Palamtales: Governor of the Western Reaches

	Reaching Moon Megacorp's Life of Moonson Palamtales Governor of the Western Reaches	Age: 41 Career: Bureaucracy Religion: Moonson Imperator Culture: Pelandan Disposition: Ambitious, driven, untrusting
Return to Home Page Gloranthan Folk Tales Gloranthan Songbook Moonie Madness Life of Moonson Carmanian Sources Malkioni Scriptures	You are the Governor of the West Reaches, which includes the four counties that make up what was once called Carmania: Spol, Jhor, Worian and Bindle. For such a young man this is a great achievement. Originally the son of a cobbler from Kostaddi, you are an example of what effort, skill and luck can get an ambitious man in the Lunar Empire. You are capable, canny, and untrusting, though outwardly polite to everyone you meet. You claim guidance from a guardian spirit undetectable to anyone else. It has not always been so. You remember very well what set you firmly on your course: the death of your mother when you were aged fourteen. Your father, it has to be said, was not a very good cobbler and when he gave Raffha Khan's young daughter the wrong shoes he knew he would be punished - and so he fled in fear. Only you, your sisters, and your mother were at home when the soldiers arrived - all of them brutal sable riders. They were led by a young and cruel man named Zitsmac who broke up your house searching for your father. When he could not be found they began to beat your mother terribly. You tried to intervene but Zitsmac hit you and you fell to the floor. Then your mother was beaten senseless, and as later transpired, to death before the men left. The worst of it was that the sable rider did not hit you very hard. You could have got up and defended your mother again and maybe saved her, or you could have grabbed one of their scimitars and perhaps killed them - but you were just too frightened to. From that day on you vowed you would never be powerless again. Soon afterwards you discovered your guardian spirit, Alaric, and began to follow his advice. You joined the imperial bureaucracy and managed to win a scholarship to the prestigious University of Glamour. You did well and returned to public service as a high-flyer. Various successful assignments led to your appointment as Governor of the Western Reaches - a job seen by many as the kiss of death because of the internecine and deadly politics of the region. However, you have done well and managed to avoid civil war breaking out between the various nobles of the region. However, the recent death of Count Haraxalur of Jhor has the mark of a political assassination and it is important to defuse the situation and appoint a new count as soon as possible. You are responsible for collecting the taxes of the Western Reaches and forwarding them to the Red Dancer of Power. Taxes are due from two of the four Counties (Worion and Bindle have already paid in full): Spol and Jhor. Now you wish to use the New Year Celebrations as an opportunity to move on to new political challenges and make new political allies. You must become so powerful that you will never be helpless again...	Background Kostaddi Satrapy You were born in the Oslir Valley, in the Heartland Satrapy of Kostaddi. For two centuries, this pleasant land has been ruled by a dynasty of Sable Riders from the Hungry Plateau: backed by the military might of their nomadic people who still live on their bleak plateau, they oppress the lowlands and extort riches to the Satrap's capital, the City of Two Towers. The current Satrap of Kostaddi is Raffha Khan. Moonson Imperator You are a devotee of the Red Emperor. Your right to rule derives from your personal appointment by the Red Emperor as Governor of the West Reaches. The cult worships the Red Emperor as the perfect embodiment of the Lunar Citizen. It does so by enforcing his Justice, supervising the actions of all other governing institutions in the Empire, and providing structures for all citizens to aspire to and achieve the highest rank. As such, it determines the basic social structure of the Empire, overlying the Empire's disparate cultures. The Red Emperor leads his cult personally. The High Priest of the Imperial Cult is Geilbonus the Sycophant, Speaker of the Senate. The Imperial Bureaucracy You have followed a career in the Imperial Bureaucracy. Young men of good family study to pass the exams which will win them appointment to junior secretarial posts. Success brings promotion, at first to roving assignments, then to the Imperial Senate, and finally to a Governorship in one of the Empire's outlying provinces. It is in the corridors of power that the fate of the Empire is determined. The Chamberlain of the Imperial Household is Mikos Thiokonos, a devoted servant of Moonson.
