[Fanzine Focus XXX] The Electrum Archive Issue #01

On the tail of the Old School Renaissance has come another movement—the rise of the fanzine. Although the fanzine—a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon, got its start in Science Fiction fandom, in the gaming hobby it first started with Chess and Diplomacy fanzines before finding fertile ground in the roleplaying hobby in the 1970s. Here these amateurish publications allowed the hobby a public space for two things. First, they were somewhere that the hobby could voice opinions and ideas that lay outside those of a game’s publisher. Second, in the Golden Age of roleplaying when the Dungeon Masters were expected to create their own settings and adventures, they also provided a rough and ready source of support for the game of your choice. Many also served as vehicles for the fanzine editor’s house campaign and thus they showed another DM and group played said game. This would often change over time if a fanzine accepted submissions. Initially, fanzines were primarily dedicated to the big three RPGs of the 1970s—Dungeons & Dragons, RuneQuest, and Traveller—but fanzines have appeared dedicated to other RPGs since, some of which helped keep a game popular in the face of no official support.

Since 2008 with the publication of Fight On #1, the Old School Renaissance has had its own fanzines. The advantage of the Old School Renaissance is that the various Retroclones draw from the same source and thus one Dungeons & Dragons-style RPG is compatible with another. This means that the contents of one fanzine will be compatible with the Retroclone that you already run and play even if not specifically written for it. Labyrinth Lord and Lamentations of the Flame Princess Weird Fantasy Roleplay have proved to be popular choices to base fanzines around, as has Swords & Wizardry. Not every fanzine is dedicated to particular roleplaying games.

The Electrum Archive Issue #01 begins a Science Fantasy roleplaying game delivered in the  fanzine format, inspired by films such as Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, books like Dune and The Book of the New Sun, computer games such as The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, settings like Dark Sun, Wormskin, and Through Ultan’s Door, and roleplaying games such as Cairn and Maze Rats. Written and published by Emiel Boven and the Cult of the Lizard King, it  explores the world of Orn and its people, descended from those who were transplanted to the planet by an ancient starfaring civilisation known as the Elders. Knowledge of them was lost when their ships fell from the heavens and buried themselves in the surface of the planet long ago. Gold and silver are so abundant on Orn that they are worthless, instead the main currency is drops of Elder Ink, a magical substance that was left behind by the Elders. Further, when vaporised and inhaled, Elder Ink expands the mind and allows the user to enter the Realm Beyond, a parallel dimension inhabited by spirits, and tap into its magical energy, thus enabling Warlocks to cast their spells. Ink can also be used to power a variety of ancient constructs like golems and airships. Trade across Orn is handled by ancient Merchant Houses feuding with others in a desperate search for former glory and power, whilst their trade networks are barely recovering from the fungal parasite known as Bone Spores. Fortunately, the Order of Ilsaar works to keep the networks free of infection. Meanwhile, hidden below Orn is the Sunless Princedoms, a network of an expansive network of tunnels and caves where the insect-like Irr are locked in a cold war over control of their ancestral city and the Twin-Souled Emperor, ruler of the ancient City of Nol, claims they are a spirit from the Realm Beyond born into human flesh. Adventurers known as ‘inkseekers’ venture out into the decaying world beyond the cities ruled over by scheming Merchant Houses to look for Elder artefacts and ink.

A Player Character has five attributes—Agility, Archive, Body, Mask, and Spirit. Archive represents information, literacy, and insight, whilst Mask is both charisma and stealth. These range between one and eight, but typically start between one and six. He also has a Background and an Archetype. Backgrounds provide Talents, Attribute bonuses, and languages, whilst Archetypes grants specific features. Backgrounds include Archivist, Houseborn (member of a minor Merchant House), Muscle, Nomad, Cultist, Performer, Scavenger, and Worker. The three Archetypes are Fixer, Vagabond, and Warlock, and each has different features. The Fixer has Skills such as Swift or Network, gaining one of these at each Level or mastery in one of the previously selected Skills. The Vagabond has Manoeuvres, such as ‘Focus’, which enables a vagabond to attack and ignore an opponent’s armour, or ‘Shake It off’ which enables him to shake damage off. The Vagabond can choose more Manoeuvres at later levels, but all Manoeuvres require the expenditure of Grit, of which the Vagabond has only a few points. The Warlock can learn spell names from the spell spirits of the Realm Beyond, initially randomly, but then by crafting them. Once known, spellcasting costs Drops of ink and how any one spell works is very much open to interpretation. Creating a character is a matter of rolling for attributes and then selecting Background, Archetype, and equipment.

Inaxx

Background: Warlock

Archetype: Cultist

Attributes

Agility 2 Archive 4 Body 3 Mask 2 Spirit 6

Hit Points: 3

Talents: Religion, Spirits, Rumours

Feature: Spell Names

Spell Names Known: Blade of Diminishing Cosmos

One possible issue with The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is that it offers limited options in terms of character types. The Fixer has plenty to choose from in terms of Skills and ways to improve them, but it is difficult to make one Vagabond different from another. So perhaps the Vagabond could have the option to take a Talent in a particular weapon and then Mastery? Whilst the Warlock has plenty of flexibility in terms of his spells and no two Warlocks are likely to possess the same spells because they are all random, could the Warlock learn more Talents? Ultimately, the issue is that as with fighters and warriors in many other retroclones, the Vagabond does feel underpowered in comparison to the other Archetypes. 

Mechanically, The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is simple. For a character to undertake an action, his player rolls a ten-sided die and succeeds if he rolls equal to or under the appropriate attribute. Advantage and Disadvantage works as standard, which can be gained from the situation or equipment, or in the case of Advantage, from a Talent. Combat is simple and deadly, a roll against a weapon’s Speed value to attack before an opponent and an attack always striking an opponent. Instead of rolling to hit, a player instead rolls damage, which is reduced by the Armour Value of any armour worn. The rules allow for critical hits, dual-wielding, aiming, and stunts. If a character’s Hit Points are reduced to zero, he is at Death’s Door, there is a fifty percent chance that he will die immediately and a fifty percent chance of falling unconscious and dying later unless healed. If that happens, the character will awake with a Scar, which can be physical or spiritual.

Experience Points are awarded for finding treasure—ink drops, completing goals, learning about the world, establishing relationships, and surviving being at Death’s Door, but the number awarded is rolled randomly. Equipment is carried across the body in slots, including backpack slots, and weapons, armour, and ammunition have a usage die rolled after each combat, whilst Torches and Lumen Pods are used up on certain Exploration Events, rations on Travel Events, and tools and gear when they are used. The currency is Drops of Ink, a worker earning one Drop per day, whilst ‘inkseekers’ can search for more. The equipment list includes membrane masks, Inkdrinker Blades (a dagger which expands to three times the size and damage when fed Drops of ink), and Moonlight Rifles (recharges faster at night). Lastly there are rules for travel and exploration.

More than half of The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is dedicated to detailing the world of Orn and the first issue of the fanzine includes a separate map of the known parts of the planet, done as a point crawl rather than a sandbox. It begins with a short history and an overview of the regions, people, languages, and religions before explaining the nature of Elder Ink and the Realm Beyond. In terms of factions, it covers ‘The Blind Bank’ which stockpiles Elder Ink and influence, guarded by the eerie Stillsingers, and sponsors expeditions to both recover more and investigate the nature of Elder Ink; the merchant House Uvri, militarising because its cynical head wants to regain control of Ilsaar, the city it built up, but lost to the Order of Ilsaar, the monks who work prevent further infections of Bone Spores; and the Children of the Moon, a cult which believes that the Elders are watching them from Orn’s moon, waiting to return and judge everyone. The cult believes that inhaling ink and interaction with the Realm Beyond are both a sin.

A good third of the fanzine—and most of the background—is devoted to detailing six of the regions given on the map. These are ‘The Electrum Sea’, ‘The Mirall Delta’, ‘The Rift’, ‘The Ruinlands’, ‘The Spirit Roads’, and ‘The Spore Wilds’. Each includes a box of travel options, descriptions of its major locations, and then tables of plot hooks and encounters, for a total of four pages each. For example, ‘The Spirit Roads’ is where the Veil between Orn and the Realm Beyond is at its weakest, spirits bend and warp the laws of physics, rocks float in formation, and the great city of Nol stands at nexus of pilgrim routes, but the entire region is walled off and can only be entered by the Soulgate in its southern wall. Nol, the City of Sorcerery, is the largest in the world, once ruled by the Consortium of Nol, consisting of representatives of the city’s various spirit cults, now ruled by the Twin-Souled Emperor, whose Sorceror-Knights have been cracking down on anyone who challenges the Emperor’s claim. The Masked Apostates, consisting of disaffected members of the spirit cults, is in open rebellion.

