cjbowser

Simon, Thanks for the feedback. I have a follow up question for you, and anybody else who answers. I was checking my library and found a book that discusses the belief in magic and occult for the exact time period and culture I am thinking about writing on. Would you prefer the magic/beasties material integrated into the body of the material or included in an appendix/sidebar? Right now, I'm looking at three interlinked and substantial scenarios, but that could always grow. Thanks, Chad

I like Mysteries of Tibet and planned on using it as a partial template. That's a good point. I considered this more of a one-shot deal, but if I'm going to put work into it, might as well make it extensible.

Thanks for the feedback this is the type of info I'm looking for. Pendragon is one of the games that, in my opinion, blend history and myth in a very enjoyable way. It give the players enough detail to get the players into the proper frame of mind for Arthurian adventures. To be frank, Pendragon is one of the things that got me interested in studying history. I'd read the books and start thinking about whether or not they were accurate and head to the library to do more research.

I think part of the reason for the low number of daily visitors is that Chaosium doesn't have forums or a similar community to draw users back repeatedly. My typical Chaosium web browsing experience goes something like this: Visit Chaosium.com --> Check Blog --> Check Catalog for something new --> Exit site.

Fair enough. It's something to bear in mind. If I did include Cthulhu references, it would definitely be in an appendix.

Essentially, that would be what I'm doing. With enough background info to provide players something to sink their teeth into. I'm starting to reconsider the sourcebook idea, though...

Thanks for the feedback. I see where you're coming from, but am hoping that a time period I'm working on will be adventursome enough that you won't need zombies, magic, or squid-headed gods. I'm not knocking any of those, I just want to try something different. And sorry about the "end user" comment. My mind was fully engaged in work mode when I typed up the initial email and couldn't think of a better phrase. There will definitely be a primer, at least enough to get the feel right. Based on the responses so far, it seems as though my belief that there would be no interest in a full source book was off base. Yay me!

This was more of a general question, not specifically tailored to the period I'm working on. So, I'll mark you down as a qualified "yes". I just felt the need to explain that I was working on something.

As the author of a couple of the CDA background articles in WoC (Bayt al-Hikma and Constantinople) as well as Cthulhu Invictus, I'll bear that in mind. This however, would be straight BRP. No Cthulhu.

The scenarios would include as much historical information needed to get through the scenario, but wouldn't contain historical information that didn't pertain directly to the scenario. Ideally, I'd like to do a full sourcebook, but am not sure the market's there. That's why I'm asking the questions.

I've got some free time on my hands and was thinking about putting my graduate degree in history to use. What are people's thoughts on historical scenarios? I'm not looking to do an entire sourcebook, because a lot of that can easily be researched by the end user. Instead, these are scenarios that pivot on historical events, allowing the players to take part in the events of history. Pre-gens would be included. If you respond, feel free to mention what type of information you think is a must-have for any historical scenario. If you think sourcebooks are needed, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. BTW, I'm keeping the historical period close to my vest for the moment, while I make sure it'll work out. Also, I haven't talked to any publishers yet, so if there's interest, let me know.

That would be in the appendices.

They usually release the PDF while they're waiting for the print monograph to get back from the printers. Give it a couple weeks.

I'd give it a 50. There's not a lot of Cthulhu content, so fans of Cthulhu aren't going to be over thrilled. The author also changed history quite a bit, so fans of alternate history are going to be put off. The steampunk content is also toned down, so those looking for A Court in the Air aren't going to find it. The scenario itself is pretty interesting.

Queensguard, the Cthulhu-lite Steampunk monograph is set in the 17th c., which I found disconcerting at first, but now find intriguing.

I'd also like to see the 17th century world handled, particularly central Europe and the reign of Rudolf II. That seems like an ideal time and place for adventurers to go adventuring.

The core Mythic Russia book is not on lulu. It's also not currently in print. You can, however, get the first Birchbark Chronicle on lulu.

I almost went for Ancient Near East, but in the end, cast my vote for Ancient Greece.

Let's see... first introduction to BRP... RQ in the late 80s. First time I played/ran a BRP game that I liked? Pendragon in 1990. Call of Cthulhu followed in 1993.

I pre-ordered a copy. When it gets here, I'll do a review.

There's been quite a lot of talk about BRP on GeekdÅ.com | The Way of the Geek lately. Your review would definitely be welcomed there. Go here, click on reviews, then click post. Drop in your comments. All reviews are moderated by consensus, but I'll do my best to make sure it gets through. I've been meaning to write up reviews of Agents of the Crown, Outpost 19, and Light Without Shadow...

You are correct here. There will be a whole new contract and negotiated rate. You'll also need to start working on illo suggestions. That's something that surprised me, Chaosium had me suggest all the illustrations that went into the book. In my case, they didn't count the money paid towards my monograph as an advance against the money paid for the distro book. However, there was a four year span between monograph and distro book. Congratulations on getting the book out there!

A couple quick things... 1. The do (or at least did) have people who run games at local shops/cons, The Chaosium Missionaries. During its heyday, it was for Call of Cthulhu, but at that time Call of Cthulhu was pretty much all that Chaosium had. Check with Dustin for more details. 2. Before you can make the rules cheap to get people to buy supplements, you have to have easily available supplements. Otherwise, Chaosium would probably be taking a loss on the book, where it can't afford to right now.

I've never used Godzilla in a game, but she is statted up in Secrets of Japan for Call of Cthulhu.

Hey Newt, I crossposted this announcement on rpggeek. Hopefully that drives even more traffic your way.