Dragonmagic
- Thread starter Adept
- Start date
One of the last issues of Chaosiums Wyrm's Footprints had some info on Dragonnewt Magic -- IIRC, it was the standard transformation magic, possilby with the additioin of breath fire.
There hasn't been much officially said about dragon magic for the Second Age yet -- I think they confirmed that the EWF is an oppressive slave society, with forced worship and power flowing up the pyramid. I'm not sure how much (if any) of this magic will be commonly available (same is true for the God Leaners -- they may keep a lot of their magic inaccessable to players).
On a cool note, it should be easier to travel on the Dragonnewt ley-lines, facillitating some interesting play options for EWF alligned players.
There hasn't been much officially said about dragon magic for the Second Age yet -- I think they confirmed that the EWF is an oppressive slave society, with forced worship and power flowing up the pyramid. I'm not sure how much (if any) of this magic will be commonly available (same is true for the God Leaners -- they may keep a lot of their magic inaccessable to players).
On a cool note, it should be easier to travel on the Dragonnewt ley-lines, facillitating some interesting play options for EWF alligned players.
Dead Blue Clown
Mongoose
Urox said:
Nope. This is from the introduction to Magic of Glorantha.
Introduction
To be a magician in the Imperial Age is to know without a shadow of doubt that you command the most powerful magic that can ever be harnessed by mortals. In reading through the pages of this book, Games Masters and players get the chance to see how the sorcerer-lords of the God Learners and the Dragonspeakers of the EWF possess power far above that of the other Gloranthan cultures. This is as it should be in this era of empires that threaten the stability of the world itself.
The Empire of Wyrm’s Friends embodies the glorious, decadent rise of world-altering magic in the Second Age. Likewise, its eventual destruction is one of the most significant peals of thunder in the cataclysmic storm that ends the era and opens the way for the Hero Wars. The rot is already beginning to set in as the Third Age nears, for despite grand designs, great lore and new boundaries of magic, the energies required for creating the Great Dragon To Come leech the empire and its people of necessary resources. Though they will not discover the truth until it is too late, in building the Great Dragon the Wyrmfriends are killing their empire. The flaws in their plan are beginning to show and those with the power to do anything about it are the ones least likely to surrender the magical might they have amassed. It is this state that we find the empire and its Dragonlord leaders – also called the Wyrm’s Eye Ascendants – at the apex of their power in the Second Age.
Opposing the Empire of Wyrm’s Friends is a kingdom equally blinded by a glorious rise to ascension. The Middle Sea Empire, called ‘God Learners’ by their allies and enemies alike, share the guilt that will come when the Second Age finally ends in chaos. The misguided conceit of the EWF is internal: they seek to transform what is theirs into the Great Dragon, altering themselves to fit an otherworldly ideal. The hubris of the Gods Learners is external: they manipulate the faiths of other cultures in order to increase their own power, altering the world around them rather than themselves.
The Dragonlords will fall because they are parasites over their people, leeching belief and resources to fuel a doomed dream. It will be a grand failure but will seem as nothing compared to the toppling of the God Learners, who will fall because they are parasites over the faith of others, leeching power from the legends of myth and history, siphoning strength from the world itself.
Players choosing to portray characters tied to the Dragonspeaker cults of the empire stand on the stage of a culture in its glorious twilight. They will be the magic-wielding imperial nobility, following their cult of choice towards the Great Work, or they will be among the legion of mercenaries who sign on for a taste of draconic power. Players allied with the God Learners are trained and equipped to venture into the Hero Planes, violating the legends of immortal deities and plundering them of wealth.
The stage is set for the death of empires.
Dead Blue Clown
Mongoose
Well, they didn't hire me for my looks.
(Though they could've done...)
(Though they could've done...)
homerjsinnott
Mongoose
Dead Blue Clown said:
Ta very much, I like it, a lot.
I have, (as always) one small worry. The EMF (sic) and the God Learners they aren't going to be cardboard cut-outs of evil empires are they?
They are going to be more balanced like the Lunars (pun intended) aren't they.
Please say yes, even if you are lying. :wink:
Dead Blue Clown
Mongoose
homerjsinnott said:
Well, no. Not at all. Mainly because...hmm...this is tricky.
New players to RuneQuest aren't coming into this like the oldies are. Take, for example, J. Random Newbie. He sees the Dragonlords and the God Learners and sees magic-driven world-shaping cultures each trying to do their own thing. He knows that, apparently, in the end, they fail and there's elements of tragedy and doom over the heads of these guys, but J. Random Newbie sees them and knows that in Imperial Age Glorantha, these are the guys to play. They, for want of a better term, are the Main Players in Glorantha. Maybe he wants to kill 'em, maybe he wants to play 'em, but the choice is there. They're not presented as evil, moustache-twirlers. "Ha ha! I've plundered your myths, Storm God! And now I shall fleee back to my Machine City!"
Nah.
Now, what I'm seeing a bit of is RQ vets having a little difficulty seeing this at times. They worry about the God Learners and the EWF being too evil or the "bad guys" in the setting. But, well, they're not evil. They're not the bad guys - any more than any expansionist empire is irrevocably evil.