Elsewhere, a monastery to St. Shebol sits atop Lifthold, a large floating rock formation, and houses the largest library in the world, and the Plain of Jars is a vast field scattered with thousands of burial jars, attracting unsavoury spirits and warlocks scavenging for secrets and treasures. Each of the locations is described in sufficient detail to pique the interest of the Seer—as the Game Master is known in The Electrum Archive Issue #01—and the plot hooks and encounters more than make up for the lack of a starting scenario. Rounding out the fanzine is a decent bestiary, an NPC generator, a ‘I Loot the Body’ table, and information about the dread Bone Spores. Lastly, there is a bibliography, which is surprisingly comprehensive.

Physically, The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is a lovely looking book. The artwork is excellent throughout, the writing engaging, and the cartography decent. One excellent inclusion is a full example of play, two pages long and far more than roleplaying games from actual publishers usually include. For a small roleplaying game/fanzine, The Electrum Archive Issue #01, its inclusion is a marvel.

The only thing real wrong with The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is that you wish there was more of it. This first issue of the fanzine is a roleplaying game in its own right and it has everything that the Seer and her players need to get playing, barring the lack of a scenario (but then the author is upfront about this), and yet this world is so intriguing that you want to learn more and explore more. From the moment the cover to The Electrum Archive Issue #01 and the basic background were available, it sounded fascinating and rife with possibilities, and there can be no doubt that this inaugural issue delivers on both the fascination and the possibilities. The Electrum Archive Issue #01 is a stunning first issue, opening up a weirdly inky, baroque, and alien planetary romance to our exploration. Electrum Archive Issue #02 is coming in 2023 and Reviews from R’lyeh is disappointed that it has to wait.

A French Sword & Planet RPG

It is the Modern Age. Three hundred years ago, at the beginning of the Age of the Havoc, Joskales, the last Incarnate of the Astarite died and the few remaining of that race fled their dead cities. Two-hundred-and-three years ago, a colony ship arrived from Earth lost en route to Alpha Centauri, and founded four colonies. The colonists discovered a world already settled by several species, each of them also colonists who had come to the world in the centuries long past. They include the almost plant-like hermaphrodite Ælfyn; the four-armed, reptilian and mercantile Agamids, who command a fleet of sky-junks; the short, stocky, almost egg-shaped Dakti, know for their technological acumen and their Karkan, specialised exo-skeletons they use for exploration; and Orcs, nomadic hunters and warriors who distrust technology. They also discovered the world was infused with ethereal energy which the Astarites had harnessed both psychically and technologically, constructing a network of stelae known as the Chain which enhanced their abilities and created a planetary communications system. However, their attempts to restart would lead to an Æthero-magnetic storm which would disrupt all technology and lead to increased friction between numerous nations that would escalate into a series of violent wars in the Age of Conflicts.

Thirty years ago, H.E.R.O. (Heuristical Exploration and Reconnaissance Operations), now known as the Free-Lancers’ Guild, was founded during the First Crater Council. It was established to undertake independent operations free of politic influence, to conduct expeditions to the ancient Astarite cities, and once there recover the surviving items and blueprints of Arcanotechnology that have survived, and also to research the Alteration, a strange, gangrenous fungus which was found to be spreading from the ruins. In the years since, the Free-Lancers’ Guild, operating out of Patera, the Crater City, has continued to undertake the same missions, but also provides guards, exterminate monsters, mediates conflicts between communities, and also acts against dragons. These creatures fall as seeds from the stars and when they hatch and grow, they can devastate whole communities. In return, members, known as Freelancers, receive lodging, support, training, and more.

This is the set-up for Lore & Legacy: Fantastic Adventures in a World of Science and Magic, a French science-fantasy role-playing game published by Empyreal Media Productions. It takes place on the fantastical world of Empyrea, a vast planet home to numerous species who have come from the stars and settled. In the long years since, they have forgotten their homeworlds, how they got to Empyrea, and how to operate much of the technology. Indeed that technology has come to be regarded as akin to magic and only a few have the skill to use what has become known as Arcanotechnology. Empyrea is also a world of many ruins, especially of the grandiose and sinister necropolis left behind by the mysterious Astarite civilization that came before anyone settled on the planet. They are said to contain lost treasures and forgotten technological wonders, but also many dangers—antediluvian biomechanical guardians and creatures corrupted by the poison of the Alteration, a mysterious fungal gangrene that spreads over the regions that once formed the heart of the Astarite kingdoms. In recent years, the Alteration has begun to spread again and Dragon Seeds have fallen from the sky, giving birth to Dragons, creatures of unrivalled destructive power. Where such threats occur, the Free-Lancers’ Guild steps forward to protect and investigate. Found throughout many nations, its members coming from many different species, the Free-Lancers’ Guild sends out those determined to unravel the mysteries of the past and to venture beyond the borders imposed by incomplete maps, to protect the population, lift the veil on ancient lore, and reclaim their lost legacies.

A character in Lore & Legacy is defined by his People (or species), seven Attributes representing his physical and mental prowess, various Abilities in which has either been trained or is gifted, and a number of Traits representing his personality quirks, special talents, obsessions, phobias, and the like. The Peoples of Empyrea—at least on the northern half of the continent of Enelysion, especially in and around the Great Crater and its neutral city of Patera, are the Ælfyns, Agamids, Dakti, Humans, and Orcs. In more recent times, they have been joined by the Disincarnated, sentient androids who once served the Astarite who have awoken devoid of personality and knowledge, but quickly grow to acquire both, as well as the traits of the other Peoples of Empyrea. The Attributes are Acumen, Fortune, Mastery, Presence, Robustness, Temper, and Vigour, and all bar Fortune are represented by a single six-sided die plus a modifier. Fortune is a straight value representing the number of Fortune dice which a player can roll each day. Now not all of the remaining six Attributes are not exactly clear as to what they are from their names. So, Acumen is the character’s ability to observe, reflect, and analyse; Mastery is agility, dexterity, and precision, and ability to think and react quickly; Temper is his willpower; and Vigour his raw physical strength. This runs counter to most naming conventions for attributes and may well be confusing for some players.

Abilities include Arcanotech, Charge, Investigation, Melee Combat, Passion (Painting), Wizardry, and more. They are always represented by a single ten-sided die plus a modifier. Traits tend to apply situational modifiers. For example, ‘Beast of Burden’ increases a Player Character’s Luggage Points by three; Healer which grants a Fortune die any non-magical healing action; Agoraphobic, which levies an Adversity die on all actions when the Player Character is in an open space; Ancestral Weapon, which grants the Player Character a weapon with the Ætheric, which reduces the Magic Resistance of a successfully struck opponent; and Remarkable, which marks the Player Character out in social interactions with members of other races, levying an Adversity die and adding a Fortune die. A Player Character also has a number of derived secondary characteristics, including Health Points, Magic Points, Physical, Magic and Mental Resistances, and so on.

To create a character, a player selects a race, which provides the base attributes and traits. He has six points to assign to his character’s attributes, eight to spend on traits and ten to spend on abilities. One of the latter points must be spent on a passion or a hobby. Lastly, a character receives some money and equipment, and if he has studied magic some spells. In general, characters tend to be fairly focused and specialised, backed up with more general skills.

Our sample character is Zuwena whose fascination with Arcanotech has never extended beyond the library. She has joined the Freelancers’ Guild in the hopes of joining an expedition, if not actually leading one. In the meantime, she has to undertake other tasks for the guild, perhaps to prove herself worthy, perhaps to gain a bit more experience of the world outside of her books.

Zuwena
Human

Temper 2 Acumen 4 Mastery 4 Presence 2
Robustness 1 Vigour 1 Fortune 2

Racial Traits: Noticeable, Technophile
Traits: Bookworm, Little Genius

Abilities: Archaeology 2, Investigation 2, Observation 1, Dodge 1, Melee Combat 1, Mysticism 1, Wilderness Survival 1, Wizardry 2

Passion Ability: Arcanotech 1

Wizardry Spells: Ætheric Echolocation (6), Ætheric Arrow (3), Healing (3)

Luggage: 9
Weight: 30
Health Points: 4
Magic Points: 8
Physical Resistance: 3
Mental Resistance: 16
Last Chance Pool: 3
Injury Threshold: 2
Speed: 5

Mechanically, Lore & Legacy uses the ‘3d’ engine, which uses three sizes of the dice and three types of dice. The three sizes are ten-sided or Ability dice, eight-sided or Damage dice, and six-sided or Attribute dice, and they are always used in specific situations. In general, when an Ability or Attribute is tested, or Damage is rolled, only one die, the Basic die is rolled, any modifier being added to the result to get a total. However, it can be as many as three. It cannot, though, be more than three. The extra dice can either be a Fortune die, an Adversity die, or even both! The result of the Fortune die is added to the result of the Basic die, whilst the result of the Adversity die is subtracted from the result of the Basic die. Adding both a Fortune die and an Adversity die to the dice to be rolled does not mean that they cancel each other out. Instead, their results are added and subtracted respectively.

