Rule One

An independent Glorantha magazine

Welcome to Issue 10 (I never really though it would get this far - I need to make some more "Issue Number" graphics. Yikes!)

An issue heavy with Lunar Goodness this time!

In this Issue

Part 2 of Greg Stafford's The Lives of Sedenya (Part 1 was in Issue 5, parts 3 and 4 will follow in Issues 11 and 12).

A Professorial thesis from the Lunar University on the Zaranistagi, the Blur Loper Folk;

Managing Lunar Sevening in MRQ2.

We also have The Wuyani, the Children of the Vulture God;

Life in Prax Part 2 (Part 1 was in Issue 9);

a Prayer to Waha;

and a look at the Leaping Horse Monks of Kralorela.

The Lives of Sedenya

Greg Stafford

Those persons of ignorance who do not live under Her light mock and scorn the fact that we, mortals all, walk in the path of a goddess. Presumptuous, they call us, and foolish, and deluded. They think there is a difference between Her, Our Immortal Guide, and us. Fools!

Sedenya had been born immortal, beginning life in the aetheric realm and feeding upon the ambrosia of the gods. Yet She became mortal, a limited and finite being who had lost all memory of Her former divine existence. She worked and played, suffered and enjoyed, loved and hated just as all humans do. And She found her way back to godhead. Sedenya, The Great Being, did this because She wished to show human beings how to assist in the recovery of Godtime.

Her journey is just like everyone’s. We all know that in the Green Age everyone was equal, a blissful being without care or worry who had the universe at their fingertips. We were all supernatural beings who smelled of flowers and cast no shadow. Yet, sometimes one by one and sometimes en masse, we fell into the traps of desire, mortality, and the realms of limited consciousness. Unity shattered; love confronted hatred and failed; and peace gave way to war.

The world has always been a worse place since the Otherworld Beings destroyed it in the Gods War. Humans have been the primary victims, and are now the primary methods of recovery. Humans didn’t destroy the world, for they had no power in those days. Yet now they are the repositories of Free Will, and as such, wield the key to reconstruction. The endless cycles of being require that the world recover its former glory, and it is the job of She Who Cycles to lead the way. Hence Her life of suffering and love as a human being, to be the model for us all. Her ascent into the Heavens shows us the way for our own ascent, and Her promise is that the cosmos will follow.

Her blood runs in the veins of millions of people—perhaps in everyone, as some of Her teachers claim. We mortals are mixed, bearing portions of everything that existed before. In that mixture, we have all been carrying out Her struggle, inching the cosmos forward toward its objective. It is the responsibility of all conscious beings to assist in this momentous transformation. It is the destiny of our empire.

Her journey took many lifetimes. It was blocked by the old and established powers. The last incarnation as Teelo Estara was only the final step, not the whole journey. But She served us with Her life, and so we can serve the cosmos by following Her principles.

Enlightenment takes many lifetimes to acquire. She does not expect us to succeed at once. She expects us to struggle forward, under Her guidance and protection. She also expects us to fail, to be hurt, and to love and be loved. We must make mistakes in our earlier lives to acquire knowledge of everything, just as our last lives must be full of assisting, perseverance, and success at the Great Test. As we approach Enlightenment, we remember the keys to success, and these determine how we act, the powers we wield, and the success and happiness of our lives.

At some point, determined by each person, the individual must undertake the Path of Proof. This can be attempted only once each lifetime, at most—some say it is only once every seven or ten lifetimes.

Some say that many paths towards immortality and eternal bliss are possible, but success among the Lunar peoples has always been to follow Her Hero Path. She showed us, we are Her people, and it is foolish to innovate under such guidance. Let others seek new ways and continue to fall, as they do, into the abyss of failure. When it is your turn to attempt to find your immortal self, take Her Hero Path.

Teelo Estara

Let us discuss her early life as Teelo Estara.

A being woke up in the body of a young girl. She discovered Her true selves and Self, and became immortal.

First, at her growth. Teelo Norri had been a girl, young and breastless, with neither the hair nor the hips of a woman. Powerful people performed the Renativity. Then the innocent street girl with the black eyes and the dirty face was no more. Her identity disappeared, submerged by the flood of lives and memories that overwhelmed whatever she had been before. Her first words were “We are all Us.” Teelo Norri vanished, and we know that Teelo Estara felt the girl slip beneath the waters of existence with some regret, at first, which disappeared quickly in the face of a hundred new selves and the immensity of the daily life that was set before Her.

Hence Her new name, Teelo Estara. And Her new body—that girl grew preternaturally quickly, without the anxieties and discomfort of a human being. She had Her memories to call upon when She bled for the first time, or Her breasts ached with rapid growth, or Her blood heated from the looks that men gave to Her, or She to them. She did not have the trouble of innocence in deciding whether to take a first lover. She might instead have had the problem of too much experience, except that She remembered, and so made wise choices.

Oh, those lovers. Surentholm, Maskore, Burdendarus, Venwhiser, and Eserela are known and revered today. Surentholm, who was at first so anxious and reluctant, and afterward so well-taught that he became known as the “great lover of Jalthil,” until killed in battle outside his city. Maskore, ambitious and loyal and unselfish, who became the first Satrap of First Blessed. Burdendarus, so sympathetic and understanding, who stayed with Her the longest. Venwhiser, who had sung to Her and made poems for a decade. First he resisted Her invitation to Her bed; then, after he made ten more poems, he reluctantly accepted, and after that, he fiercely and jealously defended it. She might have stayed with him forever, except that Mahedres Redbeard thought he was Her weak point and tried to torture him to death. Let us remember how Venwhiser sang “Ten Ways to Love You” on the rack, and how his lack of suffering nearly brought Mahedres to an apoplectic death. Nor will we overlook Eserela, that sweet woman who was hard where Teelo Estara was soft, cruel where She was kind, and, most importantly, kind where She was cruel.

Teelo Estara was born to rule. We smile indulgently now at the story of “The Ten Rules of Rule,” when Deezola sat the girl down to start instruction, and was instead instructed. That good Queen was afterwards content to advise the goddess. She also learned, so that Deezola’s own city of Torang was always well ruled, and has been ever since. Teelo Estara coordinated the jealousy of warlords and dukes, balanced the ambitions of suspicious rivals, rewarded the just and trusting, and exploited the despoilers. It took the many lives of Teelo Estara to acquire the knowledge and experience to balance the likes of Deezola, who became so unquestionably good; against the unbridled corruption of Duke Pestenus and his archpriest, Aggavrimak; and yet to keep the loyalty of those famous lords and ladies like Entholm, Aggebeskora, Feneazura, Dardanog, and Aggatholm, who were neither so good nor so bad. Too, Her diplomacy brought the blue trolls of the plateau to friendship, and once even gained the commitment of the bat-winged ones, who won the Battle of Dorid.

