Richard S.

From the stuff we've heard about how Rightness works, it doesn't seem like caste magic is sorcery anymore, it's just special abilities you get for being a good Malkioni. Though maybe they could have "condensed" spells like how Open Seas works? With new emphasis on sorcery being the domain of the Zzaburi, it'd be odd to me if the Brithini, the most fundamental Malkioni of all, let the other castes touch it.

Ah, whoops, forgot that. Have you read the novel? What sort of abilities did they have? We know that Zzaburi can store MP on the spirit plane, and Talar have some sort of ability to command the lower castes.

Not much tougher than an Orlanthi warband with a sword sage tagging along. Someone not focusing full time on sorcery is going to be barely more effective than a rune or spirit magician, and only if they have a lot of time to prepare before each fight. Plus, it's unlikely that the aforementioned rogue wizard will have learned spells that are actually useful to fighters, and the chances of them learning more are slim at best. In Malkioni lands, it's much more practical for the fighters to get their sorcerous aid from actual Zzaburi who specialize in combat support, while their own magic will be regular runes and spirits. As an aside, I imagine the Brithini can get away with their warriors not having spells because they make up for it with sheer talent and the backing of phenomenally powerful Zzaburi. Their Horali won't be slinging any spirits your way, but they'll probably be lit up like a christmas tree with enchantments and have more skill in their pinky than your whole band combined.

Well, we do know that Hrestol when worshipped as an ancestor gives Dismiss Magic, Shield, and Spirit Block. https://wellofdaliath.chaosium.com/home/catalogue/websites/facebook/2021-02-runequest-on-facebook-march-2021-highlights/#ib-toc-anchor-9

Orlanth isn't actively opposed in Pavis, since he's responsible for bringing the rain (and honestly I doubt there's enough Lunars in the city to really force him out). His temple is just across the street from the Seven Mothers'.

AFAIK, Allfather and Allmother aren't subcults anymore; Orlanth is just Adventurous, Thunderous, and sometimes Rex. Ernalda doesn't have defining subcults like Orlanth's. Dorasings will probably worship Orlanth Thunderous mostly, since he brings the all-important rain. There might be some dedicated Barntari, but he's mostly worshiped as a subcult of his dad. Capital-H Healers will worship Chalana Arroy, but any Ernaldan worth her salt is probably going to have some healing magic. The religious and social model we got from Thunder Rebels is a bit outdated, and there's especially far less of a 1:1 correlation between a god's magic and their worshipers' occupation. I'll see if I can find some references that clear things up better than I can.

Zzaburi don't use rune magic though. They're not priests mechanically, they just have a similar role in Malkioni society; the IG doesn't give rune magic, divine intervention, spirit companions, or any of that jazz. It just gave mortals the ability to use sorcery.

What about Greg's statement in WF#9 that all the Earth goddess births were parthenogenic? Did he change his mind on that later, or is it one of those "both are true" situations?

Wizards have sorcery, and so both have no need for and no desire to kneel to any gods or spirits for magic, but there's no restrictions on the lower castes having rune lords or priests. They can freely join rune and spirit cults while still being a righteous Malkioni as long as it doesn't require them to go against their caste strictures. From what Jeff has said, caste magic just requires you to be initiated into Malkioni society (the "cult" of the Invisible God) and maintain "Rightness". It's independent of the wizards, though I think they can excommunicate people. https://wellofdaliath.chaosium.com/home/catalogue/websites/facebook/2021-02-runequest-on-facebook-march-2021-highlights/#ib-toc-anchor-9

The Zzaburi have little to no involvement with the cults followed by the lower castes, unless they become a problem and need to be dealt with. Worshippers and priests both will be from the same caste.

It is a spear, the head's just supposed to be Lodril's old volcano rune I think. Or well, something resembling it.

Orlanth absolutely, his whole shtick is freedom and "no one can make you do anything"

Don't worry about it, you're fine. I'm very aware that my faith isn't very similar to Gloranthan religions, but I don't think it's entirely irrelevant. Religion is religion; we believe in an element of "supernaturalness" in the world around us, and that there are beings greater and more powerful than humans. How those things are seen and what they mean are certainly different, but I still think I can personally relate to a degree with how Gloranthans, or even our own ancestors, would see their world. So I tried to bring some of that perspective into the discussion, of how divinity is something that can exist within the world, not just as a separate thing.

Yes, exactly.

