Drinking Giants Cauldron

[Soccercalle]

My PCs want to do this heroquest to find something they think are hidden at the bottom of the Ocean. Has anyone ran this heroquest in their game?

[Nozbat]

There are people much more competent and authoritative than I am on HeroQuesting.. and hopefully they will comment on it too

First thing about HeroQuesting is that its about the recreation of an existing myth.. the idea being to follow the myth through various stations and ultimately succeed just as your god/ demon/ hero/ chaos entity did . Deviation from the myth or actually changing it is dangerous and results in different (often poorer) outcomes.

So my first clarification question would be .. Do you have an existing myth were their gods or heroes or whatever entity they worship have travelled to the bottom of the sea? 

[Soccercalle]

The closest myth is the Orlanth myth of Drinking Giants Cauldron. But I have no detailed description.

[Joerg]

51 minutes ago, Soccercalle said:

The closest myth is the Orlanth myth of Drinking Giants Cauldron. But I have no detailed description.

The best you description you might get could be in the Prince of Sartar webcomic.

Garrath Sharpsword relates his experience on the quest: http://www.princeofsartar.com/comic/75-ruined-home/ and following pages.

Peripherically of interest: Elusu's recruitment tale told to Sharman Ingilli http://www.princeofsartar.com/comic/64-making-baby-giants/

[jajagappa]

2 hours ago, Soccercalle said:

My PCs want to do this heroquest to find something they think are hidden at the bottom of the Ocean. Has anyone ran this heroquest in their game?

The best reference to the Cauldron was in the HQG work "The Eleven Lights".  That equated the Cauldron of Pieces, the Cauldron of Ver (referenced IIRC in King of Sartar), and the Drinking Giant's Cauldron. I don't know that I'd necessarily equate all these cauldrons together, but it is one place to look.

p.125: "The cauldron is as deep and limitless as the oceans — indeed this is known to the Orlanthi as the Cauldron of Ver, the Drinking Giant’s Cauldron — Orlanth took it from the Sea Gods and it has their life renewing properties."

In the Eleven Lights, dwarfs variously swarm over the Cauldron to heat it up, distill stuff in it, add things to it and remove things from it. That all seems ancillary to what you might want in your quest.

p.126: "One of the PCs might decide to try to recreate the Cauldron of Ver here. The Cauldron of Pieces is itself too big to move, but a PC might try to take some of the liquid, assuming that it is where the power resides and not the container itself. There is no easy way down to the liquid in the cauldron, but the cranes and pulleys might allow the PCs to lower one of their number to the surface. By lowering someone towards the surface, that PC might be able to scoop water from the cauldron into a container. The swirling waters of the cauldron resist being taken from it; they pull at anything that touches the surface threatening to suck the PC into the cauldron."

Separately, the Lightbringer's Book p.18 notes: "Orlanth took a cauldron of the sacred drink from Daliath, which brought him access to True Wisdom." This seems in line with what your PC's want to do.

Heortling Mythology p. 92 notes: "The Cauldron of Ver. Orlanth took this from the Sea Gods and it gave the life renewing powers of water. It also caused a permanent weakening of the Sea Gods for they lost their renewal powers." 

There aren't many other references. However, I think you could likely put together a quest along the following lines that pulls from pieces of various myths.

-----------------------------------------

Step 0: You need to prepare yourselves to enter the Seas. You need to be armed with useful weapons, and you need the Bladder of Air/Sack of Winds.

Myth: King of Sartar p.60: "Orlanth prepared himself against the monster. He brought a sack with the Four Winds in it, an ancient flint sword called a klanth, a twisted vine which held the Upper Wind, and a leather rope which held the Lower Wind. He spent a year chanting songs of power, and ate of Ernalda’s Splendorbread and drank crazy black Widebrew."

Action: particularly gaining the Sack of Winds. You might get this from a Shaman or by binding the right winds in a leather sack (see RQ Bestiary re: Whirlvishes). 

Step 1: You need to enter the Early Storm Age to battle the Sea Gods and find a way for Air to enter the Ocean.

Myth: Lightbringers p.17: "Orlanth was with his kinsmen Vadrus, Humakt, and Valind when they surprised the armies of the Manthi merfolk and swept them from the inland waters of Glorantha, and later, they dried up the seas of Pamaltela."

And Heortling Mythology p.66: "Worcha attacked and drowned Mavorela, its goddesses and its people. At the Trembling Shores King Vingkot stopped the crashing waves, and at Three Coves the Thunder Brothers destroyed Worcha and began to drive the water back. At Thrinbarri Orlanth himself led the defense against attacks from the sea, from the air and from the sky, all of whom were defeated. The Floods were systematically driven back."

Action: You find yourself at the edge of the Trembling Shores (or the cliffs above) which the Sea Gods hungrily claw away. You must defeat them with your Winds.

Step 2: You need to open the path to the Deep Sea.

Myth: King of Sartar p.52/54: "They took Vadrus and dropped him into the Deep Well, and then clapped the lid on. They were sure that he would be drowned by Water, an element which had no connection to air.... Vadrus stirred the Well so rapidly that the gods there streamed into one swirling pool of water, and Vadrus escaped through the seams in the well lid."

(Optionally, you might be swallowed by "Aroka" or Leviathan or some other sea monster to get there.)

Action: You are beside the Seas and need to find a way to the Deep. You can stir the waters to create a whirlpool funnel and ride that down. Or you can summon a sea monster and get it to swallow you and then vomit you out in the Deep.

Step 3: You need to challenge the Sea Giant to a Drinking Contest.

Myth: ... (don't find any immediately, but seems pretty straightforward.)

Action: Use your air bladder so that you aren't drowned (create a bubble of Air around you). Challenge the Sea Giant. Outdrink the Sea Giant! (Eurmal's Swallow spell might be useful???)

