These messages are the accumulation of the messages that were sent out on 
the Blue Room email list between May 1995 and June 2000.  A large portion 
of the information is directly from Professor M.A.R Barker. When the list 
members joined during the time the list was active, they agreed to refrain 
from sharing this data with non list members.  When the list ended, it was 
urged that the data be made available to non-list Tekumel fans, and it 
seemed like a good idea all around.

I only ask that if you download these digests, or have received them in 
some other way, please respect the agreements the list members made, and 
refrain from passing them around and instead point people to the Tekumel 
web site, www.tekumel.com so that they can download them for themselves, 
and see all the other material available on the Tekumel.com web site.

Many Thanks.
Chris Davis
Moderator:  Blue Room mailing list 

Creative Commons - Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 
CC BY-NC-ND

BLUE ROOM ARCHIVE -- VOLUME 37  [30 October 1999 - 25 June 2000]

1081:Livyanu Reply
1082:Ancient Secrets Reply
1083:Ancient Secrets Response
1084:Livyanu Response
1085:Time Travel Response
1086:Administrative Note - Oct 30, 1999
1087:Administrative Note - Jan 09, 2000
1088:Livyanu and the Stones
1089:UCon Reports
1090:Medical Arts on Tekumel
1091:The Atl
1092:EveCon Report
1093:Questions About Magic
1094:Miscellaneous Questions
1095:Battle Magic Questions
1096:Administrative Note - May 27, 2000
1097:Battle Magic
1098:Questions about Magic Answered
1099:Character DB and Legion Questions Answered
1100:Professor on Battle Magic
1101:More Professor on Battle Magic
1102:Tale from the Cinnabar Porch
1103:More on Battle Magic
1104:More on Miscellaneous Questions
1105:Questions about Undead
1106:Administrative Note - June 23, 2000
1107:More Professor on Battle Magic
1108:Professor Discusses the Undead

*******************************

//1081

[Moderator's Note:  Professor Barker replies to George's question about the]
[                   goings on in Livyanu.                                  ]

>[Moderator's Note:  George Hammond asks about the events in Livyanu.  I   ]
>[                   would like to know how things are going there, too.   ]

>Could anyone give a summary of what is known about the plague in Livyanu,
>and of the Mu'ugalavyani invasion?  Is the plague one of the known types
>of disease (e.g. influenza, or the Mottled Plague, or (shudder) the Plague
>of the White Hand), or is it something new?  Is its origin known?  I have
>heard rumors that Livyani soldiers brought it back from Tsolei, but this
>is mere hearsay.  Has the epidemic spread throughout Livyanu?  What about
>Mu'ugalavya or the other Empires?  The Red Hats are said to have reached
>at least as far as Tsamra, and if so, they must surely have been much
>exposed to contagion. What has been the result?

The Plague was first brought by sailors and army personnel to the western
shores of Livyanu. It swept over Sraon, Nufersh, etc. and then went inland,
reaching Tsamra in a month or so. It was something new -- perhaps
artificial. It only occasionally affected the Shen, did not bother the
Tinaliya, and killed most humans dead. It is gone now, but for a time the
Tsolyani were blockading Livyani shipping, and Mu'ugalavya fortified their
borders with orders to kill Livyani travellers on sight. This is all
relaxed now.

>Regarding those of the Carmine Chapeaux, when did they first cross into
>Livyanu, and how has their invasion proceeded since?

They waited three months, then swept down the eastern coast to Tsamra,
bringing in naval support to assist them. By this time the Plague was gone,
except in a few places. The Mu'ugalavyani deposed the Livyani government,
slaughtered soldiers and priests, and enslaved all the maidens they could
capture -- just like many an earthly army. The Red Hats were never known
for their kindness. They now occupy much -- not all -- of northern and
western Livyanu. The south, including Dlash and the Shen-human cities in
Mmatugual, are still free of invasion, although they are being swallowed up
piecemeal as time goes on.

The Red Hats countered Livyani magical skills with their infamous "Black
Stones." These slabs (2-3 feet square or rectangular) were brought by
unknown persons from beyond the Planes. They disrupt magical energy and
render spells inoperatve -- provided they are laid in certain precise
patterns to form circles around the to-be-affected area. The largest
pattern is that around Tsamra, but there are others as well. No one knows
for sure who has committed this act, but it almost completely derailed the
Livyani war effort, and the Mu'ugalavyani swept right in. The current
leader of the Resistance is a young woman nicknamed "Fireface," who is a
younger sister of the wizard Eyloa's wife. Her skin was terribly marred by
the Plague, but it did not kill her. A few did survive. Fireface operates
in Tsamra and is at the top of the Red Hats' "most wanted" list.

Some brave lads, together with Fireface's people, worked to physically
remove some of the stones from their patterns and thus break the circle.
They found most of the stones very well guarded by Mu'ugalavyani troops,
but out in the middle of Kaprakoi Bay there was one stone deep beneath the
water. Fireface's troops then disrupted the pattern on shore, and this
party used sorcery to go down to the bottom of the water and bring up the
stone by hand. This worked -- but the next day the Red Hats brought out
another stone and dropped it into place. THe venture thus went for nothing.

>I've seen brief
>mention of their deployment of a network of stones that creates areas of
>low/no magical power.  How is the effort proceeding?  Are there any
>regions or cities that remain independent of Mu'ugalavyani control?  I
>would think that large-scale use of anti-magic would be cause for wariness
>and observation by many powers in the other Empires.

Try the far south for plague-free and stone-free cities.  The Red Hats have
offered freedoms and treaties to some of them, and some local potentates
have also received huge sums of money and goodies. Only a few places
continue to resist. Dlash, of course, remains sealed and silent, taking no
part in these activities.

>I know that these events have been going on for some time, but I haven't
>been able to find much information in the Blue Room archive--just a few
>oblique references.  Have I missed a source?

No, just me being lazy!

>A good friend, one Chamangesh hiTirrune, sorceror and lay-priest of Hru'u,
>is currently stuck on a Qel, cruising south towards Yro with an expedition
>headed by the noble Kasi Charash Tlakotani, the most bloodthirsty
>Thumis-worshipper it has been Chamangesh's misfortune to know. Chamangesh
>is still in awe of the astoundingly improbable mix of savants, sorceror,
>and savages aboard the ship.  The steersman is a Haida Pakalani pirate,
>armed to the teeth, Kasi Charash has a mute warrior-priest of Gruganu as a
>body guard, along with priests of Ketengku, Karakan, Thumis, and a pungent
>mix of Ahoggya and Shen (yes, together) mercenaries.  Not to mention a
>Jakallani fop, and a mix of Livyani, Tinaliya and Shen refugees we
>pickedu up along the way.
>We lost one set of rigging taking on a Red Hat galley four times our size,
>and with the winds against us, Yro seems very far.  It would be helpful to
>have any news of Livyanu.  We picked up a noble Livyani refugee, one Arkuo
>Minaz, and Chamangesh is hoping that he can give us news.  We might try to
>make for Foshoa, but not if it's in Red Hat hands.

Sounds like a very good adventure.  Arkuo can't give much more than is
provided above, of course, since he and a few relatives and friends grabbed
a boat and fled at the first news the plague was coming.

Enjoy!

Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.
//1082

[Moderator's Note:  Professor Barker replies to Peter Timko's question about]
[                   Ancient secrets.                                        ]

>I am not an historian of Tekumel, and neither is anyone I know in Tekumel
>(they're  a pretty pragmatic lot). But looking through what histories are
>available has prompted the following line of queries:

>The early spread of the worship of Lord Ksarul reached as far as the
>backwater of Haida Pakalla, but there is no particular mention of the
>worship of those gods that revealed themselves to Pavar. So, first,
>would it be the case that the Lord of the Blue Room is more prominent in
>Haida Pakalla than elsewhere. (See Neitzsche's "The Advantages and
>Disadvantages of History for Life for a Terran argument supporting this
>tentative thesis).

A Ksarul-like deity was worshipped in what is now Tsolyanu all during the
earlier dynasties from the Three States of the Triangle on.  He is
variously named, but the common title for him is "Jraka." He seems to have
been relatively alone in his power; there is little mention of the Lords of
Stability until much later. A few of the other Lords of Change -- Sarku,
Hru'u, and Dlamelish particularly -- were indeed worshipped in various
places. Lord Ksarul's priests became zealous missionaries at one point
during the Bednalljan Age, which gave rise to enclaves of converts in many
distant places. One of these settlements was Haida Pakala, where his
worship so suited the inhabitants that it expanded out across the northern
shores of the Southern Continent.

>Secondly, and this is a longshot, does anyone know (I know, how would
>anyone know such a thing as this) whether the Refulgent Blue Curtain
>Society has adherents there. After all, of what kind of weird "material"
>is the Blue Room composed? Certainly not something that even the Lord of
>Secrets would know how to escape. Not the typical (even for a god) stuff
>of the planes beyond. If you found a key, wouldn't a good place to hide
>it be where no sorcerer could find it?

No idea about this. Some say the Blue Room is only a legend; devout Ksarul
worshippers claim the place is a"bubble-plane" -- a tiny world unto itself,
with its own miniature sun. Some of these plane-lets were created long ago
by the Great Ancients, and they still exist, lost in the darkness of the
void somewhere.

>Really, this is just a way of asking about Haida Pakalla. The Tsolyani I
>know best (I couldn't, in good conscience say "love") is originally from
>that area, and a servant of Ksarul. It makes me wonder.
>
>questing in query,
>Peter

Hope this helps. Haida Pakala is a whole book -- that one day ought to be
written!

Regards,

Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1083

[Moderators' Note:  David Bailey also responds to Peter's question.         ]

>If you found a key, wouldn't a good place to hide 
>it be where no sorcerer could find it?

A few hints and tips on *KEYS* translated into the vernacular from the 
sacred texts of the Masters of the Eighth Indigo Eye (a small and self 
selecting clique of the temple of Wuru in Pala Jakalla):

1 - who said they were actually hidden at all?  Did you really fall for 
all that Ndalu society propaganda?

2 - it's not sorcerors they should be hidden from, it's emperors and 
do-gooders

3 - how do you know that you don't already have one (or more?)

4 - it's not the finding them, it's the keeping them that is so 
difficult

5 - why not just say you have one and see what happens?

6 - always, but *always* ensure that you stand with your back to a wall 
when talking to a priest of Ksarul about this subject

7 - can I swap my blue sparkly one for you purplish one?

 
-=Midori Ito=- Priest of Wuru - "just stir up that ole pot of confusion 
an' pour me a large foaming mug"

(known on other less interesting planes as David Bailey)
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1084

[Moderator's Note:  Joe Zottola has a suggestions for George to learn more ]
[                   about Livyanu.                                         ]

George should show up at U-con then he can get his answers in person.

[I know I am going to be there. I may try to record the Barker Q&A and put 
a transcript up here, if it is ok with Joe S. and the UCon crowd.]
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1085

[Moderator's Note:  Joe Zottola elaborates on the dimensional quality of ]
[                   time within the Tekumel Universe.                    ]

Hypothetically speaking time travel is possible..The ramifications of
interfering in a specific major event are to say the least trivial...Say you
go back in time assuming you know what you are doing & get to the right time
& plane..You plan on eliminating one of the Prince's to give your Prince a
better shot at the throne....You successfully find your target & eliminate
him......

You then return to your plane only to find out that what you just did had no
effect on your timeline.....In effect what you have done is created a small
branch of reality off the main Tekumel trunk...So to answer the question no
you cannot effect the time-line by going into the past.You only create more
branches...

Your efforts to influence the timeline can only be done in the present..I.E.
If your character or characters are at a pivotal point on the time line you
can do something to influence it..You still have a small chance of success,
more than likely one of two things will happen you create a another branch
or worse you create a temporal loop...of these two results the temporal loop
is the most dangerous.Because if you do this you will not know it has
happened unless you are a truly mighty magic user(defined by having a fly
spell)...

[Could you elaborate on how having a fly spell allows you to detect a time
loop?  Or is it just show a general level of capability?]

Generally "time travel" is frowned upon when it is used to change/influence
the targeted time-line...Also the concept of a time-line is not really a
good
way to describe the way things work in the Tekumel universe..You really
need to look at it as a large tree like structure with a main trunk with
many branches & depending were on the trunk or branch you start that is the
time frame you are in...What you do above or below your location on your
home branch will only create more branches unless you are very lucky.......
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1086

[Moderator's Note:  Three messages today.  The first is important for any of]
[                   you UCon attendees.  Remember, your pre-reg must be      ]
[                   postmarked by 11/3/99.  The other messages deal with a   ]
[                   sighting of Tekumel material in the UK, and a request for]
[                   discussion on how to archive Internet Tekumel material.  ]

From Joe Saul.
There's a mistake in the PreReg book:  The Saturday night LARP is supposed
to start (and will start) at 7pm, so it does not overlap the Saturday
afternoon events which end at 7pm.  Apologies for any inconvenience.

  -- Joe
--

From Mike Cule.

There's a copy of the first TSR edition for sale by a gent in the UK.
His web page advertising this, complete with scans of the cover and some
of the maps is at:

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ept.htm

Have look and see if you're interested.

