Introduction

While certainly not a clone, as it does not try to emulate any edition of D&D, Ye Old Gaming Companye's Wayfarers RPG (now distributed by Mongoose Publishing and not to be confounded with their own game line, Legend, which they once contemplated to call Wayfarer) can be described as a "simulacrum" meant to play D&D-like fantasy. The game was originally published in 2008 by authors J. T. Swill and G. Vrill under the Open Game Licence and 2012 marks the release of a revised version which is the subject of this review. Although the changes are significant in number, they are not sufficient enough in scope to warrant calling this reprint a new edition. They are mostly tweaks and adjustments which are often the results of the feedback of its still small but enthusiastic fan community. This revision will play and feel much like the original game.

The original game has been reviewed on a number of occasions before ^1,2,3,4 but it appears to have been picked up mainly by the "Old-School Renaissance" crowd. Although their opinions were as fair and balanced as any, I do not think that the game only targets this audience. Many clones and simulacrums have been published in the recent years and it's no wonder that some great products slipped under the radar. The release of the revised Player's and Game Master's Reference Books as well as The World of Twylos Campaign Setting prompted me to write this review in which I will attempt to make a section by section description of all three of the Wayfarers' core books at once, and highlight how the revised versions compare to the original.

Disclaimer

As it is near impossible to be truly impartial when approaching one's hobby, I intend to fully disclose my personal tastes in gaming. I've discovered RPGs in the early nineties at which point 2E AD&D was the most supported line and my entry point into the hobby. Although this is by far the edition (and RPG for that matter) that I've played the most, I can't say that its mechanics nor those of any other previous or current incarnations of D&D ever quite did it for me. In retrospect, up to a couple of years ago, I would have described myself as a system orphan as I had been adopted by 2E AD&D and not the other way around. I can honestly say that, although I might be nostalgic of the good times I had with friends around the gaming table, I do not feel any nostalgia for the game systems of my youth. Even back then, I ignored many of their convoluted rules and arbitrary restrictions and, like many others, often ended up playing heavily house-ruled versions of the games.

I now tend to prefer rules-lighter systems showcasing streamlined mechanics that fade into the background in favor of exploration- and story-based gaming. I'm not looking for realism but I appreciate rules that allow the arbitration and quick resolution of a wide variety of situations without delving into intricacies nor constantly wander off into the realm of hand-waving. As the titular DM/GM for my gaming groups over the years, I like games that offer enough mechanical options to support the players' diverse character concepts while making an effort to reduce the GM's workload and preparation time. I am also biased toward RPGs that don't require the tactical use of miniatures.

Needless to say that, with such criteria, I did not entertain much hope of finding a modern system that offered the familiar D&D feel. Just as I was ready to abandon my search, I stumbled upon Wayfarers which checks out all of those boxes and it has, since then, become my go-to fantasy RPG. Although I am not commercially affiliated with Ye Old Gaming Companye in any way nor do I personally know the authors, I did participate in forum discussions leading to its revision and helped comb the books for errata. They were kind enough to provide me with early PDFs of the books while I was waiting for my physical copies. At the time of this review, I have yet to playtest the revision but I am playing the original version.

Product Presentation

The original version of the Wayfarers RPG was published as a hefty 436 pages hardcover book. Ye Old Gaming Companye first contemplated publishing the revised version through Mongoose as two hardcover books, one for the game system and one for the World of Twylos campaign setting, but had to settle on three softcover books for economical reasons : a 196 pages Player's Reference Book, a 188 pages Game Master's Reference Book, and the upcoming 132 pages World of Twylos Campaign Setting. Leo Lingas, the artist responsible for the somewhat notorious "bear-man" (which actually was a gnole, yes, spelled this way) cover of the original version managed to create new even cooler covers for the revised books. The back covers offer the same serviceable but not as inspiring art of the original version. The books are presented in the same clean two-column layout as before. The font and black & white artwork are very reminiscent of that of 1E AD&D books, giving the whole a distinct old-school visual feel. It also has the unintentional effect of making a first-time reader think that he is holding some sort of retro-clone. The artwork, although of good taste, is hardly spectacular when compared to that found in the products of the larger companies out there. Some of the weaker pieces have been dropped in favor of new better-looking ones and a lot of them have been moved around. Content-wise, everything one has come to expect from a player's book, a GM's guide, a well-stocked monster manual, and a non-invasive but interesting campaign setting is contained within those books. The revision, with its increased page count, offers even more material than the original. All of the known errata from the original version and many more fixes that were still unknown have been included in the revision. Still, despite the best efforts, a handful of typos made it through scrutiny to the books' first printing but have since been corrected in the PDF files. The original version was very well written and edited to start with and most casual readers would be hard-pressed finding what little remains of them. The PDF files I have received are searchable, copy-paste enabled, and fully indexed but not hyperlinked. As for the dead-tree versions, they are well printed on what looks like good quality matte paper and they appear to be sturdily bound. I have yet to receive the World of Twylos book but more of the same is to be expected. Hopefully, at some point in time, the books will be collected back into a special edition massive hardcovered tome.

Player's Reference Book

Player Character Creation (24 pages)

The player's book opens with the obligatory table of contents, a list of tables & figures, and J. T. Swill's foreword. Acknowledging that the reader is likely to be familiar with RPGs, the book starts with a short two pages introduction to the game where we find the usual general description of a RPG, the players' and game master's roles, and of dice rolls. The player's book then appropriately begins with character creation. PCs are mechanically defined by their race, attribute scores, disciplines (abilities), proficiencies (skills), some secondary traits (which will be covered later on), and equipment.

