[Hypothetical] Generic RuneQuest 6 - Name?

[trechriron]

So, now that we have Luther Arkwright and the potential of other non-Gloranthan RQ6 releases, has TDM or Chaosium folks thought of what you might call the system? Is it reverting to BRP?

If you were in charge - what would YOU call it?

[Guest Vile Traveller]

From the latest Moon Design podcast it sounds like MD/Chaosium is not sure what's going to become of the BRP "line" because CoC and RQ are technically also part of the BRP line - yeah, I know that BRP came from RQ, but still.. Personally I don't see the problem in calling it a BRP Line. BRP 5E, maybe?

[Mankcam]

'Worlds of Wonder' was a good titlle, and I am surprised that after that release in the 1980s  that Chaosium stuck with the BRP tag for their generic line.

Perhaps a good title for a generic RQ could simply be 'Quest' perhaps?

[nDervish]

Well, we've been told that there will be a new 32-page book based on a stripped-down version of today's RQ6, which will be named "BRP Essentials".  So it seems pretty straightforward to me:  Generic RQ6 will be called "BRP", at least in Chaosium's version of it.  (It's possible that TDM might publish their own brand of RQ6 under some other name, but, if Chaosium is already selling a generic version of RQ6, I don't see any strong reason for TDM to publish another.)

[Pentallion]

As long as they don't call it RQ Gateway, I'll be happy.  That name brings back horrible memories of Avalon Hill tearing the heart out of Glorantha.

[Baulderstone]

'Worlds of Wonder' was a good titlle, and I am surprised that after that release in the 1980s  that Chaosium stuck with the BRP tag for their generic line.

Perhaps a good title for a generic RQ could simply be 'Quest' perhaps?

World of Wonder sounds a little too generic for me. It's a similar problem that I had with the name Magic World. 

Also when I Google "Worlds of Wonder", I get the toy company that made Teddy Ruxpin and Lazer Tag, Robert Silverberg's excellent anthology/quide to writing science-fiction, an amusement park, a waterpark, a decorator. Much like how Magic World yields hits about the Magic the Gathering World Championships and magic trick stores. 

Runequest is a great name because when you type it into Google, you get Runequest and nothing else. It's also a compound word made of two real words, so it's easy to remember while being distinct.  

[Baragei]

Realizing that my thoughts on this matter really wont make much difference, I just hope they don't muck this up. 

RuneQuest is a name that carries some weight, and TDM's work on RQ6 has made it even heavier. Chopping it up to make an official Chaosium RQ and having TDM sit on the game under another name is shooting every single foot in sight. On full auto. Using the RQ Firearms-rules.

[TrippyHippy]

I would call it 'BRP Essentials'. BRP has brand recognition and the Essentials bit brings in the RQ6 crown a little too - it ought to be a unifying publication.

Moreover, "Basic Role Playing Essentials" would doing exactly what it says on the tin - while suggesting an entrée level (and one would hope cheap, if not free) for beginner gamers. Never underestimate the number of people who would buy into the game at an entrée level.

The trouble with 'Worlds of Wonder' is that it implies a tone of play - which doesn't always suit different settings - and along with 'Magic World', 'Super World' and so on it sounds a bit cheesy and vapid, if I'm being honest. I have always had the same feelings about 'Hero Wars' and latterly 'HeroQuest' as names too, incidentally.

RuneQuest sounds cool, and always has done - but I'm actually coming round to thinking that the more they re-associate that name with the original Glorantha setting the better now. Making the RQ essential rules available - albeit under the BRP moniker - would allow compatibility without sacrificing brand identity.

Edited October 25, 2015 by TrippyHippy

[Guest Vile Traveller]

I'm assuming trechriron is talking about a name for TDM's "home system" once the RQ trademark reverts to Chaosium, right? I don't think it matters what they call it, as long as it's unique (for easy Googling) and memorable (so you can remember what to Google, and so you can recognise this cool new system that all the kids are talking about). We'll soon get used to it and hopefully the word will spread from there. That's if they don't simply state "compatible with Chaosium RuneQuest" on the cover the way things were done in the old days (e.g. Judges Guild), but it would be nice for TDM to have their own thing.

As long as they don't call it RQ Gateway, I'll be happy.  That name brings back horrible memories of Avalon Hill tearing the heart out of Glorantha.

I remember RQ Gateway as being cool products from the RQ2 era, like Thieves' World, the Gateway Bestiary, and Questworld, plus lots of articles in magazines. What Gateway stuff came out under Avalon Hill?

[Joerg]

Iland of Ninja - a RQ version of theI remember RQ Gateway as being cool products from the RQ2 era, like Thieves' World, the Gateway Bestiary, and Questworld, plus lots of articles in magazines. What Gateway stuff came out under Avalon Hill?

The colliseum (a so-so mix of pregenerated fighing encounters and gladiatorial stuff)

The vikings box - excellent stuff 

Griffin Island - ripped out of the Elder Wilds

Land of Ninja - by the author of Bushido, reprinting most of the Vkikings campaign, otherwise brilliant

And two later, highly flammable products I won't go into detail about, one a ruined city setting with a few merits and original rules bits, and the other a scenario book that somehow saw print.

 

[trechriron]

I'm assuming trechriron is talking about a name for TDM's "home system" once the RQ trademark reverts to Chaosium, right?

