On 4/1/07, Greg Stafford <Greg_at_E36FEPBVCWdVwtbP_glvn8MPEmjDaHyLE0ESWfyeVRlafr8KeB15XEepPnFjaK5Um_OP_C_RLr0.yahoo.invalid> wrote:
> I played a game of HeroQuest when I was at StellarCon in North
> Carolina a couple of weeks ago.
I was a player in this game (merchant), and just want to add that a
good time was had by one and all. Of the seven players, only two of us
had ever played HQ before. Only three of us had even heard of
Glorantha! Never-the-less, the players all seemed committed to their
roles, excited by the adventure, and pleased with the setting.
There are a couple of things that I took away from the experience and
hope to apply some time soon:
- Greg and the players invented the whole scenario from scratch. Greg
really did little more than ask a long series of questions, like "Are
you from the city or country?" or "are you nobles, townsmen, or
peasants?" As the players answered the questions, the setting was
chosen, the player characters developed, and the adventure hook
created. The players were therefore highly invested in the whole
experience. The character creation method was "as you go", which fit
this style of play like a glove. I was surprised and delighted by the
results.
- Greg played fast and loose with the setting. The YGWV principle was
in full display. The Dara Happa of our game was bigger, brighter, and
more fantastic than the official printed stuff. I figure that Greg did
some of this with the newbie players in mind, but I loved it. It gave
the whole thing a wondrous fairly tale feel. Greg also didn't give out
any Gloranthan info that was not central to the story. Most players
didn't even know the name of their god! Only if a player asked
directly about something (thus showing interest) did Greg give setting
details. Otherwise things were painted with pretty broad strokes. This
had the effect of keeping the players interested but not overwhelmed.
I was surprised and delighted by the results.
~Kevin McD