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finnlongman · 23 days

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Working theories about the processes at work in the Babyfication of Cú Chulainn in the 17th-19th century Ulster Cycle tales:

All of these late stories position themselves as taking place before Táin Bó Cúailnge. This is obvious from the fact that Fer Diad is present in lots of them, but is also just narratively convenient for them, I think.

Cú Chulainn is 17 in TBC, so our starting point is that he must be younger than that.

Generally these stories position themselves as occurring after Tochmarc Emire/Foglaim Con Culainn. Again, this is partly evident from the presence of Fer Diad. Some of them overlap slightly with it.

Cú Chulainn's age in TE isn't stated outright, but following the Boyhood Deeds, he might be as young as about 6.

He must therefore be aged between 6 and 17 when all these stories take place.

Tóruigheacht Gruaidhe Griansholus, the oldest of these stories (1679), states that he is 15 -- presumably with the primary intent of firmly locating the story before TBC. The Ulaid are concerned about the idea of him going off an international road trip alone because of his age, and express this concern, but he does it anyway. His youth is occasionally referenced, but on the whole he is much as he appears in earlier texts: a skilled and precocious warrior.

Eachtra na gCuradh and Coimheasgar na gCuradh come next (early 18th cent). They notice this detail in TGG and decide to elaborate on it further: Cú Chulainn is younger than 15, and is going on adventures only in the company of other warriors; it is occurring pre-TGG, making that his first solo adventure.

Because he is too young to go on adventures by himself, and because those responsible for him are frequently concerned for him, this gives the impression that Conall et al are babysitting him.

Eachtra na gCuradh appears to take place before Coimheasgar na gCuradh. CnC introduces Láeg and by the end of the story, he and Cú Chulainn have teamed up, ready for TGG. Conall appears slightly less protective of Cú Chulainn, so we can conclude he is slightly older than he was in EnC, when he is very baby (and when Láeg wasn't yet on the scene).

His age is not stated outright in any of these, but I would guess he's aged between 10 and 14. This is based purely on relative chronology and may not hold up to close scrutiny.

Sgéalta Rómánsuíochta are the latest stories (maybe 18th century but preserved in 19th century version). They're not super interested in Cú Chulainn, preferring to foreground other characters. His babyfication makes this easier, since he can appear as a child sidekick (to Ailill Fionn, in the first story), or in a similar capacity to EnC and CnC -- the youngest/most junior member of a group of warriors. Across the four stories, he could be anything from about 7 to about 14 again.

Theories about intertextuality:

Tóruigheacht Gruaidhe Griansholus and Coimheasgar na gCuradh both provably draw on the Stowe version of Táin Bó Cúailnge. There are details that can't have come from any other version of TBC (or any other text that survives). They are not the same details in both texts, so it's not that CnC drew on TGG: both drew on Stowe.

Since EnC is probably by the same author as CnC, we can assume he also had Stowe.

EnC's inclusion of Manannán mac Lir might suggest knowledge of Serglige Con Culainn.

CnC alone of the very late tales (i.e. EnC onwards) includes Láeg, with characterisation details that obviously come from Stowe TBC. Again, it doesn't seem to derive directly from TGG (there's a detail I'd expect to see there if it did); both go back to Stowe and so have similarities but have developed them differently.

All of them are probably drawing on Foglaim Con Culainn; in some places it seems like there might be some reliance on Oidheadh Con Culainn as well. There might be some evidence of drawing on Oidheadh Chonlaioch, particularly the attribution of teaching to Aífe rather than Scáthach, although I know there are also late verse versions of this that might be a source rather than the prose.

SR may be more distant from its source material with heavier reliance on these intervening texts -- there are lots of phrasal similarities between EnC/CnC and SR, but Ó hUiginn disputes the earlier proposal that they were all by the same author and thinks SR are definitely later.

That's what I've got so far. I doubt anyone has suggestions because I don't think anyone has cared about these texts for a couple of centuries, but if you do, hit me.

I am partly writing this post so I can keep track of these thoughts for later, although my PhD corpus ends with TGG, so I won't be talking at length about the others there. (They may come up in passing, though.)

#finn is not doing a phd #ulster cycle #now corrected because i got confused between EnC and CnC in terms of which one contained Manannan #i have read so much 18th-19th century irish lately

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grailfinders · 2 months

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Grailfinders #336: Manannan mac Lir (Bazett)

happy valentines day! I hope y’all are enjoying your new year’s ships and a waifus, and… uh… whatever else alloromantic people get up to. I’ll be enjoying the cheap chocolate on the fifteenth. today on Grailfinders we’re building Manannan mac Lir, but they’re mostly just Bazett again.

we’re mixing up this build a bit- she’s still a Monk, but an Astral Self monk this time. the Death portion of the build is taken over by her Cleric half this time.

check out her build below the cut, or her character sheet over here!

next up: Infinitiger, R.I.P.

