Episode 224: Without Checking, Because That Spoils the Fun
January 13th, 2017 | Robin
Gather in the Gaming Hut as we ask ourselves when one should take historical license when running or designing a game set in the real past. Spoiler: we also answer ourselves.
In the Book Hut, Patreon backers Scott Haring and Kalin team up to demand a rundown on the works of Tim Powers.
Sorting one’s research is an important part of How to Write Good, and thanks to a question from backer Trung Bui we discuss our methods for whipping it into shape.
Finally, at the behest of backer Vana Stillwater, we pop into the Eliptony Hut to make up, er, uncover reasons behind the perhaps mysterious demise of cryptozoologist Tom Slick.
Snag Ken and Robin merchandise at TeePublic.
Get yourself some flat plastic Ken and Robin miniatures by supporting Arcknight’s Flat Plastic Miniatures 2 Kickstarter.
Sleepers awake, and travel through the secret pathways of the occulted world to preorder the new edition of Unknown Armies from Atlas Games. From the deluxe printed edition to ebooks in a variety of formats, the weird wonders of UA beckon!
Want to plunge headlong into Lovecraftian mystery, but lack a gaming group? Want to introduce a friend or loved one to the roleplaying hobby? GUMSHOE One-2-One has come to your rescue! Find this new system by some guy named Robin D. Laws, in the line’s flagship title, Cthulhu Confidential. Now pre-ordering at the Pelgrane Press store.
Do intervals between episodes plunge you into Hite withdrawal? Never fear! his brilliant pieces on parasitic gaming, alternate Newtons, Dacian werewolves and more now lurk among the sparkling bounty of The Best of FENIX Volumes 1-3, from returning sponsors Askfageln. Yes, it’s Sweden’s favorite RPG magazine, now beautifully collected. Warning: not in Swedish. John Scott Tynes’ Puppetland is ready to knock the stuffing out of a game store near you in its gorgeous new full-color hardcover edition. Join the good folks at Arc Dream in battling the horrific forces of Punch the Maker-Killer!
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Well, Robin did say on Patreon that he was putting this off, so now I see why. To be perfectly honest, I am quite surprised that the one book you finished was Earthquake Weather. As someone who absolutely loves the Faultline trilogy books, even I am willing to admit that this is the weakest one.
Still, thanks for doing this, hopefully it will get even more people interested in Powers, or at least willing to give him a shot.
On the topic of Powers books one likes or doesn’t – I personally barely managed to read through The Stress of her Regard. The book just felt way too long and the fact that Byron and Shelly were both unbelievably unlikable characters certainly didn’t help.
I confess I also had trouble with _Regard_. The fictional protagonist was entirely forgettable, and the real people he hung around with just felt unconvincing. It wasn’t their unlikeability; quite the reverse. They felt like modern people in costume rather than the actual Byron and Shelley.
Or China Mieville will surf your particular Zeitgeist and write a novel of surrealists in 2nd World War Paris.
I read *Stress of her Regard* as an SF novel, with the value lying in the ideas rather than the characters. The same went for *Stranger Tides*, for that matter. Which in turn means that I have more trouble with more recent Powers novels, where the skiffy ideas don’t seem so strong.