From: Paul Reilly (paul@phyast.pitt.edu)
Date: Tue 02 Nov 1993 - 22:39:27 EET
Paul here, Continuing to reply to the AOL Discussion:
>Gray: The Brithini claim that all other races of humanity
> are actually descended from animals that tried to
> emulate the Brithini.
I have to point out that I originated this idea and that despite its merit I am told that it is not Greg's opinion - apparently he thinks that Brithini say that the other people are Mud Men, counterfeits made of mud by evil sorcerers. Perhaps Sandy could comment?
>Gray: They say the Kralori are just Dragon Hunchen with
> pretensions...
Yep. But Dragon Hsunchen have a special status due to their power.
>Ekron: That's a workable method of finding cultural
> patterns. Who do they claim descended from what
> animals?
HSunchen from their tribal totem animals, obviously. Kralori from dragons dreaming of being men. Praxians were Hsunchen of the same time as their riding animals - again this is pretty obvious. Pentans from horses. Orlanthi mostly from cattle and sheep - their chief domestic animals. Aldryami from trees. Mostali were machines.
The Western people were descended from Brithini colonists - how would we view a colony of people who bred like flies, only lived to age 5, had babies of their own at age 1 or 2, and whose idea of 'civilization' extended to what we would call 'Playing House'?
Beast Valley people - descended from crossbreeds of True Humans and animals, whose animal forms were reawakened by EWF magic, perhaps.
Dara Happan Nobles - Eagle Hsunchen. The nose is a giveaway. Dara Happan Warriors - Perhaps horses?
Etc.
The cultural patterns of the peoples do fit into those of their animal ancestors. More on this another time.
Dragonnewts - they live only partially in this dimension. Of course they seem weird.
Elves - Much more vicious than is popularly supposed. Plant warfare (with other plants) is vicious and unremitting. They only seem peaceful because each type achieves total dominance in a niche and ruthlessly destroys intruders. Look around the base of a sycamore sometime - the brown patch is due to plant killing toxins produced by the sycamore.
Look at the Gloranthan future for Fronela - the Aldryami plan a mass genocide of humans.
The old central Genertelan culture appears Sumerian - not just the Dara Happans but the THeyalans as well. The world picture is Sumerian as well - a flat world surmounted by a sky dome, city gods, humans providing nourishment for the gods, an underworld with a black sun, etc., etc. The parallels are many.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.7 : Fri 10 Oct 2003 - 01:32:05 EEST