Goto [ ] SUMMARY: Yggdrasill is an inspired role playing game that allows players and game masters to immerse themselves in the Scandinavian culture and mythos of the early 1st millennium AD. PRODUCTION: Yggdrasill is a full color stitched hardback book of 232 pages.
Maps of Scandia (Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and surrounding lands) line the front and back cover interiors. The designers chose a sepia heavy look to all of the illustrations and page backgrounds. I'm indifferent to the choice but it does allow the black ink of the actual rules text to stand out against the backgrounds and illustrations. The illustrations (especially the book cover and the archetypes) do an outstanding job of conveying the time period and providing inspiration.
The pages are heavy and resistant to tear. I think this book will last a long time. THEME, CONTENTS, AND ORGANIZATION: Let's be clear, Yggdrasill is not a game about Vikings. Yggdrasill is a fantasy game of action, adventure, romance, and politics that takes place in the Scandian cultures of northern Europe during the 4th through 6th centuries. I'm no historian but I believe that the classic Viking period occurred sometime (as in centuries) after the time period that this game emulates.
Compositionally, Yggdrasill is split in to three main parts. The first part is basically a look into the daily life, culture, and mythos of Scandinavian life. The second part details the game system including the dice resolution system, character creation and advancement, and the various subsystems that comprise the mechanics of the game. The third and final part is a rather in depth and lengthy adventure entitled “Offerings to the Great Winter”. I think this choice of splitting mechanics from flavor can be a bit jarring when doing a straight reading through the book.
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However, during game play I think it may prove to be a boon simply because there is no real fluff to get in the way of finding any particular rule in question. PART 1 - THE SETTING: The first part of the book details the time period and the setting. Historical accuracy is addressed including some common cultural misconceptions such as Wagner's horned helmets, drinking from human skulls, and drakkars. This game is definitely fantasy (there are multiple magic systems) and that is called out at the very beginning. However, for those looking for a more historically accurate simulation the magic systems can be easily removed. The myths and religion of Scandian life are covered extensively including the gods, their history, and the composition of the multiverse including the World-Tree and its many branches and layers. The geopolitical realities of the day are covered extensively and the three main kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, and Svithjod (Sweden) are nicely detailed including rulers and political factions.
This part of the book ends with a large section on daily life. I, for one, really appreciated this addition to the book. It means I don't have to go out and do a lot of research for my game if I am aiming for historical accuracy. PART 2 - THE RULES: This section of the book includes many chapters on the rules for running the game. This is the largest section of the book and is quite comprehensive including character creation, combat, magic, character advancement, skills, and feats.
Let me pause and just say that I was pleasantly surprised by how comprehensive the rules system is for Yggdrasill. This system could be used for any historical or fantastical dark ages/medieval game. I dare say it would work splendidly (with a few additions) for A Game of Thrones if you don't like that game's native rule system as developed by Green Ronin. I won't go into too much detail in this review but I will summarize the system as best I can. The system uses d10 for all skill and combat resolution. Characters are governed by characteristics and skills. Characteristics include strength, vigor, agility, intellect, perception, tenacity, charisma, instinct, and communication.
These characteristics have a numeric score that indicates the number of d10s to roll when a skill or characteristic check is called for. Most NPCs are considered to have a 2 in most scores. However, only two d10's are are used for resolution so you will want to keep the highest two rolled and add them together. These dice can “ace” so any die result of 10 is rolled again and added to the running total. Skills such as ride, climbing, drive, stealth, and seduction (to name only a few) are hard numbers that are added as modifiers to the total number produced by the dice. The Sims 3 Cigarette Smoking Mod more. Characters will begin with a number of points with which to purchase characteristics and skills.
Combat is resolved in the traditional turn taking system whereby time is split into rounds and participants act in initiative order. Participants can take more than one action per round (based on their agility characteristic) but each successive action is harder to achieve because successively harder modifiers are applied to each subsequent action. Characters also gain combat feats, gifts, and weaknesses with which to round out their capabilities. Overall, combat is gritty and dangerous. Players would be wise to avoid violent confrontation whenever possible. Magic is suitably subtle in Yggdrasill (no fireballs).
There are three basic magic systems. The first is Seidr or Trance Magic. This system works most similarly to magic in other game systems including complete spell lists with casting levels and difficulty thresholds. The second system is Galdr or Incantation Magic.
This system is more free form allowing casters to formulate their spells along three major axis (curses, illusions, and charms). The third and final system is rune magic. Rune magic uses an alternative system for building spells requiring the player to devise a formula based on material, duration, and spell level. Finally, the rules section details how adversaries and extras (npcs) work within the game system.
Most adversaries use a simplified characteristic and resolution system but the simplicity does not devolve into the minions or extras that are seen in other systems such as DND 4 or Savage Worlds. There are many more subsystems detailed in this section of Yggdrasill (including interesting tactical options for combat) but they are too numerous and detailed to account in a short capsule review. PART 3 - OFFERINGS TO THE GREAT WINTER The final section of the book includes a rather lengthy adventure that includes a great mix of intrigue, politics, action, and adventure. GENERAL THOUGHTS AND REVIEW: This is an extremely competent RPG that “feels” very traditional with great flavor. It is not old school but nor does it stretch the boundaries either. It is not a modern “narrative” RPG in the sense that dice results are quite binary (success or failure only) and do not allow for much diversity in interpretation.
The game mechanics are well thought out and quite comprehensive for the genre, though. General mechanics lean towards the medium crunchy side of the spectrum. Fast math skills would be a boon to smooth play at the table. Yggdrasill does not present a comprehensive list of adversaries. I suspect this is forthcoming in future supplements such as “The Nine Worlds”.
It does present a short list of classic Norse adversaries such as giants, trolls, and winter wolves, however. Overall I recommend Yggdrasill to anyone who is interested in running a game that is Norse in flavor (historical or otherwise). And, yes, it would work just fine as a Viking game too.