Is there a "MRQ II for Dummies"?

[Breschau of Livonia]

As someone who has a bunch of older RQ3 books but never played it until MRQ2 I can see where there would be some confusion, especially with regard to cults.

For example, reading these boards there have been many questions on guidelines for creating various cults - i.e. how many spells, ideas for spirits, etc. It seems that the three advanced magic chapters and cults chapter should all have been beefed up a bit. There seems to be some suggestion of previous understanding - for example when I was trying to figure out how many divine spells to give a player and it seemed to me the number of divine spells available to a specific cult seemed a little low I was explained the concept of common Divine spells not called out in the main rules. Sure enough RQ3 had such a concept and it also appeared in MRQ2's Cults of Glorantha.

While it is reasonable to say "it's the GM's call", at the same time it would also seem useful to provide more thorough guidelines on what makes for a good cult.

I'm not trying to bash anyone or say "this stinks!!!", just giving an indication of an area I've had a lot of trouble wrapping my brains around. One of the things I've found most useful is when rpg books give a "behind the scenes" sidebar as needed, explaining why things are done a certain way, helping GMs determine how to make various calls.

 

[Khamulcalle]

I am intrested how the world looks like, we get tons of references
and I try to look at the region-maps that Glorantha book contains
but many times its not there. I would love a big fat Glorantha map.

And more structure with Empires, kingdoms and so on....

...a who is who

 

[Khamulcalle]

Here's my work-in-progress quick reference document:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8129635/RQ2Pocket.pdf

This looks really nice....looking forward to read more of this.

 

[Nidhogg]

Yeah a quick reference to the core mechanics like you have started working on Phil is sorely needed. I can't tell you how many times I end up leafing through the book mid-session and attempting to find a specific rule hidden in all the text that I just know is there. Keep up the good work.

Oh and small point on what is done so far... there is a typo in the stat generation area where you have put "DEX" where is should say "SIZ".

 

[PhilHibbs]

Yeah a quick reference to the core mechanics like you have started working on Phil is sorely needed.

I'm not sure if this will see the light of day. It's the sort of thing that a GM's screen should contain, or even should have been included in the rules like the reference pages in the AH box and GW books. Does anyone have the GM's screen, is it any good for this kind of thing?

 

[Vagni]

Yeah a quick reference to the core mechanics like you have started working on Phil is sorely needed.

I'm not sure if this will see the light of day. It's the sort of thing that a GM's screen should contain, or even should have been included in the rules like the reference pages in the AH box and GW books. Does anyone have the GM's screen, is it any good for this kind of thing?

The GM screen is useful but it does lack a lot of things that should be on there in my opinion.
Here's a 'contents' list for it:

Damage Modifier Table
Skill Difficulty & Haste Modifiers
Combat Actions (character creation)
First Aid Actions
Armour Types & Costs (basic armours, not A&E's additions)
Close Combat Situational Modifiers
Ranged Attack Situational Modifiers
Sorcery Manipulation Table
Ranged Weapons (Core rules only)
Close Combat Fumbles
Natural Fumbles
Ranged Weapon Fumbles
Close Combat Weapons (Core rules only)

To be honest I'm currently drawing up my own set of tables to print on to labels to stick over these as there are a lot of essential things missing I feel.

The card is very sturdy and does act as a handy file for popping a few character sheets inside, the art work on the back is nice and atmospheric, it shows a Dragon crawling around a cliff.

Hope that helps.

 

[PhilHibbs]

The GM screen is useful but it does lack a lot of things that should be on there in my opinion.
Here's a 'contents' list for it:

Damage Modifier Table
Skill Difficulty & Haste Modifiers
Combat Actions (character creation)
First Aid Actions
Armour Types & Costs (basic armours, not A&E's additions)
Close Combat Situational Modifiers
Ranged Attack Situational Modifiers
Sorcery Manipulation Table
Ranged Weapons (Core rules only)
Close Combat Fumbles
Natural Fumbles
Ranged Weapon Fumbles
Close Combat Weapons (Core rules only)

To be honest I'm currently drawing up my own set of tables to print on to labels to stick over these as there are a lot of essential things missing I feel.

Such as? That list looks pretty good to me.
*update*: Hm, no Combat Manoeuvres or Combat Actions.