-- 
Michael Cule
--

From David Bailey

Now that there are over 1,000 messages in the Blue Room list (and about 
500 useful ones in alt\...\tekumel) is there anyone in this plane with 
sufficient skill to make them into a searchable hypertext library?

I find myself searching for place names and obscure, half remembered 
references - just like real tekumel - but have so little time.

What do other list members think?

-=Midori Ito=-
(known on other less interesting planes as David Bailey)

[I just grep the text in the messages or digests.  It works quite well.  But
I think it might be time to do something.  I'll look around a bit and if  
anyone else has any ideas, send them to me at cld@prin.edu instead of the
blueroom address.  Chris]

-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1087

[Moderator's Note:  I have pretty much added all the new folks, sent out   ]
[                   message digests, etc.  We have messages about creating ]
[                   a hypertext library, Holiday greetings from Carl Brodt ]
[                   (oh, and a new catalog), Holiday greetings from Peter  ]
[                   Gifford, and notification about an addition to the     ]
[                   Tekumel Web site.                                      ]

From Andreas Baede...

Concerning David's question about a hypertext library, I think it's a good
idea. I myself am still busy, whenever I have time, to read the various
messages and turning them into decent Word documents.
However, I have a friend who composed - for his own use - a 'Cthulhu's
Cyclopedia', containing pretty much everything about the Cthulhu Mythos he
could find, plus other weird stuff from his campaign.
Although this may be somewhat overly ambitious, might it not be a good
idea, considering the fact that we all have to do with a somewhat chaotic
mass of mostly old publications and various bits and pieces taken from the
Internet, to unite as much Tekumel information as possible in some sort of
online encyclopedia ?
It would be a massive undertaking (that friend of mine's been busy for four
years, and he is 'almost finished'), but at the end you would have a
tremendously valuable gaming resource. It could be combined with a
chronology that is kept up to date.
I don't think this should be undertaken lightly, but I am curious what the
Professor and my 'lan' fellow Mailing List members think.

Andreas Baede,
The Netherlands

-----
From Kevin Fisher by way of George Hammond.  This is pretty dated.  The
opening may no longer be available.

Kevin Fisher <kerf@earthlink.net>

Characters wanted!!!  At this moment there is a party about to leave on an
incredible adventure.  It is a free form Tekumel game called "The Emerald
Sphere of Sighs".  It will be played on an RGPHost site [he hopes] and
three of the five slots are filled.  Two of the players are veterans, the
other one will be experiencing his first on-line game.  All three have
extensive experience with EPT.  We are looking for two more beings to join
us in our journey.  If you are interested in receiving more information
about the game and what is expected of its players, please contact me,
Kevin Fisher at kerf@earthlink.net All are welcome to join, but this will
be a first-come, first-served situation.  Thank you for your
understanding.

-----
Carl Brodt writes...
You can reach Carl via email to get a catalog via email at CarlBrodt@aol.com

Thank you for the attention and enthusiasm which you have shown for 
gaming in Prof. Barker's world of Tekumel in 1999.  Whether you are alive or 
undead, human or demi-human, I hope you all have a happy new year.  May the 
smell of cinnamon never cross your nostrils!

And, oh, yes, here's a link to my most current product listing.  You could 
make the new year REALLY happy for me by ordering alot of stuff. 

http://www.tekumel.com/archivepricelist.html

======================================

Tita's House of Games, c/o Carl Brodt, 1608 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, CA.
94703, ph. (510)848-3260, has the following Tekumel-related items for sale:

N.B.  The aforementioned telephone number is to my home, not to my business,
so please be conscious of the time when you call.  If you do not reach me or
Tita, tell the person answering the telephone that you will immediately call
back and leave a message on the answering machine.  Thanks.

-----
Peter Gifford writes...

To all visitors to The World of the Petal Throne at www.tekumel.com ...

May the Weaver of Skeins have some truly beautiful threads prepared 
for next year ... may your Eyes never run out of charges at crucial 
and embarrassing times ... may you never be propositioned by an 
Ahoggya, chimed at by a Ssu, or wake to find your partner has turned 
into an evil smelling substance resembling spoilt cheese ... and may 
2000 be the year that Tekumel finally gets the world wide recognition 
it deserves!!

And a special best wishes and thankyou to Professor Barker, without whom etc!

Hey ... I finally got a pristine copy of the 1975 boxed edition. At last ...

Very best regards,
Peter Gifford
PS I planned to finish the rest of the maps before Xmas but was 
struck down by the flu ... but look forward to them in January, 
they're half finished.

-----
Peter Gifford writes again...

Happy New Year!

I'm pleased to announce a major update to The World of the Petal 
Throne. The Eastern Tekumel maps are finally finished (whew!), so the 
Lands of Tekumel section is now complete. Also the Eye of 
Incomparable Understanding has been revamped, with a new Welcome page 
(with a How to Use This Site section) and a New to Tekumel? page for 
the newbies. But wait, there's more! An addition to the Excellent 
Travelling Volume (Space Gamer Issue #71), and some Tekumel banners 
to download, put on your site and link to www.tekumel.com (in the Eye 
of Retaining All things download section).

Enjoy ...

Best regards,
Peter Gifford
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1088

[Moderator's Note:  Peter Huston has more to say on the topic of the Livyani ]
[                   invasion.  When we disrupted the stone in Kapranoi bay,  ]
[                   we moved it quite some distance, and the local effect was]
[                   terrible.  I thought someone had described it in a       ]
[                   recent submission (from Phil's group), but I can't find  ]
[                   it.  What I remember was that the skin of reality got    ]
[                   pulled pretty much like an elastic band, almost to the   ]
[                   snapping point, and when it did, nexus points started    ]
[                   popping open all around us.  In other words, you may not ]
[                   be able to nudge the stones, or swoop in and pick them   ]
[                   up without dire consequences.                            ]

>The Red Hats countered Livyani magical skills with their infamous "Black
>Stones." These slabs (2-3 feet square or rectangular) were brought by
>unknown persons from beyond the Planes. They disrupt magical energy and
>render spells inoperatve -- provided they are laid in certain precise
>patterns to form circles around the to-be-affected area. The largest
>pattern is that around Tsamra, but there are others as well. No one knows
>for sure who has committed this act, but it almost completely derailed the
>Livyani war effort, and the Mu'ugalavyani swept right in. 

The thought just crossed my mind that if this is known by the Livyanu then
perhaps a suitable tactic would be to gain control of the stones, the
smallest amount that would work, and move them around, thus disrupting the
pattern, until they don't work properly. 

Has this been tried? 

Surely if it has the Muugs must be guarding them carefully. 

This could make an interesting battle/skirmish/adventure possibility. 

And come to think of it, the Livyanu have all those air cars so they could
swoop in and disrupt and perhaps swoop out, taking the stones with them. 

Hmmmmm...............?

-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1089

[Moderator's Note:  This is late in coming.  It is feedback and summary    ]
[                   messages from those of us who went to UCon.  It was    ]
[                   a WONDERFUL event.  I had a great time.                ]

Keith Dalluhn writes...

Hey Chris,
 
It was a pleasure to see you again!  Just wanted to post a note to 
the blue room thanking all the Tekumel fans that showed up!  It was a 
really fun time.  Was very surprised at the response and hope to see 
even more people next year!

Thanks again!

-Keith
----------
Michael Schwartz writes...

Hey folks,

I spoke with a handful of people at U-CON regarding the formation of a
monthly Tekumel campaign in the Ann Arbor area (that's southeastern
Michigan, about 40 minutes west of Detroit, for those of you unfamiliar
with The Mitten). I failed to collect the names, email addresses, and
telephone numbers of those interested given the late hour at which the
Saturday LARP ended and my Sunday duties as an exhibitor in the Dealers'
Room.

Would Greg (Cook?) of Troy, plus Jonathan and his ladyfriend (whose name I
fail to recall at the moment) of Ann Arbor (with whom I played with in the
Pendragon LARP at Origins) please contact me off-list at the email address
below if still interested. Sessions would likely be held on either
Saturday evenings or Sunday afternoons.

====================================================================
Michael Schwartz     mschwartz@mindspring.com     Ann Arbor, MI  USA

-----
Your fearless moderator writes...

(This was originally penned the week after UCon.)
Well, its been a whirlwind week, and I wanted to get a UCon summary up
before now.  In case you didn't know, UCon is a convention that was held
up in Ann Arbor, Michigan Nov 12-14.  Joe Saul has organized a Tekumel 
Track during the last 2 UCons, and this years was great!  I have heard 
the same mentioned about last year.  

It all started Friday with a pleasant (for a change) plane flight in.  Even
though I couldn't upgrade to 1st Class (free Frequent Flyer ticket) the 
coach section was half full, so everyone had plenty of room.  That has to
be a good omen!  :)  I then took care of transportation, and ended up with
a brand spanking new car with about 200 miles.  I was living right.  Hotel
was fine, and then after a quick conversation with Lisa Leutheuser, I was
off to Lisa and Joe's place.  Met up with the Minneapolis crowd there.  We 
chatted for a few minutes, and then were off to the con site.  

Man, what can you say about the con site.  It was beautiful.  Lots of real
wood tables, walls and doors.  Glass or wood table tops, and overall it
was just beautiful, nothing like a typical convention hall.  Many of the 
Tekumel gaming rooms were carpeted, had board-room like tables, and very 
comfortable seats.  It was a terrific setting for Tekumel gaming.

Friday's first event was a "Getting to Know You" seminar, and many Tekumel
folks attended.  There were folks from the DC area, the Northeast, middle
America (me) :), the Minneapolis group, and Germany!!!  Forgive me if I 
missed anyone else.  We shared names and info about ourselves, and just 
generally shot the breeze.

After that, there was an role playing event centering around the Northeast
of Tsolyanu.  We were a hastily thrown together group of mixed Cohorts
of differing Legions.  The time was during Emperor Gyesmu and we were
located at Hekellu.  We marched to the ultimate target, were harrassed
all the way by Tribesman, and generally had a pretty miserable time on 
the road.  We had a group of Ahoggya and Hlaka who were well played by
Bob Dushay and Keith Dalluhn (see Keith's report below).  They split off 
the main attack group and actually managed to rejoin the group just after 
the main action started.

Once at the final target, we formed up, parlayed with the defenders and 
battle began.  Their magic contingent got off the first blow, and I had
a tad of trouble forming up our contingent.  Troops were beginning to
skirmish when I got the magic contingent arrayed, and the first round of
both sides lobbing magic were stalemated (ie. Nice fireworks, but no 
effect)  The opposing magic contingent were arrayed somewhat behind us in
the hills, staying hidden until we got trapped in between them and the 
forces from the city.  What they didn't reckon with was that was the 
direction from where the Ahoggya came hooting and hollering from.  They 
were not protected very well, and the Ahoggya made a grease stain out of
them (Thanks Bob.)  With that group gone, it allowed me to re-array and
wipe out the column of Heavy Infantry that made up the core of the opposing
army.  After that, there was too much mixing for me to be effective.  The 
armies were very effective after that, and when the Ahoggya made it to 
the city gates, the enemy surrendered.  We sacked the city and took off.  
A good time was had by all.

End of Friday.

Saturday started early with breakfast with Bob Alberti and Keith Dalluhn.
I had a great time chatting with them.  All the folks from Minneapolis 
are terrific people.

Saturday started with a couple of seminars.  An intro to Tekumel gaming by
Joe Saul and what's going on in Tekumel prime with the Minneapolis group.
I opted for the second, and we just chatted about what had been going on
in the Thursday night group's gaming sessions, and just the latest events
on Tekumel in general.

That was followed by Bob Dushay's A Fiery Omen and Bob Alberti's Kashkomai
Express adventures.  I opted for Kashkomai and enjoyed playing, er, being
abused in a totally Phil-like manner. :)  When not dodging pebbles being
lobbed at me by a stealth Sro, I was investigating a huge magic phenomena
that hadn't been at the lake when last I was there.  No answers, but there
was something strange going on there.  The Lady in charge apparently did
know that it was there, but didn't share any information on it.  We had
a few brand spanking new players in that game, and it was fun!  One guy 
went and bought a whole stack of Tekumel gaming material (Carl was there
and he came loaded).  I even spent a hundred bucks at his table - I ended
up replacing my Zocchi sourcebook -with original map- that committed 
seppuku for the sourcebook scanning project (which I think I will revive
and complete soon).  

After that, I went right to the next event, David Aitken's Hall of 
Honored Glories.  David and Joe Herrick co-gm'd the event.  It deals with
a group of stability folks interring (sp) a great general in an old tomb, and
a group of Ksarul folks end up popping up (I won't say without reason). 
They help one another through a few events, but during the final ritual
to lay the general to rest, stuff happens.  I won't divulge the details,
since David may want to run it again, but much fun was had by all.  
Needless to say the stability/change rift opened at the end, and yours 
truly was wiped out.  I almost stopped that, but I had an 20 percent
chance of failing to cast a spell that would have 1.)Probably wiped out
the Ksarul guys  2.)Wiped out what they were after.  I rolled a 19 and 
the spell didn't get off.  I was wiped out the next round, along with most 
of the other Stability worshippers.  Even though most of us died, we all 
had a good time.

