Chaosium Con landed in Australia for the first time on June 8th and 9th this year. Bridgett Jeffries, Mike Mason, and I had the pleasure of being the “International Guests of Honor,” joining local guests of honor as well. From all reports it was a success, and fingers crossed we get to do it all again next year. The event was held at the Moonee Valley Racing Club (fellow Yanks, that is horse racing and like the Brits our cousins down under do horse racing with panache) in lovely Melbourne. It drew Chaosium fans from across the continent. The Stars Were Right under the Southern Cross.
I will leave general accounting of events to others. Here I will just talk about my experience. I was scheduled to run two VIP games—the final chapter of Six Seasons in Sartar and (for the first time in public ever) an episode from the yet unpublished The Final Riddle—and to lead three seminars. Two were RuneQuest specific, “Bringing RuneQuest to Life” and “Writing for the Jonstown Compendium.” The other was more general, as many attendees were Call of Cthulhu and Pendragon fans. “Running Long Campaigns” was the topic, where I focused on my own Six Seasons-Company of the Dragon-Seven Tailed Wolf, my experiences running Masks of Nyarlathotep across three editions, and having run The Great Pendragon Campaign twice. The seminars were recorded and are due to go up on YouTube. Here I will publish my notes for each over a couple of blog posts.
In this installment, I will talk about my journey there, the first game I ran, and my first seminar.
A Word Or Two About My Journey (Skip if you just want to hear about the Con)
I would be flying into Australia from Tokyo, Japan. There are two airports that service Tokyo, Haneda (which is a stone’s throw from where I used to live in Shinagawa) and Narita, which is just over an hour northeast of the city in Chiba. I left Tokyo about a month ago to live out on the coast, an hour southwest of the city, but since Narita was less expensive by far than Haneda, and had a greater selection of airlines, I chose it to depart from. I went with Qantas rather than a Japanese carrier. “When visiting Rome,” right?
There is an express train that runs to Narita and luckily it stops at Ofuna, a station just two stops from mine. It is a reserved seating train with all the works…beverage service, wi-fi, luggage racks, large seats with fold down trays. Since it was two hours to the airport for me, I took that despite the price. The flight was going to be ten hours, so I wanted to get there as comfortably as I could.
Check-in went swiftly, and there was plenty of time for a pre-flight beer (or two). The flight was an all-nighter. We left at 9 PM and landed 7:30 AM. Melbourne is almost due south from Tokyo, so there is only a one-hour time change. I was impressed by Qantas. The food and service was first rate despite my Economy seat. The only complaint I had was with the Airbus we flew down on. It was tighter and more cramped than the Boeings I usually fly on, and
I was met by the Notorious MOB (Chaosium’s Michael O’Brien) and his wife Susan at the airport. Because it was early morning and check-in at my hotel was later, they took me for (much needed) coffee first. You can always tell you are on a new continent by the trees. The trees in North America look nothing like those in South America, or Asia, or Africa, or Europe. Seeing the trees in Australia I knew I was really there. Spotting a group of kangaroos (amusing Google tells me they are called a “mob,” given my host) only underlined the realization.
I didn’t see much of Melbourne, as the airport, Con, and my hotel are all sort of north central, but what I did see immediately reminded me of San Francisco and the Bay Area circa 25 years ago or so when I lived there. A lot of this was the architecture (the two cities were built around the same time) and the eucalyptus…native to Australia of course but unwisely imported to Northern California where as an invasive species rapidly took over the local ecosystems. But despite the chill in the air from winter Melbourne was a warm, inviting place. Once I got situated in my hotel, I had several hours to myself so I wandered the streets, checking out the shops, the parks, and the venue. The hotel, incidentally, was amazing. With a full kitchen, living and dining room, office area, bed and bath (including a dishwasher and washing machine) I was ready to ditch my room in Japan and move in.
Day One
There was a welcome dinner on the eve of the Con (Friday the 7th) for the guests of honor. We ate, drank, and mingled. I was able to finally put faces to several names. One of them was Chaosium’s events coordinator and community content ambassador Bridgett Jeffries, and another was Call of Cthulhu creative director Mike Mason, my two fellow international guests of honor.
The Con opened its doors at 10 AM the next morning, and I had a busy day ahead of me. I had a three-hour VIP Six Seasons in Sartar game at 10:30, with a seminar about “Bringing Glorantha to Life” at 2:30, another about “Writing for the Jonstown Compendium” at 3:30, and a book signing at 4:30.
Six Seasons in Sartar: “The Turning”
(spoilers ahoy if you have not read or played the entire campaign, feel free to skip down to “Bringing RuneQuest to Life”)
Three hours is NOT a lot of time to run a session, especially when you are running the epic finale to a campaign and have to introduce the player characters to the setting. I did not, however, want to hand out pre-generated characters (I did for The Final Riddle, but have always felt Six Seasons should have originals). Instead I made a truncated character creation system tailored to the setting. Since the VIP games were limited to four players, I keyed the system for that number.
