You, too, CAN run Empire of the Petal Throne

[badger2305]

Resource Interlude

This is the second half of the PDF file I put together with some speculative notes towards your own Jakallan Underworld. The first half is already posted.

FWIW, aside from the listing of various places, none of this is "canonical" - I'm simply using what's in EPT to act as a guide for further creative work as referee for my own campaign.

Attachments:

[badger2305]

Part Seven - Going Underground (continued)

Okay, so it's been a fairly lengthy section on Underworlds so far. But that's also because where a lot of action takes place, and so the beginning Tekumel referee ought to pay some attention to it. Keeping that in mind, today's entry concerns the so-called Saturday Night Special.

According to the Empire of the Petal Throne rulebook, "Saturday Night Specials" are "large complexes inhabited by special beings. These should have special histories, and players should hear legends of their existence on the surface. Their abilities and treasures should also be individually devised, since these add interest and spice to the game." (page 100)

There are at least two active Temples included in the list of "Saturday Night Specials" under the city of Jakalla. Let's take the Temple of Vimuhla, since it merits more attention and has a relatively short description: all we know is that it has a moat of fire and "filled with the skulls of sacrificed victims." We can assume it is an active temple (sacrifices ARE being made), and that it must be the focus of a great deal of attention and care by the priesthood of the God of Fire. So what does all this mean? We can break this into three parts: the Temple itself, the temple annex in the area immediately surrounding the Temple, and then and defenses around that.

The Temple of Vimuhla. This will include the following:

• Inner Shrine of the temple: where the God lives
  
• Outer Hall of the temple: where most worshippers will be
  
• High Priest's rooms: one or more of these
  
• Secret (or special) Shrine: for certain kinds of hidden devotionals
  
• Treasure room: where the temple's valuables are kept
  
• Guard room: one or more of these, depending on location
  
• Holding area: where sacrifices are kept prior to being sent to the God.
  
• Robing rooms: for priests and acolytes to prepare for ritual
  

...all surrounded by a "moat of flame" with a narrow bridge across it. This might be an oil-fired moat, kept aflame by a natural wellspring of petroleum - but that's too ordinary. We might assume instead that it is a magically sustained lava pool - which might also explain any protection for people nearby.

Temple Annex. Here we have the more mundane aspects of the underground Temple:

• Barracks for temple guards
  
• Refectory for guards, priests and acolytes
  
• Dormitories for acolytes and rooms for priests
  
• Armory stores for temple protection
  
• Instructional space for priests and acolytes
  
• Libraries
  
• Slave quarters to serve the rest
  

Outer Defenses. This is a bit more speculative, but we can assume there will be an outer ring of rooms, corridors and spaces, containing traps and creatures designed to discourage the occasional adventuring party. Rather than spaces, here are some examples of outer defenses:

• Blocked off corridors and rooms with no particular exit.
  
• Pit traps and various other minor inconveniences
  
• Rooms with enough treasure to make adventurers think about leaving the Underworld, especially when combined with traps to hurt them further.
  
• Creatures such as Kurgha, Dlaqo-beetles, Kayi, even Mrur and Shedra (undead monsters) - all given habitats that would not intrude on the temple, but would be a barrier for adventurers to continue.

Once you have these lists roughed out, you can begin thinking about the temple and who would be found there:

• Priests, etc. This include everyone actually present in the temple, from High Priest down to acolytes.
  
• Guards - temple guards for the most part
  
• Visitors - anyone in another category besides the first two.
  
• Sacrifices and prisoners
  
• Anyone or anything else

At this stage, you can begin to think about treasure and what are the appropriate sorts of magical items to include:

• There would be significant sums of money, since this would be the safest place for the Temple.
  
• There would likely be valuable arms and armor, some of it magical, Vimuhla being a God of War, after all. These would be wielded by the guards, most of the time, so adventurers shouldn't be surprised.
  
• Miscellaneous magic items: besides Eyes, amulets and scrolls, there might be one or more really special items. Knowing what we do, some possibilities include a Chariot of the Gods (don't forget the Dragon Warriors, after all), the Gloves of Chirene, or perhaps a Lightning Bringer.
  
