tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post6036564271089941626..comments2024-03-29T02:20:03.864-04:00Comments on Age of Ravens: The Emirates of Ylaruam: RPG Items I LikeLowell Francishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02359280169506945906noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-87378252683204068132012-01-20T12:57:38.555-05:002012-01-20T12:57:38.555-05:00That's a good point- and the issue you raise a...That's a good point- and the issue you raise and point towards is an important one. Adopting over the medieval cultures, like the Balkans and elsewhere and glossing over those issues is equally problematic in those places. I've certainly grown accustomed to gaming and fantasy materials skipping over those issues. And perhaps my own background on the ME topic gets in my way- making it more reflexively sensitive to it and not balancing that with other depictions. I think that part of my noting that does come from the difference in treatment of the source "materials" of the cultures. Whereas Karameikos adds some of the trappings of that culture, Ylaruam feels more like a direct and literal adaptation. <br /><br />And you're right- if I'm going to note that kind of omission, I should be ready to note the cultural problems and omissions elsewhere. I think you point at an important topic- how issues/treatment of gender gets rewritten in these materials.Lowell Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02359280169506945906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-62231269580632413512012-01-20T04:27:20.758-05:002012-01-20T04:27:20.758-05:00'It is worth noting that generally the Emirate...'It is worth noting that generally the Emirate supplement(1) avoids the question of women and their treatment. While offering a fantasy refit of the Arab World(2), it leaves any question of women as second-class or restricted citizens.':(Numbers in parenthesis are my additions.) <br /><br />Replace (1) with Medieval Fantasy Gamebook and (2) with anywhere on Earth, past or present. I'd venture to guess the reason this isn't dealt with is that most players(especially females) would not want 'historically accurate' recreations of the atrocious way females were(are, in all too many cases) viewed and treated to be included in their fantasy gaming! Probably for the best, actually: it is a FANTASY world, and it's supposed to be fun, right?<br /><br />Why did you raise this issue when reviewing the 'Arab' sourcebook, and not the 'Balkan' one, which seems to draw strongly from a time period heavily influenced by the Byzantine Greeks and the contemporaneous nascent Tsarist 'Russias'(whose views on women, if not females generally, were just as disgraceful, if not worse)? I find this odd when you expressed concerned about the depiction of Arabs and Islam/Mohammed in Fantasy gaming literature.(Negative stereotypes abound from what I've seen; e.g. the Das Schwarze Auge/Dark Eye and Warhammer RPGs.)<br /><br />Other than the strange singling out of 'the Emirates' supplement for ignoring a topic that the 'Karameikos' Gazetteer nowhere touches upon, I found the review interesting and informative.velaranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15689908090884198784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-86726686245185474402012-01-15T15:36:06.985-05:002012-01-15T15:36:06.985-05:00There's a detail I like in Al-Qadim: the "...There's a detail I like in Al-Qadim: the "<i>Loregiver</i>" figure the counterpart of the Prophet) was a woman. That could give an interesting dynamic: what if "Mohammed" was more like "Scheherazade". <br /><br />OTOH, the polytheistic religion in Al-Qadim was not really well-done. They tried to add a kind of Sunni/Shia split, with different pantheons, but it didn't really work.<br /><br /><i>I have to wonder if as transparent a version of Jesus in a fantasy setting would be received well?</i><br /><br />There's a French RPG called <a href="http://www.legrog.org/jeux/capharnaum/capharnaum-fr" rel="nofollow">Capharnaüm</a> which based upon a fantasy version of the Crusades. The Jesus "analog", Jason, was a Greek legionnaire who converted to Judaism. Instead of being crucified, he was "drawn and quartered". The Holy symbol of the Crusaders is not a cross but four centrifugal arrows.Phersvhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10962408594713963134noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-4409126457246223352012-01-14T15:21:04.704-05:002012-01-14T15:21:04.704-05:00It is interesting to see the treatment of that in ...It is interesting to see the treatment of that in the various books- GURPS Castle Falkenstein: The Ottoman Empire also wrestled with some of those issues, though closer to the real world.Lowell Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02359280169506945906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-77615622859942582232012-01-13T15:44:24.488-05:002012-01-13T15:44:24.488-05:00I am a big fan of the BECMI series and the Gazette...I am a big fan of the BECMI series and the Gazetters. These reviews are great so far.<br /><br />I struggle with the issue you present (re: a fantasy analog of Mohammed) frequently in my reading of setting materials and the development of my own, so it's nice to see you touch on this here.NakiaPopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17406561137170462267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4764158821384594980.post-23857938955236580352012-01-13T11:53:45.500-05:002012-01-13T11:53:45.500-05:00Great overview! I love that classic setting book f...Great overview! I love that classic setting book format, just full of ideas and possibilities.Kaijuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06184830369889881159noreply@blogger.com