Tuesday 8 June 2021

[NEWS] HELVÉCZIA: Picaresque Fantasy RPG (NOW AVAILABLE!)

Helvéczia

“Venture into a rugged land of stamp-sized, steadfastly independent petty states, populated with robber bands, pious clergymen, wig-wearing philistines, adventurous countesses, and wily cheats: the cantons of Helvéczia, a territory of forbidding mountain ranges and endless forests betwixt rival empires. (…) A re-imagination of old-school fantasy role-playing in a late 17th century Switzerland that never was, Helvéczia is a fast-paced and colourful game of guns, dames, deviltry and steel, based on swashbuckling tales, penny dreadfuls, local legends, and the strange stories of the Brothers Grimm.”

After its debut at the North Texas RPG Con, I am pleased to announce the publication of my pseudo-historical RPG, Helvéczia. Published as a 204-page hardcover and a lavish boxed set (which contains the hardcover book, a regional adventure supplement, nine map sheets, and more), this is a self-contained game system taking you to a strange alternate-world Switzerland where danger lurks in the deep forests, and even weirder things are afoot in the high mountain valleys. In Helvéczia, you can…

  • get surrounded by a band of brigands, shoot your way out, and make your getaway on one of their horses…
  • seduce an adventurous countess, and lose all your money to her in a game of cards (how did she do it?!)…
  • get devoured by giant frogs lurking in an abandoned well…
  • blow up the Devil’s stagecoach and live to tell the tale…
  • die in an unlucky first aid attempt (many such cases!)…
  • hunt wolves from horseback with grenades…
  • learn useless sciences like Hermeneutics and Vacuum Theory, then find them surprisingly useful…
  • get captured by the Inquisition, and escape from their clutches with the aid of a Holy Bible they gave you for your final night…
  • team up with the Inquisition against a blasphemous nest of fishmen…
  • dig up the fingerbones of a hanged man for the Skeleton Key spell, and procure a tanned dogskin for Emilio Sciarelli’s Spectacle…
  • play cards with the Devil for your immortal soul!

All of these, and more have happened in Helvéczia games (although some took place in the land of Catalonia, for you can play the game in other pseudo-historical milieus with a little effort).

Look, ma! Very Irate Geese!

As it should be evident, this is not a game concerned overmuch with historical accuracy or physical realism; rather, it aims to be a fast, swingy, colourful romp with high stakes and a lot of fantastic detail. It is not grim, and not particularly dark (although the past, indeed, is a foreign country – do not expect 21st century America or Europe). You do not have to be a student of history to appreciate Helvéczia (although an interest in it does not hurt): if you like Grimm’s strange and bloody stories, swashbuckler romances by Dumas and others, or swords-and-stagecoaches films, you will be right at home. Above all, this game is a love letter to the penny dreadfuls and cheap picaresque novels describing the lives and changing fortunes of scoundrels, bravos and never-do-wells – adventurers in the truest sense!

A Miraculous Escape!

Unlike many “OSR” systems, Helvéczia departs somewhat from the usual B/X lineage, and uses a simple, heavily streamlined and modified version of the d20 System (abandoning its more cumbersome aspects, and subjecting it to a lot of tinkering and polish). Players will no doubt be familiar with the game’s four classes, spell memorisation, the procedures of the combat system, or saving throws and experience points. Helvéczia employs this familiar framework, and puts its own spin on it. Everything is altered to fit the game’s subject matter, and it all fits into a closed, six-level advancement scale: even the mightiest heroes or the most ferocious monsters are found in this range. Yet, even low-level characters can accomplish much, and you do not have to be high-level to make a difference. There is no level scaling in the world, or in the published adventures: it is up to the players how to navigate Helvéczia’s pitfalls and dangers, and succeed or fail by their own decisions (and the fickle dice). This is, also, a complete game: everything you need is found in the rulebook, from rules, spells, monsters, magic items (mostly new) to GM advice, random tables, a starting adventure, and a brief setting guide. The rules are intended to be easy to learn, and the book can be picked up by beginners rather quickly.


Version Comparison Chart

Helvéczia is available in two versions: a more affordable hardcover, and a complete boxed set. The hardcover version ($40) includes:

  • Helvéczia, a 204-page hardcover rulebook, with a cover by Peter Mullen, and interior art by a host of period artists;
  • an A3 overview map of Helvéczia by Sean Stone, providing an overview of Helvéczia’s geography on one side, and its main cantons, towns and territories on the other;
  • a deck of 32 cards in case you want to play a hand with the devil – according to Hungarian card sharp traditions, the tried and true blue Piatnik card set, NO IMITATIONS ACCEPTED!