And what of Her leadership in war? First, no one questions Her wisdom in leaving battle leadership to Yanafal Tarnils, save for the Second Battle of Memkorth when the great warlord was humbled (and no general dares to forget the subsequent admission of Her wisdom by the great man afterwards, which led to his reinstatement and later caution whenever he saw the flocks of eagles). And it was She who advised the promotions of Aggavaskaru and Paktalus, and She who named Manazura to defend Dorid, Pesdarau to be the quartermaster and Opada to command the river fleet, though the boatmen so resisted the idea of a woman to lead them.

But of all these actions, the most important to Her was to study. Irippi Ontor was rarely far from Her elbow, except when he was researching some history or divining some fact. She would always ask his advice and information about whomever petitioned Her, but She just as often seized odd moments to inquire of him about some landmark that piqued Her memory, to discuss some philosophy alluded to by a visitor, or to pump him for knowledge of a genealogy, a famous person, or one of Her own previous incarnations. No doubt the candor of that brown man was instrumental in educating Her of the faults of her past, as well as the virtues. She Herself credits Irippi Ontor with teaching Her to avoid the obscurity of Nysalor and the unbridled arrogance of Morga. And everyone knows it was She who discovered the secrets of the Mernitan Altar and of Taraltara’s Net, but it was Irippi Ontor who told Her about the cave where the altar was hidden, and of the impossibility of knowing Taraltara with Her mind. It was he, also, who revealed to Her so many secrets that he had learned from Buserian, such as the conjunctions of Ulurda with the stars Miningu, Plura, and Beto, and the knowledge of the invisible bodies of Aggatherada the hummingbird.

So with all those new facts and hidden insights, with the experience She had gained and remembered, She was prepared for when she departed from the everyday world.

Artwork copyright Issaries Inc.

The Zaranistangi Mystery

Hervé Carteau

Thesis N° 23-XIV (1621 S.T.)

Imperial College of Magic

All Hail the Reaching Moon!

I, Pilidum Falabdur, humble student of Irripi Ontor, present this Thesis to my masters of the Imperial College of Magic in the hope they will find it of sufficient interest to validate my claim to the exalted status of associated professor. May Irripi Ontor help me never stray from the Truth. May He provide the readers of this work with His deep Understanding.

Introduction

Of the many aspects of our Great Goddess, the Blue Manifestations have always been hardest to understand. Many cultures beyond our own beloved empire have known of, and worshipped, some aspects of the Blue Moon, whether they be obscure Dara Happan sects, Artmali from Pamaltela or even the inhuman Uz. However, one such aspect had been until now little studied and almost forgotten: that of the Zaranistangi, better known as the Loper People.

The Loper folk have roamed through our continent, Genertela, during the whole of human history. During the First Age, some took part in the creation of Bright Nysalor and others in His undoing. During the second age, they fought the Godlearner Empire to a standstill and it took all its might to chase them away. In the third age, they almost toppled the Kareeshtan Empire before vanishing again. We see a pattern: powerful confrontations leading to this strange people’s victory before they vanish from human lore. Where did they come from? How are they tied to our Great Goddess? And how much of an opportunity or of a threat can they pose to Our Ways?

Origins Of The Loper Folk

Zaranistangi are a blue-skinned people. In their oldest legends, they say they are the children of mother Orfeda and father Baraku. They first settled in “Coborandra, halfway between star and ocean, hard rock and soft heart”. This maxim is one of the few directly traceable to them. After long analysis and using the Irripi Reverse Corroboration method, we have established this was on the slopes of the Spike, World Mountain, itself. They seem to have been there during the Green Age, when their Mother shone over them, before Yelm took command of the Skies.

Interrogations of the august Buseri Seers reveal they know Orfeda and Baraku as stars 48 and 49, Ulundra and Ulurdrum. Orfeda, is of course the Sixth Phase of Our Lady, before (as Lesilla) and after her Illumination by Rashorana. She vanished from the Skies when she began incarnating in mortals at the Dawn; the Blue Streak is what she left behind her. The Dara Happans call her Anhila, the Pelandans Vendara, the Rinliddi Huvaran. Even non-humans recognize her, the Uz as Mahaquata the Bat and the mermen as Desduru, Mother of Tides. But it is not our point here to study the many aspects of the Blue Color of our Goddess. It is however important to recall hers are the powers of concealment and misdirection. Orfeda was only worshipped by Zaranistangi women.

Their father, Baraku, also has many names: Pelandans say she is female and call her EthelSora, whom other sects recognize as Uleria, the Web of Love. To storm barbarians, He is male and called Mastakos, a sea god made prisoner by their chief demon Orlanatus. As such, he is master of all forms of Movement, up to an including Teleportation. Praxians call this star Emilla, “Lord of the Blue Men”. Baraku is only worshipped by Zaranistangi men.

Here we must immediately dispel a long-standing confusion: Zaranistangi are not Artmali. They considered themselves the older half-brothers of the Artmali, themselves grandchildren of Serartamal , they own name for Orfeda (though they also call her sometimes Veldara), through her son Artmal, whose father was Lorion the Sky invader. Artmali lived on their Grandmother’s body before flying down to our world and settled in Pamaltela, where they built a mighty empire in the Storm Age.

Of common ancestry, Zaranistangi and Artmali met, traded, and forged alliances. It seems some Zaranistangi teleportation magic was learned by the Artmali, for whom it manifested as a violet cloud of energy covering the person who was “transferring”. However, we never hear of such visual effects in Zaranistangi magic. The Zaranistangi seem to have taken their riding beasts, the Lopers (chalicoterae or moropus) from Pamaltela. These great mammals had much longer front limbs than rear limbs, giving them a peculiar gait when they walked and the capability of doing great forward leaps. Their masters rode them everywhere as others did with horses and thus became known as the Loper Folk.

Mythic Actions Of The Loper Folk

Zaranistangi say their greatest king, Zemendarn, saved the Artmali emperor’s life in a great battle and that, in gratitude, this emperor gave him the Sword of Tolat. Here it must be reminded that Tolat is one of the barbarians’ name for dread Shargash, the Red Destroyer. The Artmali thought Tolat was the uncle of Artmal, which made him a brother of his mother Serartamal. Artmal had helped his uncle in a battle against a monster called Brejdeg, whom we now think was Umatum the first storm, and Tolat had given him his Sword, which had become the Artmali’s greatest treasure.

The Sword of Tolat was named the “Point of the Leaper”. It became one of the focus of Zaranistangi religion and greatly altered their culture, making them much more warlike. By including Tolat in their pantheon, they grew stronger in the new Storm Age. From then on, many became warriors who used their Parents’ powers to strike at the heart of their enemies, not just to avoid them.

