Ancient China / Ancient India - anything?

Aus_Snow · Aug 6, 2005

I am curious as to whether there are any d20/OGL settings out there that do a reasonable job of depicting the lands of India and/or China of long ago, most importantly in terms of game rules.

Even an easily translatable supplement/system of another kind might do the trick.

Anyone familiar with anything like this?

Meadred · Aug 6, 2005

Have you tried GURPS China? It's available as a PDF from e23, SJ Games' PDF outlet.
Also, WotC has a web enhancement for Oriental Adventures that gives a bare-bones description of campaign setting with an Indian flavour; I think the setting was called Mahasarpa (sp?). It might be of some use to you. Anyway, you should be able to find it on WotC:s web site.

Cheers,
Meadred

Dirigible · Aug 6, 2005

I haven't read any of these settings myself, but...

Green Ronin's Mindshadows has a south asian flavour.

There was a web enhancement for Oriental Adventures that detailed an Indian subsetting and rules interpretations. Actually, i have read this one myself; I had a look on the WotC site and can't point you to it, though.

Rasyr · Aug 6, 2005

Dirigible said:
Green Ronin's Mindshadows has a south asian flavour.

I think that this is a very good supplement!!

Psion · Aug 6, 2005

Mindshadows also has an interesting monster book, Monsters of the Mind, though it was made pre-XPH.

The south Asia inspired Mahasarpa is a web enhancement for OA and is available for download from the wizards website:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20011019a

Aus_Snow · Aug 6, 2005

OK, I've downloaded Mahasarpa, and will give it a read shortly. Thanks for the heads-up.

I haven't seen GURPS China, though I've collected quite a few other supps for that system - and, as seems to be nearly universally the case, I've converted their rules to other systems (e.g. d20). Is it up to the standards of the better end of GURPS sourcebooks? If so, I'll have to check it out, certainly.

Mindshadows.. any more details? I'm not fussed if things are 3.0, by the way.

As to what I have already, well... there's Oriental Adventures.. Jade Dragons & Hungry Ghosts.. Jade & Steel (!)..... um.. :\ yeh, a poorly represented East here. I'll have to fix that.

Psion · Aug 6, 2005

Aus_Snow said:
Mindshadows.. any more details? I'm not fussed if things are 3.0, by the way.

It was put out late in the 3e era, and presumed psionics as a more active part of the setting, and also have dwarves with mech-like constructs. It set up D&D races and conventions in abstract parallels of the Indian subcontinent, and it has a caste system very similar to historical India.

Green Ronin appears to have dropped all support of the setting (it having failed to sell well

), but James Malizewski gave a few idea for updating it to XPH (including replacing the barbarian elves with Maenads, which I think is a very good idea.)

Psychotic Jim · Aug 6, 2005

There's an Indian domain in Ravenloft, Sri Raji (in the Verduous Lands cluster). It has a two page or so description in the Ravenloft Player's Handbook, and there's a tiny description of a two-member pantheon for said domain. The 2E module Web of Illusion features Sri Raji in more detail.

As for China, there's a good writeup of the Ten Courts of Hell in Beyond Countless Door Ways, with several maps and creatures to help detail it. It also references Jade Dragons and Hungry Ghosts for encountered monsters.

Vigilance · Aug 6, 2005

Aus_Snow said:
I am curious as to whether there are any d20/OGL settings out there that do a reasonable job of depicting the lands of India and/or China of long ago, most importantly in terms of game rules.

Even an easily translatable supplement/system of another kind might do the trick.

Anyone familiar with anything like this?

Id like to point you toward Legends of the Samurai, an OGL book set in historical Japan:

http://www.rpgobjects.com/index.php?page=los

While its not China, the rules would translate well imo.

Also I've written a book on the Koryo Empire (medieval Korea) which should be out shortly, and an adventure for the setting called "Protect the Master" which is designed for use with Ed Bourelle's excellent "Oriental Sword School" map tiles.

Chuck

tetsujin28 · Aug 6, 2005

Meadred said:
Have you tried GURPS China? It's available as a PDF from e23, SJ Games' PDF outlet.

I unfortunately can't recommend it. It's one of the few (very few) stinkers in the GURPS supplement line.

And to answer the OP's question, AFAIK no-one's done a game based on India (although I tried). It's just too dang big. As mentioned previously, there's Mahasarpa and Mindshadows, but those are pastiches. If you're going to do a d20 India game, I'm afraid you've got a lot of research ahead of you.