There are seven core races in Wayfarers : dwarves, elves, half-elves, half-orcs, hobgoblins (orc/goblin hydrids), humans, and orcs. Wayfarers' default setting, the World of Twylos, is highly human-centric. It is worth noting that orcs of pure or mixed blood are more common (by far the most common non-humans), civilized, and not as reviled in Twylos. Dwarves and elves are not prominent races in this setting, mostly relegated to marginal roles in its stakes. This is where the game differentiates itself the most from your standard vanilla roster of races and that distinction can easily be ignored if so desired. A plethora of other optional races are also offered in the GM's Reference Book and they will be addressed later on. Other than their flavor and cosmetics, the races have relatively little mechanical influence; they provide attribute adjustments (usually 1 to an attribute and -1 to another), a type of vision (normal, low-light, or infrared), and some sort of other bonus or advantage.

For example, here's the excerpt for the elves :

Elves: Elves are the largest of the faerie folk, standing between 5 to 6' in height, but typically weighing no more than 120 lbs. Elves have low-light vision similar to dwarves. Elf life expectancy is 300 to 320 years. Elf characters get 1 to their initial presence score, and -1 to their initial endurance score. Elves are unusually resistant to mind-affecting magic and apply a 1 modifier to Mental Resistance checks resisting illusions or magical attacks.

And that's it. The simplicity of Wayfarers' approach allows for the easy introduction or creation of a large variety of races without the risk of unbalancing the GM's campaign.

Each character has five attributes (instead of the usual six from D&D) which are Agility, Endurance, Intellect, Presence, and Strength. They are all pretty self-explanatory except for Presence which could be defined as Wisdom and Charisma rolled into one. The normal attribute range is 5-16 (instead of the usual 3-18) with 10-11 as average values. Attributes below 5 (min 1) or over 16 (max 20) are exceptionally low or high and they are not accessible under normal circumstances.

Upon creation, new characters get 20 points to distribute between their attributes which start off with a base score of 7 and cannot be set over 16. Racial adjustments are applied afterwards. This approach is mathematically simpler than that of the original version which provided more points to spend but with increasing costs for higher scores. Both approaches give off comparable attribute score arrays. This time around, attribute scores can optionally be generated by rolling dice (3d4 4) for those who dislike point-buy methods and prefer adding some randomness to the process. A hybrid method is also proposed as it was in the original version. Interestingly, the dice-rolling method would provide an average of 22.5 points vs the 20 points of the standard method.

Agility provides modifiers to initiative, to-hit with an on-hand weapon (new to the revised version), to-hit with an off-hand weapon (fighting with two weapons does not overshadow other options this time around), and related skills. Endurance provides modifiers to health points (i.e. hit points) earned with levels, and related skills. Intellect provides modifiers to resistance against illusions (new to the revised version) and related skills as well as potentially give bonus arcane spells, languages, and literacy for high scores. Presence provides modifiers to resistance against charms (new to the revised version) and related skills as well as potentially give bonus divine spells for high scores. Strength provides modifiers to melee weapon damage, missile weapon (mainly thrown weapons, slings, and composite bows) damage, and feats of strength (special game mechanics meant to handle strength-based actions such as heavy lifting, bashing doors, bending bars, etc.). The actual modifiers have been slightly tweaked in the revised version.

A series of secondary traits is derived from those attributes. Characters start with a base number of health points equal to their Endurance score and a base Dodge value (target value to get hit in combat, used much like armor class) equal to their Agility score. The sum of the character's Agility, Endurance, and Strength also determines a Physical Resistance modifier while Endurance, Intellect, and Presence determines a Mental Resistance modifier (Endurance is involved in both). Physical and Mental Resistance are the two kinds of "saving throws" used in Wayfarers.

The next phase of character creation is the most important and probably what makes Wayfarers stand apart from most D&D-like RPGs out there. Characters get skill points to spend on disciplines (abilities) and proficiencies (skills). Humans get 20 skill points to spend on disciplines and 10 skill points to spend on proficiencies whereas non-humans also get 20 points to spend on disciplines but 8 points to spend on proficiencies. This is a change from the original version in which humans got slightly more points for disciplines but the same amount as non-humans for proficiencies. At this point in time, I'm unsure whether this weakens or strengthens humans when compared to other races. The number of points provided have roughly been cut in half but so have the costs of disciplines and proficiencies, therefore simplifying the calculations involved.

The 56 base disciplines listed (additionally, 19 optional disciplines are also included in the GM's Reference Book) can be seen as a mixture of class abilities and feats. This is the same number of disciplines as in the original version but two of them have been removed (Shield Bash and Shield Use; the first no longer require precious skill points expenditure to be used and the later is now covered by the Armor Use discipline) and replaced by two new ones (Charge and Rush which give more combat options). They offer everything from improving a character's attributes or ability to wear armor, to increasing his dodge or health points, and to gaining the ability to cast spells or use combat manoeuvers; allowing the player to custom-build his own character class.

Here's an example :

Backstab: 4 skill points x grade. The Backstab discipline enables a character to inflict extra damage upon an opponent, when that opponent is surprised from behind. There are three grades of the Backstab discipline. For each grade, the attacking character adds an extra 1d8 of damage to each of his attacks that hit that round. For example, a character with Backstab grade I that successfully backstabs an opponent, attacking twice with a long sword, would inflict 1d10 1d8 if one attack hit, or 2d10 2d8 if both attacks hit. The same character with Backstab grade II would inflict 1d10 2d8 for each hit with the long sword.

The Backstab discipline may only be used when a character successfully surprises an opponent from behind. Simply moving behind an opponent is not sufficient.

Note: If an opponent is unaware and attacked from behind, that opponent's dodge score is halved for the first round of attacks made.

While not overwhelming, the variety is enough to cover all the bases and allow the design of pretty much any of the standard and not so standard fantasy archetypes. The system's beauty is that there is simply no need for countless splatbooks to create the desired characters. You can have different flavors of rangers (or even ninjas for that matter) in your campaign if you so desire. Wayfarers' tour de force is that it somehow achieves this effect without generating generic jack-of-all-trades as it is often the case with classless systems. While diversification is allowed, specialization is encouraged, therefore preserving the feeling of the characters' niche roles in the party which is often held dear by those who appreciate class-based systems such as D&D.

