The Inside Scoop on Gaming

You know those edited for content versions of movies they show on television, the ones where they replace all objectionable words with an awkward and obviously different voice saying something like "freakin'" instead of the real profanity? This supplement for the excellent Tribe 8 system is not unlike that in many ways.

Tribe 8 was very well written, and the style was evocative of the horrific and dreamy tone of the world. The Fatimas seemed aloof and unfathomable, NPC motivations seemed realistic and subtle, and there were instances of over-the-top horror and violence. Children of Lilith fails to adequately fill any of these shoes left empty by the terrific rulebook. Sure, sometimes a little paper in the toe and you might not notice the difference, but for the most part this is an obviously inferior product in tone and style. That didn't stop Dream Pod 9 from charging a proportionally high price for this 96-page book, and I frenkly feel a bit cheated. This is a common failing of support products in the RPG industry. The core rules are the product of much work by many talented people, but then downstream supplements are cobbled together by the second-stringers; and in the case of Children of Lilith, this really shows.

First, let me say that this is as attractive and professional as all other Dream Pod 9 releases. The artwork is plentiful and mostly original, and the style fits the tone of Tribe 8 perfectly. The font is small and presented in two columns for the most part, so there are certainly a lot of words in the 90+ pages. Too bad they were not better words.

There are 4 quests presented in the book, with a final chapter providing relevant NPC attributes and supplemental information. The quests concern the appearance of Lilith, an unknown Fatima who is discovered in the Outlands. In the interest of not ruining the plots, let me just say that these quests are serviceable and not terrible in general, but it is in the specifics that Children of Lilith falls apart. I will concentrate on these specifics in an attempt to convey why this product fails as the first cycle for the Tribe 8 system.

To begin with, it seems like the two authors wrote independently and then grafted their respective work together. There are many instances of contradictory text in this book, sometimes on facing pages. One example concerns the origin of the Fatima, Lilith. On page 25, an excerpt of her introductory remarks to the Fallen is presented. It begins "I am Lilith. I am the daughter of Joshua." Yet, on page 27, we are told that "Lilith never confirms or denies that she is Joshua reborn." Never confirms or denies, I suppose, apart from her opening words to the Fallen. OK, so maybe the Weaver should be quick enough to catch these mistakes on the fly, but that hardly changes the fact that this is sloppily written and beginning Weavers are going to be left out to dry by this sort of contradiction.

As for the tone, this book reads like the "Hogan's Heroes" to its inspirational "Stalag 17." Gone, for the most part, is the angst and melodrama of Tribe 8 when humans face the strange Fatimas and the alien Z'Bri. Rather than stare in wonder or fall prostrate in awe at the sight of an animated body of debris and metal walking across water to the island of Hom, "most Fallen do a double take" when they notice Lilith's grand entrance. What no spit takes? Cue the laugh track. When the characters and one of the annoyingly central NPC's steel themselves to face the unknwon, gone are the potions and drugs of Tribe 8. Instead they all take a swallow of "fiery alcohol." Call me crazy, but if I usually face the unknown horrors only by being chemically altered with hazers or libs, a mere shot of Bacardi 151 is probably going to seem a little pedestrian and a lot inadequate. It definitely seems "edited for content." This PG-13 feel carries over into the Z'Bri which pop up like rabbits throughout the quests. Gone are the detailed and stomach-turning descriptions of the inhuman tortures inflicted on humans by these monsters. Instead we get vague references to a bone castle with some blood streaks running down the side. Don't get me wrong. I do not require graphic content to enjoy a game, but this is just another indicator of the drastic shift in the tone of the world as presented by Children of Lilith, and I do expect that games won't be schizophrenic in tone.