• Books. Temples are places of learning, and therefore have libraries. In such a library we might find almost anything, from The Book of Mighty Swords to the Tome of Black Mould to really almost anything.
  

Perhaps the most important lesson to take away from the design of the "Saturday Night Special" is that you need to consider how things work only after you have generated or created everything about it: who is there, what do they know, what do they possess, how is everything arranged? For some "Specials" the list of questions and answers might be very short. In the case of the Temple of Vimuhla, the fact that it is a large, active place of worship deep underground means that there are a lot of things going on all the time, and you will want to chart out contingency plans and responses by the defenders BEFORE the adventurers arrive.

Next time: Going Underground - magic items

[thetekumelproject]

When I first saw this I thought you were suggesting what basically amounts to an assault on the Temple of Vimuhla for starting characters! Then I realized that the existence of these Saturday Night specials doesn't necessarily mean the players have to tackle them right away.

But even later, wouldn't such an assault stir up a nest of hornets? What about the Concordat? Is the real situation: "What happens in the Underworld, stays in the Underworld?" Sort of like Warfare in the 1700's ("The Age of Reason") where the opposing Generals would often write letters to each other inquiring about one and other's health, and the like, while at the same time planning strategies to bring the enemy to battle.

[javaapp]

Aug 18, 2011 16:54:32 GMT -6 thetekumelproject said:

But even later, wouldn't such an assault stir up a nest of hornets? What about the Concordat? Is the real situation: "What happens in the Underworld, stays in the Underworld?" Sort of like Warfare in the 1700's ("The Age of Reason") where the opposing Generals would often write letters to each other inquiring about one and other's health, and the like, while at the same time planning strategies to bring the enemy to battle.

I believe that I have read that the Concordat only covers the surface of the planet, and that open warfare between many of the temples is the norm in the Underworld.

[rleduc]

It doesn't have to be an all out assault. Sneaking in and thieving is another possibility, or coming across various parties on their way to and from the temple is perhaps a more likely encounter.

[badger2305]

Aug 18, 2011 16:54:32 GMT -6 thetekumelproject said:

When I first saw this I thought you were suggesting what basically amounts to an assault on the Temple of Vimuhla for starting characters! Then I realized that the existence of these Saturday Night specials doesn't necessarily mean the players have to tackle them right away.

Quite right. Frankly, the Temple of Vimuhla would be difficult for even high level characters to tackle.

But even later, wouldn't such an assault stir up a nest of hornets? What about the Concordat? Is the real situation: "What happens in the Underworld, stays in the Underworld?" Sort of like Warfare in the 1700's ("The Age of Reason") where the opposing Generals would often write letters to each other inquiring about one and other's health, and the like, while at the same time planning strategies to bring the enemy to battle.

This is also true - in a sense. Prof. Barker addressed this directly in The Dragon #9:

This does not preclude secret machinations — and certainly not secret violence in the shadowy reaches of the Underworlds beneath the old cities. This is winked at, and few if any complaints are ever brought before the Council of the Priesthoods in Béy Sý. Once out of sight, either in the labyrinths below the cities or in some out-of-the-way jungle, one may count on little support from the law.

...but it's also the case the the priesthoods have long memories and there can be indirect political and social repercussions from looting a temple of an opposing deity. Now doing it and not getting caught...? That's the trick.

Along with that, javaapp and Rob are correct; the Concordat is an above-ground thing, and for the most part, a place like the Temple of Vimuhla is more someplace to be infiltrated than assaulted. (The War God's Own will likely hand you your butt in a sling...)

[rleduc]

An idea for a future note, which the Concordat brings to mind. I think one of the reasons I struggled to run Tekumel as a youth (apart from being less than gifted as a referee) was being either scared off or unable to present the Byzantine politics of Tsolyanu's "Holy Trinity" of Temples, Various Factions, and The Imperial Petal Throne. The first two novels, especially "Man of Gold" are rife with machinations.

