At certain points I will make characterizations about opinions or beliefs of 'role-players', 'retailers', 'list members', 'old style RQ guys' or other groups in single quotes. You should understand that these characterizations are beliefs of mine, which may or may not be shared by any particular member of these groups.
The man is straw, and is available for inspection by all.
Topic # 1 - Hero Wars is the best method by which Glorantha may be introduced to a new generation of gamers.
Hero Wars is certainly better at this than Runequest, which is dead, commercially. When I ran the Troubled Waters campaign, all of my players assumed, after an cursory examination of RQ mechanics, that RQ was a monster combat RPG, like Rolemaster. They wondered why I was wasting my time, and theirs. And this was just a year or so after Vampire. Nowadays even more people will have this opinion, I am afraid.
Point A - most 'gamers' familiar with the current scene think RQ passe at best, and something to avoid at worst.
Over the last couple of years I had to the opportunity to ask retailers about RQ and Glorantha. For the vast majority of 'retailers', the two are synonymous. They invariably say (if they have been around this long, which most have not), "Oh, yeah. Runequest. Used to sell fairly well. Until Avalon Hill got it. Then sales went into the toilet."
Point B - Most 'retailers' believe (if they know at all) that RQ and Glorantha are the same thing; And they believe that RQ does not sell.
Conclusion: was Hero Wars the right way to go, from a Biz standpoint? The only conclusion that can be reached is that it does not matter what system is used, _as long as it is not RQ_.
Topic # 2 Hero Wars is better at Heroquest than RQ
This being the case (RQ not being a viable biz option), Greg Stafford was free to determine which system best fit his ideal: a set of mechanics that tries to represent Gloranthan reality, as a gaming construct. That this sort of decision was made without consulting us should surprise no one. After all, who owns the copyright?
I urge all to recall that RQ mechanics distort a proper understanding of Glorantha, whoever the GM and Players might be.
Let me be clear: that such campaigns are satisfying, challenging, and have revealed much about Glorantha in the past is undeniable.
But the rate of return for new discoveries had slowed considerably, for the simple reason that one cannot simulate a Heroquest or HQ level activities with the RQ language.
The point that no 'language' (read rules) may be adequate for Heroquest is well taken. But I can go to only one Glorantha-con a year, and I do want a set of table-top rules that models HQ-stuff as much as humanly possible.
Topic # 3 - Can Hero Wars sell?
Today's market for games cannot be easily characterized. What the hell, let's give it a try.
A - Games with few rules sell more than games than many rules. This can easily be demonstrated by looking at the sales figures for the last several years. The only one to buck this trend is Deadlands, which is still simpler that games in previous epochs. And it slavishly follows B, discussed below.
B - Games that sell well possess a steady stream of product, which is then funneled through distribution. In general, 'retailers' want games that are more like Card games in sales patterns. They want people to come through the door, and buy what's new in the line. They don't want product that hangs in the store for more than a month. "If it takes more than a week to sell, it's a failure." is a comment I have heard over and over...
One of the few benefits of Gloranthan material only coming out in fan form is the existence of developed material that already exists and the backlog of creative energy that a new line releases. There is a huge amount of material from fan, semi-pro and might-as-well-be-pro sources I would dearly love to see. There exists the potential for material to come out once a month, if sufficient resources exist to edit and send the material through production quickly enough.
(/unfounded rumor-mongering)
One suspects that the reason the TOTRM crew shut down operations is that
they and the Seattle Collective are the new sweatshops where Gloranthan
material will be cranked out in the future...
(\unfounded rumor-mongering)
C - The market today does respond to innovation.
It may be a surprise to some, but the vanguard of the new designers in the last several years are ex-Glorantha Geeks, to a great extent. Mark Rein-Hagen, Johnathan Tweet, Robin Laws (obviously) and others came into the market as individuals that were fascinated by the possibilities of Glorantha, and it seems that many of them were first opened up to the possibilities that gaming had through Glorantha.
The impact of this generation of designers is still reverberating. Roleplaying is different after Vampire, even if it is not better, as some had hoped.
With the exception of the noble failure of Everway, no one has attempted real innovation in fantasy RPGs (exception: L5R). TSR, despite recent stumbles, is still the big boy. So the market seems like it should be there. Glorantha and Hero Wars may be the Next Big Hit, the Vt:M of Fantasy RPGs.
Topic # 4 - Hero Wars Combat
Yeah, it could get boring quickly. That's just my personal assessment after two playtests, by the way. But combat is not why I liked RQ, Glorantha is the reason I liked RQ.
I was one of those who, when I acquired Cults of Prax (way back when), looked in the back, saw the Tribal table, and wondered, "Gee, I wish they had put more in about the tribes. All I know about now is the religious stuff..." I personally would have never considered running a campaign in Prax until the Prax stuff in TOTRM and Drastic: Prax came out.
When I run Hero Wars in the future, I will simply run fewer combats, and stage them really well, so they are memorable enough to overcome the blandness of HW combat. And I will have rules for adjudicating conflicts in a combat-style manner, so things will hopefully be as exciting as before.
Topic # 4 - Scenario books
It is axiom that good adventures are hard to write. RQ had better scenarios than _anybody_ in the industry, with the single exception of Call of Cthulhu. This was undeniably part of the appeal of the old line, one that I hope finds a place in the new line, and not just on a website.
This does not mean they will be like the old scenarios. The best scenario in the Borderlands pack was not the big dungeon crawl, but the Morokanth/Agimori conflict that the players were called upon to adjudicate.
It may be to keep up with the 'book-a-month' marketing strategy, books dedicated to scenarios may find a place. If they are as excellent as material by a certain MOB, I am certain that I would buy them.
Enough for now,
Doyle Wayne Ramos-Tavener
It is not reasonable to suppose that Aristotle knew the number of the Elect.
End of The Glorantha Digest V6 #563
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