Glorantha: Cult of Malia 
Cult of Malia
originally published in Cults of Terror and Lords of Terror

This document is Copyright © 1998 Issaries, Inc. It may be freely linked to, and 
one copy may be printed for personal use, but any other reproduction by 
photographic, electronic, or other methods of retrieval, is prohibited.
Table of Contents
  Mythos and History 
  Propitiatory Worship 
  Other Notes 
Mythos and History
Malia was born a child of the Darkness, a spirit of healing with great 
properties to aid growth and birth. Like all shadows she grew in the Darkness, 
but she soon grew jealous of those greater than herself. When death came she 
discovered nourishment within the wreckage and destruction of the Gods War. Thus 
Malia became a corruption of Death itself, a spiritual engine of destruction, 
tainted and degraded from the swift brightness which Orlanth and Humakt used. 
The more she ate, the faster she grew, and the faster she grew, the more she 
ate. After a time, however, she feared that her food would completely fail, so 
she altered the style of her feeding, from lightning plagues that depopulated 
entire nations to the slow spread of death by disease, so that the misery of the 
world would last forever, eternally celebrating the goddess's glory.
But the ancestral diseases, each the source of new disease, were gradually 
defeated by Malia's foes. Each culture has its own hero who it claims defeated 
Malia: among the Orlanthi it was Chalana Arroy, among the Dara Happans it was 
Yelm or one of his sons, among the elves it was Arroin, among the Kralori it was 
the emperor Shavaya, but a vengeful Malia recalls each of these defeats. Because 
of her enemies' actions, the ancestral diseases have been destroyed, and all 
diseases now breed true, rather than spawning new diseases each time they feed.
When Thed and Ragnaglar combined to create chaos, Malia joined them, though 
whether willingly or under compulsion varies with the tale and the teller. She 
was thereafter known as one of the Unholy Trio, and served as midwife to the 
birth of Wakboth the Devil. Ragnaglar's children, the Broos, gave her worship, 
and she in turn aided them and provided immunity to her spirits so that they 
could further the spread of her diseased dominion. She blessed them with her 
gifts, both as a sign of her favor and to ensure that she would always have 
slaves to do her bidding. She finally parted company with Ragnaglar and Thed, 
but may never be freed from the stain of that association.
From fear and respect other chaos creatures came to worship her. As her powers 
increased, men, trolls, and elves came to her out of fear alone, praying to her 
to spare their tribes. Many endured the scourge of disease through their 
propitiation of Malia, and she continued to grow in power from such devotions.
Malia is pictured by most humans as an old woman, pockmarked and dripping with 
diseases; she often pushes a cart loaded with the dead. Broos see her as a 
powerful female broo, surrounded by spirits of disease, standing over the 
corrupt forms of her many victims. Praxian sand drawings and Lodrili wall 
paintings depict her as a headless body with a single huge maw in its belly, two 
stout legs, and many arms sprouting from her torso. Trolls picture her 
similarly, chewing her image out of flint or basalt, then smashing it to the 
ground, usually under the feet of Kyger Litor or Zorak Zoran. The elves see her 
as a diseased dryad, eating her way out of her tree, from which spirits of 
disease hang like fruit.
Malia's faithful know that there will be no reincarnation for their spirits, and 
that all they can hope for is a safe eternity serving the goddess. Some of them 
may return to the world as Spirits of Disease, to spread her blessings, though 
only the greatest may be so blessed. Some humans who worship Malia believe that 
they will be reborn as broos if faithful, and thus immune to her diseases 
forever.
Funeral rites are simple. The body is infected with at least one Spirit of 
Disease, then placed in the earth so that Darkness and Death become one in the 
worshipers. Only the ignorant or foolish will disturb such unmarked graves.
Malia is associated with the runes of Death and Darkness. Where she is worshiped 
by broos and other horrors, she is associated with Chaos as well.
Propitiatory Worship
Malia accepts worship from anyone. Her worship is ingrained in the broos, who 
are members at birth, and automatically unaffected by Spirits of Disease, 
although they can be possessed by them. A creature of any other race can become 
a member, gaining increased resistance to disease.
Worshipers of Malia gain protection from disease by sacrificing to her on 
seasonal holy days. For each sacrifice, the person gains increasing resistance 
when defending against disease, until the next holy day. Sacrifices are 
disease-specific: if a person sacrifices to protect against Soul Waste, Creeping 
Chills, and the Shakes, he will still lack protection from other diseases.
If there is a lapse in sacrificing on a holy day, the person is no longer a 
worshiper, and must sacrifice again on the next holy day to rejoin. There are no 
other benefits gained by propitiatory worship of Malia, and a person must become 
an initiate to gain any further training or benefits.
Other Notes
Insects
Malia is associated with certain insects, notably flies and a few types of 
beetles. Malia defeated some of Gorakiki's children in the Darkness, and she 
gains power from this association. Such insects are the pre ferred hosts for 
cult spirits, especially Spirits of Disease, which can possess such insects even 
thou" most diseases (except for certain insect-specific diseases) do not affect 
them; this is an exception to the normal disease rules. While possessing these 
insects a Spirit of Disease does not harm the host, and may linger for an 
indefinite leng of time. A Spirit of Disease cannot infect other indi viduals 
while bound to an insect, but can be Commanded to leave the insect host at any 
time.
Plague
Although the ancestral diseases were defeated in the Godtime by various deities, 
one escaped — the Spirit of Plague. It is still the source of unique diseases 
capable of depopulating whole nations. Such plagues were common in the Darkness, 
but have been rare since the Dawn. The most famous case of Plague during human 
memory was in Fronela before the Dawn, where Xemela, holy mother of Saint 
Hrestol, sacrificed her life and soul to end the Black Swelling which afflicted 
her people.
The Spirit of Plague is difficult to find, but a Disease Master who locates it 
can become infected by it. Such pieces of the spirit are immensely powerful, and 
almost assuredly will multiply and spread throughout a populace very quickly.
Pestilence
Malia is the source of Pestilence, and she has specific diseases which affect 
only plants. They are similar to normal diseases, but affect plant vitality 
instead of human organs and tissue. Thus, a Pestilence Spirit might affect a 
plant's ability to grow straight, or to extract water through its roots. 
Pestilence spirits can possess an area of plantlife instead of a single plant, 
and so one might possess an entire field of grain, though initially it would 
possess a single stalk of wheat, gradually spreading to other plants until the 
entire crop was afflicted. Very powerful spirits have been known to destroy 
entire forests, as the Dead Wood of Dagori Inkarth proves.
Such diseases, while mostly harmless to humans, are deadly to elves and other 
aldryami, and their shamans spend much of their time defending their charges 
against such spirits.


See also:
Chaos in Glorantha: Some Chaotic and Evil Gods
What Do You Want? Shut Up!
What the Broo Shaman Says
Secrets of the Chaos Gods


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