Jonstown Jottings #104: Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

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What is it?
Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is an anthology of source material and scenarios the continues the campaign begun in Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2 for use with Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1, both written for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha.

It is a one-hundred-and-forty page, full colour, 74.50 MB PDF.

The layout is clean and tidy, but the text feels disorganised in places and requires an edit. The artwork varies in quality, but some of it is very good.

The cartography is decent.

Where is it set?
Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is set on Tamoro and Lutva, two of the five Korolan Islands that make up the Korolan Isles which lie in the Jewelled Islands, the Islands of Wonder that lie to the east, as well as two islands that lie outside of Korola Isles.

Who do you play?

Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is designed to be used with Player Characters who are native to the Korolan Islands. The possibility of outsiders playing the scenario, along with a Player Character native to the islands, is explored in more depth than in previous volumes in the series, suggesting that alongside at least one Player Character who is native to the islands, the outsiders could be ‘new hires from strange lands’ in the in service of Queen Tamerana, a major NPC introduced in the previous volume who plays a much bigger role in this one.

What do you need?

Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 requires Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1, Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2, RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, the Glorantha Bestiary, and The Red Book of Magic. In addition, the Guide to Glorantha and The Stafford Library – Vol VI Revealed Mythologies may be useful.

What do you get?
Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 includes some rules as well as more setting material and background. These are for ships and seafaring, particularly in the East Isles. Each vessel is defined by its Draft, Freeboard, Speed, Seaworthiness, Hull Quality, Structure Points, and more. They note that the Craft (Carpentry) skill is vital for ship maintenance and making minor repairs is a constant activity, and that Sea Lore or Shiphandling are used for navigation, augmented by Celestial Lore and the Cult Lore of the appropriate sea deity. Bound together stick charts are used by some cults. Numerous ship types from the raft and the canoe to the Lancaran warship of Fereva and the Andin War Canoe (both of which appear in the following scenarios) are detailed and illustrated. Warfare mostly consists of ramming and boarding along with the use of magic. The only thing missing here are deck plans, but otherwise these rules are serviceable.

Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2 is anthology of scenarios set on two islands previously detailed in Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1. More specific setting information is provided for both islands, including settlements, major landmarks, and NPCs minor and major. Thus, for Mingai, this is the village of Verena; the Crack of Fire, sacred place to the women of Mingemelor cult; and Red Top Hill, renowned for its red rocks and the former occupant, a wizard called Red Top. Particular attention is paid to the village of Serena, since Mingai is the setting for three of the scenarios in the anthology. Whilst, for Sitoro Island, this the Senate House of Sitoro, seat of the Korolan senate, and the Dream Canal, which flows down from Laughing Plateau, and if paddled up to the waterfall at its far reaches, a gateway to the Dreamworld may be found and entered. Only the one scenario, the third, is set on Sitoro Island.

As with previous sourcebooks in the series, Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 provides specific setting information about two more islands, in this case, Tamoro and Luvata, including settlements, major landmarks, NPCs minor and major, and the gods and cults particular to them. For this supplement, the most important of the gods is the Trickster, as one of his cultists plays a big role in the supplement’s two scenarios.  For  Tamoro, there is a description of Mount Tamorongo, revered as the Parondpara, god of the island, home to a labyrinthine temple complex, details of Simotora, its capital, as well as other settlements. There are write-ups of various NPCs, including Tamerana, Queen of Korola and the members of her court. In comparison, Lutvata is low-lying and marshy, and notably surrounded by an impassable reef of sharp corals that protects it and provides extra income for the fishermen who know the secret routes through it. Again, its ruling family is detailed, as are various locations. Its highlights include the Dance Mat, a large, multi-coloured rug on which dance rituals are performed and the Wet Fett Inn, a floating tavern with the bottom of its hull cut out, which caters to sea folk rather than humans and other land folk. Both sections are accompanied by classic ‘What your grandfather told you’ sections that neatly sum up the cultural outlook of the peoples of each island.

The first and shorter of the two scenarios is ‘Pirates of the Horizon’. It is two-part scenario that can be played through in roughly two or three sessions. It opens with the Player Characters in the coastal village of Anotora on Tamoro Island where they are told that pirate ships have been seen nearby. Summoned to an audience with Queen Tamerana, she tells them that they are not pirate ships, but Lancarans, warships of the Ferevan queen, and asks the Player Characters to sail out and find out what they want. The audience also gives a chance to interact with both the queen’s court and family, setting up relationships that play a bigger role in the second scenario. The Player Characters are able to find one of the ships and learn from its captain and passengers that its purpose is peaceful and what their purpose, though it is not part of the scenario itself. Instead, that really begins when on the way back, the Player Characters learn that one of the ships from the fleet of five has turned pirate and attacked a nearby village.

Confronting the pirates sets up a standoff that is only going to be broken by skilful bargaining or a bloody fight, if not both, whilst the immediate consequences require the latter when the Ferevan queen learns of what the crew did whilst sailing as part of her fleet. The long term consequences are almost an afterthought, but will set up another confrontation with pirates as the mask that hosts village of Anotora’s wyter is stolen and the Player Characters are asked to get it back. The trail leads to an uninhabited island where fortunately, the crew are getting drunk on the beach, making it easier for the Player Characters to sneak aboard the pirates’ vessel and get away. 

The second adventure, ‘Islands of the Lost’, is a much longer affair in three parts that will take multiple sessions to complete. It combines a mystery with Romeo & Juliet-style set-up as Queen Tamerana’s youngest daughter, Yotheata Earth-Sleep, vanishes. In ‘Islands of the Lost Part 1: Thief of Hearts’, the Player Characters are again, asked by the queen to investigate, and soon discover that the missing woman is in a secret relationship with Raingo, the son of chief Itos Arinta of Luvata, the much hated rival Queen Tamerana. They must follow in Yotheata’s path to Luvata and after some adventures on the island and a confrontation with Raingo, learn that she has disappeared at sea after fleeing Luvata.

