From: johnjmedway (jjm@zycor.lgc.com)
Date: Thu 27 Jan 1994 - 00:08:30 EET
Again - old stuff, but still relevant, I hope.
>> From: "Loren J. Miller" <MILLERL@wharton.upenn.edu>
>> Subject: Loren's comments on RQ:AiG
>>
>>
>> INTRODUCTION
>> I like it, but it seems odd to see this huge essay (14 pp of 10
>> point Times) on Glorantha, including a bibliography, in the
>> chapter that is supposed to entice new readers to buy the book. I
>> ...
>> just part of it. That said, it wouldn't hurt to start RQ4 with an
>> *brief* overview of Glorantha (no more than 2 pages) like that in
>> the beginning of RQ2.
Agreed. We need a hook in the first pages of the book. Put the deeper
info in another chapter, though *not* at the end of the book. After
we hook them with the brief overview, give them a fuller context before
they get to character generation.
>> CREATING AN ADVENTURER
You've already seen my flame about "adventurer".
>> Abbreviations
>> I am not a big fan of abbreviating and anagrammatizing
>> everything. Sometimes it has its place, but to my mind there are
>> too many abbreviations here. HP, MP and SR make for a sufficient
Seconded.
>> Intelligence Training
>> This isn't mentioned in the chapter, and Chapter 2 says that
>> such training is impossible. I don't believe it though.
>> "Everybody knows" that if you read, study, argue, practice logic,
>> play chess and roleplaying games, and do all that other smarty-
>> pants stuff then you will get smarter, more intelligent. That's
>> part of our common human belief system (aka mythology). In a game
>> that is supposed to represent mythic reality shouldn't it be
>> possible to increase the INT stat? After all, we're not talking
>> about IQ scores here, but about a combination of wisdom and
>> reasoning, both of which respond to study. Right?
Agreed. Just make progress pretty slow.
>> Mounted Combat (91)
>> The combat summary says that mounted combatants are at -10
>> to attack skill, but it doesn't say anything about it here.
>> Personally, I think that anyone who has enough Ride skill to use
>> his full attack skill should not be penalized, and would remove
>> that line from the combat modifier summary, but if the summary is
>> right then you should mention the modifier in this section.
I disagree. A mount is never going to be as stable as the ground ( barring
earthquakes and other oddities ). I think there should be a penalty, though
small.
>> Part II of II
>> ECONOMICS
>> Could this have a less forbidding name? How about "Money and How
>> to Spend It"? I have yet to find an indifference curve in this
I agree. We don't have "Cultural Anthropology" or "Geography"
as titles. This seems a bit out of place.
>> THE WORLD OF MAGIC
>> I'm not sure about the title of this chapter either. How about
>> "Magic Overview" instead, or something else that communicates
ALso we don't want to confuse people about the Spirit Plane, Hero Plane,
etc. The WorldS of Magic are all of these things.
^
>> Rune Lords
>> The name Rune Lord reflects a RQ2-style emphasis of runes
>> over deities. How about calling them Masters instead? The rune-
>> fans will like it because it echoes the Mastery rune which
>> "runelords" embody, and I like it because it implies the major
>> distinction between Priests and Masters, that the Priest lives
>> mythically by repeating the god's actions in ritual and the
>> Master lives mythically by perfecting those abilities taught by
>> the god.
I'd drop the "Rune" part, rather then the "Lord" part. In any event, as
most cults have their own names, this can be as generic as we want.
>> Religions (134-143)
>> You list the pantheons common to Maniria and Peloria in
>> thumbnail format. Excellent! If you're taking votes, I vote that
>> you add Yara Aranis (the Reaching Moon) to the thumbnails of the
>> Lunar pantheon. She's an important enemy god for all those who
I'd also say that we should have Hwarin Dalthippa and the White Moon
included, just to round out the list. White Moon to show division
within the Lunars, at least. BTW: I don't have my draft with me
( I am supposed to be working ... ), and I don't remember if these are
already in there.
>> SORCERY
>> Consider changing the name of this chapter and the name of the
>> magic system with it. Why? It has become increasingly apparent to
>> (1) Wizardry (to reflect the native title of the typical user of
>> this magic) (one problem is it could be read as a sexist
>> name and we want to attract women to play RQ)
Appropriate for *some* cultures. I just can't see an Arkati "Wizard".
>> (2) Lawful Magic (to reflect this magic's close association with
Yuck.
>> (3) Wisdom Magic (to reflect the nature of this magic, where
Yuck.
>> (4) Western Magic (to reflect the part of Genertela in which
>> this magic is most apparent)
Again, apropriate for *some* cultures.
>> Lunar Sorcery
>> Please include descriptions of all the Lunar Schools of
>> Sorcery, uh I mean Wizardry, not just the Dark and Dying moons.
What *are* all the Lunar Schools of magic?
Joerg:
>> Loren Miller writes:
>>
>> > Conceptually, such a rules discovery would imply that long
>> > duration spells are similar to a Tap. I think this similarity
>> > sounds "true," and it could possibly throw light on the workings
>> > of the world. In short, I think it's a fortunate rules discovery
>> > that is as good as Reusable Divine magic for initiates (bravo!).
>>
>> I like it, too. Now where are the rules for large rituals where each
>> participant offers use of one or more of his magic point potential?
This *really* needs to be in the rules. Examples of large rituals which
societies require should be included as well.
>> > Darkness Sorcery
>> > Where are the sorcery schools for Trolls, especially the
>> > Stygian and Blue Moon schools?
>>
>> Blue Moon Wizardry? I agree with Arkat as source, but where and when
>> did Annilla steal or trade that secret?
I can only think of the Blue Moon School from the Dragon Pass game. I
would assume that it was something other than Spirit or Divine magic,
just because of the range their magic is allowed.
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