Why fairy tales & folk tales?
People have been telling each other stories since the beginning of human history. Folk tales and fairy tales are an integral part of this tradition. These shared stories were told not just for entertainment, but also to teach and share information. These tales have traditionally shown us how to live — when to be kind, when to stand up for ourselves, and when to look with suspicion on someone when they offer us something too good to be true.
Full of creatures both great and small, noble and trickster, strong and weak, we can still learn from and enjoy these stories today.
In creating this book, we have pulled from both well-known and obscure tales, twisting them just a bit. Even when the party thinks they know something or guess how the encounter will go…they could be entirely wrong. Keep in mind that, while the tales used to create this campaign may be familiar, how the characters react can and will change the story.
Who will I meet in Alwion?
NPCs from both history and folk tales and fairy tales; creatures from myth and legend and from stories both familiar and unusual! Here’s just a brief sample of some of them!
What if I’m not a very experienced GM?
That’s okay! We are purposely writing this sourcebook with you in mind, including specific sidebars on how you can customise the encounters (even on the fly!) to make them easier or harder, depending upon the group of players. Experienced GMs can skim over these parts (if they wish), because this book is also being written for you. As with any campaign, the GM should feel free to customise and tweak encounters to make it the type of campaign you wish to run.
Can you show me examples of the battlemaps?
The battle maps will be provided in both gridded and non-gridded format, each one labeled with their size for ease of use when importing into your VTT of choice. Maps include both generic and specific locations (including inns so that PCs can choose their rooms!), with each location featuring 8-15 maps specific to the locale.
Can the encounters be played standalone?
Yes! It’s completely up to the GM whether or not they wish to run the Tales were True as a complete campaign or merely pick and choose encounters (or creatures!) to pull into their own campaigns.
Tell me more about these “Folktale Narratives”. How do I immerse the players in the world?
Similar to epic paths or destinies in some other 5E supplements, a player can choose (or be assigned by the GM) a Folktale Narrative during character creation. With over 10 to choose from, there’s something for everyone from being fey-cursed to being the Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. Each narrative option comes with suggestions for the GMs on how to incorporate the player’s background into the very fabric of the world, how they might resolve their destiny, and what their reward might be. These can be as complicated or simple as you want to make them, but no matter what you choose, they will add to the player’s immersion in the world.