There was a thread on the forums this week about what do you like most about Rolemaster, HARP, and MERP. One of the things that stood out was half the people liked the detail and ‘crunch’ of certain rules. Others valued the simplicity or lack of ‘crunch’ of certain rules.
It was not that there are crunchy people and non-crunchy people. There was not one dissenting voice over the simplification of spell casting in RMu.
One the other hand there were two camps on the topic of combat. For some the one weapon, one combat table was desirable, but married up with a generic critical table for all piercing or all slash wounds. HARP has the least crunchy combat with one single roll on a different table for each class of weapon but those weapons each get their own unique critical tables. Less dice rolling, less tables but more flavour. The middle ground is the RMFRP way of tables for a group of weapons, all the possible armour types but the traditional generic combat tables.
The many types of RM/HARP/MERP combat table
The take away regarding combat is that there are four systems in common use, they all give the same net result, the same numbers of hits taken and the same scale and severity of criticals and largely use the same language, #hits, and A-E (and beyond) criticals.
Any table-driven combat system cannot get away from that appearance of crunch, you will never be free of the book or a laptop/tablet if you use automated software for your combats.
A different sort of crunch was apparent in people’s preception of skills. I think of this as ‘mined crunch’. You can have a few broadly defined skills, or you can mine down into more specific skills and then mine further down into detailed specializations.
The simpler, broader defined skills, suggest a more traditional OSR style of play. If you want to say something diplomatic you just role play and say something diplomatic. An infinite array of skills leads down a path that leads to
Player: I want to say something to defuse the situation. GM: OK, roll your public speaking.
There are strengths and weaknesses to both styles of play. If you feel self-conscious playing in characters and making speeches in front of the group then just rolling the dice holds a lot of attractions.
The broad skill approach requires a stronger character concept to play correctly. If there is just one Athletic Games skill and your character comes from a seafaring nation then you are going to be adept at games from rowing to climbing rigging and possibly swinging from ropes. Put that character in the far north and although you have the applicable skill it does not mean you can ski like a pro. You have to role play your character concept. There is no reason not to take skiing instruction and then be able to use the character’s core strength and trained balance to add skiing to their repertoire, but that should develop through play.
All of that can be avoided by having a great many layers of skills, and crunch, which tightly define what a character can and cannot do, and then a layer of similar skills to say what they know that could cross over. It is either replacing role-playing your character concept with a less flexible but more structured approach.
Neither is right or wrong. What I struggle with is the latter method does become very slow at character creation, a great many similar but different professions and a great spectrum of skills that all take time to pick and record. That married up with a very dangerous combat system and high lethality.
I see this kind of crunch as a more personal choice. Some people want it, some people don’t. The net effect is the same, characters are designed first and foremost by the player’s character concept and then the skills are bought to map that concept to the game rules. You can never totally escape combat tables if you play RM, HARP or MERP but the level of skill, and even profession crunch is within your power.
I think the Rolemaster community will always be polarised by this desire for more detailed simulation vs. less detailed simplicity. The four corners all suffer the same polarisation, character creation, combat, magic and spells, and monsters. The two sides cannot be reconciled because how could you possibly think it is a good idea to take away your ability to handcraft every monster in every encounter if that is what you love doing? The same is true for every aspect.
This is also why RMu has taken a decade to get this far and is still just a distant dream. There is little unity in a community that all wants different things.
Before I get into my thoughts on the Bard, it’s probably important to look into the past. The rpg Bard profession was introduced in the 1st edition AD&D Players Handbook, wayyyy in the back on page 117 as optional material. What does Gary say regarding the bard:
As this character class subsumes the functions of two other classes, fighters and thieves, and tops them off with magical abilities, it is often not allowed by Dungeon Masters. Even though this presentation is greatly modified from the original bard character class, it is offered as supplemental to the system, and your DM will be the final arbiter as to the inclusion of bards in your campaign.
AD&D not only required the Bard to have fairly incredible stat scores to qualify, but they needed to attain at least 5th lvl fighter, than switch to thief, then attain at least 5th level and then start tutelage as a Druid!!! That’s a pretty steep climb for any character class. What was it about the Bard that required multi-classing and high attributes?
That wasn’t the final word on the Bard. New material for the Bard was presented in Dragon Magazine #56 of December 1981. Both the original Players Handbook and Dragon Magazine article are worth a read just to understand the origins and ideas around the Bard class. The Dragon article, in particular really delves into the western cultural history of bards.
Obviously, the RM Bard profession was included to match up with the AD&D rules, but where does a Bard really fit into a gaming group in Rolemaster? Like any semi-spell user, they are weak by nature of the balance between spell acquisition and martial skills. Song spells require them to perform at the cost of all other actions, and their lore and knowledge skills are only important if the game requires it–the RM “Attunement” skill takes over a lot of magical item analysis.
Several original RM professions seemed more geared towards being NPC’s than PC’s: Healers, Astrologers, Alchemists, Seers certainly, and Bards might be just a toss-up? So what might a player character Bard bring to the table?
A “Jack of All Trades” role for the group.
Knowledge/Lore.
Language Skills.
Social Skills.
AoE Spells. (with major limitations)
That’s a great list if you are playing AD&D that has strict profession requirements and limitations, but how does that work with Rolemaster?
Jack of All Trades. Rolemaster already allows any profession to access all available skills. You can be a “Jack of All Trades” with virtually any profession.
Knowledge/Lore. Meta-gaming aside, this will really be dependent on the GM and the game. Rolemaster has the Attunement skill and there are various spells to assess items so a specialist Bard might not be critical.
Language Skills. Language should be important but can often be a plot obstruction. However there are Channeling and Mentalism spells that allow for communication.
Social Skills. For many games, social interactions are just roleplayed. I think social skills can add depth to a game, but does a GM want to develop greetings, insults, eating graces and social norms for every culture, civilization or group the game meets? In social situations–which could be virtually every encounter that isn’t met with immediate violence, the Bard could be a lifesaver. Literally.
AoE spells. The one standard thread of Bard’s abilities is the power of music and song. This allows a Bard to cast “buffs” on the group and possibly neutralize adverse affects like “Fear”, “Loss of Morale”, “Sonic attacks” etc.
So, looking over this list, there are 2 items that stand out as Bard specific: Social skills and AoE spells. Do these two abilities justify the Bard profession? Does it only come down to a handful of constructed spell lists to make a Bard? If so, do normal skills and skill costs matter if virtually all of the Bard’s abilities are derived from their Base lists?
