Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life
Written by Walter Isaacson
Published by Simon and Schuster Paperbacks
$19.99/$8.93 At Amazon

I don't delve too often into semi-modern historical bits on the blog as I mainly play Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder, both settings firmly 'rooted' if you will, in the 'dark ages' although they often rise up to technology and living standards that surpass many modern parts of the world.

If anything, reading Benjamin Franklin increases that dissonance I have with most fantasy settings where full plate is a common thing but guns aren't. Where swashbucklers and pirates are a common theme but again, guns are verboten.

For example, as many 'lone wolf' characters as we often see in fiction and at the tabletop, they would stand out in direct contrast to many of their friends and families. Benjamin Franklin himself is one of twenty children his father had with two wives.

Twenty children. It's a large number for sure, and the kids range in age all over the place, but there are others who had numerous children at the time as well. Maybe it's not so unusual when a player says his name is whatever the 2nd!

Another terrible thing, even in Benjamin Franklin's time, was that for women, it still was not a safe time to be giving birth.  "It was not unusual for men in colonial New England to outlive two or three wives. Of the first eighteen women who came to Massachusetts in 1628 for example, fourteen died within a year." (pg. 13)

The other thing in having a family is it adds drama. Franklin fathered a few children himself. One died of Smallpox before he could be inoculated against the disease. At the time, even then, there were "anti-Vaxxers" who believed it was bad to be inoculated. Franklin was not one of them and made his positions clear on the subject often.

Among Franklin's brood was William, an illegitimate son, who in turn sired Template, another illegitimate child. William was a Loyalist to England who wound up on the wrong side of history and estranged from his father.

What was worse was that Template was with Benjamin Franklin instead of being with his own father. This gave Benjamin huge swathes of influence over the young man. The generational gaps would never be healed in their instances.

In games with long-lived races such as elves, who can bear half-elves, generational stories might not be that unusual. For his time, Franklin lived an enormously long time, dying at 84. In a game where characters can live hundreds of years?

Franklin was also a bit of a scientist. One of the things he invented, or at least is credited with, are bi-focal glasses. My mom long having used these, it's one thing I'd have to tip my at to him for.

But another thing is the lightning rod.

Reading this book, it quickly became apparently that lightning strikes inflicted much damage to property, setting fires and killing scores or people at a time. "For centuries, the devastating scourge of lightning had generally been considered a supernatural phenomenon or expression of God's will. At the approach of a storm, church bells were run to ward off the bolts. "The tones of the consecrated metal repel the demon and avert storm and lightning," declared St. Thomas Aquinas. But even the most religiously faithful were likely to have noticed this was not very effective. During one thirty-five-year period in Germany alone during the mid-1700s, 386 churches were struck and more than one hundred bell ringers killed. In Venice, some three thousand people were killed when tons of gunpowder stored in a church was hit." (pg 137)

And Benjamin Franklin solved that problem.

Which is probably just one of those things taken for granted in pretty much every fantasy setting. While still ignoring guns. Because you know, guns are bad?

I know I'm harping on it but it strikes me as strange, and I get that for other people who've grown up on just traditional fantasy that it's just the way things are.

Like most fantasy settings being one giant continent and travel being a matter of going from one place to another via horse. Whereas Franklin himself made some odd eight trips across the ocean. He traveled from his home in America to London. He traveled to Paris. He traveled all about in those places including Ireland and Scotland. Most fantasy settings have a hard time getting one period of England, so they tend to include all of them. And Vikings. And pirates. And various merchants boats that really have nowhere to go as even in the Forgotten Realms, their 'Jungels of Chult' is still on the mainland itself.

So the fantasy books fill their pages with these massive and impressive ships trying to capture the era and age of piracy and capture the look often, and some of the technical specs, but then, of course, leave out all of the cannons.

Mind you, I suspect part of this is that most game mechanics fail to get weapons right in the first place. The stats most weapons have isn't based on historical accuracy or leathalness, they are based on balancing game mechanics.

I've  read in some of the Cornwell research and elsewhere, including this book, that Franklin bemoaned the lack of trained archers in the colonies because archers could be so much more dangerous than the standard musket fire of the time. The speed, accuracy, and intimation factors were huge bonuses.

The amount of time Franklin lived, and his practical application of science to the working world, also allowed him to change it. This is something that most games seem reluctant to do. Oh sure, they'll make changes in a huge edition switch, move the timeline up, ignore players and their characters for a hundred years, and render numerous sourcebooks obsolete, but allow the players themselves to change the setting?

In a way, it's a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation. If you allow the players to make huge changes to the setting, future sourcebooks in the setting become less and less useful. Oh, these nations invented X finally? The players in your campaign invested and distributed X months ago in the real world and over a year ago in game time.

In addition to the inventions, Franklin lived in a world of shifting alliances. The French would use natives to attack the then British colonies. The colonies would have to form their own militias and also seek out help from Britan. Britan would send help, but there was always cost associated with that.

Later, when fighting against Britan, the Colonies would seek out help from the French, who themselves had to work with their allies, the Spanish, as both countries were against the British but had lost much face and strength against the British in previous wars.

There are also the numerous places Franklin goes and visits and the happenings around him. This is a man who formed the Junto, an organization of like minded thinkers to advance each other's social standing and financial standing. He's also a man so well loved that when he last left France, the party thrown for him aboard his departing boat lasted until four in the morning.

His home in America was changed to accommodate his larger family including a connection between the two houses. This could lead to some interesting designs if there were upper walkways as opposed to just two houses connected through a basement.

Benjamin Franklin, An American Life, is a well written and well researched tale. It gives you a taste of those in power, those rising in power, and the era that Franklin would help herald in. He was far from a perfect man, and his deism ways would cause friction with numerous parties including such famous individuals as Samuel Adams among others.

Walter Isaacson brings the time, the struggle, and the flaws of the great man, the so  called First American, to light in a way that few before or after have mached. Well worth  the reading if you want to get the old brain juices flowing.

Sword of State by Nigel Tranter

Sword of State
Written by Nigel Tranter
336 Pages

I'd never heard of Nigel Tranter before picking up Sword of State. It was one of my finds on the good old $1 rack in Half Price Books in Skokie.

I'm a sucker for historical fiction.

But it's really not historical fiction. It's like a history book that wants to be a fiction book.

Dialog? Minimal.

Story elements or descriptions of the times? Minimal.

Recording the events of the time as they happened? Dead on.

Not everyone has the ability of say Bernard Cornwell to put historical fiction into a rousing tale.

If you want a play by play of events as they happened, though, Sword of State is $3.99 on the kindle format right now, and even more affordable in hardcover format as it's well out of print and not rare.

Having said that, it's time to think how this could be useful for running a campaign.

Character Build. One problem I see in a lot of players is that they make their characters to be these weird self-sufficient bits that have no hooks into the campaign setting. This doesn't matter if it's a super hero setting or a fantasy setting. So many dark wolf loners that don't care about anything but vengeance.

That can be boring in that it doesn't lend itself to a campaign contribution.

What do I mean? Let's look at Patrick here.

