Check Out Retro Role-Playing In Forbidden Lands

September 22, 2017 by brennon

Free League Publishing is back on Kickstarter with a retro role-playing game featuring stunning artwork and some fantastic ideas on mechanics. Take a look at Forbidden Lands.

So what is Forbidden Lands?

"In Forbidden Lands, the player characters are not heroes sent on missions dictated by others - instead, they are raiders and rogues bent on making their own mark on a cursed world. They will discover lost tombs, fight terrible monsters, wander the wild lands and, if they live long enough, build their own stronghold to defend."

I love this alternative to the standard role-playing tropes and the big thing for me is this twist towards the moral grey area. It's very much in the same vein as Torchbearer.

The artwork for this game has been done, primarily, by Nils Gulliksson who created some amazing pieces back in the 80s and indeed this new book will contain both old and new artwork by the creator.

Whilst the world itself is quite retro, and the artwork too, the real callback comes in the mechanics - which are up-to-date and well tested, but with a taste of the dangerous and the deadly.

Combat is fast and furious, the Legends you will encounter are deadly and brutal with many ways to fail your endeavours. You will have to work together if you want to survive out there in the wilderness.

As well as different adventures there is the 'Hex Crawl' as they have dubbed it, which has you tracking around the world in an open world adventure. You will also be building up a stronghold and a holding for you to maintain and then venture out for your adventures.

This campaign looks amazing, and the book and components look superb. This is one I might have to check out in greater detail.

Will you be checking this out?