terje
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Blasphemous accelerator
Posts: 204
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Post by terje on Mar 31, 2023 9:39:12 GMT -6
I happened to come across this Canadian homebrew game by one Marcus Shield by way of the facebook group Obscure and Rare Roleplaying Games. Shakhán is set on the planet of Telostic, "a world in which a once-mighty civilization has degenerated over thousands of years to a level roughly equivalent to that of Earth's early Middle Ages". Shield seems to have begun developing the game system and setting for his home campaign in the late 70s and kept working on it at least into the 00s. In Book A Introduction / Game setting, the author states that "Telostic is almost entirely the product of my own imagination, but I freely acknowledge my intellectual debt to many sources of popular fantasy and science fiction literature, in particular the Empire of the Petal Throne® series of games and books by M.A.R. Barker." This RPG.net review gives a summary of the rules system: www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/classic/rev_5389.phtmlThe game, and lots of additional material, can be accessed through the magic of the Wayback Machine: web.archive.org/web/20060818033723/http://www.globalserve.net/~marcusnkaren/shakhan/shakhan_homepage.htm |
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Post by grodog on Apr 17, 2023 20:13:10 GMT -6
You familiar with this one, Victor? badger2305Allan. |
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Post by badger2305 on Jun 12, 2023 12:33:01 GMT -6
You familiar with this one, Victor? badger2305Allan. I think I saw this a LONG time ago; it seem both imaginative and derivative, which left me with mixed feelings, if I recall correctly. Very glad he found inspiration in Tekumel, if nothing else. |
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Post by blindaudelay on Dec 7, 2023 21:08:39 GMT -6
Hmm. Is there any way to acquire this game at this point?
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Post by chicagowiz on Dec 8, 2023 6:42:14 GMT -6
Hmm. Is there any way to acquire this game at this point? It can be downloaded here, per the OP: |
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Post by misterbill on Jan 7, 2024 14:27:26 GMT -6
Hmm. Is there any way to acquire this game at this point? It can be downloaded here, per the OP: I stumbled across this forum thread in a random Google search and wanted to bring everyone up to date on the Shakhàn RPG -- its recent history, its future (if any) and some other information that might be relevant. The last full revision of the game was done in 2000 (hard to believe it's been that long ago but it's the truth). Successive revisions of the system were done throughout the 1990s, mainly to facilitate scenario play at the "CanGames" game tournament held annually in Ottawa, Ontario; but after 2000, unfortunately, personal issues (as in, "having a child" and "trying to stay employed") took over for me and precluded work on a revision past that time. The Shakhàn rule set is available for 100% free download, at the following URL (note that this replaces the old Globalserve hosting URL) : www.telostic.com/shieldsfamily/shakhan/shakhan_homepage.htmYou should use the above URL as opposed to the "Wayback Machine" as there have been modest tweaks to a few of the rule sets (just typo fixes etc.), even though these are technically still the "2000" edition of the game. Note also that the URL contains a number of playable scenarios. There are vague plans to update Shakhàn "someday", in particular to re-set the layout so as to be compatible with the Amazon (KDP) "Publish On Demand" system so the rules could be purchased from Amazon as would any other conventional pen-and-paper FRP game. The intent would be to incorporate some fixes to the rules and also have some new content added, at that time. Don't hold your breath waiting for it, however, as reformatting the already-lengthy game rules would be a massive job... those of you who have done desktop publishing know what I'm talking about! The other issue is that much of the source material was developed on computer applications (e.g. early versions of Microsoft Word and Corel Draw, just to name two) that have either been significantly updated (thus losing compatibility with older file formats) or that have just been discontinued altogether. Figuring out a way in which to migrate this material to file formats that can be accepted by today's editing tools, without having the "imported" content look like the proverbial dog's breakfast, is anything but easy (let me personally attest to that). So that is another hurdle that must be overcome before we see a new edition of Shakhàn. With the above said, however, the Shakhàn legacy does live on, albeit in a different medium. Those of you who are interested in the game (and hopefully many more), can see the story of one of the most powerful NPCs in Shakhàn as she "wakes up" in Earth's solar system in the year 2040! To find all about it, either surf to the following URL : abfbook.telostic.com/Or just access the two series, The Angel Brings Fire and The Future Burns Bright, plus an epilogue entitled Bonnie's New Auntie, on Amazon (links are provided in the titles; there are both e-Book and paperback versions available) (BTW, e-Book versions of these books are also available on Google Play Books and Lulu, for those of you who need them in formats like .EPUB and .PDF).
There are 4 books in both series; unfortunately Amazon got the description for ABF screwed up, so it only shows you Book #1 of the first series. To see all the books of The Angel Brings Fire (and the second series and the epilogue), just search for "Marcus Shields" under the Amazon "Books" section. I am planning further novels in this genre, but there are no definite release dates yet. To comment or to give suggestions you can go to the book blog, which is at:
To sum up... thank you for your continued interest in the Shakhàn universe and game setting. I hope that you have found the game fun to play and that you and other gamers will give it a try, as the years go on. If you have any questions about it, please don't hesitate to message me and I'll do what I can to provide meaningful answers. Sincerely, Marcus Shields
Author, Shakhàn game system and author of The Angel Brings Fire, The Future Burns Bright and Bonnie's New Auntie. |
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terje
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Blasphemous accelerator
Posts: 204
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Post by terje on Jan 7, 2024 17:14:41 GMT -6
Hi misterbill and welcome to the forum. Thank you for telling us more about your game! Did you run a campaign in Shakhan, or was it primarily played at conventions? |
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Post by misterbill on Jan 8, 2024 9:05:18 GMT -6
Hi misterbill and welcome to the forum. Thank you for telling us more about your game! Did you run a campaign in Shakhan, or was it primarily played at conventions? The answer to this question is somewhat "involved". I was one of a handful of people in the Greater Vancouver (Lower Mainland) region in the mid-1970s who introduced Dungeons and Dragons (the original 1st version with the tan-coloured covers and the primitive typesetting) to the Vancouver area (I believe this was in 1975 or thereabouts, but don't quote me on that).
