We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming, for a bit of promotion…

That’s too strong a word, since I’m not involved with this KS other than as a backer, but I think it must be of interest to anyone here reading about WFRP or Zweihänder. It’s a Kickstart for a, “green-hued, dark-fantasy, old-school mini-setting and bestiary set in a twisted middle-England.”

Here’s the video (warning: dubstep, but please don’t hold that against the project):

The setting is initially statted for OSR (Swords & Wizardry) and Newt Newport of D101 Games has also promised to do a Crypt & Things conversion if it funds. This is definitely an ‘old-school’ setting of hexcrawls and monster encounters, but the feel of it is entirely Warhammer:

“Situated in the middle of Havenland is an area known by the ancestors as the Middle Havenlands. They don’t use that name much any more, preferring to talk lazily, and skip letters.

In strange accents, often misheard and little understood by those outside of the central region – they call it “The Midderlands”, and themselves “Midfolk” or “Midderlanders”.

There are many peculiar folk that call these Midderlands home. Generally mistrusting of outsiders, they suspiciously eye strangers, close doors, bar windows and scurry in opposite directions. Maybe the area has had a troubled history and that is why the folk behave the way they do.

All that aside, there are good folk too. These folk just want to subsist peacefully and not have interference or “goings on” in their lives. Nothing is ever that simple.

As well as the people of the area, there are the places. The towns and hamlets, the woods and hills, the lakes and the rivers. Amongst all these places are stranger locales too; circles of stones, strange towers, castles and burial grounds.

Everywhere, the Midderlands is tainted by a green-hued menace that rises from the deep and affects nature and order, sometimes subtly and sometimes catastrophically. It rises from the mysterious subterranean realm known as Middergloom. Often described as hell bathed in green fire and flames. Green-tinged slime, noxious vapours, and miasmas creep upwards, amongst them viridian-coloured demons, lime-green tentacles and other malachite horrors claw their way to the surface to wreak havoc. The Lords of the land are always working to keep things at bay. The realm of Middergloom is deliberately nebulous and mysterious, and left for you to develop as needed to suit your campaign.

The vileness that lurks below taints the skies above the land too, known as The Drab. The atmosphere is a hint of green rather than blue. The colour can shift between turquoise and sickly yellow-green in a short space of time. When night comes and the Drab clears, the midfolk can see the constellations surrounded by wispy green nebulae, strange wandering stars and comets, and a single many-cratered moon.

There are many things to keep the inquisitive minds of treasure seekers amused. There are also many things to keep the treasures where they are.

Things stir in this viridian-hued landscape. Evil eyes blink and watch. Teeth and claws scratch and sharpen. Gaping maws slobber and drool.

All is not content in the Midderlands.”

The Middergloom could be a great take on Chaos or Corruption in the hands of the right GM, and in that respect the OSR vibe of the project would turn out to be an advantage. Because the author concentrates on “game juice” and less on the history, it leaves masses of space for a Warhammer aficionado to inject the deep background we tend to love, as well as providing a ready-made setting for any Zweihänder GM.

The project has only 5 days to go and needs a bump to get over the top, so go pledge! Here the link again: The Midderlands – An OSR Mini-Setting & Bestiary.

With thanks to Hrudgar at Strike-to-Stun for initially drawing my attention to this.