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Mythic Russia is an ambititious RPG available from Firebird Productions web site. It uses the game mechanics designed by Robin D. Laws for HeroQuest, the RPG set in the high fantasy world of Glorantha. It's a very meaty production, weighing in at 320 pages, most of it devoted to describing the cultures, history and supernatural powers of the Russians and their neighbors ca. 1380 A.D. The default spirit of the game is rather free-wheeling, romantic high fantasy with elements of Russian folklore. The HeroQuest system has been carried over with all of its strengths and weaknesses, though Galeotti suggests some optional tweaks.
Since the rules are previously published, the setting information is really why you would buy this, and it's not disappointing. As I noted, though, I'm not really thrilled with those rules, and I would rather have seen another system applied here. On the whole, I'm glad I got the game and read it, but it doesn't immediately make me want to GM a Russian game.
Setting
Medieval Russia is very unusual territory for an English-language RPG. The bibliography in Mythic Russia mentions a game called Rus' published in 1980s, the GURPS Russia sourcebook and a few scenarios for D20 and Warhammer Fantasy, and that's about it. To make Mythic Russia even more unusual, it also deals extensively with surrounding lands and cultures. Where else is there an RPG treatment of Lithuania, the last part of Europe to convert to Christianity? Who else has written up the Siberian tribes, like the Nenets, for a game? Even the Mongols, who loom so large in history and are the archetype of the irresistible nomad horde, haven't received much love in the RPG world. Galeotti, who is a professor of Russian history, makes them a full-fleshed out background for player characters, complete with animist religion.
Other cultures described in detail are those of the Teutonic Knights, the fearsome order that carved out its own state on the shores of the Baltic Sea by successive crusades against the pagans, and Byzantium, at this time plundered by crusaders and severely encroached by Turks but still a beacon of civilization and Christian authority to the Russians.
The setting hews closely to real-world history, but at the same time, magic is commonplace, and player characters are all assumed to be magic users. Here and there in the historical accounts, Galeotti adds magical flourishes - for instance, the Mongols invaded Russia with the help of Siberian cold spirits who caused a One-Year Freeze.
The author also adds non-magical embellishments. Because of the setting is so unfamiliar, I'm grateful for the way he usually takes the time to point these out. Vodka did not exist in 1380, but it's such a part of the Russia in our minds that Galeotti added it to the setting. In fact, each player gets to pick a Vodka skill for his character that reflects his relationship with the drink.
Being interested in history, I would have liked to see a few more of these fact checks, particularly in the section on Lithuanian paganism, where Galeotti acknowledges that the sources are very thin, but doesn't make clear what's his inventions. I'm being picky here, though: he already does more than most RPG authors do to separate the known from the made-up. And how can you not love the Lithuanian pantheon, which has a burly storm god named Bangputis? (Fans of Glorantha will recognize many features of the Orlanthi in the Lithuanians.)
Glorantha, the default setting for HeroQuest, is a world that's dominated by a fantastic flora of legends and religions. In both HeroQuest and the earlier game set in the same world, RuneQuest, a character's religion is his main individualizing feature, much like class in D&D and career in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. Mythic Russia inherits this principle, so a lot of the book is devoted to describing the religions of the Russians and their neighbors. For instance, characters can be followers of St. Alypus, patron of icon painters; pagan god Perun the Thunderer; or Erglik, the great Mongol spirit of the underworld.
This makes for fascinating reading, but the Gloranthan focus on religion is a little bit at odds with my concept of a fantasy Russia. I only know Russian history and folklore casually, but it doesn't seem to me that characters in either one are dominated by their participation in any one cult, either of a saint or a pagan god. I'm pretty sure most orthodox Christians didn't focus their worship on single saints, and real-world pagans were generally pragmatic polytheists, giving homage to different gods or goddess as the situation demanded it.
Galeotti notes that most people in the game world don't devote themselves to any one cult, but for player characters, it's a no-brainer, since cults are the source of magical powers. The book does give brief guidelines for hedge wizards who are not tied to religion, but not really enough to make them player characters.
System
Mythic Russia uses rules designed by Robin D. Laws for the high-fantasy, high-magic world of Glorantha. The strength of the system is that it scales well, being able to portray characters who range from demigods to yokels fresh off the farm. It's also quite brilliant in the way that it allows not just physical combat but any kind of conflict, like an argument or magical duel, to become a detailed, blow-by-blow confrontation. Any ability, characteristic, relationship, magic item, spell or other game component is ascribed a value, and the resolution system allows them to be pitted against each other and the contest resolved with a D20.
