Comments on: Review: Realms Of Cthulhu http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu The Game Mastering Blog Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:00:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: What are You Looking For in a System? « Wrathofzombie's Blog http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-11348 What are You Looking For in a System? « Wrathofzombie's Blog Wed, 01 Dec 2010 16:30:45 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-11348 [...] are: FATE (Dresden Files RPG) Dragons Age Pathfinder (Using E6) Savage Worlds (Deadlands, Generic, Realms of Cthulhu) Warhammer Call of Cthulhu Freeport Mouse [...]<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('11348','What are You Looking For in a System? « Wrathofzombie's Blog'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> [...] are: FATE (Dresden Files RPG) Dragons Age Pathfinder (Using E6) Savage Worlds (Deadlands, Generic, Realms of Cthulhu) Warhammer Call of Cthulhu Freeport Mouse [...]
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]]> By: Roxysteve http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-9338 Roxysteve Tue, 20 Apr 2010 19:56:03 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-9338 One other thing: The Rather cleverly designed RofC character sheet PDF I downloaded from Reality Blurs's website two nights ago will not print. It contains some sort of logic fart that jams the print process (semi-permanently for a laserjet, requiring a printer index finger reboot) so I recommend people use a product like Photoshop to convert the PDF into a JPEG before attempting to print it.<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('9338','Roxysteve'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> One other thing: The Rather cleverly designed RofC character sheet PDF I downloaded from Reality Blurs’s website two nights ago will not print. It contains some sort of logic fart that jams the print process (semi-permanently for a laserjet, requiring a printer index finger reboot) so I recommend people use a product like Photoshop to convert the PDF into a JPEG before attempting to print it.
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]]> By: Roxysteve http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-9337 Roxysteve Tue, 20 Apr 2010 19:46:47 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-9337 I agree with most of what you've said. But: As a long time (as in as long as the game's been in print) GM of Call of Cthulhu I was persuaded to give RoC a look. I'll be running my own comparative review in another place as a result, but I wanted to say here that the authors and/or editors of RoC might have given some thought to the notion that people might be coming to their game supplement from the POV of someone who had never played SW (yet). For all the production in the book I found that certain key mechanics, most notably the rules for Sanity-threatening situations, were NOT explained in a straightforward manner, and required lengthy zipping around between the worked example, the text block of the rules and a couple of monster stats to make a stab at what in R'lyeh was going on. It was clear that the authors expected people to fill in the blanks they left from their previous SW experience, but I didn't have any. Would it have killed someone to spell out the process unambiguously in the main rule text block? The same problem is present in the SW: Explorer's Edition. For example, it took me a long time to work out how to calculate the parry value as nowhere does it say that one should use the relevant die's maximum value as the fixed portion for the calculation. If you'd ever played a game it would be obvious, but a rulebook should assume you haven't done so. In case you feel I'm being CofC-chauvinistic here, you should know I have exactly the same sort of complaints about the latest edition of Call of Cthulhu too, which takes a very simple game system and makes it so opaque I'm surprised anyone can understand it. Is rulebook authoring a lost art? Anyway. Your article did help persuade me to take a look at the RoC product, and I am eagerly attempting to get a game of SW:RofC together to give it an honest drive around the block.<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('9337','Roxysteve'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> I agree with most of what you’ve said. But:

As a long time (as in as long as the game’s been in print) GM of Call of Cthulhu I was persuaded to give RoC a look. I’ll be running my own comparative review in another place as a result, but I wanted to say here that the authors and/or editors of RoC might have given some thought to the notion that people might be coming to their game supplement from the POV of someone who had never played SW (yet).

For all the production in the book I found that certain key mechanics, most notably the rules for Sanity-threatening situations, were NOT explained in a straightforward manner, and required lengthy zipping around between the worked example, the text block of the rules and a couple of monster stats to make a stab at what in R’lyeh was going on. It was clear that the authors expected people to fill in the blanks they left from their previous SW experience, but I didn’t have any. Would it have killed someone to spell out the process unambiguously in the main rule text block?

The same problem is present in the SW: Explorer’s Edition. For example, it took me a long time to work out how to calculate the parry value as nowhere does it say that one should use the relevant die’s maximum value as the fixed portion for the calculation. If you’d ever played a game it would be obvious, but a rulebook should assume you haven’t done so.