Patrick has a father, Cospatrick. There can be only one Cospatrick at a time as a matter of tradition and culture. When Cospatrick dies, Patrick will take that mantle. This little bit of tradition is something that adds to the campaign.

There are things that happen in the setting that revolves around family.

For example, marriage.

And here's the thing, the marriage itself doesn't have to be between player characters, it can be NPC's in the background. The important thing is that it's creating a social event. This creates a gathering of characters around the event.

If it follows the ways of comics, this could be one of those times when the bad guys come around and aren't vile miscreants, but it could just as easily be a time when the villains think it's the perfect time to strike.

In a fantasy setting, the same is true. Perhaps the players need an introduction to some figure but don't have the social status to just up and approach them. Going to a wedding and doing so there could be a great time to make an impression.

Outside of marriage, we have children.

Again, in super hero comics, there are often quests to save the poor mother to be such as when Reed Richards has to delve into the Negative Zone to find a cure for his wife's ailment.

But it's also a great time to throw another social event. It's a time when rulers may provide gifts of land. It's a time when people who may be estranged come together for the sake of the children. Perhaps the characters have parents who never visit, but now with the birth of a granddaughter, they do!

And lastly, when it comes to family, there is death.

This is another social event. Depending on the nature of who died, it may be made a social holiday. It may be a time of celebration. It may be a time of celebration for some and mourning for others. Few men die perfect world round.

Even those who history tends to treat kindly such as Winston Churchill may not be fondly remembered by say, families of the French Navy.

But what else can be brought out into gaming from Sword of State?

Hunting!

In the manga Berserk, it uses the social event of hunting to great effect to allow the Band of the Hawk the seeming appearnace of saving the Princess Charlotte from assassination.

In George R. R. Martin's modern fantasy classic, A Game of Thrones, it is an off stage hunting accident that brings war to the kingdoms.

Hunting can have a social part and a combat encounter part.

Are the characters there to meet new individuals or to prove themselves?

Are the characters there as body guards?

Another element that can be brought into the campaign is that of trade.

There is a market crash of Scotland Wool that Patrick has to investigate. If this were told as it's own story, the levels of intrigue and corruption could be a book in and of itself.

Nigel Tranter treats it as "X happened, Y happened, Z happened."

But even in that, Patrick goes to find out why the price has dropped. He offers new ways of sorting out the costs, noting that not every country wool prices have fallen, he goes on to explore new markets for the wool and finds that other products, such as salted meat and stone, may be highly desirable in those other markets as well.

In a traditional campaign, the mere act of questioning why the wool was cheaper might have brought individuals out of the shadows who were seeking to create a monopoly on the product.

It might have brought out bribes and attempts at blackmail.

And that sounds crazy over wool, but man, in the real world we've seen some strange stuff involving what people want to control and regulate so no, it's not that off the wall.

I give Nigel Tranter kudos for his research into this era and the inspiration it brings forth when thinking of how these things can be taken for anyone's campaign. For those who've read other Tranter novels, are particular recommendations? I see he has a huge catalog and while I'm not impressed with his style, his substance is strong.

The Eagles' Brood

The Eagles' Brood
Written by Jack Whyte
Book 3 of the Camulod Chronicles
Price: $25.99 ($16.04 at Amazon)
Historical Fiction/Fantasy (Arthurian)
Pages: 623 (mass paperback)

The Eagle's Brood is Book Three in the Camulod Chronicles. The series reimagines the Arthurian mythos from well before King Arthur's time, indeed, even before Uther's time. The chronicle is focused in a historical manner with a few nods to things that 'could' be interpreted as 'magic' or 'mysticism' but happen all the time such as deja vu.

Because Jack Whyte is always moving the series forward, The Eagles' Brood introduces a new point of view character and it is no less than Caius Merlyn Britannicus or simply Merlyn. This version of Merlyn is unlike any I can actively recall. He's no seer. No prophet. No magi-. No wild druid.

This Caius Merlyn Britannicus is a soldier, a leader, and a strategist. In this, he is joined by his cousin, Uther Pendragon. The two are the heirs of the growing colony, Camulod. They strive to keep all that is best from the old Roman Republic alive while adapting to their homeland.

As they do this, they find enemies about them including Lot, a king to the south whose ambitions include taking over Camulod and indeed, all lands.

Jack Whyte does a fantastic job of detailing out the ruin of the island as more and more traces of civilization fade. Without roads and with what crumbling infrastructure remains falling under constant attack by Saxon raids, civilization itself, or at least civilization in the cities, begins to fall apart.

Even as that happens, Uther and others craft and create their own weapons. Uther discovers stirrups for riding a horse. As I've read a few stories dealing with the Arthurian mythos, this bit struck in in particular until I did some cross references. Ben Bova did something similar with Orion, a time traveller who also helped King Arthur.



Uther on the other hand, invents the flail. This turns out to be a widely used killing weapon capable of smashing skulls and destroying breastplates as if they weren't there. The early day weapons and revisions to counter the new weapons plays out well in the novel.

This first person telling of Arthurian myth in a historical fashion is different than say, Bernard Cornwell and his own first person telling in the Warlord Chronicles.



For me, the Warlord Chronicles was all about the strategy. All about the terror and exultation of being in the shield wall.

And it's not that Jack Whyte doesn't have several combat scenes within his tale, but rather, they serve to move the story forward to the next character moments. The characters and their fates are what keeps the series moving forward.

I was a little worried by book two what I took as numerous useless passages but here the story movies quick and the character beats are solid. At the end I was left wanting to pick up the next chronicle ot find out "what happens now!".

If you're looking for an Arthurian version that tries to stick with the historical as opposed to the fantastic, The Eagles' Brood should be on your reading list.

Vagabond by Bernard Cornwell

Vagabond

Book Two in the Grail Quest Trilogy

Bernard Cornwell

416 pages

Historical Fiction

Vagabond is book two in the Grail Quest series. It follows on the Archer’s Tale, and continues the chronicles of Thomas the Archer and his quest to find the Holy Grail.

A well detailed historical adventure bouncing between England and France and various places within and about, Vagabond is a solid read that fans of the English wars that Bernard Cornwell writes about in his various historical fiction series will enjoy.

Thomas is an interesting viewpoint character not only because he is likeable, but because despite his charm and skills, he’s failable. He suffers loss after loss but continues to strive against the darkness and to seek redress against those who’ve wronged him.

In so doing, he encounters many interesting characters. These characters, makes Vagabond a entertaining read. There are those who stand against Thomas, like fellow Englishman the "Scarecrow" who rules over his own band of thugs including the enormous footpad known simply as “the Beggar”. These unique names give the characters their own life.

It’s not just the villains that give Thomas’s world such color. His Jewish doctor friend Mordecai for example, provides an entirely different viewpoint to the times that Thomas is living in. At one point, Mordecai mentions his son is going to be a doctor and Thomas feels that Mordecai is going to compare the righteousness of being a healer against Thomas' own cause or being an archer. In this case, that’s not it at all. As a Jew, Mordecai’s son isn’t allowed the right to use weapons. The inherent discrimination, the systematic discrimination, is palpable.

