Cults of Glorantha

Kolat

Kolat is the Orlanthi’s spirit Shaman, the only such spirit being in a pantheon populated by gods. This makes him something of an outsider but his veneration is, nonetheless, a part of Orlanthi tradition.

The spirits that Kolat commands are the wind spirits, the breath of Orlanth and those spirits who have opted, after death, to enter the Spirit Plane instead of the Otherworld and become the breath of Orlanth. All Storm Tribe worshippers bear something of Kolat’s presence within themselves, even if this is unrealised or undesired. Kolat cultists are the Sezings, or Wind Shaman, who can call upon and command the wind spirits but also other spirits from the Spirit Plane, including certain nature spirits and ancestor/heroes who have, for one reason or another, committed to the Spirit Plane.

Runes Air, Spirit.

Mythos and History

The Four Defeats of Malia (Resonance 80%) – How Disease was Defeated in the Kolatings: The Great Disease swept through the tribes taking many. Kolat rose to defend against Malia, the disease goddess and did these things. In the first defeat Kolat swept the Pox Spirits into a great net and carried them to the Sickly Lamb, which would not reach adulthood but could devour all things save grass. The lamb ate the Pox Spirits and so saved the tribe. The lamb became sacred to them.

Next Malia sent the Rot, which ate at men directly. Kolat found the Medicine Bush and from it extracted the Sacred Red Root, which he wiped across the brows of each who was rotting within and without. The root took the Rot Spirit and confined it to the earth forever.

Angered, Malia sent the Bleeding Curse that would have made all creature bleed away their lifeblood but Kolat tricked the Bleeding Curse into thinking that the fawn was a person. The fawn would not bleed and was absorbed into nothingness. Finally Kolat summoned the hero known as Inner Wind and the two of them brought Malia to her knees and gave oaths never to again attack Kolat’s tribe. This promise binds her still and all Kolati have been free from disease ever since.

Nature

The shamanic practice of worshipping Kolat is called The Seven Winds Practice. Most dedicated worshippers of Kolat are generally those who are born with a powerful spirit component to their soul, represented by their ability to Spirit Walk; usually these people are from specific clans or bloodlines descended from Kolat or other spirits. A few Orlanthi dedicate themselves to Kolat after being Initiates of another Storm Tribe god, although surviving the transformation ritual that awakens the adherent’s buried spirit is very difficult.

Organisation

Seven Winds Practitioners must attempt to explore and expand their spiritual selves by acquiring and keeping the Seven Winds. The actual magnitudes of the spirits they discover depends on the individual (see Higher Magic). Kolati view their universe through seven personal directions. Each Kolati seeks to become One with Kolat by attaining each of the Seven Winds. In practice this is done through progressing through the shamanic tradition, as follows: Spirit Worshippers have three allied spirits known as the Good Friends. The spirits commanded by the Spirit Worshipper are unique to the individual and are Elemental Spirits with the equivalent of one cubic metre.

Shaman have an additional three allied spirits known as the Place Friends. These have the following Characteristics: Seleran, (the Deep Well) is a water spirit; Veren Vu (the Defender) is a sky spirit; and Zolan Zubar (Bearpaw) is a Beast spirit.

High Shaman become One with Kolat by gaining the alliance of Inner Wind, the Hero Spirit who helped defeat Malia. Inner Wind is an Ancestor Spirit; his Characteristics are described in Higher Magic.

Kolati regularly perform rites to propitiate these spirits. The rituals are unique to each cult member and involve the throwing of the Gambling Sticks – a set of seven sticks made from wood, bone, antler or some other substance that the Kolati identifies through making a successful Spirit Walking roll once he has become a member of the cult. To invoke any of his spirits he must throw his Gambling Sticks and make the correct gestures, represented by the usual game mechanics for invoking any kind of spirit (including, of course, expending Magic Points). The cult is not widespread but several Kolati tend to be found in any one clan, indicating Kolat’s touch upon that clan. Those who are singular individuals tend to seek-out fellow Kolati and join clans where Kolati are supported. Orlanthi custom dictates that a Kolati cannot be denied entry to a clan even if he comes from an enemy clan; he must, however, agree to abide by the host clan’s laws or be judged accordingly.

