True, Of course sometimes Chaosium/Issaries/Reaching Moon Megacorp/Tradetalk/Other Fanzines/Forum Posters do things the way I wouldn't have either, so I can hardly complain about that (especially as I don't write more than the occasional forum post myself...)
> Enough moaning about the picture, my main gripe with the cover is
> the fact that it curls up into a tube. I'm not sure what process
> isn't working when these books are made but this is the most
> annoying thing about this book.
>
I've not noticed a problem since they stopped printing their own hardbacks where the covers always curved away from the pages. Maybe a problem with the environment, either in Oz, or in transit?
> For those Glorantha completists who have most supplements, con
> books, box sets, fanzines etc the book feels for the most part
> like a compilation of old articles, which is not necesarily a bad > thing, has been done before and besides, what other option is
> there when the facts of Fronela need to remain essentially the
> same.
It's certainly a lot better than a whole load of new information that does not agree with what we (thought we) already knew. I (still) get all the bits of Western Genertala confused, so didn't notice it so much here, but I liked the way with things like the Dwarf or Dragon Newt books that they managed to confirm a lot of things that were part of "GAG" even if they weren't canon, yet still include enough new stuff, or added enough "spin" that the book still felt like a worthwhile addition to Glorantha.
> The index is too small to be of much use.
Indexes and Maps are two areas that badly let the Mongoose products down. I'd prefer a better Layout artist too. Frequently information that would logically fit on a double page spread is forced onto a third page by a barely related piece of artwork that could have been moved to the following page to accommodate this.
>The table on page 63 is organised oddly, it should have either been
>grouped by allegiance or by Tribe, not in alphabetical name order.
Yes, I thought that too. Again I put this down to poor layout
> I'm possibly being a bit harsh and giving this book a bad rap.
In some ways the complaints are a bit petty and nit-picky, which in itself suggests the book does not contain any really serious issues
> The brief scenario at the end of the book is OK, but feels like it > is an edited down version of something longer. [...] I think
> perhaps the problem with this product is not that it doesn't do
> what it was written to do but that the whole premise of the book
> could have been different. There seems to be a lot of skimming of
> the surface where a smaller more focused adventure would have
> actually revealed more about Fronela in a show not tell sort of
> way.
I'm a big fan of getting to know about Glorantha in a "show not tell" way. A scenario is worth several pages of sourcebook!
> My guess is that there was too much material needed to just cover > the basic background in 102 pages and keep it coherent.
This is where the "Dara Happa Stirs" approach is a benefit. The basic background is what is needed to support the scenario. It provides some sort of focus to the material.
> It is a reasonable product, that is not without faults. I'm glad I
> bought it.
>
I'd say that is a fair summary. Some of the MRQ Gloranthan sourcebooks are better than others, and none are perfect, but I'm glad they are being published.
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