Hello, and welcome to the weekly.
Scroll podcast brought to you by the adventure.
Archive, my name is Ryan and with me, we have a very special
astonishing. Even guest with us, we have
Jonathan Davis. How you doing today John?
I'm pretty great. How are you just sleepy?
You know, but that's normal for the show.
I feel like we're both night people, right?
Yeah. I work nights.
So I'm usually pretty active around this time.
I should have wore my graveyard shift.
Sure, that's what I should have done anyway, though.
So Jonathan Davis, you've been on the show a couple of times,
but for those that have not Read your work or seen you, who the
heck are you of? Why would people know, mr.
Jonathan Davis people out there probably know me best as sieve,
add sanctum on Twitter, and itch, and all the usual places.
Probably know me from in the light of the setting sun or Helm
Fame. Yeah, I just make games and try
to put out content for its bit easier said than done.
I mean, but your prolific putting out a bunch of stuff.
I mean, you're still putting out all of the zine Quest kind of
backed bastards module. So I know I just got peak of
whoa in the mail. Hell yeah, got my copy right
here as well. That's a, that was a lot of fun
to do and we're working on the two others in the background.
So those will be coming out this summer.
I think so excited for those. Very stoked to get those.
The adaptations are absolutely fantastic and the stuff that you
imagine are doing with. I know it was Matt.
They did the covers right Matt Morris for those at dawn.
Awaits not it's a still, no, it's Dawn.
What is Matt's new name? It used to be in a rap, Matt.
It's used to be man around Matt. Now, it's Manna Dawn.
I believe Mana Dawn, that's what it is.
Yeah, gorgeous covers. Fantastic adaptations for a
really clean to Super, super light, very light system
bastards from from Micah Anderson.
But Now that everyone knows you. What are we doing today?
Here on the weekly scroll podcast.
What was the game that we were going to read review?
Even that's a good question because we've got Three
different versions of the same game.
We've got first edition box set of hyperborea.
We've got the second edition Tome.
And we've also got the Third Edition two-volume, set of
hyperborea, all very big books. I've seen that one before it is
right here. Yeah, yeah.
So maybe we should go over the most recent one.
All right, so 3E. No, first question.
How do you feel about the shortened name on 3rd Edition is
Third Edition? When they decided to shorten the
name? Third Edition.
Is when they decided to shorten the name, I'm a sucker for a
long name for a game because because you can have you can
have the acronyms. I love Ash as an acronym.
Astonishing swordsman and Sorcerers hyperborea.
Yeah but hyperborea works too. Yeah, he's all this fun.
CH, I think it's cleaner, but honestly, I vastly, I very much
prefer a sound shooting Swordsmen and Sorcerers of
hyperborean. I think the whole big line feels
great. Maybe it's just because I grew
up in a time when emo bands had whole paragraphs for album
names, you know, maybe that gets me, but I really like it.
I think it's really fantastic, though.
And as you said, the books are absolutely stunning, not only
are they Very thick, big ol, boys.
But the cover, I love this. Like, Matt, like kind of soft,
like, cover a little bit. Taking pictures of shiny books
is awful. I hate.
I is shiny books and, and, and social media.
Don't don't mix. But these kind of like, very
matte, like I said, somewhat soft, they're gorgeous books,
multiple ribbons. Yeah, to Ribbons per book.
It's, it's stunning. I love the orange.
Like all the way through. It's a really, really fantastic
strong orange. Yeah, it is.
It is nice. It's almost like, it's not quite
Burns a little more like Tennessee than Texas, but and
then it comes with a full Atlas as well.
So, yeah, the atlas is pretty great too.
It's very usable at the table, lot better than the giant poster
maps that they included with the two previous Editions.
Well, it's interesting because hyperborea is kind of like a
hexagram shaped World. Anyway.
Right. Mmm.
So it's nice that it's like I love this idea here where it's
literally like they take like a zoom like square and then give
you like a zoomed in picture next to it.
It's just a really, really cool. Interesting way to do.
The the atlas with like the big spread here in the middle, it's
really neat. Overall I mean the Running is
gorgeous and extremely well. Done on that recommended
hyperborea to begin with. He actually reached out were
like, hey if you ever do hyperborean, let me know.
And I was like, fuck. Yeah, let's do it.
Um, so what, what made you not want to only have all three
versions of hyperborea, but actually come on the show and
talk about that for me, personally, I think it's the
perfect like distillation of old-school games and What I want
out of those games, it's the perfect tool kit for these old
school adventures in the way that maybe an osc or like say a
like Labyrinth, Lord are a little lacking for me.
Personally, it's got a lot of flavor and a lot of character in
it that hopefully will touch upon in this in this podcast in
this review. So is it mostly like the the
Lauren the vibe of the game you like more or is it specifically
or mix like the rules as well? Since it's, it's kind of an add
like Neo clone where they've taken kind of like the guts.
I moved it. But you also said just like,
little bit of mix of BX in there, too.
So is it more like the world, you're into?
The rules, are a little bit of both.
It's a little bit of both. It's a Vibe heavy like, you
know, No, the main chunk of lore is in the referee book, but it
you can get little like, touches of it throughout the rules as
well. And it does some interesting
things with the rules that really streamline, maybe that
Crunch and that like esoteric nature of those older editions.
That rub people the wrong way. You know, for anyone out there
who wants like an old school experience with gaming, I think
you Can't do any better than hyperborea.
That's that's my personal opinion.
Yeah, Joe, yeah, Joe. So I never played a TD, you
know. I think the my Kind of a what
I've done a little bit more, the old-school gaming.
We've gone over some bxf here on the show like like neon Lord's.
The toxic Wasteland is a real BX Neo clone.
This is definitely beefier than that.
You know. I don't think we've really hit
on anything approaching a TD or the complexity of the older
games, you know that are kind of based in that like grid of you
know A tree of D&D. This is probably one of the most
complex role playing games I've read.
As far as tables and charts and just so much stuff to it, is
there like a sense of did you play a lot of the older editions
or was this kind of the approach into it?
I have not played a lot of the old traditions but I have Ed,
most of the older editions and yes, I think there is a sense of
when you first pop up in these books, you're like combat
matrixes. What is that?
And it just like, makes your eyes cross.
But once you get the procedure down, those charts, almost
become secondary. You don't need them like they
just become another piece of the toolset that, you just tossed to
the side. And that's what these books are
there tool sets? Like, I think people have a
tendency and this probably comes from more modern like
playstyles. Is that these are two books that
I have spent money on. I'm bringing them to my table
and I'm going to use every single bit of these books at the
table. And that's just not the case you
can pick and choose what you want to use from these books at
your table and you're not going to break the game.
Whereas say a 5e if you suddenly decide and we're not going to
use advantage or disadvantage and just use modifiers, even
though modifiers are also still in the Indie, you risk breaking
the game when you do stuff like that, just tossing mechanics
aside, that doesn't happen with these rule sets, like this.
And that's, that's another thing that appeals to me, personally,
Is the kind of. So I there's people there that
states that think 5e is kind of awful.
But also like what am I trying to think of where you like can
like pick and choose the parts a you want to like put together
with it? And I feel like it's very
different to you something we're because when I read through this
like you said there's a lot of stuff but the core rules are
still relatively like simple and straightforward.
But with 5e if you kind of I feel like a lot of people take
out, like, 30% of it and then tried, like, end up building
their own game instead of GM in, for like the parts and stuff
that they want to do to it. And it gets to the point where
you're not really playing Five any in a more, you know, your
home brew has become like a hack unto itself.
So yeah, exactly with this, I feel like as you said because
there's a lot like that's the thing is that like I'm very used
to games where its rulings of a rules that there's not a rule,
you just go with it. And I feel like this book, Is
the opposite of that in that. If there is something you want
to do, you can probably find a rule that's written in here.
Yeah, probably. So it's just a very interesting.
It was a very interesting read going through being so used to
especially here on the show. We had a lot of rules light
stuff. We hit a lot of very, I mean
like faster side stuff. You know what I mean?
Like that whole thing is like this big versus a so it was, it
was interesting. I'm excited to hop into it.
So we're going to do that. And now, I wish, but we're gonna
so I think are playing this to kind of cruise through the rules
a little bit, hitting, all the important parts.
And then talking about some of the stuff that we're talking
about now, like these extra bits and pieces, you can add on, and
all the comic because I still need you to explain the comet
Matrix to me. And and then we're going to dig
through the lure because I will say that like, you know, the
rule set interesting. We'll get to discussion on that,
but the lower The Vibes of this book are Immaculate.
I think, the, the world is fucking fantastic.
I think, as you said even throughout, like the writing and
the art, you know, and for a book that this big, there's so
much art in it. The Vibes are through the roof,
you can't read this and not be like, I don't want to play in
this world, so it's really interesting.
It's I'm excited to hop into that.
So why don't we start by going into the players manual?
And just start cruising these rules a little bit.
We ready for this? Sure.
I'm right. Boom, swords sorcery and Weird
Science, fantasy hyperborean. Uh, I still, I still, I still
want that astonishing in there. I really do.
I think it's a great word. I think it was a strong title
already and I think they've got a strong title to with this new
edition but I think they lost a little something with the
change, you know I never knew. Ooh them before but I feel like
I still miss it. You know and that that older
edition box set is gorgeous. I looked at nice.
It's very pretty. I got lucky with this one.
I managed to get one of the last copies before they went out of
print and its really nice. Just the the I don't know that
retro vibe that it's got going on for that entire set even like
the the font and everything for it.
It just And another Plus for it. Spiral bound books.
I love you. Good spiral-bound spiral-bound
is great for the table. Like it it's clearly the the
author of these I'm I always say it.
Incorrectly Geoffrey Dillon Ian, that's it.
They have played a lot of games and they I don't know, I feel
like a lot of the offerings from this, and some of the older
stuff I looked at, as I was reading this, and I want to look
at the other stuff, like they clearly wrote this game to be
played, you know, absolute like not that either games not
written to be played, but you know what I mean?
Like, even just the the concept of the spiral bound notebook.
Like clearly. You can throw that down at your
table a lot easier than like, a bigger one.
So, I don't know. I think they're very clear, love
for the game comes through pretty, pretty strongly.
Hmm. And also God, Is this art?
Is beautiful. The art is one of the best
aspects. Let me know if you get this
comparison, think of this game and then think of DCC, do you
see some overlap there? Oh yeah, there's definitely like
a I feel like there's maybe a little bit more science in this
one than I feel from DC. I know there is some decency
that has like more science but to me, DC is always felt and
maybe I'm wrong, because I also haven't read a ton of DCC
either, but it's definitely like a weird Fantasy game and
hyperborean. I felt like to me reading
through it, seeing the art, like, a Weird Science, Fantasy
game. But there's a clear.
Yeah, there's a very clear overlap, like I think, you know,
like the the Venn diagrams of DC and harbor, borya are very it's
like, you know, yeah, overlapping each other and Cover
artist is Charles Lang. By the way, just want to put
that out there. Charles laying God.
Damn it. It's telling it, you know?
And what's weird? I don't know why I always pick
up, like, the weirdest little bits and stuff.
My favorite thing about this cover and for those on podcast
lenders, to cover of the players manual, it's got these three
characters looks like a wizard, a paladin and a barbarian on a
possibly crashed. Spaceship looking thing with a
giant spider in the foreground, first of all, the Addition of
this where you're actually looking over.
Kind of like the left will say shoulder of the spider like
between the legs. At the characters, beyond
amazing composition but some of my favorite stuff on this entire
thing, are these blue hairs on the legs that just pop off the
orange background. It's like a neon blue and it
just it really complements the orange.
It it's so good. So so yeah.
The cover art is absolutely fantastic coming out of the next
page. I was this close to buying the
special editions because that's what I do.
That is that is one of my things I have to have it.
But I'm going to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of like the death
metal logo because my eyes can never read it and I got it and I
wanted the art on the covers like the special edition.
It was kind of like a burnt orange with the logo slap with
this. Like kind of like death metal
logo on the front and they're gorgeous but I did not want to
miss out. On the cover art of either of
these books, they're it's stunning.
But, but yeah. So this is sort of weird,
fantasy hyperborean, volume 1 players manual Geoffrey Geoffrey
Dillon Ian. This book is 333 Pages for the
first book and it says, here, the milieu of hyperborea are
inspired by the Fantastic literature of Robert E, Howard
HP Lovecraft. And Clark Ashton Smith.
Other Inspirations other inspirational authors include
Edgar Rice Burroughs Fritz Leiber, Abraham Merit, Michael
moorcock, Jack Vance, and Carl. Edward Wagner hyperborea, rules
and conventions are informed by the original 1974, Fantasy war
game. And managers campaign rules as
conceived by E, Gary gygax and Dave arneson.
I mean, weird sword and sorcery. You know, you can't come up with
a better list of people that did all that.
So right off the bat, I will say, you know, my, you know, one
of the, one of the things I'm most known for here.
Not hyperlinked and a relatively small table of contents for a
book. This big like it's just chapter
titles. It's yeah, it's a little skimpy.
I could have sworn this was hyperlinked.
Yeah, and I don't know if it's just the like Breadth of
information that makes like a table of contents.
A little tricky with these books, but none of the
additions, have a good table of contents.
The the second edition like particularly Falls to that curse
as well. I will say it is the PDF is
bookmarked which is great. You know hyperlink table of
contents for a book, this big especially I mean this book
would be very hard. I think to use digitally to play
this game especially without being hyperlinked but at least
they're all the bookmarks but just in general I mean honestly
if I was going to sit and play this, I would really I would
want this in like three different spiral-bound versions
to really be able to sit. But as you said, And once you
get used to the game you know it sounds like you don't need the
book as much once you get the processes and procedures down.
Yeah, once we get into the core mechanics of the game, you'll
find that it's pretty streamlined.
It's pretty like straightforward.
Yeah. And man, I will say Jeffrey.
I know it's expensive and I very much appreciate the amount of
Art in this book for a book. This big I was not expecting
Seeing as much art as there is. And I was pleasantly surprised
to see a ton of it used, and it's definitely got that old
school Vibe, feel to it. And then, you know, in the PDF,
there's a bunch of color art in the back, but throughout the
book, there's like, inserts of color are tall, will show them
in a little bit really, really incredibly well done.
And then there's a black and white page here of the cover art
again, which no reason not to put it in your Twice, it's
beautiful but but as I said, there are bookmarks, which is
really, really fantastic. I mean, I think You know it is
what it is. Navigability in the book versus
this. You know, we score that I will
say and as we've said to bookmarks in each big book, if
you're not going to have hyperlinks in your PDF, at least
get me a bookmark and you gave me too so I can't knock it.
I can't knock it too hard. I'm having this at the table
with the multiple bookmarks would be fantastic.
But yeah, so getting into this I'm going to try to be brief.
It's not my strong. My suit.
So we're going to cruise through this a little bit and John's
going to tell me when to stop and move on and when something
is really really important. So the this episode is going to
be a lot more discussion than really reading the rules.
Over those listening, we can't do a deep dive on, 500 pages in
less than five episodes. So, we're gonna, we're gonna,
we're gonna cruise this and then just hit the the core stuff.
So getting right into it, In here, you know, how we feel
about introductions. But, even on this page, I love
the art. Once again, the whole like top
left and, and the top and the surrounding three sides of the
is just art. And not only, is it art like
it's very clear like HP Lovecraft is in the bottom left
corner right here and there's yeah.
