Odhanan
Adventurer
There are games and supplements that you love from the get-go. These games and supplements sort of influence everything you do and like in role-playing games. RuneQuest (along with Glorantha, the world that is often associated with it) is one of these games for me. I have very fond memories of the games I played, the magic and the believable myths and legends that were all part of the experience. I was still, until recently, reading through my RuneQuest rule books and supplements, thinking that maybe, one day, I would run another campaign set in Glorantha. Just maybe.
Now this just became a certitude. RuneQuest is back with a new incarnation of its rules still based on Skills and percentage rolls. Many things have changed, but one thing this review will not do is compare the different editions of the game. There are enough opinions to read out there for that.
What this review does, however, is present the contents of the new Mongoose RuneQuest's (or MRQ) main rulebook and lay out the opinions I have about the whole thing. Sit down, pour yourself a drink, and by all means, enjoy the ride!
Overview
RuneQuest - Main Rulebook
Published by Mongoose Publishing
Author: Matthew Sprange
Format: Hardcover with Black and White interior.
Number of Pages: 128
ISBN: 1-905471-10-6
Retail Price: $24.95 US
RuneQuest's Main Rulebook can be purchased in PDF format from DriveThruRPG.com (soon to become OneBookShelf.com) or in hardcover format from your local game stores and various online retailers, including Mongoose Publishing and Amazon.com.
RuneQuest is intended to be a new, upgraded, cleaned-up version of its previous editions. It is intended to be accessible, to the point. It presents the basic rules of the game. Many supplements are already being designed and published to expand on these basics.
What is RuneQuest exactly? This is a game system that uses base Stats, or "Characteristics", on a human scale from 1 to 18 (and above for legendary characters). It is Skill-based, in the sense that most actions a character may perform in the game result in Skill tests using a percentage roll, or d%. It also uses some Characteristics tests and a set of various secondary characteristics, or "Attributes", such as Hit Points and Magic Points, but that's pretty much it. The system doesn't only use d10s though, but also d4, d6, d8, d12 and d20 uses for the weapons' damage.
Alright. Off we go to the Lay Out of the book.
Lay Out
The first impression I had when first grabbing the RuneQuest main rulebook is one of simplicity and relative "lightness", as far as the actual weight/page-count of the volume is concerned.
The interior lay-out is a bit busy, all in gray shades with a "faux-parchment" finish to it. It's a bit dry to my tastes, but the font is alright and the paragraphs, columns and such are spaced enough to allow the reader to breathe through the reading. The lay-out in gray shades may become a problem on black cartridges when you try to print the rules from a PDF.
Overall, the presentation isn't the most impressive I've seen, far from it, but it's clear and functional enough to not get in the way of the basic uses for the book (namely, reading from it at a game table, for instance).
The Actual Contents
The book starts with a single page of Credits and Contents. The Table of Contents could have been much more developed, since it only presents the main chapters of the book.
Introduction (2 pages) - This chapter presents Role-playing games, what you need to play, what RuneQuest is intended to be (a generic fantasy system that is published under the Open Gaming Licence), the main "themes" which permeate the rules of the game (namely about Runes, on which the main magic system is now based, the Quests, which are grand journeys towards great rewards undertaken by characters for themselves, other people and/or their community, and Cults (which complete the mystical approach RuneQuest has on fantasy, mainly because of its close association to Greg Stafford's Glorantha).
Creating an Adventurer (13 pages) - This chapter presents the different components of RuneQuest characters.
First, there are the Characteristics, namely Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Size, Intelligence, Power and Charisma.
Then, there are the Attributes which are calculated from the Characteristics: Combat Actions (the number of actions you can undertake in a round), Damage Modifier (which is a die added to all your damage rolls based on your Strength and Size), Hit Points (which are based on Size and Constitution and separated between each location of your body, i.e. you don't have "total Hit Points" like in D&D, but a number of Hit Points per location. The locations are Each Leg, Abdomen, Chest, Each Arm and Head), Magic Points (which are based on your Power and fuel the spells you cast) and Strike Rank (which determines how quickly you act in combat, i.e. initiative.
Then, you determine your character's Basic Skills' scores. Skills in RuneQuest are separated in two groups: Basic and Advanced Skills. Basic Skills all start with some default scores calculated from your Characteristics and modified by the Previous Experience of the character and Free Skill Points. Advanced Skills are skills that are not common to many people. PCs should either buy them (with Free Points of Experience later in the game) or have them available from their Previous Experience to be able to use them.
