Quote from: chirine ba kal;962656So, that's ten I know of and have seen the originals of.

So if "functionaries at Avanthar" is as old a drawing as the others, that would mean he had the Pe Choi fully visualized from very early on....I think that's pretty interesting

Quote from: Shemek hiTankolel;962678Chirine,

When you get a sec, can you check your notifications. I PM'd you something.

Shemek.

Likewise Lord Shemek...Not sure if you saw it. You should also have one waiting for you. The Imperial runners are not like they used to be!!!

H:0)

Quote from: chirine ba kal;962636DING! DING! DING! We have a winner!!! You, gentle reader of this massive thread, are literally the very first person to ask me this question in forty years. Consider yourself given the big prize!

A long, long time ago, I set myself the primary objective of being Phil's archivist, documenting the creative process that engendered Tekumel. My primary goal was to get a complete copy of all his work, and catalog and index it for future fans. Nothing more, nothing less. I made copies, I made notes, I collected artifacts, and now - all these years later - I've done it. I have everything; not the originals, as I'm not a 'collector' , but all the data. It's all in digital format, and we keep it all very, very safe.

As I got into gaming Tekumel, I set myself the goal of having all the miniature figures we'd need for any particular scenario or adventure; this is why there are over 5,000 miniatures in my basement, only about 200 of which are not intended primarily for use in game set in Tekumel. I've done that, too; I have anything and everything I need to run my games, and to do so in the kind of 'grand manner' that Phil and I dreamed and talked about for years. No masking tape on bare tables, here; I've brought my years of railway modeling experience to bear, and I'm told I do pretty cool-looking tables.

I set myself the goal to do the best I could do at anything I did, after some advice by a senior NCO; I think I've managed that, too. My wife has a roof over her head, plenty to eat, and health care for her many ills. I've had five young people become my daughters, and they've brought into our extended family a goodly number of other young people to be sons and daughters. I'd call that one a success, too.

I have set myself the goal of telling you our story as our alter-egos in Tekumel, and that's moving along; 128,000 words, and still being written.

My goals, all those years ago, were - and still are - to paint my figures, run my games, and tell my stories. Nothing more, and nothing less. looking back on it over the past forty years, I think it's been a success. Sure, there have been some bad patches, but I did get my Missus of some 27 years, and five really cool kids out of it all.

So, there we are. I win. Hands down.

And now Chirine, you confirmed my doubts - you're indeed a Twilight and a high-essence one at that...

In other words, congratulations, Uncle!

(And in regard to the game...you always play for strategic advantage, not for tactical advantage, right:p?)

Quote from: chirine ba kal;962657Yes, very much so; they tended to accumulate the signatures of the people who held them for a while, if I recall.

Yes, sometimes it freaks new players when they get gold coins and I start enumerating signatures scratched onto the surface...

Quote from: Shemek hiTankolel;962673What's even funnier is that they are Vriddi, all from "better" lineages (rolled up before the game started), the expedition is being "led" by Churisan hiVriddi (of the Vriddi) a lush, an idiot, a fop and a womaniser too high up to dispose of but too "dangerous" to be given any really power (I see him as a Fredo Corleone type of character), with Horu hiFa'asu hiVriddi -former Molkar of the 10th Legion, and blood uncle to two of the characters, "commanding" the expedition who everyone, including Churisan, is terrified of. "Uncle is looking for you." has become a sentence that instantly incites worry in my game!
To compound the above mentioned, the characters have somehow gotten a reputation of being "fuck-ups" within clan circles and Uncle Horu has told them to personally see to the lodge and that they "better not mess this up..." To paraphrase you Chirine: much mayhem will ensue.
I also do a tonne of accents from Eastern European, to South Asian, to southern US, to whatever... These are usually good for a laugh or two especially after I've had a few drinks in me
I will certainly keep you posted.

I like your sense of humour, as represented in the NPCs created;).

Quote from: Hrugga;962806Likewise Lord Shemek...Not sure if you saw it. You should also have one waiting for you. The Imperial runners are not like they used to be!!!

H:0)

Mighty Hrugga of the Epics,

I did and now check your inbox.

Quote from: Shemek hiTankolel;962850Mighty Hrugga of the Epics,

I did and now check your inbox.

Ahhh, Yes. "The High Ride" is not in order today, the runners live to see another day...!!!

H;0)

Quote from: Zirunel;962662yes I agree with you, and with The_Shadow on that. When it comes to visualizing his own creation, he was the best. Who could do it better?

Okay, maybe Kathy Marshall. She "got" Tekumel, and depicted it better than almost anyone else, but even so, the Professor's drawings are among the most evocative you could hope for. It's a shame to hear he was insecure about them. He should never have felt that.

Agreed; I suspect that a big issue was that some of the artists in his game groups were skilled technically then he was, and let him know that on a regular basis. Katy, Ken, and Chris never, ever did that, which is why _ I think - he tended to listed to them and cooperate with them more and more.

