Mankcam Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 (edited) (Disclaimer: I'm not sure where I should post this query - I couldn't find a forum on the Moon Design website, and I wasn't sure if it was appropriate for The Design Mechanism website forums as they are primarily devoted to discussion about RQ6 system development. BRPCentral appears to be the most appropriate place for this.) This one is for the Gloranthan fans out there: "What is a good culture to use as an analogy for the People of Esrolia?" I don't have many resources which have artwork displaying Esrolit characters, so I'm not sure how they are intended to be depicted. In an earlier campaign I based them off the Mycenaens, with some Celtic/Gaulish touches here and there. I would like to bring Esrolia into my current 3rd Age Gloranthan campaign, but want to present the Esrolit in a fashion that is a more consistent interpretation of Esrolia of how the authors intended. I do have a pdf of 'Stafford Library - Esrolia: Land Of A Thousand Goddesses' by Greg Stafford & Jeff Richard; it is a great resource but not alot of artwork involved. The pic of a priestess resembles a Mycenaen/Minoan a little, so that's why I based some of the culture off Mycenae. I'm not sure if I'm going down a wrong tangent though. I don't know if any of the fanzines have fleshed Esrolia out more, so perhaps someone can shed some light on the Esrolit for me. Any ideas, anyone? Edited November 23, 2011 by Mankcam grammar Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zit Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Is (or was)n't it ruled by a Pharoh? Then make it may be egyptian. Quote Wind on the Steppes, role playing among the steppe Nomads. The running campaign and the blog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vile Traveller Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 There was some information on Esrolia in the RQ2 Companion, and in the RQ3 Genertela supplement. If you dare, you might want to ask the question on the World of Glorantha Yahoo! Group, but you might get more information than you bargained for ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rust Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 If I remember it right, Esrolia was ruled by Trolls for most of its history, until the time of the first Pharaoh. Therefore I would tend to describe it as a somewhat ar- chaic culture with lots of Trollish cultural influences, not as a very highly civilized society like that of the Egyptians or Minoans - but this is of course a matter of taste. Quote "Mind like parachute, function only when open." (Charlie Chan) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted November 23, 2011 Author Share Posted November 23, 2011 (edited) Esrolia was ruled by Trolls for most of its history, until the time of the first Pharaoh. Therefore I would tend to describe it as a somewhat ar- chaic culture with lots of Trollish cultural influences, Yes, the trolls ruled the region I think during the Second Age (or maybe the First Age...). I envision that the Esrolit were viewed as slave-vassals rather than a colony, so although there may be some trollish influences I don't think the Esrolit would have them as major features in their culture - maybe some folk-magic practices to work with or ward away Darkness spirits or perhaps some underground links to trollish war cults perhaps..., but certainly not much more. The trolls tend to be matriachal, as are the Esrolit, so perhaps that link was also established under troll influence in the earlier ages. In any case, the troll legacies are likely to be downplayed by the end of the Third Age. Is (or was)n't it ruled by a Pharoh? Then make it may be egyptian. My old RQ2 Companion has a bit of info on it all. Actually the entire region of Kethalea was under the rule of the immortal Pharoah, who instructed his empire from The City of Wonders on an island in the middle of the Mirrorsea Bay. The empire was known as The Holy Country and Esrolia was considered a vassal (a 'Sixth'), with the other Sixths being Heortland, Caladraland, The Shadow Lands (Trolls of Shadow Plateau), God-Forgot, and The Right-Arm Isles. I envison the City of Wonders as a cross between Ancient Eygpt and Melnibone, with the imperial guards wearing Egyptian-style head dresses. Within recent years the Pharoah failed to be reincarnated, which has thrown the liegeship of the Sixths into chaos as the City of Wonder's influence was directly tied to the Pharoah's presence. The hordes of the Wolf Pirates than ravaged and entirely sacked the imperial capital, thus fragmenting the empire. By the end of the Third Age, the Holy Country alliances are no longer in existence, with each of the Sixths falling back into independent rulership. So while there may be a subtle 'Egyptian' influence in Esrolia, it is more of a left-over from the days of imperial unity under the Phaoroah's rule rather than from any inherent cultural aspects of the Esrolit, or that's how I read it. If you dare, you might want to ask the question on the World of Glorantha Yahoo! Group, but you might get more information than you bargained for ... I might just do that...it does make me feel a little cautious to enter the fray though, I hope things don't get as ugly as the posts in the old Gloranthan Digest...but I may have to 'go to the source' so to speak... Edited November 24, 2011 by Mankcam grammar Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GianniVacca Posted December 4, 2011 Share Posted December 4, 2011 It is land with many different cultures (six, if I recall correctly). Some 'earth goddess' types in the south west, Polynesian-like Rightarm islanders, and more Sartarite-like in the north. I don't remember the other ones. I believe there are some past issues of Tradetalk describing Esrolia, plus a French web-site: http://kethaela.free.fr/ Quote 「天朝大國」，https://rpggeek.com/rpgitem/92874/celestial-empire 很有意思: http://celestialempire.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted December 4, 2011 Author Share Posted December 4, 2011 Well I got some pretty good info from the Gloranthan Yahoo Group, who turned out to be a knowledgeable bunch and it wasn't as daunting as the old Gloranthan Digests, although I suspect some major players in the Yahoo Group would have been on the digest. From the descriptions I got, the Esrolit have alot of Hittite flavour, mixed in with Mycenaean and a touch of Gaulish influence, or something that correlates to that mix. The pics of Esrolit armour look similar to Hittite, so I'll probably use alot from them for purposes of analogies. Kethaela is one of those regions I always thought would have been more detailed by now in Gloranthan products, given its proximity to Dragon Pass & Prax where much of the published settings have taken place. The ancient empire feel of the region is great for sword n sorcery games, especially with Volcano Cults to the south and Barbarian raids to the west. Anyway I'll prob direct most Gloranthan queries to the Gloranthan Yahoo Group from now on, it's really their cup of tea Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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