Pregen PCs Booklets for the RuneQuest Glorantha Quickstart

[creativehum]

In celebration of Runequest Gloranatha: Quickstart Rules and Adventure coming home with ENnie Gold (and because I'll be running the Quickstart at a local convention at the end of the month) I decided to take the Pregenerated Player Characters and build little booklets for each PC. I just uploaded them over in the files section under the "Fantasy Other" Category. (There doesn't seem to be a RuneQuest Glorantha category yet.)

Each booklet contains the relevant Rune Descriptions, Rune Spells, Spirit Magic Spells, and short descriptions of the respective PC's cult, as well as all the other information contained on each of the PC's character sheet from the Quickstart.

My design goal was to build a little booklet which would allow a Player to flip through the booklet and find the relevant information for a specific rule or topic on a given page.

I'm a big fan of the A5/8.5x5.5 format at the gaming table. They take up less space, you can hold them in your hands easily when flipping through them. The PDF is in a A5 format. You can print the PDFs using "booklet" formatting and get a 20 page doc on five sheets of paper. (There's a short table of contents after the coverer page. The whole idea is to make an easy to use, easy to access document for someone sitting down to play RuneQuest Glorantha for the first time.)

The pages were built in A5 format. But you can easily print them in 8.5x5.5 format with only the slightest shrinkage to the text and no real effect on presentation. 

These is a format that i came up with for myself, of course. Which reflects my own thinking and design principles. But I hope people might find them helpful for getting new demonstrations of the game up and running.

I haven't done a final proof on these yet, so if you notice anything askew, please let me know!

Thanks!

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/642-rqg-vasana-quickstartpdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/643-rqg-sorala-quickstartpdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/639-rqg-yanioth-quickstartpdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/640-rqg-harmast-quickstartpdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/641-rqg-vostor-quickstartpdf/

 

[PhilHibbs]

You have listed all of Orlanth's rune spells, but Vasana only has access to three of them: Fearless. Lightning and Shield.

[creativehum]

Interesting.

From Vasana's PC sheet in the Quickstart it says:

Rune Spells: Command Cult Spirit (2), Dark Walk (1), Dismiss Magic (Var.), Dismiss Air Elemental (as per elemental size), Divination (1), Earth Shield (3), Extension 1, Find Enemy 1, Flight (var.), Heal Wound (1), Leap (1), Lightning (var.), Mist Cloud (1), Multispell (1), Shield (var.), Spirit Block (var.), Summon Air Elemental (as per elemental size, see separate write-up), Teleportation (3), Wind Words (1).

Why do you think she only has the three you listed above? (I'm willing to believe you are right. But I'm confused as to why this would be the case.)

Edited August 11, 2018 by creativehum

[PhilHibbs]

17 minutes ago, creativehum said:

Why do you think she only has the three you listed above? (I'm willing to believe you are right. But I'm confused as to why this would be the case.)

I'm going by the writeup in the full rulebook. You only get access to 1 special rune spell per rune point to start off with.

Edited August 11, 2018 by PhilHibbs

[creativehum]

Well, looks like I've got some re-working to do.

You are correct that a starting PC is limited in the number of Rune Spells he or she can start with... but this is only for Special Rune Spells of the cult. 

But characters also begin with Common Rune spells, which are known to all Cults.

Here is the list from p. 74

Quote

COMMON RUNE SPELLS

• Command Cult Spirit 
• Dismiss Magic
• Divination 
• Extension 
• Find Enemy 
• Heal Wound 
• Multispell 
• Sanctify 
• Soul Sight 
• Spirit Block 
• Summon Cult Spirit 
• Warding 

So Vasana would know all of the above, plus three Special Rune Spells from her cult.

The trick is that several of both the Common and Special Rune Spells listed in RuneQuest Glorantha aren't listed in the Quickstart. So not only does Vasana have too many Rune Spells, she is also lacking Rune Spells that are available in the Core Book. Meanwhile, several Rume spells listed for Vanasa in the Quickstart are no longer available to her at all per the core rules. 

I am assuming the same will be true for the other characters as well!

So, I have a choice to make:

1. Either leave the booklets as they are, as it is merely a Quickstart to introduce the game. (Nothing will be particularly broken if some spells are missing and some extra spells are available)
2. Or rework the Booklets with the new spells and restrictions from RuneQuest Glorantha.

Part of me would love to bring the booklets in alignment with the official rules. And another part of me is thinking, "Is the extra work worth it?"

I'm also wondering if spells placed in the Quickstart are there specifically to help the PCs along in the adventure, and if they might be stymied if they don't have them. (I'm not familiar enough with the adventure yet to know the answer to this. Perhaps @Jason Durall might have some thoughts on this point.)

Edited August 11, 2018 by creativehum

[Psullie]

Why not use the Pre-Gens from the rulebook rather than the Quickstart? As for the spells perhaps print a single booklet summarising all the common spells that can be shared. At the end of the day too much choice can paralyse new player.

