| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Starshade |
Posted - 03 May 2019 : 11:20:15
Im puzzled with a few practicalities of how to read the Mulan / mulhorand pantheon info. Is the "nobility" mentioned in sources with shaven heads, also counting the priests? Or is the "houses" of inheritable priestly positions in Mulhorand not noble? Reason I ask is since the priests got hair in the pictures of them…
Also, is there Aasimar clerics there? Since there is only mentioned "human", Id assume they all are human if read as written, but it makes no sense, since ALL clerics is direct descendant of a semi-divine avatar or manifestation of some kind, and Mulhorand is having therefore a high number of aasimar… |
| 11 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Gyor |
Posted - 21 May 2019 : 00:50:00
http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/we/ZZZrofplanetoucheddeities.html
Here was what was cut from Races of Faerun by the second developer. |
| Gyor |
Posted - 21 May 2019 : 00:46:50
In 5e some of the Mulhorandi Gods ARE Aasimar according to the SCAG, others are Tieflings or Humans, or at least their hosts are. And material about the Aasimar was cut from races of Faerun, but made public else where. |
| Gary Dallison |
Posted - 05 May 2019 : 22:09:26
That's how I've got it. They might look entirely human but with a few extra abilities. Or they might be slightly odd looking but nothing to inhuman as it's all a recessive inherited trait from a hundred generations ago.
I do however have them treated as noble (which all priests are anyway) but also that such a person would be approached by many churches in Mulhorand to be their representative (assuming he wasn't from one of the noble houses that established the church in the first place - in which case his affiliation and entire future would already be decided for him).
Such a person should automatically be subject to many of the politics and power ays that go on in mulhorandi society as the rich and powerful seek to use him to support their plans or sabotage an opponent.
Again just my take on things but I had mulhorand as a very early nation state (like modern societies where the state provides everything) but with the churches being the service providers (law, agriculture, mining, trade, etc).
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| Starshade |
Posted - 05 May 2019 : 21:57:31
I'd usually be quite comfortable homebrewing me out of issue as this, and inconsistencies in Mulan culture. In this case I am just curious, not running anything at the moment, unfortunately..
If needed, I would just assume the Mulhorandi consider the Aasimar "human", especially if someone want to play something as a Aasimar cleric from there.
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| sleyvas |
Posted - 04 May 2019 : 17:29:50
First, which pictures are you talking about that show Mulhorandi priests with hair? Are the individuals darkly skinned? I ask because Turami blooded individuals can in theory be priests in Mulhorand. I can't see a Mulan priest of any kind with body hair in Mulhorand UNLESS they are a priest of an outside god like Mask that has interloped into the pantheon (and that's still a maybe). If there are such pictures, I'd cast doubt on them.
Now, as to the Aasimar thing, I'd use some of the lore from 2nd edition Old Empires AND some of the new ideas people have been noting and throwing out. Essentially, there is in Old Empires a couple notes that indicate that there can be several INCARNATIONS of a god active at a time (note, I'm not saying manifestation... which is in essence like a godly avatar that can't leave the prime, and they can only have one active... so almost like a primordial form....). These INCARNATIONS are Mulan nobles from the specifically noble houses related to specific gods (and when I say related, I may mean in more ways than one), and in theory there's probably one or more chosen each generation. The individuals chosen take on traits of the god which they embody, but they still have free will. These are the God-Kings of Mulhorand. In addition, there's also these references to THE Incarnation of each gods as well. This leads me to believe that there is at least one Incarnation always active that is somehow more powerful (whether simply politically OR literally is unclear). I'm inclined to say that THE Incarnation is the one represented with extraordinary power in Old Empires. The others probably have extra powers, but aren't super powerful in comparison. I'd make these two "tiers" as basically templates, with one template having a requirement of having the other template first (or possibly even 3 different versions and having some "secondary" incarnations). Then I'd factor in some of the concepts we've proposed that there are literally special rituals invoked to imbue these powers on these beings, and doing so infuses them with divine energy. These rituals may involve things like the blood/semen/spit/tears (or other expulsions) of the manifestations. The children of these incarnations (because being raised in power doesn't make them infertile) are probably aasimars.
Also, one part of Old Empires has caught my attention in the past few years (decades after it was originally printed).
