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Description

(Taken from Guide to Glorantha, pages 550-552. Used without permission as fair use.)

Inhabitants

Fonrit is primarily inhabited by a folk of mixed Veldang and Agimori origin, called the Torabs. The upper class is incredibly wealthy and powerful, the poor ruthlessly taxed and beggared into heartless slavery.

Many cities in Afadjann have Vadeli Quarters, populated by Brown Vadeli and governed by their own laws and customs.

Culture

Fonritian. Slavery defines and dominates Fonritian culture. Of the Fonritian cultures, the Afadjanni are of particular interest, as they are somewhat less dominated by slavery, and their culture contains some interesting differences from Kareeshtu.

Across Fonrit, about 5% of the population are free upper class, about 5% are slave or mercenary soldiers supported by the rulers, around 10% are half-free, half-slave artisans and merchants, and another 10% petty landholders. The remaining 70% are slaves.

Fonritian free women wear veils, and both sexes wear draping robes. Harems are the rule for the rich potentates, guarded by jealous and powerful eunuch slaves.

Among the nonslaves of Afadjann, society is divided into two kinds of people, based on whether the family’s mother is of tsanyano (“Renewed”) or bolgaddi (“Oldster”) ancestry. The Renewed are liberal in their attitudes, allowing slaves to marry, buy their freedom (rarely), and enjoy limited religious choice. Oldsters are fierce and relentless. “To live is to suffer” is their motto, and they judge themselves by the same implacable standard they apply to their slaves. Some cities are dominated by one or the other class, but most are factionalized.

Language

Fonritian, Kareeshtan, Afadjanni, Mondoran; Banamban is spoken most by those of Laskal. Thinokan is the preferred language in the land of Thinokos; it is unrelated to the other Fonritian languages, but is closely related to those of Elamle and Flanch.

Government

Slavocracy. The political rulers are tyrannical overlords who must contend with a dozen powerful factions in each city. Cities may be ruled by priesthoods, merchants, or warlords. Fonritian politics lie in the hands of a wealthy plutocracy, which commands internal factions and rules over vast slave estates; they are famed for their cruelty and tyranny. Citystates strive for both independence and to dominate their neighbors. Loyalty between city-states is rare, and the various regions mentioned below are traditional groupings which are sometimes confederacies, sometimes ruled by a single leader, and sometimes divided into many squabbling states. The political units of Fonrit change hands and borders so often that an accurate delineation is difficult. As of 1621, the most powerful city-states are those of Afadjann and Kareeshtu.

Two rival confederations dominate Fonrit. The Jann of Afadjann commands the rulers of other city-states, who send tribute, hostages, slaves, and troops upon command.

Each tributary state may also command lesser city-states or tribes as well. Those cities not subject to the Jann are fiercely independent.

In the north, the undying Archidomides, the Vessel of Tondiji and Ikadz, rules a rival confederation called Golden Kareeshtu with cruelty and vision. At the present (1621), Golden Kareeshtu is the more powerful of the rival confederations.

Military

Each city in Fonrit has at least one contingent of professional soldiers, owned by their commanding officers, who are in turn owned by various ruling contingents. As is usual in Pamaltela, good horses must be imported and cavalry is rare. The ruling faction of each citystate has a professional bodyguard, usually composed of handpicked, free, highly paid foreign mercenaries, skilled in their particular weapons and magics.

Most magic on the field of battle is in the hands of powerful sorcerers aided by assistants. Other magic units are made up of small bodies of temple priests.

The Fonritian city-states have used ships of traditional design since before the Closing. Merchantmen are similar to dhows and xebecs. For war, the Fonritians prefer small ships called warsails, which are faster than any other sailing ship when traveling upwind. They are very numerous and relatively delicate, and a favored tactic is to close and board, using a variety of imaginative means, including ladders, grapples, magical leaps, and teleportation. Kareeshtu is the dominant naval power.

Religion

Fonritian Religion. Earth spirits, fishing spirits, ancestor worship, and city spirits abound. Powerful cults are variously state-supported by particular cities. The god of slavery, Ompalam, is a state cult throughout most of Fonrit.

Among the Afadjanni, the most important god, by virtue of his political import, is Darleester the Noose. This god gives a spell of compulsion to the high priest, the Jann, who can teach the spell to others who are already under his compulsion. The duration of the spell is for the lifetime of the caster. In Sarro, Orlanth (also called Baraku by the Fonritians) is the most important deity; in Ebbeshal, the Invisible God; and in Yngortu, “The Two Brothers” (called by outsiders Humakt and Zorak Zoran). The priesthoods are inevitably corrupt and form one of the factions in their cities.

Creating a character

To create a character from Fonrit use following tables

Base passions

Occupation tables

Roll 1d20 for parents occupation, or choose from the table.

Family history

This table determines the history of player characters grandparents and parents. Years are approximate outside of dragon pass, but they correlate fairly well with the years in family history sheet.

Rune affinities

Darkness +10%

Cultural skills