In the long centuries of hardships of the Storm Age, it seems relations between Zaranistangi and Artmali soured, as they did between many peoples. Desero, a great Zaranistangi king, led his people in invasion of the Artmali Empire in Pamaltela. They leapt over the gigantic Wall without Gates circling the Empire and sacked it until they were beaten by Jarkaru, the Artmali hero, who then went on to build the Kungatu Empire. The Zaranistangi were driven back north to the Spike.

When entropy re-entered the world and threatened to annihilate it, Orfeda jumped into the cosmic maelstrom to try to stop its spread. Many of the world’s waters followed her, and she fell in the Underworld (as our Lesilla did), leaving behind her the Blue Streak. The loper folk used their great powers of movement to escape the Spike’s destruction and went north, having seen that a giant Firefall had destroyed the Kungatu Empire. They eventually arrived in Seshkaul in the Age of Darkness.

Seshkaul was a continent covering what we call today Teshnos, Trowjang and Melib. After settling there, the Zaranistangi had to face a new enemy: the waters, led by Lord Sshorg. Their lands were almost completely submerged by this mighty ocean, the way Dara Happa was submerged by Oslira’s mother. Dengbalu, their King, prayed and learned that Tolat would save them in exchange for human sacrifices. Dengbalu organized an immense sacrifice and the ground became blue with running blood. He then struck Tolat’s Sword in the ground. The God’s hand reached down from the skies and pulled the Sword’s hilt, raising the whole land above the waters. Since then, Zaranistangi have offered human sacrifices to Tolat every seventeen days.  We see a parallel with Lesilla’s power, when she raised Her city of Mernita above the Flood, without the human sacrifices of course.

We know King Dengbalu then led a great expedition to find out what had become of their mother, Orfeda. Through rituals, he had learned her body rested very far north and left in his Great Blue Ship, sailing the skies, armed with the Sword of Tolat. He came to the Blue Moon Plateau and fought the Uz who had infested the Goddess’ body, changing her to something the Zaranistangi barely recognized, called “Mahaquata”. He realized the Plateau was but a part of the Goddess’ body, and that other parts were scattered across Genertela. Legends say he swore an oath to gather the parts of his people’s Mother. He then built the “Blue King’s Circle” at the western foot of the Plateau, which can still be seen today by heroes daring to brave the Blue Moon trolls.

While Dengbalu began his Great Quest westwards, leaving his ship behind, many of his followers chose to go back to Seshkaul and brought back with them their “cousins” the Sen Mari or bat-trolls, children of the Goddess’ Body.  These creatures still haunt Melib’s forest to this day. But the greatest opposition to Dengbalu came from his son Piku.

Piku objected to his father taking “Point of the Leaper”, their people’s greatest weapon, into the unknown, too far away to protect the Zaranistangi people from danger. He couldn’t fight his father and chose instead to try and find another weapon of power for his folk. He took his followers away and, much later, is said to have met the Mostali in the Nidan Mountains. Thanks to his Movement and Concealment magics, he stole the secrets of iron from them. Piku and his clan then became weapon smiths who forged many wondrous weapons, including several copies of “Point of the Leaper”, under the name of the tribe of the “Third Eye Blue”.

It is much harder to follow the steps of former King Dengbalu. He seems to have travelled all over the world, and perhaps different worlds, before finally coming to Brithos. There, the Brithini mistook him for one of their old enemies, the blue Vadeli, and killed him and his followers. They took and kept the mighty Sword of Tolat for many centuries.

Back in Seshkaul, a master Zaranistangi King called Turvenost followed the advice of an influential East Isles mystic and ordered an end to the human sacrifices to Tolat. Then the Ashurtani fell from the skies at the end of the First from the celestial island of Churanpur. They were bitter about being cast out of heaven and started conquering Seshkaul. The Zaranistangi fought back but did have neither their Great Weapon nor the support of their Mother. The Ashurtani invoked their great enemy Sshorg again, and this time, an immense tsunami ravaged Seshkaul, separating it in several islands. Still, the island where the Sword had been struck, now called Melib, kept on slowly rising out of the waters and slowing getting bigger.

After their victory in Melib over the Zaranistangi, the Ashurtani attacked Teshnos, but were vanquished and conquered by the Teshnan hero Hisgorantor, Lord of the Gâki people. Melib was integrated in his Kingdom of Teshnos. When Hisgorantor mocked the Zaranistangi’s memory, their so-called ghosts or manes, actually their few survivors, sank his whole fleet. Humbled, Hisgorantor begged their forgiveness and converted with his people to the worship of Zaranistangi Gods: Orfeda, Baraku, Tolat and the others. Surviving Zaranistangi and Gâki then shared knowledge and prayers. The Gâki took to human sacrifice and tinted their skin blue. They even took the name of Zaranistangi, but some “pure” Zaranistangi of old remained apart to preserve their old powers undiluted.

The Loper Folk In History

First Age

A few Zaranistangi survivors from Melib, led by Bradoszaran, succeeded to escape and crossed Prax at the Dawn, where the tribes still remember them and identify Emilla the wandering planet as their “great spirit”. They went west, like their god Baraku did and does, to find and retrieve the Sword of Tolat, tool of their vengeance against the Ashurtani. They wandered across Genertela for centuries, sometimes mistaken for blue Vadeli, sometimes for Helerings, inadvertently crossing into some other peoples’ myths. We lose track of them until the Second Age.

Piku’s followers found their way in the birth of Nysalor, whom we do know was our Goddess trying to reincarnate in this Age. Sons of the Blue Moon, they were attracted to her sister incarnated and tried to reinforce her with their own powers. Before they could do so, the Nidan Mostali struck and shattered Piku’s clan, sending survivors all around Genertela to survive as individual weapon-makers and metalworkers.

In Brithos, one of the Brithini’s promising warriors, a man called Arkat, became Champion of their army. He took the Sword of Tolat and renamed it “God-Cleaver”. He was able to control some of its Power. Sadly, he was Nysalor’s Other: Gbaji. He spent the next 75 years trying to destroy the Bright God, finally chopping Him to pieces with Tolat’s Sword. Then Gbaji went to Ralios and established his Autarchy there. The Sword remained behind when he apotheosized and was passed to his successors.

Bardoszaran’s descendants finally reached Ralios in the 700’s. They managed to gain back their God’s sword from Autarch Paslac, offering him to fight off his Seshnelan enemies in exchange.

Second Age

In Ralios, the Shesnegi Righteousness Crusade crushed the Autarchy in 740, destroying the Zaranistangi warband, with few survivors escaping. The Seshnegi took the Sword of Tolat. It was identified by Jrusteli sorcerers as a weapon of great power and, though they couldn’t unlock most of its powers, one of their heroes, Ordval, used it in his conquests. He renamed the sword “Edge of the East”. The Empire of Land and Sea spread further until it reached Teshnos in 768; the Gâki then learned that their Divine Sword was held by western foreigners. Some of them tried to take it back but failed, drawing the Godlearners’ attention to themselves.