Yes! I mean, what do you call the sexy awesomeness that is RQ6 once it's back hitched up with Glorantha? But I like the system by itself. I like Glorantha too (still digesting this beast), but it works well in other genres me thinks. Luthar Arkwright is a splendid work for example.

[RosenMcStern]

 

And two later, highly flammable products

 

You must have attended your fair share of conventions in the Rhine Valley to get this reference, though

[Mankcam]

Would perhaps just 'Gateway' be a good name then? 

It implies the system being a 'gateway to other vistas', and could work well as a title for a generic RPG system

That way RuneQuest would be the Gloranthan game, and Gateway being the game for the other settngs. Keep the core system more or less intact of course

It could work...

Edited October 26, 2015 by Mankcam

[Guest Vile Traveller]

The colliseum (a so-so mix of pregenerated fighing encounters and gladiatorial stuff)

The vikings box - excellent stuff 

Griffin Island - ripped out of the Elder Wilds

Land of Ninja - by the author of Bushido, reprinting most of the Vkikings campaign, otherwise brilliant

And two later, highly flammable products I won't go into detail about, one a ruined city setting with a few merits and original rules bits, and the other a scenario book that somehow saw print.

 

I see you fell foul of the forum quoting software there, Joerg.

Were those actually called "Gateway", though? I was always under the impression that RQ Gateway was Chaosium's term for RuneQuest material not associated with Glorantha (RQ vs. non-Gloranthan RQ) while Avalon Hill worked the other way around, i.e. their default was non-Gloranthan material until they later introduced Glorantha (RQ vs. Gloranthan RQ).

And yes, both Vikings and to a lesser extent Land of Ninja are excellent products. So I assume you're talking about that other stuff, right, Pentallion? I wouldn't know about those because even in pre-internet days the bad press travelled fast enough to stop me ever buying them.

Actually I always thought Gateway would have been a great name for WoW's Future*World ...

Edited October 26, 2015 by Vile

[Joerg]

I see you fell foul of the forum quoting software there, Joerg.

Rather I fell foul of the strange effect that the text editor frame isn't shown while typing on a tablet, so I missed the wrong position in the first publication, and wasn't able to edit because of some time limit. Ho-hum...

Back to topic: Griffin Island definitely was labeled Gateway, but then that was the collective term for anything not specifically Glorantha.

Why did Gateway get such a bad name in the AH period? Because it was eating up slots for long awaited Glorantha supplements (not to mention the boxes for character sheets...), I suppose. There was a disgruntled customer base of people with Rune Lord characters suddenly faced with sorcerers, rules changes, and a three or four year gap of Glorantha publications, with the detail level in Gods of Glorantha a very far cry from Cults of Prax/Terror.

Having missed out all the RQ2 era stuff, I was happy to get the RQ3 Troll Pak, did ignore the extra Kyger Litor cults, and avoided reading my Genertela Box to pieces by typing in the text and distributing it into a database format. (My Gods of Glorantha was less lucky.) At that time I still played on my own campaign world, though, a continent featuring two inland seas separated by a mountain chain, and I would have happily bought all kinds of historical adaptations for RQ3 in addition to more Glorantha material.

If the entire pre-renaissance AH publications had been released in a ) an affordable (and durable) format (compare the Oriflam editions, and weep) and b ) within the years 1984-1986, nobody would have minded the crappy scenario that nowadays usually is auctioned off bundled with a lighter.

By the time Sun County initialized the Renaissance that lasted through 5 or so more products, the Gateway approach had died.

We never managed to boost RuneQuest as much in Germany as I managed to boost the German Midgard rpg that I helped promote by spotlighting it at our local convention, even though we had the Chaos Society putting out a fanzine for it. Not from lack of trying - we managed to get "Free INT" and even two original Glorantha scenario booklets into the FLG shops open for non-mainstream games, but more because of the delay into the 90ies and the rise of the CCGs.

 

I don't like the idea of a collective label for the entire range of RQ settings. Talking about "Mythic RQ" for fantasy historical settings is fine. It is harder to label settings like Future Earth or Luther Arkwright (I'll have to read up on what that's about some day, it doesn't ring any bells for someone with only a moderate level on general geekhood from the continent, although well balanced by over-the-top geekhood in things Gloranthan and a number of other fantasy backgrounds). None of these settings are generic. Classical Fantasy on the other hand is (purposely so, or rather "universal"), and as hard to press into a collective label.

 

On the other hand, why not borrow from the Leicester convention (I think Loz was involved in) and talk about a RuneQuest Continuum?

 

 

 

 

[Mankcam]

Well for a generic system I do like the title Gateway, although Continuum could certainly work well, even if it sounds a little SciFi. Both have their merits.

While the name RuneQuest is perfect for Glorantha, it really isn't all that relevant to other settings. However to not mention it for other settings would be a loss of product identity. The name BRP is almost just as tricky. It's not really an evocative title for a system, and although not overly complex, its certainly not a 'basic' game by today's standards; yet the name itself has product identity. 

Hmmm this is quite a quandary...

Edited October 26, 2015 by Mankcam

[Guest Vile Traveller]

 

[...] Luther Arkwright (I'll have to read up on what that's about some day, it doesn't ring any bells for someone with only a moderate level on general geekhood from the continent, although well balanced by over-the-top geekhood in things Gloranthan and a number of other fantasy backgrounds).

Oh, that's easy. It's just two little comic books. Now combined into one slightly less little comic book.