And Thomas himself? He's raised with a great degree of education. He speaks English well enough, but also Latin and French. He can write. He is knowledge of nobility but isn't of "pure" noble blood but rather a bastard. This limits him but allows him to mix circles. One of his friends is even a captured enemy from another country and the two grow to become close friends.

Bernard Cornwell doesn't shy away from the absurdities of things. Multiple nations shouting out to the same God to strike down their foe. Class discrimination abounds in both the attitudes of nobles against commoners and even against half-blood bastards like Thomas himself. The plight of women against an entrenched society that literally rapes them almost at will.

The author manages to keep the reader interested in numerous little things. One of my favorite, is how the giant siege weapons are all named. It gives them a sense of personality. The advancement of the story through the seasons also shows time passing, further entangling the reader into the believability of the tale.

Bernard Cornwell wraps things up at the end with justice delivered to some of Thomas' foes, but not all. No, for that, future adventurers await in the next tale, Heretic, but for now, there is peace.

If you want an action packed blockbuster style novel, Vagabond is your next read.

Granuaile: Ireland's Pirate Queen Grace O'Malley c.1530-1603 by Anne Chambers

I was looking for the SteelBonnets, the story of Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers in the Half-Price in Skokie. I was fortunate and found it.

But in addition, I found Granuaile, Ireland’s Pirate Queen, Grace O’Malley c. 1530-1603, written by Anne Chambers.

For others more familiar with history and the women who shaped it, Grace O'Malley is probably old hat but for me?

As the old James Brown song goes, “It’s a Man’s World.” So when I see something that says, “Hey, in a time and era where women were not expected to be pirate queen’s, here we go!”, I was intrigued to say the least.

I’d never read any work by Anne Chambers before. This one read easy. It’s broken up into chunks of Grace’s life, her family’s life and history, and more importantly, the context of the time.

Grace’s family motto was “powerful by land and sea”. They were “lords of the seas around Ireland.” This included ‘the right to levy tolls for safe passage and the right to sell fishing rights to foreign fleets.”

Anne notes that “unlike most coastal families, the O’Malleys were themselves intrepid seafarers, whose seafaring was not confined to Ireland.” By having this skill set, the O’Malleys are already a step above many others who only use their coastal rights to set charges. They are in the action.

Being so in the action, the “plundered as far as Spain and Scotland.” Being so far afield from home sets a precedent that comes into play later. If one can get to Spain and Scotland from Ireland, one’s reach and grasp are further than those lords who only know Ireland itself.

I like books like this when the author gives the reader a bit of an idea of what people were doing. Here we see “Herring was the principal species caught, with hake, cod, ling, turbot, salmon, and shellfish. The fish was usually salted, sometimes dried and packed in wooden barrels for export. Hides, tallow, freize cloth, deer and sheepskins, furs such as pinemarten, considered a highly fashionable accessory in the sixteenth century, coney, fox and otter were other important commodities from the west of Ireland which found a ready market abroad.”

That’s a lot to take in, but provides a huge swatch of information at the same time. It was no simple thing that the O’Malleys did.

The tone of the book, in its era, in its time, reminds me of another time and another place.

In the late 14^th century, Italy was no whole country. It was a collection of independent city-states. This made the country easy pickings for Spain and France, among others, who sought to conquer Italy and even sacked the Holy City of Rome.

The Ireland that Granuaile inhabits, is much the same. There is no collective so powerful that it rules the country entire. Being a pirate queen, one who’s known to have visited Spain and Scotland, she is reputed to have sought out mercenaries and allies from those places. Dangerous charges indeed.

Due to Ireland having no central government capable of fully resisting the might of England, the country falls over the course of Grace’s life. She goes from suffering mightily under the hands of one of England’s lords, one Richard Bingham, to eventually serving Queen Elizabeth.

Anne Chambers wastes few words in discussing the similarities and differences between the two. Granuaile physically taller, but not possessing the same level of sophistication as Elizabeth.

Elizabeth, proud queen and ruler, but no husband. The ‘Virgin’ Queen. Grace? Two husbands and children.

Both women in an era and time that did not allow women to seize such destiny unless they were of bold nature and cunning wit.

Both proved to have it.

In Grace's case though, Anne argues that the Pirate Queen hasn't received her due for numerous reasons. The first of which, is she was not a 'patriot' of Ireland. In a time where only very recently have relations between England and Ireland been 'civil', to capitulate to England during the start of the takeover must have seemed traitorous at best.

Folklore and mythology mixed with oral history didn't let that tradition or information die out though.

Anne also makes a comparison between Grace and her ancient ancestors, suggesting that women had a much larger and more prominent role in Ireland, indeed, in much of the world, before the spread of Roman civilization which brought with it Christianity. 

And Christianity pushed those other goddesses to the back along with the leadership roles that women had.

I'm not a historian, not even an armchair one, but that's an idea that on its surface, seems to have merit and is well worth looking into (as I'm sure many have already done.)

In addition to the text, Anne includes numerous aids for the reader. These include the following:

·          a map of Ireland circa 1530 broekn up by principal lordships,

·         a O’Mally Coat of Arms,

·         an image of a regular galley, as well of one of Granuaile’s,

·         a map of Ireland 1609.

·         Map of Galway City 1611

·         Numerous black and white paintings

·         Photographs including Clare Island Castle, Kildawnet Castle, Howth Castle, Carraigahowle Castle, 

a     among others.

The appendixes are full of great tools to immerse the reader into the time of Grace including poems, paperwork, and other bits that provide a unique look into the life of someone who lived from 1530-1603.

Anyone looking for an example of how even in ‘history’, one can push against the tides and accomplish great deeds needs look no further than Granuaile.

Spartacus: Top Five Reasons To Play Gladiators

Watching Spartacus, there are a lot of gladiators. There are a lot of tales told about specific gladiators before one even sets foot in the arena.

There are gladiators who are visually designed to appeal to both the crowd and in a meta sense, the viewers. 

For gaming, gladiators can be broken down into a few different venues.

1. Colorful Names: The Undefeated Gaul! The Shadow of Death! Gladiators are colorful champions and they have names that reflect that need. These names can be a combination of homeland and status or a fearsome name designed to strike fear into enemies. Spartacus own name isn't his name mind you but it is the name of an ancient Thracian king.

2. Variety of Characters: The show includes a wide range of characters from different ethnic backgrounds. These include almost anyone of the ancient world ranging from Gaul, Roman, Thracian, Assyrian, and others. This melting pot of different characters allows players to select from a wide variety of racial origins without having to over think "Why on earth is this dragon born here?"

3. Variety of Weapons and Fighting Styles: Spartacus and the former "God of the Arena" are both masters of the two sword fighting style. Others are masters of spear and shield or trident and net. An arena is the perfect place to have characters wield those odd weapons that might not make sense in a more conventional setting.

4. Variety of Enemies: The types of foes that gladiators encounter ranges from other gladiators to captured beasts. In a fantasy setting, this can be changed up dramatically with constructs built specifically to battle the gladiators or to train them. It can include summoned creatures brought forth to test the gladiator's mettle. It may also include the odd wanderer who fancies himself an unstoppable swordsman who needs a little money and so signs up for an encounter.

