klecser

Thanks for the update Michael! Really looking forward to Shadows. It has a lot of great material that could be used in any era, IMO, in addition to DDT.

Not quite what I'm asking. I'll clarify. Is the level of detail of mentioning the Dragonrise doing more to risk overwhelming at a starter table than just jumping right into an adventure?

Do all of the Starter adventures take place after the Dragonrise? I'm going to use the opening text from Broken Tower "introducing" Glorantha to my players, even though I will be running Cattle Raid. Is it even worth mentioning the Dragonrise on the first adventure or is that too much information early on? This is NOT an invitation for you to muse about your favorite nuances of Glorantha lore. I am asking a practical GMing question. 😜

Usually four to six months after the PDF depending upon timing and shipping. For example, Shadows over Stillwater PDF was released in January and we should get the hardcopy in June, at most recent estimates. Of course, there could be unforeseen delays that could mean later.

Plus the added bonus of having to chase them under dire circumstances. It just makes sense. So many opportunities for varied conflict. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Honestly, I don't know what any of that means. There is no Idrima in Cattle Raid?

Do you think the intent behind giving him the Multimissile matrix is to compensate for that? I'm most concerned with my players getting an accurate impression of the flavor, and having fun. I'm certain whoever chooses Nathem will have a blast.

I noticed this for several characaters, but I'm not sure how they'd use it? What do you use Spirit Combat for? The rulebook in the Skills entry says: "Spirit Combat covers contests of psychic energy, such as when a spirit tries to possess (or intrude into) a corporeal body, or a shaman tries to bind a spirit, or when two magicians enter a trance, discorporate, and do magical battle." And the Spirits chapter says: "Spirit combat may be initiated only by a discorporate being. A normal corporeal being may not initiate spirit combat. A shaman wishing to engage in spirit combat must first discorporate to begin spirit combat." Nobody in Cattle Raid seems to have any options for summoning a spirit. Is there some obvious way to engage in Spirit Combat that would be relevant in Cattle Raid?

Do you think it would be wise to pre-mark their character sheet with the Rune that each weapon/spell is associated with so that they have some pre-hints for Runic Inspiration, or is that stealing autonomy too much? Or print pages 48-49 of the core book? I know my group and I feel like if they aren't told options they won't take them.

Ok, that is pretty easy to play.

Some general questions about some pre-gens for GMing my first session. I’ll be running Cattle Raid. My group of five will be: Harmast, Yanioth, Vasana, Vostor, and Nathem. I am jettisoning Sorala and Vishi Dunn as options cuz Sorcery. My perception of what everyone is good at: Harmast: Sword plus utility spells, plus you get to ride a Zebra as a vanity mount. Bargain skill strength. Yanioth: Priestess Magic user that can summon and control a Medium Earth Elemental. (Not sure why they tease the Large one? Bait a player into spending three of four Rune points on a big one and then not being able to have two points left to control it? Seems like kind of a snide way to tease/"gotcha" a new player.) Orate skill strength. Vasana: Good general combatant, can charge with her Bison (with a capital B). Battle skill strength. Voster: Diverse combat skills (weapon and spirit magic) plus small fire elemental. Battle and Scan skill strength. (I noticed he has entries for both Medium and Large shields. Does that mean he carries both at the same time? Obviously he can only use one at a time.) Nathem: Clear scout with kitty cat, plus tricked out magic bow. Lots of scout-y skills. Lots of utility Spirit Magic. What else did I miss about what each character is good at?

I think the final judgment is that, if we are talking about RQ3, you nailed it. If we are talking about RQG, you boned it. But hey, you tried really hard and I'm no worse off. 😜

Bill, we have confirmed that you are not crazy! Thanks @EpicureanDM. I will print that guide to have handy, but will avoid showing it to my players if at all possible, lest they run for the hills. I think I have the basics. I'm still a bit confused about "Engaged," but I'll do some reading on that. I mean, I get the general concept and comparison to AOO, but not sure I understand yet when it applies in this game. I'm a bit worried about introducing my players to too much too quickly.

I see, and that makes sense. You draw your sword as you walk 12 meters. Rather than paying 4 MOV + 5 Ready = 9, you just pay 5 because you are doing those two things simultaneously, correct?

Ok, this is a nuance that was not clear to me on first read, but hearing you explain it this way, in this context, made a difference.

