Re: Re: Battle of Iceland

From: donald_at_...
Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 14:06:16 GMT


In message <20070312100820.47032.qmail_at_...> Jane Williams writes:
>
>--- David Scott <sciencefish_at_...> wrote:
 

>> I'm in the middle of playing this out. My players
>> are in the middle of the winter. I realised that
>> in my game there isn't a die-off as it's a magical
>> winter. The people and animals are going to sleep as
>> has Ernalda. The players don't realise this of course
>> as I'm describing them as having frozen to death.
>> Everyone who "dies" is quickly covered by the ice
>> including the animals.
>
>What an excellent idea! Helps integrate the new OiD
>coolness (in both senses of the word!) with the
>previously existing Gloranthan history in a way that
>enhances the whole magical/mythical feel of the entire
>episode. I have no idea whether this was the original
>intention of the authors (insert standard whinge here
>that I SHOULD have some idea, because integrating into
>existing history should have been explicit in the
>first place), but that's great, and I'm borrowing it
>for my Glorantha(s).

I've been thinking that the biggest casualties aren't going to happen *during* the winter but *after* it. In a normal year plowing starts in the second week of Sea Season shortly after Voria's return on Flower Day. Now while there will be some crops which have wintered in the ground it will still take several weeks for them to be harvestable so a well prepared stead will normally have food to last until the end of Sea Season. In 1622 Voria's return is delayed until the first week of Earth Season which means that a typical stead will still have food at the beginning of Sea Season and will probably go onto short rations when Voria doesn't return on schedule. By the end of Fire Season they'll be eating their seed corn. So when the heros return from the Battle of Iceland there will be no food at all and the first vegetables won't be harvestable for some weeks. That's when starvation hits. Worse the lack of seed corn, oxen and a drastically shortened growing period means there'll be a severe shortage of grain next winter assuming any gets grown at all.

I reckon there must be some powerful HQing being done by Barntar, Orlanthcarl and Esrola followers to avert the otherwise inevitable depopulation.

-- 
Donald Oddy
http://www.grove.demon.co.uk/

Powered by hypermail