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NeilNjae
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- NeilNjae
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(Quote) But the word "magic" has meaning only for us, the reader; it has no meaning for Essun. It's an inversion of the word "orogeny" which is deeply meaningful for Essun but is a nonsense word for us readers. Is this intended …
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(Quote) I got the impression the moon's on a long-period solar orbit, not a terrestrial orbit. Maybe it comes back to the inner system every couple of centuries, but it's only a distant and transitory phenomenon, much like a comet. But even so, that…
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(Quote) Structurally, there hasn't been a lot happening so far in this book, especially with Essun. It seems like there's a lot of exposition, lining up people and places for what comes next. (I can't remember the story of this book very well, but I…
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(Quote) ny published authors do it. I suppose Tolkien is the great trail-blazer here, who showed that people will pay for it, and so it is worth doing as part of the business of being an author. LeGuin's Father was an Anthropologist who studied 'Nat…
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Earthdawn's fun because it has in-setting justifications for all those stupid adventuring tropes. The key idea is that magic comes and goes in centuries-long cycles. When magic gets too strong, evil Horrors from evil dimensions can enter our world a…
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I think the "reveal" was the presence of the Machine City, with all its machine intelligence and telecommunications, and hence that the world of the Kesh isn't some "fantasy" world but rather a future Earth after some form of civ…
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(Quote) I think that's true in exactly the same way that fantasy settings are D&D with other elements. After all, a core activity in Tékumel is going into underground complexes, killing monsters and getting treasure. It's just D&D with some …
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(Quote) Thanks! I will check it out.
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(Quote) This has come up a few times before. Is the general consensus that Jemisin is good at physical description? People, places, action, what they look like and what happens? (Quote) There's something here, I think, about Jemisin's thinking on w…
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(Quote) Lots of settings out there I've not had a chance to game in! Thanks for the list. It seems I'm more focussed on the story-games end of things.
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(Quote) My mistake! It read like a review of the GoO book you reviewed. (Quote) A lot of the innovation in games now seems to be around small, focussed games that deliver a particular experience. Not necessarily mundane, but definitely in the story…
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This review of the GoG Tékumel book turned up on rpgnet today. It's a bit wall-of-text from a fan, but interesting nevertheless.
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One other thing I forgot to mention. The argument between Essun and Alabaster about teaching (or lack thereof). Is this an instance of the shift in power and dominance between them? Is that even something we should be concerned with?
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I had a brief-but-intense fling with Tékumel around the time this game came out. I even ran a short game, The Annex for the Elucidation of Eternal Splendours that involved a bunch of minor civil servants suddenly coming into possession of a Pot Sher…
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What Richard said. Times are strange and hard. Priorities change.
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(Quote) I agree with that. There can be firm and decisive leadership that's still subject to oversight and being held to account. In the book, how are leaders chosen? Sanzed uses hereditary Leadership castes. In Castrima, Ykka is in charge because …
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(Quote) I've not heard that term, but it may relate to the Marxist idea of "false consciousness", where the oppressed proletariat have a false idea about their oppression, and so reject Marxists' attempts to overthrow the economic order an…
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(Quote) Don't worry about it. In some ways, it's our own Season. That means look to survival first. But I'm glad you're back. (Quote) Anyone remember the RPG Steal Away Jordan? It was a game about slaves in the American South, and drew on many sour…
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(Quote) Thanks for these insights. I hadn't made the connection, but it's obvious in hindsight that Jemisin would be drawing on different sources from the presumed-standard white male SF author (and I guess that all of us are white men?). (Quote) .…
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> @Apocryphal said: > OK, here's the article: https://tolkienaboutscifi.wordpress.com/2017/09/20/layered-themes-in-the-broken-earth/ > > It does warn about 'spoilers if you haven't read the books' plural, so be warned it might spoil …
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I disagree with the "constraints make us human" idea, but I agree that close "thick" relationships can make people happy. And we don't see any of those in the Culture. There are friendships, but there's nothing like a marriage. O…
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(Quote) He says he's not an orogene though he had a close relative who was one, and was killed for it (revealed near the start of The Fifth Season). At the end of The Fifth Season he recounts how he travelled from Tirimo to Castrima, and was capture…
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(Quote) Thank you for that! I was wondering why you were reading, and this explains it nicely.
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@clash_bowley , please, tell me something you like about these books. What are you getting out of reading them?
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Thanks for the summary of the editions, @Apocryphal . Looks like I have the un-expanded version.
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(Quote) My UK Kindle version claims to be about 500 pages. I've no idea what the differences are between editions.
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When were you planning to have the interim discussion? It helps me to have a deadline!
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I'm sorry to hear about your father, but congratulations on the grandchild. Strange times indeed.
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(Quote) This is the bit where I get unstuck. The characters have lots of knowledge about police procedure that the players don't. It's similar to the "problem" of games set in a different culture: how do the players navigate their characte…
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(Quote) You're allowed to edit a post for an hour after you make it. After that, it seems to be locked.