Talislanta

Hearing it was all free I checked it out.

It looked interesting at a glance, but I found it hard to really get in there at the guts of the thing.

For one it's hard enough getting my dopey friends to try role playing games they've already heard of, let alone ones where they have to memorize a bunch of race names they've never heard of and can't pidgeon-hole at a glance.

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I mean, what the fuck are these rainbow men even called?

Anybody?

What is this strange velociraptor the rainbow man fights?

Is it his natural enemy?

>>51111746
I don't know but it looks kinda cool in a 'this-would-make-a-cool-race-as-a-reference-in-Dungeons-the-Dragoning' kind of way.

>>51111854
Right, I think he's what's called a "Pharisian", which is an offshoot of another race called the Cymrilians; I'm basing on my hypothesis on a description I just found of the Pharisians dyeing their skin in bright hues.

Apparently they're often scoundrels, vagabonds and sellswords.

>>51109816
It has, but they're fucking old, so they're mostly not on the Internet (except Google+ and Facebook). And /tg/ has a much younger crowd, most people here got into D&D with 3e.

These guys are clone warriors and tatoo their whole bodies to differentiate themseles and to say stuff, it's their identity, essentially. They're called Thralls and formed the Kingdom of Taz. Ex-slaves, like many races of Talislanta.

>>51112015
Don't remember pharisians, but the tatooed men are definitely thralls.

To anyone interest, all the books from all editions are FREE on the Talislanta website. Go and download fourth edition, it's the best. (some people will tell you fifth edition is the best, but I think fourth edition is the best and that they're wrong. There are also some rare breeds who'll tell you 2nd edition is best. Reminds you of anything?)

>>51111746
And I think that beast is an exomorph. It's like a tiger. Or, if you played AD&D 1e, it's like an arumnovorax. Apex crazy predator shit.

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>>51109816
I think it looks really neat. Keep planing to do it but haven't got around.

It's a great game - i do 1st ed, as that shit is just perfect for a light fantasy game. d20, beat 6 to succeed, beat 20 for 'dramatic' success. Crazy epic world full of weirdness, over 100 character types....good times.

>>51112197

It was about this point that Talislanta started sounding like one of those "everyone play along and pretend it's a real thing" sort of deals, like Ed, Edd, n Eddy Online, and I actually had to check and see if it was real. By golly, it is.

For a game that has 'no elves' it...sure has elves.

>>51116678
Hey man, if Skyrealms of Jorune and World of Synnibarr are real, I'm inclined to believe just about anything else is too. RPGs are shithouse crazy.

>>51117398
Really, anon? Which races are you referring to?

>>51117488
A people of noble bearing, the Mirin are tall and
statuesque. Th ey have bright blue skin and hair as fi ne and white as gossamer. Mirin dress in robes, boots, and headdresses trimmed with frostwere’s hide.

>>51117565
And they're immune to the cold, practice a strange alchemy, build magic ice castles and fight frost giants all day erry day.

Just because it has pointy ears and is statuesque doesn't make it an elf.

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>>51112197
>but I think fourth edition is the best
SECOND EDITION IS BEST YOU MARUK DUNG-MERCHANT!!!

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>>51111746
>I mean, what the fuck are these rainbow men even called?
Thralls.

Fighting an Exomorph, which is basically a cross between a tiger and a chameleon.

One of Talislanta's strengths in the 1980s was the excellent art by PD Breeding-Black and others that really made the world come alive. Not as impressive nowadays, but back then compared to shitty D&D and Traveller art it really stood out.

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>>51117742

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>>51117758

The only thing I know about this game is the throw-away gag in the middle of THAC0 about it.

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>>51117767

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>>51117883
The mysterious and nefarious Black Savants...which were a PC race back then.

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>>51117897
Some pretty horrific monsters, like the Vasp, which impregnated you with its eggs.

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We wuz Kangs and shiite.

Actual, red-skinned Kangs, from the Quan Empire.

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>>51118247
Need a reason for why dungeons exists? Trapmages. Sneaky little bastards.

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>>51118259
So rude.

>>51109816
Patrician game for players with patrician tastes.
It's only obvious that /tg/ never talks about it.

>>51117565
>>51117678
mirin are humans, anon.
try again.

>>51117905
EVERYTHING in Talislanta wants to kill you. FUCKING EVERYTHING.

>>51118274
Not that kind of trap, anon. But we don't want /pol/ to find out...

>>51118458
They got pointy ears in the illustration!

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>>51118477
Monad Servitors and Mogroth are pretty laid back.

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>>51119050
Talislanta had windships before windships were cool.

So, the setting certainly LOOKS cool (in a very '80 trippy kind of way) but is the game even playable? Is the setting useable or too alien?

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>>51109816
I've never even fucking heard of it, and it seems pretty weird, but I have to say something about it is pretty cool. I get a bit of a Morrowind vibe off it, like it's just a very different take on fantasy, disconnected from the standard influences of Norse myths, Tolkien, and European fairy tales. And it has that very cool, slightly gay 80s aesthetic to all the art.