In 770, Ordval landed on Teshnos armed with “Edge of the East”. He established contact with the remaining Zaranistangi and, after discovering his Sword’s secrets, stuck the weapon back where Dengbalu had originally done so. He became King of Melib and chased the Teshnans, but could never take the Sword back. Even though its temple has been destroyed several times since, the Sword is still stuck there today.

From 740 to 800, the remains of Bradozsaran’s warband fought hard against the Godlearners; striking, then vanishing away in their desperate quest to retake the Sword of Tolat. After several defeats they inflicted on imperial forces, the Empire organized a great magical ambush coordinated by ten different schools of sorcery. The trap was sprung in Slontos in 805. The Godlearners said they wiped out the whole people, but were completely wrong.

The Zaranistangi warband tried to teleport far away from their enemies, but it is probable that the enormous amounts of sorcery using against them made the attempt go wrong. They became lost in the Otherworlds and erred there for many centuries before finding a way back to Glorantha, when the Red Moon rose.

In 930, the Closing isolated Melib from the rest of the world. Under Godlearner masters of the Ordval dynasty, Ashurtani took control of the island again and restarted persecuting the Gâki/Zaranistangi folk. Unable to get any outside help, they retreated to the jungles in the heart of Melib and fought a long guerrilla war against the Ashurtani, sometimes with the remaining Godlearners’ support, sometimes against them. Thus did they did gain the use of some sorcery.

Third Age

In 1247, the Red Moon ascended to the skies. The few remaining Zaranistangi around the world stirred and recognized her as a parent of their Mother Orfeda. The new Moon also freed the Zaranistangi army exiled in the Otherworld in 805. Using their old powers and the new goddess’ power, whom they called Yran, the exiled Zaranistangi appeared again in Glorantha. They came back in Faladje in the highlands of Marana, in Pamaltela.

Between 1320 and 1331, under the name of “Yranian Leapers” and using their old blood ties, their raised the blues (Artmali) slaves against their Kareeshtani oppressors and conquered Vralos in Umathela. Wearing red robes to honor their Mother’s new form, they used their old leaping magic to invade their enemies’ cities, of which many fell. Then, as they seem poised to overrun all Fonrit, they vanished. They told their “little brothers” they left behind to “pay their debt” and went to the Other Side, never to be seen again until this day. The Tonds of Kareeshtu are still working hard to learn more about them, to be ready to fight them if they ever come back. The Faladje inhabitants seem to know more than what they admit about the Yranian Leapers and some might have stayed behind. This seems to have been the end of the Zaranistangi actions in Pamaltela – for now.

In Melib, the civil war between Gâki and Ashurtans lasted six centuries. A report noted that a visiting Amazon queen was killed while hunting in the hinterland by “strange blue men who could vanish and reappear at will”. The remnants of the True Cult of Baraku were still active. When the Pharaoh’s fleet landed in 1586, it gave its support to the Gâki and they took the reins of power in Melib again.

In 1590, Harstar’s Teshnan army landed in Melib and took control of the Island. Harstar says he is descendant of Histogantor and plays Ashurtani vs. Gâki. He prepares for the conquest of the mainland, Teshnos. Gâki tell him they’ll fully support him if he can pull the Sword of Tolat from the ground, which he has not yet tried. The Gâki have begun again sacrificing humans in numbers to bring back true Zaranistangi from the Other Side. It seems the cost in lives is horrendous and they need Harstar’s support.

What Future for the Loper Folk?

So far it seems only a few true Zaranistangi have been brought back. When enough will have been reunited with their Sword, the weapon which killed Nysalor, the Zaranistangi people will become again a major power on Glorantha. Though they never were a people of empire-builders, they do have the power to infiltrate any civilization and take from it whatever they chose.

I thus strongly suggest that our Empire establishes contact with the Blue Loper Folk, to establish what threat and/or opportunity they can pose to our Great Goddess. With proper support of the cult of Annilla, we can gain a worthwhile ally to our cause, which holds the Greatest Weapon of the World. I plan on using this Thesis as support for requesting a Grant from the Imperial Exploration Office and go east to meet this fabulous long-forgotten folk!

MAY SEDENYA ENLIGHTEN US ALL

MAY IRRIPI PROTECT THIS TEXT OF KNOWLEDGE

Lunar Magic

Chris Bell

The Wisdom of Sedenya

Sedenyic Philosophy and Lunar Illumination in Mongoose RQ2

For fans who want the classic RuneQuest experience with the terrific updated rules from Mongoose’ Glorantha: The 2nd Age, it’s very easy to convert much of the cultural details from Glorantha: the 2nd Age. Most of the extant cults detailed in Cults of Glorantha have not changed by the 3rd Age, with the notable absence of the God Learner sects and EWF cults. The biggest change in the cultural and magical landscape is the rise of the Lunar Empire, and the unique way that Lunar Magic works. Lunar Magic is unique in that it blends aspects of all three Otherworlds. Likewise, veneration of Lunar Immortals works like Theistic Worship, but not exactly. The Lunar Way is inclusive, and Lunar magicians have access to a wide array of powers that normal Theistic magicians do not. This unprecedented flexibility has contributed to the meteoric rise of the Lunar Empire, echoing in many ways the rise of the Dragonspeaker and God Learner empires of the prior age.

This first article covers Lunar Illumination: “Sevening” and Sedenyic Philosophy

Sevening

The name for the distinct practice of Lunar Illumination, Sevening is the practice of awakening the 7th Soul of a Lunar practitioner, guided by the Lunar Examiners. This variant of Illumination is normally only open to members of Lunar Cults. It normally has the following requirements:

POW 14 or more

Theology (Lunar Cult) or Grimoire (Lunar Sorcery School) or Spirit Walking 80%

Sedenyic Philosophy 80%

Persistence 80%

Meditation 80%

During the Sevening rite, the supplicant is subjected to trials, rituals and riddles in which the All is pitted against the Self, and the subject is challenged to acknowledge that the self is also the greater Self, the 7th part of the soul which is Taraltara, the cosmic Self. The supplicant makes an opposed roll of their Sedenyic Philosophy, versus her POW times 5 or her Persistence, whichever is higher. On a critical success, he or she is Sevened. A supplicant can prepare for this by conducting appropriate Lunar Heroquests, studying under renowned teachers and other methods. This can be done as an in-world Heroquest on its own, with each station adding bonuses to the supplicant’s Sedenyic Philosophy. Reenactments of the Heroquests of various Lunar Gods and Immortals can provide bonuses for the purposes of the Sevening challenge, such as the mythology of Gerra, the teachings of various of the 7 Mothers or Valare Addi, as the GM determines. Acolyte Rank in a Lunar cult grants +10%, Rune Priest rank grants +20% and Rune Lord or the equivalent rank in a lunar cult grants +30%.

