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I am going to assume the reader either has familiarity with RuneQuest and Glorantha: The Second Age, or has at least read my reviews of those products. There is too much ground to cover otherwise. Also, as with previous reviews, I will clearly tell you up front what each section is about with the heading, so feel free to skip any area you already are familiar with (or couldn't care less about!). A review, like any piece of prose, is as much about the reader as the author. Do as you will.
I like to get pretty detailed. If you want a quick encapsulation, just skip to the end of the review. Otherwise, go get yourself a cup of coffee, relax, and enjoy the review.
INTRODUCTION
Back when Mongoose announced they would be re releasing the classic RPG RuneQuest, a friend of mine made the following observation: “They aren't going to succeed based on the system alone. No matter how they tweak it, it's already an established set of rules that's been around for decades, and in a number of permutations (Stormbringer, ElfQuest, Hawkmoon, Call of Cthulhu, etc). If they are going to make it work, it will all depend on how well they support their settings.”
In the case of Glorantha, this presented a unique challenge. The original RuneQuest had built a large part of its reputation on outstanding Gloranthan supplements, such as Trollpak and Cults of Prax. If Mongoose had settled for merely reprinting these classics with updated statistics, few would have been pleased. To make matters worse, Glorantha was still a living campaign world, the setting for Greg Stafford's HeroQuest. Stafford had created Glorantha four decades ago, and HeroQuest showcased his latest incarnation of it. This put the Mongoose design team in the position of not only competing with the earlier Gloranthan materials, but also the new.
The question came down to this: “how could Mongoose make their version of Glorantha different enough to justify a whole new game line, yet simultaneously retain enough points of contact to remain consistent with what was already out there?”
The answer is, “plenty.”
In Glorantha: The Second Age, Mongoose laid out in broad strokes how their vision of Glorantha differed from others. Set seven hundred years prior to period of both the original RuneQuest and the current HeroQuest materials, this new vision of the world was both fresh and familiar. Here was Glorantha during its glorious Second Age, an age of mighty empires and unprecedented human hubris, where mankind was turning its back on the ancient gods and spirits who forged the world in favor of potent new sorceries and exotic mysticisms. Long-time fans knew these empires—the infamous God Learners and inhuman Wyrm's Friends—were doomed to fall in an Atlantean or Numenorian-type cataclysm, but very little else was known about them. This gave Mongoose a chance to “draw back the curtain” on these empires, and to create a Glorantha quite different from those which came before it.
And, knowingly or unknowingly, it allowed them to put their finger on exactly the thing which made Glorantha different from other settings, its “world view.”
It is with this world view that we need to begin, because it is the single strongest thread running through the length of Magic of Glorantha, the first Mongoose Gloranthan product to fully break off and head into uncharted waters.
THE WORLD VIEW
The hallmark of all great fantasy is a strong, overriding world view. I was tempted to employ the more useful term “paradigm” in the heading, but to avoid Mage: The Ascension associations opted against it. But the fact remains that the truly enduring fantasy worlds all have a paradigm which informs them, a lens through which the setting understands itself. Perhaps it is because of our sympathy for certain paradigms over others that different people find themselves attracted to different settings; they show us the world the way we choose to believe it really is.
Consider Tolkien. Middle Earth is a world which has an absolute truth. Eru created the world, and those who live in accordance with the “mind of Eru” are good while those who go against it are bad. Goodness, truth, and righteousness are the rewards of those who side with Eru and the Valar. Those who defy Eru, from Melkor and Sauron right down to the Easterlings, fall into error and ultimately suffer. This is the kind of absolutism offered by Christianity, which is not surprising considering Tolkien's own devout Catholicism.
On the other hand, we have Howard. Howard's Hyborian Age has no absolutes, no good, no truth, and no real evil (its demons may be alien and inhuman, but don't qualify as evil the way Melkor does, because there is no absolute good to be the opposite of). The Hyborian Age is an almost Nietzschean paradigm where strength is the only real virtue.
Michael Moorcock offers a very different paradigm. His work seems to say that any absolute—in his case absolute Law or absolute Chaos—is intrinsically unbearable and that the only wholesome route lies through balance.
