GenCon 2013 Future of Glorantha Seminar

[David Scott]

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Quote from Martin Helsdon on October 13, 2013, 23:06

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After Pavis is liberated, all the Lunars are killed by the nomads. The armistice of Prax is broken, part of that agreement ceded the valley to the lunar settlers, in return for the Lunars staying out of Praxian Holy places. Balance is being restored in the region, the outlawed Bison and Impala tribes are likely to seek revenge and the return of some of their best grazing… The backlash begins…

Ouch. That spoiler might convince me not to buy an expanded Sun County (Argrath destroys all the Sun Dome temples doesn’t he, according to canon) or Borderlands.

That’s not a spoiler, thats in King of Sartar, with a simple extrapolation. Sun County is not going to be touched, there are over 15000 Yelmalion nomads who see it as a holy place.

[David Scott]

Quote:

Quote from Martin Helsdon on October 13, 2013, 23:06
(Argrath destroys all the Sun Dome temples doesn’t he, according to canon)

Does he? It’s not in KoS, unless I’m mistaken. Have you a reference for that?

[Lawrence]

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While it will be interesting to see the classic areas reinterpreted in line with the Guide and the post-Cradle timeline, I too was half expecting Loz et al to be developing a campaign in a whole new area, as they have hinted. Possibly they still are but don’y feel ready to announce it. Maybe MOB wanting to redo his and other work in the Zola Fel valley is an extra that has fallen in their lap?

Umm – we’ve NEVER hinted that the campaign setting would be in ‘a whole new area’. For the record, it was going to be Griffin Mountain, vastly expanded, in much the same manner as the new Pavis material. That was Design Mechanism’s first preference, for a number of reasons I’ll expand on. But then things changed a little.

There are a number of reasons why ‘Sun County’ is going to be the focus of our return to Glorantha.

1. Market. That’s where the majority of the old RuneQuest players we wish to reengage are interested in starting. They know of Pavis and Prax and would be interested in playing new adventures in that area with the new RuneQuest rules. Just as the HeroQuest relaunch needed to start with Sartar, the RuneQuest relaunch needs to start with the River of Cradles. Moreover, Pavis and Prax is an easier entry point, enabling a wide variety of player characters and nonhumans in an area chock full of strange ruins, ancient God Time remnants, and so on.

2. Speed of Publication. We can get new material set in Pavis and Prax out in a relatively short period of time after the AiG is out. The cults that have appeared in Sartar and the Pavis book can be modelled for the RuneQuest 6 rules, and we can easily work out mechanistically how they all fit together – something that needs to be done for a RuneQuest publication (or else you end up with things that really don’t fit together). Ralios or Teshnos would require that Jeff gets far more directly involved, be far more likely to veto things, and would chain the RuneQuest publication schedule behind whatever Glorantha projects Moon Design is currently working on.

3. Writers. MOB is interested in writing new Sun County and Borderlands material; Ralios not so much. MOB is a great writer, and have someone of his calibre enthused about RQ and Glorantha after such a long hiatus is too good an opportunity to miss.

In fact, at Eternal Con this year, during the ‘Future of…’ seminar jointly held between Moon and Design Mechanism, we had a sort of fun vox-pop on which books to produce next. For RQ, the winner in this small popularity poll was ‘Sun County’. It wasn’t, in itself, meant to be an exhaustive poll of the entire Glorantha fanbase, but it was an interesting exercise.

Ever since Pete and I announced we’d be producing RQ, we’ve watched hundreds of comments, speculations and arguments appear – here, on our own forums, RPGnet and RPGsite – about where the first campaign book should be set. Prax and Sun County have appeared as favourites time and time again. For many people [who don’t post here but are big fans of Glorantha regardless] Glorantha IS Prax. Yes, it would be great to detail Ralios, Teshnos, Kralorela or somewhere else – but as publishers as well as creatives, we have to consider the effort, logistics, broad market and the returns.

So there you have it. Sorry if some of you seem disappointed, but I can assure you that ‘Sun County II’ won’t be a simple rehash of what went before. MOB is keen to update, expand, re-invent and create brand new material for the region: one that is synonymous with the RQ Renaissance of the 90s and the RQ Renaissance we’re experiencing now. If these next few Glorantha books are successful, it helps us create more diverse content in the next few years. But our strategy has to be a careful one or, simply put, it runs a risk of failing.