Successfully finishing the Sevening rites grants the Lunar several special abilities to that are used in conjunction with Sedenyic Philosophy:

Sedenyic Philosophy can be substituted for Resilience or Persistence versus any form of magic that calls for a resistance roll.

Sedenyic Philosophy replaces all uses of Common Magic, Lore (Deity), Sorcery (Grimoire), Spirit Walking and Spirit Binding, or Manipulation.

Sevened Lunars are immune to Spirits of Reprisal.

Sevened Lunars register as the caster’s type on Detect Law or Detect Chaos spells and senses, and Sevened Lunars may join cults without restriction, including non-Lunar cults.

Note that Sedenyic Philosophy can only be substituted for a Grimoire skill, Common Magic, Spirit Walking and Spirit Binding or Manipulation for Lunar cults. While the Lunar Way does not forbid membership in “unhealed” cults, separate magic skills need to be developed normally. This is another impetus for having cults and people convert to the Lunar Way.

Lunars take a penalty of 20% to their Sedenyic Philosophy tests for each non-Lunar cult that they hold Believer rank in or higher, in all tests, including any Challenges of the All. This is a major impetus for the Lunar crusade to heal the cosmos, and to have all Pantheons come under the embrace of the Lunar Way. Only Lunar versions of local cults count as Healed for this definition. One of the drives to attain Immortal status for many Lunars is to provide their brethren with an ever widening array of magic. So far, this has been a success.

If a Lunar follower wants to be a member of Unhealed cults (such as local deities or practices, ancestral cults, and so on) they are certainly allowed by the Empire, as long as they are not hostile to the Lunar Way. For example, if Avarius the Hoplite wants to continue his traditional worship of Sagittus while also worshipping Yanafal Tarnils, he may. He uses Lore (Sagittus) and the normal Common Magic skill to use his Sagittus Divine magic and non-Lunar Common Magic, which is unaffected by the Lunar Cycle, while using Sedenyic Philosophy for his Lunar Common Magic and his Yanafal Tarnils Divine Magic. This is the case with the bulk of Lunars in the Empire.

Sedenyic Philosophy

Sedenyic Philosophy is the wisdom and teachings of Sedenya, the Red Goddess in her all inclusive form. Sedenyic Philosophy serves as the Lore (Deity) skill for all Lunar cults and healed entities, and can also be used in place of many magic skills by individuals who are Sevened. Otherwise, Sedenyic Philosophy acts as Lore (Deity) and Common Magic when used with Lunar Cults and Lunar Common Magic.

However, Lunar Shamans still need to learn Spirit Walking and Spirit Binding normally unless Sevened, and Lunar Sorcerers still need to learn normal Sorcery skills unless Sevened. This represents the Theist bias of the Lunar Way. Sedenyic Philosophy requires two improvement rolls to advance, not one. Sedenyic Philosophy counts as an advanced skill, and can be added to the advanced skill list for any culture that’s part of the Lunar Empire.

Lunar Magic and the Glowline

Outside of the Glowline, all forms of Lunar magic are subject to the Lunar Cycle. The Moon normally shifts from fully red to black and then back to fully red again over a 7 day period. Any Lunar Common Magic and all spells from Lunar Divine cults and Lunar Sorcery are affected by this cycle:

Moon Phase

Magnitude
Multiplier

Black Moon

X0.5

Crescent Moon

X0.8

Empty Half

X1.0

Full Moon

X1.3

Full Half

X1.0

Crescent Moon

X0.8

Dying Moon

X0.5

The magnitude of all Lunar magic is multiplied by the above multiplier on the day of the particular moon phase. This counts for all Lunar Common Magic, Lunar Divine Magic and Sorcery from Lunar Sorcery schools. Within the Glowline, all Lunar Magic is treated as if the Red Moon were in its Full Moon phase.

Why Go Lunar?

Even outside of the Glowline, there are compelling reasons to study Lunar magic. First, since Sedenyic Philosophy governs the use of Lunar Common and Divine Magic, advancement in the unified Lunar magical teachings is often faster. Secondly, for individuals who decide to undergo the harrowing path of Sevening, Lunar Illumination gives a unified understanding of the All which aids in the practice of Lunar magic, enabling ease of attaining and understanding all Healed powers, making Lunars versatile and powerful magicians. This can also be very powerful in Heroquesting, as Lunar magic always counts as native to whatever Otherworld the Lunar is visiting. This is the case for Sevened and non-Illuminated Lunar Magicians.

Wuyani, Children of the Vulture God

Roderick Robertson

According to noted Dara Happan naturalist Darlan var Enkorth, Guttas is the disreputable cousin of the regal Vrimak. At one time, according to Darlan, Guttas developed a taste for carrion after a battle with digijelm invaders. His cousin drove him from his court for his filthy eating habits, and Guttas is now found in the wilderness, feeding on death and corruption.

According to the Praxians, Wuyi the Vulture is the younger brother of Yayil the Condor, the “Fourth Feathered Rival”. Vulture was driven from his clan by Condor when he was caught stealing Condor’s food. Since that time Condor has kept the highest places for himself (Such as the eponymous “Condor Crags” in eastern Prax) while Vulture has lived on the Plains.

The Orlanthi say that Glytha the Vulture was created by Humakt to devour the dead bodies of the slain, preventing them from rising as the Undead. He performs an important, though disgusting, service. He, along with Raven and Wolf, form Humakt the Slayer’s entourage.

To the Monotheist cultures of the west, Vultur is universally seen as a creation of the devil, unclean and only one step above Chaos, upon which it lives (the natural decay of a dead body is seen as a “miracle” of chaos, whereby a solid object (the body) is reduced to mere slime and bones). Vultur is not itself chaotic, though it lives on the result of chaos.

Vultures are large birds, the size of large hawks or eagles, with bald heads - said variously to be the result of having his head plucked by a rival (Vrimak in Dara Happan stories; Hare in Praxian ones), or plucked by vulture himself to allow him to stick his head in the abdominal cavity of a corpse without getting his feathers clogged with blood and viscera. Vultures feed upon carrion or near-carrion (those wounded and close to death).

The Wuyani, known as the “Children of the Vulture God”, are a cross of Human and Vulture features; a vulture head perches atop a human body, with a ruff of black feathers around their shoulders. Their fingernails are more like bird talons, sharp and black. While, they are not winged and cannot fly (without magic, at least), their bones are lighter than those of humans, filled with air cavities like a bird’s.  Their body can be grey or pink, depending on location – generally, northern Wuyani are white or grey-skinned, while more southern Wuyani are pink skinned.