Your tell section. Yeah, HP Lovecraft, you got
Robert E, Howard up top with his big glass of wine and then over
on the Right. You've got a Clark Ashton Smith
with Seth agua over his shoulder.
So, yeah, you got your influences, all right there.
Just and honestly, even this page right here, just Vibes men,
like it just screams. Like, this is the game you're
playing. It never is never in doubt.
Throughout this entire read, what you're playing, and what
you're doing, you know what I mean?
For a book, this big Big. Again, I did not expect as much
Vibes, you know, and it screams that so introduction hyperborea,
it's a role-playing game. Listen this this isn't your
first episode of the podcast and this isn't your first game, you
know what it is. But it has a section on what
that is to talk about the heroes of hyperborean, delving into
dungeons fighting horrible monsters.
It is interesting. The hyperbola is a flat Earth
realm. So the World is Flat and I love
the explanation of that. We'll get into a little bit
later of, like, It's kind of like a Micro World a bit.
Yeah and how it became that is really, really interesting.
So but this world is a flat Earth surrounded by The North
Wind and even how hyperborean got its name is really
interesting but what is that role playing game?
I feel like in this book that is like based on these old
auditions you kind of have this almost for like a nostalgic
Factor but you know we've talked before about what we About well,
how we feel about what is a role-playing game but it has a
role. The referee is got the role of
the players. What is sword, sorcery and weird
fantasy. This is actually a really good
read. I'm not going to read it but for
anyone that hasn't read a lot of the like weird sword and sorcery
stuff or a lot of like the older edition stuff that puts this
just a sword and sorcery in it versus like fantasy, which a lot
of people like, D&D, like 5e is clearly no aspect of sword and
sorcery. It is a Western European
fantasy. Tastes like medieval simulation
game. This is very much not that.
Yeah, absolutely. I don't like you, get you get
into 0 d and d and you have this like, weird implied setting with
the rules. But like I said, it's a medieval
simulation this game. It's not really suited to get
that like Conan Vibe, you know, this is just choosing those
vibes. Yeah, just choose a booze, just
booze is a good word. For it.
Like it is all over the page. Yeah.
Can't really flip a page without getting used on in this one.
So, it does. Again, this is like a whole big
page on what is Weird Science fantasy.
I highly recommend reading it. It's a great introduction.
Not only to this game, but to just sword and sorcery in
general. But it talks about 1961 friends,
labor sword, and sorcery. The Shadow Kingdom and continues
on. So it's a great read are highly,
highly recommend it. And then another big full page.
Art of Cthulhu like a rising up, just fantastic again.
And even like the stones on it, have these like faces in them
and stuff. The skulls skulls, you're pretty
badass. Oh, the whole thing and this it
s peso. So, we're 22 plus pages of of
what makes sword and sorcery. Cool.
And as I said, it's really, really good.
So I really like this section here for a book, this big, it's
really Ali. I feel almost necessary and I
really like that. So even though the table of
contents isn't very flushed out, there's a using this book
section that gives you a blurb for each chapter and the
important parts of what you're going to get from each chapter.
So for a book, this big I really really like that.
They threw this in there. There are nine chapters in an
appendix chapter 1 is Introduction, chapter to his
character creation. Chapter 3 is statistics chapter
4 is classes. Chapter 5 is background.
Chapter 6 is equipment 7. Sorcery.
It is Adventure. 9 is combat. Then we get into some up,
indices hitting some required materials here.
The dice that you're going to need for this game are pretty
much just the standard polyhedral 's but it does give
you some occasional like ranges. So for people that have never
played the game. This is really important to
information. Have like if you're if you
arrange of 122 with the dicey already have it basically you
roll d6s things like that. Just It's breakdowns of that
natural roles like natural ones and 20s.
That's it character to our cat chapter 2 character generation.
So there is a hyper borya primer here which is again I think a
really nice thing to have in the section and again just furthers
The Vibes and once again art In like the top left here, like
this just surrounding this whole page.
It's so it's I can't. I'm gonna try to not say it.
Every time I see this gorgeous art on every page that is like
designed to fit on the page, it's it's great.
Again, The Vibes on this are Immaculate, so unless you're the
game referee, the first thing you need to do is generate a
character. Do you want to play an Amazon
fighter, hyperborean warlock a Moorish, pyromancer an S Sequim.
Ox Monk and atlanteans. Out or something else. 26 class
has 24 races and over 600 combinations.
It's a lot is it's pretty wild. Yeah.
It's a lot, it's a lot. I'm gonna be honest I it's a big
book and I like that there's a lot that's a lot like I feel
like that could be pared down. Does not need that much stuff in
it. I will say but the options are
there and I feel like it's almost so many to the point of
that's the point. You know what I mean?
Like, I don't feel like they really again.
I don't feel like you need all of those things but it's cool
that it's there, I guess. Yes.
Well, we might, you know, we're in character generation.
So, we might as well talk about it.
You have your for yeah, four main classes.
And then you have all the subclasses, right?
That's to knock out multi classic.
There's no multi-class in this book as I fucking hate multi
classing. So, that's fantastic.
So, they just give you a character option instead and I
don't know. I I quite liked it.
I liked all the options. Just a knockout care like
because I hate multi-class into. Yeah, let's do that.
I hate it. Um, if you so here's the thing
and this is interesting and like as I read it and I reread
sections on a rewrite sections, like I said, there is a, we read
so many light games that reading something this big and having
this much stuff in. There was like a almost a
learning curve in the way. My brain had to read this book
to not want. It is be like, man, I could
throw out 300 of these 330 pages.
Has. And I think it's just a whole
different mindset on the way that there's an approach to the
game because there's always discourse, right?
I generally dislike any discourse, it's not bashing on
5e because I can't not do that. But everything else, I try to
stay far away from but there's this, I don't know the right way
that everyone has to play a game and ride the game and what a
game should be. And, you know, we're doing a lot
of different games, we're going to expand.
Horizons a little bit more on, on this season, I guess this
year of the podcast and starting with this hyperborean, we're
going to hit DC and some of their bigger games.
There's like a learning curve to the way that you kind of read
games in the in intent of the games.
So with a lot of the lighter games, like I said, one of the
thing that draws me to it is, first of all, my ADHD is sit
down, and read the 330 page book.
It's rough. But I also like not having
everything I like to be able to just make it up as I go, and
this is Kind of the antithesis of that.
This has everything you need down to a lunar calendar and
reading that. Like, I, there's this Clear
Delia Nation. I think between people that want
a and people that want be, you know I mean people that want
nothing and let me figure it out as I go and people that want
everything. Right?
And I feel like I used to lean way harder into the one
everything when I used to write and run 5e campaigns like I ran
a drought campaign, I literally read twenty four novels so that
I could pick the right year. I know the exact names of
characters and like the layout of areas and be burnt to go And
I feel like if I would have read this book like five years ago,
this might be my favorite game ever fucking read because my
mind was way more into. I want all of it.
I want everything that I want versus the rules light version
of it now, so I might come at. So this is to preface me saying.
I might complain a little bit or like, sound like it as we read
through this because there's so much I do enjoy that.
There is so much like again, I think the brain has to relearn.
It's okay to have everything. NG.
And I feel like this has so much and I like the idea of like
almost needing to hunt for something a little bit and find.
Oh, like I literally could decide what time the sun sets
today with this book. That's crazy to me and it's
cool. Well.
Okay so this is and I think I want you to kind of like keep
this in mind as a reading. This think of these books as a
set of encyclopedias Yeah. Would it be insane to make you
sit down and read a set of encyclopedias?
Yeah, absolutely. But if you need something on a
particular subject, like, say, you need that calendar for like
a, like, depending on the type of game, you're running.
That calendar is the most important thing in the book to
you measure, and the rest is just secondary.
You know, if you're running a like Naval like game like, you
know, riding the waves of hyperborea, the naval combat
would be really important to you and the rest is just secondary.
So think of it that way when you get when you like read these
bigger games and that's that's a really, really interesting way
to look at it. You know what, I would really
love for a bigger games like this is like I know this is
hyperborean primers, kind of a primer on the world.
I would love for like almost like a quick start or A primer
to the the very core rules of the game, without without all
the subclasses, without all the, the encyclopedic knowledge.
If there was just like a, like a, like, a 15-page, little
primer of just the core rules. I would absolutely love that.
Maybe there is on Drive, there's something like that just to be
able to kind of focus in because I do think like 8hd on this was
was difficult to read the encyclopedic, knowledge, and go
okay. How much of this can I skim?
And how much is important information?
I think that would be my only knock on in general, but I think
like you just said looking at it is almost more like this is
encyclopedia and you don't need all of it as a great way to look
at it. But but again, it's It is what
it is. So, hyperborea, primer.
So this is a quick, I think, I think we can actually read this.
Is a quick breakdown on the world.
I love that. This is right off the bat here
and it's almost more if you've seen some of the, like, like
older editions of D&D of they'll be like, especially for new
settings, like like dark sun. It's like, here's nine,
important facts. I feel like this is this, is
that for this and this is that world.
So, absolute list of characters class, race alignment, religion
and secondary skills. There are several assets of life
that are generally known to most characters might be borya
approved As proved by science and sorcery.
Hyper board is flat, hexagonal shaped world.
The sun is a red giant, that's Chris along the horizon, never
rising to a Zenith to ellipsoid moons.
Revolver on hyperborea, one, large, the other small.
Saturn is immense in the sky. It is often visible during
diurnal, and nocturnal hours a week is seven days. 20 days is a
week, is seven days. A month, has 28 days.
A year, is 13 months in a cyclist, 13 years, 13, Cycle
includes a year Perpetual light and a Perpetual dark the
hyperborean. See spills off the rim.
The world into the infinite. Black golf, The North Wind or
boreas Wheels around the realm beyond the room, the world great
obelisks rise from the six corners of the realm Mount who
ver methadone is hyper boria's, North Pole axis and largest
mountain Crow Miriam a Cosmopolitan.
Metropolis is the largest city, the realm, the thaw claw, Ha
Orthodoxy is the most prevalent religion of the realm, the
indigenous hyperborean race. Once ruled hyperborean with
Savage cruelty and a play called the green death, nearly
obliterated mankind, 1000 years ago.
It's cool. Perfect?
Yeah it sounds cool, I love it. So I am getting a little too
chatty because caffeine is hidden.
So we're going to cruise a little bit faster.
So John feel free to tell me to shut the fuck up.
Creation steps. There are six steps to character
creation, I think it is. So first, you generate
attributes in Chapter 3 of will go about that.
A little bit more in statistics, the second you choose a class,
the third, you develop a background, Fourth, you purchase
equipment. Five, you determine your
starting spells. If you have any sixes, you
record your other statistics and I like this choosing a character
concept bit. You basically says, like as
you're rolling attributes and stuff, you might want to look
ahead and kind of decide where you're going a little bit more.
So if you decide you want to be a shaman when you're doing your
roles and things like that, you know, you can lean into that a
little bit more. I enjoy that.
I like the ideas of Character Concepts and building to, to get
to it. I really always like standard
array and 5th edition because you could kind of decide the
direction you want to go. You can level up in hyperborea.
There's various ways in which you can do that.
It's XP based just like most of the editions of D&D and and
again more art in the book. What I'm curious about is real
quick on a flip to page 13, are these black and white ones.
The ones where they insert the The color Parts into it.
But again, another huge big piece of books chapter 3 is
statistics. So we're talking about
attributes in generating attributes, there's a million
ways to generate attributes in the air.
I like that. They give you all of them.
Yeah, this is like, this is straight like one for one with
the ad&d DMG like I wouldn't be surprised if Jeffrey to Laney
and just like just copy and pasted those methods from gygax
himself. It's like, Like almost the same
thing. Do you do you?
Now my question is, when you're reading this and you've read a
lot of the older editions does this, I know like a Neo clone,
does this feel like omage as much to those older editions?
Do you feel like they thought this is necessary to fellow was
like I want to Channel A little bit of that old energy into
this. I definitely would see it as a
March because I don't know if you're aware of this but
Jeffrey. Tulane in is actually one of the
last people to work with Gary gygax Before he passed and
didn't know that. Yeah.
And from Tata from listening to Tulane, Ian speak about this.
He basically sees hyperborea as what a D&D would have turned
into had gygax stayed at TSR really?
Yes, Well, I mean I'm glad it exists at least.
Yeah, a little-little interesting factoid behind that
That is interesting. I was completely unaware of
that. Cool.
Well then, yeah, then this, I mean, this obviously feels like
omage and if this was literally, you know what he thought, Andy
would eventually be, that's cool.
It makes a lot more sense with some of the stuff that's done
though, so attributes. This is classic D&D six
attributes. Strength decks con intelligence
wisdom Charisma. They range from 3 to 18 and you
roll 3 D6 in any variation of the way you want to do that.
You're all 3D. Six drew a role 326 a bunch of
times, make a grid roll, 46, and drop the lowest.
There's a million different ways.
There's literally six different variants on how to do that.
And you can also do an attribute adjustment with permission where
you can increase one by dropping to one another.
I like that actually. I would I would I would I would
do that to be like, hey, if you want to make, you know, a stat
to lower to raise one up, I think that's really great thing
to do. So this page is when my mind
went, oh my God, this is not going to be super easy to As we
work through this. So there are tables for every
attribute. Yep.
And it's so using strength as the kind of the, the example for
this. So we don't go through all of
them. There is a table that shows how
strength is defined. There's attack modifier in melee
there is damage adjustment melee and hurled there is a test of
strength. The chance in six to force, open
a stuck or locked door or do Ooh, strength you stuff and then
there is an extraordinary feat of strength which is a chant for
chance for strength Feats of heroic - like lifting a
portcullis and stuff like that. So it literally gives you like
one in sit. If your strength is three of a
one in six chance of testing your strength, if your strength
is 18, you have a five and six chance, extraordinary, feat of
strength of a 0% chance of its three and only a 32 percent
chance of it's an 18. As I said before, I someone who
likes Is light stuff, this broke my brain a little bit, but as
you said, getting encyclopedic about it and really digging into
how much information is available if you want it.
This is really cool. Like, I really like how it's
broken down and to sit down and do all of this for everyone had
like had to take so much time and thought to really do all six
stats this way. And then the entire book you can
kind of extrapolate. The thing I just read and that's
how the whole book kind of feels where I like, do you need to
know Oh the chance and six of, you know, if you're going to
lift a portcullis or not, whether you need it or not, it's
there. And you actually have that
information if you want to find it.
So it's neat. Yeah, yeah.
It's actually like, and I'm gonna drop the ball here.
All you. This is how you perform
attribute checks in this game. There's no D20 roll.
There's no roll. 3 D6 under your attribute.
This is your attribute. Check you roll a 6-sided die.
You have a certain chance in six of doing that, it like, has
really cut back on the D20 roles in these track games.
And I like that because it's different, because I won't be
honest, the D20 is probably my least favorite die.
It's a bit overused bit overused.
I'm a to D6 guy, I like a bell curve, you know, I really really
do. And it's interesting that you
literally It gives you a DC right off the bat, you know,
that's a lie. I don't really like about D 20s
is that it's a 5% chance of everything like which means it
could be your worst score but you could somehow get a 20 and
it can be your best score. You can somehow get a 1.
And what I like about 286 is the bell curve because you're more
likely than not going to hit that middle ground where most
people are generally, kind of, okay, at everything.
And then when you get a couple more points in something, it
pushes you up so you're more likely to succeed.
He'd even if it's with a risk, I really enjoy that in this.