The continued search for Yotheata Earth-Sleep goes awry in ‘Islands of the Lost Part 2: Bhat-Nupu’ as the Player Characters’ ship is caught in a boiling current and shipwrecked. This middle part is an almost static change of pace as the Player Characters and the crew and passengers try and survive on the desert island. Their capacity to do so is tracked as Survival Points and as they fall, so does the Constitution stat of both the Player Characters and the NPCs. The Player Characters have the chance to counter this through a series of survival encounters, including with the wildlife and other things on the island, all whilst they are attempting to build a raft. The effort is complicated by the activities of some of the surviving crew and passengers, including the scoundrelle who has been flitting in and out of the Player Characters’ adventures, the harsh environment, and assuaging the needs of some wonderfully mythical NPCs. The adventure concludes with a heroic rescue, though not yet of Yotheata Earth-Sleep, and a hard won escape from the island.

‘Islands of the Lost Part 3: Cwat-Bajat’ turns up the pulp action with a desert island temple full of zombies and undead, in what is effectively a dungeon! Even if the Game Master scales the opponents to the Player Characters, this is challenging situation and they will be hard-pressed to make their escape at the end, chased by Yotheata Earth-Sleep’s captors. If they succeed in getting her home, the Player Characters will be very rewarded.

This is a decent pair of adventures, and though linear, both take the time to discuss the different means by which the Player Characters might tackle one challenge or another. Early on, both scenarios call for gift-giving, so the players and their characters need to get used to that as part of the local customs. It would have been a nice touch if the scenarios had developed some ideas for gifts a little more, but there is nothing to stop the Game Master from doing that. Both scenarios offer plenty of opportunity to roleplay, especially in their early parts, whilst they tend to switch to action in the later parts. Better suited to the experienced Game Master, overall, these are entertaining scenarios that though perhaps a little heavily plotted in places, offer up lots of scope for good roleplaying, action, and excitement.

Much like Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2 before it, one of the elements missing from Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is a set of pre-generated Player Characters. Given the differences between the setting of Dragon Pass and the Korolan Islands, pre-generated Player Characters would serve as a way to ease the players into and past those differences, showcasing the different Occupations and Cults. It would also make the two scenarios in the anthology easier to run.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 continues both the entertaining scenarios from Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2 and the exploration by the players and their characters of cultures different to those they would normally experience in RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha.No—Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is too location specific and too radical a change in cultural outlook to be of use in a general RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha campaign.

Maybe—Islands of the Lost: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 3 is too location specific and too radical a change in cultural outlook to be of use in a general RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha campaign, but its scenarios could be used to explore a clash of cultures.

The Other OSR: Warden’s Operation Guide

It is curious to note that since its original publication in 2018, the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG from Tuesday Knight Games has been reliant upon the single rulebook, the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG – Player’s Survival Guide. First as a ‘Zero Edition’ and then as an actual ‘First Edition’. Curious, because despite the horror roleplaying rules detailing no alien threats and giving no advice for the Warden—as the Game Master is known in Mothership—the has proved to be success, with numerous authors writing and publishing scenarios of their own as well as titles from the publisher. What the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG offered was a stripped down, fast playing Science Fiction system that supported a number of sub-genres. Most obviously Blue Collar Science Fiction with horror and Military Science Science Fiction, the most obvious inspirations being the films Alien and Aliens, as well as Outland, Dark Star, Silent Running, and Event Horizon. Yet the authors of third-party content for the roleplaying game have also offered sandboxes such as Desert Moon of Karth and Cosmic Horror like What We Give To Alien Gods, showing how the simplicity of Mothership could be adjusted to handle other types of Science Fiction. This combination of flexibility and simplicity has made it attractive to the Old School Renaissance segment of the hobby, despite Mothership not actually sharing roots with the family of Old School Renaissance roleplaying games derived from the different editions of Dungeons & Dragons. It is thus, at best, Old School Renaissance adjacent.

With the publication of the Mothership Core Box and the Mothership Deluxe Box following a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2024, the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG has a complete set of rules for what is its first edition. The includes rules the construction and option of spaceships with Shipbreaker’s Toolkit, monstrous threats with Unconfirmed Contact Reports, and a guide for refereeing the roleplaying game in the form of the Warden’s Operations Manual.

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The Warden’s Operations Manual is the other of the core rulebooks after the Player’s Survival Guide for the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG. It is the guidebook for the Warden—as the Game Master is known in the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG—and it takes the Warden, neophyte or not, from the first steps of making the initial preparations for a campaign all the way up to running a campaign. Not just advice, but also suggestions, prompts, and more. In the process, it talks about creating and portraying horror, creating compelling mysteries and investigations, how to be a Warden—and a good at that, how to support player agency, interpreting the rules and making good rulings, handling different aspects of the rules, introducing house rules, and more. And in just sixty pages. It packs a lot into those pages.

The Warden’s Operations Manual is at its heart a book of questions and answers, asking and answering such questions as how do I get started? What should I run? Where do I find the horror in my scenario? What challenges do I give my Player Characters? There are effectively ten questions that it poses and gives answers to in explaining the step-by-step process. More experienced Wardens might want to miss or two, and in the long run, the Warden omit some too as she gets used to the process. It starts with simplest of things. Buying a notebook to serve as the Warden’s ‘Mothership Campaign Notebook’, inviting friends to play, and reading the Player’s Survival Guide, before choosing a scenario and asking what is the horror going to be? As it expands here, it suggests options, such as ‘Explore the Unknown’, ‘Salvage a Derelict Spaceship’, and ‘Survive a Colossal Disaster’, and to find the horror it gives the ‘TOMBS Cycle’, which stands for ‘Transgression, Omens, Manifestation, Banishment, Slumber’ Cycle. This is neat little summary of how a horror scenario typically plays. So, in ‘Transgression’, something has disturbed the Horror and caused it to activate or awaken; signs hinting of its activities or effect are found in ‘Omens’; its ‘Manifestation’ means that the Horror moves into the open and everyone can see what it is, and will now be hunted by it; ‘Banishment’ sees the Player Characters race to find a way to destroy or stop the Horror; and lastly, in ‘Slumber’, the Horror is banished or subdued, at least temporarily, until someone else triggers the ‘TOMBS Cycle’ once again. It is both a superbly succinct summary of just about any horror film—and very obviously of the key film which inspires the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG—and a framework that the Warden can return to again and again to construct further scenarios.