Putting aside the D&D versions of the Bard, what works of fiction depict Bards? My earliest idea of a Bard came from the Black Cauldron series: Fflewddur Fflam. Later, there were traces of “bardic” DNA in Tolkien: poems, epic stories, songs and even slight ditties were sprinkled throughout the story. Obviously, there was “Bard” in the Hobbit: a descendant from the men of might, who slew Smaug and became the lord of Dale. Of course, his name evoked an image of “Bard” but not necessarily “a Bard” profession. In more recent works, we have Kvothe, from the Kingkiller trilogy. Kvothe is a man of many talents, a “Jack of All Trades” who has spellbound people with the power of his music. But he is also a “Wind Mage”, “Alchemist” and “Martial Artist”. Is Kvothe a “Bard” drawing from fantasy inspirations, or simply drawing from the “Philosopher King” mythos? It’s apparent that in myth and literature, Bards are truly unique individuals; AD&D reinforces this principle with the stat requirements and lengthy development process. But every PC cannot be king or group leader by mere fact of their profession. How do Bards fit into a fantasy RPG group?
Whether you base it on Welsh, English, Western or Eastern lore, Bards can be defined by their titles: Minstrel, Troubadour, Jester, Actor, Diplomat, Tinkerer, Jongleur, Poet, Musician or even Balladeer. Some seem noble, others tricksters. Some are repositories of truth while others spread fantastical tales for fame or fortune. These wide ranging and varied definitions are no different than any other RM profession. But the single factor that defines a Bard over another class is the use of music and song. Otherwise, the tertiary skills of Bards are purely cultural and are driven by the fantasy world it occupies.
So where might that fit into Rolemaster? I’m going to revert to an earlier blog format I’ve used previously: ROLEMASTER PROFESSION REVIEW: TAKING ANOTHER LOOK AT THE SHAMAN. In this blog, we’ll be looking at a few variations of Bards that could work in Shadow World.
Bard Loremaster.
A Loremaster advising a young ruler.
Bard Type: Diplomat, Mentor, Tutor, Advisor, Historian
Tasks/Jobs/Roles: Bard Loremasters serve as advisors, observors, tutors and diplomats to governments, leaders, and rulers.
While a Loremaster is not an official RM Profession, they hold a quasi professional status in Terry’s world. They have Base Lists, organization etc but under RM rules still have to be proscribed a traditional RM class rather. (It would be easier just to create a quick skill cost list and designate the Loremaster as a SW specific profession!) When looking at the roles and skills of Loremasters: historians, mentors, advisors and teachers, the Bard class seems well suited for this job! Loremasters will often appear to be powerful NPC’s that can guide the players, but Loremasters have to be low level to start! Making your Bard PC a journeymen Loremaster is a great solution for the class. They can provide campaign guidance to the group, become a vector for new adventure paths, access information and help when needed and not necessary imbalance the game. A low level initiate in the Loremaster organization and being in an adventure group are not exclusive!
Tasks/Jobs/Roles: Cleric Bards serve as Masters of Ceremonies, lead Holiday and Festival events, entertain, spread cheer and goodwill and impartial but fair judges.
If you drop the mental models around classes and realms it’s easy to see that a Bard could easily be a “Cleric” of Kieron. Sure, you might need to change the spell Realm to Channeling, but so what! Kieron is the God of Festivals, and he would definitely want a Bard type to be his emissary on Kulthea. This really doesn’t change the nature of the Bard and probably makes more sense from a learning and institutional process.
Spell Lists: Bard Base “Controlling Songs”, Mentalist “Mind Merge” and “Mind Speech”, Druid Base “Natures Lore”
Tasks/Jobs/Roles: Keep hidden or lost knowledge alive. Search/find/protect bloodlines of past empires. Recover knowledge and artifacts of past eras.
There are 2 major empires that might have a “legacy organization”–a small group of survivors that retain the knowledge of a past era. If we focus only on Jaiman and Emer that would be the combined crown Kingdoms of Jaiman in the early part of the third Era and the Emerian Empire of the 2nd Era. Imagine a hidden group of loosely organized Bards. Who better to retain and disseminate the knowledge of these past empires and work to return the world to it’s old glory. Emerian Bards might be secretly fighting the new Orders that have been subverted while the Jaimani Bards work to re-unite the splintered realms.
Travelling Bard.
Bard Type: Jack of All Trades, Tinkerer, Minstrel, Troubador, Adventurer
Spell Lists: Bard Base, Mystic Base “Confusing Ways”, various Open and Closed up to 5th lvl. Minor Illusions.
Like a “Hedge Wizard” a Travelling Bard is more akin to a Tinkerer, an informally trained “Jack of All Trades”. These Bards wander and survive on their wits and skills. They have spells, but they are generally lower level and represent a broad hodge-podge of spell powers. These Bards still play instruments and perhaps sing, but not with a great deal of skill. Travelling Bards are great random NPC’s or can be a fun addition to the group by straddling the role of Thief, Negotiator and Comic Relief!
So that’s my thoughts on 4 types of Bards that can be great in Shadow World or Bard archetypes to be used in any setting. Really, there is a Bard for every occasion!!!
In response to Peter’s most recent discussion of the Bard, I offer this new Bard base spell list, Mockery. Although I designed Mockery for RMU, I believe you could use it for earlier editions. If you try to do that, I recommend changing any instances of the words ‘action point’ to a -25 modifier per point.
You should be able to find a Word file of the list in the Downloads>RMu section in the banner above. I have included both the original version and a new, less silly version for those of you who have no sense of humor 🙂 .
Why this new list? As I’ve noted recently on
the ICE forums, I feel that some of the RMU semis (Bard, Dabbler, and Ranger
especially) lack effective combat spells. This isn’t a problem unique to RMU:
this is a problem RMU has inherited from previous editions. These classes have
always had lots of utility spells, many of which are great; but my group is
quite combat oriented, and in this department, these classes have few options,
despite the fact that semis pay a lot of development points for their spells. I
hope then to address the paucity of combat options by creating my own lists.
So what does the RMU Bard, specifically, need? Having just pregenerated a Bard character for my upcoming Gen Con sessions, I feel I now have a bit better handle on the class, both its strengths and its weaknesses. One weakness is that it isn’t very easy to make a combat Bard. In my opinion, a combat Bard needs more quick, low-level combat spells: some instantaneous ones that are minor debuffs (similar to the useful, instant-speed buffs other semis like the Paladin get); and some non-instantaneous spells that impose major debuffs or exercise battlefield control.