Like if your score of 17 you have a foreign six or a 2/3
chance of succeeding and one of the things I also don't like is
arbitrary DC's. Like it's a 14 but I rolled a
13. So what do you do with that?
You know what I mean? I really enjoy that.
If it's a test of decks you have four and six chance right off
the bat. There's no arbitrary d.c.
There's no. All that kind of stuff.
You just see what your score is. You see what the test is.
Is you roll and as soon as the dye hits the thing you know if
you have it or not. Yep.
So and I and this game still kind of does that if we get ever
get to the adventuring section, it does have that arbitrary DC
but it's still boiled down to the chance in six, and it's
really nice. And I really like that.
And I assume then extraordinary feat of strength.
You're just rolling percentile dice.
Yep, correct. Yeah.
So that's great. So they go through the grids for
all of these and all tweaked a little bit.
Likes, you know, trauma, survival, test of Khan's magic
spells, you know, clerics, bonus spells per day.
Every stat gets a breakdown of, you know, the important bits of
the things that you're going to need.
The next thing that you're gonna have to explain to me when we
get to, it is the AC cuz I looked at it.
I'm trying to figure it out and I know it's like, a simplified
Seco broke my brain. I literally, I texted John a
picture was like, bro. Whoo, I don't get it.
I really don't. Um, but um, each other statue,
get our AC class ability, fighting ability, hit dice
movement, saving throw and turning ability and we'll get to
those as we go. And then another full page piece
of art and we're already into chapter 4, even though we're
only 20 Pages end. So, they let you know in some of
the later chapters and said, some of the chapters are big
because like, you know, the sub classes and classes and stuff
like that are huge, chunk of the book because it breaks down each
of into individual one. So yeah, classes and spells
particularly are pretty big sections dispels.
I literally read to and with But Bob and just carry on as I can.
This is breaking me. So classes, there's four
principal classes. They're pretty much the classic
for classes in the party. You got the fighter, you got
your magician? You got your Claire, can you got
you Thief? So super, super classic, I mean
clearly because again this is what it is and again there are
subclasses. For each of these, we're not
really. I think a good idea might be to
like, well in total pick like one class and one subclass to go
over, just to kind of give a breakdown of that.
And I'm going to absolutely let you pick maybe your favorite
class and subclass. But a quick rundown of all of
the sub classes here and I love that you told me that the the
whole reason for the very clearly multi-class.
Classes was to stop people from multi classing.
I don't mind if I ever allowed someone to multi-class it would
be from the start. It would never really be like
people. I don't know I'm not a min/max
or so I was hate people where they're like, well, I'm going to
be a sorcerer with, like one level of warlock.
Just so I can unlock this pack to do like that stuff.
Always drove me. Insane.
Play the game not the rules, you know?
But it's really interesting. So fighter subclasses, you have
Barbarian Berserker. Cataphract, which is like a
almost like an intervention infantryman.
So I get it's like a horse Down Soldier.
Yeah, alright, yeah, Calvary, that's right.
Huntsman Paladin. So Palin's in this game aren't
super, they're not under the cleric section which I
immediately thought it. They're more just like a warrior
for justice and law. You got your Ranger and you got
warlock, which was an interesting.
I definitely jumped to that and read that one because I was
like, how is the Warlock? Like in a Fighter's up class but
it makes sense. It's basically just like a like
a damaged. This guy feels like a little
bit. Yeah, it's a Elric homage There
we go. That makes sense.
Magicians of glasses. You got Chrome answers,
Illusionist Necromancer. Clearly what I would play
pyromancer and witches, you got in the cleric.
You got Druids monks. Priests room gray, vers, which I
thought was interesting and Shaman.
And then in Thief, you have Assassin bard.
Let leg odor meanest. Which is the thief Sorcerer
multi-class, And then the purloiner and a scout and and
those are all of the various things you can possibly be.
So a lot of combinations and I really do like that.
They're all laid out for you. Right off.
The bat, makes me it. Just it tickles.
My Harlot would be like Mo multi classing.
We're good. So, there's a breakdown here of
class terms and definitions all the things that you need.
So, what a naturally requirement is, what a hit dice is what your
alignment is. What a turning ability is great
page to have. I think this is a really great
reference page. I'm curious why there's a big
four in the top right though? That is the chapter number.
Why is it just on? Is it on every other page and
just missed it? Or is it just like randomly It's
another know, not every other page, but like, I felt like it
didn't notice it until like, this page.
And suddenly, I'm like, that's a giant for and then top right
regardless. So we're getting in to the
classes. So of the four primary classes,
which one is either your favorite or the one that you
think is the best to explain a little bit?
Me, personally, I think you can explain most games by how they
treat Fighters, especially these Trad games.
And disagree with that. So the fighter great like almost
2/3 piece of art, I can't get over enough.
Like I said, how much art is in the book for a book, this big.
And it's also well done. That you never even as I was
reading it and like I said, with with, with my ADHD and stuff,
this was a little bit difficult to read.
I literally would set like a 15 minute timer and to read and
then a five-minute timer. To take a break, so I can get
back to this, a bunch. But I feel like the art helps
break it up so much compared to another big book.
We try to read, which was lanter, which has very little
art and a lot of pages of just like, like two columns of black
text on. White for page, after page,
after page, this one really breaks down little boxes and
charts and art and stuff in a way that's a lot more.
I think approachable and a lot of easier to read even if it is
still like a lot. So, the fighter is an Type of
warrior versed in Myriad, styles of combat and proficient.
In all classes of arms and armor.
This train combatants have skillfulness an inventory,
Horseman crossbowmen, longbowmen halberdiers and pikemen.
So this is the classic fighter. Anyone that picks up a weapon
knows all the weapons and hits people with them.
That is what this person is and there is a person here who looks
very much like a kind of like a Roman Legionnaire was like a big
shield and and blade. And again, the compositions
great with the sword coming out at you, none of the art in here.
Feels like it's static, really? Which is really, really cool.
So breaking down the class and you tell me when I'm wrong about
stuff. So you have a started list here.
So anyone? That's right. 5e, you know where
that came from. Now, when you look at something
like this I love the hou like class creation section.
Clearly you know Harkens back since this Harkins Who even says
fighter, Roman underneath it. That's great.
So that should be requirements. So you're required to have a
strength of nine. Your parm attribute is strength,
which is 10 % XP bonus. If you have a 16 plus, hit die.
Type is a d-10 alignment, is any armors any Shields, or any
favorite weapons are any saving, throw modifiers, death, plus, 2,
transformation, plus 2 and 4. Starting money, you got 3 D, 6
times, 10 GP, So that's all the stuff you all, get right off the
bat and then you have class abilities.
So extraordinary plus eight percent chance to perform
extraordinary Feats of Strength. You can see that in chapter 3
again hyperlinks here. Or if it's in Chapter 13 you
clicked on, it would be great. Just for navigability, it will
say the only, the only thing I could give for why it isn't
hyperlinked his goddamn, can you imagine hyperlinking this entire
Look, you would have to pay somebody just to do that job
themselves, generally between this and the second book.
So I can, I can understand to a point, but it was so very nice.
So plus eight percent chance perform.
So as we talked about earlier, there is literally a percentile
dice for if you're doing something crazy extraordinary.
So the fighter gets a plus eight percent on the normal strength.
Check, which is cool because I think at 18, Like a 32% chance.
So suddenly you jump up to a 40% chance.
So that's cool. Heroic fighting to Smite
multiple foes. When combatants on combating
opponents of 1 HD or less, double normal, melee, attacks
per round so 2/1 or 3/1, if wielding a master to weapon.
And then this dramatic attack could be affected as a single
excuse me. Devastating swing or lunge that
burst through multiple foes and at level 7 and goodbye infos are
2 HD or less. You can do the same thing.
You double your mail, iD Tech rounds 3/1 or 4/1 if wielding a
mastered weapon. So I'm dumb.
So it says double normal attacks per round.
So is that two instead of one? So then but three if you're
willing and master Been. So for every one you have, you
actually triple it for a mastered weapon and then at
level 7, you it says double normal melee attacks per round.
But why does it say 3/13 for everyone?
When Debbie tripling, no because what that is saying is that you
the 2/1 that is two attacks for everyone round.
Oh, per round, not per attack that you get.
Gotcha, I gotcha. Gotcha.
So, on level 7, double normal melee attacks per round.
What is the 3/1 than three attacks per round?
Yeah, three attacks per round. But what is how I'm what broke
me was? It says double normally attacks
per round, but then it says three, wouldn't that be four or
two? Or let's see attacks per round.
I think it's saying because let's see.
Yeah, that's weird. I don't know, right?
Like you just did, I'm just being a little nitpicky about
some of the wording, but I think it's just the way that it's the
first time that this, like, you know, something /, something
came up and there's not really an explainer for it.
So there was just a couple of people that are like that.
I think I see because melee expert at seventh level of
Fighters, standard melee attack rate improves from 1/12. 3/2
okay, so that's saying when you hit seventh level you Groove
from one attack every around 21 attack.
This round two attacks, the next round.
Gotcha. Okay.
Alright, so this goes 31 and then 4140 master of it makes
sense. So, and then it talks about
right afterwards, weapon Mastery.
So Mastery of two weapons which means plus one to hit and plus 1
damage. So you can Master multiple
weapons additional weapons can be mastered at 4 8 and 12.
So this only goes to 12. Which I love.
I think 20th level is just stupid, no one plays past
eleven. Anyway.
Yeah. So you get a lot of stuff
between your class and subclass you're getting stuff like every
level which, you know, 5e kind of does that to where you feel
like there's your, like, missing out on like the one or two
levels where you don't actually get something.
But since it only goes to 12, I enjoy that and the consistency
of experience points and leveling is also better.
I think in this too so you can get weapon Mastery which gives
you a master of two weapons, you get Grand Mastery.
So at 4 8 and 12 or 12. When a new weapon Mastery is
gain Fighters, may elect to intensify their training with an
already mastered weapon. When this weapon with this
weapon, the fighter becomes a Grandmaster, so you get plus 2
to hit and plus due to damage, you can enlist henchman at six
level of fighter May seek or sought or be sought out by one
or more henchmen class individuals who become loyal
followers, I'm a seventh bubble, you become a melee expert.
So as you said standards fight a fighter standard melee attack
rate, improves from 11 to 3 to note that weapon Mastery, can
further increase your attack rape.
So all I had to do is read a little bit more lordship at
Ninth level of fighter who builds or assumes control of a
stronghold becomes a Lord and is eligible to attack troops.
So pretty much every class allows this lordship feature
which is really interesting. I like that.
So it ninth you become because it 12th you pretty much retired.
So I I like that as you get towards the end, you really have
this. I disability to have a
stronghold, how followers really become like a major player in
the world. I feel like at that point where
people know you and stuff like that, there is a whole fighter
table here that breaks down a level experience points, hit
died, saving throws, and fighting ability.
So at level 1, obviously, in 0 XP, you have one D 10.
Dies, you have a 16 for your saving throw and one for your
fighting ability and all the way down a level 12, it takes six
hundred and forty thousand XP. You have a 9d 10 plus 9 hit the
ice, 11 for saving throw and 12 for fighting ability.
So this is definitely kind of game where you become a big old
bullet sponge from, you know, one d-10 at the bottom, all the
way to 90 10 at the top, you just increase in hit Dice and HP
and stuff like that as you go through.
So you get beefy and be fear as you go.
And then there is the fighting starter pack and then John going
to explain to me the combat Matrix and then we'll move into
sub classes. So the fighting started pack
says to expedite character creation.
Your fighter May begin with the following gear in lieu of
rolling. So this is basically like your
pack some stuff that, you know, versus 5e you can just get,
like, you're starting packing stuff.
So, regardless, refer to the equipment table later, you can
start with started armor, large Shield, short bow, arrows times
12, broadsword Arrow quiver, backpack bandages, winter
blanket, soft Leather Pouch iron rations, one week, a rope 50
feet. Each sack one person canvas tent
Tender Box, torches X to Y and skin which is full note that and
1 D 4, + 1 gold pieces. That's what you get.
That is a full pack that you're carrying there, but that is your
fighting Fighters starting pack and then who?
So the fighters initial comment Matrix, this chart shoes.
I also like the random differently spelled words
throughout this like shoes. When I first read it I was like
that's got to be a typo but then it does it all the time.
And I dig that it's not a typo. It's those like weird fiction
influences showing it. Just this like You say you
pronounced? It s square box earlier Eskimo.
Nah yeah. That's an old spelling of
Eskimo. Son of a bitch.
I like it. I like it.
I love the shoes and like you said like even as you read
through this even stuff like that.
Like The Vibes like there was such an intense in insane,
attention to detail. Like it's just a really
well-written book like all the Through, you know, and I really
enjoy that. So this chart choose the
modified E20 chance to hit for all first level Fighters
fighting ability here fa improves every level.
So at second level of fighter needs a modified 18 roll to hit,
AC 0, and so forth. And, and so forth is not enough
of an explanation for this. So you then immediately go down
to a table, right? So the top line of this is a,
Opponent's Armor class AC and the bottom line is the D20
result. And on the left it says 9 / 10,
8 of our 11 7 / 12, Etc. And then when you hit zero it's
19. And then all the way to the
right. It's minus 9 over 28.
I was like well it's descending. No wait, it's not wait, I don't
understand. I I'm rolling and to hit an
armor class of 0. I need a 19.
So I and that's when I was like, I don't know, and I screenshot
it and I sent it to You and I said, I don't understand.
So could you please explain to me what the heck does comment
Matrix eyes? And what these?
Because I even I scrolled to a seems like wait, okay?
So lowers Goodwill. The weight lowers bad like it
just, whoo it broke me. So please explain to me how we
get nine ten - nine twenty-eight and 19-0.
So in a descending AC game 49 would be Totally unarmored.
Like you're like, you got nothing on you.
A negative 9 would be your impossible to hit, right?
Yes. We're agreement there to hit
that Armor class 0 so that would be pretty moderately like
armored. That'd be, that'd be pretty
beefy. Boy, you need to roll just
natural on your D20. A 19.
But you also have modifiers. So say I have a plus 2 to hit
like from my strength and my weapon Mastery.
So, if I rolled a 19, that means I get 21.
So I've hit - to AC and everything worse than that.
Which would be negative 2 and up.
So, You want negative numbers for AC?
Yeah you want to get your AC as low as possible.
Like I think was a full plate gives you like a like a 3 AC or
something like that, that's pretty good.
That's a pretty good. A ca3 AC is pretty good.
So, a 0 AC Is like a shit ton? Yeah 08 C is like almost
impossible to hit because you got to think 19.
You've got it. Hit a natural. 19 on the die
just to hit. So, that's so, the one on the
bottom is the natural unmodified number.
But you actually rolling the dice.
So, if I roll, so say I roll a 17, right?
So I can hit it too, but I have modifiers.
You said I have a plus 2 to hit. So does that mean I moved to
over on the top? You would move to over on the
bottom to be at 19. The top.
So it's a mod of. So it is still, it's your role.
But it's also you add the modifier to the D20 result and
then go up, correct? Okay.
All right. I think descending, you see,
this breaks my brain and I'm not going to get it.
So I would just need a, like, have this combat Matrix like
handy and just reference it until my brain.
Like went this way is what it sounds like.
There's a reason they printed on the referees screen.
That's all I'm saying. Yeah, yeah yeah.
I think also like actually actually sitting out a building
a character and figuring out why my AC is what it is.
I think would really help me a lot because I think the idea of
like the descending, AC comment Matrix here, Like not having set
down and really built one out and been like, okay, so what
happens when I had to Shield to it, okay, so what happens when I
upgrade my armor, that's what Macy does.