5. Patrons: By having characters fight in an arena, chances are they may have patrons that sponsor their fights are award them when they win. This provides the Game Master with a quick "In" as to why the players are fighting. Patrons with ambitions that go beyond gladiator arenas may have other odd jobs for their skilled men at arms and may have them act as bodyguards, fight in underground arenas or even act as thug and assassin when needed.

Spartacus: Character Study: Ashur

I've been watching Spartacus on Netflix.

I consider it a guilty pleasure.

One of the things I thought interesting, was how the different relationships and the different characters play off of one another on numerous levels.

Let's look at one of the 'bad' guys, Ashur.

Ashur is an Assyrian brought in with another Assyrian, Dagan. Of the two, Dagan is the superior warrior, but Ashur has value in that Dagan doesn't speak the local tongue and Ashur does. This allows Ashur some measure of diplomacy between Dagan and others.

Initially Ashur seems eager to honestly be a part of the 'Brotherhood' where the Gladiators respect one another.

Problem is that he doesn't earn it the way the other gladiators earn theirs.

See Ashur and others follow their master, loyaly, and do things that Gladiators aren't normally a part of. Something evil and sly, assassination for their lord and master.

The reward? The brand of the gladiator and the scorn of those gladiators at the same time.

Ashur's use in translations continues to be useful but at the same time, because Dagan is the superior combatant, Ashur, who wasn't accepted in the first place, continues to fall further and further behind in estimation. This causes Ashur to make some decisions that don't please Dagan.

Things continue to go south when in a duel, Ashur 'cheats' and winds up blinding Dagan in one eye.

It goes further south when later, in a duel against another house's gladiators, Ashur suggests an alliance between himself and Crixus against the champion of their own house. Crixus responds by slashing Ashur's leg and pushing him into flames resulting in Ashur's status becoming even lower.

But somewhere during that low period, Ashur puts to use his wits and takes bets and controls money. He also spies for his lord while in the city and spreads disinformation and fakes alliances with those who seek to bring his house down.

At one point, his owner values him so much that he declares that Ashur is no mere gladiator but almost like one of his lord's hands.

Of course things come crumbling down with the whole Spartacus rebellion thing mind you...

But Ashur survives that as well! Using cunning, he escapes his fate by hiding among the dead and even helping another survive the fall of the house.

And in so doing, is rewarded with a new master who demands Ashur remove his old brand. Never mind that this requires cutting off a nice chunk of skin with that brand and takes forever to heal. It also requires Ashur to prove his point that one gladiator is worth three soldiers when he is forced to fight for his live against soldiers, but while winning, wisely holds back from killing those he fights.

His street connections enables him to gather a crew of unique mercenaries and to be a valuable asset but all is set to waste for poor Ashur when he is accused of a crime he didn't actually commit and he winds up proving his loyalty one last time taking a message to Spartacus where his overconfidence in battle leads to him being slain.

Interestingly enough, while the series Spartacus doesn't delve too deeply into racial relations, the fact that Ashur was Assyrian is enough to poison the thoughts of the slaves when they encounter another Assyrian later on. It's a subtle dig at how racism, either between Gaul and Thracian, or between Celt and Gault, is portrayed in the series.

In looking at his motivations overall, I would throw the following on him.

Petty Ambitions: While there are some in the Spartacus series that have grand overpowering ambitions, Ashur's are much simpler. An easy life, wine, food, women, and whatever else it takes to survive.

Respect: Perhaps even his number one ambition. Ashur seeks to be champion, even when he knows not capable of it. He seeks to return to the arena and win respect, even disappointed as his master tells him that he's far too valuable for such a position.

Vengeful: Much of what Ashur does that is vile, including his treatment of Naevia, is in part a result of the way others have treated him. Most think that because Ashur is the least physical among them in terms of fighting prowess alone, that he is not worthy of consideration only to learn later on that he is a master manipulator.

Loyal: While I list it last, it's important to note that Ashur had opportunity to escape his circumstances on more than one occasion and made the decision to stick with his master at the time, even thought in the end, this results in his death.

By making Ashur more than just a mustache twirling villain, the writers of Spartacus give us a character whose motivations may be easy to see, but there are motivations nonetheless.

Were there any characters that stood out for other views of Spartacus? Any villains where you were like, "Man, I can't wait to see this guy get his!" or surprised at how they went?

The Vinland Sagas

I may have mentioned it in the past, but I try to read a little bit of this and that. I don't stick with just fantasy or space opera. When I was in college, I had a few classes on various bits of historical lore including some Shakespeare work. I find that it helps keep the mind engaged.

Recently I took the dive on The Vinland Saga because of the History Channel and it's Vikings series. I'm looking forward to season three hitting this February. There's also my enjoyment of Bernard Cornwell's series, Saxon Tales, the latest, the Empty Throne, having come out not long ago..

I made the mistake of reading the introduction and it's rammed with information. So much information. So much of it jumping from one point to the other with names and locations and weird things popping up that I thought I'd scribe a few down for those interested in names. Included at the end of the article. Also included some of the locations that are mentioned.

It's a feast of information but the context it comes in is relatively small. The bulk of the book isn't the story, it's about farms, it's about ships, it's about the historical research that went into the Vinland Sagas and trying to verify them.

It's almost hard to see how there's a manga called the Vinland Saga the cribs some names from this and then goes into some well illustrated highly unlikely bits. While I've heard some compare Vinland Saga to Berserk, there are no obvious supernatural elements in the volumes I've read. 

Have a list of names, locations, and weird bits!

People

Arnora, the daughter of Einar of Laugarbrekka, the son of Sigmund, son of Ketil Thistle who had claimed land in Thistilfjord. Aud the Deep-minded, daughter of Ketil Flat-nose, son of Bjorn Buna, wife of Oleif. Bjarni Herjolfsson

Eirik the Red

Freydis, daughter of Eirik the Red

Gudrid Thorbjarnardottri

King Olaf the peaceful of Norway

Leif Eiriksson the Lucky Oleif the White, son of King Ingjald, who was the son of Helgi, who was son of Olaf, who was son of Gudrod, who was son of Halfdan White-leg, king of the people of Oppland.

Rafarta, daughter of King Kjarval of Ireland

Snorri: Child born in America to Thorfinn Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjarnardottir

Svein Ulfsson, Danish King

Thorbjorg, a seeress who was called the 'Little Prophetess'. She was one of ten sisters, all of whom had the gift of prophecy, and was the only one of them still alive. Thorfinn Karlsefni

Thorstein

Thorvald

Locations

Brattahild

Breidafjord, customary way of describing people who are born in Iceland.

Dalir in the Breidafjord area

Drangar on Hornstrandir

Eiriksstadir in Haukadal, Iceland

Hebrides

Jaeren in Norway

Keel Point, a peninsula

Lysufjord in the western settlement of Greenland.

Skagafjord, Iceland

Random Bits

Find a beached whale: That's pretty damn random and I thought it worth cribbing down. Just goes to show that you never know what life is going to throw at you. The Vikings quickly make food out of it, cooking it right on the beach.

