>> I find this odd - if this was the case Vingans would want to loose
> their
>> fertility as a standard thing. So why is it an option in one sub-cult
>> rather than a normal part of the overall cult?
>
> Because they don't have the option. A Red Woman is a woman who
> temporarily worships Vinga. She remains a she, and Ernalda takes her
> fertility until she has fulfilled her vows (or ever in the case of the
> Avenger subcult). Ernalda protects and blesses the Red Woman.
>
> Other cults of Vinga are simply women "doing as men do". Ernalda does
> not bless them - Orlanth does. And Orlanth has no power over their
> fertility.
>
> These differences and taboos are mythic, not rational. Vinga grants
> certain powers and blessings to women that no other goddess can - she
> can let her worshipers join the Thunder Brothers. However, there is a
> heavy price to pay: taboos, restrictions on behavior, distinctive
> dress, and a very "non-womanly" lifestyle, not to mention exclusion
> from the cult of Ernalda - the cult that defines Orlanthi women. I
> suspect it is similar for male Nandan initiates.
Sorry, but that doesn't address the point.
Under the Vinga Avenger subcult it says that permanent vingans who take the red vows permanently loose their fertility. Note that Vinga avenger is *not* the default subcult. And nowhere does it say that permanent Vingans temporarily loose their fertility (ie while they are Vingans). The only conclusion from this is that permanent vingans who have not joined this subcult AND taken the vows still have their fertility.
If they have their fertility and are not celibate (and there is nothing I can see in Storm Tribe to say celibacy is in anyway the norm for Vingans - just the reverse in fact) then Vingan pregnancies must be known.
Michael
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