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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Agback" data-source="post: 1219872" data-attributes="member: 5328">I played in a Fading Suns LARP for a while, and the setting made me miserable. There is no substance to it. It is as superficial as a stage set, with all the institutions standing in places cribbed from history, and no idea of how they work or why the people find it advantageous to act as they do. My character was a bishop, and everyone agreed that bishops are powerful: apparently I was just supposed to act powerful, because no-one had any idea of what my powers actually were, and when I tried to use them they turned out not to be there. No one seems to have any idea about how the contending groups actually achieve any of the things they do: how cults gain influence in the Church, how noble houses make people dukes.Fading Suns is a montage of historical and fantasy pastiches, with superficial SF stage-dressing (and not even SF costumes). There is no coherency within its social and political structures, let alone there being any coherency between its basic assumptions and the personal and social responses to them. Take half a step from the intended point of view and the tromp l'oiel fails completely, it becomes clear that the structures are framework and canvas suspended by wires; seize any of the levers and it will twist and crumple in your hand.De gustibus non disputandem est of course. Fading Suns is indeed the best example of science fantasy among RPG settings, clearly showing everything I hate about it. But it is not, IMHO, a good setting at all. (Which is not to say that other people, whose RP consists of aping stereotypal actions rather than pursuing the goals of characters in a fictitious environment, do not enjoy it. YMMV. YDWYDWP.)Regards,Brett</blockquote>

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