Step 4: Return to the surface.

Myth: As above, follow the Vadrus path to escape through the seams in the well lid.

Action: You've done something that the Sea Gods refuse to accept, and they try to drown you. You need to escape back to the surface!

 

 

 

[Nozbat]

@jajagappa has just given an excellent outline for a HeroQuest.. I was going to add you might get some inspiration from Norse mythology .. Þhor and Loki in the tale of Utgarda-Loki  or Mimir’s Well at the roots of Yggdrasil as examples of stations but then they will need to be suitably Gloranthasised (is there such a word? Or have I just invented it)

Its all about making it challenging for the players and the rewards proportionate to the risks

[jajagappa]

2 hours ago, jajagappa said:

Step 4: Return to the surface.

Myth: As above, follow the Vadrus path to escape through the seams in the well lid.

Action: You've done something that the Sea Gods refuse to accept, and they try to drown you. You need to escape back to the surface!

Just realized I forgot the more obvious escape option: capture/befriend/defeat Mastakos and steal his chariot!

Edited August 12 by jajagappa

[Soccercalle]

19 hours ago, jajagappa said:

The best reference to the Cauldron was in the HQG work "The Eleven Lights".  That equated the Cauldron of Pieces, the Cauldron of Ver (referenced IIRC in King of Sartar), and the Drinking Giant's Cauldron. I don't know that I'd necessarily equate all these cauldrons together, but it is one place to look.

p.125: "The cauldron is as deep and limitless as the oceans — indeed this is known to the Orlanthi as the Cauldron of Ver, the Drinking Giant’s Cauldron — Orlanth took it from the Sea Gods and it has their life renewing properties."

In the Eleven Lights, dwarfs variously swarm over the Cauldron to heat it up, distill stuff in it, add things to it and remove things from it. That all seems ancillary to what you might want in your quest.

p.126: "One of the PCs might decide to try to recreate the Cauldron of Ver here. The Cauldron of Pieces is itself too big to move, but a PC might try to take some of the liquid, assuming that it is where the power resides and not the container itself. There is no easy way down to the liquid in the cauldron, but the cranes and pulleys might allow the PCs to lower one of their number to the surface. By lowering someone towards the surface, that PC might be able to scoop water from the cauldron into a container. The swirling waters of the cauldron resist being taken from it; they pull at anything that touches the surface threatening to suck the PC into the cauldron."

Separately, the Lightbringer's Book p.18 notes: "Orlanth took a cauldron of the sacred drink from Daliath, which brought him access to True Wisdom." This seems in line with what your PC's want to do.

Heortling Mythology p. 92 notes: "The Cauldron of Ver. Orlanth took this from the Sea Gods and it gave the life renewing powers of water. It also caused a permanent weakening of the Sea Gods for they lost their renewal powers." 

There aren't many other references. However, I think you could likely put together a quest along the following lines that pulls from pieces of various myths.

-----------------------------------------

Step 0: You need to prepare yourselves to enter the Seas. You need to be armed with useful weapons, and you need the Bladder of Air/Sack of Winds.

Myth: King of Sartar p.60: "Orlanth prepared himself against the monster. He brought a sack with the Four Winds in it, an ancient flint sword called a klanth, a twisted vine which held the Upper Wind, and a leather rope which held the Lower Wind. He spent a year chanting songs of power, and ate of Ernalda’s Splendorbread and drank crazy black Widebrew."

Action: particularly gaining the Sack of Winds. You might get this from a Shaman or by binding the right winds in a leather sack (see RQ Bestiary re: Whirlvishes). 

Step 1: You need to enter the Early Storm Age to battle the Sea Gods and find a way for Air to enter the Ocean.

Myth: Lightbringers p.17: "Orlanth was with his kinsmen Vadrus, Humakt, and Valind when they surprised the armies of the Manthi merfolk and swept them from the inland waters of Glorantha, and later, they dried up the seas of Pamaltela."

And Heortling Mythology p.66: "Worcha attacked and drowned Mavorela, its goddesses and its people. At the Trembling Shores King Vingkot stopped the crashing waves, and at Three Coves the Thunder Brothers destroyed Worcha and began to drive the water back. At Thrinbarri Orlanth himself led the defense against attacks from the sea, from the air and from the sky, all of whom were defeated. The Floods were systematically driven back."

Action: You find yourself at the edge of the Trembling Shores (or the cliffs above) which the Sea Gods hungrily claw away. You must defeat them with your Winds.

Step 2: You need to open the path to the Deep Sea.

Myth: King of Sartar p.52/54: "They took Vadrus and dropped him into the Deep Well, and then clapped the lid on. They were sure that he would be drowned by Water, an element which had no connection to air.... Vadrus stirred the Well so rapidly that the gods there streamed into one swirling pool of water, and Vadrus escaped through the seams in the well lid."

(Optionally, you might be swallowed by "Aroka" or Leviathan or some other sea monster to get there.)

Action: You are beside the Seas and need to find a way to the Deep. You can stir the waters to create a whirlpool funnel and ride that down. Or you can summon a sea monster and get it to swallow you and then vomit you out in the Deep.

Step 3: You need to challenge the Sea Giant to a Drinking Contest.

Myth: ... (don't find any immediately, but seems pretty straightforward.)

Action: Use your air bladder so that you aren't drowned (create a bubble of Air around you). Challenge the Sea Giant. Outdrink the Sea Giant! (Eurmal's Swallow spell might be useful???)

Step 4: Return to the surface.

Myth: As above, follow the Vadrus path to escape through the seams in the well lid.

Action: You've done something that the Sea Gods refuse to accept, and they try to drown you. You need to escape back to the surface!

 

 

 

Great thanks to @jajagappa. This is what I needed!