Quote from: Zachary The First;609936I haven't run 2nd Edition, but I have played Colonial Gothic before. Since the 2nd edition is still the same rules as the first, with only minor tweaks, it's all still backwards compatible. Uses the Rogue Games 12° system. I rather enjoyed it, though the cleanup definitely makes it easier to follow and use, I'm imagining.

Just got this one myself. Looking forward to giving it a try.

Notice any key changes?

Quote from: Zachary The First;609936I haven't run 2nd Edition, but I have played Colonial Gothic before. Since the 2nd edition is still the same rules as the first, with only minor tweaks, it's all still backwards compatible. Uses the Rogue Games 12° system. I rather enjoyed it, though the cleanup definitely makes it easier to follow and use, I'm imagining.

When I skimmed the main book at a local FLGS, the first thing I thought of was Orson Scott Card's Alvin Maker books, but I don't think that's the case.  How is the setting?

Quote from: BedrockBrendan;609937Just got this one myself. Looking forward to giving it a try.

Notice any key changes?

In rules? Probably getting rid of the whole social combat/Resolve thing, which really just didn't seem to work well. So that's a smart move.

Quote from: flyerfan1991;609941When I skimmed the main book at a local FLGS, the first thing I thought of was Orson Scott Card's Alvin Maker books, but I don't think that's the case.  How is the setting?

It's Colonial America in the early throes of the Revolution, with hints of many dark and arcane things afoot. You can tweak the setting to the French & Indian War with one of the supplements, but as it stands, it's a healthy dose of a regular history setting with the underpinnings of horror tied in.

Quote from: Kiero;608900As above, how much mileage might we get out of the French & Indian War, and New France books?

Well I think I can answer these questions.

Both books are supplement heavy. By that there is very little rule material there. What rule material there is, tends to be monsters, NPCs, and rules for mass combat.

With Colonial Gothic, research is the key. I, and my writers, strive, to make sure the history is known and we do not invalidate it. When horror or supernatural is injected, it must make sense.

In the books above, you will get a very good introduction to topic as well as a lot of material on the period. New France is written by a French Canadian, and he really did his homework to make sure the history was right.

Colonial Gothic can be played as a historical game, and the reason for this, is that the supernatural is easily plugged in or plugged out.

Hope that helps.

Richard

Quote from: BedrockBrendan;609937Just got this one myself. Looking forward to giving it a try.

Notice any key changes?

To be honest, not really. This game still plays, runs, and is compatible with what has come before. You can easily play and use the previous version and not notice anything. That being said two things have changed.

First, Social Combat has been totally rewritten. It runs smoother, it is quicker and it actually is a lot easier to use then it was before. Because of this, Resolve is no longer in the game. This is not a bad thing, because the Resolve stat always pissed me off.

Second, there are no longer rules for Specialized Skill use. This is one of the major areas that has caused confusion, and no mater how much I tried to clear it up, I failed. So I killed it. Why? How the game works, there is no need to allow for specialization. Since the TN is based on Stat + Skill, there is no benefit to specializing. Because of this, it made no sense to keep it. Since dropping it, play has been smoother.

The big change is more noticeable: editing. This book is the most edited, most reviewed, and most tweaked book I've done. It had three rounds of editing, and it was worth it.

Richard

Quote from: flyerfan1991;609941When I skimmed the main book at a local FLGS, the first thing I thought of was Orson Scott Card's Alvin Maker books, but I don't think that's the case.  How is the setting?

Colonial Gothic is the history they never taught in school.

Basically the occult and supernatural is designed to emulate how the colonists saw it. The horror and the like is in the shadows, and unless you have seen it, or dealt with it, you know of it.

History happens the way we know it does. I do not turn Washington into a vampire, or Adams into a werewolf. Where it makes sense, that's where the horror is plugged in.

Case in point, I hint at Franklin being an Alchemist.

In short, you can run the game as a pure historical one, set during the period, or you can run it as a horror game. You can also run it as action game ala "Last of the Mohicans."

In short, I did not want it to be "wrong." I used history to make it make sense.

Richard

Quote from: RI2;609955Colonial Gothic is the history they never taught in school.

Basically the occult and supernatural is designed to emulate how the colonists saw it. The horror and the like is in the shadows, and unless you have seen it, or dealt with it, you know of it.

This reminds me of the tagline about the old computer game Darklands.  It was designed to have the Middle Ages presented as the people who lived there imagined it to be.

QuoteHistory happens the way we know it does. I do not turn Washington into a vampire, or Adams into a werewolf. Where it makes sense, that's where the horror is plugged in.

Case in point, I hint at Franklin being an Alchemist.

In short, you can run the game as a pure historical one, set during the period, or you can run it as a horror game. You can also run it as action game ala "Last of the Mohicans."

In short, I did not want it to be "wrong." I used history to make it make sense.

Richard

That has definitely piqued my interest.

Quote from: flyerfan1991;609965This reminds me of the tagline about the old computer game Darklands.  It was designed to have the Middle Ages presented as the people who lived there imagined it to be.

As a game designer, writer, and gamer, I think this is one of the better ways to handle historical topics when tinged with horror or fantasy. Take the view point of the residents of the period, and you have a easier task of staying on point.

For me, history has more cool hooks than anything I can make up, so I tend to run it close to the history.

I, and my group, have tried many different takes with Colonial Gothic. Some of the things I have done with it are:

1. Escaped slaves. The horror of being on the run is something that really spooked some of my players. There was no supernatural and the like. This was a pure historical mini campaign of 4 sessions, and the horror was the situation. One of these days this will see the light of day.

2. Horror of isolation. Players were trapped in a trading fort in the middle of winter, and one by one being killed by natives. This took place during the French and Indian War.

3. Horror of combat. Fighting the battle of Bunker Hill.

4. Pure supernatural horror which is where Flames of Freedom is set.

Colonial Gothic is a game you can use and run what you want. I have home schoolers who buy the game, and use it to teach what it was like to live in the period. I have a few school teachers who do the same. Reenacters have given me a lot of input when it comes to the fighting. The history is what drives this, but you can easily ignore it and run it as a more cinematic style game ala The Patriot and the like.

Richard

Boston 1775 is very good source of information about colonial New England, though most of the articles cover the 1760s-1770s.

Quote from: RI2;609955Case in point, I hint at Franklin being an Alchemist.

He was.

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPundit;610392He was.

RPGPundit

That's why I said "hint."

John Winthrop, the founder and first governor of Connecticut, was one as well.

Richard

A lot of Masons were, back then.

RPGPundit

Didn't the famed scholar (and Yale man) Ezra Stiles have some interest in alchemy, as well? He'd certainly fit in the time period...

Does anyone know of any (brief) articles on warfare in this period? Specifically how it was fought and what weapons were carried by infantry, cavalry and artillery. I could write something myself, but if someone's already done it, there's no point rehashing it.