Interpreting Shadow World using Originalism.

With Terry’s unfortunate passing we are left with 2 basic dilemmas: understanding Terry’s thoughts and intents with material he had written and published, and guidance, ideas and rules for any new material that might be published. We will never have any new “Ask Andraax” articles or threads where Terry can answer player and SW user questions, clarify his material or adjudicate any conflicts in the material. So how can we move forward with “WWTS”? Obviously we can rely on what has been written: forum posts, interviews, comments and of course all of his original Shadow World material. But how should we utilize these resources?

One guideline that we can refer to is the concept of Orginialism. This is a term used in American law that guides the view of legal and constitutional interpretation using the context of the founding authors when they wrote it. The same rough idea can be used when viewing the written works of Terry as it relates to Shadow World. Terry was pretty clear about some of his greatest influences: anime, Star Trek, Dune, art, architecture and his experiences travelling overseas (Italy specifically). There is also the thought line that runs simultaneously through the development of the Loremaster series and the early MERP modules. His SW books, which could vary in tonality, was still a consistent work product. Each new book built upon the last without significant retcons needed. This is not simply about “Canon”, but about applying Terry’s ethos, influences and aesthetic style when reviewing new work.

This is a subject I’m going to write more about in lieu of possible new SW material, adaption of RMU for SW and even to influence the thought process around Shadow World development. To be clear, SW Originialism only relies on Canon material for guidance and interpretation. This is not to say that SW adjacent material: Sea Law, Races & Cultures, or even non Terry SW modules are useless. Most are solid products, useable in play and can add to the SW body of work. But that material wasn’t imagined, inspired or specifically included by Terry even if he had some level of approval or editorial control.

While there will be different opinions, styles of play and inclinations among SW users, I certainly think that volume of books that Terry wrote over the years provides enough material to make informed decisions about new material.

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