With this in mind, let's consider Glorantha. If Middle Earth embraces a single truth, Hyboria mocks truth, and Moorcock's Million Spheres seek a balance between truths, Glorantha says to us that truth is in the eye of the beholder. Truth exists, and can be obtained, but it is a cultural and—to an extent—personal truth not valid for everyone. Truth is a local, rather than a universal, phenomenon. For example, most cultures in Glorantha agree that there was a time when the sun disappeared from the sky. The Orlanthi say that the sun was a tyrannical emperor, and that mighty Orlanth slew him to liberate the cosmos. However, the sun-worshiping Dara Happans say Orlanth merely slew the solar emperor's son(the divine sun himself was far too great to slay), and that the solar emperor died of grief. Now, in any other world, we might just say that these too cultures have different beliefs and leave it at that. But in Glorantha, an objective third party—like, say, a God Learner—could go to Dara Happa, leave the mortal plane, and personally witness Orlanth slaying the solar emperor's son. The same God Learner could then go to an Orlanthi holy site, enter the Hero Plane, and personally witness Orlanth slaying the tyrannical solar emperor himself. In fact, he could get powers from participating in two contradictory myths!
Because of this, Glorantha embraces a pluralism unprecedented in other fantasy settings. Tolkien is culturally pluralistic, but his world operates around a single truth. Hyboria is also culturally pluralistic, but truth is ambiguous at best. And Moorcock may have a Million Spheres, but all are governed by the same struggle. Even Dungeons & Dragons, with its “everything but the kitchen sink” approach to setting design, still has the cosmic absolutes of law, chaos, good, and evil (lawful good is lawful good, from world to world and setting to setting). Glorantha is wholly relativistic.
This pluralism is not the result of a modern, politically correct, “accept all faiths” viewpoint, but rather indicative of the pagan attitude, which is wholly consistent with the mythic, bronze-age world Glorantha portrays. When we examine the religious attitudes of ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern cultures, for example, we find that they are perfectly aware of foreign gods, and accept their existence, but view their own deities as being more central to their lives. A clear example can be found in the Ten Commandments of Hebrew scriptures, where Yahweh tells his people “I am your God, and you shall have no other gods before me.” Note he does not say, “I am the only true God, and all other gods are false.” This attitude did not appear until late antiquity, a period which falls long after Glorantha's scope.
From a Gloranthan viewpoint, therefore, the natural way of things is to stick with your own gods and truths, but be aware that other equally valid realities exist. Whenever, in Glorantha, a culture violates this rule, they are made to pay. This theme was certainly present in previous incarnations of the game—for indeed, the great crime of the Lunar Empire was to attempt to impose its own view of the world on all surrounding cultures—but it is far more clearly articulated here in the Second Age. Both the great empires of this age are guilty of trying to impose their beliefs upon others...and this will be the downfall of both.
This theme was put forward in Glorantha: The Second Age, but it emerges far more strongly in Magic of Glorantha. It is the core of the book.
THE PHYSICAL BOOK
Like Glorantha: The Second Age, Magic of Glorantha is a hardcover, with full color pages. The paper is heavy and slightly glossy. It is smaller than its predecessor, 96 pages compared to 160, but it is also $10 (U.S.) cheaper. There are not quite as many illustrations, and the ones that are there are small. 4 interior artists are credited compared to the previous book's 12. That having been said, it is an attractive volume with a solid binding. It lays flat, which is of tremendous import in a game book that receives frequent use.
THE WRITING
Not quite as deft as Robin D. Laws (the author of Glorantha: The Second Age), author Aaron Dembski-Bowden has a strong prose style which is evocative where it needs to be and concise where it should be. It is one of the better-written game books out there. Rather than provide examples here, I will quote the author throughout the review.
If I have any complaint, it lies with some obvious, setting-specific details. For example, in a section on mandatory time commitments various ranks of Wyrm's Friends must make to their cults, Mr. Dembski-Bowden tells us “...Disciples...must serve one month in every four” and later “...Wyrm's Hand Triumphants are expected to...(serve) for nine months out of every 12” (pp 8-9). Now, I am not certain what calendar the EWF uses, but the Gloranthan calendar has always had 5 seasons in a year, with a two-week appendage known as “sacred time.” Certainly this fact is not unknown to Mongoose, as it is mentioned on page 4 of Glorantha: The Second Age. But as I said this is a minor error in well executed book.