Ancestry & Background

Bazett’s literally a Human, no getting around that. with variant rules, you get +1 Constitution and +1 Wisdom, as well as proficiency in Arcana because you are a mage, and the Mage Slayer feat because killing mages is kind of your job. with this feat, you can slap people who cast spells within 5’ of you, and your attacks force disadvantage on anyone who needs to maintain concentration. on top of all that, you get advantage on saves against spells cast by people within 5’ of you. so, slam your hand into the wall to keep that wizard from escaping and kiss them beat them up. what. I’m not being weird you’re being weird.

speaking of weird, your background! there’s a spell I want that we could only get otherwise through convoluted class nonsense, so you’re a Gruul Anarch for your background. they don’t like magic either, and I gave the Mesopotamian gods Ravnican backgrounds, so I guess this is still consistent? you get Animal Handling and Athletics proficiency for free, plus an extended spell list to prepare from. when you learn spells you can pick between Compelled Duel, Speak with Animals, and Thunderwave at level 1, Beast Sense and Shatter at level 2, Conjure Animals and Conjure Barrage at level three, Dominate Beast and Stoneskin at level 4, and Destructive Wave at level five. we’re only really here for conjure animals, which I’ll explain when we can cast it, but anything that breaks stuff or makes you harder to break is a good pick too. don’t worry about coloring inside the lines too much, we can’t afford to send out Enforcers.

Ability Scores

your highest score should be Wisdom, that’s how you hunt down mages, summon weapons, use spells, and avoid dying. it’s a good skill, you should be good at it. after that is Dexterity. you can’t summon your weapons right away, so being good at regular punching is a good idea too. third is Constitution. you don’t die easy, a good trait for any PC to have. I wish we could make your Strength higher, but it’s still positive, and we can cover that with wisdom later. that means your Intelligence is also lower than I’d like, I assume you have to be clever to fight mages, but honestly the power scaling in this universe is pretty inconsistent, so who knows. that means we’re dumping Charisma. you just don’t plain get along with other people. thank goodness you’re not a paladin.

Class Levels

1. Monk 1: we’re starting off as a monk so you can fight in a suit, dress, or whatever the fuck that second outfit is. that’s because you have Unarmored Defense, adding your Wisdom modifier to your AC for some extra protection. everyone should have extra protection on valentines day, unless you want little bazletts toddling around in a year or so.

you also learn how to beat people to death with your bare hands thanks to your Martial Arts. when attacking unarmed or with a monk weapon (simple weapons and/or shortswords) you can use your dexterity for the attack and damage rolls, always deal at least a d4 (or more as you level up) in damage, and you can make an unarmed attack as a bonus action! you can bring all the fancy toys you want, but sometimes you just have to get your hands dirty. make sure to trim those fingernails.

starting as a monk also gives you a bonus to Strength and Dexterity saves, as well as History and Stealth. you fight servants a surprising amount for a human, and you need to fight those servants with your bare hands.

2. Monk 2: second level monks gain Ki equal to their monk level each short rest, which you can spend to dash, disengage, dodge, or attack twice as a bonus action. you can also make a Dedicated Weapon as part of your short rest, turning a non-monk weapon you’re proficient in into a monk weapon for the rest of the day. right now this does nothing, but your cleric subclass gives you proficiency with all weapons, so if you’re hankering for more weaponry it’ll be along shortly.

you also get Unarmored Movement this level, increasing your speed as you level up. your fists aren’t ranged weapons, so you’ll need a gap closer.

3. Monk 3: third level monks can Deflect Missiles as a reaction, reducing damage from a ranged attack and giving you a chance to throw it back if you spend a ki point. it’s not quite fragarach, but it’s a good point to start.

you also start getting in tune with Manannan, and unlock your Astral Self. at level three this grants you the Arms of the Astral Self. spend a ki point and your bonus action, and boom, magic weapons floating around you. when you enter this mode all creatures near you need to make a dex save or take force damage, and then it lasts for a whopping ten minutes, no concentration required. now you can use Wisdom to make attacks, using your new arms to make unarmed strikes. you get increased range with these, and they deal force damage instead of the usual kind. you can choose your arms’ appearance, so they can be literal arms or any kind of weapon you want. of course, if you want a “real” ranged weapon you can always stock up on throwing knives.