After that, I wasn't feeling well, and decided to beg out of the LARP.  It
really isn't my kind of thing anyway.  I sat and watched, and chatted with
Bob and Joe Saul again for a bit.  I sat by the window and coooled off a
bit and started feeling better.  It was then the guy dressed up in the
Ksarul gear's turn to start feeling bad.  I sat in for him (not in the
costume, but in the role) and managed to make a couple of the objectives.  
It was a truly twisted plot and kudos to Bob, Joe S. and whoever else 
worked on it.  Talk about twists within twists.  I admit I did enjoy it, 
but I don't know if I would have if it hadn't been Tekumel.

End of Saturday.

Sunday started out with Seminars mostly (I overslept and missed most of the
first one). If Joe S. wants to sum up some of that seminar he can send me
the info.  Then we had a 2 hour Q&A with Professor Barker.  I think we have
the notes somewhere from the prior year's event, and Bob Dushay said he'd 
have notes for this year's as well.

Next I played in Bob Dushay's followup to his Saturday event.  We had quite
a good time investigating a meteor strike that was attributed to Vimuhla.  
The strike was in Yan Kor, and when we got to the site, there were more 
folks there.  I won't give things away, but lets just say this kid made out
like a bandit.  Emperor Mirusiya was mighty happy when this kid returned.

That ended the con, and after that we all ended up at Joe S. and Lisa's for 
Chinese and general mayhem.  There must have been 20+ people in the room, 
talking and carrying on.  Much fun was had by all.

-----
Keith Dalluhn reports from the Friday night event at UCon...

To:the ever-glorious emperor of Tsolyanu
From:ekk-saa, hlaka commander
re:battle of Sokatis
scribed by Mragen hiTlalen

[Moderator's Note:  Wasn't it Sirsum?  I thought we were enclosed by      ]
[                   mountains and near the Hlaka ruins.  I could be wrong.]

Most glorious emperor, what follows is a verbatim account of the 
taking of Sokatis in the year 2040.  The molkar of the Hlaka legion 
approached me to tell his story.

Very glorious, most noble emperor,

I write you.  I make story straight.  Hlaka very hurt.  This happen. 
Kerdu send for me.  Kerdu tell me 'look',  we look.  Find many bad 
man.  I go.  Tell Kerdu.  I say many many bad men. He say thank you. 
I ask 'more food Hlaka?'  He say 'Yes'.  Hlaka go to baggage. 
Hlaka take food.  Kerdu come.  Kerdu mad.  Kerdu tell hlaka 'go 
home'.  Hlaka very sad.  Hlaka take food.  Hlaka go.  Hlaka no go 
home.  Hlaka wait.  Hlaka watch as Ahoggya told 'go, look'.  Hlaka 
follow ahoggya.  Ahoggya go through mountains.  Hlaka follow. 
Ahoggya come to village.  Ahoggya burn village.  Hlaka wait. 
Ahoggya leave.  Hlaka go village.  Hlaka find many many shiny. 
Hlaka take.  Ahoggya find more village.  More burn.  More shiny. 
Happen many many times.  Ahoggya come to big cliff.  Many men on top. 
Ahoggya try climb.  Hlaka help!  Hlaka bring rocks.  Hlaka drop 
rocks on men.  Many many times we drop rock. Ahoggya make top of 
hill.  Ahoggya kill all people.  Ahoggya leave.  Many more shiny!!! 
Ahoggya get to sokatis.  Hlaka get to sokatis.  We wait. Hlaka look 
city during day.  Hlaka look city during night.  Hlaka find many 
secrets!  Hlaka wait.  Army comes.  Army ready.  City comes.  City 
ready.  Many fight!  Hlaka fly over battle.  Fly to wall.  Drop many 
rock and spear.  Man on wall scream.  Many fall.  Hlaka fly to city. 
Hlaka fly windows, balconies.  Hlaka kill many people.  Hlaka 
start city burn.  Hlaka first in city.  Hlaka take city.  Not 
Kerdu.  Hlaka give city to emperor.  Many glories to emperor!!!

There you have it, word for word, from the hlaka commander.

Most abjectly I submit this report.

-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1090

[Moderator's Note:  Gustavo Iglesias would like to know more about the     ]
[                   medical arts and their practice and practitioners on   ]
[                   Tekumel.                                               ]

First of all, my name is Gustavo Iglesias, and I'm a newcomer to the world
of Tekumel. I'd like to thank the Professor for creating the most exciting,
exquisite and believable fantasy world I've ever seen in my life. I also
ask you all to have some patience with this newbie ;)

Second, I've just got into a PBEM, and I had an interesting idea for a
character; a priest of Sarku dedicated to Naupal of the Black Lips (the
aspect which presides over rotting diseases and stinking tumors), and
skilled physician.

I want to know more about medicine in the Five Empires. As a medical
student IRL, I take a keen interest in the anthropology, epistemology and
history of medicine, and I'd like to know the theories and practices of
Tekumeli physicians, surgeons, apothecaries, midwives, lithotomists, et al.

And the medical professionals themselves? How do they fit in society? Are
they associated with institutions such as temples? Are there clans
traditionally dedicated to the medical arts? Are there hospitals and
asylums? What about famous medical schools (like Europe's famous schools,
Prague and Salerno)? And so on.

If someone could answer me, I'd be grateful.

Gustavo Iglesias
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1091

[Moderator's Note:  Stephen Tihor asks about the Atl.  I don't think I  ]
[                   have heard the Professor refer to it either.        ]

The spear thrower is a fairly primitive but effective weapon system but 
I have not encountered references to it in the most recent rules systems.  
Is this another of those ideas not rediscovered in the Five empires or 
culturally suppressed?

-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1092

[Moderator's Note:  Andy Lorince passes on this note about Eve Con.       ]

 thought i'd pass on a bit of a report fro eve con
2000.
 new location, new date, washington redskins playoff
football, nice weather. that about sums it up.
although attendence was up it wasn't up as much as
expected. more of a suprise was the meal prices. $14
after tip for a hot and cold breakfast buffet with
maybe ten choices.

game wise i posted tekumel events upon arrival for
friday and saturday nights. located about halh dozen
persons intrested but as so often happens couldn't get
two of them to sit down with me atthe same time.
despite this we did make some additions to last years
game. some of the players from last year who were
present thought that our kasi needed a special reward.
since he wasn't present or didn't make himselfknown
if he was, i did my gm thing and devised one for him.

When the cohort last set up camp, near an unnamed
village, some of the locals were heard to say that
they hoped the latines were extra deep. no one payed
much attention to this until a couple days later when
intestinal problems developed. a thorough study by
various priests,mages, physicians and healers could
find no reason for this. when some one finally decided
to ask the locals, who seemed to have no difficulties,
about this they were told that it would pass in a
couple weeks or at most a month. thrak hi'anokiam our
kasi was one of those hit the hardest by this.
when these dificulties were begining to eb a messenger
arrived from fenul with personal messages for thrak
and a tirikamu named horu hi'arusa of the amber cloak
clan. a third document were orders for thrak and horu,
with a detachment from the cohort, to return to fenul
a quickly where they would begin leave to attend to
clan matters.
one of those selected to return was achan hi tuplawgte
of dark water, horu's herekesa. things did not proceed
much beyond this.

thrak hi'anoaikm of dark moon clan kasi 4th cohort
legion of shattering of ssuyal. this man was inlisted
and imediatly given command of the 4th cohort
consisting of ill equipped troops just out of basic.
achan hi'tuplawgte of dark water clan herekesa first
karang 4th cohort.
horu hi'arusa of amber cloak clan ( a newbie who
decided to generate a character friday night against
the possibility of gettig into a game on saturday. if
he had waited a half hour longer before getting into
that rpga game then we might of had a game.)

achan would learn the contents of the personal
messages. thrak's was that his clan had advised him
that the most auspicious time for his wedding was
determined to be between 18 and 20 dohala. the kasi on
the other hand was not aware that he was bethrothed.
horu was told that his aged father had recently passed
away and as eledest surviving son it was necessary for
him to assume his duties which included seeing to the
wedding of an older sister.

horu not being advised of location of fenul had
decided that he want'ed to build skills suitable to a
sea captain. now as most subscribers to this news
group know the nearest ocean to fenul the dry bay of
ssuyam which is an ocean of sand. the nearest wet
ocean is many hundreds of tsan away. after a little
investigation i learned that one of horu's father's
duties was "overseer of imperial fleets in fenul"

the governor was not even aware that there were any
imperial ships in fenul, let alone fleets. la looks
like another extensive visit to the archives, but then
thats what scribes are for.

by the way thrak's wife to be is described as well
formed with unusual hair and eyes. she is also of the
amber cloak clan and almost twice his age. read this
her eyes are blue-green and her hair tends to red with
both of them having charismas in the single digets
this would be an intresting marriage.
yuninash hi'ancholbel
governor of fenul
andy lorince
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1093

[Moderator's Note:  Don't faint now.  I am still running into problems with ]
[                   the list software I chose.  Bob Alberti offered me an   ]
[                   account on his tekumel.com machine, so we may set up    ]
[                   new list software there and move the archives there as  ]
[                   well, freeing me of the burden of maintaining the list  ]
[                   and archives by hand.  Woohoo!  Bob Dushay offers up    ]
[                   some good questions about how magic works.              ]

I have been thinking a lot about how magic "works" on Tekumel, trying to
adapt it to other rules systems.  I know you don't want to answer any rules
questions, but these are "real" Tekumel questions, to try to figure out how
to better model the world.

1. I know your "game" Tekumel differs from the "real" Tekumel.  How do the
novels fit?  I'm guessing they are also different from the "real" Tekumel,
but they're closer to it than the games are.

2. What is the difference between ritual and psychic magic?  The game
systems describe ritual and psychic magic as the same thing, with the only
difference being the gestures and substances needed to cast.  But if there
are people who can master one and not the other, that implies the
difference is more than just the surrounding mumbo-jumbo.  Are ritual and
psychic magic different expressions of the same underlying principles (that
is, with a proper mindset and in some circumstances, chanted syllables and
substances, power can be drawn from the Planes Beyond to achieve a specific
effect) or are they completely different types of sorcery, that the
mindsets for psychic magic are different from the mindsets for ritual
magic?

[Moderator:  I think that the energy is somehow affected by the items, or     ]
[            caught and shaped by the gestures, who can say why.  Items such  ]
[            as those sacrificed in a summoning are prices paid to the being  ]
[            that is summoned.   Hopefully, Phil will elaborate.  Also, some  ]
[            folks may be extremely intelligent and totally clutzy, so they   ]
[            can't perform the gesticulations with any accuracy...  :)        ]

3. How difficult is it to come up with variant effects of the same spell? 
For instance, if a sorcerer wanted their Ascertainment spell to have a
slightly longer range, or a slightly larger area of effect, is that the
sort of thing they could do without extensive research, say by altering
their mindset just a little, or using a slightly different set of words? 
Or are spells largely fixed, and only the most senior sorcerers know how to
customize them by fiddling with a word here or a concept there?

[Moderator:  I don't know what Phil does, but I am probably more loose on this]
[            topic than most people.  If someone wants to extend the duration ]
[            of a spell, I usually allow them to expend the points without    ]
[            re-rolling any dice.  It just seems logical to me.  Where you run]
[            into trouble with me is when you try to expand the Area of effect]
[            or the amount of damage, since you are "overloading the pipe" as ]
[            it were.  This can expose you to danger since you are effectviely]
[            over-powering the spell, and it might get away from you and you  ]
[            could end up frying yourself, both inside and out....            ]

4. Although this last one is more of a rules question, I'm not looking for
a rules answer: I'm trying to figure out how your game rules model the
Tekumel "reality."

I am assuming that the Swords and Glory spell list is close to the types of
spells actually taught and used by the temples in Tsolyanu.  Are the
different "levels" of a spell, such as Elicitation U1, U2, and U4, just
minor variations of the same basic spell, or are they different spells that
happen to have similar effects?  Is it easier to learn higher levels of the
same spell once you know the basics, or is it just as difficult as learning
a completely different spell?  

Let me ask this again by analogy.  You learn how to fix a Ford Escort
engine (Engine Repair U1).  If different levels of the same spell are just
variants, then U2 might be the equivalent of fixing a Ford Taurus engine,
and a U5 might be the equivalent of learning to fix a Ford pickup truck. 
But, learning how to fix a helicopter engine is a different skill (and a
different spell), so spells could be understood as:

Engine Repair U1 (Ford Escort)
     Engine Repair U2 (Ford Taurus)
     Engine Repair U5 (Ford pickups)

Helicopter Engine Repair U6 (a completely different spell)


Or, are different levels of the spell are as difficult as learning
different spells, so that

Engine Repair U1 (Ford Escort)
     Engine Repair U2 (Diesel truck engines)
     Engine Repair U5 (Helicopter engines)

Pilot Jet Airplane U6 (a completely different spell)


Thanks.
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1094

[Moderator's Note:  George Hammond asks about a number of topics.           ]

Some questions, from the general to the specific:

--Here and there I have seen reference to databases of individuals (e.g.,
at the end of Deeds), that are more inclusive than just the Emperors and
White Stone (?) clan dbs available at the ftp site.  Do these databases
exist?  Is there any possibility that they could be made available for
download?  If it would help, I have some experience with FileMaker Pro on
the Mac (which I think is Prof. Barker's preferred milieu?) and would be
more than willing to assist.