Proficiencies come next. They essentially represent the characters' knowledge and non-combat skills. A serviceable list of 44 proficiencies is proposed and covers everything from Acrobatics to World Knowledge, going through Heraldry and Persuasion but none of them would make anyone cringe. Again, this is the same number as in the original version but with a few changes. Agriculture has been removed and is now appropriately covered by the more general Trade Skill and Perception (used passively and actively in the original version) has been split into two distinct proficiencies, Perception (now used passively) and Search (used actively). The division of Perception is a welcome change since this proficiency was heavily used in comparison to others. The only proficiency, common to many fantasy RPGs, that appears to be "missing" is some sort of Disable Devices or Traps which suggests, if not an oversight, that the author prefers such challenges to be resolved by creative thinking and, maybe when appropriate, with the Engineering proficiency.

The most interesting thing about Wayfarers' proficiencies is the mechanics involved in their resolution. The player rolls a number of d20s based on their proficiency's grade (from one to four) and keeps the highest number which can be further adjusted by its associated attribute modifier. The total must equal or exceed the target difficulty (usually between 5 and 20) assigned by the GM. Natural 1s are automatic failures and natural 20s are automatic successes. Characters unskilled in a given proficiency also get to roll 2d20 but must keep the lowest roll. This gives them some chance at success although a significantly diminished one except for a few skills that can only be used by skilled characters such as Healing or Weapon-making. Unskilled proficiency rolls were handled differently in the original version, the character got to roll a 1d10 instead. The more elegant revised method allows some odds for success at more difficult checks that were previously impossible.

Here's a sample proficiency :

Healing: 2 skill points per grade (intellect). The Healing proficiency allows a character to restore lost health points to him or herself or another injured person. In general, the amount a recipient is healed is based upon the proficiency check result. In normal circumstances with adequate resources, healing provided is:

1-4: No healing.
5-9: 1 health point restored.
10-14: 1d2 health points restored.
15-19: 1d3 health points restored.
20 : 1d4 health points restored.

Healing attempts take 2 rounds. A Healing attempt may be made once per day on any individual. However, a second Healing attempt is possible the same day if the recipient is subsequently injured after the first Healing attempt was made.

Note: Healing cannot be performed by non-proficient characters.

Player characters start of at 0^th skill level but this is nominally only as it is equivalent to 1^st level in most games. It is made so that the character's level match the tens of skill points they have earned. They gain a skill level (or experience level) for each 10 skill points (which might as well been called experience points) awarded by the GM during their adventures. Upon reaching a new skill level, the player can spend the associated 10 skill points (reduced from 20 in the original version) on improving or gaining new disciplines or proficiencies. The number of skill points assigned to disciplines increases with higher levels (from 6 to 10 per level) while those assigned to proficiencies decreases (from 4 to 0 per level but keeping in mind that discipline points can also be spent on proficiencies if so desired). Disciplines and proficiencies can only be improved by one rank per level and some of them have prerequisites. The character also gains health points as he levels up; 3 at lower levels and progressively decreasing to 0 at 13^th level. The net amount gained is also subject to Endurance modifiers and investment in the Health Point discipline. None of the character's other characteristics automatically change with levels. The player therefore gets full control upon which aspects they want their character to get better in.

It is important to note that since characters start off with their Endurance score in health points regardless of their occupation (i.e. class), they tend to be more resilient than starting D&D characters. Although they do gain a fixed but decreasing amount of health points as they level up, they do not end up with as much health points as higher level D&D characters. Creatures are also attributed limited amounts of health points in order to avoid the bloat often seen in other games. In fact, if my calculations are correct, the theoretical maximum number of health points a PC could have at 12^th level is 116 for a character with an Endurance score of 20 (very unlikely) who also has invested a maximum amount of discipline points in health points but most characters are likely to have around 40 to 60 health points at this point in their progression. Combat is therefore quicker and somewhat deadlier. In Wayfarers, PCs are heroes, not super-heroes.

Money, Equipment, Armor & Weapons (5 pages)

The standard currency in Wayfarers are silver coins instead of the usual gold coins. The exchange of coins goes as follow : 1 platinum coin = 10 gold coins = 100 silver coins = 1000 copper coins = 10 000 bronze coins. New characters get their Presence x 12 silver coins to spend on their starting equipment, armor, and weapons. Characters now get to choose from a much expanded list of mundane and miscellaneous goods with the revision.

In Wayfarers, armor absorbs a variable amount of physical damage based on a die roll (from 1 to 1d8). The same basic ten types of armor (the usual from leather to full plate armor) are available as in the original game but the shield has been split into three sizes in the revised version; the buckler, the shield, and the kite shield. Shields no longer absorb a fixed 1 point of damage but a variable amount : 1d6-4, 1d6-3, and 1d6-2 for buckler, shields, and kite shields respectively (negative values count as zero). It significantly increases the shields' potential but makes them not as reliable. This may be the most controversial and contested change of the revised version, mostly because some players dislike having to roll an extra die with a negative modifier. Wearing armor can negatively influence a character's dodge score, initiative rolls, agility-based checks, movement rates, jumping distances, and introduce a chance of arcane spellcasting failure if its wearer does not have sufficient Strength. These penalties for the untrained use of a cumbersome armor is based on a impedance value as it is called in the game. Armor may well be one of the game's only aspect where I would have liked a bit more differentiation and the only game mechanic I am likely to house-rule.

