WotC "Envoy System" • Collecting General

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WotC "Envoy System"
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copycat
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Posted: Thu May 13, 2010 3:05 pm

Anyone know more about this thing called Envoy? From what I can gather, it was a generic conversion system designed to translate game X to game Y, but is (I believe) independent of Primal Order. I do not know if it was ever in print, but the Talislanta books I have make mention of it having been available in electronic form... so, does anyone have it?

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copycat
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Posted: Fri May 14, 2010 8:08 pm

Can anyone confirm this is correct? If so, then I was wrong, and Envoy is just a different name for Primal Order. It would also seem that, perhaps, it was made in print in a different form.

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Mars
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Posted: Thu May 20, 2010 3:05 pm

I haven't come across my Pyramid magazines yet but I found a copy of Cryptych #1 which contains Envoy third draft alpha version.

copycat
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Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:00 pm

Is it greatly dissimilar to Primal Order, which I assume you also have?

Just trying to determine if its something I would be interested in tracking down.

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Mars
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Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:39 pm

serleran wrote:Is it greatly dissimilar to Primal Order, which I assume you also have?

I actually don't have Primal Order and know very little about it. I think I picked up the Pawns book in the big lot but that's all I have.

copycat
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Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:55 pm

Ah. Well, hmm. Thank you for the information. I have the Primal Order rule book but none of the supplements. Heh.

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grodog
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Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2010 1:56 am

Robert, my recollection is that Envoy is completely different from the Cap System which drives/powers TPO. I think Envoy was essentially a very early form of the OGL, since it had a similar license agreement to allow the game engine to be used by third party publishers.

WotC's old email archives are at http://oracle.wizards.com/archives/index.html but it looks like the TPO and Envoy lists are either long-gone or aren't accessible via the web interface. Perhaps if you ping Lisa Stevens or Peter Adkison, they'll be able to provide more input.

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beasterbrook
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 7:08 am

There is an explaniation of envoy at the start of this..

http://www.rpg.net/columns/briefhistory ... ory1.phtml

Brette:)

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beasterbrook
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Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:46 am

It seems that it was sort of published.. I have come across a magazine that published adventures using the Envoy system.. you could send away for a "leaflet copy of Envoy"

Brette:)

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grodog
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Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2011 10:52 pm

Interesting assertion that Envoy was never published, or even completed:

The Wizards staff had wanted to create a stronger RPG community by developing ways for people using different RPG rule systems to play together. The Capsystem line of products was created with that in mind, as was the Envoy system (though that was never published nor even written down beyond the notes stage). The marriage of the d20 system and the Open Gaming License many years later was a return to that goal.

From http://oathsandfates.blogspot.com/2011/ ... welve.html

Per my comments above, I still have vague recollections that Envoy was available via the envoy listserv account; perhaps I have it somewhere in my ancient email archives....

Allan Grohe ([email protected])
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beasterbrook
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Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2011 10:58 pm

without a doubt it was "made" as per the post above on the magazine..

Brette:)

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copycat
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Posted: Tue Aug 16, 2011 10:30 pm

I am fairly certain the system was printed, but whether that deems it as published is another matter and one I lay no stake or claim on...

Anyway, I figure someone might have it as it was offered in various forms in various places. Apparently, it was released in a magazine, which may be the only time it was 'published.' I think, and I could easily be wrong, that it was primarily an electronic format work, easily distributable to those interested in it.

I'd still like to see it though.

Those who can, don't. Those who should not, do.

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