Monthly Archives: June 2025

Swords Against the Shadows, what are Characters like?

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Here’s a preview from the Characters chapter of the upcoming Swords Against the Shadows game, coming to Kickstarter on July 1st for two weeks.

Decide on Character Class

First, choose a class (see page 7 onwards). The class determines what
sort of adventurer they are and what innate abilities they have. The four
choices are Barbarian, Fighter, Thief, and Sorcerer.
Each class has a section entitled Essentials which details the following.

  • Starting hit points at 1st level.
  • Hit Dice. The dice they roll for additional hit points after first level.
  • What sort of sanity loss the character is particularly resilient against.
  • What arms and armour they can use.
  • The damage they inflict in physical combat.
  • Each class has a selection of Styles, which tell you roughly what the
    character looks like and their starting equipment.
  • Importantly, each class has a set of Class Abilities that differentiate them
    from the other classes and tell you where they excel.
  • Finally, there is a section that tells you what happens when they gain
    a New Level and through having enough experiences (see page 31)
    levelling up.

Here’s the Barbarian class as an example.

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World Building for Swords and Sorcery Games

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Here’s an excerpt from the Referee’s section of Swords against the Shadows, coming to Kickstarter soon.

World Building

Here’s a quick list of things to consider when setting up a setting for Swords against the Shadows.

  • Style. What’s the tone and feel of your setting?
  • People. What are the major human nations and cultures?
  • Nations. What important lands exist in the setting?
  • Patrons, Lovers and Nemeses. These are larger than life non-player characters whose schemes frequently involve the characters.
  • Level of Technology/Magic. Most S&S settings are low on magic, being the preserve of Sorcerers and generally considered a bad thing. Likewise, technology can vary from the Stone Age to the Renaissance and all points in between in a setting.
  • Monsters and Mysteries. What enigmas and attendant threats will the characters uncover during their adventures?
  • The State of the World. Overall, considering all of the above, at the beginning of play, what big events are rumbling under the surface, ready to erupt?

Style

This is shorthand for the general theme and tone of your setting.
Here’s a quick list of themes that you can either pick from or roll randomly on a d6 to choose.

1 Swords against Evil. Demons prey on everyday folk, only the swords can protect the innocent.
2 Swords Against the Skullduggery. The world is dominated by powerful factions run by patrons or hidden nemesis whose criminal enterprises are enacted by agents. It is up to the Swords to bring their schemes into the light of day and foil them.
3 Swords for Discovery. Much of the world is unexplored wilderness. Swords are explorers who open up the world, find treasure, and reveal ancient world-changing secrets.
4 The Swords who would be King. Either by design or more likely the characters are thrust into the leadership roles of their local city/kingdom.
5 Swords Against Sorcery. The characters are pitted against the schemes of either a solo Sorcerer or a Cabal who, for some reason, has it in for them.
6 Swords Against the Apocalypse. A great set of events is set in motion that will destroy the Swords’ world unless they get involved and drive the course of destiny.

This is only part of World Building chapter. In it the Jewelled Coast is presented as an example setting, which has been generated using the questions and answers method.

Map of the Jewelled Coast
Map of the Jewelled Coast