Being an Essence semi-spellcaster, the Bard needs these sorts of spells even more than Channeling or Mentalism semis in my estimation because the Bard has to develop Transcendence, at a cost of 4/6, in order to wear any armor at all (Channeling casters can wear up to heavy leather without Transcendence, and Mentalists can wear any armor except helmets). My level 2 Bard couldn’t even put on soft leather without it interfering with his spells. This makes for a very squishy caster, especially at low levels. Thus, the Bard needs some good, low-level combat spells – ideally debuff and control-oriented to fit with the class concept – in order to protect himself and make himself less of a liability in combat.
Please note that the spells on this new ‘Mockery’ list are not ‘songs’ that follow the rules for Bardic Songs in Spell Law 10.1. The Bard has two lists (Controlling Songs and Inspiring Songs) that follow these rules for songs, but that means they can be slow and clunky to set up. The spells on the Mockery list, on the other hand, just follow the normal spellcasting rules. I see the Mockery list in particular as the Bard’s backup plan, allowing her more combat utility, especially in cases when the party is surprised by hostile creatures.
Another thing to note is that some spells on the Mockery list have what I believe is my own new mechanic: they allow modifications to their RR based on the ranks the Bard has in a particular skill. These modifications allow the Bard to use the ability she has developed in otherwise non-combat skills, such as Composition and Social Awareness, to enhance her spells, thus making these skills more useful in combat. This also makes for some interesting tactical choices. The Bard can for example choose between casting more powerful spells that are easier to resist (i.e. have no RR mod.), or less powerful spells that are harder to resist (i.e. have an RR mod.). The Bard can also choose between casting lower level spells with no RR mod., or higher level spells with a mod.
One last thing to consider as you read the spells on this list is that, while many of them are quite powerful control spells, they have one big downside: they are only effective on targets that have a language the Bard knows. Thus the Bard is especially good at controlling foes she can speak to, but much less effective against mindless undead, giant amoeba, etc. The Bard is also better at facing foes if she can spend some time researching who they are, and learning their language (which most Bards consider a very Bardic thing to do), or if she knows/learns spells on other lists that allow her to speak her target’s language. That is one important balancing factor for the list.
This is a rough draft, and I welcome all comments and criticism. I am especially interested in any comments relating to the power/balance of the different spells. I sometimes found it hard to judge what level a spell should be, given that I introduced another variable (RR mods for skill ranks) to the power equation.
I’d also like to give a shout out to JDale and Technobabble66, one of the developers of RMU and a poster on the ICE forums respectively, since they gave me some good ideas that I have incorporated into this list.
So, what do you
think? Is this the Bard you’re looking for?
A Note on Hurin’s RMU Houserules: Thanks to Peter’s kindness, I now have a section of the blog devoted to my RMU houserules. Over the years, I’ve had quite a few requests from posters on the ICE boards to formalize my houserules so that they can use them. Over the coming months, I plan to use this section of the blog to do just that: to post for everyone’s use all of the rules I currently use, as well as all the ones I will make in the future.
Since this is my first time posting my houserules, and I’m still figuring out how to post documents and make them downloadable, I am also posting the spell list here. I don’t want to post all about the list and then not have you able to access it! So enjoy.
Bard Base
Mockery
Level) Spell Area of Effect Duration Range Type
1)
Minor Mockery * 1
target 2 rounds 100’ F
2)
Clumsify 1
target 1 round 100’ F
3)
Annoy * 1 target 1 round 50’ F
4)
I Wouldn’t Do That 1
target 1 rnd/5 fail 100’ F
5)
Fyre of the Fae 10’
radius 3 rounds 100’ F
6)
Trip 1
target 2 rounds 100’ F
7)
Confusify 1
target 1 round 50’ F
8)
Stinkify 15’
radius 2 rounds 50’ F
9)
Major Mockery * 1
target 3 rounds 100’ F
10)
Sartorial Savagery 25’
radius 2 rounds 50’ F
11)
Taunt 1 target 2 rounds 100’
F
12)
Boogeyman 10’
radius 2 rounds 100’ F
13)
You Mock Me 1
target 1 round 20’ F
14)
Pyre of the Fae 30’
radius 3 rounds 100’ F
15)
You’ve Been Served 1 target
5 rounds 50’ F
16)
I Really Wouldn’t Do That 1 target 1
rnd/5 fail 100’ F
17)
So Tiny * 50’
radius 3 rounds Caster F
18)
Mass Taunt 10’ radius 2 rounds 100′ F
19)
He’s Copying Me 1
target 1 rnd/10 failure 50’ F
20)
Mass Stinkify 30’
radius 2 rounds 100’ F
25)
Mass Confusify 20’
radius 1 round Caster F
30)
You’ve All Been Served 25’ radius 5 rounds 50’ F
35)
Ultimate Boogeyman 50’ radius 4 rounds 100’ F
40)
Seriously, Don’t Do That 50’ radius 1 rnd/5 fail 200’ F
50)
Lordly Mockery 50’ radius 3 rounds 300’ F
1. Minor Mockery * – [RR Mod.: -(caster’s
ranks in Composition: Writing)] Caster’s mocking limerick unnerves the target.
Target is at -10 to all actions.
2. Clumsify – Caster’s cautionary sonnet
informs the target of the immense gravity of the current situation, how
terrible it would be to screw up, and the inescapable difficulty of life in
general. If the target attempts a melee attack, missile attack, or spell, the
target must first roll a fumble on the appropriate table and apply all results.
If the target attempts a moving maneuver, that maneuver is performed at -75. If
the target makes no melee or missile attack and casts no spell, Clumsify has no
effect.
3. Annoy * – Caster’s biting stream of
insults prevents target from concentrating and breaks any current concentration
(see rules for ‘concentration’ in Arms
and Character Law, 7.1).
4. I Wouldn’t Do That – [RR mod.: -(caster’s
ranks in Social: Influence: Duping)] Caster sings a cautionary little ditty,
explaining the finer points of why trying that
sounds like a very, very bad idea. Target suffers -50 to one skill of the
caster’s choice.
5. Fyre of the Fae – Caster’s passionate scorn
causes enemies in radius at the time of casting to glow bright red in
embarassment, making them easier to see. The glow adds 10 OB to all attacks
against them, and prevents the targets from benefitting from any
concealment-type spells (e.g. invisibility, unseen, cloaking, shadow, blur,
etc.).
