jajagappa

Right, but that's a compilation that is not fully canon (i.e. not listed here: http://www.glorantha.com/docs/canon/ )

I guess the question there is whether Nandan is still canonical. I don't think I've seen much reference since the Hero Wars' Thunder Rebels supplement.

Or if you've signed up for the RQG previews, you can get them now! Pre-release mail-out #11 includes Rune Metals and Magic Crystals, a 4 page teaser from the Gamemaster Sourcebook!

And corpse preparation! Probably includes making shrouds, death garb, painting the faces of the dead, preparing goods for the grave and the afterlife... And after death they likely gather and prepare spirit 'food' to serve on Ancestor's Day (aka the Day of the Dead).

Only as lay members, and I'm sure they mostly do work in digging graves, maintaining the Necropoli, carrying corpses to the biers, etc.

Well, Sorola's beard throughout the RQG illustrations is hardly long! But it is very decorative and would seem a common style for Esrolian females in the Temple of Knowledge. Ah, but you must also consider this as a lay member (CoP p.75): "Apprentices must remain celibate and cloistered within the Temple most of the time except for occasional field trips to safe research areas." Therefore, they have to be past being an apprentice/student and have become just a worshipper (i.e. "Worshippers: these are people of any race or age who come to the temple to worship and learn by paying for training. They pay all standard fees." and "All Lay Members take a vow to uphold the Truth") - that is they are paying good money to the temple and have sworn oaths to Truth (keeps the riff-raff and Eurmali out).

If you mean the Red Emperor, then beginning with the Mask of Magnificus when he destroyed Sheng Seleris, the body of the Red Emperor is believed to be chosen from among the Egi who come from the various Imperial families, and most are likely also to be among his sons. But the Red Emperor is still the Red Emperor and is more than just a body - as the son of the Red Goddess he always remembers himself. GtG p.295: "The Egi are those chosen by the Goddess to contribute to the Red Emperor. The names, precise number, and types of the Egi are not known. Nor is it known how they contribute to the Red Emperor. It is known that the Egi reside on the Moon as Lunar Immortals and some have palaces in the Lunar realm."

A nice GM's reference sheet will be a big help. I'm constantly having to scroll between the Resolution table, the Attack vs. Parry table (which is quite handy), the Damage summaries, the Weapon summaries, and occasionally the Attack vs. Dodge table.

True, if you just come at it from the point of view of reading the list of rune spells, then there is no particular limitation (other than the requirement of the Harmony rune to cast). But I think there is a reason why the Rune Cults come before the Rune spells as highlights that certain Rune spells only come from certain cults. As we've seen from the other threads, I don't think there is an argument here that those inconsistencies exist. Or, your players' characters venture into the Wastes, find and join the Three Bean Circus and begin their great quest to bring Peace to all Glorantha - an epic in itself! They are the ones who bring about the Fireseason of Love, etc. 🙂 Without pulling out Cults of Prax, I wouldn't have been able to tell you there was any difference. And even then, I probably would not have thought there was any change in limiting factor (i.e. named high priestesses vs. unnamed high priestesses). The salient points are these: it's available to the high priestesses of Ernalda and Eiritha (clearly spelled out in the Rune cult chapter of RQG) and it's available via an Associated Cult in both cases (the Three Bean Circus - also noted clearly). And RQG spells out what it means for a spell to come from an Associated Cult: "they can select a Rune spell from an associated cult worshiped at that temple instead of selecting a Rune spell from their main cult or subcult. The associated cult must be one worshiped at that temple." Which leaves it up to the GM to decide if/where it is available. Overall, I think the team has done a good job in ensuring that the information you need is in RQG and does not require referencing any prior work. I've not found I need to do any referencing of older RQ version texts. I'd note that my experience with rule books is that you're never going to understand all the nuances on one or two (or three...) reads. It doesn't mean you need to go back to other texts. It may mean you need to get clarifications where some bit isn't as clear as it could be. If you've had the benefit of prior editions without much substantive change (e.g. Call of Cthulhu), then most of those bits will have been fully worked out. Overall, compared to what I remember when getting started with either RQ2 (which really was pretty bare bones and needed supplements) or RQ3 (where I really did have to rely on Cults of Prax, Griffin Mountain, and other earlier texts to help complete the Glorantha picture), RQG can stand well on its own as a rule system and as a source for getting started in Glorantha.

