Tenkar's Tavern: Micro-Nations - A Perfect Fit for a Swords & Sorcery Campaign?

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Micro-Nations - A Perfect Fit for a Swords & Sorcery Campaign?

I was wandering around Wikipedia and somehow found myself looking at an article about Micro-Nations.

It got me thinking - a sorcerer's tower would effectively be a Micro-Nation, and if he gave himself a title, so much the better.

Maybe the village has an experienced warrior settle in it, and he declares himself king of all 40 inhabitats.

Damn, I really like the idea of self declared micro-nations in a campaign ;)

4 comments:

Reverend DakApril 23, 2013 at 3:59 PM
Pretty much all there were back in the dark ages, little keeps and castles fighting each other constantly.
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Nicolas "Ungoliant" SenacApril 23, 2013 at 5:08 PM
Hmmm... Let me think...
CARCOSA !
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James MishlerApril 23, 2013 at 5:49 PM
That's totally what the Wilderlands of High Fantasy was all about...
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HenryApril 23, 2013 at 6:56 PM
Heck, you can find that even in the Border Kingdoms region of Forgotten Realms.
Any fool with a massive ego and a sword or bag of spells can do that.
Question is, can you keep it?
The more interesting question is, what do your neighbors think?
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Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Micro-Nations - A Perfect Fit for a Swords & Sorcery Campaign?

4 comments:

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