[creativehum]

38 minutes ago, Psullie said:

Why not use the Pre-Gens from the rulebook rather than the Quickstart? 

Well, first, to my chagrin, it didn't occur to me. I started tearing into the Quickstart to prep for the convention game, and those were the characters. (I didn't realize the PCs in the core book were the same characters until recently. I skipped character creation as I read and re-read the rules, since I wasn't going to be needing that.)

Second, as noted above, there might be some spells that the adventure assumes the PCs will posses to handle certain situations, and if I strip them out the PCs might get stuck. I don't think this is the case... but keep in mind until a day ago I didn't realize the PCs in the Quickstart possessed Rune spells they wouldn't poses in the final pass of the rules.

As for this:

38 minutes ago, Psullie said:

As for the spells perhaps print a single booklet summarising all the common spells that can be shared.

Two things: 

First, even though the spells are "common" they are still given to the Initiate through the cult and the god. I want to nail down that fact and that experience for the Players. You aren't just conjuring a cult spirit... you are conjuring a spirit gifted from Orlanth through the use of the Rune of Air. I might be a fool, but I think the distinction matters. I want the "commons" Rune Spells listed with the Special Cult Rune Spells because these are all spells from the cult.

Second, I think the players can handle it. I know them all. They're sharp. They play all sorts of games. They have never played RQ... but all of them are chomping at the bit to try it. Whether or not the commons spells are in a separate booklet or not, they're still going to have 14 or so Rune spells to choose from. If they have to flip between booklets to select them then they're only more moving around pieces of paper. I'd really rather have the choices in front of them.

The fact is, with only 3 Rune Points to work with, they'll only be casting 1 to 3 Rune spells during the session. The choice of which Rune spells to cast will narrow down pretty fast depending on circumstances. Plus, I know these guys: They'll jump in with a lot of questions like, "Hey, how would I get more Rune Points?" And I could talk about how the cycle of raising your POW through spirit combat, rituals, and training to have points to burn for Rune Points is one of the key cycles of the game. They'll eat it up.

They want to play the game. I want to give them as much of the experience as possible. We've cleared a six hour slot in the open gaming area and we'll be having a good time as we kick the tires on RQG and take it out for a ride.

 

 

Edited August 12, 2018 by creativehum

[jajagappa]

On ‎8‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 11:26 AM, creativehum said:

I'm also wondering if spells placed in the Quickstart are there specifically to help the PCs along in the adventure, and if they might be stymied if they don't have them. (I'm not familiar enough with the adventure yet to know the answer to this. 

Between the time of the Quickstart and the Core book release, the availability of special rune spells was changed.  Originally it was going to be that you just acquired Rune Points and could use for any available Common or Special Rune spells.  I'm not sure what the designers specific reasons were for the change, but it did resolve three issues: overpowered young initiates who could cast any available spell; the ability to distinguish special rune spells only available to higher level status members; and the ability to have PC's quest to find temples with more unusual spells.

I ran the Quickstart with the original usage.  It was fine.  When I moved on to a full campaign with the updated rules, I just had my players adjust down to a number of available special rune spells equal to their rune points.  Possible some players wouldn't like making that adjustment, but no issues in my group.

[jajagappa]

On ‎8‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 4:56 PM, creativehum said:

there might be some spells that the adventure assumes the PCs will posses to handle certain situations, and if I strip them out the PCs might get stuck. I don't think this is the case...

No specific rune spells are assumed.  Vasana is likely to find Lightning or Shield the most useful.  For Yanioth, it would be Summon Earth Elemental, Inviolable, maybe Charisma.  I don't recall Sorola or Harmast using Special Rune Spells.  Spirit Block and Heal Wound IIRC were the most important and both are common.

[creativehum]

Thanks!

[g33k]

On 8/17/2018 at 5:45 AM, jajagappa said:

...  I'm not sure what the designers specific reasons were for the change ...

IIRC, it was said at the time that analysis-paralysis was an issue at the table, and also that some of the larger lists of cult spells produced TL;DR effect  for some players.

Or maybe I am just remembering commentary/speculation ...

[creativehum]

23 minutes ago, g33k said:

IIRC, it was said at the time that analysis-paralysis was an issue at the table, and also that some of the larger lists of cult spells produced TL;DR effect  for some players.

Or maybe I am just remembering commentary/speculation ...

It was covered in this blog post about the feedback coming in from the Runequest Gloranatha: Quickstart Rules and Adventure:

Quote

Gaining Use of Special Cult Rune Spells

The other issue that came up is that many new players were overwhelmed by the options they had with Rune magic. Some cults had 14 or more special rune spells - when you include the 15 common magic spells, that's nearly 30 Rune spells to choose from! Not surprisingly many people were overwhelmed.

And this is something that bugged me from the beginning. I love the flexibility of the new Rune magic system, but worried about the decision block and learning curve it created. The feedback we received cemented my concerns.

Fortunately, we've solved it. Now during chargen, your character starts with three special rune spells from your cult (and subcult if relevant): one for each Rune point you have. If you spent points of POW to acquire additional Rune points, you get to pick another spell for each additional point spent.