As for weapons, Wayfarers lists a good selection of melee and missile weapons in which the usual suspects are well represented without unnecessarily delving into exotic subtypes. Most weapons got a damage boost of approximately a die type with the revision. This is a welcome change from the original as some weapons, especially of the two-handed variety, did not deal sufficient damage in a system where armor cuts it down. Shorter weapons can also be wielded in the off-hand and used paired with another. Weapons are further defined by a class letter which regroups similar weapons. For example, the long sword, falchion sword, broad sword, scimitar, and bastard sword (when wielded one-handed) are categorized as class E weapons. Some martial disciplines are linked to specific classes and this allows characters to benefit from those disciplines for all of the related weapons. Characters are considered to be basically proficient will all weapons but the revision adds a Strength requirement for them all in order to avoid oddities such as all of the wizards opting for two-handed swords since their spellcasting ability is hindered by armor & shields anyways and their fighting ability is too poor to fight with two weapons. Characters who do not meet the Strength requirement simply suffer from a penalty to-hit equal to the difference.

Basic Game Mechanics (6 pages)

Wayfarers' rules are clearly designed to stay out of the way in favor of smooth gameplay. In-game time is divided into rounds (10 seconds), minutes, hours, days, etc. At the start of every round, each character rolls 1d10 and adds his initiative modifier. The highest results go first and identical values perform their actions simultaneously. The participant with the highest score can also choose to defer his initiative to 0. I find it to be the most useful game mechanic to automate with a software in play. In combat, a character may move up to 1/4 of his movement rate and THEN take any appropriate action (full attacks, cast spell, drink potion, etc.) OR move up to 1/4 of his movement rate, draw a weapon or switch weapons and THEN make one on-hand attack OR he can charge up to his full movement rate and THEN make one on-hand attack. Attacks are resolved by rolling 1d20 with modifiers to match or exceed the target's dodge score in order to hit. Natural 1s are automatic misses and natural 20s are automatic hits. For convenience and ease of play, multiple attacks are resolved one after the other at the same initiative. Damage is rolled for successful attacks and, when applicable, reduced by the target's armor absorbance roll. Characters fall unconscious once reduced to 0 or less health points and die if reduced to a negative value greater than half of their Endurance score. And that pretty much covers the basic combat mechanics.

Rules for things such as fighting with two weapons, attacking sleeping or unconscious opponents, vision impairment, mounted attacks, and surprise attacks are also provided. This section additionally discusses damage, falling, unconsciousness, healing, holding of breath, movement (running, jumping, swimming), and encumbrance. With the revision, the natural rate of health point recovery now elegantly scales as the characters grow in power. As for the encumbrance, it is worthwhile to note that the rules favor a really simple approach, not requiring any book keeping, based on an estimation of how much weight the character carries over his normal carrying capacity.

Magic Potential Skills & Spells (123 pages)

There are four types of magic in Wayfarers, two of them arcane (obtained by studying spell books and hindered by wearing armor) and the other two divine (obtained by worshiping deities and unhindered by wearing armor). With a total of nearly 600 spells, the game offers a nice assortment of powerful options in and out of combat. Many spells have been altered in the revision, a few of the weaker ones have been removed and replaced by new less redundant ones, especially for divine magic.

The first type of arcane magic is called Hermetic and it is usually wielded by wizards, sorcerers, and mages. Hermetic spells are divided into eight circles (i.e. spell levels) and further divided into schools : Abjuration, Alteration, Annihilation, Artifice (spells that cover magic item creation), Astromancy, Charm, Divination, Evocation, Horology, Metamagic (spells that modify or optimize the workings of other spells), and Summoning. They require verbal, gestured, and/or material components but the latter are only required when they are central to the spell. There is fortunately no need to stock-up on coal or to carry around bat guano. In combat, spells have a casting time that delays the moment in the initiative order in which it will take effect. During this time, the spellcasting can be disrupted by breaking the caster's concentration, either by attacking him or otherwise. Hermetic magic is vancian in the sense that its users can cast a daily limit of spells per circle but casters do not need to memorize individual spells each day. It is assumed that they memorize all of the spells that they know and can therefore cast any combination of them in a given day. Having to select individual spells prior to adventuring is a feature that I have always disliked of D&D's magic system as it tended to greatly reduce the variety of spells that was actually used in the field. New spells are learned from others' spellbooks and scrolls.

Here's a sample write-up of a classic spell :

Fireball
Circle: 5^th                                       Resist: Physical 15 for 1/2
Duration: Instantaneous                Casting time: -5
Effect: 30' diameter sphere          Range: 200'
School: Evocation                         Damage type: Heat
Components: V, G

The Fireball spell sends a small fiery globe streaking out from the caster's fingertips. When this incendiary reaches a distance determined by the caster, it explodes into an enormous sphere of fire. If the fireball is level to the ground with the caster, the area of effect will be a large dome or hemisphere, 30' in diameter. All creatures within the blast of a Fireball suffer 6d8 points of damage. Those making a successful Physical Resistance check suffer 3d8 points of damage.

The second type of arcane magic is called Hedge and it is usually wielded by alchemists, illusionists, bards, enchanters, tricksters, and thaumaturgists. Hedge spells are divided into five circles and also further divided into schools : Alteration, Artifice, Charm, Divination, Illusion, and Jinxes. They work much like those of Hermetic magic with the nuance that some spells may affect more targets than the listed maximum at the cost of reducing its resistance target number.

The first type of divine magic is called Faith and it is usually wielded by priests, clerics, and curates (and to a lesser extent; paladins, monks, and rangers). They obtain their spellcasting ability by worshipping a specific deity. Faith spells are divided into eight circles and further divided into domains : Benefaction, Damnation, Revelation, and Tellurgy. The spellcaster gains access to every spell of all of the domains allowed by their patron deity and refresh their spells by praying daily. They usually have access to a primary (1^st-8^th circles available), a secondary (1^st-6^th circles available), and a tertiary (1^st-3^rd circles available) domain and therefore barring access to the fourth but some deity grant access to two primary domains at the cost of also losing access to a second domain. One unfortunate consequence of the revision is that there is no base selection of deities to start with in the Player's Reference Book although religions are detailed in The World of Twylos Campaign Setting. The mechanics of Faith spellcasting are otherwise similar to those of arcane magic but, unlike other spellcasters, wielders of Faith magic can consolidate two spells of their daily repertoire into a spell of the next higher circle. Similarly, they can also substitute a spell for another of the next lower circle. Resistance target numbers (as well as some other characteristics) required to counter a Faith spell are influenced by the casters' current spellcasting ability. It is also worth to note that D&D's classic abilities to turn, destroy, rebuke or control undead are handled through a variety of spells in Wayfarers.

