7th Sea Almanac: The Montaigne Revolution
by Dana DeVries, Peter Flanagan, BD Flory, Les Simpson, Eric Steiger, Rob Vaux, and Kevin Wilson
for 7th Sea
Alderac Entertainment Group
128 pages, perfect bound
$19.95
ISBN 1-887953-41-8
Grade A-
Reviewed by Lisa Padol
As with many 7th Sea products, I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I do not like how the progressive 7th Sea timeline is handled. On the other, considered in isolation on its own merits, The Montaigne Revolution is a fine product.
The title sells the book short. Unlike rpg products that barely cover their subject material, this one covers much more than The Montaigne Revolution. As sharp eyed gamers will see, the book is an almanac, covering events in Theah, the world of 7th Sea, from 1668 through the first half of 1669.
The Montaigne Revolution is the most prominent event in that time period, and the first chapter describes the events leading up to the Thean version of our French Revolution and its immediate aftermath. The second chapter focuses on Vodacce, which has lost one island, gained another, and seen a major shift in the politics of the Great Game played by the Vodacce Princes. Chapter Three covers events in the rest of the Seven Nations, while Chapter Four contains the GMs' secrets, adventure hooks, and a full adventure.
Two appendices round out the book. The first describes the major NPCs and the new skill Politician. The second has a timeline and maps of Castille, Montaigne, and Vodacce. The maps are larger and easier to read than the ones in the Game Masters' Guide, and I really wish there had been maps for all of the nations. The layout is clean, and the art is good, with no bimbo art.
While I have not read all of the books The Montaigne Revolution draws on, I was able to follow what had happened in the world of Theah well enough. The few events in the first three chapters that were confusing were explained either in the fourth chapter or in the timeline.
The authors get many things exactly right. They understand that it is possible, and even desirable, for PCs to replace NPCs in certain key roles. GMs are told what qualifications a PC needs to be the captain of the Musketeers, for example. I have long advocated giving PCs important roles like that, rather than making them glorified pawns.
GMs are reminded that PCs should be active participants in events, not passive witnesses, a point I have raised before. The authors further suggest that PCs not simply get handed tasks by NPCs. Instead, they provide much needed examples of how to tie a GM-chosen adventure into a course of letting PCs be proactive so that the players perceive their own agenda as naturally leading to the evening's adventure. This is a tactic I have worked for years to develop.
The full adventure in The Montaigne Revolution involves the creation of a new secret society. It is preceded by a consideration of how to create secret societies in general, a section useful for any GM using secret societies in any campaign, as well as any player who wants her PC to create a private secret society.
The adventure is good in general, though I would caution GMs that PCs may not be prudent enough to let the initial injustice stand, however much the sympathetic NPC begs them to bide their time, and however great the odds against them. The basic hook is good, though, and the authors provide a couple of alternative paths in case of the most likely PC goofs.
The Thean timeline in the second appendix is invaluable. Not all of the events it mentions are completely described, but I find they are described well enough for me to use even the ones where I know that I am missing the full story. I do, of course, have a few nitpicks, as well as my usual complaint, and some question over how familiar with the world of Theah one must be to make use of the book.
The Nitpicks
1. The authors consider first half of The Montaigne Revolution suitable for players to read. I do not. The first half contains information about such matters as Montegue's situation which the PCs may well be ignorant of. This is a nit I have with the 7th Sea nation books as well: I do not want my players or their PCs starting out with a clear overview of the big picture. It doesn't make sense that the PCs would know so much, and GMs can base many adventures around the PCs slowly learning what is going on in the world.
2. The secret of the mindless waisen is revealed: If all of the people connected to a person by fate strands are killed, that person becomes a mindless wanderer. This raises questions that are beyond the scope of the book, but which I would like answered nevertheless. How are strands formed between individuals? Why aren't all people linked to each other? Could the method used to cure one of the waisen be duplicated? Could another method be used? What would the fate witches make of the secret of the waisen if they knew? How does this secret relate to the case of one fate witch who tried to cure the waisen, only to fail and join them in their mindless wanderings?