As an older person, I guess I realize that the player characters don't really have to be involved in that at all. And perhaps it can be treated much in the same way that you discuss populating the Underworld; there are a few main players and conflicts right in the EPT rules as sort of Saturday Night Specials, if you will, and various other subplots can be hung off of these like a tree, with some particularly low level or local grudges concerning mid range pc's (after citizenship) or perhaps some adventures touching on lower level ps's hired as goons or flunkies for some dirty work.

Anyway, i think your thoughts on adding this sort of flavor would be invaluable in the future.

[ckutalik]

Aug 17, 2011 21:41:01 GMT -6 badger2305 said:

Resource Interlude

This is the first half of the PDF file I put together with some speculative notes towards your own Jakallan Underworld. I will do the second half in another post.

FWIW, aside from the listing of various places, none of this is "canonical" - I'm simply using what's in EPT to act as a guide for further creative work as referee for my own campaign.

Now I grok quite a bit more the representational problem with the underworld as presented on Barker's original map--even with that huge over-sized map it only covers a fraction of the space.

But I guess that just leaves us all with nice big grey spaces to draw in our sections. ;D

Marking the locations btw by period layer is really helpful. Arbitrarily, I set the Classical Tsolyani complex the Google Plus groups are going through about three hexes north of where you have the temple of Dlamelish's complex--this has motivated me to draw in some connections.

[badger2305]

Aug 18, 2011 20:47:02 GMT -6 rleduc said:

An idea for a future note, which the Concordat brings to mind. I think one of the reasons I struggled to run Tekumel as a youth (apart from being less than gifted as a referee) was being either scared off or unable to present the Byzantine politics of Tsolyanu's "Holy Trinity" of Temples, Various Factions, and The Imperial Petal Throne. The first two novels, especially "Man of Gold" are rife with machinations.

As an older person, I guess I realize that the player characters don't really have to be involved in that at all. And perhaps it can be treated much in the same way that you discuss populating the Underworld; there are a few main players and conflicts right in the EPT rules as sort of Saturday Night Specials, if you will, and various other subplots can be hung off of these like a tree, with some particularly low level or local grudges concerning mid range pc's (after citizenship) or perhaps some adventures touching on lower level ps's hired as goons or flunkies for some dirty work.

Anyway, i think your thoughts on adding this sort of flavor would be invaluable in the future.

Hmm! What to think?

First off, as a EPT referee you must remember, "it's MY game." You don't have to follow the plotlines in the novels at all. In fact, it might be a breath of fresh air to go do your own thing. Watch the faces of players who have steeped themselves in Tekumel trivia as they discover that...Dhich'une disappears, Ald's "Weapon Without Answer" gets used on Khirgar, and Eselne becomes Warlord of the North - all of it stemming from a certain incident turning out differently. Or maybe Hirkane lives a lot longer - or dies tomorrow. Baron Ald cements an alliance with Salarvya and there's a two front war. You decide.

But your question is more specific. Here are some parts of an answer:

• Be indirect. Nobody comes in and announces, "I am the secret representative of Prince Mridobu!" If anything, all this intrigue gets done at the lowest levels without any of the pawns realizing what role they play - or who they work for.
  
• Keep your own notes - and keep them to yourself! You will want to know what's going on, but you have to keep the mystery a mystery. This may be the hardest thing of all.
  
• Don't try to figure out everything. Part of the fun in all of this is in letting the outcome of uncertain events really matter. So don't try and figure out how everything will unfold - let game play determine certain outcomes and roll with it. Put another way, let the actions of player-characters actually matter.
  

That's a little abstract. Applied directly to Tekumel, the best thing to do is remember that a little Hling-seed goes a LONG way. Simply having the players working for one particular faction is often more complication than most players know how to handle. Getting them working at cross-purposes, inter-party intrigue, dueling spymasters giving conflicting orders - it's a quick recipe for campaign paralysis.

