RuneQuest

Fantasy Roleplaying Adventure Game

Reviewed by Sam Shirley

Authors: Chaosium, Inc.
Publisher: Avalon Hill
Release date: Sept. 1984
Price: $37
Complexity: Intermediate
Solitaire Suitability: None
Rating: *****

This is the third edition of the RuneQuest Fantasy Roleplaying Adventure Game. For this edition, Chaosium has rewritten much of the rules and cultural material while leaving the printing and distribution headaches to the superior resources of The Avalon Hill Game Company. This cooperation has produced a classic roleplaying game.

Three kinds of changes have been made in the original game. The old rules have been expanded slightly to be more realistic, a number of new sections have been added to make the RuneQuest universe more versatile, and the authors have answered some of the complaints against prior editions of RuneQuest. The most significant change is that by lifting it out of the Gloranthan fantasy world and setting it in medieval fantasy Europe the game is more generic.

RuneQuest comes in three versions. The first is the Player Box which contains the Players Booklet with all the mechanics, and the Magic Booklet with four interrelated magic systems. The second version is the Gamesmaster Box containing the Gamesmasters Booklet with cultural information, hints on refereeing, and a beginning scenario; the Creatures Booklet with many interesting monsters and races; and the Glorantha Booklet with information from an already created fantasy world. The third version is the Deluxe Box which contains all five of the booklets and sells for $38.00. The price is higher than people are used to paying for one game, but the publisher offers a lot of game for the money.

The cover art is striking. The booklets also have nice artwork both inside and on the cover. However, there is one problem with the booklets in particular, they are staplebound medium grade paper and will come apart with continued use. Finally, a word on the box itself. its just a bit too narrow to hold a standard sheet of paper it is annoving to have all your notes curl up.

RuneQuest is set in a late bronze age world of low magic. The great magics of fantasy are still there, but they are difficult to make and even harder to find. They evoke the awe of wonder when encountered, not jaded acceptance.

The mechanics of RuneQuest are easy to understand. They are probably too difficult for a young child, but any intelligent 14 year-old will have no trouble. RuneQuest is a skill based system which means that a character's prowess is measured by his ability in certain skills, and that a skill can be bettered only by training or using that skill. For example, a successful blow in combat is based on the attackers weapon attack skill and the defender's weapon parry skill.

Damage is rolled by type of weapon and then applied to one of seven randomly rolled hit locations after subtracting the armor points covering that location. Combat ends up being deadlier than in most games, but this has the positive effect of forcing the player character to come up with solutions that do not depend on his sword arm.

The game itself is well thought out and a joy for both referee and player, it lends itself well to games that emphasize roleplaying. The Gamesmaster Booklet, which contains languages, social classes, economics, standards of living for different professions, price lists for different sized towns, ship building and sailing, encounter tables, road travel rates, weather, etc., is a handy reference tool no matter what system you use.

The RuneQuest rules are well organized with information easy to find. Each booklet features a full index of its contents on its back cover, The tables and lists are reprinted in two mini-booklets, making these much used aids even easier for reference during play

The characters in RuneQuest are well balanced. No character profession has a significant edge over any other. They will all find some opponents; they can casily defeat, some that will test their courage, and others that they should avoid until they improve their skills.

In all, the mechanics make a lot of sense. They try to model the way we think of the world as really working. The realism, along with a skill based system, allows the referee and player to devote more of their attention to the world and the character personalities without having to puzzle over bizarre abstract rules. The innovative character background generation system helps greatly in generating complete and individual characters.

The background system determines a characters native culture, his profession within the culture, his religion and system of beliefs, along with the various skills, magic abilities and possessions he would have gained from that background. Beginning characters made with this system are well rounded and undoubtedly different from anyone else in the game. They are young, however, and the world could he a dangerous place for a new adventurer on his own, New characters should practice some caution and try some more traditional employment until the wisdom and talents of age are present.

The most significant innovation is the section on how to roleplay in the beginning of the Players Booklet and how to referee in the Gamesmaster~Booklet. Combined, they are the best discussion yet on the art of roleplaying. This is the part of the game that really caught my attention. It is an excellent guide for beginning gamesmasters and players, There are even some ideas that advanced roleplayers should read.

In all, RuneQuest is a top quality game. It is probably too complex for the really young roleplayer, but more mature beginners should do fine. Whether the fact that the game is geared more toward roleplaying and less toward combat is a detriment really depends on your gaming style. Still, even if you don't intend to play RuneQuest, it holds a lot of useful information and new ideas. No library is complete without it.

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