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Vinga: subcults
Spirits of Reprisal
Generally these appear as sylphs of varying sizes, though with unusual accuracy in their attacks.
Minor infractions are often punished by the culprit's hair being pulled out by the wind.
Note that the famous Vingan infertility goes with the hair (simply shaving it would not have this
side-effect, of course). More serious crimes result in the culprit's weapon being blown out of their
hand in the middle of combat. In extreme cases, they may find themselves unable ever to hold a weapon
again until they atone.
The Four Magic Weapons
Vinga has access to these weapons, though not for the same reasons as for Wind Lords.
For Vinga they are each tied to one specific location (though it is possible that other sites exist
with different myths, as yet unknown). Unless specified, the spell provided is as described in the
Orlanth write-up in River of Cradles.
Scarf of Mist
Myth:
Vinga agreed to go out and fight a god who was threatening Huraya by blowing her mists away,
if in return the nymph would defend those of Vinga's followers who remained behind. Huraya put a
girdle of mist around Vinga's stead, and any man who entered it became lost and found himself outside
again. That stead is now the temple of Tarthcaer, in the Quivin Hills, and it can be found by any woman
who seeks Vinga's protection.
Location:
Tarthcaer. Note that the defences are still in force!
Lightning Spear
Myth:
When she heard that Elmal had gone to the Hill of Gold, Vinga followed him, hoping to help.
She arrived to find him lying injured on the ground, while the first of his enemies stripped him of
his armour. Enraged, she dashed in and picked up the spear which Elmal had dropped. The foe gave way
before her attack, and she chased him down the hill. He flew away faster than she could follow, and
she lost him. She returned to where she had left Elmal, but found that he had gone: home, she assumed,
since he now had no armour and his favourite weapon was lost to him.
Location:
Good question. The shrine that gave this spell was known to have been in Dragon Pass prior to the
DragonKill War. It has not been rediscovered since the reoccupation of the Pass, though there are many
Vingans who would like to do so. Possibly the various arguments about sun-worship have obscured its
significance.
Sandals of Darkness
Myth:
Once Vinga and other members of Orlanth's warband were in troll lands, raiding the trolls who had
raided them. They came across a band of trolls who were defending a cave, and after a great fight,
won through to see what it was that had been guarded so fiercely. Within, they found a female troll,
about to give birth, and no treasure. The disappointed warriors would have killed the troll as she
lay there, but Vinga stopped them. She had come to fight trolls, as had they, but she could not harm a
woman, even of the Darkness tribe, at such a time. When they would have insisted on slaying their
victim, saying that violence was always an option, she turned on the rest of them and chased them away.
The troll, now safe, gave birth to a fine daughter and was very grateful to Vinga. But Vinga was now
alone, without her companions, deep in enemy territory. The troll gave her the sandals that she had
had from her own mother, so she could return safely to her own lands without being seen. Some say that
the sandals were intended as a loan, and that Vinga neglected to return them, saying that promises
only count when made to kin.
Location:
Pick a troll area that looks like fun. (The Kitori area, perhaps?) The participating troll gets a
healthy birth out of it, which gives them an incentive.
Scenario
A Daughter of Vinga is hiring male Orlanthi for a troll-bashing expedition. She has the support of
the local Orlanth temple, and volunteers are told that participation will count towards their cult
duties. They are NOT told what to expect, but are picked for their hatred of trolls and general
violence, so they should make the right response. They are told to take the Vingan's orders without
question. In fact the whole thing has been pre-arranged with a local troll clan, in order to be sure
of a safe birth for one of their women. The trolls will not fight as hard as might be expected, since
the success of the plan depends on their losing. And some of them will probably remain to guard the
female, just in case. When the puzzled adventurers get back to the temple, all will be explained, and
they will be sworn to secrecy. Since they have been taking the part of Orlanth's own warband in a minor
Heroquest, they may get some magical reward.
Shield of Arran
Vingans often use this spell to strengthen a shield which would otherwise be too light to be of use in
melee: the light wicker shields more normally used on horseback to protect from arrows can be used in
a shield-wall by using this spell. Since knockback affects the user normally, it does not enable the
Vingan to resist unusually strong blows.
Myth:
Arran is not a martial deity, and wielding his famous shield himself is not one of his skills. He has
however been known to assist his sister, providing her with a magical clay that can be used to coat
any shield, no matter how flimsy, making the surface as hard as iron.
Location:
The Arran shrine at the Old Wind temple.
Godlearner secret
This wasn't in the original write-up, but was planned in from the start.
Take a look at the un-named "foe" in all those myths. Spot anything in common?
That's right. It's Orlanth. Not that any modern Vingan will admit this.
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