Rescue some people who have been shipwrecked. (Considered a lucky act): This is part of the culture. If you see people on a sinking ship, save them! Mind you depending on what type of raider viking you are, you might be enslaving them but better you than the sharks eh?

Skraelings: I've seen the name used before and honestly didn't remember that's what the vikings called the natives of the lands they encountered, including those in North America.

Cesare Borgia: Advocate or Antagonist

With his position as the son of the Pope and his ambition to united Italy, Cesare Borgia is an excellent historical character to view in terms of how someone like him could be used in a role playing game. Many RPGs, including fantasy, post apocalyptic, and even science-fiction, often have some type of 'Border Kingdoms' where the right person with the right backing and the right timing and fortune, can make of themselves something new that rivals the old powers.

So how would someone like Cesare be used?

1. Patron: This is the most obvious use of a character like Cesare. Much like Griffith from the anime and manga Berserk, Cesare is going to need "feet on the ground" to do things that he himself might not be able to do, or should be seen doing.

1a. Assassination: There is a specific political opponent that needs to be eliminated.

1b. Kidnapping: In order to insure compliance of some allies, some children will need to be kidnapped.

1c. Liberation: Say you have a target that is necessary to acquire and in most instances, would willingly ally with you, but hey, the enemy boss used a little of that 1b and now the characters have to go and free those taken hostage.

1d. Defend the Fort: During his imprisonment, one of the only things that kept Cesare alive, was his forts manned by his loyal commanders, could not be taken. The players could be those commanders.

1e. Spies: One of the strengths Cesare had, was not in his actual military commanding or his own personal fighting ability. No, rather, it was his tight grip on accurate and recent news. He was able to take advantage of his enemies ignorance and use shock and awe techniques and often didn't have to strike a single blow.

1f. Scouts: While similar to the above, it's more of an outdoor thing. In the Borgias series, Cesare is able to take a fortress without a lengthy siege by discovering its weakness. In history, Cesare used speed of troop to navigate his forces where they were not expected to be. Players could be the ones scouting out passes, mountain trails, and other routes that haven't been in use for years or creating new routes specifically for the soldiers.

1g. Strategic Targets: In one of the various Troll Slayer novels about Felix and Gortex, the pair are in city under siege. Some of the weapons being used to bring death and destruction and demonic siege weapons. Gortex takes battle axe in hand and goes out in a sneak attack mission to cripple those weapons and give the city further time to repel the invasion.

2. Enemy: What happens if Cesare is on the opposite side of the characters and how would that happen if he's been using them?

2a: An Example Must Be Made: One of the things Cesare did was kill one of the harsh commanders that inflicted discipline on the newly formed barony. He did this in order to assuage the fear and loathing that the common people had of the man, and the forces he belong to. By killing that commander, Cesare was able to lift the people's spirits and able to insure that the people were loyal to him.

2b: It's a Mistake: One of the keys of drama is misunderstood circumstances. Imagine that the players are relaxing at City A when their master's chief enemy comes into the city unknown to them. Would you believe that it was a coincidence? Or what if one of the player character's has a relative that starts working against the player character's patron?

2c: Cost Savings: Well, I know that I agreed to pay you X, but it's simply easier to kill you at this point. One of the problems with working with unscrupulous individuals is that there often comes that moment of "curse you for your sudden but inevitable betrayal."

2d: Player Strikes Back: If the players are powerful enough, they may decide that this setting yourself up as a baron and ruler isn't a bad idea and go against their patron before the nobles even know what hit them.

When looking at patrons, allies, and enemies, there are many options that the GM should consider and how those elements may play out. For example, suppose that none of the above happen, but when a new official of some importance is elected, either religious, criminal, or military, and they say, "We're now turning our eye to your patron. If you're there, you will not be."

Cesare for example, did very well while his father the Pope was still alive. But when the Pope died and Cesare's enemy became pope? It was all over for a large number of people. The players have to decide if they want a last man standing showdown that they can't win or wash their hands of the whole thing.

The Artist, the Philosopher, and the Warrior by Paul Strathern

After watching the Borgias and Borgia, two separate shows based on the infamous Italian family of the 1500s, I was curious to see what others had written about them. Seeing The Artist, the Philosopher, and the Warrior, a book discussing Da Vinci, Machiavelli, and Borgia, three figures fairly well known to modern audiences, I was curious as to their historical importance to one another.

In the Showtime special, I don't remember Da Vinci at all to be honest. Machiavelli showed up mind you and was well played. In the Borgia series though, Da Vinci is part and present with Machiavelli and Cesare Borgia. There is a great scene in the later where Cesare is atop an armored carriage with his famous slogan, "Caesar or Nothing" in all his prime and power while Da Vinci quickly sketches him.

Written by Paul Strathern, the author of Napoleon in Egypt among others, I'd never read anything by Paul before. Fortunately, his writing voice is easy and flows nicely. Reading the book is a pleasure. The author presents several sources of information and informs the reader when these sources are questioned and provides a massive "Notes" section which provides where the information is drawn from.

Paul brings the reader to prior to the three meeting, as well as what happens when they meet, and what their eventual ends are. The author notes that in their own time, they were often considered failures. While Da Vinci was known for his impressive and wide ranging talents, his inability to FINISH things was well known to his many patrons who often grew tired of that. He was fortunate to die under the patronage of the current king of France who treated Da Vinci almost like a father figure and kept him around only for company and didn't expect anything from him.

Machiavelli, best known perhaps for his writing of the Prince, which is based off of his meeting with Cesare Borgia. It even notes where exactly that Machiavelli believes that Cesare failed in not realizing his power base from his father the Pope was more important to Cesare that he realized and helping to elect the man who would wind up being his doom, Julius II.

Machiavelli, due to what he refers to as "Fortune" is cast down from his lofty position and winds up living much of his end days out on his familial lands in poverty and away from 'the action' of the court. Even when he manages to write the Prince, it turns out that the people of the time are more shocked and horrified of it then awed by it. The Prince, and all books by Machiavelli, wind up going into a books banned by the Church list. Going against the church is never a good thing, and in an Italy where the Pope is actively engaged in things? Even worse.

Cesare? After many years of what must seemed to have been almost super human 'Fortune', suffers setback after setback when he no longer has Papal forces at his command. After taking over much of the Romagna, and installing law that brought its own peace and even a level of joy to the people who lived there, the Romagna is taken from Cesare and Cesare suffers capture.

To me, it's interesting that the author speculates that Cesare, after having suffered these many setbacks, including almost dying of the same disease (or perhaps poisoning) that killed his father, in effect commits suicide through recklessness. This is a theme I've seen played out when Police Officers start taking unnecessary risks, or firefighters or any occupation that is inherently dangerous in the first place. Even comic books don't escape this theory as it was recently decided that Cyclops of the X-men, was committing "Suicide by Supervillain."

While Paul doesn't provide a ton of depth to the information here, he does bring out a lot of the interesting aspects and speculates on others backed up with the information on hand. In addition, with all of the reference work at the back of the book, I can't imagine anyone who wants to know more about this time period and these people, would be leaving the book with no further place to go.

