> See, I wondered about this. In all the RQ2 and RQ 3 stuff I always had
> the impression that you couldn't remove a chaos taint.
Not impossible, just really hard -- there was the "Cleansed One" who was freed from chaos by Zola Fel in (River of Cradles?).
> Suddenly it turns out that one of the Ernaldan subcults has the secret
> of Heal Chaos (or similar). It just doesn't seem right to me. I'm
> don't think my Glorantha is going to be like that.
I don't have so much trouble with this for two reasons:
Belveren is probably not the most common subcult because chaos, while terrible, is not the most common problem Sartarlings have, and Belveran is pretty focused. Now, while I can imagine that she has a higher devotee to initiate ratio than most subcults (I imagine anyone that joins a chaos-fighting cult is responding to an urgent divine call), people who have progressed far enough to learn the secret to a level where it is useful are going to be slim. For one thing, surviving long enough to get your skills to the point where you can learn the secret has to be difficult. The danger inherent in using the secret will make obtaining the services of a Chaos Healer difficult and pricey. (As much so as resurrection, I would think.) I think most clans who have a Belveren worshipper are likely to feel that killing and burning outsiders who need her services is more in their interest than allowing the healing. I certainly wouldn't want players blithely nipping off to the "Adveturer Center" for a "chaos check-up and shot."
It could be a really good scenario -- the player characters have to get someone to a healer in another tribe. To get the clan ring and the shrine to OK the healing, they have to prove their sincerity, grease many palms with cows (that's not the best metaphor, I suppose), make some good relationship rolls, and so on. All the while, the chaos-tainted person is getting sicker and sicker in mind, body, and soul. Triumph or tragedy? Naturally, trying to convince some Storm Bulls not to kill the hapless victim would be a big part of it.
My second reason is that release from chaos has to be possible for the moral balance of Glorantha. If good people can despair, suffer moral corruption, and fall into chaos, it has to be possible for the chaotic to free themselves from their hatred of the world and seek healing. The hard part, of course, is making the first step of wanting to be healed. The second part is maintaining that desire long enough to do something about it, fighting hatred and the rational instinct of the non-chaotic to destroy anything even vaguely associated with chaos. The paradox of the Lunar Empire is that its flirtation with chaos has produced not only horrors but redemption. Of course, the question should always be: are they redeemed or Illuminated? Is this a triumph or a trap?
So I don't think Belveren upsets the balance. Besides, she makes a nice Ernaldan answer to Urox. "The Is Always Another Way," even with chaos. However, this is just my opinion. Feel free to discard her, your Glorantha may be Belveren-less, heck, just make her so rare that no one knows of a devotee with the secret until you need to trot one out. I think there's some good stories in her, anyway.
Peter Larsen
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