The first step would determine core personality and statistics:
Step One: How Do You Solve Problems?
1. You like to solve problems with physical force.
STR: 18 CON: 14 SIZ: 16 DEX: 12 INT: 10 POW: 12 CHA: 10
MP: 12 HP: 15 (Arms 4, Chest 6, others 5) HR: 3 DSR: 3 SSR: 1
SCD: 1D6 DB: 1D6 AGL: +5 COM: - KNW: - MAG: - MAN: +5
PER: - STL: -5
2. You like to solve problems with charm and persuasion.
STR: 10 CON: 12 SIZ: 10 DEX: 12 I NT: 14 POW: 16 CHA: 18
MP: 16 HP: 12 (Arms 3, Chest 5, others 4) HR: 2 DSR: 3 SSR: 2
SCD: 1D6+3 DB: - AGL: +5 COM: +10 KNW: +5 MAG: +10. MAN: +10
PER: +5 STL: +5
3. You like to solve problems analytically and thoughtfully.
STR: 10 CON: 10 SIZ: 12 DEX: 12 INT: 18 POW: 16 CHA: 14
MP: 16 HP: 12 (Arms 3, Chest 5, others 4) HR: 2 DSR: 3 SSR: 2
SCD: 1D6+1 DB: - AGL: - COM: +10 KNW: +10 MAG: +5. MAN: +10
PER: +10 STL: +10
4. You like to solve problems quickly and deftly.
STR: 10 CON: 12 SIZ: 10 DEX: 18 INT: 16 POW: 12 CHA: 14
MP: 12 HP: 12 (Arms 3, Chest 5, others 4) HR: 2 DSR: 1 SSR: 2
SCD: 1D6+1 DB: - AGL: +10 COM: +5 KNW: +5 MAG: - MAN: +15
PER: +5 STL: +15
The next step had the double duty of base skills and family history, introducing key NPCs:
Step Two: Your Father/Mother Is…
Your father is Gordangar, the Clan Chieftain...
- Starting Skills: Ride (any) +10%, Insight (Human) +10% , Intrigue +10%, Read/Write (own) +10%, Orate +30%, Manage Household +30%, Speak Own Language +10%, Cultural Weapon (pick type) +30%, Customs (own) +10%, Shield (pick type) +30%.
- Standard of Living: Noble
- Ransom: 1000L
Your father is Harvarr, the Smith…
- Starting Skills: Art +10%, Evaluate +10%, Bargain +10%, Craft (primary) +30%, Insight (Human) +10%, Craft (secondary) +20%, Lore (any) +10%, Devise +15%, Manage Household +30%, Cultural Weapon (pick type) +15%.
- Standard of Living: Free
- Ransom: 500L
Your father is Savan OR your Mother is Morganeth…
- Starting Skills: Any cult skill +10%, Lore (Cult) +30%, Dance +10%, Read/Write (own) +10%, Orate +10%, Manage Household +10%, Sing +30%, Worship (deity) +30%, Meditate +10%.
- Standard of Living: Noble
- Ransom: 1000L
Your father is Jorganeth Bladesong OR Erinina Copperaxe…
- Starting Skills: Sing +10%, Scan +10%, Battle +30%, All Unit Weapons (including shield) +25%, First Aid +15%, Other Weapon (pick type) +25%, Listen +10%, Tertiary Weapon +15%.
- Standard of Living: Free
- Ransom: 500L
Magic and Runes was next, and an opportunity to introduce the Black Stag and the wyter cult. As Six Season characters are in their first year of adulthood and not yet pledged to cults, there was no need to dig into all that:
Step Three: Your Runes and Magic
Select four Elemental Runes at 70, 50, 30, and 10. Divide 100 points between paired Runes as you like (max 75 in any Rune).
You are all members of the Wyter cult, the Black Stag. You have 3 Rune Points. You have access to all common Rune spells plus three unique clan Rune spells. I explained the Black Stag’s Rune spells here.
All male characters are lay members of the Orlanth cult. All female members are lay members of Ernalda’s. Males pick up to 5 points of the following spirit magic; Bladesharp, Demoralize, Detect Enemies, Disruption, Fanaticism, Heal, Mobility, Protection, Strength. Women pick up to 5 points of Befuddle, Demoralize, Heal, Second Sight, Shimmer, Slow, Strength, Vigor.
Finally we did quick selection of equipment and extra skill bonuses…
You have any weapon your character is proficient in. Assume 3 APs in all hit locations (cuirboilli, layered leather armor, etc). Add 25% to any four skills on the character sheet. Add 10% to five more.
