Glorantha: Cult of the Crimson Bat 
Cult of the Crimson Bat
originally published in Cults of Terror and Tales of the Reaching Moon #8

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 
  Other Notes 
Mythos and History
The Crimson Bat was once a natural animal, but was horribly mutated by the flood 
of chaos which infected the world in the Great Darkness. It grew to a tremendous 
size, and glowed with chaotic forces. To feed these energies, the Bat comsumed 
enormous amounts of food and magical power. It became one of the myriad horrors 
which made up the legions of chaos. It survived the destruction of the armies of 
chaos in the last battles of the Gods War and haunted the hero plane, a 
nightmare of chaos might.
During the First Age, the Crimson Bat roamed the world without restraint. It 
descended upon towns and cities without warning, devouring the people. The early 
hero Arkat met the monster in battle, withstood its chaotic powers, and 
managedto banish it from the mundane plane.
In the Third Age, the Red Goddess left her people to visit the elder gods, 
forging her place among their pantheons, to earn her apotheosis. While she was 
on this heroquest, powerful enemy lords took the opportunity to strike. Their 
armies converged on her capital. At the climax of the siege, the Goddess 
returned, riding the Bat. The battle, a Lunar triumph, was ever after known as 
the First Battle of Chaos. Since then, the Bat has been the symbol of Lunar 
chaos, hated by the Empire's foes, and distrusted even by many Lunar faithfuls.
The cult of the Crimson Bat concerns itself little with any afterlife. Common 
folk believe that the souls of the Bat's worshipers are forfeit after death. 
Everyone knows that anyone or anything eaten alive by the Bat is utterly lost, 
body and soul. Death in the Bat's maw means annihilation, not just death. This 
is a major reason for the terror inspired by the Bat.
This cult's Runes are those of Moon and Chaos.
Other Notes
Killing the Bat
If the Bat's physical form is destroyed or it is not fed, the Bat is driven it 
back to the hero plane, whence it must be summoned by difficult rituals 
performed by the Red Emperor himself. The current high priest of the Crimson Bat 
cult is fed to the Bat as part of the resummoning ritual, after which a new high 
priest is chosen.
The Surrounding Population
The Crimson Bat roams the frontier, stopping every week or so in a new area. It 
has not entered the Lunar Heartland for many years. When the Bat enters an area, 
the people react in one of four ways:
  They flee immediately with as many of their domestic animals as they can, 
  returning when the Bat has departed; they often return to find their property 
  confiscated or destroyed. 
  They hide, but the cult is expert at tracking down and finding people. 
  If captured, they join the cult as lay members, and betray non-cultists; since 
  the Bat eats lay members when needed, this tactic is of uncertain benefit if 
  the population is small or if everyone joins. 
  Some fight the cult; unfortunately, the cult is very strong compared to its 
  usual foes, and always has with it the awesome trump of the Crimson Bat 
  itself. 
Most people are convinced that assisting the cult causes the least damage. They 
round up undesirables, traders from other countries, minor cultists, sick 
cattle, and the like, hoping that the offering is adequate.
The Glowspot
The Bat exudes a force, the power of the Red Moon. All Lunar magicians within 
its glow can use all magic as if the Moon were full. This glow extends in a 
radius around the bat of some 20 kilometers.


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