Caladraland Adventure Hooks

[ZedAlpha]

So I might be running a Gloranthan game in FATE Core soon, and one of the campaign ideas I had was one set in the Hero Wars era in Caladraland, probably just after the City of Wonders is sacked by the Wolf Pirates (about the same backdrop as the Harrek Must Die! campaign I ran a few years ago). I love the idea of an impenetrable volcano-kingdom ruled by an amazingly helpful, loving, himbo fire-god's priests, and I love the thought of dinosaur-filled jungles and whatnot.

Problem is I can't think of any interesting plots. A quick survey of my players shows not much enthusiasm for the classic season-by-season community-based gameplay common to a lot of Gloranthan campaigns. I can work with that, but I'm not sure if tilting more hack'n'slash, dungeon-crawling swords-and-sorcery  would be the way, or if I should guide the campaign in a more capital-E Epic Fantasy Quest region would be the way to go. What is certain is that my players are absolutely wary of the "Elminster Effect" of established settings, where big powerful NPCs get to do all the setting-warping plot-advancing stuff, with PCs relegated to roles of helpers and assistants to the characters with real destinies. That means I'll probably be steering clear of Argrath's story, or changing this Glorantha (once more) into one where the Multiple Argrath Theory is true.

All that long-winded nonsense is just to say I'm kinda stuck for ideas on what to do in Caladraland about that time. The other idea I had was an Orlanthi game set in Dragon Pass about the same time as the King Of Dragon Pass video game, so we won't have to worry about any of the stuff involving the Hero Wars at all. That would probably be more of a community-centric game, but that's probably another thread.

Anyway. Anybody have any ideas for plot hooks or campaign concepts I might be able to use?

[jajagappa]

25 minutes ago, ZedAlpha said:

I'm kinda stuck for ideas on what to do in Caladraland about that time.

So Caladraland in the 1624-5 timeframe:

• it's the least accessible of the Holy Country lands, and is dominated by a series of volcanoes and very fertile forest/jungle (so something of a central America/Caribbean feel to it from a climate and landscape perspective) - one of the land's resources is obviously timber, but it is also a good source of healing herbs, unusual tree products (fruits, nuts, bark, etc.)
• it's dominated by Fire-rune cults: Lodril (aka Veskarthan) and Caladra & Aurelion (conveniently in the new Earth goddesses cults book)
• and it's got a strong Dwarf presence (not dinosaurs though): Gemborg - and based on its name, Caladraland is rich in gems as well as earthblood and firebone
• the leader of Caladraland has formed an alliance with the Demivierge of Rhigos (the Warm Earth Alliance) and it is vying with Queen Samastina of Nochet and the High Priestess of Ezel to rule Esrolia.
• the Wolf Pirates are still somewhat around and will likely come back in force in an effort to loot the Vent and Gemborg of some of its treasures

Possible adventure themes:

• taking a line from the Wolf Pirates (or perhaps the adventurers are Wolf Pirates? with the new Lightbringers cults book you could draw from Ygg, Orlanth, and others to play pirate characters), there's the classic treasure map scenario - perhaps in sacking the City of Wonders, they've found a map to Gemborg and an opportunity to sneak in and back out 
• with the abundance of forest/jungle products, there's opportunity to harvest (perhaps smuggle) such goods out and bring them back to Nochet 
• the city of Handra (or other coastal cities) are looking for a way to avoid the Wolf Pirates and the disarray of the Solanthi/Ditali lands - if they can carve out a reasonable "port" and trade path, maybe they can avoid both threats 

 

[ZedAlpha]

Okay, okay. That could work. I don't know if the PCs would want to be Wolf Pirates, given how I've described them in my overview of the possible setting, but the treasure hunt could be a really fun series of adventures.

And hell, knowing these players, they might try to kill Harrek like the old group did XD

[ZedAlpha]

Also: any specific books I should look up to get any in-depth information on Caladraland, or do you think I'd be good to wing it with the bits I'm able to pick up from these forums and various wikis? Not gonna lie the cities you mentioned and the other countries (apart from Esrolia and Nochet) are drawing blanks, but I've got some ideas just from the implications of what you've said.

