Advice for starter campaign for born again GM

[Kordain]

Hi Folks

Going back a while we played lots of RQ and other games systems and ive run others too but never run RQ. Now, after 20 years of nothing my new friends, half a world away from where I started, are asking me to run a RQ game in the new year. Ive just order RQ in Glorantha but im a little overwhelmed trying to identify a good campaign set that i can use to start the group off from. Looking for advice on which campaign book to pick up etc.

I aim to introduce them to RQ system with some very vanilla chars from farming background etc. Then, after maybe 5 three hour sessions, when they have a feel for the rules take them to a city (thinking Pavis?) where they will attain background and some development points (out of game time) to shape their chars into who they want them to be and then launch a campaign. Its this campaign that im looking for help selecting. Ive read a lot online and keep hearing its too hard a campaign for begginers etc and am just a little confused and dont want to be picking the wrong thing up.

Apologies if this is a forever asked question but i did try and search so feel free to just post a link to something that would be helpfull.

Thanks for any and all contributions.

Mike.

[hkokko]

Borderlands or Griffin Mountain... Either will do magnificently. 

[Kordain]

Thank you very much :)

[drablak]

First off, I'm in the same boat as you are (so any advice I give you is equivalent to the blind leading the blind!  ).

If you have not picked up the GM Screen Pack, you should, it's literally packed with good stuff, especially if you plan on running things in Sartar.

I'm hesitating at the moment, but I may be using the Eleven Lights campaign (it's from HQG) as a base. It's set from 1618 to 1625 (where RQG normally starts at, but it seems to be really cool. I'm waiting for the books to arrive to make my mind on it. Otherwise the GM Screen pack has 3 adventures to get your players started.

@hkokko Which Griffin Mountain is the latest? There are two of them at Chaosium (SKU ISS1606-PDF and CHA4013-PDF).

[Psullie]

As a starting off point the three scenarios in the GM pack make for a very good introduction to RQG. As they are written for the new edition little work is required to get started. Once the players have saved apple lane they would be ready to venture forth to either Prax or Balazar.

21 minutes ago, drablak said:

There are two of them at Chaosium (SKU ISS1606-PDF and CHA4013-PDF).

ISS1606-PDF is the Moon Design edition that contains the original plus additional materials. CHA4013-PDF is a reproduction of the original. 

[drablak]

2 minutes ago, Psullie said:

ISS1606-PDF is the Moon Design edition that contains the original plus additional materials. CHA4013-PDF is a reproduction of the original.

Thanks, I'll be looking into it.

[Kordain]

Great guys thanks. I’ll deffo pick up the screen pack then as well. That’s prob exactly what I’m looking for 

[womble]

Note, though, that 'some vanilla farmers' are likely to get mulched in Apple Lane 1625. The base level of characters is higher than most tabletop RPGs are used to, as they come out of the book via Character Generation. It's certainly higher powered than starting characters in your previous RQ-carnations. "Some vanilla farmers" would be lacking the personal development bonuses of the system as presented in the book, as I read it (putting their best skills 25 points below where the material expects them to be). The default RQG system produces characters that are already ready for Pavis. Maybe not the depths of the Big Rubble, but they can certainly scurry round the New Town and the easier bits of the Rubble. They've been in, potentially, several major battles and hung around with Demigods-to-be a bit by the time you get to have a chew on them as the GM.

I say: go for the standard starting level and have them be in Sartar. Maybe restrict Homelands a bit so you don't have to explain too many world-views to the players to start with, and they have some ties to draw them into Sartar and its background. But Dragon Pass is where the action is going to be at, in the Hero Wars: give your players front row seats (right next to the mosh pit)!

Also, from personal experience, make sure your players have a really good reason and motivation for getting double-Initiated in chargen. One of mine who doubled did, and the other didn't really, and now it seems all a bit hinky. And I have to manage and explain yet another God...

And make sure you leave lots of game-contract wiggle-room for players to go back and redo, from start, if necessary. Glorantha is a funny old beast and first impressions aren't always borne out in game, so if someone turns out to hate what they intially set up, let 'em noodle it about, or even completely change it.

[Kordain]

Got it thanks. Yes I was going to run them as pre made farmers age 20?, using only the first page of the char sheet, in some inconsequential happenings while we all get familiar with the game then get them to a city and give them (guessing here) 5 years out of game time? to justify their characters becoming trained and possibly mentored and a religion before we go out into the big bad world at whatever level we need to be at. 

Cheers. 

[Crel]

I'll add my voice to the praise for the GM Screen Pack. I haven't had the opportunity to play it, but I really like what I've read.

Some advice I've seen/received before, for starting new players, is to play with sort of basic farmer-type characters for a session, and set them up against a "level 1" type encounter where they'll probably die. Then, begin play with their actual characters in following sessions. This can be helpful for players with experience mostly with games like Pathfinder & D&D, where the combat can be less lethal and the adventure design more often includes "appropriate" encounters.

[g33k]

Don't neglect the Broken Tower / Quickstart module.  It may be your best "first session" option!

 

Edited December 14, 2018 by g33k
Italics

[Kordain]

Interesting. I’ll look it up. Thanks. 

[Kordain]

@Crel agreed. I know they are used to the ease of D&D so my thoughts too.