Phases of the moon / EWF (2012)

Submitted by descarga68 on Mon, 14/05/2012 – 18:32

Hey, Gloranthaphiles,

I have the Pavis book, and it immediately raised a couple of questions, one pressing question and one that is more a background question for me:

1.) The new HQ2 rules for Lunar magic are lovely.  The Seven Mothers write-up, though, only mentions a few of the key Lunar cults: the Seven Mothers themselves, Etyries, the Red Emperor, etc.  Has anybody sat down and sketched out what phase of the moon is associated with each of the other well-known Lunar cults?  (I mean, I could make something up; but if somebody has thought through a mythopoetically coherent/compelling scheme for ordering Lunar immortals among the 6 phases, I’d love to hear about it.)

I am especially interested in Irin: the plan is for one character to be a young inquisitor of the Irin School secretly dispatched from the Lunar heartlands to distant Pavis with a mission to root out and destroy Chaos in the administration of the Lunar occupation — along the way making enemies in the army, (problematic) allies in expeditions to the Chaos nests of the Rubble and the Wastes, etc.  I think it’s a good, life-complicating character premise; but it would help a great deal to have an opinion about which phase of the moon Irin is in.

2.) One of the things I love about Glorantha is how material gets used, reused, and crops up elsewhere, turned on its head.  One of the most compelling things about Blood Over Gold, in my view, was the situation of the city of Fay Jee as a community that depended for its existence on binding and worshipping its demon guardian.  This would be appalling enough for most people by itself, but said demon was bound in place by the God Learners and remains in place only because the city embraces the ritual and cherishes the memory of the Middle Sea Empire — despite the God Learners having been responsible for sinking half the city and most of the region under the sea, for the Closing, etc.  Furthermore, this means that certain basic aspects of Fay Jee are fearful to all its neighbors but most objectionable to other Malkioni — that is, to those neighbors who are historically/mythologically most intimate with Fay Jee’s development.  A prophet in his own country, and all that…

Similarly, I’m delighted with the image of Pavis as a community whose civic life is ordered by the Pavis cult, which, true to its origins as a sattelite of the Empire of Wyrm’s Friends, maintains the costume, language, ritual, etc., of the EWF, which everybody else on the continent fears and loathes the memory of.  Or is it everybody?  Does anybody here know of other places in Genertela which preserve EWF practices and references?  The City of 10,000 Magicians, maybe?  I’d be interested to hear opinions/information.

1)  I (speaking only for meself)

Submitted by metcalph on Tue, 15/05/2012 – 02:36.

1)  I (speaking only for meself) don’t think the proper cults are actually keyed to any specific moon phase.  The cults in the Seven Mothers are stripped-down versions designed to teach the seeker about a particular phase of the moon.  But within the cult of Yanafal Tarnils, there are Yanfali with full moon runes, Yanafali with crescent moon runes etc and they have a different feel.  So it doesn’t matter what phase the Irin follower has so long as it makes him interesting.

1a)  As a parenthesis, I’m rather less than enthusiastic by the Irin School writeup.  The anti-chaotic (I nearly said Rokari style) inquisitors doesn’t fit in very well with the Lunar philosophy of total freedom. I also think that by denying chaos, they end up denying anything non-chaotic and end up like the Mad Sultan or the poor people of Tork.

That said, if you want the School of Irin in your campaign, ignore what I just said and go for it.

2)  EWF throwbacks might be the city of ten thousand magicians (which you mentioned), Ormsgone Valley (who might worship the Huge Red Dragon), Tink (primarily Forang Farosh) and Delela (where heirs of the demented fool Ingolf might still live).

Terrifying city guardians

Submitted by Herve on Tue, 15/05/2012 – 15:31.

Good Fay Jee citizens certain do not miss godlearner days. In truth, most of them are sacre sXXXless by the huge, flaming, three-eyed demon living on top of the spot where countless victims were sacrificed to the false sun. They would be very glad to get rid of this monster and its clique of half-mad sorcerers led by a quasi-undead lich. But they don’t know how to do it !

Getting rid of Fay Jee means opening the city to barbarians’ attacks, and even worse release the countless ghosts from untold generations who’d rampage through the streets. In fact, switch the demon for something more palatable was one of the main long-term focus of our 3-years (RT) Fay Jee campaign… It wasn’t easy.

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