The Honorable Club of Role Playing Gentlemen and Ladies of the Center Total war

[Lucius Malfoy]

Considering a couple new rpg settings as one of the ones I run (Probably There and Back Again) will be archived and my Deus Vult will be replaced by the Latin Empire idea that GG and I have.

My two new (though old) rpg settings will be:
1. The Elder Scrolls 4.5: The Great War (the war between the Empire and the Aldemri Dominion. Would be playing as a weakened Empire against the resurging Dominion. War can end canonically or end with a total Empire victory or defeat.)
and
2. Romance of the Three Kingdoms (some time after the battle of Wuzhang Plains, the end of the Northern Expeditions and the death of Zhuge Liang. Probably will be playing as the new and rising generation of generals, nobles and officials of Wei.)

Any ideas? Suggestions? Comments? Criticisms?

[Magicman2051]

Making an RPG, particularly a forum based one, for the Elder Scrolls setting can be difficult at best. There is a wealth of RPG information, in the kinds of formats that you can easily adapt, out there. Whether it be in the more conservative balance mods, the few pen & paper adaptations that are knocking around or the game itself.

This can actually have a negative effect on your game as you try, and you will inevitably fail unless you're willing to devote a serious amount of time, to somehow be on-par with the kind of thorough mechanics used by those examples. As long as you're willing to make up, or cherry-pick carefully, a set of mechanics and ideas (most of them can be references rather than direct copies) that is designed to allow you to RP within the setting then you're fine. As long as you focus on the RP, spending too much time on mechanics with an idea like that is just going to sink you.

[Zeus Almighty]

Only Wei!!!?? I was a damn three kingdoms fanatic for years way back. I'm game for that one.


And I may be interested in the elder scrolls one as well. We talking strictly Breton and imperials vs high elves or would we be ok with Dark elf chars? And I don't know a whole lot of the cannon, only the brief bits I cared to pay attention to while playing lol.

[Magicman2051]

only the brief bits I cared to pay attention to while playing lol.

Read a book.

Dunmer characters wouldn't be out of place, as either mercenaries or adventurers.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Only Wei!!!?? I was a damn three kingdoms fanatic for years way back. I'm game for that one.


And I may be interested in the elder scrolls one as well. We talking strictly Breton and imperials vs high elves or would we be ok with Dark elf chars? And I don't know a whole lot of the cannon, only the brief bits I cared to pay attention to while playing lol.

The original idea I had was that ALL RACES would be playable. But due to the war, there would be certain changes in attitudes towards certain races. Argonians revolted against the Empire so they would be looked upon with some disdain by Imperials. High Elves would be looked upon with suspicion by the Imperials, Nords, Bretons and Orcs. You get the picture lol.

Btw the war was as such:
Morrowind and Black Marshes = neutral (recent revolt by Black Marshes and Morrowind is still recovering from a recent calamity)
Cyrodiil, High Rock, Hammerfell, Skyrim and Orcs = Empire side
Summerset Isles, Valenwood and Elsweyr = Dominion side (Valewood was annexed and Elsweyr was divided into two ancient kingdoms, making them client states of the Dominion.)

Read this to understand the Great War and its causes: http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:The_Great_War

Making an RPG, particularly a forum based one, for the Elder Scrolls setting can be difficult at best. There is a wealth of RPG information, in the kinds of formats that you can easily adapt, out there. Whether it be in the more conservative balance mods, the few pen & paper adaptations that are knocking around or the game itself.

This can actually have a negative effect on your game as you try, and you will inevitably fail unless you're willing to devote a serious amount of time, to somehow be on-par with the kind of thorough mechanics used by those examples. As long as you're willing to make up, or cherry-pick carefully, a set of mechanics and ideas (most of them can be references rather than direct copies) that is designed to allow you to RP within the setting then you're fine. As long as you focus on the RP, spending too much time on mechanics with an idea like that is just going to sink you.

I am very much aware of the balancing issues and the time needed to make a good and workable rpg setting for the Elder Scrolls idea. It would similarly with the Three Kingdoms setting rpg in mind. I would be focusing more on the rpg aspect and less on the mechanics. Thankfully I have enough experience with rule making and game mechanics to make something good and simple, though it would take a lot of work.

[Gandalfus]

I would recommend focusing on one province, as the Great War would be too large and complex. Lets have something fresh, like High Rock or Black Marsh. Heck, even Skyrim or Cyrodiil would be ok.

[Zeus Almighty]

Read a book.

Dunmer characters wouldn't be out of place, as either mercenaries or adventurers.

No time

[Magicman2051]

No time

Time is infinite.

Whatever racial tensions would or would not exist in that setting, gold is a great healer.

[m_1512]

The title's meaning is very weird in spanish (Hispano speaker here)

Google translate, I am afraid.