I expect most of the greater entities will be in the Gods of Glorantha book. Re: Hykim and Mikyh, the best sources are the Guide to Glorantha and the Glorantha Sourcebook. It/they are the source of the Beast Rune, and almost all beasts are said to descend from one of them. The Hsunchen folk claim them as part of their ancestry, usually with whatever animal is their associated beast-spirit. GtG p.21 or GS p.73: "Hykim and Mikyh According to God Learner genealogies, Hykim and Mikyh are the ancestors of all beasts. They are usually said to be dragons. Hykim is male and Mikyh female, though they never appear together in tales. The God-Learners hypothesized that they represent a single hermaphroditic being, in normal draconic fashion. The genealogy of these deities resembles a taxonomic classification of Gloranthan animals. There is, for instance, a Mammal Mother whose children are the cat-god, bear-god, sheep-god, and so on. Then the cat-god is parent to the lion spirit, the lynx-spirit, the tiger-spirit, and so forth. Some animals are also accounted another origin elsewhere. One example is Vrimak – the paramount bird-ancestor, but who is said to have been created by Dayzatar, the sky god. Most animals are closely associated with another deity, and Hykim or Mikyh are used as explanatory links. For instance, Mikyh is the mother of King Griffin by Yelm, and of Storm Bull by Umath." GS p.71 "There roamed Hykim, Eldest Beast, said to be in the form of a Dragon."

Potentially, but likely players and GM's may vary on what they want to do. In a heavy clan-based game, I often create lineage diagrams to give the players a sense of how their characters fit (and who is related to whom). The Coming Storm has some nice Relationship maps, which some may find useful. I'd simply suggest trying some ideas out yourself and seeing what works. And if they do, post here in the Forums.

Are you supposed to read Cults of Prax? No, not required. RQG is fine. I have no issues with the rune spell of Peace is in RQG. Why not? It's available through an Associated Cult to High Priestesses of Eiritha and Ernalda. That means you have to find a temple to one of those deities where a shrine to the Three Bean Circus exists to get the spell in the first place. It's going to cost you 3 rune points to cast it by itself. Yes, you can cast Extension with it. So there's a point in the ground with a 1km radius around it which makes non-rune masters feel peaceful for x amount of time. Works fine in my game. Not that I've particularly seen so far, but I do have long time experience with both. But that's the purpose of forums such as these - you can ask questions if you're worried or concerned about them. But back when I didn't have such immediately available and was running RQ3, I just followed the MGF principle - if you're the GM and it feels right, go with it (and if your players balk, work with them to figure out what works between them and you). On the whole, I disagree. I ran the Quickstart just fine with what we had then. RQG covers most of what you need except for the Bestiary (and there are samples from that already available). I expect that the Gods of Glorantha book will be a valuable addition, but there's enough on the cults in RQG to get players underway with a lot of choices. My RQG campaign is branching out from some ideas from the point at which the Quickstart ends. (Admittedly I'm drawing on concepts from other Sartar books because I have them available as GM, but with the short Homeland writeups in RQG and the pregen characters, my players have been able to get underway without issue.)