4. Cleric 1: now that we have your basic weapons and ascension gear down, we need a horse. yes this is important. as a Death cleric you start off as a Reaper, giving you a bonus necromancy cantrip like Toll the Dead to really beat the hell out of children, or anyone else who gets in your way. if the target fails a wisdom save, the take a moderate amount of necrotic damage, with the damage die growing if they’re not at full health. you can also hit two creatures with it instead of one if they’re next to each other. you’ve got two hands, after all.

you also learn how to cast and prepare spells using your Wisdom this level! since you can pick and choose every day, don’t stress too much about getting the perfect spell list down. that being said, you get Guidance and Resistance for cantrips to be better than most mages, as well as Light for a little holy background.

at level one you get False Life and Ray of Sickness for free, but I’d pay more attention to Thunderwave from your Gruul spell list, as well as Inflict Wounds for a major suckerpunch and Detect Magic to make fighting mages a lot easier.

5. Cleric 2: second level clerics can Channel Divinity once per short rest in two ways. all clerics can Turn Undead to make skeletons run away on a failed wisdom save, but you also get a Touch of Death, adding a bit of necrotic damage to a creature when you hit them with a melee attack. thankfully, both your astral arms and regular arms count as melee attacks. but not melee weapon attacks, which is why we didn’t go paladin.

6. Cleric 3: third level clerics get second level spells this level, you get Blindness/Deafness and Ray of Enfeeblement for free, but I’d like to draw your attention to the Gruul spell Shatter. punching through walls is usually hard, but not for you. you can use Protection from Poison for some debuff resistance, or you could summon a Spiritual Weapon if you’re still miffed you’re not technically summoning swords most of the time.

7. Cleric 4: fourth level clerics get their first Ability Score Improvement, and it’s also your first ASI. sorry it took so long to get your Wisdom higher; we needed a good base to build on first. now your wisdom helps you out in every conceivable way, so I hope it was worth the wait.

you also learn the Thaumaturgy cantrip this level- you’re part god, you might as well sound like it.

8. Cleric 5: fifth level clerics can Destroy Undead when they’re turned if they’re CR ½ or lower. you also get third level spells, so if you want chocolate skeletons of your own, Animate Dead can help out there. you also get Vampiric Touch for free, but again we’re here for the Gruul spell Conjure Animals. you need a horse, and it was this or going paladin for find steed. on the plus side with this spell you’ll get plenty of replacements for when your horse is inevitably shot out from under you. you can also use Dispel Magic and Remove Curse for some retroactive debuff immunity, and Protection from Energy to kind of counter magic.

9. Cleric 6: okay, we’re done with walls of text each level for a bit. at sixth level you can channel divinity twice a short rest, and your Inescapable Destruction sounds cool but just means your spells and CDs ignore resistance to necrotic damage, so that touch deals a near-guaranteed 17 bonus damage now.

10. Monk 4: fourth level monks also get an ASI for more Dexterity for those times you run out of arms and spells, as well as Slow Fall to counter gravity as well. you can also spend 2 ki and an action for some Quickened Healing, taking a breather to keep up your fighting spirit. It’s Second Wind, but worse!

11. Monk 5: fifth level monks get an Extra Attack each action for up to four fisticuffs a turn. you can also turn any one of those into a Stunning Strike, spending ki to force a Constitution save on someone you hit. if they fail, they can’t do much of anything for a round, and melee attackers get advantage to slug ‘em again. finally, you can also spend ki on Focused Aim to nail a jumpier target, turning ki into attack bonus.

12. Monk 6: sixth level monks have Ki-Empowered Strikes, so your unarmed attacks are all magical now! you could’ve gotten around those sorts of defenses with your mind fists already, but a free alternative is never a bad idea. speaking of those arms, you can either spend a bonus action or combo together with your Arms of the Astral Self to summon a Visage of the Astral Self for 1 ki point. while masked up, you see in all kinds of darkness for 120’ and have advantage on Insight and Intimidation checks. your charisma’s bad, but seeing someone punch a car and keep going will put the fear of god in anybody. on top of that, you can mute your voice so only one person can hear you, or amplify it so everything in a 600’ radius can. beating mages to death tends to be either very loud, or very quiet. now you have options for both.

13. Monk 7: Seventh level monks can counter fireballs with ease thanks to Evasion blocking half the damage of failed dexterity saves and all the damage of successes. you also get Stillness of the Mind which shuts down effects charming or frightening you as an action. hooray for more debuff immunity!

