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Robin Laws to pen two RuneQuest Books


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"Chaosium has recruited renowned role playing author Robin Laws (Feng Shui, Hillfolk) to write an updated version of the RuneQuest supplement Pavis & Big Rubble. The first of two volumes, A Big Rubble, will release late in 2019, with Pavis planned for 2020."

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/41146/robin-laws-pen-two-runequest-books

NB Robin's books are set some 7-10 years after the adventures described in RQ2's Pavis & Big Rubble, that culminate with The Cradle (1621). A lot has changed in that time.

 

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I'm interested to see how the same tension can be found in Pavis without the Lunars in play in the same way. 

I think to keep Pavis as interesting as it was is going to a massive challenge for Robin.

In fact its probably one of the main reasons for  me not liking the new time setting, So I think Chasoium has set Robin a challenge here.

I will very interested to watch, and delighted if robin can prove me wrong and to be a grumpy old man. 

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26 minutes ago, Jon Hunter said:

I'm interested to see how the same tension can be found in Pavis without the Lunars in play in the same way. 

I think to keep Pavis as interesting as it was is going to a massive challenge for Robin.

In fact its probably one of the main reasons for  me not liking the new time setting, So I think Chasoium has set Robin a challenge here.

I will very interested to watch, and delighted if robin can prove me wrong and to be a grumpy old man. 

Who knows what you will think of it. But Robin and I both feel that post-Lunar actually lets us play more around with Gloranthan themes (and themes that Glorantha is built on), and gives us far more tension to play around with. Deadwood is a far more interesting town without foreign conquerers.

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Just now, Jeff said:

Who knows what you will think of it. But Robin and I both feel that post-Lunar actually lets us play more around with Gloranthan themes (and themes that Glorantha is built on), and gives us far more tension to play around with. Deadwood is a far more interesting town without foreign conquerers.

Agreed.

I think the new time-setting is at least a little refreshing, and allows (for those whose campaigns really want to nestle in the bosom of released products) for a breath of fresh air in the otherwise-trammelled ground of Gloranthan canon.

But what do I know?  I thought MRQ's attempt to move to the 2nd age - while the rules may have had mechanical issues - was a brilliantly creative idea for the setting.  It's allowed our campaign to explore some Arachne-Solara-evading time travel, where Ralzakark sent our heroes back to the era of God Learners to 'fix' something in his past that allowed him to exist...they weren't happy about that.

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And I used the name "Deadwood" quite deliberately. One of the touchstones of Pavis is the mythology of the Old West - and I think it is fair to say that everyone on the team is more interested in Deadwood and Tombstone than Braveheart.

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3 hours ago, Jon Hunter said:

I'm interested to see how the same tension can be found in Pavis without the Lunars in play in the same way. ...I will very interested to watch, and delighted if robin can prove me wrong and to be a grumpy old man. 

Unless you only find excitement and tension by specifically siding with or against the Lunar occupiers, I think the Lunars being gone (at least not in power) is a big refreshing change. While your campaign could have played it very differently, the one I played in had most of the factions biding their time while the Lunars kept a lid on everything. Without that central control all manner of groups and such can be on the move and trying to accomplish their goals. I have no doubt the Elder races in the Rubble all got into gear once the Lunars were gone, and I am very sure the nomads in Prax also see opportunities. I keep thinking of all these rebel groups, after the Lunars are gone, each saying to themselves, "great, now we can get back to fighting the real enemy, the XXX". It's kind of like the joke about the UK where, after the Soviets crumbled and ceased to be a big threat, the UK pointed their nuclear weapons back at their real enemy... France."

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Hope that Helps,
Rick Meints - Chaosium, Inc.

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3 hours ago, Jon Hunter said:

I'm interested to see how the same tension can be found in Pavis without the Lunars in play in the same way. 

I think to keep Pavis as interesting as it was is going to a massive challenge for Robin.

In fact its probably one of the main reasons for  me not liking the new time setting, So I think Chasoium has set Robin a challenge here.

I will very interested to watch, and delighted if robin can prove me wrong and to be a grumpy old man. 

In my Glorantha with the Lunars on their heels from 1625 and on, there is going to be a lot more chaos instead. And for human adversaries, old feuds and wars might blossom again. I don't  follow a canon storyline, I mostly make my own stuff up to suit my player group. Source books are useful anyway for me, even if I cannot use all adventures in them.

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27 minutes ago, Rick Meints said:

Unless you only find excitement and tension by specifically siding with or against the Lunar occupiers, I think the Lunars being gone (at least not in power) is a big refreshing change. 

I think any change is refreshing, and good. Nothing against Glorantha c.1620, but we've been "stuck" in that same time for 40 years! It's nice to see the clock tick forward, and things happening.

