tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post3737024568045483112..comments2024-03-28T06:20:47.668-04:00Comments on GROGNARDIA: Retrospective: The Nightmare Maze of JigréshJames Maliszewskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-43065024441968495582011-08-05T13:17:27.488-04:002011-08-05T13:17:27.488-04:00Just played my first Tekumel adventure last night....Just played my first Tekumel adventure last night.<br /><br />Committed breaches of etiquette, went into a dungeon, killed a monster. Extremely pleased. Can't wait to do it again.Zak Sabbathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08812410680077034917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-11576348273205256432011-08-04T17:47:55.503-04:002011-08-04T17:47:55.503-04:00As a complete aside, I think that the "Nightm...As a complete aside, I think that the "Nightmare Maze" aspect of this adventure was borrowed in part - or at least inspired by - the popular maze books by Vladimir Koziakin, which started coming out in the early 1970's...Victor Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05928494560036528653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-89489973730890177512011-08-04T14:09:12.606-04:002011-08-04T14:09:12.606-04:00Oh dear. I'm in serious trouble. I've co...Oh dear. I'm in serious trouble. I've completely forgotten what the musty smell of cinnamon was supposed to signify.<br /><br />Is it something to do with Sáku's minions? [And I'm impressed I remember the name of the God of Undead and Worms after so many years.]<br /><br />Time to find where I buried my Tékumel books...<br /><br />[Tékumel never seemed to take off down here in Oz, probably because it was so difficult to get the source material. I know it took about four years for the distributor to actually get in a copy of <i>Empire of the Petal Throne</i> for me.]Reverance Pavanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01217657347160811310noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-13469441516604558352011-08-03T21:58:36.770-04:002011-08-03T21:58:36.770-04:00About the Maze proper. It totally reminded me when...About the Maze proper. It totally reminded me when I got a copy of all the mazes we'd doodle around 4th grade. The elaborate ones with lots of switchbacks, deadends and sloping loops. <br /><br />What a nightmare to play through--more in a pain in the ass way than a challenge way.Chris Kutalikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01414743509426875792noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-6107663717953874222011-08-03T21:55:48.011-04:002011-08-03T21:55:48.011-04:00@Victor
A very good point about the "purism&q...@Victor<br />A very good point about the "purism" coming less from the gaming side of Tekumel fans. <br /><br />In my own experience, it's the gamers--especially those who have played in the setting for 30+ years and in Barker's home campaign no less--who have been the most open and encouraging about helping me make it my own.Chris Kutalikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01414743509426875792noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-21942121736159391582011-08-03T21:18:48.472-04:002011-08-03T21:18:48.472-04:00Nightmare Maze indeed!Nightmare Maze indeed!Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10884401206802336531noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-26045020456374180322011-08-03T20:57:28.252-04:002011-08-03T20:57:28.252-04:00Could you elaborate on this if you have a moment?
...<i>Could you elaborate on this if you have a moment?</i><br /><br>There are several factors at work here. First, Tékumel is really old. Human beings have lived on it for tens of thousands of years, the earliest ages being ones filled with high tech wonders. In the eons since, the only wonders left unclaimed are those found deep within the bowels of the planet, where huge gravitic engines and atmosphere processors still operate and the tubeway systems can be found. So there's plenty of incentive to go down there.<br /><br />Second, many Tekumeláni cultures have a religious custom, called Ditlána that commands that, every 500 years or so, a city must be razed and rebuilt anew on top of the old site. The result is that, after so many millennia, most major cities are now built upon the many layered ruins of their "past selves."<br /><br />Third, the forces of Stability and Change have agreed to a Concordat against sectarian violence. However, that Concordat doesn't apply <i>beneath the surface of the planet</i>. Consequently, many sects and cults seek out the underworld for their headquarters/lairs and engage in all sorts of activities down there.<br /><br />And, finally, even Tsolyáni need money and the underworlds are a great place to get rich -- or die trying.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-67252664758046423852011-08-03T20:27:19.681-04:002011-08-03T20:27:19.681-04:00a ready-made and culturally plausible explanation ...<i> a ready-made and culturally plausible explanation -- a couple, actually -- for the existence of monster and trap-filled "dungeons."</i><br /><br />Could you elaborate on this if you have a moment?gdbackushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09245941451462450346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-36701480310771402032011-08-03T14:38:42.031-04:002011-08-03T14:38:42.031-04:00The solo adventure books written in the early 90&#...The solo adventure books written in the early 90's , I think, gives the best presentation to people unfamiliar to the world as they were written for the player in mind. Same goes for the GM as their loaded with plot hook and new campaign material. <br /><br /> I would also add parts of the Game of Thrones series to the list as the eastern realms depicted in the books could easily fit into the flora and fauna of Tekumel,I.F.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04345074915911014741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-19174894241780617642011-08-03T13:47:06.334-04:002011-08-03T13:47:06.334-04:00James - you're right to point to the "Tre...James - you're right to point to the "Tree of Time" as the means for understanding differences between Tekumel campaigns. However, there are "Tekumel purists" out there who do get worked up if your campaign doesn't match that of the Saintly Old Professor (I suspect Phil would dispatch some Ssu to visit people with this attitude). One of the observations I've made in the past is that such "Tekumel purists" aren't actually doing much gaming in Tekumel, but instead study it much as some Tolkien fans study Middle-earth. My advice on this subject is to do exactly what Prof. Barker says for you to do: make it your <i>own</i> game, once you have it.<br /><br />Rob Conley - I've never read Ray Feist's books that obviously were derived from Tekumel. I know that Feist and Prof. Barker have unresolved differences about that, and out of deference to an old friend, I've refrained from reading Feist's work. If it worked for you, however, that's good to hear.Victor Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05928494560036528653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-41813171241530501652011-08-03T11:51:32.976-04:002011-08-03T11:51:32.976-04:00Tékumel... tóó mánÿ dámn díácrítícs.
