This is a very good supplement! I feel like for my players, supernatural horror works a little better in modern setting, and it's easier for me to prepare - that's why I gravitate towards things like WoD for horror. But this is exactly what I need to marry what is amazing about Vaesen and WoD for me.

Magnificent!!! This is our favourite supplement to Coriolis and also about our favourite area and the whole of the Third Horizon. Without this book we probably would've given up on Coriolis.

Exceptional sandbox fantasy TTRPG in an exceptional world. This Nordic post-apocalyptic take on the Tolkienesque pseudo-medieval fantasy is just so tasty and full of great bits of lore that are easy to adapt into the play of the game. The version of the Year Zero Engine (YZE) used in this game, while not perfect due to some rules being prone to misconceptions, is a really good adaptation to this setting and fantasy sandbox gaming in general. My players are simply loving this game and it is so easy & fun to run. Five out of five stars.

Loving this product! Enjoying it as a change and its simplicity.

A very nice and entertaining little adventure site. Used it as a one-shot in my first Forbidden Lands session and it worked quite well.

What a wonderful adventure, well written, entertaining and very helpful for a novice GM. Please follow up with the Mysteries of the East Marshes.

I bought the game to see if it was something for my group, and wanted to give a brief review in case it might help others decide.

Preface: Haven't played the game and probably never will, so I have no idea if the game works mechanically. I will say however, that the game is not based on the Year Zero Engine from Free League, which was a disappointment for me. It relies on a mixture of d6 and d12 with unique symbols on some of the numbers - yes rather annoying unless you like buying special dice all the time.

Graphics: The book is gorgeous and the font, style, art etc. is taken 1:1 from the LotR movies. Whether this is a good or bad thing for you naturally depends on whether you think Peter Jackson and co. have a perpetual artistic patent on visualising the world of Tolkien. I personally find it flavourful, but I can easily see why someone might be fed up with it.

Style of game: Interestingly, from my reading of the rules it seems like a game focused around exploration and travelling, instead of a combat simulator with the rest tacked on. Rather refreshing actually.

Unfortunately, but very much in line with the lore, PCs do not have access to magic. I have several players who never play games without magic, and as such I'll never run this at either of my tables.

Thus my very short overview ends as I have way too many games to read through to learn stuff I'll never run :(

Unreadable - wish I’d checked these reviews/comments before purchasing

Grałem w tę przygodę, w stworzonej przez autorkę pętli i grając przygotowanym przez nią archetypem. Wszystko dobrze przygotowane, łącznie z dołączonymi smaczkami i szczególikami. Jako gracze dostaliśmy sporą swobodę w działaniu, jednocześnie mając jasny cel, który chcieliśmy osiągnąć. Sama historia nas zadziwiła niejednym plottwistem, ale wyraźnie spinała się w spójną całość, zostawiając nas z chęcią na tylko więcej.

Seasons of Mystery

As a supplement to the role-playing game Vaesen, Seasons of Mystery is a collection of four adventures, each of which, as the name suggests, is assigned to a season.

The first adventure is A Dance with Death, which takes the player characters to the seemingly peaceful area around Lake Siljan in the spring. Near the lake, animals are kept for grazing in the spring, and a group of young women take care of herding the animals there. But the supposedly idyllic atmosphere is broken when a young farm girl is found by the lake with amnesia, and shortly after, two cows drown in the water. The task is to solve the mystery and prevent an escalation.

The adventure Fireheart focuses on an area called Smolandia, which suffers from heat waves and fires, causing many residents to immigrate to America. One of these people, who wants to leave the area, does not want to leave his brother, who runs a successful steel mill and may be under the influence of a preacher. Of course, there is much more to do than just mediate between the two quarreling brothers because, this time, the player characters will encounter a truly epic creature.

The Devil on the Moor is about a group of engineers who try to open up an abandoned moorland through canals. However, during their work, they encounter strange events and constant setbacks. The chief engineer fears that dark forces are at work. The players must investigate this matter and mediate between the engineers and the villagers, who are critical of the project, to solve the strange incidents' mystery.

