The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Introduction

Agone is an unusual fantasy game by Multisim, which I believe had the back luck of going mostly unnoticed amidst the rumble that came with the d20 tsunami. While I wouldn't rate it a 5/5 as other reviewers did (more like a 4/4), it is certainly an intriguing game on a different setting.

As Conan McKegg explains on his review of the main Agone rulebook, the players are Inspired, characters from the world with a long story behind them, fame, fortune and perhaps a holding or two. Since these characters are high ranking personages in their world, some of them might own land or be an important part of the domain they live on.

The Grey Papers provides two main things for an Agone game: first, a set of rules for the creation and evolution of domains; and second, a set of pre-created domains to use in play. Also included are a short Drama (Agonespeak for scenario) and a list of NPCs.

Most people would take a good look at the girl before they wonder about her personality, so let's start with the book's layout.

Layout and art

The layout for The Grey Papers is extremely similar to that of the main Agone rulebook: grey pages with borders that look like engraved stone, typesetting that is often clear and easy to read (with the sole exception of the pesky cursive from the fiction), and a simple two-column-with-sidebars layout throughout the book that doesn't force you to wonder how in hell are you supposed to read the book.

The art ranges from the average to the excellent, with some exquisite ink and pencil drawings (such as the two-page spread near the beginning, or some of the inside art) being the hight points. I didn't see one piece of art in the book that didn't fit the content, and while there are few art pieces - perhaps one per domain, with the rest being re-used clipart - they are use to maximum effect so that you don't get a sense of visual repetition when browsing through the book.

Content

But looks will only get you so far, so let's examine the game content.

Game fiction

The book starts with a two-page piece of short fiction that didn't do much for me. The prose feels a bit clunky (a possible side effect of the translation), and the "To be continued..." didn't exactly whet my appetite. Nobilis has spoiled me for anything else than excellent fiction.

Domain rules

Immediately after this (without any introduction whatsoever) come the rules for domains. These are useful, short and to the point; and cover not only domain creation but evolution. Again, they never reach the level of beauty and simplicity of the Nobilis rules, but are workable and will certainly function for the setting.

There's just one catch: there are only six pages of rules. I'm not complaining, since for me the less rules the better, but the fact that they only cover from page 8 to 14 makes me wonder why they weren't included in the main rulebook. Could it be that Multisim didn't trust people to buy a book just because of the new domains? Let's evaluate them now.

Domains

The domains included in the book are a strange bunch: from the princely communes to Laeghdoved to the liturgical province of Holy Post, or from the widowlands of Scaletstone (ruled by a schizophrenic Medusa, no less!) to the maniac members of The Horde, the domains are useful and extremely varied. So varied, in fact, that they reminded me of the domains in Ravenloft: there was so much variation, that there couldn't possibly be a way they all fit together in the same world (though Ravenloft did use an ace they took from their sleeve to explain that).

Fortunately, the designers had the common sense of including a map of the Twilight Realms, were we can see that these provinces are not all bunched up like a kinder, gentler Ravenloft, but actually spread throughout the continent. This does makes believing the variety easier.

Not that there is not a bad point, however. There's something about the writing of these provinces that makes reading about most of them a task, however interesting the province itself it might be. I often had to pause between provinces to avoid dozing off and stop them from becoming just one globular hodgepodge inside my memory. In the end, nevertheless, if you waddle through the writing there are some gold nuggets there for your Agone game.

The Drama

The Ophidian Tragedy, as the included drama is called, provides an interesting adventure for your Inspired though it doesn't seem like a good way to start a campaign. Thoughtfully, the designers provide three ways for the players to enter the adventure that go beyond and old-man-contacting-them-on-a-pub gig, but unfortunately the adventure is plagued from the same self-important style as the rest of the book, with such lines as (under "What Really Happened"): "This is for your eyes only, Eminence, but one day your Inspired may discover what follows."

I got it, the Eminence Grise is a part of the game, move on. I don't need you to bring it up all the time.

Denizens of Harmundia

The denizens of Harmundia section is supposed to detail several NPCs for the setting, but actually presents templates for NPC types: the Intriguer, for example, or the Craftsman or Sailor. These templates look helpful if you need to cook-up an unimportant NPC on the fly, and proper NPCs are detailed for each domain anyhow.

In conclusion

Agone was already a pretty complete package, and The Grey Papers ends up being a little redundant. It is a nice addition to the game and, if you already have an Agone game going and can spare the cash, feel free to go for it. Others who are still wondering about the game or who would actually use the book for inspiration for other systems, I'd suggest you pass.

