''RDF Sourcebook'' is a supplement published by
Game Designers' Workshop
Game Designers' Workshop (GDW) was a Board wargame, wargame and role-playing game publisher from 1973 to 1996. Many of their games are now carried by other publishers.
History
Game Designers' Workshop was originally established June 22, 1973. ...
(GDW) in 1986 for the near future post-apocalyptic role-playing game ''
Twilight: 2000'' that places gameplay in Iran.
Contents
"RDF" stands for "
Rapid Deployment Force
A rapid reaction force / rapid response force (RRF), quick reaction force / quick response force (QRF), immediate reaction force (IRF), rapid deployment force (RDF), or quick maneuver force (QMF) is a military or law enforcement unit capable of ...
", an American concept in the 1980s for a small but potent mobile force that could be quickly deployed to trouble spots in the world to defend American interests.
[J Record Revising US Military Strategy, 1984, 1st Edition, Pergammon-Brasseys, McLean, Virginia, p. 36.] ''RDF Sourcebook'' presents information on Iran and the surrounding area before and after a fictional Third World War; it includes a map of southern Iran, orders of battle for the US and Soviet forces in the area, and information on important
non-player character
A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...
s.
The book includes:
* Map of southern Iran
*Character generation tables for soldiers of various nationalities, including American, British, Soviet, and Iranian.
*Order of Battle for all forces that remain in the area after the nuclear war
*Specifications for 30 vehicles and weapons
*Biographies of major notable personalities in the region and various organizations
Publication history
GDW published the post-apocalyptic role-playing game ''Twilight: 2000'' in 1984 that posited a nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union that was followed by a conventional war. It is in the world of the conventional war that the role-playing takes place. GDW published a number of adventures and supplements for the system, including ''RDF Sourcebook'', a 48-page softcover book written by
Frank Frey, with
Loren Wiseman and
Frank Chadwick
Frank Chadwick is an American game designer and ''New York Times'' best selling author. He has designed hundreds of games, his most notable being the role-playing games '' En Garde!'', '' Space: 1889'' and '' Twilight 2000'', and the wargame s ...
, with interior art by Tim Bradstreet and Liz Danforth, and rear cover art by Steve Venters. It was published by GDW in 1986.
Frank Frey wrote several pages of additional rules for aircraft, published in GDW's magazine ''
Challenge'', to be used with the upcoming sourcebook.
Reception
In Issue 80 of ''
Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer
''The Space Gamer'' was a magazine dedicated to the subject of science fiction and fantasy board games and tabletop role-playing games. It quickly grew in importance and was an important and influential magazine in its subject matter from the la ...
'', Richard A. Edwards thought the book would be very useful for
gamemaster
A gamemaster (GM; also known as game master, game manager, game moderator, referee, storyteller, or master of ceremonies) is a person who acts as a facilitator, organizer, officiant regarding rules, arbitrator, and moderator for a multiplayer r ...
s, saying "While those looking for specific mission briefings will be disappointed, players and referees of ''Twilight: 2000'' will find ''RDF Sourcebook'' to be indispensable for providing new character generation tables and equipment lists."
In a retrospective review of ''RDF Sourcebook'' in ''
Black Gate'', Patrick Kanouse noted that "armed with the ''RDF Sourcebook'' and the voluminous extra information in
'Twilight:2000'' adventure''King’s Ransom'', any gaming group will be able to find hours of play and adventure in Iran. Kanouse concluded, "The book is, in the end, an excellent resource for groups wanting to play in a region outside Europe and the US."
References
{{reflist
Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1986
Twilight: 2000 supplements