Finally, the adventure A Winter's Trail takes the player characters towards St. Petersburg, where they want to participate in a meeting with like-minded people. However, a dangerous snowstorm forces them to seek shelter on their journey. There, they are confronted with a threat that they must identify while fighting for their survival and that of the other guests of the inn in the middle of the wilderness.

Seasons of Mystery offers four well-crafted and, above all, varied adventures, each capturing the mood of its season. The settings and challenges are unique, and each adventure should offer enough for a few sessions before the characters have solved the mystery and hopefully averted the conflict. As usual with Vaesen, it is not just about identifying the supernatural threat, but also trying to solve the problem at its core. And since a physical confrontation is not the method of choice, it is a matter of understanding the background and trying to resolve the conflicts in other ways - if possible, which is not always the case here.

I liked the approach that each adventure takes place in a limited, self-contained setting that offers the player characters many opportunities for interaction, be it with the young farmhands, the aggressive brothers, the engineers, or the inn guests, who offer entirely different points of view. For each scenario, there are also hints on how they can be adapted for the Mythic Britain & Ireland setting.

For players of Vaesen, Seasons of Mystery is definitely recommended, as the adventures provide exciting challenges and offer varied environments for the player characters to investigate.

(Björn Lippold)

A Wicked Secret

With A Wicked Secret, the first adventure volume for the role-playing game Vaesen has been published. This volume contains four fully fleshed-out adventures, each of which revolves around a particular type of Vaesen on the one hand and, on the other hand, also addresses the other themes of the game - above all, the social changes of industrialization.

The first one is about a fishing base that has become a successful herring factory and, at the same time, has attracted the suspicion of a clergyman.

The following story focuses on a small town in the northern woods where the interests of a sawmill collide with ancient secrets.

Deadly secrets also lurk in a modern seaside resort when the wrong people play with the wrong forces.

And finally, university research is shown to be dangerous when it comes into contact with trolls.

Each of the four stories has a central entity in focus, but the settings, the conflicts, and the themes are pretty varied. Furthermore, the adventures offer more than just monster hunts that must end with a final battle; rather, the horror theme is approached in various ways. Without revealing more about the adventures, in my opinion, A Wicked Secret is a recommendable addition to the role-playing game Vaesen, with which game masters can easily spend their first game sessions.

(Björn Lippold)

Mythic Britain & Ireland

With Mythic Britain & Ireland, a sourcebook for Vaesen has been published, which is about moving the game's setting from Scandinavia to England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Of course, this region is very suitable for Vaesen since, on the one hand, the heart of the industrialization of Europe beats here, and on the other hand, the region is probably more familiar to players than Scandinavia due to its presentation in movies, books, etc. Players should be better acquainted with this region than with Scandinavia at that time.

First, the book introduces the four countries and covers aspects such as industrialization and social development. In addition, there are details on how the somewhat complicated monetary system works or how to incorporate social classes into the game regarding rules. Of course, the book looks at the various cities, which are briefly described but usually come with a local legend that can inspire the game. A large part of the description is, of course, devoted to London, which is introduced more comprehensively and again offers various points of connection and reference for the game. Some fictional and real celebrities, as well as a larger list of mysterious places, round out the ideas presented here. In addition, a more extended section is dedicated to the aspect of fairies from Celtic mythology, which introduces legends like the Wild Hunt, the Shidhe, and other fairy creatures in more detail once again.

The second chapter revolves around the organization to which the player characters belong, which for this region is the Apollonian Society, founded by John Dee, which pursues supernatural entities similar to the Order of Artemis. In fact, the Apollonian Society is also in contact with the Order of Artemis, so theoretically, it is also possible to have a game in which the characters are active as guest agents in another region. Besides the description of the society and its historical development, its base, Rose House, is also introduced, which has some secrets to offer. Three new archetypes - the Athlete, the Entertainer, and the Socialite - round out the chapter and provide more character options that fit perfectly into the setting.

