Percival and the Presence of God by Jim Hunter

I can't remember when, where, or for how much I bought Percival and the presence of God, but I know I bought several of the Arthurian novels at that time. I had never read anything written by Jim Hunter prior to this. It was a well written short first-person novel that took me an afternoon to finish off.

In many ways the novel  is timeless.  Well that's not quite true.  But it doesn't seem to be set in a specific  time frame outside of  being in a dark age or a middle-age  or a  medieval style setting .The author is free with a lot of description in terms of what the character is feeling  but not necessarily and say  what the characters wearing, what style armor the character has,  what manner of sword the characters using or other  bits and pieces that some modern authors  drown the reader with.

In short if you're looking for a quick  read  about  Percival  you could do worse  then this book  by  Jim  Hunter.

 In terms of gaming because the novel is short  and combat  is secondary, not even secondary  maybe fourth  or fifth  six place  in the scheme of things  there are still some bits  that can be yanked  for your home  campaigns .

For example  that many people  take  Percival's  quest  to be a worthy and in and of itself.. There is the question  of leaving  not just one home  but many homes  in the pursuit  of something that may not come  to fruition  but it is that characters  drive .  in looking at characters drive  it's important  that the player and GM understand it  but not necessarily important that the other characters  or the NPCs  agree with it.

Another thing to consider  is  the lack of light.  in the wintertime for example  there is not much time to be on the road.  indoors  there is not much light  to do anything  without candles  or torches or lanterns  and many of these things  produce smoke  and heat and fire.

Lastly there is the presence of ruin. Percival thinks he sees King Arthur's castle from afar. As he draws closer to it though, it is merely a ruin that he almost gets himself killed in. IN so doing, he learns deep despair. Ruins are full of potential 'traps' from rotting ceilings and stairwells to support beams and floors that can all fail when a character puts weight on them.

Percival and the Presence of God is not filled with combat and clashes but is an interesting character look at a knight's wanderings as they take him further and further form home.

Pendragon by W. Barnard Faraday

I love me some Arthurian fiction. It can take a wide variety of shapes and styles. It can be written in a deep dark gritty style or as a take on modern events. This version tends to feel more historical in nature and brings some differences to the table.

I'll be laying into the spoilers fairly quickly here and note, I haven't finished reading it, so there may be some more random thoughts shot out on another post soon.

King Arthur is replaced here by Artorius. His lady love is now Gwendaello, and we have a druid bard known as Merddin. The little changes in name give it a more archaic feel, more ancient, more fitting perhaps to some of the themes within.

One of the interesting things is that here, Gwendaello is not some princess to be rescued. She meets Artorius, who is a general at this point, after she has escaped capture by killing those who sought to despoil her. Artorius is a bit unsure of her, perhaps because she's already tried to kill him at this point!

She's brash and bold and has a love for the Island of the Mighty and sees in Artorius, someone who will do all he can to save the people of that island, even if they themselves are not going to do all they can. She is a battle queen here, and it's a role that fits her well.

Another interesting bit was reading on what were accepted common courtesies of the time. For example, when stopping at someones home. The thing that struck me was the author mentioning that people were welcome in such instances not only because of manners, but because there were hungry for gossip, for news, for things outside of the norm. This was their chance for entertainment.

In an era where there are no phones and no Internet, human interaction and communication becomes vital. The going door to door, as the bards do here, to raise spirits and showcase confidence, are of great importance as well as providing that touch of entertainment that people long for.

While there is no G4 network, there is still paper.  Artorius is written to by Princess Gwendaello and she wishes him luck in his efforts to preserve the Isle of the Mighty even as she explains to him that forces she herself will be leading. Letters are an excellent way to do some 'Blue Booking'.

Pendragon has a lot of historical richness in its veins and that material can come through in any setting should the GM focus on it. For example, when looking at the spot where two rivers meet, Artorius notes that people will always go to such locations regardless of how many times they are destroyed or occupied because of the utility of such a boon. Towns build on rivers or bodies of water are a staple of fantasy games because they are all over the place in history. Survival becomes much more achievable when water ways become involved not only for trade and transportation, but food and well, water.

If you're looking for a Pendragon with a bit more weight in its heft, Pendragon by W. Barnard Faraday is for you.