Sure, in years to come they wil be parables for hubris, foolishness and selfishness, but right now they're both opposing empires desperately seeking to further their own agenda. They've risen far above all other Gloranthan cultures, and that is reflected in the influence and power they have.
In all honesty I can only speak for my work and I've read some upcoming stuff that takes a much more traditional look at Glorantha, dealing with all cultures equally. Magic of Glorantha, however, doesn't. This arose from my own focus on what is important to 2nd Age Glorantha and many, many emails with Greg Stafford. The actual magic of Glorantha in the Imperial Age is the world-shattering magic of the God Learners and the Dragonspeakers. That's what needed exploring. That's what is there to be used in the book.
I do see a future resistance to this from some vets who will prefer the EWF and God Learners as historic parables and mysterious tales, as well as flat-out enemies, in the Second Age. The latter is perfectly viable, in fact. I'm desperate to run a game about the heroes of an Orlanthi tribe resisting the draconisation of their faith.
However, my focus was on making the magicians of the empires playable. That focus is pretty much entirely born from me talking to Greg Stafford about what magic was in the 2nd Age, as well as what I took from the main rulebook as the really important stuff going on in the era.
I suspect people looking for more Orlanthi cults (which could exist in any era) and any traditional Gloranthan 3rd Age aspects aren't going to happy with my stuff. Those looking for Dragonlords wearing shaped bone armour and risking their souls by tapping into Draconic Mysticism while they defend the empire against God Learners and Old Ways insurrectionists? They'll be the smiling ones. Magic of Glorantha is almost entirely about wielding these twisted imperial magics.
Well, and some other stuff. But Draconic Mysticism and God Learner Sorcery are the biggest chapters. And that's all I'm saying.
Dead Blue Clown
Mongoose
Lord Twig said:Sounds great so far. This is exactly what I would like to see from the 2nd age Glorantha stuff.
You cannot know the full weight of my intense relief at seeing those two sentences. I was fretting the first reply to my 'admission' would be somewhat less friendly. Thanks, dude.
homerjsinnott
Mongoose
Dead Blue Clown said:Lord Twig said:Sounds great so far. This is exactly what I would like to see from the 2nd age Glorantha stuff.
You cannot know the full weight of my intense relief at seeing those two sentences. I was fretting the first reply to my 'admission' would be somewhat less friendly. Thanks, dude.
Sounds really interesting, being an old timer me'sel I know they do a lot of nasty things but there are ordinary folks in there as well, and to some extent many of them will look back at the Arkati as "a warning from history", but be blind to their own folly. Ah! the joys of hindsight.
What have the Lunars ever done for us?
Aqueducts?
homerjsinnott said:Dead Blue Clown said:Lord Twig said:Sounds great so far. This is exactly what I would like to see from the 2nd age Glorantha stuff.
You cannot know the full weight of my intense relief at seeing those two sentences. I was fretting the first reply to my 'admission' would be somewhat less friendly. Thanks, dude.
Sounds really interesting, being an old timer me'sel I know they do a lot of nasty things but there are ordinary folks in there as well, and to some extent many of them will look back at the Arkati as "a warning from history", but be blind to their own folly. Ah! the joys of hindsight.
What have the Lunars ever done for us?
Aqueducts?
Aquaducts, running water, hygiene, stable societies, universities, etc., etc., etc.
Long Live the Red Moon!
Hyrum.
Dead Blue Clown said:Lord Twig said:Sounds great so far. This is exactly what I would like to see from the 2nd age Glorantha stuff.
You cannot know the full weight of my intense relief at seeing those two sentences. I was fretting the first reply to my 'admission' would be somewhat less friendly. Thanks, dude.
I'm no Gloranthaphile, as some here could tell you, but this does sound very compelling to me and actually has me feeling excited about the product.
Well Done!
Cobra
Dead Blue Clown said:
When is this book coming out? My own Glorantha campaign is currently in the year 1601, and some survivors of the EWF (as well as the Sartar & Kethaela vs. Lunar Empire conflict) are the main themes emerging.
The campaign is called "The Emperor and the Dragon", and it's starting to sound like your book will offer me great source material.
I wouldn't advertice the "this is the past of Glorantha, and these empires are both going to fall" angle to gamers myself.
It's a bit like reading the last chapter of a mystery novel before starting the book. If I'm going to run a second age game, I'm not going to take that approach.
It's a bit like reading the last chapter of a mystery novel before starting the book. If I'm going to run a second age game, I'm not going to take that approach.
sexy_davey
Mongoose
Oh man...
Ohhh maaan!!
I am currently hopping from foot to foot, clapping my hands and squealing like a little girl. No offence to little girls...
Ohhh maaan!!
I am currently hopping from foot to foot, clapping my hands and squealing like a little girl. No offence to little girls...
Dead Blue Clown
Mongoose
Adept said:
Dude, I'd love to play in that game. Hot damn, would I ever. It sounds awesome.
Uh, release date? I think it's October.
Adept said:
Don't get me wrong, I see exactly where you're coming from. The overreaching tragedy/doom is played up in the expositional introductions, rather than the meat of the chapters. I didn't want to go overboard, but I also wanted to give it a solid mention as well.
