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Casus Belli 37 |
| 2021-06-23 |
Casus Belli 37
Less than seven days after receiving my copy of Casus Belli 36, my copy of Casus Belli 37 showed up in my mail box. It was thinly wrapped but survived all the miles. Maybe thanks to the Alien on the cover.
That 2021 May/June issue is bountiful, it contains two extra items: a DnD 5th edition setting, and also a role-playing game.
The DnD 5th edition setting is the french translation of The Last God setting. The Last God - Sourcebook was released in English in June 2020. There were no plan to have it translated to French although the comics were. The Casus Belli team partnered with the french editor, translated it and included it in its pages.
I didn't know the comic, I don't know much about recent comics, so I went through the first pages on Kindle and found it excellent, the story drew me in and the images are, well, served by an Italian Master.
The Last God setting occupies fifty pages, there are 6 maps, 18 creatures, and 3 races. The setting archetypes and their spells are detailed as well. You add the comics (which also contain some setting prose) and you have a solid world to explore.
The role-playing game included is named "The Blues Brotherhood" by Aurélie Pailhez. It's a narration-oriented game with an engine named POM for "Power Of Music" that sorts actions between Rhythm, Melody, and Harmony, those three are also the attributes of the system. For example, the sample character Hopper (the enraged pianist) is simply defined by "Harmony 3, Melody 7, Rhythm 6" and a few background paragraphs.
It looks like excellent fun for fans of The Blues Brothers.
Back to the review plan I have given myself for Casus Belli editions. The scenarii provided are:
- "Phylloxera Devastatrix", an investigation scenario for Shadowrun 6. It's set in 2080 France, use of the SR supplement about France is recommended but not mandatory.
- "Jeux d'Ombres", an investigation scenario for Aliens. The player characters form the core of a new security team on a touristic resort, things go bad quickly.
- "Mauvaise Foi", an action scenario set in Laelith, the heroic fantasy city born in the pages of Casus Belli years ago. It can be used with DnD and friends for low level characters.
I now realize that there is no scenario included for "The Last God" setting, while "The Blues Brotherhood" includes one named "The Last Request". If I were the author of "The Last God", I think I would like to write and include a module in my "sourcebook", to set the tone. Not sure, space constraints maybe.
The first review that caught my eye, is the one about Alien by Free League. They point to Dead Orbit, The Weyland-Yutani Report, and the Colonial Marines Technical Manual, underlining the richness of the universe.
Next, the review of Hexagon Universe - The Partisans. It's an RPG about super heroes in France during WW2. I didn't know there was a sixties french comic about super heroes, I thought the only french super hero was Superdupont. One of the source books of this RPG is a translation of The Nazi Occult by Kenneth Hite. (My fear in those Corona days, is that some people read such books literally...)
The "Bâtisses et Artifices" column always describe a location that can be used in various settings. This time, it details the "Custer Pride" resort where the "Jeux d'Ombres" Alien scenario is set. It could be easily used for Stars Without Number or Traveller.
Finally, my favourite item in this Casus Belli issue is the interview of Anne Vétillard, the setting author for Légendes de la Table Ronde, her nickname is "La Dame du Lac", she started on the Holmes edition of Dungeons and Dragaons. I wish I could get her to sign my copy of "La Table Ronde".
I need to stop writing, "The Last God" in my Kindle is calling me...
