EPT Reprints for Sale

[Falconer]

Reproductions of the 1975 boxed set for sale.

[crimhthanthegreat]

Great link and not a bad price at all for a reproduction of the original game, (WotC could be doing that with the OD&D stuff too) and I have a copy of the original game, but I don't have The Best of the Journal: The Pettigrew Selections and that looks like something that I may order.

[danproctor]

Dos anyone know if this is the same as the PDF over at DriveThru? Anyone bought the PDF, and is it complete? I seem to have a vague memory of someone posting somewhere that it is incomplete?

[greentongue]

The ad states:
..., a reproduction of the Different Worlds printing, ...
I have a copy of the Different Worlds printing. (and used to own the original TSR version.)
The only difference from the TSR version is the lack of included maps.

The world map can be downloaded I believe and the Jakalla map can be purchased.

My Different Worlds copy came with a better world map than the TSR version but no Jakalla map. (I had to purchase that separately.)

I do not have the PDF version.
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[danproctor]

I just bought the electronic core book at RPGnow...and my initial reaction is...holy crap, this is awesome! What a treasure! Any fan of OD&D or 1e should check this out. I'll try to print it out and give it a thorough read soon!

I've seen other people say it is a tough game to "get" because of the foreign culture. This doesn't bother me because I'm trained as an anthropologist (though I am more in the human evolution specialty).

[thorswulf]

I purchased a copy of EPT from DriveThru. You get the rules, and that's it. No maps. It is complete as far as I can tell also. My original condition is in sad shape. The back page was replaced with cardstock, and the years of loving attention have made it all the more fragile. You folks are right, any fan of OD&D and early TSR owes it to themselves to get a copy of this game.

[dwayanu]

I thought I had already posted it on this forum, but ...

I recently purchased from RPGNow three PDFs of: the (TSR) rulesbook (plus box-cover art); colour Jakalla map, and key; and (original EPT pair of) continental maps. The quality is excellent (thanks to one Victor Raymond)!

The Different Worlds book left out at least one picture and mapped Jakalla in B&W. Most tellingly, it lacked a map of the Five Empires.

RPGNow has a cornucopia of other classic Tekumel works for download.

Those new and avid should be told of the jam-packed Tekumel Source Book and accompanying maps originally published by Gamescience as the first part (but not dependent on the rules) of "Swords and Glory." I believe Tita's House of Games offers facsimiles, as well as an index. The three-volume Different Worlds edition may have its merits (perhaps more as supplement than as substitute -- certainly not for the main maps, and the new illustrations are in my opinion wanting).

I cannot recommend the Guardians of Order product except to completists. The map is pretty, but (IIRC) lacks a scale and may be more loosely "representational." The mechanics are of course an elaboration on GOO's "Tri-Stat" system (unless they also plopped out a "D20" version).l

One might find more cheaply at a local used-book store than on the Net copies of The Man of of Gold and Flamesong. The latter provides quite a tour of the world. Barker's subsequent novels are probably best shopped for online.

Do I catch afresh a glimmer of blue light, chimelike murmurs and a whiff of cinnamon? New campaigns may be afoot ... !

[calithena]

The best Tekumel game produced is probably still the original EPT, though if you want a slightly updated rules set Dave Morris' Tirikelu rules are pretty good too, and used to be free online. The main complaint people make about those rules is that the magic does not follow canon, but as a game it's pretty solid and not too wonky.

The best world information is in the Swords & Glory sourcebooks - not the game books but the three volumes of world information. If you don't care about system get those and apply them to whatever rules or adventuring style you prefer.

The coolest Tekumel thing is the Book of Ebon Bindings. If you can find a copy of "The Grammar of Sunuz" online (I think they have it at DriveThru) it's a good supplement to the juicy demonological stuff in BoEB.

[greentongue]

dwayanu said:

Do I catch afresh a glimmer of blue light, chimelike murmurs and a whiff of cinnamon? New campaigns may be afoot ... !

Sniff, sniff
Not sure if I should follow or run.
On second thought, RUN!!

[dwayanu]

Run! In Pechano, hunting Ssu is considered aristocratic sport; IMC, that's an effective "term limit" on the nobility! A Hlyss hive-ship's buzzing is another tip to those whose ambitions include long life ...

...Then again, if you're tenth level in EPT then you can take on a small army.

Tirikelu is my favorite for games with folks familiar with the setting and really interested in the role-playing and cultural aspects (more intrigue, less dungeon-delving). I happen to like the magic rules, which feel more "organic" (or something) than the S&G/Gardasiyal system -- which is also quite different from spellcasting in the original game.

Economics is also different in EPT than in later games. I think it's a good idea to say firmly, "This is myTekumel," and not worry much about whether what you want to do is "canonical."

I've long thought of D&D as more descriptive than prescriptive -- one of its strengths -- and of EPT as a splendid further example of what one can do with the seminal game's basic "toolkit."

My impression is that Phil and Gary are birds of a feather: gentlemen, scholars (Barker by profession, Gygax by avocation) and very tough and inventive game masters!

There's a "dose of salts" aspect nowadays to picking up one of the old games and playing it "as is." At first, one may find oneself often reminded that "it's just a game" (not a "simulation" or "artistic medium"). Then, just as in the old days, it naturally and subtly becomes something more -- not through changing or adding explicit rules, but from the dynamics of play.