The second type of divine magic is called Ritual and it is usually wielded by mystics, shamans, necromancers, druids, obeah, warlocks, or witches. They obtain their spellcasting ability by worshipping powerful extra-planar beings. Ritual spells are divided into five circles and further divided into spheres : Blood, Dream, Gaea, and Stitch. Ritual spellcasting differs from other types in which it is not vancian. The spellcaster has a certain number of spell points to assign to each sphere and spend daily to cast spells. Each spell requires a certain number of points from one or more spheres and higher circle spells require more points. Spell points are refreshed by meditating daily to some otherworldly powers (mostly neutral or amoral beings). The rest of the spellcasting mechanics are similar to those of the other types of magic.

The section is then followed by 14 pages of sample characters and an example of gameplay.

Appendixes (18 pages)

The player's book ends with a spell glossary, the game's main charts & tables for quick reference during play, a list of pre-generated attribute combination sets, an index, and a character record sheet.

Game Master's Reference Book

Skill Points & Character Skills (16 pages)

Right after the table of contents and list of tables & figures, the GM's book starts off with guidelines on how to award skill points to the players as well as when and how to let them spend those points on their characters. They are given based on the challenges faced, the players' performance, and the enjoyment of the participants. The GM can generally award up to 5 skill points (reduced from 8 in the original version) to the players after each successful game session. This means that players will usually level-up every 3 to 5 game sessions.

It then moves on to advices on how to referee proficiency checks. Proficiencies are examined individually, examples for their use are given, and typical target numbers are proposed. Here's an example regarding the Contacts proficiency :

Contacts: The Contacts proficiency indicates the character has a number of useful social relationships within a specific region or locale. As such, the Contacts proficiency might be specific to either one large city, or several hamlets within a culturally unified area. Therefore, it is possible a character may have more than one Contacts proficiency, with each proficiency score relating to a distinct region. Typically, a character can draw upon contacts within these areas for services, aid and/or information. As a Game Master, it is important to require that a character spending skill points in the Contacts proficiency to spend a fitting amount of time in the area in which the contacts are to be established. Furthermore, even after contacts have been made, reciprocity is essential to maintain these relationships. Failure to do so should result in increased difficulty of future proficiency checks, or decrease the quality of the aid provided. Remember, the Contacts proficiency can work both ways. Thus, a well-connected character will likely be approached for services and/or aid just as he might approach others within his network.

Typical Contacts target numbers are: passage upon a sailing vessel: 5, safe house: 8, fence for contraband: 11, informant within a house of government: 14, hired assassin: 17.

General Mechanics & Rules (16 pages)

This next section details how to arbitrate the feats of strength mechanics as well as spell books and spell acquisition. The combat rules are also revisited from the GM's perspective, including discussions about critical hits and fumbles, cover, attacking with a shield, grappling, combat movement, charges, and retreating. The section ends with a full combat example.

The GM's section then goes into a discussion about some circumstantial topics such as damage, falling, asphyxiation, paralysis, stunning, poisons, diseases, health point recovery, character death (described as "an essential risk within the game"), aging, light & vision, water combat, and traveling.

I will not go into much more details since the most relevant specifics have been addressed in prior sections.

Magic Items & Their Creation (29 pages)

Magic items are assumed to be rare in Wayfarers and it is recommended that magic items be awarded sparingly. They are divided in the following categories : scrolls, potions & ambrosias, wands, armor, weapons, artifacts, and relics. Magic scrolls can allow any literate character to invoke the spell inscribed on it as if he was the magic-user that created it. A casting time is involved and reading a scroll can therefore be interrupted in combat. They lose their properties once used. Interestingly, spells cannot be transcribed from magic scrolls into a character's spell book as opposed to non-magical scrolls which allow such a thing. Magic scrolls can be found containing hermetic, hedge, and, to a lesser extent, ritual spells. Similarly, magic potions or ambrosias imbue the character who fully consume them with a spell-like effect starting the next round. Ambrosias are holy elixirs that usually possess curative or healing properties. Magic wands are implements (generally rods, staves, wands and, rarely, weapons) enchanted with the ability to cast a certain number of charges of a single spell. Magic armor and weapons are pretty self-explanatory. Magic armor provides bonuses to the amount of physical damage absorbed while magic weapons provide bonuses to-hit and damage (which differed in the original version). Additionally, their strength requirements can also be reduced. Artifacts are often powerful and permanent magic items which can take the form of boots, cloaks, rings, as well as other miscellaneous items which provide a wide variety of extraordinary abilities. Relics can be even more powerful items created through the intervention of a deity and are often comparable to what D&D considers to be an artifact. Here's an example of a relic of moderate power :

Wand of Morgana: This relic appears as a thin rod of carved antler. Depending upon the season, the Wand may be used to invoke one of four effects:

Spring: Any plant touched will be affected as if by the 2nd circle Faith magic spell, Plant growth.
Summer: Any creature touched will be burned for 2d8 points of damage, or 1d8 points if a Physical Resistance check of 16 is made.
Autumn: Any plant touched will wither and die.
Winter: Any creature touched suffers 2d8 points of cold damage, or 1d8 points if a Physical Resistance check of 16 is made. Furthermore, all non-magical liquids upon the victim will immediately freeze, and will remain so until thawed.

The Wand of Morgana may be employed once per day. A druid or priest of nature can make a Religious Knowledge proficiency check (target number 13) to determine for themselves which season's power to invoke regardless of the time of year.

