An obligatory (?) 'Why no Narnia RPG?" thread

[johnsemlak]

Actually, I would not be that interested right now in playing a Narnia RPG or setting, but it did occur to me that the Narnia series was my primary inspiration for fantasy when I first started playing D&D. I hadn't read Tolkien when I started with the Red Box. Most of my early characters had names like Peter, Edmund, Trumpkin, Caspian, etc... My first homebrewed houserule of any significance was to create a spell-casting Half-dwarf class for the Basic D&D game, to accomodate the character Dr. Cornelius (my version allowed them to become the equivelent of a 4th level magic user)

It thus occured to me that perhaps the setting would be a useful draw for the younger crowd. I am not sure how popular the series is with younger readers in this age of Harry Potter, but after rereading the 'Lion, Witch...' I am reminded how very translatable to D&D Narnia is--with dwarves, ettins, ogres, trolls, wands of 'turn to stone', sleep spells, healing magic, etc.

 

[Aus_Snow]

There already is one, albeit 'fan-made' or whatever the term is.

It's for True20, I believe. There was talk of it over at RPGNet recently.


But then you probably meant an actually published thing, right?




edit --- How about Grimm, for these purposes? The 'fluff' could be used straight from the novels, while that system could be fairly appropriate, perhaps.

 

[jdrakeh]

To answer your question, the reason is that the Narnia radio broadcast and merchandising rights are currrently licensed to an organization that periodically cites BADD 'reports' to discourage people from playing RPGs (no kidding). Same said organization has invested heavily in the film and Walden Media (one of the two companies producing the film). This organzation would never (openly or otherwise) affiliate themselves with IP linked to a roleplaying game. Google my city of residence and Narnia at the same time for details.

 

[dougmander]

My Narnia-related two cents:

My best pal when I was a kid was the son of a successful board game designer -- I'm talking Pay Day, Bonkers, and other games that were played by tons of 70s kids here in the States. He was also a big Narnia fan, and managed to secure the game rights from the religious organization that owned the rights. Said organization was very unhappy to learn that the game would employ dice -- a tool of gambling, that wicked pastime! My friend's dad suggested using "number cubes" that had actual numbers instead of pips, and for some reason that was deemed ok! Ultimately, their relationship was terminated and no games were made, but it might explain why there have never been any Narnia RPGs.

 

[Nifft]

These two cannot be combined.

RPGs are known to be the work of Satan, while Narnia is God's holy word.

-- N

 

[Cam Banks]

Of course as we all know, Aslan is really a Mithraic figure. So Narnia's more of a Zoroastrian allegory.

Cheers,
Cam

 

[Drowbane]

The Hobbit, and the Narnia series got me hooked into Fantasy... back in 2nd grade! I haven't read the Narnia stuff in years though... but I'm sure alot of it would work for D&D.

 

[afreed]

I realize that licensing issues are the real reason there's no Narnia RPG, but I'm not sure if the setting would work for a game, anyway. I love the books, but here's the way I see it:

Fantasy RPGs come from a Tolkienesque tradition, not in terms of setting or theme, but in terms of worldbuilding. Tolkien had Middle-Earth perfectly mapped out, with extensive histories and cultural notes. C.S. Lewis, on the other hand, wasn't into worldbuilding for worldbuilding's sake. He wasn't even really into internal consistency. That's why Narnia is such a hodge-podge of influences. (St. Nick's appearance being, arguably, the most bizarre inclusion.)

Narnia works well for the specific stories Lewis wanted to tell. But creating a Narnia that suits a wide variety of players and that GMs could actually use would require major departures from the canon. And at a certain point, you're not working with Narnia anymore--you're working with a new setting altogether.

(Side note: I'd love to work on such a setting. In fact, one day I'll polish up my notes for a Narnia / Wonderland / King's Quest-style RPG and publish it. Right now, however, paying freelance commitments are keeping me busy...)

I wonder if a Space Trilogy RPG would be more plausible? It's been so long since I read the books, but they strike me as more easily adapted. I'd buy a "C.S. Lewis's Space Trilogy Role-Playing Game," anyway.

 

[jdrakeh]

These two cannot be combined.

RPGs are known to be the work of Satan, while Narnia is God's holy word.

-- N

Sadly, that's pretty much the position that the various organizations currently in control of the media rights advocate.

 

[jonesy]

...the Narnia radio broadcast and merchandising rights are currrently licensed to an organization that periodically cites BADD 'reports' to discourage people from playing RPGs...

Heh. I wonder what they would feel about the fact that the Narnia books I'd read in the school library were the reason I originally bought the Basic rules from a classmate back in 4th grade.