When the Basic Skills' scores are calculated, you select the Previous Experience of your character. The Previous Experience is in fact a template of Skills you add to your character (in the form of bonuses or Advanced Skills availability) based on a culture and a profession you choose for your character. The Cultural Backgrounds are Barbarian, Peasant, Townsman and Noble. The available Professions are Acrobat, Alchemist, Animal Trainer, Bard, Blacksmith, Courtier, Craftsman, Diplomat, Explorer, Farmer, Fisherman, Herdsman, Hunter, Lord, Mercenary, Merchant, Militiaman, Miner, Physician, Priest, Sailor, Scholar, Shaman, Soldier, Spy, Thief, Town Guard, Tracker, Witch and Wizard. Each profession is associated to one or more Cultural Backgrounds of course. After both Cultural Background and Profession are chosen, you then distribute some Free Skill Points in any of the skills you have, Basic Skills, or buy some new Advanced Skills.
Then, you flesh out the general information relevant to your character. This includes the Movement rate per combat action, which is 4 meters for all humans, Hero Points (all characters start with Hero Points - they are similar to hero points and action points of other systems), Age, Appearance, Personality and such.
Lastly, you purchase your character's Equipment.
The Chapter closes on an double-page example of Character creation. This is most welcome (I always feel like examples help understand otherwise very theoretical rules).
Skills (14 pages) - This Chapter describes the Basic Skills and Advanced Skills of the games. It also explains how to use them.
How do you make a Skill test in RuneQuest? You've got a Skill written down on your Character sheet as a percentage. For instance, you have the Skill "Sing - 54%". You roll 1d100. If you roll is equal or below this percentage, you succeed your test. If you roll above, you fail. If you roll under 1/10 of your actual Skill percentage, this is a Critical Success. If you roll 00, or "100", you make a Fumble, i.e. critical failure. Futher, any roll between 01 and 05 is an automatic success, and any roll of 96-100 is an automatic failure.
And that's pretty much it. Sure, there are subtleties here and there, particular rules related to extremely powerful characters, some side rules for Opposed tests, but these are the core principles of RuneQuest's rules. Weapons are used the same way, Characteristics tests are done the same way by using a default multiplier to a Characteristic and testing the resulting percentage... that's the main mechanic right here.
Basic Skills include such basics as Athletics, Boating, Dodge, Weapon Skills, some Lores, Evaluate and such. Advanced Skills include Crafts, Dance, Engineering, Tracking and such. I won't develop much more, since the Skill listings are pretty similar in most fantasy RPGs. The difference between Basic and Advanced Skills is the main point here.
Equipment (13 pages) - Some basics on Trade, Currencies, Wealth and Status. Then follow the tables of equipment. Weapons, armors, miscellaneous equipment such as bedrolls and Fish hooks, animals, transportations, slaves, food and lodging, and basic magic items are covered there. Don't get too excited on the magic items: That's just taking a page of the rules. Base stuff, really.
Combat (18 pages) - Now that's a biggie. The combat system is where you really get to understand how the game works in many fantasy RPGs. Well, here, I clearly get the feeling that RuneQuest's rules have been updated to feel more "modern" to the user. What "modern" means, in this precise context, is that RuneQuest's design was clearly inspired on Third Edition D&D. Combat Rounds get the opponents to act according to their Strike Rank and adding 1d10 to it (i.e. initiative roll).
Then, the characters have a number of Combat Actions depending on their Dexterity. This can range from 1 to 4 actions per round. Characters spend their actions in the Round when they do stuff like attacking an opponent, moving/running, make a flurry, use a skill and such. Attacks are Opposed Skill checks most of the time (Attacker's Weapons Skill versus Defender's Weapon Skill or Dodge - these are called, along with Free Attacks (i.e. Attacks of Opportunity), Reactions. You've got as many Reactions as you've got Combat Actions in a Round).
The whole thing about Combat Actions, which can be attacks, movement etc, and Reactions, which could be dodging, parrying, making free attacks triggered by some Combat Actions, is the main thing to understand about combat beyond the simple Skill rules.
