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Tuala Morn Discussion


Killer Shrike

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Ya know what? This is a terrible idea' date=' and I decided not to go to bed without disclaiming myself. Tuala Morn is basically a romantic setting for larger-than-life heroes, and although I think it has room for some shades of gray, doing something like this would instantly plunge any campaign into the grim'n'gritty, no matter who was playing in it. I've excised the above paragraph from my last post, but I comment on it here as an object lesson in letting professional interests interfere with a damned good game.[/quote']

 

Can't say about the TM setting till I've read it, but I think 2000 AD's Slaine shows that you can address the topic of cultural human sacrifice without going COMPLETELY shades of grey. It's mostly a matter of presenting it in a "non evil" fashion, and having players who can accept that cultural mores can be radically different than their own comfort zones.

 

out of curiosity, are the Tualans headhunters like our own Gaels?

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Very true. I think that offers some intriguing possibilities for setting design for gaming' date=' if you pay attention to it. You can create all kinds of social and cultural differences in what we (as Americans) would consider a [i']very[/i] small area if you pay attention. You don't necessarily need a world the size of Greyhawk or Ambrethel.

 

Or the world of Forgetten Realms, whatever that's called -- I think Faerun is the name of just the one continent. Just on the one continent, you could pick out one small corner and have enough variation and conflict to build an entire campaign around...I think they overdid it. The details on most places are really vague and lacking.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

teaser.gif

 

- Coming Soon -

 

More information to follow but the game will be held:

 

- online so highspeed will be necessary

- weekday evenings (-6 GMT or whatever it becomes after the whacky new DST)

- Skype for voice so a microphone on your PC/laptop

- an internet browser

 

I'll start a proper thread of it's own over in the Player Finder

 

Later

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Sooner or later we should start a "Groovy Stuff for a Tuala Morn Campaign" thread.

 

For the nonce, however, as one of my favorite bits of poetry I give you an EXCELLENT example of the Celtic warrior ideal

 

Clan Donald's Incitement to Battle on the Day of the Battle of Harlaw, 1411

(by Lachlann Mor MacMhuirich)

 

O Children of Conn, remember

Hardihood in time of battle:

Be watchful, daring,

Be dextrous, winning reknown,

Be vigorous, pre-eminent, Be strong, nursing your wrath,

Be stout, brave

Be valiant, triumphant

Be resolute and fierce

Be forceful and stand your ground,

Be nimble, valourous,

Be well-equipped, handsomely accoutred,

Be dominant, watchful

Be fervid, pugnacious,

Be dour, inspiring fear,

Be ready for action, warrior-like,

Be prompt, warlike,

Be exeedingly fierce, recklessly daring,

Be prepared, willing,

Be numerous, giving battle,

Be fiery, fully-ready,

Be strong, dealing swift blows,

Be spirited, inflicting great wounds,

Be stout-hearted, martial,

Be venomous, implacable,

Be warrior-like, fearless,

Be swift, performing great deeds,

Be glorious, nobly powerful,

Be rapid [in movement], very quick,

Be Be valiant, princely,

Be active, exeedingly bold,

Be ready, fresh and comely,

Be exeedingly fierce, king-like,

Be eager, successful,

Be unflurried, striking excellent blows,

Be compact [in your ranks], elated,

Be vigorous, nimble-footed

In winning the battle

Against your enemies.

O Children of Conn of the Hundred Battles.

Now is the time for you to win recognition,

O raging whelps,

O sturdy heroes,

O most sprightly lions,

O battle-loving warriors,

O brave heroic firebrands,

The Children of Conn of the Hundred Battles,

O Children of Conn, remember

Hardihood in time of battle.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

The "Music to Raise the Dead" thread gives me a thought. What sort of background music would one use for a Tuala Morn game? I can think of a number of songs on my Enya CDs' date=' the "Braveheart" soundtrack, and a couple of tracks on "Last of the Mohicans." What else might there be? Good musical choices could really sell the ambience of this setting.[/quote']

Richard Searles has an excellent album "Celtic Cross" which is all instrumental, and in my mind invokes a very "traveling and adventure" feel to it.

 

Mary McLaughlin has an album of old dirges and requiems, "Celtric Requiem" that is also an awesome mood setter.

 

Anisa Angarola has an ablum "Irish Aires & Dances" which is good for some free wheeling fun.

 

And you have a host of more well known (mainstream at least) artists, Clannad, Enya, The Chieftains, Leahy, etc... We could probably come up with a nice long list of music that could fit into the setting.

 

But if you really want to go into battle in style - find a Swedish or Norwegian death metal band.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Is there a scaling problem with the Northlands map?

 

There are a couple things going on here. First, the scales on the two sets of maps aren't meant to be identical. All the maps have to fit on no more than one 8.5" x 11" page, so different areas tend to be shown at different scales.

