[Glorantha] Re: Glorantha Digest, Vol 11, Issue 354

[Joerg Baumgartner]

Rob (aka parental unit 2):
>I'm playing in Roderick's Engiziland e-mail game, which involves a  Lunar
expedition
>to Dragon Pass in the 1300s. My character, the  expedition's nominal
commander,
>would like to summon a guardian.  Ideally, it would be an Dara Happan
ancestor who
>was involved in  cooperation with both dragonnewts and Heortlings. Would
such a
>person  even exist, and if so, in which era?

Three eras come to mind.

First: Shortly after Argentium Thri'ile, when the "monster army" and
Khordavu came to terms. Your ancestor could have been one of the
emissaries or go-betweens. Up to one of Khordavu's Ten Princes, if he is
sufficiently noble.

Second: After the conquest of the Bright Empire, during the (enforced)
stewardship of Ordanestyu. Technically, the Dara Happans were a subject
people (much like the Sartarites after 1602), but there will have been
collaborators. Not sure how much (if at all) the dragonewts were involved
here. While they had been conquered by Palangio, I doubt that they bore a
grudge like the humans and trolls did. On the other hand, it is entirely
possible that a dragonewt diplomat accompanied the Heortling occupators to
Dara Happa and ceremoniously defecated on a number of Palangio-related
sites, or something similarly weird, and some Dara Happan official (your
ancestor) was detailed to act as native guide.

Third: During the EWF, before the Dragon Emperor ascended to the throne,
there were peaceful and even friendly contacts between draconic scholars
and Dara Happans. After the ascension, we're in a "subject people and
collaborators" situation again.

Afterwards, interaction between Dara Happans and Heortlings or newts was
warlike, up to the True Golden Horde. Unfortunately, during this time any
collaborators would have been redefined as black sheep in the ancestry, so
you would have to give a good reason why to contact one of the less well
regarded ancestors. Not sure whether a chance at redemption is a good
motivation for a Dara Happan.


Hwarin Dalthippa doesn't seem to have had Dara Happan supporters, and
anyway the barbarians with whom she interacted were Heortlings at best by
descent, not by practice. To my knowledge there weren't any dragonewts
left north of the Deathline and west of the Jord and Imther Mountains
(some dragonewt nest(s) survived in the Elder Wilds). That would have been
too recent, too.