While Tékume...Tékumel... tóó mánÿ dámn díácrítícs.<br /><br />While Tékumel is an interesting read; for me, it is far too personal of a creation for me to ever want to game in, as is. Good inspiration for my own campaigns... but I don't usually feel compelled to run anyone's pet campaign, or study their linguistics charts.<br /><br />I feel the same way about Glorantha. Which is another setting I won't play in for the very same reason.KPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18374233546533225028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-9793230063661914412011-08-03T11:29:02.606-04:002011-08-03T11:29:02.606-04:00I picked up a copy of this adventure about a year ...I picked up a copy of this adventure about a year ago from a friend who was cleaning out old material. Like you, I was disappointed by how mundane it is. (That's aside from the fact that running a winding maze as a dungeon is either aggravatingly frustrating if characters just wander, or ridiculously simple if characters put their left hand on the wall and follow the maze to its heart, as you can with this one.) I've found, however, that running EPT is largely a matter of injecting some exotic atmosphere into the buildup to the adventure. Once actual delving begins, the alien monsters carry most of the load for you. <br /><br />Atmosphere-wise, I've found the best inspiration in Clark Ashton Smith's tales of Xiccarph, Zothique, and Poseidonis. Their otherworldliness translates well to EPT.Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11677895164302972957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-72801918220867934752011-08-03T11:16:55.579-04:002011-08-03T11:16:55.579-04:00Dave Morris (old White Dwarf and Dragon Warriors) ...Dave Morris (old White Dwarf and Dragon Warriors) has a number of good posst on Tekumel's alienness as well some adventures. <br /><br />I've never played in a Tekumel game but I found it interesting reading.<br /><br />http://fabledlands.blogspot.com/search/label/TekumelRuddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12174843939252395797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-45772631886028944342011-08-03T11:06:58.154-04:002011-08-03T11:06:58.154-04:00I can't say I've ever seen the phrase &quo...I can't say I've ever seen the phrase "wrong Tékumel" before, which isn't to say it doesn't exist or hasn't been used before. My experience is that most hardcore Tékumel fans use the "Tree of Time" metaphysics to justify differences between Barker's campaign and divergent ones.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-22748947418686403482011-08-03T11:00:24.748-04:002011-08-03T11:00:24.748-04:00Interesting retrospective, ta. Looks like Tita...Interesting retrospective, ta. Looks like Tita's House of Games may be getting more of my kaitars soon...<br /><br /><i>Too many people have the false impression that Tékumel is too exalted to be sullied by hands other than those respectfully steeped in its minutiae for decades beforehand.</i><br /><br />Doesn't the Tekumel fandom has a concept they call 'wrong Tekumel'? As I understand it 'wrong Tekumel' means something like "not in accordance with what we know happens in Prof. Barker's Tekumel campaigns, but still cool to play."Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04072272223837426211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-55314809268954573862011-08-03T10:56:24.892-04:002011-08-03T10:56:24.892-04:00Speaking of Feist, you should dig into Midkemia at...Speaking of Feist, you should dig into Midkemia at some point. Along with Blackmoor, Glorantha, Tékumel, Greyhawk, and Wilderlands it is one of the oldest documented setting.Robert Conleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03863009007381185340noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-15357346402182221082011-08-03T10:54:32.180-04:002011-08-03T10:54:32.180-04:00I will probably be blasted as a heretic but I &quo...I will probably be blasted as a heretic but I "got" Tékumel after reading Feist's Riftwar and Empire. I realize there are difference but afterwards EPT made a lot more sense.Robert Conleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03863009007381185340noreply@blogger.com