It's also a good idea to avoid "white hat/black hat" divisions. It might be the case that the faction the players are working for seems all well and good, but what they propose doing is Not a Good Idea. Contrast that with the opponents to the players - seemingly the agents of the Villainous faction - working towards A Much Better Idea. All of which gets thwarted by Somebody Else. All I've done is put into play three unidentified factions, two end goals, and look how murky everything gets. So it is really easy to get in over your head as the referee, much less the players.

Chris Kutalik (hi, Chris!) has some excellent thoughts about all of this over on his blog, here and here.

There's more I can say about all of that, and maybe this deserves its own thread.

[Deleted]

First off, as a EPT referee you must remember, "it's MY game."

This cannot be stressed enough. EPT essentially represents OD&D -- "here's my world, explore it" -- taken one step further; it not only tells you how to create and explore a world, it gives you a world to do it in.

Phil didn't really expect people to run "duplicate Tekumel." Just from the original game, you have enough that you can run EPT as a straight "Dungeon Bash," a game of political intrigue, a Kiplingesque saga of soldiers on the frontier, a Sword-and-Planet tale out of "Astounding Science Fiction", or a "Thief of Baghdad"-style swashbucking romp. And over the years I played with Phil, he did all those and more.

And as far as the Underworld goes... Vimuhla and Karakan are both Gods of War. They don't expect their followers to sit around weaving garlands of flowers. Think the rivalry between the Musketeers and the Cardinal's Guard, or perhaps the Montagues and Capulets.

"Two temples, both alike in dignity,
In fair Jakalla, where we lay our scene..."

[kent]

Aug 19, 2011 12:09:41 GMT -6 @gronanofsimmerya said:

EPT essentially represents OD&D -- "here's my world, explore it" -- taken one step further; it not only tells you how to create and explore a world, it gives you a world to do it in.

That's a contradiction isn't it?

And I wouldn't say it is a step forward to be given someone else's created world however brilliant it may be.

The most useful thing a DM can be given is a solid and inspiring game (A/OD&D) from which he can create his own world for his players to explore. The next most useful thing for a DM is to read about how others have successfully done this (EPT), but that is of secondary importance and not "a step forward".

[badger2305]

Aug 19, 2011 14:26:01 GMT -6 kent said:

Aug 19, 2011 12:09:41 GMT -6 @gronanofsimmerya said:

EPT essentially represents OD&D -- "here's my world, explore it" -- taken one step further; it not only tells you how to create and explore a world, it gives you a world to do it in.

That's a contradiction isn't it?

And I wouldn't say it is a step forward to be given someone else's created world however brilliant it may be.

The most useful thing a DM can be given is a solid and inspiring game (A/OD&D) from which he can create his own world for his players to explore. The next most useful thing for a DM is to read about how others have successfully done this (EPT), but that is of secondary importance and not "a step forward".

While this is an interesting debate it isn't really relevant to the subject of this thread. May I kindly request starting a different thread about that topic rather than debating it here? Many thanks in advance.

[ragnorakk]

Aug 19, 2011 14:26:01 GMT -6 kent said:

And I wouldn't say it is a step forward to be given someone else's created world however brilliant it may be.

Sure - but is it necessarily a step backward?
<edit> sorry badger - posting at the same by the looks of it

[badger2305]

Part Seven - Going Underground (magical items)

I've added a poll - somewhat inelegantly. The question of the poll is simple: which one of the magical items listed there did not appear in either Empire of the Petal Throne or in the Jakállan Underworld as written up by Prof. Barker?

The larger point to be made here is simple: when it comes to magic, make up your own stuff. You can extend that to almost every aspect of Tékumel, but starting with magic is a good way to begin to make the game your own. If you think about it, magical research and enchantments have been going on for a LONG time on Tékumel, which means that the actual number of magical items that have been constructed must be larger than the list presented in EPT.

To extend this point further, you can start to think of the sorts of magical spells which are either shared with only a few other priesthoods, or might be exclusive to a single Temple alone. It this way, a beginning EPT referee can begin to simulate the sorts of spells that appear in later source material - but don't wait. Just go ahead and make them up yourself.

