From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!floyd!cmcl2!tihor Newsgroups: net.games.frp Title: RPG comments (cont) Article-I.D.: cmcl2.4556 Posted: Tue Jun 15 17:26:11 1982 Received: Thu Jun 17 03:55:38 1982 >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