HYPERBOREA / The philosophy of Hyperborea

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 2/07/2015 3:44 am

Clearly AS&SH derives from antecedent literary sources that inspired D&D initially. If one reads the works of Lovecraft and Howard grim worlds are on display for the reader, and in many regards Hyperborea continues this tradition. It's great, I like it.

It brings me to my question though, how gritty is your actual gameplay experience? At times I will initiate a D&D campaign with the intention of a dark twisted world; yet come 6 months in we have the usual elves and Halflings leaping around in joy, and something of the original intention gets lost. The removal of playable Demi-races is a good move in my opinion and the detailing of dwarfs in Hyperborea brings tears of joy to my eyes. Likewise, the only adventure I've read, which Jeff sent me 'charnel crypt of the sightless serpent' maintains a good dose of terrifying. All of these seem to go a good mile towards setting the stage for horrifying, gruesome and amoral adventure, with a dash of Conan-esque heroism thrown in for good measure. But I'm wondering how people's experiences translate the intention of the game with the reality of play.

Oh and if it is the things you want it to be, how have you ensured it remains thus?

**Posted by Ghul** 2/07/2015 2:56 pm

Responding from my phone, so in brief, for me it is the prevalent orthodoxy of Xathoqqua, the use of the festivals, and the use of the sun, a red giant that is transitioning to complete light or complete dark. It establishes tone, as well as the sea spilling off the edge of the world to infinity.

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 2/07/2015 4:07 pm

Ghul wrote:
Responding from my phone, so in brief, for me it is the prevalent orthodoxy of Xathoqqua, the use of the festivals, and the use of the sun, a red giant that is transitioning to complete light or complete dark. It establishes tone, as well as the sea spilling off the edge of the world to infinity.

So Jeff, do you find those things alone are sufficient to set and maintain the mood, or are there other tricks and techniques you employ to create more of this ambience?

**Posted by Ghul** 2/07/2015 4:18 pm

Rastus_Burne wrote:
Ghul wrote:
Responding from my phone, so in brief, for me it is the prevalent orthodoxy of Xathoqqua, the use of the festivals, and the use of the sun, a red giant that is transitioning to complete light or complete dark. It establishes tone, as well as the sea spilling off the edge of the world to infinity.
So Jeff, do you find those things alone are sufficient to set and maintain the mood, or are there other tricks and techniques you employ to create more of this ambience?

I think the Green Death and its impact on the population of humanity is another good mood setter. Many cities are larger than their populations demand, and so there are large abandoned and ruined sections.

I also like to stress the impact of civilization versus barbarism; beyond the scope of Khromarium, for example, the barbarian tribes of the Kimmerians and the Kimmeri-Kelts is a constant threat, especially when the Lug Wasteland freezes over.

Basically, if you review the write-up of a particular region, you can use that as a springboard for your own creativity, establishing the kind of tension and mood you wish to evoke.

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 2/07/2015 4:57 pm

Howard was big on the tensions between civilisation versus barbarism, which is obviously mirrored in his Conan stories; the decay and abandonment of cities too. I've read a sizable portion of the Gazetteer and I really like the medley you've established. Particularly the city of Ape-men is an interesting idea, and I could imagine that being a rich site of adventure. I'm really looking foward to running something.

**Posted by Blackadder23** 2/07/2015 6:17 pm

All of my D&D games are dark and gritty; no one is skipping through the woods in joy. The pillars of my DM style are frequent use of irony and deception, pulp-style weirdness, black humor, and unbelievably gory violence (the last two frequented combined into violence so extreme it's funny, such as people exploding and raining body parts for miles, or PCs having to spit out severed ears and noses that fly into their mouth during combat). I find all of this deranged nonsense translates easily and well into AS&SH. But as to how it differs from my typical D&D campaign... well, it doesn't.

Last edited by Blackadder23 (2/07/2015 6:18 pm)

**Posted by Rastus_Burne** 2/07/2015 8:36 pm

The woodland dancing was somewhat hyperbolic but I find (whether by cause and effect or something else) that the inclusion of Demi-humans seems to promote a tamer or kinder world somehow. I know it needn't. However I think after recently delving into Howard, Lovecraft and AS&SH I can posit my world as something nastier than my current homebrew one.

My players are well-versed in mainstream fantasy tropes which is where some of my difficulty lies as my tastes veer towards more macabre sensibilities.