JonBolds

I'm gonna need a precise reference on this one because it is precisely the tier of bizarre Gloranthan thing that I love

Thank you for the input, everyone! Here's a summary of updates to my scenario idea: Just check out Bill's great post for the general rules of trollball. Given what everyone has said, trollball is pretty much a powerful magical ritual/Heroquest. So our game of trollball, when it starts, should be like a Heroquest that would take place in a god's temple. The uninitiated wandering by, who are not initiated into either Clan involved in the magic, would just see pretty normal stuff happening. (Though humans would inexplicably be holding their own in trollball.) To those in either clan, the referees would become Giants, the humans ancient, heroic Vingkotling ancestors (Getting a big temporary STR boost, I think.), the magic troll ball etc. Since our quest hearkens back to the Storm Age, pre-curse, the ball(s) is a (likely very angry) badger. Someone should absolutely have to go into the woods and pry a badger out of its winter den as part of this scenario. As befits a Heroquest, anyone "slain" or "maimed" during the game comes back at the end whole, hale, and hearty. It's a bit of a comedic relief scenario, but one of the great things about Glorantha is that it has comedy, tragedy, and epic in equal measure.

I don't actually know that much about the "real rules" of Trollball 😅 because I haven't read many of the older books, but it seems like a comfortable substitution in terms of Heroquesting/Myths. Like having a Yelmalio cultist stand in for Elmal, any given Thunder Brother stand in for another (e.g. Vinga for Hedkoranth), or an Eiritha cultist stand in for Ernalda. Either way, the trolls brought an Argan Argar cultist with them. 😀

Harrek hates Lunars a lot due to prior history with them. I can't remember precisely, but I think Harrek participates in return for Broyan saying Harrek can sack the City of Wonders, which happens later in 1624. Other people that could be there: Elusu, Argrath's trickster. Orlmarl the Charioteer, Argrath's Mastakos guy. Feels like Tarkala could be there, but would have just recently met Argrath. Maybe Pennel Ford is where they meet? I think Greymane is dead either in this battle or before. Per Glorantha Sourcebook p38 "With Greymane and his sons dead, the surviving Western Barbarians scattered back to Maniria." (Future) Sartar Magical Union Warlock units that could be there, per pages 212-213 of Glorantha Sourcebook: Night Jumpers, who predate Argrath. Night Jumpers are Hendriki, so could be traveling with Broyan. Sir Narib's Company is definitely there, nominally in Esrolian service, and joined Argrath in 1624. The Eaglebrown Warlocks were the "first" of the units created and were composed of the kinds of people who were with Argrath during the circumnavigation and/or joined just after, so they're probably here at least in a proto-form. The Warm Sisters were formed just after this battle, "one of the first units of warlocks," so the core of that regiment of warlocks is surely here fighting and impressing Argrath enough to be granted magical secrets afterwards. Despite all these presences, it's worth noting that the Sartar Magical Union as a proper, organized, named force doesn't appear until Sword Hill in 1627.

In the spirit of the thread, here's an idea for a scenario! This adventure could take place any time during the Winter in Dragon Pass: Either late Dark season or early Storm season, when the snow is deep. THE TROLLBALL TRUCE A fairly large group of Dark Trolls and Trollkin are spotted on clan lands. They're not traders, because they don't have much with them, but they're clearly not a war party either. If attacked without warning and badly wounded, they retreat and don't come back. If threatened or only lightly injured, they come back later. If approached peacefully, or at least without obvious violence, their leader - a priest of Argan Argar - attempts to communicate in broken tradetalk that they're here "during the truce" to invite the clan's warriors to play a curious game called Trollball. They have brought several tasty Ham Beetles as gifts. The way they speak is somewhat odd and doesn't convey clearly notions of what time, day, or precise season it is - only that they're here for an important reason. Astute characters might figure out that the Trolls are actually a Heroquesting band! The Trolls are This World Heroquesters here to enact an ancestral myth from their tribe. Apparently, at some point during the Lesser Darkness, when the Uz were at war with the Vingkotlings, these trolls' ancestors and the players' clan's ancestors had a winter-time truce. One year, when there was great danger from the coming Chaos and many Uz warriors were injured, the Uz clan only had enough able-bodied trolls to field one team. Some Trolls from their tribe came here and played a round of Trollball with the humans in a spirit of cooperation against the coming evils. Consulting the clan's ancestors from that age will confirm that this event took place. Consulting the clan's ancestors from a later age will confirm that these trolls were on the Clan's side during the I Fought, We Won Battle. Participating in the Trollball Truce Heroquest - win or lose, the ancestors and the Trolls can't remember who won - will give minor magical rewards to the players and strengthen the clan's magic during the hardest season of the year. Winning the game, obviously, will provide more powerful benefits. Either way, the quest will bind the players' and trolls' clans into a continued truce. Not participating in the Trolls' Heroquest won't have negative consequences unless the players' tribe has a specific mythic history of peace with Trolls. There are some potential complications: It won't be easy to convince the Tribe's warriors, or its chief and ring, that they shouldn't simply drive off or kill the trolls. Trollball is an exceedingly violent game. They may need to convince the Trolls of a few unorthodox house rules - perhaps no edged weapons? Someone neutral will have to be found to serve as referee. A human Argan Argar cultist would be ideal. A Humakti or summoned Law spirit would do well. A Lhankhor Mhy or Issaries initiate would do in a pinch. Trolls are not very good guests, by Orlanthi standards. Corralling them for the night(s) before the game is played will be required. (The game is to take place during the grey winter dawn when neither team has an advantage.) Peaceful PCs will likely take exception to the result of most Trollball games: A dead Trollkin. Be sure to review the rules for grappling before running this quest. Otherwise this whole thing is going to go pretty slow. Should the whole event go well, the players could reciprocate this quest next Dark Season to strengthen its effects, perhaps leading to some long-term friends and Heroquest Allies among an Uz clan (as far as such a thing can exist) or protection from Chaos for both clans. The quest could then be reciprocated, year after year, between the two clans.

So you're telling me I can call them "lil deer bois"?

I agree that it makes it harder to successfully Knockback, but I disagree that it has to explicitly mention here that this particular attack can be parried or dodged. That's listed under the heading for attack, parry, and dodge respectively. If you couldn't parry or dodge a Knockback, it would be called out: As under Flee (p195), Use of Dodge and Parry Against Missile Weapons (p201), Use of Shield Against Missile Weapons (p219), and Use of the Pike (p220). I could, of course, be wrong here because the combat chapter is so extremely vague and inconsistent in so very many respects.

Per Page 224, under Knockback heading, third paragraph: "The adventurer must then make an attack with the weapon, shield, or part of their body they are intending to use for the knockback attempt. If the attack is successful, compare the STR and SIZ..." Emphasis mine. There is every indication that a Knockback is resolved as an attack and should be parried or dodged against using the standard rules, however, in lieu of dealing damage (per the last sentence of that paragraph) the attacking character makes the resistance roll indicated and takes the consequences listed.

I also saw the potential in Godbound for Glorantha, and I think it'd be a quite fine system for running the setting in a HQ2-like vein. Instead of the HQ2 or RQG assumption that the characters are people who could become Heroes, using Godbound would assume the characters are people who are already capital-H Heroes. Weak and in their Heroic childhood, maybe, but still able to cut down scores of normal men if they need to. Just be ready for characters to reshape the whole setting to their liking rather than go along with the canonical plot!