However, if there's any good resources to look into to reduce the workload I'd be more than happy to go after them.


Also also: Do you think there could be a plausible relationship between the cults of Lodril/Vestkarthan and Maran Gor? I'm asking for two reasons: earthquakes and volcanic activity kind of go hand in hand, and I really want to YGWV some dinosaurs into Caladraland for this campaign

[Malin]

One fun thing we did in this era was to play a band of Lunar deserters after all the disasters that beset the Lunar army. Trying to decide if they want to blend in with the natives or trying to figure out a way to go back home without being executed for desertion and/or treason. We did that post-Penal Ford on the outskirts of Sartar and had great fun with ex-legionnaires from one of the penal legions pretending to be civilians and eventually marrying into one of the local clans. He wasn't a worshipper of one of the chaos-affiliated gods, so he was reluctantly accepted after some suitable deeds.

[Squaredeal Sten]

4 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

So I might be running a Gloranthan game in FATE Core soon, and one of the campaign ideas I had was one set in the Hero Wars era in Caladraland, probably just after the City of Wonders is sacked by the Wolf Pirates (about the same backdrop as the Harrek Must Die! campaign I ran a few years ago). I love the idea of an impenetrable volcano-kingdom ruled by an amazingly helpful, loving, himbo fire-god's priests, and I love the thought of dinosaur-filled jungles and whatnot.

Problem is I can't think of any interesting plots. A quick survey of my players shows not much enthusiasm for the classic season-by-season community-based gameplay common to a lot of Gloranthan campaigns. I can work with that, but I'm not sure if tilting more hack'n'slash, dungeon-crawling swords-and-sorcery  would be the way, or if I should guide the campaign in a more capital-E Epic Fantasy Quest region would be the way to go. What is certain is that my players are absolutely wary of the "Elminster Effect" of established settings, where big powerful NPCs get to do all the setting-warping plot-advancing stuff, with PCs relegated to roles of helpers and assistants to the characters with real destinies. That means I'll probably be steering clear of Argrath's story, or changing this Glorantha (once more) into one where the Multiple Argrath Theory is true.

All that long-winded nonsense is just to say I'm kinda stuck for ideas on what to do in Caladraland about that time. The other idea I had was an Orlanthi game set in Dragon Pass about the same time as the King Of Dragon Pass video game, so we won't have to worry about any of the stuff involving the Hero Wars at all. That would probably be more of a community-centric game, but that's probably another thread.

Anyway. Anybody have any ideas for plot hooks or campaign concepts I might be able to use?

Trade based.  Learn to know and love the Trader Princes on the route west. Or alternatively east to Nochet.  

Edited August 30, 2023 by Squaredeal Sten
spelling / typing

[ZedAlpha]

oh, that could really work. Start the campaign going from Nochet back to Caladraland, have some urban adventures in the big city while they're waiting for their employer (a trader-priest, probably) to close the deal, then hear the bad news about the City of Wonders getting merc'd, then sail like the blazes back to Caladraland ahead of a pack of pirates looking to loot any seagoing traffic.

Once they're back home, who knows?

Still seems like an interesting start to a campaign.

[jajagappa]

1 hour ago, ZedAlpha said:

any specific books I should look up to get any in-depth information on Caladraland, or do you think I'd be good to wing it with the bits I'm able to pick up from these forums and various wikis? Not gonna lie the cities you mentioned and the other countries (apart from Esrolia and Nochet) are drawing blanks, but I've got some ideas just from the implications of what you've said.

Most Caladraland information (cities, important figures) is in the Guide.  An alternative is to pickup the old RQ Classic RuneQuest Companion as that had the original Holy Country/Caladraland information. Not as complete as the Guide as it provides no details on cities or people (and some bits definitely replaced/out-of-date), but a lower price point if that is an issue.

The two new cults books would likely be useful for ideas as well as PC options. Definitely the Earth Goddesses book as that has the full cult writeup on Caladra & Aurelion, plus the cults of Mostal, Aldrya, and Flamal.  And for tie-ins with Esrolia, the rest of the Earth Goddesses would make sense.