Wuyani live in family groups of a dozen or more adults, covering a range of a about a hundred square miles. They are exogamous, taking mates from neighboring families. Wuyani normally stay in the wilderness, far from human towns or cities. Many cultures (human or otherwise) consider the Wuyani to be a form of Broo or Harpy (Sometimes they are called “Backwards Harpies”). Their habit of feeding indiscriminately on carrion disgusts almost all non-chaos races, and no-one wants their loved ones to be feasted on by semi-humans!

The Wuyani are theists, worshipping Vuyatok the Vulture God. They do not tell their god’s stories to outsiders, as evidenced by the different stories told about Vulture. Magic provided by Vuyatok includes Detect the Dead, Long Soaring (flying magic) and Long Spit (an augmentation that allows a Wuyani to spit their acidic saliva several dozen yards).

Wuyani physical culture relies on what they can scavenge from the dead around them. Tanned hides and bone implements are common, though the corpse of an intelligent adventurer can provide woven cloth, worked leather and metal weapons. The Wuyani do not need fire to cook their food, and usually only build a fire when the temperature falls below freezing. Then they use the flames both to keep themselves from freezing, and to defrost their food to allow them to eat it. They do not use pottery or baskets – they normally do not need to keep their food, as Death is all around them.

The digestive juices of the Wuyani are extremely strong, allowing them to digest flesh infected with diseases or poisons that would kill other scavengers. They can even eat the bodies of many chaos creatures, such as broo, scorpionmen or Jack-o-Bears, though not the more toxic creatures like Gorp. Wuyani are able to gauge the “chaosness” of a body, avoiding those that have a high chance of infecting the eater with disease or a chaos feature. Wuyani saliva is highly acidic, and they can spit remarkably accurately up to 2 yards, often aiming for the eyes to blind their opponent.

Wuyani are not cannibals – they will not eat one of their own dead. Instead, Dead Wuyani are left for their cousins; true, avian, vultures. They will eat any other dead creature, even the stony dwarfs and woody elves. Leading to some speculation about their origins, since vultures won’t touch those two species.

Wuyani hate Harpies with a primordial passion, and will attack harpies if they try to move in on Wuyani territory. Wuyani won’t eat the corpses of harpies, out of simple disgust. Wuyani will not normally engage in close combat, unless they outnumber their opponents by a wide margin, or the opponent is near death. Harpies are an exception to this rule – a single Wuyani will take on two or even three harpies at once, even if it kills him.

Vuyatok the Vulture God

Vuyatok has many names among the different peoples of Genertela: Guttas, Glytha, Wuyi, Vultur. To the Wuyani, he is Vuyatok, Father and creator. The Godlearners (wrongly, as usual with them) assigned Vulture to the Pelorian pantheon, cousin of Vrimak. Vuyatok is a God, a creature of the God Plane, though some, such as the Animal Riders of the Wastes, worship (or, more appropriately, propitiate) him as a Spirit.

Worship of Vuyatok is only practiced by the Wuyani and the occasional crazed Death Cultist. To the Wuyani he is the Creator, and embodies both Male and Female principles. He is also the Cleanser, fighting corruption by eating the Dead. Without his services, Death and Undeath would reign supreme in Glorantha, and plagues would spread with no check. While the rest of the world sees only the “carrion eater”, the Wuyani see the Cleanser.

The Wuyani say that Vuyatok was born in the so-called “Golden Age”, when armies clashed and creatures died (not, perhaps in Dara Happa under the “benevolent” gaze of Murharzarm, but elsewhere in the world). Vuyatok was born of the Great Bird and Old Woman Death,  and found that the taste of Dead Things was preferable to that of plants or stones or living beings. Vuyatok was not a fighter, or a healer, or a lover, or a maker, but was a Cleaner, a Remover of Dead Things.

Vuyatok has never had feathers on his head (he was never plucked by another God, regardless of what other cultures may say – what do they know?). His magnificent wings are black above, white below. He can eat any dead thing, though he prefers the flesh of animals to dead wood or water or rock. He can even eat Chaos, removing it from Glorantha and shitting out non-chaotic waste. Where the chaos goes is a secret of the God –the Wuyani do not speculate on it.

Vuyatok hates the Harpies, though he will not reveal their origin (again, the God Learners and Dara Happans got it wrong – it was not Oria who created them). It is one of the few mandates of worship of Vuyatok that “Thou shalt not suffer a Harpy to live”.

Vuyatok is a God of the Wild. Though he will not hesitate to enter a town if there is Death nearby, he is found more often in the wilderness. Vuyatok can sense the presence of Death. The more Death, the sooner he can sense it – even before it happens, in the case of large battles. Large swarms of his Children will follow armies days before a battle.

Vuyatok gave birth to three children: Vultures, the Wuyani, and the Veselyu Vulture Daemons. Vultures and the Wuyani both live in the Middle world. Veselyu are Daemons and live in the God World, though they can be summoned by worshippers of Vuyatok. The Wuyani are the normal worshippers, but there have been some extraordinary vultures in times past, like Dolm the Stone Eater and Shalu Harpy-bane, who were intelligent and worshipped Vuyatok as heroes.

Worship of Vuyatok is inherent in every Wuyani. Though the eldest Wuyani traditionally leads worship services, ant Wuyani knows the rites. Most ritual objects are the remains of the dead – bones and skulls figure prominently.

Sharduk Sun-face, a Dara Happan scholar and naturalist, claims in his “Rites of Barbarian Animals” that the Wuyani perform “Death Hunt Dances”, willing death on creatures and humans. What he actually witnessed is nothing more than the “Cleansing Rite”, a way for Wuyani to find the dead, much like a Hunting rite in other cultures. They do not will death, simply find it and remove it.

Some, braver, worshippers carry replicas of the Veselyu cleavers, and are less shy about combat.

Worship of Vuyatok as described here is only practiced by the Wuyani. There are no “adoption rites” to allow outsiders access to this cult. Cult practices vary slightly over the lands of Glorantha, though in the main most worshippers will recognize these variants easily.

The cult of Vuyatok is thoroughly intermixed in the daily lives of the Wuyani – one cannot say where “Daily Life” ends and “Worship” begins. The Eldest Wuyani normally leads worship ceremonies, and is called Grandmother or Grandfather. If two bands of Wuyani worship together, the oldest performs the rites for everyone. Worship of Vuyatok provides the normal magical abilities available from a theistic cult. Special magic includes Flight, Spit, Sense Death and Eat Chaos.  Affinities (For Heroquest) are Death (especially the “Separation of Living and Dead” aspect) and Bird. The Secret of the cult is to Eat and remove Chaos from the world. A Hero with this secret may remove any amount of Chaos (which it can eat) from the world permanently. Large chaos creatures might require many Wuyani with this secret to eliminate. Wuyani Worshippers travel to Vulture’s Roost in the God Plane, where they commune with Vuyatok.

Vulture

Cathartes aura

Ages: All since the Golden Age

Distribution: All across Genertela and its coastal islands (An unrelated species exists in Pamaltela)

Habitat: Anywhere and everywhere except the tallest mountains and Valind’s Glacier.