Mulhorandi worship many gods, but most of these are local cults that spring up and disappear every few generations. There are seven major deities, however, who have extensive priesthoods and influences.
While this was obviously included so that people could just introduce whichever other Egyptian gods they might want, this also implies that these other gods that come and go aren't necessarily manifestations. It then goes on to mention that Hathor, Geb, and Sebek are "other gods". There's also given no stats for Hathor or Sebek's manifestations, and some 4e lore (Dungeon #178) tends to link the realms version of Sebek (as Sebakar) to an offspring of set and some archfey named Mornach.
So, from this, it may be that Hathor was already like other gods in the Faerunian Pantheon and possibly already in other parts of the world (either under another name, or outside of Faerun). She might have even been like a goddess for some "cattle headed" races like minotaurs, yikaria, etc... who turned from her because someone else came along and stole their worship (such as Baphomet, the Forgotten God, etc...). I've actually proposed that Hathor is the Rashemi goddess known as Bhalla, and further that Bhalla is possibly linked to the cow "primordial"/"archfey" Audumbla (Audumbhalla). |
| Gary Dallison |
Posted - 04 May 2019 : 11:57:28
Given that the aasimar are supposed to be descended from the gods, and given that every noble mulan is descended from the inaskari slaves who interned with their gods, and also that almost all priests are noble, I decided the aasimar had always been there but were rare and were a recessive trait among noble mulan |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 04 May 2019 : 02:16:15
quote:
Originally posted by Starshade
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
What source material are you referencing? Aasimar weren't originally in D&D -- they came late in 2E.
Races of Faerun (2003) p. 112 - 113.
Maybe this is what happens when there is added content, new races, classes, and all need to fit in somehow..
Hmm. Well, Races of Faerűn was in the era where aasimar were part of the game... So either the divine blood bred out or took another form, or there's some sort of cultural thing that limits the priesthood to humans. |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 03 May 2019 : 23:32:30
FOR10 Old Empires (1990) was the first product which really discussed Multhorand in any real detail. FR6 Dreams of the Red Wizards (1988) described Mulhorand indirectly (in a way consistent with the artwork you've seen).
But products from those times had notoriously inconsistent artwork - sometimes the visual descriptions adhered to the text descriptions really well - sometimes the art couldn't even "agree" on basic stuff like skin colour or costume types or cultural style.
Late 2E products and tons of 3E products just kept introducing more inconsistencies.
Sometimes the artwork completely contradicts the text but the text itself is only briefly mentioned in passing - so no big deal over details which aren't particularly important to the setting.
And of course the cover art or scattered illustrations sometimes depict specific characters or locations - but often involve random nameless people in random nameless places - so no big deal if they conflict with mountains of detailed text.
And different families or priesthoods or cities can have their own fashions. And fashions change over time. No big deal if they wear their hair a little differently unless it's an uber-conservative uber-conformist society (which Mulhorand is not). |
| Starshade |
Posted - 03 May 2019 : 20:36:26
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
What source material are you referencing? Aasimar weren't originally in D&D -- they came late in 2E.
Races of Faerun (2003) p. 112 - 113.
Maybe this is what happens when there is added content, new races, classes, and all need to fit in somehow.. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 03 May 2019 : 17:03:57
What source material are you referencing? Aasimar weren't originally in D&D -- they came late in 2E. |
| Gary Dallison |
Posted - 03 May 2019 : 11:33:57
I have tried to answer many of these questions in my own version and in the process redesigned much of Mulhorand. I'm not sure if you do homebrew but the address is below (or in my sig).
https://alternaterealmsblog.wordpress.com
I found a lot of the info about mulhorands culture to be conflicting or unworkable in a realistic way so I chose to remould some of it so that it was a superficial nod to canon (aasimar for instance are never mentioned as that is a rules construct, and technically all mulan are descended from the gods - something else I reworked - so I chose to make the a few individual possess recessive traits from their ancestors and they are revered as special so they are my version of aasimar).
Its not entirely finished (nothing realmsian ever is), but it is mostly there.
Anyways, I'll finish rambling, hopefully you will find something that helps solidify how their society works in your mind (which is really the whole point of any sourcebook). |
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