Hardcover edition

The boxed version ($60) includes everything above, and then some in a sturdy, hand-made box filled to capacity with goodies. Thus:

  • Helvéczia, a 204-page hardcover rulebook, with a cover by Peter Mullen, and interior art by a host of period artists;
  • Ammertal and the Oberammsbund, a 72-page regional supplement describing two cantons in Helvéczia in a hex-crawl format, and containing three larger and two shorter adventures, along with other miscellance (this supplement is also available separately);
  • an A3 overview map of Helvéczia by Sean Stone, providing an overview of Helvéczia’s geography on one side, and its main cantons, towns and territories on the other;
  • eight more A3-sized, double-sided map sheets offering player and GM hex maps for the entire extent of Helvéczia, and some of the surrounding territories (two of each map included to last multiple campaigns);
  • a deck of 32 cards in case you want to play a hand with the devil – according to Hungarian card sharp traditions, the tried and true blue Piatnik card set, NO IMITATIONS ACCEPTED!;
  • a folder with character sheets, sample characters, and a calendar booklet to keep strict time records with for a meaningful campaign (the folder doubles as a collection of reference sheets).

Boxed edition (four-volume, antique edition of Gil Blas not included)

Is it fun? We think so. Judge by the results of last Sunday’s expedition to the tunnels and chambers beneath the small town of ___(Redacted to protect the place’s good reputation)____, which lead right to the very depths of HELL!

  • Angelo Rossi, the Italian Vagabond, fell into a pit, where he was torn apart by headless walking corpses.
  • Brother Jean-Ambrose Lazard, a very sinful Franciscan, was captured by devils, and boiled in a fiery cauldron.
  • Tristan de la Croix, a French Soldier, was captured by the beautiful but wicked Gudrun von Oberhöllen, one of the aristocrats of Hell, and for disrupting her wedding night, imprisoned in a cage for the lady's perverted fancies. (Some might not find this so bad.)
  • Ivan the One-Eyed, Cossack Champion, fled in panic, and in madness did he emerge from the depths below!
  • Finally, Werner Lösung, German Sharpshooter, rescued Gudrun's handmaiden, the beautiful and innocent Elsie Schreck (who went to Hell for swearing, once!), but had to ask the Devil's assistance through cards to return to the surface of Helvéczia while hiding in a wardrobe (dragged through a painted cupola sky by diabolical giant owls). Since he had nothing else to pay the Devil with, Werner had to sign the contract (but at least he got to marry Elsie).

Want to die horribly in HELL and suffer ETERNAL DAMNATION? This is your game. Want to become a brigand leader? That, too, can be arranged. Reach sixth level, defend your doctorate in theology, and retire in style to your very own abbey? Not impossible. Win the hand of a fiery Gypsy girl after forgiving your mortal enemies? Certainly! Die in the last round of the last combat of a long-running campaign, and get decapitated by a vampire lord you had loosed on the world several sessions before? Could be, could be. Such fates, and more are in store for those who brave dust, gunfire, weird beasts, secret societies, and stand fast in the eternal struggle between Heaven and Hell!

IMPORTANT SHIPPING NOTE: As you might guess, the boxed set is large, and heavy. Accordingly, every boxed copy ships separately from other ordered items, and – unlike the smaller zines and modules – every boxed set incurs a separate shipping charge. Please note also that boxed sets have been found to ship slightly slower than regular mail, so expect some extra time or delivery.

Kämpft weiter!


36 comments:

  1. Finally, my days of waking up at 3am and desperately checking to see if this has been released has come to an end.

    So excited about this, congrats on the game!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And thus started our protagonists's days of waking up at 3am and desperately checking if this has been delivered by the post office.

      Delete
  2. Looks fabulous. Congratulations on seeing the fulfillment of your hard work Melan! I hope to find the funds to buy a box edition. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Isn't that the bottle of wine we had on the Sunday game?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes it is! In my defence, it was not drunk at an actual Helvéczia game, so it is not against the rules.

      Delete
  4. What I should read to prepare for this delight to arrive? Where Should I start?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. René Lesage's Gil Blas is a great book to read. It is long, but you don't have to read the whole to get an idea, and it has more plot in 30 pages than modern fantasy novels have in a trilogy.

      It is much more grim than Helvéczia, but Moorcock's War Hound is an inspiring book, and I consider it his masterwork.