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

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6 hours ago, Jeff said:

And I used the name "Deadwood" quite deliberately. One of the touchstones of Pavis is the mythology of the Old West - and I think it is fair to say that everyone on the team is more interested in Deadwood and Tombstone than Braveheart.

 

 

Speaking of the mythology of the Old West via Glorantha - will MOB be updating the Sun County book in a similar fashion?

 

Amongst other things I'd like to know what becomes of Melo Yelo.

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1 hour ago, Addison said:

Speaking of the mythology of the Old West via Glorantha - will MOB be updating the Sun County book in a similar fashion?

Amongst other things I'd like to know what becomes of Melo Yelo.

The elevator pitch for Sun County has always been "Spartans in the Wild West".

The "future history" of Sun County is already written, taking events through to 1628. This as-yet unpublished document is titled "The Great Winter and Time of Two Counts" and is some 50K words long. Even in a backwater like Sun County and the River of Cradles a lot happens during this time (the recriminations after the Cradle debacle, the Windstop and defeating it, the Second Battle of Moonbroth, the coming of Argrath Whitebull, religious civil war in Sun Dome lands, the Dragonrise, etc). Melo Yelo plays a role in many of these events. I have posted bits and pieces from this document in various BRP Central threads

Earlier this month I ran a (baboon-free) scenario at Gen Con where the players are a file of Sun Dome Templars. It culminates at the Second Battle of Moonbroth (1624). The Sun Domers are of course Lunar allies, but at a crucial moment they adroitly change sides—or are at least not on the losing side...

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10 hours ago, Jeff said:

Who knows what you will think of it. But Robin and I both feel that post-Lunar actually lets us play more around with Gloranthan themes (and themes that Glorantha is built on), and gives us far more tension to play around with. Deadwood is a far more interesting town without foreign conquerers.

@Jeff, could you talk more about these themes?

I'm a relative newcomer to Glorantha (started reading Hero Wars materials in the early 2000s) and have poked around a little bit, going back to the RQ2 rules. I've run two convention games using the HeroQuest rules... so in some ways it is still all new to me.

Starting with the History section in RQ2, the conflict between the Lunars and the Heortlings seemed like the biggest storyline of the setting, and the fight over the progress (or stopping) of the Red Moon the main theme. 

But, of course, many RQ supplements and materials didn't dwell on this conflict at all. So Glorantha is clearly built on many themes.

For myself I'm really fascinated by the conflict between the Lunars and Heortlings (though for some reason I never see it as a matter of Braveheart, though apparently, since you bring it up a lot, many people do.) If I get a chance to run a game I'd be starting with an Orlanthi clan in 1580.

However, my reading of Glorantha material is still limited. I've mostly focused on the Lunars, the Heortlings, and the conflict in Dragon Pass.

So, could you talk more about the "themes that Glorantha is built on"? I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

Edited by creativehum

"But Pendragon isn’t intended to be historical, just fun.
So have fun."

-- Greg Stafford

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If you want to play a game with the Lunars running Pavis, then it isn't that hard to set the timeline back a bit and use the excellent HeroQuest Pavis book. Personally, I'm looking forward to moving the timeline forward.

And if you want a campaign where the Empire is in charge and villainous, run a game in Tarsh, get involved in that upcoming civil war! My players have decided that is what my first RQG game will be, and I'm really looking forward to a different take on the struggle against the Empire (one that, at least initially, includes many people who are religiously Lunar). As history advances, the struggle against the Empire moves North, but its a long way from being over. 

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18 hours ago, Dragonsnail said:

Don't take this to negatively - I'm happy for all books that get done for RQG. But I'm a bit disappointed to get another "Pavis" book. The last one  for Heroquest was done 6 years ago is it? I'm very much for "do new stuff" instead.

Robin's books are set some 7-10 years after the adventures described in RQ2's Pavis & Big Rubble and HQ. A lot has changed in that time.

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11 hours ago, creativehum said:

@Jeff, could you talk more about these themes?

I'm a relative newcomer to Glorantha (started reading Hero Wars materials in the early 2000s) and have poked around a little bit, going back to the RQ2 rules. I've run two convention games using the HeroQuest rules... so in some ways it is still all new to me.

Starting with the History section in RQ2, the conflict between the Lunars and the Heortlings seemed like the biggest storyline of the setting, and the fight over the progress (or stopping) of the Red Moon the main theme. 

But, of course, many RQ supplements and materials didn't dwell on this conflict at all. So Glorantha is clearly built on many themes.

For myself I'm really fascinated by the conflict between the Lunars and Heortlings (though for some reason I never see it as a matter of Braveheart, though apparently, since you bring it up a lot, many people do.) If I get a chance to run a game I'd be starting with an Orlanthi clan in 1580.

However, my reading of Glorantha material is still limited. I've mostly focused on the Lunars, the Heortlings, and the conflict in Dragon Pass.

