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Steve Perrin joins RuneQuest design team


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MOB posted this to the Glorantha list, but this really should be here in the RuneQuest Gateway folder! Plenty of info here!
 
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In the spirit of bringing the band back together, Chaosium is delighted to announce that Steve Perrin is joining the design team for Chaosium’s new edition of RuneQuest. "We knew that Steve Perrin’s place at the table, as both the creator and lead author of the original groundbreaking ‘78 and ‘79 editions of game, was a natural fit that harkens back to the genius and originality of RuneQuest", said Rick Meints, President of Chaosium.
 
In late 2015 Moon Design Publications and Chaosium successfully Kickstarted the RuneQuest Classic Edition campaign, a triumphant reissue of the iconic 2nd Edition of the RuneQuest rules and the supplements produced for it: Cults of Prax, Pavis, Big Rubble, Griffin Mountain, TrollPak and many others. 
 
“We want to usher in the newest exploration of Glorantha with a tribute to the masterpiece opus of work that has come before. Part of Steve's role is to help insure that this edition contains the best possible game mechanics while maintaining backwards compatibility with RuneQuest 2", said Jeff Richard, creative director at Chaosium. 
 
The new version of RuneQuest maintains backwards compatibility with earlier editions, while also containing a number of unique innovations that resonate with Glorantha, Greg Stafford's mythical campaign setting where RuneQuest started and to which it returns. This new edition incorporates Runes directly into both your character and the magic system you use, including their passions and motivations. 
 
"The rules reinforce immersion in the setting even more than the original RuneQuest rules did, and ideas experimentally brought forth in Griffin Mountain reach their fruition", said Richard.
 
Seizing this unique chance to get this right, Chaosium has brought in a team of notable game designers to support Chaosium’s rebirth of RuneQuest, including Sandy Petersen (Call of Cthulhu), Ken Rolston (Paranoia, Elder Scrolls, RQ3),  Chris Klug (James Bond 007 RPG, DragonQuest) and Jason Durral (BRP, Conan).
 
A special pre-release version of the new rules will be revealed at Gen Con later this year, along with introductory scenario sessions. A wealth of all-new campaign material and supplements for the new edition will follow. 
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The plan always was to make a RuneQuest optimized for playing in Glorantha. As has been revealed, the design process for RQ3 (dating back to 1982-84) had a lot of Glorantha-specific developments that weren't included in the product for Avalon Hill which now are meant to be reunited with the development from RQ2 to RQ3 and further to a modern RQ as in RQ6.

Details about the how and why remain private between The Design Mechanism and Chaosium, but the recipe to make a Glorantha supplement for RQ6 seems not to have gone far enough for Chaosium.

This isn't the first time a RQ version under development named "Adventures in Glorantha" failed to see publication beyond a playtest edition. That name appears to be poison.

 

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Telling how it is excessive verbis

 

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I hope that the usual sense of "Quality" before "Schedule" wins here as it has done with all other Moon Design publications. I would not mind a deep gestating period to get this right. Even though summer is the birthday for RQ - it should not drive the schedule - readiness should. It is already February - half a year is short time to playtest and get the rules right... and of course for those of us who purchase it - we want awesome art as well - but the rules - they need to be right...

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8 hours ago, hkokko said:

I hope that the usual sense of "Quality" before "Schedule" wins here as it has done with all other Moon Design publications. I would not mind a deep gestating period to get this right. Even though summer is the birthday for RQ - it should not drive the schedule - readiness should. It is already February - half a year is short time to playtest and get the rules right... and of course for those of us who purchase it - we want awesome art as well - but the rules - they need to be right...

Absolutely, I couldn't agree more. I want to see the "best" RQ, released when it's had loads of playtesting and adjustment, and it's good and ready. Not based on an arbitrary schedule. If it misses publication this year, then so be it.

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Yep I'm in no hurry to have a new RQ, so when it arrives I really want it to be a great edition, capturing the best of RQ2, RQ3, and RQ6. All of those editions need to be reviewed in equal measure for the upcoming version.

This needs to be an elegant system, not something that sounds like a bunch of house rules thrown together for the sake of a new publication, as any of us tend to do that already. This edition needs to be worthy of the name of RuneQuest, and I'm sure that the right people are involved in making this so.

In the meantime I would be happy if Moon Design Chaosium published non-mechanic content for Glorantha, so we can use it for HQ or RQ or whatever. 

