soltakss

Argan Argar sounds good to me. A Trollkin Scribe would probably be powerful, or useful, enough to be able to join Argan Argar, after all, the cult fields phalanxes of trollkin spearmen.

On 11/30/2023 at 1:51 AM, Wheel Shield said:

Doesn’t exactly jump out at you though.

That applies to an awful lot of the RQG Rules, unfortunately.

On 12/5/2023 at 2:00 PM, glarkhag said:

In a lot of the Sartar campaign material there are burial mounds and tombs with grave goods in them. This seems to imply that if you defeat the owner the loot is fair game. Is that the general view on Grave Robbing (that adventurers can plunder it without retribution) or does Heortling culture consider this dishonourable?

Grave Robbing happens a lot.

Humakti wouldn't like it, as they like to honour the fallen. Similarly, Ty Kora Tek won't like it, as you are disturbing graves, and graves are sacred to the cult.

Orlanthi might see it as a desecration but probably won't care much.

I suppose the question might be "What happens to the deceased person and their grave goods after death?" If the grave goods go with the deceased to the afterlife on burial then it is OK if they are then taken, as the deceased still has them in the afterlife. However, if the grave goods remain with the body, then removing them also removes them from the deceased's spirit in the afterlife, potentially robbing them of those items. That would be really bad for the spirit and anyone who the spirit can contact.

He was a Hero and could have been reincarnated in some way, or could have returned to the mortal world. Stranger things have happened.

On 12/6/2023 at 8:52 PM, Demishadow23 said:

If one wanted to get a full well rounded knowledge of the world of Glorantha and it's history what is your preferred reading order if you were to go book by book completing each instead of how I currently go about it just going back and forth taking bits and pieces?

It depends on what you are interested in.

The Glorantha Sourcebook gives you a good overview of mythic and actual history for Glorantha as a whole.

Cults Mythology gives you a good rundown of the Monomyth and general mythical history.

The Guide to Glorantha gives sketches of all the areas of Glorantha, which is useful if you want to know about a certain area, but it won't go into any great detail.

Individual Cults books detail the cults in a pantheon, which roughly correspond to areas of Glorantha. So, if you are interested in Esrolia then read the Earth Cults book, for  Sartar or other Orlanthi areas read the Lightbringers Cults books and so on. They give you background on the cults not on the actual places, but Cults are really important in Glorantha.

After that, it really depends on which areas you want to focus on. There are a lot of out of print supplements that cover particular areas, and many Jonstown Compendium supplements fill in certain areas. Chaosium are bringing out areas-specific supplements in the future, I believe, but they are not available yet.

On 12/8/2023 at 4:22 PM, Oldskolgmr said:

As someone more interested in Gaming in non-canonical Glorantha (My GM's GWV), I had a question that arose from reading another Topic:

With the Glorantha Sourcebook, The Guide, and Mythology out now is reading the King Of Sartar (KOS) still very important to understanding Glorantha (as a setting for games)?

A lot of King of Sartar has been included in newer works, so it is not essential.

However, it is still very useful and has everything in one place, so I would recommend it as a good read with a huge amount of Gloranthan content. Much/most of it has now been replicated, though, so you might feel cheated if you have the newer supplements.

On 12/5/2023 at 6:38 PM, Ali the Helering said:

Being purely practical for a moment - in an environment like Prax are you really going to leave a dead body undealt with?  Hygienic storage will be a nightmare.

I would just ay that the body stays in a fit state for seven days, so that the body can be resurrected. It just makes things easier.

On 12/6/2023 at 9:54 AM, French Desperate WindChild said:

does that mean you can embalm a body before the "not yet seven days death" and resurrect the cultist after that ?

Unless you as a GM rule that embalming stops Resurrection. That might be a valid point, as you are preparing funeral rites for the body.

Personally, I wouldn't, as it is a bit harsh on Adventurers.

On 12/7/2023 at 4:58 PM, French Desperate WindChild said:

let's explore it. When I imagine embalming, I see some egyptians with a hook exploring the noose to extract brain.... That seems to me not really safe for the patient  resurrection candidate  😉  But I may be wrong

If someone kills another person, say by lopping the top of their head off, and you cast Heal Body to heal it, the body can be Resurrected. If the killer takes spoon and eats the brains immediately after killing them, does that stop a Resurrection? I'd say that Heal Body repairs that damage too.

