From: S.Phillips (gkca16@udcf.gla.ac.uk)
Date: Thu 04 Aug 1994 - 20:04:08 EEST
Hi from Sam
Beer:-
Mead would be stronger, as would be the wine. Applejack, a winter speciality of the Varmandi and other apple growers is v.v.strong. All three would also be *much* tastier than the beer.
Flutterbyes and Bummingherds:-
I have always been confused about putting an allied spirit in a butterfly. I thought these wee buggers only lived for a few days. (Sandy?). And hummingbirds, wouldn't these buggers need to spend all day sucking gick out of flowers. Fat lot of use either would be. Unless of course Chalana Arroy temples are surrounded by hugh exotic and beautiful gardens. *hey* now that is not such a bad idea.... Like large Mental Institutions....
Animal Cruelty is a Modern Idea:-
Tell that to the large Orlanthi whose cat you have just kicked. Or the Chalan Arroy whos flutterby you have just stood on. (Well her Urox bro).
Animal Cruelty is a Modern Idea:-
How do you introduce new players to Glorantha?
"Gently"..
It is a bit like making souffle.. here is my recipe:-
You can describe the new player's actions in one sentence and let them get on with it. You (the GM) can then slowly work in nice bits of Glorantha and see howthey cope with them. Throw in a few moral dilemas, the odd weird encounter and a few bits of heroism and myth interaction and Contrabass! (a bigger viola) - they are hooked.
My current experiment is starting everyone as children and working them gradually to heroes. So far they are still children and .: are not initiates of any cult. I allow them to mimic and dress etc as if they were and I suspect yer average man-on-the-dirt-track would not be able to tell they *were* children (after all some of them are in their early 20's!)..
To aid with background I produced a many page guide for them - as they all came from the same clan it was important that we all had the same info on the other clanmembers. (I have been working this into a presentable form for all those who requested a copy... It will be 20 or so pages A4 typeset w pictures.. I just need to check my maps w the "official" ones and finish off the myths'n'legends bit. + clean up the scenarios which are in v.rough form). I found that this is was *lot* more work than I first thought. Just condensing and retyping a few paras from one of the sourcebooks can take *ages*. Trying to "make it up" is time consuming too. Mind you, everyone should hsve a go at this sort of thing because then you can *really* appreciate what the *true* RQ-Guru's go through. My least favourite bit is stats. Eugh! But I have strayed from the path (again).
A 'common knowledge' and a 'what my father told me' should be provided with every scenario published and every new culture presented. They are brilliant, but a lot of work to produce yourself. It is easier to just introduce new players in a place where you already have this type of info. Borderlands had one sheet of paper as a handout telling all players exactly what they had learned in Pavis. I remember at the time it taught me a few things I didn't know and I had been playing four years. Splendid.
I would :. stay clear of writing a player's booklet - unless you have a 'lot' of time and find it is completely neccessary to your campaign. (and if you do - I am sure all your *buddies* on the RQ-Daily would like a copy, too!)
Funnily enough, I have found that new female players want to play Stormbullers and other Mega-Violent types and new male players tend to go for something a bit gentler ie Yelmalio. We did once have a new player play a Chalana Arroy. HE played HIM for years. After he retired him he played a Humakti, though..
Cheers!
Sam. x. NSBS.
p.s. Hi to Bob! Thanks for the Haggisy complements.
Alex. When are we going out drinking?
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.7 : Fri 10 Oct 2003 - 01:36:08 EEST