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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Clueless" data-source="post: 2250477" data-attributes="member: 11802">... there are days I regret sending you links to the neat things I find.I'll second the suggestion of Authentic Thamaturgy - it's an extremely fine read, and very useful for this sort of topic.For more direct help - let's see if I can surface any useful collections of information for you. For example, <a href="http://www.meta-religion.com/Psychiatry/Demonic_possesion/rituale_romanum.htm" target="_blank">exorcism rites</a>. And the <a href="http://www.meta-religion.com/Psychiatry/Demonic_possesion/roman_ritual.htm" target="_blank">detailed rites</a>.Other collections of information, if this hasn't been mentioned yet the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithras" target="_blank">Cult of Mithras</a> - I'd especially note that this diety was very popular with the soldiers surprisingly enough. Which can lead to some interesting implications.There's often an importance (I believe it's Celtic, may also be Cherokee) lent to standing in the 'in between' points - crossroads, on beaches, or one foot in water and one on land.The Cherokee have legends of a people called the 'Shining Ones' that are remarkably simular in tone to the Irish Tuatha De Danan. (Considering the implication that the Sidhe came from farther west over the open sea - this can lead to some interesting connections for the plot minded DM. It also led to some <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/external-search/702-5911690-4918460?tag=dragonslibr0b-20&keyword=Tom+Deitz&mode=books" target="_blank">nice books by Tom Dietz</a>.)For Chinese myths/legendary stories I'd review <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_to_the_West" target="_blank">The Journey West</a>. It's one of the most well known and deeply engrained stories for that area of the world. For a random tidbit of information regarding offerings to the dead: It's bad luck to pass someone a bowl of rice with the spoon/fork/chopsticks pointing up in the air. It's preferred that the eating tools are to the side, resting on the side of the bowl. Why? Because when food is placed out for the ancestors to symbolicly eat - the spoon is pointed straight up so they may grasp it. Passing a bowl with the spoon up to a *living* person is more than just a little awkward.I would really not over look the influence of animist cultures. These are the ones with spirits and the like - and often have a much richer magical element to them than what may be commonly seen. Unfortunately the research on those involve me hitting a library, it's obscure even for me. So I can't be much more helpful than just listing them off. Your list covered Europe and North America pretty handily. It's a modern game though so they might run into just about anything. Russian mythology is downright *creepy*. If we have any Australians on the thread maybe they could fill us in with a more direct run down on the concept of the Dreamtime?</blockquote>

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