In case you feel I’m being CofC-chauvinistic here, you should know I have exactly the same sort of complaints about the latest edition of Call of Cthulhu too, which takes a very simple game system and makes it so opaque I’m surprised anyone can understand it. Is rulebook authoring a lost art?

Anyway.

Your article did help persuade me to take a look at the RoC product, and I am eagerly attempting to get a game of SW:RofC together to give it an honest drive around the block.

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]]> By: John Arcadian http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8934 John Arcadian Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:26:07 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8934 <a href='#comment-8895' rel="nofollow">@Guilherme Moraes</a> - We already talked about this over email, but absolutely! http://retropunk.net/blog/?p=1091 is the link to his Brazilian version. I love the interior pics you used. They really show the excellence of the interior design.<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8934','John Arcadian'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> @Guilherme Moraes – We already talked about this over email, but absolutely!

http://retropunk.net/blog/?p=1091 is the link to his Brazilian version.

I love the interior pics you used. They really show the excellence of the interior design.

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]]> By: Savage Worlds IN Review #10: Reinos de Cthulhu http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8924 Savage Worlds IN Review #10: Reinos de Cthulhu Mon, 15 Feb 2010 21:12:10 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8924 [...] Artigo original escrito por John Arcadian [...]<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8924','Savage Worlds IN Review #10: Reinos de Cthulhu'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> [...] Artigo original escrito por John Arcadian [...]
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]]> By: Guilherme Moraes http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8895 Guilherme Moraes Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:14:00 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8895 Greeting, this is my first contact with RoC and i already in love with the setting. So, i wish to know if i can translate this review to portuguese? I run a blog, Retropunk.net, dedicated to turn Savage Worlds and its universo more "known" to the brazilian players. Thanks.<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8895','Guilherme Moraes'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> Greeting, this is my first contact with RoC and i already in love with the setting.

So, i wish to know if i can translate this review to portuguese? I run a blog, Retropunk.net, dedicated to turn Savage Worlds and its universo more “known” to the brazilian players.

Thanks.

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]]> By: John Arcadian http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8173 John Arcadian Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:34:11 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8173 <a href='#comment-8088' rel="nofollow">@Scott Martin</a> - Took me a while to get back to this. The material is focused on all 3 eras fairly equally. Any of the plots that I read could easily be made modern. Cell phones ruin all horror genres, but they get written out fairly quickly. The author takes great care to give the GM enough tools and advice on ways to preserve that sense of isolationism (and other Cthulhu and horror elements) in games. I'd say that you could easily take one of the 1920s plots and update it to the modern era on the fly.<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8173','John Arcadian'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> @Scott Martin – Took me a while to get back to this. The material is focused on all 3 eras fairly equally. Any of the plots that I read could easily be made modern. Cell phones ruin all horror genres, but they get written out fairly quickly. The author takes great care to give the GM enough tools and advice on ways to preserve that sense of isolationism (and other Cthulhu and horror elements) in games. I’d say that you could easily take one of the 1920s plots and update it to the modern era on the fly.
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]]> By: Scott Martin http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8088 Scott Martin Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:01:16 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8088 Is the material strongly focused on the 1920s, or are the 1890s and modern also well covered? Were the older plots playable with minor adjustment, or does a cell phone ruin them?<div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8088','Scott Martin'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> Is the material strongly focused on the 1920s, or are the 1890s and modern also well covered? Were the older plots playable with minor adjustment, or does a cell phone ruin them?
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]]> By: Noumenon http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulhu/comment-page-1#comment-8076 Noumenon Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:01:52 +0000 http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/review-realms-of-cthulu#comment-8076 I don't know if it's right for the hardcore fan, but I sure liked <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOHJUrcVdJk&feature=player_embedded" rel="nofollow">The Adventures of Lil Cthulhu.</a><div class="comment-remix-meta"><a href="#" class="replyto" onclick="replyto('8076','Noumenon'); return false;">Reply</a> </div> I don’t know if it’s right for the hardcore fan, but I sure liked The Adventures of Lil Cthulhu.
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