I went and downloaded all the books and I'm gonna try reading them, so thanks for making the thread OP, if nothing else it'll give me something to do tomorrow.

I've run a short campaign of it for a few friends, but couldn't finish due to people moving away.

It's one of those things where the mechanics are actually pretty well done and everyone can be useful and make the sort of character they want to play.

The quantity of lore and resources is almost a downside, to be honest. It's the sort of setting where, since everything is cool and unique, that it can be a challenge to easily create a good and fitting story. One problem is the desire to show off the different areas and races and themes counterbalanced by having to actually know and understand what those are, explain them to the players without saying "read the book" and have it work in a game.

Well designed system, but the lore is just a bit too expansive, especially without enough clear plot hooks.

It'd be good for just about any kind of game though, which is a huge plus. The real problem comes from actually getting that done.

Also it has great magic. Make sure either everyone has magic or those who do read and follow the rules for spells very carefully.

It's nice because you can't be great at magic and be good at everything else, but you can be good at particular uses of magic and not have it hold you back from other skills.

>>51120621
Well, I'm glad this random thread got one more person interested in a new RPG. Discovering new games is good. Heh, maybe we'd have less people shrieking over pointless D&D (or WoD, or Exalted) edition wars if we went out of our way to look at games, both old and new.

>>51119572
Yes it is playable and the setting great, love 4th editions magic system

Man I wish the 4e rulebook wasn't so expensive I'm a sucker for collecting physical books

>>51121973
Print the pdf!

>>51122200
I want to but whats the most cost effective way? Just Lulu or should I go to a staples?

>>51122458
'unno, I threw the idea at you because I know people have printed entire core books. It isn't always pretty but I know technology has improved and combined with pdf being so clean and tidy you can end up with something easy to read and decent-looking. One possible way is to print it on normal paper, and put the pages in those...I don't know, those plastic wrap with holes and stuff it all in a binder. Not the prettiest way but very easy to navigate.

Alright anyone got any stories, or know any blogs/podcasts don't let this thread die I really dig this game!

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>>51122620

This is the only podcast I know of:

https://sunday-skypers.podbean.com/

>>51122663
Awesome thanks!

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There are also some stories on the official site.
Kang Civil War was not bad.

I disliked how the marketing says they have no elves, but many of the races are absolutely elves in all but name.

>>51117477
>World of Synnibarr
>2e and it's supplement are still in stock at the publisher, Wonderworld
It's really quite magical.

>>51122784
Don't be that guy

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>>51122784
Because there are so many iterations of elves and the requirements to count as elf are really low it is quite hard to make a fantasy humanoid wo isn't either a dwarf, orc or beastman and not be counted as elf by a large number of people.

Some people see elves as starting at "has pointy ears" and fantasy races have pointy ears more often than not.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1Z4NTP5kNY&list=PL28Hge4P7xTD7pae5DNm-YpTTnc4Vcq7o

>the Talislanta: The Savange Lands RPG Kickstarter hasn't appeared yet
>it was supposed to be out in summer 2016
Is it still going to happen?

>>51123109
There's a Talislanta facebook page. The creator hangs out there, why not ask him?

>>51109816
The only way to play this game is by using psychedelic drugs and listening to progressive rock.

>>51123921
These are badass. As is this thread. I'm going to read all the Talislanta books now, thanks OP.

>>51123010
http://talmusic.barsoom.cc/

>>51118502
aaaaaand we don't give a shit about the pointedness of their ears.
>>51122784
The marketing tells the truth. There are no elves in talislanta.
>>51122949
This guy knows what's up.

>>51119417
I don't get why people do this, that's obviously a hobgoblin but it's called a kang for no good reason. Taking a staple of fantasy and calling it something else ain't creative or even sensible.
>>51124600
Okay it has shmelves instead of elves, big whooppee.

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>>51125126

>>51117742
Yeah, when the closest thing you have to an iconic race is defined by its wild multicolored skin, and all your interior art is mostly black-and-white, you done fucked up.

>>51123921
>setting with no humans
>people still refer to shit as "humanoid"

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>>51125126
Why should Hobgoblin be a more valid designation than Kang? It builds upon the existence of a goblin and has a similar role to what an Orc is in many settings. What exactly a hobgoblin is differs again from setting to setting.

>>51127210
>done fucked up
Not have taken a minuscule blow to presentation due to budget constrains. Way to be over dramatic.

>>51127384
If we are going to be pedantic I'll say this is not an in universe account. The choice to write to the clear understanding of the reader is therefor valid.

>>51127852
>Why should Hobgoblin be a more valid designation than Kang? It builds upon the existence of a goblin and has a similar role to what an Orc is in many settings. What exactly a hobgoblin is differs again from setting to setting.
Let's face it, you can't really make a fantasy race without someone going 'hurrr that's an elf/dwarf/orc/whatever of a different color!' as soon as it has one or two trait, either cultural or physical.

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>>51127852
>Not have taken a minuscule blow to presentation due to budget constrains. Way to be over dramatic.