[greentongue]

Interesting discussion of Empire of the Petal Throne here,
www.therpgsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2388
for those that might have missed it (or be interested).
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[tgamemaster1975]

Thanks for the link and the info, I always wanted a copy of this game but never did get around to buying it. Great that there is a second chance at it.

[Finarvyn]

thorswulf said:

I purchased a copy of EPT from DriveThru.

I just bought one from DriveThru, downloaded it minutes ago, and was very bummed to find out that it is a scanned image PDF rather than an OCR PDF where I can copy and paste text. That's one of the key things I look for in a purchased PDF.

Not exactly wasted money, but not too much better than my paper copy. I could have just Xeroxed a few pages for the money.

[crimhthanthegreat]

calithena said:

The best Tekumel game produced is probably still the original EPT, though if you want a slightly updated rules set Dave Morris' Tirikelu rules are pretty good too, and used to be free online. The main complaint people make about those rules is that the magic does not follow canon, but as a game it's pretty solid and not too wonky.

The Dave Morris' Tirkielu rules are still available as a free download here, just right click and save as on the link.

[badger2305]

dwayanu said:

I thought I had already posted it on this forum, but ...

I recently purchased from RPGNow three PDFs of: the (TSR) rulesbook (plus box-cover art); colour Jakalla map, and key; and (original EPT pair of) continental maps. The quality is excellent (thanks to one Victor Raymond)!

Thank you!

As far as the PDF of Empire of the Petal Throne goes, there are no missing pages. The original page numbering included blank sides of pages, which were omitted when I put together the scan. I tried fairly hard to get a crisp, clean scan (especially after having purchased some of the somewhat indifferently scanned PDF files of OD&D supplements from DriveThruRPG myself).

The Tekumel Sourcebook is next, along with all four of the original Swords and Glory maps. The maps are done, the Sourcebook indexing is taking a little bit of time.

[badger2305]

danproctor said:

Dos anyone know if this is the same as the PDF over at DriveThru? Anyone bought the PDF, and is it complete? I seem to have a vague memory of someone posting somewhere that it is incomplete?

As the guy who put the file up, it is QUITE complete. All that is missing from the scan are blank pages counted for numbering purposes. I'm beginning to think I ought to have left them in just so people would wonder about blank pages instead.

[philotomy]

I have the reprint, and just wanted to say that I'm drawing a lot of inspiration from it, even though I'm not actively running EPT. The variant OD&D rules are interesting, and there are some neat ideas in there (e.g. the table for multiple damage dice by level, or the example of level progressions for creatures with more than 1 base HD). The fluff and flavor is where it really shines, though. Even just the names are cool. Sarku, Five-Headed Lord of Worms, with his Skull Priests. Hrihayal, Dancing Maiden of Temptation, Whore of the Five Worlds, Mistress of the Thirty-Two Unspeakable Acts. The City of the Chiming Skulls. The Tomb of Mnekshetra, Lesbian Mistress of Queen Nayari of the Silken Thighs. The Garden of the Weeping Snows.

How cool is all of that?

[alvahardison]

THE thing about the maps on Drivethru and at Tita's are that they are at best 11x17 whereas I have the maps on disk and the printer to print them in original size in full color. The Swords & Glory(S&G) V1 Source book from Tita's is better than the orignal due to its superior binding and the 3 volumns of the Source Book are really the DW reprint of the S&G one only the info is broken into 3 parts. DW never completed the 3rd Vol. but Tita's has it. The map set that came with S&G originally covered more of the continent to the east than the originals but they maps are smaller and were on one sheet with 2 front and 2 back. If anyone lives in the Nashville, TN area look me up as my current group is on hiatus due to life getting in the way.

[bert]

Philotomy says:

Even just the names are cool. Sarku, Five-Headed Lord of Worms, with his Skull Priests. Hrihayal, Dancing Maiden of Temptation, sleeper of the Five Worlds, Mistress of the Thirty-Two Unspeakable Acts. The City of the Chiming Skulls. The Tomb of Mnekshetra, Lesbian Mistress of Queen Nayari of the Silken Thighs. The Garden of the Weeping Snows.

How cool is all of that?

Extremely, and its why Tekumel still has its fans, despite some dud rules sets and bad luck with publishers. The lack of imagination in RPGs is staggering - bar the odd one here and there (Dark Sun) - you get endless recyclings of the same old stuff. Generic western fantasy was done brilliantly by the Judges Guild Wilderlands series way back when, and little of the more recent stuff can match up to it.

The language of Tekumel is an inspiration in itself - think up a wacky phrase of the appropriate ilk - The Nine-Eyed Guardian of the Juggernaut's Child, The Betentacled Friend of Yush the Unknowable, The Cavern Where Silence Dwells, The Book of Verses of Universal Salience- and see what horror this means introducing to your players

[casey777]

Have to love those names.

In many ways Tekumel is like what if Lord Dunsany, Clark Ashton Smith and Jack Vance got together and wrote an RPG over a bender after (while?) reciting Byzantine, Chinese, Egyptian, Hindi and Native American poetry.

With Flash Gordon comic strips on the table.