Objectionable content like graphic violence and drug-use aside, the very psychology of the world according to Children of Lilith is more pedestrian. Z'Bri are not alien and cryptic and cruel by nature, they are now glorified toll-keepers and the depth of their strange cruelty goes only so far as chasing humans about with a pack of monster dogs. That big kid who used to live down the street from me in suburbia (the one who took my lunch money and set his dog Chopper upon me as I rode past on my bike with playing cards in the spokes) was as cruel as the Z'Bri in these quests. And there a LOT of them. Tribe 8 counceled against throwing in every signle aspect of the world in one orgy of detail, and this book does just that. The Z'Bri are going to seem awfully familiar to characters after these four quests. The Fatima Lilith sits about with PC's and NPC's as if they were enjoying a latte at Starbucks. Shouldn't Fatimas be aloof and unapproachable and separate? In the motivations of NPC's we get more of the unintentional slapstick introduced with Lilith's arrival into Hom. For instance, one NPC, a Herite named Kyrt, comes face-to-face with Lilith, goes through several visible emotional changes, half-draws his sword, then scurries away to a safe distance followed by his cronies where they dramatically and immediately plot the Fatima's downfall. I can't read that without hearing that wacky Yakety Sax music from Benny Hill and seeing everything moving in fast-forward. Is that how humans actually react to the unknown?

Finally, Children of Lilith seems to waiver on whether you should be laissez faire with your players or play their characters like a fine-tuned violin. Early on, the writers suggest that the Weaver be subtle in motivating the characters to leave Hom on the first quest. They suggest that "heavy-handed methods...risk alienating the Players themselves." Sound advice. This is followed by a string of strong-arm plot devices which includes capture, detention, torture, and even possession. This is supplemented by a healthy dose of NPC's who are more central to the action than the PC's. Top it off with many scenes in which Lilith goes through the motion of vanquishing enemies in combat while the PC's throw in a few token blows. If we are to believe that the writers are truly as sensitive to the need for independence of the Players as they claim, then this book should have been subtitled "How to Really Alienate your Friends in Four Easy Steps," because they throw subtlety right out the window.

So if I dislike this book so much, why did I give it an Average rating in Substance? Well, Children of Lilith is bad, but there is so much content that some good amount of it is probably salvageable. I truly feel that the writers tried, because there is a lot here, but the senior editor at Dream Pod 9 should have noticed the huge gap between this book and the world of Tribe 8 in tone, if nothing else. That is not to say nothing of the usual flood of Dream Pod 9 typos and the instances of conflicting text.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 3 (Average)

