Arkat is a
major figure in Glorantha, a man who fought a 75 year long crusade to
kill a god, and ended up being worshipped as a deity himself. The
story of his war is told in numerous Glorantha publications, and
snippets about hose who worship him crop up here and there. The
cults written up here are very non-canon. The original version of
Black Arkat was first published in Avalon Hill's RQ3 Troll Gods, and
Arkat Humaktsson has been mentioned in a few Humakt and Nysalor write
ups.
Arkat
Humaktsson
Arkat
Humaktsson is peculiar subcult of Humakt (see here), very secretive
and not liked even by the Humakti themselves. They worship Arkat as
he first appeared in Maniria after he was brought out of the
underworld by Harmast Barefoot, the epitome of Humakti dedication,
warrior prowess and death-dealing, with an utter ruthlessness that
was uniquely his own.
Followers
of Arkat Humaktsson recall a few things other Humakti have preferred to forget – their hero Efrodar was a general in Arkat's army, Makla Mann's
loyalty was considered exceptional because he stuck with Arkat even
after he betrayed the humans of Dragon Pass and became a troll, and
Arkat bore the Unbreakable Sword, a weapon wielded by Humakt himself
in the Age of the Gods. In fact a few even say that the cult of
Humakt was unknown in Dragon Pass until Arkat introduced it from
Ralios.
They also
say Arkat was never really a troll. All along he used the guise of a
troll to keep the strongest anti-chaos force in Glorantha at the time
on side and at the battle front beating back Gbaji. The accusations
of betrayal are unfounded – Arkat was true to the task he set
himself, even if that meant angering some of those who couldn't see
that he had no choice.
His
followers have the rather unique ability among Humakti to lie
convincingly, even when they have a geas on them never to do so, even
to their fellow cultists and even when a Detect Truth spell is used
on them. They also have no compunctions about ambushing people and
using poison, unlike many of their compatriots, and have even gone as
far as to hire out as assassins, though they always fight fellow
Humakti fairly and tend to reserve their dirtiest tricks for chaotics
and their allies.
They justify all this horrible skulduggery
by saying that they are the only sound stone in the Humakti edifice,
only they are willing to compromise their very honour, risk their
very souls in fighting the only fight that truly matters – beating
back the insidious creep of chaos.
Needless
to say their fellow Humakti have no truck with such mealy mouthed
backsliding and execute any such person they find within their ranks,
but a few are spooked that they seem to get away with breaking geases
and playing fast and loose with the Code without calling down the
wrath of the Swordbreaker. The bastards don't even seem to notice
Excommunication!
Membership
is by invite only, and the Arkati are very careful and selective
about who they approach. Initiation is carried out blindfold with a
poisoned dagger at the prospective followers throat, just in case
they show any unexpected qualms. Those who balk don't live to see the
dawn. Those who talk tend to die – the cult makes great use of the
Oath spell.
Followers
of Arkat Humaktsson do have contact with other Arkat cults, and in
some places practise openly. Not all the barbarians of Ralios are
averse to Arkat (though most are, since Arkat in various forms is
favoured by the decadent oddballs in the cites of Safelster).
In Dragon
Pass and Prax there may be as many as twenty-five followers, hidden
among various Humakti mercenary bands, working as bodyguards and
delving into the lethally dangerous ruins of Pavis.
Skills
Legend:
Deception, Stealth
RQ6:
Deceit, Stealth
Spells:
Legend:
Boon of Lasting Night, Bandit's Cloak
RQ6:
Darkness, Incognito
Secrets of
Arkat Humaktsson
Any
follower of Arkat may use his Deception/Deceit or Theology (Arkat
Humaktsson)/Devotion Arkat Humaktsson) to reduce any skill or
spellcasting roll that might otherwise betray him. For example:
Thorgrim the Grim uses Detect Truth to determine if Halvar the
'Loyal' is telling the truth about where he was last Freezeday when
some enterprising soul poked a dagger between the chieftain's ribs.
Thorgrim's Exhort (Humakt) 40% is reduced by Halvar's Devotion (Arkat
Humaktsson) 30% before he even gets to cast the spell and Halvar
still gets to resist it! (40-30=) 10% chance... Halvar was at Geo's
drinking small ale and listening to a skald, nothing to do with
him...
Sadly this
doesn't work with perception vs stealth rolls, if Thorgrim had been
at the chief’s side while Halvar was lurking down by the privy,
he'd have had a normal chance of catching him in the act.
Arkati
also get a Sense Chaos skill at POW+CHA. This enables them to spot
secret chaotics, like ogres, Krasht cultists and Lunars who have
dabbled with chaos spells. It also enables them to spot those who
have undergone Illumination.
When an
Arkati breaks a geas or blatantly abuses the Humakti code he can roll
against his Theology (Arkat) or Devotion (Arkat) at 2x skill to
ignore any consequences.