Like I said, time to read it but like, I'm definitely someone who
has to, like, Like do it and then line kind of like teach
back. Um I think that would help a lot
with this but yeah I feel like this is something that I would
have to have for a long time. And so yeah.
So this is considered descending AC.
Yes. The so this is classic like it's
not that Co, it's a definitely a simplified version of it but
this is classic the sending a see as as it worked back in the
day, okay? All right.
I mean it works clearly it works again.
I've never played a descending AC games, so I think I
understand it a little bit better now.
But I think my understanding literally comes down to just use
just use a matrix. So, so that is the fighter.
The magician is also here. I love the mix of sword and
sorcery. I'm not going to go through the
magician like the whole thing, but I do want to touch on the
Alchemy thing because that made me giggle a little bit.
So in alchemy to practice sorcery, science of alchemy
Apprentice magicians. Learn how to identify Oceans by
taste alone. I'll bite the practice.
Is not always safe. Love that for my favorite lines
in the whole book at 7th level a magician made concoct potions
with the assistance of an alchemist by 11th level.
The assistance of an alchemist is no longer required.
I don't know why. That's one of my favorite things
in this entire book. That just is like you can mix
potions if you want, good luck. Yeah, here's this guy who
actually knows the science of mixing stuff and if you work
together You can make cool stuff and eventually you get good
enough to not do it. I love that mix of Science and
sorcery in that specific ability, or this specific little
blurb here for class abilities, so much.
And I don't know why, but it took me so hard and I read it
like four times. You also read it a million times
because every sub class gets to do it, but like I really, really
enjoyed that a lot. So again, I think this is
another aspect like you said of like Vibes, all throughout rules
little flavor text like Art, it just keeps going.
So there's a whole section here on Magic with again, art all
over the place, the cleric, which really, really digs deep
into the, the sorcery. But Divine really enjoy that
great piece of art here too, with this, like almost like
vampire, Undead thing coming up out of a pretty badass,
sarcophagus with some, some skeletal things behind them.
Really love that the thief classic Thief.
This one is a Celts to me. This looks like they're doing
the thing from ours. Yeah, yeah.
And then, I did the replace the Idol with the sandbag gesture,
for those listening and then this immediately jumps into
subclasses, right? So of all of the fighter
subclasses which one is your favorite or, or a different, or
a different sub class, because it really gives you everything
you need in the sub classes for all the classes, which ever one,
you want to go with Berserker or War?
Lock. I'll let you pick.
Let's Go warlock, because we can touch on Magic a little bit
without. Yeah, there we go.
Okay, just want to point out the cataphract.
He is riding on a horse with a sword, but he also has a laser
gun. I don't know if I noticed the
Layton. You son of a bitch.
She does. Don't know if I noticed it.
This guy looks very what's. What am I trying to say to
describe this person? Looks?
Almost like I don't want to say my history is really terrible.
Is it like almost like the Turkish style?
Like they're very, they have a comical helmet with a plume kind
of coming out the top. Darker complected, long, black
beard. There's this kind of like Armor
draped all over the horse. Got a scimitar.
And then yeah. A freaking laser gun.
Yeah, I know what you mean and I'm traveling the word escapes
me too. So this is more.
So there. There we go.
Next up, care about is a more which yeah, we'll talk about
that when we get to the races but so yeah, cataphract has a
laser gun in a scimitar which is fantastic.
I love it. The Huntsman here.
We got the Paladin. All of the art again is so good
again. None of it is static.
Everything is moving everything. Has a cool background to it.
The primary artist And this book is really, really fantastic.
The Ranger I will say it's a better Ranger than 5 e and then
we get to the good old warlock here.
So breaking down the Warlock. The Warlock is a swordsman, and
a sorcerer. The the, the astonishing won
himself a man. Armor-clad Warrior who wields,
the steel of a fighter and weaves a sorcery of a magician.
Such an individual might represent a clandestine order of
warrior Wizards or maybe a failed, Magician's Apprentice
falling to the life of a soldier I love I love all of that.
I like this part later to where they might be a head wizard, but
so there are some warlocks are practiced sorcery of cryo
mansour's, but they're not crime answers there.
I slor'. It's because they're not crime
answers. And then same thing with
pyromancers, they're not there fire Lords.
And here's my favorite because this is what I would do.
Those who dabble in necromancy are not necromancers are death
soldiers, many of whom supplicate, the Demon, Lord,
Thelma Gorga regardless there, They're swordsman and Sorcerers.
I love that. I think this is such a fun
interesting class and this guy is casting a spell towards you
holding a scimitar on with wing and Boots as he floats.
Really, really cool. Really again, Fantastic Beasts
are so. So for subclasses, attribute
requirements. Strength is 12 intelligence is
12 plus wisdom, 12 for death soldiers, fire Lords, and Ice
Lord's. So you got lots of 12s to be
deaf Soldier, Then we have the can you can you continue reading
that little section there? I prime attributes.
Of course you got your Prime attributes, you need strength
and intelligence of 16, plus to get that 10% XP bonus, hit die.
Type is a d8, alignment can be any for base warlocks, but for
death soldiers, it needs to be neutral lawful evil chaotic
evil, fire Lords chaotic, good neutral chaotic, evil or ice
Lords, which Our lawful good neutral and lawful evil armor.
Allowed is light and medium. Shields allowed as any favorite
weapons. Any saving for a modifiers
transformation plus 2 and sorcery plus 2 and starting
money is at 3 D 6 times, 10 GP. Yeah.
Yeah, there, I really enjoy again.
The more you dig into this when you dig back into like kind of
like the rules, heavy aspect of it.
I lie. You know, you like it more and
more, and I really like, even like breaking down dead
soldiers. Like neutral neutral, a lawful
evil or chaotic evil. That's all you get.
That's what you gotta be and I've always loved playing it
neutral. Evil characters, not all right.
Characters that are generally seen as evil, but playing them
as neutral. Like I really love death.
Clerk is my favorite class in 5e and I love playing a neutral
death player. Where death is just a thing that
exists. It's not this like evil
incarnate and I really like that idea here in this world, with a
death Soldier because I feel like that would almost be like
the outcast of the dead soldiers.
It's like wait, you're not evil. You're not working for the
demon. That's just like, nah, man.
So I really like that. So, um, class attributes for the
Warlock really and tell me if I'm wrong.
No, I am wrong. No, they really give you in the
subclass. They repeat all of your class
abilities. I am, I am I incorrect to say
that. Yeah.
So so how it works is that the sub classes, they get a lot of
stuff, but the primary classes there beefier so they like get a
bump up in stuff. As the sub classes, they have
the same thing with a little extra, just a little weaker
because you get so much. So, so you don't and I guess
when I was reading this, a click to my head, you don't pick a
class and a subclass of the class.
You pick, either one of the primary classes or you pick a
subclass, right? You don't have both correct.
And that would make sense. Why all of the stuff that you
get from all some of the stuff you get from the class is also
written in This applies, it's not just so that when you pick
both, you have it all in front of you.
You literally pick one or the other, interesting.
So, you are literally just a fighter or you are a beserker
and a huntsman and stuff like that.
Correct neat. I like that.
I like that because my brain definitely went five you with
this and slap the two together, in, with damn.
You get a lot of stuff if you have a class in the subclass.
So, I like that. I like that a lot.
I like that a lot better than What I did before when I thought
you got both. So you don't get a million
things, you just get a lot less than I thought.
So I really, I really enjoy that a lot.
So I would definitely, I would pick this guy.
But man, you so my question arises, then the only way to be
a warlock then would be two roll three.
Twelves off the knock. Correct.
Damn. There's higher attribute
requirements for the subclasses. If you the primary classes are
so beefy because they're so easy to roll up, like they're sort of
saying like, yeah, we know, you didn't get the class that you
wanted, but here's here's this to like tide you over.
That makes sense. I really like that.
That in order to even pick a
subclass, you have to go. You have to be like I rode
really well this time. Let's go.
I really do that or you need to lower One of your attributes so
low that it's almost useless just so you can get the
attribute requirements for this subclass that you want.
And make sense. I dig it.
I dig it, I dig it. I'm a fan.
So so this will have some of the fighter class abilities.
And so for example, you still get extraordinary, plus 82,
extraordinary feat, you get magic item.
Use can utilize magic items normally restricted to magicians
which is cool. You can read magic, you can
decipher the unintelligible. You know, magical Ins scroll
used to decipher and invokes Scrolls invoke, scroll Scrolls.
Oh, that's type of with spells that are included in the
warlocks. Chosen School of sorcery
magician crime, answer Necromancer or pyromancer.
So you pick one unless the scroll is created by the
ecclesiastical sorcerer scroll writing.
You can you can write Scrolls down for a bunch of money there
is sorcery. So this is the breakdown into
your basically kind of like a it would this be a half Caster
table? Comparatively Quarter Caster,
level 1 2 & 3. Oh yeah.
Yeah, I guess that would be. Yeah, absolutely.
Let me, let me scroll up to the magic user actually.
And compare while he's doing that.
I'm keep going warlocks, cast spells that they memorize from
Arcane tomes at character creation a player.
So, which one is it? Yeah, it's a half Caster tape.
Half Caster. Okay, cool.
The the player must select, which school of magic his or her
Warrior practices. You got to pick right off the
bat which one you're going to get and the tones.
You can read, it's irrevocable. The number of levels and 12 /
cast day are charted above c table, 30, the warlocks of high
intelligence and gain bonus, spells, cast per day.
For example, a fourth level warlock with 13 in can cast to,
or like begins with the spell book.
That contains one love one spell etc, etc.
So you get initial number of cells known times one and number
of Souls game times 1. So there's the whole table here
again, you get level experience points, hit died, saving throw.
Adding ability, casting ability and then the spell is cast per
day. A loved one you have one love
one spell at level 12. You have three loved ones or
level 2 3, level threes. So this clearly uses like the
vanity in style of magic, you have like slots and spells and
stuff like that. It's classic DD.
So you're not going to get anything else weapon Master.
You've already talked about unless hegeman we've already
talked about melee expert and then you get lordship again you
also get a warlock starter pack, scale mail, battle-axe light,
crossbow light, Bolts backpack. Bandage bolt case ink and quill
soft. Leather Pouch, iron rations,
hemp. Rope Tender Box.
Torches, wineskin. Spellbook and 24.
Plus 1 gold pieces. It's interesting too.
I feel like this has to come from.
I have a D&D mini from 3.5 that is a warlock.
That looks exactly like this picture.
That looks like a tiefling wearing this kind of like scale
mail thing with like a dagger in one.
And I think maybe a rod in the other and I feel like I always
wondered why the Warlock looks like that.
And I almost used it more as like a tiefling ranger because I
was like, he's got horns and I was like, this is definitely
that this is 100% like even like probably this piece of art here
which is really, really neat. So interesting.
So that is a subclasses. That is they class and subclass,
we went over fighter and then warlock.
It also breaks down. Now the the Mages and stuff.
Cough. Oh, you know what?
I'm just going to go to the bookmarks and then we can get to
the next section. So classes, we've already done
that. So background chapter 5, so who
now we're getting into races. be honest, there's a little bit of
stuff here where I'm like, I feel like I don't know, like the
Eskimo and the more and things like that.
Tell me your thoughts. I think the this game, wanted to
get into some pseudo history with their setting and included
some stuff that you know, Would be included in a setting that
touches upon old Earth history so they included stuff like
Eskimo and more and stuff like that.
So I think I don't think it gets into some very uncomfortable
stuff but I think it is adjacent.
I very much agree that it is a Jason.
I don't think there's any intent.
I so I don't think there's any intent upon the author's part
either, but when it talks about the pure races and the
Half-Blood races and all of that stuff to, I'm like your skirt a
line, a little bit here. Yeah, it definitely does skirt a
line. I will say that.
And I think it's, you know, I think there's some hearkening
obviously because you know, as you said, this is the potential
evolution of what D&D was based on the times in 1974.
So, you know times are different or 50-plus years later.
Yeah, we're 50 years later almost and it's who I think.
Mmm, I think we'll leave that there with that, and you'll hear
us as we go over some of these. But yeah, talking about
Half-Blood Savages, pure, blood races.
And some of the other stuff, it, I was like, hmmm.
Yeah. And I think it Bears mentioning
that this is also based upon weird fiction, written in the
1920s and the 1930s it has that stuff in there.
Oh and I will know HP Lovecraft was a racist piece of shit.
Yeah, absolute monster. But I and I want to know, Tulane
ants thoughts on this. I want to know if there was at
any point with him, writing this, if he considered ever,
perhaps, leaving that behind, or if this is all setting stuff.
Like if this is just, he is writing this from the point of
view of a person in hyperborea, if that if that is the voice
that is not not excusing it because I do think it does.
Touch upon that stuff. But I would be interested to
know his thoughts on this. I think, I think one of the
things that you can see in some books that I wouldn't have
minded seeing in this book is kind of like a, hey, just so,
you know, there is some stuff in here that skirts A-line.
And this is the intent, and this is the reason and stuff like
that. And but I mean it also depends,
you know, I've not could be someone from an older generation
that doesn't see this is as, as bad as some people of us know, a
generation, see it as who knows. But I wouldn't mind seeing that
and I'd like, I said, I don't feel like there's any intent.
I feel like this is feels like it's written from like a
historical spect perspective of like, you know, if you were in
hyperborea, this is what people were called, who at the time in
history, who crossed the barrier into the world and stuff like
that. But anyway, so that's Is so we
get into races and all sorts of stuff.
So basically it says, in a Barrio, there are cultural and
ethnic groups who share physical traits, most of which can be
traced back to Old Earth. So the hyperborean race is the
Auto close, thermos race of hyperborea and other races
crossed the veil at different times, which when we get to
lower that side EFT, I love that concept of that.
So, there are 12 primary races with notable to diminishing
populations and And there are 12 ancillary races measured by
there. Are measured to be either less
populous or on the brink of Extinction and not properly
surveyed by the sages. All these ten are considered a
pure race has one is considered a hybridization, and one is
deemed a consequence of Otherworldly tampering in total.
There are 24 hour races. And some of them are Half-Blood,
Half-Blood tribes in the rainforests of savage, Boreal
Coast. So crosses a line every now and
then in the section, but I'll accept that.
Yeah, that's not just skirting the line that's like balancing
upon the line, you know? Yeah.
So there is a table result. Basically says performs of
gameplay, choosing a specific player character, race is not
necessary. So you don't have to do any that
you can just be common to move on, but all the rest of the
stuff is here, if you want to Amazon Atlantean, let's go Mo.
I'm going to spell this. SRI guys, Esq you.
I am aux Eskimo hyperborean xen celt chameleons, can marry celt
picked picked picked a blood picked and Viking and then
there's a table, so you can roll up that if you want.
So, we're gonna Cruise the races a little bit, but let me just
say that there are pretty like detailed descriptions of
physical appearance, including skin color, one of which is
often Jaundiced which I found. Interesting is, that's
interesting word. Yep, so you get hair color, eye
color, skin, color, build all that kind of stuff for all of
these. You also get the regions that
they're generally located in a little bit of history.
And then we're going to cruise, right past all that stuff.
So, you can pick all of those things.
There's other also, the other kind of, like, I don't know,
less of the popular 12 races. They feel more like area, like
celt feels very obviously like Cal Titian stuff but there's mu
picked Roman Viking, things like that.
