INTRODUCTION
General. Although not precisely tied to the anime or novelization for the ROBOTECH IP, Palladium Books released a number of licensed titles supporting their ROBOTECH Table Top Role-Playing Game (TTRPG). The impact of this release helped propel a huge number of fans to continue their love affair with the IP and participate in the battles of their favorite time period. Released around the same time as the novels, the TTRPG sold like gangbusters, and are still relevant, highly sought-after books. The system may be dated by today's standards, but provides the narrative framework for any Game Master to influence and direct the action their Players can enjoy.
ROBOTECH Novelization. A series of reviews for the individual TTRPG books will be presented in parallel to the Legacy Review: ROBOTECH Novelization by Jack McKinney.
THE FIRST GENERATION
Robotech Defence Forces. The SDF-1 has crash-landed on Earth and the battle for Humanity's survival against the Zentraedi threat is yours to realize. Choose your adventures, be it from the outset of the series, or somewhere thereafter during the voyages of the SDF-1.
ROBOTECH: The RPG (Cat #550). Forthcoming!
ROBOTECH: The RDF Manual (Cat #551). Forthcoming!
Zentraedi (Cat #552). Forthcoming!
RDF Accelerated Training Program (Cat #555). Forthcoming!
Zentraedi Breakout (Cat #559). Forthcoming!
ROBOTECH: New World Order (Cat #562). Forthcoming!
ROBOTECH: Strike Force (Cat #563). Forthcoming!
THE SECOND GENERATION
Armies of the Southern Cross. After a twenty-year voyage, the Robotech Masters have arrived at Earth in order to ascertain what happened to their vaunted Zentraedi fleets. Despite their resource-deprived state, the Robotech Masters present an existential threat to an Earth still ravaged by the Zentraedi bombardment.
THE THIRD GENERATION
The Invid Invasion. The Invid have come for the Flower of Life. The Regis commands, her forces cultivating their precious crop. For the Invid, Earth presents the most viable alternative to their once vibrant home world, ravaged by the Robotech Masters and their Zentraedi forces. For Humanity, it is the only home they have ever known.
The Sentinels. The expedition led by Rick and Lisa Hunter attempts to reach out and negotiate a peace with the leaders of the Zentraedi, the Robotech Masters. Discover worlds and other species that have been ravaged by the predations of the Masters and Invid alike.
CONCLUSION
Released in the same timeframe as the Jack McKinney novelization of the original anime presented by Harmony Gold, the Palladium Books ROBOTECH TTRPG was a massive hit. The two lines of books (novels and TTRPG books), very much supported the sales of the other; if you bought the novels, chances are you were in the target audience for, and purchased the TTRPG as well.
The game system lent itself well to provide a framework for Game Masters to drive a narrative campaign with lots of action and battles determined by the vagaries of dice rolls. Supported by the clean, crisp lines of Kevin Long for the majority of the products, ably supported by the likes of Wayne Breaux, Aubrey Bradford and Peter Simon, the illustrations fired up the imagination and developed an incredibly immersive and enjoyable game experience. Regardless of whether your characters influenced any of the canon events, it was easy to enjoy the game and imagine ones character in the thick of the action.
Having come back to them all (novels and TTRPG books), there are certainly some of the TTRPG products that I read for the very first time while writing these review. In such a case, there certainly is an element of nostalgia involved, but I examined them with an eye for modern gaming trends and what a Player or GM would look for today. If you happen to have access to these gems, there are a few in particular that I would rate much higher than others. For the most part, nearly all of the books stand up as well now as they did back then; the few outliers I will clearly identify. Overall, in terms of a TTRPG product line, the fun and enjoyment is certainly there for the taking.
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