Black
Arkat
During his
long crusade against Nysalor, Arkat adopted and dropped many roles
and many allies. At first he was an atheist Brithini Horal soldier,
then he became a Hrestoli Knight, then he was Arkat Humaktsson and
then during his final assault on Dorastor he became a troll. After
his victory he became a human again, but one who had walked so many
paths in the Godworld becomes a deity of sorts himself, and is
worshipped as such across Ralios and also in a few places in Maniria
and Dragon Pass, though his complex nature means there are many
competing and mutually hostile cults.
The Order
of Black Arkat is a sorcerous sub-cult of Argan Argar drawing on
Arkat's power as a troll and as a monotheist sorcerer. It is open to
both humans and trolls, and is the only source of sorcery available
to trolls.
Who
worships Black Arkat?
There are
two separate cult centres. the trollish land of Guhan in Ralios and
in various spots around the Holy Country, though isolated
practitioners can be found in Sartar, Dagori Inkarth and even farther
afield patrolling the world looking for traces of their ancient
enemy. Given the hostility to sorcery and to Arkat around Dragon Pass
most members are secretive and 'undercover'.
The Order
used to be much bigger. Back in the days just after the Gbaji Wars,
the Church of Arkat, as it was then, controlled the Cathedral in
Nochet, and a good many trolls of the Shadowlands were members. But
humans turned against the church (and their troll rulers), the God
Learner Empire thoroughly squashed it and the EWF had no time for it
either. These days the Order only has two chapter-houses in the Dragon Pass area, one in
Arkat's Hold, the other in the remnants of the Kitori lands south of
Sartar. There are no more than fifteen followers left, all except one human, though they
include some pretty dangerous sorcerers and knights. There are another dozen or so 'detached' members, troll sorcerers who possess fragments of the Lead Grimoire without actually being members of the Order as such.
Common
Membership
There is
no actual lay membership. The Order is recalled among the defeated
and oppressed Kitori and the trolls of the Shadowlands as being
advisers to their once mighty kings and to the long dead Only Old One
himself, but only in Arkat's Hold are members publicly known and then
only because they traditionally hold a place on the Queen's council.
Some Argan Argar worshippers make donations to the cult at Arkat's
Hold and some merchant enterprises are owned by the cult through
front men, though their employees suspect nothing of where the
profits really go. A very few Kitori have a tradition of sending
their brightest children to the Order; these children are intensively
schooled in sorcery and scholarship and usually reach the rank of
novice by the age of 16 or so. The troll noble families in the
Shadowlands who took up sorcery were decimated by the Pharaoh's
armies, and those few who survived left for Dagori Inkarth and
Halikiv.
Novices
Theoretically
novices must first be initiates in good standing of the cult of Argan
Argar, but in practice they are so desperate for new blood they will
take anybody who comes close to meeting the requirements. Ideally
they will have 50% or more in the following skills:
Legend:
Read/Write Darktongue, Grimoire (The Lead Grimoire), Manipulation,
Deception, Persistence, Lore (Mythology), Insight, Meditation.
RQ6:
Literacy (Darktongue), Invocation (The Lead Grimoire), Shaping,
Deceit, Willpower, Lore (Mythology), Insight
The cult
teaches a fair number of common magic spells:
Legend:
Bandit's Cloak, Bearing Witness, Countermagic, Darkwall, Demoralise,
Detect Enemy, Detect Magic, Fate, Chill, Understanding
RQ6:
Avert, Bypass, Chill, Curse, Darkness, Demoralise, Find Enemy,
Incognito, Witchsight
The Novice
may learn 1/3 of his INT in basic spells from The Lead Grimoire.
Legend:
Project Vision, Project Darksense, Eyes of Night, Sense Chaos,
Dominate Spider, Castback, Animate Shadow
RQ6:
Castback, Dominate Spider, Project Darksense, Project Vision, Eyes of
Night, Sense Chaos, Animate Shadow
Novices
tend to be sorted out into the scholarly/sorcerous types who go on to
become Adepts and the more physical and martial ones who become
Knights.
Adepts
Adepts
must have at least 50% in Read Darktongue to understand the inner
secrets of the Lead Grimoire, and at least 70% in Grimoire (The Lead
Grimoire) or Invocation (The Lead Grimoire).
They also
need 70% in two of:
Legend:
Manipulation, Deception, Lore (Mythology), Insight, Meditation
RQ6:
Shaping, Deceit, Willpower, Lore (Mythology), Insight
They also
get to learn some of the hairier magics from The Lead Grimoire, and
may have 2/3 INT worth of spells.
Legend:
Open Gate, Summon Shade, Tap Power, Diminish Strength, Enchant Lead
RQ6: Open
Gate, Evoke Shade, Tap Power, Diminish Strength, Enchant Lead
Adepts
often appear in public disguised as priests of Argan Argar, with
cloaks lines in black fur, lead masks and an ebon spear.
Knights
Knights
are the military arm of the Order, and back in the good old days they
could field a regiment of beetle mounted warriors armed with mauls
and lances and armoured in lead. Current Knights are the active
agents of the cult, going out into the world to investigate possible
secret chaos threats and persuade such leaders as will listen to act
against them. To become a Knight you need 70% in one weapon,
traditionally a spear or a mace, but any will do these days,
knowledge of the Sense Chaos spell and 70% in three of the following
skills:
Legend:
Ride, a second weapon, Insight, Influence, Courtesy, Persistence,
Resilience
RQ6: Ride,
Insight, Influence, Courtesy, Willpower, Endurance, any combat style
They may
only learn the basic spells noted under Novice above, plus Damage
Enhancement, but may learn up to half INT worth of spells.
