The Other OSR: Mythic Bastionland

Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd starts by committing a cardinal sin. It does not tell the reader what it is. It is clearly a roleplaying game and it does at least tell the reader that, but there is no explanation of what the players and their characters do in Mythic Bastionland. There is no explanation of what sets this apart from any other roleplaying game in its genre. Instead, it leaps straight into setting up a game and creating characters and more. Without this context, Mythic Bastionland leaves the reader and the Referee with more work to understand what the roleplaying game is and what it is trying to do. Now there is some commentary at the rear of book which through a combination of examples of play and commentary upon them does provide some of the context that Mythic Bastionland is missing at the very beginning of its book and throughout the presentation of the rules. Yet this comes in the ‘Oddpocrypha’, almost one-hundred-and-seventy pages after the end of the rules presentation, and since there is no introduction to the roleplaying game to tell the reader that it is there and what it does, there is every possibility that the reader is going to be mystified as what he has in hands and the Referee daunted at the prospect of running Mythic Bastionland.

And yet, check online, such as the DriveThruRPG page for Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd and clear and simple explanations as to what this roleplaying game is and what it is trying to do, can be easily found and understood. The fact that such an explanation—or something similar to it—is not given in Mythic Bastionland is both mystifying and profoundly unhelpful.

So, what then is Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd? Mythic Bastionland is an Arthurian roleplaying game inspired by British folklore, Arthurian legends, and more modern interpretations of both. This includes Hal Foster’s Prince Valiant comic strip, the films Excalibur and The Green Knight, the roleplaying game Pendragon, and the computer game, Elden Ring. It is published by BastionLand Press following a successful Kickstarter campaign and as its title suggests, it is a roleplaying game set sometime in the past of Into the Odd, an Old School Renaissance adjacent microclone of Dickensian horror and industrialisation. This also means that it is also set in the past of Electric Bastionland: Deeper into the Odd, the roleplaying game of incomparable debt and failed careers amidst a very modern and almost incomprehensible city. Mythic Bastionland even suggests ways in which Player Characters from one roleplaying game can go to another as well as several ways in which they are connected, all of which are true, and it even hints that it may not actually be in the past either…

In Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd, the players take the role of Knights, each different and knighted by a different Seer, seeking Glory, exploring a Realm, and confronting Myths, all having sworn the same oath—‘Seek The Myths, Honour The Seers, Protect The Realm’. Theirs is a world of brutal and bloody medievalism, but by gaining Glory, whether through the resolution of Myths, public duelling or jousting, entering tournaments, and fighting battles that history will remember, they will prove themselves worthy of rank, first of taking a seat in Council or at Court, next of ruling a Holding, and then of ruling a Seat of Power. Ultimately, as a Knight-Radiant, a Knight will prove himself worthy of undertaking the final task, fulfilling the City Quest. This will likely bring a campaign to an end as the Knights confront and deal with a series of omens.

A Knight is very simply detailed. He has a type and a rank, three Virtues, Guard, some property, an Ability, and a Passion. The three Virtues are Vigour, Clarity, and Spirit and they range in between in value between seven and eighteen initially, but can never go above nineteen. Guard is a Knight’s ability to avoid Wounds, whilst property is what a Knight owns, an Ability is a talent unique to the Knight, and the Passion is his means of restoring his Spirit. Both Virtues and Guard are rolled for as standard for all knights, but the property, Ability, and Passion are all defined by what type of Knight he is. This can be chosen or rolled for from amongst the seventy-two knightly types that Mythic Bastionland gives. The process is quick and easy.

Sir Wedell
Type: The Salt Knight
Rank: Knight-Errant
Glory 0

VIRTUES
Vigour 12 Clarity 11 Spirit 10
Guard 4

Property: Spined mace (d8 hefty), javelin (d6), coraline mail (A1), Everflask (contains an endless supply of fresh water), Scaled steed (VIG 12, CLA 8, SPI 5, 3GD), dagger (d6), torches, rope, dry rations, camping gear
Ability: Inspire Ire
Passion: Mettle
Knighted by: The Bright Seer

Mechanically, Mythic Bastionland is simple, though more complex than either Into the Odd or Electric Bastionland. To have his Knight undertake an action, a player rolls a Save against the appropriate Virtue. Beyond that, combat adds some complexity. In a turn, a Knight can move and attack—in that strict order, and instead of rolling to attack, a player rolls the damage his Knight will inflict. Combatants can attack the same target and their players roll their dice together. The highest die result counts, while the remaining dice that have rolled four or higher, can be discarded to perform Gambits. These start with ‘Bolster’ to increase the damage inflicted by one, but also enable a combatant to move after the attack, repel a foe, stop a foe from moving, trap an opponent’s shield, dismount a foe, and so on. There are greater Gambits for rolling eight or more. All Knights have access to Feats—‘Smite’, ‘Focus’, and ‘Deny’, which they can use in combat. ‘Smite’ adds an extra, larger die to the combat roll; ‘Focus’ lets a Knight use a Gambit without sacrificing a die; and ‘Deny’ blocks or rebuffs the attack before it lands. All require a Save against a Virtue lest the Knight become fatigued.