So clearly things crossed. And then you get a whole section
here of physique, so you can actually no height average
weight of a man and a woman and then there's height adjustments
by race. A whole section here.
Yeah, eye color hair color, complexion tables, you can roll
up. You didn't roll out of.
You can roll that up. So and then it gives you a whole
page of eye color, hair color, and complexion by race.
Other physical abilities and then we move onto less tricky
subject matter so alignment. I like the, I like the alignment
broken down a little bit more on this.
They really are just five, not nine, lawful good chaotic good,
lawful you will chaotic evil and then just neutral, I like that.
There is barbarism and chaos to the right law and civilization
to the left. And I'm sure you can pick like,
I mean, obviously, you can see all nine in your mind's eye.
Die. But it doesn't break that down a
lot. I've never been one to play with
alignments. The only alignment that I ever
mattered to me was lawful good, especially those lawful good
Paladin's. I would lose their magic if they
did something not lawful good because their God would punish
them about the only time I ever really worried about alignment
because 90% of people just say I'm chaotic neutral anyway.
But I think, I think this setting is a little bit more
Stark. I think that the difference
between chaos and law is a little bit more Delia needed.
Yeah, it has pretty interesting, like interpretations of law
chaos. Good and evil, you know, and
it's especially important in these older games because there
were magic items that would change your alignment.
There were curses and traps that would hurt you depending on your
lime mint. So it does bear mentioning that
alignment was very important as a mechanic in these older games.
Mmm, I also you know, I also think that just the like, I feel
like this is a lot more good versus evil feeling than
something like 5th edition, where it feels like, it's just a
lot of gray across the thing and then you get like say right but
like I feel like the Conan weird sword and sorcery Magic from
demons or is is, you know, Heroes made it a little bit more
necessary. I think for this dealing nation
in the alignment to and I do like it better.
I like the concept of like law versus chaos.
A lot better than like the nine steps of Of you know, FIB
Edition character alignment. So it's just, you know, I enjoy
that in this. I feel like that like I have to
bring down this like big evil is an important part.
So still going to character stuff, I mean we're on dialects
for people. The languages that they speak
religion. An interesting part, do we want
to touch on a little bit of that?
That now with like, you know go into a little bit of the lore
bit with some of the religion stuff or do we want to cruise
that will touch on a little bit. Just it just to say that you can
definitely get a sense that they really thought about the
pantheon of hyperborea. There's a lot of historically,
grounded, gods and goddesses. In this setting, there's a lot
that come from fiction and there's some that were
completely made up whole cloth. You know you have as a thought
and Cthulhu along with Artemis and Apollo in this Pantheon it's
a very interesting now I'm big fan as the Thoth.
I'm a fucking Edge, Lord piece of shit so I'm obviously picking
like the death Soldier and as a thoughts and stuff like that but
yeah I mean even boreas but I like what you said there about
how it's very it's a mix of the grounding in history with the
with the completely made up and and also like a wide variety.
You know, because I mean, you know, depending on where you are
a lot of, you know, you know, D, these are what you worship, you
know what I mean? And I always liked in fiction
where things are more powerful. The more worshippers you have
that kind of idea, but the fact that there is, like, Viking gods
mixed with like Greek and Roman gods mixed with like, what are
obvious, like hyperborean Gods as well, because all the people
are here. So they're worshiping, you know
what they're going to worship? So yeah, it's interesting.
So in this section here, there's a little, there's a little
excerpt on each God. There is the what the typical
clergy and followers are and then there's a symbol for it.
And I always loved symbols of God's adds, fantastic, good
good. But they have here, but there's
Pages upon Pages, upon pages of those, which is great, a section
on secondary skills, which exists, you can have secondary
skills. And then, that's it.
So, we're getting to do chapter 6, which is equipment, so we can
cruise through a lot of this stuff.
But, again, we're talking about armor and Shields and armor and
how armor works. And, and the Change.
You know, I'm a big fan of the silver standard but in this you
get platinum, gold electrum silver and copper you get the
the, the whole, you know, plethora of various monies.
I think this is a gold standard though, right in this world.
Yeah, looks like it's broken down into gold.
Yeah. Monetary exchange rates if you
need them armor and shield, so armor, so light armor.
Okay, it gives you Dawning times but actually let's look at what
so a sea of nothing as you said, Is a 9 and full plate.
Armor is a 1. So again, yeah, descending AC
and there's, there's that means there's nine different types of
armor here. That's a lot of armor but you
have none padded leather, studded scale chain laminated
banded, splint plate, feel plate and full plate.
Going from Kashi nothing to be naked to 2,000 gold to have full
plate armor and it even gives you the weight breakdown and and
the movement and everything like that.
So, So armor table defined. This really breaks down armor,
and I read this and I read it and, you know, armor still
armor. So the base armor class,
imparted by the armor, type is the armor.
You get the type. I'm not going to break down this
class. We're actually going to break
down, just like armor and how it actually works.
So, as we said, descending armor, so one at full plate and
then Shields, so defense modifiers for Shields.
You know what, I think it is. It's the concept of Descending
Armor class. But positive modifiers that
makes my brain go to, you know? Yeah.
It definitely takes a bit of like practice and doing in order
to like get it down, you know, right.
So like for example, like if you let's say you have, let's just
pick a random one. Let's say you have banded mail
at for AC, right? And then you have a large shield
with a +2 defense modifier. If If someone's trying to hit
me, can you run through that for me?
So basically to negate that whole running, through that, you
just make your AC to, if you have the, the field plate, you
said the field played right whatever, whichever band ID
field, plate, yeah. Well, we'll go feel plate,
that's a to, yeah, yeah, so field plate.
You have AC to, if you have that Shield along with it, your AC is
now effectively zero. So just put a big fat zero on
your character sheet now, Like there's no need to go through.
Well, I have this modifier that would like modify your role to
be this instead as I know just make your AC zero and they have
to roll against the zero so they have to get that natural 19 now.
Okay. Okay.
Alright okay so modifiers are just It's a different way to
look at the modifiers and I like you.
Add it to every roll. You just add it to the thing
once and then that's just your new thing until it's gone.
That is always gone. Yes it's an easier way to look
at it so much easier way to look at it.
Okay yeah this is definitely a learning curve.
I think for people that haven't played this style of game which
also makes me understand a little bit more people that have
really only that start of this kind of game playing a newer
game and having a learning curve to being like I get all of this
and I do this and this and then suddenly all that's gone.
It makes a little more sense for people that have that started
with kind of like a D and D or something.
So there's a whole breakdown on melee weapons and how they're
defined. There's a very long list of a
weapon of weapons. With the cost, the weight, the
range, the hurled, the damage, all of that kind of stuff, still
aren't on the page. Oh well, something you always
love to see almost a whole page of just pictures of weapons
drawn out for you. I love to see Alice.
It, mmm. Multiple Pages.
Even multiple Pages were on, like the fourth page of weapons.
The fifth page weapons, the six-page weapons a seven-page
weapons. Hey, I think weapons are
important in this game, guys. There's a whole section on a
missile weapons and boomerangs bows, you know, pages and pages
of all of that stuff, there's a whole gear section here.
Talking about, you know, bottle? Owls and chalk and chisels, and
glass and all that kind of stuff.
This this obviously has to be here, obviously, it all comes
from here, but I will say the thing that has always drive me
the nuts, the most for just no reason because that's just how
my brain works. Is long inventory.
Lists with costs has always been, like, I don't care, you
can carry in your pocket or not like that's all you get.
Also the fifth edition inventory costs have no basis in reality.
No, not at all. A shovel cost like to Silver.
That's like that's like 100 bucks bro.
Like for a shovel come on. So it's it is what it is.
So livestock, livestock, Tack and harness.
Basically this is all the fucking gear you need.
If and again, we've talked about this is an encyclopedic amount
of information. It's gonna be in here.
If you need to know the difference between a
four-wheeled open, wagon and a four-wheel cloth covered wagon,
it's in here. So if you got questions about
gear and all this kind of stuff you can do.
Do the gear section. It's in here, talks about the
difference between Mammoth socks and ponies and what they can
pull and stuff. It's in here boats.
I mean, all of that so sorcery. So we're only in chapter 7 and
we're 150 pages in a 300-page book, but a lot of that is going
to be spells. So we're cruising okay well I
want to get to Lauren about the next like 15 ish minute.
So we'll Cruise sorcery and will hop into into that because I
definitely want to make sure we get a chance to go over that so
sorcery. Is a sorcery.
There is alchemy which you talked to before it sorcery.
Signs of potions are supposed ins in general.
I will say the which is a very is a potion based on class.
It really doesn't need an alchemist.
They can just mix up stuff and go on their own.
So the way sorcery works, there's a whole section here on
Brewing. It starts with Alchemy potions
on brewing, potions and poisons. And there's charts on efficacies
of potions poisons and potion poison.
And Ingredient costs and stuff in here, and hold tables on
different variations. That toxicologists, Laboratories
the poison type, how ingestible it is time of onset again
encyclopedic amount of knowledge on brewing and using potions and
poisons. Then we get to the spellcraft
section. I love that they use that weird.
AE. Thing here, still craved yes.
Well, craved starting spells spellbooks.
Replacing lost spell book. Whole sections here.
There is a breakdown of the difference between like
magicians and clerics and how magicians gain new spells,
what's required of them, and how clerics gain new spells, what's
required of them and what they get.
So do you the the quick explanation on the big
difference between magicians and clerics is that magicians have a
limited number of spells that they can cast per day?
They have a limited list to choose from clerics one, If they
gain their spell, casting, they can cast like, say there are a
second-level cleric, they can cast, any spell from the first
level cleric spell. List - like I want to pick this
spell in this bill for today, whereas the magician has a very
limited number of spells that they know for a fact.
You know, that's the main difference between the two of
them. Gotcha.
Make sense. I mean, again magicians, cast
out of a book and clerics get their spells from God.
Basically right, the gods. So it's I like that.
There is a big difference. I mean, and anyone that's played
any of the, any of the, the dungeon games, that's pretty
much how it is across the board for all of them, but it's I
really like the dealy nation and here too.
So talked about magic costs and all that kind of stuff, spell
memorization spell. Casting, a lot of this is just
casting spells, how they cast spells, how many spells you get?
Type of spells you get broken down into the types of cash and
stuff to magicians, crime answers, Illusionist etc, etc.
Even talks about stacking Spells at the range duration effects.
There's a mass of their spell lists for all the different
characters here, magicians, crime, answers, Illusionists
necromancer's. Obviously the best one, the
Danse Macabre, the death mask, you know, the visualize death.
I know which one you read. Oh yeah, yeah, absolutely.
You know me, but it it all breaks everything down the White
Hand of Death. So we're going to I'm gonna if
you're watching this sorry, look away because I'm scrolling
quickly and then we get to the spa Spell list pick one spell.
Oh god, let's see, I'm going to pick Lord.
Let's pick brain death just because that's a fun fun name.
All right. So brain death, we got level 4.
It says level, it says necromancy for range touch
duration, permanent love that. So, kills a small portion of the
victims, neural region related to memory, the target must be
touched and is allowed a death. Saving throw modify Bay will
power adjustment if applicable. If the saving throw is
successful, the target bill will be aware that foul sorcery.
Has Been attempted though, respect though, resisted, if the
savings are fails, the victim will have no inkling that the
Spells cast because you just death to their brain, the
sorcerer must then describe the memory to be terminated.
The memory is limited to a specific event person place
thing conversation. Or the like this spell cannot be
used for eradicating Ability. Eg a farmer cannot be made to
forget how to raise crops a cleric.
It cannot be made to forget how to cast spells its Target roles
in and 41 on the saving. Throw a full year of memories
and one point of intelligence are lost this.
Blank is for as far more noticeable.
But the victims Associates in either case, a throbbing
headache, follows the failed saving throw.
So even though it's called brain death.
It's more like a memory wipe situation.
Yeah. But that is how these spells
work and I found that a lot of these spells feel a little bit
more. Or a little bit, a little bit,
less defined, I think than 5 E. I mean, five years, written
terribly. It's written in a way that
excludes everything, that it doesn't specifically say that
you can do, which I really don't like it all.
It's a very restrictive way that it's written.
I feel like the way that this book is written even though it's
like very specific. I don't feel like it's the
language of the rules are as exclusionary in the in the way
that it is and I feel like the spells in general too.
Feel more narrative, a lot of the time and feel a little bit
less restrictive than a lot of the five.
You spells that have to be like if this but then that but not
when this and blah, blah blah like they'd have to be very
specific and these are much more Broad and I enjoy them a lot
more. Yeah.
The 5e Spells almost feel like they're written in order to make
sure that you're casting it the way they want you to cast it.
Yes. Whereas this is just like yeah,
it does this thing. Yep.
And and that's it. Yeah.
I will say with a lot of the rules, like I said, there's, you
know, I feel like there's a little bit more freedom in the
way that this one is written. There is that kind of like
context that you said before? How it's like, you can you can
chop pieces out if you want a dozen completely break the game.
Oh, you know what I do? I'm doing that.
When there are bookmarks, we're jumping past that so adventure
and then we'll get to Combat a little bit and then we'll be
done. So Adventure, this whole section
is really just about adventuring party adventure, creation
hirelings. Henchman all of that, the cost
of them, the different various types of them.
There's a breakdown of all the different types halberdiers and
Cavalry men and all that kind of stuff Specialists, where you can
hire priests and blacksmiths and Alchemist and stuff like that.
It would be interesting. Like, if you were like a, like a
Caster making potions and stuff to need a higher on an
alchemist, just so you can do it without killing yourself making
potions. Yeah, or So that your potions
are actually like useful, you know?
Yeah, yeah. And I like that idea.
There's a whole section here on like, dungeon delving, so, about
like the amount of light you have listening to things,
sleeping resting, special abilities, traps, all that kind
of stuff, here, all of that falls under this Adventure
chapter time, encumbrance movement, all that kind of stuff
transportation. That is all in this section.
Then we get to the combat section.
So unate talks about weapon skills.
Unskilled attacks. So if you have an attack as by
character class, so, you know, cleric monk Thief, all that they
have negatives to attack rolls on things like that, based on
their specialization there's acquiring new weapon, skills
weapon, Mastery, which we talked about in the fighter section
attack attack rate and missile rates of fire.
I mean, again encyclopedic amount of charts and things to
It's for pretty much any situation that you find yourself
in. But as you said, I feel like you
could still use this by going into like a rulings overrules
kind of thing. I feel like, I don't, ya have to
reference every single chart, combat movement attack rolls,
okay, so why don't you run me through an attack roll with a
modifier here real quick. Just so we understand that as we
kind of did with like the defense, just so There's like a
breakdown of how it works. So if you're trying to hit me
and let's say might let's say I'm wearing the the banded armor
where my AC is 4. Bandit armor where they see is
for. So basically what is going to go
down is someone is going to try and attack you.
They're going to roll their 20. They're going to look at the
result on the twenty. Let's say they roll it and they
get a 17. Let's say they have a plus 2 to
hit that would make their role effectively 19.
They you know, consult the chart and which means they look at
their D20 rolls, 19 hits, AC 0 So they have effectively hit you
because you only have a C4, they have hit four steps of AC above
you. And then and then they then I'm
damaged day-to-day by judge. Yeah.
So it a lot of it comes back to that comment Matrix and there's
a second thing about combat Matrix is but but yeah.
So there is a whole section here on combat conditions, like
having the higher ground, having long, ranges of like that.