Master
Masters of
the Order may be drawn from the Adepts or the Knights. There are
currently just two such positions in Dragon Pass, one in the Kitori
wilds and one in Arkat's Hold. They need 90% n three of the following
skills:
Legend:
Ride, a weapon, Grimoire (The Lead Grimoire), Manipulation, Insight,
Courtesy, Deception, Lore (Mythology), Persistence, Resilience
RQ6: Ride,
a combat style, Invocation (The Lead Grimoire), Manipulation,
Insight, Courtesy, Deceit, Lore (Mythology), Willpower, Endurance
They also
get to see the last chapter of the Lead Grimoire, and if they have
Read Darktongue at 70%+ they can use the final few spells, and have
as many spells as they have INT:
Legend:
Shapechange (Human to Dark Troll), Shapechange (Dark Troll to Human),
Undeath, Wrack (Swarm of Spiders)
RQ6:
Shapechange (Human to Dark Troll), Shapechange (Dark Troll to Human),
Undeath, Wrack (Swarm of Spiders)
Grand
Master
The Grand
Master of the Order is a probably a troll in Guhan in Ralios. Nothing
has been seen or heard of him/her for years near Dragon Pass, the
last contact being a request sent to Arkat's Hold twenty years ago for troops to fight off a Rokari crusade. It was answered by
one foolhardy Knight who was never seen again.
Secrets of
the Order of Black Arkat
Members
above the rank of Novice are allowed into a strange secret –
members of the cult can, if they want, join many theist cults, some
monotheistic churches and even some spirit societies without having
to worry about any divine retribution. The Masters hold a special
book, 'The Blessings of the Righteous Divines', with spells that
appear to fend off divine or spiritual vengeance for breaking the
codes of behaviour or taboos expected from members of a specific
deity, if the recipient rolls Lead Grimoire skill, and where the god
is 'jealous' and requires a member to give up other allegiances, they
need not do so.
Few members use these blessings, but according to the
Order demonstrate that Arkat was in truth acting as the agent of all
Creation when he took on the blasphemous empire of Gbaji. Currently
one of their Knights has used the blessings to become a member of the
Atroxic Church, while an Adept lives
among the Pol Joni as a Shaman of Storm Bull. The rest are happy
enough combining the sorcery of Arkat with the divine blessings of
Argan Argar, for whom no such spell is needed. The Lunar cults they
would love to infiltrate remain beyond their reach.
Arkat was
a noted heroquester, but the assaults by the God Learners and
Belintar have left the Order with few accounts of what he did and how
he did it. They have not used heroquesting offensively for a long
time, but it is still part of their teaching, hence the emphasis on
learning Mythology.
Arkat and
the Red Moon
Both of
these cults have a deep mistrust of the Red Moon and the Lunar
Empire. The bastards have no qualms about using chaos, they boast of
their 'Illumination' and the connection of their god to hated Nysalor
and they have used 'creative heroquesting' to subvert other people's
mythologies and rites. They know that there will have to be a
reckoning, but they are a scattered few and the empire is incredibly
powerful. For their part the Empire has not forgotten Arkat. He is
not a major concern, but the sorcerers of the Imperial University
know that he still has his adherents and that Dragon Pass must
contain a few, and they might retain enough of the old Arkat magic to
pose a minor threat to the Empire.
Arkat's
Hold
In the
North Marches of Esrolia lies Arkat's Hold. The site was a Daysenerus
temple founded in the days of Nysalor's Bright Empire, but after
Arkat liberated Esrolia he used it as a base to muster for the
conquest of Dragon Pass. His fortress is still there, and parts have
been rebuilt to serve as a garrison along the Building Wall created
by the Pharaoh to keep out the Lunars. This fortress is a squat
blocky edifice in the severe Brithini style, but most of the
elaborate maze of outworks are mere lumps in the ground. The
population are typical Esrolians, with a slight excess of Argan Argar
worshippers and fair minorities of 'civilised' trolls and Ralian
immigrants.
There is a
temple to Humakt here, but most of the troops serving along the wall
follow native Esrolian traditions. There is a shrine to Arkat
Humaktsson in this temple, old, untidy and disused with no open
worshippers bar a few cursory prayers on Founders Day, and a Chapter
of the Order of Black Arkat housed in the crypt of the ruins of the
Church of Arkat. Traditionally the Queen of Arkat's Hold has had a
sorcerer of the Order as a member of her council, and this has been
kept up despite pressure from better attended temples and churches to
have this privilege removed. You might run into followers of the many
disparate Safelstran Arkati sects here on pilgrimage, and the
Unbreakable Sword Inn is a fine place for a heated theological
argument and a fight, and studiously avoided by the unobtrusive
adherents of Black Arkat and downright invisible Arkat Humaktsson..