Agone: The Grey Papers
Agone: The Grey Papers Capsule Review by Ricardo J. Méndez Castro on 31/08/02 Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 3 (Average) An useful Agone resource, though by no means invaluable. Aaargh, how has Nobilis spoiled me! Product: Agone: The Grey Papers Author: David Benoît, Raphaël Granier de Cassagnac, Mathieu Graborit, Benjamin Gruet, Jean-Rémy Lerin, Jean-Baptiste Lullien, Xavier Spinat Category: RPG Company/Publisher: Multisim Line: Agone Cost: $20.95 Page count: 144 Year published: 2001 ISBN: 2-84476-095-3 SKU: Comp copy?: yes Capsule Review by Ricardo J. Méndez Castro on 31/08/02 Genre tags: Fantasy Gothic	Introduction Agone is an unusual fantasy game by Multisim, which I believe had the back luck of going mostly unnoticed amidst the rumble that came with the d20 tsunami. While I wouldn't rate it a 5/5 as other reviewers did (more like a 4/4), it is certainly an intriguing game on a different setting. As Conan McKegg explains on his review of the main Agone rulebook, the players are Inspired, characters from the world with a long story behind them, fame, fortune and perhaps a holding or two. Since these characters are high ranking personages in their world, some of them might own land or be an important part of the domain they live on. The Grey Papers provides two main things for an Agone game: first, a set of rules for the creation and evolution of domains; and second, a set of pre-created domains to use in play. Also included are a short Drama (Agonespeak for scenario) and a list of NPCs. Most people would take a good look at the girl before they wonder about her personality, so let's start with the book's layout. Layout and art The layout for The Grey Papers is extremely similar to that of the main Agone rulebook: grey pages with borders that look like engraved stone, typesetting that is often clear and easy to read (with the sole exception of the pesky cursive from the fiction), and a simple two-column-with-sidebars layout throughout the book that doesn't force you to wonder how in hell are you supposed to read the book. The art ranges from the average to the excellent, with some exquisite ink and pencil drawings (such as the two-page spread near the beginning, or some of the inside art) being the hight points. I didn't see one piece of art in the book that didn't fit the content, and while there are few art pieces - perhaps one per domain, with the rest being re-used clipart - they are use to maximum effect so that you don't get a sense of visual repetition when browsing through the book. Content But looks will only get you so far, so let's examine the game content. Game fiction The book starts with a two-page piece of short fiction that didn't do much for me. The prose feels a bit clunky (a possible side effect of the translation), and the "To be continued..." didn't exactly whet my appetite. Nobilis has spoiled me for anything else than excellent fiction. Domain rules Immediately after this (without any introduction whatsoever) come the rules for domains. These are useful, short and to the point; and cover not only domain creation but evolution. Again, they never reach the level of beauty and simplicity of the Nobilis rules, but are workable and will certainly function for the setting. There's just one catch: there are only six pages of rules. I'm not complaining, since for me the less rules the better, but the fact that they only cover from page 8 to 14 makes me wonder why they weren't included in the main rulebook. Could it be that Multisim didn't trust people to buy a book just because of the new domains? Let's evaluate them now. Domains The domains included in the book are a strange bunch: from the princely communes to Laeghdoved to the liturgical province of Holy Post, or from the widowlands of Scaletstone (ruled by a schizophrenic Medusa, no less!) to the maniac members of The Horde, the domains are useful and extremely varied. So varied, in fact, that they reminded me of the domains in Ravenloft: there was so much variation, that there couldn't possibly be a way they all fit together in the same world (though Ravenloft did use an ace they took from their sleeve to explain that). Fortunately, the designers had the common sense of including a map of the Twilight Realms, were we can see that these provinces are not all bunched up like a kinder, gentler Ravenloft, but actually spread throughout the continent. This does makes believing the variety easier. Not that there is not a bad point, however. There's something about the writing of these provinces that makes reading about most of them a task, however interesting the province itself it might be. I often had to pause between provinces to avoid dozing off and stop them from becoming just one globular hodgepodge inside my memory. In the end, nevertheless, if you waddle through the writing there are some gold nuggets there for your Agone game. The Drama The Ophidian Tragedy, as the included drama is called, provides an interesting adventure for your Inspired though it doesn't seem like a good way to start a campaign. Thoughtfully, the designers provide three ways for the players to enter the adventure that go beyond and old-man-contacting-them-on-a-pub gig, but unfortunately the adventure is plagued from the same self-important style as the rest of the book, with such lines as (under "What Really Happened"): "This is for your eyes only, Eminence, but one day your Inspired may discover what follows." I got it, the Eminence Grise is a part of the game, move on. I don't need you to bring it up all the time. Denizens of Harmundia The denizens of Harmundia section is supposed to detail several NPCs for the setting, but actually presents templates for NPC types: the Intriguer, for example, or the Craftsman or Sailor. These templates look helpful if you need to cook-up an unimportant NPC on the fly, and proper NPCs are detailed for each domain anyhow. In conclusion Agone was already a pretty complete package, and The Grey Papers ends up being a little redundant. It is a nice addition to the game and, if you already have an Agone game going and can spare the cash, feel free to go for it. Others who are still wondering about the game or who would actually use the book for inspiration for other systems, I'd suggest you pass.

Agone: The Grey Papers