Heal Body allows for the regrowth of limbs, and presumably other organs, so it might be possible to be Resurrected after that.

It all depends on the stance that the GM takes. If the GM rules that the organs, for example, the brain, need to be regrown then is it possible to do that in the seven day limit? Healing Trance multiples healing eightfold, so a week is the equivalent of a Season's regrowth. 

However, Heal Body says "This spell cures the total damage done to a body, regardless of hit location or source. The target heals all damage from total hit points and hit location hit points. Any severed limbs reattach if available, or regenerate if not". So, that says to me that Heal Body is enough to regenerate organs messed up by the process.

On 12/8/2023 at 8:31 AM, Arocos said:

But what kind of mission/adventure can be given to PC, when (and if) he gains contact?

Go and kill some Chaos.

Rescue a kidnapped Healer.

Escort a merchant.

Go to some Zorak Zorani trolls as an emissary (Storm Bull is an associated cult and might not kill him out of hand)

On 12/7/2023 at 12:53 PM, Zalain said:

i played this this way: At first, the chief of the temple decline him. FOr weraing weapons, armor, marks and symbol of sun cult, and arguing any warrior doesnt have ANY knowledge to contribute with. But (character) player replied about a couple of knowledge skills he has over 50%. He meet the requirements to join Lhankor Mhy cult, in addition of Yelmalio.

Both cults are Neutral.

i thought admit him, but not allowing (for faith issues) sorcery spells.

or should i keep negate him??

Why stop him?

You did a good thing by playing it out. Refusing a warrior is a knee-jerk reaction that a Sage might do, but the Yelmalian showing that he had the right skills and could qualify for cult membership was a great move. The Yelmalian could show his Truth Rune, for that is a common Rune with Lhankor Mhy.

Personally, I'd allow the Yelmalian to join but maker it difficult. Give him a Quest to prove his willingness and worthiness to join. It doesn't have to be a HeroQuest, maybe to find some lost knowledge or to take a book from a library in the Yelmalio Temple and to bring it to the Lhankor Mhy Temple. That way, he has to prove his loyalty to Lhankor Mhy instead of Yelmalio. Of course, he could try to persuade the Yelmalio Temple to loan a book or scroll to the Lhankor Mhy Temple.

Also, as mentioned previously, Lhankor Mhy is Buserian when worshipped in Dara Happa, and Buserian might be an Associate Cult of Yelmalio. The Yelmalian could explore that aspect of Lhankor Mhy and prove something about the cults, maybe exploring a deeper relationship.

16 hours ago, g33k said:

So far as I know, Humakt's beef is only with the walking dead, the embodied-but-still-active dead.  Ghosts & other disembodied spirits are (theologically) just fine, normal, and unexceptional.

They aren't keen on Wraiths, as far as I can remember.

11 hours ago, Rodney Dangerduck said:

Because it is Kushile Horse Archery?

Griffin Mountain has Kuschile Hawk Archery, so it is already adapted to other mounts.

11 hours ago, jajagappa said:

We also assume that Delecti created the swamp and the zombies for his own nefarious purposes. It could well be that those simply intersect with another motive - keeping some dark draconic or Chaotic designs at bay.

In my Glorantha, Delecti created the Upland Marsh to protect the people from the True Golden Horde.

On 11/11/2023 at 6:00 PM, Erol of Backford said:

Saw the new movie trailer... does Glorantha have a lightning breathing giant dinosaur, maybe in Pamelta? Kong? Silly yes but what the Hell Crack right?

Of course.

I ran an RQ3 Gloranthan campaign when Channel 4 had a series of old Japanese Monster films, so they all appeared as monsters in Dorastor a few weeks after I watched them.

I had a Hero Power that enabled a Yelmalian to act as the Sun, so his Sun Spears cam from him not from the Sun.

Try looking at these threads, there are others here and on Facebook:

Weird Science covers those bits in films, books and TV Shows, where a mad scientist comes up with a load of pseudo-science babbling to justify something. If you can do that then you can make it with Weird Science.

On 11/14/2023 at 11:57 PM, bronze said:

Are the Red Emperors truly the same person wearing different masks?

