jajagappa

Good example! Of course, the initiation into Humakt severs one from their kin, so that works well. And I'm sure a Trickster doesn't care, and might be delighted to "initiate" one into their ranks as a child with whatever consequences to the clan.

That's because it is the Adulthood initiation rite, not a cult one. Always. If you're not ready for adulthood, you're certainly not ready to enter the mysteries of a cult (nor will you have the knowledge and clan markings to protect you when the bad spirits or demons come into the ceremonies).

I've always interpreted it as an Old Ferryman who will literally carry you on his back across the place so that you don't have to touch the ground and be drained of all your magic. But he might well have a spirit boat or raft that can transport you across.

I'm sure there are situations of Esvulari commoners falling in love with Heortlanders and marrying them. The deities worshiped are the same, but will the Heortlander recognize and offer worship to the Invisible God and meet the other community restrictions (which may include violating typical Orlanthi taboos - e.g. they might have to herd or eat goats) as well in order to join the Esvulari community? That's really what it comes down to.

When your purpose is solely to carry folks and things across the Dead Place, who'd stop and bother to remember your name? Or maybe it's one of the things that you forget while crossing.

Yes, the one in the middle of Prax.

Molds, worms, ... - they're all secrets gained from Darkness to both survive the Great Darkness and keep Chaos at bay. Eat more cheese! 😉

Some of Jeff's notes which are foundational for the Heortland book are noted here: Aeolians – The Well of Daliath (chaosium.com) Of particular note from that reference: "I tend to think of the Aeolians as being roughly analogous to the Druze or Yazidi. They are an ethnoreligious group that are always a minority outside of their strongholds. As an aside, I do not believe that the Aeolians try to convert anyone. I am not sure they even accept converts!"

They are included in the Heortland regional book which is currently in the publication queue. The Aeolians (aka Esvulari) are around 10% of the Heortland population, generally concentrated in southern Heortland up to Durengard, with their great temple at Mount Passant. They have only three castes: noble, wizard-priest, and commoner. They consider worship of the Lightbringers and other deities acceptable as Emanations of the Invisible God. Nobles worship their ancestors which can be traced back at least to Aeol, possibly Orlanth and Ernalda. Wizard-priests are typical zzaburi and lead the worship of the Invisible God, and apply the Invisible God's blessings as directed by the nobles. The Commoners worship those other gods recognized as Emanations. The Aeolians are endogamous are marry within their caste and culture. Not very much. They are a relatively closed culture, not a proselytizing one. Knight Fort or the like served as defensive positions against raiding Praxians (if you consider that until 1300+ that Dragon Pass was closed to humans, then the main westward target for Praxians was southern Heortland).

The new Miskatonic Repository work Heinrich's Call of Cthulhu Guide to Carcosa is a solo adventure (though could easily be run by a GM) taking characters into a struggle for your soul in the King in Yellow's home. It is very well done, and is certainly not light-hearted.

The Father of Independents. You can find him in Nomad Gods. My guess is that he, and a number of other small Spirit Cults, will appear eventually in the Horned Man/Hsunchen/Spirit Cult book in the Cults series.

Two views of the deity. With the Lightbringers, LM is a key advisor to Orlanth questing into the Underworld to restore the world. With the solar pantheon, Buserian is the one who watches the Sky, records their movements, etc. But in both cults there is a focus on recording and saving knowledge. One of LM/B's runes is Stasis (the Sky Dome) after all.

This is the critical piece - never think of the fetch as an "independent" entity! Easier to think of your fetch as a new "appendage" to your body, just a part that extends into the Spirit World and takes on a certain shape both there and occasionally in the mundane world (in a translucent form). The Waha shaman-priest negotiates and interacts with the allied spirit normally.

Yes, it's definitely a human concept (might be an equivalent for elves or trolls too), and I agree not a dragonewt concept in the same way. From a dragonewt perspective, an "innocent" is likely a crested dragonewt who has yet to master certain of their passion pairs.

The fetch may spiritually be seen as an animal, but it is not an animal. The fetch is part of the shaman and only exists as the shaman's constant presence ('eyes' if you will) on the Spirit Plane. If the shaman dies, but self-resurrects, they resurrect their fetch too as it is part of the shaman's soul. (Effectively, the form/shape of the fetch reflects what the shaman's soul looks like in the Otherworld.)