6. Trip
– [RR Mod.: -(caster’s ranks in
Performance: Acting)] Caster warns target not to trip over an unseen imaginary
deceased turtle. If the target moves more than 1’, it must roll an RR; failure
means it falls prone and is stunned for two rounds. (Note the target only makes
the RR if and when it moves).
7. Confusify – Caster’s willfully incoherent
poem compells target to pause and ponder the fundamental principles of logic. Target
is incapable of making decisions or initiating action; target may continue to
fight current foes or in self-defense.
8. Stinkify – Caster calls attention to the
unique body odour of one target in the radius. Target’s allies within the spell
radius who fail their RR will not willingly move closer to the target, and must
move at least their BMR away from target each turn of the spell’s effect, if
they have an open path.
9. Major Mockery * – [RR Mod.: -(caster’s
ranks in Composition: Writing)] Oh no, did the caster really just say that!?!? Target is red-faced and overcome
with existential ennui, at -30 to all actions.
10. Sartorial Savagery – [RR Mod.: -(caster’s
ranks in Social: Social Awareness)] Caster’s savage derision calls everyone’s
attention to the target’s most questionable fashion choice. The target and all
of the target’s allies within the radius who fail their RR suffer -30
Perception due to being unable to stop glancing at target. Affected allies also
must spend 1 action point/round laughing uncontrollably at target’s apparel (or
lack thereof).
11. Taunt – Caster’s incredibly annoying mime
impression enrages target. Target must spend its next two rounds charging
towards and attacking caster with full OB. If target’s path is completely blocked,
target will attack anything and anyone in its way. Target can make a second RR,
using SD stat bonus rather than Essence RR mod, to avoid striking allies;
failure means target will use full but non-lethal force (eg: grappling/shoving)
to get allies out of the way in order to continue charging.
12. Boogeyman – [RR mod.: -(caster’s ranks in
Social: Influence: Intimidation)] Caster’s deep-throated shout of ‘I’m your boogeyman!’
strikes fear into all enemies in a 10’ radius. Targets suffer -15 to all
actions and -30 to any fear-based RRs.
13. You Mock Me – Target is convinced that
one of its allies (chosen randomly if any real allies are within sight;
otherwise, an imaginary ‘friend’) is mocking the target behind its back. Target
spends all action points for the turn moving towards and attacking this ally.
14. Pyre of the Fae – As Fyre of the Fae, but
with expanded area of effect.
15. You’ve Been Served – [RR mod.: -(caster’s
ranks in Performance: Music)] Caster disrespects the target’s dancing skills so
harshly that the target feels compelled to show some moves. Target must spend 2
ap/round dancing.
16. I Really
Wouldn’t Do That – [RR mod.: -(caster’s ranks in Social: Influence: Duping)] As
I Wouldn’t Do That, except the
penalty is -100.
17. So Tiny * – Caster’s mocking couplet
makes the target seem far less imposing, preventing the target from casting any
Fear spell or spell effect, and negating any fear effects the target has
already imposed within the area of effect.
18. Mass Taunt – As Taunt, but with expanded area of effect.
19. He’s Copying Me – Caster prevents target
from casting any spells by mimicking the target and humming annoyingly when
target tries to cast a spell.
20. Mass Stinkify – As Stinkify, but
affecting all enemies in radius, who must move 2x BMR away from all other
affected targets.
25. Mass Confusify – As confusify, except it
affects all enemies within 20’ of caster, and targets may not attack caster for
duration (even if they were already fighting caster).
30. You’ve All Been Served – [RR mod.:
-(caster’s ranks in Performance: Music)] As You’ve
Been Served, but with expanded area of effect, and targets must spend 4
AP/round dancing.
35. Ultimate Boogeyman – As Boogeyman, but
with expanded area of effect and penalties: targets now suffer -30 to actions
and -60 to fear RRs.
40. Seriously, Don’t Do That – [RR mod.:
-(caster’s ranks in Social: Influence: Duping)] As I Really Wouldn’t Do That, except all targets in the radius are
incapable of using the chosen skill (caster can only choose one skill total for
all targets).
50. Lord Mockery – [RR Mod.: -(caster’s ranks
in Composition: Writing)] Future Bards will tell the tale of the unrivalled epicness
of this insult. Emotionally shattered, the targets are rendered catatonic in
disbelief.
Note: Spell on this list
only affect creatures that can understand complex (i.e. non-bestial) languages.
The caster must have at least skill rank 2 in one language the target speaks.
Welcome to another “Spin Cycle” blog post! If you aren’t familiar with my previous entries on re-purposing MERP products for Shadow World. You can find my take on the Court of Ardor HERE, HERE and HERE. and the MERP adventure module “Thieves of Tharbad”
Today we are going to be looking at Umbar: Haven of the Corsairs. Like The Court of Ardor, Umbar was one of the first MERP products put out by I.C.E. and like Court of Ardor fits very easily into Shadow World. Cover art is by Gail Mcintosh–I always like this art for representing my idea of Rolemaster combat: gritty, dangerous (they never have much armor on!) and this is cool because it’s on a boat that’s tilting!
So why is Umbar such a useful module and a good fit for Shadow World?
Strip away the Middle Earth material and you have great adventure content. The city of Umbar with city maps, sewer maps, tavern maps, 6 city towers of various “Captains”, info on the Wizard Guild, smugglers, merchants, Thieves Guild, City Milita, healers, Armorers Guild, Dark Religion and ships and sailors. Plus there layouts for 6 small castle/keeps that are great drop in plans for any adventure. This is classic RPG material. The Middle Earth info is just window dressing.
Where does this fit into Shadow World? Plasidar. There isn’t much material on Plasidar in the Jaiman source book but a few data points:
Piracy along the Melurian Straits is on the rise…..the lords of Plasidar, and the Xooba raiders all increase activities.
Generally considered a ‘wild land’ filled with thieves and pirates, Plasidar most likely is not quite as bad as it is made out to be.
The Duke of Plasidar….is an Elven merchant-lord who commands an impressive fleet.
Gûl is the capital city of Plasidar and certainly Umbar is a good stand in for the port city. Umbar has the 6 “Captains of the Havens” while Plasidar has it’s Sea Captain “Lords”. Umbar has Corsairs, Black Numenoreans and Haradrim raiders, (plus smugglers and merchants) while Plasidar has thieves, pirates, raiders and merchants. All in all, a pretty good fit! Given that the new updated Jaiman source book is complete and unlikely to be revised again, using Umbar fills in a fairly large chunk of southern Jaimain that’s close to other important areas: Lethys, Nomikos, and across the sea from Emer and Eidolon.
