GURPS Castle Falkenstein

I just picked up a copy of GURPS Castle Falkenstein and immediately read it to review for this issue. Before beginning my review though, I want to explain some prejudices I had going into this. First of all, I am a GURPS fan. Including this newest addition, I have thirty GURPS books, none of which are Traveller books (I do have the 1982 hard-bound copy of The Traveller Book). I like new and innovated playing systems as much as anybody, but I like that I can go from one campaign to the next in GURPS and pretty much know the rules.

On the other hand, R. Talsorian's Castle Falkenstein has cool rules. The card based system of play was new to me and really added character to the game. In fact, Steve Jackson Games' online magazine Pyramid has an article on how to incorporate playing cards (standard or Tarot) into GURPS games. If Talsorian's Castle Falkenstein had weaknesses, it was the vague nature of the system and the way it seemed to change substantially from CF to Comme il Faut.

That being the case, I was not sure what GURPS could add. It seemed to me a trivial matter to create GURPS characters and vehicles that could be used in a CF setting without having to buy a book about it. But, as a public service, I have the book and here is my opinion about it, for what that is worth. Also, I will try to avoid too much comparing of GURPS CF with Talsorian CF

For those not familiar with Castle Falkenstein, it is a game that takes place in an Alternate Earth in the nineteenth century. In this world, Magick exists and Dragons evolved from dinosaurs. Faerie creatures are energy beings from the void between Universes who invaded our world and are just barely held in check. Jules Verne is the Minister of Science in France and has written articles on Captain Nemo and his extraordinary submarine, and has had build an enormous cannon. Frankenstein and Dracula are both real, as are Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty. Charles Babbage built his Analytical Engine and now mechanical computers run industry. It is a world of culture and adventure.

The first thing I noticed was the artwork. GURPS CF is full of artwork from the R. Talsorian books. I have not checked to be sure, but I think ALL the artwork is from the R. Talsorian additions; all the same artists are listed in the credits. The main difference is that what was beautiful full-color art is rendered in grey scale here. Also, the artwork does not seem as integrated with the text as it was in Talsorian's version. One disappointment is the map, which in Talsorian was a two-page spread, here takes less than half a page and is grey-scale.

The second thing I noticed was Phil Masters as the lead author. If you have done any research on the web regarding Castle Falkenstein, Victorian adventures or Steampunk, you will have seen something from Phil Masters, such as this page or the newer version of it. You will see Phil Masters name on several good GURPS books and many other RPG's. He also claims to make a living as Paradox programmer. That is pretty scary. ;-) But, with Phil Masters on the project, It stands a good chance of being a good book. GURPS CF has nine chapters:

1. The World Of Castle Falkenstein
2. The Known Lands
3. A More Civilized Age
4. Dramatic Characters
5. Dragons, Dwarfs and Faerie
6. Magick!
7. Steam, Steel and Science
8. Important Personages
9. Falkenstein Campaigns

Chapter 1, The World OF Castle Falkenstein, gives a brief background of the world of Castle Falkenstein. With some of the material split out to sidebars, and having dispensed with the narrative style of the original, it is not as entertaining a read and somehow seems less complete. Choppy might be a good description. I felt that if I had not known so much about CF already, I might have easily become confused about what was going on in this world.

Chapter 2, The Known Lands, gives brief descriptions of the major nations of the world. These descriptions are far from adequate to successfully plan a campaign in any location. Anyone wanting to set a campaign in any country or city would need to do considerable more research. A nice set of city maps would be nice, but then, I have a particular fondness for maps.

Chapter 3, A More Civilized Age, discusses society, including what makes a gentleman and a lady, how to dress and so forth. Most of the treatment is brief, but there is an excellent treatment of Social Classes and there place in the GURPS Status levels. There is a brief discussion of crime and the underworld, and law enforcement. One weakness, clearly, is how limited space is devoted to Victorian culture and its mindset, an important part of what makes playing in any Victorian era so much fun. Perhaps the authors, lacking space, assumed that those who might be interested in Castle Falkenstein and Victorian gaming in general either already know that are willing to research it more. I suppose that just makes websites like Victorian Gamer and all the other sites like it important.

