female characters & Blood Over Gold

From: bryan_thx <bethexton_at__QGXvhXPLRSNWYsNNlnBecF3t5T853BTEe9LGTqbPQI4F4noF9qx4Ge-FGMiizHn0v>
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:15:35 -0000

I agree with the above, but I'll note that there can be a different play mode, where it is more about desperate times and 'normal' people having to do extraordinary things. The hero wars are probably less about cattle raiding or going off to hunt treasure in snake pipe hollow, and more about doing whatever it takes to keep your people alive and true to their traditiosn. Which does open up opportunities for lots of non-traditional characters to have exciting times. IF you are interested in telling those kinds of stories.

I think that HQ is better at telling that kind of story than most game systems, because of the importance of relationships and community support, and the nature of a lot of the magic (for my money Orlanth AllFather has the most potentially potent affinity in all of the Storm Tribe: "Making" But some of the Ernalda affinities are also very interesting when dealing with a community). It might be more of a stretch in RQ.

>
> " It's generally assumed that women, as a whole, don't prefer
hack-and-slash. ....... happy when necessary to inflict heavy damage with a flail, and crow over a critical hit to the head. It's just that doing that as a first resort is boring. "

Just by the way, I rather agree with you.

" By the way, good for you for playing female characters. None of the group with whom I've played ever have. "

Probably about a third of the characters I play are female....it is simply that sometimes that is the story that grabs me during character creation. Often I get there by starting with an idea of a more stereotypical character, then realising "Hey, the female version of this really makes for an interesting take on all these traditions. The Valinding outlaw would be different to play....but his daughter, brought up to scorn the settled folk yet maybe also envying them, would be even more interesting."
>
> " As for the feminist viewpoint, naah, I don't really mean that.
 A little more effort to design interesting roles for female characters, though, would be encouraging. Preferably not just as exceptions to the rule, e.g. Light Lady Vega of Sun Dome County in Prax. For instance, 'Blood over Gold' has been released lately, and received very good reviews. The review that I read implies that the sons of House Caroman are the potential heirs. Are there any women in commanding roles? Would female PCs be effective in this campaign? I don't know - could Jeff fill us in? "

I can probably answer this reasonably well. First of all, female characters should do just fine. The adventures are pretty open in how you deal with them--very deliberately. How you solve things will affect the House, so it was a design intent on Jeff's part to allow various ways to solve things.

Note that the Trader Princes didn't win their position by military might, but by negotiation and cleverness. House Caroman has its military arm, but the default mode of the campaign is that the characters are hired as a group of trouble shooters to deal with situations for which the existing branches of the house are not well suited. Hence, it is not about crushing the chaos creatures or the like.

Finally, I don't think I'm giving too much away if I say that the Prince has three children, two sons who are for different reasons not entirely desirable as heirs, and a daughter who probably would be, if the Trader Prince tradition allowed females to rule a house. Blood Over Gold does not say who succeeds, it leaves it open to be decided in game. And there is no obvious right answer. Deal with one son, make a figure head out of one son, buck tradition and make people accept the daughter, somehow keep the old prince alive, stage a coup and take over themselves, help someone else stage a coup, marry one of the children and rule through them, sell the place out to the highest bidder, just sit back and wait for things to work themselves out, take the place over in the name of some other power altogether.....its pretty wide open. At least by my interpretation of it.

Speaking of which, I should see if any of the local stores have BOG in stock, I only have the pdf version so far, would love to hold it in my hands!

--Bryan            

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