Troll Spirits of Guhan

This is a set of spirits that are worshipped in and around Guhan by the trolls, and by the primitive human tribes in Lalia who are aligned to Darkness, and the Uz in general. They supplement the spirits found in Troll Gods and The Book of Drastic Resolutions Volume Darkness.

In all of the spirits below a history of the spirit is given, followed by what rune spell is granted by that spirit if the spirit is worshipped as a spirit cult (see Gods of Glorantha p.40-1 for more information). Also, if you use Sandy Petersen's Shaman rules, or a variant thereof, the spirit description details what gifts and what taboos the shaman gains for contacting the spirit. Ignore this is you do not use Sandy Petersen's Shaman rules.

Anamaka, Hero of the Wind Before Wind

The Hero Cult of Anamaka is a troll sub-cult of Kyger Litor, and can be joined like any normal sub-cult to gain access to Anamaka's special Rune Spell. However, Anamaka can also be contacted by troll shamans. HeroQuests by shamans to Anamaka grant the ability to Incarnate him magically. Anamaka is native to Guhan, and while he has a few adherents in Halikiv, his cult generally is not found outside of the Queendom of Ralios.

Anamaka was a dark troll from Uzgot, a city in Guhan. He was a follower of the Master of Weapons and Holder of the Five Rites of Ice. When the Little Men invaded from the north, and used Storm magics against Uz, Anamaka's tribe was destroyed and Anamaka was left alone - retreating in the direction opposite to where he people lived as the Storm Folk drove him back, routing him across the Hunting Grounds east of Guhan.

Alone, with no family and no mother, Anamaka resolved to return to his people. He summoned up the spirits of his ancestors. The first four had nothing useful to tell, but the fifth was from the Green Age and had lived in Wonderhome. Anamaka placated the spirit with a feast he had gathered - heads of beast people, roasted storm folk and a full griffin. The spirit told Anamaka that she was from the time before Storm came to the Cosmos and that she knew some secrets that would be of use. She took Anamaka to Hell's Cupboard and showed him where the secrets of wind had been held before they were unleashed upon Glorantha. Anamaka spoke to the guardians and learnt the magic of the closet.

When he returned he knew how to lock away the secrets of storm magic, back where it had once been held. He used his secrets to travel through the lands of Otkorion and returned once again to the lands of Guhan.

Anamaka can be worshipped to teach his secrets. The Rune Spell he grants is Anti-Storm:

Anti-Storm
3 points
ranged, temporal, non-stackable, reusable
For the duration of the spell, the chance of casting any storm based rune magic (i.e. any rune magic from a storm cult is reduced by POWx5. This affects everybody within the area of effect. Magic already in effect is unaffected. Sorcery and spirit magic is unaffected.

To shamans, Anamaka can grant the spirit gift of Banish Orlanthi Cult Spirits.

Dhagmat, Spirit Friend of Death

Dhagmat is a darkness spirit of the Godtime. He was the grandson of Zorak Zorank and a Death Shamaness called Amakal, who died at the Second Swirl while the Uz made an exodus from Wonderhome. Dhagmat was kept in a lead box from the time of maturity until the beginning of the Lesser Darkness.

He was awoken by Zorak Zoran and joined his cohort of War and Violence - walking the length and breadth of Glorantha causing devastation and ruin. His companion was Balmara, a Disorder Spirit. There came a time when a fight broke out between the cohort and their foes, and Balmara died.

To Dhagmat, this came as a surprise. He had never seen anyone but enemies die before. He went to his master, "Lord," he said, "How is it that my friend, born of Darkness, died this night. How is it so?"

Zorak Zoran stopped gouging and replied, "Fool, we can all die. To not die you must be the best, better than everyone else, and then nothing will be able to kill you and you need not fear death."

"Lord," said Dhagmat, "You are the Best."

"Correct cohort friend."

"So I can never be the best, and so I will always fear Death. Someday I will die."

"Correct cohort brother."

Dhagmat grew dismayed at this and so left the cohort to find another answer.

No God and no mortal could tell Dhagmat anything of use - they were all afraid of Death, and those willing to talk of it were cowards who told Dhagmat to flee from it for eternity. Dhagmat would rather die than flee.