So, could you talk more about the "themes that Glorantha is built on"? I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

The conflict between the Red Goddess and Orlanth is an important theme in the setting (but then again, so is the cycle of elemental conflicts, the ancient polarities, etc.). But that theme is possibly more easily explored either before or after the Lunar Occupation of Sartar. But there are plenty of other themes - particularly in Pavis! - like frontier versus civilisation, hero versus community, conflict with others counterposed against the need to make unlikely allies in order to survive in a hostile world, etc. - all of which are just as important and just as interesting as the conflict between the Red Goddess and Orlanth. 

Also, the Lunar Occupation of Sartar lasted only about 23 years. RuneQuest has been around for 40 years, and it is time we open up the setting to new possibilities.

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40 minutes ago, Jeff said:

Also, the Lunar Occupation of Sartar lasted only about 23 years. RuneQuest has been around for 40 years, and it is time we open up the setting to new possibilities.

Without doubt. I wouldn't suggest otherwise.

The fact is, given the breadth and depth of inspirational material (both geographically and temporally) people can (and in my view should) grab whatever section of history or portion of the map and build out whatever kind of play they want. Whatever Chaosium chooses to publish will have little bearing on what I might do at my table, since I'll be doing what I want at my table.

I asked because I wanted to know what you thought might be valid or important themes in Glorantha. 

Thanks for the reply!

"But Pendragon isn’t intended to be historical, just fun.
So have fun."

-- Greg Stafford

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14 hours ago, MOB said:

The elevator pitch for Sun County has always been "Spartans in the Wild West".

The "future history" of Sun County is already written, taking events through to 1628. This as-yet unpublished document is titled "The Great Winter and Time of Two Counts" and is some 50K words long. Even in a backwater like Sun County and the River of Cradles a lot happens during this time (the recriminations after the Cradle debacle, the Windstop and defeating it, the Second Battle of Moonbroth, the coming of Argrath Whitebull, religious civil war in Sun Dome lands, the Dragonrise, etc). Melo Yelo plays a role in many of these events. I have posted bits and pieces from this document in various BRP Central threads

Earlier this month I ran a (baboon-free) scenario at Gen Con where the players are a file of Sun Dome Templars. It culminates at the Second Battle of Moonbroth (1624). The Sun Domers are of course Lunar allies, but at a crucial moment they adroitly change sides—or are at least not on the losing side...

 

 

Fantastic stuff.

And some of this shall appear in Sun County 2.0 which is scheduled for release next year? 

Okay, so I'm high on hope...

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Of course, there's nothing to stop you bringing in the Lunars as spies, secret agents, infiltrators or whatever, trying to build up influence in the shadows or from Krarsht tunnels deep below Pavis.

Just because the Lunars have gone, there's no reason to have no Lunars anywhere.

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

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1 hour ago, Mark Mohrfield said:

Will there be any information on the communities in the Big Rubble such as the Real City, Opili's Fort and the Troll Clans?

I really hope so.
A never before looted dungeon filled with secrets from the 2nd Age and ruled by one of the 17 enemies of Waha wouldn't hurt either.   ;-)

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Read my Runeblog about RuneQuest and Glorantha at: http://elruneblog.blogspot.com.es/

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On 8/16/2018 at 4:53 PM, Jeff said:

And I used the name "Deadwood" quite deliberately. One of the touchstones of Pavis is the mythology of the Old West - and I think it is fair to say that everyone on the team is more interested in Deadwood and Tombstone than Braveheart.

I completely get the old west vibe, but I think law vs lawlessness is a very string OW theme, and the lunars always provided a strong law theme in that paradigm 

I think you do a little dis-service to alternative views are inspired by Braveheart,  pop culture references that inspire aspects of my use of the empire especially in  Pavis.

  • The Empire on Tatooine "Those are not the wind voices you are looking for...."   the crass, overpowering, distant and slightly disinterested oppressor/force of law. 
  • The Romans from the Life of Brian "What have the Lunars ever done for us......"   the actually benevolent, condescending and slightly bemused voice of reason.
  • and a little more seriously the British Empire.. "Bloody Natives...."    young entitled fools, out of their depth, not understanding the situation and making bloody stupid and inhumane decisions because they are under resourced and feel the need to 'project power'.

Those are a little more varied and interesting than just 'the kill the Lunars theme' suggest by the Braveheart reference. Now those themes don't need the Lunars, and actually need not be repeated if replaced by other themes.

I suppose at the heart of my concerns is that a 'benevolent authority' working with the players is not as interesting and complex as a "antagonistic authority" which the players are avoiding, negotiating with,  trying to circumvent and undermine.

or put another way a 1943 french resistance campaign to me holds more appeal than a  June 1944 D-day campaign. 

I think you have both given yourself opportunities and set yourself significant challenges with the changes, the bar of the old setting is high and is much loved by many. I wish you all the best and look forward to seeing the outcome.

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