Glorantha noob question

[Chewie]

I've always been curious about Runequest since I saw the second edition book in a local game shop when I was kid. For some reason I never picked it up, although I played a lot of CoC and Stormbringer over the years. Based on what I read on this site I decided to take the plunge and order the Core Rulebook, Companion and Glorantha book. Before I go too far into this new system however I have a question about Glorantha.

I always see Glorantha described as a bronze age world and I think that is one thing that attracts me to it. I have a background in Near Eastern Archaeology so that kind of thing appeals to me. However I didn't see much that reflected this setting in SRD. The armour and weapon types listed could have came out of D&D or any other pseudo-medieval setting. Will there be rules for older armour types (or stone age weapons) in the Glorantha supplements? Where are the boar teeth helmets and ox hide shields? Looking at the art from older Runquest supplements, they certainly look Greek and Middle Eastern, but I didn't see it in the rules. Maybe the core rule book will explain it better.

That being said, I really like what I saw of the system and think it will go over well with my group. However as a typical older gamer with no spare time, I would like the large Glorantha campaign/scenario book to come out as soon as possible. :lol:

 

[RMS]

Well, Glorantha isn't really Bronze Age, and this will be apparent pretty quickly with your background. It gets refered to this way because the most common metal in the world is bronze, while iron is the special magical metal of the world. (Note: Gloranthan bronze isn't really like real world bronze either. It's typically mined as bronze, and has many properties of earth iron...and there are conflicting ideas of whether it oxidizes or not in the written material.) However, most of the developed parts of the world are most definitely late Iron Age or simple Ancient civilizations as compared with the pseudo-medieval basis for most fantasy game worlds and literature. I'm really drawn to that. The main published campaign materials in the past have concentrated on areas in the fringes of the Lunar Empire (Persian Empire with some Roman Empire mixed in, with lots of unique bits) and their interactions with locals that can be fairly Greek, but more commonly are Celtic tribesmen based, and plains nomads that are parially mounted Native Americans and partially Russian/Mongol steps nomads with lots of weirdness added. There is also a stone age society that's pretty well developed in Griffin Mountain that was a lot of fun to play with.

The real kicker here is that all of the previously published material is for 3rd Age Glorantha and the new material is 2nd Age Glorantha, 600+ years earlier, so we're really only guessing how different the two ages will be.
You are right that there's a lot of items in the equipment lists that are out of place in Glorantha, at least in the 3rd Age. They may well be appropriate in the 2nd Age, which consists of a couple of very large, well organized, powerful empires and a much higher level of magic (and technology-like equipment).

 

[Chewie]

Thanks for the response. So the bronze comes out of the ground as bronze? Oh well, there goes my first campaign idea for finding a new source of tin.

If it is more classical than ancient, I can deal with that but I really have enough medieval/renissance games right now. I leafed through a friends copy of River of Cradles in university and it seemed to have a Mesopotamian feel to the clothing and architecture. I thought I could really do something with that.

Has Mongoose given any indication of the tech level of Second Age Glorantha?

 

[atgxtg]

One of the other things too is the the core book isn't tied to the Glroantha setting, at least not since the days of RQ2, but is more "generic" so GMs can use it for differenrt settings. SO that is one reason why it looks more like a typical fantasy RPG.

The core rules can be used for a High Middle Ages campaign, of for Lankhmar, or Dark Age Britian, as well as for Glorantha. In theory, a sourcebook would contain the changes needed to adapt the game to the setting.


Part of the difficulty in explaining this is that while many of us are experienced with Glorantha and RuneQuest, none of us are familar with how all this will work with the new edtion. For example, the magic system in the core book is similar to a magic system in previous edtions of RuneQuest, but is also somewhat differernt. So we are not sure if the magic system will be modfied for Glorantha, or if Glorantha will be modified to accept the new magic system.

 

[Utgardloki]

Another possibility would be playing in Glorantha at some time other than the "Standard" time. When I was developing my "Beyond Glorantha" ideas, I gave some thought to the concept of evolution. I even considered running a "Seventh Age" campaign where Gloranthans developed advanced technology, even though they're living on a flat world surrounded by bottomless ocean.

If you're willing to entertain D20 products, I have a book called Testament which describes D20 rules for running adventures in the ancient Middle East. Mongoose has a book called OGL Ancients which may have ideas.

