History TabletopGame / RuneQuest

* FantasticCasteSystem: The Brithinis are divided into five castes, the four castes of men founded by the legitimate son of Malkion (Dromal, Horal, Talar and Zzabur) and his wife's caste Menema (caste of women).
** Dromali=commoners, Horal=warriors, Talar=diplomat and coordinator castes (no leader, even though people often make derivatives), Zzabur=wizards, intellectuals (spiritual power, like the Brahmans of India). The Brithinis are as Indo-European, while Malkinos are more feudal (power plus or Zzaburis Tatars) and a subtle reference to the divergent evolution of the Indian system and the European one.

* NeverMessWithGranny: Esrolia is matriarchal. Stafford has pointed out that this does not mean "rule by women" - it means "rule by mothers", specifically, Grandmothers, the heads of extensive matriarchal patrician (matrician?) clans (and their clients). Some of them are genuinely well-meaning and benign; others are ruthless, controlling, manipulative tyrants. All of them are iron-willed, powerful Earth priestesses with decades of positively Byzantine political experience, and so none of them are to be messed with.

* SdrawkcabName: ''Into the Troll Realms'', adventure "The Flying Trollkin". Nesretep is the leader of the title criminals. Steve Petersen co-wrote the supplement.

Dromali=commoners, Horal=warriors, Talar=diplomat and coordinator castes (no leader, even though people often make derivatives), Zzabur=wizards, intellectuals (spiritual power, like the Brahmans of India). The Brithinis are as Indo-European, while Malkinos are more feudal (power plus or Zzaburis Tatars) and a subtle reference to the divergent evolution of the Indian system and the European one.

* FantasticCasteSystem: The Brithinis are divided into five castes, the four castes of men founded by the legitimate son of Malkion (Dromal, Horal, Talar and Zzabur) and his wife caste Menema. (caste women)
Dromali = commoners
Horal = Warriors
Talar = diplomat and coordinator castes. (No leader, even though people often make derivatives)
Zzabur: wizard, intellectual (spiritual power, near the Brahmans of India)
The Brithinis are as Indo-European, while Malkinos are more feudal (Power plus or Zzaburis Tatars) and a subtle reference to the divergent evolution of the Indian system and European

** Also, the [[DontFearTheReaper users of the Death Rune]] are highly respected and well-liked, due to their ability to confer with the ancestors and their anti-undead powers. ...in ''some'' cultures, anyway. In other cultures, the Death worshipers are exactly as creepy as you'd expect.
* DarkMessiah / MessianicArchetype / TheAntichrist: Nysalor/Gbaji, [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation depending of the interpretation]].

** But the Heortlings don't think of themselves as barbarians, of course. Now, Wenelians (think more primitive Orlanthi with a stronger Iroquois influences and less of Heortling laws) are definitely barbarians, too quick to avenge slights and less likely to be hospitable or accept weregild. And Praxians? Savages.

** The Goddess was eventually defeated, but probably [[HesJustHiding she is just hiding.]]

** OnlyAFleshWound: Generally averted, due to the hit-location system. Characters can get crippled very easily in combat.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Deconstructed with the broo-they were created as a warped parody of life meant only to destroy, and they know it. [[TorturedAbomination And they have never forgiven their creators.]]

** Also, the [[DontFearTheReaper users of the Death Rune]] are highly respected and well-liked, due to their ability to confer with the ancestors and their anti-undead powers.

* DeusExHomine: [[DeusEstMachina Zistor]] and Nysalor, who was to be the [[MessianicArchetype perfect deity]].

* TheNightThatNeverEnds: This is what happens when you kill the Sun God. And then [[ItGotWorse it gets worse]].

* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: The Vadeli in the West, much like the Brithini they broke away from and warred with, are divided into castes. Brown Vadeli are commoners, and until recently, the only ones that seemed to survive into historical times; they're slimy and evil, but not actually that great at military planning or any grandiose long-term schemes. More recently, Red Vadeli warriors came back onto the scenes - and quickly rallied the Brown Vadeli for a campaign of maritime terror. Everyone dreads the possibility of the return of the Blue Vadeli, the leaders and archmages, who could actually put the bad old Vadeli Empire together again.

'''[=RuneQuest=]''' was created by Chaosium in 1978, making it one of the oldest tabletop RolePlayingGames. Among other things, it introduced an experience system that replaces the levels (as in TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons) with skills that increase if you successfully use them ({{Traveller}} replaced levels with skills first but they didn't increase with use). It also introduced hit regions instead of general HitPoints. The system was also used for other Chaosium games like ''CallOfCthulhu'', ''Stormbringer'', and the ''ElfQuest'' RPG, and was in 2004 developed into the generic BRP (Basic Role-Playing System). In August 2012, a new company, Design Mechanism, published a revised 6th Edition of Runequest.

'''[=RuneQuest=]''' was created by Chaosium in 1978, making it one of the oldest tabletop RolePlayingGames. Among other things, it introduced an experience system that replaces the levels (as in TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons) with skills that increase if you successfully use them ({{Traveller}} replaced levels with skills first but they didn't increase with use). It also introduced hit regions instead of general HitPoints. The system was also used for other Chaosium games like ''CallOfCthulhu'', ''Stormbringer'', and the ''ElfQuest'' RPG, and was in 2004 developed into the generic BRP (Basic Role-Playing System).

The original [=RuneQuest=] was set in the ConstructedWorld named Glorantha. As the authors say:

* ColdIron: Iron is poison to elves and trolls, because the dwarves who invented it -- not "found," not "refined," they ''invented a metal'' -- designed it as a weapon against them.

Glorantha is also the setting of the clan-developing computer game of TheKingOfDragonPass.

* Sdrawkcab Name: ''Into the Troll Realms'', adventure "The Flying Trollkin". Nesretep is the leader of the title criminals. Steve Petersen co-wrote the supplement.

* RedemptionQuest: Orlanth's ToHellAndBack.

* HornAttack: The following Gloranthan creatures had horn/butt attacks: bison, broo, rhino, sable (antelope), sky bull, unicorn

** Kind of a weird case - the Lunar Empire promotes (cosmic) Chaos but is ''very'' organized, whereas the Orlanthi are Chaos-hating barbarian berzerkers.

* HornAttack: The following Gloranthan creatures had this: bison, broo, rhino, sable (antelope), sky bull, unicorn