Chapter 4, Dramatic Characters, is, to me, the heart of the book, particularly if you have been wanting to play CF with GURPS rules. They provide a long list of character templates to create suitable characters for a campaign. Like Talsorian, GURPS CF suggests creating goals for your character and keeping a diary. It then goes on to translate many of the important characteristics of CF characters in terms of advantages and disadvantages, and skills. The twenty three character templates are excellent bases for character design (and all right out of Talsorian).

Chapter 5, Dragons, Dwarfs and Faerie, describes the various non-human races and presents a wealth of background information. The list includes Dragons, Dwarfs and Faerie. Faerie folk are actually energy beings from a non-physical plane who have invaded the world. They have a variety of powers and weaknesses. Generally, the Faerie fall into two camps, the Seelie, who have good relations with Humans, and the Unseelie, who, if given the chance, would hunt Humans into extinction.

Chapter 6, Magick!, is one I was eager to read. I was curious how GURPS would present the use of magic, which seemed so elegant in Talsorian, whereas I find GURPS Magic mind-numbingly rule-centric. Fortunately, GURPS CF, right up front, states that this Magick is more akin to GURPS Voodoo than GURPS Magic. A significant quote from the sidebar is "...GURPS Basic Set spells will not work in Falkenstein games" (emphasis theirs). CF Magick is much more flexible than most magical systems and ultimately more powerful, although it is slower and less flashy than other systems.

Magick in Falkenstein is carefully controlled by Sorcerous Orders. Each Order possesses one or more Lorebooks that contain spells. The Orders tend to guard their Lorebooks jealously but it is not too unusual for Magick-users to join multiple orders.

The difficulty in Magick is not learning or casting the Spell, but in drawing the Thaumic Energy required to cast the Spell. Magick is not powered by the magicians personal store of mana, but by drawing Thaumic Energy from the air. Casting a spell requires identifying the base spell to be used, then calculating the Thaumic Energy Requirement (TER) based on a variety of factors, such as duration, range and subject. Rather complex dice-rolling rules determine how the magician gathers energy and casts the spell. Although harmonics is mentioned, it lacks the flavor of Talsorian and is not explained well enough.

Falkenstein Magick-users must have the Magery advantage and Ritual Magic as well as a 5-point Unusual Background for access to a Lorebook. Each Lorebook is treated as a separate skill.

The chapter goes on to explain the major Sorcerous Orders and the contents of their Lorebooks. It also discusses Artifacts, Wards and Unraveling (using your own energy to power spells).

Chapter 7, Steam, Steel and Science, discusses technology with emphasis on using GURPS Vehicles to design steam-powered equipment. Personally, I find GURPS Vehicles difficult to use. GURPS CF has a number of vehicles and equipment defined and tables of standard weapons and gadgets.

Chapter 8, Important Personages, gives GURPS stats and backgrounds for a number of the major characters in Castle Falkenstein.

Chapter 9, Falkenstein Campaigns, discusses a variety of flavors of Castle Falkenstein and does not miss the opportunity to discuss using other GURPS books in your campaign (never miss a chance to sell). Though brief, many of these suggestion open some unusual doors and can add variety to any campaign. There suggestions give great starting points for someone who has had difficulty in coming up with a good campaign.

At the end, GURPS CF has a nice page that shows how to convert from Talsorian CF to GURPS.

In summation, GURPS CF adds nothing to Castle Falkenstein. It is an admittedly good translation from one system to the other, compressing material from the original CF and Comme Il Faut into one book. If you already own Talsorian's CF, there really is not much reason to buy this, unless you absolutely have to play it in GURPS. If you do not own the Talsorian version but you are interested, then GURPS CF is a good book. It lacks the color and flavor of the original, but it full of good information, great ideas for campaign development, a wide list of characters and a more fun magickal system. I liked it and am glad I bought it.

GURPS Steampunk

As a Pyramid subscriber, I had the opportunity to look at GURPS Steampunk. As soon as I can get ahold of a final copy, I will review it here. I confess to having some doubts about the material, but perhaps I am prejudiced by my own very strong ideas about how Victorian era world books should be put together. I downloaded some of the sample pages available at its web page and it may be better than I fear.