There has not been much on TKT over the years, and some content is likely non-canonical, though you still might find usable. Here's some bits & pieces: Cult Compendium (p.278, 286): Ty Kora Tek, Queen of the Dead, was incensed when Vivamort [aka Nontraya] stole souls who were hers, and she set the Earth against him.... Several Earth cults have sacred burial tools, usually shovels that deliver unregenerable damage to vampires, in the same manner as fire. Their use in digging graves for the dead and their holy place in cult funeral rites gives these tools their special powers. [Clearly a myth here where she learns of Vivamort ripping away souls that belong to her, then cursing him and sending agents/tools back into the world to hunt him down and destroy his funerary earth, and his powers.] Glorantha Sourcebook (p.56): Ty Kora Tek, daughter of Gata, is the dwarf Goddess of Death, for she lives deep within the earth and has befriended the dwarfs, promising to return their souls’ energy to them if they would worship her. [A myth here of aiding/gaining the loyalty of some dwarfs - and probably horrifying good Nidan dwarfs in the process.] ditto (p.78): Ty Kora Tek is also the Goddess of Dark in the Earth, mentioned later on as one of the Six Earths. Within a great cavern or tomb of grey, called the “Waiting Ground” by some writers, she rules over the dead. Those dead who are fed and honored by their living kin have a pleasant existence, but those whose living kin have forgotten them mindlessly gibber in the Darkness. [She patiently collects all these souls. And likely she sends out her agents, aka various Psychopomps such as Issaries, Jajagappa, and others, to gather these souls and bring them to her.] ditto (p.89): Ty Kora Tek was sister to Asrelia, and neither so beautiful nor friendly. She received gifts different from her sisters’, and grew covetous and jealous. This helped to bring about the downfall of the Earth deities in the War of the Gods. Ty Kora Tek had a Darkness God as her husband, and with his knowledge built a vast grey cavern where she would be her own queen. When the horror of Death came to the world, Ty Kora Tek aided many by leading them to this place of refuge and sanctuary in the world gone mad. There they remained, subject to her laws of Silence and Subservience, but in safety. Ty Kora Tek is now the Goddess of the Dead for the Earth cults. With her husband, she had several children who serve her in the Underworld. [In my myths of Saird, the dark husband would be Jajagappa, the Catcher of Souls, who can catch in his net and drag even the most powerful magicians to the Underworld.] ditto (p.94): Ty Kora Tek is the Keeper of the Dead. She is viewed as fearsome and necessary. After caring for them in her bleak cavern, she releases the dead spirits to be reborn again. GtG v2 (p.678): [From Gods Wall] IV-9. Annara Gor, Goddess of the Third Underworld, Keeper of the Third Hell. Her hair is of serpents, and her clothing is in rags. She is also called Ugly Old woman. (This is Ty Kora Tek, Goddess of the Dead and Queen of the Land of the Dead. She is a gaunt and wasted deity whose worshipers prepare corpses and guard graveyards.) and IV-8. Deshlotralas God of the Third Underworld, Keeper of the Third Hell. He holds aloft the Bone of Power. [This suggests that Ty Kora Tek's dark husband is Deshlotralas, which may be a dark form of Lodril in the Underworld. Heortling Myth (p.7): Ernalda traveled deeper into the Underworld until she came to great caverns filled with the moaning dead. There she met her aunt, Ty Kora Tek, Keeper of the Dead. During the start of Kinstrife, Uralda and Esra had gone to her, seeking protection. Ernalda asked her aunt to release her daughters but Ty Kora Tek refused. “Whoever comes into my realm now may not leave. I cannot set a precedent and allow anyone to leave if they have a good reason. Bad times are coming and soon my halls will be bursting with the slain.” Ernalda pointed out that Uralda and Esra were still full of life and were bringing vitality and sound to the Caverns of the Silence. “If both of them spend all their time here, soon the cavern will become its opposite and the dead will become confused.” Ty Kora Tek relented, seeking to keep her Gardens silent, but only if Esra agreed to spend some time with her aunt. [Anyone seeking to bring back an Earth goddess or an ancient ancestress for their clan, for example see the Quest for Orane scenario in HQG, must encounter TKT and convince her to free the goddess or ancestress.] ditto (p.98): Ty Kora Tek is the title, not a name, of the Shrouded Good Elder Goddess. No one dares to speak her name aloud, except in the midst of her sacred ceremonies, for to do so invites the wrath of her wretched, avenging daughters. [In some stories, there is a suggestion that Asrelia and TKT are simply two names/faces for the same goddess. This may or may not be the case. But clearly TKT has access to a host of Underworld avengers such as Furies or Fates that can enact her will.] ditto (p.118): Ernalda’s absence had sent Orlanth upon the Lifebringers Quest, and he had found her inside the hidden places of Ty Kora Tek's unknown realm. [The Earth goddesses, and indeed many souls of the Orlanthi, are gathered by TKT.] ditto (p.144): Asrelia’s abode, the Green Arbor, is in the Earth Realm. She sits close to Ernalda, whether on the throne, at the loom, or in the fields. By the feet of her stool is a tiny hole that most people cannot see, where she puts treasures. Inside this hole is her vast Treasure Vault. This hole also leads to Ty Kora Tek’s Caverns of Silence in the Underworld. ditto (p.161): Ty Kora Tek is a goddess of the Earth Tribe and a sister of Asrelia. They are twins, although they look different they are exactly alike. When Asrelia wanted to go wander Ty Kora Tek did not. She remained behind. One time a darkness god came to her and said, “I am going to take you. I want to be inside of you.” “I don’t think so,” said Ty Kora Tek, and she broke it apart and then used his parts to make a hidden cave, and then she moved in and remained there. In the God War Humakt, Eurmal, Orlanth and the others all released Death into the world and sent hordes of terrified souls and spirits wandering about without a place to be. Ty Kora Tek aided those stricken by the new power. She found their neglected bodies and she prepared the dead for their last rites. When the ghosts did not go away then Ty Kora Tek could talk to them and convince them to retire properly. ditto (p.161): Ty Kora Tek is a gaunt and wasted goddess, and who is hollow inside. Her power is to bring sorrow to everyone. She makes a person’s absence known to all. She is also the goddess who will take away and hold that sorrow, make absence mean nothing, and fill her hollow so the living may live. She receives regular sacrifice on every Shroud Day, along with Ernalda. Also, black hens go to her whenever the dead are buried in their jars. ditto (p.166): Ty Kora Tek: Goddess of the Dead, and the Land of the Dead. She is a gaunt and wasted deity whose worshipers prepare corpses and guard graveyards. And that's likely most of what is available.