[Moderator: I could have sworn we had put that up on the list.  I'll check   ]
[           into why that didn't happen.  I should get a new one from Phil.  ]

--Regarding the Tlakotani, do any of them occupy high office besides the
Emperor's immediate family?  Not a single legion commander or high general
mentioned in Deeds of the Ever-Glorious is Tlakotani (except the princes,
of course).  And I don't recall seeing any Tlakotani mentioned among the
high priests named in Mitlanyal.  One would think that such a prestigious
lineage would have many members in high office.  Is there some limitation
or social pattern that I am unaware of?

--And some specific legion questions:

What was the fate of the Legion of the Translucent Emerald?  In the back
of Deeds of the Ever-Glorious, the story of the legion's return from long
obscurity, and subsequent odyssey (served against Yan Kor, then to Tumissa
to serve Princess Ma'in Kruthai, then to Bey Su to join Prince Taksuru) is
recounted.  Has the legion been given a number?  What is its current
situation?  Did it ever see combat?    

It would have been entertaining to see: a travel-toughened legion of
mountain farmers, their military training and gear some 500 years old,
tramping out of the east and out of the past to show up at the gates of
Ma'in Kruthai's palace...

--Also, I am a seeking information about two other Imperial legions:  the
24th and 26th Heavy Infantry.  Both are listed in Part 2, Volume 1 of the
Adventures on Tekumel series (this is the first of the Solitaire Adventure
series, with the blue cover), but I was unable to find mention of them in
Deeds of the Ever-Glorious or Gardasiyal.

Could anyone provide information on the history or disposition of these
legions?

Here is the information given in AoT:  

24th HI: Legion of the All-Consuming Flame.  General Chidoru hiSraisha of
Hekellu; devoted to Vimuhla, now at Sunraya.

(remarkable that such a small provincial place apparently supports 4
legions: 2 heavy infantry (the 24th, and the recently resurrected Legion
of the Translucent Emerald),  one of medium infantry, and one of Hlaka
scouts.  I don't believe any other city of it's size supports that many
legions of humans, except Vra.  Also, the Legions each appear to have
relatively strong temple affiliations:  to Vimuhla, Dlamelish, and Wuru.
Hekellu must be a strange place.)

26th HI: Legion of the Blue Peak.  General Arunomu hiSsanmirin of the Clan
of Sea Blue; based at Jakalla;  the General is the brother of the General
of the Legion of the Ruby Hand; mostly followers of Avanthe and Dlamelish.

Many thanks and regards to the Groupmind,

George H.
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1095

[Moderator's Note:  George Hammond also asks about Magic but wrt Battle.   ]

Hello all,

I've been wondering about the effect of battlefield magic.  For an online
game I'm playing in, I've been speculating on the unsuccessful Engsvanyali
invasion of Livyanu that Bareka hiShanyal notes as occuring in the reign
of the Priest-King Ssesmuga IV, c. 3420 in the Ever-Reliable Calendar of
Jnathar Vera (Bareka's work appears as "enghist.pdf" at the Blue Room ftp
archive). The invasion is described as having failed "due to powerful
sorcery".  I would be grateful for any information that could be provided
about this particular event, but would also appreciate a more general
discussion of the actual effect of battlefield magic.

The Sourcebook notes that in the Five Empires, legions and/or armies have
contingents of sorcerors who work as special teams, combining their powers
to defend their troops from opposing magic and cast powerful (if somewhat
crude) offensive spells. These spell-casters are specialists, trained to
work together, and are different from the more conventional
sorceror-priests that we are familiar with.  So what actually happens on
the battlefield?  Do the forces cancel each other out?  If they are
relatively well-matched, do any offensive spells get through to their
targets?

It would seem that if one side or the other was not well protected, the
effect of magical attacks could be devastating.  Large battles often hinge
on the clash of heavy infantry in close-order, and area-effecting magical
attacks could easily cause crucial disruptions in the ranks.

So how does this actually play out?  Does anyone have some battlefield
experience they could share?  Do attacks often get through?  What does
battlefield magical combat look like?  Does it often (ever?) occur that
one side is significantly less protected magically?  If so, I imagine the
outcome is quickly and brutally resolved.  Or perhaps there are rules of
honor that discourage this sort of thing?

I suspect that at least some of my questions would be answered by "The Art
of Tactical Sorcery," but this essay is long out-of-print, and I have been
unable to find a copy.  Carl Brodt says that the author has not been
willing to give him permission to reproduce it either.

I did review the battles described in "Coming of Age in Tsolyanu"
(Adventures on Tekumel Part 2, Vol. 1):

--At the attack on the Atkolel Heights, Yan Koryani sorcerors cast
Doomkill spells, but then are apparently suppressed by a Tsolyani casters.
--At the capture of Sunraya, no spells are used on the surface (an
explosion is triggered in the Underworld).
--At the siege of Tleku Miriya, we learn that city walls and major
buildings are protected by special spells developed during the Latter
Times (it would be nice to more of this!), and that the opposing sorcerous
contingents block each other's efforts.
--At the battle of Anohl, "magic bolts" explode above the heads of the
soldiers, but we don't learn if they have any effect.

None of the other descriptions mention battlefield magic.

[Moderator:  I have never participated in a large scale battle with Phil, but ]
[            I am sure that others who have will respond.  As I understand,   ]
[            Battle Magic is different even though it may look like larger and]
[            bigger versions of known spells.  I would call the Magic Unit of ]
[            an army a Battery.  The mages are linked, power pooled, magic is ]
[            shaped and cast.   Some of the battery is geared to defense, some]
[            to attack.  It seems that in most cases, the magic unit is there ]
[            to stalemate another magic unit.  If you fight someone and they  ]
[            don't have a magic unit when you do, they are going to be in big ]
[            trouble.  My limited experience.                                 ]

Well, I've rambled on more than intended.  Any thoughts on battlefield
magic?  Perhaps this would be a suitable article for the next issue of
"Seal of the Imperium"?

regards,

George Hammond
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1096

[Moderator's Note:  I have pretty much added everyone to the list, and removed]
[                   the folks who have been bouncing.  Updates are done, and  ]
[                   after I send out this Admin note, I will be sending out   ]
[                   back message digests to all the new subscribers.  This is ]
[                   all I currently have to send, so hopefully George and     ]
[                   Bob's questions will garner some responses.  In this admin]
[                   note there are 2 updates from the tekumel.com website, and]
[                   Peter Gifford knows someone with miniatures and other     ]
[                   Tekumel stuff to sell.                                    ]

All messages are from Peter Gifford.

Greetings Tekumel fans!

The Excellent Travelling Volume has been updated with a whole lot of 
new scans and information on Tekumel publications throughout the 
years. I've also made the layout clearer and added a publishing 
history where I have the information. This should please all you 
obsessive Tekumel collectors out there (hopefully I'm not the only 
one!) If you have any more information on any of these publications 
or wish to add one that is not yet listed, let me know.

Sorry I haven't had the time to add another major section to the site 
- life is hectic and tekumel.com is a very time-consuming job ...
Remember I'm also still canvassing support for the creation of a new 
full colour printed map of Tekumel. You can get an idea of what this 
would look like by downloading the colour wallpaper map in the new 
Downloads section. Please email me if you think you would be a buyer 
of such a product.

As ever, comments, articles, adventures, suggestions and 
contributions are very welcome. Any feedback from the Tekumel 
'community' is encouraged - www.tekumel.com needs your support. Any 
web site programmers who want to help with back end functionality 
(search functions, registration system, shopping facilities) for the 
greater glory of Tekumel are encouraged to contact me.

Hopefully in the not-too-distant future tekumel.com will have a 
chatroom. For those of you who haven't discovered it yet, Brett 
Slocum has an excellent new mailing list running at 
http://www.egroups.com/group/tekumel

Enjoy! <http://www.tekumel.com>

Best regards,
Peter Gifford
-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
peter gifford
ceo | designer
universal head graphics pty ltd

42 glenmore road, paddington nsw 2021 australia
call (+612) 9358 4777
fax (+612) 9358 4788
email <mailto: head@universalhead.com.au>
website <http://www.universalhead.com.au>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi
I've also posted Roger McCarthy's excellent Excel spreadsheet of 
spells, legions and personalities.
And added Mitlanyal to the Excellent Travelling Volume.

Go to www.tekumel.com/gameframeset.html
click on the 'Gaming Tools & Play Aids' link
there's a link to the page under the 'Playing Aids' heading.

Cheers
Peter Gifford
-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
peter gifford
ceo | designer
universal head graphics pty ltd

42 glenmore road, paddington nsw 2021 australia
call (+612) 9358 4777
fax (+612) 9358 4788
email <mailto: head@universalhead.com.au>
website <http://www.universalhead.com.au>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I hope no one minds if I use the list to advertise some Tekumel 
items, but I thought those on the Blue Room would be interested in 
these offers, especially those into collecting Tekumel figures! Some 
rare items, including a 1975 boxed EPT, are also for sale.

A new friend of mine in Canada, Ken Ward, has asked me to post this 
list. I've bought several items from him myself and he has been an 
absolute pleasure to deal with; I'm happy to personally vouch for 
him. If anyone is interested in purchasing any or all of these items 
you can contact Ken directly at :
thewards@telus.net

Tekumel Figure List
Ken would prefer to sell the lot in one go (see total price at end of list).

Painted Tekumel Figures:			Cost in US Dollars
					per	total

2 Ahoggya					3.00	6.00
1 Ahoggya Armored				3.00	3.00
1 Ahoggya Small				3.00	3.00
1 Hlaka Flying				1.50	1.50
1 Hlaka On ground				1.50	1.50
2 Hlyss Warriors				3.00	6.00
1 Mihalli Sorcerer				1.50	1.50
1 Mihalli Warrior				1.50	1.50
1 Mu'ugalavya Drum				1.00	1.00
1 Mu'ugalavya Drummer			1.50	1.50
1 Mu'ugalavya General			1.50	1.50
1 Mu'ugalavya Infantry w/ Pike & shield		1.50	1.50
1 Mu'ugalavya Standard Bearer			1.50	1.50
1 Pachi Lei  Armored				3.00	3.00
1 Pe Choi Female				3.00	3.00
1 Pe Choi Male				3.00	3.00
1 Pe Choi Male - Armored			3.00	3.00
2 Priest of Hry'y				1.50	3.00
1 Priest of Vimuhla				1.50	1.50
2 Priestess of Avanthe			1.50	3.00
2 Priestess of Dlamelish			1.50	3.00
1 Shen Heavy Armor				3.00	3.00
1 Shen Light Armor				2.25	2.25
1 Sro Winged (11" wing-span!)			50.00	50.00
3 Ssu Black				1.50	4.50
2 Ssu Grey				1.50	3.00
1 Tinaliya					1.00	1.00
1 Tsolyani General				1.50	1.50
2 Tsolyani Heavy Infantry w/ Bow		1.50	3.00
2 Tsolyani Heavy Infantry w/ Pike		1.50	3.00
1 Tsolyani Legion of Red Devastation w/2-handed sword
					1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Omnipotent Azure Legion Hvy Inf. w/Halberd
					1.50	1.50
2 Tsolyani Omnipotent Azure Legion Hvy Inf. w/Spear
					1.50	3.00
1 Tsolyani Omnipotent Azure Legion Officer	1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Standard Bearer			1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Trumpeter			1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani (Aradani?) Naked female w/ shield and spear
					1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani (Hluss?) w/2-handed sword		1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Light Infantry w/ Sling		1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Medium Infantry w/ Crossbow		1.50	1.50
1 Tsolyani Medium Infantry w/ Halberd		1.50	1.50
1 Urunen Warrior				1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor General				1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Gong				1.00	1.00
1 Yan Kor Gong Beater			1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Heavy Infantry w/ Pike		1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Infantry w/ axe			1.50	1.50
2 Yan Kor Infantry w/ bow			1.50	3.00
1 Yan Kor Infantry w/ crossbow		1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Infantry w/ halberd			1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Infantry w/ sword & shield		1.50	1.50
1 Yan Kor Standard Bearer			1.50	1.50
_____________________________________________________________________
total 64						160.25