3. There are two brothers, born to a Vendel father and a Vesten mother. The family spent time in both the Vendel and Vesten areas so that the brothers could choose their own paths. One man became a Vesten. The other, seeing his parents killed by Vesten raiders, became a Vendel, dedicating himself to revenge.
So far, a good angst plot. The Vendel brother hates his Vesten sibling. I can believe this. What I cannot believe is the authors' claim that this brother is the only Vesten he knows, given that he had spent time in both the Vendel and the Vesten worlds, prior to his parents' deaths. A minor nit, easily fixed, as the Vendel is clearly using his brother as a symbol of all he hates.
The Usual Complaint
I have railed about this before: I am tired of fixed timeline games that release the timeline in stingy doses that sometimes seem designed to hold back a campaign.
Since the 7th Sea GM pack, with the first official 7th Sea adventure, was released over two years ago, GMs who wish to stay faithful to the official timeline have been in a bind. Do they force their campaigns away from areas earmarked for expansion or do they make choices that risk separating their campaign from the official version of Theah? For over two years, those most loyal to AEG have been in the worst position, as product after product discussed plots and incidents with predestined ends, ends which were not revealed until the release of The Montaigne Revolution.
I was asked if my basic problem was that this product was not available from the beginning. Yes and no.
The problem is not the delay in releasing the time line. Rather, it is the combination of that delay and the decision to tie too much into that timeline. Consider: The first 7th Sea adventure, packaged with the GM's Screen, has the PCs deliver a fateful letter to General Montegue of Montaigne, one which will cause him to attempt to return from Ussura to Montaigne. He will allow the PCs to travel with him.
Let us say I want to use this scenario, and the PCs accept the escort. Guess what? Years after the scenario is published, I learn that Montegue's army was vastly reduced, many killed or captured on the way home. Odds are, by now, I've had Montegue escort the PCs home. I may want to play in AEG's official timeline, but I can't.
Or let's take what actually happened when I ran the scenario. The PCs bid farewell to Montegue and completed the two published scenarios which followed. They then returned to Montaigne, where I, blissfully ignorant of what the official timeline would be, eager to play in it, but unwilling to put the campaign on indefinite hold, had Montegue return, unharmed, army largely intact. This means that my group is forced out of the official world. We have been hosed.
There are many similar examples I could give, but the most annoying one involved a common soldier first introduced in the Montaigne sourcebook. Readers are told that he will set Important Events in Motion in two weeks. So, freeze your games until AEG deigns to reveal another crumb! Oh, and you cannot possibly have the Montaigne Revolution without this guy.
Crap. Utter crap. He's a catalyst, not the cause, and could be replaced with any similar NPC. This is a case where less really would have been more. He should have been cut from the Montaigne country sourcebook. All one needs to know about him is in The Montaigne Revolution, and his presence is not required before then. Remove him from the earlier book and you remove the most obnoxious and unnecessary case of trying to compel gamers to buy sourcebooks that will be needed months before their publication, something impossible however great one's brand loyalty.
And yet, considered in isolation, The Montaigne Revolution works. It gives an extremely useful overview of months of Thean history, and it suddenly makes several shelved 7th Sea sourcebooks viable. It doesn't matter whether I choose to follow the timeline or not; The Montaigne Revolution gives me enough the option to use as much or as little as I want.
Who Can Use It?
So, how many 7th Sea products must a GM have before The Montaigne Revolution is useful and useable. At a guess, I'd say the two core books and the Montaigne nation book are all you need. The other nation books are useful, as are the secret society books, and the more you have, the easier it is to use The Montaigne Revolution. The Vodacce and Castille nation books, along with the Los Vagos supplement are the most useful after the Montaigae nation book. Heck, you might even get by without the Montaigae nation book, but I'd recommend having it on hand.
The Bottom Line
While I don't like AEG's marketing habits, The Montaigne Revolution works fine as a stand alone product. I recommend it for people who want to play in the official 7th Sea timeline. It is also the ideal product for people who want an introduction to the timeline and world of Theah so they can decide for themselves how much of the timeline to use.
Side note: It would be a much appreciated gesture if AEG made just the timeline part of the book available online.
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