Carnival of Swords

[Messageboard Golem]

In the center of the civilized Empire, a pagan menace stirs beneath the worn cobbles of Old Coryan. Every seven years, the people celebrate a strange holiday called the Carnival of Swords, enacting an atavistic rite to crown one among them as the Horned King. But now the monarch lies dead, slain by an unseen hand, causing the ancient spirit known only as the God of the Hills to run rampant through the streets unchecked. The only chance to stay this being and the warring factions of Old Coryan lies in the hands of a small band of adventurers drawn into the heart of the conflict.

Carnival of Swords is a 64-page Sourcebook and Adventure detailing Old Coryan as a setting that provides endless nights of adventuring. The Adventure has the added benefit that it can be played with Living Arcanis characters at home! In addition to an intricate and suspenseful adventure, GMs will enjoy added material on crime guilds, prominent figures, exotic locales, new magic, and much more!

 

[Minicol]

Hello Folks !

This is my first review, and english is not my native language, so please be indulgent with me.

This is a playtest review !

Carnival is a 80 pages softbound book, written by Scott Charlton, an recurrent author for Living Arcanis, the RPGA Living campaign set in the World of Arcanis. It is playable both within living arcanis and in home play.

For those who dont know Arcanis, think Ancient Times and Roman Empire with a rich mythology and an original take on fantasy classics.

Carnival of Swords is subtitled "an adventurer's guide to old Coryan".

Roughly half of the book is a description of the town of Old Coryan, the old quarter and historical center of the much larger metropolis of Grand Coryan, capitol of the Coryan Empire, the largest country in the Arcanis world. It describes the various areas of the city, from the ghettos of the Myrantian minority to the lofty heights of the patricians quarters.

The second part is the adventure. It is a city based adventure, with a heavy emphasis on ROLE rather than ROLL playing, with a strong mystery theme. The adventure is long and can be played in about 10 hours. It takes place within a carnival and is faithful to the atmosphere of carnivals in ancient times. Sufficiently so to offend some of my more prudish players, but it means some research was done. The atmosphere is really well rendered out.

There are about three parts:
Part 1 is a murder mystery
Part 2 is an enquiry about an elven (elorii in Arcanis) Artefact.
Part 3 unveils a dire conspiracy plot where the players have been the pawn in part 1 and 2, but thankfully, they might have an opportunity to understand what is going on and beat the BBEG.

For those who value role-play above dice-rolling, this is a GREAT adventure. I played it with a group of six players, and in that group, five were ecstatic, and one hated it. Afyer discussing it with the problem player, he said that the main reason is that the other five stole the adventure from him, depriving him of the spotlights. So, all said, it is an adventure with a lot of potential, almost able to rival with "power behind the throne" for warhammer.

What else can I say ? Art is B&W, but you are not really buying it for the art.

The only reason why it doesn't deserve more as a mark, is that I feel that with so rich a setting, the author could have done even better. I hope he sets to writing a sequel. If you have any cash for a hamburger, you must have this book instead !

All comments welcome, if you have anything to say, you can email me at : francois.michel12@wanadoo.fr

regards

 

[Messageboard Golem]

I must say I loved "Carnival of Swords". Not only did I get a city sourcebook, but a full length adventure as well. Paradigm's attention to detail, and the author's ability to create an atmosphere the players can truly immerse themselves into made this adventure a wonderful experience for myself and my gaming group. I highly recommend this product to anyone who plays within the world of Arcanis OR anyone else who craves an adventure rife with dark intrigue and tough encounters.