[Glorantha] Re: Arkati crossroad guardians?

[Malk Williams]

> Apparently this did not stop the God Learners from doing all the
damage
> they are supposed to have done on the Hero Plane. 
> Is it possible that most guardians have been defeated/corrupted by the
> GLs?

I suppose it depends on whether the followers that Arkat left were
unique individuals who would be defeated in perpetuity if they were
defeated once, or, like other obstacles on Heroquests, whether they are
almost symbolic in nature, and represent an additional obstacle that
must be overcome, on top of the usual stations in a Heroquest, the place
of which can be filled by a suitable representative.

I'd have thought the latter was the most likely.  Finding a suitable
stand in for a follower of Arkat could either be incredibly easy
(anything that Arkat once was - Knight, Humakti, Zorak Zorani, etc...
etc... etc...) or very hard... as I understand it, not many Gloranthans
will still stand up and be counted as Arkat supporters, though I might
well be wrong about that last.

Conversely, it seems certain the GLs would have regularly come into
conflict with such guardians, so perhaps they did find a way around the
problem, either by becoming adept at countering such Guardians, or else
by finding a more permanent fix.  Perhaps by pioneering a Heroquest for
the specific purpose of vanquishing Arkat's guardians in their
subsequent exploits in the Hero Plane.

Malk.