[As an aside, Chalana Arroy as the White Goddess has always had an association with the Altinae and the White Camp of Innocence/Wisdom. It's a concept that can fit with a group known as the Sisters of Mercy.] But assuming such 'innocence' is non-determinable, we might give the dragonewts an ability to sense their Runes and interpret the high Harmony/Fertility combination as something potentially useful to eat. The warrior dragonewts are carnivorous so the debate still makes sense. Warrior dragonewts are also tested on the lines of: curiosity and apathy, leader and follower, impulsive and cautious, nervous and calm, and suspicious and trusting. So one is Curious - what does this mix of Harmony & Fertility taste like, and is it good for one? Possibly help make them calm and trusting. The other is Suspicious, maybe Apathetic - and feels that this mix will entangle them in the earth, or that it will dampen their efforts to become more impulsive.

No, but I probably wouldn't put in terms of "respect" as that seems a very human viewpoint. You might find a pair of warrior dragonewts (or above) debating the merits of eating a Chalana Arroy healer - one arguing that the flesh of Innocence can remove an Entanglement from the world, while the other suggests the opposite, that the flesh entangles them in the Threads of Harmony and attaches them to the world. Crested dragonewts on the other hand might hurl themselves at her feet, incessantly groveling around her. Another, nearing transformation to the warrior stage, might refuse all her healing, and do all in their power to prevent it (even attacking her!).

Exactly, Voria is born from the Compromise between the Sun and the Rain - she cannot emerge from the seeds of the Earth without both fathers!

Except, The Prosopaedia, p. 133, also notes "Spring’s Handmaiden, one of Voria’s common names, was born of Ernalda and Orlanth". And if you look at the genealogy charts on Mythology p.124 and p.122, you will find that both are True.

Well, this depends on what map you are using. The one in the Guide is not correct vs. Greg's Master Maps. Best current reference is what Jeff has shared and is available at the Well of Daliath site: JR-Dragon-Pass-sketch-map.png (2048×1978) (chaosium.com) Now, Barbarian Town is certainly not on any significant river, but there are likely seasonal streams coming down from the Storm Mountains. It's most likely similar to somewhere on the backside of the Sierra Nevada range (e.g. Reno, Carson City). The majority of rain will certainly fall on the Heortland side with the majority falling on or around Bullpen Mountain going down the Martof River, but I doubt it all does. I haven't seen Jeff's vegetation map of that section to confirm though.

The intersection of the trail past Stormwalk Mountain (i.e. a sacred Storm Bull/Orlanth pilgrimage route) with trails running north-south from Swenstown and Pimper's Block down to the Bandori Valley, Monkey Ruins, and Cam's Well. The more verdant lands hug the Storm Mountains, so good land for the Pol-Joni to graze. I tend to think of Barbarian Town as something out of the Wild West - often lawless, sometimes a new Rune Lore (sheriff) comes to town to clean things up, then they depart and it returns to its rugged ways. Pol-Joni horse-and-cattle folk, Storm Bulls going between Stormwalk and the Block, Gagarthi bandits... and sometimes wild broo that must be hunted down and destroyed.

I'd say they are in their favored weapon since becoming a Sea Wolf requires 90%+ in their primary weapon skill.

The spell is described fully for RQG in the Red Book of Magic, p.32 This is a most dangerous spell. It drains the totality of the victim’s memory, transferring it to the caster’s mind and leaving the victim a mental vegetable. It can only be cast during a holy day and takes the entire week to perform. Each time it is cast, the caster takes 3D6 general hit point damage, which can be healed normally. The caster must overcome the target’s POW with their own. If they fail, the entire ritual fails. If the caster fumbles, they collapse into a catatonic trance for 1D6 weeks, leaving them at the mercy of ambitious opponents. If the spell succeeds, the caster may learn any or all the target’s spirit magic, sorcery, or Rune spells, and obtains the target’s Rune points. All such Rune points cannot be replenished if the caster is not a member of the victim’s cult. The caster can also gain Knowledge and Magic skills that the victim has at at a level higher than the caster’s own ability. For each such skill, the caster attempts a series of rolls as if learning by experience (even if the skill cannot normally be improved by experience). Once the experience gain roll is missed for a given skill, the priest can gain no further expertise in that skill from that victim. The skill values are considered final and include the skill category modifiers. The caster may also learn skills other than Knowledge or Magic category skills, but these permit a single experience roll each. These skills cannot go higher than the caster’s INT×5 or the victim’s skill, whichever is lower. This spell has no effect on priests of Lhankor Mhy. If accidentally cast on such a victim, the caster must still roll in case they fumble.

Love it!

Actually, you're better off if you don't. 🙂