The damage rules work in simple ways. At the same time you roll for Attack, you also roll 1d20 for the location you might hit. A location reduced to 0 hit point suffers a minor wound. -1 or more is a Serious Wound. If the Location's Hit Points are reduced to a negative score greater than the starting HP, it's a Major Wound. That's when you fall unconscious and can die if nobody helps you with First Aid pretty quick.
The Chapter closes on specific rules for Two-weapon fighting, Mounted combat, Grappling and such. I won't go into too much details. It also describes the uses for Hero Points (to reroll a failed test, change a Major Injury back to Serious Injury, have luck, that kind of thing). There's an double-page of a sample combat, which is an example very welcome.
Magic (17 pages) - This chapter details how to use Magic Points and Rune Magic. You have first to find some physical runes, "integrate them" (i.e. attuning to the item carrying the rune), and then gain some innate abilities based on the nature of the rune. You can later, with study, learn spells based on the Runes you have integrated. Most spells are more or less the province of religious and philosophical groups determined by the setting. Spells are cast by using the Runecasting Skill, which in fact is a group of Skills, since each Rune has its own Runecasting Skill.
For instance, if you have Runecasting (Fire) 45 %, and you learned the spell "Fireblade" from a member of the Brotherhood of Mithras, Slayer of the Bull, you can add some fire damage to your slashing weapon by succeeding a Runecasting (Fire) test.
There are other types of magic besides Rune Magic. Like Divine Magic, Sorcery and more. But these aren't described in this based rulebook. Like stated earlier, this Main Rulebook is all about the ground rules, the basic components of the game. Many supplements will come later and build (and have already built) on these basic rules.
Cults (5 pages) - This Chapter describes a few sample Cults or religious/philosophical groups which are Rune-based and technically bring spells and training to the characters. The generic Cults described herein are the Cult of the Storm King, the Brotherhood of Mithras, the Indigo Hand (i.e. thieves' group), The Azure Cinquefoil (spirit-loving manipulators and masterminds) and the Childer of Hama-Dreth (worshipping some of sort of being from the Outer world that seeks to be brought to the world to destroy it).
It also describes the specifics of the main Ranks of members within these groups: The Lay Members, The Runepriests and The Runelords. This mainly affects what type of spells said characters can cast and how well they can cast them (to which intensity).
The chapter closes on some basic rules for Divine Intervention (which should remain fairly extremely rare by the RAW, since you can make only one Divine Intervention roll per month, and should obtain a roll below your straight Power score to succeed).
Adventuring (10 pages) - This Chapter details some particular instances of adventuring situations, providing specific rules for them. Time and Movement, Chases and Pursuits, Vision, Fatigue, Healing, Encumbrance, various Hazards (falling, suffocation, burning/freezing, that sort of thing), Poisons, Diseases, Inanimate objects (destroying, damaging, bashing them) are covered here.
Improving Adventurers (11 pages) - Rules are provided here to improve the characters. Gaining Hero Points (which are GM awards basically), Improving Skills (by spending "improvement rolls", basic rewards of the adventures, which allow you to roll d% to improve your percentage at a precise skill, with a successful d% above the current Skill percentage for a better gain), Practice and Research, Learning New Advanced Skills, Improving Characteristics and Legendary Abilities (which you buy with Hero Points you did not spend over the course of the game and are sort of very effective Feats a la D&D, for very powerful characters in this context) and rough "power levels" (i.e. what is a "novice", a "seasoned", a "veteran", a "master" or a "hero" in RuneQuest as far as power and abilities are concerned? ) for various types of adventures are covered here.
Creatures (18 pages) - that's sort of a sample bestiary for the group to use for the first adventures the GM runs. This includes some classic animals (bears, horses, lions), the iconic broo (which is sort of a defiled, diseased goat man with really nasty chaotic habits), centaur, troll, dragon, duck (an actual humanoid/duck hybrid, another iconic race of RuneQuest), Giant, et cetera. Enough for a few games I guess, but you'll soon feel like you need to build your own creatures or buy the RuneQuest - Monsters volume (which is already available for purchase at the time of this writing).
A very needed and welcome Index (2 pages) comes next. A Rune sheet (summary of what runes are described and what they basically do to a character who integrated them), a double-page Character Sheet and a Sample, filled-out Character Sheet end the book.
Critical Hit
What I really like about the book is its relative simplicity. The rules don't take forever to explain to the players, and you don't get particular cases popping up all the time in the game. RuneQuest is a system that will appeal to Game Masters and players who like intuitive RPG systems they can easily houserule and make their own.