Your player can also use any of the 11 common rune spells. Most of these are either spells affecting magic (Dispel Magic, Extension, Multispell, etc.) or spells applicable to every cult (Divination, Sanctify, Warding, etc.). Heal Wound also remains a common Rune spell because it provides a way to potentially mitigate RQ's extreme lethality. Enchantments (Armoring Enchantment etc) only become available once you are a Rune master.

As characters gain more Rune points during the course of play, they get to select more special Rune magic from their cult (as long as more are available). 

This way, players are eased into using all special Rune magic available to their character. This isn't an issue of balance—that's provided by the spell cost in Rune points and the character's limited number of points—but of getting around information overload. 

This also ends up making subcult and associate cult special magic easier to manage - and more meaningful!

I like the change in part because, yes, it cuts down the number of spells a new player has to learn. And I don't mean only a new player to RQ, but a player new to a specific cult with a new list of spells. By cutting down the list of Rune Spells a player has a chance to learn a bit about the cult and its spells when he or she picks the spells.

More importantly, in my view, is that it gives the player somewhere to go with the Adventurer and his or her place within the cult. By limiting the number of Rune Spells at first, but proving a list of spells that could be gained, the player has several carrots to shoot for. 

And to get those spells the character must raise his or her POW so he or she can burn those points to get more Rune Points. This not only means the Adventurer has more points to spend on an adventure, but has a wider range of spell. As the Adventurer gains new spells he or she also has the power to activate more and more of them during an adventure. These growth of the character's power is thus revealed on two fronts.

How is POW raised? With checks during adventures and with ceremonies during Holy Days. This means staying on good terms with the community and the cult, tying the character back into the world and encouraging roleplaying within the subtler aspects of the game. All of this allows the Player and the adventure to grow into the cult and invest more and more into it over time.

Edited August 18, 2018 by creativehum

[creativehum]

Well, here's the thing:

The information for the PCs in the Quickstart is on one page.

Does that make it easier or more comfortable to read? At least for me, no. It's wall of text with lots of words all crammed together. My eyes would be swimming (and drowning) looking for a specific skill or trying to pluck the PCs Rune Points, for example. (I'm not falling the QS for cramming everyone on one page; it's a layout/space issue.)

From this we know that few pages doesn't mean better.

Now, whether my design decision was correct or not I don't know. But the thinking was for each page or section of pages to contain a desecrate chunk of info: Character background, or Rune Spells, or whatever. The Table of contents is there to make it easy to move reference whatever one is looking for. And my guess is that within an hour of play the Players will have a sense of where different items in the booklet are.

At best I could shave a few pages off. But perhaps at the expense of cramming the text on the page. But his was another design choice: I want the text to have some breathing room. I'm less concerned about the page count than I am about usability. There may be be twenty pages... but once you turn to the Rune Spell section there the spells are, in a format easy to read and use. And it will soon be one page shorter (see posts above) and I'll paginate it on at two page spread. When it is time for combat, all the combat info is on a two page spread near the back.

For whatever reason I'm afraid of the page count. A RQ Adventure has a lot of info. There's no getting around that. But what I care about is when a player want to look up a skill or a Rune Spell it happens easily and efficiently: check the table of contents, go to the page, there's the info, ready to read, reference, and use easily.

The only place to really cut would be in the Rune descriptions... but those come into play not only in personalty but in Augmenting skills. So I wanted those at hand so the Players could see them. So I am cramming more than one would find on a character sheet into the booklets. But I also think the extra info is important. 

While the page count might be intimidating to some (I don't think it will be to my players however, as I know them and they love poking around new games) I do think once they are put into use the design as a reference document that works will ultimately alleviate that. 

Of course, different people, different tastes, and so on.

[creativehum]

All right. 

I've changed up the list of Rune Magic spells to match the spells found in the RQG Core Book. I've also altered the spell notion terms from those found in the Quickstart to those found in the Core Book (so, now a spell might have the notion, [1, Touch, Instant, Nonstackable], as opposed to the notion from the quickstart).

I hope this is useful for people. I'm still plowing through the rules. But I've found that making tools like this lets me get a grasp on new rules. And I believe it will help my players in a couple of weeks have a quick reference for both rules and some of the texture of Glorantha as they sink into the setting and the game for the first time.

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/647-rqg-vasana-quickstart-11pdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/648-rqg-vostor-quickstart-11pdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/644-rqg-harmast-quickstart-11pdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/645-rqg-yanioth-quickstart-11pdf/

https://basicroleplaying.org/files/file/646-rqg-sorala-quickstart-11pdf/

[creativehum]

I also fixed the changes created between the Quickstart and the core rules.

The latest and for now final drafts (1.2) can all be found here on my blog. I'll get around to uploading them here at the Chaosium site later.

[creativehum]

The latest, and final, versions of the QuickStart Pregen Booklets are now available in the download section.

 

[Dragonsnail]

Very well made, cheers.

[creativehum]

Thanks!