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BRP Rome!


Trifletraxor

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I suppose since I'm the author of the forthcoming BRP Rome book, I should pipe up and mention that work is still continuing on the manuscript, but I hope to have it finished early next year. It should be noted too, that the supplement will be covering the somewhat more exotic Monarchy and Republican periods... So you can set adventures at the same time as the HBO series if you wish. :)

Okay Pete, tell us more about your project! :happy:

SGL.

Ef plest master, this mighty fine grub!
b1.gif 116/420. High Priest.

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Okay Pete, tell us more about your project! :happy:

Well, it originally started off as a player's handout called Pax Romana written for an adventure set in Nero's Rome. I'd designed (what I considered then) a comprehensive booklet for Roman character generation, seeded with little snippets of cultural info. The scenario actually took some real historical events of the time, and wove in a lovecraftian horror plot. The players had a blast, especially looking up the history and finding out that everything was based on reality.

Anyway, a friend decided that the handout was so good that he sent it to Lynn at Chaosium. Lynn liked what he read and asked if I'd be willing to expand it into a fully fledged supplement. Of course I foolishly said yes... :)

Inspired by the first HBO ROME series which was just being broadcast over here in Sweden, we agreed that it should be a historical campaign setting covering the period of Rome's beginning in 753 BC to the end of the Republic in 27ish BC (and none of that Cthulhu mythos neither!)... a period of Rome's history previously not covered by RPG's, and full of exciting possibilities due to its early mythology, and later political chaos.

Thus I started work and soon realised what I thought I knew about Roman history... culture, society, law, etc was all based on Imperial Rome. Thus followed many, many months of reading and research... which led to a dramatic increase in the size of my library and DVD collection. :)

So what is the state of BRP Rome now?

My current draft covers the following roughly defined subjects... (I can't and won't give a fully defined list, since I want to leave a large number of surprises in the final book ;) )

Character Generation - professions, income, price lists etc.

Society - social classes, family, virtues, politics, law, education, death, etc.

Culture - leisure (from bathing to sports), art, fashion, food and drink, etc.

The City of Rome - foundations of, different buildings (from bridges to forums to villas), crime, disasters (conflagrations to plagues), etc.

The Games - religious festivals, chariot racing, ludi, animal stats, etc.

The Legions - evolution of the army from the monarchy to the late republic, enemies of Rome, legion punishments, decorations, rewards, ovations and triumphs, etc.

Religion - gods and spirits, the priesthood, festivals and their dates, superstition, sacrifices, human sacrifices etc.

Magic & Mythology - divination, curses, divine blessings, Roman mythological creatures, etc.

Historical Timeline - An attempt to condense 700 years of vibrant events into a handful of pages <sigh!>

Scenarios - Several dozen interwoven plot seeds with a pre-generated dramatis personae, to replace the traditional - and usually tedious - linear scenario.

Appendices - Roman name lists, minor deity lists, vulgar latin - or how to swear with proper foulness, the laws of the twelve tablets, etc.

Throughout the entire manuscript are inserted quotes from dozens of Republican (and some Augustan) authors which illuminate Roman life of that era in the voices of those alive at the time. They are not only interesting or even comic in their own right, but will hopefully inspire the reader to locate an English translation of the original text and read the entire thing properly!

As of today, I am over two thirds of the way through the project in terms of chapters done. Fortunately most of the detailed historical stuff is written, and I'm currently working on Religions. Its been a bit slow, but although it is destined to be a roleplaying supplement, I also want the facts contained within to be as reliable as possible. Soon I'll just be left with the purely game mechanic and scenario chapters, which will be churned out far faster... Hmm, perhaps churned isn't the right word... :)

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Approximately how many pages will it be? Is there any supporting supplements for the setting in the planning? Any full scenarios? ;)

In order of questioning...

1) It was supposed to be up to 128 pages. Unfortunately, I'm sure It'll end up much bigger and the editorial axe will have to be taken to it.

2) I don't know. But if the book survives editing, and proves to be a popular seller, then I'm sure Chaosium would be happy to entertain further supplements.

3) None as yet, see 2.

Do you have a picture for a Basic News article on the index page by the way?

Unfortunately there is no 'official' artwork, since I haven't actually finished writing the manuscript yet!

I have a stack of Roman mosaic photos if that's any help?

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Is there stuff about the Etruscans at all in it ?

Yes, from the perspective of what they bring to Roman society, culture, magic, religion and mythology. But there are no discrete sections specifically focused on the Etruscans themselves, save for an overview of the Etruscan kings of Rome.

