Best of Greyhawk VII - Le Monde de Greyhawk

the Oerid, as a nation, were produced by the collision of these two cultures. Their mythology would reflect thisconflict.There is also nothing to support an Oeridian genesis for Ehlonna. She is a deity of the central Flanaess,with both druidic and clerical priesthoods. Perhaps her druids follow a more mystical path than her clerics, but thismay simply be a function of druidic philosophy rather than Ehlonnan history. She seems to be more closely relatedto the elvish cultures than any one ethnic group of humanity. She may well be the matron of a half-elven societythan once flourished in the Flanaess. Though that culture was lost during the Migration period, something of it isstill preserved in the society of the Rangers found in the central Flanaess.Perhaps the "mythographic" style of the late Robert Graves is not the most effective one for thepresentation of game material. Try to take a less all-encompassing stance. Explain, in game terms, how mystery cultsdiffer from the other forms of worship. Are there different levels of Initiation? What are the benefits and detrimentsof cult membership? How do the deities view these cults? How do these cults view the deities? What are theirgoals, and who can join? Answering some of these questions will make mystery cults both more substantial andmore accessible. Then the mythic background can be utilized much more fully in the campaign.Just a thought,PsychlopsSubj: Re:Ehlonnic Mystery Cults IV Date: 95-10-01 04:48:36 ESTFrom: Chaos28MB,Give me a little time to collect some more feedback, and I'll try to address all the questions in one posting. Goodquestions, BTW. My versions of Ehlonna and the Four Winds will probably differ from those of other folks here,and I'd like to see the reaction before I delve further.ChaosSubj: Re:Ehlonnic Mystery Cults Date: 95-10-01 14:58:25 ESTFrom: SabretoreI think the Mystery Cult background is interesting. As written, it can add detail to the worship of Elhonna.However, the cultic specifics appear to be left to the DM. This may be intentional?I am not so concerned about how this all meshes into the overall cosmology or culture of the Flaneass. Thebackground is interesting in and of itself and is sufficient.More detail is always good but as with other presentations by other posters, I get the idea and given themedium that is sufficient.I see Ehlonna as more of a nature deity than presented and that would limit my use of this material. Similarly,I see a mystery cult as somewhat more mysterious and with a clearer purpose than that presented.Ehlonna is a puzzling deity because of the elven/half-elven/druidic associations piled on top of her natureportfolio and her inclusion in a human pantheon. (Ever notice how demi-humans always worship the same pantheonin every setting but not humans?). I think I would need to sort out these mixed associations before proceeding intofurther detail. In this, Chaos may be ahead of me. Good postings.Cheers:)SabretoreSubj: Mystery CultsDate: 95-10-02 02:14:42 ESTFrom: Chaos28Just to answer a few of the questions so far...I took the mystery cults from proto-Hellenic mythology. The cults were kind of like the druidic cults ofwestern Europe in that they represented both spiritual and secular power. The ancient druids were a powerful lot,and the proto-Hellenic cults likewise commanded respect and steered their respective societies. The initiation intodeeper and deeper mysteries fits perfectly well into the RPG atmosphere when one considers higher and higher levelsof spell-casting power on behalf of clerics and druids, and when one considers that not every religion is going towant to let its raw acolytes determine doctrine. I used this proto-Hellenic model with the Oeridians because I see theOeridians as somewhat Greek in flavor. I therefore used the practice of oracular divination and the formation of thepantheon from cults, just as we find in early Greek mythology.As to the specifics not jibing with GH history (Psychlops), I don't see why they can't. I did notice that whenI was condensing my notes into posts, I might have mistakenly indicated that the Baklunish adopted Istus from the