Using TOR for Dark Age Arthurian Britain

[Obadiah]

I have been thinking that The One Ring system would work well for a low fantasy setting in Arthurian Dark Age Britain or even a Celtic setting in Britain. Just wondering if anyone has had similar thoughts or anyone has ever done any work on house rules to accommodate this?

[Glorelendil]

I have been thinking that The One Ring system would work well for a low fantasy setting in Arthurian Dark Age Britain or even a Celtic setting in Britain. Just wondering if anyone has had similar thoughts or anyone has ever done any work on house rules to accommodate this?

I think it would work...fine. But the Hope/Shadow thing is kind of core to the system, and that doesn't really fit Arthurian setting. At least to me.

And that's the thing: what makes TOR so freakin' great for Middle-earth is that the mechanics were designed from the ground up to support the flavor of the fiction. So to get Arthurian setting right I'd start with "what are the central themes, and what mechanics would support that?" and go from there.*

I love the basic mechanics of TOR (skills, dice, etc.) and I could see an Arthurian system based off of it. But TOR itself? Skeptical.

*For the record, I've tried Pendragon and appreciate the effort that has gone into it but don't love the mechanics. It lacks the elegance of TOR, imo.

[Obadiah]

I agree. I love the elegance of TOR system. I love the combat system.

I prefer the Arthurian stuff set in Dark Age Britain rather than the medieval and that's why I think this basic system might work. But I hadn't considered the Shadow aspect at all. Good thoughts. I might start to put my thoughts down and see how it unfolds.

[Kurt]

I think it would work fine. Could you not rename hope/shadow to chivalry/villainy and achieve the same thing? I’d see more of a thematic issue with the cultures, the callings and degeneration into madness.

Cheers,
Kurt

[Butterfingers]

Yes, it would work ok I guess and if you don't want to get a new system... however I would recommend either Pendraken or more realistic Mythic Britain (using Mythras/RQ6 rules). Great sets tailored for either style, and contain lots of useful information/ideas.

When thinking abotut using TOR with Arthurian / dark age games, the biggest issue for me would be the asymmetrical nature of the combat, plus I'd really prefer something more simulationist for this subject. But that's just my personal preference.

[Terisonen]

I'm just doing the contrary, adapting Pendragon system to Middle-earth using some components of TOR...

[bluejay]

Given how influential Pendragon was on TOR I assume it will handle at least a certain flavour of Arthurian game.

If you're going more towards the Cornwell approach with Arthur as a hero of the Britons against the invading Angles, Saxons and Jutes then perhaps Hope and Shadow could be related to the spirit of Albion in some way.

[Terisonen]

Given how influential Pendragon was on TOR I assume it will handle at least a certain flavour of Arthurian game.

If you're going more towards the Cornwell approach with Arthur as a hero of the Britons against the invading Angles, Saxons and Jutes then perhaps Hope and Shadow could be related to the spirit of Albion in some way.

Fellowship phase seem's really like a Winter phase in Pendragon. And tempo is the same: an adventure a year.

[Glorelendil]

Given how influential Pendragon was on TOR I assume it will handle at least a certain flavour of Arthurian game.

If you're going more towards the Cornwell approach with Arthur as a hero of the Britons against the invading Angles, Saxons and Jutes then perhaps Hope and Shadow could be related to the spirit of Albion in some way.

Fellowship phase seem's really like a Winter phase in Pendragon. And tempo is the same: an adventure a year.

What else? I scratched my head at the "how influential Pendragon was on TOR" part.

Back on topic, there are some really neat looking Swedish RPGs that have been published in English in the last couple of years. I'm sure somebody here knows the titles I'm talking about. Would one of them be right for a Dark Ages Arthurian? (I'm envisioning something like Bernard Cornwell's version: mail and shield walls, timber halls and Roman ruins, as opposed to knights in shining plate armor amidst soaring white towers.)

[Butterfingers]

Well one thing at least is the Darkening of Mirkwood campaign itself, the tale of years is managed very similarily to the one in Pendragon (forgot what it's called, must be getting old...) and the thing that it presents a great narrative storyline from beginning to the very end etc.

And you could very easily use the holding rules from Pendragon to expand the ones in TOR (these were added to Adventurer's companion, right, so they're not core rules a such though.)

Sorry to hammer this home, but you should really take a look at mythic Britain, it should be just the ticket, and Mythras/RQ6 rules are brilliant (unless you have an allergy to d100 systems... )

Mythic Britain is a complete sourcebook for adventuring in Britain’s Dark Ages using the RuneQuest rules. The book includes an extensive history and background of 5th and 6th Century Britain; details of the different tribes and territories; complete character creation rules for Britons and Saxons, details of magic, the Saints and pagan Gods; and, rules for massed battles. Completing the book, seven linked scenarios form the Mythic Britain Campaign in which the characters travel the length of breadth of the island, serving Merlin and Arthur, fighting the Saxon invaders, searching for the lost Treasures of Britain, and becoming involved in all manner of schemes and intrigues.