Ritual of Salt
Illustration by Hugo Solis
Robert N. Emerson
1. So you have a good host of authors on this project, do you have a favorite?
I’m going to have to go with ‘All of Them’, possibly excluding myself for proprieties sake, as they did some solid work and it’s all pulled together quite seamlessly. They’re talented folk who I’m quite humbled to have had worked with.
Litorians is the culmination of its fine pieces and it flows together well enough that all the authors seem of a communal thought and I liked that, a lot.
12. Describe your best moment working on Litorians?
While the whole experience has been the best, I’d say that the beginning, when I was asked to not only work on it, but to being the developer, as the best moment. I’m still floored when I think about it today, as it’s just one of those awesome, yet fearful moments.
That was definitely the best moment, for me, of the whole project and I hope that my contribution made things for the better.
13. What do you feel was the most ingenious part of Litorians?
I’d say the overall way things came together, between what the patrons talked about and how the designers delivered it. There were so many ways and directions that things could have gone, yet we ended up with where it was best to go, I think.
But, as should be no surprise, I’m a fan of patronage projects and the methods they use for design and development. I think it adds an enjoyably unique layer to a project, which can lead to some ingenious stuff.
14. What specific design choice are you most happy with, and why?
I’m really pleased with the village that we wrapped the project around. It gave us this center piece to play off of and I think it came off quite nicely.
Hopefully others agree with me, too.
15. Which design element was the hardest to figure out, and why?
I’d say the balance between flavor and mechanics; at least that was the hard part for me. I can just blather on about something for a good long while without throwing a rule in edgewise. But, with some help, I got a better idea of that fine balance and worked through the learning.
It’s sort of how I am when I run a game, too. I need to find that balance between narration and throwing dice, and when I do it’s a fun time for all.
16. What did you learn about design and especially designing for Arcana Evolved?
Everything.
One of the perks, I think, of working with so many experienced designers was seeing the differentiation in their methods, styles, and how it all comes together.
It’s not false humility or sycophancy, but I really learned a lot from the folks working on the project since, out of all of them, I’m rookie, so to speak. Between designing, developing, and editing on the project, I think I’ve improved my tradecraft a nice amount and I’m very thankful for that.
While a lot of it is things I knew, or knew of, before, it’s just in a sharper clarity now and I think that’s a good thing.
17. What have you learned about Litorians during the creation of this book?
I’d say my sense of their stoic nobility grow more underlined and pronounced for me, although it’s always been there to a degree.
See, I’ve only played two races in Arcana Evolved; Faen and Litorian. That’s it, and I’ve enjoyed them both a lot and I wish this book at been part of my experiences then, as I would have played Rathe, my litorian oathsworn, a bit differently. However, a lot of my thoughts on how Rathe was, as a litorian, are also present in the book.
18. Did you make any mistakes or miscalculations in the design process? How did you fix them?
If we made any, we must have fixed them, since I can’t remember them right now.
I know, that sounds so dodgy, but it’s not meant to be. See, I can’t really think of any mistake, as it all came together well, in the end, and that’s what really matters. Heck, that’s life when you think about it. If all we did was ruminate, evermore, on the mistakes we’ve made than they’re anchors to progress, instead of fuel. Myself, I through mistakes in the hopper and use them as fuels for improvement.
So, while I’m sure we made lots of mistakes, as we’re only human, I can’t think of any right now.
19. There seems to be a very low level for anthropomorphic creatures in d20 community, how did you handle that during the creation of Litorians?
Honestly? I just ignored it.
At its basest, anthropomorphism is a flavor element and once that choice is made, then you just move forward with the design and development. While not a comparison, Lewis and Tolkien didn’t seem to have an issue with it and they were very close friends and successful authors who used anthropomorphism to various degrees.
When you really look at it, with or without anthropomorphic races, we are taking characteristics that we see in our world and magnifying them upon a species in a game so that we can explore them with our imagination. Whatever the traipsing, the framework is much the same.
20. Are you happy with where Litorians is today?
I’m quite pleased with the way that Litorians turned out, as it’s not only a beautiful layout; it’s also a fine group effort by some various talented folk. Sure, I’m a bit biased, for obvious reasons, but I’m happy with it, none the less.
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