 

[Vagni]

I'd add at least the following:

Spell Casting Situation Modifiers
Travel Per Day
Hit Location Chart
Fatigue Levels
Common Skills List
Advance Skills List
Magical Skills List

...and maybe even the following:

Attributes
Hit Point by Location
Comparative Movement Rates
Falling Damage
Fire, Heat & Cold Damage
Spirit Damage Table
Horse Hit Location Table
Skill Difficulty Examples
Inanimate Object AP/HP
Level of Success Chart

..but then I just love tables!! :wink:

 

[Deleriad]

Been meaning to send my updated GM screen over to BRP central and have now done so http://basicroleplaying.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=368. It covers a lot of the content mentioned here that I find useful to see in play. It does have one house rule that has been clearly marked as such.

 

[Khamulcalle]

I get so frustrated when I read Cults of Glorantha and Glorantha 2nd Age...

...What I would like to have is a dictionary with;

Cities A-z
Gods A-z
Regions A-z
Countries A-z
Rivers A-z
Cults A-z

ect ect...

For example I read about one god who is the son of xxx and xxx and when
I want to know who they are they are not to be found....

This cant be impossible for Moongose to make? or is it?

//Khamul (very frustrated)

 

[PhilHibbs]

I get so frustrated when I read Cults of Glorantha and Glorantha 2nd Age...
...What I would like to have is a dictionary with;
Cities A-z
Gods A-z
Regions A-z...
//Khamul (very frustrated)

I agree, it can be frustrating when you come across some reference such as the Gargos River, and your players ask where it is. I assumed it flowed east through Mondoro and into the Marthino Sea between Tarahom and Banamba, but I found another map that shows it flowing north and spills out next to the island of Kebor, making the journey there from Jrustela about half the distance that I had assumed.

 

[Khamulcalle]

There must be someone who has a GREAT map over Glorantha....
I was amazed about the lack of a large world map...(I know I am not young anymore...) but I would like the text on the color map of G2ndA to be little bigger than size 7

With information about Glorantha since 1966 (I was born -68 )
It really would be possible to have the best world map in the RPG world
...just look at the Forgotten Realms map.... It must be possible...

I dont wanna bash this game, I played it for the first time in 1981 or 82
...and I loved it. And now when I bought the new game I love it even more
but I hate (sorry) the structure of it... The books are great for the diehards, but not for the newcomers... I have not played this game since a very, very long time...

...well since I last poked around in a broo's toilet near Pavis...geez, was that stupied or what???!!!

//K

 

[Khamulcalle]

...just look at the map over Dragon Pass...the biggest river does not have a name (not that I can see) all the rivers that are diverting from the great river has name though...

 

[Loz]

There must be someone who has a GREAT map over Glorantha....
I was amazed about the lack of a large world map...(I know I am not young anymore...) but I would like the text on the color map of G2ndA to be little bigger than size 7

With information about Glorantha since 1966 (I was born -68 )
It really would be possible to have the best world map in the RPG world
...just look at the Forgotten Realms map.... It must be possible...

I dont wanna bash this game, I played it for the first time in 1981 or 82
...and I loved it. And now when I bought the new game I love it even more
but I hate (sorry) the structure of it... The books are great for the diehards, but not for the newcomers... I have not played this game since a very, very long time...

...well since I last poked around in a broo's toilet near Pavis...geez, was that stupied or what???!!!

//K

Moon Design is currently working on 'The Guide to Glorantha' which will be chock-full of maps. I've seen some of them and they will present Glorantha in a level of consistent detail that will be the definitive atlas of the world.

 

[Loz]

This cant be impossible for Moongose to make? or is it?

No, its not impossible, but it is very tricky. Here's why.

Let's take Cults of Glorantha. When you decide what cult your character is going to join, you'll be making that decision based on your cultural/regional group. By and large cults are gathered into pantheons and groupings that reflect culture; it therefore makes sense to structure the book in that way, organising all the gods into their respective groups (Storm, Dragon, Sun, etc) because, when you're making your Dara Happan noble character you can simply turn to the Solar chapter, read the background info, have everything necessary for choosing the right cult and the cult itself.

You can certainly organise things A-Z, and the old Avalon Hill 'Gods of Glorantha' boxed set did just this; but it meant that it was difficult to know which gods belonged to which pantheon and have all those relationships easily laid-out. Even 'Cults of Prax', which is still considered the definitive work in this regard, has organisational issues that still, today, don't always make sense.