My impression is that Glorantha has been so well developed that it is sort of like Forgotten Realms or Ravenloft; you can run just about any type of adventure there because you are not restricted to just one area of the world as you are in the Iron Kingdoms or World of Greyhawk.

 

[Durand Durand]

On the subject of bronze, it can be made, but is often found a god bones. So a mining story game could work. Iron is an artificial metal made by Mostal before time, and ancient sources do exist. I think, though Glorantha is a weird place, a smithing based game would be wonderful.

 

[RMS]

Thanks for the response. So the bronze comes out of the ground as bronze? Oh well, there goes my first campaign idea for finding a new source of tin.

Bronze is from the bones of dead gods. It can be created, but generally is mined. You could certainly base a game around mining in Glorantha, but if you want to stick with the published material you'd need something other than bronze IMO.

If it is more classical than ancient, I can deal with that but I really have enough medieval/renissance games right now. I leafed through a friends copy of River of Cradles in university and it seemed to have a Mesopotamian feel to the clothing and architecture. I thought I could really do something with that.

That's one of a handful of great supplements that came out in the early 90s before RQ faded away for a decade. It's a great place for adventure, and the most developed part of Glorantha. Incidently, you can buy recently compiled and reprinted material of that region from the early 80s as Gloranthan Classics Reprints: http://www.glorantha.info/index.html.

A mining campaign might be tough in resource poor Prax, but a similar campaign based around salt licks could be excellent. Incidentally, the city in the background is the rebuilt ruin of a 2nd Age city built by giants.

Has Mongoose given any indication of the tech level of Second Age Glorantha?

I haven't seen anything specific. From what I currently know about it, personal arms and armor will probably be similar, but on the larger scale there should be magical artificats aplenty and more access to Dwarf machines (fantasy steam power or similar).

 

[simonh]

Tin does exist in Glroanth, it can be mined and when mixed with copper forms Bronze. It also has magical and mundane uses of it's own as it's the elemental 'sky' metal.

The main differences between Gloranthan and real-world metals are:

Iron can only be mined at a very few, well known and guarded locations that are mainly controlled by the Mostali. Untempered iron has a damping effect on magic, and iron weapons are poisonous (double the damage that penetrates armour) to Aldryami and Uz.

Aluminium is known as Sea Metal, and floats.

There's a very (extremely) rare metal, the name of which escapes me, that conducts magic! If the caster and target are connected by wires of the stuff, the magician can cast spells as though they were touching.

I think that's the main points.

Simon Hibbs

 

[soltakss]

Tin does exist in Glroanth, it can be mined and when mixed with copper forms Bronze. It also has magical and mundane uses of it's own as it's the elemental 'sky' metal.

Don't get me started on that one .....

 

[indrodar]

That's one of a handful of great supplements that came out in the early 90s before RQ faded away for a decade. It's a great place for adventure, and the most developed part of Glorantha. Incidently, you can buy recently compiled and reprinted material of that region from the early 80s as Gloranthan Classics Reprints: http://www.glorantha.info/index.html.

A mining campaign might be tough in resource poor Prax, but a similar campaign based around salt licks could be excellent. Incidentally, the city in the background is the rebuilt ruin of a 2nd Age city built by giants.

I seem to recall seeing a fan publication somewhere which had Sun County's prison being a salt mine out in the Wastes. You think Prax is tough and resource-poor, you try going over the other side of the river...

 

[Mark Mohrfield]

There's a very (extremely) rare metal, the name of which escapes me, that conducts magic! If the caster and target are connected by wires of the stuff, the magician can cast spells as though they were touching.


Simon Hibbs

IIRC this was silver, as used by Dwarves.

 

[atgxtg]

To confuse a newbie even nmore:

Last buy not least, bronze isn't, bronze, and irton isn't iron.

It is mentioned in passing in several RQ books that GLorantha Bornze isn't actually the same metal as Earth Bronze, but that the game uses the term "bronze: for covienence. THe same is ture of iron and all the other Glorantha metals. THey just use terrestrial terms to make it easier for us to understand the metals and their relative strengths.

Addtionall, some metal are "rune metal" and are identified with certain elements. Such metal can be enchanted to the strength and hardness of bronze (if it helps) and have special powers. For instance, a weapon made from a rune metal can harm a lycanthrope.

 

[RMS]

I seem to recall seeing a fan publication somewhere which had Sun County's prison being a salt mine out in the Wastes. You think Prax is tough and resource-poor, you try going over the other side of the river...