Once the horror is in place, the Warden adds obstacles for the Player Characters to be overcome, which the Warden’s Operations Manual categorises as ‘Survive, Solve, or Save’. These are then broken down, offering choices. For example, for ‘Solve’ it offers questions or mysteries, puzzles or obstacles, and answers or secrets, and further expands upon them. The most common questions are ‘What happened here?’, ‘Who did it?’, and ‘Where are they?’ and some ideas are given as what they could be. For ‘Solve’, there is a really good table for defining NPCs along two axes—‘Helpful versus Unhelpful’ and ‘Powerful versus Powerless’. A helpful, but powerless NPC is a drinking buddy, whereas a powerful, unhelpful NPC is a gatekeeper. Lastly. The supplement takes the Warden through the process of drawing her scenario onto a map and then in tying it all together, providing something for each of the four roles in the roleplaying. Violence for Marines, something that Humans cannot do, but Androids can, some science or research for the Scientist, and something to build, repair, or pilot for the Teamster.

With the writing and the design out of the way, the middle part of the Warden’s Operations Manual is dedicated to advice on actually running the game. Here we are on more familiar territory, good for running almost any other roleplaying game, but very much focused on the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG. There is direct and more immediate advice for the prospective Warden not to worry about the rules, to use common sense, to build up the horror slowly, to treat every violent encounter as if it could be last, and more. The advice on teaching the game is good for a Warden’s first game as much as it is the players as well as if the Warden runs the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG at conventions, and there is advice on that as well for setting the tone and safety limits for strangers (at conventions) in addition to that for friends.

It breaks down the cycle of play, examining each of the stages in turn, from the Warden describing the situation and answering the players’ questions through waiting for them to decide what they want their characters to do, the Warden setting the stakes for any conflict and explaining the consequences, and again waiting for the players to commit, to resolving the action. This is such a usual deconstruction of the game flow from minute to minute and what is so useful is that like a lot of the advice in the Warden’s Operations Manual, it applies to a lot of other roleplaying games and not just the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG. And as with the earlier ‘TOMBS Cycle’ and ‘Survive, Solve, or Save’, it examines these aspects of play in further detail, noting how to handle time and tension, what to do about technology (lots of good options here such as offloading the explanation as to how a device or technology works onto the players and having futuristic technology work as badly as our own, alongside simply keeping track of it to make it part of the campaign background and focusing upon what it does rather than how it works), when to not roll dice and when to roll dice as well as resolving the action and the consequences of failure.

The suggestions for social situations are interesting in that NPCs should be obvious in their manner so that the Player Characters have a greater understanding of who they are and be in a better place to decide how to interact with them and what to do with the information they learn about or from them. The Warden is also told that she should tell players when an NPC is lying. Similarly, the Player Characters can lie to the NPCs. And all this without resort to dice rolls, although the Player Characters will suffer the consequences if found out and knowing that an NPC is lying leads to further investigation (or confrontation) as the Player Characters try to confirm it.

The advice on investigations is kept surprisingly short, boiling down to giving the players clues rather than making them roll for them, except when their characters are in a hurry or when time is short. Monsters and horrors are to be kept that, as ‘boss’ monsters that the Player Characters cannot readily defeat until they have more information about them. When it comes to combat and death, the Warden’s Operations Manual reiterates that the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG is a roleplaying game about people in the worst and most stressful situation possible and that this, in addition to the possibility that their characters might die, should always be made clear to the players.

The latter third of the Warden’s Operations Manual focuses upon building campaigns. Here it talks about style and types of campaign frames, such as space truckers, dogs of war, bounty hunters, and mining and salvage, creating factions, handling money and debt, and more. There is a bibliography too and some advice on telling a good story, like the fact that the game is about what the players do, that story happens in retrospect, and for the Warden to use her best ideas first rather than build up to them, and how to end a campaign. All of which is supported by tables of prompts and ideas that the Warden can pick from or roll on.

Physically, the Warden’s Operations Manual is well produced and very nicely illustrated, with many illustrations actually serving as examples of elements of the game, such as the illustration for tactical considerations or the ‘TOMBS Cycle’. The book is very readable. 

The Warden’s Operations Manual is a very good book of advice, help, and suggestions for the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG, but there is room for expansion in places. For example, the individual parts of ‘Survive, Solve, or Save’ get more attention than those of the ‘TOMBS Cycle’ and the campaign frames amount to no more than elevator pitches rather than actual frameworks. Despite this, the Warden’s Operations Manual is useful not just for the first time Warden, but worth reading and dipping into for the experienced one too. In going back to basics before giving sound advice that will give the prospective Warden a very good start in setting up and running her first game of the Mothership Sci-Fi Horror RPG, the Warden’s Operations Manual is an exceptionally good book.

