Let's Talk Blue Rose

[Crothian]

but that it's laughably politically correct with a facile "tolerant" philosophy.

but it really isn't. PCU was a movie that fit that describtion. THis is just a world where some places don't have prejudice and other places do.

 

[Mallus]

...but that it's laughably politically correct with a facile "tolerant" philosophy.

Would that be more, less, or about as facile as a Conanesque "I want to crush my enemies beneath my heels and hear the lamentations of their girlfriends" ubermensch philosophy?

Just asking...

 

[Arcane Runes Press]

Would that be more, less, or about as facile as a Conanesque "I want to crush my enemies beneath my heels and hear the lamentations of their girlfriends" ubermensch philosophy?

Just asking...

Yeah, you and Crothian have hit the heart of it.

Romantic Fantasy is a subgenre with many different authors, each of whom brings their own viewpoints to their writing.

Calling all of it "laughably politically correct" is completely false, because it's entirely wrong, in the same way that saying all sword & sorcery is "laughably ubermensch" is entirely wrong.

Kushiel's Dart fits comfortably in romantic fantasy, as does Robin Hobb's Assassins trilogy, but the two books are very, very different.

 

[CrusaderX]

it is both. There are places that are very good verse evil, but there are options for in the middle as well. The new alignment system they have is basically like good, neutral, evil but it uses different names.

Here's the game's description at RPG Now:

Aldis, the Kingdom of the Blue Rose, shines as a new light following the dark age of the Sorcerer Kings. Now, envoys of the Sovereign’s Finest strive to protect Aldis from threats like the Lich Kingdom of Kern and the fanatical Theocracy of Jarzon, as well as monsters and dark magic left over from the Shadow Wars of the Sorcerer Kings. Aided by the rhydan—their psychic animal companions—the champions of the Blue Rose guard the Light against the power of the Shadow.
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The word has gone out, the land of Aldis needs heroes! Will you answer the call? Join the Sovereign’s Finest and the Knights of the Blue Rose in safeguarding the kingdom and its people. Swear your allegiance to the Light and to the rightful Sovereign ...

For Aldis, and the Queen!

This isn't black and white? Not to be argumentive, but clearly, Aldis is portrayed here as the good guys, while "the fanatical Theocracy of Jarzon" is portrayed as the bad guys (heck, they're thrown in right alongside the liches and the monsters ) Is this ad copy wrong?

And I'm not saying that a black & white setting is bad. Not at all. But again, everything I'm reading says that the tolerant neo-pagans are the white, and the repressive, fanatical theocracy is the black. Which doesn't jive with WayneLigon saying that they're both equally "good". What am I missing here?

 

[Crothian]

And I'm not saying that a black & white setting is bad. Not at all. But again, everything I'm reading says that the tolerant neo-pagans are the white, and the repressive, fanatical theocracy is the black. Which doesn't jive with WayneLigon saying that they're both equally "good". What am I missing here?

Yes, that aspect in that light is very black and white. What you are missing is the actually game doesn't present it as that extreme, though there is a portayal of good verse evil. And the alinmgnets and the gods are not all good or evil, there is middle ground.

 

[CrusaderX]

Maybe Aldis just has a better PR machine.

 

[Psion]

This isn't black and white? Not to be argumentive, but clearly, Aldis is portrayed here as the good guys, while "the fanatical Theocracy of Jarzon" is portrayed as the bad guys (heck, they're thrown in right alongside the liches and the monsters ) Is this ad copy wrong?

When I first saw that, I was so wanting to run a character or game putting the Theocracy in the light of being right, just to turn the assumed subtext on its head.

 

[Crothian]

When I first saw that, I was so wanting to run a character or game putting the Theocracy in the light of being right, just to turn the assumed subtext on its head.

Just like running a Star Wars game from the view of the Empire....

 

[Twiggly the Gnome]

I could buy the Jarzoni as a "grey hats" if it were not for one passage in the book:

Because of the prevalence of darkfiends and aberrations
in their land, particularly near the Shadow Barrens,
the inhabitants of Jarzon dislike any creature that
even vaguely resembles such monsters. To the Jarzoni
imagination, rhydan, vata’sha, and the night people have
such a resemblance, so they often attack them on sight,
trying to capture them so that they can be handed over to
Jarzon’s priests, who cast them into temple fires.

To me, the parallels that evokes pushes them squarely into the dark side.

 

[Crothian]

Ya, but their reasons are not just because they are evil. They suffered at the hands of monsters and now don't try to distinguish between monsters good and bad. So, you can have the fanatical priests who are against all these creatures and also the woodsman who has minor experiecnes with some good creatures and doubts the beliefs he has been taught.