It won't appeal to rules lawyers and people who test a system by trying to break it.
There are gaps in the rules. They are left for the GM and players to fill as they play the game and experiment with them. That's another philosophy of game design than, say, D&D. Some people want rules to be complete and cover every single possible loop holes in there. Some others just like to have a system they can work with and build their own thing out of it. RuneQuest will appeal to the latter. Not the former.
From experience, RuneQuest's system works great with Game Masters who like dynamic descriptions and improvisation on the fly. The system triggers some great moments of role-playing and epic actions described by the people around the table. What it does not do is take you by the hand like you're a 10-year-old who would need to be strictly framed by the rules.
Fumble
There's no "Fumble" per se. The system may become really frustrating for rules lawyers and people who just want RPG rules to cover everything for them. That much is clear. It is not a perfect system, but it is a system that will work perfectly for a particular type of Players and GMs.
Another regret is linked to its nature as a introductory product to a wide range of settings and supplements. The system feels a bit dry and well, I would have liked to have gotten more out of this base rulebook. Unfortunately, I'll need to invest in RuneQuest - Monsters and RuneQuest Companion to feel I have a satisfying amount of rules and particular applications of the base principles explained in the main rulebook to go ahead and run my game.
RuneQuest's Future
There's a lot of cool developments in the works for RuneQuest. Glorantha, the iconic RuneQuest world created by Greg Stafford, has already a few volumes coming out. Core products already include this Main Rulebook, the "Monsters" volume, the "Companion" and soon the "Legendary Abilities" sourcebook. In January of next year, there will be the Lankhmar sourcebook coming out. And then, later, an Hyborian Age (i.e. Conan) sourcebook.
RuneQuest's truly coming back with a "Bang". That's good to see!
Conclusion
RuneQuest is a good, intuitive system for people who like to concentrate on the game rather than the rules and are comfortable houseruling and improvising on the fly.
That's a good system for experienced players and game masters.
It is not intended for gamers who like to have volumes and volumes of rules, sub-rules and dozens of tables to work with. It is not intended for gamers who want the rules to cover everything for them. I've repeated it time and time again, but I think it's worth repeating again in my Conclusion.
Do I like RuneQuest? Yes I do. Will I run this game? I will. For this reason, I give it a 5 Stars (Excellent).
Now this just became a certitude. RuneQuest is back with a new incarnation of its rules still based on Skills and percentage rolls. Many things have changed, but one thing this review will not do is compare the different editions of the game. There are enough opinions to read out there for that.
What this review does, however, is present the contents of the new Mongoose RuneQuest's (or MRQ) main rulebook and lay out the opinions I have about the whole thing. Sit down, pour yourself a drink, and by all means, enjoy the ride!
Overview
RuneQuest - Main Rulebook
Published by Mongoose Publishing
Author: Matthew Sprange
Format: Hardcover with Black and White interior.
Number of Pages: 128
ISBN: 1-905471-10-6
Retail Price: $24.95 US
RuneQuest's Main Rulebook can be purchased in PDF format from DriveThruRPG.com (soon to become OneBookShelf.com) or in hardcover format from your local game stores and various online retailers, including Mongoose Publishing and Amazon.com.
RuneQuest is intended to be a new, upgraded, cleaned-up version of its previous editions. It is intended to be accessible, to the point. It presents the basic rules of the game. Many supplements are already being designed and published to expand on these basics.
What is RuneQuest exactly? This is a game system that uses base Stats, or "Characteristics", on a human scale from 1 to 18 (and above for legendary characters). It is Skill-based, in the sense that most actions a character may perform in the game result in Skill tests using a percentage roll, or d%. It also uses some Characteristics tests and a set of various secondary characteristics, or "Attributes", such as Hit Points and Magic Points, but that's pretty much it. The system doesn't only use d10s though, but also d4, d6, d8, d12 and d20 uses for the weapons' damage.
Alright. Off we go to the Lay Out of the book.
Lay Out
The first impression I had when first grabbing the RuneQuest main rulebook is one of simplicity and relative "lightness", as far as the actual weight/page-count of the volume is concerned.