When a Player Character undertakes an action, his player makes an Action Roll, consisting of the appropriate Basic die—whether a ten-sided die because the Player Character has an appropriate Ability or a six-sided die because he does not and must rely upon an Attribute instead—and applies any modifier. The Difficulty Rating for the Action Roll ranges from six for ‘simple’ to eighteen for ‘superhuman’. The success result can vary. A result equal to, or greater than the Difficulty Rating is a Standard Success and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim. A result one-and-a-half times or greater than the Difficulty Rating is a Major Success, and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim with positive benefits. A result less than the Difficulty Rating and less than half of the Difficulty Rating is a Partial Success, and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim, but with unforeseen complications. A result less than the Difficulty Rating and more than half of the Difficulty Rating is a Failure, and indicates that the Player Character has not achieved his intended aim.

In addition, a Player Character can also roll a Spectacular Success or Disastrous Failure. A Spectacular Success is achieved when a Fortune die is included in the Action Roll and a maximum result is rolled on the Fortune die, when the result of the Action Roll is a Standard or Major Success. Similarly, a Disastrous Failure is achieved when an Adversity die is included in the Action Roll and a maximum result is rolled on the Adversity die, when the result of the Action Roll is a Partial Success or Failure. Although a Disastrous Failure cannot result in the death of a Player Character, the Game Master is free to be as creative as she wants, whether the result is a Spectacular Success or a Disastrous Failure.

For example, Zuwenna has been assigned an escort mission, and whilst she is not interested in the job itself, the route does take it near some ruins that are rumoured to be Astartite. Before she attempts to persuade her colleagues that they might be interesting, she decides to spend some time in the archives conducting research. She has the Investigation skill, so her player will be rolling a ten-sided die and adding Zuwenna’s Investigation of 2. In addition, the Little Genius Trait grants her a Fortune die with any Ability which uses the Acumen Attribute. However, she does not have long, so there is a time penalty to find any useful information. The Game Master sets the Difficulty Rating at twelve. Zuwenna’s player rolls the two ten-sided dice and rolls a six on the basic die and a maximum of ten on the Fortune die! Not only is the result a total of eighteen, but the ten on the Fortune die means it is a spectacular success! This means that she definitely has some information related to the ruins and it could contain arcanotech. That should be enough to persuade her companions on the road.

Both combat and magic use the same mechanics. A combatant has a single gesture, move, and action each round, and if he attacks, his player’s Action Roll is against his opponent’s Physical Resistance as the Difficulty Rating or Magic Resistance if the weapon used involves arcanotech. A Fortune die can be added to an Action roll if the opponent is immobilised, paralysed, knocked down, unconscious, and so on, likewise an Adversity die can be added if the attacker is suffering from similar conditions. Damage is rolled on a single eight-sided die, plus the weapon’s damage bonus, and is halved if the outcome of the Action Roll is a Partial Success, but increased by a half if a Major Success. Damage inflicted equal or superior to an opponent’s Injury Threshold and an injury is inflicted.

Lore & Legacy includes several types of magic. Illusory magic deals with changing the perceptions of others about their environment, whilst Material magic being the scientific study of making real what was not, or transforming what is. Ritual magic consists of magic which takes several magicians to cast, whilst Spiritism deals with ‘nature spirits’, including possession and exorcism. Bar Spiritism, the other types of magic include lengthy lists of spells, which are all in their own way interesting and ones that a magic using character in the game would want to cast. As in combat, the outcome of a Partial or Superior Success on an Action Roll halves the effect of the spell, or increases it by half, respectively.

For example, Zuwenna has persuaded her colleagues to investigate the ruins in the hope of finding some Arcanotech or at least something interesting. She has already cast Ætheric Echolocation to determine the extent of the underground passages and rooms when the guards left behind to protect the caravan come looking for them. Not to check on their welfare though, but to steal what Zuwenna and her colleagues have found. However, their disappointment at the lack of discoveries leads them to threaten Zuwenna and her colleagues, and a fight breaks out. Zuweena is attacked by one of the guards, Hagor. Both Zuwenna and Hagor have a Speed of five, but he is wearing chainmail, which reduces it by one to four. However, surprised by the attack, Zuwenna decides to fully defend herself. This doubles her Physical Resistance from three to six, to which is added her Dodge skill of one and the bonus from her padded armour, for a total Physical Resistance of eight. The Game Master rolls a Basic die and adds Hagor’s Melee Combat skill of 3 to the total. She rolls a two and adds the three for a total of five. This is a Partial Success, which means that any damage inflicted by Hagor is halved. The Game Master rolls 1d6+1 for his shortsword, rolling a one, then adding one before halving the damage inflicted—one! Clearly Hagor was expecting to be more of a pushover, as he growls, “C’mere you little witch!”, but Zuwenna’s Health Points are reduced from four to three.

Now Zuweena can act. She has a dagger, but attempts a desperate blast of magic by unleashing an Ætheric Arrow at Hagor. Having already cast Ætheric Echolocation, Zuwenna has two Magic Points left, but Ætheric Arrow costs three to cast. This means that the power must come from somewhere and that is from her Health Points, which will be reduced by a further single point, leaving her with two. To cast the spell, Zuwenna’s player will be rolling a ten-sided die and adding Zuwenna’s Wizardry of 2. As before, the Little Genius Trait grants her a Fortune die with any Ability which uses the Acumen Attribute, which includes the Wizardry Ability. The Difficulty Rating is determined by Hagor’s Mental Resistance, which is fourteen. Zuwenna’s player rolls eight on both dice for a total of sixteen and adding her Wizardry gives a final result of eighteen. This is a Standard Success and inflicts 1d8+1 damage. Zuwenna’s player rolls a total of eight, enough to beat Hagor’s Injury Threshold of eight. This can trigger a Condition, which will vary depending upon where the Ætheric Arrow. Zuwenna’s player rolls ten on a ten-sided die, indicating the head. Hagor screams as his head is burned by Ætheric energy. Until healed, the Game Master must roll all of his actions with an Adversity die.

The advancement mechanics in Lore & Legacy are nicely woven into the setting itself. Being a member of the the Free-Lancers’ Guild provides a Player Character with motivation and missions to undertake, but having completed a mission, the Freelancers are paid in Asters which can be used to gain training, access Arcanotech archives and magical libraries, and even undergo experimental therapy to effectively buy off the negative effectives of Traits. For example, Bookworm provides extra points to spend on Abilities during character creation, but at the cost of an Adversity die being rolled every time a character undertakes an action related to his Vigour. So a player could spend the Asters to pay off this negative effect, all of which provides a nice range of options when it comes to Player Character advancement.

Although Lore & Legacy employs magic and wizardry, it is very much a Science Fiction game and this shows in the range of equipment available. So not just swords and shields, but firearms, technologically enhanced weapons such as gravitic bolas or phase kukri, and Arcanotech. The latter are lost devices from all of the peoples on Empyrea whose manufacture is no longer possible, and they need to be found and deciphered. They can be weapons such as Adamantine Claws and Disphasers which paralyses targets, and artefacts such as Anti-Grav Boots, Assessor collars which estimate the value of items, Khading Wings carried in a backpack and allow wearer’s to fly. Vehicles exist also, such as the Agamid aerial junks, gunboats that have survived wars, but are fielded during emergencies, such as dragon attacks. Full stats for dragons are provided in the bestiary along with a host of other threats and dangers.

Lore & Legacy includes a decent amount of background about the Free-Lancers’ Guild, what it does and what the Player Characters do. Patera, the Crater City, is also detailed as is the Greater Crater Region, along with various NPCs which can be found throughout the region. There is plenty here to support an ongoing campaign, and both the Game Master and her players are provided with a starting point. For the latter, it is set of six pre-generated characters, but for the former, it is not one, but three adventures. They begin with an investigative adventure in Patera itself following an attack on the Free-Lancers’ Guild headquarters, whilst the second is more traditional, being an expedition to investigate a meteor strike which at worst could be the arrival of another Dragon Seed. Lastly, the third scenario follows on from the second, to further investigate what was found at the site of the meteor strike. Together the three scenarios nicely showcase aspects of the setting—the Player Characters’ base of operations, what expeditions are like, and a little bit of some of the mysteries of the Empyrea. In addition, suggestions are given as to how to include the ‘Froglins in the Mist’ adventure from Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide in between the three adventures in the core book. Each of the three should provide at least two sessions’ worth of play, if not more.

