My Life In Fandom: The Pundit Talks Mythology & How It's (Badly) Used

The RPG Pundit is back, talking mythology and RPGs. Even if you write fiction, he's got good commentary here.

First, there is a game that did a far better job at playable mythology then Dungeons & Dragons: Runequest. It's akin to Pendragon and Paladin in that, like Call of Cthulhu and Stormbringer, it's a D100 System with very perishable characters and involved character generation. Mythology is made playable due to putting access to real power behind engagement with setting lore in some fashion or another, often involving the joining of a cult dedicated to a specific mythic figure and celebrating its rites. Want to be a god-king? Got to become The God-King.

Second, it shows a very concrete example of what authors in fantasy and science fiction often complain about: "pagan mythology" is often little more than a combination of Fuck You Dad and really dumb LARPing, sometimes with just enough academic bullshit to rook the rubes. Actual mythology (a) has a very real function and (b) is considerably messier than what mentally ill weirdos with already shakey connections to reality--the common figure pushing this bullshit--think that it really is.

Third, mythology is hard because most people don't consciously comprehend it even if they are affected by it- including academics. The closest they get is its political utility, which is still potent stuff but not the full explanation. They could get it if they had the humility to accept that they can be influenced by it, and thus make the effort to think through what they do.

And until more people get mythology, you'll see this problem persist.