The Lightbringer cults include not only various Storm Gods (whether you want Wolf Pirates as PC's or NPCs), but also Chalana Arroy (with information on healing herbs, so could be patron or PC option), Lhankor Mhy (a sage with a map!), and Issaries (if you prefer a trade-based option). 

 

[ZedAlpha]

Are there any Fire Tribe-aligned trade gods? Looking at the Holy Country, it makes sense that there might be Argan Argar traders and maybe just some mercantile God Forgot atheists.

[jajagappa]

10 minutes ago, ZedAlpha said:

oh, that could really work. Start the campaign going from Nochet back to Caladraland, have some urban adventures in the big city while they're waiting for their employer (a trader-priest, probably) to close the deal, then hear the bad news about the City of Wonders getting merc'd, then sail like the blazes back to Caladraland ahead of a pack of pirates looking to loot any seagoing traffic.

Definitely sounds like a viable start. I included some Trader Prince references in the Nochet book, so you may be able to identify a patron trader-prince.

Also there is a neighborhood in Nochet that is dominated by folk who originated in Caladraland - not huge numbers but they are present.

Plus in 1624 after the Battle of Pennel, the Wolf Pirates are in Nochet (invited in to spend their gold) and are busy turning things upside down there until they decide to sail off and sack the City of Wonders. So, opportunities to overhear the plots of the Wolf Pirates.

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by jajagappa

[jajagappa]

2 minutes ago, ZedAlpha said:

Are there any Fire Tribe-aligned trade gods? Looking at the Holy Country, it makes sense that there might be Argan Argar traders and maybe just some mercantile God Forgot atheists.

Issaries is inherently neutral, hence why he is the preeminent Trade God. He is often aided by the Wagon God, Lokarnos, who is a celestial figure/God of Light (not Fire though). 

[ZedAlpha]

alright, cool. So Issairies could work--I genuinely thought he was exclusively a Storm Tribe-aligned cultural god, and would be weird to see people who aren't Orlanthi/Heortling devoted to him. Isn't there a sailing god that could work, too?

Either way, it also seems like there's definitely enough space to make up a new deity if need be. Probably a couple of deities. A friend of mine is asking if there's a God of Bees, actually.

ANYWAY, I'm digressing. I think there's definitely some stuff to be done. Once they're back in Caladraland, I like the idea of the PCs possibly joining the defense of their homeland against marauding pirates, maybe helping out some refugees from up North (Esrolian, Heortling, Sartarite...maybe ducks?), then at some point finding a treasure map like you mentioned.

[Erol of Backford]

1 hour ago, Squaredeal Sten said:

Trade based.

Like Mr. Square deal said, Trade.

We use Rollo (Trade Talk  12 p.13) as a trader who circumnavigates the Bay and does an occasional route along the Caladraland Coast. We also liked the Seapollis scenario in TotRM 16, the PC guard an envoy from X going to Seapolis.

Huts of Darkness which is a little east for you but it's good fun. (TotRM 09 p.20).

If you are looking at fire we have a set of orphaned Agimori who grow up civilized, one ends up being an Emali Acolyte and the other finds his roots with Lodri, takes them to Vent and all the associated fire cult goings on there. 

The trade associated with the Caprati and du Tumerine families created by MOB in TotRM 13 brings all sorts of reasons to travel west along the cost. Beyond the Building Wall was also quiet memorable for us though its a bit east and north from Caladraland, TotRM 13 p.44.

Good fun is to be had at Fay Jee as a trade stop. There is a good bit of detail in Blood Over Gold: The Trader Princes of Maniria (2007).

https://wellofdaliath.chaosium.com/caladraland/ and links associated will get you more info as well.

Additionally there is all sorts of shenanigans going on with the battles being fought, see the clip for the GtG VOL2 though again a bit east and north of say vent...

[ZedAlpha]

That sounds great. What do all those acronyms refer to, so I can look them up?

[Erol of Backford]

Sorry, TotRM Tales of the Reaching Moon.

GtG Guide to Glorantha.

Below are great links for finding more info.

https://wellofdaliath.chaosium.com/

https://glorantha.steff.in/digests/

https://glorantha.fandom.com/wiki/Main_Page

[ZedAlpha]

thank you!

