The Taproom
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I agree with you master barliman, that’s why I am enthousiast when I see other play it
I just can’t do it myself, I would feel guilty many things are known though about the fall of Fornost and the rise of Angmar… about Glorfindel’s prophecy about hypothesis on what happened to the barrow downs afterwards precisely, about the fall of the capital of Arnor and the exile of Arvedui…
there are texts here and there… in the HoME too… and it would be hard to respect all of these texts precisely… the story is not our our to write, this is not our world it belongs to someone elseRegarding the canon discussion, I often consider something like a multiverse concept, a story tree with countless coexisting future branches. In my opinion, this is reflected in Mythos, and also Tolkien’s opus — especially with “H”oME we actually have tales and fragments from several possible histories, just follow the different variants of stories, languages and etymologies from the beginning; therefore, carefully adapting storylines to create further story branches (albeit “in style” per favore — and here, I agree, things get very complicated, and perhaps better left undone
) appears to me at least be similar in spirit to Tolkien’s own creative process, and the embrace of “uncertainty”. But I definitely respect contrary views on this. Just trying to offer “canonists” a path to gaming in ME. there are several fantasy worlds where the “mutliverse” notion and twin dimensions are a fact, and this fact is described at one point or another at least in the genesis of this world… this way it explains the different evolutions in one dimension or another… but alas, tolkien did not include this possibility in his “genesis”…
but all those debates makes me thirsty
…. Maybe some of those exotic drinks from the city of Korlan, down in the lands of Ardor? No, no, Master Ent, I will refrain from further pursuing such topics (only adding as a last thought that such a multiverse may or may not “exist “regardless if it is mentioned by Grandmaster Tolkien or not; but in how many of them my Humpen is empty? Well, THAT is a grave matter!) … and will now work on increasing my drunkenness to an acceptable level. Cheers to all!
Huoommm … never mind, Master Protozeus … have you ever tried to let fill that Humpen (tankard, Master Barliman) with clear-clean-non-sparkeling-you-know-what- ? …. huoomm …
… cheers … rhuoommtidomrubbelidom … protozeus wrote:Regarding the canon discussion, I often consider something like a multiverse concept, a story tree with countless coexisting future branches. In my opinion, this is reflected in Mythos, and also Tolkien’s opus — especially with “H”oME we actually have tales and fragments from several possible histories, just follow the different variants of stories, languages and etymologies from the beginning; therefore, carefully adapting storylines to create further story branches (albeit “in style” per favore — and here, I agree, things get very complicated, and perhaps better left undone) appears to me at least be similar in spirit to Tolkien’s own creative process, and the embrace of “uncertainty”. But I definitely respect contrary views on this. Just trying to offer “canonists” a path to gaming in ME. Or indeed, to quote the master himself:
“I would draw some of the great tales in fullness,
and leave many only placed in the scheme, and sketched.
The cycles should be linked to a majestic whole,
and yet leave scope for other minds and hands,
wielding paint and music and drama…”
– John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, from a letter written to Milton Waldman, ca. 1951Considering how bare bones and contradictory much of the work beyond the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings itself can be, I suspect there’s no contradiction between being a purist and one willing to tinker around in the background of the legendarium.
Wonderful, Master Gavin! (Other Hands — Other Minds — I nearly forgot about that quote and how the fanzine titles came to pass …)
When Fenlon drew his map, none of these things were known, or published.
The map was signed off on by Tolkien Enterprises, which was sufficient… at the time. A lot of the old MERP materials contain some weird oddities, merely because the Histories had not been published. Of course, later MERP materials included elements of the Histories, but they had no right nor license to do so. Which is just one level of the strangeness involved. But on top of all that, the histories do not include all the scrawled notes, and they do not reflect “canon” – largely because “canon” in Middle-earth can only ever be what was published in finished form. The histories are notes, abandoned or forgotten texts, fragments and ideas written over fifty years and rarely assembled into a coherent whole.
I suspect, eventually, the Tolkien Estate will assemble an actual book, a History of Middle-earth which shapes these notes into something more “coherent” – in much the same way that the Turin stories were shaped into the Children of Hurin. This will not happen while Christopher is alive – being the ultimate purist, he agonised over changing two sentences in The Children of Hurin which fixed the narrative.
But the list is not endless. There probably aren’t a whole lot more exciting things to come out of the Tolkien filing cabinet. More notes and scrawls may eventually be published, but they will merely serve to illuminate the thought processes which went into the creation of one of the canonical texts. Strider is not Trotter, after all. As such, playing around in the softer areas of canon is both true to that stated wish for “other minds and hands” to work in the world.
SoI shall stick to my assertion that a game about dynastic struggles in the last years of Arthedain isn’t going to contradict anything worthwhile
Gavin
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