Friday Fantasy: Eve of Destruction

Eve of Destruction refers to the chief villain and the situation in which the Player Characters find themselves by the end of the scenario. It starts simple enough. In fact, it starts with a fantasy roleplay cliché. A village in peril. Beset by bandits. A desperate mayor. The Player Characters. Low Level. In a typical fantasy roleplaying scenario, the Player Characters would be hired by the Mayor to root out the bandits which are have been preying on the town and its surrounds. Then they would search area, locate the bandits, and strike, disrupting their operations and in the process discover that the bandit leader has a spy in town. Fortunately, Eve of Destruction is much more interesting than that and presents the players and their characters with a challenge or two, not all of which are combat-based. Eve of Destruction is a scenario for ShadowDark, the retroclone inspired by both the Old School Renaissance and Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition from The Arcane Library. It is published by Jeff Stevens Games and is designed for use with Second Level Player Characters, but includes notes for scaling the scenario down for Player Characters of First Level and up as high as Seventh Level.

Eve of Destruction begins with the Player Characters in the town of Sunset Hill where they are approached by its mayor, Eugenia Stumpy. She wants help in dealing with a group of bandits that have been predating on the town and the surrounding farms, as well as generally being a nuisance, including the scenario suggests leaving obscene graffiti on a tavern wall, when not raiding or robbing. Once they decide to take up the job, the mayor warns them that the bandits’ leader, known as ‘Eve of Destruction’, is a known killer, but lets them know roughly where the bandits’ camp is. The journey is interrupted by the discovery of a band of Goblins holding up a wagon and once the Player Characters deal with them, the wagon and its passengers turn out to be Tart’s Traveling Thespians, who just happen to have been hired to perform a play for a nearby group of bandits. Coincidence? Of course, but it also turns that the actors of Tart’s Traveling Thespians no longer want to perform, having been rattled by the Goblin holdup. Ideally—and the scenario assumes so—the Player Characters will see this as an opportunity. After all, if the actors do not want to do it anymore, and were expected by the bandits, meaning that they could just roll into their camp, surely the Player Characters could go in their stead. The upside is that the Player Characters will be able to get into the camp unopposed, the downside is that they will have to put on a performance.

Eve of Destruction encourages all of this with a complete, five-page script that the players, as their characters, are expected to perform. Whilst all of this is going on, two of the cast, that is, two of the Player Characters as the cast, each receive a message. One is from ‘Eve of Destruction’ herself, another is from her deputy, Roark Gould. From these messages, the Player Characters learn that all is not well in the bandit camp. The leader and her deputy do not trust each other and want to kill each other, and have hired members of Tart’s Traveling Thespians. Eve of Destruction has the potential for a great third act when the Player Characters can hopefully bring the house down—on both the stage and on the bandits. How the former plays out likely depends in part upon the characters’ Charisma (or performance)-based checks. How the latter plays out is left open-ended and player-led, calling for roleplaying and intrigue upon their part, as well as a more experienced Game Master to handle it. Even so, some suggestions as to the possible outcome at the camp would have been useful as would details of the other bandits at the camp and their disposition and how the Player Characters might sway them in direction or another.

Physically, Eve of Destruction is cleanly and tidily laid out. Bar the cover, the scenario is not illustrated. It could do with a map.

Eve of Destruction is a short, entertaining scenario that is easy to slot into a campaign. It takes a classic fantasy roleplaying set-up, in fact, a cliché of a classic fantasy roleplaying set-up, and gets the players and their character to do something different. To get the Player Characters actually roleplaying themselves by performing stage as well as mixed up in some double-crossing intrigue and potential shenanigans. The scenario does leave the Game Master with a bit more work to do at the end than it really should, but the set-up and getting there is entertainingly different.

Friday Filler: Dying Message

Dying Message is an Oink game with a difference. Notably, it comes in a bigger box than the standard size for a title from the Japanese publisher. It is also particularly gruesome. Even bloody in its own way. Which is to say, a ‘felt’ way. Dying Message is a party game, a social deduction game with a classic theme. That is, to find out who committed a murder. The identity of the murderer—because this is a game—is determined randomly, but the role of the victim is always one of the players. In fact, the players take it in turns to be the victim, each time their killer being randomly determined. Only as the victim, a player does not start the game dead. Only dying. In classic murder mystery style, the victim gets to leave a message for anyone who finds his body. In blood. His own, of course. Only in the moment of death, he has forgotten the name of his murderer, so can only draw vaguely helpful clues that might help the authorities—as represented by the other players—identify who did the deed. At which point, the victim is dead and as his player, he can only listen in, keep his mouth closed, and try not to get too frustrated as the other players play detective and fail to detect any clues in his otherwise brilliant ‘dying message’.

Dying Message is published by Oink Games and designed to be played by between three and eight players, aged twelve and up, in roughly twenty minutes, and three modes. ‘Joint Investigation’ is the standard mode and has the players work together to solve the murder; in ‘Competitive Investigation’ the players race to be the first one to solve the murder; and in ‘Speedy Death Showdown’, the players race to create a message and be the first to die. Besides the rulebook, Dying Message consists of thirty Suspect Cards, fifty Message Cards, six Alphabet Tokens, a Judgement Card, thirty-two Score Tokens, a six-sided die, and a Dice Cover. The Suspect Card are large and each gives an illustration, the name, occupation, and description of a potential suspect. The Message Cards are double-sided and are marked with a symbol or shape or sign or line drawn in blood red. The Alphabet Tokens are marked ‘A’ to ‘F’, as is the die. They are used to indicate a Suspect Card in a lineup, whilst the die is rolled to determine the murderer and Dice Cover is used to keep its result hidden once rolled. Lastly, the Felt piece is intended to be used to enhance the theatre of the Victim’s death.

Set-up is quick and simple. The player to be the Victim draws six Suspect Cards for his cards, assigns their Alphabet Tokens, and then draws fifteen Message Cards. He rolls the die to see which of the Suspects did him in and hides the result under the Dice Cover. The Victim then has a minute to craft his message to the other players, the Detectives. Only the side of the Message Cards visible can be used, and when crafting the message, he cannot hint or point at or spell either the Suspect Card or its associated Alphabet Tokens. Otherwise, the Victim can arrange the Message Cards he uses—and he does not have to use all of them—as he wants, including covering parts of them up. Once done, the Victim essentially groans and falls dead on the table, his head resting the pool of blood (or on the felt!).

