From: Nick Brooke (100270.337@CompuServe.COM)
Date: Thu 25 Nov 1993 - 23:37:15 EET
> Though some people say predictive magic is impossible in Glorantha
> due to the effects of Time, obviously the Gods and Heroes who are
> outside Time can see the future with ease.
A lot of people have trouble with this. I think you're confusing fortune- telling "predictive" magic (which is, of course, impossible) with finding unusual ways of telling what the Great and Powerful intend to do to the world. So Prince Snodal sneaked a look at Zzabur's Master-Plan (or at the Altinelans' copy of a leaked version of it). That isn't telling the future, any more than the assassins lying in wait by the roadside have pierced the veil of time by finding out in advance their victim's planned itinerary. After all, it didn't happen that way, did it?
The Roman practice of Augury is entirely reasonable for Glorantha. You aren't asking, "Will we win today?". You are asking, "Have we done all we can to get you Gods on our side?". And that's a question the Gods can easily answer (per standard RQ3 definitions). Similarly, Astrology might amount to little more than determining what magical forces were most potent -- a more sophisticated version of "Don't go climbing Condor Crags on Windsday".
Nobody in Glorantha can "see the future". But a lot of people can recognise the way things are tending, spot mythically-determined patterns reenacting themselves, or work hard to implement their own part of the Great Design. Like, it doesn't take a genius to predict the poisoning of King Glyptus in Elkoi as soon as his Lunar wife straightens out the succession... Like, if a cult of millions starts wanting a White Moon, it's a fair bet one will come along sooner or later, given Glorantha's tendency towards wish-fulfilment.
> QUERY ON BLUE MOON
> I have never seen anything in print on the length of time between tides
> other than to say they occur now and then and what happens. Could some-
> one give a description of this?
Apparently there's an entirely random, one to six day cycle between high tides. In a game, roll a D6 every high tide to work out when the next one will come. [Source: Elder Secrets, p.44]. How this cycle relates to the height of the tide is described there, in the Prosopaedia, and in Troll Cults. Presumably sailors can make World Lore rolls to "guesstimate" what the speed of the next tidal cycle will be (i.e. low to high in one day or six), based on the speed with which the waters are rising -- assuming all high tides to be of roughly similar height (though we know of course that there is some variation).
Some doubt in this interpretation: Elder Secrets says it takes "one to six days to climb to the centre of the sky", but doesn't make it clear if this is days counted from nadir to zenith, or counted from when the Blue Moon reaches the edge of the sky after a (lengthy?) transit of the Underworld. I suspect the former: it's simpler by far. Though a 2D6 day tidal cycle (averaging seven days) has obvious numerological attractions...
Perhaps Sandy could clarify this?
Speaking of whom,
> Your article impelled me to give one of the more important reasons
> for climbing Wintertop, beyond a number of Heroquests that start or
> end here -- if you go up the right (magic) way, it looks DOWN on the
> Red Moon, and you can jump over to it.
I think that's "Top of the World" you're thinking of. But then again, these big mountains are all much of a muchness, magically speaking...
COLEMAN: "Well, Broyan, you're obviously on Top of the World right now."
BROYAN: "Certainly am! And as for Argrath 'Gazza' Dragonspear, I imagine
in a little while he'll be over the Moon..."
{apologies for my quirky Brit humour}
Your earlier point about the distinction between the magical (12 km) and mundane (*far* more reasonable) height of Wintertop was well made, IMHO. It appears from this and the mountain-heights printed in Elder Secrets that, speaking "magically", the Red Moon must hang somewhere between ten and twenty kilometers above the world. With the Sky Dome having a radius of circa 20,000 km (guesstimated from large-scale maps of Glorantha), this isn't all that impressive. (Another proof of the folly of the Lunar Way).
> If I was interested in starting a RuneQuest campaign, what books/
> supplements would I need... which ones should I get...??
I hope you are!
If you have nothing else (other than the rules), get "River of Cradles" and "Sun County" for a good grounding in Gloranthan culture, religion and magic. The setting of Civilised Prax is described well enough for campaign purposes (the Nomads may pose problems, but hopefully Sandy will keep leaking useful details), while there are scenarios in both those products. If you want an *excellent* starting scenario, get "Shadows on the Borderlands" too and try running "Gaumata's Vision". Yelmalion Sun County is a good background for players who are new to Glorantha, as it's highly parochial, xenophobic and isolated: you don't need to know anything about foreigners other than how horrible and ignorant they are, and you always follow orders (which can lead into easily controllable scenarios).
Not knowing your background, players, or previous campaigning experience, this is of course just a suggestion. But Prax is the best-described setting for RuneQuest Glorantha. Any problems you have with it, post them here.
> Mountaineering with bronze-age equipment seems close to madness IMHO..
Seconded. Though I belong to the Robert E Howard school of plausibility...
> Wonderful news for DP Fans... The French version of Dragon Pass is out
> in French stores under the name "La Guerre des Heros".
I've seen the draft counter art for this, and by rights it should be a beautiful product. Soon as I can get on a ferry, I'm off for my copy! (Please, does anyone know any good Paris/Calais/Boulogne games shops, or have a mail-order address for these people?). *Everything* I've seen by Oriflam has been lavishly, lovingly produced: they put Avalon Hill's older (paper book) stuff to shame, and still shine alongside the new "Renaissance" products. If only they could do English translated versions... <g>
> What's the meaning of Humakt Geas #10 "accept no magical healing at
> all?" Can the Humakti cast healing on himself? Can his allied spirit
> cast it? What happens if he's unconscious and it's cast on him?
Heh, heh, heh... Here's a suggestion. Same thing as happens if he's dead and someone raises him... the Humakti goes all out against the guy who brought him back / unwelcomely healed him, and then (after killing / wounding his "benefactor") he takes the damage again.
No, you're right: I don't like Humakti much. But twisting and wriggling in order to be Healed is grotesque, and would certainly invite a visit from Swordbreaker in my game. As gamemaster, decide whether "accept" will mean "at all" or "from other people" in your game, tell the players, then enforce it harshly. Ignorance is no defence: an unconscious Humakti can get himself into *real* trouble.
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