[Erol of Backford]

YVW!

[jajagappa]

2 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

I genuinely thought he was exclusively a Storm Tribe-aligned cultural god, and would be weird to see people who aren't Orlanthi/Heortling devoted to him. Isn't there a sailing god that could work, too?

Nope, Issaries is Mr. Neutral (well except to Chaos). He even does most trading in the Lunar Empire, though under the thumb of his daughter Etyries there.

Sailing god is Dormal - he's the one you need if you're heading out on the open seas to make sure the Closing of the Seas doesn't destroy your ship.

1 hour ago, Erol of Backford said:

TotRM Tales of the Reaching Moon.

While some good materials in Tales of the Reaching Moon, it is unfortunately out-of-print and harder to get a hold of.

Some of the Tradetalk issues are available though at DriveThruRPG: Tradetalk fanzine

Issue #5 does include Caladraland content. Issues #10 and 11 cover lands further west, but relevant to trade through the region.

These aren't canonical articles, but could work fine for what you're looking for as Erol noted.

[ZedAlpha]

Cool, thank you. I'll definitely do that ASAP.

  

5 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

Also also: Do you think there could be a plausible relationship between the cults of Lodril/Vestkarthan and Maran Gor? I'm asking for two reasons: earthquakes and volcanic activity kind of go hand in hand, and I really want to YGWV some dinosaurs into Caladraland for this campaign

Any ideas on this front, by the way? I think I've got one--something's kicking around my head about a mostly-forgotten myth the PCs could rediscover about Lodril somehow seducing Maran Gor (or maybe the other way around), which could give them some dinosaur allies against the Wolf Pirates. Any way I can include dinosaurs and ducks in this game, I'm gonna do it.

[AlexS]

Hi @ZedAlpha,

I’m part of a team that’s working on a campaign resource for Caladraland, but it won’t be ready for a while (we have to finish the ones for Esrolia and the Rightarm Islands first…). However, I’m happy to share some of our initial ideas in case they’re useful.

First off, do you plan on using Caladraland as a Homeland for your adventurers, or as a place where a party of PCs who all originate somewhere else can come and do some adventuring?

On the assumption that at least some of the PCs may be Caladran, I’ll share some thoughts on character backgrounds in this post – but I’ll also do a second post with ideas for adventure seeds focused around the different regions of Caladraland, so you can skip to that one if you are planning to have all the adventurers be from outside the region.

For developing Caladralander adventurers (or NPCs), it helps to think of them as actually being quite diverse. Sure, there are many who conform to the stereotype that is beautifully illustrated on page 250 of the Guide to Glorantha – a muscular, heavily tattooed, bare-chested dude with a wrap-around skirt, a flaming red beard and a flaming red spear. These Caladralanders live in the jungle uplands of the Highvale and usually only venture out to make money from mercenary work with the legendary Flamespear units. But there are others who are quite urbanised and commercially-minded (living alongside Esrolians in the trading cities of Porthomeka and the wine-growing areas of the Vinavale), and a few who have learned sophisticated crafting secrets from the dwarves of the Gemborg. 

Based on ideas from the GM of our Kethaela campaign, we have worked these into three different ‘cultural traditions’ among which a player can choose when generating an adventurer from Caladraland:

We think that giving Martalari Caladrans even limited access to Mostali sorcery may be a stretch, but we wanted to represent the symbiotic relationship that some Caladralanders have with the dwarves, which is a really interesting part of what makes Caladraland different from other parts of Dragon Pass and Kethaela. The other two cultural traditions are meant to encourage players focus on either the wild Veskarthan tradition or the more domesticated (but still fiery) Caladra & Aurelion one which was introduced by the God Learners and is now more common than traditional Veskarthan worship.

As @jajagappa has pointed out, C&A are in the Earth Goddesses book, so that might be the best place to start. But if you're planning to have the party be composed entirely of Caladralanders, there's lots of scope for including a fighty devotee of Veskarthan, an Ernaldan negotiator/healer type (probably a bit more fiery than the Sartarite or Esrolian norm), an Issaries wine-trader from Soros or Thelos and/or a weirdo sorcery-using Martalari Caladran dwarf-friend.

