Hello guys,

For those of you that have both HarnWorld and Artesia, how do the two compare?

Is Artesia as detailed as HarnWorld? How about the game systems? Are characters fairly detailed in Artesia?

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Always looking for players in the Savannah GA area...

1) No.
2) Fuzion with Narrativist advancement, loosely based on Tarot. Very slick.
3) Yes. Extensive background generation.

All in all, a great product. I do plan on running it someday. It's a bit artsy-fartsy, but nonetheless very well done.

-Mark

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Putting the "Ho" in Hodiri since 1998.
The Forge: Western Martial Arts

Artesia is a very different beast from Hârn(master), but it's also a great game worth getting. The setting can best be described as an early Renaissance with heavy ancient Greek and Gloranthan influence. It is low fantasy in theme, but magic is extremely common. The game is also entirely human-centric and very sexually explicit (both in theme and art).

The game uses an iteration of the Fuzion system. Now, I've never been a fan of the system, but Artesia makes it work. One of the notable features of the system is the way it gives the psychological aspects of character (love, prejudices, fear) a solid mechanical treatment in the form of bindings. It also means that if you dislike personality mechanics in an RPG, Artesia will not be to your liking.

As Spartan pointed out, Artesia has a rather nifty advancement system, which is based on a feedback loop. All your characters actions in game are rated as falling under the auspices of the cards of the Atesian tarot arcana and you receive arcana points accordingly. These points can then be spent to advance the skills and abilities falling under the arcana in question. It provides a very nifty loop where by committing destructive acts you became ever more adept at them and the decision to stoop to nasty measures gets easier and more rewarding.

The only problem I have with the experience system is that as written, it saddles too much work on the GM. I'm planning on running the game at some point, and I'll probably let the players assign their own experience points on the fly as they commit actions.

Oh, and the book is absolutely gorgeous. Since Mark Smylie had complete control over all aspects of the game, the result is an incredibly coherent whole where the art and text work seamlessly together. Highly recommended.

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skiorht

Skiorht,

Thanks for the info. I might not be the initial poster, but I found your post most informative.

Skiorht, thanks a lot.

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Always looking for players in the Savannah GA area...

I am absolutely stunned by this book. It is on par with HarnWorld in my opinion. Maybe you don't know the quality of land around a stead, or the slope grade of a building floor, or specific detail on a social or economic aspect, but a character is as firmly rooted in the setting of Artesia as a HarnMaster character would be. The religious and magical aspects of the game cover more detail, and the routine for determining one's journey in the afterlife is very cool. Combat is simple but has a lot of detail, similar to HM.

Get this game. It's beautiful.

Now to learn it, and play.

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A moment is the most you can ever expect from perfection.

Yeah, Artesia is really worth getting.

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Með kveðju, Thorvald
http://www.last.fm/user/hrafnsbjarg

A certain JD Smith made an interesting remark in his review at DriveThruRPG:



Here's the link to the full review: http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_reviews_info.php?&reviews_id=19296&products_id=3222&it=1

Certainly looks and sounds interesting, and with a price tag of roughly 20 USD for 354 pages probably a bargain too. And look at all the awards. Thanks for bringing this up!

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~Laudant illa, sed ista legunt~
~You may leave Hârn, but Hârn never leaves you!~

Yes, this book is a gem. Sadly, I've never found any local gamers interested in playing. Same 'ole, same 'ole.

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Always looking for players in the Savannah GA area...

Thanks for the info.
With my Harn gaming put on hold, we have been looking at other systems. I have finally started getting alot of them, that I have heard about for a long time but never investigated; Burning Wheel, Riddle of Steel, Gumshoe, etc.
Now I just need the time to read and play. I think I may be turning into a collector...
Allan

I just wanted to echo the praise for Artesia as a physical and intellectual product. As a book it's beautiful. As a world, it's clever, with a great history; as a rules system, its got some interesting features (I like the Tarot card themed method of character advancement)

I can't say, though, that I've ever actually *played* the game, though. It's not clear to me whether any of the other folks who've commented here have either.... maybe this is a game that lots of folks buy, but no-one actually plays?

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-- Jim Chokey

"Argent, chief embattled tenne. A coney of the field and crossed carrots proper"

The games are equally good. All the while I've been reading, I keep remarking to myself about how much it reminds me of Runequest and Harn in terms of the level of world detail.



I have yet to find many resources, and the official game forum is offline. Still, I fully intend to create some pregens and run the adventure included in the book. If I only play it once, I'd still think it a worthwhile purchase.

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A moment is the most you can ever expect from perfection.

Artesia is interesting for several reasons:

1. Crossmedia production:
Mark Smylie, the creator, first published the first parts of his comic Artesia, before publishing the RPG. There was even talk about selling the movie rights. Classical horizontal diversification.
Unfortunately, Archaia Studios Press (founded by Smylie) is just a minor player and suffered from internal restructuring last year. On the other hand, it's quite possible that at least the comic will be finished (pet project) giving players and GM additional background. If any Artesia RPG sourcebooks will be published? Well, we still hoping for Trierzon.

2. Outstanding quality in artwork, layout and design:
350 pages, hardcover, complete in 4 colour on coated woodfree paper. All the artwork is done by Mark Smylie, given the whole book the most coherent and professional look of all RPG I encountered so far. 4 and nine tenth stars out of 5.

3. The religious background
Artesia is one of the very, very few RPG with a believable mythologic and religious background (something which Hârn lacks, unfortunately. But this is a discussion for another topic). For short: it's on the one hand a struggle between an old cult of a mother goddess and a younger cult of the sun king (and their pantheii), on the other hand there are omens bringing message of an ill future and darker sects doing their hidden work.

4. The experience system
The experience system based on the (for the Artesia setting rewriten) great arcana of the tarot is very intriguing. I.e.: You gain "Lovers"-XP by aiding a pair of lovers in need and "Hermit"-XP by resisting diversions from your goal. You can spend those XP on attributes, skills, gifts etc. tied to the specific arcana i.e. stamina or research for "Hermit"-XP and empathy or persuasion "Lovers"-XP.

Some minor flaws:
- Well, it's a an artist labour of love and for this reason striking beautiful ... but huge. Something for a connaisseur but nothing for beginners.
- Like many Fantasy RPG creators Mark Smylie slackers a bit in regard to toponymy, albeit he did it 99 % better than most other games. But ... how many Middle Kingdoms do I have to endure?
- Due to the scope of Achaia Studio Press it is unlikely that we will see more sourcebooks in the near future. Sad, as at least four more books are announced in the core book: "Cults of the known world" with more informations on the different pantheii, "The book of Secrets" with more informations on the heavens and the underworld (and how you could rise to become a demi-god), a more detailed decription of the Middle Kingdoms and at last a ruleset for mass combat.

If you are a hard-core "medieval and nothing else" simulation gamer, Artesia might not be your first choice as it resembles in many aspects more early renaissence times. But this in a refreshing way.

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Michael - visit Tales of Chybisa.com.

Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.