[Deleted]

Great energy from the Planes Beyond, Badger. Now all you need is a mobile/Kindle/tablet app and you can drive yourself insane playing out options.
Then again. I read of the Google limits on player interaction as noted above. I would suggest Ventrillo, a free voice link for eight players. Easy set up, easy use. Only GM needs to play the server to which others can log in. Sets up in about five minutes. I run my WOW group with it on some gamenights. A GM can even set up multiple servers so that he can run different groups exclusively in different games.
I was fun to recollect my game days in MARBs basement in the 70s. A 90 mile sojourn from Duluth to gaming goodness.
Chuck Monson

[badger2305]

Aug 21, 2011 3:48:12 GMT -6 @rahar said:

Great energy from the Planes Beyond, Badger. Now all you need is a mobile/Kindle/tablet app and you can drive yourself insane playing out options.
Then again. I read of the Google limits on player interaction as noted above. I would suggest Ventrillo, a free voice link for eight players. Easy set up, easy use. Only GM needs to play the server to which others can log in. Sets up in about five minutes. I run my WOW group with it on some gamenights. A GM can even set up multiple servers so that he can run different groups exclusively in different games.
I was fun to recollect my game days in MARBs basement in the 70s. A 90 mile sojourn from Duluth to gaming goodness.
Chuck Monson

Good to see you here, Chuck! When I was in grad school this past decade, I would drive from Ames, Iowa to Minneapolis on Thursday afternoons to get to Prof. Barker's place in time to game. Mind you, I had other reasons to come back to the Twin Cities on weekends, but that's another story.

(edit: the thread about old Blackmoor players was located by Chuck already)

[badger2305]

Part Eight - Developing Scenarios

The term "scenario" has a particular importance in Empire of the Petal Throne, because it describes a phase or part of an overall campaign. It's important because it is the link between gameplay and the overall planning for the campaign as done by the referee. Several quotes help illustrate this point:

Any campaign can be made much more enjoyable by the construction of a rough "scenario" into which players can fit themselves. (pg. 104)

He then "sets the stage" for his players, describing the scenario to them, locating them on his maps, telling them what they see, whom they encounter, etc. etc. (pg. 11)

One important component of an enjoyable scenario is the construction of nonplayer characters who may become personalities in their own right. (pg. 104)

So a major conclusion from this is that rather than having set-piece "adventures" or "modules," the completion of which becomes the focus of the campaign, "scenarios" consisting of a generalized theme and characters to bring it to life are the intermediary stage of any EPT campaign.

World-level: the campaign
|
Intermediary level: the scenario
|
Ground level: the game or adventuring session

By implication, this is more demanding in terms of preparation, since it isn't so much about this or that specific locale and its dangers, but rather more about a range of possibilities within a larger purview. It also suggests a much more "sandbox"-like orientation for EPT, though such a conclusion is clearly an after-the-fact assessment. Thus the possibilities presented in Sec. 1110: Initial Encounters in Jakálla may be considered as "opening moves" in the development of a scenario - though they do not need to be obvious and simplistic! Again, to illustrate this:

The referee must set the scenario, and the players must then fit into it as best they can. Players may, of course, politely refuse any offer which does not suit their interests and needs. (pg. 41)

Some of our most enjoyable adventures have been in the company of aspiring nobles, greedy tomb-robbers, devious scholars, and Imperial officials on some sort of mission. The only limitations are those of the referee’s skill in developing a “scenario.” Seal of the Imperium, The Dragon #11

What is clearly suggested here is something of an on-going negotiation between the players and the referee, as they mutually decide which sort of scenario is of the most interest. One specific corollary to this is that different characters are more suited to some scenarios and missions more than others - and other characters potentially less so. So a beginning EPT referee who may not have thought everything through might face the possibility of having to split up the party in order to continue pursuing a particular scenario. While it is possible to have some characters "go off and pursue their destinies" and come back to them later, it is often better to find some way for the party to stick together. (NB: just to be clear, once you and your players have developed some familiarity with Tékumel, the possibility of letting characters pursue their own goals and weave their own skeins is much less of a problem.)

