''GURPS Camelot'' is an

Arthurian King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a Legend, legendary king of Great Britain, Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest tradition ...

supplement published by

Steve Jackson Games Steve Jackson Games (SJGames) is a game company, founded in 1980 by Steve Jackson, that creates and publishes role-playing, board, and card games, and (until 2019) the gaming magazine ''Pyramid''. History Founded in 1980, six years after the cr ...

in 1991 for ''

GURPS The ''Generic Universal RolePlaying System'', or ''GURPS'', is a tabletop role-playing game system designed to allow for play in any game setting. It was created by Steve Jackson Games and first published in 1986 at a time when most such systems w ...

'' (''Generic Universal Role-Playing System'').

Content

''GURPS Camelot'' details how Arthurian legend can be used as a setting for a medieval ''GURPS'' campaign. Information includes an examination of Arthurian myths, short descriptions of notable people at Camelot, an examination of the historical facts behind the myths, and rules for jousts, siege warfare, and herbal concoctions, as well as suggestions on character creation.

Publication history

''GURPS Camelot'' is a 128-page softcover book written by Peggy and Robert Schroeck, with additional material by

Aaron Allston Aaron Dale Allston (December 8, 1960 – February 27, 2014) was an American game designer and author of many science fiction books, notably ''Star Wars'' novels. His works as a game designer include game supplements for role-playing games, severa ...

, J. David George,

Loyd Blankenship Loyd Blankenship (born 1965), better known by his pseudonym The Mentor, is a computer hacker and writer. He has been active since the 1970s, when he was a member of the hacker groups Extasyy Elite and Legion of Doom. Writings Hacker Manifesto ...

, Steve Jackson, Chris W. McCubbin,

Steffan O'Sullivan Steffan O'Sullivan is the author of several role-playing game books. Career Steffan O'Sullivan was a ''GURPS'' writer whose projects included ''GURPS Swashbucklers'' (1990) and '' GURPS Bunnies & Burrows'' (1992). He designed the ''FUDGE'' role-p ...

, and Daniel U. Thibault. Interior art is by Ruth Thompson, Keith Berdak, Carl Anderson, and Larry McDougal, and cover art is by

John Zeleznik John Zeleznik is an artist and illustrator. Career Zeleznik has provided covers and illustrative work for many role-playing games including ''Shadowrun'', '' Rifts'' (and other Palladium Books games), and ''GURPS''. He graduated from the Otis/Par ...

. In the 2014 book ''Designers & Dragons: The '80s'', game historian Shannon Appelcline noted that Steve Jackson Games decided in the early 1990s to stop publishing adventures, and as a result "SJG was now putting out standalone ''GURPS'' books rather than the more complex tiered book lines. This included more historical subgenre books. Some, such as ''GURPS Camelot'' (1991) and ''GURPS China'' (1991), were clearly sub-subgenres, while others like ''

GURPS Old West ''GURPS Old West'' is a supplement published by Steve Jackson Games in 1991 for ''GURPS'' (''Generic Universal Role-Playing System''). Content ''GURPS Old West'' provides details of how to introduce a Western (genre), Western setting to ''GURPS'' ...

'' (1991) and ''

GURPS Middle Ages I ''GURPS Middle Ages I'' is a sourcebook for running a Middle Ages themed ''GURPS'' campaign. It is a part of the extensive ''GURPS'' "generic" roleplaying system. Contents ''GURPS Middle Ages I'' covers English history from the Dark Ages to the R ...

'' (1992) covered genres notably missing before this point."

Reviews

In the February 1993 edition of ''

Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

'' (Issue #190),

Rick Swan Rick Swan is a game designer and author who worked for TSR. His work for TSR, mostly for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, appeared from 1989 to 1995. Swan also wrote ''The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games'' (1990), published by St. Martin's Pre ...

found the "attention to detail is impressive", but thought that it "often reads more like a term paper instead of a collection of neat ideas the designers couldn't wait to share." Swan noted that the book lacked both game-mastering advice and a full-length adventure. He concluded by giving the book an average rating of 3 out of 5, saying that the book "skimps on staging notes and the details of day-to-day existence that might help players bring their characters to life."

References

{{reflist

Camelot Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as the ...

Historical role-playing games Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1991