Painted EPT Constructions from Other Figures

1 Chlen					3.00	3.00
1 Chnelh					3.00	3.00
1 Dlaqo					3.00	3.00
1 Dnelu					3.00	3.00
1 Dzor					3.00	3.00
1 Feshenga				3.00	3.00
1 Gerednya				3.00	3.00
1 Giriku					3.00	3.00
1 Hyahyu'u				3.00	3.00
1 Kayi					3.00	3.00

total 10						30.00
_____________________________________________________________________

running total 74					190.25

Unpainted EPT figures

1 Hlyss Large (?)				2.00	2.00
5 Mihalli Sorcerer				1.00	5.00
1 Mu'ugalavya Heavy Infantry w/sword & shield (?)	1.00	1.00
3 Mu'ugalavya Infantry w/Pike & (2 pikes missing)	0.50	1.50
1 Pe Choi Armored				2.00	2.00
1 Priestess of Avanthe			0.85	0.85
1 Priestess of Dlamelish			0.85	0.85
2 Tsolyani Aridani w/ javelin			0.85	1.70
1 Tsolyani General				0.85	0.85
1 Tsolyani Heavy Infantry w/ pike & shield (?)	1.00	1.00
3 Tsolyani Hnalla, Master of Light w/ Halberd	0.85	2.55
3 Tsolyani Joyful Vrayani			0.85	2.55
3 Tsolyani Medium Infantry w/ Halberds		0.85	2.55
3 Tsolyani Mighty Prince w/ Pike		0.85	2.55
2 Tsolyani Omnipotent Azure Legion Officers	0.85	1.70
2 Tsolyani Road/City Guard			0.85	1.70
2 Tsolyani Serqu Sword of the Emperor w/composite bow
					0.85	1.70
3 Tsolyani Serqu Sword of the Emperor w/ Pike 	0.85	2.55
1 Tsolyani Standard Bearer			0.85	0.85
1 Urunen Crossbowman			0.85	0.85
1 Urunen Drummer				0.85	0.85
1 Urunen Halberdier				0.85	0.85
1 Urunen Sorcerer				0.85	0.85
1 Urunen Standard Bearer			0.85	0.85
4 Yan Kor Archers				0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor Axemen				0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor Dharw & Vanu w/ halberd		0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor Dharw & Vanu w/ sword		0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor Makhis Light Longbows		0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor Tleku Miriya w/ crossbow		0.85	3.40
4 Yan Kor w/ pike				0.85	3.40

total 72                        			63.50
____________________________________________________________________
  Overall Total = 146					253.75 US


Other Tekumel Items
Ken is open to offers on these items:

EMPIRE OF THE PETAL THRONE: The World of Tekumel - boxed - TSR -1975
EMPIRE OF THE PETAL THRONE: The World of Tekumel - Different Worlds Productions -1987
SWORDS & GLORY, VOL. 1: Tekumel Source Book 1 - Different Worlds Productions - 1987
SWORDS & GLORY, VOL. 1: Tekumel Source Book 2 - Different Worlds Productions - 1988
SWORDS & GLORY, VOL. 1: Tekumel Source Book -boxed - Game Science - 1983
TOMB COMPLEX OF NERESHANBO, THE - An adventure - Tekumel Games - 1984

Thanks!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
peter gifford
ceo | designer
universal head graphics pty ltd

42 glenmore road, paddington nsw 2021 australia
call (+612) 9358 4777
fax (+612) 9358 4788
email <mailto: head@universalhead.com.au>
website <http://www.universalhead.com.au>
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1097

[Moderator's Note:  Chuck Monson shares information about Battle Magic.      ]

My tales of battle magic are based on battles with Barker present in days 
when I still had hair.  Indeed, lacking strong battle magic resources is a 
near thing, but never insurmountable in my experience.  In a balanced game, 
where generals are supposed to have a working knowledge of the opponent on 
the field, both sides often make sure of magic resources before engaging.  
In each of three battles I was the Yan Koryani commander where I had lesser 
resources in the magic field than my opponents.  In fact, I generally 
discounted any effect of magics short of tactical advantage (dropping a tree 
on an insidious archer with a magic bow, blowing up a bridge while an enemy 
unit crossed it, and on one dire emergency, firing spells into the ranks of 
oncoming armor plated Shen at short range).  The operations for most battle 
magics is to keep the opponent priests from fragging your command staff and 
your magic users.  
In one battle, my rolls of dice were phenomenal (three d100 1's in a row) to 
have normal archers penetrate the comfort zone of the Tsolyani command 
platform and succeed in nailing the General himself inspite of  magical 
shields, magic armor, and a couple of  offensive spells.  (I believe that the 
officer of that group was the only one to stagger back to my lines.) Battle 
magics are powerful.  They are just not the only lethal effect in battle.  
Luring the enemy into his doom is always a nice touch, but don't rely on your 
magics to go unheeded by the enemy priests.  Or unavenged by nasty Mad Ones 
who could care less about such things.  
Field tactics are almost magical in themselves.  I learned about toe-clips 
for sandals allowing a dust cloud to be raised.  At a distance safe to 
maneuver at speed, my army reassembled for an assault by hiding behind the 
obscuring dust wall and marching to the right flank. The Tsolyani had to pick 
up their entire seige train to chase me.  Disrupting the enemy position on a 
battlefield is more successful than simply knocking about a few hundred 
troops with spells. 
Magics with sound military plans and good opportunities work well, but do not 
rely on the magics to stop enemy legions.  It might make your troops lack 
confidence in your military skills or  question your worthiness to lead the 
boyos into death's maw.  Honor is ever at the fore and success depends on who 
is left standing beside you.  
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1098

[Professor Barker responds to Bob Dushay's questions about magic and the    ]
[various "realities" of Tekumel.                                            ]

>I have been thinking a lot about how magic "works" on Tekumel, trying to
>adapt it to other rules systems.  I know you don't want to answer any rules
>questions, but these are "real" Tekumel questions, to try to figure out how
>to better model the world.

>1. I know your "game" Tekumel differs from the "real" Tekumel.  How do the
>novels fit?  I'm guessing they are also different from the "real" Tekumel,
>but they're closer to it than the games are.

The various Tekumel game systems *and* the novels *and* our role-playing
games are all abstractions from reality, of course. They are not identical
to reality but only approximations of it, for various purposes. Naturally,
there are inconsistencies and omissions. The games are abstractions
constructed so as to provide a "rules" context.  The novels are similarly
abstractions designed to simplify and explicate "Tekumel reality" for
fictional purposes. Both are meant for those who cannot "visit" Tekumel for
themselves.

To take an Earth example: Monopoly is a greatly abstracted vision of
Atlantic City, New Jersey. Its rules are not meant to represent anywhere
near the complexity of "real life" there: no bureaucracy, no tax problems,
no federal versus state intricacies, no zoning laws, -- and a myriad other
factors. It is a simplified game-view, and an enjoyable one (at least for
me). If I were to write a roleplaying game based on Atlantic City, I would
include many more factors, but I would still not get them all -- or get
them as others might see them. If, again, I wrote a novel about Atlantic
City, I would again pick and choose my details and descriptions --
different, perhaps, than my "game" systems. I could not get the entire
picture into any sort of novel, game, or whatever, even so. This would be
true even for a lengthy encyclopaeida article or book about my subject!
Reality is always more than whatever pieces an author chooses to stuff into
his/her work.

To reply directly to your question: yes, the novels are different in some
ways from the games, and, yes, they are closer to "Tekumel reality" but
still not all of it.

>2. What is the difference between ritual and psychic magic?  The game
>systems describe ritual and psychic magic as the same thing, with the only
>difference being the gestures and substances needed to cast.  But if there
>are people who can master one and not the other, that implies the
>difference is more than just the surrounding mumbo-jumbo.  Are ritual and
>psychic magic different expressions of the same underlying principles (that
>is, with a proper mindset and in some circumstances, chanted syllables and
>substances, power can be drawn from the Planes Beyond to achieve a specific
>effect) or are they completely different types of sorcery, that the
>mindsets for psychic magic are different from the mindsets for ritual
>magic?

Good question. Psychic magic is dependent largely upon the caster's mental
powers; ritual magic has some of this but adds in physical aids, such as
chanted ritual, substances, gestures, etc. With physical aids, the sorcerer
has a somewhat easier time linking his/her powers to the flow of energy in
the Planes Beyond. Psychic magic requires more mental training and
discipline: both draw upon the eddies and currents of the Planes Beyond,
but navigation is made easier by physical charts, instruments, buoys, and
the like, to employ a metaphor. Ritual magic is more physical in some ways,
harsher, cruder, and less subtle.

Can one achieve the same results with either ritual or psychic magic, given
training and experience? I would say probably, but getting there with
psychic magic is always more complex and more dependent upon mental
discipline and mind-set. At least, this is how I see it, although many
Tekumelani sorcerers would doubtless have a great deal more to say on it.

>[I think that the energy is somehow affected by the items, or >   ]
>[caught and shaped by the gestures, who can say why.  Items such  ]
>[as those sacrificed in a summoning are prices paid to the being  ]
>[that is summoned.   Hopefully, Phil will elaborate.  Also, some  ]
>[folks may be extremely intelligent and totally clutzy, so they   ]
>[can't perform the gesticulations with any accuracy...  :)        ]

This is another way to understand it. The items -- diagrammes, sacrifices,
chanting, etc. do indeed have properties and powers of their own. These are
accessed by the ritual sorcerer, wheras the psychic mage has nothing but
his/her own mind to utilise.

>3. How difficult is it to come up with variant effects of the same spell?
>For instance, if a sorcerer wanted their Ascertainment spell to have a
>slightly longer range, or a slightly larger area of effect, is that the
>sort of thing they could do without extensive research, say by altering
>their mindset just a little, or using a slightly different set of words?
>Or are spells largely fixed, and only the most senior sorcerers know how to
>customize them by fiddling with a word here or a concept there?

Spells, as taught in the tmeple schools, are largely fixed by custom and
the ease of teaching just so many traditional details. To teach other
features tends to muddy the waters, or -- to use a Tekumelani image -- to
"put the oar in at a different angle" that may or may not bring about the
desired effects. This can be done, but only by a real expert with years of
experience. This is why I left this feature out of the games (and, largely,
the novels): it just requires too much work, experimentaton, and knowledge
to accomplish easily. Almost every gamer, if given the chance, wants to
change something about some spell or other. He/she wants to do this easily
and simply by saying, "Okay, I'm going to spend the next few years learning
a new spell and experimenting on it to produce different effects." This is
just too easy. It does not represent the sweat, blood, and tears needed to
master this procedure, nor does it represent the chances of failure -- and
blowing oneself to kingdom come while doing it. I have even had players
say, "Oh, I'm practicing my spells while we are marching along the road,
and I'm going to experiment on modifying a certain spell to produce X." One
requires concentration and hard work for this, which cannot be had very
well while pushing through crowds on the Sakbe Roads, or struggling through
a bazaar.

There is also a gaming factor that should make sense: if every player-mage
can develop new versions of spells, then what can other players do to
maintain cohesion and gameability? For example, Mage A says, "Oh, I have
researched my lightning bolt spell to allow for greater range, going around
corners, greater boom-boom effect, etc." The next player counters with,
"Yes, but I have resarched my shield spell to make me invulnerable to all
lightning bolts!" Anarchy! For game purposes, as well as for the sake of
"reality," thus, I set up the system to make it *very* difficult to master
new spells and/or variants.

>[I don't know what Phil does, but I am probably more loose on this]
>[topic than most people.  If someone wants to extend the duration ]
>[of a spell, I usually allow them to expend the points without    ]
>[re-rolling any dice.  It just seems logical to me.  Where you run]
>[into trouble with me is when you try to expand the Area of effect]
>[or the amount of damage, since you are "overloading the pipe" as ]
>[it were.  This can expose you to danger since you are effectviely]
>[over-powering the spell, and it might get away from you and you  ]
>[could end up frying yourself, both inside and out....            ]

I tend to agree, Chris, but even extending the ranges might be "overloading
the pipe." The opponents walk blithely into range of this long-range
variant and are toast before they know what hit them! In "real" Tekumel,
this is very rare but possible -- but the opponents may also have heard of
the researches of this super-mage and have got ready for him/her with
extensions of their own. In any case, this, in my view, is what rules are
best designed for: keeping the lid on supermen!

[Actually, I think we are in agreement on this.  I feel range falls]
[into the same category as area of effect.  What I was referring to]
[above was duration.  For example.  Say I cast a light spell that  ]
[lasts for 10 turns.  At the end of the 10th turn, if I decide to  ]
[continue the spell, I allow the points to be invested to keep it  ]
[running for 10 more turns.  All without rolls to keep it going.  I]
[would not treat a doomkill or congelation the same way.  They are ]
[discreet non-continuous spells.                                   ]

>4. Although this last one is more of a rules question, I'm not looking for
>a rules answer: I'm trying to figure out how your game rules model the
>Tekumel "reality."
>
>I am assuming that the Swords and Glory spell list is close to the types of
>spells actually taught and used by the temples in Tsolyanu.  Are the
>different "levels" of a spell, such as Elicitation U1, U2, and U4, just
>minor variations of the same basic spell, or are they different spells that
>happen to have similar effects?  Is it easier to learn higher levels of the
>same spell once you know the basics, or is it just as difficult as learning
>a completely different spell?

THe "levels" of a spell are abstractions of the amount of power that must
be obtained to use them. A short-range, low-effect lightning bolt is easier
to learn and cast than a bigger, more long-range one. It is easier to learn
higher variants of a spell than to learn new  spells; this is represented
in the game system. It is also close to Tekumel reality.