      The works of the Grimm brothers are great, too, but the best book to get for Helvéczia is not their Fairy Tales, but Grimm's German Legends. This is a ready-made collection of adventure seeds, and filled with great mood. However, a complete, unexpurgated edition of Fairy Tales is also very good, for the tales which are typically NOT included in the usual collections - the weird, bloody, or nonsensical fragments that make for good game fodder.

      Stanley Weyman's Under the Red Robe is quite excellent, and fairly short.

      As movies go, any 1950s-1970s European swashbuckling movie will do. Honestly, these are not great works of art, and fairly interchangeable, but they are great fun. One particular work off the top of my head (and which I did not know until very recently) is the Italian I Picari (The Rogues, 1987). These are written specifically on the basis of two Spanish picaresque novels.

      Delete
    2. Excellent!These will keep me busy on the long wait, thanks!

      Delete
  5. And not to forget about a classic that also originated from Hungary, just like Helvéczia, now freely available in some languages, such as in this Victorian English translation:
    https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/34770

    It is listed in the Recommended Reading of the rulebook, and already mentioned at Melan's blog:
    http://beyondfomalhaut.blogspot.com/2021/04/news-helveczia-announcement-and-preview.html?showComment=1618609517980#c5723934759965759264

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I'll look into that as well.

      Delete
  6. Thanks to Helvéczia, I've learned that the set of cards that I've always considered as "mariáš cards", Czech cards or perhaps just THE cards are actually Hungarian. Or, I guess, Austro-Hungarian (and borderline Swiss, containing imagery from William Tell).

    https://welovebudapest.com/en/article/2017/1/18/explainer-hungary-s-unique-playing-cards

    So here's to our shared heritage, and of course I've already bought the box. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know if it is true or a legend, but as I remember William Tell imagery was used because of anti-Habsburg sentiments.
      I think germans also have cards very similar to this, and most likely these exist in whole central Europe in similar format.

      I think you will like Helvéczia :)

      Delete
  7. Finally!
    Would it need a lot of work to run Castle Xyntillan by Helvéczia rules?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've asked the same question and got a reply here:

      http://beyondfomalhaut.blogspot.com/2021/04/news-helveczia-announcement-and-preview.html?showComment=1620416509067#c6457373585816291331

      Delete
  8. Congrats on the release!
    Purchased, and can't wait to get my hands on my copy down here in the deep antipodes.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I just received my box set a couple days ago and it is absolutely stunning!

    Though I do find myself confused about spell craft. Students are listed in having an additional 1d3+2 levels of spells in their spellbook. Are they capable of casting these higher level spells at first level or are they merely there to give Students something to work towards?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They can be spells the Student may learn later (third level is not too hard to achieve, while finding spellbooks out in the wild is a gamble). They can also be memorised as bonus spells by high-Intelligence Students. Bonus spells have no level limitation (although they have others as described in the book), so a 2nd level Student with an Intelligence of 15 could have one bonus spell memorised from the first level, and one from the second level; the rare Student with a 18 Intelligence could even have a third-level one.

      Delete
    2. Thank you! That is incredibly helpful. Let me know if I have this right:

      A 4th cleric praying at a large enough church could learn their full complement of spells in a single night, while a student would have to take a few days studying to fill all their slots,a day for two 2nd level and an additional day for their 1st level spells? (I'm assuming unspent slots stay learned until cast)

      My only other question is about the Devil's Bible. I understand paying with gold but I'm unclear about paying in sin? Do you remove the sin you committed and raise your virtue, or are you just paying a virtue cost?
      Additionally when the devil "keeps" a card does that mean a character must buy a new deck of cards if they want a full set?

      Thanks again for the answers, trying to process all this information before getting a proper group of scoundrels together.

      Delete
    3. A 4th level cleric could learn every spell available at that specific church under a single night, but would have to look for others at different locations. This can require some travel, especially since local priests are rarely happy about a guest overstaying their welcome. There are further limitations discussed in the book - jealous priests and abbots guarding "their" spells, corruption, enmity, or spells which may only available on special conditions (like access to a particularly holy chapel or a forgotten relic).

      Students would spend some days memorising their spells and acquiring/preparing components. However, they could use any spell included in their books.

      In general practice, resources in Helvéczia - this includes Hit Points as well - are more weekly than daily. The pace of adventuring is slower, and resource conservation plays a large part. Most Students, for example, tend to fight with pistols and swords, and only occasionally resort to spells.

      Delete
    4. Concerning the Devil's Bible, sins committed during the adventure (but not outside it) can be wagered instead of gold Thalers. The sin, of course, stays in place: it is the Devil's trick to entice man to damnation even if he is "let off easily"!