They surely knew in advance that their interior art would be black-and-white. That was the norm for RPGs in the 80's, especially for fantasy heartbreakers like this. They could have designed the world in such a way that critically important information about the world and its people was not dependent on color. Hell, if they really wanted to get fancy they could have designed a world where almost everyone is colorblind and color vision is this weird one-in-a-million gift to which people ascribe spiritual significance.

>>51128363
>fantasy heartbreakers
So what, is Talislanta the oldest fantasy heartbreaker?

>>51109816
First tabletop rpg I ever played. I was, like, 10. I remember my character was a bird person and I skinned a giant tiger creature. That's all I remember.

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>>51128363
Yes they knew in advance and decided to not sacrifice a cool concept. I find the notion that color shouldn't have relevance in relation to a concept in game because the book can't be full color absurd. For a game taking place in peoples imagination for the largest part no less.

It is further quite nit picky. You wouldn't say that an iconic weapon couldn't glow a certain color of symbolic significance, that rubies can't be red, that a cosmopolitan market cant be described as colorful or monks couldn't wear their characteristic safran robes.

Why single out the Thrall in this case, they have comparatively frequent color coverage on the front covers?

>>51123985
Woo! A convert. You won't regret it.

Well, you will, because you won't be able to find anyone to play this awesome game with.

>>51128363
>>51128534
That's not the definition of a 'fantasy heartbreaker'.

You can read the actual definition here: http://www.indie-rpgs.com/articles/9/

>>51128690
I think people just use 'fantasy heartbreaker' for "any fantasy game I don't like"

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The Girls of Talislanta (NSFW):

http://girlsoftal.nfshost.com/

If you want to be enthralled by some slavish boudoir paintings.

PS: would Jaka females have 2 breasts or 6?

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>>51128858
Only two mayor ones it looks like. Possibly they still have more nipples.

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>>51116603
Somewhat nicer map.

>>51127852
>Za Bandit


Anyway this seems nice and a couple of years ago I wanted to get into it but was discouraged by the quantity of material.

If you would advise a single short adventure or a wiki, or a a book which highlates the interesting parts of several races what would you suggest?

>>51129085
Wanted to post others, but they were over the size limit.

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>>51129120
Everyone should start with The Chronicles of Talislanta (cover pictured).

It's an illustrated travelogue of Talislanta by a dimensional traveller named Tamerlin who gets into all kinds of trouble across that land. Kind of like Cugel but more descriptive of the setting and more serious, with occasional humour. No rules, just exposition and adventures.

After that read the core book for whichever edition you prefer:

1E. OOP, don't bother.
2E. Very simple and concise, simplistic some might say, but my favorite.
3E. Crappy WOTC version (before they bought D&D)
4E. Big Blue Book, labour of love, combines setting plus new rules for magic. Probably the most complete core book, contains everything.
5E. Lots of mechanics added, including feats and race/class customization.

>>51129120
>a single short adventure

The 2E core book has a short adventure where you deliver some crates to a Dual-Encephalon recluse. It's a very good intro to Talislanta as it showcases some of the monsters, the weird races and mercenary/merchant relations, but it's not too long and very easy for the GM to run.

>>51128786
It's a fantasy RPG that has some nice original parts and sells itself as being a more original alternative to D&D, but really it's just an almost-clone of D&D. That's what this game is.

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>>51129445
>almost-clone of D&D. That's what this game is.
No, it isn't. It's got almost nothing related to D&D, and is based off weird fantasy worlds like Jack Vance's Planet of Adventure and Clark Ashton Smith's Zothique.

Don't diss something you don't know anything about.

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A Tal podcast of a starting adventure:

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-hwcmb-5bd0a2#.VqjtJA2JY8U.google_plusone_share

>>51129483
Sure they hired some manatees to shuffle the parts around, but it's running off of all the conceits of old-school D&D. That wouldn't be as much of a problem if it wasn't selling itself as "wow so original so not steal," but its originality, such as it is, is just a layer of butcher paper over a steaming pile of minced-up D&D.

>It's nothing like D&D, it's like Jack Vance
I have some bad news for you, Anon

>>51129620
>It's nothing like D&D, it's like Jack Vance
>I have some bad news for you, Anon
D&D has increasingly moved away from whatever genre Vance was in.

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>>51129620
You're making baseless accusations without any supporting evidence. Talislanta is very different from old-school D&D in the following ways:

>Characters based on skills, not classes.
>Setting has nothing to do with Ye Olde Medieval Europe, unlike Greyhawk or the Forgotten Realms
>Had a "d20 system" long before WOTC
>Degrees of success
>Customizable magic system like Mage the Ascension
>About 100 more races to play than A/OD&D ever had
>Culture-based magic rather than class magic
>Levelling relatively unimportant, front-loaded PCs

>>51129620
>>It's nothing like D&D, it's like Jack Vance
>I have some bad news for you, Anon

I have some bad news for you too. D&D wasn't based on Jack Vance's worlds. The only thing Gygax took from Vance was the idea of "spell memorization". Talislanta takes its inspiration and ideas from Vance's weird settings. That's a much better deal.