Eventually, in the Wastes, Dhagmat encountered Death. He was gaunt, fourteen trolls tall with hands of ivory and bone, and no eyes, and Worse-Than-Darkness for a soul.

"Everyone is scared of you." Said Dhagmat,

Death merely nodded, "Everyone flees from Death."

"So no-one has talked to you?"

"Unless scream are speech - no."

"Then I am the first."

"And the last. Are you afraid of me?"

"You are no more terrifying than my mother when I young, before I hid in my box."

Dhagmat produced his lead box, "If I am the first to speak, and the first not to be afraid, might I not also be the first to be your ally?"

"Ally?" asked Death,

"Companion. You take my gift, the gift of my Lead Box. In return you do not harm me."

Death took the box from Dhagmat, "This is agreeable. Until today I had never spoken to anybody, nor seen a face that did not shy away from me. Today I have my first friend."

Dhagmat survived many encounters with Death, for he was Death's Ally. Eventually, near the end of the world, Dhagmat called upon Death to take him so he could join the others in Hell. Even today, Dhagmat can teach others how to be a Spirit Friend of Death.

Dhagmat can be contacted by shamans for his gift or to begin a spirit cult. The Rune Spell he grants to spirit cults is Befriend Death. The shaman gift he grants to those who want it is Prevent Death, and it's concurrent taboo is "Spend four consecutive days a year in a lead box."

Befriend Death
2 Points
ranged, instant, non-stackable, reusable
This spell can be cast on anyone who is a member of a cult with the Death Rune. It can only be used on those with no lethal intent to the caster. If the caster overcomes the target in a POW versus POW the target becomes more lenient and friendly towards the caster. This spell is not a Command spell, it does not stop animosities or hatreds. For example, if cast on a worshipper of Humakt you have just encountered he might be willing to talk with the caster (if they speak the same tongue) while if he meets an old enemy, a beserker or a chaos worshipper it will have no effect. Obvoiusly if the caster attacks at any point the effects are nullified. The GM should allow the use of this spell only with his discretion.

Prevent Death
Every level in this gift gives the shaman two benefits. Firstly, when a shaman is reduced to 0 hit points or less they have one extra SR per level to be healed before dying. So someone with Level 3 who is reduced to negative hit points will not die until SR 3 next round. Secondly, each level prevents decomposition of the body for an extra day so that if they are ressurected they suffer less penalties.

Latal Tan, Hero Cult of Mee Vorala

When the Dark Council of Guhan gathered together, they told Latala that all the Uz had retreated into the Hills of Uzgor for safety. With so many trolls gathered in one place, it seemed likely that they would starve. Latala volunteered to find an answer to the problem, and went forth, past the barriers that kept the trolls safe in their tunnel riddled hills.

Prowling around the hills was the Fourth Fire Scorcher, which had lain in waiting for trolls to kill for a year since they all fled. It ambushed Latala, who used her Poisonous Maul on it, defeating it. She stole it's wings and beat it to submission, "Demon," she cried, "You are the plague and bane of my people, tool of the Souless Ones, I shall slay you for your crimes.

The daemon, however, pleaded for it's life as she dismembered it, promising her help, aid and gifts if she let him turn traitor. After two legs and an arm had been removed, the daemon told her he would even show her how to get into Ehilm's Court. At this point Latala stopped, and agreed that she would let him live if the creature guided her to the court.

Flying for a week and a day, they came to the lands of the Sky. Latala frightened away the guardians she encountered on the way for she had long possessed the powers of darkness to such a degree that, even here in the home of the Sky Dwellers, her aura of fear and horror was still awesome enough to scare enemies away - even scare them to death.

At the walls to the gardens surrounding the Palace of the Sun, the daemon suggested Latala leave him as a decoy for the guards so she could enter unobserved. The troll Queen consented and left his bleeding husk where the guards could see. When the guards went to investigate, she sneaked over the wall and into the garden. But the daemon, glad to be returned to his home in the Sky quickly told the guards of Latala, and they gathered in force to chase her down and capture her.

Meanwhile, the heroine walked through the bountiful gardens. Here was enough food for all the trolls for a year, but Latala knew it would not be enough. Yet, in amongst the trees, she saw a gardener, whose skill and magic was responsible for the bounty she saw. Before the guards could find her, she kidnapped the Sky Man and flew back to the Earth.