If you're looking for more information about three three and the world they shared and some of those they shared it with, like  Louis XII, Alexander VI,  della Rovere, the Sforzas, Orsinis, and Medicis. Many of these famous in and of themselves, but together, forming an impressive tapestry of historical significance.

The Borgias: Season Three

Damn you Showtime! I finally catch up on everything and discover that this was meant to be a four season series that was cut short by a whole season? Curse your financials that prevent this from coming out!

Yeah, I enjoyed it in case you can't tell. The tensions between family members come to a head in a big way between father and son, and between sister and brother and not everything works out in such a happy campy charming way that leaves me wondering where Showtime was going to take it.

Yeah, I saw that they came out with a $9.99 e-book but the reviews on that one are all over the place and let's be honest, I'm not paying $10 for a e-book for a show I watched on Netflix. Pass!

Jeremy Irons continues to knock it out of the park and his son, Francois Arnaud aka Cesare Borgia, have some great scenes that will be heart felt to anyone whose ever had issues with their own father in terms of trust and living up to what they wanted to be while trying to make that parent happy at the same time.

The Borgias season three is available on blu ray for $30.35 from Amazon but is streaming free on Netflix now. I was so interested in the time period and other bits going on I decided to check out another series based on the Borgias and it's been very interesting thus far with a lot of similarities but a ton of differences so will make for some interesting compare and contrast bits later.

So in terms of role playing fodder though, where to start...

1. Minor Characters: Throughout the whole of the series, Cesare has had a henchman, Micheletto Corella, who acted as his assassin and his right hand in many things. The character arcs Micheletto go through take him out of Cesare's orbit. Real life can be a PIA. Work, sickness, birth, death, vacations and other things can take players in and out of the game. Having reasons why the player's character retries as opposed to die are handy to have and having one suffer from emotional distress provides a quick way of allowing a player to bring a favorite back as opposed to having a character die and then come back for some odd ball reason.

2. Traps: Learning that pilgrims are skipping out on Rome to see another holy site, Cesare investigates knowing full well that it may be a trap. Turns out it is. Some traps have to be investigated head on while others do not. In this case the relic was a shroud of the bleeding Christ that tears were of blood. The trap? Blowing the entire cave up while Cesare was in it. Anyone whose seen the Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug will also be familiar with a character walking into a trap as Gandalf, knowing full well that something is waiting for him, goes into the ruins of the Necromancer in order to expose him.

3. Poison: Season two ended with the Pope being poisoned but he is quickly saved by the knowledge that Lucrezia has of poisons. While in his weakened state, the pope learns more about who his friends and allies are, and who his enemies are. It allows him to navigate plans within plans while waiting to recover. Poison in most role playing games is often a "make a save or die" but while there are many such poisons in the world, there are also those that may incapacitate the poisoned for a while.

4. Factions: The one who poisoned the pope is captured but quickly escapes. When there are multiple factions involved in a situation, especially one as large as poisoning a pope, there may be those who seek to gain from that event even as there are those who seek to punish for it. Have plans for various events and how different factions will react to those situations. "If X happens, group Y will do the following while group Z will do the opposite." Having these things out ahead of time will prevent you as the Game Master from having to scrabble as opposed to having the NPCs having to scramble.

5. Innovative Siege Tactics: One of the interesting things that happens in the series, not based in real world history mind you, is that the castle of Caterina Sforza is taken when Cesare uses cannons to destroy the ground under a second of wall build atop an old mine. The cannon fire breaks the supports of the mine and gravity takes down the wall allowing the siege to be mopped up quickly. Allowing the players to have unique tactics that should work should be encouraged. In some instances, the Game Master should build should things deliberately into the setting so that there is a way to victory that doesn't necessarily involve 'the hard way'. Another example of this is seen in the anime/manga series Berserk where Griffith lays siege to a caste but that is only a rouse while his forces take the castle under cover of sand storm and open the gates to them.

Such tactics don't necessarily stop with siege warfare though. When Jews coming to Rome, the pope initially wants to tax them for a 'great crusade' against the Turk. The Jews counter offer though with a plan that burns the fleet of ships of the Turks to the oceanline. The careful use of the various Jewish merchants throughout the port cities, supplied with oil allows them access and means to do so.

6. Mercenaries: Second sons and bastard sons have a bit of a problem in a feudal or semi-feudal system. The inheritance can only go to one, and usually that's the eldest. So what is a second or third or even bastard son to do? Mercenary work is a good way of advancement. But as some historians note, mercenaries are not necessarily going to fight on a losing side just because they're initially agreed to it, especially if a better offer comes along. Having some sort of system to track a mercenaries 'honor' or 'valor' might be useful for players who want to hire some hirelings from time to time or even full fledged armies. Knowing who to trust though is even better.

 7. Unique Supplies: In the dreaded 'real' world, supplies are vital to all sorts of things. When certain parts of the modern world flood for example, some computer components may go up in price because they are outsourced there. In a darker time, when cannons need sulfur, controlling the supply of sulfur allows one to control the flow of war. One cannot make 'easy' war or 'modern' war without cannons and without sulfur, the canons are useless. In your own settings, are there any resources which control of is vital? Which control of may not even be seen as vital because they are from an outside source, but one that might be taken over or outright bought by a single source?

8. Financial Record Keeping: One of the cardinals accused of conspiring against the pope decides, ah what the hell, steals a bunch of land rights and titles, and burns the remaining information on the various wealth and coffers of the Church. Specialists have to be called in whose sole job is to discover the wealth that the Church has access to. Anyone whose read anything about the United States Government knows that often times there are resources unearthed decades after they were needed. If the players ever find themselves working for a government branch, don't be afraid to allow them access to resources that the government didn't even know it had.

For those who've watched other series, like the Tudors, did you find yourself stealing any particular ideas or bits for your own campaigns? For those who've watched the older version of the series, did you find yourself enjoying that one more or less?

For those running historical games, do you tend to stick with the 'real world' history as much as possible or play it fast and lose? One of the things I enjoyed about Mage's Renaissance setting was how open it appeared to be to having various cool things happen in a semi-historical period.

Vikings: The Complete First Season

I haven't had cable television in years. It's one of the reasons I'm always behind on television series. I heard good things about Vikings. I was a little surprised to learn that it was a History Chanel program, but I've since learned that their programming is winning all sorts of awards.  and when it first came out, for some reason Best Buy of all places, was selling the bluray version for something like $19.95. So I picked it up.

And time passed.

And finally I managed to watch the nine episodes that comprise season one.

If you're looking from a grim and gritty take on the start of the viking invasion of England, this is right up your alley. The costumes, soundtracks, and landscapes, ranging from mountains and hills and rolling fields, to the ever present sea, provide a possible look at what life would have been like all those long years ago.

Make no mistake, while there are protagonists and antagonists, this is a time of savagery and barbarism. Having said that, it interested me enough that when season two hits blu ray, I'll be looking forward to picking that up as well.

I haven't dug into the special features yet as my LG bluray player for the computer has decided at the last minute that hey, why would I want to work and allow you to actually enjoy your purchase? Go watch that on the tv and leave the computer alone.

