jeffjerwin

Is it just me or does the name "Porscriptor" sound un-Theyalan?

He sounds foreign. Thus the by-name might indeed reference an unacceptable custom he had to abandon?

Maybe they ate their dead out of reverence, like trolls (and certain human cultures in our world).

Fire makes smoke, which is a kind of hot darkness (like, I dare say, ZZ). ZZ is what trolls fear.

Argan Argar is literally surface darkness - shade - cool and welcoming, the opposite/counterpart/twin to ZZ.

3 hours ago, Joerg said:

I am not sure whether Shargash wasn't at the Hill of Gold, sharing the ZZ role, or the Orlanth one, when Antirius received one of his wounds.

I've argued this before (relative to Zolan Zubar), but Shargash ~ *Zar-k-az = definitely a Hell divinity, who is associated with fire and necromancy.

Edit: *zre-, 'light'

The parallels in names, portfolio, and outré fearfulness/the "Other" in the pantheon seems awfully similar.

Also, the site where Orlanth and Shargash struggled as Orlanth went towards Ralios on the LB Quest is close to the Hill of Gold.

1 hour ago, JonL said:

Antirius isn't a perfect match, but in Plantonius's account he was the manifest sun within the dome beneath the ice, is a champion of justice,  was wounded fighting the Cruel God and the Selfish God upon the Hill of Gold, and upon his death his spirit rose as a great hawk. 

That's a lot more like the later Yelmalio tradition than the Elmal lore of the Heortings or the Hyalorings.

Certainly it was the intention for the writers of the HeroWars and HeroQuest material (Sartar:KoH, p.153) that Elmal = Antirius, as an aspect of his is in fact called Anatyr the Chieftain there. That's obviously the same name. Though for all we know, Antirius/Anatyr is a description too, like "Little Yelm"/Yelmalio.

Edit: indeed, it's plausible that it means chieftain.

20 minutes ago, M Helsdon said:

Just another perspective. And Little Yelm may or may not be be Yelmalio - Yelmalio is a relatively recent name for the Cold Sun god... and of decidedly Southern Pelorian origin, like Elmal, but unlike the Dara Happan sun gods.

During Time, the religions of the southern Pelorian Cold Sun god(s) have been influenced by the styles and outlook of the northerners, but are still quite distinct.

It's a bit like the numerous Indo-European storm gods - lots of names but very similar characteristics, over many millennia, and they blur with the Mesopotamian storm gods to a degree.

We can see some misattributions and misnaming in the Gods Wall in the Guide... What if the god now called Yelmalio (which pretty likely means 'Little Yelm') is not the same god as the original? Certainly Yelm had more than one son, and the function of being the 'Little Yelm' (i.e., the Sun's vicegerent) could have shifted. 

9 hours ago, Yelm's Light said:

That was the river Lethe, another one of the five rivers of the Underworld.

And in fact, it was by dipping Achilles in the Styx, with the exception of the heel his mother was holding, that he became nigh invulnerable...

The Styx is definitely lawful in Greek myth. The Gloranthan Styx is more elemental darkness/water than law.

I think that every concept/thing/object/entity in Glorantha can be usefully posited to have a spirit; the spirit of Hazia is a Plant-Spirit/Otherworld-Euphoria type spirit. Though if this is, for example, how living things gain nourishment (i.e., trolls can eat rock spirits but most other creatures cannot - except plant and worm spirits/entities...) it might explain a lot.

 

Thus addiction might be a side-effect of particularly potent spirit ingestion.

 

3 hours ago, soltakss said:

 

For me, a clan tula is probably a single hex on the Dragon Pass board, with the surrounding 6 hexes considered clannish lands, but maybe with overlaps to other clans. 

 

A tula = 1 hex. Surrounding hexes belong to other clans [or other groups, including nonhumans], with most, but perhaps not all, being part of the same tribe. It's probably more interesting to make the tula border a neighbouring neutral or hostile tribe for generating some adventures...

