Thread: Questioning chirine ba kal

Originally Posted by AsenRG

It seems the Green One is saying that, yes. I'm not quite sure he's right, but I'm treating it as a joking hypothetical.

Also, "Dao that can be put in words ain't the real deal".

I'm not saying that, I'm saying that when the people who know about the game worlds are saying that, like that literal response I saw on Glorantha boards, then that really doesn't help a setting that starts off being a little outside people's cultural familiarity wheelhouse to begin with.

Originally Posted by Gronan of Simmerya

This is what forty years of practice can do for you, kids.

Chirine, you are a true master.

Perhaps. my General. perhaps...

DSC00211.jpg

Sort-of-Aztec figure from Steve Jackson Games (long out of production for a long out of print game), rare earth magnet by Hawk, 'Small Flame Marker' by Litko, washer by Ace Hardware.

Now, when I can source some really tiny switches that I can hide in the bases where I've hidden the battery and run the copper foil up to the LED in the torch, then, young Skywalker, then I shall be the master...

Ah, the 1990s on the old Usenet group. Where the phrase, "Barker's Own", was born.

Let me tell you all a little story. Along about 1990, one of the people who had poisoned my relationship with Phil took the time to give me a call to tell me with great glee and delight that Phil had, in one of his fits of pique, killed Chirine (and his NPC wife and infant children). I heard him out, and told him that if he cared to, tell Phil that I hoped that this made the old boy happy; the more power to him. It's his campaign, after all. Tearing up a 3" x 5" index card was about the total result - Chirine was a PC in an RPG, and that was it. (As I mentioned when this first came up in this thread, some of the Tekumel fans of the day called Phil out on this, and there was some 'retconning' done; it didn't fly very well, and Phil lost some more very good people over it. Others were merely expelled from the group.)

And then, I politely told him that in my Tekumel campaign, Chirine and his little family were just fine, doing the Sir John Hawkwood thing off in the Nyemesel Isles, and that anyone was welcome to drop by our warm sunny climes for a visit. The response was "NO! NO! YOU CAN'T DO THAT! THAT'S NOT REAL TEKUMEL!!!" and many similar words to that effect at the time and for a decade afterwards. For the rest of the decade, I got many threats of legal action and such to prevent me from running my Tekumel campaign, as it wasn't 'authorized' and 'official'. (The 1990s sucked for me and my family, if you want my opinion.) These were the days when it was being floated to assess a fee or charge to make one's Tekumel campaign 'official' and 'authorized'; that never got any traction, either.

As I mentioned a while back in this thread. Phil himself said "Here's my Tekumel, now make it yours!" So, I did. And I encourage others to follow his advice, and from what I gather quite a few people have over the years. More power to them, it keeps the spirit of those Thursday Nights alive after all these years.

So, here's my thought. Phil did what Phil did; I do what I do. If there's anything you can take away from that for your own games, then have at and be welcome to it.

Originally Posted by Baron

Crazy stuff. I lost a good friend over gaming, myself. Sad.

I'd agree with that assessment. It went from one heck of a lot of fun gaming for a decade to being all about the courtiers' position around the throne, and the effects of that plotting and chicanery are still with us today.

My curse, as it always has been, is to know what can be - not what will be. I saw what could be done for Tekumel, way back when, and tried very hard to make that happen for Phil and his fans. A few people got bent out of shape about that and with the folks who tried to help me make the dreams come true - so, we all had to go. And over a couple of years, they got their way; over a couple of decades, we've seen the result.

I've been asked, point-blank, why I don't reflect all this nastiness in "To Serve The Petal Throne" and make the book more grim and nasty. No, thank you; I would like very much for you to remember the witty, inventive, and downright unique man that I knew and the wonderful nights we had with him for so many years. If I can do that, and you laugh along with us as we go off on our adventures, then I think I've done what I set out to do forty years ago...

Originally Posted by Greentongue

If I recall, you had mentioned previously that Aqaa "the Worm of the Catacombs" were used by the ancients for mining and other such tunnel digging.
Do you have any idea what would keep one out if it was motivated to dig into a place?
Would the metals and high strength materials of a starship do it?
I'm thinking that given enough time they could chew/dissolve their way through.
What is your experience/opinion?
=

It's in Phil's last novel too, I think.

Nothing, except the starship hulls that you mention. Nothing seems to get through them, at least in our experiences with them in the old star port north of the Plain of Towers and the other ships we've happened on. They both chew and dissolve, and given time thy can get through anything we could come up with.

Well, there is one consideration without getting crazy about it...if someone wanted to spend money at this point buying Tekumel stuff, it would be nice to know what is being sold by the decent people and what is being sold by the shitlords. Last thing I want to do is contribute to the people destroying the place. A PM will do.

Originally Posted by CRKrueger

I'm not saying that, I'm saying that when the people who know about the game worlds are saying that, like that literal response I saw on Glorantha boards, then that really doesn't help a setting that starts off being a little outside people's cultural familiarity wheelhouse to begin with.

Yeah, maybe I've misunderstood you, then.

My point was that all settings except the modern world start outside of people's cultural familiarity wheelhouse. (The cases where the people are running a setting they have already researched notwithstanding, because they're a minority). Some people just believe they know enough to run some kinds of settings, but unless they've researched them, that's simply not true.
Of course, the answer is "so do the damned research, then!"

Originally Posted by chirine ba kal

As I mentioned a while back in this thread. Phil himself said "Here's my Tekumel, now make it yours!" So, I did. And I encourage others to follow his advice, and from what I gather quite a few people have over the years. More power to them, it keeps the spirit of those Thursday Nights alive after all these years.

So, here's my thought. Phil did what Phil did; I do what I do. If there's anything you can take away from that for your own games, then have at and be welcome to it.

I've taken that advice to heart, Uncle, thank you!

Also, anyone who has ever published a book about a setting is explicitly giving me permission to game in said setting. This remains true even if don't I own the book, but loaned it from a friend, or just read a review of it and am using its core concepts.
I'm sorry that people who don't understand that simple fact have caused you such grief, but I believe that your answer has been an excellent one, and probably made them freak out even more!

Originally Posted by AsenRG

Or we can go to the same sources as MAR Barker did.

Speaking of which, the Howard Hawks epic "Land of the Pharaohs" was on TCM earlier in the week. Kinda hokey, with some weird ahistorical elements and wooden "epic-style" dialogue and acting, but fun.

I don't know for certain but I'm guessing it was one of the many Hollywood genre films that helped shape Tekumel back in the 50s.