Using Glorantha

[sword'n'buckler]

Having now acquired and delved into Glorantha: The Second Age, I am really impressed with the depth of the world. Much seems to have changed since I dabbled as an RPG novice many years ago. I love the 2nd Age setting, with the twin Empires. Almost endless possibilities seem to leap out at me as a GM. I also love the fact that the setting allows for a wide range of interpretations for fantasy flavour. I tend to shy away a little from the very high powered mythical/hero level stuff in favour of a more Hyborian flavour, but I love the feeling that the myths are grounded in a reality and have a genuine impact on Earthly Glorantha (if there can ever be said to be such a thing).

Just out of curiosity, how do other people use Glorantha as a setting? What level of fantasy (low, medium or high)? What flavour do you find works best for the world? It seems so naturally suited to political scheming, backstabbing and quite a 'dark' flavour, whilst still retaining some lighter, high fantasy elements (Ducks, Dragonewts etc...). How do people best manage to combine these elements to create a real feel for the world?

 

[soltakss]

All in my opinion, of course ...

I like a wide range of Gloranthan gaming, so I have the barfights at the start then the cattle raids or the wandering adventurers, then cult membership becomes more important and they get to do some HeroQuesting, if they want. They can also progress in cult membership, clan/tribe/city position, increasing personal power, political power and social power if that's what rocks their boat.

I don't tend to use ducks, newtlings etc as comic relief as my games normally have enough of that anyway.

As for Heroic vs Crunchy gaming, I like reading Moorcock and Pratchett, so I tend to have crunchy games where people get involved and do things. However, I also like the idea of PCs being able to influence major events, so I allow them to be as heroic as they like. I prefer a fast and furious game, so the more heroic the players are the better.

Timelines and future events are just guidelines as to what will happen if the PCs don't get involved, so PCs in my game can change the future timeline - sometimes quite drastically.

I quite like having several detailed background plots going on at once, with the players/PCs interacting with that every so often. That means there is ample opportunity for backstabbing and political intrigue. However, political intrigue only really becomes possible when the PCs have become socially or politically important in some way. They don't have to be very important, but they need a position in society or need to have someone's ear or have incriminating portraits of local bigwigs. They tend to find that political intrigue means they make more enemies than friends and what seemed like a good plan has consequences that they didn't think of at the time.

But, Glorantha is a good setting for this sort of stuff. So much so that I very rarely get the chance to GM or play in games outside of Glorantha and when I do they don't seem quite as satisfying.

 

[Cleombrotus]

I run it dark and materialistic. I like it doom-laden and mercenary. I think that it is an inherently tragic world where enlightenment is seen as evil and prejudice is piety. I think that Glorantha is as bleak a place as you could imagine. Beauty is transient and even the afterlife offers strife as much as paradise, depending on deity. There's no concept of forgiveness.
Pantheistically existentialist. Sounds pompous, but it's quite accurate. The gods are real, so learn to deal with it. That's where Gloranthan freedom lies. Living in the shadow of world-shattering disasters and the will and whim of the gods, or rather the cults, as well as a world where violent death is a highly likely outcome sets the tone for my Glorantha.
That's why I run 'Adventurer' campaigns rather than 'Clan' games. I love exploring the morality of the 'adventurer' in Glorantha.
I like to run everything, including ducks, as serious. All our laughs are had out of game or are incidental in nature. I don't think we go out of our way to create funny situations.
I've played in games that are the opposite. Personally I don't like them, but others probably think that we are up our own arses, so I guess that evens itself out. Glorantha can take either approach. YGWV.

 

[DigitalMage]

When I finally get around to running G:tSA I will set it in Pamaltela and have the players as natives who go on a quests for their tribes and begin discovering more about the invaders. I amlikely to use the Australian outback and Aboriginal culture as inspirations with the PCs going Walkabout

 

[calle]

The most appealing thing with Glorantha for me, is the close relationship between humans and their gods.

Its like humanity before the 4 big monotheistic religions!

In Glorantha the gods are for real and can interact with their worshipers in direct way. I mean, thats funny, playing Sumerian type civilication with Gilgamesh as hero!

Or playing the mountain tribes with a real close contact with their spirits.

For me, Glorantha is the best setting, especially the 2 age with the two big warring empires, and Mongoose is doing a great job with it.

/Calle

 

[Rasta]

Its like humanity before the 4 big monotheistic religions!

I think it is very interesting how Glorantha employs elements of all major belief systems.

I've always viewed the God Learners as the Gloranthan equivilent to Christianity. With their saints and their all encompassing monomyth.

 

[Osentalka]

Gloranthas West is a MIX out of the major monotheistic religions of history:
Christianity (including saints, prophets, and the split of the faith into two major fractions, and a lot more), Cathars, Islam, Jews, Zoroaster.

For me the most interesting part playing in the west is that real world Christianity only BELIVED that there is such things as witchcraft, demons, etc. and that true faith will protect them .
In Glorantha everybody can SEE magic happen, and they STILL belive that their faith is the right way.
I think that THEIR faith must be stonger than that of the real world people by those evidence of other deities, and forces.

 

[GianniVacca]

Its like humanity before the 4 big monotheistic religions!

4?

 

[Rasta]

4?

Yes. Judaism, Catholicism, Islam, and Christianity.

:lol:

I crack myself up.

 

[TRose]

In my Gloranthan game I tend to empathise the dark age/ tribal aspect where bot clans and cults are very important . Politics are important some what but backstabbing is discourage by clan and cult loyalties .
My game is also kind of low level with the characters involved in things like fighting bandits , raiders and the like and at times escorting merchants and getting rid of large predators.

 

[calle]

Its like humanity before the 4 big monotheistic religions!

4?

Judaism, Islam, Christianity and Zarathushtra (ism?) (sorry my spelling)

Zarathushtra brought the categorization of good versus evil onto the framework to create a new structure which was to be influential in the shaping of the Judeo-Christian tradition.
Later when Judaism was small and rebellish and Cristianity barely existed, this religion of the one fire, was not only in Persia but well spread out in the "known world".

 

[Utgardloki]

I've had an idea for using Glorantha in the Drow War adventure, where at least some of the PCs brought into the adventure are from Glorantha, and they find out that the drow had sought to make contact with a race called the broo.

 

[weasel_fierce]

I like that it is, at the same time, deathly serious and quite whimsical