16 minutes ago, seneschal said:

See the D100 family threads.  Cakebread and Watson have options for you

Yes. - Renaissance system and so forth.

There is: Blood Tide: here: https://www.chaosium.com/blood-tide/

You can take what you need from it. There's also RQ Pirates from Mongoose. Current, IP-less edition: http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/rpgs/legend/legend/pirates-of-legend.html

You may want to get the Sartar Companion for HeroQuest. It has a bunch of adventures as well as pages upon pages of random encounters.

2 hours ago, PhilHibbs said:

A related question is, if I have Javelin skill, and I can either throw it or stab someone in melee, are they the same skill, in that they both go up together?

These seem like they should be different skills. Aiming and throwing a javelin is substantially different from handling a spear in close combat.

2 hours ago, styopa said:

Or I guess it just occurred to me, are we assuming that magical birthcontrol would be used by iron-age women to the same degree that we see in educated western modern women?

This. Effective birth control is a secret Earth power, just not spoken of to men...

27 minutes ago, Pheres said:

One thing that i think is that Yinkin is a very loyal personage. When he choose Orlanth side, he's never betrayed him... Loyalty seem to be one important thing to him. Perhaps he give up his father because his father try to force him to do something Yinkin really don't wanted. But i am not sure that he could done it without that kind of thing... He never give his grands parents up...

Fralar the predator does not seem to have been a strongly paternal figure; he mostly just wanders around fathering meat-eating beast ancestors. I think Yinkin really never knew him - and Umath was either absent or dead in Orlanth's childhood as well. They were raised more or less by Kerofin as a single parent.

6 hours ago, simonh said:

I'm not sure I buy that. Neither of the actual cults mentions this, and neither of them asserts an associate cult status with Daka Fal.

I suppose it just makes my supposition about ancestor worshiping forms of these cults being assimilated into Orlanthi society semi-official.

Yinkin is the lineal ancestor of several Sartarite and Hendriki clans. In fact, Hendrik himself was a descendant of Gavren, son of Yinkin. But he's generally worshipped theistically, like Ivarne, Heort, Hendrik, and Sartar, along with all the other ancestors a clan might have.

Omitting all the unchanged bits:

Runic Affinities:

                                                Elements                    Power/Form

Preadolescents: 7-11           30/30/10;                 two at 55/45

Adolescents: 12-15               35/35/15;                 two at 60/40

New Adults*: 16-17              60/40/20;                 two at 75/25

 

*New adults have undergone the rite of passage into adulthood (note this takes place a little earlier for girls, depending on diet, since it’s based on menstration).

My Rationale: Initiation is awareness of the rune affinity, but these begin to shape a child before awareness of the mysteries: look to the childhood of Orlanth…

No bonus from Runes to Characteristics until Initiation.

 

Generating Characteristics:

 

Preadolescents: 7-11   Adolescents: 12-15       New Adults: 16-17

STR                 2d3+1d6        2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

SIZ                   2d3+3             2d4+4                        2d5+5            

CON                2d3+1d6       2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

DEX                 3d6                 3d6                             3d6

INT                  2d6+6             2d6+6                     2d6+6

POW               3d6                 3d6                             3d6

CHA                 2d3+1d6       2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

 

The only other change is that "new adults" - lay tribes folk - get 2 points of spirit magic but no rune magic (as yet).

This is a great article.

One caveat: the Nandans are overlooked. I know they aren't as exciting as Vingans, but they deserve a presence.

I think it useful to have "New Adults" (as I'll rename them) detailed out so one could start a campaign with the run-up cultic initiation, like in Apple Lane...

The adolescent category is also useful if you want to actually run someone's adulthood rites.

These might be used as 'prequels' to the main campaign if, as in Argrath's experience, these events presage later events in the story.

