Skip to content
The Well of Daliath
Menu
Menu

White Bear & Red Moon – Prisoners (1976)

Originally published in Wyrm’s Footnotes #1 (1976) by Greg Stafford

Taking Prisoners

There is a certain ignominy, perhaps even a touch of evil, attached to sacrificing your own followers to gain the alliance or augment the strength of a creature of Darkness. Likewise, it is equally corrupt to slaughter every person conquered in battle, Yet, as the rules now stand, both these cases are invariably so.

No longer.

Prisoners may now be taken. Later, certain deities will be greatly pleased by great hecatombs of human sacrifice, and the advantage of sacrificing many prisoners will be more evident. For now, they are useful in furnishing victims for Delecti, the Ivory Plinth, the Hydra, and the Crimson Bat.

1. PRISONERS may be taken in any attack of 3:1 odds or greater. In these cases one half of the units (measured by CF) which would normally be eliminated by the CRT may be taken prisoner. Odd numbers are rounded off in favor of the attacker, who also chooses which units to take.

2. GUARDS must be provided for the prisoners, and this rule supercedes normal stacking rules. One or two units which normally count in stacking may guard up to three prisoner units by being placed upon the same stack. If prisoners are left unguarded at the beginning of their own Movement Phase, they are free, and may move and fight as normal.

3. SACRIFICE of prisoners may take place any Turn, and the units are removed during your own Combat Phase, Guard units may kill their prisoners and then fight as in normal combat. However, you may not kill your prisoners in your enemy’s Combat Phase.

4. MOVEMENT for a prisoner convoy is one half of the MF of the slowest guard unit, no matter what the prisoners’ MF may be.

5. PHYSICAL ATTACKS UPON GUARDS may be made to free the prisoners. in these fights the guards may use only 1/2 their normal CF to defend themselves. The prisoners may not engage in this battle, but are freed if their guards are Eliminated, driven off, or captured.

6. MAGICAL ATTACKS UPON GUARDS do not diminish their defensive MgF. However, if other magicians are the prisoners, these captives may add 1/2 of their MgF to the attack. If this is done, the prisoners will suffer the same CRT result as the other attackers. An exception to this rule is below.

7. MAGICIANS GUARDING MAGICIANS prevents the captives from using their MgF to help free themselves. In fact, the guard magicians may use 1/2 their prisoners’ MgF in their own attack or defense.

8. INDEPENDENTS WITHOUT A LEADER, if taken prisoner, may immediately change sides and fight for their captor. This includes dinosaurs, Tusk Riders, and Dwarf Gifts.

9. INDEPENDENTS WITH LEADERS may be taken prisoner, but will not join your side unless their leader is also taken. If their leader is killed, they will never side with their captor.

10. CAPTURED LEADERS automatically cause all of their followers to change alliance to the side which captured them. Leaders of this type include the Feathered Horse Queen (Grazelanders), the Earthshakers (Tarsh), the Inhuman King (dragonewts), Ironhoof (the half-beasts), Ethilrist (Black Horse County), Delecti (zombies), and Cragspider (troll gangs).

11. UNCAPTURABLE UNITS, unless they are used as independents, may never be taken prison. These include Superheroes, Exotic Magicians, Zombies, Dragons, and Illusionary Armies.

If Androgeous is an independent Superhero, he may change sides only if she receives a Wound, followed that Combat Phase by a successful Emissary roll.

Related Pages

  • Dragon Pass – Battalia Clarifications (1983)
  • Dragon Pass – Random Events from La Guerre des Héroes (1993)
  • White Bear & Red Moon – In Defense of Superheroes (1978)
  • White Bear & Red Moon – Map Scale (1977)
  • White Bear & Red Moon – The Sisters of Mercy (1977, 1992)
  • White Bear & Red Moon – The Walktapus (1977)

White Bear / Red Moon, Wyrm's Footnotes

Page Last updated: 2021-12-24 17:32:48

Sections

  • Search Tips
  • Current RuneQuest Glorantha Publications
  • RuneQuest Glorantha Corrections and Q&A
  • Catalogue
  • References for Glorantha
    • Gloranthan Canon
  • Gloranthan Documents
  • RPG Systems & Versions
  • Gallery
  • About This Site
  • Get involved!

Latest Posts

  • Thog the Giant

    In 870, Thog the giant appeared with an army of …
  • The Nine Good Giant Mountains

    The Nine Good Giant Mountains are about 60 km or …
  • Why Most Sartarites Hate the Lunar Empire

    From time to time it is worth reminding people why …
  • Suntown and the Eiskolli

    Suntown has always been in the hands of the Sun …
  • A Few Notes on the Grantlands

    To the south of Sun County are the former Grantlands, …
  • Sartar Cities

    Sartar can be thought of a confederation of small cities …
  • Catalogue of the Gods revisited

    This piece from the Mythology book is among my absolute …
  • Thunderbolts in Art

    One of the things that really got me down the …
  • RuneQuest Art

    So let’s talk RQ art for a moment. For the …

Links

  • Chaosium
  • Chaosium’s RuneQuest RPG Wiki
  • Glorantha on BRP Central
  • RuneQuest on BRP Central
  • RuneQuest on Discord
  • Prince of Sartar Webcomic
  • Glorantha G+ Archives on Tapatalk
  • Search mailing list archive

Latest from BRP Central

  • RQ Tekumel
  • The Gods & Their 'Free Will'
  • Babeester Gor Initiation Heroquest
  • Request of information: spying from above
  • Now on sale in Jonstown Compendium: Dine 'n Dash in Dragon Pass
  • Glorious Re-Ascent of Yelm: The Star Numbers
  • Salt in Glorantha
  • Wintertop Fair pdf?
  • Slonta is not in the Prosopaedia?
  • MORE RHINOS! [Come on, you love this stuff too...]

Popular Tags

Boldhome (large city) Chaosium Colymar (Sartar tribe) Contents Cult demographics Cults of Runequest (preview) Ernalda Esrolia (homeland) FRA Furthest (large city) G+ post Genealogies Gods Wall Greg Stafford Guide to Glorantha (preview) Humakt Jar-eel Lunar Empire Lunar Pantheon Magazine Malkioni pantheon Map Michael O’Brien Mongoose MRQ1 New Pavis (small city) Old Glorantha Q&A Orlanth Orlanthi pantheon Photo reference Population demographics Prax (homeland) RQ3 RQG Sandy Petersen Sartar (homeland) Spirit Cult Star Subcult Tarsh (homeland & Lunar province) Troll Pantheon Yelm Yelmalio Yelm Pantheon Youtube

Recently added or updated

  • Eiritha

  • Annara Gor

  • RQG Cults allowing Sorcerers or Shaman

  • Bagog

  • Gbaji

  • Vivamort

  • Mallia

  • Wakboth the Devil

  • Kalikos Icebreaker

  • Primal Chaos

  • ISS1102 Glorantha: Introduction to the Hero Wars (2000)

  • Hero Wars: Beyond Humanity (2000)

  • Ropecon 2011 Heroes And More

  • Yanioth Work in Progress

  • CHA4034 Red Book of Magic – Chapter 02 Rune Magic Spells Q&A (N-Z)

  • CHA4037 Dragon Pass – Q&A

  • Erenava Chan

  • Vasana & Yanioth’s Apprenticeship

  • Reconstructing Slontos – 2nd Age

  • The Discovery of Glorantha

©2025 The Well of Daliath | Design: Newspaperly WordPress Theme