Returning to her people she forced the gardener to teach the trolls the secrets of Growing, and the people of the Uzgor Hills did not have need to food for a long time to come.

Latala ascended to the Godplane off of her own volition two centuries later. She is worshipped as a sub cult of Mee Vorala and can also be contacted by troll shamans.

If contacted by shamans she grants the gift Spirit Affinity Plant to shamans, and allows them to bind plant spirits to their fetches. Her taboo is "Eat fungus with every meal".

As a sub-cult she grants the spell Darkripen.

Darkripen
1 point
10m radius, duration one year, stackable, reusable
This spell must be cast on the first day of Dark Season. It allows the growing fungi to draw upon the powers of darkness and moist warmth to help it grow without disease or problems. The powers of Darkness help the fungus resist parasites, infection etc... Each extra point increases the radius by 10m.

Bellak Deathmaul

Bellak was a dark troll from Guhan, more specifically from a mid-mountainous region circa 1275 ST. She steadily ascended through her clan to finally become a Kyger Litor Priestess. It was an arduous time achieving this, for Bellak was not of a good family lineage and it was only her skill, cunning and heroism that allowed her to rule her clan.

She went on a HeroQuest known as the Four-Foot-Trail-To-Hell where she met Karrg, Master of Weapons. She learnt a fair number of weapon tricks at his teachings. She taught her clan, and they all learnt how to use flanged mauls. However, Bellak came into conflict with Guhani Tusk Riders, there was competition for space as Otkorioni advancements forced Tusk Riders out of their homes in Otkorion and back west into Guhan. A war began, and Bellak won, forcing the riders north into Ballid where they were slaughtered.

When, twenty years later, tusk riders came again in larger numbers, the Dark Council called upon her knowledge and fighting techniques to help force them back. For this she was honoured and upon her Death the Dark Council allowed contact with her in Wonderhome to be made possible.

All shamans who wish to contact her must bring a dead tusk rider killed by the shaman herself. To shamans she teaches the gift of Spirit Mastery and her taboo is "Challenge the leader of any tusk riders you meet to one-on-one combat".

If worshipped in a spirit cult she teaches the Rune Spell of Death Maul.

Death Maul
1 point
touch, temporal, non-stackable, reusable
This spell can only be cast on a flanged/spiked/pointed mace or maul. This spell is only useful if you use the rules from my House Rules. If you do not generally use these rules then you could say that only worshippers of Bellak can make such flanged maces and mauls.

Whereas, normally, the chance to impale with a flanged mace or maul is half of your normal special chance, a weapon with this spell cast upon it impales at the normal 1/5th chance of your weapon attack skill.

Ghugakt, the Long Death

In the First Age, some eleven years after the Death of Gbaji Womb-biter, a spirit was rescued from Iv'alani, a fort of the Bright Empire that held out for over a decade after their masters demise. The spirit was a foreign darkness spirit called Vuvraxan, Twelfth Concubine of Monster Man.

Vuvraxan was married in a great ceremony to one of Karrg's Sons, Madai. They had had a son, a Dehori called Ghugakt, who learnt from the Gods. Ghugakt spent forty two years on the spirit plane as a spirit allied to one of the Guhani tribes, the Bloodteeth tribe. At the end of those years, after the Bloodteeth tribe had claimed a great victory fighting chaos in chaos nests in the West, Ghugakt descended to join his grandfather with the gods in Hell.

Ghugakt is a fearsome spirit, a troll skeleton covered in writhing darkness, with six cold tentacles either side. He studied with Karrg and other Death spirits, and caught the attention of Subere who taught him a magic secret of Death. Ghugakt was able to learn how to strike foes dead at a range.

He is worshipped by a lot of Uz in Guhan, but Zorak Zorani are banned from his worship.

If contacted on a personal level by shamans rather than in a spirit cult, he grants the Shamanic Gift of Enhance Disrupt, his taboo is "Tithe one broo head a season to the Bloodteeth clan".

Enhance Disrupt
For every level in this gift one point of damage is added to that inflicted to the foe with the spirit magic spell Disrupt. It also adds one to the effective magic points for overcoming defensive magics such as Countermagic.

If worshipped as part of a spirit cult, the spell granted is Shattering.