>>51119093
Incorrect, windships were always cool.

>>51129746
Not too mention it's not just Vance, it's CAS, A Voyage to Arcturus, Kai Lung and many other strange fiction novels.

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Update on The Savage Lands from last month:

>Right now, the game is in playtest mode (as far as I can ascertain), round 2. Stewart [Wieck] (who is handling the production and business end of things) is estimating a Kickstarter coming in March (2017). The book is written (as far as I know) and I think that all of the art is done (I've seen a few pieces), but getting mechanics sorted after the first round of playtest seems to be eating some time. Probably layout is taking some time as well. And, on the other hand, Stewart is running a gaming company with a lot of stuff on his plate AND he just bought (as a co-owner) a gaming store in... uh... Texas (?) I think. So, he's pretty busy. Look, aside from Stewart taking over the production and being an actual company owner, Tal's biggest successes have come from when the fans were producing stuff (see 4th edition). TSL is close to that as it was pretty much written by SMS and us fans. I'm not 100% happy with some of the mechanics choices, but the setting and the worldbuilding and the lore are solid.

>>51122949
No I mean they quite literally have a magical pointy eared beautiful elder race that's dying out.

They also straight up have fairies under another name too.

Talislanta has some pretty cool ideas, but don't pretend it's incredibly original, it has it's shit too.

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>>51130094
>YFW Stewart Wieck,
>yeah that guy who co-founded White Wolf and co-created The World of Darkness...
>...loves Talislanta

>>51130235
So someone with shit taste and ideas love something good? Shocking.

>>51130094
http://www.nocturnal-media.com/blog/2015/10/16/announcing-talislanta-the-savage-land

>>51129746
>Had a "d20 system" long before WOTC
Not any of the anons you're arguing with, but AD&D 1E and 2E used the d20 system, and they were own by TSR. But yes, Talislanta is very different to AD&D.

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>>51130512
I should have been a little clearer. I didn't say that Tal was the only game to use a d20 as its resolution mechanic. That's obviously D&D's claim.

But Talislanta called its mechanics system the "d20 system" in the 1990s. No edition of D&D under TSR called itself that until WOTC released D&D 3E in 2000. Not that it was a Tal trademark or anything, but it was the moniker for the system. That's why Talislanta's "d20 system" predates D&D's d20 system.

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Its funny to see this generation compare a weird setting to Morrowind instead of Moebius and stuff like Incal.

>>51130867
Because we grew up on the works inspired by this stuff instead of with it?

But uhhh...... All the sauce, please. I don't have the words to explain how disappointing it is to not have friends who know about weird settings

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>>51131300

Google Philippe Druillet and Jean Giraud for starts.

70s and 80s weird sci fi fantasy best fantasy.

>>51131300
The Incal is a comic by Alejandro Jodorowsky, a french-chilean film maker and comic book writer (and more). Keep in mind I use 'comic book' as in the medium, because most americans are unaware of european comic books not Tintin or Asterix. His work include the amazing Metabarons saga.

>>51119050
>>51119050
What happens when they sit on you? Yeah...

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>>51131300

>>51117565
>Statuesque fit dudes
>Called Mirin

Okay so is this a joke game or not?

>>51128576
This anon again. Looked up the setting actually. I remember now. I played a gryph.

I've also realized this setting is made for magical realms and snowflakes. I wonder what was wrong with my friend's dad (our gm).

Huh, for a setting with no trolls, this thread seems to have picked one up...neat! Still bored and lonely, friendo? I got a raknid with your name on it....

>>51131361
>>51131371
As good a place as any to ask--looking for an old French science fiction comic that I think is on the border of softcore porn, it follows the usually nude protagonist around a spaceship that she doesn't understand while a bunch of the higher life forms try to capture her. Ring any bells?

>>51132598
Could it be Druuna or something like that?

>>51132729
It is exactly that. Guess it's not French.
Thanks!

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>>51132729
Paolo Serpieri is amazing


>>51132598


I fucking hate puritan times we live in.

A bit of eroticism is good in sci fi and fantasy, just dont go overboard.

There are tons of European erotic comics with sci fi and fantasy backgrounds.

See Erich von Gotha and Milo Manara as well.

So who's actually running or playing in a Talislanta game?

>>51133782
>>51132845
>>51132786
>>51132729
Nope, this is now a weird fiction and erotica thread.
Are there any women who've done similar work? There's a level of objectification/misogyny that's a) kinda hot and b) kinda routine and tiresome.

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>>51133782
>objectification/misogyny

>>51132845

christ i don't even counted how many sneaky rubs i got from old manara. i miss being a kid

>>51134324
Wrong post.

>>51134324
I'm seeing page after page of subservient women being humiliated, used, and maybe protesting a little before deciding that actually, they like it. Which, if actualized in the manner portrayed would be abuse and/or assault, and if actualized as part of a fantasy falls pretty squarely into a large and common fetish niche.

I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it, I'm saying a lot of this is similar in tone to my sex life and I want some variety.

