Ghyll:Rattallan

The infamous crackpot Rattallan was born in a small hamlet in the Evesque Valley some time around -250 EC (record-keeping in the region was particularly poor in this era, so the exact date is unknown). He was best known as a predictor of numerous world endings, one of which partially became true, and as a musical composer who created many impossible scores, but also a small number of wonderful pieces. He is also one of the figures who might have been Not Peershakes, though that belief has now largely been discredited. Rattallan tried to be a polymath but ended up more of a jerk-of-all-trades, a failure in a wide range of fields.

Links between Rattallan and Phylostarus

Both Rattallan and Phylostarus were born in the Evesque Valley, and there are some indications that, for a time, Phylostarus was a student of Rattallan. But obviously, Phylostarus' scholasticism reflects none of the madness of Rattallan's methods. It is possible that Rattallan instilled a deep interest in learning and understanding in Phylostarus, who quickly realized that his mentor was a crackpot, and headed off to Bute University.

Rattallan's writings contain no direct evidence of any interaction with Phylostarus. Indeed, any mention he makes of pupils he tutored mentions them only by a stripe color. There are references to a "red stripe," and Phylostarus' carapace colors included red, but that color is not uncommon in the Evesque Valley, so this can't be taken as strong evidence. However, both Rattallan and Phylostarus were interested in Pinky and Perky. Both wrote about the Articulary Motion of the two bodies, and both observed the event in -201 EC.

Rattallan as Musician

As a composer Rattallan, for the most part, made a splak of things as much as with anything else he attempted. Though no scholar has been able to create a comprehensive catalog of Rattallan's musical compositions, there are a small number of tunes for pentet that Rattallan composed by copying notes from other musical scores at random, most which are wonderful pieces of music and are performed regularly. Since Rattallan's titles are as impossible as the rest of his works, these are usually referred to just by number (Rattallan's Good Pentet No. 417, etc.)

Much of the rest of Rattallan's musical work is both unlistenable and unplayable. The music historian Freddd Threibees broke an arm in -55 EC while attempting to play Rattallan's Dinner Napkin Stains and Obovox Ode No. 2153, after which he completely gave up on any further study of Rattallan.

Rattallan and Not Peershakes

While one or two of the works ascribed to Not Peershakes could possibly have been written by Rattallan, most were written after Rattallan had died. A number of Not Peershakes' works (e.g. the Laundry Ticket Limericks) are distinctly dated after Rattallan's death. But two or three of the least coherent pieces ascribed to Not Peershakes are possibly works by Rattallan, though likely copied over several times before being given a Not Peershakes attribution. And, after all, with a title like wsuham9w unmw37uj cmfbsdv xnsaFLj who else could've written it but Rattallan?

Rattallan, Rattallanism, and the Events of Solitude

A widespread outbreak of rin-tin-tinitus in -101 EC was taken by many to be proof of the accuracy of Rattallan's prophecy. Scores of people became convinced of Rattallan's true genius, and within weeks, Rattallanism was a major movement across Ghyll. With this renewed surge of interest, many scholars delved into the volumes of his writings to study what other prophecies Rattallan had written. They were greatly disappointed, however. They soon found more than 90 entries predicting the same event would take place at other 'significant' times over a span of 204 years. This is why Rattallanism dissapated entirely less than four years after the movement started.

Rattallan's Family Life

Rattallan was repeatedly married (often polygamously) and divorced almost as often. He frequently forgot who he had married (or who had already gotten sick of him and divorced him) and often asked every female he encountered to marry him. Surprisingly, a large number agreed. Despite having numerous mates, Rattallan fathered no children. Rattallan died in his kitchen at home in -167 EC.

Citations: Bute University, Perky, Phylostarus.

--Brother Arfrus 11:25, 23 Sep 2005 (EDT)