But Heroquest has weaknesses. For instance, the extended resolution system often feels indecisive and plodding, and the few tactical options that are available don't feel meaningful. It's almost impossible for the winner of a conflict to end up hurt. Galeotti has taken advantage of the time that has passed since the rules first came out in 2000 (then under the title Hero Wars) to suggest some optional rules that look like they address some of these issues, but I would rather have seen a more evolved system as the default.
The experience system is very spare: basically, it's up the GM to give out "hero" points. They're used to boost die rolls and for character advancement. Galeotti adds the option, not found in HeroQuest, of using them for "plot edits," giving the player the right to change or add minor element to the story. It's a small change, but it's a welcome one if you want your game to be even more player-driven.
Mythic Russia applies the simplest and probably best of HeroQuest's three (or four or five, depending on how you count) magic systems, the theist one, to all religions. This is somewhat welcome, because HeroQuest can get pretty muddled when the rules attempt to reflect creator Greg Stafford's vision of Glorantha. This vision sometimes gets in the way of playability - particularly clear in the recent Imperial Lunar Handbook 2, where some sects have an awkward mix of magic from three different systems. Galeotti's choice, on the other hand, makes it easy to combine Orthodox Christianity with Paganism, a practice known as dvoeverie, or double-faith.
For those with historical verisimilitude in mind, the use of the theist system may be less than satisfying, because it best simulates an individualistic, pantheistic religion. Under the system, the two main gauges of character participation in a religion are the initiate and devotee levels, which have no clear cognates in Christianity. Heroquest's more communally oriented wizardry system would have been a better match for Christianity, but perhaps not as fun.
Heroquesting
Glorantha is strongly influenced by Joseph Campbell's notions of the hero's journey, and HeroQuest is named after the act of travelling into the supernatural Gloranthan otherworlds as form of worship or a quest for magical power. For me, this is one of the more problematic aspects of HeroQuest, because it entails first introducing the players to a magical world full of wonder, Glorantha, and then getting them to be interested in leaving that world to go into one that's even more filed with magical wonder. I'd rather focus my effort on making one world come alive.
Mythic Russia keeps the heroquesting mechanic, but improves on the situation a bit. It describes several otherworlds layered over the mundane plane, and closely tied to it, which makes them easier to understand than the nebulous Gloranthan otherworlds. The closest plane, the Ideal World, is an idealized version of the natural world, with bluer skies, darker forests, fewer people and more talking animals. The Representational World is shaped by the faith of the people in the mortal world: in Orthodox areas of Russia, the landscape looks like it's part of an icon or an illuminated book. The Boundary or Transitional World is composed of zones that verge on Transcendent Worlds, like Christian Heaven or the Summer Land of Russian pagans.
Even with these improvements, I would jettison the otherworlds from my game. They're just too high-fantasy for my taste, and they're hard to reconcile with a world that's largely historical. I'm more inclined to use an option Galeotti gives, which is to meld the Mortal and Ideal worlds with a Russian twist: the further you go away from settlements and into the forest, the more otherwordly the surroundings. The book stresses that the Russians were wary of the deep forest and its denizens.
Scenario
The included Wood, Blood & Snow, is a tightly woven scenario of intrigue, pitting the player characters against one another and foreign invaders. It's quite unlike the linear introductory scenarios in most games. It's quality material, but could daunt beginning GMs. There are plenty of scenario hooks and suggestions in the rest of the book.
Style
Galeotti's writing style is clear and vivid, giving good fodder for the imagination. However, proofreading is sorely lacking, and some of the layout is subpar. Captions aren't distinct enough from body text, for instance. The art is adequate in quality, but as you can imagine in a one-man production that runs 320 pages, there isn't quite enough of it. Apart from the cover, the printing is all in black and white.
Closing note
I guess the short of it is that I would have preferred a game more divorced from Gloranthan baggage, lower in magic and easier to reconcile with history and my mental conception of Russian folklore, where most of the magic power seems to reside with non-human spirits and animals. Of course, you can dial down the religious aspect of the game, but you're then compromising the richest, most detailed part of the book. Still, it's a very impressive and surprisingly professional effort for a one-man production, and if you have any interest in the setting, it's money well spent.
