The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Let me assure everyone that I do not work for Last Unicorn Games (not that I wouldn't like to do so). I know that my reviews of their recent Star Trek: The Next Generation Roleplaying Game supplements have bordered on the fawning at times. It's just that they really are so darned good. If LUG would produce some poorly-written and ill-conceived materials, believe me, I'd make certain that you knew. Unfortunately for those of you who enjoy reading bad reviews, this isn't one of them. Indeed, LUG's supplement, The Way of Kolinahr: The Vulcans, is a truly great supplement, by far the best that they have produced –– and that's saying something!

I like The Way of Kolinahr for more than its simple content. For one, it's very well-written and edited. Unlike the other supplements I've reviewed for ST: TNG RPG, this one does not suffer from the plague of bad grammar. Likewise, the art in this book is also much better than that seen previously. Some of the art is still not to my liking, but much of it, especially that of Steve Bryant, "feels" just right. I'd recommend that LUG use The Way of Kolinahr as a model for their future releases, both in terms of art and writing.

Of course, it's for the content that everyone will be buying this book. Before I read it, I doubted that anyone could 90+ pages of interesting material about the Vulcans. I was wrong. The Vulcans have long been a favorite race among Star Trek's millions of fans. Perhaps only the Klingons rival them in popularity. Needless to say, the pressure on LUG's writers to produce a book that does right by this popularity must have been immense. Yet, The Way of Kolinahr lives up to every expectation that I had –– and exceeds them. One of the best things about the book, like so much else in the ST: TNG RPG, is that it goes beyond simple stereotypes and stock answers. Using this book, players and Narrators can create truly unique and three-dimensional Vulcan characters that transcend arched eyebrows and quips about humans' emotional volubility.

By far the best chapter of the book is its first, which discusses Vulcan history, culture, and philosophy. This chapter is wonderful reading and alone worth the price of admission. In particular, I was impressed with the way that the well-known Vulcan adherence to the principles of logic was detailed and expanded upon. While most Vulcan subscribe to the philosophy of Surak, not all do. Indeed, there are several different schools of logic, not all of which lead Vulcans to behave like Spock or Tuvok. Some of them, like the way of Jarok, suggest that emotions must be mastered through understanding rather than through repression. Others are equally interesting and thought-provoking and should provide plenty of inspiration to players of Vulcan characters. Given that the Vulcan counselor of my own campaign's USS Magellan adheres to a school not unlike that of Jarok, I was especially pleased with this chapter. The chapter's treatment of the history of Vulcan is also fascinating and it too will give more than its share of ideas to Narrators looking for ways to spice up their games.

The second chapter, on Vulcan government, is as interesting as it could be. The section on the Vulcan Isolationist Movement is sure to inspire lots of adventures. It's hard not to have one's imagination fired by images of Vulcan terrorists. The third chapter on the planet Vulcan itself is terrific. Included along with it is a nice map of the planet, which is a big bonus. That each of Vulcan's continents has its own name is a particular pleasure for me. I long ago tired of Star Trek's unfortunate penchant for talking about "separatists from the southern continent" or "tectonic shifts on the northern continent." I doubt anyone would really speak in such a bland fashion about their own world. Why should aliens? Included along with this chapter is a section on Vulcan animals and plant life (including the famous sehlat and le-matya) as well as a gazetteer of noteworthy locales. This too is a really nice touch. Just reading through these sections conjured up visions of my own campaign turning its sights to Vulcan. I am sure that it will do so for other Narrators as well.

The fourth chapter is a short one and I am grateful for that. Chapter four details Vulcan technology, some of it psionic in nature. As I have said elsewhere, I am not keen on the idea of Star Trek technology manuals. Somehow the whole idea seems antithetical to the core ethos of the series. Chapter five is another wonderfully written one, detailing Vulcan characters, including new templates and overlays. Anyone wishing to run a Vulcan character in a Star Trek game, whether a player of a Narrator, will want to take advantage of the information in this chapter, including how to tailor existing advantages and disadvantages to the unique nature of Vulcans. The chapter also provides a host of new psionic powers that will add spice to a game, particularly those using Vulcans that adhere to a different school of logical thought than those commonly seen in the series.