Below I'll be discussing some of the things I enjoyed and how they may or may not fit your own role playing games.

1. Family. Strangely enough, Ragnar, who claims to be a son of Odin, the all father of the Nose deities, is a family man with a shield maiden wife and two children and a farm. These lands bond him to his Earl and insure that he has servants and animals of his own. His relationship with his family is one that the authors of the show use multiple times in order to draw him into conflict with others. Not only does he have this family, but he also has an ambitious brother Rollo.

Rollo is a great character to have in this show and would be tricky to do in a role playing game. For you see, Rollo is all about his own interests and rise. When he first joins with his brother Ragnar, they are supposed to do so as equals but Ragnar, perhaps due to his vision of wanting to raid the west in the first place, or having an ally capable enough to make a ship to survive the voyage, is the one hailed and whose renown grows. This sits ill with Rollo.

So Rollo is always being tempted to be against his brother. Initially this is 'merely' being a witness against Ragnar during a trial but when Ragnar's wife, Lagertha also stands to be killed, Rollo decides against it. His loyalty is tested later on as well and we'll see how that plays out in season two! The good thing though about Rollo, is you never quite know if he's actually against Ragnar.

And that's the problem for a role playing prospective. How often would you let someone seemingly betray you before you distanced yourself from them either by not travelling with them anymore or by attempting to kill them?

Family can have many functions in a campaign. They can be a place to rest when returning from adventure. In Lagertha's case, they can be direct assistance to the characters when they are low on resources because of her shield maid skills for example. They can also act as complications as when Ragnar is cheating on his wife and his son is infuriated with him over it.

2. Exploration. While the raids and the desire for new wealth is a huge part of why the vikings sail to the west, Ragnar at least, is seen as an explorer. He wants to visit new lands and learn new things. The desire to see what's over the next horizon fits perfectly in most role playing games where the state of roads and technology in general are low at best.

3. Tactics: Bernard Cornwell describes the shield wall in several of his viking and Arthurian sagas. The writers of Vikings do not shy away from it. I suppose my point is that as well loved as 'Tucker's Kobolds' are, don't punish the players when they use superior tactics and outflank the enemy or should be outflanking the enemy. Not every encounter should be one with enemies who fight just as intelligently as the players, especially if the foes the characters face are arrogant and cocksure of themselves. Who expects a night raid after all? Who expects extra traps to be set? Who expects a force to keep fighting when its members are wounded?

4. The Gods One of the things about The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett is that it played off of Middle East assumptions that it's better to die against the enemy than grow old. Vikings had similar attitudes and did not wish to die old women. This is showcased as one elder viking swears allegiance to Ragnar and wishes to raid and fight and die in combat so that he may enter the halls of valhalla. The willingness to die, the preference to die in such a cause, stands against that of those they face who'd rather live to fight another day.

5.Mind altering substances: In his first raid, Ragnar captures a priest who was wide traveled and can speak Ragnar's native tongue. Learning about the people who have made him a slave occurs gradually over the course of time, but also happens in ceremonies where in one instance, special leaves are burned that enhance the story telling about ragnarok and later on, mushrooms devoured and perceptions altered of events at a religious gathering. With the leaves burned, it shows that directly putting some mind altering substances don't have to be something that characters have to be 'hit' by or drunk down.

5. Distinctive Features: I've mentioned distinctive features as being useful tools to distinguish one character from another before. Ragnar's hair style and the tattoos on the side of his head for example, are very much distinctive from others. Scars, large body wide scars, are often visible on those who fight alongside Ragnar. Rollo, during one of his times of loyalty to Ragnar, or simply because he didn't actually know, is scared across both sides of his face by the Earl. Taking this to an extreme level, there is the Seer who serves the northmen. This seer is almost an albino and whose face is like melted wax with blackened lips. Truly distinctive!

Vikings has a lot going for it. Season one is available to stream for free from Amazon Prime right now, and on blu ray it runs $39.98.

The Coffee Trader by David Liss

While I enjoyed Peter V. Brett's novels in the Demon Cycle, I'm loath to order the next book and wait for it in the mail. Especially when I had dozens if not hundreds of books waiting to be read. Especially when there is another book or two after that third novel that hasn't even been released yet!


Among those is The Coffee Trader by David Liss, homepage here. It's worth a look at if you're a fan of historical fiction or comics. Yeah, that's right, David Liss writes comics as well. Sheesh.


I'm mentioned David Liss before, for example, the Whiskey Rebels, and he's a fantastic historical author. I find a lot of things to think about in terms of how the world was, how it is, and how those things can be applied to a role playing game.


For example, while I'm nowhere near finished with the Coffee Trader, there are numerous bits talking about the plight of Jews.


There is the terror of being a hidden Jew. One that has to do everything relating to its religion in secret and fear the Inquisition coming for them. One problem here is that because the Catholic Church gets your property and possessions if you're convicted of being a Jew, that prosperous merchants fall to the Inquisition even when they are not Jewish.


Another problem reveals itself, in talking about who to tell your faith to. I mention this because one of the ladies in the novel doesn't know she's Jewish until she's married off. Her father and family were worried that she would be too much like her mother and have a tendency to gossip which would result in the family being killed. So for her, being a Catholic who hates Jews is all she's ever known her whole life.


That makes an interesting character. Where one's training and background have all followed one path her entire life only to be told, "Well, that's not the truth." Even her 'real' name is different. The potential for character moments are high there.


In addition to the outside persecution though, there is still internal strife. When the characters feel they have a 'safe haven', they are taken in by the Jews of Amsterdam but then have to follow all of the laws of those Jewish tradition holders or be thrown out of the community. This leads some of the merchants and traders to do business in places out of the way, where they will not be seen by members of their community.


Now that's also role playing potential. Not only is there the risk of being spotted by members of your own faith and community and being thrown out for it, there's risk in putting yourself into those situations where no one from your faith or tribe can help you. In those out of the way locations, who knows what could happen.


The Coffee Trader is so far enjoyable and I'll probably have another post about it later. The role of faith and ethnicity and the merchant  background that David Liss brings the reader into are so far compelling and enjoyable while being thought provoking at the same time.

Barbarians, Marauders, and Infidels: The Ways of Medieval Warfare by Antonio Santosuosso

I would love to be an armchair historian. It's too much work though. I tend to read the same thing over and over from different resources and have some vague sense of where and when things happened but never get those specifics unless I'm digging for them.

Despite that, I enjoy reading historical material. Having some ideas on how history actually went, or was recorded at least, provides me with some fuel for role playing games that I enjoy, especially those that tend to be based on themes or ideas of 'dark ages' or non-modern eras where war was the common treat of the day.

Barbarians, Marauders, and Infidels fits that criteria perfectly. There is so much packed into this book that I could do several posts on it. The only problem with that is that I didn't mark it enough for that. But there were a few things I did mark down.

Kahina:I knew nothing about this Berber queen before reading this book. Reading it, and looking up further details though? She's almost mythical in terms of theme and stance and role in the fighting.

Or how about Alboin, a king who drank wine from a goblet made form the skull of a king killed by his hands in the lands of Pannonia?