 

Second, the information in the "Beyond Tualan Shores" chapter is deliberately presented with a certain amount of vagueness. The chapter's presented from the POV of explaining what the Tualans know about the rest of the world, which often ain't much. Some of the information in it is right, some is exaggerated, and some is just plain wrong. The map itself may not even be entirely accurate -- a common flaw in many early maps, after all. If and when I get to write more about the Northlands you will get accurate information about those areas... as well as what they know about those weird Tualan folx. ;)

 

Third, it's entirely possible that I deliberately gave John Lees inconsistent information. One of my main jobs as editors is to make Art Directors, artists, and cartographers miserable with bizarre requests and last-minute changes, and I try real hard at it. :eg:

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

What sort of background music would one use for a Tuala Morn game?

 

I have no particular suggestions, but did want to point out that one of the artists told Andy that he got himself psyched up to work on the subject by listening to bagpipe music and such while he worked. ;)

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Third' date=' it's entirely possible that I deliberately gave John Lees inconsistent information. One of my main jobs as editors is to make Art Directors, artists, and cartographers miserable with bizarre requests and last-minute changes, and I try real hard at it. :eg:[/quote']I thought that somewhere there in what Steve sent me there was an indication that the map was not to scale. I know I didn't write that on the map itself, I didn't think it was appropriate to the "feel" of the work as a whole. I'm not even sure at this point that I put a scale on that map at all.
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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

out of curiosity' date=' are the Tualans headhunters like our own Gaels?[/quote']

 

Actually, the book makes a couple of mentions of headhunting. There's a reference to Barbathans hanging heads from their chariots until the flesh decays and leaves the skulls rattling (nice sleighbells, Santa!). There's also a mention of Tualan warriors keeping the heads of defeated single-combat opponents packed in lime. When you put it that way, the human sacrifice doesn't sound as outrageous...but I wouldn't try it unless I was very, very sure that all of a group of players could cope with the cultural relativism.

 

BTW, for anybody who might seriously think about including human (or animal) sacrifices as mainstream Tualan behavior, I might recommend you grow some long hairs and take a look at Rene Girard's Violence and the Sacred. It's definitely a scholarly treatment, and I don't agree with some of Girard's extrapolations, but his basic "mimetic scapegoat theory" of sacrifice has a lot going for it.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

I thought that somewhere there in what Steve sent me there was an indication that the map was not to scale. I know I didn't write that on the map itself' date=' I didn't think it was appropriate to the "feel" of the work as a whole. I'm not even sure at this point that I put a scale on that map at all.[/quote']

 

You didn't, as such. There are about three lines drawn between Tuala Morn or Logres and the mainland that have distances in the 200-300 mile range attached to them. If those distances were meant to be accurate (and I can accept if they aren't), they would imply that Tuala Morn is much smaller than the other maps in the book would suggest.

 

No fight, no blame, as Lao Tzu wisely said. I just wondered, since all of the maps of Tuala Morn itself are pretty consistent on scaling.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Richard Searles has an excellent album "Celtic Cross" which is all instrumental, and in my mind invokes a very "traveling and adventure" feel to it.

 

Mary McLaughlin has an album of old dirges and requiems, "Celtric Requiem" that is also an awesome mood setter.

 

Anisa Angarola has an ablum "Irish Aires & Dances" which is good for some free wheeling fun.

 

And you have a host of more well known (mainstream at least) artists, Clannad, Enya, The Chieftains, Leahy, etc... We could probably come up with a nice long list of music that could fit into the setting.

 

But if you really want to go into battle in style - find a Swedish or Norwegian death metal band.

 

I'm not a death metal fan, but thanks anyway. I have several Chieftains albums copied to my HD that I checked out from the local library, and I think some of their whistle and fiddle songs would be great for Beltane adventures, as would some of the songs with Irish lyrics (players who could possibly understand them being few and far between!). Enya or certain Loreena McKennitt songs would work well for matters faerie or otherworldly--and so would some of those department-store Celtic collections that AmadanNaBriona mentioned (I also have a few of those). Track 6 (Promontory) on the "Last of the Mohicans" soundtrack would be perfect for Celtic-flavored suspense.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

I just wondered' date=' since all of the maps of Tuala Morn itself are pretty consistent on scaling.[/quote']Yes, those other maps have the same scale. Literally the same in fact, since I moved it (actually copied it) from one section to another when the maps were made.
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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Assuming I attached the file correctly, it's a few pages of notes I worked out this afternoon on how one might use the animals and fantastic beasts from the HERO System Bestiary in Tuala Morn. I started doing it just for myself, but then thought somebody else might get some kind of use out of the thing. It's a PDF, but that doesn't trouble very many people these days.

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Re: Tuala Morn Discussion

 

Assuming I attached the file correctly' date=' it's a few pages of notes I worked out this afternoon on how one might use the animals and fantastic beasts from the [i']HERO System Bestiary [/i]in Tuala Morn. I started doing it just for myself, but then thought somebody else might get some kind of use out of the thing. It's a PDF, but that doesn't trouble very many people these days.

 

Very cool. What's that celtic-style font you're using for the header?

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