Key Notes
METAL IS RARE
Weapons & Armor grade metal has limited availability due to rareness and / or specialized knowledge to effectively work metals. Metal armor is very rare and expensive in the Realm and most metal armor is bronze or iron (in short supply and at least double base cost) rather than steel. Steel is very highly valued for both armor and weapons (rare, at least triple base cost), and the knowledge to forge it is rare and very protected; a fine steel sword would be something that many would literally kill for. Non-metal armors such as leather, hide, lamellar, and even bone is the typical fare and several cultures still use primitive stone based weapons.
BULGING HEWS AND THIGHS CAN RUIN THE GAME
As a side effect of the focus of the paradigm, high strength characters will tend to be extremely prevalent. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, but it can have some unintentional side effects that can do anything from destabilize the game to outright ruin the GM's intended tone and feel.
Aside from the boring sameness of many meat puppet warrior types, one of the main issues is that high strength allows characters to effectively ignore Encumbrance, which allows them to strut around in full plate as if it were flannel. Most Sword & Sorcery campaigns are slanted at more of a bare-chested barbarian feel, and characters strolling around with an ironmongery on their back is obviously counter to that intention.
The rarity of metal in the Realm of Barbarica addresses this by making high-grade armor relatively unavailable.
MAGIC ITEMS ARE RARE
Magic Items of real power tend to be very rare, and are frequently relics of a bygone (and more powerful) Age. More prevalent Magic Items tend to be lower powered and/or expendable. If a character acquires an actual Permanent Magic Item (as opposed to an Ephemeral Magic Item with limited uses) with a useful ability they should consider themselves lucky but will also likely need to defend it from the avaricious. Often a character with some pluck that is fortunate enough to acquire a useful Magic Item will go on to make a name for themselves, and many such items have well known histories surrounding them stemming from a string of notable owners.
WEAPON CONSTRUCTION IS SIGNIFICANT
Due in part to being a warrior dominated paradigm, and lacking quantities of magical and high quality weapons, subtle differences in the construction of mundane weapons is often an important subject in Sword & Sorcery campaigns. A GM should consider giving some weight to the materials used to construct weapons and a few minor pros and cons for good or shoddy craftsmanship.
SKILL TRUMPS TRICKS
The order of Sword & Sorcery should be taken literally. Magic is present but takes a back seat to muscle and skill; in a direct confrontation, a swordsman will usually defeat a Spellcaster. Magic is often insidious and capable of noteworthy effects, but powerful effects are rarely fast, or combat practical, or reliable. On the plus side however few people have any defense against Magic, or Magic Items of their own, so Magic Users have an effective near-monopoly on Magic.
Settings
| No Formal Race Package or NCM | | X | Formal Race Package with NCM |
| END Cost = Active Points / 10 | | X | END Cost = Active Points / 5 |
| Knockback | | X | Knockdown |
| Generalized Damage | | X | Hit Location Damage |
| No Long Term Damage | | ~ | Injury & Impairment Damage |
| Literacy Standard | | X | Literacy Not Standard |
| Super Skills Available | ~ | | No Super Skills Available |
| Combat Luck Allowed | ~ | | No Combat Luck Allowed |
| No Deadly Blow Allowed | | ~ | Deadly Blow Allowed |
| No Armor Proficiency | | X | Armor Proficiency |
| No Skill Maxima | | X | Skill Maxima |
| No STR Minima | | X | STR Minima |
| Equipment Costs Points | | X | Equipment Doesn't Cost Points |
| Bases & Vehicles Cost Points | | X | Bases & Vehicles Don't Cost Points |
| Followers Cost Points | | X | Follower Don't Cost Points |
| Superheroic CSL Conversion | | X | Heroic CSL Conversion |
| No Encumbrance | | X | Encumbrance |
| No Long Term Endurance | | X | Long Term Endurance |
| Normal Damage Default | | X | Killing Damage Default |
| ~: Used in moderation |
Healing
Magic Healing is Uncommon to Rare. Some kinds of
Occultists are Healers with mystical powers, and some
Ecclesiastics are granted healing abilities by the entities they serve. The most typical form of magical healing are potions (and the like) created by
Alchemists; they tend to be costly in monetary terms but their portability makes them a very valuable commodity.
However characters tend to be hardy with a lot of BODY, and the Fast Healing Talent is common to heroic characters.
Additionally, Chirurgy (Paramedics) and herbal healing (KS: Herbology, PS: Herbologist) exist, though they are no where near as efficacious as most forms of magical healing.
Artifice Level
The Realm of Barbarica's default
Artifice Level is
LowSome regions, where noted, are
Primitive on the low end or
Standard on the high end.
