tihor (06/16/82)
>From tihor Tue Jun 15 17:14:54 1982
To: tihor
Status: R
Back for a minute
CONTINUATION ONE
and stochastic experience point system...that is: initially one starts with a
set of generic skill bases built from the characteristics (Manipulation,
Knowledge, Perception, etc.) to these are added innate skill % giving
basic values in most skills. One then can improve these through training
(to some degree) and through sucessfull use in the field. This tends to
encourage role playing to some degree since the incentive is to use ones
skills rather than mearly to acquire wealth and commit murder. The combat
system is somewhat more detailed and as realastic as is reasonable. It
plays about the same speed as D&D if the players are familiar with it
and provides a LOT more "feel" to the combats which do occur. The rules also
have a certain elegant unity to them, all things that can reasonably
using the same general rule do, etc. Separate but related to this is the
Gloranthan enviorment which is presented in the rules although BRP and
a variety of related products amply demonstrate that the basic ideas
can be applied to other ideas as diverse as Melnibone (_S_t_o_r_m_b_r_i_n_g_e_r)
and the Cthonic literature of H.P. Lovercraft (_C_a_l_l _o_f _C_t_h_u_l_l_u)
. The RQ!/Gloranthan main magic system is bipartite: simple battle magic
based on the Norse Runes to do simple and common things (Light, Ignite, Blade-
sharp) and Rune Magic which is granted by the gods to those who choose
the follow the path. But for example in _W_O_W (Worlds of Wonder) the
MagicWorld component includes a series of more Hack and Slash flavored
D&D like spells.
C&S -- a group of Canadians (?) whose names I unfortun
forget (will follow) -- Fantasy Games Unlimited Inc (FGUi, pronounced Fuh-Gooey)
-- D&D done up with a historically accurate systems (each different) for
a late Dark Ages / Medieval European society (other culture were done in
supplementary books, the best of which is Land Of The Rising Sun by Lee Gold
an equal product doing Japan with loving detail and benifiting from considerable
time and playtesting by experience RPGers) second generation of the form:
D&D did it (a) wrong, (b) too quickly, (c) a historically. The magic
system is ornate and very detailed with a variety of modes of magic most
working differently, but many of the spells are pretty D&D-ish. Simmilarly
the combat system takes the basic structure of D&D melee but adds multiple
blows for some weapons, a more historical selection, Knock Back (a good idea!)
and the Fatigue/Body point dicotomy. THere is also a lot of source
culture material such as an influence system and a great deal of material
on designing the medieval nation as a whole and specific areas in much
detail and a mass combat system. The clerics are much more "historical"
but still have some of the objectionable attributes of D&D clerics, still
in C&S they are clearly identified as based on the Medieval Catholic Church
and the polical heirarchy of the church is taken into account.
Obviously this is a game which represents what a group a medievalists
and wargammers did to 'fix' the original D&D rules. Unfortunatly
the cultures are very tightly woven into the rules AS WRITTEN and
there are too many peices that don't fit together but clearly were
written separately and just joined.
TO BE CONTINUED