If low is bad, is the autofail roll ignored?

[PhilHibbs]

52 minutes ago, Bren said:

What you suggest doesn't seem unreasonable for the general population. But the question is, does that societal rate apply to the PCs?

You're right, I'm falling into the same trap that I constantly bleat about there, talking about the tables as though they applied to the whole population.

[Bren]

A trap I find easy to fall into. One of the things that drew me to Runequest back in 1979 or so was a world simulation/emulation design emphasis (monster stats same as PC stats, Greg's comment, etc.). I've only recently felt like I both understood and felt comfortable with the PC focused, RQG design philosophy.

[DrGoth]

13 hours ago, PhilHibbs said:

I don't think so. Glorantha is said to be a "bronze age" world, and I think that extends to life expectancy. Loads of healing? Sure, but loads of monsters and various magical perils too. These things roughly balance each other out.

Monsters and magic yes, but children aren't going to be in the front line of Monster fighting. Even amongst the Orlanthi ;-).  I suspect the plus to the dice roll is common enough to make the odds more favourable.

[PhilHibbs]

8 minutes ago, DrGoth said:

Monsters and magic yes, but children aren't going to be in the front line of Monster fighting. Even amongst the Orlanthi ;-).  I suspect the plus to the dice roll is common enough to make the odds more favourable.

Sometimes the monsters bring the front line right in through the front door. Have you never played a scenario that begins with a ruined farmstead? Sure, in scenarios it's usually the plucky kid that survived, but that's because scenario writers are softies. Unless that tendency is revealing some deeper principle of Gloranthan reality... but there I go extrapolating Glorantha from RuneQuest...

[DrGoth]

3 minutes ago, PhilHibbs said:

Sometimes the monsters bring the front line right in through the front door. Have you never played a scenario that begins with a ruined farmstead? Sure, in scenarios it's usually the plucky kid that survived, but that's because scenario writers are softies. Unless that tendency is revealing some deeper principle of Gloranthan reality... but there I go extrapolating Glorantha from RuneQuest...

True, but I hope such things are not population wide...

[PhilHibbs]

21 minutes ago, DrGoth said:

True, but I hope such things are not population wide...

In my Glorantha, those factors exactly balance out the effect of healing and health improvement magic leaving the demographics more or less the same as a bronze age world except where explicitly described as different.

Edited March 30, 2023 by PhilHibbs

[Akhôrahil]

14 minutes ago, PhilHibbs said:

In my Glorantha, those factors exactly balance out the effect of healing and health improvement magic leaving the demographics more or less the same as a bronze age world except where explicitly described as different.

I think this is sensible.

[DrGoth]

27 minutes ago, PhilHibbs said:

In my Glorantha, those factors exactly balance out the effect of healing and health improvement magic leaving the demographics more or less the same as a bronze age world except where explicitly described as different.

You do have a point - something has to control population growth.

[Bren]

6 hours ago, PhilHibbs said:

In my Glorantha, those factors exactly balance out the effect of healing and health improvement magic leaving the demographics more or less the same as a bronze age world except where explicitly described as different.

I don't sweat an exact rationale, but it is easier for me to envision the world if I assume demographics are similar to Earth's bronze age and/or classical antiquity. Glorantha seems to have a higher proportion of women in roles (like warrior) that on Earth were primarily masculine. I assume this decreases the birth rate so the counterbalancing factors aren't only monsters and magical peril .

[PhilHibbs]

4 hours ago, Bren said:

I don't sweat an exact rationale... the counterbalancing factors aren't only monsters and magical peril .

Absolutely. I should have said that monsters and evil magic are some of the factors that counterbalance abundant health magic, but you are right that there are others.