Romance of the Perilous Land

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Lofgeornost said:
Is Eastland vaguely Hertfordshire, Essex, Cambridgeshire, and maybe East Anglia? That's roughly where it seems to be, though the Perilous Land does not have the same outline and Britain, exactly.

It's interesting that the game puts Camelot in Gwynedd (made considerably larger) and that the Lancashire region is retitled 'Hutton.'
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The geography is odd, but Eastland would more or less comply with Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. It absolutely moves Sherwood towards the coast.

The most baffling move is putting Lyonesse directly north of it, so Sherwood is the border between Lyonesse and Eastland.
 
We're getting towards the last quarter of the book. The next part is details some of the personalities of the Perilous Land. So we have stats, classes and levels for King Arthur, Lady Guinevere (who is a knight), Sir Launcelot, Robin Hood, Modred, Merlin and Morgan Le Fay.

The next part of the book is the bestiary. There's 87 creatures listed ( quick count) in the bestiary- so there's a good mix in there. As mentioned earlier in the thread, creatures are extremely easy to make as everything is based in their HD. Give an extra ability or two and your good to go. The creatures listed have good examples for modifying things.

The creatures do have a good amount of flavor to them. Again, I'm not well informed of British folklore, but I guess quite of bit is from it. Lots of things to get ideas flowing.

The last 20 pages or so of the book is dedicated towards running the game. The last page is a character sheet.

So that's the game in a nutshell. I just got the Black Hack (2nd edition) to compare it to, and going through that as well. I think RotPL occupies a nearly empty space in fantasy rpgs, lower magic that's hopeful and not gritty. Romantic fantasy. Not sure where Blue Rose sits on the power spectrum, was it higher powered?

Anyways, there you go!
 
I find it interesting that Arthur is still a young king, not even 30 yet. It allows him to lead the charge in some great battle or other. Having Guinevere be a knight and no mention made of her adultery suggests the writer has chosen to avoid the whole affair, though referees might think differently.

I do wish a significant barbarian and rogue were included. Certainly, Cu Chulainn would be a good fit for the former given RotPL's Celtic inspiration.
 
I like how most of it was left open, that only the barest of bones was presented. Enough to show that "this is the side of good, and this is the side of evil". The GM can choose to form it from there.
 
I suppose I would say the Arthurian sources are likely modern, the 90's Merlin miniseries and the more recent British Merlin shows seem likely inspiration. Perhaps the BBC Robin Hood series too, but I didn't watch that one.

The celtic influence is only really felt in the gods, the magic items and some of the monsters. Primarily the former. It takes a moment to reconcile the Merry Men's punishment of greedy priests and then remember these aren't the church-running Christian holy men that dominate the Robin Hood tales. I can only assume the celtic worship is less bloody and barbaric in this take on the Arthurian age.

Not that I think these elements are irreconcilable, but it is a mix that might be taken in very different directions by different groups.
 
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