Since this isn’t meant to be a straight up product review, I’m going to skip down to page 11 where the content starts becoming usable for Shadow World.
Lords of Umbar
3.1. There are 6 Captains the rule the city, each has their own fleet, tower in the city and castle with liege lord outside the city. The names themselves are “Tolkien” style, but dropping the accents, and putting in apostrophes convert to “Shadow World” style. Each lord gets a paragraph with a good description to flesh them out as NPC’s. The Lords are in the 20-25th lvl range, so they make great higher level bosses. There are also stats and info on each lords Chief Captain; these NPC’s are 10-13th lvl.
4.0. City of Umbar. Like most ICE products, Umbar has great color maps with building color coded as well for Alchemists, Lay Healers, Mentalists, Magicians, Herbalists and other professions. Umbar is pre-MERP so all the RM classes are used in these early products. Another bonus for Shadow World use.
Sewer Map
There are layouts and information on two taverns, The Drunken Goose and The Red Sunset. These are perfect hang-outs, meeting places and starting points for a group of adventurers.
Middle Class Establishment…….dive bar.
5.1. Describes the 6 city towers of each lord. There are floorplans and layout keys and are perfect for a thieving expedition.
8.0 Organizations. Several pages are dedicated to city organizations that the players could interact with or even belong to: The Wizards Guild, Smugglers, Merchants and Merchant Houses, Thieves Guild, City Guard, Healers and Healing Orders, Ships and Sailors, Armorers Guild and a Dark Cult. There are stats for key NPC’s of each, some building or lair layouts and certainly enough information to easily build adventures.
10. Castles of Umbar.
Umbar contains the layouts and keys for 6 keeps, each controlled by one of the lords. Nearby are farmlands and villages that support each keep and the city.
Finally there are the usual and useful summary charts for NPC’s, master military chart, herbs, key people, magic items and some supplementary adventure info.
Umbar is a fantastic “mid-size” campaign module that easily fills in the blanks of Plasidar. The format is easily understood by SW and ICE players, the art work is cool and the stats are straight Rolemaster. The additional info on ships is a great bonus for ocean adventuring, pirates and smuggling scenarios.
While Umbar is OOP, there are multiple online sources for usable PDFs. Check it out and enjoy!
The game I am a player in at the moment has a Bard in the party. There are three important facts about this party/game that you should know. The first is that we are still what the GM calls low level, the party is 4th to 7th level. The GM is using accelerated leveling so we seem to be jumping a level or two for every about 10hrs of play. The second thing is that this is a very high magic world. Even peasants in the fields can cast cantrips and almost every family has a caster that knows at least one list and the first level spell. Finally, there seems to be a lot of role confusion in the party.
I will deal with the role confusion firstly.
The party is made up of a Magician who dresses like a barbarian, kilt and claymore, the whole chebang. That is how we met him and at first level our OB/DB combinations were so low that he could easily have been a real warrior/barbarian. The player is one of those that bought a rank in his claymore at 0th or maybe 1st level and has not touched the skill since. The player is one of those that has to grab every possible magic item for themselves. Much to other party members displeasure, he is hoarding a magical ring and sword that give a total OB bonus of +50. His total OB is probably +60 now. I think he is 5th level and has ~30PP.
We have a Noble Warrior. Also about 5th level, chainmail hauberk, sword and shield or a big old two-handed mace. He really, really wanted that sword and ring! I haven’t seen much magic from this character beyond the occasional Shield spell.
Me, my character is a 7th level lay healer. I am learning plate armour (AT17), I wield a spear, with shield most of the time. I have an OB of +48 (two-handed) or +28 one-handed. I am capable at Adrenal moves strength and speed with total bonuses of about +50 in each. I have more powerpoints than you can shake a stick at from background options and a multiplier.
The Bard. Our bard is wearing chain 13, uses a sword and is growing into his magic. I believe he has only just hit 4th level. He is lagging behind because he missed a couple of game sessions and was NPCd by the GM and picked up less exp during those sessions.
The role confusion comes from the magician looking like a barbarian, having the highest OB and only magical weapon in the party but being fight shy. The character talks the talk but when it comes to the action he wants to be as far away from the nasty monsters as possible. In our last fight against a particularly nasty and bigger than normal wyvern we wall charged in to save the innocent bystander but at the last minute the magician used Leaping to jump out of the combat and back out of danger.
The bard in this battle tried Calm Song but without success. He then spent a couple of rounds after the battle had started to get behind the Wyvern during which time he had both Shield and Blur) Attack Avoidance and either Cloaking or Brilliance lists. He then entered melee using position and magic to aid him.
Our bard seems to have just enough DPs to be able to pick up both some of his base lists and a couple of Open Mentalism lists. What he is lacking is anything overtly offensive. As a character, he was fully engaged in the combat.
Out of combat, he does have a lot of options and is one of the most useful characters. We are on a long ol’ quest and city hopping with long journeys in between. The noble warrior just seems to see the cities as R&R locations. The mage is turning into a pretty one-dimensional artillery piece. It is in these city sessions that the bard shines as our major source of information and of reputation.
From the players point of view his main complaint about the profession is that he feels inactive a lot of the time as he has to keep playing/concentrating to maintain his spell effects. He described it as prep, prep fail, prep, prep succeed, do nothing. It doesn’t help that he is the lowest level party member. I already have some spells I can snap off in a single round as I am now 7th level. I also get subconscious spells so even when stunned I am still doing stuff. I can un-stun myself, I can clot wounds and I can heal.
The player is mitigating this by buying up more non-bard lists to give himself more options. The Bardic lists that he has don’t get particularly useful until 5th level, when the effects start to last after the song ends. I would have said that all of the bardic lists ramp up from this point onwards. The open mentalism lists, in contrast, are giving him utility, more instant cast spells and a least a few subconscious spells. I can see why he may be seeing them as more immediately useful.
I think this is a shame. The character is from a supposedly affluent background, attended the best musical colleges so the backstreet thief style bard does not really suit. Combat boosts are not particularly fitting either.
If I was going to give the character a boost I would possibly consider something along the lines of reading people and body language. An Anticipations List based upon being able to see the person you are trying to anticipate the actions of. This could have combat and social uses. It would fit in with the social element of the bard and also with their mentalism realm. A first-level spell that gave a small boost to either OB or DB because you could anticipate your opponent’s action would not be overpowered or out of character with the profession. These could ramp up and be used in more situations as the list progressed. I would also see these as instant spells so the bard’s magic would be useful to them right from 1st level.
