DrGoth

Or put the wolf to sleep. Pacifist healer soothing the savage beast and all. I was about to add befuddle. But befuddle talks about the subject using INT to overcome the effects. Does that mean the wolf couldn't shake it off or it couldn't be cast on it in the first place? I'm guessing the former but...

I thought if it wasn't one of us and looked funny it was Krjakli 😉

Fantasy Europe. And the box explicitly says "Derived from Roman examples". So not so much Bronze Age. RQG says they are present, so they are. But as a general point I wouldn't rely on a Non-Gloranthan RQ3 supplement for anything.

With suitable 'guidance' from the Ernaldan chief priestess, some subtle and not so subtle lobbying. Private conversations around the back of the stead. Possibly the occasional out right bribery. Some completely unrelated but isn't this a great time for it for score settling even though we clan and kin. And anything else you think could make it fun if this was the subject of a session in your game. I can't believe that Orlanthi clan chief choosing is an absolutely fair, open and unbiased event.

It might be my Glorantha varying, but I thought in Sacred Time rituals initiates did travel to the God's home. Not sometimes, but every Sacred Time. It's relatively safe. It is their God. That reality of that experience is very important to the worshippers. Lay members, not so much. They have not been initiated into the mysteries.

Six Seasons in Sartar is very popular. It's on the Jonstown Compendium But... Glorantha holds a lot of variety. A lot. There are so many possibilities and so many ways to explore it. Six Seasons gives you one lens on to the world. It's far from the only possible perspective. I reminded of the blind men and the Elephant. I'd love an intro to Glorantha campaign sent in Oraya or the Redlands for Lunar PCs when the Pentans come calling.

Sure, physical abilities are a big part of it. But social and mystical/religious has to count. There are a number of ways of to implement that in game - choose whichever works for you and your group.

And wouldn't that be an interesting campaign idea.

A lot of true believers don't believe that. In an odd way, Glorantha is closer to those comic books which include Greek Gods and Norse Gods and ...

I don't see it (either clan or tribal) as version of the pentathalon. This Glorantha. There will be a mystic/mythological component of it. I wouldn't be surprised if part of it is around "gaining Orlanth's blessing". Now doing that might require something physical - see Leika's crown test. But it's not just going to go to the guy with the biggest skill numbers.

Sure - I was just talking about relativities. Compared to horses, I think bison are more common nearer to Prax and less common further away from it.

Just because he was the Earth King doesn't mean he was 'good'. "Ah yes, thank you for resurrecting me, mere mortals. Now, disavow all your other gods and worships me. All shall bow down before me."

I'm assuming (but happy to be corrected) that Bison get less common the further you move from Prax (more or less). And Sables too, until you get nearer to the Hungry Plateau.

I'm not sure how impressive the armies of Fonrit are, but they do have a large population.

I'm particularly interested in this one. I'm guessing that Jeff's statement "makes the chieftain a de facto warrior" can be interpreted broadly as being able to be effective one on one in a fight. Some Ernaldans at least will be able to do that, especially with a little bit of Orlanth/Vinga magic to add to the mix. Earth Elementals are pretty scary. Earthpower and Absorbtion definitely help in a fight. BG gives Earth Shield. So a little bit of things like Lighning or Thuderbolt and you have a pretty effective set. I'd like to think someone is an Ernaldan priestess and Vinga initiate could be successful as a chief.

Oh, those are very useful as colour, if nothing else. Those poems would exist in Glorantha and could be used, for example, by NPC priests. So is there any chance of seeing the Lunar ones someday if they aren't even in the Stafford Library?

This is an important point. Gloranthan religions do work differently, because of the magic that comes from the gods. Seeing and experiencing that has to have an effect.

Okay, so now I went and read your previous post. Maybe I should have done that first. But to me the Greeks are a really bad example. The Romans had dedicated priests. So did the Egyptians. I'm pretty sure other Near East civilisations did too. And they certainly had moral codes. The Egyptian belief about the weighing of a soul against the feather of truth? Holding Gloranthan religions up to the measure of probably the most morality free religion in Earth history is a bit of a straw man. I've only looked at this really quickly, because it's getting late here, but: " the conviction was deeply ingrained, particularly in the minds of the Babylonians, that the gods demanded adherence to moral standards. " https://factsanddetails.com/world/cat56/sub363/entry-6068.html