It's interesting to see these original authors involved in RQ again. It feels like the right thing to do, it is also very respectful to the original authors - this is something we don't usually see in the modern world, especially in business matters. Growing up with these names emblazoned over some of my most treasured books certainly does make me want to see what they do to assist with the development of a new edition.

I'm very impressed with Moon Design for doing this

Edited by Mankcam
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" Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!"

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16 hours ago, Steve said:

Absolutely, I couldn't agree more. I want to see the "best" RQ, released when it's had loads of playtesting and adjustment, and it's good and ready. Not based on an arbitrary schedule. If it misses publication this year, then so be it.

+1

We've waited this long -- what is another year? Enjoying HQ in the time being and may try my hand at RQ6 w/ cult one pagers, converted Glorantha Classics and RQ6 Encounter Generator.

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4 hours ago, TrippyHippy said:

What do the "ideas experimentally brought forth in Griffin Mountain" include?  

I would guess that this means Personality Traits.

Edited by soltakss
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Simon Phipp - Caldmore Chameleon - Wallowing in my elitism since 1982. Many Systems, One Family. Just a fanboy. 

www.soltakss.com/index.html

Jonstown Compendium author. Find my contributions here

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3 hours ago, TrippyHippy said:

So, we will see Personality traits as in Pendragon?

Not really that radical, as it stands. Anything else?

 

Not radical as they have appeared before, but they could bring a framework for social interaction that the game didn't have. If they implement them that way.

IIRC, in Griffin Mountain they were actually there to give character to NPCs without having to have stats and skills, so that you would know how they would react when the characters were interacting with them. There were more traits, and they were even less opposing pairs than Pendragon.

SDLeary

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Personally, I am not looking for anything too radical from this project. If the goal is to make this the ultimate edition of Gloranthan RuneQuest, it seems best to just focus on refining earlier editions than shaking things up. The more radical it is, the more likely that it will take one more edition to refine those radical parts, and I am getting edition fatigue with RuneQuest at the moment. I just want to see a solid, reliable build tailored to Glorantha. 

 

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I would love to see lots (and I mean lots) of new scenarios and campaigns instead of worrying about backward compatibility overly much. Those lovely scenarios from 20 or 35 years ago, they were lovely at the time and some of them still are but they are old. I can be as nostalgic as anyone but I would like to see more gamers and especially younger generation gamers to be lured into Glorantha. Create some rules and get them right but get us new sandboxes which are easy for newcomers to get into and that deep divers or old hands can mod and love.fascinating intro scenarios which will draw people into Glorantha and keep them wanting more.

 scenarios, sandboxes, new stuff.... 

Ahh, have to go back to medicine bag to get my daily stuff a bit earlier....

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Yea, glad to see Steve Perrin will have a hand in this. I just hope the new guys at Chaosium listen to him more than the folks at Mongoose did  when designing MRQ. I believe most of the major flaws of MRQ1 were noticed by Mr. Perrin during the playtest stage.

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

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7 hours ago, skoll said:

I just hope the new version will be more than just a nostalgia trip for old-timers - the impression I have got of the project so far. A lot has happened with RPG's since RQ2 was released originally. I would hate to see all the development of recent years thrown away for the sake of backward compatibility.

I agree with that as well. When I say I am not looking for anything radical, I'm not talking in terms of what would have been radical additions when RQ3, came out. I'm more than happy for time-tested elements from the 30 years between to be added in. Last I heard they were keeping a lot of the core mechanics of RQ6. 

Full backwards compatibility with RQ2 might be an issue. I've been happy to see the Power point economy die in recent editions. I really liked that RQ6 didn't have that, and one of the main reasons I was excited to get my hands on Adventures in Glorantha. I'll probably be picking it up at some point, but if it isn't addressing my concerns with they system, I might sit out the Kickstarter and pick it up later. While I like Glorantha, I'm already less enthused about a version of RQ that is Glorantha only. 

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I certainly think it can work. The new RQ looks like it is has Gloranthan elements hard-wired into its game design. This obiviously will make it ideal for a gritty game in Glorantha, although porting all that to a setting like Ancient Greece may not work so well. However Design Mechanism's RQ6 rules are almost built for such purposes, and for non-Gloranthan games then I think Design Mechanism's rules will be what I use. I'm happy that Loz & Pete are free to do their 'Mythic ' series and other genres, and I think, at least for me, that their system will sit nicely alongside the new RQ in the BRP Family of games.

 

Edited by Mankcam

" Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!"

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