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The game before last, the kids got cocky. 13 and 14 yo sons helped take out a couple of ice demons at the top of Wyrms High Pass. We even saved the sheltered prince of Dykene who snuck into the caravan. So, they went into the fight with a giant mantis in the Vale of Flowers this weekend feeling a bit smug. Then our almost initiate of Found Child bet a few too many action points when he tried to climb its back and stab it and wound up near pinned to the ground. Without his dog Growler's help he would have been pinned. Our Orlanth Adventurous lay member had a plan and his going first meant he backed up and brought the thing into the center of the group. Some of us were not pleased. Thankfully, my Lkankor Mhy/Issaries lay member did well and since I had way more action points than I was used to, I bet big and took out an eye one round and the next I pinned enough arrows into the crook of its arm to take away some motion. And we survived, and they had fun, but they might be more cautious with those action point bids the first round next time. Especially since we were confronted by a very mad Gorakiki priestess once it was dead. At least we did not have to fight her! The kids are loving the rules so much they want to convert their 5e characters over and play them with this system.

Sorting through an old box of papers from my old Imther/Amber Fort Campaign, I came across two small decks of 'cards': one of spirits common to the region south and west of the Elf (Amber) Sea, and one of events. Figured I'd share some of these in the event that someone might find them of use. This first bit is a set of some spirits. It includes their name, common associations (their rune, plus an abstract association); positive and negative associations (whether these are spirit places or something else, I don't recall); primary skill/power indicating some type of skill or magic granted; their primary traits (drawn from Pendragon at the time); other spirits they variously loved, feared, were loyal to (i.e. friendly), or hated; their home in the Spirit World; and other places in the Spirit World that they could readily access (or show others how to access). Spirit Name Primary Association Positive Negative Primary Skill/Power Primary Traits Love Fear Loyalty Hate Home Passage to… Sky River Boatman Fire, "the boat" Sky River The Eddy Sail Sky Boat, Strength Brave, Lazy Silent Sky, Silver Star, Star Guide Ravenous Mouth, Dark Maw, Water's Edge Azar, Mistress Morande The Walker Sky River Ancestor's Place, Bright Glades Greybelly Hare Beast, The Great Dash The Footing The Hunters Dodge, Hide Energetic, Cowardly Tender Shoot, Low Runner Twilight Owl, Blood Claw Hawk, Winter Wolf Summer Wind Red Fox, Silver Fox, Ravenous Mouth The Root Hole Green Wood, Ancestor's Place King Beaver Beast, The Living Heart The Home The Disorder Craft: Wood, Swim Energetic, Prudent Tender Shoot, The Willow Fast Current Summer Wind, Still Waters Mistress Morande, Lady of the Long Tresses The Dam Long Bog, Ancestor's Place Black Speckled Lady Water, The Source The Home Rushing Waters Control Insect, Control Disease Cruel, Prudent Black Speckled Frog Azar, Wide Mouth Turtle, Bog Snake Morakin Green Skinned Lady, Amber Clam, Marsh Rat Badwater Swamp Shadow Wood, Stagnant Pool Lady of the Long Tresses Water, The Source The Friend The Kings Dance, Sing Energetic, Chaste Mistress Morande, Singing Rocks Azar, Golden Eyed Youth, Winter King Morakin, River Children, Summer Wind Crumbling Rock, King Beaver Amber Mouth Green Wood, Rising Sea The Old Bleeding King (aka Dying Sun) Fire, The Blood The Everlasting The Danger Lawspeaking, Silence Proud, Just Golden Eyed Youth, Glowing Ember Hunter of the Beacon, The Rager Horned Owl, Old Flint, Master of the Beacon Black Crow, Winter King Sunspike Bright Glades, Storm's Rage Horned Owl Truth, The Wisdom The Place of Watching The Fools Celestial Lore, Scan Worldly, Prudent Silent Sky, Still Grasses Hunter of the Beacon Twilight Owl, The Old Bleeding King, Red Fox, Silver Fox, Drummer of Logs Overarching Elm Shadow Wood, Ancestor's Place The Walker Man, Movement,The Traveler The Paths The Ending Track, Pathmaking Energetic, Arbitrary Rigtaina, Votank Bad Man, Two-faced Man, Winter King Brother Dog, Long West Gale Azar, River Children, Sky River Boatman anywhere Shadow Wood, Ancestor's Place Father Bear Beast, The Ancestor The Home The Shadow Wrestling, Track Indulgent, Suspicious Mistress Morande, Song Warbler, Berry Girl, Singing Rocks Hand of Ice, Shadow Taker Gathering Squirrel, Upriver Salmon Masked Bandit, Black Speckled Lady The Old Den Storm's Rage, Ancestor's Place Long West Gale Storm, The Gale The Movement The Stagnation Wind Call, Increase Wind Brave, Arbitrary Thundering Bull, Dancing Leaves Master of the Beacon, Bind of Knots The Twisting Hand, The Walker Summer Wind, Sky King Circling Winds Storm's Rage, Shadow Wood The Burner Fire, The Rage The Dance The Ending Firemaking, Consume Plants Indulgent, Arbitrary Sky King Binder of Knots, Mistress Morande, Azar, Thundering Rains Morakin, The Old Bleeding King, Old Flint Black Speckled Lady, Lady of the Long Tresses Firebrand Bright Glades, Burning Plain