Just a note, I remember Jeff saying that only the otherworld can provide magic. The Moonsword cult might have some small spells or techniques they can teach, but neither Jar-Eel nor any other Hero can actually provide magic from themselves unless they've given up their agency and become a god. Thanks for clarifying what the point of the topic is right as I was typing, though now I need to erase everything I'd written since it wasn't relevant. I don't have a terrible lot to add, since I'm not nearly as smart and well read as the people here, but from my perspective as a Christian, my real-life faith isn't really concerned with performing magic and getting results, the most important thing is simply the belief that I am an agent of a benevolent creator for the sake of creating a better world - maybe you could say the magical ritual and the results both are just our own actions. Sure, I pray and believe that God answers prayers, but I don't look for the answers to be obviously supernatural or immediate or anything like that. If God is the ruler of creation, things will be done mostly according to those rules that he set down for it. And yes, I know that's a huge f-ing cop out of an answer, as it sounds like me saying dumb luck and placebo are what sustain my faith, but at the moment I'm not feeling articulate enough to explain how I feel better. As for other religions and practices, the impression I've gotten from those I've talked about this with (unfortunately not many) is that they feel similarly. Things that could be called coincidence could just as easily be called divine intervention, whether immediately good or immediately bad. The proof of the magic depends on the observer, and rational science can coexist with irrational mythology (except for maybe among the most radically fundamental). Okay, to try and pivot this to Glorantha, I think it's the same deal that divinity is an almost mundane thing. The storm bearing down on your stead is both a natural formation of clouds and electricity and a manifestation of Orlanth. The sun is Yelm, the earth is Ernalda, the ocean is Magasta, the night sky is Nakala, the moon is Sedenya. They have rules and measures and principles which they follow but that doesn't stop them from also being divine. Obviously rule-breaking supernatural stuff is more common than in our world, but by that very point you might say that that's just a natural thing too. The sorcerer can say it was a natural result of power being used to manipulate nature just as easily and just as accurately as the barbarian can say it was his god responding to his need. I'm sorry if this isn't very clear, it's been a while since I tried to give an actually intelligent answer and it shows. Hopefully it contributes something.

RQ2 Yelmalio had the Togtuvei subcult that taught mapmapking, though that skill has since been nixed. We know Pavis masons worship Flintnail and/or Pavis, and I believe Jeff mentioned Sartar providing magic to Boldhome masons. One of Lodril's sons is a mason, right? I'd imagine he's fairly popular. In my Glorantha, the sages offer maps for purchase similar to the old b&w one in RQ2, mostly because it makes life much easier for everyone at the table. It's more than a little anachronistic, but Glorantha's full of anachronisms already so I'm not losing much sleep.

Title. I'd think it'd be a good deal better than what our own ancient cartographers could make, thanks to organizations like Lhankor Mhy's cult and magic like Flight or Geomancy (and of course our map loving adventurers), but I haven't found any definite answers. Thanks!

A game line that doesn't exist can't be unsupported

At least with how QuestWorlds runs things you can pretty much use RQG as a Glorantha supplement as-is. A QW specific supplement I think would have pretty much the same fluff, just stripping out the rules and giving some broad advice for character creation and magic. RQ spells can easily be reflavored as Abilities. On a bit of an aside, I've begun to feel the attempts to differentiate the three systems through rules aren't really needed anymore, and would like if any genre pack in the future softened or outright did away with them except as flavor (which of course is almost as strong as mechanics in QW). Who cares if "Thunderbolt of Heaven" is a feat broken out from a rune, a charm, or a spell broken out from a grimoire - it's an ability, put it where you want and use it how you think it should be used. Magic is magic.

Finally got around to reading Le Mort, which I've been doing for the last few days, and noticed that dwarfs seem to be an oddly common thing in the stories. I'm assuming it's just old english speak for a short person, not a supernatural short craftsman, but I'm just wondering if there's any particular reason they're mentioned so often? And of course, since this is the Pendragon board, do they get any attention in the game or gpc?

Assuming you're talking about the Praxian Sun Country, I'd guess that yes it's allowed, or at least not disallowed, but there's not much reason to. They don't have much reason to keep or use them in their current situation, and it'd make their Praxian tribal members uncomfortable. If they do need cavalry for some reason, they have the majority of the Impala tribe as allies.

I read it something like "koo-SHEEL" or "koo-SHEEL-ae"

Axes, swords, whatever's on hand probably. I doubt there's a ton of uniformity in what secondary weapon they use, even within the same temple, since even as a source of professional mercenaries they're not full-time soldiers.

All true, but it still would be nice to get some sort of update on where we're at. Maybe some previews or design notes like we got in the leadup to Runequest. For already being halfway through the "year of Questworlds" there's been remarkably little of it.

To be fair, afaik it's been established that dead spirits do eventually lose their memories of their old life and get reincarnated into someone else. How that meshes with being able to summon specific ancestors to the nth generation I'm not sure, but maybe those are more like "memories" of the ancestor rather than the actual spirit they possessed in life. Either that or the timelessness of the Other Side has something to do with it. So it seems fine to me that Zzabur can both accept death being the end of the ego and that the dead can be communicated with.