It seems their characters, and even policies, are very different from each others. 

In my Glorantha, yes, the Red Emperor is the same person. Sure, he had different bodies and some of the bodies were destroyed, but he simply reforms on the Red Moon and returns. Some people say that the Egi's bodies make up the next Red Emperor, but that doesn't happen in my Glorantha.

In my Glorantha, there are gladiatorial contests at Tourney Altar, but they are more about challenging other combatants.

The Ten Tests might be a form of Gladiatorial Contests, or might have them as part of the tests.

Hon Eel's Rites might involve gladiators fighting and their blood feeding the crops.

The Blood Sun, I think, had gladiatorial contests.

Gaining entry into Ralzakark's Broo Legion involved gladiatorial contests, with the victors joining the Legion, in my Dorastor.

On 11/15/2023 at 2:52 AM, bronze said:

Of all deities, they should oppose the Chaos the most. Are they secretly in league with the Chaos? 

How could Yelm accept the Red Goddess as his daughter? Isn't Chaos the ultimate rebellions against cosmic order? 

Humakt: He is opposed to the misuse of Death and allows Chaos cultists as worshippers as long as they do not misuse Death and uphold his Honour. That is all he cares about.

Yelm: He defeated Chaos very early in his reign and banished it. Chaos did not affect his realm until he was killed by Orlanth. So, Orlanth cause Chaos to attack his realm. Yelm is fine with the Red Goddess, as she is his daughter. He doesn't see her as Chaotic as he is not really aware of Chaos except as something that he defeated long ago.

Ourania: She is so remote and so far removed from the world that she is beyond petty things such as Chaos. If it does not affect the Heavens then she is not interested in it.

On 11/14/2023 at 11:34 PM, bronze said:

Do the air gods possess inherent power over rain and lightening, respectively domains of water and sky deities? 

No, not all air deities have powers of rain and lightning. Don't forget that Lightning was originally a power of Umath before Shargash picked lightning bolts from his skull after he killed him, so Orlanth simply regained the stolen powers of Lightning from the Sky Deities.

Gloranthan deities are quite specialised. Not all Air deities are deities of Storm and not all Stom deities have weather magic. Storm Bull, for example, is a hot dry wind and doesn't get powers of Rain or Lightning. 

On 11/18/2023 at 6:29 PM, g33k said:

Maybe Storm Bull?  Does their "detect Chaos" ping on Gark-zombies & similar undead, but not ping on ZZ-zombies...?
I'm sure I recall someone being "surprisingly OK" with ZZ's undead ...

Storm Bull is a Death deity who is OK with Zorak Zoran, in fact they are associated. So, Storm Bull cultists have no beef with Zorak Zorani undead. 

Zorak Zorani Zombies are not Chaotic, so don't ping on Sense Chaos, but they are undead and ping on Sense Undead. Not all Undead is Chaotic.

On 11/17/2023 at 12:26 AM, g33k said:

IIRC, there *are* some forms of zombie (at least) that Humakti find abominations (not sure about skeletons).
I'm not recalling which those are, however... 😕

There are others (looking at ZZ's undead) that AFAIK do NOT bother Humakti.

Humakti hate all forms of Undead, including skeletons and Zorak Zorani Zombies.

They are fine with Ghosts, as they bind Ghosts themselves.

On 11/14/2023 at 3:58 PM, Rick Meints said:

To paraphrase one of my favorite movie quotes, Delecti has a long tradition of existence.

Having him defeated, destroyed, and gone for good would be a tremendous loss for MGF.

Permanently killing him would mean that the Undead of the Upland Marsh would be out  of control, which is far worse than they are under Delecti's control.

On 11/12/2023 at 7:08 PM, Murf said:

So what happens to everybody's favorite undead menace?

In my last Glorantha campaign, the Adventurers gave the Upland Marsh to Harrek, making him Duke of the Upland Marsh, expecting him to fight Delecti, but instead they came to an arrangement that allowed Harrek to raid from the Upland Marsh into Sartar, the Holy Country and the Lunar Provinces, with an army of Wolf Pirates and Undead. 

On 11/12/2023 at 7:08 PM, Murf said:

Does Argrath take some time out to eliminate this threat to his flank and later his rear?