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>>51134252
Yes

Its full of barbarian, rude uncivilized He man types, naked being civilized by a woman.

What ya know objectification of men.
Actually there are none made by women, but you have all those Fabio erotic novels. Enjoy.

>>51134485
Sorry if I wasn't clear, but I was hoping for quality erotic art and not shitty writing. Bummer that it probably doesn't exist.

>>51134521
Moebius erotic art is amazing.

Search around on pinterest

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>>51134252

>>51134714
>>51134737
>new-to-me Talislanta art
MOAR pls!

>>51130182
>No I mean they quite literally have a magical pointy eared beautiful elder race that's dying out.
Really?

>>51123921
I fucking love the idea of someone dealing in captured self sustaining creatures used as utilities.

>>51117699

2nd edition's fluff with 3rd edition's rules, erd-lover.

>>51134919
woa - how did the fluff change over the editions - I am a first editioner.

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comfy

>>51134855
Yes.

Elves in all but name.

>>51135083

I love how oldfags really sincerely thought this was cool back in the days. I mean i is cool, but not in the good way cool.

>>51135093
Nope. Try again.
You suck at this.

>>51135233
>Cymrillians
>Not elves

Nah, go fuck yourself.

Fuck, this looks pretty cool and trippy.

>>51134855
>>51135093
>>51135383

Look, it has pointy ears. MUST BE AN ELF!

Go fuck yourself and shit up some other random thread, you moron.

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>>51135639

>>51135030
2nd edition took what was in 1st, expanded it to that lovely level of "Here's enough to hang your ideas on." . Basically it cleaned 1e up.

3rd kept a large chunk of the fluff, but had this big push of "Oh no the sub-men are rising boooo be a big damn hero!" Which can be fun, but nah.

4th I don't remember the fluff on, but the magic system was less than fun, since it stripped out a ton of hte mystery of the setting.

>>51135639
>it has pointy ears
And is long lived, and skilled in magic, and tall and thin, and very beautiful.

They're fucking elves.

>>51135665
Well see, now you're lying.

>CYMRILLIAN MAGICIAN
>INT+3
>STR-1
>DEX-1
>CHA +0 (ie, average)
>Skilled in Magic... like 45 other races in a game saturated with magic where practically every race is skilled in some kind of magic

No, sorry, that's not a classic Tolkien elf. You'd have a much better case for arguing that case with Mandalans...if you knew anything about this game.

I really don't know why you have such an irrational hate boner for a game you obviously haven't played and don't know much about other than recognizing the "no elves" ads from 30 years ago. Did they annoy you or hurt your ego or something?

>>51135776
>>51135665
Also Cymrilians are not long-lived, let alone "immortal". They have an average lifespan and are grouped with 20 other Races of Men.

>>51135659
4th also had the Kang Civil War.

>>51135874

I don't really remember the Civil War bit. Can't speak to its quality.

>>51109816
What is the name of that title font?

>>51135776
>>51135838

I have a hate boner for pretentious settings. It promises it's something it isn't.

>>51135383
cymrillians are human, idjit. you should reed tha book.
AND THEN fuck yourself. cupcake.

>>51135625
aeriad? not ardua??

>>51136337
>cymrillians are human

Hardly

>>51135649
Darkling. Not elf. Look! It has a tail!
>>51135659
thanks brother!

>>51135914
It's called: the artist drew it that way cause there were no fonts back then.
All by hand, friend.

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>>51136096

>>51136425
>there were no fonts back then
Are you actually this stupid?

I want to like this. Which edition has the least stupid shit? No Gnomekin Crystalomancer class, please.

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>>51136496
Gnomekin are in every edition, they're part of the setting.

Talislanta has some stupid shit in it just like any other game. Nobody's pretending it's perfect, but what is considered stupid will vary according to the person.

Gnorl Rhabdomancers, with their secret collections, are way cooler than gnomekin anyway.

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>>51136355
Looks that way to me.

>>51136425
You're fucking dumb.

>>51136096
Then you're barking up the wrong tree. Apart from the silly ad, the setting doesn't take itself that seriously and isn't pretentious at all. Certainly not like Glorantha or *gasp* Tekumel. Do you troll up those threads too?

And Stephan Michael Sechi is about as laid-back unpretentious a guy as you can find; he's a musician who gave all the books away for free, composes (free) music for Talislanta and allows fans to write books. He talks to people in the Facebook group and is always unfailingly polite.

Wrong target, amigo.

>>51136863

ah Tekumel, ye dense beast. It's rather telling that the game's author suggests new PCs all be foreigners so they don't have to know the incredible intricate world lore.

Does Sechi hang out anywhere other than Bookface? I've always wanted to chat at him.

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>>51136355
>>51136650
Apparently they got renamed between editions.

>>51136439
Wew, lad - you seem to be. Don't be so literal.

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Wow, a Talislanta thread that's longer than 4 replies.

I am amazed, astounded and awed.

Kind of inspired to start a Talislanta game, maybe online.

>>51136696
Well, he's right, so--don't know what to tell ya.

