Call of the Warlock
| Call of the Warlock An advanced role-playing game |
|
|---|---|
| publication | |
| Author (s) | Olaf Heinen, Goesta Krengel, Silvia Eckelt, and others |
| Original publisher | Games-In |
| Original publication | 1990 |
| original language | German |
| World and system | |
| genre | Fantasy |
| Game world | Tanaris |
| Basic system | own |
| Ascent | stages |
| cube | W30 |
Reputation of the Warlock (short: RoW ) is a fantasy - RPG , the first in 1990 of "Fantasy Games Bonn," the development team, and then in 1992 by Games-in was published publisher. RdW is, according to its own statement, "a role-playing game for advanced players" and is explicitly not aimed at role-playing beginners. The complex set of rules is very closely linked to the game world Tanaris, which is largely expanded in adventure volumes . RPG books have a reputation for borrowing from other RPGs, making use of a peculiar humor, and containing a great many anglicisms .
Role play for advanced players
Ruf des Warlock sees itself as an "advanced role-playing game", which is expressed in different ways. On the one hand, the set of rules dispenses with the introduction on the subject of "What is a role-playing game" and "How do I play a role-playing game", which are common in other role-playing rules publications. It assumes that the reader is familiar with the basic terms. On the other hand, the rules are strikingly complex. For a smooth course of the game, the "support" of the players is relied on, who take on part of the bookkeeping and table work. It also means that the explanations and explanations that can be found in the text are based on the fact that the reader is already familiar with certain mechanisms of other systems - the rules are explained, but where they come from, how they are best used in the game, and how they work, not necessarily.
Game mechanics
In the rules you will find some similarities to other role-playing systems, provided you know them. Character creation and battle rules are reminiscent of DSA through the selection of attributes and mechanics . Other parts of the combat rules are reminiscent of Rolemaster through the design and content of the tables for "critical hits" . The character system is tied to character classes and levels , so that the further development of the characters is very much given, similar to Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). The skill system is not atypical for most role-playing game systems that emerged in the 1980s and is derived from the attributes. In addition, RdW uses a system of measuring mental stability, similar to that in Call of Cthulhu .
The dice used in the game are the standard models as they also appear in D&D or Basic Role-Playing , with the exception of the W30 , which serves as the basis for the entire game mechanics. The rules of battle are complex and allow players to keep records of hit points , stamina points and bleeding from wounds. The effects of hits in combat can also lead to the death of a character even after the end of a combat situation. The magic system is no less complex and used in addition to those used in many RPG systems magic points also spells endurance points. For further development, the characters have two separately measured levels for combat and knowledge experience.
The world
The world in which RdW is set is called Tanaris and is an almost classic fantasy world loosely based on parts of Tanith Lee's "Flat Earth Cycle" , in which the character classes are not just examples and role models, but fixed sizes and represent institutions in the game world (as is also the case, for example, in Earthdawn (1993), which appeared a little later ). The classic fantasy element is mainly broken here by the fact that only a few things are what they seem at first glance: There is no external difference between elves and humans, a stone desert does not have to have been created by the weathering of a mountain and special climatic conditions 'Unicorns do not like to be touched by virgins, cockroaches do not nest in walls, and light angels are not "good" just as dark angels are not evil - except for one who has been rejected by the others. But you can't kill him. The angels created the "Warlock" (who is not a sorcerer) for this. But he didn't feel like fighting the evil angel and preferred to become ruler of the world. The angels created the sword masters for this, warriors who fight each other so that the strongest among them can challenge the warlock to become a warlock himself (and hopefully for the angels to finally destroy their evil brother). And so that the most powerful swordmasters can find the warlock, there is the call of the warlock .
writing style
A specialty of the rules, adventure and supplementary volumes is how they are written. On the one hand, set pieces can be found again and again that are known from other role-playing systems, but the set of rules is also interspersed with more or less obvious quotes and allusions, often from song texts by the Manowar group , but film and literature quotes and allusions are also hidden everywhere . In addition, there is a frequent use of Anglicisms, or an English-language naming of places and events, which is most likely to be ascribed to the language use of role-players in the 1980s, who often had to fall back on English-language role-playing systems as there were not many translations and German developments. Overall, RdW reads like one inside joke after another, which it probably is.
developments
The first edition of RdW appeared in a small edition and was already out of print half a year after it was published in 1990. After being published by Games-In Verlag, eight adventure volumes were published by 1996. There are also three supplementary books, the last of which was published in 2004. Since then, a new edition of the set of rules has been planned, but has been postponed by the publisher.
From October 1993 to October 1994 the RdW Fanzine called "Black Marbles" appeared with 3 issues. In October 2006, September 2007, June 2010 and June 2012 four editions of Six Magic Circles , another fanzine , appeared in the RdW Forum .
Web links
- Games-In Verlag website
- Authors' website
- The game in the Drosi Lexicon
- RdW Forum - lots of resources and tips
- Call of the Warlock. In: Helden.de. March 10, 2009, Retrieved July 21, 2011 (review).
Notes and individual references
- Remarks
- ↑ The description of the swordmasters makes some allusions to Highlander .
- ↑ Such as The Discovery of Slowness by Sten Nadolny as a spell to slow down opponents
- Individual evidence
- ↑ a b RDW ??? (No longer available online.) In: Ruf des Warlock Homepage. Archived from the original on August 16, 2013 ; Retrieved July 19, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Scaldor: Re: Call of the Warlock. (No longer available online.) In: blutschwerter.de. March 10, 2006, formerly in the original ; Retrieved July 21, 2011 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c Andreas_Krueger: role-playing game for experienced players. (No longer available online.) In: ciao.de. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016 ; Retrieved July 19, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ kael1: Call of Warlock - A Fantasy RSP. (No longer available online.) In: dooyoo.de. July 4, 2000, archived from the original on February 3, 2015 ; Retrieved July 21, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Christoph Böhler: Call of the Warlock - Shadows over Tanaris. In: DRoSI. Retrieved July 19, 2011 (review).
- ^ Rainer Nagel: Technical language of fantasy role-playing games . In: Leipzig Specialized Language Studies . tape 7 . Peter Lang, 1993, ISBN 3-631-45844-4 .