[AlexS]

12 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

Do you think there could be a plausible relationship between the cults of Lodril/Vestkarthan and Maran Gor? I'm asking for two reasons: earthquakes and volcanic activity kind of go hand in hand, and I really want to YGWV some dinosaurs into Caladraland for this campaign

We also thought of making a Caladran cultural tradition with a focus on Maran Gor worship, but in the end we decided against it. Fiery old Veskarthan is enough of a source of seismic turbulence without adding the Earthshaker herself into the mix – plus her Dark Earth / Blood Sacrifice vibe didn’t really work for our Caladraland. 

The region definitely has lots of dinosaurs, though (because MGF, and because of the irresistible echoes of Warhammer World’s Lustria in the Central American vibe that @jajagappa has correctly identified for Caladraland), so there’s no reason why you couldn’t have a small clan that has specialised in Maran’s magic in an attempt to tame the Quakebeasts – or at least keep them out of the crops. 

7 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

something's kicking around my head about a mostly-forgotten myth the PCs could rediscover about Lodril somehow seducing Maran Gor (or maybe the other way around), which could give them some dinosaur allies against the Wolf Pirates.

Given Veskarthan/Lodril’s lusty history plus the fact that Maran wasn’t a death-deity when she mothered the quakebeasts, this myth could easily work. Of course Veskarthan/Lodril was officially the husband of Maran’s mother Asrelia, so there could also be some myths of how Asrelia took revenge on Veskarthan for seducing her daughter – and these could even be part of the myth-cycle that ends up with loving dinosaur-mother Maran becoming terrifying Maran Gor with her blood-sacrifice obsession.

[AlexS]

OK, on to the adventure seeds.

As I said, Caladraland is actually pretty diverse, so it helps to think of these in relation to each of its different regions.

Porthomeka: this used to be part of Esrolia but was taken over by a bunch of Caladralander warlords about four centuries ago, when the Queens were preoccupied with trying to get rid of the Hendriki Kings. The warlords never acknowledged the rule of the High King of Caladraland, and Belintar left them alone as long as they sent troops to serve in his military. Now the warlords and the High King have signed up together for the Warm Earth Alliance put together by the Queen of Rhigos, hoping to share in the booty from sacking the Red Earth lands. Under the surface of this temporary alliance there is plenty of scope for political scheming, with both Rhigos and the High King aiming to take control of Porthomeka. For a Wolf Pirate angle, you could have the adventurers come from Oxnos, a city that was brutally sacked by the pirates in 1620, and be out for revenge. For a trade-based campaign like those suggested by @Squaredeal Sten and @Erol of Backford, you could have them be from the port city of Storos; this is a big base for exporting Vinavale wine to Nochet and beyond, so it could be a good jumping-off point for Handra and points West.

Vinavale and Thonble: Vinavale is the most agriculturally-focused part of Caladraland, thanks to its fertile soil and the famous wines it produces. That gives it a much more Esrolian flavour – and the fact that it is both relatively rich and relatively accessible means that it has suffered from the same Western Barbarian raiding as Esrolia. The Caladralanders have carved out a buffer state called Thonble along the Western border of Vinavale, which is where they try to hold back the Manirians. The PCs could be part of the border patrol / barbarian-chasing forces from this area, and their encounters with Ditali and Solanthi raiders could lead to adventures taking them into Maniria itself. Political chaos has overtaken Maniria following the death of Greymane and his sons at Pennel Ford, so there will be plenty of gold on offer from Trader Princes looking for guards for their caravans or muscle for keeping the barbarian clans in line.

Lowvale and Gemborg: the Western part of the Caladraland highlands includes the Low Temple, which is the political centre of the Homeland. It also includes the Gemborg, a major dwarf city which has a longstanding alliance with the Caladralanders. Adventures with a political scheming flavour could focus on the ambitions of the High King, who wants to turn his temporary and ceremonial role into a permanent one with real power, against the (sometimes violent) objections of the freedom-loving traditionalist clans and their conservative Volcano Priest allies. Adventures involving strange artefacts and left-field missions to distant places could focus on relations with the dwarfs of the Gemborg, who can be generous with their tech and their jewels but also capricious and downright weird (for ideas on playing human-dwarf interactions, take a look at @jajagappa’s great material on the dwarves of Imther in Edge of Empire).