The difficulty lies in the overall depth of Glorantha. There are hundreds of cults: big cults, small cults, well known cults, obscure cults and cults with little bells on them. Often there are no definitive guidelines on how they work and relate to each other. Some are fan creations, some canonical. Some overlap. If every cult were to be written up, and all the relationships mapped, a Cults book would be size of several encyclopedia volumes and very diffcult to navigate around.

No structure of a book like Cults of Glorantha will please everyone, so the organisational decision I made was based on how best to present cults with a similar place or grouping, in a way that mirrors the cultural organisations out there. I think it works best this way.

The problem you're describing though, is something that's long plagued such a detailed world. I completely agree that a definitive encyclopedia of gods, geography, people, myths, cities and so on would be terrific. It would also take years to complete - and that's no exageration. I know there's been one fan attempt at this, and this was quite a few years ago, and the volume was absolutely immense (and no, don't ask me where you can get a copy because you can't - its a long story) and still incomplete...

 

[Khamulcalle]

There must be someone who has a GREAT map over Glorantha....
I was amazed about the lack of a large world map...(I know I am not young anymore...) but I would like the text on the color map of G2ndA to be little bigger than size 7

With information about Glorantha since 1966 (I was born -68 )
It really would be possible to have the best world map in the RPG world
...just look at the Forgotten Realms map.... It must be possible...

I dont wanna bash this game, I played it for the first time in 1981 or 82
...and I loved it. And now when I bought the new game I love it even more
but I hate (sorry) the structure of it... The books are great for the diehards, but not for the newcomers... I have not played this game since a very, very long time...

...well since I last poked around in a broo's toilet near Pavis...geez, was that stupied or what???!!!

//K

Moon Design is currently working on 'The Guide to Glorantha' which will be chock-full of maps. I've seen some of them and they will present Glorantha in a level of consistent detail that will be the definitive atlas of the world.

Yes! This is what I am talking about! Best news I could get, thanks!

 

[Khamulcalle]

Thank you Loz,

...for the clarification, this helps me when I try to understand Glorantha... I really love the world but I want so much of it...lol, just to get my brain to understand how it works...(my brain works in mysterious ways hehehe!) I am a very visuall guy, I want to see towns, mountains etc etc...

...I want to know more about the dwarves and the elf and so on

I want to see a map over the sky, heaven, underworld, hell and so on...
...I guess I ask for the impossible...but thats just me...

I cant wait for all the maps to arrive

Thanks again!

 

[andyl]

There must be someone who has a GREAT map over Glorantha....
I was amazed about the lack of a large world map...(I know I am not young anymore...) but I would like the text on the color map of G2ndA to be little bigger than size 7

With information about Glorantha since 1966 (I was born -68 )
It really would be possible to have the best world map in the RPG world
...just look at the Forgotten Realms map.... It must be possible...

I dont wanna bash this game, I played it for the first time in 1981 or 82
...and I loved it. And now when I bought the new game I love it even more
but I hate (sorry) the structure of it... The books are great for the diehards, but not for the newcomers... I have not played this game since a very, very long time...

...well since I last poked around in a broo's toilet near Pavis...geez, was that stupied or what???!!!

//K

Moon Design is currently working on 'The Guide to Glorantha' which will be chock-full of maps. I've seen some of them and they will present Glorantha in a level of consistent detail that will be the definitive atlas of the world.

Yes! This is what I am talking about! Best news I could get, thanks!

I would note that the Moon Design book will be for the 3rd age. Which means that there are quite a number of differences - some large like the Upland Marsh (actually created in the 2nd age - although I can't remember the exact date) and Seshnela, other smaller such as towns and town names.

 

[Rungard]

I get so frustrated when I read Cults of Glorantha and Glorantha 2nd Age...
...What I would like to have is a dictionary with;
Cities A-z
Gods A-z
Regions A-z...
//Khamul (very frustrated)

You will LOVE this:

http://www.glorantha.com/tools/buserian/buserian.php

(try typing Gargos)

:wink:

 

[Khamulcalle]

I get so frustrated when I read Cults of Glorantha and Glorantha 2nd Age...
...What I would like to have is a dictionary with;
Cities A-z
Gods A-z
Regions A-z...
//Khamul (very frustrated)

You will LOVE this:

http://www.glorantha.com/tools/buserian/buserian.php

(try typing Gargos)

:wink:

You are my hero!!!!

Thanks a bunch...me and my brain love this!

//K