Pyramid Pick
Deluxe Hero Wars RPG
Published by Issaries, Inc.
Created by Robin Laws, Greg Stafford, Roderick Robertson, Shannon Appel, and others
Boxed set containing Roleplaying in Glorantha (256 pgs), Narrator's Book (176 pgs), Gloranthan Visions (112 pgs), Starting Rules Synopsis Booklet (56 pgs), b&w map; $44.95
Last week my wife and I received a visit from someone whom we hadn't seen in a while . . . her multiple sclerosis came back with a vengeance. She's on steroids right now, and the only danger we have to worry about is whether or not she wishes to join the East German olympic team. Last week I received a visitor from someone who I haven't seen in a while: Glorantha, the Hero Wars.
Sometimes we see a familiar face, and it turns out to be a nightmare. When I saw Runequest, as produced by Avalon Hill, the last time it was a nightmare. A somewhat complicated game had become even more complicated, and the meat of what I wanted to read -- Glorantha -- only seemed to come out in fits and starts. To its credit Avalon Hill seemed to be getting more material out about Glorantha, but then they cancelled the game.
I didn't have many expectations for Hero Wars. Well, I hated the cover (Orlanth in stretch pants!?!), and I felt that the system was going to be a mess. Runequest had always had a certain amount of complexity, and I felt that if this complexity were lost then part of the essential flavor of the world of Glorantha might be lost as well. I was wrong!
Robin Laws, by whatever muse . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: October 13, 2000
Copyright © 2000 by Steve Jackson Games. All rights reserved. Pyramid subscribers are permitted to read this article online, or download it and print out a single hardcopy for personal use. Copying this text to any other online system or BBS, or making more than one hardcopy, is strictly prohibited. So please don't. And if you encounter copies of this article elsewhere on the web, please report it to webmaster@sjgames.com.