The interior lay-out is a bit busy, all in gray shades with a "faux-parchment" finish to it. It's a bit dry to my tastes, but the font is alright and the paragraphs, columns and such are spaced enough to allow the reader to breathe through the reading. The lay-out in gray shades may become a problem on black cartridges when you try to print the rules from a PDF.
Overall, the presentation isn't the most impressive I've seen, far from it, but it's clear and functional enough to not get in the way of the basic uses for the book (namely, reading from it at a game table, for instance).
The Actual Contents
The book starts with a single page of Credits and Contents. The Table of Contents could have been much more developed, since it only presents the main chapters of the book.
Introduction (2 pages) - This chapter presents Role-playing games, what you need to play, what RuneQuest is intended to be (a generic fantasy system that is published under the Open Gaming Licence), the main "themes" which permeate the rules of the game (namely about Runes, on which the main magic system is now based, the Quests, which are grand journeys towards great rewards undertaken by characters for themselves, other people and/or their community, and Cults (which complete the mystical approach RuneQuest has on fantasy, mainly because of its close association to Greg Stafford's Glorantha).
Creating an Adventurer (13 pages) - This chapter presents the different components of RuneQuest characters.
First, there are the Characteristics, namely Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Size, Intelligence, Power and Charisma.
Then, there are the Attributes which are calculated from the Characteristics: Combat Actions (the number of actions you can undertake in a round), Damage Modifier (which is a die added to all your damage rolls based on your Strength and Size), Hit Points (which are based on Size and Constitution and separated between each location of your body, i.e. you don't have "total Hit Points" like in D&D, but a number of Hit Points per location. The locations are Each Leg, Abdomen, Chest, Each Arm and Head), Magic Points (which are based on your Power and fuel the spells you cast) and Strike Rank (which determines how quickly you act in combat, i.e. initiative.
Then, you determine your character's Basic Skills' scores. Skills in RuneQuest are separated in two groups: Basic and Advanced Skills. Basic Skills all start with some default scores calculated from your Characteristics and modified by the Previous Experience of the character and Free Skill Points. Advanced Skills are skills that are not common to many people. PCs should either buy them (with Free Points of Experience later in the game) or have them available from their Previous Experience to be able to use them.
When the Basic Skills' scores are calculated, you select the Previous Experience of your character. The Previous Experience is in fact a template of Skills you add to your character (in the form of bonuses or Advanced Skills availability) based on a culture and a profession you choose for your character. The Cultural Backgrounds are Barbarian, Peasant, Townsman and Noble. The available Professions are Acrobat, Alchemist, Animal Trainer, Bard, Blacksmith, Courtier, Craftsman, Diplomat, Explorer, Farmer, Fisherman, Herdsman, Hunter, Lord, Mercenary, Merchant, Militiaman, Miner, Physician, Priest, Sailor, Scholar, Shaman, Soldier, Spy, Thief, Town Guard, Tracker, Witch and Wizard. Each profession is associated to one or more Cultural Backgrounds of course. After both Cultural Background and Profession are chosen, you then distribute some Free Skill Points in any of the skills you have, Basic Skills, or buy some new Advanced Skills.
Then, you flesh out the general information relevant to your character. This includes the Movement rate per combat action, which is 4 meters for all humans, Hero Points (all characters start with Hero Points - they are similar to hero points and action points of other systems), Age, Appearance, Personality and such.
Lastly, you purchase your character's Equipment.
The Chapter closes on an double-page example of Character creation. This is most welcome (I always feel like examples help understand otherwise very theoretical rules).
Skills (14 pages) - This Chapter describes the Basic Skills and Advanced Skills of the games. It also explains how to use them.
How do you make a Skill test in RuneQuest? You've got a Skill written down on your Character sheet as a percentage. For instance, you have the Skill "Sing - 54%". You roll 1d100. If you roll is equal or below this percentage, you succeed your test. If you roll above, you fail. If you roll under 1/10 of your actual Skill percentage, this is a Critical Success. If you roll 00, or "100", you make a Fumble, i.e. critical failure. Futher, any roll between 01 and 05 is an automatic success, and any roll of 96-100 is an automatic failure.
And that's pretty much it. Sure, there are subtleties here and there, particular rules related to extremely powerful characters, some side rules for Opposed tests, but these are the core principles of RuneQuest's rules. Weapons are used the same way, Characteristics tests are done the same way by using a default multiplier to a Characteristic and testing the resulting percentage... that's the main mechanic right here.