[Mark Beresford]

Personally for me and the groups I know RQ (and indeed Glorantha) is all about Pavis, the Lunars, Prax and the Zola Fel. Contrary to some of the views given above I’m hoping that Moon Design and the Design Mechanism release updates so that the product line is complete and doesn’t require players and GMs to use material from different sources designed decades ago for other systems. Then again, the anal retentive in me wants to look at my bookshelf and see a comprehensive Pavis/Prax line produced by the current owners of the license. I’m not really interested in picking up a campaign in some remote part of Glorantha. What’s more, rather than put me off, that precise of events to come in the region has got me salivating for more not less. I think the opinions in the RPGnet forums bear me out that this is what the cast majority of players want.

[Mark Beresford]

My only issue is with the pace of release. With MD intention to step away from unplayable esoterica and concentrate on material for gaming it seems wildly remiss to promise a necessary Rubble book hot on the heels of Pavis only to leave us with that familiar forlorn feeling, waiting for a number of years…

[Martin Helsdon]

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Does he? It’s not in KoS, unless I’m mistaken. Have you a reference for that?

My mistake: History of the Heortling Peoples has Arkat destroying the Sun Dome temples. Arkat/Argrath: too close for comfort…

[Jonathan Geere]

A MOB expanded Borderlands taking us into the future sounds more fun, and less likely to cause the groan of “Another reprint!”.
But another area of Glorantha will have to be explored, once the Gods of Glorantha is out.

[Vaughan Cockell]

Just as an aside from the main discussion, and as I did this for someone on Basic Roleplaying Central, here is the list Jeff rattled off of Deities etc that are definitely going to be in the God’s book.

Aldrya, Mostal, Ernalda, Yelm, Malkion, Orlanth, Humakt, Kyger Litor, Zorak Zoran, Yelmalio, Unholy Trio, Storm Bull, The Other 7 Lightbringers, Hrestol, Nysalor, Arkat, Harmast, Modern Malkioni Schools of Sorcery, The Seven Mothers, The Red Goddess, Hwaran Dalthippa, Hon Eel, another 5-10 others.

The order definitely seems to tie in with the Mythic history of Glorantha, which ties with what Jeff said about the books prime purpose: to fully unpack and explore the Monomythic structure of Glorantha.

[Runeblogger]

And I guess The Design Mechanism will publish a parallel book with all those deities in terms of RuneQuest 6, right?

[Runeblogger]

A suggestion:
Once the Guide is out, Moon Design and The Design Mechanism could organize a competition: “Write a scenario or campaign in Glorantha” with prizes such as books and maybe seeing your scenario officially published. The finalists’ scenarios and campaigns could be bundled in a PDF free to download from this website.
I think this would be a great way to see all those ideas that the Guide can inspire in fans and also newcomers and could go to show the wonderful diversity that Glorantha can offer. What do you think? 😉

[Lawrence]

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Quote from Rungard on October 19, 2013, 13:07
And I guess The Design Mechanism will publish a parallel book with all those deities in terms of RuneQuest 6, right?

Not quite. Adventures in Glorantha will include the tools for you to make the conversions, but we won’t be publishing parallel books that reinvent the wheel.

[Jonathan Geere]

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Quote from Lawrence Whitaker on October 19, 2013, 14:04

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Quote from Rungard on October 19, 2013, 13:07
And I guess The Design Mechanism will publish a parallel book with all those deities in terms of RuneQuest 6, right?

Not quite. Adventures in Glorantha will include the tools for you to make the conversions, but we won’t be publishing parallel books that reinvent the wheel.

Not in AIG, but RuneQuest stats, cults and adaptation for Moon Designs’ first three books would be cool IMHO. Crowdsourcing this will help define the level of interest and economic value.

Similarly a RQ book, I hate to say it by like Avalon Hill’s Gods of Glorantha, might complement Moon Designs’ future Gods of Glorantha version by bestowing ‘RQ crunchiness’.

Plus whatever main dishes the Design Mechanism serves up, of course.

[Clayton Trueman]

Pavis/Prax/The Wastes is, in my opinion, the optimum setting for a wide range of adventuring groups ranging from native Praxians through Satarite exiles and Lunar groups to rarer groups such as Kralori or Teshnos based parties. Cosmopolitan and geographically suitable. The Tunnelled Hills/Plateau of Statues region is a favourite of my group. It allows for the full range of Theist, Animist, Sorcerous and Mystic archetypes that enables new and established players to take on the roles that most interest them. I am sure once we have the GtG we will see adventures branching out into the less familiar regions of Glorantha that will satisfy everyone’s wanderlust lol.

[Runeblogger]

OK, and what do you think about the idea of making a big “Gloranthan Scenarios Contest” once the GtG is out?

[Author]

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