Vultures are carrion feeders, and seen as disgusting birds of ill-omen by many cultures. Vultures are ubiquitous in Genertela. A few cultures use vultures are a way to dispose of their dead, often leaving the body on a barrow or wooden framework “for the birds”. These cultures view the vulture as the psychopomp, leading the soul of the dead to the afterlife, even as it eats their flesh. The Orlanthi uniquely see the Vulture as a bird whose carrion feeding serves a purpose – namely keeping the dead from rising. A corpse eaten by a vulture cannot rise or be risen by normal means (though “Create Skeleton” type magic usually still works).

Vultures are normally seen soaring in solitary circles, though huge kettles (flocks) of vultures will gather for battles or plagues. Vultures gorge until they are too heavy to fly, and will turn the ground black with their resting bodies as they digest their food. 

Vultures are not equipped for killing prey (unless it is nearly dead and too weak to resist), and cannot pierce some of the thicker skins, such as Rhinos or buffalo, waiting instead for some other scavenger to first open the body.

The vulture’s distinctive feature is its bald head, usually wrinkled pink or grey-white flesh. When flying, a vulture can easily be mistaken for a hawk or eagle by those with little knowledge.

Distinct Abilities: Eat, Sense death, Soar.

Tactics: When attacked, the vulture will fly or hop away.

Veselyu Vulture Daemons

Ages: All since the Golden Age

Distribution: God World. Can be summoned to the Inner World

Habitat: The “wilderness” areas of the God World

Veselyu look like large Wuyani with vulture wings. The skin of their head and body can be almost any color, with no discernable distinction between colors. They stand approximately 20 feet tall, though tend to walk with a permanent stoop.

Veselyu perform the same services in the Gods World as Vultures do in the Inner World. They are mostly found where Death stalks the God Plane – noted battles or sieges, plagues, and Heroic combats. In the main, Veselyu are as “cowardly” as their avian siblings, though a direct attack on a Veselyu reveals them to be able fighters.  Veselyu are armed with two-handed cleavers, which they use to dismember their food. These cleavers can be used to great effect in combat.

Significant Abilities: Sense Approaching Death, Dismember, Fly, Eat (almost) Anything.

Life In Prax

Andrew Larsen

The Yassa

The Yassa is the Law of Waha.  It defines the basic parameters of Praxian life.  It determines how men deal with women, with animals, and with those outside their own tent.  It is not a moral guide, but a guide to proper procedure and ritual.  It explains how people are to survive, both technically (what plants and animals can be eaten, how an animal is to be butchered), magically (what living beings eat plants and what living beings eat animals, what living beings are people) and interpersonally (how strangers are treated, when and where violence is acceptable).  It defines crime and punishment, funeral customs, and clothing styles, among other things.

The Yassa defines four categories of beings: the Wahano, the “People of Waha”; the Eirithana the “Children of Eiritha”; the Oho-Wahano, the “Not-People of Waha”; and the Vrakanga, the “things of Chaos”.  The Yassa is binding on the Wahano and the Eirithana. The Oho-Wahano are those who do not abide by the Yassa and who are therefore not considered Praxians; this includes both foreigners (a category that includes River Folk, Oasis Folk, and Pavisites, as well as those coming into Prax from elsewhere) and the Gagarthi, those who have been banished for violating the Yassa.  The Oho-Wahano can be treated in any way the Wahano choose, and cannot claim any sort of protection under the Yassa.  The Vrakanga are not to be tolerated but must be directly opposed and destroyed. 

Praxian society itself is divided into the Wahano and the Eirithana (essentially, people and animals), and they are bound by the Yassa.  For the most part, people are two-legged and animals are four-legged.  However, the Morokanth tribe invert this; the people are four-legged and the animals are two-legged.  The Morokanth herd humanoid beasts known as gern (herdmen).  The gern have the intelligence and instincts of beasts, while the Morokanth speak and interact as people.  Despite the occasional insults of the other tribes, the Morokanth do not eat people, only gern; when other tribes capture gern, they are treated as herd beasts and may be eaten (although there is often some discomfort about doing so).  The two-legged/four-legged division also breaks down among the Bolo Lizard and Ostrich riders, whose mounts are two-legged animals.  The people of Waha are bound to treat the beasts of Eiritha according to proscribed forms that include how to herd them, where to graze them, and how to kill and eat them.

Those outside the Yassa are always, at all times, legitimate targets of violence.  The only considerations applied in normal circumstances are whether it is prudent and useful to attack them or trade with them at a particular moment.  Outsiders are seen as a resource to be exploited; their property can be taken to enrich the individual or the sept, they themselves can be killed or enslaved, and they can be bargained with for things that the Praxians cannot produce themselves.  They can be lied to, cheated, and stolen from.  About the only restrictions are that they cannot be killed on sacred ground (because Praxians are forbidden to engage in violence there) and they cannot be eaten (because they are not food, although the Morokanth have a way around that).  Praxians have no concept of ‘giving their word’ to non-Praxians; such a concept only applies to interactions between Praxians. Indeed, Praxian culture celebrates clever trickery of non-Praxians, who are normally understood to be stupid, arrogant, and useless.

The Yassa also regulates how tribes can interact.  In general, it permits both raiding and outright warfare between clans and tribes, but also stipulates times when such activities are forbidden and places where they forbidden.  In general, violence is forbidden within sight of any altar and within the bounds of the Paps; the only exceptions to this are creatures of Chaos, who must be attacked by warriors wherever they are, and if a Wahano or Eirithana is attacked, in which case defensive violence is permitted (in such a situation, all legal and spiritual penalty comes on the attacker). 

The Yassa specifies a variety of taboo actions, the violation of which result in either death or banishment.  Taboo actions include the killing of a sept-member, homosexuality, sex with any person who qualifies as one’s mother, violence at an altar or within the Paps, a woman killing an Eirithana, intentional mis-butchery of an animal, the presence of a man at any woman-only ritual, riding or eating horses, and cannibalism; of these cannibalism is considered the worst offense possible (because it violates the fundamental principle that Wahano eat Eirithana, the entire basis of Praxian life), but the improper killing of an Eirithana is a close second. Other actions are considered legal but bad luck, such as a man touching a menstruating woman, killing a skullbat, giving an Oho-Wahano shelter during a storm, touching a dead hyena, attacking a Praxian mount, non-shamans entering a spirit-place, and eating eggs outdoors.

Customs

The ger traditionally faces east, for the practical reason that strong winds rarely blow from the east.  Praxians associate the south with Eiritha, the north with Waha, the west with Storm Bull, and the east with Daka Fal. For this reason, women occupy the left (south) half of the ger and men the right (north) half.  The west side of the tent is a place of special favor; a khan or priestess or honored guest will be given that location.  Children and most visitors sit on the east side.

