The Inside Scoop on Gaming

In the early 1980's, Greg Stafford created Pendragon, allowing roleplayers to explore the fantasy world of King Arthur. It did, however, lack the epic scope of the Arthurian legends as there was no means by which players could experience the defining moments of the saga. For the most part, gm's were offered very little information regarding the Sword in the Stone, the wars with King Lot, the Saxon Wars, and other vital events. Indeed, the recommended era of play occurs in an era of unprecedented prosperity and tranquillity, a far cry from the tumultuous era in which these dramatic events took place.

A few years later, The Boy King emerged, and changed all that. A sourcebook covering Arthurs entire reign (an 80 year campaign), but focusing on the turbulent era during which the young king gains and consolidates his throne, it opened up infinite roleplaying opportunities and allows players to be intimately involved in the saga right from its outset. Reproduced by Green Knight Publishing after it gained the Pendragon license, The Boy King remains a landmark rpg supplement and a must have for Pendragon gms's.

The book divides the Arthurian saga into 5 phases: Anarchy (495-509); Unification (510- 25); Consolidation (525-540 ); Apogee (540-555 ); and Downfall (555-565 ). While highlights of the latter two phases are pointed out, the real glory (if you'll pardon the pun) lies in it's year by year coverage of the critical years 495-531. Each year is detailed in a standardized format; special guests as court; gossip; news; intrigue; and events (battles and other events central to the story). You really get a feel for the scope and color of the Arthurian myths, and the world comes alive as a result. Most importantly, players love being in the thick of things, from watching Arthur pull the sword from the stone to leading troops n the Saxon wars.

Phase 1 is a great period in which to start a campaign, an era of lawlessness between the reigns of Uther and Arthur. There is an opportunity to seize lands that does not exist after Arthur is crowned, allowing players to gain significant clout. It is a time of savagery, with no concept of chivalry and romance, and the ever present threat of Saxons casting a pall over the land. New gamers, particularly those used to D D and other fantasy rpg's, will find this a perfect time in which to ease into Pendragon.

Phase II begins with Arthur pulling the sword from the stone, and is dominated by wars with dissident nobles and Saxons. There is ample opportunity to gain generous amounts of glory through heroic deeds in battle, opportunities which do not really occur with much frequency after Arthur consolidates his throne. Every player will drool at the chance to fight at Badon, and they will all learn to hate Saxons in a very personal way after a decade of bloody warfare.

The highlight of Phase III is Arthur's war with Rome, culminating in his being crowned Roman Emperor. With this conflict, the major wars of the Arthurian saga ends and questing takes priority.

There are 14 adventures in the book, specifically designed for phases 1 and 2. In addition, there are numerous adventure hooks provided by events and locations hours of game time offered by roleplaying the numerous battles. Finally, there is a full length scenario, the Adventure of the Castle of Joy, which sees the pc knights defend the Holy Grail and the Fisher King against evil hordes.

A 9 page chapter is devoted to the Forest Sauvage, a triangular piece of land from London in the east, to Cirencester and the Cotswolds in the west, to Lincoln in the north. Most of the dozens of locations pinpointed have local folklore associated with them, leading to possible adventures and the setting is perfect for pc's who want to develop fiefs and become important local landholders.

Another useful chapter is devoted to battles and sieges, which expands upon the brief rules from the core rulebook. The new rules are so thoroughly enjoyable that they really are mandatory in order to make warfare a fun and dramatic part of your campaign. They are much more detailed than the basic warfare rules, but still manage to stop well short of being a wargame and involves no number crunching and no math skill. Best of all, it retains the loose and light feel that marks the Pendragon system.

The book is rounded out by templates for many of the main personalities from the early period of Arthur's reign; character generation rules for Phase I (who wants to be a Romano-Celt?!); a brief chapter of cities, focusing on Camelot and London; and a great timechart that tracks important events, technological and societal advances, as well as pinpoints periods from our history which correspond with dates in Arthur's reign---for example, the Laterin Council outlaws the crossbow in 526 (1140 in our history), and Byzantium is sacked in 525 (1200 our time).

The interior art, by Arnie Swekel, is excellent, while the cartography is the usual yeoman effort. Staffords writing is clear and immensely readable, making The Boy King a fun read as well as a utilitarian sourcebook.

The Boy King essentially creates an 80 year, multi-generational campaign and is an example of rpg design at it's most ambitious. It is not often that you get an entire campaign, and literally months of roleplaying sessions, for under $30. All Pendragon gm's owe it to their gaming group to take advantage of the resources that this sourcebook offers. The Boy King is a blast to play, helping define the early reign of Arthur so that players might enjoy the full scope of the legends.