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The Possibility Wars
Torg: Mysterious Cairo
Come to the World of the Nile Empire, a world of high adventure, intrigue, and danger. Come to the city of Cairo, on the banks of the Great Nile. Here, pulp heroes fight against insane villains in the streets. Weird scientists, magicians, and occultists concoct incredible schemes to rob their enemies of more than just their lives...
Contains the stories:
"Knowing the Rules" (part I, II, II, IV), by Ed Stark
"Carnival Voice", by Bill Slavicsek
"The Scarab's Sting", by Greg Farshtey
"The Sands of Change", by Steven Brown
"Cry Havoc", by John Terra
"Icarus Descending", by Greg Farshtey
"Dead End", by Shane Lacy Hensley
"The Dreams of Midnight", by Bill Smith
Contains the stories:
"Knowing the Rules" (part I, II, II, IV), by Ed Stark
"Carnival Voice", by Bill Slavicsek
"The Scarab's Sting", by Greg Farshtey
"The Sands of Change", by Steven Brown
"Cry Havoc", by John Terra
"Icarus Descending", by Greg Farshtey
"Dead End", by Shane Lacy Hensley
"The Dreams of Midnight", by Bill Smith
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
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February 28, 2013
The Possibility Wars is primary a game setting, and I think it works better as that. It seems that the underlying concept was to create a multigenre system and array of settings, and also for those settings--fantasy, pulp adventure, cyberpunk in various flavors--to interact meaningfully. To create the ultimate mix-and-match environment: "I play Gandalf, you play The Shadow, go and beat up Darth Vader." Something like that.
In addition, there's an overarching metaplot of the various genres--the "realities" invading Core Earth for reasons not well explained--are in competition for control. So the bad guys are a squabbling bunch who undermine one another.
Fair enough. Interesting tie-together. But the authors are burdened with not just explaining the internal logic of the adventure pulp setting of the Nile Empire (a world of 1930's style, black-and-white morality, pulp-style masked vigilantes, weird science, mysticism, dramatic action, flamboyant villainry, and cliffhanger escapes from implausible deathtraps), but to show how that reality-setting interacts with immigrants from other settings or from Core Earth and how agents of the other High Lords are working on projects to take control here.
The most interesting idea that I came across--and this is a book with superheroes fighting the robosphynx on the cover--is the psychological effects of this reality. The characters, villains included, are compelled to make grand gestures, chancy risks, and snappy comebacks, because that's the rules of this reality.
In addition, there's an overarching metaplot of the various genres--the "realities" invading Core Earth for reasons not well explained--are in competition for control. So the bad guys are a squabbling bunch who undermine one another.
Fair enough. Interesting tie-together. But the authors are burdened with not just explaining the internal logic of the adventure pulp setting of the Nile Empire (a world of 1930's style, black-and-white morality, pulp-style masked vigilantes, weird science, mysticism, dramatic action, flamboyant villainry, and cliffhanger escapes from implausible deathtraps), but to show how that reality-setting interacts with immigrants from other settings or from Core Earth and how agents of the other High Lords are working on projects to take control here.
The most interesting idea that I came across--and this is a book with superheroes fighting the robosphynx on the cover--is the psychological effects of this reality. The characters, villains included, are compelled to make grand gestures, chancy risks, and snappy comebacks, because that's the rules of this reality.
Displaying 1 of 1 review