The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Pantheon and Other Roleplaying Games

by Robin D. Laws

Hogshead Publishing Ltd.

18-20 Bromell's Road London SW4 0BG United Kingdom

http://www.hogshead.demon.co.uk

24 pages, saddle stapled

$6.95

ISBN 1-89974925-X

Grade: A-

reviewed by Lisa Padol

I received this as a review copy, although I did not receive it from rpg.net.

The five games in this slender volume use the same, simple core rule system, although each game may have a couple of additional rules. These are also fairly simple, allowing folks to start playing at once. It is a fine product, and my only quibble is a pedantic one about labels.

The author explains

Some people get all tangled up in definitions of what is and isn't a roleplaying game. We also call the five games in this book roleplaying games in order to annoy these people.

As an ex-academia type, getting tangled up in definitions is what I live for. I am not annoyed by the use of the term "roleplaying games" to define Pantheon and the others; I am simply aware that it is the wrong term.

I am a member of a committee that selects a book to be the winner of the Mythopoeic Award each year. This has given me further experience in tangling with definitions, as I try to assertain whether each contender has the elusive quality of mythopoeisis. I also try to assertain whether each book is any good. One year, Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower was on the list. This is an excellent book, and I recommend it to any of you who haven't read it, but it is not mythopoeic. It is an orange at the apple-judging contest, and I will not call an orange an apple.

Now, there are metaphorical cross-breeds of the apple and the orange, but Parable of the Sower is not one, nor is Pantheon and Other Games. The five games presented here are fun, well-written, original games, and I recommend them. They are not, however, roleplaying games.

These games are competitive storytelling games. Everyone is assigned a character, but no one person plays any character. Each player narrates the story in turn, one sentence at a time, following simple, but rigid, rules. You have to mention your character in every sentence you use, and you may not mention more that one other character.

Sounds like it could still be an rpg, or perhaps a crossbreed known as collaborative storytelling. However, this is competitive storytelling. Players score points for successfully introducing certain plot twists, or having those twists sprung on their assigned characters. The person with the most points at the end wins.

Exactly what will score points for a player depends on the genre. The author demonstrates this with an example of a slasher movie story where one player guesses that he'll score points for being the first to mention that the phone is dead. Guesses? Yep. The first time a game is played, the players should not look at what earns points for whom.

There are ways to take control of the the story involving beads and dice. These are reminiscent of Baron Munchausen and Once Upon a Time, two other excellent competitive storytelling games.

So what we have here is an original idea that flies quite nicely. Buy it, play it, enjoy it. Just don't expect me to call it a roleplaying game.

Pantheon and Other Roleplaying Games
Pantheon and Other Roleplaying Games Capsule Review by Lisa Padol on 20/08/01 Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 4 (Meaty) Five competitive storytelling games in 24 pages. Great for parties or when you need a break from the usual. Product: Pantheon and Other Roleplaying Games Author: Robin D. Laws Category: RPG Company/Publisher: Hogshead Publishing Ltd. Line: Cost: $6.95 Page count: 24 pages, saddle stapled Year published: ISBN: 1-89974925-X SKU: Comp copy?: no Capsule Review by Lisa Padol on 20/08/01 Genre tags: Fantasy Science Fiction Modern day Horror Comedy Diceless Other	Pantheon and Other Roleplaying Games by Robin D. Laws Hogshead Publishing Ltd. 18-20 Bromell's Road London SW4 0BG United Kingdom http://www.hogshead.demon.co.uk 24 pages, saddle stapled $6.95 ISBN 1-89974925-X Grade: A- reviewed by Lisa Padol I received this as a review copy, although I did not receive it from rpg.net. The five games in this slender volume use the same, simple core rule system, although each game may have a couple of additional rules. These are also fairly simple, allowing folks to start playing at once. It is a fine product, and my only quibble is a pedantic one about labels. The author explains Some people get all tangled up in definitions of what is and isn't a roleplaying game. We also call the five games in this book roleplaying games in order to annoy these people. As an ex-academia type, getting tangled up in definitions is what I live for. I am not annoyed by the use of the term "roleplaying games" to define Pantheon and the others; I am simply aware that it is the wrong term. I am a member of a committee that selects a book to be the winner of the Mythopoeic Award each year. This has given me further experience in tangling with definitions, as I try to assertain whether each contender has the elusive quality of mythopoeisis. I also try to assertain whether each book is any good. One year, Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower was on the list. This is an excellent book, and I recommend it to any of you who haven't read it, but it is not mythopoeic. It is an orange at the apple-judging contest, and I will not call an orange an apple. Now, there are metaphorical cross-breeds of the apple and the orange, but Parable of the Sower is not one, nor is Pantheon and Other Games. The five games presented here are fun, well-written, original games, and I recommend them. They are not, however, roleplaying games. These games are competitive storytelling games. Everyone is assigned a character, but no one person plays any character. Each player narrates the story in turn, one sentence at a time, following simple, but rigid, rules. You have to mention your character in every sentence you use, and you may not mention more that one other character. Sounds like it could still be an rpg, or perhaps a crossbreed known as collaborative storytelling. However, this is competitive storytelling. Players score points for successfully introducing certain plot twists, or having those twists sprung on their assigned characters. The person with the most points at the end wins. Exactly what will score points for a player depends on the genre. The author demonstrates this with an example of a slasher movie story where one player guesses that he'll score points for being the first to mention that the phone is dead. Guesses? Yep. The first time a game is played, the players should not look at what earns points for whom. There are ways to take control of the the story involving beads and dice. These are reminiscent of Baron Munchausen and Once Upon a Time, two other excellent competitive storytelling games. So what we have here is an original idea that flies quite nicely. Buy it, play it, enjoy it. Just don't expect me to call it a roleplaying game.