There are also other bits I found interesting. For example, it talks about "Chinese salt" or gunpowder being used first in major battles by the Mongols, especially in their attempted invasion of Japan in 1274-1781, from whence it then passed to the Muslims, until finally landing in Roger Bacon's work.

Sadly, as much awesome as there is in this book, it was my 'car' book so I read it pretty much whenever I was waiting for my g/f or mom so while there is a ton of awesome in there, like how one group of conqueror's would allow a defeated army to leave unmolested, but kill the citizens of the lands that the conqueror's had already defeated because they were not loyal, or how knightly chivalry was image enhancing nonsense, my recollection of specifics is woefully weak and I've got a ton of other books to read over and forget.

The good news is that there are a ton of foot notes, and a ton of other books referenced here. If you are an actual armchair historian or someone who really digs into history, Antonio has a lot of reading planned for you.

The Whiskey Rebels by David Liss

I would not say with absolute certainty that The Whiskey Rebels is the best book I've read in 2013. After all, there is still another month to go and there is a lot of potential in that last month. Having said that, The Whiskey Rebels is the best book I've read in 2013. David Liss is always worth a read and this book, a done in one historical look at America right after the Revolutionary War, is a fascinating take on how to use historical fiction and fact to weave a fantastic story together.

There are so many things that make it useful to a person running a role playing game that it's an important reminder why people should regularly read outside of their genre, why they should stretch their mental muscle past its comfort zone.



I'll be discussing some specific things below from the book and how they might be useful in role
playing games.



Money. One of the biggest focuses of the book is in the accumulation of money. Anyone whose lived in America in the last, oh, say ten years, has seen the financial institutions take the economy to the brink and had to be saved from themselves only to eagerly go back to the very same behaviors that lead to the issues to begin with because they know that the government will back them up again should the need arise. This is something that doesn't necessarily get touched on often in role playing games because it can not only be boring, but can be more complex and less violent than a good old dungeon crawl.



In terms of money, no matter what the era, no matter when the time, there will be conflicts. there will be opportunities. There will be potential. As the book picks up right after the Revolutionary War, there are people attempting to control the new banks that are coming along. To fund them, or at least fund a specific one, there is a Whiskey Tax. This tax, on one side, seems harmless but to the people making the Whiskey?

Well, the whiskey in and of itself doesn't bring in funds. Instead, it's used as a bartering tool. An object of trade. There may be those who do make money off it, but those are not the people hurt by the tax.

Imagine Star Wars. The Emperor probably has those who are friends and allies and he could easily let slip that the Empire is going to build not one, but two death stars. Think of the manpower, the funding, the technology in terms of engineers and machines, needed to build that. Now we could go all, "Well, it's the Empire. No one is getting paid." Corruption pays off much better than tyranny. Look no further than China where it's not necessarily illegal to be bribed, merely illegal to be caught doing so eh?

Information is power. In a fantasy setting, if the players learn that a group of merchants is going to buy all of the land on the waterfront and sell it to the lords of the city in exchange for vast sums of wealth because they know that the lords of the city need that land for building defenses or something of that nature, what happens if the players decide to be the ones who buy the property? What happens if they already own it and are then put under 'scare' tactics? Hunting down such things would be an excellent use of the Gumshoe engine for example.

Character Change. Ethan Saunders starts the book as a near useless alcoholic. His talents in spying, in gathering information, are secondary to the notoriety he faces for rumors of him and his best friend Fleet, being British Spies who merely weren't brought up on charges because the war was ending and people had better things to do. Through the course of the novel, David builds the things that tore Ethan down into things that slowly build him up. Ethan missed out on so much of his life due to failed perceptions and not wanting to do anything to disgrace the memory of Fleet, because he secretly feared that Fleet was indeed a spy, that when the novel keeps bringing the 'truth' to the surface, Ethan has no choice but to change into something still flawed, but better than he was at the start of it.

The same is also true of Joan, who starts off wanting to be a writer, but whose apparent uncontested understanding of how the financial system works, makes her into a near unbeatable foe whose goal, the destruction of the government, seems almost within her power to be stopped by sleight of hand as opposed to straight out skill. The changes characters go through should influence the direction the game takes.

The Frontier. Joan starts off living in 'civilization' but poor. An opportunity comes up to seek out a new live on the Frontier in exchange for the script that shows the government owes her husband money. But after the Revolution the funds don't appear right away so are traded away for a 'better' life. This life is one of hardship. One where the simple comforts of the city, even the city of that era, are not present. Where one must be self sufficient to survive. Well, perhaps not entirely self sufficient for Joan's husband, despite his carpentry skills, and the skills he mastered in the war, isn't a full wilderness master like those already tricked, and already living there are. This brands them together being out in the wilderness against those who would further harm them. It makes them united against 'outsiders' even though Joan and her husband are still the 'new' people who must earn their way into the trust of the group.

Big Concepts: Joan and Ethan are both patriots. Ethan fought in the war to be free from English rule. Joan's husband did the same. Joan harbors thoughts on what a true free society is worth and what shape it must take while Ethan wouldn't see chaos and government failure run through the streets if he can help it. Some ideas can have multiple views that are both right but both must come across one another. When designing a setting, are there certain aspects of it that people might find distasteful but would rather have than absolute chaos? Are there some things that would make people change their minds about the country if only they knew?

The Unseen: Ethan has a slave, Leonidas. Ethan is able to use Leonidas status and his race as a useful tool for gathering information several times throughout the novel. In many settings, there are those who are looked down on. In modern societies, this could be as simple as the ignoring the cleaning people or the delivery people. In ancient societies, slaves were not often well thought of and things may have been spoken of freely in front of them. Another group in almost any setting could be children. Most settings have that 'underclass' that is always around and no one pays attention to. Using those resources can give characters and edge up against those who don't.

The Whoseitcalled. I was surprised to see reference to Jeffersonits. Those who followed Thomas Jefferson. And Hamiltonist. People who have followers will find those followers called by their specific name. While perhaps not in as much use today for personal names, Communist is a label still thrown about for example, but Putinists? Perhaps not so much. But in a setting where characters can be larger than life? Where you may have served, fought for, or directly assisted the person who liberated the whole of the country? Where those who take up stances against new methods and manners are on one side and those who take the opposing ideas on the other? Then indeed, it would seem nature that naming conventions might be s thing that use the giants of the era.

A Large Cast: When I was a younger and perhaps more apt game master, I had a huge three hold punch of characters. Whenever I added a character to the game, a throw away merchant, a named dragon, a hidden dungeon, or anything that had a name, I jotted it down into the book. I organized the book by region and was able to expand upon it and call upon it when characters where in a certain location. David Liss maintains a huge cast of characters here and it makes the world feel more alive. He mixes fictional and historical characters with the ease of a master juggler and the reader is never certain if who they are reading at the time is one or the other. Keep a list of potential names and descriptions for use at any time with the understanding that those names and characters may never be used, but that you have them if they are needed.

The Whiskey Rebels is a powerful historical novel that has a personal touch and focus and by having two viewpoints, brings the reader even deeper into the action.