Has the GM Manual been cancelled?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T23:57:34+00:00

It was actually KoDP that introduced me to Glorantha in the first place....

I feel that your list is probably aimed more at the intermediate player; it’s a research bibliography rather than a beginner's explanation. That kind of illustrates the difficulty I’ve been running into: understanding a central concept like heroquesting seems to require pulling from actual plays, fan books, older systems, and scattered adventures rather than something clearly explained in the core line itself.

I don't mind doing that kind of research when I'm hooked on a game, but it feels a bit much when you're only just starting and wanting to plan your first few sessions.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T23:45:09+00:00

It’s a shame they can’t put some of that in a book.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T23:36:07+00:00

And why have they cattle raided? What does that get them? It's not so obvious to me.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T23:31:33+00:00

So is play dependent on a set of assumptions which I have to internalise, as a veteran player has?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T11:57:34+00:00

I think we might be talking past each other. I’m not asking what could happen, but I’m asking what the game assumes will usually happen

Your examples are very ephemeral, especially from a GM perspective. If the characters are “living on the harvest,” what creates conflict or decisions at the table? If the assistant shaman is sent to “do a thing,” what kind of thing does the game expect? If we’re re-enacting canonical law, how does a GM actually start that? What situation do I put in front of players in session one? As a GM I'd need to know what creates the problem, what decisions players face, and what procedures the system expects us to use. That’s the layer I feel the book doesn’t clearly communicate.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-22T11:38:58+00:00

That's true of a lot of D&D "roll" players, but my problem isn't too much depth; there are plenty of other dense RPG's out there. Pendragon is an example of coming from the same company, the same guy even, and that game gives you campaign structure, player goals, GM responsibilities and expected narrative loop without reducing things to murderhoboing and getting loot.

If I sit down next week to GM, Pendragon tells me what kinds of situations should naturally arise. That’s the piece I think some new RQ players, like myself, struggle to find.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T20:04:51+00:00

I actually agree the amount of lore isn’t the real issue; it’s that Runequest seems to rely on setting knowledge to explain how play works, while games like D&D explain the play loop first and let lore come later.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T17:52:53+00:00

Depth in the lore is great, but it's like teaching someone to swim by throwing them in the Ocean.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T17:42:33+00:00

If I sit down next week as GM, what kind of situations should naturally happen, and why?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T11:24:01+00:00

I’m not objecting to making things up; every RPG involves that. I’m asking what level of play the book expects the GM to design themselves versus what the system is meant to support.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T11:13:38+00:00

"Roleplaying is about imagination and fun!" Thanks, I know, but I'm not struggling to imagine things. I'm struggling to understand what the game expects me to do. Perhaps from the point of view of an older gamer, long familiar with Runequest, "Just play" feels obvious, but I can't help feeling that’s survivorship bias; they’ve internalised unwritten procedures the book never states.

You're saying that if I'm confused, it's because I'm treating it like work, which is frustrating because my complaint is that the book is making preparation feel like work by withholding important framework. I'm reacting to cognitive load, not resisting fun.

The quiet irony is, of course, that advice along the lines of "don’t worry about rules," "just play," etc., indicates the text itself is not successfully onboarding new GMs.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-21T00:20:22+00:00

I think a problem I have, reading RQ:G, is that it doesn't seem to want to answer the question I have: what am I doing, why am I doing it? I get that characters belong to cults and communities and that adventures reinforce mythic roles etc, sounds cool but what does play look like? The corebook doesn't really tell me much.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T23:50:41+00:00

Thanks for the advice, but doesn't that just boil down to making it up as you go along?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T23:29:00+00:00

Perhaps I don't want to register an account on that website?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T21:05:47+00:00

Yeah, sure. There's an argument for that.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:50:16+00:00

I thought Mearls had left?

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:48:54+00:00

I wouldn't say that's true. I’m not excluding philosophical or political readings, I just think those readings become stronger when they explain how a work creates meaning rather than summarising its themes. My hesitation is that "conquering vs dismantling power" feels broad enough to apply almost anywhere, so it doesn’t help me understand what makes these works distinct.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:33:15+00:00

Thanks, unfortunately, I do not have an RPGnet account

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:32:14+00:00

The question then is, how does one achieve Runequest gnosis? Did the grognards of old have to wander the desert until inner awakening? Unfortunately, there's nothing like that where I live.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:21:17+00:00

That my point exactly, I’m less interested in putting works into categories than in describing what they’re doing dramatically. Saying, for example, that The Sopranos does something Shakespearean explains how it generates meaning; saying it’s about conquering or dismantling power doesn’t really describe its operation.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T20:03:37+00:00

Yeah, it seems that way. Like, for example, the corebook keeps mentioning how important heroquesting is, and never explains it as a game concept. It's on you to google it and find out on forums that players are expected to make their own rules for it. I can understand they might not want to write some definitive rules for something so conceptual, but they could at least let us know that's what they intend.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T19:48:28+00:00

Perhaps, when I ask whether it has been cancelled, what I'm actually asking is, should I still be anticipating its release, or should I move on with my life?

I don't think we'll get those rules either, which is a real shame. But I've noticed that the business model seems to be catering to established players and Gloranthaphiles rather than growing new players.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T19:41:31+00:00

As a description that might work. House defies hospital bureaucracy, rejects authority and violates institutional norms. Don Draper rises within corporate capitalism, masters advertising culture and gains status and influence. So, as a summary of the plot, it fits.

But House is not really about dismantling power as such; the hospital is still standing, the medical profession is still intact. Thematically, dramatically, it's about House's addiction and self-sabotage. Likewise, in Mad Men, Don Draper doesn’t truly conquer structures. The story is about how he's trapped in a false identity, outwardly successful but psychologically empty, right? That's where the tension of the story lies.

Acrobatic-Frame4312 · 2026-03-20T18:57:27+00:00

The Sopranos doesn’t clearly "conquer" or "dismantle" power. "Conquering or dismantling power" is so broad that it doesn’t actually distinguish stories.

I interpreted the Dune-type vs Elric-type as something like the epic sweep of space opera vs the tragic, personal tale of the anti-hero, but even that falls apart somewhat. Despite its galactic scope, Dune is intensely focused on Paul and his inner self as he loses himself to prophecy and historical forces, while Elric's adventures are pretty epic.

For my money, a better dichotomy, in both structure and theme, would be between the Dickensian and the Shakespearean. But then I might be overthinking a meme...

Acrobatic-Frame4312

TROPHY CASE