49 minutes ago, Julian Lord said:

 

And I think anyway that you're trying to represent as "Intellect" something that the Orlanthi culturally will experience in Initiation. Initiation transforms the mind of an Orlanthi to very much the same degree that a mastery of critical thinking or of some other intellectual methodology will transform that of one of our contemporaries.

I assume you mean adult initiation here. There is a need here for two different terminologies...

Initiation in an anthropological sense = adult initiation = 'rite of passage' 'entry into adulthood'. I'll use 'rite of adulthood' for this in revisions.

Cultic initiation = roughly corresponds the chrismation/confirmation among Christians. 'mysterion'. Because of longstanding usage, I'll use 'initiation'.

27 minutes ago, Julian Lord said:

I actually have to agree with Harald -- the "young initiate" category would probably be best represented as the basic unmodified skills on the character sheet, and the basic attributes of standard character creation but without the bonuses from Runes, cult Initiation, experience.

This works for me, on reflection. It also makes running a newly 'initiated' adult much easier...

I'll post revisions later tonight or tomorrow.

35 minutes ago, jajagappa said:

 

I don't see a need to segregate characteristics for this age group though YGWV.

Mostly my perception from working with teenagers.

33 minutes ago, jajagappa said:

Keep in mind that initiation into adulthood does not equal initiation into a cult so new adults should not have any rune magic.  You can't participate in any cult rites until you are an adult.  At that point, you may participate as a lay member and begin training to satisfy cult initiation requirements (and may pay/work to learn spirit magic).  But it may well be 2-4 years before there is a new initiation rite into Orlanth for instance. 

Oh! Hmm. That's new to me.

Voria and Voriof are said in earlier books (3rd ed.) to be the lay cults of Heortling children. If this is true, what differentiates them from the cults which have adult non-initiates?

Child Characters in RQ:G

[Thanks to Joerg, Julian Lord, and Harald for revision suggestions]

Rune Affinities:

                                                Elements                    Power/Form

Preadolescents: 7-11            30/30/10;                 two at 55/45

Adolescents: 12-15               35/35/15                  two at 65/35

New Initiates: 16-19             50/35/15                  two at 70/30

My Rationale: Initiation is awareness of the rune affinity, but these begin to shape a child before awareness of the mysteries: look to the childhood of Orlanth…

No bonus from Runes to Characteristics until Initiation.

 

Generating Characteristics:

 

Preadolescents: 7-11                        Adolescents: 12-15   New Initiates: 16-19

STR                 2d3+1d6        2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

SIZ                   2d3+3            2d4+4                                    2d5+5            

CON                2d3+1d6       2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

DEX                 3d6                 3d6                             3d6

INT                  2d6+2             2d6+4                                    2d6+6

POW               3d6                 3d6                             3d6

CHA                 2d3+1d6       2d4+1d6                    2d5+1d6

 

Why is INT not 2d6+6? Well, I used to teach children. INT includes decision-making, extrapolation, and critical thinking. These are learned skills.

 

Generating Skills:

 

Base Skill bonuses for children/youth: These base skills are as is for new initiates.

If not noted, as adult:

Agility:

Dive Chariot (00)

Swim (00); (10) for adolescents

Communication:

Bargain (00); (05) for adolescents

Disguise (00); (05) for adolescents

Intimidate (05); (10) for adolescents

Intrigue (00)

Orate (05)

Language skills (see below)

Knowledge:

Battle (00)

Celestial Lore (00)

Customs (see below)

Elder Race Lore (00)

Evaluate (00)

First Aid (05)

Homeland Lore (15)

Manage Household (05)

Mineral Lore (05)

Peaceful Cut (00)

Survival (05)

Treat Disease (00)

Treat Poison (00)

Magic:

All (00)

Manipulation:

Craft (05)

Perception:

Insight (own species) (10)

Track (00)

Stealth:

Hide (05)

 

Weapon skills: reduce all by 10, excluding:

Dagger (10)

Pike (00)

Shortsword (05)

1H Spear (05)

Crossbow (00)

Javelin (05)

Rock (15)

Self Bow (05)

Sling (05)

 

Cultural skills: Crude method: Cultural skills are gained at -10% for preadolescents, -5% for adolescents and as is for new initiates.

