Retconning a familiar setting for BRP?

[Trifletraxor]

There a setting a used to play a lot with RQ3, which I like a lot. I don't like the way it turned though, but maybe we could make a version sufficiently different, but still with the same flavour?

Maybe that island in the middle of the ocean that was closed off? Starting the mythology from the day it was closed. Humans, elves, dwarves and trolls of course. Tweaking MRQs OCL magic system for it, and then just develop it from there? What do you think? It could easily be a community effort as there's lots of islands there.

SGL.

[frogspawner]

Sorry to be negative but, on reflection, I'd prefer something clean, fresh and non-litigious. We don't all live in Norway, y'know!

But I do think that we, BRP fans collectively, should have a go at collaborating on a new BRP setting (or world, or multiverse...)

But what flavour?

[Atgxtg]

Yeah, I think "Moreantha" probably won't be workable. There is a company out there that lisences it out.

But a group world, or maybe a couple of them (one for fantasy, one for Sci-Fi) could be neat. We could do a sort of Questworld idea for the fantasy world. And a collection of Star Systems/confederations for the Sci-Fi one.

Someone would need to be a sort of overseerer and we have to work out what restrictions we'd operate under, but it could be quite a setting.

[frogspawner]

What is the Questworld idea?
I still like the 'gates between worlds' concept. (Was that it?) We could just have general rules for how the gates would look/work, and then I think we could do without an overseer (or, rather, each author would oversee their own world/universe). Do you see any problem with that?

[Atgxtg]

Originally Posted by frogspawner

What is the Questworld idea?
I still like the 'gates between worlds' concept. (Was that it?) We could just have general rules for how the gates would look/work, and then I think we could do without an overseer (or, rather, each author would oversee their own world/universe). Do you see any problem with that?

Questworld was a RQ2 boxed setting. It was an open world comprised of a many large islands. It was supposed to be an open game world that people could contribute to unlike Glorantha which was pretty much Greg's world. Questworld was big enough that you could have parts that were isolated or sections where many little countries traded with each other (or warred).

We could ressurect it, or create something along the same lines.

Someone (maybe Triff?) could serve as an editor/moderator just to have prevent any clashes that could arise from multiple authors. We could limit everyone to the same technological level, or maybe allow for some leeway in certain areas. Like a island nation that has superior maritime technology. Maybe they have Brigs and schooners where the rest are using Cogs and Caravels?

We'd probably need to get people to talk about what sort of world they want, how advanced, how large, how isolated, who much war, how much trading, etc.

[frogspawner]

Originally Posted by Atgxtg

Someone (maybe Triff?) could serve as an editor/moderator just to have prevent any clashes that could arise from multiple authors. We could limit everyone to the same technological level, or maybe allow for some leeway in certain areas. ...
We'd probably need to get people to talk about what sort of world they want, how advanced, how large, how isolated, who much war, how much trading, etc.

Thanks, that's pretty standard but seems a bit limiting and trickier to administer than necessary. Mr T mentioned Questworld and the idea of gates between worlds (though going on to say he didn't like 'em). It seems to me that 'Gated Worlds' would' put no limits on author creativity, need no edit/moderating, and allow existing worlds to be plugged in (even commercial ones). I've mentioned this before in another thread but raised little interest.
What would be wrong with the 'gates' approach?

[Triff]

Originally Posted by frogspawner

Thanks, that's pretty standard but seems a bit limiting and trickier to administer than necessary. Mr T mentioned Questworld and the idea of gates between worlds (though going on to say he didn't like 'em). It seems to me that 'Gated Worlds' would' put no limits on author creativity, need no edit/moderating, and allow existing worlds to be plugged in (even commercial ones). I've mentioned this before in another thread but raised little interest.
What would be wrong with the 'gates' approach?

There's nothing wrong with the "gates" approach, but doesn't create much of a cooperative world, unless there's something to bind it all together. Then everyone would just work on their own projects, as we do now. You can easily say there are gates btw. that connect the western, roman, greek and gwenthia settings in the download section, but I think it would be harder to front that as "one setting".

SGL.

[Rurik]

Well I wouldn't want to attempt to make a generic version of another world that is still in development (and which I might even play in).

What would be a good exercise is coming up with a list of what made such a setting so special in the first place, and using that as inspiration for an original setting.

For example (real quick off the top of my head):
1. NOT at standard fantasy late middle ages setting.
2. Magic is common
3. Myth and Religeon is prominent and real.
4. Emphasis on realistic setting with enough wackyness to keep it fun.
5. Familiar races that are in fact unique, so you can say to a new player 'elf' and have them learn through play that 'elf' does not mean Galadriel.
6. Wacky races.
7. Strong emphasis on cults and religeon as primary sources of culture, belief, and magic.
8. Damn strong detailed starting settings and scenarios.

If everyone contributed to such a list, and then agreed on which of these things should shape a new setting, I think that would be cool. I'm not looking for thinly vieled copies of cults or cultures in another world, but to capture the essence of what made that world fun in a new setting.

I'm not into gates per se, I agree if you want gates you can just put them in ANY worls to link to ANY OTHER world. I prefer a more organic approach. Islands is cool, perhaps after a period of the seas being unnavigable for some reason so cultures have been isolated until recently (I know - that is a bit like another existing world which had unnavigable seas). Maybe some other kind of magical barrier between lands that has recently been lifted (or is just being lifted for the first time as the setting starts so the players can be the first pioneers of travelling between the once isolated cultures).

Just some thoughts...

[RMS]

I'm generally with Rurik here. I have my own world that's developed over the years and I've stolen a lot of ideas and would be happy to put some details behind it for others to use, but honestly I'm not going to share...at least not the overall vision, and for the same reason I really wouldn't put the effort into designing something with someone else.

Btw, I like Rurik's list, but I would actually remove the "races" part. I got into Glorantha, but in general I greatly prefer humancentric worlds. Mine has rumors of elven forests, but they're haunted, uninviting forests. (If the PCs ever get there, they find humans that are in tune with nature, live in the trees, etc. but are not genetically different from other humans.) I don't mind having other intelligent creatures around, but I've stayed with either fantasic, nonhumanoid creatures and they're usually "monsters": ie. not completely races, but individuals or very small groups.

What I really stole from Glorantha (and really from real world ideas) was the idea of having lots of unique religions, that provide magic to their believers, and everyone has some connection to that...it's just that since it's all real, praying over your blessed sword actually does make it sharper before battle, etc. In fact, I've done a lot of thinking about religions and how they, societies, and individuals all fit together and I'm trying to come up with some basic rules that link all of that.

I'm going with the basic premise that anyone who receives worship, gains power from that, so an emperor who receives worship from his subjects really does gain power in the world, and conversely can dispense that power to his worshippers how he sees fit. This is a two way street, so that if a minor god loses his worshippers he loses real power and potentially his divinity and can return to being mortal. Anyhow, I'm going off topic here, but if anyone has ideas on some reasonable way to model this I'd love to hear it.

[Atgxtg]

The drawback to gates is like Triff said. Little cooperation. Basically, unless the gates are well known and there is a lot of commerce and interaction between the various planes (like hyperspace gates in Sci-Fi) you'll end up with 12 differenrt settings instead of one detailed and rich setting.

We can always link any two settings with some sort of magical gate. Strombringer 1st edition suggested something like a gate to Glorantha or the bridge of the Enterprise.