So where is the Yelmalio cult in Sartar, one might ask. Well here is how that breaks down:
- Sun Dome Temple – 2700 great temple
- Boldhome – 150 minor temple
- Alda-Chur – 400 major temple
- Other cities – 350 (minor temple in Alone, otherwise shrines)
- Vantaros Tribe – 900 major temple
- Colymar Tribe – 250 minor temple (Runegate)
- Amad Tribe – 150 (minor temple)
- The other tribes – 750 TOTAL (about 40 per tribe, not clan).
And that in a nutshell, shows what happened to the Elmal cult.
See Also
So most of the tribes don’t even have a shrine to Yelmalio. Worshipers need to travel to a city, or to the Sun Dome Temple. Otherwise the cult is too small to function.
The required ritual challenge is between Wind Lords and solar priests and lords. If you are just an ordinary innocent Yelmalion going on a walk, you are likely going to get ignored.And the priest or lord gains magical recognition from the Wind Lord.
Is there a shrine in Dangerford? No. Dangerford has a minor temple to the Seven Mothers, and a shrine to Engizi anda shrine to Heler. No Yemalio shrine. The Burial Mound is a shrine to Humakt. There is a shrine to Yelmalio in Dolutha though.
As an aside, a shrine requires 75-225 members, which, if assuming a clan of 1000 people, means that at least one in four of your adults belongs to the cult.
Most clans have a minor temple to Ernalda, a minor temple to Orlanth, or a minor temple to Ernalda, a shrine to Orlanth and a shrine to something else.
Tribes often have shrines and temples that are shared by the local clans. So the Quackford has a shrine of Issaries that functions as a minor temple because of the local folk and traders who go there to worship.
Not a disproportionate number in the Bachad or Tres, not like the Amad? The Bachad have a disproportionate number of Humakt and Maran Gor cultists, the Tres have Maran Gor and Chalk Man.
So when we think about Maran Gor, probably almost half of the cultists are around Alone. Which makes sense, given that they are from the Bush Range and Koffer Hills.
As an aside, I imagine that the Torkani, with 6500 members, have somewhere around 500 Argan Argar cultists. Enough for a major temple.
One thing I find invaluable with these exercises is that you run out of these small cults pretty quick.
So the number in Alone doesn’t include the number in the Amad tribe? That’s the folk living in Alone. Only Yelmalio is worshipped among the Amad and Alone temples.