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Message: <blockquote data-quote="ColonelHardisson" data-source="post: 6035586" data-attributes="member: 363">Subjectively hard, but not objectively. A lot depends on how willing one is to strongly assert that one's campaign version of the world the players know is not the same as the one in the book/movie/etc. Some people enjoy that kind of meticulous research. Those who don't, shouldn't bother trying to run such a game or writing such books. In addition, my efforts have never been to create a Middle-earth setting or game rules for it that is easily accessible to casual or non-readers of the books. But at least one reading, certainly two, should give one enough background to run such a game. Same goes for historical settings; I don't think you need to do enough research to create a Master's thesis to run such a game. This is also why I emphasize the Fourth Age as a good time for a Middle-earth campaign. You really don't need to know much more than what a reading of the books or a viewing of the movies would reveal. Need to know more about the history of a place? Well, there are now tons of resources, printed and online, where solid synopses of just about anything are right at your fingertips, that can give you more than enough info in five minutes of reading.Twice is more than enough. Once will do. No one expects a doctorate-level presentation. It's just a game.You do need a separate supplement. People - including me - have indicated that going back to D&D's roots as a game is desirable. People don't want radical revisions of the classes and rules; that's been tried, and that's why Next is in playtest, and why it harkens back to past editions.  D&D, for better or worse, is D&D, and many have indicated that that is what they're looking for. So, yeah, I assert that what you want has to be done as a separate supplement, because it would involve the kinds of changes that have proven to be contentious among D&D players. The Next playtest has been getting consistently positive feedback and discussion, enough that it would be unwise to veer off and make the kinds of changes you seem to want.Of course, if you feel that what you've seen in the Next playtest is moving the way you like, then that's another matter.</blockquote>

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