Trail of Cthulhu 2e and Broken Empires

I try not to back funding projects (on Kickstarter and the like) that often these days. This is because I backed a few in recent years that I now kind of regret (e.g., Shadowdark, Dolmenwood, Old School Essentials, a bestiary from Goodman Games, and a couple of other things, the details of which I've already largely forgotten).  As they trickle in (many of my recent "regrets" still linger in the ether somewhere) I find myself sighing and -- after briefly flipping through them -- putting the print products on my shelf and the PDFs into my ever-expanding dropbox of RPGs. 

To be clear, the products themselves might be fine or even quite good. For instance, Shadowdark certainly has some interesting mechanics, some of which I'm on the fence about (but which, I concede, very well may be vindicated in practice). But the cold hard truth of the matter is that I just don't see using this game that much (if at all) in the near future, as well as the other RPG products that have trickled in over the past few years (e.g., OSE). 

Having said all that, there are two funding projects that I have decided to back, albeit at a reasonably scaled back level (for me). 

The first is the second edition of Trail of Cthulhu. Now, I already have a surfeit of Cthulhu Mythos material (including ToC, but mostly Call of Cthulhu books, some 7th edition but mainly material for earlier editions). However, I've played a couple of ToC scenarios and thought quite highly of them. Indeed, one was probably the best "one shot" horror scenario I've ever gone through. So I will be backing the current Trail of Cthulhu 2e funding campaign because of its innovative treatment of the setting and the high quality of the scenarios. I also love the ToC art. (Plus, I had a distinctly unpleasant "experience" with some of the "new Chaosium" folk around 2016-2017 -- no one involved with 7e CoC but rather the Moon Design folks -- which has put me off their products ever since. Hence, I'm happy to go elsewhere for new Cthulhu material.) 

If you're curious about Trail of Cthulhu, check out the 2e Quickstart.

The other project that I'm backing is the Broken Empires FRPG (albeit, again, at a lower level than I have backed projects in the past). I'm curious about the system, as Mythras is one of its main influences, and it aims to be a "sim-lite" game. This means, roughly, that the game falls within the "simulationist" camp -- that is, it is a game in the mold of Mythras, RuneQuest, Harnmaster, Rolemaster, Middle-earth Roleplaying, Against the Darkmaster, and the like. These kinds of games (which generally belong to the "d100" BRP and RM "families") vividly and precisely describe, via their mechanics, what happens in the game world, with hit locations (in Mythras and related systems) or critical hits (in Rolemaster, MERP, VsD, etc.), different levels of success for skill rolls, and so forth. My tastes, I've (re)discovered in recent years, definitely lie in the simulationist region of RPGs. But Broken Empires also claims to be "lite" by achieving a high degree of "simulation" with fewer mechanics, dice rolls, and calculations. I'm frankly a little sceptical about the latter claim, but the game overall looks interesting enough for me to want to include it in my collection. I'm especially intrigued by the "free form" magic system (roughly, there are no "spells," but instead spell-casters describe what effects they are trying to realize, and they draw upon their relevant skills in order to do so).  

These are somewhat niche RPG interests, I suppose, but I thought that I would mention these projects in case others might be interested in them.

The Tome of Worldbuilding from Mythmere Games

I thought I’d mention that Mythmere Games is running another kickstarter. This one is for a volume entitled The Tome of Worldbuilding. The title pretty much sums up what the book is about: “The Tome of World Building is written by ENNIE-award winning author Matt Finch, author of the critically-acclaimed Tome of Adventure Design. Using the Tome of World Building, you can create fantasy worlds quickly and fill them out with a wealth of detail from the random-generation tables in this book.”

While Mythmere Games is known primarily for its Swords & Wizardry retro-clone – my favourite game of the “Old School Renaissance” and the one that motivated me to start this blog over fifteen years ago – The Tome of Worldbuilding is system-neutral. This also is the case for the other book that is part of this kickstarter, The Nomicon, which provides “new tables for name generation.”

More information about the kickstarter is available here.

The art samples look really great. I’m especially impressed by the pictures by Kennon James, which evoke the style of the late great Dave Trampier, while still being original.

Mythmere Games does great work. Check it out!

Sale on issues 1-14 of Fight On!

As recently announced here, the Old School Renaissance fanzine Fight On! has returned to publication after a long sabbatical.

If you are missing PDF versions of the first run, issues 1-14, they currently are available in a bundle at Drivethru RPG for 50 percent off (34.99 USD). The sale will run until this Saturday (12 October 2024).

It’s great to have Fight On! back with us … and fighting on! 

The Main Problem with the Rings of Power series

So, the final episode was a mixed bag like the rest of the series. 

