Some Trivia
Lemuel~~~ ~laughs~ Well, we can get started I guess, though with just us I'm not sure how lively the discussion is going to be. ~S~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~putting the rencepaper against thighs as she slightly closes them to make a more writable surface.. ~
Lemuel~~~ O.K. — since I don't have a topic...how about some trivia?
What food do Initiates avoid?
Kayla~~~ ~trying not to look stupid~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening to the question.. not remembering.. and then thinking of what Master ate..~ beans?
Lemuel~~~ Hint: There were some in the stew I just ate...
Asellus~~~ *giggling....*
Lemuel~~~ ~chuckles~ Yes jasma, beans.
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~looking up at her Owner.. a bit shocked.. but happy.. ~
Yours wasn't quite sure.. she thought it may be though.. ~smiling~
Lemuel~~~ ~S~ Apparently Initiates don't eat meat either...
Page 26, "Marauders of Gor" —
Initiates do not eat meat, or beans. They are trained in the mysteries of mathematics. They converse among themselves in archaic Gorean, which is no longer spoken among the people. Their services, too, are conducted in this language. Portions of the services, however, are translated into contemporary Gorean. When I had first come to Gor I had been forced to learn certain long prayers to the Priest-Kings, but I had never fully mastered them, and had, by now, long forgotten them.
Kayla~~~ beans??? Why beans?
Kayla~~~ I can see meat but beans?
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening to the quote~.. perhaps due to the animals being dirty?.. the beans.. because of flatulence, perhaps?
Asellus~~~ Is is just protein-ridden food in general?....or....*thinking*....
Lemuel~~~ ~shrugs~ You'd have to ask an Initiate that, Kayla. I haven't a clue. ~G~ Probably just the same nuttiness that makes them forgo women...~S~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening to Mistress Asellus~.. a girl as well thought that..
Lemuel~~~ ~laughs at jasma's comment~ Could be...I imagine they'd stay away from broccoli too then.
Kayla~~~ Laughing.....
Kayla~~~ Or cabbage?
Lemuel~~~ ~chuckles~ Maybe so, Kayla.
Garawin~~~ *laughing at the flatulence reference*
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~trying not to laugh, but hold a serious expression on her face~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~offering~
as in many instances, John Norman offers some things, but don't explain it so we leave it to our imagination.. ~s~
Lemuel~~~ I doubt that's the reason though. After all, who would know if they cut one loose with all that incense they burn? ~G~
Asellus~~~ Ohmigosh! *eyes wide with incredulous laughter as Lemuel speaks*
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~not concealing the laughter any longer as her Master speaks.. trying to hide head against His thigh as she laughs hard.. ~
Garawin~~~ *laughing* perhaps that was the purpose of the incense - to hide the indescretions???
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ Could be Garawin.
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~softly offering as well~
and since they'd chant as they walked places.. it's not like anyone would be able to hear it.. unless maybe if it was a ripper..
~really trying to hold a straight face now~
Lemuel~~~ ~grinning~ O.K. — another question dealing with Initiates...
What is the symbol of the Initiates (and Priest-Kings)?
Kayla~~~ ~just shaking My head~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~thinking.. a symbol.. thinking~
Kayla~~~ ~grins trying to think of a symbol~
Lemuel~~~ Hint: symbolizes perfection and eternity...
Kayla~~~ a circle?
Lemuel~~~ ~nods to the Lady Physician~ Aye Kayla, a circle.
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~learning as she listens~
Lemuel~~~
From "Marauders of Gor" — page 33:
The high altar, of marble, setting on a platform, also marble, of three broad steps, was surmounted by a great rounded circle of gold, which is taken often as a symbol of Priest-Kings. It is without beginning or end. It stands, I suppose, for eternity.
Garawin~~~ *remembering He nods* yes a circle
Kayla~~~ that was a guess...LOL
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~remembering that part in Marauders.. but not remembering the symbol.. ~
Lemuel~~~ ~S~ Here's another quote
from "Magicians of Gor" — page 17:
We could hear the bells, the chanting. In a moment we could see the lifted golden circle, on its staff, approaching. The people in the street hurried to press against the walls.
“Initiates,” I said to Marcus.
Lemuel~~~ ~dropping a hand to My side to caress My girl's cheek while I think of another trivia question~
Errand Knight~~~ brissles at the talk of the Initiates
Lemuel~~~ ~grins and winks at the Physician~ Oh, I think You would have liked the earlier topic of why Initiates don't eat meat or beans...
Kayla~~~ another book that I don't have...
Lemuel~~~ ~nods~ Yes, "Vagabonds" and "Magicians" are hard to come by. Hopefully they'll be re-released some time in the not too distant future.
Lemuel~~~ Next question...should be easy...
How do Tarnsmen call their tarns to them?