These arrangements are loosely replicated across the camp, where possible.  The khan camps on the north side, while the priestess camps to the south (although among the Bison Riders, both camp on the west side, in the place of honor), while the bachelor’s tent is normally on the east side.  Women’s activities (such as shearing herd beasts) typically take place on the south side of the camp, while men’s activities (such as butchering animals) take place on the north side.  Shamans generally conduct their activities to the east of the camp, unless they are contacting cult spirits associated with Waha, Eiritha, or Storm Bull (in which case the appropriate direction is favored). 

Strangers who wish to demonstrate their friendliness approach a camp from the south or the east, although this doesn’t guarantee that those who approach from those directions will receive a friendly reception.  When strangers meet, except on sacred ground or other ritualized situations, it is expected that some form of competition will occur. If the strangers are hostile, the competition is combat; thus when members of different tribes meet, fights typically break out.  The degree of hostility determines how vicious the fight gets.  If there is no hostility, the competition looks more like a sporting match; this commonly takes the form of races, wrestling matches, boasting or shouting competitions, and riddle challenges.  Women compete with dancing, boasting, or racing, or by showing off their necklaces (which indicate how wealthy they are).  When groups meet, only one competition is required, although more may happen.  Many long-running quarrels have broken out when a non-violent competition provoked angry feelings.

Praxians typically focus their loyalties on their blood relatives, whom they are expected to protect and support at all times.  But they recognize three special arrangements that create fictive relationships.  A stranger who is invited into a ger is traditionally offered bread and salt.  For the duration of the stranger’s visit, he is considered to be a distant blood relative, a ‘salt-brother’.  Neither guest nor host is permitted to do anything that physically or magically harms the other, which includes theft.  The relationship expires when the guest departs the ger and travels out of sight. 

Praxian warriors often build followings of lesser warriors. These men act as military supporters but more politically-minded men can use them to rise to clan-khan.   These lesser warriors repudiate their membership in their sept, clan, or even tribe and declare themselves the noker (or ‘younger brother’) of the greater man.  Such a practice allows Praxians to build coalitions that cross family lines, but it requires the noker to acknowledge a subservient position to the leader.

Two men who consider themselves equals might make themselves andas, or ‘sworn brothers’.  They do this with a simple ritual in which they both take a handful of dirt (symbolizing Mother Eiritha), rub their hands with it, and then rub their hands together.  Such a relationship is considered more binding and deeper than biological brotherhood.

Although Praxian life is hard, Praxians have many forms of amusement, most of which are quite simple sports.  Men compete in racing, wrestling, archery and javelin-throwing; among Bison and Rhino Riders, head-butting is a favored sport.  At the Butchering Festival, khans compete to see who can perform the best Peaceful Cut ceremony, with prizes given for fastest work and most elegant work.  Rodeo sports are also common.  Among women, the favored sports are competitive singing and dancing; on Helpwoman’s Day there are competitions of craftwork.  Other diversions include riddle contests and genealogy-recitation challenges.

A Prayer to Waha

John Harding

The prayer below was found with the remains of a unnamed dead Lankhor Mhy worshiper on the north bank of the junction of Sounders River and the Good Canal. He is known to archivists as “The Good Canal Scholar” and is well known to present day students as an authority on chants and customs of the Praxians. His home temple and name remain unknown to us to this day. The majority of the bundle of parchment was too damaged to read due to water damage. What could be pieced together from the remains indicated that he was researching the customs of the various tribes. The remains however are still one the best sources for customs and songs of the Praxians.

The following is a facsimile of one of the better preserved pages from the collection.

Theodopolus Pandarus

A Plea to Waha

Oh, Waha, whose voice I hear in the herds
Butcher of the herds, hear me

I come to you as one of the Endrawaha
I am small, I need your wisdom to guide my hand
Open my ears so that I may learn to your ways
Make me wise so that I may know the things you have taught the Endrawaha
The lessons you have written in every hoof and pelt

May I cut as you taught us
May my hand be steady
May my knife be sharp
May my cut be peaceful in the way you taught us

Make my arm strong and hand sure
That I may take without pain

Make me ever ready with sharp knife and steady hand,
So that when life fades as it must,
I may face the judge without shame.

Oh, Waha, whose voice I hear in the herds
Butcher of the herds, hear me

“I originally heard this prayer when I was allowed to attend an initiation ceremony of Impala Tribe youths but I also heard variations of this from other tribes including the Sable and Bison. Even though it is an initiation prayer it is also used by men of all ages as an invocation before they undertake a hard or particularly meaningful task. It seems to only be used when the task is not of a martial nature and is said to focus the mind on the task in hand, giving good luck to the person reciting it.

Young men are prone to use it before formally courting one of the tribes maids. however I also came across it being used before young men were sent out to seek particularly dry lumps of dung for the cooking fires. I am not sure whether this was increase the luck of the men in finding the said dung or to fortify them during the task in hand. It would seems to be very much a multi use prayer ...never let its be said that the Praxians are not a romantic breed!”

The Good Canal Scholar
Fragment 10.1

Leaping Horse Monks

David Millians

The empire has long outlawed members of this Sheng-era martial arts tradition. They claim a minor son of Sheng, whose mother was a Kralori master, as their founder, and several lineages exist throughout the land. They have a few hidden dojos and safe houses, but most wander the land. Considered seditious by nature, most actually behave honorably and have been known individually to win powerful friends. They do aspire to a renewal of the Empire of the Star, but they are a small organization. Most make a simple living and do good work, though some ally with other followers of Pain Star or even tongs and evil cultists.

A Leaping Horse monk is known for his great leaps and mighty kicks. Most of their strengths come from long physical training, but they can also draw upon a few spirits.

Entry Requirements: Oath of Loyalty to Pain Star and Master

Abilities: Open Spirit World, Leaping Horse Practice Knowledge, Spirit Face

Virtues: Honorable, Loyal, Wandering

Spirits:

Kicking spirits (Fists as Hooves 13 to 20, Kick High 17, Kick Low 17)

Leaping spirits (Jump Clear 15, Leap Into Battle 17, Leap Over Foe 15)

Spirit Ally: Spirit allies are always Kickers or Leapers.

Fetishes: They use tattoos.

Secret: Heroform Leaping Horse (Bite 10W, Kick 10W, Leap 15W)

Secret Requirements: Open Spirit World, Leaping Horse Practice Knowledge, and Spirit Face at 1W2

Holy Days: These vary by lineage, but all try to find one another in summertime to test their skills against one another and any challengers.

Other Side: Clifftop Meadow contains the last spirit herds of Pain Star and is dutifully guarded from imperial interlopers.

Other Connections: Many Kralori martial artists know enough to honor these warriors, even if they do not trust them.

Disadvantages: Any practitioner of this order is subject to execution if discovered.