In the end, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Certainly, it isn't necessary. However, few Star Trek games will not involve Vulcans at some point or another. As such, I think The Way of Kolinahr will prove useful in most campaigns. This book sets a very high standard for future Star Trek alien sourcebooks. Later this year, we will see Among the Clans: The Andorians. If it is as good as this book, LUG may well set a standard for such books that even other games must follow. I, for one, would not be sorry to see that. Once more, Last Unicorn has done right by Star Trek and has given us a well-written and conceived volume that will add further depth and color to any ST: TNG RPG campaign.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

The Way of Kolinahr –– The Vulcans
Author: Various Category: game Company/Publisher: Last Unicorn Games Cost: $15.00 Page count: 96 ISBN: 1-888953-07-1 Playtest Review by James Maliszewski on 03/26/99. Genre tags: Science_fiction Space	Let me assure everyone that I do not work for Last Unicorn Games (not that I wouldn't like to do so). I know that my reviews of their recent Star Trek: The Next Generation Roleplaying Game supplements have bordered on the fawning at times. It's just that they really are so darned good. If LUG would produce some poorly-written and ill-conceived materials, believe me, I'd make certain that you knew. Unfortunately for those of you who enjoy reading bad reviews, this isn't one of them. Indeed, LUG's supplement, The Way of Kolinahr: The Vulcans, is a truly great supplement, by far the best that they have produced –– and that's saying something! I like The Way of Kolinahr for more than its simple content. For one, it's very well-written and edited. Unlike the other supplements I've reviewed for ST: TNG RPG, this one does not suffer from the plague of bad grammar. Likewise, the art in this book is also much better than that seen previously. Some of the art is still not to my liking, but much of it, especially that of Steve Bryant, "feels" just right. I'd recommend that LUG use The Way of Kolinahr as a model for their future releases, both in terms of art and writing. Of course, it's for the content that everyone will be buying this book. Before I read it, I doubted that anyone could 90+ pages of interesting material about the Vulcans. I was wrong. The Vulcans have long been a favorite race among Star Trek's millions of fans. Perhaps only the Klingons rival them in popularity. Needless to say, the pressure on LUG's writers to produce a book that does right by this popularity must have been immense. Yet, The Way of Kolinahr lives up to every expectation that I had –– and exceeds them. One of the best things about the book, like so much else in the ST: TNG RPG, is that it goes beyond simple stereotypes and stock answers. Using this book, players and Narrators can create truly unique and three-dimensional Vulcan characters that transcend arched eyebrows and quips about humans' emotional volubility. By far the best chapter of the book is its first, which discusses Vulcan history, culture, and philosophy. This chapter is wonderful reading and alone worth the price of admission. In particular, I was impressed with the way that the well-known Vulcan adherence to the principles of logic was detailed and expanded upon. While most Vulcan subscribe to the philosophy of Surak, not all do. Indeed, there are several different schools of logic, not all of which lead Vulcans to behave like Spock or Tuvok. Some of them, like the way of Jarok, suggest that emotions must be mastered through understanding rather than through repression. Others are equally interesting and thought-provoking and should provide plenty of inspiration to players of Vulcan characters. Given that the Vulcan counselor of my own campaign's USS Magellan adheres to a school not unlike that of Jarok, I was especially pleased with this chapter. The chapter's treatment of the history of Vulcan is also fascinating and it too will give more than its share of ideas to Narrators looking for ways to spice up their games. The second chapter, on Vulcan government, is as interesting as it could be. The section on the Vulcan Isolationist Movement is sure to inspire lots of adventures. It's hard not to have one's imagination fired by images of Vulcan terrorists. The third chapter on the planet Vulcan itself is terrific. Included along with it is a nice map of the planet, which is a big bonus. That each of Vulcan's continents has its own name is a particular pleasure for me. I long ago tired of Star Trek's unfortunate penchant for talking about "separatists from the southern continent" or "tectonic shifts on the northern continent." I doubt anyone would really speak in such a bland fashion about their own world. Why should aliens? Included along with this chapter is a section on Vulcan animals and plant life (including the famous sehlat and le-matya) as well as a gazetteer of noteworthy locales. This too is a really nice touch. Just reading through these sections conjured up visions of my own campaign turning its sights to Vulcan. I am sure that it will do so for other Narrators as well. The fourth chapter is a short one and I am grateful for that. Chapter four details Vulcan technology, some of it psionic in nature. As I have said elsewhere, I am not keen on the idea of Star Trek technology manuals. Somehow the whole idea seems antithetical to the core ethos of the series. Chapter five is another wonderfully written one, detailing Vulcan characters, including new templates and overlays. Anyone wishing to run a Vulcan character in a Star Trek game, whether a player of a Narrator, will want to take advantage of the information in this chapter, including how to tailor existing advantages and disadvantages to the unique nature of Vulcans. The chapter also provides a host of new psionic powers that will add spice to a game, particularly those using Vulcans that adhere to a different school of logical thought than those commonly seen in the series. In the end, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Certainly, it isn't necessary. However, few Star Trek games will not involve Vulcans at some point or another. As such, I think The Way of Kolinahr will prove useful in most campaigns. This book sets a very high standard for future Star Trek alien sourcebooks. Later this year, we will see Among the Clans: The Andorians. If it is as good as this book, LUG may well set a standard for such books that even other games must follow. I, for one, would not be sorry to see that. Once more, Last Unicorn has done right by Star Trek and has given us a well-written and conceived volume that will add further depth and color to any ST: TNG RPG campaign. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

The Way of Kolinahr –– The Vulcans