Here is a partial list of potential scenarios suggested by Prof. Barker in Empire of the Petal Throne:

• The plot surrounding General Kéttukal (political and religious)
  
• The war with Yán Kór (political and military, as well as religious)
  
• Plots for and against the Imperium (political and secret)
  
• Sailing voyage to the west (more "picaresque" in character)
  
• Adventures among the hostile Ssú or Shunned Ones
  
• Inter-factional fighting
  
• Becoming a fief-holder (by implication)
  
• Joining the legions (by implication)
  
• Administering a temple (by implication)

Much of the material presented on pages 3 through 11 in Empire of the Petal Throne becomes source material for these scenarios, not too surprisingly.

[badger2305]

I am working on a brief profile of Underworld monsters and a pronunciation guide to their names and the names of the various intelligent races. That will be the next Resource Interlude, out probably on Friday.

I should note that I am still taking votes on the one magic item that did not appear in Prof. Barker's notes for the Jakallan Underworld.

I am always interested in comments and questions, too!

[Deleted]

Aug 10, 2011 20:18:56 GMT -6 badger2305 said:

Aug 10, 2011 19:58:56 GMT -6 aldarron said:

Makes sense to me. Might be good to have one or two explanatory posts about a few of the more unfamiliar (from a D&D standpoint) rules in EPT too.

Good idea! Help me out here - which ones were you thinking of? I'm so close to the rules in my own head that I might have a hard time coming up with examples.

Experience. Is the table of XP after the high level deductions or before? The example of going beyond 10th level confuses it. And is it really a mere 10,000XP (after the deduction) for levels after that while 125K after to get from 9th to 10th?

[rleduc]

I just wanted to say that I continue to read this thread with great interest! This is a fabulous work.

[badger2305]

Aug 24, 2011 21:14:31 GMT -6 @herbn said:

Aug 10, 2011 20:18:56 GMT -6 badger2305 said:

Good idea! Help me out here - which ones were you thinking of? I'm so close to the rules in my own head that I might have a hard time coming up with examples.

Experience. Is the table of XP after the high level deductions or before? The example of going beyond 10th level confuses it. And is it really a mere 10,000XP (after the deduction) for levels after that while 125K after to get from 9th to 10th?

That's genuinely a mix-up; Prof. Barker admitted as much in a private letter. I do believe that some sort of experience reduction makes sense, but I think it ought to get keyed to the relative toughness of what you are fighting, e.g. a 10th level lay-priest should not get full experience from fighting a bunch of Mrur or Kurgha.

There are very few places in EPT that need genuine fixing, but this is probably one of them. I'll put some thought into it.

[aldarron]

Victor, just as an aside, I've noticed that the quotes you draw on are either from EPT or Dragon mag. I wonder, for the kind of issues your tackling here, if there might not also be useful bits in Swords and Glory. I've yet to plop down the cash for that one.

[Falconer]

I think Victor’s overall plan-of-attack here is to deliberately restrict the canon so the potential GM doesn’t feel like he has to collect and study materials for decades before finally starting a game (or, as is more likely, being overwhelmed and giving up).

[badger2305]

Aug 25, 2011 10:38:10 GMT -6 Falconer said:

I think Victor’s overall plan-of-attack here is to deliberately restrict the canon so the potential GM doesn’t feel like he has to collect and study materials for decades before finally starting a game (or, as is more likely, being overwhelmed and giving up).

Precisely.

Let me expand a little on my one-word response. The reason why I wanted to restrict myself to just Empire of the Petal Throne and the articles from The Strategic Review and The Dragon is that:

• ...it's Old School. It is what people would have had access to back in 1977 or so, and wanted to play Tékumel,
  
• ...you can get it all right now; you don't have to wait to order or find anything else, and
  
• ...people keep saying that Tékumel is too overwhelming, too intricate, too detailed, etc. etc. etc. - well, it can be overwhelming if you add in everything else.
  

Frankly, EPT is almost completely compatible with what came out later (i.e. Swords & Glory, Gardasiyal, etc.). The biggest difference is in the magic system, which is fixable.