There's modifier State here versus something like advantage
and disadvantage and stuff. So there's a big difference
between if the attacker is blind versus if you're attacking from
the rear, Or you're invisible or you're on High Ground stuff,
which is again, interesting. A whole section here on AC
modifiers, for like, if the Defenders defenseless and things
like that. Okay?
So here is what I was talking about.
There's a giant combat Matrix here, where it talks about the
fighting attack, the the fighting ability of the attacker
and then the armor class of the defender.
And then there's a whole like 0 to 12 on the left 92, minus 9 on
the right and the, a little break down here.
Trust me, write this like four times how to use the combat
Matrix, I'm not going to read it again.
I read it a bunch of stuff but Long story, short, use the chart
but there is an explanation of your fa.
You're fighting ability the AC the defender and where you can
just use this chart to see a bunch of stuff.
And there's even a whole breakdown here, that talks about
combat steps. Determine surprise declare
actions, roll initiative, resolve actions check morale and
then a breakdown of that, I love that.
That's are the steps of combat. I think that's really, really
important. I think for a game is combat
heavy is this, I would not have my End of this chapter way
sooner. But I also think that having
armor and class and stuff like that to understand a little bit
better before he gets here, is also important so I don't mind
it all the way back here. But as you said that, you read
this, once you reference the parts that you need.
But yeah, so there's a whole section on surprised with a Z
action resolution morale, the breakdown of all combat and how
all of that works flask curling. Yep, it's in here.
We're more art, all the various different things you can do here
for unarmed. Combat to Grapple pummeling
overbearing and opponent Advanced combat options, which I
really liked a lot. Conservative fighting disarming,
dodging, double arrow, shot, double faint.
All of those are considered Advanced options.
Indirect fire offhand. Weapon, Perry Reckless fighting.
I really like a lot of this stuff here.
I like that they're Advanced options, not just like dealing
needed in defeats and stuff like that.
And then there's a holes optional section here on
critical hits and misses with multiplying damage.
Restrictions table of things that could happen results.
Tables sections on saving throws items, saving throws, all sorts
of that stuff, damage and death. So a death checks how they work
in this. Pretty sure it's just hit zero
in, you're dead. Yeah I love that.
Fuck three death saving throws like could you make the game
less deadly if you tried let's just let's I'm talking about
five year probably should have thrown a couple of these F5.
He's in here a couple of times but if You have to if you
balance all encounters to the players abilities so that
there's you effectively get rid of like a lot of death ability
like options right there, right? You encourage a narrative style
of play that discourages death and then every death right.
Requires you to fail three roles before you can die.
There's not a lot of fear death and 5th edition like it's crazy.
I like this like you hit zero you're dead or you hit like
minus 10 or something and you're dead.
And there's various different ways to do that.
I did. I liked it so much better, I
think I think a lot of people are that only play 5er at a have
been massively disservice by the massive push for storytelling
style games, and a complete fear of death are a complete lack of
The death as an option in storytelling.
I think I personally find that to be a disservice to people and
I think everyone should have a couple of characters that die
every now and then they need to play a funnel, you know.
But I definitely think that this is a lot better here.
Damage death, falling damage healing.
Yeah. So when a person or animal are
monsters reduced to zero death transpires, but Beast you and
humanoids are dead at zero common.
People are dead at -3 and PCs and PCs are dead.
At minus 10 upon being reduced to 0, HP or less, the following
guidelines apply. So at 0, your unconscious of -1
- 3, you're seriously injured, the stable - 42 - 9, you're in
critical condition and it 10, you dead.
So don't go over your by 10, I think in 5e it's literally like
w HP maximum to. So you got to hit like - 50 or
something crazy like that. Yeah.
Section on Resurrection reincarnation, special damage
like lycanthropy Madness, bunch of art.
Appendix a is a name generator Anglo-Saxon names.
Just give me a list of wasp names and we're good to go, um,
hole and then more arts, ixy and names.
Again, I'm scrolling fast. There's a whole section here on
lordship and strongholds in appendix B, which I really enjoy
you. Read that.
But it talks about the breakdown of like fighting Lords,
magicians, lordthe, floors, cleric Lords.
There's like how to be a lord for like, every class and
subclass. Which is awesome.
Pin to hear that Matt Koval. They did it.
They did it better than you. One of the rare times I'm gonna
keep my mouth shut. Um, so Cooperative gaming
role-playing games are Cooperative effort.
So, there's a whole set, there's a section on that.
There is the ogl statement that still applies not going to get
into that at all. And then there is a glossary in
the back. Our there's an index in the back
at the very least. I would have loved if this was
hyperlinked, but it's not and it says index.
But it's really a glove. What would you call this table
cutting in? I guess it isn't.
It's a little bit more context. Yeah.
So and then the back has in the PDF all of these great,
gorgeous, mostly full color pieces of art that in the book
are actually interspersed with about, oh, the The in pages, are
included as a, as a, as a page in the back.
And I really love that. So, for those looking at, when
you actually read through the book, all of these pages in the
back of the PDF that are full color, comes with the sticker to
are actually interspersed throughout the book.
So like, every, I don't know, like 25ish Pages or so boom.
Oh, that's funny. We spoke to the same one full
color page of Art interspersed in So that was at 174.
Yeah, so about every 50 pages, there's a color page and then
again, the book itself to Ribbons, it's stunning.
I think the amount of art amount of color are the style of the
art. I mean, definitely not going to
lose points on Art, but that is the rule.
The players manual for hyperborea?
Feel like we went over by this much as we could possibly do
with my ADHD calf. Fein sleep-deprived self in
about an hour and a half that is you know the 18d, / BX, Neo
clone hyperborean from Jeffrey Tulane Ian, there's also the
referee manual here, but I think the next thing we're going to do
unless you think that there's a lot of really important stuff in
the referee. It's really, it's an
introduction, there's a whole section on refereeing.
There's a bestiary All section on Treasure a gaze, a tear,
which is important and the appendix section.
What I found interesting though, I think is that the this book
continues, the chapter numbers. So it starts with chapter 10,
but then switches back to number 14, page numbers.
And I was like, why wouldn't you just make this player's handbook
chapter one? But it's - whatever is
interesting because it's effectively this monster cut in
half. Ah that is a Book.
Yeah, that's a book. Oh dude, I thought that when you
kept holding that up earlier, I thought it was the box that you
pulled the book. No, no, this is a massive Tome.
This is, how many pages is this? 607 Pages?
Yeah, fuck that up. So, so what we're going to do
now is move into the lower of the world.
So John why don't you take it over?
Tell me if we need to switch to a page in the referee manual and
and and Tell us all about hyperborea so hyper borya as it
states on the, on the packaging. It's a flat hexagonal old Earth.
Basically, with this, large land mass in the center.
Hyperborea surrounded by the Waters of okeanos.
But Yeah, it's just this like weird amalgam of like weird
fiction and science fantasy, it's great.
There's all of these like interesting cultures that are
like exploring around and interacting with each other.
There's like interesting religions you know like the
gazetteer itself. I love reading that for
entertainment. It's great.
Like every bit of it is like so flavorful.
There's like, A paragraph for each like location in the world,
like, you want to know about the city-state of crow Miriam,
they've got a paragraph for that.
And what I like about it is that it doesn't overstay, its
welcome. It gives you enough intermittent
information to run off of and then basically just lets you go
and like build off that yourself like so your hyperborea is not
going to be the same as my ow. Which I really enjoy.
I like, when I like, when Publishers do that with their
baked in settings, I completely agree.
It's I definitely made it a point to sit down and read the
entire gaze of tier. It's it's nice and I like the
the story of how I remember he was created and how it came to
kind of be. I thought was really fucking
interesting. Yeah, just to give a quick
rundown basically hyperborea. What was the hyperborea of myth
on On our world, this like idealistic country to the north
populated by the hyperion's, but then the action worm showed up
and basically like blanketed the entire continent in ice like and
Glaciers and shit just basically like locking it in time.
And then the snow receded, only for the inhabitants of
hyperborea to find that they've Like blown off of Old Earth and
are now orbiting around Saturn. Like some shit went down while
they were under eyes and they just existed like that for
Millennia with like these like weird people's like traveling in
and out from space and time into hyperborea which gives it that
Weird Science fantasy flavor and then a comet just flies overhead
and sprinkles. Like some like, plague dust over
everything and like, kills off something like 90% of the
population, which is, which explains all of the ruins and
dungeons that pocket hyperborea. I don't know.
I just love when authors take, like all of these influences and
just mash them up into one big like story.
Basically, I don't know, like, yeah, we Touched upon the
uncomfortable stuff with the the racist hype borya.
But ultimately I think the setting is so like strong with
hyperborea that you can kind of like just push all that to the
side and just enjoy hyperborea as is.
Yeah, I don't, I don't disagree with that, I think.
First of all, I think, if you strip this down to just rules,
It's a game. It's fine.
It's okay lat, it's yeah. But I think the setting I think
the vote the setting of The Vibes are as we said before
Immaculate, I love the story of the world that you just went
over. The the then you got like, the
the Snake Man, and the Beast, Man, and like, all this other
stuff coming into it to. Like, I just feel like it's so
cool. And so interesting.
And one of the fun things about science fantasy, I think we
talked about this a little bit with like the electric motor.
Hive is that you can lean into science or you can lean into
fantasy and then you can like touch on both the little bit and
various ways, you know, I love the fantasy, where people find
old technology and don't know what it is.
So it feels magic. You can lean into that a little
bit but like you said, the cataphract had a freaking laser
gun in his Scimitar, you know? So and then you have Roman Joe
Vikings, you have the beastmen. You have like all of this
different stuff. Like I love And even the
hyperborean themselves, like, which witch, queens and shit.
Like, you know, at these like 200 plus year old like 9 feet
tall, like, just that, it's just so much of it is extremely,
extremely well done. I feel like they pulled a lot of
these sword and sorcery, aspects into it in a really, really fun,
interesting way. And, and that, really, I mean,
that obviously makes the game, you know, is just the this Your
hexagonal flat world like could you be more like meta then
having like a hex, literally a hex as the shape of your world,
you know what I mean? Like, it's, I don't know.
I feel like story-wise extraordinarily strong, the
setting. Yeah, absolutely.
Like, I don't know, I especially like, hype Warrior because it's
so varied across the different, like, locales, And like, regions
on the map that you can basically, like yeah, there's
in-house modules for hyperborea, I believe, there's like 10 or 12
or so modules. And those are really good, but
you can just take any old D&D module and just plop it in,
like, wherever on the map and it'll more than likely fit, just
because hyperborea is so varied. Yeah, like I love it, it's
great. Yeah, I mean, there's not a
whole lot more to say about it than that.
It's super fucking well done. Like and the, the story is very
well written. I feel like, I mean, there's
obviously multiple writers in this game, but I feel like
sometimes it's a little bit hard to make a setting that feels
lived-in and that doesn't feel like something is broken with it
in an amine and even digging through the Alice even the way
that they built, the world feels like there was a conscious
effort to build a world like a world.
You know. It's not like you have like a
Giant Mountain in the middle of fucking nowhere with like, no
river system. That's right.
You know what I mean? Like, there's like a lot of
thought to it. I think that's one of the things
that I like the most about this game is the amount of obvious
like, thought attention to detail and love.
That went into the game like like Jeffrey to Laney and
clearly you know has I mean this is the third edition of this
game too. You know what I mean?
Like so compare this to other additions and like what is
different about Third Edition and first edition?
If it's all kind of based on this like Neo clone ad&d, what?
What is the difference between each?
Is it just like rehashing? Or is it the modernization or
simplification or what's the big difference between like one,
two, and three? The main dish, the main
difference between one and two, I believe was a new classes and
some tweaking to the setting. I believe the map is different
between the two editions and I think the same can pretty much
be said, between two and three primarily though, I think the
difference is that they wanted to cut it down into two books
just because this is not Not very practical to take to the
table. That's the main difference
between those two. But yeah, like you said, it's an
a/d and d/a clone. You can't really do much with it
though. I will say, I do quite like, the
D6, attribute, check mechanic. It's obviously different from a
D&D, but I Like those differences when they come
about. Yeah, I think that's a really
Again, as I said before, like I don't like when things that you
should be good at, you have a possibility of you have an equal
possibility of failing as succeeding at something, you
should be good at and vice versa, right?
Yeah. Like I don't think that that
should be possible except in the most extreme still extent, you
know, and with the D20 you'll 5% chance of literally any number.
I like the as you said the first Bility Texas off.
I got the D6, although there is still the same percentage of the
number, whatever you get a different percentage for.
So you have like a four and six chance or an X in six chance.
So, like, it's not the same as just rolling, a 5 percent chance
across the board and maybe adding a load of a modifier, you
know? I mean, there's a huge
difference between getting a plus 1 and a plus 2 and the to
D6 system and getting a plus 2 R plus 3 and a D20 system.
I mean, you're only every plus 1 is only a 5% increase chance of
doing something. So, Even if you have, I guess
maybe a plus 5 is an increased 25% chance.
But you know, an advantage is roughly, mathematically, a plus,
or minus 5 or advantage and disadvantage.
That still feels like such a small, like when you ever really
plus 5 on anything, you know what I mean?
So I really enjoy that specifically the abilities
combat. I understand that he 20 a little
bit more because you do have some modifiers, but like, I'm in
general is more chaotic and although you can be really good
at it like People moving and dodging all that kind of stuff
is different, but like the ability checks or something, I
do want to play around with a little a lot and really dig into
a little bit more because of that D6 system.
And I think that a lot of systems that use T20 could be
adapted a little bit more like that.
So yeah, absolutely. Yeah I don't know like think
about your resolution mechanics a bit more.
Then just saying it's make it a D20 roll, right?
Why put put some thought into it.
They think about what informs the kind of game you want, you
know? Exactly.
You know I think D20 rollover is one of my least favorite
systems, at least, you know, do a solid D20 roll under Big
vanity, 20 roll under, you know, because with something like
that, you know, you roll your 3D six or whatever, right?
You get a 15. Now, you have a set DC for the
thing that you need to do already so you don't need to
convert a, a score to a modifier.
You don't need to determine a DC, you chop out a bunch of
unnecessary. Steps should just be like, oh,
it's intelligence. All right.
Roll under your intelligence like, you know, I just So the
standard D20 rollover system although is classic 2D Indie and
people that want to play D&D might like the, you know, 5%
chance of everything plus modifiers, I don't and I think
this is a really cool, interesting thing that was added
that that makes it fun and interesting.
I guess, what else about the lore or setting is there, is
there anything else that you think really stands out really
sets it apart or that? Needs to be said about
hyperborea. The bestiary in particular, is a
very strong one. It's really fucking good again.
It's got those classic DND monsters in there obviously, but
also it's got like these lovecraftian Cthulhu Horrors in
there as well. That just really like bring out
the weirdness at the bestiary basically turns hyperborea into
a whore. Our game.
Well then with with the uh between the undead the demons
the the lovecraftian shit. It brings out old-school.
D&D to me at least is more most interesting when it becomes a
horror game and it's a horror game at those lower levels.
I think, I think Well, that last episode I said the exact same
thing. I don't remember but I, but I
completely agree. Low-level old-school D&D like
like like BX and like these kind of things.
They're fucking horror games and I think 5e makes it like
completely abolish, is that concept.
But, if you are a squishy wizard right, with like for HP and one
fucking spell and you're going to go dungeoneering into an area
that might Of one of these fucking guys, I'm putting in an
ABBA, the art for it is insane to get that is horrifying,
horrifying, like in the fear of death, also makes it a lot
harder. I think, again, the, the
disservice done 25e players with the complete lack of the fear of
death, I think takes such a massive chunk out of what
role-playing games are especially at lower levels.