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Fun Fact: John Harper, now of Blades in the Dark fame, got his start by designing the 4th Edition of Talislanta.

Funner Fact: Vincent Baker, of Apocalypse World fame, has been a huge fan of Talislanta his whole life.

That should tell you something about the quality of this game.

>>51137386
https://githyankidiaspora.wordpress.com/category/talislanta/

>>51137113
But they seem the same - thanx anon! Why must they always change things.....
>>51137264
Do it you vile Nefaratan bastard. It will be one helluva group, I suspect: how do a zandir and a nefaratan get along, i wonder?

Here's a Tal fanzine. It won't win any graphic design awards, but it's got some neat new stuff.

https://mytalislanta.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/shan-ya-template-3.pdf

>>51118259
>Trapmages
But why though?

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>>51137458
>how do a zandir and a nefaratan get along, i wonder?
Splendidly, I would imagine; both utterly clueless about the outer bounds of morality.

>A Jaka Is Fine Too

>>51137736
To...make traps? Magic traps? Traps so fiendish even a devil couldn't get past their labyrinthine workings?

Mostly they're jews though.

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>>51132598
>Ring any bells?
I can't tell if you're being coy or seriously don't know.

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>>51136096
You should play Vampire.

I'm intrigued. What's the resolution mechanic like?

>>51140775
iirc, d20 + skill mod
beat 6 for minor success
beat 10 for normal success
beat 20 for success plus coolness
And that's about it.

>>51141114
So no difficulty scaling? That doesn't seem good. I'll probably still read the lore though.

>>51141267
Well, yeah, there are difficulty mods - of course, why wouldn't there be??

>>51141306
Because you said that was it.

>>51129237
>(cover pictured).
>not the Revised and Annotated version

>>51141373
Well, if you think I have the capacity to sum up an entire rpg in 5 lines, thank you! I AM that awesome!!
But, srsly, lrn 2 rd btwn the lns....

>>51137291
>he's right
No he isn't.

>>51125126
I'd say the kang has more influence on the modern perception of the hobgoblin than anything else. Much like the thrall is a precursor to Dark
Sun's mul race. In fact Dark Sun owes a lot to Talislanta

>>51128534

No but that honor might belong to The Arcanum which was written by the same author.

>>51132168
>>51132168
That's no joke. Talislanta predates that meme by like two decades or something. I've only ever heard that in reference to /fit/ so...

For those who played Talislanta, what part of the world did you play in?

>>51128363
How the hell would any culture ascribe spiritual significance to a one in a million, impossible to describe or share our prove, experience? In a land of the color blind, the non color blind people are just insane, and their talk of colors would be treated as mad ramblings.

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>>51136863
>Glorantha takes itself seriously

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>>51145359
In the real world we have people who pretend to have some kind of "second sight." It'd be like that, only people who have it could test who's really like them and who's faking.

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Talislanta: the only game where you can play a Lizard-Horse as a PC.

>>51130867
>>51131300
>>51131361
>>51131371
http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Prophet

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Monstress

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/The-Goddamned

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/The-Eternaut

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/The-Dark-Crystal-Creation-Myths

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Saga

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/The-Metabarons

http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Clive-Barker-s-Night-Breed-1990

>>51136425
Google "garamond"

>>51128363
>>fantasy heartbreaker.
It's amongst the oldest fantasy settings intended for a rpg still on the market.
It's not an heartbreaker, It HAS fantasy heartbreakers based on it.

>>51129445
>sells itself as being a more original alternative to D&D,
And here's where You're wrong.
D&D is conan, this is barsoon.
The setting is It's own thing down to the litterary references.

>>51129620
>but it's running off of all the conceits of old-school D&D
It doesn't. You'd have noticed If you'd read it.

I know of a community of GMs that do a living campaign. What i remember from it is that the game is seriously lethal, it doesn't give a shit if your character dies, thats on you and part of the story

>>51135383
Cymirillians are an emerging culture that's just now starting to gain traction and power, want to industrialize and commonalize magic and lead a multietnic coalition of six other local powers into relevance continent-wise.
Their population is also growing and they're known for having a respectable military tradition,rather than just skirmishers.
The Only way they could be any less elven would be If they valued martial strenght above all else and they reproduced in litters.

Anyway, campaign talk time!
I've had my PCs have some political manouvering fun in the Seven Kingdoms. Following wich I was planning to send them to the west in a diplomatic mission to Aaman (since one of them is a Aaman Priest) to secure help against some asshole sorcerer in the southern coast with a pírate fleet and a rapidly depleting reservoir of fucks to give.
Some ideas of What could happen during the travel If they decide to Go by land?

>>51148697
Cool. The Big Blue Book 4E has encounter lists starting on page 491.

For Aaman that's

Avir
Batranc
Caravan Bug
Durge
Erd
Exomorph
Root Grub
Ravenger
Omnivrax
Ogriphant
Urthrax

I'd throw in some Pharesian peddlers cause that's extra-heretical.

PS: I love how Talislanta inverts the lawful good cleric/paladin trope in the Aamanians.