Children of Lilith A Tribe 8 Cycle
Author: Jason P. Prince and Jim Cotsios Category: game Company/Publisher: Dream Pod 9 Line: Tribe 8 Cost: $18.95 Page count: 95 ISBN: 1-896776-44-2 SKU: DP9-804 Capsule Review by Roger Taylor on 09/03/99. Genre tags: Fantasy Horror Post-apocalypse	You know those edited for content versions of movies they show on television, the ones where they replace all objectionable words with an awkward and obviously different voice saying something like "freakin'" instead of the real profanity? This supplement for the excellent Tribe 8 system is not unlike that in many ways. Tribe 8 was very well written, and the style was evocative of the horrific and dreamy tone of the world. The Fatimas seemed aloof and unfathomable, NPC motivations seemed realistic and subtle, and there were instances of over-the-top horror and violence. Children of Lilith fails to adequately fill any of these shoes left empty by the terrific rulebook. Sure, sometimes a little paper in the toe and you might not notice the difference, but for the most part this is an obviously inferior product in tone and style. That didn't stop Dream Pod 9 from charging a proportionally high price for this 96-page book, and I frenkly feel a bit cheated. This is a common failing of support products in the RPG industry. The core rules are the product of much work by many talented people, but then downstream supplements are cobbled together by the second-stringers; and in the case of Children of Lilith, this really shows. First, let me say that this is as attractive and professional as all other Dream Pod 9 releases. The artwork is plentiful and mostly original, and the style fits the tone of Tribe 8 perfectly. The font is small and presented in two columns for the most part, so there are certainly a lot of words in the 90+ pages. Too bad they were not better words. There are 4 quests presented in the book, with a final chapter providing relevant NPC attributes and supplemental information. The quests concern the appearance of Lilith, an unknown Fatima who is discovered in the Outlands. In the interest of not ruining the plots, let me just say that these quests are serviceable and not terrible in general, but it is in the specifics that Children of Lilith falls apart. I will concentrate on these specifics in an attempt to convey why this product fails as the first cycle for the Tribe 8 system. To begin with, it seems like the two authors wrote independently and then grafted their respective work together. There are many instances of contradictory text in this book, sometimes on facing pages. One example concerns the origin of the Fatima, Lilith. On page 25, an excerpt of her introductory remarks to the Fallen is presented. It begins "I am Lilith. I am the daughter of Joshua." Yet, on page 27, we are told that "Lilith never confirms or denies that she is Joshua reborn." Never confirms or denies, I suppose, apart from her opening words to the Fallen. OK, so maybe the Weaver should be quick enough to catch these mistakes on the fly, but that hardly changes the fact that this is sloppily written and beginning Weavers are going to be left out to dry by this sort of contradiction. As for the tone, this book reads like the "Hogan's Heroes" to its inspirational "Stalag 17." Gone, for the most part, is the angst and melodrama of Tribe 8 when humans face the strange Fatimas and the alien Z'Bri. Rather than stare in wonder or fall prostrate in awe at the sight of an animated body of debris and metal walking across water to the island of Hom, "most Fallen do a double take" when they notice Lilith's grand entrance. What no spit takes? Cue the laugh track. When the characters and one of the annoyingly central NPC's steel themselves to face the unknwon, gone are the potions and drugs of Tribe 8. Instead they all take a swallow of "fiery alcohol." Call me crazy, but if I usually face the unknown horrors only by being chemically altered with hazers or libs, a mere shot of Bacardi 151 is probably going to seem a little pedestrian and a lot inadequate. It definitely seems "edited for content." This PG-13 feel carries over into the Z'Bri which pop up like rabbits throughout the quests. Gone are the detailed and stomach-turning descriptions of the inhuman tortures inflicted on humans by these monsters. Instead we get vague references to a bone castle with some blood streaks running down the side. Don't get me wrong. I do not require graphic content to enjoy a game, but this is just another indicator of the drastic shift in the tone of the world as presented by Children of Lilith, and I do expect that games won't be schizophrenic in tone. Objectionable content like graphic violence and drug-use aside, the very psychology of the world according to Children of Lilith is more pedestrian. Z'Bri are not alien and cryptic and cruel by nature, they are now glorified toll-keepers and the depth of their strange cruelty goes only so far as chasing humans about with a pack of monster dogs. That big kid who used to live down the street from me in suburbia (the one who took my lunch money and set his dog Chopper upon me as I rode past on my bike with playing cards in the spokes) was as cruel as the Z'Bri in these quests. And there a LOT of them. Tribe 8 counceled against throwing in every signle aspect of the world in one orgy of detail, and this book does just that. The Z'Bri are going to seem awfully familiar to characters after these four quests. The Fatima Lilith sits about with PC's and NPC's as if they were enjoying a latte at Starbucks. Shouldn't Fatimas be aloof and unapproachable and separate? In the motivations of NPC's we get more of the unintentional slapstick introduced with Lilith's arrival into Hom. For instance, one NPC, a Herite named Kyrt, comes face-to-face with Lilith, goes through several visible emotional changes, half-draws his sword, then scurries away to a safe distance followed by his cronies where they dramatically and immediately plot the Fatima's downfall. I can't read that without hearing that wacky Yakety Sax music from Benny Hill and seeing everything moving in fast-forward. Is that how humans actually react to the unknown? Finally, Children of Lilith seems to waiver on whether you should be laissez faire with your players or play their characters like a fine-tuned violin. Early on, the writers suggest that the Weaver be subtle in motivating the characters to leave Hom on the first quest. They suggest that "heavy-handed methods...risk alienating the Players themselves." Sound advice. This is followed by a string of strong-arm plot devices which includes capture, detention, torture, and even possession. This is supplemented by a healthy dose of NPC's who are more central to the action than the PC's. Top it off with many scenes in which Lilith goes through the motion of vanquishing enemies in combat while the PC's throw in a few token blows. If we are to believe that the writers are truly as sensitive to the need for independence of the Players as they claim, then this book should have been subtitled "How to Really Alienate your Friends in Four Easy Steps," because they throw subtlety right out the window. So if I dislike this book so much, why did I give it an Average rating in Substance? Well, Children of Lilith is bad, but there is so much content that some good amount of it is probably salvageable. I truly feel that the writers tried, because there is a lot here, but the senior editor at Dream Pod 9 should have noticed the huge gap between this book and the world of Tribe 8 in tone, if nothing else. That is not to say nothing of the usual flood of Dream Pod 9 typos and the instances of conflicting text. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 3 (Average)

Children of Lilith A Tribe 8 Cycle