At which point, the Detectives enter the scene. They can read the details of the Suspect Cards, they can look at the Message cards in play, but cannot move them, and they can examine the Message Cards that the Victim did not use. The Detectives have three minutes to deduce who did it, at which point, they collectively point at the Suspect Card representing who they did the dirty deed. The Victim uses the ‘Judgment Card’—either its ‘Found Peace’ or the ‘Lost Hope side—to indicate whether or not they have been successful.

Once done, the next player becomes the Victim and the procedure plays out again until everyone has had a turn at being the Victim. Then each player awards points based on what he thinks was the best Dying Message using the Message Cards and which was his favourite Dying Message. The player who scores the most points at the end of the game is the winner.

The ‘Competitive Investigation’ plays out in the same fashion, but instead of the Detectives all pointing to the Suspect Card they all collectively think is the killer, they individually point to the Suspect Card they think is the killer. Scoring is more complex in this mode. No points are scored if all of the Detectives were either correct or incorrect. The Victim will score points for every Detective who correctly identifies the Suspect, whilst each Detective who is correct will score points for each Detective who was incorrect.

Lastly, in the ‘Speedy Death Showdown’, each player draws fifteen Message Cards and secretly chooses one of the Suspect Cards as his potential murderer. They then race against each other to be the first to craft a message using the Message Cards. The player to do so, takes the Felt and becomes the Victim. The other players become the Detectives. Play then proceeds as per the standard ‘Competitive Investigation’, including the scoring and winning conditions.

The heart of Dying Message is the Message Cards. Getting the most out of them and being able to craft the most effective message is the key to the game and its play. They are also where its fun lies too. Of course, sometimes a Victim will be faced with Message Cards that can easily be arranged to form a message, at other times not, and so he will be forced to do the best that he can. So, there is a luck element there, but it really is up to the Victim to do his best with what he can as after all, it is the last thing he will do. Yet even if a Victim has crafted what he thinks is a great message, there is no guarantee that the Detectives will be capable of deducing anything from it. Which leaves a lot of groaning to be done in the post-mortem as each Victim explains what he was trying to convey with his message.

Physically, Dying Message is very well produced. Everything is of a good quality and the rulebook is a quick and easy read that clearly explains the rules. The game is also easy to teach. The Felt is absurd, but fun.

With its  high number of Suspect Cards and Message Cards, Dying Message has plenty of replay value. It is a game that works better with a higher player count—especially ‘Speedy Death Showdown’—as there is more variation and more player input. At its heart, Dying Message is a classic murder-mystery, social deduction game which gets inventive by adding physical and creative elements to its play. It is clever and it is fun, and it can be enjoyed by casual, family, and veteran gamers alike.

Miskatonic Monday #413: The Phantom of Gloaming Thicket

Much like the Jonstown Compendium for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha and The Companions of Arthur for material set in Greg Stafford’s masterpiece of Arthurian legend and romance, Pendragon, the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition is a curated platform for user-made content. It is thus, “...a new way for creators to publish and distribute their own original Call of Cthulhu content including scenarios, settings, spells and more…” To support the endeavours of their creators, Chaosium has provided templates and art packs, both free to use, so that the resulting releases can look and feel as professional as possible. To support the efforts of these contributors, Miskatonic Monday is an occasional series of reviews which will in turn examine an item drawn from the depths of the Miskatonic Repository.

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Name: The Phantom of Gloaming Thicket

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Andy Miller

Setting: Dark Ages Britain

Product: Scenario
What You Get: Forty-four-page, 41.17 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: “If you go down in the woods today, you’re sure of a big surprise

If you go down in the woods today, you better go in disguise”

—Henry Hall, Teddy Bear’s Picnic

Plot Hook: No matter if you are going north or south, there is horror to be found on the other side of the Watford Gap.

Plot Support: Staging advice, six pre-generated Investigators, seven NPCs, eight handouts, two maps, some Mythos and other monsters, and two artefacts.

Production Values: Decent

Pros

# Inspired by B10 Night’s Dark Terror

# Side-trek for Cthulhu Dark Ages

# Includes advice to adapt to other eras and settings

# Easy to slip into a campaign

# Easy to prepare

# Catoptrophobia

# Hylophobia

# Scoleciphobia

Cons

# From its size, the Keeper may be expecting more

Conclusion

# Extended ‘things in the woods’ encounter

# Very serviceable addition to any Cthulhu Dark Ages campaign (and other campaigns with some effort)

Miskatonic Monday #412: A Heady Draught

Much like the Jonstown Compendium for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha and The Companions of Arthur for material set in Greg Stafford’s masterpiece of Arthurian legend and romance, Pendragon, the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition is a curated platform for user-made content. It is thus, “...a new way for creators to publish and distribute their own original Call of Cthulhu content including scenarios, settings, spells and more…” To support the endeavours of their creators, Chaosium has provided templates and art packs, both free to use, so that the resulting releases can look and feel as professional as possible. To support the efforts of these contributors, Miskatonic Monday is an occasional series of reviews which will in turn examine an item drawn from the depths of the Miskatonic Repository.

—oOo—

Name: A Heady Draught

Publisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: J. Michael Arons

Setting: Modern day United Kingdom

Product: Single-Secession Scenario
What You Get: Eight-page, 30.28 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: Possession is ninth tenths of the bottle.

Plot Hook: “I see that a man cannot give himself up to drinking without being miserable one-half his days and mad the other.”

― Anne Brontë, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

Plot Support: Staging advice, no pre-generated Investigators, one NPC, one handout, and one Mythos monster.

