Using Conan RPG for REH's Crusader Stories

[ScottOden]

Hi All,

Does anyone know if a mod already exists for using the Conan RPG rules for a campaign in REH's vision of the Crusades? I expect the most time consuming part might be translating the races into their real-world counterparts (change Cimmerian to Gael to create, say, Cormac FitzGeoffrey). Maybe drop the magic system -- and the Scholar class -- and have at it.

It seems like the rest fits extremely well. But, before I head off to do it, I wanted to check and see if maybe one of you fine folks had beat me to the punch

Thanks!

Scott

 

[The King]

In the Conan the Barbarian comics, there is several issues concerning the Turanian holy war. The son of the king uses the deity to expand North and annex the free (Hyrkanian) cities.

The Stygians could do the same with Set or The Hyborians with Mitra. You just have to change some facts.

 

[ScottOden]

Hmm, I think our wires are crossed

I'm talking about picking the whole superstructure of the Conan RPG rules up out of the Hyborian Age and bringing it forward to REH's Oriental tales (i.e. Hawks of Outremer, Lord of Samarcand, et. al.). I spent a little bit this evening over dinner comparing the rules to the stories and I think very little modification would be needed. The races are the biggest thing I can see (oh, and dropping the idea of sorcery -- AFAIK, the Oriental tales were magic-free). REH's Crusader stories share a similar dynamic with those of Conan. The heroes are bleak and doom-ridden and the fighting is acceptably ruthless; indeed, by the descriptions a couple of REH's medieval heroes are Gaelic sons of Conan, to be sure.

But, before I head off and reinvent the wheel (for personal use, unless Mongoose would be interested in something like this), I thought I'd see if anyone had done it before.

Scott

 

[One Star Under Heaven]

I have thought the system would be good for campaigns set during the Crusades.of any type or style.
I have not done it yet, but I have planned to use the Conan RPG for Kull and Ban Mak Morn, and maybe some of REH's other stories (as well as other S&S setings-Jirel, Imaro, Elric, etc.).
Regarding his stories during the Crusades:
You can use
Shemites for Arabs
Turanians for Turks
Cimmerians for Gaels but for some reason I am partial to Hypeboreans
You can use the Knight multiclass variant from Hyboria's Finest (I think), or modify Mongoose Publishing's Heroes of Fantasy Knight class.
I recommend perusing Heroes of Fantasy and seeing if some of the other classes (Alchemist, Assassin, Crusader) might be easier to use in a Crusades setting than utilizing the Conan RPG's multi-class variants.

Whatever you decide, I cannot imagine much difficulty in using this rule system to handle another of Howard's settings.
Good luck to you.
-OSUH

 

[The King]

Do you want to take the OGL rules only?

I mean there should be some D20 books on the crusades beginning with Green Ronin's Medieval Player's Manual (A d20 rulebook to play in medieval Europe in the age of Christianity and crusade)

 

[ScottOden]

Good suggestions!

I've been using the end of Howard's essay The Hyborian Age to extrapolate where the races eventually fall out and comparing that with descriptions of various characters in the Oriental stories. Cormac FitzGeoffrey, for instance, is said to be half Gaelic and half Norman, but his description echoes that of Conan. Quite a few of REH's wild Irish characters fit the same mold.

The rules are an extremely good fit for the era, after some cosmetic tweaking like changing 'Akbitanan Weapons' to 'Damascene Weapons' and changing a couple of Hyborian-specific weapons/feats. I also dropped plate armor and the visored helm, since AFAIK both were later additions to the martial armory (though I could be wrong). I think it's a testament to how accurate the rules portray the REH outlook that so little tinkering is required.

Scott

 

[Hervé]

You should take a look at Crusades of Valour by Mongoose.
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=54&qsSeries=2