Having been distracted by celebrating the Fourth, and the inevitable day of recovery following, it would seem that Mr. Kyer has already made the analogy of Odayla followers to the "mountain men" of the pre-Civil War American west. It's a good analogy - in part because there really weren't that many "mountain men" but their importance as symbols and myths were much more important than their numbers or economic relevance.
>I suspect most GMs will modify the pure form of the cult as described in
the
>writeup, citing local pressures and environmental factors. The model seems
>to be the frontier mountain man, but Sartar just doesn't have the frontier,
>the wilderness, or the ecological necessity for season long hunting trips.
>90% of a hunter's subsistence comes from small game and vegetable
>gatherings, and hunting large game requires *teamwork*. Heortlings love of
>family, their communal sensibilities and strong emotional/ritual ties to
>tula would mean that these solitary hunters would be very rare indeed. And
>their worldview (which I've previously explored in some detail on the
>Digest) would be so different from most of the clan that I can't see them
>being very useful as a Ring member.
Possibly. However, even solitary hunters have to return to their communities to trade, marry, etc. Folk like Kit Carson, Jebediah Smith or Joseph Walker all spent years in the wilderness, but still returned to civilization. Heck, Kit Carson became a very prominent (and rather wealthy) figure in the Colorado and New Mexico territories. [For what it is worth, his occasional boss, John Fremont, became an early millionaire, a US Senator, a presidential candidate (first Republican nominee for president) and a Civil War general. He sounds like a follower of Orlanth Adventurous.] Even mountain men don't stay in the wilds all their life - even if they long for it.
>Any Odaylan Ring member would be an elder, probably crippled or too old to
>hunt effectively, and wouldn't be making continual long trips in the gors.
>In the circumstances, Ormalayon or even Velhara cultists would be much more
>likely to take the Ring positions.
I think that in some clans, the small handful of Odalyans may have a more significant role for Heortlings than you are giving credit. Farmers may view the half-wild hunter as a negotiator with the wilderness - someone who has an understanding of the wild forces of the woods and wastelands. Furthermore, the furs provided by these "mountain men" might be a valuable trading commodity. In places like Syllila, their symbolic and ceremonial role is probably far more important than their role as a provider of meat.
I agree that it is probably the grizzled elder that sits on the ring - probably bored and frustrated with clan politics, but useful nonetheless.
Jeff
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