I recently discovered this from a unpublished Lunar Heartland travelogue. This snippet is from the discussion of Dragon Pass and Esrolia:
“The Orlanthi are barely human. They rut like barnyard animals, kill each other over insults and slights, and allow their Earth Priestesses to demand that their rulers satisfy their whims both carnally and in deeds. They marry their half-sisters and women abandon their children to the temples. Men and women wander around naked and without shame, and they keep snakes and black cats in their homes. I tell you that the tree people have far more to offer us than those hill barbarians. “
And yet, the rant (it might be from a woman btw) carries a kernel of truth. The Orlanthi are much more sexually permissive than the Heartlanders. The leaders of the Orlanth Rex cult are required to at least ceremonially marry the ranking Earth Priestess and often have tasks imposed upon them to prove their worth. Half-siblings can marry in certain circumstances (when they belong to different clans). Temple priestesses are known to have their children raised by the temple. The Orlanthi lack a nudity taboo and they do keep snakes and shadow cats in their homes.