>Let me ask this again by analogy.  You learn how to fix a Ford Escort
>engine (Engine Repair U1).  If different levels of the same spell are just
>variants, then U2 might be the equivalent of fixing a Ford Taurus engine,
>and a U5 might be the equivalent of learning to fix a Ford pickup truck.
>But, learning how to fix a helicopter engine is a different skill (and a
>different spell), so spells could be understood as:

>Engine Repair U1 (Ford Escort)
>     Engine Repair U2 (Ford Taurus)
>     Engine Repair U5 (Ford pickups)
>
>Helicopter Engine Repair U6 (a completely different spell)

Sounds good to me. Helicopter repair might depend upon roughly the same
basics as Ford car/truck repairs, but it is more complex, and new factors
have to be learned, I think.  My feeling is that motor repairs are similar
enough to all fit somewhere on the same ladder, but they would be divided
(into sub-skills) according to the levels of sophistication involved.
Perhaps they could be set up as different "skill-ladders," too, if they are
really intrinsically different enough. This would depend upon the person
devising the relevant game. My father could repair any breed of early car
ever made -- they were all basically similar. He could not have repaired
any of the newer models with their computer components and elaborate
construction. New skill/spell? I think so.

>Or, are different levels of the spell are as difficult as learning
>different spells, so that

>Engine Repair U1 (Ford Escort)
>     Engine Repair U2 (Diesel truck engines)
>     Engine Repair U5 (Helicopter engines)
>
>Pilot Jet Airplane U6 (a completely different spell)

Yes. But is Helicopter repair a separate skill from jet airplane repair? I
leave it to those who know...

Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1099

[Professor Barker responds to George's questions on the character database]
[and Legions.                                                             ]

>Some questions, from the general to the specific:

>--Here and there I have seen reference to databases of individuals (e.g.,
>at the end of Deeds), that are more inclusive than just the Emperors and
>White Stone (?) clan dbs available at the ftp site.  Do these databases
>exist?  Is there any possibility that they could be made available for
>download?  If it would help, I have some experience with FileMaker Pro on
>the Mac (which I think is Prof. Barker's preferred milieu?) and would be
>more than willing to assist.
>
>[Moderator: I could have sworn we had put that up on the list.  I'll check   ]
>[           into why that didn't happen.  I should get a new one from Phil.  ]

I have a Fillemaker Pro 4.0 datebase for about 2,000 characters who have
appeared now and again in our games. Many are player characters and thus
have more spells and skills than they deserve (some jolly fellows-- alas --
have downright cheated on this!). But there they are. Chris was going to
put this database up on the FTP site, but I don't think he ever got to it.

[Will do so very soon.  I have a copy of it.  I actually began the ]
[process of converting it to access, but got sidetracked.  I should]
[probably get a new copy from Phil first.                          ]

>--Regarding the Tlakotani, do any of them occupy high office besides the
>Emperor's immediate family?  Not a single legion commander or high general
>mentioned in Deeds of the Ever-Glorious is Tlakotani (except the princes,
>of course).  And I don't recall seeing any Tlakotani mentioned among the
>high priests named in Mitlanyal.  One would think that such a prestigious
>lineage would have many members in high office.  Is there some limitation
>or social pattern that I am unaware of?

The Tlakotani clan does have members in high positions, but the Omnipotent
Azure Legion has been pretty careful about letting them attain undue power.
High generals and potentates might tend to want to maintain their personal
or lineage power by dubious means. Not that this doesn't occur... The
Empire is just too big and complex for me to see everything. The chances of
meeting a Tlakotani in a high position in some government bureau are
actually quite good.

>--And some specific legion questions:
>
>What was the fate of the Legion of the Translucent Emerald?  In the back
>of Deeds of the Ever-Glorious, the story of the legion's return from long
>obscurity, and subsequent odyssey (served against Yan Kor, then to Tumissa
>to serve Princess Ma'in Kruthai, then to Bey Su to join Prince Taksuru) is
>recounted.  Has the legion been given a number?  What is its current
>situation?  Did it ever see combat?

This legion saw combat in the last days of the Civil War: It helped Taksuru
assault the defenders of Avanthar. Many of its members perished, but
they're still around. Princess Ma'in wants it back now, and Taksuru has
agreed -- grudgingly -- to send it back to Tumissa (which he has not yet
done).

>It would have been entertaining to see: a travel-toughened legion of
>mountain farmers, their military training and gear some 500 years old,
>tramping out of the east and out of the past to show up at the gates of
>Ma'in Kruthai's palace...

This did occur. You should have seen the look on her face!

>--Also, I am a seeking information about two other Imperial legions:  the
>24th and 26th Heavy Infantry.  Both are listed in Part 2, Volume 1 of the
>Adventures on Tekumel series (this is the first of the Solitaire Adventure
>series, with the blue cover), but I was unable to find mention of them in
>Deeds of the Ever-Glorious or Gardasiyal.

>Could anyone provide information on the history or disposition of these
>legions?

>Here is the information given in AoT:

>24th HI: Legion of the All-Consuming Flame.  General Chidoru hiSraisha of
>Hekellu; devoted to Vimuhla, now at Sunraya.

>(remarkable that such a small provincial place apparently supports 4
>legions: 2 heavy infantry (the 24th, and the recently resurrected Legion
>of the Translucent Emerald),  one of medium infantry, and one of Hlaka
>scouts.  I don't believe any other city of it's size supports that many
>legions of humans, except Vra.  Also, the Legions each appear to have
>relatively strong temple affiliations:  to Vimuhla, Dlamelish, and Wuru.
>Hekellu must be a strange place.)

Quite right. This represents the constant conflict over the recent
centuries in the far northeast. Hekellu has always been a bubbling pot of
hostilities, and many of its inhabitants seem predisposed to violence for
reasons unknown to me. Ever been there?

>26th HI: Legion of the Blue Peak.  General Arunomu hiSsanmirin of the Clan
>of Sea Blue; based at Jakalla;  the General is the brother of the General
>of the Legion of the Ruby Hand; mostly followers of Avanthe and Dlamelish.

Nothing much I can say to this, except that debts had to be paid off during
and after the recent Civl War. This has resulted in political call-ups of
various old and defunct legions by people with political aspirations.

>Many thanks and regards to the Groupmind,

Regards,

Phil
-----
>Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
>The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
>Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1100

[Professor Barker responds to George's question about Battle Magic.    ]

>I've been wondering about the effect of battlefield magic.  For an online
>game I'm playing in, I've been speculating on the unsuccessful Engsvanyali
>invasion of Livyanu that Bareka hiShanyal notes as occuring in the reign
>of the Priest-King Ssesmuga IV, c. 3420 in the Ever-Reliable Calendar of
>Jnathar Vera (Bareka's work appears as "enghist.pdf" at the Blue Room ftp
>archive). The invasion is described as having failed "due to powerful
>sorcery".  I would be grateful for any information that could be provided
>about this particular event, but would also appreciate a more general
>discussion of the actual effect of battlefield magic.

There isn't much else known about this remote period. The Livyani have
always been renowned for their sorcery: they have depended on it as their
main line of defense for centuries, right up until the recent invasion by
Mu'ugalavya and the deployment of the anti-magical "black stones" brought
over from the Planes Beyond.

Ssesmuga's mages are recorded as "having access to the Spectral Essences of
the Palace of the Blue Lord of Tlashte," whatever they were, and Livyanu's
foes were sent reeling back by forces so powerful that "even the Armies of
Splendid Ch'ochi itself could not withstand them." After the victory the
Livyani wisely "returned their allies to non-being, in order not to allow
them to spread danger and chaos across the face of Tekumel."

There are indeed higher powers of sorcery than those now taught in the
Tsolyani temples (the spell corpus given in the current Tekumel games). The
players in the Thursday night roleplaying group have encountered a few of
these unusual spells, almost always in the possession of undying wizards,
beings from the distant past, and the like. A very, very few of these
spells have been learned by one or another player character wizard. In
time, these may appear in the teachings of the Tsolyani temples (which ones
depend upon circumstances too complex to describe here). For example, the
"Moonbeams" spell employed by Lady A'is, the lovely wife of Sanjesh
hiKirisaya. She claims to be the reanimated daughter of one of the monarchs
of the Dynasty of the Fisherman Kings, and her magic is slightly different
from that practiced in modern Tekumel. Such spells are rare, of course, and
are not available to modern wizards, largely because they do not know the
lady and have not had an opportunity to learn her sorcery. Lord Sanjesh
himself is careful not to publicise his wife's abilities, for fear some
temple or government -- or the Imperium itself -- might kidnap her and
wring her secrets out of her. A'is herself is well aware of this and never
uses her special spells unwisely. Were such potent enchantments to become
widely known, the whole system of spells and temple organisation would be
shaken.

>The Sourcebook notes that in the Five Empires, legions and/or armies have
>contingents of sorcerors who work as special teams, combining their powers
>to defend their troops from opposing magic and cast powerful (if somewhat
>crude) offensive spells. These spell-casters are specialists, trained to
>work together, and are different from the more conventional
>sorceror-priests that we are familiar with.  So what actually happens on
>the battlefield?  Do the forces cancel each other out?  If they are
>relatively well-matched, do any offensive spells get through to their
>targets?

Battlefield magic is described briefly in "Flamesong," as well in an
article on the Battle of the Temple of Chanis, published some years ago in
a wargaming magazine and then later again in one of the "Best of..."
booklets. To answer specifically, both aggressive and defensive magical
contingents have special repertories of spells that are amenable to "group
use" -- most spells are not. A light spell, for example, is  an individual
production; putting two wizards -- or twenty -- together to produce a
single giant light spell is just not possible, for unknown reasons. Mages
have spent their lives in dedicated research, but no method of grouping
such "individual" spells together has ever been found. Those spells which
can be combined and used on a battlefield are all known, and are detailed
in a number of treatises, the oldest of which goes back to the Latter
Times. There are indeed a few minor variants, practised by this nation or
that, but the basic structures do not seem to vary much.

>It would seem that if one side or the other was not well protected, the
>effect of magical attacks could be devastating.  Large battles often hinge
>on the clash of heavy infantry in close-order, and area-effecting magical
>attacks could easily cause crucial disruptions in the ranks.

This is absolutely true. The military forces of the Five Empires coddle
their magic-user contingents diligently. Once skirmishers or special attack
units (particularly of species less susceptible to sorcery) have penetrated
an opponent's position  and disrupted his magical contingent's spell
concentration, that opponent's army is doomed to almost certain defeat. The
Ahoggya have perhaps the best chance of getting through an enemy's magical
defenses, but Shen and some other species also can sometimes repel magic
and get into close combat with troops defending a magic contingent's
position.

>So how does this actually play out?  Does anyone have some battlefield
>experience they could share?  Do attacks often get through?  What does
>battlefield magical combat look like?  Does it often (ever?) occur that
>one side is significantly less protected magically?  If so, I imagine the
>outcome is quickly and brutally resolved.  Or perhaps there are rules of
>honor that discourage this sort of thing?
>
>I suspect that at least some of my questions would be answered by "The Art
>of Tactical Sorcery," but this essay is long out-of-print, and I have been
>unable to find a copy.  Carl Brodt says that the author has not been
>willing to give him permission to reproduce it either.

It wasn't entirely accurate in any case, having been written without
consulting me for authenticity.

>I did review the battles described in "Coming of Age in Tsolyanu"
>(Adventures on Tekumel Part 2, Vol. 1):
>
>--At the attack on the Atkolel Heights, Yan Koryani sorcerors cast
>Doomkill spells, but then are apparently suppressed by a Tsolyani casters.
>--At the capture of Sunraya, no spells are used on the surface (an
>explosion is triggered in the Underworld).
>--At the siege of Tleku Miriya, we learn that city walls and major
>buildings are protected by special spells developed during the Latter
>Times (it would be nice to more of this!), and that the opposing sorcerous
>contingents block each other's efforts.
>--At the battle of Anohl, "magic bolts" explode above the heads of the
>soldiers, but we don't learn if they have any effect.

They didn't. Both sides had small magical contingents, and they cancelled
each other out.

>None of the other descriptions mention battlefield magic.

>[I have never participated in a large scale battle with Phil, but ]
>[I am sure that others who have will respond.  As I understand,   ]
>[Battle Magic is different even though it may look like larger and]
>[bigger versions of known spells.  I would call the Magic Unit of ]
>[an army a Battery.  The mages are linked, power pooled, magic is ]
>[shaped and cast.   Some of the battery is geared to defense, some]
>[to attack.  It seems that in most cases, the magic unit is there ]
>[to stalemate another magic unit.  If you fight someone and they  ]
>[don't have a magic unit when you do, they are going to be in big ]
>[trouble.  My limited experience.                                 ]

All true. This is essentially how it is.

>Well, I've rambled on more than intended.  Any thoughts on battlefield
>magic?  Perhaps this would be a suitable article for the next issue of
>"Seal of the Imperium"?

Good idea.

