FanDominion

A new web site launched that may be of interest to role-playing fans of Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Darkover series of books.

Called The Red Sun, the fan-crafted site launched over the weekend. The RPG uses a blend of in-character message board posts and fan fiction to build the player-generated storylines.

The game is open to the public to create user accounts and join in on the fun. Since it is still in its rough starting stages, The Red Sun may be more malleable in its plot direction (a boon to creative new players) than more established BBS-based RPGs.

The Red Sun describes itself as a “game is set in the Recontact era – Terra discovers Darkover for the first time … again. Shattered Chain, The Winds of Darkover, Spell Sword and Forbidden Tower are books set in this time. Terrans think Darkovans are a primitive, violent people while Darkovans feel pretty much the same things about Terranans.”

In the same introductory message, the main site administrator (with the board nickname of Zandru) warns MZB purists that the “game does not always follow MZB canon. Rather, just like MZB herself did in her work, I’ll make minor changes to allow for the best stories and game balance.”