Physically, Lore & Legacy is well presented. Much of the artwork is excellent and much of it reminiscent of FASA’s Earthdawn roleplaying game—which should be no surprise given that artist Jeff Laubenstein worked on both. The writing is also good, and the translation is more than reasonable. It feels a little overwritten in places, the rules, though simple, often feel as if they have more terms than they really need. If the book lacks anything, it is an index. The table of contents is good, but an index would have helped.

Lore & Legacy: Fantastic Adventures in a World of Science and Magic could be described as Earthdawn meets SkyRealms of Jorune, but the former is primarily due to Jeff Laubenstein’s artwork. Nevertheless, it firmly falls into the ‘Sword & Planet’ genre, combined with post-apocalyptic elements, whilst adhering to Clarke’s Third Law which states that, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Its inspirations—the French science fantasy comics series, Valérian, the works of Moebius, Philippe Caza, and Philippe Druillet in Heavy Metal, C.L. Moore’s Northwest Smith and Jirel of Joiry, the computer game, Might & Magic, and even She-Ra and the Princess of Power—all combine to give Lore & Legacy a different feel, a stronger sense of the other and the alien than might be found in similar roleplaying games.

Lore & Legacy is an adroit combination of a simple rules system, intriguing setting, a set-up that provides the Player Characters with motivations and missions, and a sense of mystery and wonder in the secrets of the Astarites. Although it leaves both wanting to know more about the world of Empyrea and its mysteries, Lore & Legacy: Fantastic Adventures in a World of Science and Magic provides Game Master and players alike with an impressive introduction and start.

A French Science Fantasy Starter

Lore & Legacy is a French science-fantasy role-playing game set on the fantastical world of Empyrea, a vast planet home to numerous species who have come from the stars and settled. In the long years since, they have forgotten their homeworlds, how they go to Empyrea, and how to operate much of the technology. Indeed that technology has come to be regarded as akin to magic and only a few have the skill to use what has become known as arcanotechnology. Empyrea is also a world of many ruins, especially of the grandiose and sinister necropolis left behind by the mysterious Astarite civilization that came before anyone settled on the planet. They are said to contain lost treasures and forgotten technological wonders, but also many dangers—antediluvian biomechanical guardians and creatures corrupted by the poison of the Alteration, a mysterious fungal gangrene that spreads over the regions that once formed the heart of the Astarite kingdoms. In recent years, the Alteration has begun to spread again and dragon seeds have fallen from the sky, giving birth to dragons, creatures of unrivalled destructive power. Where such threats occur, the Free-Lancers’ Guild steps forward to protect and investigate. Found throughout many nations, its members coming from many different species, the Free-Lancers’ Guild sends out those determined to unravel the mysteries of the past and to venture beyond the borders imposed by incomplete maps, to protect the population, lift the veil on ancient lore, and reclaim their lost legacies.

Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide provides this background and more. Published by Empyreal Media Productions, it introduces the setting and the mechanics, plus an adventure designed for four players and their quartet of pre-generated Player Characters. A character in Lore & Legacy is defined by his People (or species), seven Attributes representing his physical and mental prowess, various Abilities in which has either been trained or is gifted, and a number of Traits representing his personality quirks, special talents, obsessions, phobias, and the like. The Attributes are Acumen, Fortune, Mastery, Presence, Robustness, Temper, and Vigour, and all bar Fortune are represented by a single six-sided die plus a modifier. Fortune is a straight value representing the number of Fortune dice can roll each day. Now not all of the remaining six Attributes are not exactly clear as to what they are from their names. So, Acumen is the character’s ability to observe, reflect, and analyse; Mastery is agility, dexterity, and precision, and ability to think and react quickly; Temper is his willpower; and Vigour his raw physical strength. This runs counter to most naming conventions for attributes and may well be confusing for some players.

Abilities include Arcanotech, Charge, Investigation, Melee Combat, Passion (Painting), Wizardry, and more. They are always represented by a single ten-sided die plus a modifier. Traits tend to apply situational modifiers. For example, ‘Beast of Burden’ increases a Player Character’s Luggage Points by three; Healer which grants a Fortune die any non-magical healing action; Agoraphobic, which levies an Adversity die on all actions when the Player Character is in an open space; Ancestral Weapon, which grants the Player Character a weapon with the aetheric, which reduces the Magic Resistance of a successfully struck opponent; and Remarkable, which marks the Player Character out in social interactions with members of other races, levying an Adversity die and adding a Fortune die. A Player Character also has a number of derived secondary characteristics, including Health Points, Magic Points, Physical, Magic and Mental Resistances, and so on.

Mechanically, Lore & Legacy uses the ‘3d’ engine, which uses three sizes of the dice and three types of dice. The three sizes are ten-sided or Ability dice, eight-sided or Damage dice, and six-sided or Attribute dice, and they are always used in specific situations. In general, when an Ability or Attribute is tested, or Damage is rolled, only one die, the Basic die is rolled, any modifier being added to the result to get a total. However, it can be as many as three. It cannot, though, be more than three. The extra dice can either be a Fortune die, an Adversity die, or even both! The result of the Fortune die is added to the result of the Basic die, whilst the result of the Adversity die is subtracted from the result of the Basic die. Adding both a Fortune die and an Adversity die to the dice to be rolled does not mean that they cancel each other out. Instead, their results are added and subtracted respectively.

When a Player Character undertakes an action, his player makes an Action Roll, consisting of the appropriate Basic die—whether a ten-sided die because the Player Character has an appropriate Ability or a six-sided die because he does not and must rely upon an Attribute instead—and applies any modifier. The Difficulty Rating for the Action Roll ranges from six for ‘simple’ to eighteen for ‘superhuman’. The success result can vary. A result equal to, or greater than the Difficulty Rating is a Standard Success and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim. A result one-and-a-half times or greater than the Difficulty Rating is a Major Success, and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim with positive benefits. A result less than the Difficulty Rating and less than half of the Difficulty Rating is a Partial Success, and indicates that the Player Character has achieved his intended aim, but with unforeseen complications. A result less than the Difficulty Rating and more than half of the Difficulty Rating is a Failure, and indicates that the Player Character has not achieved his intended aim.

In addition, a Player Character can also roll a Spectacular Success or Disastrous Failure. A Spectacular Success is achieved when a Fortune die is included in the Action Roll and a maximum result is rolled on the Fortune die, when the result of the Action Roll is a Standard or Major Success. Similarly, a Disastrous Failure is achieved when an Adversity die is included in the Action Roll and a maximum result is rolled on the Adversity die, when the result of the Action Roll is a Partial Success or Failure. Although a Disastrous Failure cannot result in the death of a Player-Character, the Game Master is free to be as creative as she wants, whether the result is a Spectacular Success or a Disastrous Failure.

Both combat and magic use the same mechanics. A combatant has a single gesture, move, and action each round, and if he attacks, his player’s Action Roll is against his opponent’s Physical Resistance as the Difficulty Rating or Magic Resistance if the weapon used involves arcanotech. A Fortune die can be added to an Action roll if the opponent is immobilised, paralysed, knocked down, unconscious, and so on, likewise an Adversity die can be added if the attacker is suffering from similar conditions. Damage is rolled on a single eight-sided die, plus the weapon’s damage bonus, and is halved if the outcome of the Action Roll is a Partial Success, but increased by a half if a Major Success. Damage inflicted equal or superior to an opponent’s Injury Threshold and an injury is inflicted. 

The Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide only presents two types of magic, more being available in the core rules. These are Illusory and Material magic. The former deals with changing the perceptions of others about their environment, the latter being the scientific study of making real what was not, or transforming what is. As in combat, the outcome of a Partial or Superior Success on an Action Roll halves the effect of the spell, or increases it by half, respectively. Just a handful of spells are included in the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide.

The Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide includes four pre-generated Player Characters, which come four of the species available. The Disincarnated are humanoid synthetic life forms left behind by the Astarites, but discovered and reactivated by Free-Lancers, who gather experiences until they reach maturity and individuality; Dakti are short and muscular, good engineers and builders with great physical strength, and nicknamed ‘Dwarves’; Ælfyn, or ‘Elves’ are graceful forest-dwellers deriving most of their energy from photosynthesis; and of course, Humans. Two other species, the reptilian, four-armed Agamids, and the hardy and muscular, felinoid Orcs, who originated from the same world as the Ælfyn, are mentioned, but do not appear. The four pre-generated Player Characters consist of a Disincarnated Healer, Dakti Wizard, Ælfyn Marksman, and a Human Warrior. Theya re of course, members of the Free-Lancers’ Guild, essentially the in-built reason for the Player Characters to explore and adventure on Empyrea. 