There are some remnants of
High societies here and there in the Realm, but they are ancient, and may not remain functional or meaningful.
Character Points
DEFAULT STARTING POINTS: 75+50It is assumed that new characters in this paradigm start with 75 Base Points and up to 50 points from Disadvantages. This value can be altered by the GM at will.
This paradigm is expected to explode on the higher end of the point scale. A GM can easily kick start the campaign to a higher level of play by granting large chunks of Experience to characters to represent their status as veteran adventurers when the campaign starts. Similarly the GM could downscale the characters to represent that they are somewhat green when the campaign starts
The following chart vaguely indicates relative status levels by adjusted character points. The status titles are not intended to have any literal meaning; they are just intended to give an idea of the status of a character with that many character points.
| Relative Status | Base | Max Disadvantage Points | Starting Experience | Max Starting Total Points |
| Sheltered Neophyte | 50 | 25 | 0 | 75 |
| Neophyte | 50 | 50 | 0 | 100 |
| *Youngblood | 75 | 50 | 0 | 125 |
| Seasoned Youngblood | 75 | 50 | 25 | 150 |
| Veteran | 75 | 50 | 50 | 175 |
| Seasoned Veteran | 75 | 50 | 75 | 200 |
| Hero | 75 | 50 | 125 | 250 |
| Champion | 75 | 75 | 150 | 300 |
| Famous | 75 | 75 | 200 | 350 |
| Legend | 75 | 100 | 225+ | 400+ |
| * Asumed Default |
Races
The core playable races of the Realm of Barbarica are listed below.
- Humans: Humans are by far the most prevalent playable race in the Realm of Barbarica, and there are numerous subraces to choose from.
- Karadaka (Dwarves): a few scattered remnants of the fabled Karadakana remain across the lands of Barbarica.
- Elves: Elves are relatively rare, but a few of them remain in Barbarica.
- Lizardmen: a race of crocodillian humanoids lives in the swamps of Tropizia, and a race of spindly desert lizardmen live in Silizia.
Means to Power
There are many different ways for characters to gain power and be recognized in the Realm of Barbarica.
MAGIC SYSTEMS
Common: these Magic Systems are widespread and generally accepted in Barbarica:
- Ecclesiastics exist in Barbarica exactly as presented in the linked document.
- Alchemists exist in Barbarica exactly as presented in the linked document. Alchemy is well regarded as a lucrative trade in most regions of Barbarica.
- Occultists exist in Barbarica. RSR: Occult Lore (INT) is required on all Occult abilities. An Occultist that has three or more Occult abilities can combine them into a single Occult Elemental Control. The recommended Limitation restrictions (must Cost END, cannot take Charges, Independent, or Foci) are in effect.
Rare: these Magic Systems are rare and / or
geographically limited and GM's permission is required to play a practitioner:
- Runecrafting exists in Barbarica, but it is rare. GM's permission is required to play a Runecrafter. Runecrafting originated with the Dwarves long ago, but several human cultures have a version of it.
- Naturalists exist in Barbarica exactly as presented in the linked document; they are often referred to as drydd, dryw, druí, or drúa depending on regional dialects.
- Elementalist exists in Va-ros but are extremely rare and their magic is very entangled with spiritual worship of the Celes.
- The Dark Arts
- Necromantists exist in Barbarica exactly as presented in the linked document. However, they are persecuted in many lands.
- Thanomancy exists in Barbarica and is one of the most powerful Magic Systems available, but is very rare. GM's permission is required to play a Thanomancer. The practice of Thanomancy and Necromantism is combined in some arcane disciplines.
- Daemonologists exist in Barbarica exactly as presented in the linked document. They are persecuted in most civilized lands, but quite accepted among many of the more savage or dark peoples.
PSIONICS
Psionics exists in Barbarica but is called
Mentalism and practitioners have a variety of names but are most often called Mystics instead, and is generally rare, though it is more common in some regions than others. Wild Talents are roughly equally as common as full fledged trained Mystics, and are also referred to as Mystics and are merely thought of as being untrained / untutored. In some areas Mystics are hunted down and enslaved or slain.
SUPER SKILLS
Realm of Barbarica characters can have "super skills", generally called "
Heroic Knacks" or "
Combat Tricks", or "
Feats", etc. Such abilities can take many forms, and represent a significant means for characters to distinguish themselves. The GM exercises veto privileges over all such abilities.
Here are over a hundred examples:
Heroic KnacksMARTIAL ARTS
Fighting Styles, both formal and informal, armed and unarmed, are available in the Realm of Barbarica. The GM exercises veto privileges over Martial Arts Packages, Damage Classes, and so forth.
Professions
The following Profession are considered to be "core" to the Realm of Barbarica.
Realm of Barbarica