Production Values: Plain

Pros

# Simple investigation

# Suitable for one Investigator, one Keeper play

# Easy to adapt to other eras and settings

# Easy to slip into a campaign

# Easy to prepare

# Focusses on one NPC for strong roleplaying

# Dipsophobia

# Thanatophobia

# Dipsomania

Cons

# Needs an edit

# The Keeper may want to add a map and other NPCs

# Episodic; what are the Investigators doing the rest of the days?

Conclusion

# Episodic, tight scenario focused on one NPC

# Keeper may want to develop the scenario a little wider

Icelandic Stories

It is the Age of Vikings. From their homes in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, the Norsemen have spread throughout Europe—and further beyond. They have conquered and settled in the British Isles, Ireland, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, and Normandy, as well as following the trade routes deep into Eastern Europe. They have not always been welcomed and they have often been feared. They have a reputation as raiders and pillagers, plundering towns and monasteries wherever their boats can take them, even sailing up the Seine to besiege Paris! These are the infamous Vikingar—or Vikings—who banded together to honourably raid other lands, and less honourably to raid the lands of other Norsemen. Yet such Vikings are not the only perils that Norsemen face. Some from within, some from without. On the harsh island of Iceland, far to the west, they are independent and free of kings and queens and nobility. Instead, they answer to the law courts of the assemblies where disputes are settled by the chieftain-priests known as goðar, to their families, and to their honour. Yet this would lead to revenge killings and blood feuds that passed down generations and violence perpetrated to restore slights and injuries to honour—perceived and otherwise. The Norsemen of Iceland are not the only inhabitants of this land. It is home to spirits of nature and mythical creatures. The Hidden Folk watch mortal men and sometimes meddle, their motives unknown. Travellers abroad on the wind and ice swept island can be attacked by Trolls. Curses and spells can be laid upon family and friends as well as neighbours and enemies, for magic is real, whether in the form of Rune Magic drawn from the Well of Fate beneath Yggdrasil or the ritualistic Seiður magic that comes from communing with the spirits, the powers of the land, and the gods.

This is the set-up for Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game in which the Player Characters are farmers and adventurers in medieval Iceland. They seek fame and fortune through adventure and also raiding during the season, but to protect their honour and their family too. It is published by Chaosium, Inc. and it is not the publisher’s first foray into the Viking Age and medieval Iceland, having previously published Mythic Iceland and been associated with Avalon Hill’s Vikings: Nordic Roleplaying for RuneQuest, published in 1985. Like those roleplaying games, it uses the mechanics of the Basic Roleplaying: Universal Game Engine, but mechanically, it bears some similarity to RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha. Such that if you have played RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, then mechanically, adjusting to Age of Vikings will not be an issue. That said, any experience with Basic Roleplaying: Universal Game Engine will work too. Lastly, it should be pointed out that Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game straddles the line between the historical and the mythical. It draws heavily upon both the history of the period and on the Icelandic Sagas, but allows the Game Master and her players to decide to focus on the historical elements of the setting or the mythic elements of the setting or both. The default is the latter as it reflects the outlook of the Icelanders upon the world and the land around them.

A Player Character in Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game is defined by his name and nickname, his Passions and devotions, family history, characteristics and skills, plus Spirit Animal, Devotions, Family, and distinctive features. A Player Character’s Passions represent his values and emotional desires, and in play, they can drive him to act (and mechanically grant a bonus) and bring him into conflict with others. He starts with three: Honour, Loyalty (goði), and Love (Family), and he will have more, typically created during the process of roll for his Family History. The latter gives the Player Character his backstory from the time of his grandfather in 900 CE all the way up through his parents’ history to his own 977 CE. The characteristics are Strength, Constitution, Size, Dexterity, Intelligence, Power, and Charisma. These are rated between three and eighteen, although the minimum value for Size and Intelligence is eight. Skills are divided in seven categories—Agility, Communication, Knowledge, Manipulation, Mythic, Perception, and Stealth, plus Weapons. His Spirit Animal reflects a Player Character’s soul and will grant a bonus for certain categories, such as the Owl, Snow Fox, or Weasel, which means that the Player Character is cunning and gains a bonus to Perception and Stealth skills. A Player Character’s Devotions are made to the gods that he most values and can draw upon for inspiration, represented by points of Dedication that grant him a bonus when acting according to their ideals. For example, the ideals for Baldur are light, happiness, and peace, whilst those for Óðinn are magic, war, and wisdom. The worship of Loki and Hel is rare and frowned upon.

Creating a Player Character in Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game is a mixture of random rolls and making choices. Options are given to simplify the process, but the default does take time. The player chooses or rolls for his character’s name and nickname, his family background, and then selects his Homeland skill bonuses. If the character is to be a Runemaster or a Seiðkona, his player selects from the skills for those options. He selects the three gods for his Devotions and assigns the Dedication points to them. Lastly, he rolls for his family details, its wealth, and its farm, and thus the equipment he has access to, as well as the distinctive feature.

