It is safe to say that John Carter did not do as well as Disney would have liked. It is pretty clear by now that it is more on the Prince of Persia end of the profit scale than on the Pirates of the Caribbean end. That’s a shame, really. The original John Carter books are fine examples of good pulp action and tons of sci-fi stories and franchises have mined the stories for ideas and themes. Many of the things that we take for granted as being part of the sci-fi landscape come from places like the John Carter stories, Flash Gordon and the writing of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. If the movie had done well, there could have been an explosion of interest in these pulp stories that would have benefitted nerds everywhere. That’s no doubt what Adamant Entertainment was hoping for with their Mars supplements. But, despite the lack of success of the John Carter movie, we can still enjoy some of the gaming that gained its inspiration from the same source.

Adamant has published a number of adventures and supplements that revolve around the pulp Mars. The first, Blood Legacy of Mars begins with a coup and a loyal servant fleeing the bloody massacre of the royal family with the infant heir to the throne in her arms. It picks up decades later when this heir is a grown man who believes himself to be nothing more than the son of a whore. He is a talented nobody who will likely only know fame and fortune through luck as much as talent and hard work. Fortunately, his heritage is just that bit of luck. Unfortunately, it is likely to be as much trouble as it is to be of help. Enter, the player characters. They arrive just as a bit of serendipity reveals the prince’s noble heritage and are dragged along for his wild ride to fame and fortune. Read the rest of this entry »