We ended up with two players—a brother and sister—as the children of Earth priestess Morganeth, one as the son of Storm Voice Savan, and one as the son of Erinina Copperaxe (being a Babeester Gori, we decided she had her son before she changed course and swore to Babeester Gor).
Another change from the full campaign is that I removed all mention of Kallyr Starbrow and Shah’vask from the episode. Kangharl was attacking because the Haraborn had been aiding rebel warbands in the mountains and evading tax payments. It was enough to have them absorb the Black Stag, the dire situation the clan was in, and all the new NPCs in two and a half hours without all the rest of the campaign’s complexities.
After the game it was time for the first seminar, “Bringing RuneQuest to Life…”
Seminar One: Bringing RQ to Life
(Note: these are my prepared notes, not word for word verbatim what I actually said. Nor does it include the Q&A portion of the seminar. Please watch the Chaosium video when it comes out for the full seminar)
This is a funny little hobby we find ourselves in. Watch a movie or a stage play, pick up a novel or stream something, and you become a participant in a story. A passive participant, however. An observer. Arguably of these only the novel lets you approach active participation, because you are required to create the setting, the characters, and the story in your mind’s eye. But not even the novel comes close to a roleplaying game. Because in an RPG, the act of creation is all on you. As a player you are responsible for bringing your character to life. As a GM, you have to animate all the NPCs and the setting. The story does not exist until collectively you summon it, breathe life into it, give it shape and texture and a voice. No other form of entertainment is quite like it.
About 65 million years ago, when I was 17 years old, I won something called the New York Young Playwrights Competition. The prize was that my play would be produced by a professional director and theater company, and I was to be part of it, to learn the craft. So I met with the director, and he shared his interpretation of the script. Then I attended the casting sessions and rehearsals, watching the actors give their interpretation of the characters. I had written a fair bit of prose by then, including two painfully adolescent novels, but THIS was so much more exciting. Because this was a collaboration. I put the words on paper but they took those words in new directions. I recognized this, because I had been a role player and GM for about 7 years. They were doing a version of what we do at the table.
Far more recently, watching groups like DMs After Dark or the Old Ways Podcast with their play sessions of Six Seasons in Sartar, it was deja vu. Because they were taking my script and re-interpreting it. Changing it. Bringing it to life. More so, in fact. When you write for RPGs you surrender ownership. Your only role is to assist the GM and their players to bring their Glorantha to life.
And that is what I would like to do here with you today.
There are two parts of this, really: bringing RuneQuest to life and bringing Glorantha to life. They dovetail—because RQ was created as a vehicle for bringing Glorantha to life—but are still separate things. Some of the things I’d like to talk about are more player-specific, and some more GM-specific, but useful I think for both to hear.
Bringing RQ to life is reverse statistics. A statistician looks at life and turns it into numbers. You have to turn numbers into life. All the numbers in the game tell a story. Especially the dice rolls. But it is up to you to find the story through all the numerals.
For example, characteristics.
Your character has a 16 STR…but what does that look like? Feel like? Is it upper body strength, or do you have massive thighs and calves? SIZ and CON can help form a clearer picture. SIZ 10 and STR 16 and maybe you are lean and wiry…or maybe you are built like a fire hydrant, short and thick. CON 10 and STR 16 you can produce fair bursts of strength but get easily winded.
What about DEX? With your DEX 18 are you a gymnast or the equivalent of of a master pianist? Is it agility or hand-eye coordination? How do you maintain that DEX? Practice the equivalent of Glorantha yoga? Or what about a low DEX. Were you injured as a child falling from a tree and the joints never really healed? Just naturally clumsy?
The same goes for the mental and spiritual traits. High POW and high CHA and maybe you are just naturally magnetic. High INT and high CHA and maybe you are a master manipulator, able to get inside people’s heads.
Building a character starts with letting the characteristics tell you their story.
And what about Passions? In my upcoming The Final Riddle I have a set of pre generated characters for players who want them. Two of them, an alcoholic Humakti and a young thief both have the Love Passion for each other. But what does that mean, beyond the numbers? Are they romantically involved, or do they love each other as brothers? Your character loves their spouse at 80%…okay, but why? What about them do you love? How did you meet? Same goes for Loyalty. Are you loyal to your chieftain because he inspires you, or because that is what is expected of you? What has he done to inspire your loyalty?
Basically you can sit down with any characteristic, trait, or skill on your character sheet and find a story in it. The more you do this, the more alive the character feels.
And GMs…all this is true for NPCs too.
But lets ease into the Glorantha part of the conversation by talking about Rune affinities. As we all know, the Runes are the building blocks of Glorantha, the essence. They define and inform every facet of the setting. A fish is Beast and Water. A bird is Beast and Fire/Sky. Seaweed is Water and Plant. Fungus is Plant and Darkness. Etc. When I design NPCs, I start with their Runes. This is good practice for players too. Think about how the Runes inform the character’s personality and appearance.
