Review - GURPS Horseclans and the Horseclans Series
This is a review of GURPS Horseclans. In case you didn't know, GURPS stands for Generic Universal Role-Playing System. It is one of my favorite role-playing games (rpgs). GURPS is published by Steve Jackson Games but this particular book is out of print due to licensing issues. You can still find used copies of this book on sale online. I have a hardcopy of this book which I bought when it first came out in September 1987.
Before I start the review, let me mention a few things. This particular world book was based on the first edition of the GURPS Basic Set. Over the years, GURPS has gone though some edition changes. It's now at its 4th edition so this book is very dated. However, the source material is still good and can be easily adapted to other rpgs. I will mention one particular adaptation that I think is quite appropriate. I will review this book by looking at the sections in detail and point out how it could be adapted to GURPS 4th edition. I will also look at the Horseclans series, on which this book is based.
Let's start with the front and back covers. The front cover shows an armoured man holding a battleaxe and a sword slung on his back. Crouching beside him, you see what looks like a sabre-tooth tiger! Aren't they extinct? When you turn to the back cover, a few words in the blurb jump out at you. These are: post-holocaust America, mind-reading prairiecats, undying. Milo Morai, Robert Adams' bestselling Horseclans series. So now you know that this is not your typical fantasy setting. It's a post-apocalyptic rebuild civilization setting. Let's now turn to the first few pages of the book.
The first two pages are the usual credits and copyright notice together with a table of contents. After that you come to the Introduction. The Introduction gives you a good summary of the book and its contents. The sidebars give additional information about Steve Jackson Games and the Horseclans series.
Chapter 1 starts on page four. A sidebar on page 4 lists the titles of all the Horseclans novels published as of September 1987. If you compared this list to that given in Wikipedia, you'll see that the series is complete except for Book 18: The Clan of the Cats. In the days before the Internet, this list helped me to keep track of the novels in the Horseclans series. This chapter, which runs from page 4 to 11, gives a chronology of the Horseclans world, discusses various types of campaigns in the different time periods and talks about the economy, technology and languages of the Horseclans world. There is an interesting sidebar on page 10 about how to rewrite the history of the Horseclans to keep the players on their toes.
Chapter 2 runs from page 12 to 41 is titled The Lands of Mehrikah (America). It gives a detailed description of post-apocalyptic America up to the year 2800 AD. The government, history, geography, flora and fauna, attitude towards psionics and/or magic, society, law, races, military and warfare, religion, interesting places, languages and, finally, adventure hooks are presented briefly for each area of Mehrikah. Maps of some regions are also provided. This chapter is a goldmine of information for any fan of the Horseclans series. The information is system neutral and can be used for any rpg.
Chapter 3, which runs from page 42 to 73 is where the game information is presented. Much of the information is now outdated. However, any experienced GM should be able to use the information as a basis for conversion to any preferred system. Full GURPS stats for important personalities of the Horseclans series, such as Milo Morai, are given from page 68 to 73, together with short biographies of these people.
Chapter 4, titled The Encompassing One, is rather weird. It is a one page description of a deity which is worshiped by some people in the world of Mehrikah. In general, the Horseclans series is not heavy on divine intervention and there are no clerics in the Horseclans world.
Chapter 5, Psionics, gives GURPS rules for psionic powers in the Horseclans. It runs from page 75 to 83. Once again, the rules are outdated but can be easily adapted to any other system. There is a description of psionics in various animals on the sidebar of page 82. The main text on page 82 also describes the mind transfer powers of the Witchmen, a group of scientists who have attained immortality by transferring their minds from their old bodies into a young and healthy one.
The mass combat rules, presented in chapter 6 from page 84 to 90, provide a way to engage in large battles involving large armies. The equipment used by the various armies of Mehrikah are described briefly.
Chapter 7 presents the bestiary of the Horseclans world. It occupies two pages, 91 and 92. After this, a glossary of terms used in the Horseclans series is given in chapter 8. Page 95 is an advertisement for the Horseclans novels and shows some book covers. The last page is an index for the book.
That was quite a tour. As you can see, GURPS Horseclans can be easily adapted to any other rpg so this book is quite valuable even today. In particular, I think it is quite easy to adapt it to the Traveller rpg (any edition). The entire Horseclans series could be set on a planet located in some remote corner of the Traveller universe. It even has psionic humans, which would certainly attract the attention of the Zhodani. The Imperium would probably interdict the Horseclans planet just based on this fact alone. The various characters can be left alone but their back stories would probably have to be changed. In particular, the Undying and the Witchmen, two groups with great powers, would have to be explained in a Traveller context. The Witchmen can be explained as a group of renegade scientists or even Imperial scouts who have gone native. In such a setting, the mind transfer powers of the Witchmen have to be removed but they can have access to even more advanced technology available to Imperial citizens.
The Undying are more difficult to explain. They are central to the plot of the Horseclans and cannot be removed without affecting it. One possibility is to think of them as Ancient robots, constructed as humans and left on the planet eons ago. The appearance of new Undying can be explained away as a robot waking up after centuries of slumber and blending into the human population.
Lastly, a word about the Horseclans series. The entire series is available on Amazon.com as Kindle ebooks. Check it out if you are interested. A word of warning though. The Horseclans series was written in the 1970s to 1980s, a time when people were not as concerned about being politically correct. If you are easily offended by any sensitive topics (treatment of women, disapproval of homosexuality etc.), I would recommend steering clear of this series. On the other hand, if you're looking for a good adventure, I heartily recommend this series.