This just needs the GMs approval, a DP investment and time for the character to do the research. That is what I would do.
Several days ago, Peter blogged about the Ranger and then Hurin responded with his own blog post and thoughts on the Ranger. Since they both weighed in, how I could resist not adding my own ideas on the Ranger! Since there have been two previous posts, why not “Three Tales of the Ranger”? ( a subtle reference to the writings of Elor Once Dark and the three tales of Tor’lan p. 26)?
Peter. First let me tackle a few items from their posts. Peter, while you titled it regarding RMU, you also needed to drag in a 20 year old spell list from RM Companion to flesh out the Ranger. Fair enough, but that allows me to utilize other non-RMU spell lists for my own Ranger build! Yes?
Hurin. Welcome to the club! While you fully didn’t embrace “no-profession” in your post, you clearly embraced the spirit of flexible chargen. Your story about your Thief character that had convincingly played as a “Scout”, “Ranger” and even a “Paladin” is great anecdotal evidence that skills define the character and not an arbitrary profession designation! If your Thief was spending DP’s on spells, transcend armor and other non-core skills is he really a Thief? I also appreciate your eagerness to adopt Mentalism or Essence realms to build your ideal character. With some type of no-profession philosophy you can build whatever type of PC you want; and call him whatever you want. You didn’t transcend armor, you transcended class tropes! Congrats!
While I don’t use standard professions and build off a profession DP template, it’s easy to build a “Ranger” in my ruleset. Not only build a “Ranger”, but virtually any type of Ranger or subclass concept the player wants. However, I’m not going to dive into skill minutia, but instead define a Ranger via spell lists as Peter and Hurin have done. Luckily, I have a whole slew of non-ICE spells to choose from, that were designed for exactly this type of flexibility: BASiL Channeling! And guess what–they are non system, general d100 spells that could be PUBLISHED shortly for any d100 system.
But wait, doesn’t that conflict with some game company IP? NO.
RMU RANGER LISTS.
First, I wanted to address my personal issues with RMU Spell Law/Ranger lists. These are my opinions, not mean to be criticism since RMU was meant to be the gentle arbiter of all RM and ICE conflict.
Beastly Ways. Generally I think this is a great list and improvement from RM Spell Law. First, I’m not sure it’s “Ranger” spell list as I conceptualize the profession. Druid? Sure. Beastmaster? Absolutely. Shaman. Of course. I think it needs some tinkering and I would use SW specific names (rather than Terran animals). Definitely could be treated as a Mentalism or Essence list as well.
Inner Walls. Another improved list and a good generalist list for any spell caster. I think there are some small logic errors and OOP spells: Sterilization which affects other than the caster, and Martial Wall should have some logical mechanism for it’s implementation.
Moving Ways. Great spell list and probably what I would consider the “Core” list of the Ranger concept: it has to do with travel, movement and traversal. I would tinker with it and the 50th lvl spell “Submarine Ways” is a horrible 50th level spell. (allows a 50th lvl caster to swim 50 miles w/o fatigue!!!! WOW!!!!). That should be a 10th lvl or under spell. The 35th lvl spell Distance Running should be a 5th lvl spell–especially with groups that don’t focus on fatigue mechanisms.
Nature’s Guises. Good conceptually, but really just a grab bag of ideas. Not sure what 3rd lvl “Freeze” is doing in this list (should be in a “Nature’s Manipulation” list, and “Animal Thought” is a bit of an oddity as well-That should be in “Natures Communing”). Pruned and tightened up a bit and it’s a great spell list that would work for a Ranger, Shaman, Druid or Animist–if you even think there is a needed mechanistic difference between those classes!
Pathmastery. This is another list that seems tailor made for a type of Ranger. Again, there are some outlier spells that don’t fit thematically in the list: Nature’s Tongue comes to mind. I’m also not a fan of bonus to skill spells. It just feels lazy and it undermines the value of the underlying skill itself. At third level a +50 bonus to Tracking? Why would the player even bother with taking more than a handful of tracking skill ranks at lower levels?
Survival’s Way. This is a solid spell list with some problems. Again, bonus to skill spells like the 3rd lvl Wound Tending I find problematic. How does that work? Does it bestow knowledge to the caster? Better coordination? A steady hand? Divine intervention? Also the 35th lvl Adaption should be moved to the “Inner Walls” spell list.
To be clear, these RMU Beta lists seem like a solid improvement over past Spell Law iterations. If there is a requirement for 6 base lists it will suffice. However I feel that a this archetype needs around 2-3 lists: some type of Moving Ways, Pathmaster and Survial Ways. All three RMU lists above need tweeking but certainly act as a foundation for the character trope. Looking at the remaining lists, I would combine some of the spells in Survival’s Way into Pathmastery and Inner Walls, move the Change spells into Natures Guises and Beastly Ways and maybe make a new list Natures Commune for plant/animal speech, thoughts, control and mastery.
BASiL “Ranger” Lists.
So writing this blog to the “Ranger Series” of blog posts, I hadn’t reviewed my BASiL channeling in several years (working on Mentalism final revisions). Luckily, these changes were prior to RMU Beta spell lists. I’m going back to review and revise, but this was a great opportunity to analyze them after several years!
While I purposefully didn’t organize BASiL to track with Open, Closed or Base–it’s fairly evident that it can easily follow along with this process. So for a “Ranger”, “Druid”, “Animist”, “Beastmaster”, “Pathfinder”, “Scout”, “Warden”, “Hunt Master”, “Shaman”, “Witch”, “Forest Wizard”, “Path Blazer”, “Elf”, “Liberal”, “Eco-Terrorist” or any similar ridiculous class or profession name, these are the following BASiL core spells:
Natures Guises. This is a cleaned up version we discussed above. Discarded nonconforming spells, adjusted powers to level and attempted to increase utility of ALL spells in the list (rather than meaningless placeholders.) All these spells are about concealment, disguise, misdirection etc.
Natures Defenses. This spell is purely self-reliant, with all spells about personal survival and protection vs. disease, poison, tainted food and water or extremes of temperature or elements.
I think these are CORE spells for any “Nature” style character. However, if I wanted to add some more specific powers that seem Ranger specific:
Natures Movements. This is a cleaned up and focused “movement list” for a Ranger. It covers different terrains: water, ground, air (not just a forest ranger from Tolkien!)
