A thread to discuss Free League's Symbaroum system and setting, including the 5E adaptation.
Spoilers for adventures and supplements (such as the reveals and changes of the "Throne of Thorns" campaign) should be tagged.
So, I've just picked up a full set of Free League's Symbaroum supplements. I already had the core book, but never managed to start a campaign with it.
I'm liking it a lot. Definite Dark Fantasy, with hints of SkyrimWarhammer Fantasy Roleplay and The Witcher in there, with a relatively simple rule set.
The setting is the new kingdom of Ambria and the vast forest of Davokar. It's got a northern european feel to it, perhaps unsurprisingly given the Swedish company behind it.
About 20 years ago, the southern nation of Alberetor barely won a horrible war against their neighbours, who'd turned to dark sorcery, undeath and conquest. The downside of victory is that Alberetor's cursed, poisoned land now — crops fail, soil becomes lifeless, animals are sickened, killed or corrupted into something unnatural.
So Queen Korinthia, hero of the war, has led a slow migration north, across a mountain range to the unspoiled lands that are now Ambria. Naturally, the lands weren't exactly unpopulated — there were barbarian communities there, who've now been dealt with via treaties or force.
There are also ogres, goblins and changelings, who are now being awkwardly assimilated into Ambrian society (and available as player characters).
More problematically for the settlers, there are also ruins of an ancient empire — Symbaroum — buried under the forest. And hostile elves who insist that the ruins are cursed and must not be disturbed.
It's an interesting frontier setting with plenty of factions, Grey-and-Grey Morality and culture clash. Elves are enigmatic and genuinely threatening, not just forest folk with pointy ears.
Skimming the books:
Layout doesn't always make it easy to dive straight in - and there are a lot of named characters in adventures for GMs to keep track of.
The epic "Throne of Thorns" campaign is pretty epic, and will take the heroes from one side of the nation to the other (and sometimes beyond). On the other hand, it has some scope for railroading and it's the sort of campaign that will significantly change the setting if played to the end.
The Advanced Players Guide includes rules for playing Elves, Dwarves, Trolls and Undead. I would be very wary about opening most of those up as PC options, but I can see it working for some campaigns.
A thread to discuss Free League's Symbaroum system and setting, including the 5E adaptation.
Spoilers for adventures and supplements (such as the reveals and changes of the "Throne of Thorns" campaign) should be tagged.
So, I've just picked up a full set of Free League's Symbaroum supplements. I already had the core book, but never managed to start a campaign with it.
I'm liking it a lot. Definite Dark Fantasy, with hints of Skyrim Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay and The Witcher in there, with a relatively simple rule set.
The setting is the new kingdom of Ambria and the vast forest of Davokar. It's got a northern european feel to it, perhaps unsurprisingly given the Swedish company behind it.
About 20 years ago, the southern nation of Alberetor barely won a horrible war against their neighbours, who'd turned to dark sorcery, undeath and conquest. The downside of victory is that Alberetor's cursed, poisoned land now — crops fail, soil becomes lifeless, animals are sickened, killed or corrupted into something unnatural.
So Queen Korinthia, hero of the war, has led a slow migration north, across a mountain range to the unspoiled lands that are now Ambria. Naturally, the lands weren't exactly unpopulated — there were barbarian communities there, who've now been dealt with via treaties or force.
There are also ogres, goblins and changelings, who are now being awkwardly assimilated into Ambrian society (and available as player characters).
More problematically for the settlers, there are also ruins of an ancient empire — Symbaroum — buried under the forest. And hostile elves who insist that the ruins are cursed and must not be disturbed.
It's an interesting frontier setting with plenty of factions, Grey-and-Grey Morality and culture clash. Elves are enigmatic and genuinely threatening, not just forest folk with pointy ears.
Skimming the books: