I got no takers for my 3 minis scenarios using Roderick Robertson's Warband rules. Then again, I was up against Ottawa's Red Shirts who had done a 1/32 scale version of a sci-fi/gaming convention being overrun by mechs, and featuring Princess Amydala mugging Punisher for a signed autograph of his comic. No wonder I got no-one.
My three role-play scenarios went MUCH better. The first was Saturday Morning, where I ran "Meet the Neighbours" for 5 Gloranthan newbies. I used cards to facilitate the "create as you go" method of hero creation. Those cards will be posted to the files. Character creation went by in a flash. We had a sexy Orlanthi (with an original magic item called the "Codpiece of Charisma"), a Scout with too much Lanbril magic for his own good, and a very cowardly stickpicker devotee of Chalana Arroy. "Thrax" also took common magic from "Flower Maiden's Secrets," and his talents included "Sing Happy Song in Face of Scary Monster" and "Make fun of Dum-Dum." It was fun yet violent Heortling hijinx. However, friends were made with the Black Oaks.
Saturday evening I only got I player for my "To Everything There is a Season" scenario. I had no preparation other than a relationship map and a simple playing board that functioned as a low-tech version of King of Dragon Pass. The player had to allocate magical resources and deal with crises as they emerged. If no crises emerged, I turned to the relationship map and generated an intra-clan crisis. Usually it was not needed, because the player rolled for crises very often. He did negotiate his clan through two very nasty years, using the medium of a Heortling Lawspeaker. His clan was dealing with the rise of some wealthy Issaries-affiliated bloodlines who were jostling with the warriors and the cottars. Turns out that the head of the trading faction had acquired the selfrock teaching from the nearby "crazy old lady who worships the stones," discovered in the first session of the day. Trouble is, he took some sorcerous "Guilty Magic" (my Heortling version of the Grazerss sinful Common Magic) and pumped it up by sacrificing some children to Krarasht. This detail was borrowed from Barbarian adventures. There was some fine role playing as well as some clever strategizing.
The Sunday afternoon session was a hoot. Well, a grotesque, horrifying, and violent hoot, but a hoot nonetheless. I had 4 newbies who were left without a game once the D & D sessions filled up. I ran them through a modified version of the Orane's Spindle scenario. There was plenty of Mahome-day whackiness as 2 of my players ended up becoming the King and Queen of the festival, an honor that helped them deal with the Clan's conservative chief after the Draugur attacked. I compressed a lot of action into the game, including the festival games, an extended contest debate, and brief hero quest. Their minds boggled when I suggested that they simulate the results of a journey through Black Oak territory and into the Upland Marsh with I simple role. I negelected to give them a chance to recruit duck allies before they faced undead members of their own clan, so I had to bring in a host of feathered slingers arriving at the last moment to save their bacon. The twin barbarian brothers got the hang of heroquesting right away. A redsmith's magic hammer helped get a corrupt poison tree ignited. I had to bend the rules to let a young player create a D & D -style spellslinger. I just gave her the selfrock teaching and some powerful talismans to work her magic. she did a great job as the team-supporting magic user. Plus her bird companion allowed her to distract the nasty undead who were making mincemeat of her clan mates.
3 very fun sessions. Not very profound, but very found. The relationship mechanics and the importance of community co-ordinated the groups' energy and focus quite well.
The create as you go method works like a charm -- if you have done some prep beforehand. I offer my Religion, profession, and Common Magic cards as helpful aids to this process. They are, however, really limited.
I have waited 25 years for this game and this kind of gaming experience.
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