Pulping the Renaissance

[Shadowsoul]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

That Renaissance Pulp thing would be great. Davinci is almost like Doc Savage all by himself. Is there anything the guy couldn't do? Also' date=' you want villains, try the Borgias. How about a slightly fictionalized Machiavelli as the Moriarty of the game?[/quote']

 

An interesting thought. Although Machiavelli wasn't quite as bad as our use of the term Machievellian would suggest. He could be a Pulp style villain but I'd see him more as a sort of mercenary political advisor who could be hired by princes or councils to help them consolidate their rule. Of course with a bit of artistic licence he could be turned into a kind of Moriarty as you suggested.

 

When I have the time I think I'll try to do a write up of Da Vinci as a Pulp character.

[jtelson]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

An interesting thought. Although Machiavelli wasn't quite as bad as our use of the term Machievellian would suggest. He could be a Pulp style villain but I'd see him more as a sort of mercenary political advisor who could be hired by princes or councils to help them consolidate their rule. Of course with a bit of artistic licence he could be turned into a kind of Moriarty as you suggested.

 

When I have the time I think I'll try to do a write up of Da Vinci as a Pulp character.

 

I like Machiavelli as a recurring henchman; Characters encounter a semi-competent major villian group which strangely becomes very competent after a few encounters. They eventually defeat the group and in a later arc something similar occurs, eventually they begin to hear rumors about a "consultant"...

[Spence]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

A lot of truth in some of the previous posts but from my little corner of the universe people are trying to force small shoe onto an elephant. Most of the Pulp resources I use reference the term Pulp to be based there being published in Pulp Magazines. The use Sword & Sorcery, Sword & Raygun (sometimes named Planetary fiction), Horror, Detectives Stories (sometime Police Adventure), Mystery, Military Adventure (sometimes Aerial or Aviation Adventures), Western Adventure and Men of Mystery as sub-categories. Some stories don't fall into one classification and are just "pulps". But whether you are a Hard beat cop in Chicago in 1930 or a earthman on Venus in 1960 (story time) or hero from the misty past before the rise of civilization, it is all still Pulp.

 

There were stories written in the Pulp Magazines that took place in the Renaissance Era. I dimly remember reading at least one. For a more modern take on ‘Renaissance Pulp’, look at the movie The Three Musketeers (1993), if that doesn’t scream two fisted pulp action I don’t know what does.

 

In the end, Pulp isn’t a specific time period in a story or a specific genre or setting. It is an attitude and writing style that was common in a type of periodical.

 

A lot of people who try to say that something is or isn’t Pulp can be likened to a person saying “Star Wars is not a Movie, it is Science Fiction” or all “animated programs are for 3 year olds or other small children”.

 

 

I shall now take my marbles and run away

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

That Renaissance Pulp thing would be great. Davinci is almost like Doc Savage all by himself. Is there anything the guy couldn't do? Also' date=' you want villains, try the Borgias. How about a slightly fictionalized Machiavelli as the Moriarty of the game? [/quote']

 

Interestingly, da Vinci in his youth was reputed to be exceptionally strong. He'd often amuse his friends with such feats as twisting horseshoes with his bare hands.

 

Also interestingly, Leonardo and Machiavelli were said to have been friends. Friends who become unwilling enemies is a classic dramatic trope.

[Shadowsoul]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Interestingly, da Vinci in his youth was reputed to be exceptionally strong. He'd often amuse his friends with such feats as twisting horseshoes with his bare hands.

 

Also interestingly, Leonardo and Machiavelli were said to have been friends. Friends who become unwilling enemies is a classic dramatic trope.

 

Could be an interesting scenario where it is firmly believed that the only thing which will allow normal people to defeat an army or regime backed by Machiavelli is a device constructed by Da Vinci and vice versa. Da Vinci and Machiavelli don't like to be on opposite sides and have no personal emnity but keep ending up being used as counters for each other.

[Shadowsoul]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

I am sorry I posted here. I like to say I am sorry to all those on this thread for my post and the post has been removed.

 

I'd have to agree with the others that I didn't mean to sound angry when I argued with you or to upset you. It was all just in the spirit of healthy debate, no offence intended.

 

So, sorry about that.

[Trebuchet]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Our Pulp Hero campaign is set in the 1907-era; but we gave serious consideration to running one set in the mid-17th century (especially after reading Neal Stephenson's absolutely brilliant The Baroque Cycle) trilogy.

 

Sir Isaac Newton as the mad scientist! Woot!

[Doc Democracy]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

You might also want to use Mary Gentle's Ash as a pulp style renaissance adventure.

 

Ash kills her first man when she is eight, and at 20 is an experienced captain of mercenaries in the small wars of the late Middle Ages--but not quite the Middle Ages we know from history. The more scholar Piers Ratcliffe works on the evidence, the more knowledge and recorded history and the rules of evidence crumble under him--this world of Visigoths with ceramic robots and of the religion of the Green Christ is nothing he knows of. Ash hears voices, but not like those of Joan of Arc--voices that give her very specific advice about the winning of battles. Married against her will to a man who despises her, but whom she lusts after; finding that the Visigoth general is her twin; coping with the day-to-day problems of battle and siege and mayhem

 

Doc

[Spence]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Have you ever stepped back to think about how much good stuff there is out there these days? It's like we live in the golden age of adventure stories, both in print and on screen. I can remember when the problem was finding a good scifi/fantasy book. Now the problem is sorting through and reducing the available titles to a manageable number to read.

 

Gotta love it

[pinecone]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Yeah...think of how many "Modern" adventure storys are based on items and mysterys that date back the the Middle ages and the age of reason. No reason not to use that stuff while it's fresh out of the oven...

[cleireac]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Thoughts for influences.

 

 

Any more?

 

There was a book a few years ago entitled Ariosto Furioso by Chelsea QuinnYarbro, that dealt with the poet of Orlando Furioso, one Ludovicio Ariosto. There is a lot of fantasy elements in it, but as I recall (from over 25 years ago), that it was a pretty good read, and may be helpful

[Clonus]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Just two things to say....

 

There's a film!? Woot!

 

And, what a cool idea. And who says a Master Villain couldn't have a Zepplin

 

Or a pirate ship with cavourite on the hull.

[Spence]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

Or a pirate ship with cavourite on the hull.

 

 

mmmmmmm......cavourite.......mmmmmmmmm

[Trebuchet]

Re: Pulping the Renaissance

 

And who says a Master Villain couldn't have a Zepplin

Heck' date=' one of the master villains in our [i']Champions[/i] campaign has a zeppelin. Yes, it's strangely high tech and seems to (literally) obey physical laws from another dimension (Its hydrogen won't even burn, much less explode. We know; we tried.). The bad guys got away in a rocket-powered flying escape pod after a couple of our stalwart heroes climbed aboard by one of the mooring ropes as it was taking off.