The adventure in the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide is ‘Froglins in the Mist’. Divided into five acts, it is a fairly linear and straightforward affair. It begins in the port of Brasto, a successful trading city-state in the Contested territories. The local branch of the Free-Lancers’ Guild has posted a mission—a celestial barge in distress was spotted over a mangrove swamp two days’ walk south and it wants someone to check for survivors. The adventure provides the players and their Player Characters the chance to test out the mechanics with some shopping and bargaining, followed by travelling, before getting into the meat of the scenario. The Player Characters easily locate the crash of the celestial barge and discover that it was attacked after it crashed, and both crew and passengers are missing. Very quickly, the Player Characters will themselves be under attack, but will ultimately discover what is going on and hopefully rescue both passengers and crew. To be fair, ‘Froglins in the Mist’ is a bit simplistic and too combat orientated, so there is not much in the way of plot to its story. As a one-shot or a starting point for a campaign, it is fine though, providing a reasonable showcase for the mechanics and a little of the world of Empyrea, which can be played through in a session or two.

Physically, the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide is well presented. Much of the artwork is excellent and much of it reminiscent of FASA’s Earthdawn roleplaying game—which should be no surprise given that artist Jeff Laubenstein worked on both. The writing is also good, and the translation is more than reasonable. It feels a little overwritten in places, the rules, though simple, often feel as if they have more terms than they really need.

If there is a downside to the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide, it is that both it and the ‘Froglins in the Mist’ adventure could have done with a little more mystery and a little more wonder to really hook both Game Master and her players into setting of the Empyrea. Perhaps the adventure could have been slightly longer and maybe gone into some ruins that might have delivered that needed mystery and wonder? It is a serviceable adventure though and perhaps a separate adventure which would work as a sequel—whether using the quartet of Player Characters included in the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide or created using the core rules, might deliver that? Nevertheless, the rules themselves are actually fairly simple and easy to understand, being on par in terms of complexity with something like Savage Worlds or Numenera. The setting of Empyrea itself has a post-apocalyptic set-up combined with Science Fantasy and Planetary Romance a la Skyrealms of Jorune or again, Numenera. Overall, the Lore & Legacy – Quick-Start Guide is a decently done little quick-start that can be played and enjoyed as is, but would really benefit from just a little more of its mystery.

Bringing Barsoom to your table

For over a century, fans of Science Fiction and planetary romance have been thrilling to the adventures of John Carter, American Civil War veteran and prospector on the alternate Mars known as Barsoom as he won himself a place as a warlord—or Jeddak—and won the hand of a Martian princess, Dejah Thoris of Helium, as well as delving into the mysteries of the dying planet. This is a world at war, between the city states of the Red Martians, each of which stands guard against attacks by the barbarous, four-armed Green Martians, whose great tribes fight amongst themselves. It is also a world of mysteries, much of it dating back into Barsoom’s long past and ancient civilisations. The eleven books in the series, penned by Edgar Rice Burroughs and starting with A Princess of Mars, have long had an influence upon gaming, most notably the latter’s inclusion in E. Gary Gygax’s ‘Appendix N’ of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, but also upon roleplaying games set on Mars such as Game Designer’s Workshop’s Space 1889, Adamant Entertainment’s MARS: The Roleplaying Game of Planetary Romance, and Onyx Path Publishing’s Cavaliers of Mars. Of course, it has been a direct influence on earlier war games and roleplaying games like the John Carter: Warlord of Mars – Adventure Gaming Handbook, as well as Modiphius Entertainment’s Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, the recent and first proper roleplaying game to be based directly on Edgar Rice Burroughs’ stories.

Yet, despite the John Carter movie of 2012, neither the stories of John Carter nor the world of Barsoom are as familiar to the gaming hobby or the readers of Science Fiction as they once were. After all, the John Carter stories never got turned in comic strips, radio series, Saturday morning serials, or movies the way that Edgar Rice Burroughs’ own Tarzan, Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon, and Philip Francis Nowlan’s Buck Rogers all did. So, it is as if the core rulebook for Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom has to actually introduce the licensed property almost as if it was something wholly new. Thus, having been published following a successful Kickstarter campaign, John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom begins with an explanation of both who Edgar Rice Burroughs and John Cater are, what Barsoom is, and perhaps, most importantly, how its “Rationalism, Romanticism, and Pulp Roleplaying” mark it as different from other roleplaying games. Here is a world where, “Heroes fight enemies born of lust, ignorance, and tyranny to save their friends, loved ones, and those places and cultures they call home. False gods, lying priests, deceitful nobles, treacherous assassins, and many other cruel adversaries are the biggest threats.” Notably, “There are no “evil” races on Mars.” Thus, villains need to be drawn of a richer cloth, with motives more than mere vileness. Although the practices and attitudes of the natives of Barsoom may be callously pragmatic and emotionally muted, there is room for sentiment and for firm action, perhaps upon the part of man or woman of Earth, or even one of the several species that make Mars their home, to overcome the native reticence and thus make friendships, dispel falsehoods, forge alliances, and so on, much like John Carter did in uniting Barsoom.

What all of this will involve, will depend on when the Narrator is setting her John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom campaign. Three eras of play are suggested—‘Dotar Sojat’, when Carter arrives on Mars and has his earliest adventures; ‘Prince of Helium’, when John Carter has married Dejah Thoris, become a Prince of Helium, and has most of his adventures and discovers many of the planet’s secrets; and ‘Jeddak of Jeddaks’, when John Carter has unified much of Mars and brought about a fragile peace which has pushed conflict and adventure to the planet’s furthest locales. The latter is the default period for playing in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, a time when the player characters have the opportunity to make a name for themselves and perhaps bring about the greater era of peace that John Carter’s unification has promised. The other eras provide plenty of scope for adventure, especially if the player characters take the roles of characters from the books, one of the Champions of Barsoom—the legendary John Carter, the inspiring Princess Dejah Thoris, the daring Kantos Kan, the loyal and mighty Tars Tarkas, and so on—one of the given options in the roleplaying game, either by creating them themselves or using the more powerful versions included in the book.

John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom employs the same 2d20 System as Modiphius Entertainment’s other roleplaying games, like Star Trek: Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier and Robert E. Howard’s Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of, but in a stripped down version designed to be played using experienced and talented pulp-style characters in a planetary romance. This is will be reflected throughout John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom and its iteration of the 2d20 System.

Characters in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom are defined by their attributes and their Talents. There are six attributes—Daring, Cunning, Empathy, Might, Passion, and Reason—which range in value between four and twelve for player characters. Talents are unique or developed abilities which make a character special, such as a skill, a natural aptitude, an arcane power, or a psychic power. They typically require a player to expend Momentum, or allow a character to undertake actions which Momentum would not normally allow him to do. Now what is missing here is skills. Unlike most other 2d20 System roleplaying games, characters are automatically deemed to be competent from the start.

Character creation in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom involves a player coming up with a concept, selecting a Race, archetype, descriptor, before setting starting Renown and equipment. Lastly a character needs a flaw. The given concepts include Wandering Princess, Reformed Assassin, Airship Raider, Adventuring Scientist, Panthan Warrior (Martian sword-for hire), or Lost Explorer, which although has no mechanical benefit, will influence a player’s further decisions in creating the character. A player’s choice of Race—Earthborn, First Born, Green Martian, Okar, and Red Martian—provide some attribute modifications and may give a character a Talent, but primarily tell a character what he knows, what he does not know, and what he can do. So, the copper skinned and athletic Red Martians can speak and read Barsoomian, has knowledge of his home kingdom and its neighbours, plus their customs, politics, and threats, knows of Barsoom’s great cities, and the basics of airship operation and Red Martian science. He knows little of people and places far away or hidden, but can defend himself in hand-to-hand, melee, and ranged combat, operate the basic machinery and use medicine common to Red Martian culture, and can fly most vehicles and ride trained mounts. A Red Martian receives a +2 bonus to Daring, Cunning, Empathy, Passion, or Reason, and two +1 bonuses to any other attributes.

Of the five races open to the players, the Red Martians with their great airship navies and the tall, six-limbed, betusked, and aggressive Green Martians are the most numerous. The yellow-skinned Okar from the polar regions, and the arrogant onyx-skinned First Born who serve Issus, the living goddess-tyrant, are rarer, whilst Earthborn are all but unique. It is possible to create mixed heritage characters, but features common to all Martians include limited telepathy and egg laying instead of giving birth to live young.

Some fifteen Archetypes are given, including Airship Officer, Assassin, Beastmaster, Duelist, Envoy, Explorer, Fugitive, Gladiator, Guide, Healer, Panthan, Rogue, Scientist, Soldier, and Spy. Again, these provide a character with more of what he knows and what he can do, but give attribute bonuses and a suggested Talent. A Descriptor—again from a choice of fifteen—adds further attribute bonuses, whilst a player has five points to invest in Talents, which come in grades. So for example, Expert Aim (Grade 2) grants a player two extra twenty-sided dice when shooting, but not moving, and Witty Repartee (Grade 2) enables a player character to take an additional Spoken action as part of an attack, defence, or other action. Of the given Talents, most are combat or action orientated to reflect the pulp action nature of John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, with only a few reflecting knowledge or a social skill, and none being of an arcane or psychic nature, their being saved for NPCs later in the core rulebook. All characters bar Earthborn receive ten Renown with which to invest in allies, contacts, titles, and so on, reflecting status in their kingdoms or tribes. All characters receive the standard equipment for their archetype. This is their Core Equipment and something that they always have or can easily replace. Only a few Flaws are given, but all enforce a character to lose Momentum points when they do not roleplay that flaw. 