[badger2305]

Part Nine - Some Deeper Principles

I had originally wanted to title this "Things That Make Tekumel Unique" but that is better suited to a Resource Interlude. What I really want to get to with this post are some of the "deeper principles" that emerge from reading Empire of the Petal Throne. As such, it is subject to issues of personal interpretation, but I believe some judicious quotes will help illuminate these topics in a useful way.

Magic and technology are indistinguishable. "Old machines took on a divine aura, and as they failed, men lost the knowledge to repair them..." (pg. 8) Looking at the list of Eyes, it is difficult to ignore the overlap between many of them and many magical spells. But the important point is that we're into Clarke's Third Law territory: on Tekumel, one cannot tell the difference between magic and science. That means things like recognizable technology, e.g. Mark V Ogre cybertanks, are quite anachronistic and therefore jarring to the sense of Tekumel.

Declarative statements reflect conventional wisdom - but there are hidden exceptions. Such statements - and their associated caveats - are readily found throughout the text of EPT. Case in point: horses on Tekumel. In the same paragraph, Prof. Barker says:

Unfortunately there are no animals suitable for riding upon Tekumel; man had passed beyond the need for living steeds...

and

There IS a rumour, true or untrue is not known, of some such creatures kept in what must have been a zoological preserve upon an island somewhere upon Tekumel...

What this means is that as far as anyone in the Five Empires knows, there are no riding animals except Chlen-beasts, and those are hardly war-steeds. But that is not to say there are no riding beasts. It can then become an adventure to bring them back to Tsolyanu, alive, healthy and at least something of a curiosity. Similarly, in the descriptions of Miscellaneous Magical Items, the number and location of at least some of the items are given - but the descriptions also use conditional phrases such as "...it is said that..." or "...if legends throughout Tekumel are the be trusted..." What this does is provide room for the beginning EPT referee to decide the "actual" truth, and elaborate on the scenario from there.

Discovering lost secrets and hidden truths leads to greater puzzles. Re-reading the entirety of Sec. 200, the World of Tekumel, as well as the section on magic items and tomes, provided me with a host of questions - where is lost Purdanim? What negotiations have actually taken place between Baron Ald and King Griggatsetsa? What planet did the Little House of Tranquil Dwelling originally come from? What is the relationship between Lord Hrsh and Lord Vimuhla; are they different or merely different aspects of the same god? Each and every question of this sort - if answered completely and truthfully - will almost certainly lead to deeper questions and enigmas.

There are no atheists on Tekumel When it is the case that the Gods are manifested daily in the temples of their faith, it means that on Tekumel, there are few people - if any - who would suggest that the Gods are not real. They may be vast inter-dimensional beings, but they are for all intents and purposes, gods.

Next up - Part Nine, continued.

[Lord Kjeran]

Chello!

Great article, badger!

I have the GoO Tekumel and the books on the gods as well as the first two novels. I've been toying for years with the idea of running Tekumel. I've been gaming since 1981 and have heard the whispered Legends of the "greatest world ever."

Maybe it's time to dust off the tomes.

[badger2305]

I'm out of town at a wedding of two friends of mine. When I get a chance I will finish out Part Nine. Additionally, what I plan to do is:

• Prepare a list of errata for EPT
  
• Do a set of reference tables besides the handouts in the original boxed set
  
• Do a series of adventure outlines (a la 76 Patrons) for EPT.
  

[soundchaser]

This thread is fantastic. I plan to build upon its glorious insightfulness for any campaign world I build and play around in. But more so, I am now confident to run Tekumel (and will be more so, once you go further, as you have said)... I plan to use either a Dying Earth variant or Heroquest 2e for my system.

[Deleted]

Hello all

After several phases of geeking out on Tékumel material over the years, I've started running an EPT game. We're taking the approach of ne'er-do-well southern barbarians on the make in a corrupt, brutal, and scandalously wealthy city. "Oh, this Eye, yer worship? It fell of the back of a chlén, like."

While I have a good memory for chunks from some of the novels, the bestiary, etc., my goal is not to play like we're trying to memorize the geography and current events of the world.

