February 5, 2012: I Scream "Social"!

I spend a lot of time poring over numbers at e23, and it's always a treat when one catches my eye. Such is the case with GURPS Social Engineering. As best I can determine, William H. Stoddard's masterpiece has been the fastest-selling e23-original supplement since its release last October. (GURPS Low-Tech sold a smidge more in the same period, but since we planned it as a hardcover, we always expected it to do well.)

Given how integral (and fun!) the use of interpersonal abilities are in most RPGs, it's not surprising that this supplement has sold as well as it has. We've gotten lots of comments from folks about how it opened up new possibilities for having adversaries who could be intimidated/charmed/seduced/tricked/blackmailed.

If you haven't checked out GURPS Social Engineering, I'm now using my persuasion skills to encourage you to do so. Plus, to see a great worked example of this supplement in action, check out Pyramid #3/39: Steampunk; it features a Stoddard-written article that shows how the social structure of real-world Victorian England maps to the Social Engineering rules. (And notice how skillfully I'm "Giving Information," per p. 28 of Social Engineering . . .)

--Steven Marsh