The Primal Order, or "TPO", is a religion-based fantasy roleplaying game supplement.[1] Of particular note, TPO was the first work published by Wizards of the Coast and its president, Peter Adkison.[2] Through TPO, Wizards of the Coast introduced the "Capsystem" concept, enabling gamemasters to seamlessly integrate TPO and future Capsystem titles into other role-playing games.
The supplement covers high-powered gaming and the gods. TPO provides guidelines for gamemasters to develop individual gods of various power levels, to include entire pantheons, as well as the vast support network, both divine and mortal, required to maintain and increase godly status. These guidelines stem from the foundational concept of primal energy, its sources and impact, as well as its resource management.
As part of the sale of Wizards of the Coast to Hasbro in 2001, Adkison retained the rights to The Primal Order, his own original work.[3]
Wizards quickly followed up the release of TPO with several supplements to help build on the system's foundation. These supplements included:
Pawns, The Opening Move. Written by Nigel Findley, TPO's first supplement serves as a bestiary created with the TPO ruleset in mind. It was published in 1992.
Knights, Strategies in Motion. Written by Nigel Findley, this supplement details three fictional deities and their approaches to building their respective religions based on the TPO ruleset. It was published in 1993.
Chessboards, The Planes of Possibility. Written by Dave Howell, this supplement details planar design and management with respect to TPO ruleset. It was published in 1993. The first copies went on sale at GenCon 1993, but its release was overshadowed by another new product: Magic, the Gathering.
Controversy
One of the driving forces behind the Capsystem concept was to provide gamemasters of various systems with conversion notes to port TPO into their respective games. As such, Wizards solicited conversions for various systems, and included the following conversions with TPO:
Kevin Siembieda, the owner of Palladium Books and Palladium FRPG copyright holder, sued Wizards for copyright infringement.[2] The parties settled the suit out of court, and Wizards released a revised edition of TPO that excluded Palladium. The revised edition also excluded AD&D, D&D and WarpWorld. However, Adkison took advantage of the revision to include these games:
The expanded coverage increased TPO's page count from 232 to 250 pages. It also included new cover art.
Planned supplements
Wizards initially planned several supplements, of which two are known:
Bishops, The Eternal Crusade. This TPO supplement, to be written by Loren Miller,[4] was to focus on "Earthly" churches using the TPO ruleset. It was never completed, nor are there any notes or references available.
Rivals of Estedil. Written by Jonathan Tweet,[5] this was an adventure using the TPO ruleset. It was never completed, although Mr Tweet compiled copious notes and an outline.
In addition, the following Capsystem works are mentioned in the Legal Stuff section of both the original and revised editions:
The Military Order
The Economic Order
The Governmental Order
The Underworld Order
Yet, with the dramatic success of Magic: The Gathering, coupled with previous legal issues regarding their Capsystem approach, Wizards focused almost entirely on collectible card games and did not release any further Capsystem books.[2]
Other conversions
Although TPO received no further official support beyond the 1995 revised edition, several folks have put forth other game system conversions for the system, to include:
Loyd Blankenship reviewed The Primal Order in Pyramid #1 (May/June, 1993), and stated that "TPO is probably the single most useful book a GM can buy regarding the proper and effective use of gods and religion in a campaign."[9]
TPO received very good reviews from various sources, including RPGNet.[4]
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The Primal Order or TPO is a religion based fantasy roleplaying game supplement 1 Of particular note TPO was the first work published by Wizards of the Coast and its president Peter Adkison 2 Through TPO Wizards of the Coast introduced the Capsystem concept enabling gamemasters to seamlessly integrate TPO and future Capsystem titles into other role playing games The Primal OrderFirst edition coverDesignersPeter AdkisonPublishersWizards of the CoastPublication1992 1995 revised edition GenresFantasySystemsCapsystemThe supplement covers high powered gaming and the gods TPO provides guidelines for gamemasters to develop individual gods of various power levels to include entire pantheons as well as the vast support network both divine and mortal required to maintain and increase godly status These