What do we know about Wyrms High Pass? I haven't found a great deal of information about the pass, although I realise I may just not have found stuff in sources I've got, so I've put a few tentative ideas together based on the snippets I'm aware of. @Jeff Richard's session at the Kraken last year on creating Gloranthan places was very useful - unfortunately I don't think it was filmed, but its essence was to pull together what is known or inferred about a place from Gloranthan sources and use them as building blocks for creation of both the place and its adventurous potential. This is preferable to initially looking to real world examples and basing a place on them as you run the danger of creating a sense of space or culture that is too derivative rather than firmly rooted in Glorantha. (Jeff - I hope I haven't got this too far wrong!) Anyway, here goes with a few thoughts: Name: Wyrms High Pass So, there are wyrms there. From Anaxial's Roster I gather that wyrms thrive in warm or hot conditions, so I'm positing a pass that is heated by volcanic activity with hot springs and rocks covered with strange coloured deposits. Perhaps Lodril has a role to play here? Also, the Empire of the Wyrms Friends is likely to have taken an interest in the pass. So there's scope for ancient structures, perhaps a crumbling monastery high on a cliff ledge or hugging a strange spire with the remains of spiral steps up to it? And its shape - it has to be narrow and winding like the body of its namesake. Location High in the Rockwoods. So if it is a hot pass it's going to produce some interesting anomalies. I envision constant steam as heat from the pass meets cold air above. Thick fogs fill the pass and Iphara is strong here. When heavy snow falls it rapidly evaporates, creating pools of water along the valley floor which may be heated to extreme temperatures by gaseous discharges. The cliffs of the pass are characterised by spectacular waterfalls as runoff from the ice and snow to the sides of the pass melts and cascades down. Balazar's aldryami High Woods lie to the north, the uz lands of Dagori Inkarth are south and dwarven Greatway is west. So the pass is obviously a contested place, which lines up with historical references I've found. There's certainly recorded conflict between aldryami and uz either side of the pass, but if we accept it has rich mineral deposits then I suggest dwarven interest has shaped its history too. Also to the south is Bagtrap's Pass, another location I've found little about. I've created a tale of a cave by the pass which always looked like a viable place to stay for a night. But this cave had strange walls and floor, leathery in texture. Those foolish enough to stay here found that they had camped in a huge bag placed in the cave by a cunning giant, who would pull it closed with a drawstring which went up through a funnel in the roof to the cliff above. Which leads to another important point about location. There are giants either side of the pass and they sometimes travel through it too. History I haven't found many specific references to the pass in sources, but events around it give hints. Here are a few human-centric points. End of First Age: Tribes from the south swarm through the pass, burn the aldryami woods and some join the Votanki already in the north. Empire of the Wyrm's Friends: The pass flourishes as both a crossing point and place of pilgrimage. Post-Dragonkill: People no longer come from the south and the Balazarings avoid it. The destruction of Dykene in 1250 effectively gives the south-east of Balazar to the aldryami and people forget about the pass. Dykene's resurgence, 1580: Begins renewed exploration of the pass. Joh Mith: I've elevated the role of Joh Mith to the person who quested to properly reopen the pass. He speaks the Wyrds of the Wyrm's Way and he fills the Giant's Bag. Fall of Sartar 1602 and onwards: Refugees come north through the pass and are accepted by King Yalaring of Trilus, leading to building the Lightbringer's Hall there. What do you know? Well there's a few ideas. But what do you know or suggest about the pass? I'm keen to find out about anything written about it over the years, anything those well versed in Gloranthan lore can tell us and also about depictions of it in anybody else's adventures.