Let’s say you are playing a Sartarite. They tend to be dark-eyed, dark-haired, bronze-skinned. But a Sartarite with a high Fire/Sky Rune might have pale eyes, grey or even blue. Their might be gold highlights in their hair. With high Air and Fire/Sky Runes they might be proud and violent, but also more thoughtful and idealistic. They employ violence for a cause, an ideal. They are freedom fighters, anarchists, out to reshape the world. Compare this with a character who has high Air and Darkness Runes. Just as violent but cold, cruel, and patient. Pure serial killer material.
So much can be done with the Runes. What colors does the character wear? What sort of things are they attracted to? What foods do they like? Water people like fish. Fire/Sky people prefer poultry. Air Rune folk are beef and mutton eaters. Earth Rune people—the sensualists—are the gourmands. Darkness Rune people tend to be gluttons…they eat and eat and eat. Moon Rune people are the most likely to fast, or forgo food, seeking liberation from the demands of the body. There really is no end to things you can discover about your character by plumbing the depths of the Runes.
GMs…think about Runes as overall themes for adventures, as well as defining settings. A forest with the Plant and Water Runes is swampy, wet, damp. A forest with Plant and Darkness is brooding, dark, and full of fungal growths. A village with a strong Harmony Rune will be ordered and peaceful. A village with a high Disorder Rune is full of division, crime, and infighting. Superman’s Metropolis has the Harmony Rune, Batman’s Gotham has Disorder (and Darkness!). Stories themselves can be defined by Runes as well. If you are having trouble coming up with ideas, write the Runes on index cards and use them as Tarot-like story seeds. Draw three. Movement, Water, and Disorder suggest a story about piracy on the high seas. Movement, Water, and Truth implies a voyage of discovery and exploration instead. Man, Mastery, and Stasis might suggest a story were a stubborn chieftain or leader must be persuaded to act. Fertility, Disorder, and Fire/Sky might inspire a story about drought. Earth, Disorder, and Movement a terrible earthquake. Single card draws are useful for adversaries and specific scenes. Draw Fire/Sky and the Sun Domers show up. Draw Moon and its the Lunars.
The more you bring Runes into play, the more the game lives up to its name and the more Glorantha comes alive. Let the Runes define everything from the gods to the landscape. Make their influence omnipresent. Sorcerers already get Runic bonuses (and penalties) for their spells, but why stop there? Fire/Sky is associated with INT, Perception skills (particularly Scan), spears, and bows. On Fireday do these get a little +10% boost? On Fireday in Fire Season is it 15%? If that seems too generous, maybe Fire/Sky Rune affinities get a boost instead, making it easier to augment. Still too mechanical? Tough crowd. Then ask yourself…doesn’t Fireday tend to be the warmest, driest day of the week? Aren’t the shadows just that much deeper on Freezeday? On Wildday, are weird, random events more likely to occur? If the answer to this is “yes,” you are bringing the game to life by making the Runes a constant, consistent presence.
Now, the one thing I am going to spare you is ideas on how to make combat more vivid.
First of all, I think this falls under turning the numbers into a story, and RuneQuest is already very, very good at helping you do this. In D&D, thirteen hit points is an abstract concept. In RuneQuest, thirteen points to your right leg when you have only four points of armor there is how the game got the nickname “LimbQuest.” The only thing I would suggest, GMs, is to let the players interpret and narrate the damage both that they inflict on opponents and that they take themselves. Let the player decide if that nine points of damage shattered his knee cap or mangled his ankle. You handle the game, let the players provide the gore. Second, bringing combat to life has been discussed time and time again into a thousand RPGs. Let’s discuss something far more interesting.
Breakfast.
You want your players to inhabit their characters? Tell them what their meal is and what it tastes like. Weapons & Equipment—the most woefully misnamed book in the history of gaming—is your Bible for this. Tell your players often enough that they are having flatbread for breakfast fresh from the hot stones and they will soon take over for you. I once had a player, his character discussing battle plans over breakfast, tell me “I pick at my flatbread absentmindedly and think.” I had not mentioned the flatbread in that scenario, but he knew. Don’t stop there. What kind of flatbread? “The maize flatbread is lighter and thinner than the einkorn you grew up eating, and somehow less filling.” Make sure they players know that the barley wine in this inn is watery, or sour. Make sure they know they are drinking it out of bowls. It is tempting to want to breeze past these things. Don’t. Food is where people live. The way to a character’s heart is through their stomach.
Don’t stop with food. How are the drinking bowls painted in this tavern? What toy is the child on the street corner playing with? Describe the character’s bed rolls when they travel. Ask them where they dig their latrines. Connect the characters with as many aspects of their lives as you can. Once players become familiar with these details, they will adopt them, expect them, and inhabit the world when they play, having enough of a sense of it that they can add details themselves.
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