The third chapter offers very specific game material, in this case, more vaesen for player characters to face. Here, you will find an arsenal of mythical creatures from Celtic and British legends, such as the Banshee, the Knocker, the Pixie, the Selkie, and many others. The book also provides notes on how vaesen, already published in the basic rule book, can be adapted accordingly for the setting.

So that gaming groups can get started right away, there are three adventures for the setting, but these could generally be moved to Scandinavia with a few minor changes. In the first adventure, Old Meg, a girl, has been found dead. Her fiancé is suspected of being involved. Thus, conflicts arise between the two families and between the population and the police, who are not pulling in the same direction in the investigation.

The Llantywyll Incident, the second adventure, moves the action to Wales, where an accident has occurred in a slate mine after a priest has held mass there. The mine is closed for the moment, threatening the economic existence of the village. Here, ancient superstition and Christian religion collide.

In The Hampstead Group, the player characters are hired by a young woman looking for her brother, who has disappeared from a hedonistic artist colony. Here, the player characters must find out where the young man has gone.

All three adventures have in common that, as is usual for Vaesen, they focus heavily on investigative work and drive the players to find a solution that is not simply to find and fight vaesen. Combative confrontation is usually not a valid solution. All three adventures capture the local atmosphere well and offer exciting stories that fit the setting perfectly but could theoretically be set in Scandinavia.

Thus, Mythic Britain & Ireland offers an excellent sourcebook for Vaesen. Gaming groups that have so far found it difficult to use the somewhat unfamiliar Scandinavian setting will get a background here that will make it much easier to get started. The small rule additions are not essential but enhance the game. With the chapter about other vaesen, the game gets even more challenging. There are three adventures for actual play, which are very varied and offer exciting challenges. In addition, they can be integrated into an existing campaign if the player characters act as local guests or because the game master can simply move them to Scandinavia with a few adjustments.

This makes the book an excellent addition that enriches the game in many ways. For those who have previously put Vaesen on the back burner because of its background, here is an opportunity to play in probably more familiar regions. For Vaesen fans, the book is a definitive recommendation anyway.

(Björn Lippold)

This review contains spoilers. It was originally posted on my website, akhelas.com.

Following in the footsteps of last year’s Ruins of the Lost Realm, this year Swedish publisher Free League has released another adventure compendium for The One Ring 2E (TOR). Drawing deeply from Tolkien’s works, TOR is a game which I’ve fallen in love for its evocative mechanics, varied story opportunities, and high-quality production. TOR is a great example of why I admire Free League’s work.

A note—I read these adventures, but have lacked the opportunity to play them.

That said, how does their latest adventure into Middle-Earth fare? Let’s find out.

Tales from the Lone-Lands is a collection of six connected adventures. Each adventure’s core is a landmark (in the style of Ruins of the Lost Realm) which could be run independent of the adventure’s other material. This book also provides support for playing the entire adventures independently, but they’re at their strongest as a cohesive story.

And really, the story told in Tales from the Lone-Lands is exactly the type of campaign I wanted. It’s a somber tale, filled with minions of the Enemy, heroic quests, and a wonderfully on-theme finale.

The focus of each adventure is split between the journey, and the destination. Across the six adventures of Tales the Player-heroes will find themselves traveling widely across Eriador, the land west of the Misty Mountains. Even for Tolkien enthusiasts this campaign will likely enter unfamiliar territory while sailing onto the Great Sea or traveling into the frozen wastelands beyond Angmar. The focus on both journeys and landmarks suits TOR well given the game’s “There and Back Again” adventure structure. Most adventures have character drama or custom events which take place while traveling. Advice to the Loremaster on lacing the adventures together can be found throughout each adventure’s elements. In particular, I can see journey events being lifted easily and used during travels associated with other adventures.