THE INTRODUCTION (& what the book covers)
“The second Age of Glorantha is not an era based on equal empires and worldly balance. In fact, the exact opposite is true....God Learner sorcerers and EWF dragonspeakers will demonstrate their cultures'...incredible levels of power and may end up towering above those they meet in all political, military, and magical respects. This imbalance is not a problem with the setting that Games Masters need to work around—it is an integral feature of Glorantha's doomed Second Age. If it creeps into your group's games, then run with it...” (p. 3)
This short (2-page) Introduction sets up the scope of the book. Magic of Glorantha covers five topics. Two of them—Draconic Mysticism and God Learner Sorcery—are unique to this version of Glorantha. The third chapter, the Old Ways, looks at two theistic pantheons (Solar and Storm) in broad strokes. The individual gods belonging to these pantheons are detailed in Cults of Glorantha, Volume I, but the goal of this chapter is to look at them as a whole, and the relationships between them and the empires of this Age. The fourth chapter is “HeroQuesting,” the practice of leaving the mortal plane of Glorantha to enter into the mythic realms. There, the hero emulates the deeds of the gods in myth and as a reward, gains similar powers. HeroQuesting has always been part of the setting, but never officially discussed in previous incarnations of RuneQuest. Finally, the book concludes with descriptions of the greatest magicians of the Age.
DRACONIC MYSTICISM
“With the the rise of (the Empire of the Wyrm's Friends)...the religious beliefs of the cultures they have conquered come under the increasing pressure of draconisation. The imperial faith is in the dragonspeaker cults: the groups devoted to the birth of the Great Dragon. This mandate leaves conquered populations in a dangerous position should they not desire to convert directly to the beliefs of their conquerors...the choice they face is simple: adoption, conversion, or destruction...” (p. 4)
The Dragons of Glorantha are not like those found in many other settings. They are immense beings, often several miles long, possessed of truly godlike power. Where they dwell, none can say. They come to Glorantha only to lay clutches of eggs, which hatch into the Dragonewt species. These Dragonewts reincarnate—upon death, the spirit returns to the egg from which the creature originally hatched, and a new form is generated. Over many hundreds of lifetimes, the creatures evolve into true Dragons and leave Glorantha. The only real threat to a Dragonewt is therefore the destruction of its egg; without an egg to return to, it cannot reincarnate or evolve. For whatever reason, the majority of Dragon egg clutches are laid in a region of Glorantha known as Dragon Pass.
Throughout Gloranthan history, humans and Dragonewts maintained an uneasy coexistence. The Dragonewt tongue, Auld Wyrmish, was incomprehensible to humans. But in the Second Age, the code of that language was cracked, allowing humans to begin to learn the tongue. Such is the power of this language that simply learning the words changes you...mentally, spiritually, and physically. You begin to think and act like a Dragonewt. The result was the spread of several new draconic cults throughout Dragon Pass, which in turn formed the nucleus of a new power, the Empire of Wyrm's Friends (or EWF).
The core of the EWF's faith is simple; “the veneration of the Great Dragon is founded in a deep disgust at the world of the flesh, regarding the mortal form as another imperfection in a world of imperfections. Dragons represent the pinnacle of physical, spiritual, and magical evolution, and are therefore to be emulated” (p. 4). They intend to redeem the imperfect physical realm by transforming their empire—both the land and everyone in it—into a single, Great Dragon. This mad scheme demands that the Empire collect (and horde) immense amounts of magical energy. That means converting more and more people to the Dragon Way.
