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Tékumel
''Tékumel'' is a fantasy world created by American linguist and writer M. A. R. Barker over the course of several decades from around 1940. In this imaginary world, huge, tradition-bound empires with medieval levels of technology vie for control using magic, large standing armies, and ancient technological devices. In time, Barker created the tabletop role-playing game ''Empire of the Petal Throne'', set in the Tékumel universe, initially self publishing it in 1974. Later, Barker wrote a series of five novels set in Tékumel, beginning with '' The Man of Gold'', first published by DAW Books in 1984. Sources The setting provided a context for Barker's constructed languages which were developed in parallel from the mid-to-late 1940s, long before the mass-market publication of his works as the roleplaying game and book forms. The most developed language created by Barker for his setting is Tsolyáni, which resembles Urdu, Pashto and Nahuatl. Tsolyáni has had grammatical guides ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Man Of Gold (novel)
''The Man of Gold'' is a 1984 science-fantasy novel written by M. A. R. Barker and published by DAW Books. It is the first novel set on the fictional world of Tékumel – also featured in Barker's role-playing game ''Empire of the Petal Throne'' (1974) – and tells the story of a priest of Thumis named Harsan, a scholar who becomes involved in the quest for the eponymous artifact of a past immensely ancient. Barker became acquainted with DAW editor Donald A. Wollheim through their shared interest in miniatures. ''The Man of Gold'' was licensed to the London publisher Century Hutchinson, which released a UK edition in 1985. The novel was also translated into German and published under the title ''Der Ungewöhnliche Goldmann: Abenteuer in Tekumel'' by Goldmann Verlag in 1986.The Tékumel Novels ''Tékumel Collecti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Empire Of The Petal Throne
''Empire of the Petal Throne'' is a fantasy role-playing game designed by M. A. R. Barker, based on his Tékumel fictional universe. It was self-published in 1974, then published by TSR, Inc. in 1975. It was one of the first tabletop role-playing games, along with ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and was the first published RPG game setting. Over the subsequent thirty years, several new games were published based on the Tékumel setting; however, to date, none have met with commercial success. While published as fantasy, the game is sometimes classified as science fantasy or, debatably, as science fiction. History Origin M. A. R. Barker, a professor at the University of Minnesota and a scholar focusing on ancient languages, had been crafting his fantasy world that known as Tékumel for decades, writing out its history, culture and languages on thousands of pages. He assisted the wargaming club at the university as an adviser, where a club-mate and role-playing game player Michael ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tsolyáni Language
Tsolyáni is one of several languages invented by M. A. R. Barker, developed in the mid-to-late 1940s in parallel with his legendarium leading to the world of Tékumel as described in the Empire of the Petal Throne roleplaying game, published by TSR in 1975. It is detailed in The Tsolyáni Language, Part I and II. It was the first constructed language ever published as part of a role-playing game and draws its inspiration from Urdu, Pashto, Mayan and Nahuatl. The last influence can be seen in the inclusion of the sounds ''hl'' and ''tl'' . One exact borrowing from a real-world source is the Tsolyáni noun root ''sákbe,'' referring to the fortified highways of the Five Empires; it is the same word as the Yucatec Maya ''sacbe,'' referring to the raised paved roads constructed by the pre-Columbian Maya. Another close borrowing is from the Nahuatl word ''tlatoani,'' referring to a leader of an Aztec state (e.g. Montezuma); it is similar to the clan-name of the Tsolyáni empe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
War Of Wizards
''War of Wizards'' is a board game published by TSR in 1975. It was TSR's first publication for M. A. R. Barker's world of Tékumel. Development David M. Ewalt, in his book ''Of Dice and Men'', described how University of Minnesota professor M. A. R. Barker "made his game-design debut at TSR. A scholar of ancient languages, Barker had spent decades crafting a fantasy world called Tékumel, writing thousands of pages of histories, describing its culture, and even constructing its languages. He served as adviser to the university's wargaming club, and after Michael Mornard showed him Dungeons & Dragons, Barker wrote two games based in Tékumel; a tabletop role-playing game, Empire of the Petal Throne; and a combat-oriented board game, War of Wizards." History Originally published by TSR in 1975, it was reprinted by Tita's House of Games in 1999. ''War of Wizards'' predates TSR releasing ''Empire of the Petal Throne'' by a few months, making it their first ''Tékumel'' publicatio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tabletop Role-playing Game
A tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG or TRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a kind of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization, and the actions succeed or fail according to a set role-playing game system, formal system of rules and guidelines, usually involving randomization (such as through dice). Within the rules, players have the freedom to improvisation, improvise, and their choices shape the direction and outcome of the game. Neither pen and paper nor a table are strictly necessary for a game to count as a TTRPG; rather, the terms ''pen-and-paper'' and ''tabletop'' are typically used to distinguish this format of RPG from role-playing video games or live action role-playing games. Online play of TTRPGs through videoconferencing has become common since the COVID-19 pandemic. Some common e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Arneson
David Lance Arneson (; October 1, 1947 – April 7, 2009) was an American game designer best known for co-developing the first published role-playing game (RPG), ''Dungeons & Dragons'', with Gary Gygax, in the early 1970s. Arneson's fundamental early role-playing game (RPG) genre work pioneered now-archetypical devices, such as: cooperative play to develop a storyline instead of individual competitive play to "win"; and adventuring in dungeon, town, and wilderness settings as presented by a neutral judge who doubles as the voice and consciousness of all characters aside from the player characters. Arneson discovered wargaming as a teenager in the 1960s, and he began combining these games with the concept of role-playing. He was a University of Minnesota student when he met Gygax at the Gen Con gaming convention in the late 1960s. In 1971, Arneson created the game and fictional world that became '' Blackmoor'', writing his own rules and basing the setting on medieval fantasy elem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
