Free download Shadows of Esteren Book 0 Prologue

 No worries, this is a completely legal download. The kickstarter of Book 2 Travels has reached one of its stretch goals which has made Book 0 Prologue available for free download as of now. 

Book 0 Prologue provides an introduction to the setting of Shadows of Esteren, a quick overview of the rules system, six pre-made characters, and three introductory scenarios. 

It's a great way to get a feel for the setting, the rules, and the game's beautiful artwork.

Head over to DriveThroughRPG to download Shadows of Esteren Book 0 Prologue for free.

Shadows of Esteren Book 2 : Travels Kickstarter

The new kickstarter for Shadows of Esteren is online. Book 2 Travels consist of 196 pages of Shadows of Esteren goodness. I already have the pdf and I can tell you, this book looks as amazing as the others. Stunning artwork all over the place.

The first chapter Cartography takes a look at several noteworthy places of Tri-Kazel. It takes an in-depth look at Gwidre, Reizh, and Taol-Kaer but it doesn't stop until about 45 pages are filled with setting material and descriptions of locales the players can visit or encounter.

The chapter continues with information on travelling in Tri-Kazel, the meaning of several Varigal signs, and advice on storytelling a travelling scene. After overland travel, the chapter takes a look at sailing the seas surrounding the peninsula, information on different ships and navigation.

Chapter 2 Canvasses features five short scenario's for 2-3 hour play.

Chapter 3 A life choice is a short campaign about a Magientist mother who finds out her long-lost child and husband are now living in an ultra-traditionalist community in Taol-Kaer and organises an expedition to save her child from a dogmatic upbringing. The campaign is split up in different scenes with hints throughout on which music to use for a particular scene, tips to enhance the setting, indications on where to add (optional) gore or suspense, all illustrated with clear signs we've come to know from the previous books.

Chapter 4 Figures of Tri-Kazel takes a look at 18 memorable non-player characters the players can encounter on their travels through the land.

Finally chapter 5 Bestiary explores several common place creatures that can be encountered and 10 much stranger creatures from Loch Sniomh, the sea wyrm to the majestic Siren of the Taelderoth.

Check out the Shadows of Esteren Book 2 Travels Kickstarter !!

For those in doubt what to expect, check Martin from Grognard Games unboxing his package from the previous kickstarter.

Call of Cthulhu and Shadows of Esteren win Diehard gamefan awards

Diehardgamefan.com is a website that covers all sorts of gaming from console games over boardgames to RPGs. On the website you'll find gaming news, reviews, and columns covering all aspects of the above games.

Seeing their awards makes me feel I'm collecting the right games. Or at least, that other people are just as exciting about some of these games as I am.

As you might know, I have a sizeable Call of Cthulhu collection and thus was very pleased to see that the game won several awards:

• BEST RE-MAKE/RE-RELEASE: Cthulhu by Gaslight, third edition
• BEST ADVENTURE (SOLO): Age of Cthulhu Vol. VI - A dream of Japan
• BEST CAMPAIGN SETTING: Mythic Iceland
• SYSTEM OF THE YEAR: Call of Cthulhu

Alright, Mythic Iceland is technically not Call of Cthulhu but it's Chaosium and Pedro is a nice guy who I met at the Kraken so I don't mind plugging the book.

If you follow the blog (yeah right), you will have noticed I was pretty excited about Shadows of Esteren. I met some of the illustrators and authors at Spiel in Germany and I'm very happy to see the hard work of these superfriendly gamers is being appreciated.

• BEST ART: Shadows of Esteren: Book 1 - Universe
• BEST NEW GAME: Shadows of Esteren
• BEST CORE RULEBOOK: Shadows of Esteren: Book 1 - Universe

And since I also collect Dungeon Crawl Classics, the DCC RPG won the award for BEST OLD SCHOOL RENAISSANCE TITLE. It's nice to see some love for the old school rpgs as well.

For a full report on Diehardgamefan.com's tabletop awards, just follow the link.

Shadows of Esteren : Book 0 - Prologue Kickstarter

After a succesful kickstarter for their Book 1 - Universe, the Forgesonges Collective and Studio 2 Publishing are back for the release of Book 0 - Prologue.

Book 0 will be an introduction to the Universe of Shadows of Esteren, contain a summary of the game system, 6 sample characters, and 3 adventures. And it will feature beautiful artwork.

Sure this is a dark and gritty low fantasy setting, full of gothic horror and Cthulhu influences, what really drew me into supporting the first kickstarter was the incredibly beautiful artwork.

I met author Nelyhann and illustrators Gawaine and Chris at Spiel Essen this year and they are incredibly nice people with a genuine love for the game. They've worked really hard on getting these books out in English and I for one, will support their work.

