Akhôrahil

The big heroquest in Red Cow has that same "go into the Underworld to bring someone back" schema that we see a lot. Regaining Hara Orane in the HGQ rulebook does the same kind of thing in its heroquest. I'm thinking this schema was a mythic structure that already existed when Harmast pieced the LBQ together, and he used it as an important part of it. I believe there is a way to just perform the Westfaring and jump off on the way in order to get yourself transportation westwards?

Also, isn't "cheap resurrection spell" what Argrath's LBQ at the very least looks like? He sets out to bring Sheng Seleris back in order to open up a second front against the Lunar Empire for strategic reasons, with little obvious thought about spiritual content or cosmic order. Or am I missing something?

XV, I believe.

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He’s a full city god (although a weird one), but the cult will probably only come in the Pavis book.

I’m not sure whether the clans accept any Orlanthi superiors following the Lunar occupation, although I’m sure they sometimes work together. Their stance re: Pavis might be more like local clans towards the towns in Sartar. They don’t wield authority over you. Following Argrath’s conquest, who knows, though?

You might say the same thing about Sheng Seleris...

I thought this was even canon! That the GLS wouldn't work any longer even if we knew it.

Yes, but again, we don’t know how they did that.

Yeah (and the Guide says much the same thing as well). We know what it is, but not how it was done. I'm assuming sorcery, but that's still merely the tool, not the method. This is interesting because it's basically a Compromise breach from the reverse direction. We're used to the Compromise being threatened by the gods inserting themselves into the mundane world, but this is exactly the opposite.

Qwackboth brings a new terror to existence.

“Your god killed my god!” ”Eh, no-one cared about him while he lived.”

I'm thinking of writing up the Hedkoranth subcult, which would give you your personal Thunderstone (Little Weighty?) that works like an ordinary Thunderstone but can be recharged with Rune Points on the fly. Ernalda is also an amazing "downtime" cult, with Bless Crops and Bless Pregnancy.

Poor Yelmalio - the selling point (you might get 90% in a weapon, which used to be a big deal) is nowhere near as important, and the awful spell selection matters a lot more now.

It used to be the case that they were kinda crap as cults, but in RQG, both are excellent cults due to the truly massive spell selections and the ease of regaining Rune Points. Belonging to a big cult is good in a way it never was before. In my stead-based campaign, most people follow Orlanth or Ernalda, with a smattering of Odayla and Yinkin for the outdoors people, and one Daka Fal.

Also, crossbows are dwarven imports, and dwarves do have renaissance-level tech.

Huh, that’s super weird. It looks like an outright error to me (it all makes sense if it would say “king of the Bilini” instead), because why on Earth would it be the only mention, anywhere, about an active kingdom king of Talastar post-Opand? You would think that would be important, plus it seems like thing that should be mentioned when texts talk about him becoming king of the Bilini. Not only is it a bit odd for a kingdom king to also pick up a tribal king title, but the text also says that the deciding factor was that he carried Ironbreaker. Also note what it says on p. 341, of the Bilini rebellion ”shattering the short-lived kingdom”, making it clear that the kingdom of Talastar is gone (and, interestingly, making it seem like the Talastari didn’t have a king before, perhaps working out more like a tribal federation dominated by the Bilini?). I think it makes more sense to assume either that p. 344 is wrong, or that it’s merely not precise (Bolthor is king over a large part of the Talastari merely through being Bilini king, after all).

I maintain that Pavis crossbowmen use a so-called ”Pavis” shield. 🙂

At least "kiting" retreating. Just running without shooting for a while works. 🙂 Also, that the javelin skirmishers can use shields is a Big Deal.

This isn't particularly clear, but the rules seem to differentiate between "throw" and "shoot", such as on page 211, "One missile per melee round can be thrown/shot", and the term "shoot" is typically applied to projectile weapons (although not always, such as on p. 214, so it can be read either way). The paragraph then does go on to talk only about archery/mounted archery (does this mean that can't ride and use a thrown weapon at the same time, ever, in that case?). I'm reading this to mean that you "throw" thrown weapons, and "shoot" projectile weapons. And the rule you quote is only, as phrased, about shooting. Perhaps this reading was influenced by the fact that throwing while moving pretty obviously works IRL. You won't see anyone standing still while throwing a javelin at the Olympics - if anything, you should get a penalty for not moving, at least a few steps. However, even if you don't like this reading, thrown weapons might be more mobile in another way - the rules are fairly clear that you can draw a weapon while moving (at least at half rate), which means that you can move while you get ready to attack again with thrown weapons, which is what you spend the majority of the time doing with thrown weapons anyway. Meanwhile, it seems unlikely that you can reload a projectile weapon while moving (or you could have arbalesters running around while reloading, which doesn't seem reasonable).

But she would have ended up bringing someone back (even if she didn't have someone in mind)? That's what the LBQ always does in practice? Peace with whom, then? The Lunars? That'd be super interesting.

What was the objective of Kallyr's LBQ? Who was she trying to bring back?

Burying or throwing in a lake or marsh is also very historical.

Shouldn’t that over the Earth?

I would have to read up, but I don’t think this is correct. Opand (r. 1590-1595) was the last king of Talastar, when Hrodar (king of the Bilini) overthrew him. The kings of the Bilini then follow from Hrodar (Eric, Hakon, Bolthor). What’s your source that Bolthor was king of the Talastari? His two big claims to rulership seem to have been being a compromise candidate and bearing Ironbreaker. Hahlgrim is never king, I believe (I know the wiki says he was, but I believe that’s wrong). Oddi becomes king after Bolthor, and then we don’t even get hints about what happens after his endgame.