2 ed previews

[Ralph]

Loving the 2 ed previews.
The new border art is excellent, even the square coffee beans around the character sheet.
I will understand why the book may need to be in black & white (coming in at 420 pages), but please tell me it'll be in colour?
Ralph

 

[GlassJaw]

all B&W - thumbs down
unnecessarily gratuitous art on every page - thumbs down

I didn't mind the art layout in the 1ed but the new style is just over the top. I'm not a conservative person by any means but I just don't need that in an RPG rulebook.

These two issues will certainly keep me from buying Conan 2ed.

 

[One Star Under Heaven]

I was leaning more toward's Koski's point of view in the Final Decision thread-I have a number of the books, they seem to have everything I need, etc. etc. My thoughts have gone from having a number of doubts about picking up 2nd edition to getting ready to preorder the new corebook. I do like the new border artwork (although it reminds me of Gurps 4th covers for some reason), but the original Frazetta border art was more evocative of the setting and genre.

Very good preview pdf, and I now cannot wait until the release of 2nd edition.

-OSUH

 

[Trodax]

Oooh, previews!

B&W would indeed be a bit of a disappointment. I myself really like the art though!

The character sheet shows that the skill list is exactly the same (I was hoping for a condensed list without stupid stuff like Use Rope). However, Knowledge (local) seems to be replaced by Knowledge (rumours) - a great improvement in naming as far as I'm concerned!

Defensive Blast seems to be different for different schools of sorcery (Hypnotism gets "Terrible Fascination"). That sounds pretty cool to me (no more "all sorcerers can blow up").

 

[Belkregos]

so...
where are the previews!!? :shock:

 

[Ralph]

Here
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/series.php?qsSeries=7

 

[Malcadon]

WOW! I see each Sorcery Style has it own defensive blast. The new Combat Maneuvers looks cool.

The preview shows new stuff up to page 4 then it is just shows everything we all have seen in the 1st edition. It would have been nice if they put in a page of the new NPCs.

I see that they go to B&W to keep costs down. Most folks will be s***ing bricks and/or kittens over this, but I dint mind as I'm use to this in other game books and most of the Conan art just looks better in B&W. I like the new border and I hope they add some extra new art for this book as it always good to see some new stuff.

 

[Strom]

I really like the border art - wonder who the artist is? Looks great.

Haven't read any of it yet but it looks good. I can appreciate going b&w to keep the cost reasonable - plus that makes the 1st edition unique as well.

Here's a more direct link for those like me who took awhile figuring out where the previews were:

http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=1449&qsSeries=Conan


edit: I like the new manoeuvres and their requirements - much better than 1st edition!
8)

 

[MGBM]

Nice preview!

I don't mind if 2ed is in b&w, colour would be nice but it's not colour that will make or break a game, it's its contents. And I have full confidence that 2ed will be a good game.

The border art is very cool and evocative, just the way it's supposed to be.

The only drawback I have is that it seems they recicled much of the art already in existence from other sourcebooks. Other than that, I'm really looking forward to get it.

 

[Spectator]

Hmmm, the border art is not as good as the 1st edition, I loved how they melded about 18 different things into the border art, while in the preview all I see is some skulls, a pissed off scholar, and a good looking femal figure, but it doesn't FLOW like the 1ed did. That was done in much more of an 'immuminated manuscript' style.

Doesn't look like much changed in a lot of regrads from the preview, though? Is it really a 2nd edition or a 1.1 edition?

 

[Majestic7]

Defensive blasts for each sorcery style and taking in immediate, swift, free actions is greatly approved. Otherwise...well... I don't know what to think. Doesn't look really that it has changed much. I'll wait till I can get hold of a copy and browse it. Skills are at least still the same. I was kind of waiting Move Silently and Hide to be merged in to Stealth, Listen & Spot in to Perception. I think the topless temptress kind of belongs to the genre, though I don't know if my girlfriend would approve it, heh.

 

[Soulmage]

Preview looks great to me! I can't wait to pick up my copy at GenCon and run it by my group.

I far prefer the new border art to the old!

 

[LucaCherstich]

I'm happy there is at least some bestiary in it.
Thus far I had only the pdf version of Conan rpg and never played it.
I was thinking to buy 2nd edition but my main concern was that i had to wait until the bestiary book for some monsters.
I'm happy they kept some monsters there.
I noticed that they add the "Yuetshi" language in the PC sheet.
Yuetshi are the fishermen around the Vilayet. (they appear in "the Devil in Iron").
I hope this means we get also a new race which was lacking in 1st edition.

 

[Majestic7]

I must add that Terrible Fascination defensive blast from the preview look quite unoptimal. First, it has will negates and second, its power does not increase with the more power points you spend on it. I don't naturally know what kind of things the other defensive blasts are - but in 1 Ed. the point of defensive blast was that it was more potent the more power points you had left. That Terrible Fascination seems to work just fine if you, for example, spend your last remaining power point on it, with which you could do little anyway.

I don't know if it has been designed that way on purpose.

 

[Mongoose Gar]

Skills are at least still the same. I was kind of waiting Move Silently and Hide to be merged in to Stealth, Listen & Spot in to Perception.

I considered this (and we did it with Babylon 5 2nd Edition), but I eventually decided it didn't fit Conan. In B5, I did it because the focus of the game is supposed to be on diplomacy, investigation, deception and so on. Conan is about combat, survival and adventure, and so I kept the original skill list. (Plus, the 1st edition Conan supplements were considerably more rule-heavy than the 1st edition B5 supplements, so changing skills would have required an awful lot more conversions).

 

[MongooseMatt]

all B&W - thumbs down
unnecessarily gratuitous art on every page - thumbs down

Is it possible to have gratuitous anything in Conan?

 

[Ralph]

I noticed that they add the "Yuetshi" language in the PC sheet.

But Bossonian is curiously still missing.

I must add that Terrible Fascination defensive blast from the preview look quite unoptimal. First, it has will negates and second, its power does not increase with the more power points you spend on it.

I second this all the way. Although I suppose most sorcerors will have access to more than one style and therefore more than one Defensive Blast.

I'm glad to see more Combat manoeuvres, especially at lower levels, but I don't understand what an immediate action is yet.

Do I really have to wait 2 weeks for the book?!
Surely there must be more previews in the pipeline?
More, more, more I say!

Ralph

 

[Se Chris]

I really like the border art - wonder who the artist is? Looks great.

Pascal Quidault.

 

[GlassJaw]

all B&W - thumbs down
unnecessarily gratuitous art on every page - thumbs down

Is it possible to have gratuitous anything in Conan?

In the setting? No. In an RPG rulebook, certainly, yes.

The fact that it's a picture of naked boobies doesn't bother me. But it does bother me when the art, whatever the content, distracts the reader from the text.

 

[Kyorou]

Well, it ceases to be a distraction once you get used to it.

And, as a matter of fact, if the right pages depict a bare-chested male, I want a bare-chested female on the left. Gender equality and so on.