This chapter covers a lot of ground. It discusses the philosophic points of Draconic Mysticism, which includes obsessive emulation of the Dragonewts (for example, Dragonewts are left-handed, so all true disciples force themselves to be) and the dedication of every ounce of magical energy towards creating the Great Dragon To Come. It then details the hierarchal structure of dragonspeaker cults, including the benefits and restrictions of each level of membership. It then details several of the cults themselves, which form a kind of “draconic pantheon,” not of separate deities, but rather of different approaches to creating the Great Dragon. For example, the Order of Crimson Purity exists to root out internal corruption in the Empire, purifying it for the coming of the Great Dragon, while the Adepts of Inhuman Mastery focus on increasing the Empire's borders. Nine such cults are detailed.
There is a discussion then of Draconic martial arts and—er—Dances. This is not quite as odd as it sounds, as wielding the powers of Draconic Mysticism requires the disciple to execute certain draconic poses and motions. A dragonspeaker's Draconic Illumination skill rating, which is rolled against to cast dragon magic, may never exceed an individual's Martial Arts or Dance rating. Some of the martial arts styles and dance forms are quite colorful, such as the Way of Osseous subjugation, which specializes in breaking bones to agonize the victim, or the Dance of the Blackened Sun, which gives the dragonspeaker access to a new Legendary Ability that allows the character to respond to any single combat action performed by an enemy with a free attack.
Finally, there is a long and detailed system of “Dragon Magic.” Dragon Magic functions similarly to Rune Magic, but requires a Draconic Illumination skill roll instead. In addition, to reflect the long-standing RuneQuest tradition that Dragonewts are reluctant to use their magic (it ties them to the mortal world rather than allowing them to transcend it), every time a dragonspeaker makes a Critical Success on a Draconic Illumination roll, he actually loses a point from his skill (he has “lost the path”). Fumbles are equally dangerous, as they mutate the dragonspeaker in unpleasant ways and cause him to lose characteristic points.
To balance this, Dragon Magic is quite powerful. Unlike Rune or Divine magic, several Dragon Magic spells may be learned simultaneously, depending on the character's rank in the hierarchy. Furthermore, they may be cast ahead of time and “triggered” at a later date. And the spells themselves (more than 40 are described) are quite potent.
For all of this, Draconic Mysticism is presented as alien and, well, creepy. To fellow cultists, individuals with high Draconic Illumination scores seem beautiful and unearthly, while to outsiders they are cold and utterly inhuman. The only parallel I can draw for long-time players are the old Nysalor Riddlers. But the dragonspeakers are far more pernicious in that they are forcing conversion on people, and perverting faiths to fit the Dragon Way. Time and time again, Dembski-Bowden reminds us that theirs is a cautionary tale, doomed to fail for their callous disrespect and obsession. They are portrayed as a “cult” in the most uneasy sense of the word, mortifying the flesh, forcing conversion on others, and rejecting everything for the apocalyptic day when the Great Dragon will come and save them all. Ironically, they are right about the apocalypse, but dead wrong about salvation.
GOD LEARNER SORCERY
“The equal toleration of all religions...is the same thing as atheism” (Pope Leo XIII, “Immortale Dei,” 1885).
“...(the) belief in the one true God, with the evidence of his mortal birth, death, and divine resurrection, creates the underpinning of Jrusteli Sorcery. As Christianity had the Bible, Malkionism has the Abiding Book—a text...thought by the God Learners to be the work of the Invisible God himself. The God Learners need answer to no-one, for they are unwavering in their faith...no plunder of the Hero Realm can be considered a crime when God himself has decried the religions of other cultures...” (p. 45)
Ironically, as I was writing the previous section, the Jehovah's Witnesses came to my door. It seems even here in Japan there is no escape.
I don't say this to condemn their beliefs—as an academic and scholar of comparative religions I believe all faiths equal in validity—but the timing was ironic in that I was preparing to write about the God Learners, whom I have long felt are Greg Stafford's comment on medieval monotheism versus pagan plurality.
There is an unavoidable arrogance in monotheism, just as there is in any absolute point of view. To accept that there is only one truth is to simultaneously deny the truths of other peoples. This is inevitable. I recognize that the people who just came to my door really believed they were there on my behalf, and that their faith could save me, but despite their pure intent there was still the absolute assumption that they had the truth and I did not.
If this all seems odd or irrelevant in an RPG review, let me contend that a really good game is no different from fine literature. It can entertain and be though-provoking at the same time. The story of the God Learners exemplifies this.
