At long last I have an update for Arcadia fans! My personal life has been a challenge, and I am about to list my house for sale, but once I'm past that, things should improve greatly. I have a couple pieces of news I'll share with you. If you're still around, bless you for waiting this long, but I am hoping this will be worth the wait.
THE LEGEND OF ARCADIA V2.0
First is a project I've been working on for about 5 years: updating the original "The Legend of Arcadia" Rules (TLOA). As a refresher, that's the combination of Chronicle Rules and Solo Rules combined, with the added rules of playing the story of The Wyld Hunt by navigating every Quest card. I think the new rules are fantastic, but I might be biased. Gone is the "race against time" element, which I have replaced with a system that not only makes more sense, it is fun yet challenging. I'm currently playtesting the new rules. While it's utterly impossible to playtest every possible Character and Merit combination, as long as the mechanics are doing what they are designed to do, it should be very enjoyable. After I playtest through several quests and I'm confident in the system, I'll post the new rules here. I can tell you that after playing through the first Quest, it was challenging but I had a great time when I completed it. Some of the new changes include:
- Moving TWH to a 2D6 system to match KIM and produce more consistent results
- A "Doom Counter" replaces Quest time limits, simulating the encroaching danger of the Darkening and creating organic campaign pressure
- Some Flaws are assigned (and you can chose to add more), producing richer and more distinctive characters
- A different system for handling Enemy Flaws
- Banes — special Flaws triggered by the Doom Counter — represent the Darkening's growing influence
- Three difficulty modes (Wanderer, Adventurer, Heroic) allow players to tailor the challenge to their own skill set, level of enjoyment, or desire to be challenged
- Suggested story paths guide players through essential narrative beats - it's not necessary to complete every single quest, but you can do as many as you wish
Look for this update to come soon, most likely in the next 1-2 weeks.
ARCADIA EXPANSION: KING ARDLANTH'S FATE
Yes, that's the title I decided on for the expansion. That name will make more sense when you run through the Quests. It can be played using the standard rules, but will be much more fun if you utilize TLOA rules. There are 4 different possible endings to the game under TLOA, based on decisions and challenges that you experienced during the playthrough.
All Quests, Waylays, and Leagues are complete as far as the design goes. There will be no new Characters, Flaws, or Merits - the game has plenty of these already - although there could possible be some new Treasure cards specifically for Quests. I'm currently in the process of gathering artwork. My mom was an artist and was going to paint a watercolor map for me that would have looked similar to the art style of TWH and KIM, but she passed away 2 years ago, which was devastating to me personally, as well as setting the project back. I will most likely commission some map artwork and see how it turns out. Also, I need to playtest this new expansion, especially for TLOA rules where you can bring a character across from TWH and KIM with all their Merits and Flaws.
Due to the art issues and playtesting needed, look for new cards to start appearing within the next 3-4 months.
That's all for now. I hope you are all doing well and find this news exciting!
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