I've started one corner of a dungeon complex to be explored over various jobs, and otherwise we'll go where the players want to. But what do you know, a random encounter... d12 merchants with 2d12 guards! guess we're not making it to that "abandoned" temple property tonight, fellows.

Short-term goal is to get another player or two in addition to me, Pessimistic Halfling here on the fora, and The Captain (my gaming name for him since his Trail of Cthulhu investigator set a new standard for disturbing violence in the midst of Temporary Insanity).

Longer term I have some crazy fun dungeons and wilderness settings in mind; we've suggested taking our northern riches and funding an expedition back to the southern continent, where we can explore and establish our own local Tékumel.

This first session, the Halfling rolled up a fighter and the captain a magic user. Each had one very good stat (85 or higher) and one terrible... both got an 11 i believe :>

We rolled for names using Brett Slocum's name generator. Fighter Hrerikkumas and mage Mn. Yes, Mn. "Is that MNNNN or m'Nuh?" "M'Nuh to my friends, Mnnn formally."

We decided registration with one of the temples was a bureaucratic requirement on all registered barbarians entering the Empire and sequestered in Jakalla (e.g. not those killed or enslaved by some local clan or temple faction!), and that alignment with Stability or Change didn't stand in the way of friendship. The text talks about Good and Evil, but Order and Chaos, etc. is more in line with general old D&D and plenty of the pulps.

They were summoned to the offices of a most discreet and careful agent for a certain elegant nobleman, and agreed a little too fast to a job! The flabby gasping eunuch dabbed his forehead and laid out the score. Just some property my master has come into --been untenanted for quite some time. Just pop in, clear out any ruffians or clanless scum who may have broken in. Should be nothing to worry about. Oh, it's very important you remove nothing of the house from the premises: it is all my master's property!. Here are the keys: for the first gate, the second gate, and I don't know what the third key is for. And an authorization for barbarians matching your description to walk and take boats through splendid. Jakálla.

After some comedy and humiliation with elegant traditional xenophobic Tsolyanis, Hrerikkumas and Mn reach the crusty ancient gate. Mn casts Clairvoyance and hears only birds, rustling leaves, insects, small woods critters. They badger the doors open and find a very overgrown garden. After some time hacking their way through the enormous ornamental and fruiting plants, they emerge from the shadow of the wall and spot an opalescent pyramidal building, florid with balconies, windows, and a tiny brilliant dome. The nearest side is overgrown with thorny vines above the tangled trees.

The strange structure cannot be approached directly; the damp gardens, gone to old growth forest, would require enormous fuel, manpower, or magic to clear. Striking out to the right, roughly west, Mn and Hreri spot weird spherical plants, dull woody balls from hand size up. Before they can investigate further, SNICK an arrow hums between the pair. They quickly spot a trio of child-sized, skull-faced... things...! crouching in the low branches of a tree. Their spindly limbs draw back short bows and launch another volley of arrows. Hreri the indignant southerner is hit by two arrows and dead before he hits the ground.

Taha: Any last words as you die?
Halfling: Yeah. "Aggghhh..." This is AWESOME!

Mn turns tail and flees. He reaches the gate before he realizes the FIGHTER had the keys! Shrill ululations pierce the woods behind him, fade to gurgles and the steady champ of jaws.

The Captain says Mn heads back to the foreigners' quarter and seeks out the gang of ruffians Hreri had he'd been distancing himself from. The foreign thugs, of Hreri's southern people and others, are sorry enough to hear the bastard was dead, particularly as there's the chance of plundering the joint. Don't take anything? How are they to know what's been took! Nobody's been trimming the gardens for some time, ha ha ha!

The Pessimistic Halfling will return as one of these toughs, with their boss as chief hireling. We're quite excited about having a spear line of redshirts. Mental note: the gang wear snazzy red tunics.

More to follow as events transpire.

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Oh, we're going to call it TD&D or D&D in the world of Tékumel in describing it to friends and would-be players. Play up the classic traps and treasure, exploration, wonder, deadly weirdness on every side. Tékumel fits well in that regardless of elflessness and hobbitlack.