Name: Álfdís Hallisdóttir
Nickname: Coal-brow
Passions: Honour 90%, Loyalty (Goði) 60%, Love (Family) 60%, Loyalty (Sweden) 60%, Hate (English) 70%, Loyalty (Norway) 60%
Devotions: Óðinn (1), Freyr (1) Forseti (1)
Animal Spirit: Cat (Spiritual)
Distinctive Features: Alluring expression, Eyebrows grown together, Red hair

CHARACTERISTICS
Strength 09 Constitution 13 Size 11 Dexterity 15 Intelligence 16 Power 18 Charisma 14

ATTRIBUTES
Move 10 Magic Points 18
Hit Points 14
Head 5 Left/Right Arm 5/5 Chest 6 Abdomen 5 Left/Right leg 5/5
Healing Rate 3
Maximum Encumbrance 10
Reputation 13
Status 25%

SKILLS
Agility (+10%): Ride 30%
Communication (+10%): Sing 45%, Skaldic Poetry 30%
Knowledge (+10%): Area Lore (Iceland) 40%, Customs (Norse) 35%, Farm 50%, First Aid 45%, Law 30%, Myth Lore 45%, Survival 35%, Treat Poison 25%, Treat disease 25%
Manipulation (+15%):
Mythic (+10%): Go Under the Cloak 45% Prophecy 40% Second Sight 40% Seiður Magic 60% (Weave), Worship (Forseti) 30%, Worship (Freyr) 10%, Worship (Óðinn) 30%
Perception (+10%): Insight 55%, Spot Hidden 45%
Stealth (+15%):
Weapon Skills (+15%): Knife 55%

Her grandmother, Bergdís, journeyed to Iceland from Sweden where she travelled, but did not settle. She was at the Alþing as one of the thirty-six first Goðar to preside over the law courts. The following year she was aboard Gunnbjörn Ulfsson’s ship when it sailed to the west, but what she saw there, she swore never to reveal. When she returned, she dreamed of the Fire Canyon breathing once again and her warnings persuaded her family to leave their farm in time. She dreamed again of the invasion of kings and fought at the Battle of Wineheath as part of the Norse army and fled when they were defeated. She hated the English ever after. Late in life she travelled far, dying with glory in the Battle of Constantinople. Her son, Halli, did not agree with his mother’s dislike of the English at first, but when in England fought alongside Eiríkur Bloodaxe at the Battle of Stainmore in England and saw him betrayed by the English, barely escaping with his life, he found himself in the wrong. Fleeing England, he found favour at the Norwegian royal court, but left for Iceland to avoid converting to Christianity. Sadly, King Haakon the Good followed him and began converting the Icelanders, but Halli resisted this and helped throw up a temple to Óðinn. When the prophet Þórdís visited the farm in honour of Bergdís, she prophesied that love would take someone away. Halli’s oldest son, Gaukar, disappeared a year later, only being seen with someone who was suspected of being one of the Hidden Folk. Halli fought honourably at the Battle of Assembly Bay, but his wound did not keep him from being at the assembly later that year where he spoke in favour of dividing Iceland and his words were greatly received.

In the Great Winter of Famine, the family survived by foraging and hunting and when the seas settled and the priests of Christ came to Iceland once again, Bergis mocked them in song to the pleasure of many. When the Goði’s hall was set alight, she rode a horse dedicated to Freyr and was rightly scolded even though she caught the culprit. More recently, she has been involved in the feud between the family of the renowned warrior poet Egill Skallagrímsson and Önundur Ánason over cattle grazing rights. She helped protect Egill Skallagrímsson against those who would kill him. Last year, she came across a spooked and bloodstained horse. In its saddle bag was a healing stone.

Mechanically, as a Basic Roleplaying: Universal Game Engine roleplaying game, Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game is a percentile system. All a player has to do is roll percentile dice and get a result equal to, or lower than the value of the characteristic roll or the skill, and his character succeeds. A characteristic roll is typically a characteristic multiplied by three, but can be higher or lower depending on difficulty. Any result of ninety-six and above is always a failure and can be a fumble, whilst a roll of one fifth of the success or less is a Special success and one twentieth a Critical success. These will give enhanced outcomes, such as increased damage. Rerolls may be possible, but impose a penalty each time. Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game does make use of the Resistance Table to make determining the outcome of opposed rolls, such as withstanding the effects of poison or overcoming the mind of another, easier and faster. It is possible to have skills above 100%, but not at the start of play. If a roll is failed and the situation is absolutely dire, a player can choose to spend his character’s Wyrd. This turns a failed roll into a successful roll, but at the permanent cost of a point of Power. Do this too often and a Player Character’s Wyrd or fate has played out.

Rolls can also be augmented prior to a characteristic or skill roll. This can be done with another skill as well as a Passion. A failed augmentation roll will actually levy a penalty on the roll being augmented, whilst a successful augmentation roll will apply a bonus, which will be better with a Special or Critical success. Passions lie at the heart of a Player Character for they reflect his emotions and values, but they are more than a means to augment a skill or characteristic roll, to explain why he is acting the way he is. They can also be used to compel a Player Character to act according to them. This can be with a roll or if high enough he can be forced to.

Combat uses the same core mechanic. Initiative is determined according to Dexterity values, and once in physical combat, each combatant can either make a physical attack and defend or make a magical attack and defend. Defending is either dodging or parrying, and the outcome of both is determined by comparing the quality of the success for both the attack roll and either the parry or dodge rolls. This requires reference to their own tables often from blow to blow and the need to consult both tables does slow the flow of combat, if only slightly. (It is where the Age of Vikings: Gamemaster Screen Pack will undoubtedly prove to be useful.) If an attack is a Special success, it will do roughly double damage, whilst a Critical success indicates that any protection or armour has been bypassed and maximum damage inflicted. Of course, it is possible to roll a Fumble for an attack or parry, and there is a table of results for that. Rune magic can be used in combat, but Seiður magic cannot as it takes too long.

Armour protects, but not all locations and the best armour—either helmets, chain, or scale—is expensive. Shields will also stop damage, but can be damaged too. Damage is done by location, but if the Hit Points in a particular location are reduced to zero, a limb becomes useless, the combatant is left bleeding to death, or knocked unconscious and dying. Damage done to locations is also applied to general Hit Points and reducing those will knock a combatant unconscious. First aid and healing magic are available, but natural healing takes weeks.

What Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game makes clear is that combat is deadly and should be avoided if possible. If it cannot, it suggests that the Player Characters should prepare beforehand, casting weapon-enhancing magic and defensive spells, if possible, ambush and attack first, use missile weapons, and wear even minimum armour. And lastly, be prepared to flee if necessary.

