Re: Secrets of the Than

From: Keith <keith.nellist_at_KwZLpf1kishjkRIwPQyU_f4ZB8SyQ7DY4lBLbMZa6KkxONAG8TaVsmd3KyeA8Z>
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 2011 11:39:21 -0000

When I was thinking about a 1st Age Lightbringers game, one idea I had was to have the players encounter a community of Than worshippers. (One of the premises of the game would have been that each group encountered would only have a limited pantheon or religion and that the Lightbringers would reveal a more complete Orlanth/Ernalda religion.)

The idea was of a relatively large but not obviously evil community with some odd quirks (I was going to use the Gifts and geases percentages from Cult of Terror) such as some people living underground, some not using sharp weapons, some with dietary restrictions, etc. that had the nastier aspects (living heads, cannibalism, sacrificial victims) hidden underground.

With 1000 initiates, 30 need to eat flesh of sentient creatures at each meal, 30 are obliged to kill sentient Chaos creatures on sight, 60 never speak to ousiders(half of those to anyone at all). 130 must stay out of light to varying degrees, 100 must never use fire. 50 would have rams horns, 50 would have pitch black skin, 80 would have a chaotic feature. The percentages change as more initiates become Doomed, but they need to decapitate enemy cultists, and do other vile ceremonies to become Doomed, so new people (such as the player Heroes) become an an interesting opportunity.

It's almost worthy of an evil King of Dragon Pass - the Hands of Tarnished Talastar. Lead your clan (evil cult) to Doom.

>
> The Sartarites will say that Than was an evil god who stole heads for
> his own vile uses.