And then when you get to high levels, you're literally a
fucking God. And I think that took so much
out, I think completely removed the concepts of horror and a
bunch of other stuff like you don't like a lot of the later 5e
stuff. It's like let's add all of these
other rules to make it feel like horror.
Why don't you just reintroduce the fear of death and trust me
it's a horror game. I couldn't agree more.
Why don't you pick? Is there like one monster that
really stands out to you? So we can kind of like break
down what the cuz I'll say all of these letters of numbers at
the beginning of of a monster staff feels like a lot, but then
your attacks feel like not a whole lot.
So, is there one that stands out to you as like a good one?
As an example of the beasts, one, I'm pretty fond of in
particular as the crap, man. I think it just brings out the
weirdness in the setting personally, Or rock crystal
automaton. I think I'm still in this
easier. Let's go to again, at least our
bookmarks. I will say that that's really
helpful even without the oh I literally went back to the
beginning. That's really helpful even
without hyperlinking and stuff like that.
What am I at a bear? A bat black pudding, a blink dog
caveman, Centaur centipede, chimera?
Khloe, I love the cloaker. It very much more.
Looks like a cloak. Then there's the crab.
So crabman so break down the crab, man for me Well, you want
me to read it out or do you want to share - much as you feel?
Yeah, go for it. Just tell me, tell me all about
the crab man, reputed to originate from the ocean planet
Poseidon. Oh, so this highly technological
alien race uses tightness materials to build cities, deep
below the sea likewise are there, water filled space craft
constructed. They speak a strange, clicking
tongue enhanced by limited range.
Empathy crab men are vague Humanoid and shape.
The head is a disc-shaped carapace from three to four feet
in diameter. And then it just gives you like,
basically a rundown of basically what they're creepy bodies look
like. Yeah, I don't feel like this is
vaguely humanoid. It literally is just like a crab
with a long torso, then just like, can stand up a little bit.
That's about as humanoid as it gets.
Let's see the motives of the strange species are unknown, but
they are worshiped by And pics and Eskimo, who died their skin,
red or blue and Dawn, armor and headgear to appear more like
crab men curiously. These crab pics and crab Eskimo
despise each other. Each believing that they are the
chosen of the crab men. The more privileged of these,
I'd eliezer's understand, the basics of crabman speech, but
cannot actually articulate it. Hence, they might be used as
translators. And then it gives you the stats
for the crab man. So yeah so the stats can you
break down? Because there's like one, two,
three, there's like four or five lines of what all this stuff is.
Can you break down the just a regular crabman.
Little stat blocky guy here. So first off it gives you the
type, they're considered otherworldly.
So that's for your Rangers and their preferred prey.
I believe is the preferred term but you have number encountered.
So 1 D6 or 46 times 10 within their layer.
That's what the parentheses mean, you have alignment neutral
size, large movement, 30 decks 9, AC 3, HD number of attacks to
per round. Interestingly enough, they can
use laser rifles damage for their attacks.
Save Morale. And then finally XP.
Then not sure where the T C stands for TC.
Yeah, that whole last line TC in plus, I 0 PQ, X, 10 X Y.
Like, I'm like, what? But I'm, if you're looking for
that, I'll read laser. So XP is 75.
But 165, if you beat one with the freaking laser rifle, what
is the TC treasure class? Oh, so that's the different
different. There's a whole, literally a
whole chapter to son treasure. That's probably the probably the
different tables that you can roll on.
Yeah, which is, I like, I like that and you can just like roll
on the tables and stuff. So they have a laser Gauntlet.
So some are fitted with a gauntlet like laser rifle over
one claw. So that's when I first read
that. I was like, okay, so how do they
hold a laser rifle? And obviously, I thought human
hands, but obviously, you know, very ethnocentric of me.
They literally slides over a claw and the Pinter in
manipulates a trigger mechanism. A function humans are unable to
mimic the laser rifle is shot at a plus to blah, blah.
Does Damage may be fired Thrice per round to a range of 150 and
a typical laserwriter cartridge has 144 charges.
No wonder the XP goes up by 110. If it's got a freaking laser
rifle and then there's a crab lowered, our crab man Overlord
which really just adjust the stats, but keeps a laser rifle
jumps to an XP for 5750 with a laser rifle.
I mean, you're completely right. I couldn't imagine something
that feels more hyperborean to this and Humming of the bees.
Here was definitely a. I'm glad we jump back to it
because lure wise, I feel like spells and bestiaries are such a
good way to throw in a lot more lore and the crab Meehan
specifically when you like that, that is a whole module right
there. If you just take Eskimos and
picked crab Min crab, picks and crab Eskimos, right?
And having a translator and You a crab an Overlord, it's a hole
for it literally is an adventure as John holds up a book that's
got a crab man on the cover. It's dope.
I mean I want more hyperborea stuff again I love the setting,
the the ruleset. I feel like maybe I'd use it.
Maybe I'd actually adapt it to something else, but I think it's
really interesting. So what we're going to do left
now with the last or is there anything else you want to say
about hyperborea? I've said all I needed to say.
So we're actually going to do a rule.
We're going to do the deal. Weekly scroll rule section here.
We're going to not real section the the the game review.
So the way the reviews work here on weekly scroll right you there
are five categories five metrics that we evaluate and then each
one has a opportunity to get up to 10 points, each for a total
of 50 and then those metrics are Art and style, which is the
quality and quantity of art used throughout the book and also the
style of the book which can include the style of the layout.
But not specifically the layout as it is like readability of the
layout and stuff like that because then the next one is
layout which includes readability.
Navigability. All of those kind of things.
Hyperlinks, etc, etc, ribbons. There's the ruleset.
So if it is a new rule set, how good is it?
Do we like it? If it is an Did rule set.
How well, is it adapted? Then there's originality which
is kind of across the board. Everything is this unique is
this interesting? If it's been done before, if
it's a space game. Is it a?
Is it done in a different way? Those kind of things.
Originality is kind of a very broad one where it just feels,
does it feel new and different and then there's value.
So value is not just how much that costs but bang for your
buck, like, what do what all do you get for the money?
You spend on? A game are there?
Modules is our third-party licensing.
Are there online? Generators is there?
How much out there is there for you to use?
Or do you have one book with one Adventure in it?
And that's the only content that you're ever going to see.
Those are the different things, so art and style wise.
So art and style, tens are really books that are basically,
like, Art books, you know what I mean?
Like, we're talking things like War planned.
Even like Merck board where like there's not just art on every
page but even the way the words are written, are in the art, you
know, like very rarely, are you going to have two columns of
black on white text? How do you feel about the art
and style of art board? I love the art.
I think it has, you know, tons of style to me.
To me at least the only knock against Third Edition in
particular, is that it reuses a lot of art from the two previous
editions. There are some original pieces,
some new pieces. Those color plates are new to
this Edition but overall there's a lot of repeats from the
previous Edition. So I me personally I think I'm
going to give this a 7 then. Um, I so I didn't read the I
don't have the other editions. I think the thing that really
stands out to me for the art on this, not only is that quality
art. I think it's fantastic.
I think it's also very thematic you know one of the things about
5er that I think a lot of people critique is that it's very
homogenized and it's also very like concept art style.
You have like a lot of people just standing there.
You know, and occasionally, you'll get a scene and the
covers are kind of whatever, but you also get a lot of that like,
watercolor splatter with an item stuck on it, kind of stuff.
It's all very say me. I just don't, I mean, and this
is not a knocked any artist but like like can you name me, 35e,
artists that have really like stood out as you can't.
So but we can all talk about all of the artists and previous
editions, I have their own style, there was a uniqueness to
and stuff like that. I feel like hyperborean has a
Very fantastic style. That's very to the Vive.
And I also the thing, that surprised me, the most is how
much art there is in, like the, what 500, 600 Pages, across both
books. There is a rare page where
you're not going to have a table or a piece of art.
The chapter is some of my favorite stuff, like, all of the
kind of, like, collage of art across the edges of the pages,
and then the full color art, the fact in the book and on the PDF,
Stuck in the back the fact that it's a black-and-white book but
also is interspersed with those big thick pages of art.
Really just blows me away for a Trad Book for a Trad book of
this size. I feel like there is No other
book. I've read close to his much art
and style and Vibe. Is this one.
Maybe I need to read more big books like this.
I haven't, you know, dug through DCC as much but the
presentation. Yeah, is is fantastic.
As far as the way the artists presented.
I will say like it's not an art book, it's not a 10, it's not a
nine. I'm between though a seven and
an eight for this just because of not only the quality of the
art but they quantity. The fact that it is 500 pages
and you have a piece on her. We won, there's dozens and
dozens and dozens and not only that broken down into like some
pages that are just like a piece of art on it.
Like I think it's really fantastic when I look at other
ones because with a lot of scores for those listening we
try to it's very what's the word we're like we compare it to
things that have come before, not on its own.
You know what I mean? Or that's what I'm trying to say
is like this is in comparison to other games, so sometimes scores
and stuff can change. I'm trying to think of another
game. That is as big as this one.
The only one I can think of as Lancer and although, the lanter
art, is fantastic. It got a six because there's not
a whole lot of Art in the book. So to me, this feels almost more
a dish if I compare because like five is dead, average 5 is 8
because even 5th edition would get like a six or seven for me,
just for the quality and quantity of the art even if I'm
not as fan of the style. So I'm leaning a little bit more
into eight if this wasn't. I called Art.
If this is the first time you picked up the book with that
adjust your score at all. Yeah, I think that I think that
would be fair because I do agree.
It's definitely not an art book, and I'm definitely not like,
well, this is like, the I have my favorite pieces but there's
not like, whoa, this is like my favorite art that I've ever seen
in my entire life. Right?
Which would be like, nine territory for me.
I was going to say eight, but it got that knock from having
recycled art. So that's why I went with seven.
I think I think well because this is my first time seeing it
might be a lot of people's and I think having those other
editions I definitely hear that from you but I think I think on
its own. I think eight I think eight
feels good for this though. I feel I think that's fair on
its own. Yeah, it's definitely an eight.
I think that any time you can go.
I think any time that you can go damn this is a lot of our you
know you got to give it a little bump even if it's recycled from
other stuff. And can you imagine the amount
of art that's in here? If they did all brand new art
for this to, that would be Insane.
Yep. So layout instant knock for not
having a hyperlink PDF. I know that would be like a
year-long job but, you know, that's kind of like the thing
that I bitch about the most and I have like I'm almost I think
I'm about to double digits for number of people that hit me up
and be like, hey, you bitch about hyperlinks a lot.
I put some in mind I'm like, yes.
So definitely less than that. How do you?
So the layout is really about how the book is laid out.
It in a way that readable navigable and where they can
give you the information. Effectively, how do you feel
about the effectiveness of the, the way the information is laid
out for you, you know. Like I get a lot of enjoyment
out of reading books like this, but I recognize that this might
not be for everybody. It reads a little bit like
stereo instructions It is a textbook.
Basically that is teaching you how to run these procedures like
a textbook does. So I'm not going to say it's
good or bad. I would say it's definitely
middle-of-the-road. It's very readable, you know, to
column black and white text like nothing crazy like Merck Borg or
something. So I With that and you know it
might get a knock for the hyperlinks, the lack of
hyperlinks, but I'm thinking of 5.
For layout, I middle of the road.
Yeah, I think middle. I think black and white text is
definitely true. I do think it is encyclopedic in
the the knowledge, but as far as layout for the way the knowledge
is presented. I think for a, this amount of
information, I think it's pretty solid, you know?
And the interesting thing is, a lot of times when books are art
heavy, they lose points in layout, like Mercury, for
example, got I think a ten and are in style, but the, the
layout point, Drop. Because a lot of times that
there's so much art, it becomes part of it, the actual
readability of that decreases. So although Mark board does make
sure that any of the super important stuff like the
adventures and stuff are in a very readable readable way,
that's why I stole it got good points, but I do agree with you.
I think that, I mean, as I said, for someone who has any type of
nerd of urgency, this is not an easy book to get through, but I
can't imagine a different way that the amount of knowledge
Could be presented to you. I do love the bookmarks, I
think. As far as the navigation tool in
the physical world for me, bookmarks equates to hyperlinks,
right? It's my ability to be able to
especially when there's multiple ones.
I wish honestly. I know there's to God.
I wish there were like four in here.
I also and I know this isn't like a big deal, but for someone
who does love a good book Mark, I love that.
The bookmarks are in two different spots in the book.
And I don't know if this is a lot of times, your bookmarks
will both come from the same middle point and have to go in
different places. Now, what I mean and these being
like, like, kind of like a third in, on each side lights, the
bookmarks not be like, weirdly like wrapped across the top of
the book. I don't know that's such a small
fucking detail, but I absolutely fucking love that.
Are the always see once I call from the middle or they're sort
of they touch, Like, oh yes, I know mother.
They're next to each other and then have to go out versus this
one, or they're actually like separated and give you a little
bit more. So anyway, yeah I think layout
wise, I mean, sole answer got a five, and Lancer is literally
just rows of columns and tables 5 is considered, Aang average.
I think for layout on this, I'm probably I'm probably about a
six mostly because of the bookmarks, the because the even
though it's not hyperlinked it is completely bookmarked which I
really, really, which is necessary.
I don't even know, I don't even remember if Lanza was
bookmarked, and it does have the ribbons on both of the books,
which I really, really love the lack of PDF.
Navigation though, with that with hyperlinks kind of is a
knock a little bit, but I think with the with the bookmarks and
with the ribbons and stuff like that, I think it does.
Give it just like a smidge above bang average to me.
So I think about a 6 feels good to me.
How do you feel about that sounds fair to me?
Some okay, so ruleset. Okay, so Again talking about
rule set, it is the if it is a new rule set, do we like it?
If it's an adapted, ruleset how well is it adapted?
And this debt that second thing is almost specifically designed
for retro clones. Neo clones like this.
So, how well do you think that this rule set is adapted from
earlier editions also with and any new stuff added into it?
That kind of tweaks it What are your, what are your thoughts on
it overall? Well, well if we're judging it
from that standpoint personally and I stated this earlier, if
you're looking for an old-school like experience, I don't think
you can do any better than hyperborea as far as adapting.
An old rule set. And improving upon the
presentation of it. I think it's knocked it out of
the park. Personally, if we're judging it
from that standpoint, I think I'm probably sitting on either a
seven or an eight. Yeah.
So we've never given a 10 for ruleset.
I don't know if we're ever going to because I think like Hunter
and I would both have to be like this is a greatest game ever.
Played our entire lives, you know what I mean?
See how the other ones that we've Then like, we gave tends
to like I think Mark Borg, maybe like maybe, maybe a war plan and
I think maybe that one got like a tent or for art and style and
honestly if we were to reduce Mercury was the first one we
ever did, I'd probably go art and style nine, former board.
Now if I went back and did it again, we're blind got a nine,
Cornell is got a nine things like that, but value is got
intent. I think everyone might have
gotten a 10 except for rules that at this point.
So, pretty much a 9 is 10. And again, I need to To read a
D&D to really look at this. But I've read, I've read through
15, I've read OD Andy, I've read fourth edition of Road fifth
edition. It's really the like expert
stuff and a TD that I really haven't dug into for me
personally. And I said this before I'm a
rules, like I right? But that, that doesn't
necessarily that way isn't a little bit to the ruleset
question. But really, this is more about
the rule said, as it exists, not what I would like it to be.
