A Question or Two...

[BenjaminRogers]

1) Since BBRACK Productions is an "indie" production company, do we qualify for our own little place here?

2) If we don't, is there a place where we can make an announcment about our new game, Promised Sands?

Pardon me if this is the wrong place to ask these questions...

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Ben,

It's the perfect place to ask these questions.

Let's see ...

1. You're eligible for a forum here, according to the usual standards. You might review whether you want one, though, because a successful forum ends up being a lot of work. Do consider yourself invited, though.

2. To promote your game, it's better to stay away from announcements in the traditional sense. Instead, present instances of actual play and discuss the game's components and design philosophy in the relevant forums. It's really the buzz this creates (which is genuine, not forced "promotion") which makes for a worthwhile forum later.

Best,
Ron

[BenjaminRogers]

Ron,
Thanks for the swift reply.

I'm currently "riding herd" on a small forum that doesn't garner much traffic.  I think I could easily handle one here at this point in time.  At the very least, I'd like to continue the openly helpful exchanges that we've shared in the past.

I totally understand your comments about creating "buzz"--even if I'm a tad heavy-handed at doing so in other places. :::chagrin:::

I must say, the ... hmm ... level of intellectual analyzation here is higher than I had expected (or previously experienced).  It is at once refreshing and daunting!  :::Grin:::  But, take that as a compliment...

I'm still digesting the details of the GNS Theory and being reminded constantly of the classes I took in Psychology while in University!  

Thanks for the warm-welcome.  Give me a little time to settle in and I'll pop over an email to discuss the responsibilities and duties of maintaining a forum here.

[Bankuei]

Hi Ben,

I'm very interested in your game(since AEG never did a Burning Sands supplement to L5R).  I'd say don't worry about GNS for the moment, just get some of your folks in and have them post about actual play.  That has sold me on more games than theory.

Chris

[BenjaminRogers]

I'm very interested in your game(since AEG never did a Burning Sands supplement to L5R).  I'd say don't worry about GNS for the moment, just get some of your folks in and have them post about actual play.  That has sold me on more games than theory.

Thanks, Chris!  I hope we can live up to the quality you mention (I have great respect for AEG).  

Perhaps I should just request a forum, then, to discuss the game--since I don't wish to crowd out other forums or be impolite and produce threads in places where they are not wanted.  After all, I am new here and do not wish to "upset the applecart" with my exuberance about Promised Sands.

(By the way, I do that.  I bold Promised Sands when it's mentioned.  I hope it doesn't offend anyone here--it did on other forums--but I find that it clearly draws the eye to the subject matter, I like the way it looks and--doggone it!--I'm going for impressions here!   ::Grin::)

I will see if I can gather up some cohorts and post a few examples of play and subject matter so that you can get a little more of a feel for the place.  You might also consider examining the website--a link is in my signature--there are some "Tales" (look under "Vahna" to find them).  The ones by Doug Dorannes and myself will give you a "developer insight" into the world.  Most of the others are "fan insight".

I'll be posting more of the world on the website over the next few days (as I grow more and more accustomed to webmastering...

Again, Chris, I really appreciate your comments.  I am confident that we present an in-depth world with Promised Sands, I just hope we live up to the hopes of others (like yourself) who are looking at this from the perspective of other game systems.  

In fact, if you don't mind my blathering a little, I used a lot of points of reference in creating Promised Sands--including Lawrence of Arabia, Dune and my own travels in the Middle East.  I didn't want to do something derivative--so don't go expecting to find "God Emperors", "Saurdukar", exact Arabian-based cultures or even Crescent ideas from Seventh Sea (a game my group thoroughly enjoyed).  

Instead, you should expect to find a world that is unique unto itself.  It is a richly diverse world with a history that we grew and developed over 3000 years (more, actually, but some of it is "hidden history").  We had concepts for Promised Sands that leave huge, deliberate gaps (and even conflicts) in histories and legends so that individual Bards (what we call our Game Masters) can incorporate what they want or don't want as "truth" or "legend".  

One of our editors was concerned that two of our legends conflict as to the origin of one of the cultures.  It was deliberate.  One culture has one idea--the other culture has another idea.  This is normal in our world today.  Ask a dozen people about the Noahic flood and you'll see what I mean.

History, legend, fairy-tale, mythology, story, cultural motifs--these are all fluid elements and that's one thing I was trying to capture with Promised Sands.

We'll probably release most of the "truth" in a supplement for Bards (like maybe with the Bard screen)--but that's still a little in the future...  :::smiles:::

[The Minty Fool]

Again, Chris, I really appreciate your comments. I am confident that we present an in-depth world with Promised Sands, I just hope we live up to the hopes of others (like yourself) who are looking at this from the perspective of other game systems.


I would be one to agree, here. I've read through the PS book, and honestly, the background/history and whatnot is one of the biggest selling points, IMHO.
Perhaps THE single MOST attractive feature to this game world is the fact that, much like my most favored game of WFRP, the world itself is dirty, grungy, grimy, dangerous, and unfair. Should players decide to make the world a better place they are quite literally fighting against thousands of years worth of history, bigotry, sexism, hedonism, and slavery. In some locations of the world, it makes being a 'hero' more dangerous than being a 'villain'.
It is a world that spawns anti-heroes, mercenaries, and (my favorite) reluctant heroes. They can do realistic things, and still feel a sense of accomplishment at having fought the good fight - mainly because people in the world of T'nah don't really expect to be saved. They expect to die if things get tough. They are fatalistic, realistic, and more than a little resigned. It allows you to build 'real' heroes, believable characters, and rich plot lines.
Perhaps more impressively, even though the world is unjust at no time in the book did the writers degenerate into 'name calling', stereotyping, or free for all bashing of any Middle Eastern culture. Given recent events in American history, it is an impressive feat to have the integrity to avoid such an obvious – and perhaps even tempting – pitfall.
Now, realize, I have worked for this company, working on their next release, so take my opinion with a grain of salt, but I do recommend that you go look at it for yourself. Pick it up, kick the tires, drive it around the block once or twice.

-Daniel Ross
The Minty Fool

[Bankuei]

Very cool.

I've always been a fan of games that don't back off from serious issues.

Looking forward to your forum.

Chris