Our sample character is Jane Miller, a young lady from Yorkshire who family was wealthy enough for her to study chemistry at university. Yet before she had a chance to complete her degree, the war against Germany broke out and she volunteered to train as a nurse. An ardent romantic, she never managed to find and keep a young man for herself, ultimately finding solace in books. The last thing she remembers was rushing to get the men recovering under care into the shelter during an artillery bombardment. Now she is on a dry, dusty world with red sands and sky and no idea quite where she is. 

Name: Jane Miller
Concept: Romantic Lost Explorer
Race: Earthborn
Archetype: Healer
Renown: 0
Flaw: Softhearted

Daring 4 Cunning 3 Empathy 6
Might 7 Passion 7 Reason 7 

Talents
Leaps and Bounds (Racial) (Grade 2)
Show Me Where It Hurts (Grade 1)
Perceptive Scientist (Grade 2)
Skilled Physician (Grade 2)
Empathic Rider (Grade 2)

The process is relatively quick, but throughout, there is advice on how a player can create his own Archetypes, Talents, and Flaws as well as modify existing Talents. The latter is probably easier than creating new Talents, which comes with the danger of being too similar to existing ones or being too powerful.

In most 2d20 System roleplaying games, such as Robert E. Howard’s Conan: Adventures in an Age Undreamed Of and Star Trek: Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier, a player rolls two twenty-sided dice and get successes by rolling against the value of an Attribute or against an Attribute plus the Expertise value of a skill in Attribute Test. A success is achieved by rolling under this combined value, but two successes if the player rolls under the Expertise value of the skill. Of course, John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom does not use skills. Instead combining the total of an Attribute and a Skill, it combines two appropriate Attributes, a player rolling two twenty-sided dice to get successes by rolling under the combined total, or two successes by rolling under the value of the lower Attribute. If a player rolls a twenty, it does not necessarily mean that the character fails, but rather that he suffers a Complication to his action, though as an alternative, it can add to the Narrator’s Threat pool.

For example, not long after she has been stranded on Barsoom, Jane Miller has been captured by the Red Martian bandit, Tavsark On. She has managed to get him drunk and slipped out to the edge of his camp where the bandits have their thoats penned. These riding animals are not used to Earthmen, so she is strange to them, but Jane wants to steal one and ride it away. The Narrator asks Jane’s player for a roll, telling him that since the task is Challenging, he will need two Successes in order for her to be able to calm and ride the strange beast. He suggests that Jane’s player will be rolling against a total of her Daring and Empathy, since she needs to calm the thoat quickly. This gives the player a target of ten to roll against, but if he rolls four or less—equal to Jane’s Daring—her player will generate extra Successes. He rolls 1 and 6. The 6 generates one Success, but the 1, which is under her Daring in this situation, generates another two for a total of three Success. The two Successes mean that Jane sneaks past the guard, calms a thoat, and manages to ride away from the camp. Further, she has an extra Success left over, which can be kept as Momentum.

Most of the time, a player will need to generate no more than a single Success to do whatever his character wants to do, but it can be as high as five or Epic Successes needed, depending upon the action. Any Successes generated above the difficulty generate Momentum and Momentum can be saved or spent. Typical uses for Momentum are to add another twenty-sided die to an attribute test, make an opponent’s test more challenging, increase quality or scope of a success, to obtain information, or reduce the time a task takes. In another change from other 2d20 System roleplaying games, Momentum in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom is not saved into a communal pool to be used by all of the players, but into individual pools. Although each player’s pool maximum Momentum is equal to their character’s lowest Attribute, it means that there is more Momentum in play overall. Another aspect to having individual pools is that players can transfer Momentum between each other’s pools and so help each facilitate the action.

So for example, Jane Miller has managed to escape the camp of the famed Red Martian bandit, Tavsark On, but the guards quickly realise that she is gone, and with Tavsark On at their head, they give chase. Since she is trying to get away, Jane’s player will roll against Daring and Passion, but Tavsark On will lose face if he does not catch the stranger, so the Narrator will roll against his Might of 5 and Passion of 4. Jane also has the Empathic Ride Talent which not only allows her to always use her Empathy when riding or controlling a living mount, but also allows her player to reroll a failed roll. To ensure that Jane outrides her former captor, her player decides to spend the Momentum from the earlier success to add another die. This means that Jane’s player will be rolling three dice versus the Narrator’s two. The Narrator rolls 1 and 8, which is enough for three successes. This sets a high bar for Jane’s player as Tavsark On gains on her. Jane’s player rolls 1, 10, and 14, which also gives her three success, but that is not enough. Fortunately, her player can reroll a die because of her Talent and chooses the 14 to reroll. This time it rolls a two and generates another two success. This is two more than Tavsark On and so not only does Jane get away, but there is more Momentum to save or spend.

In addition to Momentum, characters also have Luck, but where Momentum needs to be generated and the amount a player holds in his pool degrades from one scene to the next, a player always begins a session with his Luck refreshed to the value of his character’s lowest Attribute. Luck can be spent to add more dice to a roll—but such dice are always set at 1 and thus always generate two successes, to perform an extra action in combat, gain a second wind and recover from stress suffered in combat, inflict more damage in combat, overcome an affliction, and to influence the story. Luck points can also be earned for noteworthy actions and roleplaying, and so on. Another way to gain Luck is by accepting voluntary failure—it also adds to the Threat pool for the Narrator’s use, as does purchasing extra Momentum should a player run out. The size of the Threat pool is equal to the number of Luck points the player characters start a session with and Threat is used in a similar fashion to Momentum, but for the Narrator’s NPCs rather than the player characters. Another use for Threat is to seize the initiative in a conflict from the player characters and let an NPC act next.

As with other 2d20 System roleplaying games, what the Threat and Momentum mechanics do is set up a pair of parallel economies with Threat being fed in part by Momentum, but Momentum in the main being used to overcome the complications and circumstances which the expenditure of Threat can bring into play. The primary use of Threat though, is to ratchet up the tension and the challenge, whereas the primary use of Momentum is to enable the player characters to overcome this challenge and in action, be larger than life.  In other 2d20 System roleplaying games, these parallel economies are more balanced because there is only one of each, but in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, because they generally have access to more Momentum, the economy favours the players and their characters. It also means that the Narrator will want to be slightly conservative in expending Threat from her Threat pool, saving them for her story’s villains rather than rather expending them necessarily on Mooks and minor incoveniences.

Rather than combat scenes, John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom has Action scenes, which can involve speech, movement, conflict, and free actions—the latter never requiring an Attribute test, whereas the others probably will. Action scenes also vary in length, depending upon the situation, from a single clash of swords to the great flying ships spending minutes to maneuvering for position. Combat itself consists of opposed rolls, but the attacker will roll and the defender will roll varies. For example, to make an attack with a sword, Cunning and Daring are typically used, whilst Daring and Reason are used for ranged attacks. To defend against the sword blow, Daring and Passion would be used if the blow was bravely defended against, or even Daring and Empathy if the defender was trying to read the attacker’s movements. These combinations define how a character undertakes an action, and they work as well with movement actions and spoken actions as much as they conflict actions.

If the attacker rolls more successes than the defender, then action succeeds. Momentum here can be spent to increase the number of damage dice rolled, to disarm an opponent, get rid of a minion, to move closer or further away, and so on. Depending upon the type of action, damage is inflicted upon a character’s Confusion, Fear, or Injury stress tracks. Take too much damage to a stress track and a character can suffer from an affliction—Madness from Confusion damage, Trauma from Fear damage, and Wounds from Injury stress. Each type of affliction increases the difficulty of Attribute tests, but suffer too much of one affliction and a character will black out.

In addition to the standard twenty-sided dice, John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom uses Combat dice. These are six-sided dice where only the rolls of one, two, five or six count with rolls of five and six also inflicting an Effect, such the Sharp quality of a sword, which inflicts extra damage.