The God Learner Empire is Glorantha's analogue of Atlantis, an island nation which came to dominate the world through strength of magic. It is instructive here to compare the Jrusteli to Tolkien's Atlantis-esque civilization, the Numenorians, as doing so illustrates the different world views of the settings. In Tolkien, the crime which causes the seas to rise and consume Numenor is defiance of the One God, who has ordained that humans are to be mortal, and not to enter the Undying Lands. By stark contrast, the crime of the Jrusteli (which also causes the seas to rise and consume them) is that they defy any gods except their One God! For them, their truth is the only truth, and it entitles them to plunder the other pantheons and cultures of Glorantha.
Again, the lesson here is plurality. The Malkioni, who believe in only one true God, are not themselves intrinsically evil. They continue to exist in the Third Age, alongside other cultures, long after the Jrusteli fell. The God Learner crime was not to believe in one God, but rather to think that their belief gave them the monopoly on truth. From a Gloranthan perspective, truth is bigger than any single individual, religion, or culture, and comes in multiple forms.
This chapter begins with a discussion of the God Learner faith, and how belief in their own Invisible God serves as their justification for plundering “the foolish mythologies of lesser cultures” (p. 44). It describes how the foundation of God Learner power was laid not merely on the strength of their Sorcery, but on their rape of other pantheons. In short, in Glorantha it is possible to depart the mundane plane and enter the world of myth (this is called “HeroQuesting” and is detailed in the following chapter). Usually, worshipers enter the myths of their own gods, and emulate them. In doing so, they return to the world with powers reflecting those of the god. The God Learners known that all gods are lesser beings, and thus go about penetrating the myths of other cultures—HeroQuesting—to rob them of their magic.
Worse still, in Glorantha, myth is the foundation of reality. The God Learners have discovered methods of actually changing the myths, and thus rewriting reality as they see fit. But;
“...ultimately the God Learners have damned themselves as well as Glorantha. The Third Age is...the result of the God Plane lashing back to stability, eradicating the meddling changes made by mortals. Reality itself and the universal laws reject this Sorcery-born warping and the devastation that follows paves the way for the Third Age. The God Learners of the second Age still believe their manipulations are as permanent as they are powerful. They are wrong and time will show them just how wrong they are.” (p. 46)
Another God Learner abomination is Zistorwal, the Machine City. The Mostali (Gloranthan Dwarfs) perceive the world as a great Machine. The God Learners have raided their myths to form a “fourth plane” (Mundane, Hero, God, and...), the Machine. Zistorwal is a living city, ruled by a fabricated Machine God. Here, the Jrusteli mass produce magic weapons for their armies, while Zistorite sorcerers replace parts of their flesh with arcane, biomechanical implants.
The chapter concludes with a discussion of God Learner Sorcery (which includes improved versions of spells from the RuneQuest Companion), and with several examples of Zistorite implants (Gloranthan cyberware!!!). God Learner Sorcery, we are bluntly told, “represents the highest form of magical power in Glorantha” (p. 48). To prove it, several spells are listed with reduced casting times, and some new ones (like Lacerate and Firebolt) are revealed. Perhaps the two most shocking spells are “Open HeroQuest Gate” and “Break HeroQuest.” The former allows the God Learner to enter the Hero Plane from anywhere he desires, while the latter allows him instantly to return (more on these later).
Finally, the Zistorite implants are listed, each with a cost (both monetary and in magical energy drain) and a benefit of having such a device.
THE OLD WAYS & HEROQUESTING
I have decided to examine these two chapters together, as they are largely inter-related.
For long-time fans there is nothing new in the Old Ways chapter. It simply examines the two largest human pantheons of the era, the Storm Tribe and the Sky Gods. It does not look at the deities individually (you need Cults of Glorantha, Volume I for that), but rather looks at the over-all world view of each. About a page is given to each. On the final two pages of this short chapter, four new Divine spells are listed (why they were not included in Cults of Glorantha with all the others is beyond me).
