>>Migratory birds probably have two hunting seasons (passing through). >>Praxian herd beasts (possibly including tribal beasts) will be >>whenever climate draws the herds or individuals to the western >>edge of the chaparral. The annual Stinkwood Boar migration appears >>to be a historical hunting event of the Bush Range, now down to >>too few beasts to excite a major hunting season.
John Hughes:
> Long range bird migration is extremely problematic in a lozenge
> without hemispheres.
Most migratory birds don't bother crossing the equator, they simply move so they are as far from the frost front in winter as they were in summer.
North Pent and Erigia are birds' paradise in summer, rich in foliage and insects, but unliveable in winter. Likewise the Kenyrian (or Ice) Sea offers good opportunity to raise baby seabirds in summer, but freezes over in winter.
Other birds might strive to live "below the Sunpath".
> Micro-migration, sure, for mythic reasons. herd
> migrations I'm assuming will also be limited, and for the most part
> regionalised. You *might* escape the winter in Prax, but theres no
> food there. It *might* be warmer by the ocean, but human populations
> have blocked thoses routes for millenia.
Or in the absence of humans, troll populations. Still, the Balazarings and Elder Wilds trolls take advantage from the Pentan megafauna drifting into their lands when the north freezes over, and the herds roaming the Elder Wilds in summer will move south to Balazar and probably through towards the Pass region in winter. Crossing the pass in winter probably doesn't happen.
On this subject, where do the dinosaurs go in winter?
> Here's a listing I did some years back, part of a wider discussion
> at Questlines: http://mythologic.info/questlines/florafauna.html
> Expansions and corrections are always welcome.
Eminently useful listings.
> HIGH MOUNTAINSIDE
> Above the tree line, the upper mountain soils are frozen much of the
> year, and the conditions are desert-like. In sheltered regions, moss
> and lichen prevail, while the following plants will flower briefly -
> campions, saxifranges, sedge and dwarf willows. Some deer and birds
> will occasionally be found, as will Wind Children and Griffins.
Found in the Skyreach, Indigo and Rockwood Mountains mainly. Both Quivin and Storm(walk) Mountains are mostly too low to provide much of mountain tundra.
> MIXED AND BROAD LEAF FOREST
> This environment primarily consists of broad-leafed deciduous trees
> with marshes, plus clearings with deciduous ground cover.
...
> (In Neolithic Europe the siberian tiger sat at the top of this food
> chain. A suitable Gloranthan equivalent would be sabretooth, griffin
or wyrm).
Actually, it was the european lion, not the siberian tiger - Hercules hunted his in Greece. I don't think tigers ever roamed west of the Caspian Sea (at least while Homo Sapiens Sapiens roamed there).
Since much of the Genertelan fauna has New World flavour,
> Major Wilderness Fauna
> Elk (including giant species)
Since you listed Wapiti extra, I suppose this translates as "moose"? ;)
But what I really stumbled over was "giant species". The Rockwoods are full of huge giants with huge appetites. Are there any herd beasts close to their size for hunting (other than Earth Shakers)? To an 18 meter giant a forest bison would be little better than a small rabbit to a human.
> Reindeer
I wouldn't expect any in the Rockwoods. Definitely none south of the Snowline.
> Animals have their own tribes, and approximately 1% of each species
> have a high degree of consciousness, free will and volition. They
> have their own immortal leaders, heroes and shamans, who may dwell
> both on the Other Side and on the Lozenge. These animals may appear
> as spirit guides and totems in dreams and visions. They have their
> own gods, rituals, holy places, heroquests and long term goals.
Do they have gods, or are their immortal leaders the embodiment of these gods? I'm thinking of beast-shaped embodied spirits/daimons/essences. Basically the type of deity approached for "Common Magic".
> The topic of animals as symbols and omens is enormous, and largely
> unexplored. Why are they associated with certain events? What is
> their link to the world soul or web of Glorantha, the source of
> their folk and cultic associations?
Anaxial's Roster hints at numerous beast conflicts.
>>We know that the aurochs has been extinct for quite a while.
> That's what the odaylans tell you. The Lady has many secrets. And
> with short worlds and heroquesting, even extinction is no
> obstacle to a successful hunt ...
You can always hunt the metal deer (or whatever prey) in Ernaldi. However you can only bring back what you carried (or chased) there, although enhanced.
Short Worlds offer plenty of territory besides known geography. Another (and different) approach are hidden lands - such as the Hidden Greens, Castle Blue etc.
How much "folded up territory" do you use in your games?
I have used the odd fog-filled valley to branch off into places unreachable the other way. Such places are regions where Glorantha does vary - certain events bypass whatever hides there.
However, if these are defined as short worlds, their magic is limited. Possibly their life force, is, too.
Hidden Lands have conditional access to mundane Gloranthan reality - you have to meet certain conditions to be able to find a place to enter. I don't see them as cut off from the Otherworlds, though.
There remains the question how many such refugia are useful for narrative purposes. If every second threatened population can find such a hide-out, what is so special about the Pure Horse Tribe of Prax disappearing after Alavan Argay (and re-emerging as Grazer Tribe)?
Powered by hypermail