Membership

The membership of the clan depends on awakening the inner spirit. The chance of awakening the spirit component that permits the Adventurer to become a member of the Kolati is equal to the Adventurer’s POW. A single roll against POW can be made to determine if the spirit component can be awakened. If it is, then that Adventurer has lineage with Kolat or has been touched by Kolat’s presence at some stage in their life. Any Adventurer that follows a cult through either the Air or Spirit Rune may roll against his POW+CHA to awaken the inner spirit.

If successful then the awakening confers the Adventurer with the Spirit Walking skill at its base percentage. Spirit Binding must be learned when one initiates into the cult. Awakening the inner spirit is generally a call to join the Kolati, accompanied by strange dreams, visions and spirit visitations. However, joining the cult is up to the Adventurer. If he chooses not to, then the Spirit Walking skill reduces by 1D4% per Season until it either reaches zero or the Adventurer joins the cult. Alternatively, if an Adventurer has rolled an appropriate Background Event (see RuneQuest Core Rulebook, pages 23–24), such as Rune Touched, then he can opt to have awoken his inner spirit instead of making the POW roll. Awakened Kolati automatically qualify as Spirit Worshippers. The cult has no Followers.

Common Magic

None – save whatever Common Magic the Kolati has learned before becoming a Seven Winds Practitioner.

Higher Magic

Each rank within the cult allies the member with the Good Friends, the Place Friends and Inner Wind. These spirits have the following Caracteristics:

Good Friends (Spirit Worshippers)

INT 1, POW 1D6+6, CHA 1. Each Good Friend has the abilities of a sylph (RuneQuest Core Rulebook, page 170). When the Kolati gains a rank, then his Good Friends increase their cubic size by one cubic metre, gaining an additional point of INT, CHA and 6 points of POW. A High Shaman thus is allied with three, three cubic metre Air Spirits.

Place Friends (Shaman)

Seleran, (the Deep Well) is a one cubic metre water spirit; treat as a one cubic metre undine (page 171 of the RuneQuest Core Rulebook).

Veren Vu (the Defender) is an Intensity 1 Sky Spirit: INT 5, POW 10, CHA 5, CA 2, SR +5; HP 10, Spirit Damage +1D6, Persistence 40%, Spectral Smother 50%. Veren Vu increases the Kolati’s Insight by 10%.

Zolan Zubar (Bearpaw) is an Intensity 1 Beast spirit: INT 5, POW 9, CHA 2, CA 2, SR +5, HP10. Spirit Damage +1D6,

Persistence 36%, Spectral Claw 48%. Zolan Zubar boosts the Kolati’s Damage Modifier by one step.

When the Shaman reaches the rank of High Shaman, each Place Friend rises to an Intensity 3 spirit with abilities recalculated accordingly.

Inner Wind (High Shaman)

Inner Wind is an Orlanthi Hero from the Dawn Age who fought with Kolat. He is an Ancestor Spirit with the following Characteristics:

INT 14, POW 17, CHA 15 Skills: Discorporate 68%, Spectral Spear 117%, Stealth 97%, Track 85%.

Heroic Ability: Tireless

Gifts and Compulsions

All Kolati are considered strange by other Orlanthi. They are compelled to use their Gambling Sticks when reaching any decision and must choose one Compulsion from the following:

Spit or urinate on any threshold where disease has been. Collect bones, sticks, antler shards, stones and so on, increasing the collection each season. The collection has no monetary value but is deeply precious and sacred to the Kolati.

Become celibate.

Become vegetarian.

Cover the body in ritual scars made with the Gambling Sticks. A new scar forms whenever a spirit is called upon for aid. In return, all Kolati are resistant to all natural diseases and increase their Resistance to disease by +20%. When a Kolati reaches the rank of High Shaman he gains the Disease

Immunity Heroic Ability.

Cult Skills

Insight, Lore (Kolat), Meditation, Perception, Spirit Binding, Spirit Walking.

Allied Cults

None.