Publication history
The Big Eyes, Small Mouth game used the Tri-Stat System. The system would later be modified for use in other games and be more generally named the Tri-Stat dX system. Most of Guardians of Order's games use some form of the Tri-Stat dX system.
After Big Eyes, Small Mouth, Guardians of Order would go on to achieve significant success with The Sailor Moon Role-Playing Game and Resource Book . The game was built on Big Eyes, Small Mouth but featured an extensive reference to the Sailor Moon universe. Guardians of Order acquired licenses and published Big Eyes, Small Mouth-based RPGs for a number of other anime series including Dominion , Demon City Shinjuku , and Tenchi Muyo! . After El Hazard , the last such game, the company's strategy with licensed anime series changed and it began issuing "Ultimate Fan Guides" which served the same purpose while avoiding the need to reprint the same BESM-based mechanics. All of these books included game statistics for characters in the series as well as extensive episode guides and character summaries.
Guardians of Order expanded beyond anime based games when the Tri-Stat dX system was adopted for the superhero game Silver Age Sentinels .
Guardians of Order later acquired the rights to publish the Amber Diceless Roleplaying Game from Phage Press. [1] [2] Guardians of Order licensed the rights to produce role-playing games set in existing fictional works. These include games based on The Authority , Tékumel , and A Song of Ice and Fire .
History
Mark C. MacKinnon created the company Guardians of Order to publish his anime game, Big Eyes, Small Mouth (1997). [3] :318 Guardians of Order was founded by Mark C. MacKinnon in 1996. In 1998, Guardians of Order hired David Pulver. In 1999, Jeff Mackintosh was hired; and 2000 brought in Liz Fulda and Lucien Soulban. In 2002, Guardians of Order launched their "Magnum Opus" program, licensing the company's intellectual property to third parties to create new games. By 2005, Guardians of Order downsized to just Mark C. MacKinnon.
Between February 14, 2006 and August 1, 2006 there were no official updates to the Guardians of Order website. There was speculation on the official forums that the company was out of business. On July 28, 2006 a post to George R. R. Martin's official web site announced that Guardians of Order was out of business. [4] In response, on August 1 Mark MacKinnon posted confirmation that Guardians of Order "ceased operations." [5] According to MacKinnon the company had too much debt. MacKinnon attempted to place Guardians of Orders games with other companies, and promised that existing orders would be filled. The company officially closed their doors August 1, 2006.
On September 9, 2006 ArtHaus Games, whose titles are published by White Wolf Publishing, announced that it had acquired the third edition of Big Eyes, Small Mouth which was slated to be released in April 2006. The announcement stated the company was "extremely confident" that a release date of January 2007 would be met and confirmed that those who pre-ordered and prepaid for the book would be "in good hands," though it was also said that they have not taken on Guardians of Order's liabilities. [6]
On March 7, 2007 George R. R. Martin wrote that he had regained control of his intellectual property rights and was "all square" with Guardians of Order. [7] As part of their settlement, Mr. Martin received all remaining stock of the limited edition version of the RPG. No further information regarding the settlement was revealed, nor the status of other creditors' claims on the property.
Uresia: Grave of Heaven is an anime-inspired fantasy world for role-playing games written by S. John Ross. Originally published for the Big Eyes, Small Mouth role-playing game, the most recent edition published in 2012 is systemless. Like the previous edition, it includes maps drawn by the author. Uresia was originally published by Guardians of Order.
R. Talsorian Games (RTG) is a publisher of role-playing game books and accessories. Originally based in Berkeley, California, but moved to Renton, Washington in 1997. Their titles include the Cyberpunk 2020 series and anime-related titles such as Dragonball Z. Their major product line today is the Fuzion system.
Ex Machina is a cyberpunk role-playing game book published by Guardians of Order covering a range from classic cyberpunk to postcyberpunk. It exists under both the cinematic Tri-Stat dX and d20 RPG systems.
Silver Age Sentinels is a superhero role-playing game (RPG) published in 2002 by Guardians of Order, creators of Big Eyes, Small Mouth, an anime-themed RPG.
Empire of the Petal Throne is a fantasy role-playing game designed by M. A. R. Barker, based on his Tékumel fictional universe, which was self-published in 1974, then published by TSR, Inc. in 1975. It was one of the first tabletop role-playing games, along with Dungeons & Dragons. Over the subsequent thirty years, several new games were published based on the Tékumel setting, but to date none have met with commercial success. While published as fantasy, the game is sometimes classified as science fantasy or, debatably, as science fiction.
Big Eyes, Small Mouth (BESM) is a tabletop role-playing game originally produced by Guardians of Order in 1997 that was designed to simulate the action of anime and manga. The title alludes to the common anime drawing style of characters with large expressive eyes and comparatively small mouths.
The Slayers d20 Role-Playing Game is a 2003 role-playing game published by Guardians of Order based on the anime series Slayers. The title refers to the title under which Central Park Media released the three seasons of the television series.
A Game of Thrones is a role-playing game produced by Guardians of Order based on the A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series by George R. R. Martin.
Tékumel: Empire of the Petal Throne is a role-playing game published in 2005 by Guardians of Order based on the fantasy world created by M. A. R. Barker.
David L. Pulver is a Canadian freelance writer and game designer, author of more than fifty role-playing game rulebooks and supplements, including the award-winning Transhuman Space.
Adam Jury is a Canadian game designer and graphic designer working in the hobby games industry. He is the co-founder of Posthuman Studios.
Samuel John Ross Jr., known as S. John Ross, is a game designer and owner of Cumberland Games & Diversions. He wrote the early Indie role-playing game Risus.
The Demon City Shinjuku Role-Playing Game is an anime-inspired supernatural horror role-playing game published by Guardians of Order in 1999 that is based on the novel and anime series of the same name.
The El-Hazard Role-Playing Game is a role-playing game published by Guardians of Order in 2001.
Jesse Scoble is a Canadian game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games.
Jeffrey Ian "Jeff" Mackintosh was a game designer who worked primarily on role-playing games.
John R. Phythyon Jr. is a game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games.
Mark C. MacKinnon is a Canadian politician, entrepreneur, and designer of roleplaying games.
The Sailor Moon Role-Playing Game and Resource Book is a 1998 role-playing game published by Guardians of Order.
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