Rules for allowing PCs to create magic items are then suggested, encouraging the GM to adjust them as he or she sees fit. This can only be done at higher levels and it is expensive (it was extremely expensive in the original version). The appropriate spells, ingredients, resources, time, and successful Dweomercraft proficiency checks are also required. Personally, I would tend to prefer magic items to be created at any level but remain very expensive. It is my opinion that restricting magic item creation to higher levels leads to the paradox that such powerful characters would rarely bother creating items of lesser power which should make them as rare as items of greater power. Hermetic spellcasters can create scrolls, potions, wands, armor, weapons, and artifacts. Hedge spellcasters can create scrolls and potions. Faith spellcasters can create ambrosias and relics. Ambrosias are a new addition to the revision and are meant to fix a loop-hole of the original version in which healing potions could not be created by any type of spellcaster according to the rules. Ritual spellcasters cannot create any kind of magic items unless they also wield Hermetic or Hedge magic, in which case they can create scrolls, potions, or wands imbued with Ritual spells.

Optional Rules (6 pages)

The optional rules section first lists other balanced races that a GM can introduce in their campaign. They are cambions (human/demon hybrids), dvergar (subterranean dwarves; new to the revision), dark elves (subterranean elves; new to the revision), gnomes, goblins, harkumen (exotic human-like race that cannot easily be killed but is unable to use any type magic), haubits (yes, spelled this way; new to the revision and of goblinoid origin), ogres, ratkin (ratmen), reptilians (lizardmen), and sidhe (shape-changing fairie folk). 19 optional disciplines (three of them are new to the revision and one has been removed) are then proposed. Optional rules and game mechanics are then offered. They include adding randomness in character creation, critical hits & fumbles, unintended targets in missile combat, armor breakage, effect of damage on individuals, firearms, effect of armor impedance on spell casting-time, damage from fire, and bonus skill points awarded through players' ballot. All of the previous allows a fair amount of tailoring of the game to suit most tastes.

Non-Player Characters (5 pages)

As advertised, this section contains guidelines and tables to aid the GM by simplifying the process of NPC creation.

The Other Planes (2 pages)

These couple of pages summarily describe the different planes of existence and cosmology of the World of Twylos.

Game Master Resources (12 pages)

This section contains a selection of tools aimed towards facilitating the GM's work. It starts with old-school tables for random treasure determination which have been adapted from material published in the Wayfarers Guild Journal (a semi-periodical featuring supporting material and supplements for Wayfarers) but are new to the revision. A series of pre-generated spell books for various levels of Hermetic and Hedge spellcasters follows. Much as a homage to the appendixes found in the 1E AD&D Dungeon Master's Guide, we then find useful lists of names for NPCs, deities, guilds, inns, boats as well other evocative terms. We also get lists of furnishing, tools, instruments, gems, jewelry, environments, urban sites, and evocative adjectives.

Catalog of Creatures (79 pages)

The longest section of the GM's book is dedicated to the description of well over 200 types and subtypes of creatures from Ablocanth to Yeti (in case anyone wonders, yes there are zombies as a subtype of undead), some of them illustrated. The wide variety offered is more than enough to support years of campaigning. All of the classics (and not so classic) can be found without any major oversights. The creatures are (fortunately!) not written-up like PCs or NPCs. Only the characteristics that are most likely to be used in play are detailed, which makes for easily digestible stat blocks. Creatures have generally been powered-up a notch with the revision. Here's a sample write-up for a classic creature :

Skeleton
Dodge: 13
Health points: 10 1d10 (16)
Intellect: very low to low
Physical Resist: 1
Mental Resist: n/a
Average size: 6' tall, 50 lbs.
Attacks: claw: 2 x 1d6 1 or 2 x by weapon 1
To-hit modifier: 3
Hide/armor: none
Initiative modifier: 1
Movement rate: 160'

Skeletons are the animated skeletal remains of a long dead humanoid. As individuals, skeletons have almost no personal impulse, and thus, are almost exclusively found in the service of an evil creature or greater undead. If encountered alone, a solitary skeleton will be extremely aggressive, attacking any living creature in sight. Larger groups of uncontrolled skeletons will act similarly, roaming in packs and seeking living beings to destroy. If possible, skeletons will choose to wield weapons, and at times, may be armored by their patrons. If given a choice, a skeleton will always prefer a bladed weapon rather than a bludgeoning one.

Abilities: Skeletons are immune to spells of possession, charm, illusion or any spell which allows a Mental Resistance check. Furthermore, skeletons take only half damage from cold, and are immune to poison and disease. Skeletons may see in total darkness. Edged weapons only inflict 1/2 damage upon skeletons. For missile weapon attacks, skeletons are considered to have a Dodge score of 16.

Physical description: Skeletons are the animated bones of an undead humanoid. Thus, their size and appearance depend upon the type of humanoid the skeleton was derived from. Although most skeletons are humanoids, some are the remains of other creatures. These skeletons will likely have different attributes than those provided here.

Appendixes (21 pages)

The appendixes include random encounter tables for different terrains, a spell glossary, and the game's main charts & tables for quick reference during play. A list of pre-generated attribute combination sets and optional skill point values for defeating creatures (which can also double as challenge ratings to help the GM build fair encounters) can also be found in the revision. The GM's book then closes off with an index.

The World of Twylos Campaign Setting

A Player's Guide to Twylos (11 pages)

The World of Twylos, described by its author as an old dirty world in decline, is actually the seamless synthesis of seven different settings used in a series of campaigns spanning nearly two decades. Since it contains relatively few system-specific details, the setting could easily be converted to most other systems. It is meant to be used mainly as a source of inspiration for GMs to plunder and make their own. It provides flavor instead of laundry lists of every locations and NPCs inhabiting the world. Fortunately, this flavor does not come with elements that could complicate adapting material from other sources. Although it might be for lack of better fantasy literature references but Twylos left me with an overall vibe somewhere in-between that of George R. R. Martin's Westeros and Jack Vance's Dying Earth.