Locating Ways. This is meant to be the core locating power of a Ranger, Bounty Hunter (fantasy Mandalorian!), Beastmaster, Detective etc. There is a light overlap with Nature’s Lore, but far less than the overlap and redundancy of RM spell lists. None of these spells devalue, replace or simply add a bonus to RM skills.
Finally: though not really “Ranger”. Weather Mastery. This is more a Druid/Animist or Nature Cleric style spell, but depending on the campaign or setting could be used by a Ranger type for some weather and elemental control.
So this is just a classic Ranger build. If you want more Tolkien I would add a lesser healing spell list, lower level weapon rune spell list or even a lesser fire law list! (all can be found on BASiL spell lists btw). If you want a more martial Ranger, I would replace a few lists with some Mentalism lists for Warriors, Monks, Disciplars, Weapon Masters, Erudites etc :
So, lots of options, cleaned up spell lists, flexibility to build YOUR idea of a Ranger AND a real functional Ranger. Whatever that means to you! That is my Third Tale of the Ranger for the Rolemasterblog.com!
Carrying on from Brian’s post on the RMu ranger it seemed fairly accepted that the way to make the Ranger stand out was through magic. I firmly agree with this. I played in a game a few years back where I had a thief character with a pretty hefty In stat bonus. I tossed 12DP into an open channeling spell list and just let it ride each level until I managed to get the list with just the one rank. The GM let us add stat bonuses to the spell gain roll so it was almost inevitable that eventually, I would get the list. Once I did get the list I put 12DP into a second list. During our adventures I had picked up a x2 Channeling multiplier which no one else could use. Being limited to 1st – 5th level spells plus quite good natural PPs/level (2 I think it was) and x2 from the item it didn’t take long for me to have so many power points that I effectively never ran out. Being a thief by profession my main emphasis was not a spell caster but being able to heal concussion hits was useful as was light’s ways.
The GM did individual experience and the more active you were in the session the more EXP you got. This lead to the mage and I being two levels higher than the rest of the party when they reached 10th and I was 23rd level before the fighter reached 20th. By that time I had 5 spell lists.
Almost everyone in the party thought I was a ranger. I played the character as a scout rather than an actual thief and that made me quite outdoorsy and then with magic on top the natural conclusion was that I was a ranger.
In my last four or five levels I actually learned transcend armour and plate AT17 and started masquerading as a Paladin using much the same technique. Platemail fighter type that lays on hands, a bit of an Aura spell here and there, but that is another story.
The point is that the thing that made the character stand out amongst his peers, and made people think he was a Ranger was the magic.
Image via Wizards of the Coast Magic: The Gathering
It was suggested that the Ranger could be an Essence semi, or a Mentalism semi profession. Part of the problem is that we each have very different ideas of what a Ranger actually is. Is it Aragorn, Robin Hood or Lawrence of Arabia? Primarily an archer or are they a commando built for stealth and up close hand to hand fighting?
If we start to make wood/forest/tree type spells for the profession do we cripple it for desert or nautical settings?
Does swapping the realm take away as much as it solves?
I was flicking through Companion One looking for some inspiration and I lighted upon the Arcane lists. Just using the small selection of arcane lists in RoCoI they would make a great ranger. The only one that is potentially borderline is Mana Fires but even then I can see a ranger being the one that instinctively saves people by using fire to drive away wild beasts.
Could the fact that the Ranger seems to be a natural fit for every realm not point to the solution that they are naturally every realm?
I would be very inclined to allow a Ranger to swap out one or even two of the RAW Ranger base lists with one or two of the RoCoI Arcane lists and treat them as if they were Channeling lists for casting restrictions. The enforced choice also means that we would get some very different Ranger builds.
Take a look and see what you think of an Arcane-ish Ranger. Would you want to play it?
I confess I’ve never really liked the Ranger in
Rolemaster. It’s not that I dislike the archetype: who wouldn’t want to be
Robin Hood, Legolas, or Drizzt? The problem lies in the implementation.
The RM2 Ranger had a great set of utility spells
(to help with Stalking and Hiding, Movement, survival in the wilderness, etc.),
but very little that buffed him in combat; indeed, a fighter was better than a
Ranger with a bow. Shouldn’t Robin Hood be better with a bow than Lancelot?
Also, many of the Ranger’s spells were also duplicated, in stronger or weaker
versions, on the Open and Closed Channeling lists, so there wasn’t very much
that was unique. Nor is Rolemaster alone in having an underwhelming Ranger:
D&D has missed the mark sometimes too. While the 4e version of the Ranger
was strong, the 5e version has been one of the most severely criticized aspects
of 5e, and Wizards has tried several times to use supplemental material to fix
the class. Opinion on it is still quite mixed.
So how can we revive the Ranger? I would say the key is adding and modifying the Ranger Base spells. These are easier to distinguish than other aspects of a class, because in Rolemaster, other classes can buy the same weapon skills and wilderness skills and even Ambush too. The spells, though, are unique.
I am happy to report that RMu has added a new
spell list for Rangers (Beastly Ways) that is quite good, especially in its
higher level spells. The Ranger uses these spells to mimic creatures: Rabbit
Reflexes give a bonus to initiative, while Boar Strength gives a big strength
buff, for example.
The new RMu Ranger list is both useful and
flavorful, but one thing is still lacking: a list to buff his bow. Happily, supplements
and later editions to Rolemaster do point the way to our Holy Grail. I direct
your attention first and foremost to the list Wyrd Bow, published in the Guild Companion in 2000. This list is
based on the Druid’s own Druidstaff (RMCompanion
I), but adapted to fit the Ranger: http://www.guildcompanion.com/scrolls/2000/jun/wyrdbow.html
. This list provides a number of strong buffs: it gives a bonus to the bow,
turns it into a spell adder, and enables trick shots, quick loading, and
extended ranges. Now there’s a Ranger I could get behind – and definitely would
not want to get in front of!
Given that the Wyrd Bow list is based on a Druid list that some consider overly
powerful, I would recommend toning down some of the spells on the list,
especially the first level spell, ‘Minor Bow’. This turns the bow into a +10
magical bow, but if it is ever destroyed, the caster is at -35 for 1-4 weeks. Ouch.
That’s too strong for my tastes, and the downside is also too punishing, so I
would recommend toning down both the benefit and the malus. How about we make
it just a +5 magical bow, and substitute the destroyed clause for just saying
the caster can only have one Wyrd Bow attuned?