Please support the Shadows of Esteren Book 0 - Prologue Kickstarter

Spiel Essen 2012 (1)

I traveled to Spiel 2012 in Essen, Germany today. It's a yearly tradition to visit Europe's biggest gaming fair and even though many people are saying it gets less interesting every year, I still manage to find nice deals.

I've only visited Hall 6 which is where the RPG goodies lie in wait. Below an overview of my loot for the day.

Malcolm's booth is one of the reasons why I go to Essen every year. I knew beforehand that he had bought a big Call of Cthulhu collection and he was kind enough to send me a list of all the goodies so I could check what was interesting. While I was going through the boxes of Cthulhu books, he just kept piling up one boxed set after another. "Oh Ralph, I also have the 2nd edition boxed set, ah yeah and also the Gaslight boxed set. Oh and here's another stack. You can't make a choice until you have seen all of it..."

• PAG5004 - A guide to the Cthulhu cult (1998)
• Necronomicon Press - A history of the Necronomicon (6th print 1992)
• CHA2324 - Call of Cthulhu 4th edition (1989)
• CHA3302 - H.P. Lovecraft's Dreamlands (1988)
• CHA2312 - Alone against the dark (1985)
• CHA2344 - Keeper's Compendium (1993)
• CHA2346 - Investigator's Compendium Volume 2 (1994)
• CHA8804 - H.P. Lovecraft's Kingsport (2003)
• CHA2377 - Before the fall (1998)
• CHA2373 - Dead Reckonings (1998)
• CHA2361 - The Complete Masks of Nyarlathotep Hardcover (2006)
• CHA2314-X - Cthulhu by Gaslight (1986)
• CHA2009-X - Call of Cthulhu 1st edition, 2nd printing (1982)
• CHA2301-X - Call of Cthulhu 2nd edition (1983)
• TRIAD0003 - Whispers in the dark (1993)
• CHA2317-H/004411 - Call of Cthulhu 3rd edition (1986)
• 178301 - Call of Cthulhe 2nd edition (1983)

I picked up some Pathfinder books I was still missing. I didn't get the biggest of discounts but it still beats the regular prices at the FLGS.

• PZO1002 - Rise of the Runelords Anniversary edition (2012)
• PZO1114 - Game Mastery Guide (2010)
• PZO1115 - Advanced Player's Guide (2010)
• PZO1118 - Ultimate Combat (2011)
• PZO9407 - Cheliax, Empire of Devils (2009)
• PZO9413 - Orcs of Golarion (2010)

I happened upon a booth where I saw a number of cheap books and scenery all stacked in boxes. Then suddenly my eye fell upon a rack of novels with a 1 euro tag on it. 1 euro for hardcover novels is too good to pass up on.

• TSR 8483 - The Dark Elf Trilogy Book 3 - Sojourn (1991)
• TSR 21799 - Songs & Sword Book 3 - Silver Shadows
• WOTC 177590000 - The Hunter's Blade Trilogy Book 3 - The two swords (2004)
• WOTC 886250000 - War of the Spider Queen Book 3 - Condemnation (2003)
• WOTC 177260000 - War of the Spider Queen Book 6 - Resurrection (2005)
• WOTC 888520000 - The Legend of Drizzt Book 2 - Exile (2004)
• WOTC 963620000 - The Legend of Drizzt Book 3 - Sojourn (2004)
• WOTC 950167200 - The Legend of Drizzt Book 6 - The Halfling's Gem (2005)
• WOTC 955497200 - The Legend of Drizzt Book 9 - Siege of Darkness (2006)
• WOTC 959237200 - The Legend of Drizzt Book 10 - Passage of Dawn (2007)

Here's some more 'bin' material. The D20 stuff came from a 3 euro bin, the 4E Power cards were 1 euro per pack so I just got a full display case. The Shadows of Esteren book obviously doesn't fall under the category 'bin material'. I supported their kickstarter and got the limited edition of their Book 1 - Universe that way. I picked up the regular version at their booth.

• WOTC 251080000 - Arcane Power Power Cards Display (2009)
• WOTC 242960000 - Player's Handbook 2 Power Cards Display (2009)
• AEG 8506 - River of Blood (2002)
• MYG 0201 - Arcane Mysteries - Blight Magic (2002)
• WW16003 - Sword & Sorcery - Beyond all reason (2002)
• WW16142 - Sword & Sorcery - Arcana Unearthed - DM's Screen and Player's Guide (2003)
• AGA10001 - Shadows of Esteren - Book 1, Universe (2012)

I also got a Shadows of Esteren t-shirt through the kickstarter and since that's the only gaming related shirt I have, I decided to wear it to Spiel. When I showed up at the Esteren booth, Nellyhann, one of the authors, immediately greeted me and asked if I had brought my book so they could sign it. He introduced me to illustrators Chris and Gawain and we had a chat about the game. This is Chris' piece in my limited edition version of the book. Nellyhann was kind enough to personalise it as well.