For example, prior to her successful flight from his camp, Jane Miller found a way to sneak out of Tavsark On’s tent. The bandit has been drinking, trying to find out more about his strange captive, whilst she has been demurring. At the right moment, Jane snatches up his dagger and despite him laughing at her that she is not going to do anything, stabs him! Her player will roll her Daring of 4 and Cunning of 3 against an Average difficulty, whilst the Narrator will roll against Tavsark On’s Might of 4 and Reason of 6, but since the bandit has been drinking, it will be against a Challenging difficulty. Jane desperately wants to get away, so her player spends a point of Luck to give her two Successes. This is enough, but her player still needs to roll, but needing more of an advantage opts to purchase a point of Momentum in return for adding a point of Threat to the Threat pool. Jane’s player rolls three dice and gets 10, 7, and 2—three success, which with the two from the Luck point, gives her five. This is enough to succeed and generate four Momentum. The Narrator rolls two dice for Tavsark On, but rolls 14 and 20, so not only a failure, but with a Complication too! Jane’s player elects to turn all of the extra Momentum into Combat dice, which gives him four extra to roll with the single Combat die for the wine jug! Jane’s player rolls 2, 4, 5, 5, and 6. All but the 4 inflicts a point of damage on Tavsark On’s Injury, plus the 5, 5, and 6 all have an effect, which for the dagger is Sharp! So for each effect rolled, another point of damage is inflicted, for a total of seven. This fills Tavsark On’s Injury stress track, inflicting a wound and it is more than five points of damage, inflicting another Wound! Tavsark On roars in pain and anger, attempting to grab his assailant, but the Narrator describes—and here the Complication comes into play—how the bandit staggers back, gets caught up in a tapestry and trips up, banging his head and knocking himself out. Now Jane can make her escape...

One notable fact about combat is that John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom does not differentiate between weapons. So all daggers do one die’s worth of damage, swords do two, and so on. Firearms and bows are similar. This reflects the lack of variety of weapon design—or the efficiency of weapon design—on Barsoom over thousands of years. Barsoomians know what works, and are also honourable enough to always face each other with equal weapons, so if a Red Martian armed with a radium pistol is faced by an opponent with a sword, the former will holster his pistol and draw his sword. What this means mechanically is that John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom eschews the need for an extensive equipment list and that in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, it is a character’s skill which matters rather than the weapon. Another aspect of John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom’ genre is that the player characters are powerful, with only a few NPCs approaching or equalling their power and skill. Such NPCs will be challenging, especially when supported by the Narrator’s Threat pool, but many other NPCs, especially minions do not represent such a challenge.

The technology section in John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom highlights the differences between the advances made by Barsoom and by Earth. Barsoom is more advanced than Earth, but has lost much understanding and access of the scientific and technology their ancient forebears once had. So whilst the Red Martian kingdoms field navies of fliers of all sizes, kept aloft by anti-gravity, and pneumatic trains run between the twin cities of Helium, and are widely understood, how exactly the planet maintains a breathable atmosphere is a secret known to a very few… 

In terms of background, John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom provides information on the history of Barsoom; the culture, traditions, laws, languages, and more on the tribes of the Green Hordes and the kingdoms of the Red Martians. Each of Red Martian nations is given roughly two thirds of a page, which includes notable personages and places as well as suggestions on how to use each in a Narrator’s campaign. The far northern kingdom of Okar is given a similar treatment, whilst the other planets in the Solar System are accorded a varying amount of detail, all depending  to what degree they figure in Edgar Rice Burough’s stories. Further background—specifically for the Narrator’s eyes only—explore the mysteries and secrets of Barsoom, all of them drawn from the books. This includes the secrets of Barsoomian religion, such as where the Barsoomians go to die should they survive long enough to reach a thousand years old, hidden locations, strange powers, and lost technology. It is interesting to note that the relative obscurity of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom stories actually means that they are likely to be fresh and unknown to many gaming groups.

As well as the section detailing the secrets of Barsoom, the Narrator is given some solid advice on running John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, as well as handling the mechanics and setting both tone and theme for a campaign. This includes how to create suitable villains for a campaign, adhere to the conventions of the genre, and expanding Barsoom beyond Edgar Rice Burroughs’ novels, giving new kingdoms and cities for the player characters to visit. Numerous sources of inspiration are discussed, surprisingly more than just the novels—which are even more surprisingly, not actually listed in the Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom—including classic myths, other works of fiction, and more. Stats and write-ups are provided for almost twenty of Barsoom’s creatures, most notably the iconic White Ape, along with a guide for the Narrator to create her own, followed by stats and write-ups for all of the major characters from the novels—including John Carter, Dejah Thoris, and their family, as well as some archetypal ones too.

Rounding out John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom is ‘The Mind Merchants of Mars’, a short action-packed adventure. It begins with the characters being thrown into an arena and forced to fight experienced gladiators. Whatever the outcome, they end up being sold into slavery, escape, and more. This is a decent introductory scenario, throwing the player characters straight into the action and get them involved immediately. It is supported not only by a cast of villains which deserve to make further appearances, but also some nine quite detailed adventure hooks, each with variations.

Physically—and this is the very first thing which will strike anybody about it—Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom comes not in the traditional portrait format as almost every other roleplaying game and supplement does, but landscape format. This gives it a singular appearance and provides a wider space for the roleplaying game’s artwork. Vistas here, really can be vistas. Much of that artwork is excellent, the cover in particular is spectacular, but some of the internal illustrations feel a little murky. The writing is good throughout, though an edit is required in places. Where the game and rules are lacking is in having more and fuller examples of both the rules and play, as more would make it easier for new players and Narrators to learn. Another issue is the organisation, which could have been better, in particular, the Talents could have been all listed and explained in one place, rather than placed throughout the book where they appear with NPCs. This would have been useful as a reference for the Narrator. It would have been nice if there had been a few maps than the one given of Barsoom, perhaps of a city or a flier, basically to help the Narrator visualise places if not support the roleplaying game’s use of miniatures, which is an option. If there is a real issue though with the core rule book for John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom, it is actually the format. As lovely as it is, the landscape format is a little unwieldy for easy use. 

Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom is the lightest and easiest of Modiphius Entertainment’s 2d20 System. It plays fast and easy, the Momentum mechanics supporting an action-oriented Pulp style of play in an old fashioned setting. Indeed, were Modiphius Entertainment to find a Pulp style property it wanted to develop into a roleplaying game, then the version of the 2d20 System used in this roleplaying game would serve as a very solid basis for it. In the meantime, Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars: Adventures on the Dying World of Barsoom provides everything necessary for a gaming group to visit Barsoom for the first and gives Edgar Rice Burroughs’ stories the roleplaying they deserve.

1978: John Carter: Warlord of Mars – Adventure Gaming Handbook

For over a century, fans of Science Fiction and planetary romance have been thrilling to the adventures of John Carter, American Civil War veteran and prospector on the alternate Mars known as Barsoom as he won himself a place as a warlord—or Jeddak—and won the hand of a Martian princess, Dejah Thoris of Helium, as well as delving into the mysteries of the dying planet. This is a world at war, between the city states of the Red Martians, each of which stands guard against attacks by the barbarous, four-armed Green Martians, whose great tribes fight amongst themselves. It is also a world of mysteries, much of it dating back into Barsoom’s long past and ancient civilisations. The eleven books in the series, penned by Edgar Rice Burroughs and starting with A Princess of Mars, have long had an influence upon gaming, most notably its inclusion in E. Gary Gygax’s ‘Appendix N’ of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, but also upon roleplaying games set on Mars such as Game Designer’s Workshop’s Space 1889, Adamant Entertainment’s MARS: The Roleplaying Game of Planetary Romance, and Onyx Path Publishing’s Cavaliers of Mars. Plus of course, it serves as the direct inspiration for Modiphius Entertainment’s John Carter of Mars - The Roleplaying Game, the recent roleplaying game to be based directly on Edgar Rice Burroughs’ stories. It was though, not the first.

The influence of A Princess of Mars on E. Gary Gygax cannot only be seen in its inclusion in the famous ‘Appendix N’, but also five years earlier with TSR, Inc.’s The Warfare of Barsoom in Miniature, Rules for individual and large-scale land and aerial conflict, co-written with Brian Blume. This though, was an unlicensed game, and as much as the book has become a collector’s piece, it was always an unofficial set of rules and it would be another publisher who released the first set of official rules for gaming on Barsoom. Two years later, in 1976, Grenadier Models, Inc. also released a line of ‘John Carter Warlord Of Mars’ miniatures, but they too were unlicensed. It would be Heritage Models, Inc. in 1978 which published the actual first, official gaming product based on the John Carter of Mars series of books. A year later, SPI (Simulations Publications, Inc.) would publish its highly regarded John Carter: Warlord of Mars board game.

Now better known for publishing Star Trek: Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier, the first Star Trek roleplaying game—also in 1978, and later the fantasy roleplaying game, Swordbearer, in 1982, Heritage Models, Inc. was primarily a publisher of wargames and miniatures. Indeed, it would also release a line of miniatures to support not the one new set of rules, but two. One was the Barsoomian Battle Manual: Wargame Rules For Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Classic Science-Fiction Series, which provided rules for mass combat on Barsoom and aerial combat between the flyers used on the planet by all nations. The other was the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook.