Highvale: the eastern part of the highlands includes the Vent, the great volcano that is home to Veskarthan himself. It is the wildest and least accessible part of Caladraland, and the most sacred to the volcano worshippers. The PCs could be devoted Veskarthan cultists who seek to honour him through chaos-fighting in the badlands around Larnste’s Footprint and the Stone Woods, where Veskarthan aided Orlanth in holding back the chaos tide. Maybe their flaming spears are needed to protect a Veskarthan priest who plans to use volcanic magic to hold back the tide of scorpionmen from the Queendom of Jab?

Edited August 30, 2023 by AlexS

[Ludo Bagman]

7 hours ago, ZedAlpha said:

Do you think there could be a plausible relationship between the cults of Lodril/Vestkarthan and Maran Gor?

Lodril is Asrelia's lover or husband, and Asrelia is the mother of Ernalda and Maran Gor. Sometimes Lodril is seen as their father, so there is a relationship, but he is not really worshiped in most Orlanthi lands.

[mfbrandi]

8 hours ago, Ludo Bagman said:

Lodril is Asrelia’s lover or husband, and Asrelia is the mother of Ernalda and Maran Gor.

I am sure that used to be the case, but as always, it is complicated (or very simple). The new Prosopaedia seems to pair up grotesque Oria and priapic Lodril (CoR Prosopaedia, p. 78).° FWIW, I do prefer younger brother Lodril as the toy boy of old woman Asrelia — if she must be paired, at all.

Oria collapses sideways into Ernalda and Esrola (i.e. the bountiful middle phase of Crone/Mother/Daughter — ibid, p. 93), but of course, they can be collapsed vertically into Asrelia — either Asrelia is their mother, or they will become Asrelia as they become older. (IIRC, these games go back at least to Wyrm’s Footnotes #9.)

Some may say that this reflects an attitude that considers all women to be one or at least freely interchangeable — or possibly to be categorised primarily by age & reproductive potential.°° Me? I could not possibly comment. But come the revolution …

So Maran Gor may be something like Lodril’s sister-in-law, but that probably does not exclude any other relation — marriage or blood — you care to add.

—————————————————————————————

° See also: Other Names of Lodril

°° There is also the scale which ranks the sisters Maran Gor (over on the left: scary and not interested in sex), Esrola/Oria/Grain Goddess (over on the right: oversized and oversexed), and Ernalda (in the middle and in the Goldilocks zone). It is horizontal, not vertical, but hardly an improvement. “You don’t like the way I have categorized you? I will categorize you better.” “Just STOP!”

Spoiler

Oria is the Grain Goddess, and mother of many gods and goddesses of the Earth. All plants and animals are her descendants. She has had many husbands and lovers, who protect her against the forces of hunger and evil … In the Lunar Provinces, Oria’s worship is often combined with that of Ernalda. She is also often identified with the Orlanthi goddess Esrola. — CoR Prosopaedia, p. 93

Lodril is known by many names throughout Glorantha. Here are a few of the best known: … Turos is worshipped in conjunction with his wife, who is usually Oria the Grain Goddess — Other names of Lodril

Edited August 30, 2023 by mfbrandi
added spoiler

[Joerg]

16 minutes ago, mfbrandi said:

I am sure that used to be the case, but as always, it is complicated (or very simple). The new Prosopaedia seems to pair up grotesque Oria and priapic Lodril (CoR Prosopaedia, p. 78).° FWIW, I do prefer younger brother Lodril as the toy boy of old woman Asrelia — if she must be paired, at all.

Lodril's tryst is with Asrelia/Esrola. Esrola and Oria correspond about as much as Ernalda and Oria.

By Dara Happan YS dating, Lodril descended into the Broad Earth one tenth into the "Reign of Yelm", aka 10,000 YS, as the vector for Aether's fiery seed. Clearly after the Green Age, but rather early. Still, parthenogenetically born Ernalda is supposed to have been around that early. Lodril's daughter, consequently "later".