But hey, since you speak Spanish, you could give the correct translation here.

[Lucius Malfoy]

I would recommend focusing on one province, as the Great War would be too large and complex. Lets have something fresh, like High Rock or Black Marsh. Heck, even Skyrim or Cyrodiil would be ok.

It would be focused one province: classic Cyrodiil. Which is where one of the two theaters of war was between the Empire and the Dominion occurred (the other being Hammerfell).

You could visit other places through the usual thread making. So to visit Skyrim or a specific place in Skyrim, make a thread. Wanna see the Bretons and their High Rock home? Make a thread Though, unless you are Argonian, no one else can enter/visit Black Marshes...without some way to deter both violent predators and poisonous plants/marshes. Canonically, it is too toxic for any other race to live there besides the lizard folk of the Marshes who are immune to it. So Black Marshes, though considered an Imperial Province, historically signed a pact that acknowledge the overlordship of Tiber Septim and his empire over their territory.

[Gandalfus]

I mean, have an RPG set in a different time in said province. The cyrodiilic interregnum, one of the many civil wars in skyrim, Tiber Septims conquest, whatever.

[Lucius Malfoy]

I mean, have an RPG set in a different time in said province. The cyrodiilic interregnum, one of the many civil wars in skyrim, Tiber Septims conquest, whatever.

It would happen during the Great War before the events of Skyrim. It would be fun to change the fate of the Empire and the fate of all Tamriel. Though if that setting fails, there are plenty of others to try that have enough lore backing to help mods and players create something good.

[Magicman2051]

Untrue, you can enter the Black Marshes, and indeed live there, regardless of species it just isn't particularly suited to the Imperial way of doing things.

[Gandalfus]

There is a book about an imperial who lived among the argonians, I believe.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Untrue, you can enter the Black Marshes, and indeed live there, regardless of species it just isn't particularly suited to the Imperial way of doing things.

According to lore,

Foreign agricultural, colonial, and commercial ventures beyond the slave-trade have met with abject failure

There is a book about an imperial who lived among the argonians, I believe.

And at GG's post

The only Cyrodilic humans said to have ever lived in Black Marsh for any length of time were the Kothringi tribesmen, who were wiped out by Knahaten Flu. The flu persisted for 41 years, from 2E 560 to 2E 601. The native Argonians proved immune to the effects of this plague, leading others to suggest that they and the Hist had created it.[33][1] The last recorded case of the flu was in 2E 603, after the aforementioned Kothringi tribesmen had fled the Black Marsh by boat and disappeared.

The Black Marshes is just historically inhospitable to anyone but the Argonians and any native creatures/cultures to the land. Imperials have managed to live there yes, but not for a long enough time to do much. Roads are in terrible condition due to the vegetation and the violent predators deter outsiders as well.

[Magicman2051]

Nothing in that suggests that you can't enter the Black Marsh, in fact it to confirm that you can enter the Black Marsh. But that attempting to impose Imperial standards of living and commerce in a place with limited clear space for roads, regularly shifting waterways and an arguably hostile local population isn't particularly efficient.

I wouldn't rely on UESP as an absolute source of information, nor TESW. There are a few sites which just lift all the text from the various books and repost them, but I haven't looked them up in years, and those tend to be more accurate/verbose.

[Gandalfus]

I suggest you read this, LM.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Nothing in that suggests that you can't enter the Black Marsh, in fact it to confirm that you can enter the Black Marsh. But that attempting to impose Imperial standards of living and commerce in a place with limited clear space for roads, regularly shifting waterways and an arguably hostile local population isn't particularly efficient.

I wouldn't rely on UESP as an absolute source of information, nor TESW. There are a few sites which just lift all the text from the various books and repost them, but I haven't looked them up in years, and those tend to be more accurate/verbose.

I think 'enter' wasn't a good word for what I meant. I think its more like...its not a good idea to enter the Black Marshes by yourself without some form of help. Or maybe its inhospitable in the long term for an outsider of the Black Marshes.

Ah yes, Scotti!! (what an odd Imperial surname when they use a lot of Roman-like ones...anyways) Yes I do remember reading about him.

[Magicman2051]

It could similarly be argued that its not a good idea to enter Skyrim by yourself without some form of help. Ultimately nothing in the lore restricts the Black Marshes from entry, regardless of help, by other races and indeed the active and substantial slave trade (regardless of its success) seem to reinforce the idea that you can come and go as you please.

Are there dangers? Yes, but those dangers exist everywhere. In Cyrodiil, Skyrim or Resdayn you're likely to run into a power mad adventurer with no respect for common decency who will kill you to steal your shirt, even if its not a particularly good shirt.

[Lucius Malfoy]

Alright. I see the point. Once more, I believe I used the wrong word for what I meant to say.

Anyways, those are my two ideas. If anyone wants to offer help, pm or vm me.