Armour worn and shields carried will reduce incoming damage, whilst the ‘Deny’ Feat will enable a Knight to avoid damage all together. A Knight’s Guard is reduced first, and as long it is one or more, a Knight can evade attacks. If his Guard reduced to exactly zero, the Knight gains a scar, but if the damage exceeds a Knight’s Guard, it is deducted from his Vigour and he is Wounded. If a Knight’s Vigour is reduced by half, he is mortally wounded and will die in the hour, but can easily and quickly be given first aid to prevent this. If a Knight’s Vigour is reduced to zero, he is dead. The other Virtues can suffer similar damage, often from Scars, but whilst some are debilitating, other Scars can also increase a Knight’s Guard. The rules for combat also cover unarmed combat, ranged combat, and mounted combat, as well as duels, jousts, shieldwalls, and spearwalls. They scale up quickly to include running warbands, the use of artillery, and handling sieges.

Combat in Mythic Bastionland is thus brutal. However, Knights do have the advantage of having the initiative in combat—unless surprised—and they and their players have the time to plan accordingly. Tactical use of Feats and Gambits will keep a Company of Knights alive longer than if they simply charge into combat.

For the Referee, beyond the basic rules, there is simple guidance on how to set up the game and its scope—how many sessions everyone wants the game to last, goods and trade, descriptions of the people and the realms, and setting up a Realm. This involves creating and populating a hex map, typically a twelve-by-twelve grid, that will mostly consist of wilderness. To this is added four Holdings—castles, walled towns, fortresses, or towers, held by Knights or influential Vassals of the King—one of which is the Realm’s Seat of Power, and six Myth Hexes, each one clearly affected by the presence of their Myth. The details of the various hexes, excluding the Myth Hexes, can be generated using the ‘Spark’ or prompt tables presented later in the book.

In terms of advice, Mythic Bastionland emphasises the ‘Primacy of Action’, that past actions and their consequences supersede content generated by prompts of the Spark Tables (and the bottom of almost all of the pages in the book) and the rules, ensuring that the players and their Knights have enough information to act, and using a simple procedure to determine the outcome of any action. There are also guidelines for improvisation, using prompts, handling luck, and how to end a session. The latter is important because every session should end with a discussion of what the players and their Knights want to do next. This can be to pick up where the current session has ended, but the players can also decide to end the Season or the Age, allowing for months or years to pass or even enough time for a Knight to mature from a young Knight or a mature Knight to become an old knight. There are numerous activities that the Knights can undertake in between—effectively off camera—but the passing of an age forces a player to reroll his Knight’s Virtues and accept the new result, even if lower. The result of which might be that a Knight has learned from his experiences and matured, or he could have been wounded and suffered a debilitating injury or entered his dotage. Further rules cover travel, exploration, and ultimately, dominion and authority. In the case of dominion and authority, a Knight comes to rule a Holding—or even a Seat of Power. At either level, what Knight will be trying to do is maintain and improve his Holding, deal with crises from within his realm, and see to his succession, and also crises from beyond his realm should a Knight hold a Seat of Power. This though is more for long term play than short term play.

All of which runs to sixteen pages. In other words, the rules to Mythic Bastionland are concisely presented in sixteen pages for everything! Which begs the question what exactly does the rest of Mythic Bastionland consist of given that that rules take up three-fortieths of the book? Over two thirds of the book is dedicated to two things. One is the Knights and one is the Myths, equally divided, for a grand total of seventy-two entries each. The Knights are what the players choose from, or ideally, roll for, and they include The True Knight, The Trail Knight, The Story Knight, The Rune Knight, The Mask Knight, and The Silk Knight, and every single one of them is different and interesting and will present a different way of playing a Knight.