>>51148824
Pretty usefull in itself thank you, but I meant more like subquests to gain time while I prepare for another Round of politicking in Aaman. Perhaps they could find a recently sacked caravan on the way, and the merchant asks them to help Retrieve the merchandise?
Or they could escort some Aamanite pilgrims I presume.
BTW yeah, the Aamanite piramid scheme approach to organized religion is boss.

>>51148824
Then add some

>Stranglevine, that looks pathetic enough to harvest
>a Green Man being caged and persecuted
>Aamanians fighting and calling each other heretics over what turns out to be a dispute over farm boundaries
>An inquisitor's retinue being attacked by a party of Ur and Darklings who infiltrated into Amn to raid a village (save the bad guys?)

>>51149094
Good, thank You!

>>51145652
It occasionaly does and It's teh cringe

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So who's more OP in Talislanta: the Jaka, the Xambrians or the Ferrans?

Those were the 3 races my former players loved because of their insanely high attribute bonuses.

>>51150378
Ferrans seem a bit low on HP.

>>51151865
Holy shit, look at all the elves in this picture!

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>>51151904
Atnalsilat - finally all Elves!

>>51152044
>>51152189
Are these from the French editions?

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>>51152291
I got them from image search, but I presume.

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Thank you whoever is bumping this thread and /tg/ for actually discussing this game this is the best start to the new year I could ask for

>>51153507
A Tal thread that hits 225 replies is really nice.

Do you guys know of any good blogs or resources for Talislanta other than the main site and Facebook?

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>>51153577

https://www.reddit.com/r/Talislanta/

>>51153923
A map of winds and currents for Talislanta in French? Wow, they really got into this game. Now I want a map of trade routes and trade goods.

Where do i download this? I tried every place i know and there was nothing

>>51155403
Right in the OP it says all the pdfs are on the official website.

>>51155403
Can't see the site but go to talislanta.com and click on Library.

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>>51155403
http://talislanta.com/?page_id=5

>>51155095
Trade routes you say?

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>>51155954

>>51155954
>>51155974
Mon Dieu! Vive la France!

>>51147576
>Google "garamond"
Nawwww, anon - just check the credits of the book: Main title designed by...........
You should really get the facts before you spew garbage. Faget.

>>51145273
The whole goddamned thing - and let me tell you, as the gm, it was a bit of a chore.....just take it one piece at a time - seven kindgoms and the wilderlands are good starting spots; but so is pretty much every where else.......

>>51141551
Erm, yes he is...see>>51157085

This is so cool, I remember reading one of the manuals my older cousin owned like 18 years ago, nice thread.

>>51157248
It's simple (1st ed anyway) and extremely imaginative and alien, but not too alien. Easy place to have fun in - be sure to check out the free pdfs on their website, and play a game! Character gen is usually fun (just look thru the pix til you find a cool one), and usually spawns a few idears for the gm.

>>51158137
I'll be honest. I fapped to this more than once as a teenager. Good times.

So, since there is Talislanta music anyone knows other music styles which might help make a full soundtrack for a Talislanta game? Not that I intent to run one (can't say I'd ever have the group for it, sadly) but having more than 6-8 songs would be nice.

>>51132729
Druuna is seriously hardcore, mate!
>>51140413
Barbarella is more... pinup? Definitely not porn.

>>51158321
Tangerine Dream and Biosphere would fit right in.

Played in a multi-year Talislanta campaign and briefly ran one in the early 90s.

Still one of my favorite settings because it's so *fantasy* as compared to the more common Northern-European-folklore-filtered-through-Tolkien that's everywhere else.

>>51158391
>Barbarella is more... pinup? Definitely not porn.
I think the japanese would label it as 'ecchi'.

>>51158528
I was thinking starting by taking a look at various world music. I admit associating a single culture to a Talislantan one would be a mistake, but I think the Civilization series might have a few songs worth using here and there on top of my head. Maybe it's just the love for videogame music but I'm sure there are games whose soundtrack can be plundered for ambient songs.

>>51158528
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dTxmdH01dE

I mean, come on! I don't know what Talislantan culture or region would use this song but it's so perfect to the vibe I'm getting from the books.

>>51158597

Muse flute-music would be like that Tibetan Spa stuff you can buy for $10 at Wal-mart in the incense aisle.

>>51158647
>that Tibetan Spa stuff you can buy for $10 at Wal-mart in the incense aisle.
Maybe I should look for this stuff to build a Talislantan soundtrack.

the author has music for the game on the official website

>>51158711
Yes, we know, hence:
>So, since there is Talislanta music

>>51158731
No need for snark when anon just tried to help, fuckwit - smarten the fuck up.

>>51158799
Okay then, might as well be helpful and link to it:
http://talmusic.barsoom.cc/mft1arc.html

>>51158828
Based anon. Very nice post.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V89ZFWxVxcI

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I think this is a good matchup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PDY7qtTsVw

Just how alive are Black Savants? I know they don't age, need to drink or eat or get diseases, but do they still bleed or have kids? Can you suffocate one, or can they drown?