Asellus~~~ ....whistles...? Or have I lost my mind??
Errand Knight~~~ bald headed badgers ..as much chance of immortality as Me! Pity they dont stick to their business in the nest. Im glad the Initiates courts in Port Kar arnt worth an urts arsewipe
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ by a tarn whistle?
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ Yes Lady Asellus, they use tarn whistles. Each one a different note to which only one tarn will respond.
Asellus~~~ *smiling brilliantly*
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~giggling softly as Mistress Asellus and a girl responded the same.. ~
Errand Knight~~~ Lemuel: I think a Tarnsman might be wiser using a tarn whistle than a tarn goad to call the bird
Lemuel~~~
From "Tarnsman of GOr" — page 52:
The Older Tarl had mounted his tarn, climbing up the five-rung leather mounting ladder which hangs on the left side of the saddle and is pulled up in flight. He fastened himself in the saddle with a broad purple strap. He tossed me a small object which nearly fell from my fumbling hands. It was a tarn whistle, with its own note, which would summon one tarn, and one tarn only, the mount which was intended for me.
Lemuel~~~ ~chuckles~ Yes, the whistle is undoubtedly better than the goad for getting a tarn to come to you. ~S~
Errand Knight~~~
"The spirit of the tarn must not be broken, not that of the war tarn. He is trained to the point where it is necessary for a strong master to decide whether he shall serve him or slay him. You will come to know your tarn, and he will come to know you. You will be as one in the sky, the tarn the body, you the mind and will. You will live in an armed truce with the tarn. If you become weak or helpless, he will kill you. As long as you remain strong, his master, he will serve you, respect you, obey you." (Tarnsman of Gor, p.58)
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~smiling softly.. remember Ubar of the Skies~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~
The Older Tarl was leaving, and I understood that I was to follow him. We ascended a spiral staircase inside the cylinder and climbed for what must have been dozens of apartment levels. At. last we emerged on the flat roof of the cylinder. The wind swept across the flat, circular roof, tugging one toward the edge. 'There was no protective rail. I braced myself, wondering what was to occur. Some dust blew against my face. I shut my eyes. The Older Tarl took a tarn whistle, or tarn call, from his tunic and blew a piercing blast.
Tarnsman of Gor, page 50
Lemuel~~~ ~smiles at the other quotes about tarns~
How about something more obscure...
How many streamers, or reins, are used to control a tarn?
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ aren't there 6 straps to control the bird?
Kayla~~~ 6 reins
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ Yes Kayla and jasma are right. There are six reins.
And I thought that would be more difficult. ~S~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~smiling softly.. listening~
Lemuel~~~
"Tarnsman of Gor" — page 55:
The tarn is guided by virtue of a throat strap, to which are attached, normally, six leather streamers, or reins, which are fixed in a metal ring on the forward portion of the saddle. The reins are of different colors, but one learns them by ring position and not color. Each of the reins attaches to a small ring on the throat strap, and the rings are spaced evenly. Accordingly, the mechanics are simple. One draws on the streamer, or rein, which is attached to the ring most nearly approximating the direction in which one wishes to go. For example, to land or lose altitude, one uses the four-strap which exerts pressure on the four-ring, which is located beneath the throat of the tarn. To rise into flight, or gain altitude, one draws on the one-strap, which exerts pressure on the one-ring, which is located on the back of the tarn's neck. The throat-strap rings, corresponding to the position of the reins on the main saddle-ring, are numbered in a clockwise fashion.
Errand Knight~~~ 6 ..they are attached to the metal ring at the head of the saddle and from there to the throat strap ...pulling the different coloured straps makes the tarn vere or ascent etc
Errand Knight~~~
laffs ...ok, what is the decent velocity of an attacking tarn?
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ Oh...good one, E.K.
~thinking~ Around 200 miles per hour if I remember correctly...
Errand Knight~~~ too right Lemuel ....400 pasangs an Ahn which is as you say 200mph ..means its not a good idea for a trnsman to breathe when his bird attacks unless he likes the idea of his lungs exploding out of his arse
Lemuel~~~ ~G~ Yep, Yep......
From a footnote in "Blood Brothers" — page 437:
* No terrestrial conversion is supplied in the Cabot ms. for this figure. Equivalences supplied elsewhere in the Cabot mss. suggest a figure of a little over two hundred miles per hour. —J.N.
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening quietly~
Lemuel~~~ ~grins laughing~ Oh no, wouldn't want that to happen. ~LOL~
Errand Knight~~~
ok, what is the significance of the tarns to the future of our city Port Kar?