Basic Skills include such basics as Athletics, Boating, Dodge, Weapon Skills, some Lores, Evaluate and such. Advanced Skills include Crafts, Dance, Engineering, Tracking and such. I won't develop much more, since the Skill listings are pretty similar in most fantasy RPGs. The difference between Basic and Advanced Skills is the main point here.
Equipment (13 pages) - Some basics on Trade, Currencies, Wealth and Status. Then follow the tables of equipment. Weapons, armors, miscellaneous equipment such as bedrolls and Fish hooks, animals, transportations, slaves, food and lodging, and basic magic items are covered there. Don't get too excited on the magic items: That's just taking a page of the rules. Base stuff, really.
Combat (18 pages) - Now that's a biggie. The combat system is where you really get to understand how the game works in many fantasy RPGs. Well, here, I clearly get the feeling that RuneQuest's rules have been updated to feel more "modern" to the user. What "modern" means, in this precise context, is that RuneQuest's design was clearly inspired on Third Edition D&D. Combat Rounds get the opponents to act according to their Strike Rank and adding 1d10 to it (i.e. initiative roll).
Then, the characters have a number of Combat Actions depending on their Dexterity. This can range from 1 to 4 actions per round. Characters spend their actions in the Round when they do stuff like attacking an opponent, moving/running, make a flurry, use a skill and such. Attacks are Opposed Skill checks most of the time (Attacker's Weapons Skill versus Defender's Weapon Skill or Dodge - these are called, along with Free Attacks (i.e. Attacks of Opportunity), Reactions. You've got as many Reactions as you've got Combat Actions in a Round).
The whole thing about Combat Actions, which can be attacks, movement etc, and Reactions, which could be dodging, parrying, making free attacks triggered by some Combat Actions, is the main thing to understand about combat beyond the simple Skill rules.
The damage rules work in simple ways. At the same time you roll for Attack, you also roll 1d20 for the location you might hit. A location reduced to 0 hit point suffers a minor wound. -1 or more is a Serious Wound. If the Location's Hit Points are reduced to a negative score greater than the starting HP, it's a Major Wound. That's when you fall unconscious and can die if nobody helps you with First Aid pretty quick.
The Chapter closes on specific rules for Two-weapon fighting, Mounted combat, Grappling and such. I won't go into too much details. It also describes the uses for Hero Points (to reroll a failed test, change a Major Injury back to Serious Injury, have luck, that kind of thing). There's an double-page of a sample combat, which is an example very welcome.
Magic (17 pages) - This chapter details how to use Magic Points and Rune Magic. You have first to find some physical runes, "integrate them" (i.e. attuning to the item carrying the rune), and then gain some innate abilities based on the nature of the rune. You can later, with study, learn spells based on the Runes you have integrated. Most spells are more or less the province of religious and philosophical groups determined by the setting. Spells are cast by using the Runecasting Skill, which in fact is a group of Skills, since each Rune has its own Runecasting Skill.
For instance, if you have Runecasting (Fire) 45 %, and you learned the spell "Fireblade" from a member of the Brotherhood of Mithras, Slayer of the Bull, you can add some fire damage to your slashing weapon by succeeding a Runecasting (Fire) test.
There are other types of magic besides Rune Magic. Like Divine Magic, Sorcery and more. But these aren't described in this based rulebook. Like stated earlier, this Main Rulebook is all about the ground rules, the basic components of the game. Many supplements will come later and build (and have already built) on these basic rules.
Cults (5 pages) - This Chapter describes a few sample Cults or religious/philosophical groups which are Rune-based and technically bring spells and training to the characters. The generic Cults described herein are the Cult of the Storm King, the Brotherhood of Mithras, the Indigo Hand (i.e. thieves' group), The Azure Cinquefoil (spirit-loving manipulators and masterminds) and the Childer of Hama-Dreth (worshipping some of sort of being from the Outer world that seeks to be brought to the world to destroy it).
It also describes the specifics of the main Ranks of members within these groups: The Lay Members, The Runepriests and The Runelords. This mainly affects what type of spells said characters can cast and how well they can cast them (to which intensity).
The chapter closes on some basic rules for Divine Intervention (which should remain fairly extremely rare by the RAW, since you can make only one Divine Intervention roll per month, and should obtain a roll below your straight Power score to succeed).
