re: Re: Western Reaching

From: KYER, JEFFREY <jeff.kyer_at_...>
Date: Mon, 02 Oct 2000 10:17:55 -0400


Peter M writes:

> >In all honesty, they don't. I just don't feel comfortable with
> >Carmanian men worshipping a female deity.

> Conservative Carmanians perhaps, but when one is worshipping a
> Lunar Deity, they've already shed some inhibitions.

Wouldn't that mean that there might be a pre-existing Carmanian Trade deity? I suppose that they would get by with Lokarnos and Issaries as trade gods are notoriously far-ranging. But I wonder if they had a deity native to their culture?

Kevin writes:

> > >This would answer a question one of my players asked: "Since their cults
> > >are so fragmented, shouldn't the Carmanians suck at magic?"
> >
> > If the Orlanthi people are so fragmented, shouldn't they suck at fighting?
>
> IMO, yep. After all, the well organized Lunars pretty much have their wicked way with the Heortlings until > Argrath gets them working together rather than as unruly individuals. "Together we stand, divided we fall", > and all that. As individuals, the Orlanthi are pretty formidable, but you don't win wars with individuals. > Unless that individual is Harrek the Berserk... :)
 

I think that the knowlege of magic would be quite fragemented, along with the worship/study population as well as the mythic knowlege. One of the advantages of the lunar schools is that they share their knowlege with the other schools (well, more than most do -- I'm aware of the tendency of scholastic infighting to hoard knowlege) rather than regard any little tidbit of wisdom as a deep, dark secret to be kept from others...

It might be that knowlege raiding and hijacking myths may be a common occurance among the Carmanians as they try to get an edge on their competitors. Cut throat competition seems to be a very strong facet of their social makeup.

This might make a good environment for the classic inter-priesthood rivalries with much theft and intrigue around with few holds barred (unlike the more communal Lunars where I suspect they are more civil about their theft)

> Exactly how I should relate this to the Carmanians I am unsure. The Carmanians are neither as organized as > the Lunars or as individualistic as the Orlanthi. This may be the source of their current relative > weakness, and the product of delicate Lunar planning. On the other hand, are the Orlanthi cults really that
Probably a bit of both. The Carmainans are a bit of a boogyman to the typical Dara Happan and that's the culture the Lunars are derived from. To quote some French politican from the 60's: "I like Germany. I like it so much, I want two of them." Its in the Empire's best interest to keep them weak. But I think the weakness was inherrent in their feudal social structure.

> much more widespread, open, and communally powerful than the secretive cults of Carmanian Houses?
> Carmanians are unlikely to get thousands of worshipers together for any but the largest (state promoted)
> cults, like Yanafal Tarnilis. Neither are the Orlanthi, from what I can tell. There may ultimately be no
> real difference at all.

I think that the Orlanthi are more individualistic rather than insular. They don't see much difference outside the clan/tribe so that while theydon't have the same sort of feelings we have with nathionalism that we experience, they can be very pragmatic about the big picture -- you just have to phrase it right.

Unlike Carmania, the Orlanthi don't have the deepset, sophisticated *philosophical* differences you find in more 'enlightened' cultures -- and they seem to be more religiously tolerant, though that could just be wishful thinking on my part.

In the case of Carmanian, they appear to have a sense of "nationalism" -- I can't think of the right word. But its not towards Carmaina as a whole, it seems to be towards their House or Order. And if the houses can't combine well because of long, long standing hatreds and feuds that are on a scale much worse than the traditional inter-clan feuds that plague the Orlanthi.   

But you could be right. But we do know that the Orlanthi DO get their act together. I don't know if the Carmanians get their Houses in order?

Hope this is of use. Its interesting to speculate.

Jeff

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