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~enjoying the quotes offered.. a girl's books all packed~
Lemuel~~~ And here's the passage the footnote refers to (same page):
Out of the sun struck the great tarn. As I had been trained to do I drew as deep a breath as possible before the dive began. It is not impossible to breathe during such a descent, particularly after the first moments, even in the rushing wind, but it is generally recommended that one do not do so. It is thought that breathing may effect the concentration, perhaps altering or complicating the relationship with the target. The bird and the rider, in effect, are the projectile. The tarn itself, it might be noted, does not draw another breath until the impact or the vicinity of the impact, if the strike fails to find its mark. The descent velocities in a strike of this sort are incredible, and have never been precisely calculated. They are estimated, however, at something in the neighborhood of four hundred pasangs per Ahn.
Lemuel~~~ ~smiling and shutting up, giving someone else a chance to answer~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~totally lost to the answer.. listening~
Asellus~~~ *blinking*
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ Can I give them a hint, E.K.???
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening for a hint.. ~
Errand Knight~~~ please do Captain
Kayla~~~ Since Port kar is limited already by access if not by tarnback that leaves only a water approach *ss* and tarns are quicker than boat/ship
Lemuel~~~ ~grins~ O.K. — One of the holidays of our future Port Kar commemorates this event in which tarns played an important part...
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ the battle of the 25th of Se'Kara
Lemuel~~~ ~nods to jasma~ And what part did tarns play?
Errand Knight~~~ very good jasma
Aye the great naval battle between Port Kar and the combined forces of Cos and Tyros which occurred on the 25 of Se'Kara and which resultd in our Council of Captains taking control rather than the doopy Ubars. Port Kar won this great battle, in part to its use of tarns at sea. A number of tarns had been hidden aboard ships and taken to the battle. Normally, a tarn will not fly past sight of land. But when the tarns were released, with no land in sight, they acted normally and fought fiercely.
Kayla~~~ and that is the past so the future???/
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ although the ships were there.. tarns had been brought in as well..
???
Lemuel~~~ ~S~ Well, according to Our Home pages, Gorean Shores is set in the time after the Captains took control, but before the Home Stone was found...which is before the battle took place.
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening to Mistress Kayla~
aye.. because Gorean Shores, is before the time of the sea battle of the 25 of Se'Kara.. so this actually hasn't.. happened.. although.. it has.. ~smiling somewhat confusededly~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~nodding to the quote Master Knight offered~
Errand Knight~~~ Kayla: no as I understand it, GS is set pre 10120 C.A
and jasma: the tarns were on the ships ..when the Ubars sold out and made the alliance with Cos and Tyros, their naval strength was greater than the combined fleet of the Captains ..on of the fqctors in victory was the surprise release of the shipkept tarns
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ aye, Master Knight.. a girl knew they were on the ships, she apologizes for not being more specific in her reply
Lemuel~~~ ~nodding at E.K.'s words~ Yes, the significant thing is that tarns had never been used at sea before, so they were something of a surprise to the fleets of Cos and Tyros.
Errand Knight~~~
But in Se'Kara of 10120 CA, during the problems of the Ubars' treachery, Port Kar acquired a Home Stone. As the naval forces of Cos and Tyros neared Port Kar, many of the residents of Port Kar fled, worried that they would be killed or captured by the superior forces of Cos and Tyros. To unite the remaining people of Port Kar, Tarl Cabot decided to give the city a Home Stone, a rallying symbol. At this time, Tarl was known as Bosk of Port Kar and he had become a Captain of Port Kar. He sent a slave out into the streets of Port Kar to find a rock. The slave returned with a common gray rock, just larger than a fist. Tarl carved the initials of Port Kar, in block script, into this stone. It was then brought to the Council of Captains where it was eagerly accepted by the people of Port Kar as their Home Stone. The remaning men then did unite, proud that they now possessed a Home Stone. Without this Home Stone, Port Kar would most likely have been conquered by Cos and Tyros.
Errand Knight~~~ yep tarns do not like to lose sight of land and would not normally fly so far out to sea
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~listening to Master Knight~.. because most of the city thought without a Home Stone, there was no reason to fight. They were willing to give up.. what Tarl and the slaveboy, Fish, had done was a turning point for Port Kar
Lemuel~~~ ~looking to the clepsydra~ Well, unless anyone has more to add...
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ ~looking up to her Owner~
Yours has nothing more to add, Master..
Lemuel~~~ ...I'll call this forum to a close. Thank you all for coming and participating. ~S~
And a reminder...the rotating forum will be held in Gorean Shores this Sunday. I'll be moderating and I hope to see you all then. ~S~
jasma{LB}GSFG~~~ thank You, Master for allowing Yours to participate and relearn some of the things she's forgotton.. and to learn new things, she never gave much thought to, before.
Kayla~~~ Thanks Lemuel... Seems I am saying that alot to You right now Captain *ss*
Lemuel~~~ ~chuckles~ Just filling in until the Senior Captains come back.