Detailed method (Sartar only so far):

Cultural skills:

[7-11]                         [12-15]                       [16-19]

Ride                -                                   -                                   +5%                

Dance             +5%                            +5%                            +5%

Sing                 +5%                            +10%                         +10%

Speak Own L  (30)                            (40)                            (50)

Speak Other   -                                   +5%                            +10%

Customs         +10%                         +15%                         +25%

Farm               +5%                            +15%                         +20%

Herd               +5%                            +10%                         +10%

Spirit Comb.   -                                   -                                   +15%

Dagger            -                                   +10%                         +10%

Battle Axe       -                                   -                                   +10%

1H Spear        -                                   +10%                         +10%

Broadsword   -                                   +5%                            +15%

Comp. Bow     -                                   +5%                            +10%

Sling                +5%                            +10%                         +10%

Javelin                        -                                   +10%                         +10%

Medium Sh    -                                   -                                   +15%

Large Sh         -                                   -                                   +10%

Pick parents’ occupation and assign one +10, and three +5s to your skills based on each parent. Most should be assigned to Lore or professional knowledge.

A new initiate instead takes occupational skills as normal, but does not gain the normal personal skill bonuses. Instead they gain +10 to four skills and +5 to five more skills.

An adolescent gets two +10s and three +5s.

A preadolescent gets two +5s.

Magic:

If an adolescent or preadolescent rolls under their POWx5 they have an object [such as piece of jewelry, clothing, or toy containing up to one point [pre-adolescent] or up to two points [adolescent] of practical spirit magic. GMs may waive the roll if the campaign centers around children.

New Initiates start with +10 to one cult starting skill +5 to one other. They gain Cult Lore at 5%, Worship at 5%, and no Meditate skill.

They gain 2 points of spirit magic and 1 point of rune magic.

For Uz boyz, at least:

Love (mother) 60%

Fear (mother) 60%

Hate (chaos) 60%

my two bolgs, anyway.

These are some notes for the adventures I run for my daughter, whose character is an 8-year old lay worshipper of Voria and Vinga.

 

Rune Affinities:

Preadolescents: 8-12                        30/10/-; two power/form runes at 60/40

Adolescents: 13-17               40/20/10; two power/form runes at 65/35

New Initiates: 18-21            50/30/15; two power/form runes at 70/30

No bonus from Runes to Characteristics until Initiation.

Generating Characteristics

Preadolescents: 8-12                        Adolescents: 13-16   New Initiates: 17-21

STR                 2d6                 2d6+1d4                    3d6

SIZ                   2d3+3           2d6+2  [min. 5]           2d6+5            

CON                as STR

DEX                 3d6                 3d6                             3d6

INT                  2d6+2            2d6+4                        2d6+6

POW               3d6                 3d6                             3d6

CHA               3d6                  3d6                             3d6

 

Cultural skills are gained at -10% for preadolescents, -5% for adolescents and as is for new initiates.

Pick parents’ occupation and assign one +10, and three +5s to your skills based on each parent.

A new initiate instead takes occupational skills as normal, but does not gain the normal personal skill bonuses. Instead they gain +10 to four skills and +5 to five more skills.

An adolescent gets two +10s and three +5s.

A preadolescent gets two +5s.

 

If an adolescent or preadolescent rolls under their POWx5 they can learn one point [pre-adolescent] or two points [adolescent] of practical spirit magic.

 

New Initiates start with +10 to one cult starting skill +5 to one other. They gain Cult Lore at 5%, Worship at 5%, and no Meditate skill.

 

They gain 2 points of spirit magic and 1 point of rune magic.