When I returned to pick up my limited edition, I also bought a copy of the regular version and Nellyhann insisted it should be signed too. Gawain took care of the illustration in this book and while he was drawing, Nellyhann and another volunteer went through my Cthulhu purchases together. The Esteren staff was as excited as me about the Cthulhu boxed sets. I can recommend this game to everyone. The book are filled with stunning artwork and these guys are incredibly kind, thankful for the support they get, and big fans of roleplaying games.

Shadows of Esteren: A Medieval Horror RPG Kickstarter

Kickstarter seems to have really caught on in the RPG world.

Shadows of Esteren is a French roleplaying game which will now be translated into English.



It's being described as a mixture between Braveheart, Sleepy Hollow, Ravenloft, and Call of Cthulhu. Well that certainly had my interest peaked.

From what I can see on the Shadows of Esteren Kickstarter page, it certainly is going to be a beautiful book.

I chose the Farl collector pledge which contains a limited edition version of 300 copies.

The gaming system is described as follows

• A Detailed Character Creation. The creation of a PC goes through ten steps. The Characters are designed “inside-out”: you determine his psychology with 5 Ways that define how the Character sees and affects the world. Thus, there are no attributes such as Strength, Dexterity and so on, but there are Combativeness, Creativity, Empathy, Reason, and Conviction. By default, all the Characters are equally strong, fast, good-looking, etc. However a Character can purchase Advantages and Disadvantages to flesh out some of these physical attributes (“Strong”, “Weak”, “Hawkeye”,etc.), or provide him with allies, extra funds, etc... Skills are then picked according to several stages of his life (youth, professional training, miscellaneous activities).
• The System of the Ways. The Ways are characteristics that determine the major traits of the Character’s personality: the Player allocates the scores 1,2,3,4,5 among the 5 Ways. Ways are rated from 1 to 5: 1-2 is considered Minor , 4-5 is considered Major. Therefore, a Character will have 2 Major Ways, 2 Minor Ways and an average one. This makes it possible to roughly determine the way he thinks, his emotional tendencies, etc...
Additionally, there are five Faults, one for each Way: Passion (Combativeness), Subversion (Creativity), Influence (Empathy), Doubt (Reason), and Guilt (Conviction). The main aim of these characteristics is to give references for role-playing, but the Leader (GM) can ask a Player to make a Test roll in one of his Character's Major Faults to see if his Fault gets the better of him in a heated situation. Also, a Character chooses 1 Flaw and 1 Quality based on his Major or Minor Ways (a Major Way can imply both a Flaw and a Quality). As shown in the example below, a Major rating in Combativeness can result in an Optimistic behavior, but also an impulsive one. Example for Combativeness
• Quality:
Major Rating: combative, optimistic, dynamic, brave, pugnacious, etc. Minor Rating: calm, phlegmatic, cool-headed, peaceful, etc.
• Flaw:
Major Rating: impulsive, presumptuous, prideful, stubborn, arrogant, boastful, etc. Minor Rating: pessimistic, spineless, sad, weak-willed, fearful, self-conscious, coward, etc.
• A Resolution System Based on a D10. When a resolution roll is required, the Player adds the Character's rating in the appropriate skill + his rating in the associated Way + 1d10, and must beat a given Threshold. The margin determines the quality of success or failure. There are critical successes and failures as well. This resolution system is used for every aspect of the game, from fighting to using skills and calling upon mystical powers.
• Quick and Violent Combats. Combat is clearly deadly. Fighting attitudes have been designed to define how the Character fights. Moreover, the amount of Health Points defined at the creation of the PC (which is most of the time the same for every Character) does not increase as the PC improves in the various skill fields. The basic principle is that the human body is fragile: for example, close combat remains dangerous, no matter how good a PC is in a given domain.
• A Complete Sanity System. Dying is not the only danger that threatens the PCs: their psyche can be sorely tested, and they can even sink into madness. This is an important aspect of the game: where the combat system has been summed up in only three pages, the sanity system plays a much more important part and provided several tools to embody a psychically unstable PC. From the creation of his Character, the Player chooses a latent pathology for him, which may come to light if mental traumas become too heavy.
• Three Types of "Magic". Although Shadows of Esteren is defined as a low-fantasy universe, supernatural elements still exist. Magical powers are meant to be most often rare, but powerful, and their use is never without consequences. The game system details the Demorthèn arts (druidic/animistic tradition); the Miracles of the Temple, granted by the One God to the Elect; and Magience, a science using “Flux”, a fuel harvested from nature.