Regards,
Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
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Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1101

[Professor Barker responds to Chuck's contribution on Battle Magic.      ]

Good to hear from you,Chuck! We did indeed have a good time.

>My tales of battle magic are based on battles with Barker present in days
>when I still had hair.  Indeed, lacking strong battle magic resources is a
>near thing, but never insurmountable in my experience.  In a balanced game,
>where generals are supposed to have a working knowledge of the opponent on
>the field, both sides often make sure of magic resources before engaging.
>In each of three battles I was the Yan Koryani commander where I had lesser
>resources in the magic field than my opponents.  In fact, I generally
>discounted any effect of magics short of tactical advantage (dropping a tree
>on an insidious archer with a magic bow, blowing up a bridge while an enemy
>unit crossed it, and on one dire emergency, firing spells into the ranks of
>oncoming armor plated Shen at short range).  The operations for most battle
>magics is to keep the opponent priests from fragging your command staff and
>your magic users.

Tabletop miniatures battles are game abstractions, of course. Things happen
that cannot occur in real battles: e.g. the godlike viewpoint of the
opponents, who can see all of the battlefield and marshal their forces
accordingly. Battlefield magic is like troop movement and fighting
capabilities: it is subject to "rules" that both facilitate it and also
limit it. This is naturally different from "reality."

>In one battle, my rolls of dice were phenomenal (three d100 1's in a row) to
>have normal archers penetrate the comfort zone of the Tsolyani command
>platform and succeed in nailing the General himself inspite of  magical
>shields, magic armor, and a couple of  offensive spells.  (I believe that the
>officer of that group was the only one to stagger back to my lines.) Battle
>magics are powerful.  They are just not the only lethal effect in battle.
>Luring the enemy into his doom is always a nice touch, but don't rely on your
>magics to go unheeded by the enemy priests.  Or unavenged by nasty Mad Ones
>who could care less about such things.

Good advice.

>Field tactics are almost magical in themselves.  I learned about toe-clips
>for sandals allowing a dust cloud to be raised.  At a distance safe to
>maneuver at speed, my army reassembled for an assault by hiding behind the
>obscuring dust wall and marching to the right flank. The Tsolyani had to pick
>up their entire seige train to chase me.  Disrupting the enemy position on a
>battlefield is more successful than simply knocking about a few hundred
>troops with spells.
>Magics with sound military plans and good opportunities work well, but do not
>rely on the magics to stop enemy legions.  It might make your troops lack
>confidence in your military skills or  question your worthiness to lead the
>boyos into death's maw.  Honor is ever at the fore and success depends on who
>is left standing beside you.

You always were a good general, Chuck. Wish you had been at the *real*
battle of the Hill of the Stone Serudla in Milumanaya to aid Prince
Mirusiya! The Tsolyani lost a lot of good men there, partially due to
battlefield magic.

Regards,
Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
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Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1102

[James Snead provides this account from his Tekumel.                     ]

*The Cinnabar Porch, an architectural fragment of a once-
substantial palace dating to Engsvanyali times, is a prominent
monument of Sokatis.  In essence a high, covered balcony
overlooking an expanse of smoke-wreathed domes and temple towers,
the porch provides a shady meeting place for the savants of the
city.  On lazy summer evenings they sit beneath the graceful
arabesques of a distant era, drink dark ngalu wine, and dispute
amongst each other over the lore of the ancients and tidings of
arcane events. 
     Towards the end of the recent civil disturbances the
following document, pertaining to an incident which occurred in
northeastern Tsolyanu, was revealed during such an informal
gatherings at the Cinnabar Porch by Kokun Durumai, Scholar Priest
of Gruganu and denizen of the Archive of the Bark-Eater in that
city.  He provided no explanation as to the origins of the
manuscript, nor how it came into his hands.  That it pertains to
certain practices of desert clans is evident, as is its
relatively recent date.  Beyond this who can vouch for the truth
of the matter?  Or of the nature of the macabre sorcery to which
it refers?*

     TO THE WEARER OF THE GARLAND OF FLAMES, salutations.
*Editor: the unnamed author, apparently an officer in one of the
Vimuhla-worshipping legions, had been dispatched on an
intelligence-gathering mission to northeast Tsolyanu.  The bulk
of the report concerns the movement of tribes, which are of
little interest here and have been omitted*.
     I desire to relate to you a curious incident, the import of
which is hidden to me.  It concerns one Ahwazh, a resident of the
town of ____, a foreigner from lands further to the east who
through advantageous marriage and involvement in commerce had
greatly advanced his station.  His prosperity, in fact, was a
source of some comment among the townsfolk, since Ahwazh had once
been among the poorest of the community.  No hint of impropriety,
however, had come to the ear of the authorities.  Indeed, due to
his fidelity to the Flame Lord he was held in great esteem by the
Mriyan of the temple here.
     It is due to the influence of this priest, indeed, that I
came to enter this tale.  Ahwazh had a likely-looking son, who
having reached the age of maturity was in preparation to undergo
certain rites of manhood peculiar to this remote place.  The
priest, anxious to curry favor with the lad's father, came to me
in supplication, requesting that I honor them by playing some
small role in the ceremony.  To this I assented, and in the
company of two of my trusted men arrived at the temple on the
appointed day and hour.
     A small procession had there assembled, and after casting an
offering into the flames that symbolized the passing of youth we
set out through the gates of the town.  The son of Ahwazh,
possessed of a fine voice, chanted liturgical passages as we
marched, showing no fear for the trials ahead.  In that desert
the heat was significant even at such an early hour, and the fine
armor we wore in keeping with the sacredness of the task would
have soon dragged down lesser men.  Our trail led beyond the
places usually frequented by the townsfolk and into the wild,
where soon the pools of Vaksoth the Bemuser of Men could be seen
shimmering on the stony plain *Editor: the author refers to a
local aspect of Lord Ksarul*.  After perhaps two hours a rocky
eminence came into view, crowned by some indistinct structure; to
this we climbed, up a stair half-masked in windblown sand.
     At this moment an argument broke out between Ahwaz and the
priest.  The shrine ahead, it transpired, was not the usual
setting for the rite, and indeed was unknown to almost all
present.  The priest was insistent, however, that conduct of the
ritual was guided by certain omens, and that their course was
directed by auguries which had taken place the previous evening.  
With evident reluctance the foreigner became silent, although his
face remained pale with anger and what seemed to be dread,
altogether unseemly for the event. 
     It was no great distance to the summit, on which stood the
shrine.  It was of an antique style unknown to me, a low, square
platform of yellow stone, open to the air, in the center of which
the sacred fire burned in a stone-lined pit.  Columns at each
corner were built of circular drums which grew larger with
height, forming inverted, pyramidal structures half again as tall
as a man.  At the far side of the platform stood a plain altar. 
All was unadorned and strangely plain.  At the gesture of the
priest we fanned out behind the boy, who stepped up on the
platform with firm intent.
     Most strange of all was the figure which stood behind the
fire.  It was a man full-armed, garbed in military harness of
archaic style, face hidden behind visor.  His gauntleted hands
clasped the pommel of a great steel sword, point down.  Seen
through the waves of heat and thin smoke generated by the fire
The figure seemed an apparition of the past, one of Lord
Vimuhla's holy warriors come to earth to defend the righteous. 
The chants had ceased, and while not a word was spoken, I
gathered that the rite was to be a token clash of arms between
the boy and this guardian, to my thinking a priest disguised in
heirloom armor dispatched from the town this morning to be ready
upon our arrival.  Such ceremonies I have heard described for
other remote corners of our empire.  Ahwazh, it seemed, had given
up his protest but still seemed uncertain, even stumbling
slightly as he came up onto the platform to stand beside his son. 
     The boy, however, in credit to his clan, stood firm, and at
the prompting of the priest cried out a challenge and lifted his
own sword in a martial pose.  Murmurs of approval came from the
witnesses, to which I added my own.  At first nothing came from
the masked figure, but then, as if lifting a great weight, it
wordlessly raised the steel sword high in response to the
challenge.  The boy turned his head slightly, as if expecting
more prompting from the priest, but none was forthcoming.  Then
the armored guardian took a long step sideways and suddenly had
come around the flaming pit, weapon still raised to strike.  At
this the boy leapt forward, and announced his readiness to die if
anything in his conduct should be judged unworthy, there before
the altar of his god.  There was only a little crack in his
voice, which seemed more a product of youth, rather than fear.
     The sword of the guardian came down in a gleaming swing
which caught the young man between neck and shoulder, the weight
of the weapon and the strength of the blow nearly cleaving him in
two.  The utter shock of this struck those of us witnessing with
the force of a fist.  Bereft of words, I found myself groping in
futility for my own weapon, while face of the priest went grey
with amazement and horror.  Then there came a roar of the hot
desert wind, and we were for a moment blind and deafened.
     Spitting sand, I leapt onto the platform and called for my
men to unsheathe their arms.  The boy's eyes already stared
sightless into the sky, but as the dust cleared it seemed that
the murderous guardian, too, had taken some blow, for he lay
fallen by the side of the pit of flame.  Wary of treachery I
continued ahead and reached to prod the armored body with my
sword.  At the touch of the weapon the helmet rolled free, empty.
Indeed there was no body within the armor at all, although there
had been no time for it to be discarded.  I stepped back, the
hairs rising on my neck, and my men, who had joined me there,
exchanged apprehensive glances.  
     There was nothing further that could be done for the boy,
who at his end had acted with nobility.  All noted, however, the
strange behavior of the father.  Ahwazh, as if stricken of sense,
crouched motionless at the base of one of the strange pillars
even while the temple functionaries bound up his son's body to be
returned to honorable disposition in the town.  His eyes looked
not on the dead youth but on the altar at the far end of the
platform.  No one spoke to him, and indeed among the dispirited
gathering there grew a sense that the harrowing events witnessed
were the outcome of some secret shame.  Unprepared, however, to
entirely credit the day's events to spirits and demons, I sent my
men to scout the hillock.  They returned soon enough, bringing
with them a report strange even in the context of a grim day,
prompting me to bring the priest and return with them down a
narrow trail they had discovered which led from the rear of the
platform towards the plain below.
     The path ended at a small cave that had been cut into the
hillside, perhaps once serving as a place for robing and the
storage of items associated with worship at that place.  The
entry was half blocked by drifts of sand and rubble, implying
that it had been many years since such it had seen regular use. 
Lying athwart the entrance was the body of a man whose naked form
showed no obvious wound but whose face had been frozen by death
into a rictus of terror.  It had clearly been hours since he had
been stripped of life. "This is our man," said the shocked
priest, "the one who was to be the guardian.  He was sent this
morning, to light the flame, to don the armor, and to play the
role ordained by the Lord of Flame."  
     We stepped over the dead priest and struggled to enter the
rubble-choked chamber, there finding yet another body, one 
shriveled and desiccated in the heat, a condition which had
however preserved both his visage and the sword wound across the
throat that had ended his life.  The priest, whose haggard face
told the story of the day's events, recognized this one, as well. 
"Yes, I knew him.  His name was...Sukoi, as well as I can
remember.  Another foreigner, who lived in the town when I first
came here.  He disappeared 18, 20 years ago, and was thought to
have returned to his own people.  And..." the priest paused,
taking a breath, "he was a close associate of Ahwazh.  They were
both poor men in those days."
     We returned, in silence, to the shrine.  The temple
servitors had rigged a sort of stretcher, on which the boy's body
had been placed, ready to return to the city for a very different
celebration than had been expected.  Ahwazh remained crouched
beneath the pillar, but as we approached he took his eyes away
from the altar and searched our own, as if reading the news of
our discoveries and the questions they raised.  Then, while we
waited there, he stood, stepped up to the bier, and stroked the
boy's forehead with a gesture which testified both to affection
and to grief.  It was my thought that he would cast himself into
the flame, and for a moment he seemed to consider this, too, but
instead, reached around his neck and took out what at first
looked like some small charm. Ahwazh pulled sharply, broke the
thin chain, and held it up to the sun, where the object gleamed
strangely.  The priest tensed, as if in preparation to ward off a
sorcerous attack, but Ahwazh lowered his arm and moved silently
to the altar, where he placed the item on the flat surface and
turned again to face us.
     "It is the Hand of Woe," he said, in a voice that seemed
scarcely human.  "I have risen high because of it; but its price
was always four."
     With that he turned to one side, stepped off the edge of the
platform, and vanished into a whirl of sand that appeared out of
nothing to swallow him up.  When we looked again he man was gone,
as if consumed by the desert, and no footprints made a trail down
the slope.  
     We stood for a moment in the heat of early afternoon,
conscious of a change as if from the passing of a shadow.  There
was, however, one thing remaining for me, and I walked across the
pavement to the altar.  There, on its surface, lay the item
Ahwazh had placed there.  It appeared to be a stone, flat and
four cornered, bound with gold and with a loop at one angle which
had been attached to the chain.  Its gray surface seemed at first
to be unadorned, but as I looked, it suddenly took on a
glittering sheen, seething with whorls and inner movement.  Then
I noticed next to it, on the surface of the altar, a faint
impression, which had exactly the same shape as the charm, as if
at some earlier time the same malevolent talisman had sat on the
altar for ages long enough to have left its imprint graven in the
stone.
     At that moment the priests and his acolytes took up the
drone of the chant for the honorable dead.  I was suddenly aware
again of the desert heat, and turned with heavy heart to join
them, leaving behind on the altar the Hand of Woe and its
secrets.  Together, we began the long walk back.
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1103

[David Bailey comments on Battle Magic.                                    ]

>The operations for most battle 
>magics is to keep the opponent priests from fragging your command staff 
>and your magic users.  