In keeping with the setting, the rules for Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game cover alcohol and drinking contests, ships and seafaring, the latter giving stats for the classic longship, as well as cogs, biremes, and triremes, plus combat and other dangers. Alongside the guide to Viking life, including the gods (and that does include a section on Christianity in the Iceland of the period), and there are rules too for running a raid, on anywhere from an isolated farm or monastery all the way up to a metropolis with their associated Risk and Reward Ratings. Once any immediate opposition has been dealt with, the Player Characters can search the location, what they find being primarily determined by the Loot Table. Depending upon the nature of the campaign, both the seafaring and raid rules will be consulted again and again when the Player Characters decide each year that it is the time to be ‘going Viking’. Similarly, the rules for Icelandic legal system will probably be consulted again and again as a means to resolve conflicts without resorting to combat—though it is likely too as going before the courts is a measure of last resort when everything has failed. The process takes the participants through the legal battle in four phases consisting of travel to the court, presentation of cases, giving testimony, and final arguments, in between which both sides—but primarily the Player Characters—can conduct manoeuvres, such as intimidating a witness, researching the law, and even offering a favourable marriage to a judge to persuade him to one side or another, in order to gain Legal Advantage Points. Acquire seven Legal Advantage Points and the case is won, but then the winning side has to enforce it. Depending on how underhanded the Player Characters want to be, there is plenty of scope for roleplaying a Viking legal drama.

Magic in Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game takes two forms. Rune magic has specific rules, but essentially involves him choosing and carving three Runes or more closely associated with the desired effect and dying them with the caster’s blood. He also needs to create a Galdur, a script that he intones upon casting them. The more runes carved, the greater the number of effects and the greater the number of Magic Points that need to be expended. In the form of the twenty-four Elder Fúþark, the Runes offer incredible flexibility. For example, Vend means bliss and has the purview of happiness, relationship, hope, and kinship, and it can be used to give a bonus to the Charm and Insight skills as well as increase Charisma. Vikings: The Roleplaying Game does not just detail the twenty-four Elder Fúþark, but gives multiple combinations, their effects, and Galdur in each case. As with any magic system in any roleplaying game, there is a lot to learn, but player and Game Master alike are encouraged to create and prepare scripts, lest play get bogged down as they try to put a script together.

Where Rune magic can be cast all but immediately and only has a short effect, Seiður magic requires a long ritual and once completed, has a much longer-lasting effect. The Seiður practitioner, or Seiðmaður, is only really limited by the number of Magic Points that his player wants to expend in determining the duration, distance, and dimension of the spell, and whether or not the effect falls within the preferred Realm. There are four of these—Mind, Body, Spirit, and Weave (fate)—and the Seiðmaður favours one over the other three. This means that he is at a penalty when working within the realm of the others. In this way, Seiður magic is even more freeform than Rune magic, only limited by the player’s imagination. There are no formulaic spells for Seiður magic, but there are examples given drawn from the sagas for each of the four realms.

Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game gives a history of Iceland, from the Mythic times all the way up to the start of the game, as well as a Traveller’s Guide to the land itself. The guide is threaded with numerous adventure seeds. There are details too, on the lands beyond Iceland, but they are very much not the focus of the roleplaying game. It also reveals the secrets of the Hidden People and gives a detailed bestiary, which lists a variety of mortals, from berserkers, foreign raiders, and goði to thralls, traders, and warriors. The Mythic Folk include the Hidden People, Jötunn, Merfolk, and Trolls. There are descriptions of beasts too, but also Draugur, Fallen Ravens, and Seal Mothers, plus horrors like Wicked Whales and Kraken.

Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game supports the long term with rules for experience and downtime activities, such as worshipping, the progress of the farm and family, which again though mechanical, can spur opportunities for roleplay and stories. In the short term, it provides a single scenario, ‘The Alþing’. This is the annual meeting of the community, at which there are opportunities to arrange for the collection of goods, conduct courtships, settle disputes, recruit for raids in the coming season, and so on. ‘The Alþing’ gives plenty of opportunity for the players to roleplay and learn more about the community and the scenario itself sets up a potential dispute between the Player Characters and some NPCs as well as having both players and their characters participate in the rules for the court. Certainly, its general set-up really does show off the social aspect of the setting and its mundane rather than mythical nature means that it is suitable for historical as well as mythical play. However, it is not necessarily the best adventure for the group that wants more of a directed adventure or one that deals with more of the mythical elements. The Game Master may want to work with her players to develop some motivations as what their characters want from attending and build those into the scenario. Yet is still a good adventure, its format being one that the Player Characters can return to again and again, with unused elements being saved for the next one and the Game Master adding new ones, perhaps more tightly tailored around the drives and activities of the Player Characters.

Physically, Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game is very presented. The book is well written, the artwork is excellent, and there are plenty of examples of play throughout, as well as a set of six ready-to-play pre-generated Player Characters. It needs a slight edit in places.

Given that Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game employs the Basic Roleplaying: Universal Game Engine, there is a complexity to the core rules, especially in combat, and whilst it can be argued that Rune magic and Seiður magic are both complex, that is more conceptual than mechanical. In comparison, the rules for Viking legal battles and for raiding do not add complexity, but rather add depth to the setting and help develop situations and opportunities for roleplaying. This is balanced by the richness of the medieval Icelandic setting and its historicity versus fantasy, leaning towards the former than the latter in portraying a people (and thus Player Characters) and their outlook rather than the clichés of Viking raiders. It places the Player Characters as farmers first, part of a wider community whose disputes and stories that they can become a part of as well as creating their own. Age of Vikings: The Roleplaying Game is a low fantasy, deeply historical  game that is designed to help tell stories of home, hearth, and honour, myth and magic, and bring new sagas to life, and in that it succeeds admirably.