The Channeling Companion also offers some
Priest lists that would help beef up the Ranger. Hunting Mastery gives the all-important low level combat buff (Aiming),
while The Hunter gives the RM Ranger
a D&D-style favored enemy, against which his attacks hit harder. Either or
both would be welcome additions to the Ranger’s quiver.
So what do you think? Does the Rolemaster
Ranger do it for you? What changes would you make to the class?
Back in July of 2016 I went a bit off topic to blog about a new TV series I saw: Stranger Things. What a difference a few years make, as the show went on to become a cultural sensation and further promoted the D&D legacy into our culture.
Recently I had the opportunity to watch a new show, The
Mandalorian, that has quickly become the new “It Show”. Much of that is due to
the popularity of Star Wars for over 40 years, and some of it to the quality of
the show.
I’m not going to review the show or risk spoilers, but just in case—spoiler alert! What struck me the most about the show was how closely it adhered to classic RPG beats. It was similar to reading a RPGLit book—the dice rolls, traditions and tropes were all right there on the screen. Some may argue that these are devices more similar to video games; that may be true but video games themselves drew from tabletop traditions. I find this revealing: for decades Star Wars was defined as following ancient mythical storylines: The Heroes Journey and classic fairy tales wrapped in a fantasy/scifi setting. But throughout the Star Wars trilogy there hasn’t really been traditional gaming mechanics. Yes, characters develop some abilities—mostly the young Jedi protagonists—but this was done through plot advancement and some handwaving. (Lukes Jedi training might only have lasted in days or weeks, and yet was the sum of his formal education in the movies).
The Mandalorian is a completely different beast. There is a serial adventure nature to the show. “Mando” finishes adventures with special alloy treasure that he brings to the “Armorer” to have forged into upgraded equipment. There are side adventures. There is new, cool equipment that gives added abilities and firepower. The Mando takes real damage, needs healing and is restrained by ammo and weapon limitations. You have temporary NPC’s (who mostly die and thus don’t have a lengthy plotline) that aid the Mandalorian for that particular adventure. I think it’s incredible that popular culture is embracing (perhaps unknowingly) a clear gaming format into a high-profile serialized event.
I’m not sure I’ve seen another high budget show that adheres
to gaming mechanics in such a clear way. Thoughts?
In December I wrote an encounter. The gist of it was that the characters come across an angel trying to deliver a message to some shepherds but the angel gets attacked by some big tough demons. The characters get to make the choice to intervene or not, if the angel is defeated it will try to pass on its message for the characters to deliver, and so on.
D&D has celestials as a type of monster, big tough angels. Rolemaster doesn’t have them or if it does I had an absolute failure in my research skill roll when looking for them.
In place of the missing celestial stats I used the stats for an Oriental Dragon and just changed the physical form factor to that of an Angel and tweaked the odd ability here or there. I was pretty pleased with the result.
The oriental dragon version of the angel was not my first choice. I started out by making a Hira’razhir cleric but their default level is only 3rd and that was not the sort of thing I was looking for in this encounter. I could have leveled up the Hira’razhir cleric but that was too much effort (I am extremely lazy).
All through this my thinking is very much RM2/RMC. I am 100% sure that the same effects could be achieved with RMSS/FRP and even more so with RMu with its archetypes and seven million talents. What I wanted could just as easily be botched, jury-rigged or finely crafted. Whether the end results would be any different depending on the route you took is open to debate.
The positive thing is that both options are available. The GMs that like to handcraft every encounter can be satisfied by taking a Hira’razhir and giving it a profession, all the racial stat modifiers are in C&T to roll up your NPC with the full profession and spell lists and everything that goes with it.
Equally, I could tweak a stat here, an ability there and change the physical description and the encounter was good to go.
Could I have done the same thing in D&D? I am not sure both options are available. The botch and make it up is definitely an option. Creating a monster strictly adhering to the monster design rules, I am not sure if they exist. My D&D experience ends with AD&D and Basic/Expert so I am drawing on a distant and outdated set of knowledge.
A few years ago I was involved in editing a version of the 5e SRD and at that time I honestly do not remember seeing monster creation rules in the book. That could just mean that they are not part of the SRD.
So I know I can easily botch, jury-rig and craft a monster in RM. What about competing systems?
RuneQuest
RuneQuest uses the concept that every creature can be a player character and as such, they are all customizable. Creating unique monsters is catered for in the rules. In addition, RuneQuest uses a skill shorthand, such as a single figure to use for all skill tests, Ogres get 20% in all skills except the few that really define their orgrishness. Having these rules of thumb or shorthand techniques makes botching something up quickly a viable option.
Zweihander
Zwei has two approaches. The first is treating all similar creatures as one. A Man Eater could be a lion, tiger, wolf or whatever. The basic stats do not change, just the visual appearance to the characters. You can have half a dozen basic templates and cover the entire natural animal kingdom. The same approach is taken with monstrous things. They are split into broad categories and from them you can dress them up as you like. Zwei also has a full cast of truly unique creatures, the same as any system but the general approach is that the role play trumps the need for unique stats for everything.
The second approach is found in the companion Main Gauche. In this book, you get a blank template and all the rules necessary to make any monster. These are the same rules used to create the stats for the core rules.
Zwei leads with botch it but backs that up with fully customizable monsters using a rules-driven process. A unique monster takes about 20-40 minutes if you have to read as you go.
Chivalry & Sorcery
One of the cornerstones of C&S is that Monsters are people too. What that means in practice is that they are just as customizable as player characters. Think of them as NPCs.
It may just be my lack of experience with the rules but I found this the slowest game to create a unique monster in. It may get quicker over time but or it may just have been me. I fact is that the rules for customization are there.
vsDarkmaster
It is so long since I have read these rules that I could not fairly compare them. I also read an early beta rather than the finalised rules. What I am expecting though is no more trouble than RM presented. They share the same DNA and when I have compared monsters across systems before there was barely any difference, a few points of DB here and a few points of DB there.
Conclusions?
What I was hoping to find was that RM was more flexible than most. RM has always prided itself on its modular design and how everything is tweakable. It turns out that all the d100 systems I looked at offer the same flexibility. Some wanted you to go down the rules driven route while others were happy to promote the botch it and see method. Which is ‘best’ is a personal GMing style question.
Is this a function of the d100 system? If everything is operating on the same general scale does it lend itself to tweaking the figures?