This is one of those things. Like, I don't, I would, I don't
think I would ever run this game.
Like, I might play it if someone else ran it for me.
But personally knowing myself, one of the reasons I love rules
like games is because my brain is broken into sucks, and I need
less. 600 pages of a game to run it because I also know me that I
won't want to know everything at all times because I think we
skipped over but they're literally is a chart here as I
said before about sunrise and sunsets in different months of
the year it's crazy I love that there's so much information but
as far as the base rule set it just feels like a lot.
It feels like a lot to me but the The fact that it's a Neo
clone, I'm taking your word for it.
That it's well done. And also I do love like you said
that the the that D6 attribute check thing.
That's really smart. Really clever.
I really, really enjoy that. I think it's such a great thing
to add to D20 systems. I don't know, what did you say
for federal said, I was feeling a seven or an eight.
Um, This is I'm going to say this is all you.
What do you think? Seven, seven or seven or eight?
I mean, so when we look at eight, so I think of ruleset as
like Well Done stuff. I think I think seven actually
feels really good for the rules on this, I think because it is a
Neo clone, and for the most part, it is an adapted ruleset,
not a unique role set. I do think that that gives a
little bit of like, I don't want to say knocks points off doesn't
add as many points because I To think of a start at 5 and see,
what more does it do? Instead of start at 10 and
reduce it? So I don't think that it really
pushes up into eight territory since for the most part.
It's probably just, you know, copy paste.
So I think seven I think seven feels good for me if that feels
good for you. Yeah.
Sounds find me like because like yeah you said it's like it it
plays around with some stuff and it adds a couple things here and
there but ultimately it is just 80 and a.
So a 7 feels good to me. Cool.
Um, Maybe one day, we'll do like a review of all the additions in
order something. How interesting with that?
Be? Let's do a review of 0 D and D
now. Um that's not going to be
pretentious at also originality. So this is across the board in a
lot of like this really setting really falls into originality
for me whenever I think of originality because rules are
rules and and like you said it could just be a fucking manual.
But that really falls into this. What are your thoughts on
originality? I think that what a lot of retro
clones fall into and they really fall short of, you know, hitting
it out of the park is that they don't put their voices into the
game, like, they're just like, like I was saying earlier stereo
instructions there just manuals and it's basically just Take
your pick from the thousands of retro clones.
There are out there and you more, or less can't tell a
difference between what game you're playing like.
Oh God, like the the oh D and D retro clones.
It's like, can anyone really tell the difference between full
metal plate? Mail or what's that one?
Done by the guy who did basic fantasy roleplay, like iron
Falcon, I believe it's called like who Tell the difference if
you don't, if you don't know, like if no one tells you out
right, what game they're playing.
But this game has the added benefit of having that voice
having the setting tacked on to it.
Having these bits of War, interspersed throughout the
throughout the text. So, I don't think it's in nine
territory for me, as well, but But I think it's again in that
seven to eight Ranch, I think this game is like solid as far
as originality goes I agree. You know, I think like I said
originality for me setting setting pretty much all falls in
originality but there's little bit more to it too because it's
like a lot of times like unique interesting rule sets will fall
into originality to if they're unique and interesting because
it's like, that's really original.
I haven't seen that before, you know, even like layout Stuff is
there, you know, originality to? It's done like Merck board,
literally changed the way, a lot of books are laid out, right?
So that falls into it, this doesn't have a lot of those
other things, right? It's not it's black and white on
columns, right? It's an adapted rule set so what
really jumps out to me more than anything is the setting.
And here's the interesting thing, too, about the setting,
if you pick up a book and you go man, I would play this with
different rules. But I would keep every fuck.
I would keep almost all of the parts of this setting.
That to me, means the setting is like super fucking strong.
The like, and I think that the setting of hyperborea is
unquestionably, the strongest part of this game.
I think you could keep the settings slap, any other rule
set on it and they would still be a really fucking cool game
period. I think they did an incredibly
good job, and I think one of the things you said to about like
the voice showing through even in like the random, not miss
spelling, but different spellings of Birds.
The the random kind of like offhand, extra bit of lore bits
to it, like the Alchemy section where it's like, you know,
Apprentice potion makers just get to taste it and find out.
Like, I love all those little bits through and I think when
you said was is 100% true, the voice of Jeffrey, tell Elaine
Ian shines through on every fucking page, like every single
page. And I think the rule set is or
I'm sorry the the the Ting is although adapted from sword and
sorcery. The strong point of this period,
I think I agree with you. I don't think I'm around at 9:00
for this because again, we're talking about only the
originality, really falling just on the lore.
But I think eight feels really good for this to like, you know,
the setting is so strong that it really carries this.
This entire kind of like metric all by itself.
But I think I think eight feels really good for this to for the
world that was created. Um, all right, value-wise
value-wise, where can you get hyper borya right now and how
much does it cost? You can get a hyperborean TV
slash store. There's a bundle currently.
It is on sale, you get both books and the atlas of
hyperborea for 100 bucks, which is pretty good, considering the
quality of the books, how big they are.
You're basically getting In the atlas for almost free.
And considering that the three core books for a certain game,
total 150 bucks, a pop. Yeah.
Man, I really wish I would not have gone to the store because I
feel like I would be buying the entire stack of Adventures now.
But yeah, I so each of these books by by themselves out of
the bundle, it's fifty dollar per book, right?
So 50 bucks with the players handbook, 50 bucks for the
manual 15 for the atlas, as you said, with the bundle of,
basically you get the atlas for free.
The leatherette set is $135. And the to Emmanuel is on sale
right now. $30 for a 50 dollar book, right?
If you compare this to the 5e player manual, It's not even
fucking close, like the quality of this print is so much better.
The, I mean, the, the players manual is that standard kind of
like gloss whatever finish. There's no fucking bookmark.
It's like, it's like, what, like 120 Pages.
This is twice as big. The the quality of the, the
thickness of the paper on the print, that's one thing.
I know I talk about digital stuff a lot.
This is a really fucking nice book.
Like really nice, the The paper as nice thick texture to it.
The, the, the, the, the art big pieces put in the feel of a
cover, cover feel like mouthfeel.
I'm going to bring cover feeling feels nice.
Like I said, it's Matt, it's tiny bit soft double ribbons.
There's not a single goddamn ribbon in the 5th edition book.
I even have the special edition ones down there.
They're still not as nice as this for 50 bucks.
The amount of content you get in the quality of the print, it's a
great. Value and someone just posted in
chat and I totally forgot about this.
The PDFs on drive-through are only twelve dollars a piece.
Each. Yeah, that's a great fucking
deal for a PDF. We say, State like what we
consider industry average if your book is like 80 to 100
Pages, 15 bucks is about average for a PDF.
This is a 300 plus page book. Each for $12 for PDF, great
fucking deal. Great fucking deal and then
let's see if we go. If we open up the, the adventure
Pages, we're talking about one, two, three, Four, five, six,
seven, eight. Oh, two.
There's like 11 Adventures here. It's $20 for an adventure and do
you get the PDF when you buy the adventure?
I, it doesn't say if you do or not, if you do.
That would be a crazy. Good deal.
This might be a knock, but I don't belie believe all of their
PDFs are on drive-through. Okay.
So then it's $20 for an adventure and then The can you
link to Adventures quick on? See how much the PDF or one of
the adventures is PDF? For an adventurer is looks about
$10. Okay.
Not too bad. So we're paying 30 bucks for an
adventure with a book and a PDF, not too bad.
Um, I'd say ten dollars to the adventure on the PDF is fine.
It's crazy. That it adventurous $10 in the
entire book is $12 crazy. Good value.
It uses the 10 AG, they'll 1.0 a ogl so you can make as much
fucking Content for this game and you fucking want.
Realistically, are there any anything that?
Oh it's if you are interested in our digital products sold
separately, it specifically says right on the website, there we
go. Yeah, I don't think there's a
section in here that talks about making additional content for
it, but I don't know if there's a lot of third-party hyperborean
content, I can't imagine they'd be fine with third-party day or
your content, they have a pretty active.
Forum community on their website.
That is that they're linked to. There's people always making
third party stuff on there. Now whether or not people are
selling that, I'm not sure you might need permission from
Jeffrey Tulane. Ian in order for that to happen
but there's always people riding up Adventures on that Forum,
right? Yeah, even just looking at the
licensing stuff. I personally find this to be a
pretty solid value. I think that the cost of the
book is, is great for the quality of the print and the
amount of the page number and all that kind of stuff.
I think 50 boxes is I think food boxes, maybe I would pay.
You know, I pay up to 60 65 for a book of the size and quality.
I paid more for much smaller books.
I think the the, the book from Rune Hammer like Viking, Viking
death squad was like $65 and it's like, Zine sized and like
60 ages. So, 50 bucks, I think is a
fantastic. You $12 to the PDF, is an insane
deal, $20 for the adventurer, how big is it Adventure?
When you hold up that one, how many pages is in there?
It varies between Adventure. But the thickest I've got is
about 64 pages and the thinnest go ahead.
Know what were you saying? The thinnest is thinnest, I
would probably say is about 24 to 32 Pages decent size and then
which one's the thick one that would be the, the Lost Treasure
of Atlantis. So 26 bucks, for that one.
So I think that's a solid 26 bucks for 60-page adventure.
I think it's a solid deal. It kind of sucks that the PDFs
on come with it, but for only 10 bucks, I mean, I'm solid on the
value of this. I think the bang for your buck
in the quality of everything that you get are the quality of
the adventure prints are They nice.
All we got Peter. Yeah, no, no, they're not print
on demand. I wouldn't be surprised if they
were getting these like printed like professionally.
Like not not mix them but like higher quality than that.
They're like really nice quality.
I think value on this is really fantastic, which is awesome to
see for a game. This big, you know I think I
think some Corners off and get cut for having to do some like
this but there's some Quality quality craftsmanship that has
gone into all of this stuff. And I think for the price on
this is Is pretty fucking solid. I mean, value wise, I'm probably
sitting at gosh, like, probably like an eight, realistically,
seven or eight. I want to say a tall.
So I'm tempted to go to 9 just because there's a ton of support
for the game as well. You can go on their page.
Oh, go ahead know. So, a lot of, so the other thing
with value besides just their money, A lot of games that have
gotten like up two nines have like, online generators have
like a butt like online character sheet, websites, have
like a bunch of, like, additional free stuff like art,
for example. Samples one that came out with
like, like six different, like digital tools or even Lancer.
Got a decent value score because they have like a whole like app
that was designed to run the game.
I think those are the things that really push it up towards 9
territory, but I think even just the price and quality really
even getting up to 8 for something, this big I think is a
testament to how quality all of this stuff is out there making?
Yeah, it doesn't have any fancy apps or online generators, but
there's like, Like, there's a resource page is only thing.
I'll point out is that there's a resource page on the hyperborea
website that just has like tons of community, created resources
for it, like generators for familiars character, name
generators, character sheets, debauchery tables.
Yeah, all kinds of stuff and that's all free.
That's all free. Yeah.
Yeah, I think you know, I think I think I think eight does feel
really good for the value on this.
Oh, bang for your buck though. I because I think like I said,
like the only ones that have even got two tens.
It's they're literally free like Merck Borg at this point and I
reference Mark where we live. It's just it's just, it's one of
the first ones who did so. It's the first one that pops up
over here. They whole game is free now,
like you can literally get the Bare Bones PDF.
And for the entire thing, furry, and almost all of the adventure
content is completely free. That's about the only way you
can get to attend. Is if you're literally, you're
heading me. You're like 5,000 Pages for your
game for free. I think I think between eight
and nine is solid and I think eight feels really, really solid
for this, actually, for the value that you get for all of
the stuff. So that's, that's where we're
at. 84 art and style, 64, layout 74 will set a date for
originality, 84 value. I really like when games have
this kind of Spread its it when you have a game that's got like
a 10 and 1 and like a six in another, you can tell there's
like inconsistencies to it. Like I would almost rather have
something that's like eight straight down the board to just
be like, super solid consistent the whole way through and this
feels like it's eight. 6788 feels really good to me.
So if I add all those numbers up we're looking at a 37 for this.
Hey That is a solid solid like for a Trad game, this big on
this channel. I think that is exactly that
feels absolutely right to me. I think the only thing that
really gave it a big knock was the layout button, there's not a
whole lot, you can do about that.
You know what I mean? Like, not with this amount of
information know, like it's too. It's too big to really think of
it to be able to give it to you in a a different more,
interesting way. The only thing that really could
have bumped it up, was some hyperlinks and some stuff like
that. And that would I got it's like a
seven or eight. I just wanting a Triad book, the
size could ever get something close to, like a 9 or a 10 as
far as as far as that goes. I mean, the information is fed
to you in really interesting ways.
I think the only other way that you could really add points and
layout besides hyperlinks is, like I said, if there was like a
separate like QuickStart easyread kind of section for the
breakdown of the core stuff, I That would increase readability,
navigability and things like that.
That would that would bump that if it was hyperlinked in had
that this would be like at least an 8 for me as far as as far as
layout goes because yeah, something something similar to
what DCC does it like every free RPG day?
They are. They're handing out those
QuickStart pamphlets for DCC. So yeah, I think a quick start
for this would be a godsend for anyone who wants to play this
game because like honestly, like I got through Reading, Um, this
it was really difficult but to really get it to the table for
people that have a difficult time reading.
This much information, a quick start.
Hey everybody, a quick start would be really, really great
and if you have one I'm sorry and we'll talk about changing
that point for you. So that's, that's hyperborea.
I'm as far as, as far as big thick Trad games go, you know I
love this one as much as I think impossible to love this style of
game realistically, and I'm really glad that you suggested
it and they were able to sit down and do this and And any,
any final thoughts on score on the game on on, on anything for
hyperborean astonishing Swordsmen and Sorcerers play
play more Mighty Feud. Barbarians in games.
We need to see more of those. All right, so that is that is
for everybody out there. So John thank you so much for
coming on the show. Really appreciate it.
Hope this won't be the last time I think this is the third time.
You've been on the show but the first time you've been a guest
host. Actually sit down and review
with me. It's really, really great time
again. Thank you so much for for
suggesting this one. Where can people find more?
Jonathan Davis, more civet Tinkham.
You could find me at sieve, add sanctum on itch.io and on the
Twitter at Seds underscore sanctum?
Yeah, this is a lot of fun and hopefully I'll suggest a shorter
game next time. Yeah, I wouldn't mind.
I don't think I have many games bigger than this.
I think the only other rule set that I have this big is probably
DCC and this this big brown one right there we go.
Yeah so this is this has been the weekly scroll podcast.
I think this is a great way to kind of like break down a bigger
book like this. So there's a good chance I will
Use this same kind of like idea to do maybe DC in some of these
bigger tried gums. So it was nice to be able to do
something a little bit bigger and only two and a half hours.
So we are us. You can find us at video weekly
desk rolled on Instagram that's where we post all of our scores
and everything you can find us on weekly underscore scroll,
which is where we're going to announce when things hit vods or
what our next games and whatnot are and do us a favor.
Go to the adventure archived on YouTube, you can find all of the
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APS, you can find, you know, Seance, which is a dungeon a
deathtrap dungeon design stream. I recently did with the
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climbing up on subscribers. We'd love to hit 1,000 by this
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but that's where you can find our socials.
That is our episode for today. Again, John, thank you so much.
Thank you, everyone. That was here for chat and thank
you all for listening. You all have a wonderful day.