14. Monk 8: of course an ounce of prevention equals a pound of cure, so let’s max out that Wisdom this ASI for stronger saves, attacks, spells, and stuns. wisdom: it’s what’s for dinner!

15. Monk 9: ninth level monks get Unarmored Movement Improvement. now you can run up walls and over water, though you’ll fall down if you end your turn off solid ground. is it really an anime fistfight if you haven’twalked on a wall at least once?

16. Monk 10: at level ten, monks have a Purity of Body that makes you 100% immune to disease and poison. given how much chocolate the average master has to eat every year, you’re going to need that.

17. Monk 11: eleventh level astral monks get the real fun stuff when you start making the Body of the Astral Self. it’s a free bonus you can put on if you’ve summoned up both your arms and face. with this you can counter magical attacks better with Deflect Energy, using your reaction to reduce incoming elemental damage. of course your counter attack also uses your reaction, but you can’t counter something if you’re not alive to do so, so it’s kind of a moot point by then.

the real reason this level’s great for counter attacks is your Empowered Arms. once per turn, you deal an extra die of damage when you hit someone with an arm. an astral arm. your regular arms are nice but they’re not magic. probably. I mean they are magic bc of the ki-empowered strikes, but- yknow what? this is getting too confusing, next level!

18. Cleric 7: whew, now we can talk about something simple, like… fourth level spells! you get Blight and Death Ward for free, but I’m more interested in the gruul spell Stoneskin. it gives resistance to nonmagical physical damage! that doesn’t sound so great, but when you punch through one too many support pillars you’ll be happy to have it. Locate Creature is also a great spell to hunt down whatever your mark of the day is.

19. Cleric 8: you get one last ASI, so bump up that Constitution for extra health. it’s retroactive, so that’s 19 bonus HP! your fight plan is to deliberately get hit with someone’s strongest attack- trust me, you need that health. also, Destroy Undead works on CR 1 creatures, and once a turn you can make a Divine Strike, adding 1d8 necrotic damage to the target of a weapon attack once a turn. remember, your unarmed attacks are both melee attacks (so they work with Touch of Death), and weapon attacks (so they work with Divine Strike), but not melee weapon attacks (so they don’t work with Divine Smite). this is all completely reasonable.

20. Cleric 9: ninth level clerics get fifth level spell. I hate to be repetitive, but once again your freebies Antilife Shell and Cloudkill aren’t really what we’re after. That being said you do get Destructive Wave for a big stompy AoE attack, as well as Holy Weapon if you’re really itching for a shiny white sword. whatever weapon you touch deals extra radiant damage, and it can explode if you end the spell early. you could also use something like Dispel Good and Evil to knock a servant back to the throne early, if you wish.

Pros & Cons:

Pros:

as mentioned in Cursed Arm’s build, monks have great mobility, and being able to use that mobility without ever having to enter an enemy’s melee range is a huge bonus to a monk’s survivability. you got long arms, basically, and with those and your speed boosts, you can deal all the damage you want while staying pretty safely out of the range of most monsters.

if you really want to fight at long range, you have access to one of the best spell lists in the game, only made better by the additions from your background. I know we didn’t touch on many spells in this build, but that just means you have even more wiggle room to work with when you prepare each day.

for once, we have a build that isn’t Multi-Ability Dependent! I know that’s not much to say, but monk builds usually tend to be a bit messier than the others. being able to hard-focus on wisdom makes your whole experience a lot smoother. also I didn’t have anywhere else to put it, but you deal a lot of damage in a single hit, which is unusual for a monk. this, plus your usual monkly number of attacks, means even the most nimble of enemies only needs to get unlucky once to feel the brunt of your power.

Cons:

you have a lot of resources to keep on top of. two that recharge on short rests, and one that recharges on long rests. add in the flexibility of ki, spells, and divine channeling, and you’re bound to get a headache from all that thinking.

of course there’s a good chance you won’t even be able to use most of that if you spend your time trying to counterattack like you’re supposed to be able to. we still never really found a better option than simply holding your action, and that sucks! it eats up most of your turn on the off chance someone else does something cool. you’re the PC! you should be the one doing cool stuff!

we took a whole background just for a horse. it’s not even a special horse. just flavor something else as a horse and pick a more fitting background, it’s really not worth it. cleric already has damage spells and protection spells up the wazoo, the Gruul spells mostly add flavor tbh. they don’t hurt, but you won’t be using these horses in a fight, and outside of a fight you can just buy some.

#fgo #fate grand order #D&D 5e #DND #bazett fraga mcremitz #Manannan mac Lir #monk #cleric

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