This is a very interesting example of the very fine balance of power that 
pervades the whole of Tekumel.  Over the millenia every fine advantage 
that can be found has been countered, counter-countered and so forth.  
Battle magic becomes, in some ways, a burden: commanders need to take a 
cohort of coddled, whining, pampered priests out to the field and all they 
actually acheive is a stalemate!

A good modern analogy is chemical warfare - although the potential 
consequences are truely ghastly, the real effect on combat troops is to 
force them to slow down and carry protective suits and detection 
equipment.

Also like chemical warfare, in the few campaigns where we have had the 
misfortune to come across it, battle magic is far more dangerous to 
bystanders than the enemy.  On one occasion we were sneaking back to 
the Empire with the body of a Prince of the Latter Times in some sort of 
crystaline coffin when "leakage" from a cohort of Sarku mages who were 
fighting on the other side of a hill caused us some serious difficulty 
with an ambulant corpse.
--
Midiro Ito
(known on other less interesting planes as David J Bailey)
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1104

[David Bailey comments on the equipment of legions (esp. those that         ]
[sometimes appear out of history) in Tsolyanu.                              ]

>It would have been entertaining to see: a travel-toughened legion of
>mountain farmers, their military training and gear some 500 years old,
>tramping out of the east and out of the past to show up at the gates of
>Ma'in Kruthai's palace...

To which Phil replied:

>This did occur. You should have seen the look on her face!

Indeed, such tales would become a great legend!  There are several 
excellent adventures that cover the ways in which old legions can be 
revitalised, and each has given our little group hours of entertainment:

* recovery of the standards (usually wrapped in lead foil and magically 
protected from decay)
* finding a patron
* appealing to the Emperor

ISTR that there is at least one legion (or the greater part of it) lost in 
the Unending Grey.  But perhaps that is not official Tekumel.  When or 
where they pop out they will cause a stir, I am sure.

There is good archeological evidence that stone, bronze and iron weapons 
stayed in use for many many generations or until destroyed or buried as 
grave goods.  Perhaps, on Tekumel, military gear a *mere* 500 years or so 
old is unlikely to earn more than a second glance and perhaps a few low 
whistles for failing to keep such minor family heirlooms in the usual 
excellent state of repair...
--
Midiro Ito
(known on other less interesting planes as David J Bailey)
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1105

[Bob Dushay asks some good questions about various undead.                 ]

Some thoughts about the Undead.  

In the old EPT rules, Mrur had to be burned so that they wouldn't rise
again. This was clarified in both the Blueroom (I think) and the Tekumel
Bestiary, where it says they should be destroyed so an adept can't
reanimate them. My questions are about what other details about the undead
are "game effects" and what is the "reality" behind them? How close are my
guesses below?

Hra are said to keep rising unless they are burned, and to pursue enemies
relentlessly. What's the "reality" behind this information? I am figuring
the enchantment that reanimates them is powerful enough to let their parts
scuttle together, and the magic that reanimated them in the first place is
powerful enough to hold whatever scraps of their body together. Fire either
destroys the body so much that there's nothing to hold together (in which
case, blasting the Hra into particles, or dissolving it in acid would also
do the trick) or disrupts the enchantment (in which case only fire will
do). As for the relentless pursuit, I'm guessing Hra have enough
intelligence to recognize foes. Stability forces will be attacked on sight,
while worshippers of Ksarul and Sarku would not. However, other followers
of Change cannot be sure what a Hra will do. If they encounter a party of
Karakan-worshippers, and the party's slaves run away, the Hra will first
deal with the warriors who stay and fight, and any survivors will track the
slaves, unless these were identifiable as followers of Ksarul or Sarku. But
I can't see them pursuing those slaves into the sunlight, nor would they
wait until night to leave the Underworld to hunt them in their beds.

Or would they?

Finally, what about the draining of fluids from the victims? Hra are
probably like vampires, with fangs and they draw the fluids from their
defeated victims to help sustain their bodies.

I'm seeing them as large, vaguely human appearing, with skins of a dingy
grey or black. Older specimens who haven't fed recently may be shrivelled,
looking like mummies, while fresher specimens may be fuller-fleshed, but
still undeniably dead.

I'm having a lot more trouble with Shedra. From the spell listed in the
Gardasiyal rules, I see them as looking similar to Mrur. I'm guessing their
consumption of other corpses helps fuel them, ennabling them to heal wounds
and keep their undead flesh cohesive. But how do they cause the bodies of
those they kill to rise as Shedra? Since they fight with swords, they need
never actually touch an opponent. I was thinking the spell that animates
them has an area effect, but if this were so, the entire catacombs would be
awash in Shedra. Plus, what's the spell that must be cast immediately on a
victim to prevent their rising? Some form of Alleviation? Finally, do
Shedra reanimate as the Hra do when they are defeated, or must an adept
cast a spell on their remains again, as for the Mrur?

--Bob Dushay
rdushay@mindspring.com
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1106

[Administrative Note - June 24, 2000                                       ]

There are 2 items this week.  The first is an observation by David Bailey 
about one of Phil's answers to a previous question.  The second is an 
announcement of a campaign opening by Michael Schwartz.

>Monopoly is a greatly abstracted vision of
>Atlantic City, New Jersey

funny - looks like it was based on London to those who live in the Old 
World.  I suspect Tekumeliani feel the same about the inhabitants of other 
planes: "well, they look a bit like us, but they have history all wrong, 
dear..."
--
Midiro Ito
(known on other less interesting planes as David J Bailey)

---

(A copy of this message has also been posted to the following newsgroups:
alt.games.frp.tekumel)

Hey folks,

The PENDRAGON campaign in which I have played for the past six years has
wound to a close and I have decided to begin a fresh campaign of my own.
Thus far no specifics have been settled upon, other than choosing a rules
set (HERO WARS, the new roleplaying game by Robin Laws and Greg Stafford)
and narrowing down the setting to either Glorantha (Ralios, Sartar, the
East Isles or Prax) or Tekumel (Chaigari, Tsolyanu, Pechano or Livyanu).

HERO WARS is built around a fairly simple mechanic, is easy to learn, and
allows for the dramatic resolution of activities as varied as personal
combat, magical duels, influence peddling or sexual seduction... just a
few things for which the average player-character (Gloranthan or
Tekumelani) is famous. And all using the same mechanics! I have never in
all my twenty-plus years in roleplaying found a system which performed as
admirably without the need to fudge significantly.

Of the people I have thus far contacted, most are fans of both settings...
so it could go either way. Interested parties in the southeastern Michigan
area should contact me at the address below. I would like to see this
campaign get off to a start before August, so get in touch ASAP if you
wish to play and can commit to a monthly or bi-weekly play schedule.

====================================================================
Michael Schwartz     mschwartz@mindspring.com     Ann Arbor, MI  USA
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1107

[Professor Barker replies to David's messages.                             ]

Battle magic is indeed a way of slowing down and harassing an enemy army.
It also slows down your own forces. But it keeps every little would-be hero
from running out and zapping enemy leaders with his own little Eye of
Raging Power (or what have you). Can you imagine warfare in which magic is
used and in which there is *no* counter? What a mess that would be! With no
way to defend your generals and organised forces, warfare would quickly
become an incredible chaos of warring magicians.

>[David Bailey comments on the equipment of legions (esp. those that         ]
>[sometimes appear out of history) in Tsolyanu.                              ]
>
>>It would have been entertaining to see: a travel-toughened legion of
>>mountain farmers, their military training and gear some 500 years old,
>>tramping out of the east and out of the past to show up at the gates of
>>Ma'in Kruthai's palace...
>
>To which Phil replied:
>
>>This did occur. You should have seen the look on her face!

>Indeed, such tales would become a great legend!  There are several
>excellent adventures that cover the ways in which old legions can be
>revitalised, and each has given our little group hours of entertainment:

Several legends tells of similar events. They are indeed interesting.

>* recovery of the standards (usually wrapped in lead foil and magically
>protected from decay)
>* finding a patron
>* appealing to the Emperor

You have found some of the ways in which adventures can revolve around
legion histories. There are more, and they are just as much fun, though
some are complicated by politics, religion, etc.

>ISTR that there is at least one legion (or the greater part of it) lost in
>the Unending Grey.  But perhaps that is not official Tekumel.  When or
>where they pop out they will cause a stir, I am sure.

Yes, in "official" Tekumelani history there is a legion lost in the
Unending Grey. Arrogance on the part of its general led to a confrontation
with Other-Planar creatures, which in turn caused said general to use a
very potent Nexus Point spell, which led directly into the Unending Grey.
They're still in there...

>There is good archeological evidence that stone, bronze and iron weapons
>stayed in use for many many generations or until destroyed or buried as
>grave goods.  Perhaps, on Tekumel, military gear a *mere* 500 years or so
>old is unlikely to earn more than a second glance and perhaps a few low
>whistles for failing to keep such minor family heirlooms in the usual
>excellent state of repair...

Exactly.

Regards,
Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

//1108

[Professor Barker replies to Bob Dushay's questions about undead.

Your ideas are essentially correct. The Undead function much as described
in the source materials. There are not many "game devices" that are there
just to make them interesting -- or to make them more like ancient Earth
ideas of the "Undead." No mirrors or appearing as bats, of course, and
jabbing a Mrur or a Hra with a wooden stake would probably kill it if you
hit the right spot -- but would otherwise wound it or just discommode it.

The Hra might not follow foes out of the Underworld, but they certainly do
chase them relentlessly within it -- until enough time and distance have
passed to make the creatures give up and go elsewhere. In D-n-D and in the
Empire of the Petal Throne rules, these creatures inhabited specific rooms
in the Underworlds (remember? "You open the door to the room and see ten
vampires, one mummy, three trolls, and whatever else.") In "real" Tekumel,
such creatures are often posted as guardians of tombs or treasures. They
are also set to patrol a labyrinth to keep hostiles from passing through it.
This is all done with magic and is not all that different from the "game."


>Finally, what about the draining of fluids from the victims? Hra are
>probably like vampires, with fangs and they draw the fluids from their
>defeated victims to help sustain their bodies.

Fluids (blood, mostly, though some need other liquids to survive) are
indeed needed to sustain life and energy. There is no real crucial property
in blood that distinguishes it from a milkshake for a Hra. It is just
convenient for keeping the creature from dessicating. It's also nutritious!

>I'm seeing them as large, vaguely human appearing, with skins of a dingy
>grey or black. Older specimens who haven't fed recently may be shrivelled,
>looking like mummies, while fresher specimens may be fuller-fleshed, but
>still undeniably dead.

You're omitting the stench.

>I'm having a lot more trouble with Shedra. From the spell listed in the
>Gardasiyal rules, I see them as looking similar to Mrur. I'm guessing their
>consumption of other corpses helps fuel them, ennabling them to heal wounds
>and keep their undead flesh cohesive. But how do they cause the bodies of
>those they kill to rise as Shedra? Since they fight with swords, they need
>never actually touch an opponent. I was thinking the spell that animates
>them has an area effect, but if this were so, the entire catacombs would be
>awash in Shedra. Plus, what's the spell that must be cast immediately on a
>victim to prevent their rising? Some form of Alleviation?

The Shedra are fuled by the nutrients in their victims' flesh, just as some
other inhabitants of the Underworlds. Their bodies are imbued with a
magical poison (the creation of the Latter Times and those that created
them). This poison is concentrated in the teeth and fingernails of the
shedra. When a foeman contacts enough of it, he may die and return as a
Shedra. This poison, in reality, is not very deadly, and a lot of it has to
be sent coursing through an enemy's veins in order to bring about the
transformation into a new Shedra. It also takes a little time, depending
upon the foeman's natural resistance. The Shedra themselves are neither
intelligent nor conscious enough to gather this poison into flasks or shoot
it with a hypodermin needle or some other clever way of getting it into an
enemy's body in large qunatity. This is all briefly symbolised in the rules.


>Finally, do
>Shedra reanimate as the Hra do when they are defeated, or must an adept
>cast a spell on their remains again, as for the Mrur?

It is safest to destroy the bodies of both of these creatures. They may not
actually be "dead" and thus may resurrect again,  A thoroughly destructive
spell, fire, etc. are best to get rid of them. Otherwise they may  indeed
"regrow."

There's a lot more to be said about the Undead, their powers, and their
means of existence. Perhaps I may write a treatise on it someday.

Regards,
Phil
-----
Chris Davis      Moderator, The Blue Room        blueroom@prin.edu
The Blue Room's FTP site:  http://nexus.prin.edu or  ftp://nexus.prin.edu
Available 24 hours a day, except when my PC is down, or unavailable.

