Griffin Island (RuneQuest)

Griffin Island is a boxed tabletop role-playing game supplement for RuneQuest. Originally published by Chaosium in 1981 as Griffin Mountain, this edition was published in 1986 by The Avalon Hill Game Company as part of its third edition rules set. As Avalon Hill owned the RuneQuest trademark, but not the world of Glorantha, the original wilderness setting was changed to an isolated island that could be transposed into any RuneQuest campaign setting. The cover was branded with the Gateway logo to indicate particular fantasy setting. The writers remained the same, Rudy Kraft, Paul Jaquays, Greg Stafford, and Sandy Petersen, with interior art by Paul Jaquays, but new cover art by Steve Purcell.[1]

Griffin Island
Griffin Island (boxed set)
as published by Avalon Hill in 1986.
Illustration by Steve Purcell.
Designer(s)Rudy Kraft
Paul Jaquays
Greg Stafford
Sandy Petersen
Publisher(s)Avalon Hill
Publication date1986
Genre(s)Fantasy
System(s)RuneQuest

Contents

Material included in the books include background material, notes for gamemasters, various encounters, notable personalities and both short adventures and adventure hooks that can be developed into major adventures.[1]

  • a 32-page Gamemaster Book,
  • a 52-page Scenario Book,
  • a 28-page book of Players' Handouts,
  • a 32" x 22" map of the island on which the setting takes place.[2]

Reception

In the September 1986 edition of White Dwarf (Issue #81), Robert Neville had a few quibbles, complaining about the changes made to the names of monsters and deities in order to move the material out of the world of Glorantha. He also thought the map's text should have looked more "ancient" rather that using typset text. He concluded that for those with the old Griffon Mountain supplement, this new product was not necessary. But for those who did not already own it, Neville suggested, "Griffin Island is very highly recommended to everyone who hasn't a copy of the original."[3]

In the October 1987 edition of Dragon (Issue #126), Ken Rolston lamented the loss of the world of Glorantha, but admitted that "it is with resigned enthusiasm that I salute the adaptation of the Gloranthan Griffin Mountain material to more generic fantasy conventions." Rolston applauded the quality of work, saying, "The campaign background material, game-master staging notes, minor encounters, and scenarios are exceptionally well-done. For the most part, the classic setting and narrative values of the original have been preserved or enhanced." He also liked the short adventures that were included, commenting that "The best things about the scenario resources are their brevity and variety - perfect for an evening’s entertainment, easily reviewed and understood by the GM, with good maps and simple text descriptions." He concluded with a strong recommendation, saying, "The excellent presentation of the player handouts enhances the already superior quality of the campaign and adventure material, and fine presentation of the original Griffin As the only representative of a classic line of campaign supplements still is an essential part of any fantasy role-player’s library. Newcomers to Chaosium’s campaign-supplement presentation wizardry will marvel at its excellence. Old fans of the out-of-print Gloranthan supplements must resist nostalgic comparisons with the good old days and recognize Griffin Island for what it is: the best contemporary fantasy campaign supplement."[1]

In the November 1987 edition of Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer (Issue No. 80), Tim Robinson commented that "the game is an excellent buy if you play RuneQuest. It is useful to a GM who has a campaign established, or to the GM who wants to begin a campaign game using RuneQuest. Griffin Island has a good background, some excellent scenarios, and some new, interesting creatures. I recommend this supplement for anyone interested in some enjoyable role-playing."[2]

In the August 1989 edition of Games International (Issue #8), John Scott admitted that he was nostalgic for the original Griffin Mountain, but he found the updated Griffin Island material as good, although he was "sorely vexed that Griffin Island is now non-Gloranthan." He concluded by giving Griffin Island an average rating of 3 out of 5, saying, "this is a good pack. Even if you still have the older pack, it might be worth checking this out."[4]

Other reviews

References
  1. Rolston, Ken (October 1987). "Role-playing reviews". Dragon. TSR, Inc. (126): 9–10.
  2. Robinson, Tim (October–November 1987). "Griffin Island". Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer. Diverse Talents, Incorporated (80): 36.
  3. Neville, Robert (September 1986). "Open Box". White Dwarf. Games Workshop (81): 3.
  4. Scott, John (August 1989). "Griffin Island". Games International. No. 8. p. 40.
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