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Message: <blockquote data-quote="hawkeyefan" data-source="post: 8796263" data-attributes="member: 6785785">Here’s part 2 up today:<a href="https://ttrpg.substack.com/p/113-walking-up-spire?utm_source=email" target="_blank">Cities in RPGs 2- Spire</a>This one focuses on the eponymous city from “Spire: The City Must Fall” RPG, which is in my opinion an under appreciated gem. The game focuses on underclass drow revolutionaries in a city ruled by high elves. That this series has kicked off with my favorite two RPGs of recent years probably says something about my personal tastes. Both have some elements in common… one city as the setting for play, systems of oppression, social dynamics, moral ambiguity… but it is interesting in how the two books go about what they do. As mentioned in the article, Spire is a book written to be read. Normally, I’d view that as potentially problematic… I think it’s best for an RPG book to be written and designed with utility in mind. Ao that is a bit of a problem with Spire… but there are a few things that mitigate it.First, the mechanics of the game are presented in a very clear way, easily referenced at the table. The rules are also simple enough not to need a lot of reference. A handful of pages contains all you need to reference the mechanics of play. Second, the setting has a very “non-canonical” approach. There are numerous ideas presented for all manner of things, some even conflicting. The expectation is that the GM and players can pick whatever makes sense for their group. There’s no need to know everything presented in the book… it’s written for folks to pick and choose what they want.Finally, the quality of the writing. Every page has multiple ideas that could be used for scenarios in play that could last many sessions. The way the ideas are presented and the sheer amount… it’s all meant to inspire play. There’s no need to know all of it, just pick what you like and go with that. I think as the article suggests, and as I did in my campaign, the best thing to do is to select a district as the primary focus of play, and then use ideas related to that. We chose Red Row, a crime riddled ghetto, so we had criminal factions and those devoted to law, so I made sure to be familiar with that kind of stuff. The city itself is a kind of surreal, quasi-industrial place, with just tons of occult elements present. The major background feature is the struggle of the underclass against the ruling class. You can lean into any or all of these elements to different degrees, per taste and need. So very different in presentation compared to Doskvol, despite many similarities in the setting and theme.</blockquote>

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