The book opens with G. Vrill's foreword and a table of contents. This section then proceeds to introducing the World of Twylos to new players eager to explore its midst. It is an Earth-like planet dominated by a continent approximately the size of Eurasia with a technology level akin to that of the 15^th-16^th century. An overview of the highlights of Twylos' history, divided in three eras, is then presented, followed by a chronology of major dates and events which I'll attempt to summarize very briefly below.

The First Era started roughly with the birth of religion in the mountains and valleys of the northern reaches of Twylos nearly four millenia ago. The Vox Duur, the first of Twylos religions, emerged as cults whose followers, led by druids, worshipped both the lighter and darker sides of nature and fertility. As humankind thrived, a nation ruled by a king claiming to be descended from the war god Aguierre established itself as the dominant culture in the region. With the rise of civilization, city dwellers distanced themselves from the old wilderness gods and turned to revere Kithain and Zhol, gods of fate, destiny, and death; the tenets of the Thainists. Those people were united by a set of warring families, called Houses, into the great Empire of Irendor. The riches accumulated through warfare soon allowed the academic study of art, science, and Hermetic magic. This militaristic society led to the emergence of a philosophical tradition of warrior-monks, the Ixians, who turned their faith not towards the gods but in the depths of the soul. Their fanatism led them to a series of failed coup that forced them to exile out of the Empire for treason. This turned out to be the first wave of emigration toward the East, West, and South of the continent. As the Empire grew in size and power it also fell into decadence. Around this time, Caradoc the Antiarch, a former slave who had returned from the dead, believed to be the beloved of Aguierre and His hand on Twylos, raised a small army of fanatical followers and sparked a ferocious religion war called the Purge of the Antiarch within the Empire. In the wake of the devastation, a group of widows, sisters, and children of those killed in the previous war, who came to be known as the Handmaidens or the Brides of Zhol, also took arms out of grief and spite, devoting themselves to ending conflicts by violent methods, usually attempting to massacre both sides until the war has ended. The Second Era was that of the fall of the Irendi Empire. Weakened by incessant infighting, political machination, and assassination, the Empire loss ground to the neighboring outer colonies who were a refuge for the Lesser Houses. As the last true emperor died without leaving a surviving heir, the Great Houses fought each other for control of the Iron Throne. The contemporary Third Era, saw the rise of great merchant Guilds and other trade organizations such as the Ulgan Sceptre. The establishment of the Slavers, the Navigators, and the Surveyors Guilds led to the unification of the nations of Twylos through trade. With their combined wealth, they commissioned powerful wizards to map the whole world of Twylos through what is still considered to be the greatest act of magedom to date. A fourth Guild, the Alchemists, later saw the day of light alongside that of Hedge magic. Although at first glance, Twylos appears to be enjoying a period of relative peace and prosperity through international trade in the current year 213 of the Third Era, persistent rumors of a coming apocalypse heralded by the heretic and depraved Church of Typhon as well as the demons and alien creatures of the mad god Xeres alongside whispers of the rebirth of the Empire suggest otherwise.

The section then moves on to more detailed descriptions of the 15 main religions (churches, orders, cults, and sects) of Twylos including the domains of magic provided by the gods to their worshippers. It then follows with an overview of the four major Guilds of Twylos and the benefits they can provide their members. The player's section concludes with a list of the most common languages spoken throughout Twylos.

Game Master's Guide to Twylos (51 pages)

The GM's section opens with general information for running a campaign in Twylos, the nature and origin of magic in the world and its relationship with the different religions, and details regarding the services offered by the Guilds.

What follows, the meat of the section, is the short description of the major towns, landmarks, regions, and other areas of importance as well as adventure seeds, all organized geographically. Enough details are given to help the GM breathe life in his own campaign without overwhelming the reader with encyclopedic amounts of information. Here are some representative examples :

Andukar (ANN-due-car)
Region; snowy mountains.
Common encounters: bears, giants, hunters, ogres, orcs, wolves.
Rare encounters: dwarves, miners, roc, titan, trolls, wyverns, yeti.

Andukar is the Land of Giants, a large region northwest of Drohksmere proper. Inhabited by ogres, orcs, and giants who mine the mountains for heavy metals and gemstones, they have one city, Szondarch, and a few camps scattered amongst the peaks. They do trade a bit with Armech and the Ulgan Sceptre, but it still is a wilderness region, generally inhospitable, cold, and deadly.

Tharkenge:Tharkenge is far from modern civilization, is purported to be Twylos' tallest mountain. The human explorer Sebastian Mordechs claimed that Tharkenge was not natural, but rather seemed to be constructed out of immense stones. (Indeed, lost to history is the truth of Tharkenge- that it was built at the dawn of time by titan slaves of the Arcanos, as a tomb to the first of their number to die.) Mordechs spent almost two decades investigating Tharkenge, finally retreating in frustration when his assistant Arvyn, himself a skilled wizard, flew towards the mountain top, only to be devoured by the Black Wyrm Gothmenes. Gothmenes (double-size wyrm dragon) is revered as a god by the ogres and dwarves of Andukar, along with their interpretation of Vorn as Tapaan, the Black Giant. Gothmenes lives within Tharkenge, the first guardian of its eternal secrets.

Torsche (TORSH)
Major city, built on ten tiers around a mountain.
Population: 31,000; 85% human, 12% orc, 2% dwarf, 1% misc. (including faeries, goblins, ratkin).
Resources: very wealthy, high magical and technological levels; stoneworking, trade, clothwork, metalworking, agriculture and husbandry, art, libraries, military and magical academies.
Religion: Thainist, Duuran, Ixian, Aguierre, Typhon.
Guilds: Alchemists, Slavers, Surveyors.
Government: strict; militaristic control by the Honorable Friends of Torsche, led by Lord Baalphegor Pheng (actually Reginald Molliphant, 4th level human, 6th Circle Hermetic), trained army of 800.

