Re:Old comments are like fine cheese

From: Kennjewlz_at_aol.com
Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 23:28:44 EST


 Hey gang,
   First'll be some comments(be forewarned-Rulesy stuff may be encountered);followed up by some more comments as well,I'd wager...

   Starting off, from way back in #293: Peter Metcalfe was discussing Sylphs- -transport over very long distances w/Chris Bell and expressed his opinion that:

"the average bound time is something on the order of 15 minutes.Scarcely
enough time to fly to the 4500 km to pamaltela and back (which is at least 150 hrs flying time* nonstop and requires something like an extension 9).*calculated on the basis that the sylph is travelling at max speed of 500 metres a minute all the time. Which is what careful exegesis of Monster Collesium suggests a CON-less creature may do."

   Now to me,the trouble with this is the fact that,being creatures prettymuch  made of Air& Wind,the Elementals' move of 10/SR is way too slow.Even if you allow it to move _at_ 20/SR by really applying itself(at the cost of 2 Fatigue pts/round;a characteristic which it doesn't have anyway),it is still just too damned slow.

   To give the Sylph a more "believable" RW speed (more akin to how fast the wind moves),I first off had to go to the Speed Comparisons table in the Coliseum Book(pg22) and work out some values well beyond those listed( I finally tired out at 167-whew!) Then I did a little research(verry little,really);read up on(or maybe it was something on the Weather Channel) that high-wind producer,the Tornado.

   According to the info ,a tornado usually covers ground at around 50-60km/h(move 17-20/SR-a speed still possible thru the doubling of the standard Slyph's move through exertion),but can reach speeds as high as 95-105km/h(move 31-35/SR).The winds produced by/in the funnel itself can reach(now get this) up to 500km/h(move 167m/SR).

   In another case,a Tornado produced winds strong enough to pick up a tractor-trailer(SIZ 68) and hurl it 100m(using the throwing rules,a STR of 157 allows this little feat at a 95% chance of success)Now that's a strong wind!

   In the realm of non-Tornado winds,about 3 weeks back an event was in The News where these super-high winds(not related to a storm,I think) really tore up someplace (in the Pacific Rim,maybe? Serves me right for walking in on the end of the report).Anyhow,these winds were "the highest ever recorded on land"(note:this was a direct quote) ,and they were in excess of 200mph(something like 108+m/SR)!Whooosh!

   To give the Sylph a quicker move, I'm thinking it should have a rate equal to it's POW;simular to that of the Assorted Spirits(RQ3,pg 221-223 ).Or maybe it should have a speed equal to it's STR,which,IMO would be better.

   Instead of 2FTG pts/round for doubled movement, 1HP/round wouldn't be excessive(possibly even 2HP/round in an extreme case) ; or MPs could be used instead(certianly less lethal for the Sylph,yet still really wearing it out).

   As for the Extension ,the increased move makes for a shorter trip; in turn probably lowering the pts used in that spell.

   309: Peter Metcalfe,commenting on Dwarfs: What exactly is a "Dunish Hunterseeker"  anyhow?Sounds considerably high-tech to me(And I thought the Rifled Musket from DW24 was high-tech!)Any stats? :)

   315: Daren Clark(and others later on) re a Familiar turning back into what- -once-was after its Master has BTF(bought-the-farm).This is certianly one bit of game mechanics I consigned to the flames right after reading it .The Familiar aught to be able to attach itself to someone else if it wants.Hell,folks should be able to inherit them;it feels right to me,and I'm sure it occurs in numerous fantasy novels(though I cant recall having read any :) )-an easy plot hook!

   As for your mention of the Familiar trying to free its former-Master's head from yicky spiritual slavery...Really neat!A great plot hook there! Grim & tragic.A cool quest that the headless's comrades couldn't help but attempt to resolve.

   330: Loren Miller re Carmania. Mosquitomen really paint a creepy new picture:

"They may or may not fly. But they have human bodies and mosquito heads,
they swarm, and they suck blood".
- - Loren,you've just managed to re-introduced(after giving it something of a weirder spin) the dreaded Stirge!!!Eeeek!