guidelines stem from the foundational concept of primal energy its sources and impact as well as its resource management As part of the sale of Wizards of the Coast to Hasbro in 2001 Adkison retained the rights to The Primal Order his own original work 3 Contents 1 Published supplements 2 Controversy 3 Planned supplements 4 Other conversions 5 Reception 6 Reviews 7 NotesPublished supplements EditWizards quickly followed up the release of TPO with several supplements to help build on the system s foundation These supplements included Pawns The Opening Move Written by Nigel Findley TPO s first supplement serves as a bestiary created with the TPO ruleset in mind It was published in 1992 Knights Strategies in Motion Written by Nigel Findley this supplement details three fictional deities and their approaches to building their respective religions based on the TPO ruleset It was published in 1993 Chessboards The Planes of Possibility Written by Dave Howell this supplement details planar design and management with respect to TPO ruleset It was published in 1993 The first copies went on sale at GenCon 1993 but its release was overshadowed by another new product Magic the Gathering Controversy EditOne of the driving forces behind the Capsystem concept was to provide gamemasters of various systems with conversion notes to port TPO into their respective games As such Wizards solicited conversions for various systems and included the following conversions with TPO Advanced Dungeons amp Dragons both 1st and 2nd edition Arduin Grimoire Ars Magica Chivalry amp Sorcery Dungeons amp Dragons GURPS HarnMaster Hero System Palladium Fantasy Role Playing Game Pendragon RPG RoleMaster RuneQuest Shadowrun Synnibarr Talislanta Torg Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay WarpWorldKevin Siembieda the owner of Palladium Books and Palladium FRPG copyright holder sued Wizards for copyright infringement 2 The parties settled the suit out of court and Wizards released a revised edition of TPO that excluded Palladium The revised edition also excluded AD amp D D amp D and WarpWorld However Adkison took advantage of the revision to include these games Castle Falkenstein CORPS Earthdawn Kult Tri Tac Games World of Darkness gamesThe expanded coverage increased TPO s page count from 232 to 250 pages It also included new cover art Planned supplements EditWizards initially planned several supplements of which two are known Bishops The Eternal Crusade This TPO supplement to be written by Loren Miller 4 was to focus on Earthly churches using the TPO ruleset It was never completed nor are there any notes or references available Rivals of Estedil Written by Jonathan Tweet 5 this was an adventure using the TPO ruleset It was never completed although Mr Tweet compiled copious notes and an outline In addition the following Capsystem works are mentioned in the Legal Stuff section of both the original and revised editions The Military Order The Economic Order The Governmental Order The Underworld OrderYet with the dramatic success of Magic The Gathering coupled with previous legal issues regarding their Capsystem approach Wizards focused almost entirely on collectible card games and did not release any further Capsystem books 2 Other conversions EditAlthough TPO received no further official support beyond the 1995 revised edition several folks have put forth other game system conversions for the system to include GURPS 4th Edition 6 Mythus 7 Unisystem 8 Reception EditLoyd Blankenship reviewed The Primal Order in Pyramid 1 May June 1993 and stated that TPO is probably the single most useful book a GM can buy regarding the proper and effective use of gods and religion in a campaign 9 TPO received very good reviews from various sources including RPGNet 4 Reviews EditWhite Wolf 34 Jan Feb 1993 Notes Edit Edelstein David RPGNet Game Index Retrieved 2011 07 04 a b c Appelcline Shannon A Brief History of Game 1 Wizards of the Coast 1990 Present RPGNet Retrieved 2011 07 04 Peter Adkison Talks About The Return Of The Primal Order Dorkland 9 December 2013 Retrieved 2014 06 17 a b Edelstein David Review The Primal Order RPGNet Review Retrieved 2011 07 04 Tweet Jonathan Rivals of Estedil ISBN 9992228962 Wilson Jefferson GURPS 4e and The Primal Order Personal website Archived from the original on August 24 2010 Retrieved 2010 08 24 Morris Rodney Conversion of The Primal Order to Mythus Personal website Retrieved 2011 07 04 Furtado Fred The Primal Order Conversion Notes for Unisystem Personal website Retrieved 2011 07 04 Blankenship Loyd Pyramid Pick The Primal Order Pyramid Magazine Retrieved 2011 07 04 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Primal Order amp oldid 1032206209, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
