tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post8380799398760492475..comments2024-03-29T07:58:31.156-04:00Comments on GROGNARDIA: Retrospective: Conan Unchained!James Maliszewskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-49225547696809765782020-11-12T05:50:44.301-05:002020-11-12T05:50:44.301-05:00Interesting! Thanks for sharing that.Interesting! Thanks for sharing that.James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-9425973863852280032020-11-12T01:54:05.978-05:002020-11-12T01:54:05.978-05:00I don't own CB1 (though I recall perusing it i...I don't own CB1 (though I recall perusing it in the store in my youth...loved the "manotaur"); however, I *do* own CB2. Authored by Ken Rolston, I haven't been able to find any of the "plot encounter" text from CB1, despite having all the setting specific rules about adventuring in Howard's Hyboria. Neither does Anne McCready's RS1 ("Red Sonja Unconquered"). It appears TSR dropped the concept - and the directive of massaging player choice - after CB1.<br />JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03263662621289630246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-62508005441328041982020-11-11T10:47:32.168-05:002020-11-11T10:47:32.168-05:00The adventures for the Conan RPG also have little ...The adventures for the Conan RPG also have little in them to recommend. The best of the bunch is CN3, Conan Triumphant, by William Carlson, which centers around a succession crisis in Ophir. It has a hex map of the kingdom, city geomorphs for neighborhoods in the capital city, a detailed map of the palace (which can be used for rooftop chases), some building floorplans, and a halfway decent dungeon map. The plot seems like a linear snoozefest, but might be convertible into something more sandboxy, albeit with considerable effort. The Conan RPG boxed set itself is fun and inspiring to read, with a colorful (but not very detailed) map of the Hyborian Age, but the setting booklet is very light on details, and the game book contains only one very short and not fully developed adventure (based on the Tower of the Elephant). The Hyborian Age is a great setting for RPGs, so it's a shame that TSR was not able to develop a game or series of adventures that realized the setting's potential. Jon Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15483110614579754014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-30235862109916091202020-11-11T10:37:15.950-05:002020-11-11T10:37:15.950-05:00All excellent questions, for which I don't kno...All excellent questions, for which I don't know presently know the answers. James Maliszewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00341941102398271464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7487871339000666216.post-76866146262942949462020-11-11T10:25:17.100-05:002020-11-11T10:25:17.100-05:00Two types of question come to mind:
1. Does anyone...Two types of question come to mind:<br />1. Does anyone know why TSR decided to publish the Conan RPG as a separate game, rather than as a boxed supplement for AD&D?<br />2. If the AD&D adventures for Conan had been better designed, or if there had been a Hyborian Age boxed set for AD&D, might this have actually found a market and done really well? Was there a lack of interest in Conan among AD&D gamers, or was the failure of the line due to its poor design or lack of support?Jon Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15483110614579754014noreply@blogger.com