• The “Wizard” storyline ended pretty much as I expected (disappointing, lazy, and predictable). The story of the Istari belongs to the Third Age. There is no narrative reason for the writers to cram them into the Second Age (especially given that they already have too many other storylines to properly unfold). (But it looks like the proto-hobbits won't be around for next season? Or is that too much to hope?) 
• The Durin III conclusion made no sense. (He single-handedly managed to bury the balrog with a swing of his axe? And since the dwarves now know that a balrog lies beneath Khazad-dûm, why would they later “dig too deeply” and release it in 1980 of the Third Age?)
• The Númenor storyline feels forced and under-explained. (You would have no idea of the central role that the “fear of mortality” vs “faith” plays in the conflict between the “Kings’ Men” and “the Faithful.”) 
• The Adar story was a surprise and I found it moving. 
• A solid ending for Celebrimbor. (I like how he manipulated Sauron into killing him, thereby ending his torment.)
• Sauron/Annatar is a joy to watch whenever he's on the screen (the actor Charlie Vickers really captures the essence of the character). 
• And … how the hell is Gil-Galad the High King of the Elves? He’s portrayed as an indecisive doofus in the series.

Taking a step back and considering the series overall (both seasons), the MAIN PROBLEM with it is that it comes across as something written by people who are only familiar with the Peter Jackson films but have been given some notes and lines to use from the novels. It’s as if a group of people thought about what a cool “prequel” to the movies would involve, and, almost as an afterthought, were given a sheet with a list of things from the Second Age to mention as well. 

Sadly, The Rings of Power is not what a series that aimed to tell a story about some key events of the Second Age – as described by J.R.R. Tolkien – would look like. It is no wonder that people who actually like the writings of Tolkien find it so disappointing.

Finally, I assure you that this almost certainly will be my last post on this frustrating television series for some time (at least until the third season is imminent).

Rings of Power Season 2 Thoughts

Season 2 of The Rings of Power is definitely better overall than season 1. But the series remains, on balance, disappointing.

Below are some quick thoughts on RoP season 2.

Positive:

• The sets in both seasons are great. Ost-in-Edhil, Númenor, and (especially) Khazad-dûm look amazing.
• Many of the actors are quite good and are well cast for the characters they represent (e.g., Elendil, Annatar, Celebrimbor, Durin IV, Elrond, Miriel, Ar-Pharazôn). 
• I like the new character Adar and the nuance that he brings to the condition of orcs in Middle-earth (a topic with which Tolkien himself struggled throughout his life).
• The original character Arondir also is cool (and well-acted).
• The relationship and interactions between Celebrimbor and Annatar this season are quite compelling. Annatar’s “gaslighting” of Celebrimbor is well done overall, I think. (But I’m annoyed that the relationship unfolds over a period of months instead of decades.)
• The portrayal of Sauron (Annatar) this season has been excellent. 

Negative:

• I’m still really annoyed by the grossly compressed timeline. Smashing together events from the middle of the Second Age – the forging of the rings and the war of Sauron and the Elves – with events near the end of the Second Age – the fall of Númenor – irritates me to no end. 1700 years reduced to … 170 days?
• Not only does the compressed timeline make a mess of the history of Middle-earth, it creates too many storylines, none of which are adequately developed. E.g., Why is Númenor split between the Faithful and the King’s Men? Watching the show, you’d have no idea (aside from the prospect of “elves stealing jobs”!?!). 
• The “Wizard and proto-hobbits” storyline is terrible and pointless. It doesn’t even have a minimal connection to anything that Tolkien wrote. It’s an attempt by the writers to ram into the series a “Gandalf and the Hobbits” origin story. There already are too many storylines in the show and it definitely does not need this one. (The actor who plays the Wizard is quite good, though.)
• The scripts, especially dialogues, are often quite bad (albeit slightly improved from last season).
• Middle-earth feels too “small” in the series. Characters pop around the vast land (from Lindon to Ost-in-Edhil to Khazad-dûm, or from Pelargir to Ost-in-Edhil) far too quickly. (A great virtue of the original Peter Jackson trilogy was that it conveyed a real sense of the enormity of Middle-earth, the far distances and wildlands of the world.)
• Related to the previous point, the pacing always feels off, too rushed. 

Overall, I stuck with the second season primarily because of the Annatar-Celebrimbor storyline. While not perfect, I found it compelling enough to want to keep following it (in part because the actors are excellent). I also think that Elendil is a great character, but the Númenor storyline has been underdeveloped this season (and wastes time with silly tangents like the “sea worm” trial). I’ll reserve final judgement until after the final episode (this week), but so far, I’d give the second season a 6.5/10.