When moving, number of MOVs replace SIZ strike rank modifier (SRM) in figuring weapon SR pages 193 and 194 RQ RiG Thanks, as always, for your support Bill! I'm struggling to find the book text on those two pages that corroborates this statement and it may be that I'm just missing your point. 194: "..Movement: Any time two fighters meet in melee, no matter how long they’ve traveled to get to that meeting, strike rank should be figured out normally for them [emphasis mine]. However, the gamemaster should consider the time taken to get from point A to point B when an adventurer joins an ongoing melee or charges across a distance at a foe using a spell or missile against them." An example that illustrates my confusion: I'm in melee with someone and I have SIZ SR 3 and DEX SR 3: My tentative SR is 6 (until weapon added). I move 3 meters to engage an opponent. My tentative SR is (1 for the move + DEX SR 3) = 4? (until weapon added). "Number of MOVs REPLACES SIZ SR" This doesn't compute. Why does moving nullify my SIZ? Shouldn't it be: SIZ 3 + DEX 3 + MOV 1 = 7? (until weapon added) Not trying to be difficult. I need to GM this in less than a week! 😜

Spirit Magic record-keeping and use questions: Spirit Magic spells are often listed as "Spell X" 1) This number represents the maximum number of effect gained by that character and it may have come from a combination of character creation or a character later doing favors for temples/cults that grants them boosts to magic, correct? I might start with Heal 2, but do a thing for the Cult and they give me one more "Spirit Magic spell point," essentially? 2) Let's say I have Heal 3. This means that I can cast Heal with 3 MP. Can I also Cast it with just 1 or 2 MP if I so desire? 3) If I have Dullblade 3, that caps the effectiveness of my Dullblade, but it doesn't stop me from spending MP to get past magical defenses, correct? So if I cast Dullblade 3 at 6 MP, it would only have the "strength" of the 3, but the rest is to overcome a raised magical defense, correct? 4) Spirit Magic "spell ranks" are ultimately capped (CHA), but rarely do you see starting characters with Spirit Magic spell rank totals approaching the cap. Would it be fair to say that one of the many, many goals of adventuring is for some characters to do quests and other duties that allow them to gain more access to magic from their Cult? 5) Unlike Rune Magic, where any character can cast from the General list, Spirit Magic is entirely dependent upon what a temple or cult teaches you, correct? Most players start the game with only about 1-3 spells, depending upon rank but they potentially gain more as they quest? I know these questions likely seem obvious to veterans. But they are not necessarily obvious to new players, especially as we code switch from other games. I'm trying to build my logical consistency within the game right now so I can effectively GM it.

1. Melee strike rank is always DEX SR+SIZ SR+Wpn SR ? (assume readied) 2. Missile weapons are DEX SR ? (assume readied) 3. Spell is DEX SR + 1 per MP beyond the first? (assume readied) 4. SR appears to be pre-calculated for Pre-Gens/Scenario Adversary Stat Blocks? But assume a readied weapon?

Thanks Phil. That is one of several changes I'm going to make based on feedback. Someone in the comments also pointed out that my STR doesn't support a large shield and weapon. So, honestly, I'm just going to increase her STR to 12. That will help me keep the character concept.

Part 6 is up! Bumpity, bump, bump, bump.

You did not. And that has been clarified, so it's all good anyway! @g33k and @Bill the barbarian, you are pillars of the BRP community. Thank you!

Thanks for all the advice. Some more questions: 1) Do you feel giving players the text of the history of the Colymar Tribe from the Screen Pack is overkill? 2) Would pages 12-16 be a better "basic" introduction to the Tribe lands? (Population, Climate, Temples, Politics) I have decided to run Cattle Raid for this first adventure.

I hear you, but I also feel like I'm receiving mixed messages. Either in this thread or another one, multiple people said that Rune magic should not be used in intro games because it encourages players to erroneously use what is a very finite resource. Since Rune points only regenerate at festivals/certain times of year. I'm trying to balance this advice because my players aren't fools. If I encourage them to try it out, but remind them that points don't come back potentially for months, they'll understand that. On the other side of the coin, I see the point that blowing all your Rune points all at once is not how the game is played. Spirit magic makes total sense to use since it is largely based off Magic points, right?

You do not need to run a game publically to join. You can run a game with your group of friends and report on that. You just don't get Chaosium.com credit perks for running among your friends. I just joined and there was no blood test or DNA sample required.

This is one of the things I like about this game. The rules don't need to get any more complex from the start. It isn't an "expansionist" RPG. Rules lawyers love Pathfinder and DND 3.5 because you just keep heaping on more and more complexity. I'm not saying this game can't get complex, because it obviously can. That is why I started this thread. As I explained in my first post (which some people apparently didn't read very thoroughly), I'm an experienced GM with a solid General knowledge of teaching games and helping people feel fun right from the gate. But there does need to be PARSING of content at the start so that knowledge can be gradually released so players don't feel overwhelmed at the start, ruining the fun (I think I also mentioned in my first post that I'm a professional teacher, so I don't need to be lectured on what learning is and isn't). Bill, I appreciate your insight in what needs to be parsed in RQ, because that is what I posted for in the first place. And I hear you all loud and clear: magic comes later, and that totally makes sense. Thanks everyone who contributed on topic!