Page count, and the fact that most of what we know about the Etruscans only comes from archaeological finds or Roman literary sources anyway, makes it difficult to give them space of their own.

Sorry! :(

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This looks cool. I love anything dealing with the Roman Empire in its varying stages. I like alternate histories based upon the Roman Empire and its influences.:thumb:

I guess this isn't for you then. As it is for the Roman Republic. :P;)

Chaos stalks my world, but she's a big girl and can take of herself.

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hehe...darn history buffs. In my mind when I wrote 'Roman Empire' it was all inclusive from inception to demise. :lol:

Neither of which can be agreed upon. History is so much fun. :D

I wonder if we have stats for African Elephants in the book. I'd assume the Punic Wars will be covered.

Oh, BTW, Jason's old Pax Romana stuff is still available for downloading. Its not the full supplment, but is good for a BRP Rome fix.

Chaos stalks my world, but she's a big girl and can take of herself.

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Neither of which can be agreed upon. History is so much fun. :D

I wonder if we have stats for African Elephants in the book. I'd assume the Punic Wars will be covered.

Oh, BTW, Jason's old Pax Romana stuff is still available for downloading. Its not the full supplment, but is good for a BRP Rome fix.

I do remember the African Forest elephant( now extinct unfortunately) was smaller then the Indian Elephant .

But if there Elephants then can I use flaming pigs. You are a real history buff if you know what I'm talking about.

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But if there Elephants then can I use flaming pigs. You are a real history buff if you know what I'm talking about.

Or just a twisted old wargamer? Light up those Expendables!

Britain has been infiltrated by soviet agents to the highest levels. They control the BBC, the main political party leaderships, NHS & local council executives, much of the police, most newspapers and the utility companies. Of course the EU is theirs, through-and-through. And they are among us - a pervasive evil, like Stasi.

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covering the period of Rome's beginning in 753 BC to the end of the Republic in 27ish BC

Holy smoke, that will cover a huge period of time!

If it goes well there is a lot of room for future interesting possibilities and crossovers: Greece, Carthage, Egypt, Persia, Asia Minor. There is a lot going on during those years. I always thought the post- Alexander/Hellenistic period would be a great time to set a campaign in. I think Fafherd and the Gray Mouser ended up there in one of their adventures.

By the way there is a stunning series of books about the fall of the Republic written by Colleen McCullough beginning with The First Man in Rome. It runs from the time of Marius and Sulla to the rise of Augustus. Great ideas for role-playing plot and character in that series and really gives a different “out of the box” feel to many of the famous personalities. To read this series is like taking a masters level class on the fall of the Republic.

Anyway, I am looking forward to buying this supplement; sounds great.

294/420

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A few questions here.

Will the book cover the enemies of Rome if one ones to play a Celtic rebel or such.

Not in any detail I'm afraid. The book is focused on roleplaying the Roman side of things.

2) And will there be a section for a fantasy Rome for those who wish to have magic?

There is both a magic system and stats for Roman mythological creatures. African forest elephants are even included too! But you'll forgive me if I leave out the damage capabilities of burning pigs...;)

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By the way there is a stunning series of books about the fall of the Republic written by Colleen McCullough beginning with The First Man in Rome. It runs from the time of Marius and Sulla to the rise of Augustus. Great ideas for role-playing plot and character in that series and really gives a different “out of the box” feel to many of the famous personalities. To read this series is like taking a masters level class on the fall of the Republic.

I highly recommend these books too. I especially liked the way the author handled the Gold of Tolosa escapade. Excellent campaign material, and a slightly more accessible introduction into the politics of the period without having to dive straight into classics such as Livy or Plutarch.

For those who prefer the mystery genre over historical epics, I can also suggest Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series and John Maddox Robert's SPQR series. Both of which are very enjoyable, and illuminate life during the late Republic.

Anyway, I am looking forward to buying this supplement; sounds great.

Hmm. I'd better stop reading this forum and push on with the current chapter then! :D

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Oh, BTW, Jason's old Pax Romana stuff is still available for downloading. Its not the full supplment, but is good for a BRP Rome fix.

I don't know about Jason's, but my old Pax Romana is available here... :)

http://basicroleplaying.net/files/Pax%20Romana.pdf

Please remember that it was only designed to be a handout for character generation, and was set in Imperial Rome (rather than pre-Imperial as BRP Rome will be). Forgive the artwork and layout too... it was my first attempt and I had to trawl the web for images!:o

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