Err, what? I certainly hope you're not saying some people are taking Orlanthism as a a real religion. In this world. That would be, ..., hmm. So if what you're saying is that some people want to Orlanthism (or any other religion of Glorantha) to be a fully believable, well-rounded fictional religion, then, well, um yeah. Religions tell you how to live your life. That's a big bit of what they do. They give moral and ethical codes. Some will be more specific about it, some less. But it's there. Now whether you like the moral or ethical code that a religion real, or fictional, puts forward is something completely different. And most religions will tell you that their way is best. Glorantha is about the relationship of people and mythology. Religion is a big part of that. There's a reason that Cults of Prax is one of the most celebrated supplements ever. It's a big part of why I got into RQ. "Wow, here's a world that's actually trying to be internally consistent, that has religions that work how religions actually work and a supplement that isn't just putting the God's name over some stats and a giant loot pinata." So, to me, of course Gloranthan religions say "this is how you should live." Why wouldn't they? And of course their followers would think their religion is great, amazing, wonderful and tells you the best way to live. if not, said worshippers would be off to the temple down the road. Now, that's a long way from saying any Gloranthan religion would be a great one if it was real. Or that any particular presentation of a Gloranthan religion is a masterwork of RPG setting writing (or even a good one). But I will defend the approach that Glorantha takes, which is to say "what we are trying to do here is present religions that actually feel like credible religions in a world like Glorantha would be." Is Orlanthism a great way to live? The only thing that matters there is: does it make sense in Glorantha? Now, maybe I've totally misinterpreted your post. But that's the message I took away.

I know this is probably a stupid question, because the answer is almost in the name of the topic, but... Are clan chiefs in Orlanthi lands (and especially Sartar) always members of the Orlanth cult (or Vinga)? And by that I mean rune levels (at least priests). I think the answer is yes, but a little piece of me wonders whether exceptions are possible and it's an Orlanthi 'all' when we say all leaders are followers of Orlanth. Might we see Ernaldan chiefs or even Tribal queens? Obviously we have Ernaldan Queens in Esrolia, but what about at the clan level? And what about in Sartar? If we do have Ernaldan clan chiefs in Sartar (or other Orlanthi lands), do they have to also initiate to Orlanth (or Vinga) on taking up the leadership? Could we find an Ernaldan (or even something exotic like a Babeester Gor) chief? If so, just how common are these exceptions? The 15% that isn't the Orlanthi 'all'? More common? Less common? The most extensive source I can find is Sartar, Kingdom of Heroes, but I know its state is questionable. On p.212 it has that a chieftain "must be initiated into the clan secrets of Orlanth". Read literally that does not require rune level membership (and yes, I know it was written for HQ, not RQ). On p.215 it has details of traditional and lightbringer rings, both noting "Orlanth the Chief" as the chief's position but not saying anything about requirements. To me it could be taken as meaning that an Ernaldan (or other Earth cult) priestess, initiated into Vinga, could be clan chief (as an example). In summary, does a Sartar (or other Orlanthi lands) clan chief have to be a rune level of Orlanth? If not, what sort of percentage is the exception? Is initiation in to Orlanth(/Vinga) required?

Anything is possible. Don't limit yourself. if it works for your Glorantha, go with it.

Short answer: Very very little. If what Nick says applies, then Kazkurtum isn't even a person. Slight longer answer: Make it up. He can be whoever you like. A spiritually crippled Red Emperor because one of the Egi ate something bad for breakfast on the day they reassembled him? A jumped up pretender who really is a false emperor? For those, maybe the red emperor's totally nutso grandson? A general on the make? A priest who thinks he can do it better than that last mask? Even longer answer: Kazkurtum? Who is this Kazkurtum? Oh, you've been reading that deluded wishful thinking from the tattered remnants of those dreary barbarians down south. They still haven't got over the death of their god, have they? Keep trying to contacting him and failing. It's pitiful really. Why they even thought they could take on the light and majesty of Sedenya is beyond me. Now, Sheng Seleris, there was a worthy foe. They did help set him free, I'll grant you that. They should have known he would turn on them the moment they did that. Still, can't complain. Watching one of your enemies destroy another is always fun. Pass the popcorn, as Argenteus would have said. Yes, dear old Sheng did give us some trouble. Before we fed him to the maw of chaos. Now we live in the glorious reign of J-. Oh, sorry got to go now. No, no, nothing like a problem. We don't have problems. At all. Everything is wonderful. Got it?

Or, given its name, useful knowledge about an enemy.

There are Storm Bull cultists there, are there?

Whatever suits your campaign best. Maybe it was some tricky third party putting them at each other's throats?