Torsche is a beautiful city built up and around Mount Vyenze. This large and successful city is divided into ten tiers, a series of stratifications that form a semi-circle around the mountain. The first four tiers form a large sprawl at the base of Mount Vyenze, while the highest six tiers are located in terraces up the mountain itself. Torsche is generally governed by the Honorable Friends of Torsche (sometimes called the Ninth Circle), a conglomerate of four merchant families with loose ties to both Armech and the Sceptre. However, they generally defer to Lord Baalphegor Pheng for the most important decisions. Lord Baalphegor is a powerful mage who lives in a private estate on the tenth and highest tier. Torsche shares many characteristics with Gyre, such as magnificent gardens, and thriving artistic and scientific communities, although Torsche is much smaller, and well under control by the Ulgan Sceptre and the Ninth Circle.

The Lost Courier: In the middle of nowhere, in mud flats towards the southeast of the Valstedt, a rusted iron helm is submerged in the mud and covered with weeds. This is the head of an iron golem, one of the first to be constructed, which sunk into the flats in the First Era. It appears as a man-sized suit of full plate armor, covered in mud and rust. If freed from the mud and cleaned of rust, it will continue its journey from Bludszech to the Arcanum, an ancient and abandoned school of magic deep within the Ered Wastes. When it reaches the Arcanum, days later, it will descend down a hidden staircase to the old office of Lady Aerial. Having come this far to fail in its mission, it will go berserk and attack anything in sight until destroyed. Within the body of the golem is its message for the late Lady Aerial: a Magic Bag, containing a Scroll of Greater Golem and a magician from the First Era kept in suspended animation, Lord Anaximer duMaxinay (11th level human, 5th Circle Hermetic). DuMaxinay was a traitorous magician partially responsible for the exile of the Lady and her colleagues; he was sent here for questioning and execution. DuMaxinay will be understandably confused if revived, and speaks only ancient Irendi, but he is smart, will quickly grasp the situation, will be eager to acquire a spellbook, and then return to Bludszech (preferably the Bludszech of the First Era, given that he was kidnapped on his wedding night).

Appendixes (31 pages)

The appendixes start with a series of more than 50 magic items (armor, artifacts, potions, relics, scrolls, wands, and weapons) specific to Twylos but usable in any other setting. The stats for 10 new creatures indigenous to Twylos follow. Three possible campaign outlines with an apocalyptic overtone are then proposed over 14 pages. These campaign examples all share an over-arching plot involving the revelation of "the Keys of Typhon" (which serve a similar purpose to the seals in the biblical Apocalypse) but seen through differently themed lenses, lending themselves to different gaming groups and styles of play. The section closes with a couple of pages of glossary for important terms and names from the World of Twylos, a series of hit-and-miss (in my humble opinion) advices on being a Game Master by author G. Vrill, and a black & white two-page spread of Twylos' world map. Although an attractive high resolution color map is available for download on Ye Old Gaming Companye's web site, a color map would have been a nice addition to the book. I also feel it could have used a distance scale.

Twylos: The Fourth Era (25 pages)

This section is new to the revised version although some of it had been previously published in the Wayfarers Guild Journals. Set more than 200 years after the Third Era, it proposes one possible vision of Twylos' future. The main events, chronology, guilds, and locations of this apocalyptic version of the setting are described. A new type of arcane magic called Viral is presented. It is somewhat of an offshoot of Hedge magic with spells of a new Essence school which involves the analysis and control of the soul. One of its distinguishing features is that the caster can increase his spells' resistance target number by expending some of his own health points. The new spells for the five circles of Viral magic are then described. A couple of new magic items, 9 new creatures, a glossary of terms, and an afterword by G. Vrill follow. The author presses the GM to disregard any elements that do not fit his own take on the campaign setting.

The Lodge of the Bronze Knight (12 pages)

This special appendix is also new to the revision. As a classy gesture, the authors essentially meant its inclusion as a homage to an active gaming group composed of longstanding contributors to the Wayfarers community by allowing the players to publish their campaign protagonists' character write-ups and the stories associated with them.

Line Support

In addition to the input of the friendly folks hanging out at the Ye Old Gaming Companye forum, Wayfarers is mainly supported through the new material published in the previously mentioned Wayfarers Guild Journal. A lengthy preview of the Player's Reference Book as well as an introductory adventure, Trouble at Niven's Creek, have also been made freely available. As the game is meant to stand on its own as a complete package with only the three core books presented above, a slew of supplements is not to be expected although accessories such as a beautiful canvas world map of Twylos (currently available), an indispensable 4-panel GM screen (in revision), and a revised Characters companion book (a non-player character gallery and reference manual which I believe is in the works) are planned to be released.

Conclusion

With its streamlined mechanics and ingenious classless but leveled character creation system while keeping a distinctly D&D-like feel, it is my opinion that Wayfarers can cater as well to old-schoolers than to gamers with more modern sensibilities. If you are looking for a well written and comprehensive fantasy RPG that opens up a wide variety of possibilities for years of gaming from only three core rule books, then Wayfarers might be the game for you. It is to be hoped that its distribution through Mongoose Publishing will help expose this great game to as wide an audience of gamers as possible.

Now for the verdict :

On style, the Wayfarers RPG gets 4 out of 5 stars. Although very well written and of tasteful presentation, the books do compete with other products showcasing much more elaborate artwork.

On substance, Wayfarers gets a solid 5 stars. It is an elegantly designed and high value RPG which succeeds in offering streamlined modern mechanics while maintaining an old-school D&D-like feel.

Previous Reviews

1) Grognardia review : http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2009/01/review-wayfarers.html

2) First RPGnet review : http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/14/14186.phtml

3) The RPG Site review : http://www.therpgsite.com/showthread.php?t=13784

4) Second RPGnet review : http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/14/14554.phtml