It wouldn't surprise me if they also serve as keepers of the seeds of Aldrya.

It may be worth noting that Ty Kora Tek is more a Keeper of the Dead (she is Keeper of the 3rd Hell, or the Halls of Silence) vs. a shepherd of the dead (which I would interpret as a Psychopomp, and for the Orlanthi that is Issaries). That said, Ty Kora Tek's cult is all about preparing the dead for their funerary rites, of conducting the rituals of mourning (think of them as professional mourners), and then ensuring their bodies or ashes are appropriately buried (whether in urnfields in Sartar or the necropoli of Esrolia. They then help keep the dead quiet and satisfied in the afterlife (in Esrolia they tend the necropoli and provide the dead with spiritual food), and deal with settling ghosts. Traditionally this is the domain of old women, however, as others have noted there are various possibilities of how younger women might be called to her service.

I ran a variation of this in my Orlmarth HQ campaign as part of the Harvest celebration. The suitors/contestants were the Barley Men, and the winner was declared the Barley King by the Harvest Queen (who bears witness to the two-day event). Celebration of the Barley King's victory (lots of ale) preceded the marriage where the Barley Men then carry the Barley King to Orane's Loom. The Harvest Queen then emerges from the earth shrine there, and they are ceremonially united by the Clan Chieftain and the Earth Priestess.

I have a copy of Greg's document on the Weeders, and they are the riverfolk of Darjiin, Henjarl, and extending to Saird. They follow the heron goddesses and are adept at the use of reeds for daily life (often to the exclusion of even making clay vessels). As you note, they retain their distinctive cultural niche living off the marshes and rivers.

Well, it was hard to tell them apart after they went through the Harrek meat-grinder! 🙂

Maybe it will be in Claudia Loroff's Glorantha cookbook project!

Short answer is Yes, it will be more detailed in the Gods of Glorantha book that Jeff has referenced elsewhere. As for Rune Lords vs. Rune Priests, it depends on the nature of the cult. Most will just have priests. Some martial cults would primarily have Rune Lords. A few will have both.

I'd be inclined to say a type of cabbage, grape leaves, or something like chard, perhaps wrapped around some chunk of meat, and served in a hot pot style.

As @Oracle noted Greymane, and his sons, are dead. (Though of course YGMV) Queen Hendira is also dead, and the Red Earth Alliance destroyed. Esrolia, and by extension, Maniria, is in something of a jockeying for power post-Dragonrise. On the one hand, ruling Nochet and effectively ruling Northern Esrolia and leading the Old Earth Alliance is Queen Samastina. On the other hand, ruling Rhigos and leading the Warm Earth Alliance, with close ties to Caladraland, is the Demivierge of Rhigos. You can see these divisions reflected in the Homelands writeup in RQG. Now bear in mind that Esrolia is still dominated by 200 Enfranchised (i.e. noble) clans and their Grandmothers, who are realigning themselves towards one or the other of those two leaders. And they are extending their influences along the Trade Road to Maniria. Off in Maniria, there's the Queen of Handra, who has her own ambitions. And northward there is the Arstola Forest, and the elves have their own agenda (i.e. cover all of Maniria, and more, in wild woodland once again).

Why? Beast seems perfectly reasonable for trolls. Just consider some of the variant troll forms like cave trolls or midget slashers (from the old RQ3 Bestiary).

I was referencing the original, rather than the "Ongoing" thread. You can also do a Search for "1617" and find some of the entries directly. See: https://basicroleplaying.org/topic/7638-rqg-corrections-thread/

I think that was noted as an error in the RQG Corrections thread.