Delecti is not a threat if he is hired by Argrath. Sue, he is a temporary threat in the wars against the Lunar Empire but he can as easily be hired by Argrath. After all, Argrath has Ducks that he can send to Delecti as Emissaries.

On 11/12/2023 at 7:08 PM, Murf said:

Also are there any stats for the Mr Cold and Clammy and his bevy of blood sucking bimbos.?

I didn't really bother. He can cast Create Undead spells using his Magic Points instead of POW and can raise hordes of undead from the ranks of the newly-slain. Remember the scene in Game of Thrones when the King of the White Walkers raised his fallen enemies? That is what Delecti does. 

On 11/22/2023 at 11:26 AM, Darius West said:

There is no Kuschile High Llama Archer skill.

Why not? If a Yelmalian High Llama Rider, who cannot ride a horse due to taboos, gained a Kuschile Archery skill, why wouldn't it apply to a High Llama?

On 11/22/2023 at 11:24 AM, ChrisWentWhere said:

Obviously if the Humakti were to try to shoot at someone from his Llama his attack chance is limited to his Ride skill. What about the baboon? I'm assuming that the main reason for limiting it to the ride skill is because the person in chance is having to control the mount. The passenger is just a passenger after all. But it is also not a completely stable platform to fire from. Perhaps limit it to DEX x 3?  

I would limit the shot to the Humakti's Ride skill and keep it simple.

On 11/22/2023 at 9:32 PM, Scorus said:

So my players are about to have the first of what I expect to be many meetings with Argrath (post-Dragonrise). I've read King of Sartar, Black Spear and other earlier pubs with him, but while those do well at his history and legend, they don't speak as much to his personality, so: How should I role-play him? By this time he is Illuminated and at least semi-Draconic, and influenced to one extent or another by Harrek, Giants, the Bison Tribe, the White Bull, his Colymar/Sartar upbringing, and who knows what else! I assume he is very strong in a wide variety of runes, including opposing ones since he is Illuminated. Would you play him as kind? tyrannical? just? power-hungry? arrogant? questioning of himself? mild-mannered (from Illumination)? volatile (as an Orlanthi)? extroverted? introspective? mature? immature?

He sees himself as a King to Be, someone with a destiny, someone powerful. This would affect how he treats people. Before he became powerful, when he was in Pavis, he was a friendly if not standoffish Adventurer. Now he has returned from his voyage with Harrek he is a changed man. He is probably arrogant and doesn't interact with common people. He is King of Pavis so has people to talk to other people. He is surrounded by his bodyguards and council, so he listens to them. When he talks to other people, they are summoned to his Council. 

So, he would be arrogant, driven, power-hungry, almost desperate, probably volatile.

On 11/19/2023 at 8:13 AM, Jose-san said:

What's "income"? Their basic professional or household income and anything made on the side as well, like loot from adventures? How do you manage this?

Generally, if people have to ask "Is this income?" then it clearly is.

So, anything you gain from loot and so on, even finding long-lost treasure, is income.

On 11/19/2023 at 8:13 AM, Jose-san said:

Initiates are supposed to pay 10% of their income to their temple. What's "income"? Their basic professional or household income and anything made on the side as well, like loot from adventures? How do you manage this?

You pay your dues to the cult. If you don't then you lose your standing in the cult, can't gain new magic or regain Rune Points, and so on, so people generally pay this.

On 11/19/2023 at 8:13 AM, Jose-san said:

Quote

The basic “tax” in most Gloranthan societies is the temple tithe, most notably the 20% of the harvest that goes to the local temples of Ernalda and her husband

Do you take this into account? Does it affect PC in any way?

That is just something that everyone pays when they do the harvest or take animals to the market. Some of the animals are just taken and put into the cult pens.

On 11/19/2023 at 8:13 AM, Jose-san said:

What other taxes exist in Orlanthi society, do clans, tribes and/or cities collect taxes in any way? If so how and how much?

For me, when the Lunars raise taxes, or even the Prince of Sartar, they raise taxes on the Clans and Tribes and they use their coffers or collect it in other ways.

Merchants pay taxes, or tolls, to travel roads. Adventurers used to pay taxes to enter Pavis, or they did in our campaign, paying a "Leg Tax" on entry to the City at the Gates.