"Fantasy and Imagi-Nations." Topic

I have half a dozen Imagi-Nations, four already done, and two more on the blocks. Two more are planned. I've mentioned these before, no need to go into it again.

Now a bit of definition. An Imagi-nation is a country, primarily represented in its table top army and the buildings and units that go with it, which is a fictitious army but one entirely in congruence with our physical world around us.

Fantasy has always been associated with the Role Playing side of things and D&D. This has fantastical creatures and things like orks and elves etc. There have been some who have fashioned these and even combined them in the 18th century and some manufacturers even make minis for them.

That's not what I am talking about.

I'm thinking of making a Fantasy Imagi-nation army in the 18th century with-- trolls. But these aren't your Tolkein-D&D trolls. Following an article I did in Saxe N' Violets about Imagi-Nations and what it would take to accommodate these magical races into the 18th century paradigm, these trolls are more like the trolls of Pier Gynt, than those of Tolkein and J.K. Rowlings.

I'm thinking of putting these fantasy creaters on an alternate or parallel plain where they can at times interact with our own, and ours with theirs. As such things are not always what they seem. On the lowest level there may be a unit of Troll Jaegers roughly man-sized, with a physiognomy fairly close to man but of course with a greenish cast to the face. They would not be ugly or hideous and in fact, as I opined in the article, as the 18th century was besotted with delicate beauty, the trolls would have to follow the pattern also. However the power of the Trolls would be in other ways. For example the substitution of a hex of terrain from their world into our world. for this you need to know that in my war game set up I do it by hexes. I don't mean we move and fight with the hexes as a unit of measurement or combat, it's straight open game not gridded, but I make the terrain on hexes to make it modular sturdy, and to provide a base for modeling. Thus it's easy to switch terrain around and make all sorts of geomorphic forms. Thus the Trolls could subsititute a hex from their plane into our plain, where different laws of physics, or- even logic or morality might apply.

I'm using the trolls here, I emphasize only as "an other" not with any specific idea of trolls in mind, but more as "men" but slightly different "men." Thus Troll weapons might be different in application here than there, or not really weapons at all. For example, the use of troll "messengers" or interlocutors with officers and or leaders to befuddle, or emote, in ways that are not always bad.

The problem I'm continually coming up with is that you have to work this with a very light touch or it ruins the game. Indeed what is difficult is working the trolls into being "unworldly" and not just the same old tired things from our games with a light wash of green on them.

All of my yes to this idea. I was tinkering with a very similar idea with my Imagi-Nation project before it abruptly ended… although I was more interested in the witch hired by the La Princesa Sebolla to summon goblins during the game itself. La Brujah would not have been an "every game" inclusion, but when she showed up, it would have made things different.

Fantasy creatures/races in the age of reason is delightfully contradictory.

I've never been a big fan of magic in fantasy. but the creatures and races are the part I enjoy

Now if only a company would make good quality 18th century fantasy miniatures( and no flintloque does not count)

one idea for doing trolls in a 18th century setting would be to deliberately emphasis the manufacturer';s size differences. for instance, if you have mostly perry/foundry sized figures when you make your troll figures, go with front rank or some of the other manufacturers in the larger side. along with your slightly different hue of skin, this might emphasis the difference.

You should read Naomi Novik's "Temeraire" series – dragons in the Napoleonic wars!
naominovik.com/temeraire

Sounds like a precursor to the Flintloque fantasy Napoleonic rules.

I've thought Trolls would be quite useful for pulling artillery about.

no no, you guys are not listening to me. No heavy duty magic, no dragons in the Napoleonic wars, which I consider completely stupid,none of that. The trolls are essentially just like us, our size, our shape, our proprtions just a different style of men. A slightly different creature. Virtually human in all ways but a few. The difference in the game explores moral, societal. normative and ethical differences not physical ones. The differences are in what is the one, the true,the beautiful, the tension between egoism and empathy, the problems of the ingroup and the outgroop, the one the self and the other, and most of all the two great questions of 18th century thought, the choice between the greater of two goods and the nature and character of happiness. For example following up on the article in my newsletter Saxe N' Violets in a future issue this year will be a dialogue between a The Prince of Zwiebak the younger, and Lucilleot Florian, a Colonel of a Troll Regiment on the conduct of war between the spheres. The underlying question of course is why both spheres our temporal and the troll temperal cannot seem to remain seperate. In this Lucilleot argues against the intrusion of the plane of men into that of the trolls, and insists the trolls do not wish to have any traffic with men, but the Prince asks if that is so why do you always interfere and save our young when in trouble, or play with human emotions and effections.

Otto

Otto, once again you are complaining when a topic does not follow the rules you vainly try to impose on it.
Starting with a definition in your second paragraph is generally ignored by all.
How long have you been here?

I would have thought that including anything and everything that never existed sort of goes against the entire idea of imagi-nations.

FWIW Flintloque/Slaughterloo does not have heavy duty magic nor dragons.

Some of the dwarves, elves, and orcs are in tricorns with more suitable dwarves in the pipeline.

The current trolls are in Napoleonic era Swedish garb with the smaller trolkin in Danish inspired uniforms.

I have used these figures for very low fantasy indeed (only the racial types causing some difference), or as proxies for simple human types for years and have a set of conversions suitable for Long Rifle and 95th up on the web somewhere. Link provided as requested.

Otto's troll idea sounds fine to me. Even when I play proper sword and sorcery fantasy I use little magic (usually the bad guy in a Conan story sort of way).

Bob

Right, I thought the idea of Flintloque/Slaughterloo was that someone had done away with magic (except in the Witchlands?) and that's why everything had shifted towards black-powder. So, baring the trans-dimensional aspect, it's similar to the idea already outlined.

Another source of inspiration for this would the 'Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell', the way 'Farie' works is similar to this concept.

-Will

Dear Winston

Perhaps I should take note and participate accordingly.

The Mountain King said:

Be true to yourself and to hell with the world.

Dear Grommet37

Ah yes, what was I thinking. Thanks.