Barbarians of Lemuria, a review
Barbarians of Lemuria is a fine, rules-light game that would work well to reflect the stories of pulp fantasy. Picture a lone barbarian warrior, chain mail bikinis and dark nefarious sorecerers, fast and deadly combat, cursed treasure in hidden tombs, slave traders and pirates. It's all there.
Core Mechanic Summary: Your Class is your Skills.
Suposse you are -in BOL terms- Barbarian 3, Hunter 1, Slave 0, Sailor 0. In background terms that could mean you are from some Barbarian lands, Hunted for food as a young lad yet you got captured and spent some time as a galley slave.
In game terms, that means every time you have to check for some action, you consider your careers and roll against them. For example you want to lift a rock, I'd say that's pretty Barbarian stuff, so you'd add your Strenght and Barbarian. (Let's say STR is 2, fairly good) That totals 4. Now you roll 2d6. If your final total is 9 or better, then you made it.
Problem: Overlapping career.
In BoL careers are not defined strictly. Who's better at setting up an ambush; a Barbarian or a Soldier? No idea. What if you are Barbarian 2 Fighter 1 and Warrior 1? Who's more sneaky a Slaver or a Hunter? Context can help but I can see an opportunity for arguments over the game table.
Solution: Good roleplayers.
BoL is meant for the player who loves barbarian pulp fiction and yet it is not interested in simulating real combat. Instead, he or she loves the thrill of battle and fast action and yet it is mature enough to trust the Game Master.
That said, I would love to see the careers to be better defined in a next version.
Combat
Combat is quite sketchy, the rules are basically the same than the core mecanic, only that instead of career you use your combat skills. These are Brawl, Melee, Ranged and Defense. There are no dodging rolls, the Defense skill simply makes you harder to hit, which works just great. If you hit you roll for damage points. Armour will absorb some damage, the remainder will eat up you Lifeblood points, if they get negative you are in big trouble.
As a side note, most NPC are considered rabble. These would be dispatched satisfyingly quick enough.
Character Creation.
Boy call it fast. You divide four points among your Attributes STR, AGI, Mind (IQ) and Appeal (sorta Charisma). None can be greater than 3 or lower than -1 You choose four Careers and divide 4 points among them. Again 3 is the maximun, -1 the minimum. You divide 4 points among your combat skills, you choose an origin (place of birth), which come with suggested Boons and Flaws, and you are basically done.
Equipment, you basically get what you want, as long as it is in character. Really, like that, you don't buy, you don't worry about carrying anything, you just get what you want and that's all you need to worry.
I also see a possible problem here. The rules will work well with good players which do not seek to abuse the system but it could potentially lead to arguments.
Magic
Most magicians in BoL are evil, the bad guys, the kind of people you want to defeat, and while you can have magician PC, these are not meant to be the stars of this game.
Magic rules are again sketchy and neboulous. Indeed, the best defined feature is the price you have to pay or the limitations you have to face in order to cast a spell. Think in ritual sacrifices, fasting, specific times and so on. A first magnitude spell could require nothing but a ritual cleansing; however a extremely powerful (and difficult to cast) spell can usually need ritual sacrifice.
Which is perfect for the pulp barbarian setting; yet quite different from the usual "Medieval Fantasy" Games
Potions, Shining Swords, Golems: you can make them!
This kind of magic(?) is unusually developed in this game; perhaps to compensate for the limitations to magic. You'll need to be an alchemist, but then you can easily make a posion, with some skill, you can make a potion of strength and even shape change or achieve immortality.
You could also build flying machines or the ultimate sword; though you better hand it to the barbarian in your group.
Lemuria, the game world.
Sketchy but familiar, you know. Similiar to Conan, it's not developed in any deep, but that's a bonus if you ask me. The last thing I want in pulp fiction is a strict setting.
Bottom line: A good game for what it means to do, a great concept that deserves more development as its fan base expands.
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