That'd be Pent Ridge by Michael O'Brien who did much of the excellent Sun Dome County work. Vulture's Country is pretty rough, but beyond that are lots of good lands. The Praxians are just smart enough not to tell anyone about them and let the stupid settled peoples think everything east of the Zola Fel is like Vulture's Country. Otherwise, they'd try to fence it off and farm it, and not share it, just like they do with the river valley lands.

 

[TRose]

How resource poor Prax and the waste are can be debated.After all the nomads have no interest or knowledge in mining so rich veins of metal could exist in the waste and no one knows about them because no one goes there that would recognize the raw metal.You do have the Copper Sands in the waste ,which might be a good source of copper if you could overcome its magical properties, the Broo and other chaotics that live next door and the nomads thar would attack both the mines and caravans in and out.
Might add if you want to run a mining party is check out the cult of Caladera and Aurelion as it knows to use the secretss of both coal and oil if I remember right.

 

[moonbroth]

I seem to recall seeing a fan publication somewhere which had Sun County's prison being a salt mine out in the Wastes. You think Prax is tough and resource-poor, you try going over the other side of the river...

That'd be Pent Ridge by Michael O'Brien who did much of the excellent Sun Dome County work.

Here you go: Pent Ridge.

 

[homerjsinnott]

Gold not tin is the sky metal anybody who tells you otherwise is a misprint.(sorry RMS )
Tin is the metal of the wind/air.

This is a typical case of stupid misprint just like that rubbish with the undead rune "uh this makes sense so we are going to change so it doesn't."


Anyway off my hobby horse.


Pavis/ prax has a very bronze age feel (even more so before the lunars).
With a chronic shortage of metal and could easily have the flintnail mostali as the only ones smithing and restricting the type of armour they will make. The clime too makes people unwilling to run about in heavy armour.


You could also explore the coast of Pamaltela (sp?) for a truly Bronze age setting.
Im sure you could develope something there.

 

[RMS]

Gold not tin is the sky metal anybody who tells you otherwise is a misprint.(sorry RMS )

No big deal, but that's not me who claimed that. I know that gold is the sun metal.

Tin is the metal of the wind/air.

I don't remember that one however. I don't remember tin being particularly important to anyone. You see enchanted copper amongst the elves, iron amongst the dwarves and lucky/special humans of all cults, lead amongst the trolls, quicksilver (aluminum) amongst sea faring peoples, gold amongst sun worshippers, etc. I though enchanted silver was special to the wind/air, though it rarely shows up. People either use bronze or have made the jump to iron.

Pavis/ prax has a very bronze age feel (even more so before the lunars). With a chronic shortage of metal and could easily have the flintnail mostali as the only ones smithing and restricting the type of armour they will make. The clime too makes people unwilling to run about in heavy armour.

I still disagree about Bronze Age, at least if we're comparing against earth cultures. Most of central Glorantha is more Iron than Bronze Age, but in any case certainly aren't pseudo-Medieval in any way shape or form.

Heavy armor is something we've never used in Prax. It just makes no sense to do it there. Our powerful rune lords travel around in soft leather or no armor most of the time, and only "armor up" when there's a known fight coming. Even when exploring in dangerous regions, their armor is on pack mules most of the time, if it's even around.

 

[TRose]

Tin was the original rune metal for Air Gods like Orlanth, but it seemed to later have been changed to silver. LIke some people I prefefereed Tin and in my games Tin is still the Air rune metal.
One of the things I think that keeps the Bronze age feel in Runequest is very few people even after they played awhile can afford the heavy armor like Chain, let alone plate. You work your way up to a full set of chain armor and you are then somebody in most games.This is different then most other games where many players will start out with even plate armor and look down their noses on anybody wearing Chain armor let alone scale or leather.

 

[moonbroth]

I still disagree about Bronze Age, at least if we're comparing against earth cultures. Most of central Glorantha is more Iron than Bronze Age, but in any case certainly aren't pseudo-Medieval in any way shape or form.

Here's an old piece of mine on defusing Mediaeval Glorantha.

Cheers, Nick

 

[Nikk]

There's a very (extremely) rare metal, the name of which escapes me, that conducts magic! If the caster and target are connected by wires of the stuff, the magician can cast spells as though they were touching.


Simon Hibbs

IIRC this was silver, as used by Dwarves.

Is it? Is there a reference for that? That's one of the coolest ideas I've heard in a long time.