The Myths are what the Referee uses to populate the Realm. They include The Wurm, The Tower, The Spider, The Toad, The Hole, and The Rock, and every single one of them will present the players and their Knights with a different challenge. Each is simply presented with simple description, a set of omens that trigger as the Knights discover more signs of the Myth, a set of NPCs, and a table of random details that the Referee can use to detail parts of the Myth. For example, ‘The Wall’ is described as “Cutting through the land, a wonder two storms tall Guarding from invasion, or built to cage us all”. Its Omens begin with, “Crumbling outpost. A band of labourers sharing a meal on their way to begin work repairing the Wall. They think Knights are being sent to stop them.” and will escalate to, “Two giant magpies, stealing shiny things. They nest in the trees that root among the Wall’s oldest stones.” The cast includes stats for Wall Wardens, Brin, Catrona, and Elish, a Wall Knight, the giant magpies, and empowered refugees.

So how then, is Mythic Bastionland actually played and what do the Knights do? Quite simply, they explore the wilderness map that the Referee has created, looking for signs of Myths. When they have found them, the Knights will look for the source, root it out, and resolve it. There is no set way to resolve any of these Myths. Ultimately, whether or not a Myth is resolved comes down to whether or not it remains a threat to the Realm. The typical six Myths of a Realm is enough to support a mini-campaign at least, though more can be added to extend the campaign once one set of six is done, whilst the mix of seventy-two different Knights and seventy-two different Myths means that no two campaigns are going to be alike because whilst the Myths provide the adventures to play, they also give and flavour to a Realm. Once the Referee has set up her Realm, Mythic Bastionland is very definitely designed to be played from the page with a minimum of preparation.

The last part of Mythic Bastionland is devoted to the ‘Oddpocrypha’. This consists of thirty pages of examples of ‘Play’ and ‘Thoughts’ upon those examples of play. From ‘Start & Scope’, ‘Character Creation’, and ‘Teaching the Rules’ to ‘Council & Court’, ‘Crises’, and ‘Delving into Tomorrow’, the ‘Oddpocrypha’ explores and examines numerous examples of the rules and their ramifications. In many ways, actually providing much of the context that the rules section at the start of the book lacks. Consequently, it is a lot easier to read, but there is dichotomy to the writing. Essentially, the ‘Play’ examples are written in one tone and the ‘Thoughts’ on the examples are written in another. So, what you have is the author writing the examples of ‘Play’ and then commenting upon them as if he had not written them in the ‘Thoughts’. It is weird. That said, the examples of ‘Play’ really do help the reader and potential Referee understand the rules and how the game is intended to be played and the thoughts‘Thoughts’ do explore what the designer thinks of his game.

Physically,Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd is a stunning looking book with every Myth and Knight fully illustrated, meaning that there is a profusion of artwork in the very big middle of the book. The tones are primarily earthy greens and oranges with splashes of red, blue, and purple and the whole look of the Knights and Myths section is as if Mythic Bastionland was not a roleplaying game, but a deck of Tarot cards. The layout of the book is tight in places and bar the ‘Oddpocrypha’ at the back of the book, the writing is very concise, the aim being to fit all of the rules for each aspect of the roleplaying game onto a single page each.

It is debateable how Arthurian a roleplaying game Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd is. There is no doubt that it is inspired by Arthurian legend and it certainly lists numerous Arthurian inspirations. In play though, the Knights are not engaging in the Arthurian legend and they are not going on quests such as the Quest of the White Hart or the Quest for the Holy Grail. Instead, they are going on their own quests, perhaps hunting down ‘The Wyvern’ or delving into ‘The Forest’ in search of a lost, but beloved Seer, only to discover darker, primordial secrets. The Knights are questing knights, ultimately if they prove to be glorious enough worthy to undertake the ‘Quest of the City’, but they quest more for their Realm than a mythical figure such as King Arthur and theirs is a world that is more one of bloody brutalism rather than one of romance and chivalry.

Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd is not an introductory roleplaying game. The rules are too concisely written, there is a lack of context to the roleplaying game, and play relies a great deal on improvisation, whether that is working from the prompts from the ‘Spark Tables’ or working the Myths and the Knights’ reactions to those Myths into the world of the Realm. However, armed with some context and Mythic Bastionland begins to hint at its possibilities with simple, clear rules that emphasise the brutality of the world that the Knights live in, before charging the reader and the Referee down with its gloriously fantastical Knights and Myths that demand their stories to be told. Mythic Bastionland – Before Into the Odd is the film Jabberwocky with a seventies Prog Rock soundtrack, built not so much on rules light mechanics, but rules intense mechanics.