	Objectives Personal Increase your personal power and prestige by gaining more important political appointments. Make life unbearable for Raffha Khan, the Sable rider satrap of Kostaddi and his lackeys, if you can. Find the evil and brutal sable rider Zitsmac and have your revenge upon him. If you do find him then when you confront him you must say to him "remember my mother!" Career Collect the taxes due from the nobles of Carmania. You must present at least 30 influence to Ivex Devouring Dog by the middle of Freezeday. Ensure Carmania remains at peace, and that the current balance of power between the Great Houses is preserved. Find a descendent of Aronius Jaranthir to inherit the County of Jhor: ideally Artaphaestos, and not one of Yolanela's children. You held the Blue Moon Silver monopoly for the past seven year plan. You will be offered first refusal to buy it for the next plan, for six influence. You know that it will produce 2 cards of Silver, which can be traded to the Red Dancer of Power for a total of twelve influence. Religious Remember to listen for and take advice from your guardian spirit, Alaric (this is a voice in your head and it may make people around you uncomfortable when you listen to it - as it should do so ham it up!). Give generously to Teelo Norri orphanages. Your mother was an orphan. Seek out the Red Goddess in her aspect as a loving mother and gain her forgiveness for the death of your mother.	Who You Know Personal Acquaintances None Through your Career Alehandro: the Count of Spol and Captain of the Queens Regiment. He is rarely at home, preferring to leave day-to-day affairs to his mother, Yolanela. He is probably trying to avoid her! Artaphaestos: the heir to the Count of Jhor, he has been in distant Arrolia for the past seven years. You must persuade him to accept his inheritance and return to rule Jhor, as otherwise the County will pass into the hands of one of Yolanela's brood, concentrating too much power in the hands of one of the Carmanian Great Houses. Brostangian Archmoor: the Hierophant of Carmania, his help is invaluable in maintaining civil peace within the West Reaches. Other Magi are firebrands, condemning heresies and calling for inquisitions wherever they look: Brostangian has the sense to temper religious enthusiasm with healthy pragmatism. Ivex Devouring Dog, Imperial Tax Collector: in fact he is not a omnipotent demon, but in fact a rather old and boring functionary. He seems a lonely man - perhaps you can help him in some way and help yourself at the same time? Yolanela: the Taloned Countess is the real ruler of Spol. She has been forbidden to come to Glamour, and you must watch out that her sons (Brostangian and Alehandro) do not get up to any mischief on her behalf. you must be wary of her Spolite Witchery, which is reputed to have been the doom of many men. Through your Religion Geilbonus: the Speaker of the Imperial Senate is High Priest of the Imperial Cult. Through your Culture Rhaffa Khan: the odious Warlord of the Sable Tribe and Sultan of Kostaddi. His vile barbaric people have lorded it over the civilised and peaceful land of Kostaddi for long enough! Indirectly he caused your mother's death.
	Other Knowledge The Malachite Phalanx and Winedance Cavalry are Heartland Corps regiments of a thousand Lunar troops each. You have limited authority over these troops, such that you can question their orders if they are moved from Carmania. Note that Bellex Maximus recently decreed that no troops were to be sent west to Arrolia. To make the Western Reaches safe you really need another regiment assigned. The Seven Year Plan is the mechanism by which the major food and raw material requirements of the Empire are centrally planned and provided for. At the beginning of each seven year period every sultanate and province agrees to quotas of important foodstuffs and other raw materials and goods which they must achieve over a seven year period. A seven year plan has just ended and each of the sultanates and provinces will be audited this a sacred time on their results. Success is usually the route to promotion and Imperial favour, while failure is a sure road to political humiliation. The Great Houses of Carmania: The Western Reaches are ruled by the ancient noble houses of Carmania, rulers of the Empire that was overthrown at the rise of the Red Moon. The Carmanians have proud and austere traditions, holding themselves aloof from those of lesser birth and following the rituals of noble life from their ancestral strongholds in the West Reaches. Every Carmanian is born into a Great House, a secretive and insular bloodline preserving antiquated traditions of rule. Though they may appear paranoid to outsiders, you know that the rivalries between the houses can be intense and deadly, erupting at times into ruthless campaigns of assassination and terrorism aimed at the utter destruction of opposing families. Facing the Music: many Carmanian families pride themselves on having remained in Carmania to face the horse nomad invasions of two centuries ago, when others, turning their backs on their Lunar heritage, fled to the West with the Arrolian Migrations. The Court of the Silver Gate is a council of Satraps of the Empire. It meets infrequently, and can have great influence in determining the course of the Empire's destiny. The members of the Court of the Silver Gate are: Gul-Taran, Satrap of First Blessed Haroun al-Rastari, Satrap of Karasal Moonson, Satrap of Silver Shadow Makkrit-Oor, Satrap of Darjiin Rhaffa Khan, Satrap of Kostaddi Var-Eel, Satrap of Oronin Prince Pardidas, Satrap of Sylila Queen Penelori, Satrap of Oraya The Satrap of Doblian will also have a place, when one is appointed. The Moonboats are magical aerial craft, propelled by the moonlight. Within the Empire, they are used for rapid transport of troops and supplies. Their use beyond the Glowline is more limited, as the cyclical phases of the Moon and the untamed forces of Storm can leave them grounded or even damaged	Secrets Palamtales has a guardian spirit who he talks to and who advises him on what to do. Its name is Alaric. Palamtales' mother was murdered by sable riders. Palamtales' father was a humble cobbler from Kostaddi. Palamtales suspects that the last Count of Jhor was assassinated. Special Item Seleric Verses. This publication has been banned by the Danfive Xaron cult as being subversive. What prudes!
	Reaching Moon Megacorp's Life of Moonson was written by Nick Brooke, Chris Gidlow,David Hall and Kevin Jacklin, with Rick Meints and MOB. The lead author for Palamtales was David Hall. Glorantha, HeroQuest, Hero Wars, and Issaries are trademarks of Issaries, Inc. The contents of this page are copyright by David Hall, 2001; any material derived from Greg Stafford's world of Glorantha is also copyright by Greg Stafford. Glorantha is the creation of Greg Stafford, and is used with his permission.