      When the cards are counted after the adventure, all of them must be accounted and paid for, and afterwards, they are returned to the deck to tempt scoundrels another day!

      Hope that answers it.

      Delete
    5. It being an adventuring week vs an adventuring day makes a lot of sense. It's a beautifully designed game, and seeing how Xyntillan is hands down the best adventure I've ever read/run I'm itching to get this to the table!

      One last question about the Devil's Bible though, what does it entail then when the devil "takes" a card. It seems you only suffer if you break 21, so wouldn't it be a good move to just ubderbid for every card? Or do you see who's closer to 21 after the Devil takes theirs and if he's closer you still owe your soul/favor?

      Delete
    6. Ooops, I forgot to answer this one. It theoretically makes sense to overbid every card, if your character has the money. However, money is typically fairly tight in the game; living expenses and basic equipment are usually not a problem for a bunch of adventurers, but having a purse full of gold is not guaranteed. If one of my PCs has more than ten Thalers, I tend to feel rich! That amount is about sufficient to buy off a full hand.

      Delete
  10. Any news on the pdf release?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The PDF version will be released with the customary delay, in late Septermber or early October. For now, I would rather let people absorb the print edition and preserve the novelty. A few extras like character sheets, a virtual card deck, and similar play aids will be uploaded relatively soon.

      Delete
  11. Gabor,

    The box set is terrific. In preparing for a campaign, I’ve been reading your recommendations, with Mór Jókai being a real discovery. Told by the Death’s Head is amazing. Are there any other inspirations that didn’t make your list, especially ones that will be off-the-beaten path for Anglophone gamers?

    Jon

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jon -- Glad you are liking the box! The main items I did not list in the recommended reading represent a genre that might be called "historical curiosities and antiquities". These are books focusing on minor weird history, usually meant more for entertainment than serious research, and most popular in the 19th and early 20th century. (Although they were written by knowledgeable people.)

      They would feature all kinds of strange historical knick-knacks from mercenaries' magical beliefs (some of which have made their way into the game), to stories of how a city had put a pig on trial, how a certain mountain spring was known to be used by eagles for rejuvenation, or historical methods of cryptography. This is an area where my sources could not be reasonably expected to be available in English, while I do not know of the worthwhile English books in the same area.

      One English book I decided to drop from the list was Richard Head's The English Rogue, a 1665 picaresque novel. It is authentic, true to the genre, but rightfully forgotten - the protagonist is a complete dick, and the writing is really uneven.

      Likewise, the German Rinaldo Rinaldini, one of the defining robber stories by Christian Vulpius (who was related to Goethe!), is omitted in novel format, since the original version is sort of dull for modern readers. It is present in the form of the excellent TV series (itself a forgotten obscurity, unfortunately).

      I also decided to omit Defoe's Moll Flanders, which is much better, technically a picaresque, but perhaps not as adventurous as the game would demand.

      More recently, I have discovered Théophile Gautier's Captain Fracasse; this fits the game quite well, but I discovered it too late to include it.

      Delete
  12. I'm curious -- do you have a plan or recommendations for publication of third-party adventures written specially for Helvéczia?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This will probably happen gradually. I would first like people to familiarise themselves with the game, and play some. And for a while, I might want to vet anything commercial. It would be nice to have good materials for the game, and it should not be too hard to get the hang of it, but I am looking at what's happening with Mörk Borg, and that's something I would prefer to avoid.

      Delete
    2. We need this. I personally want to have a Portuguese option to the game. I want to die horribly by the hands of Krampus as one.

      Delete
    3. The Portuguese have made their debut in our ongoing Catalonia campaign (among other inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula). Since this material is not yet published, let alone translated, here is a quick translation of the material in question:

      Portuguese: The brave Portuguese are known for a love of the sea. Their adventurous forebearers made the first great discoveries leading to colonisation, and it is no accident that they are counted among the greatest seamen to this very day - although evil tongues often wag, claiming that the wish to travel only drives them because Portugal is the most boring land in the world.
      * They receive +2 on every check related to ropes.
      * They receive the Sailing skill for free at the start of the game.

      Unfortunately, the only Portuguese character died very quickly at the hands of devil spirits, so the road to greater glories has not yet been trod.

      Delete
    4. Awesome! I'll definitely use this in my game. And thanks for the laugh, that description kills!

      Delete
  13. What's happening with Mörk Borg?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Flood of terrible supplements.

      Delete
    2. They should get rid of all the pink background, it will be their demise, I tell you.

      Delete