Adventuring (10 pages) - This Chapter details some particular instances of adventuring situations, providing specific rules for them. Time and Movement, Chases and Pursuits, Vision, Fatigue, Healing, Encumbrance, various Hazards (falling, suffocation, burning/freezing, that sort of thing), Poisons, Diseases, Inanimate objects (destroying, damaging, bashing them) are covered here.
Improving Adventurers (11 pages) - Rules are provided here to improve the characters. Gaining Hero Points (which are GM awards basically), Improving Skills (by spending "improvement rolls", basic rewards of the adventures, which allow you to roll d% to improve your percentage at a precise skill, with a successful d% above the current Skill percentage for a better gain), Practice and Research, Learning New Advanced Skills, Improving Characteristics and Legendary Abilities (which you buy with Hero Points you did not spend over the course of the game and are sort of very effective Feats a la D&D, for very powerful characters in this context) and rough "power levels" (i.e. what is a "novice", a "seasoned", a "veteran", a "master" or a "hero" in RuneQuest as far as power and abilities are concerned? ) for various types of adventures are covered here.
Creatures (18 pages) - that's sort of a sample bestiary for the group to use for the first adventures the GM runs. This includes some classic animals (bears, horses, lions), the iconic broo (which is sort of a defiled, diseased goat man with really nasty chaotic habits), centaur, troll, dragon, duck (an actual humanoid/duck hybrid, another iconic race of RuneQuest), Giant, et cetera. Enough for a few games I guess, but you'll soon feel like you need to build your own creatures or buy the RuneQuest - Monsters volume (which is already available for purchase at the time of this writing).
A very needed and welcome Index (2 pages) comes next. A Rune sheet (summary of what runes are described and what they basically do to a character who integrated them), a double-page Character Sheet and a Sample, filled-out Character Sheet end the book.
Critical Hit
What I really like about the book is its relative simplicity. The rules don't take forever to explain to the players, and you don't get particular cases popping up all the time in the game. RuneQuest is a system that will appeal to Game Masters and players who like intuitive RPG systems they can easily houserule and make their own.
It won't appeal to rules lawyers and people who test a system by trying to break it.
There are gaps in the rules. They are left for the GM and players to fill as they play the game and experiment with them. That's another philosophy of game design than, say, D&D. Some people want rules to be complete and cover every single possible loop holes in there. Some others just like to have a system they can work with and build their own thing out of it. RuneQuest will appeal to the latter. Not the former.
From experience, RuneQuest's system works great with Game Masters who like dynamic descriptions and improvisation on the fly. The system triggers some great moments of role-playing and epic actions described by the people around the table. What it does not do is take you by the hand like you're a 10-year-old who would need to be strictly framed by the rules.
Fumble
There's no "Fumble" per se. The system may become really frustrating for rules lawyers and people who just want RPG rules to cover everything for them. That much is clear. It is not a perfect system, but it is a system that will work perfectly for a particular type of Players and GMs.
Another regret is linked to its nature as a introductory product to a wide range of settings and supplements. The system feels a bit dry and well, I would have liked to have gotten more out of this base rulebook. Unfortunately, I'll need to invest in RuneQuest - Monsters and RuneQuest Companion to feel I have a satisfying amount of rules and particular applications of the base principles explained in the main rulebook to go ahead and run my game.
RuneQuest's Future
There's a lot of cool developments in the works for RuneQuest. Glorantha, the iconic RuneQuest world created by Greg Stafford, has already a few volumes coming out. Core products already include this Main Rulebook, the "Monsters" volume, the "Companion" and soon the "Legendary Abilities" sourcebook. In January of next year, there will be the Lankhmar sourcebook coming out. And then, later, an Hyborian Age (i.e. Conan) sourcebook.
RuneQuest's truly coming back with a "Bang". That's good to see!
Conclusion
RuneQuest is a good, intuitive system for people who like to concentrate on the game rather than the rules and are comfortable houseruling and improvising on the fly.
That's a good system for experienced players and game masters.
It is not intended for gamers who like to have volumes and volumes of rules, sub-rules and dozens of tables to work with. It is not intended for gamers who want the rules to cover everything for them. I've repeated it time and time again, but I think it's worth repeating again in my Conclusion.
Do I like RuneQuest? Yes I do. Will I run this game? I will. For this reason, I give it a 5 Stars (Excellent).
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