At the heart of this campaign is Amon Guruthos, the Hill of Fear. This antagonist thrusts a deeply “Tolkien” feel into the whole campaign. The return of the Enemy haunts each adventure, and forebodes the growing power of the Hill of Fear. Unlike trolls and orcs, the Hill of Fear is not a monster (although there are several options for cool boss fights). The Hill of Fear is an ancient remnant of Morgoth’s evil, like the famous Balrog of Moria. It is not a creature to slay, but a force to confront.

This confrontation is interlaced with TOR’s mechanics. In TOR, exposure to the Shadow or committing Misdeeds can accrue Shadow points to a character. This often reflects forces beyond the scope of a Player-hero. The Eye of Sauron might be resisted, but its gaze isn’t a spell to counter or a sword to parry. Shadow is a moral force, a force of horror and corruption and despair. The Hill’s malevolence is present throughout Tales‘s adventures. This weaves the players’ journeys into a quest of resistance against the dark.

This tale seems, to me, bleak in the same ways as The Lord of the Rings. Indeed, the possibility of eucatastrophe is suggested twice in the final adventure, through the light of Eärendil. Resistance unto breaking, and beyond breaking, resistance to the last against Shadow and Evil. This book’s adherence to Tolkien’s themes presents a way to meaningfully play out a “Tolkien-like” story at the game table.

In terms of general polish, the text is well-written, with very few errors. These are mostly textual oversights (such as the text’s “Vale of Gold” being labeled the “Hill of Gold” on the map). Such errors never caused me confusion. I found each adventure’s presentation hit a sweet spot between linearity and openness. Tales provides enough options for player agency, but few enough that the Loremaster can follow the adventures easily. I feel confident to run any of these adventures after a single read-through the night prior to the session.

Always hunting for adventure? Then check out my RuneQuest work! The Queen’s Star sends players into the fiery Cinder Pits to save a fallen star. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the support!

As with Free League’s other TOR products, the quality of Tales from the Lone-Lands is excellent. The volume is a 112-page hardcover with, I believe, a cloth-bound cover on which the cover illustration is printed. The interior is the same high-quality paper as the prior releases, with a focus on presenting a “tome-like” feel. Tales illustration is more satisfying to me than Ruins due to the increased focus on illustrating characters and creatures encountered during the adventures (such as the delightfully nasty Worm-wight). Most interior illustrations are grayscale sketches, punctuated with full-color spreads to start each adventure, and color cartography.

Overall the illustration is strong. In particular I like how Free League’s design choices have remained consistent. The heavy use of grayscale (sketch?) artwork adds a continuous feel to the game line. Likewise, it seems from the credits that the same collection of artists have worked on each hardcover. This consistency in style and quality is a strength I hope to see continue.

The only production critique I have is that at times the cartography feels a little unclear. This is more due to the mesh of cartography and game design, rather than the illustrations themselves. For example, some adventures note a large ruin at a landmark as a single location, with a few notes for portions of the ruin. Although TOR isn’t designed for “hallway by hallway” dungeon-crawling in the style of Pathfinder or Dragonbane, I do think a little more detail (or less massive ruins) would clean up the descriptive presentation.

I heartily recommend Tales from the Lone-Lands to anyone interested in more adventures for TOR. It’s a splendid book which weaves Tolkien’s themes into a meaningful story which allows the players to impact the future of the Free Folk.

This book meshes well with Ruins of the Lost Realm, without excessively overlapping in scope. I feel the books work best together. Ruins provides a geographic setting, and Tales an interconnected story. Laced throughout with landmark adventures from Ruins—and of the Loremaster’s own design—I feel excited to take these books out on a campaign into Eriador.

Honestly this is a life safer. I printed it out and handed one of the first sheet to each player, and then kept one copy of the second sheet for table reference. It's really good and completely worth the money.

This is a great scenario with a murder mystery vibe. It took our group three sessions (3 hours per session) to complete.