   BTW,really enjoyed the description of life in Carmania-the analogy to frozen Mother Russia was great!

   334: Joerg Baumgartner re big-ol-catfish.While reading "The Shaman's Apprentice"(which is an excellent book about an ethnobotanist's adventures living in the Amazon with The Headhunters.It's filled with notes on all sorts of cultural weirdness and the flora n fauna of the area.An oversized Penguin paperback,and most certianly overpriced(as are all Penguins,but you've gotta pay thru the nose for that delightful esoterica)..Anyway,in the Amazon,there's a catfish thats the size of a car,which weighs (now get this) a half ton! I sure wouldn't want to fall overboard around this Lord of the Bottom-feeders.

   335: Dave Black re your penguins.
  "Of course if there are already things that have been determined to exist in that area of Glorantha I may have to tailor or abandon the whole idea and thus the posting to the group at large".  

   Dave,dont let yourself be cheated out of what you like in YOUR game just because of some decree from On-High(or On-the-Side,or wherever).

   The Penguins are interesting,and more importantly,full of MGF.    If there's room enough in Glorantha for Ducks,by all means,why not Penguins?(just don't let 'em be little and precoscious like that completely demonic cartoon character Chilly Willy ).

   At one point in my old campaign I had quite a few funny animals lurking about;ducks,badgers,cats,crows,pigs-even those cool lizards from Bode's Cheech Wizard comics.But I had trouble meshing the funny with the real animals;or the humans for that matter,so they eventually went the way of the DoDo(as did my whole campaign).

   355 (and beyond): Various folks have been talking about actually being able to play in the Hero Wars without upsetting the Most-Holy of Timelines or stepping on the toes of the Bonafide Heroes.

    I think the easiest way to put this whole thing in the proper perspective is to use the most obvious of RW parallels,The WWII Movie!...From the psuedoreality /documentary-styled ones(like "The Longest Day","The Battle of the Bulge",or "Patton" ), to the strictly comicbook-type,surreal, actionadventures  (like "The Dirty Dozen", "The Fighting Seebees","Kelly's Heroes",or "Patton"(Okay,so I used "Patton" on both examples). As long as the War ends with the 3rdReich losing and Hitler in flames,it seems that ANYTHING else should be fair game.So what does it matter if a different Hero (or the Characters themselves,for that matter ) leads the troops at some decisive battle,or a couple of the big Heroes/Generals end up dying off ?( now if you want Ike to be around to become President after the War,he'll of course,have to NOT be killed during it)...

   Fortunes of War and all that...
   So relax,and be Fian-valorous in your wounding-exploits!

   For a while now I've been wondering about Dinosaurs in Glorantha.    There aren't any listed in RQII besides the Bolo Lizard( which isn't exactly a dino,as they're described as "dinosaur-like"; though stat-wise very simular to the Deinonychus ).

   In RQ3 Creature Book we have the Allosaurus(something of a Trex-light), Behemoth (is it even a dinosaur?I thought it was a gigantic mammal), Brontosaur,and the Plesiosaur.

   In DrasticPrax there is the Deinonychus (verymuch like the now well-known  Velocaraptor).

    With the slim pickins as far as Dinos are concerned,it makes me wonder why two of the most-often-seen-in-PopCulture Dinos;the Tyrannosaurus rex and the Triceratops are apparently nowhere to be found.Seems like quite a gaff to me...

   There's an ad on the back of DW8(or 10 maybe?.I'd have to dig around to find out for certian) hustling the old Gateway Beastiary, with something like a dozen Dinos within.And there's info on the back of the ES box which,I think,alludes to Dino information being contained within.

   I'm assuming that there are Trikes in Glorantha as one of the nomad tribes.Why,in KOS(pg 18) Argath's mom,the TrikeQueen (hmmm,that odd abbreviation brings to mind imagery of a badass biker chick) is supposed to have been in charge of a herd of the darned things .So are there any currently living in Glorantha,and if so,where are they, and where are their stats?If someone with access to these OOP sources could fill me in,I'd be most appreciative.

   Thanks in advance.
   See ya around the campus!
   Ken-
   1020pm,1-30-98      


End of The Glorantha Digest V5 #382


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