REVIEW: Edge of Empire

Ever wonder what life is like for the Orlanthi who live under the Lunar Empire's oft-oppressive rule? Edge of Empire is the supplement your RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha (RQG) campaign is seeking. Harald Smith's debut Jonstown Compendium release contains over 200 pages detailing life in the rustic kingdom of Imther in the Lunar Provinces. Like … Continue reading REVIEW: Edge of Empire

Behind the Scenes #16

April's in the rear-view mirror, which means it's time for another Behind the Scenes … over on my Patreon page! These monthly articles are my small way of showing gratitude to the people who're willing and able to give above-and-beyond support to my creative work. They basically fund me doing the articles here each week, … Continue reading Behind the Scenes #16

Vignettes in RuneQuest

The emphasis on communal obligations and day-to-day life is one strength of RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha (RQG). This is built into the game's religious expectations like tithing adventuring loot to one's temple, and in how the game's cults describe reciprocal relationships and social hierarchies. Despite these strengths actual RQG adventures tend to focus more on … Continue reading Vignettes in RuneQuest

The Esvulari & the Aeolians

The first RuneQuest character I ever played was a knight-sorcerer in RuneQuest 3. Coming from Pathfinder 1E and Dungeons & Dragons 3.5E I loved the idea that you could play anything you wanted due to the skills-based Basic Roleplaying (BRP) engine. Our game added in a bunch of insane spells from Sandy Petersen's RuneQuest sorcery … Continue reading The Esvulari & the Aeolians

Unwritten Rules: Bonus Stacking

My trickster Illostan finally gets caught by Prince Temertain's guards—he thinks he's friends with “Temmy” and wants to give him more “presents”—and needs to Fast Talk to escape the situation. To improve his chances, he both casts the spell Clever Tongue and rolls an augment with his Harmony Rune (“No, I really am his friend!”). … Continue reading Unwritten Rules: Bonus Stacking

Trickster Animism in RuneQuest

The Trickster is a character found in mythologies all around the world, from Loki of the Scandinavians and Coyote of the Native Americans, to Sun Wukong in China and (I'd be tempted to argue) Judas in Christianity. This transgressive figure is nonetheless necessary for his culture's worldview to make sense. Judas's betrayal of Jesus is … Continue reading Trickster Animism in RuneQuest

REVIEW: A Bad Day at Duck Rock

When there's smoke in the air and Ennio Morricone's warbling Western sting fills your ears, you know someone is destined to have a bad day. Hopefully, that won't be you! This week we're taking a look at A Bad Day at Duck Rock, Peter Hart's first foray onto the Jonstown Compendium. Bad Day is an … Continue reading REVIEW: A Bad Day at Duck Rock

Out Now! Treasures of Glorantha 2

Treasures of Glorantha 2: Relics of the Second Age is now available. Click here to get your copy! This book is the essential guide to lost magics of the Imperial Age. Within you will find the lost secrets of a dragon-worshiping empire, powers stolen by god-manipulating sorcerers, and other arcane mysteries. Treasures 2 contains thirty … Continue reading Out Now! Treasures of Glorantha 2

Weariness in RuneQuest

The RuneQuest core rules offer a pretty flexible “fatigue-lite” system based on encumbrance (ENC) for how much stuff an adventurer can carry. While writing a new RuneQuest adventure which occurs through most of a single night, I found I wanted an additional tool for describing an adventurer's weariness. Artificially adding ENC based on how long … Continue reading Weariness in RuneQuest

REVIEW: Sacred Earth, Sacred Water

Considering the consistent quality of their publications, I'm a big fan of the indie RuneQuest publisher Beer With Teeth (BWT). Skimming over my archive, it looks like I haven't actually reviewed their work on my site! A travesty, I tell ya. I love how their Clearwine books delve into Sartarite daily life on a personal … Continue reading REVIEW: Sacred Earth, Sacred Water