Quote from: Shemek hiTankolel;962673What's even funnier is that they are Vriddi, all from "better" lineages (rolled up before the game started), the expedition is being "led" by Churisan hiVriddi (of the Vriddi) a lush, an idiot, a fop and a womaniser too high up to dispose of but too "dangerous" to be given any really power (I see him as a Fredo Corleone type of character), with Horu hiFa'asu hiVriddi -former Molkar of the 10th Legion, and blood uncle to two of the characters, "commanding" the expedition who everyone, including Churisan, is terrified of. "Uncle is looking for you." has become a sentence that instantly incites worry in my game!
To compound the above mentioned, the characters have somehow gotten a reputation of being "fuck-ups" within clan circles and Uncle Horu has told them to personally see to the lodge and that they "better not mess this up..." To paraphrase you Chirine: much mayhem will ensue.
I also do a tonne of accents from Eastern European, to South Asian, to southern US, to whatever... These are usually good for a laugh or two especially after I've had a few drinks in me
I will certainly keep you posted.

It just gets better and better! I went through the same process when I renovated the old Engsvanyali palace Lord Chirine calls home; I should send you the notes, if I can find them...

Quote from: Shemek hiTankolel;962678Chirine,

When you get a sec, can you check your notifications. I PM'd you something.

Shemek.

Got it; reply on the way.

Quote from: chirine ba kal;963002Agreed; I suspect that a big issue was that some of the artists in his game groups were skilled technically then he was, and let him know that on a regular basis. Katy, Ken, and Chris never, ever did that, which is why _ I think - he tended to listed to them and cooperate with them more and more.

Chris, would that be Chris Huddle?

Quote from: Zirunel;962697So if "functionaries at Avanthar" is as old a drawing as the others, that would mean he had the Pe Choi fully visualized from very early on....I think that's pretty interesting

Agreed. I wish you could see the rest of the material I have on file from him in the 1948 - 1952 period. What we know today of Tekumel was very largely created back then, and the details filled in in the 1970s. The 'Ts Rani' language and script documents have survived 99% intact in the later tw0-book set, with additional materials, and the 'History Of The Ts Rani Empire' is the foundation of "Deeds"; the first section of the latter book is almost entirely the 1950s manuscript. When I compared the two texts, I realized just how Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax must have felt when they saw Phil's work for the first time.

Quote from: chirine ba kal;963008Agreed. I wish you could see the rest of the material I have on file from him in the 1948 - 1952 period. What we know today of Tekumel was very largely created back then, and the details filled in in the 1970s. The 'Ts Rani' language and script documents have survived 99% intact in the later tw0-book set, with additional materials, and the 'History Of The Ts Rani Empire' is the foundation of "Deeds"; the first section of the latter book is almost entirely the 1950s manuscript. When I compared the two texts, I realized just how Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax must have felt when they saw Phil's work for the first time.

1948-52? So visually at least, much of Tekumel may have been "fixed" before he ever went to India. Maybe not all, but much of it. The basic "look and feel"

Quote from: AsenRG;962837And now Chirine, you confirmed my doubts - you're indeed a Twilight and a high-essence one at that...

In other words, congratulations, Uncle!

(And in regard to the game...you always play for strategic advantage, not for tactical advantage, right:p?)

I looked that reference up, having only seen a copy of the game on the shelf in the FLGS, but I'd say that you are right. I do wish other people would read it, as they might realize just what I really am.

Yes; I always think in strategic terms, as all too many opponents in all sorts of games have learned. I think in long-term goals and objectives, not in short-term tactical ones. And it's always been a great help to me that quite a few of my opponents over the decades have been so predictable, and can be counted on to not to think but to 'shot from the hip'. It makes them so much easier to manipulate, especially as so many of them don't stop and think what my goals and objectives might be, or what might be their - and my - optimal outcomes.

I will freely admit that this does annoy some people, when I decline combat at that point in time; I can remember one huge "Chainmail" game that Gronan ran where I opened the battle by retreating, at which my opponents called me a coward and other, nastier, things. They pressed their attack, and then discovered that I had conducted a fighting withdrawal into a superb defensive position, and being gamers quite willingly stuffed their larger army into my troops' meat grinder. They had 10-1 odds on me, and lost 10 to 1 casualties. I laughed a lot over that one...

I happen to prefer offensive defensive battles, if I can use that phrase, as it never seem to occur to people - aside from Gronan, who knows better! -  that I might find it very much to my advantage to allow myself to be attacked...

Agincourt. Crecy. Poitiers. Waterloo. Gettysburg. Sedan. Omdurman. To name a few. I am that most dangerous of all foes, a historian with a good memory - the the wit to use it...

Quote from: Zirunel;963005Chris, would that be Chris Huddle?

Yes, Chris 'Bear' Huddle.

cool, I like his work too. The "Temple of Dlamelish" issue is great, both pictures and text. Although I wish the images had reproduced better

Quote from: Zirunel;9630101948-52? So visually at least, much of Tekumel may have been "fixed" before he ever went to India. Maybe not all, but much of it. The basic "look and feel"

Probably yes; from what I can tell from his works, I think that the basic outline of the epic was there and South Asia filled in a lot of the details. His time there filled in a lot of how 'modern' Tsolyani looked and felt; his love of Ancient Egypt was the basis of the Engsvanyali Imperium, from what I've seen and read.