By contrast, the HeroQuesting chapter is a jewel. HeroQuesting, the act of emulating the myths of a culture to enter the Hero Plane and win power from the gods, has always been a part of the setting, and as far back as the original edition of RuneQuest we were promised rules for it. Alas, that never came to pass (although HeroQuest, the other Gloranthan RPG, introduced a system for it). To see a chapter finally in print was satisfying indeed.
Having said that, I should mention that this chapter—while completely compatible with HeroQuests for theists—focuses on HeroQuesting from a God Learner perspective. It outlines in broad strokes how the Jrusteli initiated their HeroQuesting programs, and how they take advantage of the system to plunder the faiths of other peoples.
HeroQuesting requires an individual (or party) to journey to an established holy site associated with the pantheon in question. There, they must begin to ritually enact the myth they wish to enter. Doing so requires a Lore (Theology) skill roll appropriate to the myth. Naturally, this forces the Jrusteli to study the theologies of several cultures (hence the appellation, “God Learner”). The roll is modified by the importance of the holy site and the myth. If they succeed, they enter the Hero Plane, and the real adventure begins.
Dembski-Bowden gives fine suggestions on how to run a HeroQuest, including what to expect on the Hero Plane, and the possible rewards (skill or characteristic enhancements, transmuted items, legendary abilities, runes, spells). The author also details the God Learner “RuneQuest Sight,” the power to sense the ebb and flow of magic and faith, allowing them to sense runic powers and locate HeroQuest sites. He also details the rule-breaking “Open HeroQuest Gate” and “Break HeroQuest” Sorcery spells which allow God Learners to circumvent the requirements above.
Dembski-Bowden then devotes the next 20 pages to discussing the major deities of both the Storm and Sky pantheons, detailing the kinds of myths, HeroQuests, and powers associated with each. It is 20 pages very well spent. Long-time fans should be amused with his side bars on Daka Fal (“...the God Learners are currently devoting a great deal of focus on the deeds of Daka Fal, purely because...(they) are having so much trouble finding any at all” p. 67) and the Lhankor Mhy “beard thing” (“...the false beard adopted by women can be a misrepresenting term, since they more often resemble half-masks of wood and metal that cover the lower half of the face...” p. 72). Nice touches indeed.
Some additional deities, such as the Unholy Trio, Gorakiki, and Kyger Litor, are also discussed.
MAGICIANS OF THE IMPERIAL AGE
The final chapter describes just under a dozen of the most powerful magicians of the age. Surprisingly there is not much here. No statistics are presented, merely descriptions. The entry on the Inhuman King seemed odd to me, as he scarcely resembled what I had always imagined, but I did derive a kind of wicked pleasure in reading about Delecti before his necromancer days.
WORTH THE MONEY?
You bet. The Draconic Mysticism chapter really breaks new ground for RuneQuest, and having concrete guidelines for HeroQuesting earns this book every penny. Glorantha fans, old and new, will want it.
ANYTHING FOR NON-GLORANTHAN RQ FANS?
The Draconic Mysticism chapter could be adapted to other settings, but aside from that, I would have to say “no.”
OK...BUT MY CAMPAIGN IS IN THE THIRD AGE
Well, you are getting a nice set of HeroQuesting rules, and the Draconic Mysticism could easily flesh out the powers of Dragonewts in your campaigns.
MAN...YOU RAMBLE ON FOREVER! COULD YOU JUST GIVE IT TO ME IN A PARAGRAPH OR LESS?
Be thankful you are not one of my students. They have to listen to this kind of crap all the time.
Here goes; You WANT this book because it gives you a detailed look at the EWF and the God Learners. It will help you run HeroQuests as well. The book gets high marks because, unlike The Second Age and Cults of Glorantha, Volume I, Mongoose is really breaking new ground here, contributing to the richness of the setting rather than just tailoring things printed before to fit the Second Age. Despite a very shaky start with the core rulebooks, Mongoose is finally taking off here and flying. They have proven that they “get” Glorantha, and have the vision to push its themes even further. If Lankhmar is as well done, and they eventually put out a nice, single set of core rules, they will have pulled off what no one else before them seemed capable of, a genuine RuneQuest renaissance.
NEXT?
I decided to review Cults of Glorantha Volumes I and II together, and should have a review soon.