I was a university student at the time, first (for a brief while) with the University of B.C. but then later with SFU (Simon Fraser University) where I completed my degree studies. During this time period, along with a good friend who has now unfortunately developed a serious personal health issue, I set up the first SFU "Games Club" which was later named "SPLUD" ("Society for the Preservation of Large Unpleasant Dragons") (don't blame me for this... I wasn't the one who thought of the name  ).
SPLUD was not entirely devoted to RPGs; we had very active board wargames, chess and backgammon sections, as well (this was the late 1970s, past 1977 specifically, and though there were a few computer games by this time none of them were played at the club).
While I was attending SFU, both on-campus and off-, I ran what was originally a D&D-based gaming group called "The Telostician Campaign" (we had around 10 players who participated on a regular basis, though not all in the same sessions), but right from the start I began to add to and modify the original D&D rules (particularly the combat-related ones). This campaign was the original version of what later became Shakhan (although that did not happen until much later, in the early 1990s, after I had moved back to Eastern Canada to find work).
Fun Fact : In the SPLUD group there were actually two DMs running active D&D campaigns : myself and N. Robin Crossby, who you may know from his Harn RPG system. Robin's system was originally called "The Nusha Campaign" and later, in the 1980s if I recall correctly, it was formalized into an entirely independent rule set and game environment system, in which form it continues to this day. Robin, sadly, passed away some years ago, but in the formative years he and I knew each other very well, we certainly had our disagreements (he could be hard to get along with, a characteristic which may apply to Yours Truly as well) but I always respected his abilities at game design and I wish he were still with us.
Once I was back in Ontario it became practical for my wife and I to attend the annual CanGames convention in Ottawa, and for much of the 1990s and early "aughts" I ran Shakhan tournaments at CanGames although I was not running the game on a day to day basis otherwise. (I did, however, hear that for a while it became quite popular overseas... I had a number of rules-related queries from Germany, for example.)
So that's the story. Currently, I am participating with a group of friends from our street, in a "whenever we can get together" D&D campaign but I don't think I will be running a specific Shakhan campaign any time soon -- but "never say never", as the technology landscape now makes doing so over the Internet, at least possible. I have fond memories of the Telostician Campaign, we had some great times for a while (except <ahem> for perhaps it not being so much fun after all, when players "discovered" the Shakhan "Critical Hits Table"... nothing to lose your head over there son  ), so perhaps, after I retire, I'll have more time to do something like that.
Cheers
Marcus Shields Author, Shakhan game system
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terje
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Blasphemous accelerator
Posts: 204
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Post by terje on Jan 8, 2024 10:57:49 GMT -6
Thank you! Always fun to listen to "war stories" from back in the days.  |
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Post by misterbill on Jan 8, 2024 13:03:15 GMT -6
Yeah, those were the days alright... life was simpler back then. (Although I had no money to spend...)
One final supplemental note -- I am working on a document that will (theoretically at least) allow you to use the Shakhan game setting (e.g. culture, civilization, maps, etc.) with the AD&D (2nd Edition) game system. No ETA on this yet but should not take too much longer, at least for the first draft.
When it's ready, it will be added to the Shakhan homepage.
Cheers
Marcus Shields
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Post by greentongue on Jan 8, 2024 13:40:10 GMT -6
With the advent of AI, there may now be utilities that will do those file format conversions without the end results resembling "dog's breakfast".
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Post by misterbill on Jan 22, 2024 10:50:34 GMT -6
Shakhán to D&D conversion and game play rules are now complete as a first draft, and the Shakhán Website has been updated to reflect this.
Rules can be accessed here -- let me know what you think of them.
Cheers
Marcus Shields
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Post by rredmond on Jan 22, 2024 11:05:10 GMT -6
Shakhán to D&D conversion and game play rules are now complete as a first draft, and the Shakhán Website has been updated to reflect this. Rules can be accessed here -- let me know what you think of them. Cheers Marcus Shields
30 pages! Nice detail there, thanks Marcus! |
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Post by misterbill on Jan 23, 2024 12:51:53 GMT -6
30 pages! Nice detail there, thanks Marcus! Thank you.
As is always the case, the #1 challenge was "what to leave out" as there is a huge repository of as-yet-unpublished stuff that I have been "planning to get around to, one of these days"... for several decades now. 
If and when I am in a position to provide additional background material on Shakhán, I will notify you folks here.
In the meantime, I'd suggest that you check out The Angel Brings Fire and related novels, on Amazon, as these tell the story of one of the most powerful NPCs of the planet Telostic, when she "wakes up" in Earth's solar system... with a perilous quest dropped on her semi-divine doorstep!
I am working on more books in this series, and as they get done I'll also update you here.
Best wishes
Marcus Shields Author, Shakhán FRP game system
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).
), so perhaps, after I retire, I'll have more time to do something like that.
