Submitted by Gentleman John on Mon, 2006-11-27 15:26.
I never read Aberrant, so I can't comment on the quality of the writing (which I think may be the problem, rather than having the writing up front)m however I did think Adventure and Changeling were two very good examples from the WW lines of putting fluff first.
Alright, I am a great fan of the pulps (or as much as I could get hold of here in the UK), so maybe I'm biased. However, the pieces of fiction in Adventure hit the spot, as did the opening fiction in Changeling. The best example of it, though, is still Castle Falkenstein.
As for SLA - well, my opinion on that particular piece of gaming history is "all furcoat and no knickers": in other words, nice looking fluff, but I don't get the hype.
So, put the fluff first: yes! But make sure it is damn good fluff. As the Sheikh says, usually story comes first. Generic-setting rules are only good if you have an idea you want to wrap around them.
Adventure
I never read Aberrant, so I can't comment on the quality of the writing (which I think may be the problem, rather than having the writing up front)m however I did think Adventure and Changeling were two very good examples from the WW lines of putting fluff first.
Alright, I am a great fan of the pulps (or as much as I could get hold of here in the UK), so maybe I'm biased. However, the pieces of fiction in Adventure hit the spot, as did the opening fiction in Changeling. The best example of it, though, is still Castle Falkenstein.
As for SLA - well, my opinion on that particular piece of gaming history is "all furcoat and no knickers": in other words, nice looking fluff, but I don't get the hype.
So, put the fluff first: yes! But make sure it is damn good fluff. As the Sheikh says, usually story comes first. Generic-setting rules are only good if you have an idea you want to wrap around them.