From lydia@theurgy.digex.net Mon Aug 19 13:16:33 EDT 1996
From: lydia@theurgy.digex.net (Lydia Leong)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Review: HarnMaster 2nd edition.
Date: 14 Aug 1996 14:09:05 -0400

HarnMaster 2nd Edition, Core Rules: A Review

I've been looking forward to the release of the 2nd Edition of the
HarnMaster rules for a number of years, now; I finally acquired it on
the third GenCon of trying. Columbia Games managed to get it out just
in time for the con. The game comes as a set of sturdy pages
three-ring-punched, in either a plastic cover or a three-ring binder.
Columbia Games apparently had to do the collation themselves in order
to get the game out by Saturday morning of GenCon; the copy I received
was missing character sheets ("Character Profiles" in HarnMaster), and
I encountered no hassles in getting this mistake rectified.  Be
forewarned that, while a three-ring-punch format is very convenient,
it also makes the resulting product far more vulnerable to wear and
tear.

There is color on every page of the book, tastefully used, and the
layout is uniformly excellent. Tables alternate light and dark lines,
making them easy to read. The typefaces are large and clear, with
boldfacing and color used in intelligent ways. Where optional rules
are given, small checkboxes are provided, so that the reader can
note what rules he is using. Page numbers are specified generously
where rules refer to other rules. The design isn't going to win
any awards, and it's certainly not "hip" in the White Wolf style,
but this is obviously a set of rules that is meant to be used, 
and referenced. The artwork, by Eric Hotz, is generally good; 
if you liked his woodcuts in the 3rd edition of Ars Magica, 
you'll probably like the illustrations in HarnMaster.

The HarnMaster "core rules" are just that: rules for the basic skill
system, combat, and related matters. Magic and religion are
forthcoming in separate books, and copious background material is
already available.  The core rules provide an absolute minimum of
background material; those desiring to use the rules with other game
systems will not lose anything by doing so, in my opinion. What few
references there are to the Harn background are easily ignored; on the
flip side, if you do want to run a campaign in the Harn world, you
will unquestionably need to purchase one of the background
supplements, such as HarnPlayer.

This second edition of HarnMaster is still clearly early-1980s game
design. Attributes are done on a 3d6 system, ala AD&D, Chivalry &
Sorcery, and similar systems. Characters have occupations, in a manner
reminescent of Palladium's "Occupational Character Classes". A large
number of skills covers everything that one might expect a peasant
to know, including, amusingly, a "Lovecraft" skill: "The ability
to charm, seduce, and give erotic pleasure... It cannot normally
be improved by solitary practice."  (On the other hand, this is
better than Escape Venture's Gatewar RPG's breast sizes...)

I'm not sure what practical use many of the skills have; is there
anyone who has a campaign where Embalming is routinely rolled?  But to
be fair, the number of skills certainly doesn't exceed what's found in
a typical White Wolf StoryTeller game, so one can't complain too
much. Skills all receive a paragraph of detailing, and frequently, a
chart of some sort; explanations are clear and put in their proper
historical context.

The system is basically d6 and d100-based. Skill use is simple:
roll below your skill level and succeed (critically succeed on
a multiple of five), roll above and fail (critically fail on a
multiple of five). Character creation requires a lot of 
calculations. Mastery Level (ML), SB (Skill Base), OML, EML...
add, subtract, multiply, divide... you'd better have a calculator
handy for this one.

HarnMaster has an amazing number of acronyms. Nearly every major 
part of the system is gifted with an abbreviation; at least the
authors had the forethought to summarize all the abbreivations in
a table at the front of the book. Fortunately, the concepts are clearly
explained and illustrated with examples, or the rules would probably
be obscure beyond comprehension. It does take some time to become
conversant with the HarnMaster way of describing rules. For example.
consider this statement: "To reflect a greater knowledge of weapons,
when a veteran opens a Melee weapon skill, it opens to OML + SB
instead of opening to OML."  Huh?  (A little time spent becoming
familiar with the HarnMaster abbreviations is definitely well-spent.)

What sets HarnMaster apart from other games is its combat system. 
Quicker-playing than Rolemaster, it condenses down into a single
double-sided page of charts, without sacrificing the detail that
makes Rolemaster worthwhile. This is assuming that all the optional
combat rules (which, to my understanding, used to be a standard
part of HarnMaster) are used. If they're not used, the result is
an interesting, detailed combat system that isn't simulationist
enough to justify having to fumble with that many numbers. The
system is best when it's handling complex actions.

This is a combat system that is geared towards low fantasy --
vicious brawls between relatively lightly-armored combatants.
Injuries are appropriately gruesome; hit location as well as
the type of damage matters, and shock and blood loss are major
factors in combat. Wounds can become infected, limbs may have
to be amputated in order to "heal" injuries, and, overall, the
various ways to maim the human body are lovingly detailed in
a series of charts.

There is a set of Psionic rules that are unexceptional, reminding
me strongly of the AD&D First Edition approach to psychic talents.
The Campaign, Bestiary, and Treasure sections are also extremely
reminescent of AD&D First Edition. There is some good historical
detail that will probably be of general interest, but the material
that is directly game-related is rather humdrum generic-fantasy
stuff. The ideas here are fairly run-of-the-mill; they're 
well-executed and well-presented, but they're not going to
win any awards for originality.

The real strength of HarnMaster is the system's ability to condense
complex tasks into a relatively simple set of die rolls. It provides
roughly the same degree of accuracy as Rolemaster does, without the
pages and pages of charts; some effort has also been put into making
HarnMaster probability curves "realistic".  Unfortunately, beyond the
combat system, there's really very little reason to recommend
HarnMaster. The Harn background material can be used without using the
system. Runequest is far simpler, and has a richly detailed
background. Palladium Fantasy is well-suited to running adventures
of the Harn style, and, again, it is much simpler. AD&D is perhaps
the most similar in its approach, with stats/monsters/treasure.
Rolemaster provides more detail, and is useful for high-fantasy
as well as low-fantasy play.

HarnMaster seems to be a system that is excellent for human-vs.-human
struggles at the grunt level. Indeed, the rules make it fairly clear
that this is exactly the sort of character that one is expected to
play. It falls down when it attempts to be just another fantasy RPG.
I wish Columbia Games had attempted to market it as a system for
playing historical simulations. The stubs of magic and religion
in the core rules seem awkwardly out of place, and while I look
forward to seeing what the HarnMaster Magic and HarnMaster Religion
supplements will look like, I also strongly feel that the authors
ought to have capitalized upon what was apparently extensive research
on medieval combat and customs, and turned out something more closely
focused upon, well, peasants grunging out a subsistence existence.

I would use HarnMaster if I were running a medieval-setting, low-fantasy
campaign with low-social-class characters and a dark, gritty, feel. In
this case, however, I would almost certainly toss everything but the
main stat system and the combat system. Bits and pieces of the system
may also be useful in combination with other games; for example, impact
>from  falling, and damage inflicted by fire, are both handled particularly
well, and the combat tables might be very useful as critical-hit tables
in conjunction with systems such as AD&D.

Overall:  Recommended, but only to a select audience.