The John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook offers ‘Miniature Man-to-Man Adventure Gaming’ stating that, “Here is action with a single man or small group of men pitting their abilities, skills, and courage against other men or fearsome Beasts in settings from dank, poorly lighted underground dungeons to the swirling, desperate hand-to-hand battle raging on the deck of the flyer a thousand feet above the ground. The clash of naked steel. . .the test of manhood and courage. . .this is the essence of a life on Barsoom!” Certainly this sums up life on Barsoom for its brave men and women, the planet being filled with dread creatures like the Great White Apes, the Apts, and the Banths, let alone attacks by the barbarous Green Men, whilst the dungeons mentioned are the little known mazes of tunnels and rooms beneath the planet’s many cities—inhabited and abandoned—built long ago by the ancients. It also provides help with ‘Painting and Organizing Your Miniatures’. What you have here then is not a roleplaying game per se, but more of a set of wargames rules with rules for single figure or character action, whether that is combat, exploration, or roleplaying. In this, it echoes roleplaying’s first steps with the original Dungeons & Dragons from 1974.

The sixty-four page John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook begins though with a guide to the inhabitants and creatures of Barsoom. In turn, the Red Men, First Born, Therns, Yellow Men. Assassins, Green Men, and more are described in detail, as are many of the planet’s dangerous wildlife. The descriptions vary wildly in length and depth, for example, the Red Men and Green Men of Mars have three and four pages devoted to them, whereas the Yellow Men and Toonolian Marsupials barely two paragraphs each. This though, reflects their prominence in Edgar Rice Burroughs’ stories rather than lack of diligence upon the part of the author. What is noticeable about each of the entries is that they are all prefaced by listing describing their appearance. So for the Red Men this includes the colour of their skin, hair, and clothing, their boots and harnesses (from which they hang their awards and medals), and what weapons they carry. These details are not just included for colour, but serve as the painting guide for each of the different races and creatures upon Barsoom. Along with a guide to the Barsoomian environment, weapons of Barsoom, flyers—the main form of transport on the planet, and its cities, this all takes up roughly half of the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook.

Characters in the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook are defined by seven attributes: Swordsmanship (Attack and Defense), Strength, Finesse, Luck, Accuracy, Constitution, Morale, and Quickness. Swordsmanship is rolled on three six-sided dice—both Attack and Defense, as Constitution, but everything else is rolled on two six-sided dice. Modifiers from Strength, Finesse, and Luck adjust a character’s Swordsmanship values. There is little acknowledgement of race in the process except for adjustment of the Accuracy value for Red Men and Green Men. Indeed, selecting a race is not actually part of the process. 

Parthlan of Manatos

Swordsmanship: Attack 20/Defense 20

Strength: 9 (+2)

Finesse: 9 (+2)

Luck: 9 (+2)

Accuracy: 7

Constitution: 14

Morale: 10

Quickness: 6 (-1)

In terms of rules, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook does not provide a skills system or a resolution mechanic, instead focusing on combat. This includes movement with a surprisingly high chance of tripping over and the use of a Combat Results Table to determine attacks. This requires Swordsmanship ratings to be compared, the values modified by the combatants’ stance, position when attacking, wounds suffered, and so on, the difference determining which column is rolled on using just two six-sided dice. If successful, this generates a modifier which is added to the result of two ten-sided dice (or percentage dice as the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook puts it) and the outcome determines how many Wound Points and what type of wound is inflicted. If Wounds are inflicted, then the defender rolls on the Swoon Chart to see if he is incapacitated, the chance determined by how many Wounds he has lost.

For example, Parthlan of Manatos is aboard a flyer which has been successfully boarded by pirates. So far he has cut down several pirates, but as the battle on the deck swirls around him, the lead pirate raider steps forth and singles him out. Fighting stalls as this duel plays out. The raider leader has a Swordsmanship of 16, so comparing that to Parthlan’s Swordsmanship gives him a difference of +4 and rolling a 9 on that column on the Critical Results Table gives a modifier of +1. A roll of 6 and 6 plus the modifier for a total of 13 and the raid leader has suffered a moderate wound to the head and five Wounds.

The raid leader has a Constitution of 13 and so can suffer 13 Wounds before definitely being knocked unconscious and potentially dying. So far, he has suffered 5 wounds, or 38% of his Constitution. The Judge rolls a ten-sided die and the result of 2 indicates that the raid leader is stunned and at a -1 penalty to attack and defence on the next turn. This means that the raid leader is at a disadvantage when it comes to his attack and may need to be more aggressive to counter the effects of the wound he has suffered. Either that, or retreat…

Some tactical options are provided, such as stance—Attack, Defence, Normal or Web of Steel—and position when attacking, enabling combatants to counter better opponents or the effects of wounds. Missile combat uses similar mechanics, as does mounted combat, the latter allowing for loss of control of the notoriously surly Thoats in combat, whilst the rules for flyer allow for simple aerial engagements but still focussing upon the characters.

The objective in John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook for the player characters is two-fold. One is to get better, primarily by accruing Adventure Points which can be spent to improve a character’s attributes. The other is to achieve status. This is done by achieving military rank, rising from nothing up to Jeddak’s Chamber Guard, by achieving social status as a prince, and then by further adventuring, by improving his appearance with jewels and medals, and so, he can accrue ‘Princess Points’. The aim here is to make a good impression, but the random events when meeting her, such as dancing with her and repeatedly stepping on her foot, singing her a sweet love song, staring and drooling at her, belching loudly, or getting to dance with her repeatedly, will temporarily modify a character’s total Princess Points. Then of course, a roll is made on the ‘Princess Response’ table, the results ranging from “Who are you, have we met before?” to the eye-opening “MY PRINCE, FIREWORKS, THE BIG TIME, HUBBA HUBBA!!”.

By modern standards, these mechanics are both clumsy and misogynist. Yet they are both a product of their time—after all, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook was published forty years ago, and based on a source of its time, A Princess of Mars having been published sixty years earlier. So romancing, even wooing a princess would be perfectly in keeping with the planetary romance genre of the books. Yet just as in the four decades since the publication of the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook, sensibilities towards the genre and how it should be approached have changed, so has game design, with roleplaying games like Chaosium, Inc.’s King Arthur Pendragon handling both the male and female roles within its genre with subtlety and consideration. Here the approach feels immature, at least in some of the writing.

For the Judge—as the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook terms the Game Master—there is advice on the types of scenario which can be run, such as protecting a cultivated area, going on a Banth hunt, or looking for an assassin in Jeddak’s palace, but there is an emphasis on interacting with the Princess. Whether that is rescuing the Princess from the villain who has kidnapped her, rescuing the Princess from Green Men who have captured her, rescuing the Princess from the villain who has kidnapped her and plans to marry her, and— None of which should be seen as the Princess’ fault, but of course, it is up to the player characters to rush after her in order to rescue her. So that she can get kidnapped again. Then rescued again. Then kidnapped again. Then wooed. Kidnapped and rescued again. Wooed again, and so on, until her fair, red hand is won. Which will still not prevent her from being kidnapped and needing rescuing again.

One option not covered in all of this is playing men of Earth. Now stats are given for the eponymous character of the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook—John Carter, but is here presented as the only NPC in the book. He is also invincible in that he cannot be killed. Nevertheless, no means are provided for playing characters from Earth, and really, there is all but no advice on playing any of the different races in this game.

Physically, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook is a book of two halves. The first half, the source material and the painting guide is reasonably written and in general a good guide to Barsoom. The second half is a muddle, the rules written with little, if any clarity, and little in the way of proper organisation. The need to flip back and forth to access both rules and tables can only hamper play. Beyond the book’s vibrant colour cover, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook is completely unillustrated.

At the time of its publication, John J. Nutter reviewed the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook in ‘Barsoomian Options: System Additions & A Review of John Carter, Warlord of Mars’ in The Space Gamer No. 24 (September-October, 1979), stating that, “Mr. Matheny has built a sound combat system and role-playing game which captures much of the flavor of the novels.” Hindsight was less kind though, Lawrence Schick in his Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games (Prometheus Books, 1991) describing the rules as “poorly organized”, adding that “Players unfamiliar with the concepts of role-playing games would probably be unable to use them”.

By the standards of the day, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook was unsophisticated, one note, and clumsy. Today, it feels too grounded in its wargaming roots and undeveloped even in comparison to the Dungeons & Dragons of 1974 with the constant focus on rescuing the princess never less than jarring. Ultimately, the John Carter, Warlord of Mars: Adventure Gaming Handbook is a gaming curio, an attempt to create a hybrid between roleplaying and wargaming, but one that fails to succeed at either.