The Thing

Since its sub zero Fahrenheit here in western NY, (it about -2 with wind chill its -22) I figured this would be a great time for this post given the location of the movie!

Continuing my musings on campaign worlds on the blog as of late, here's a thought: How about a game (and it could work in almost any game system) based on the Thing? Obviously, the horror genre games would work, but in a way it could be derivative of zombie genre as I covered here or perhaps using Twilight 2000? These are just a few thoughts that come to mind.

The Thing is based on the work Who goes There? (1) (which I'm still reading despite reading two other books). It was first made into the movie, The Thing from Another World in 1951; smack dab in the middle of the UFO craze of the 1940s and 50s. Later it would be remade by John Carpenter in 1982 as The Thing with a prequel in 2011. All three are different with the 1982 and 2011 versions obviously having the same storyline. While I like all three, the 1982 version is clearly superior.

That the 1982 Thing is a very good is an understatement its exceptional; and at time very underrated movie. Underrated in the sense that there are tons of clues scattered throughout and is very much a mystery movie wrapped in the horror genre. Reading the novella that is drawn from this is readily apparent. Add to the fact that Carpenter and his team a had a long period of time to work on the story (and it shows) there is lots of subtle clues throughout. On such place browse these clues is  the forum at Outpost 31 For the sake of brevity here, for those not in the know The Thing had an unusually long time before they actually started shooting (something like 17 months as far as I can recall) and Carpenter admitted they had plenty of time to plan out the plot, which camera shots they would use, etc to far greater detail then he might otherwise done.

So as an RPG? Imagine it starts out at a research station isolated in the Arctic or Antarctic (doesnt have to be the same Outpost 31 although it could be) and the players are confronted with the events as the unfold in the beginning of the movie. Where it goes from there is almost endless but at the same time a nice tidy sandbox. Perhaps a better ploy is to just get into the action as they will most likely already know the story. Add a different cast of characters (the players PCs) and keep the weaponry minimal. Then again even having high-powered military rifles, the PCs are screwed  as they aren't very good against Things (2).

Barring that, how about a Thing has made it to the mainland and Blair's prediction starts playing itself out. Its going to take lots of flamethrowers or nukes once its too far gone.

In such a post apocalyptic scenario(s), movies like 28 Days Later or World War Z are going to seem like a walk in the park!  If Things start reproducing in vast quantities in large human population centers, its largely game over. Such a game would quickly shift to extreme paranoia and one of ultra-extreme survival. Come to think of it with no recourse but to wipe out 7 billion or so Things it might be an exercise in futility.

If a GM uses Twilight 2000 it could add a good twist on the horrors of World War III;  dropping some Things into that already horrific scenario? That could really mess things up. Of course it could also muddy stuff too much. Perhaps a better solution is to simply use the rules for Twilight 2000 and place it in modern day with the scenario outlined above. The only issue is that there is no really rules for monsters per say in Twilight 2000, so the GM would need to do some work, not insurmountable, but doable. Another thought is use the Savage World system which would definitely keep things moving quickly, but I think with minimal fuss All Flesh Must Be Eaten would be best.

In closing, I think such a game is better for a one-off/short campaign, or rather a series of short episodes as opposed to a multi-year/session campaign. There probably isn't going to be much "winning" if the Thing(s) make it out of Antarctica. It could be a fun/blow um up/ go out in a blaze of glory type of deal, but if there was ever a "no win scenario" this is it. Think of the end of the 1982 movie, not much (read: none) hope at the end and lots of question marks instead...

And of course I would be remiss if I didn't point out one of the best lines in the history of cinema: 

No kidding indeed.

(1) Who goes there can be found on such online places at the iTunes book store for free.

(2) The Norwegian with the sweet gun was using a Heckler & Koch HK33. Details to the weapon at IMDB is here or the full details on a wiki for weaponry used in movies.

The New Shadow- Middle Earth

One of the things I noodle around with from time to time is campaign world concepts; I sometimes draw maps, jott notes or otherwise brainstorm. So it was in that vein that I came across Professor Tolkien's ideas on the New Shadow.

Middle Earth in the Fourth Age from www.tolkienforums.com

Before getting to the main idea itself consider the story we know: after Frodo and Sam haul the One Ring to Mt Doom and Gollum does his part in the story the is essentially over; everything that comes after is wrap up. While I like the Scouring of the Shire it's not vitally important to the story as a whole. While the interaction after the Downfall and the crowning of the King is interesting, it's also epilogue.

Considering the publication history of the Lord of the Rings trilogy the only thing the good professor would (nearly) finish afterwards (in the major book sense) is the epic Silmarillion (published in 1977 four years after his death). I say nearly as his son Christopher had to edit it a lot to make it into a story.

Before the Silmarillion however he contemplated a story about the transience of good and the flawed nature of Man, he called this idea The New Shadow. Again, to me the idea has some merit which he apparently wrote in the 1950's and again near the end of his life in 1968. In this we have the Professor's own words on the matter:

I did begin a story placed about 100 years after the Downfall, but it proved both sinister and depressing. Since we are dealing with Men it is inevitable that we should be concerned with the most regrettable feature of their nature: their quick satiety with good. So that the people of Gondor in times of peace, justice and prosperity, would become discontented and restless — while the dynasts descended from Aragorn would become just kings and governors — like Denethor or worse. I found that even so early there was an outcrop of revolutionary plots, about a centre of secret Satanistic religion; while Gondorian boys were playing at being Orcs and going around doing damage. I could have written a 'thriller' about the plot and its discovery and overthrow — but it would have been just that. Not worth doing.
- J.R.R Tolkien

I bring this up because with the proper fleshing out this could actually be a very good campaign world, consider:

• The New Shadow storyline eliminates the "War of the Ring Problem" as I call it. It's the issue of THE event hovering over the world. Dragonlance also suffers from this problem. The New Shadow means a familiar world, but not encumbered by the War of the Ring per say.
• A world likewise far enough into the future means that none of the "personages" of the Third Age and specifically the War of the Ring are going to be around with the possible exception of Gimili and Legolas. This a new, wide open tableau to work with.
• Along with very few if any of the main characters There is going to be very few elves left, and the dwarves retreating further into the mountains.  That leaves humans and hobbits. For evil a reappearance of orcs and undead (like skeletons and barrow wights) works for evil.
• Middle Earth isn't all that of a clerical world, at least in the D&D sense. Because of this it makes undead that much more of a fearsome foe.
• The New Shadow Cult could be greatly expanded upon and taken in any number of directions. 
• The High King of the Reunited Kingdom is Aragorn's (Ellesar) son  Eldarion, Going with some of the points above it allows for a great latitude as the Tolkien didn't write too much about the Fourth Age. Plus due to his elven parentage through Aragorn its possible to place Eldarion's reign even further into the future. A small but added bonus is he's not "really" in the movies other then the dream sequence of Arwen.

In short I think a Middle Earth a few centuries after the Downfall could be a very viable campaign setting for your favorite RPG, it doesn't necessarily have to be AD&D, I simply used it as a guide. ICE MERP could work as I think 1st or 2nd edition Warhammer role-play rules would work very well. Clearly overall it needs to be made much more grim for most people's taste but there are some good hooks there to build upon.

For more info on the New Shadow story begun, but not finished by the Professor click here.

For more info on the New Shadow story itself look here. The actual text appears in The History of Middle-earth, specifically the The Peoples of Middle-earth I have only ready excerpts and it is on my list to read this year (at least sections).