>>51117398
a ton of games at that time did the "no elf" thing. only to have one or more races that were just renamed elves. Down to the artwork with pointed ears. AD$D was dead/dying and everyone wanted to be the next big thing, not just a AD$D cone.

>>51162586
They don't bleed nor reproduce to the knowledge of anyone outside their race, so no, you cannot suffocate or drown them.

>>51163900
>the thrall on the bottom-left
>"These aren't giant tits. They're googly-eyes."

>>51162709
>a ton of games at that time did the "no elf" thing. only to have one or more races that were just renamed elves.
Yes they did, and talislanta isn't one of them, like we've been explaining the whole thread.

So, possible games to use their soundtrack for Talislanta:
-Civilization 5 and 6
-Civilization Beyond Earth
-Endless Legend
-Metroid serie
-Ori and the Blind Forest
-Journey
Anything else?

>>51130867
I have the vague impression that it wasn't trivial to get that stuff in the US until relatively recently (i.e., the last ten years or so), but it's entirely possible that Moebius, etc. are in the same category as Stanislaw Lem— very popular with people who've heard of them, but not widely known for some inexplicable reason.

Either way, I feel like the comparison to Morrowind is a bit unfair.

>>51167143
Until the growth of Amazon and book piracy on the internet over the last few years it was indeed very hard to get Moebius, Caza and almost all European artists and writers in North America outside of major metropolitan areas. And even in those you had to look in speciality book shops or special order at very high prices. That was my experience.

We have a cornucopia of media products from around the world available at our fingertips now, but even 10 years ago the situation was quite different.

>>51167143
>Either way, I feel like the comparison to Morrowind is a bit unfair.
Even on /tg/, most people have only been exposed to things which have been mainstream for the last 10-20 years, be it games, novels or even movies. People here might have slightly less mainstream tastes but overall the % of /tg/ user who have read things such as the Metabarons or Vance's novels is abysmally low.

Most people here are in their '20 to '30 and have entered tabletop via D&D 3e.

>>51167819
>People here might have slightly less mainstream tastes but overall the % of /tg/ user who have read things such as the Metabarons or Vance's novels is abysmally low.
Well, sure. Non-mainstream stuff is obscure by definition. But /tg/ is usually pretty receptive to new, weird stuff that elegan/tg/entlemen haven't heard of before. We had some great threads on the Night Lands, for example. It's interesting that this kind of weird-hunting still runs by word of mouth.

We do get people like >>51136096 who reflexively reject anything they haven't seen before, but they're a minority.

I haven't read the Talislanta books. Between

>>51129237
>>51112197
>>51117699
>>51121939
>>51134919
>>51135659

I'm guessing 4th edition is the one I should read?

>>51169374
>I'm guessing 4th edition is the one I should read?
4th edition is the one the creator think is the definitive edition from what I have read so far. 5th is similar but does things differently mechanically. No clue if there is any major lore change in between those two.

>>51169453
I think not but It's been a while since last time I read the 5e book.

>>51167143
>I feel like the comparison to Morrowind is a bit unfair.
I don't see how it's "unfair". I compared it to Morrowind not suggesting any direct similarity, since I don't really know much about Talislanta, but to say that like Morrowind, it looks as though it draws its influence from different places than the European and Greco-Roman myths that make up the basis for almost all fantasy stuff you see. So whereas there are dozens of fantasy games that are ostensibly different, but all draw on the same sources, and so all have similar aesthetics, there are a much smaller number that draw on very different sources, and so truly feel alien compared to a standard European fantasy world.

Talislanta looks like that sort of setting, where a lot of it is not what you expect out of a basic medieval Europey game. And the most prominent example of that in my mind is Morrowind.

>>51109816
>>>51169374
>>I'm guessing 4th edition is the one I should read?
>4th edition is the one the creator think is the definitive edition from what I have read so far.

It is. But Steve also prefers the simplicity of the second edition, from my conversations with him.

>>51170196
Ah, I read your comment as the usual lamentation regarding the ignorance of the masses. I thought that was unfair considering how difficult acquiring Moebius et al. used to be. I see I've misread you. Sorry.

>>51169374
>We do get people like >>51136096(You) who reflexively reject anything they haven't seen before, but they're a minority.

That's the problem, I have seen it before. That's why I don't like it.

>>51173006
Then be mature about it and ignore the thread, just like the other 80 threads of Things You Don't Like.

>>51173006
>>51174016
Or, be more specific about your complaints - the 'no elves' bitch has been dealt with: what other pretensions bug you about Talislanta?

>>51174016
>Then be mature about it and ignore the thread
Mature? On 4chan? Bitch please, we all know this place is 'grumpy old men and autist' central.

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Have seen it before somewhere else is also a bit unfair when those settings are more recent than Talislanta.

I like that demons in Talislanta are tied to the elements, so you have ice demons, and fire demons and storm demons and sand demons, etc.

cool thread

>>51166624
Zeno Clash OST

>>51179122
>Zeno Clash OST
Anything more like this, anon?