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If you're a stickler for an old-school TRPG system, accompanied by delicious fantasy artwork, then Dragonbane might just be the thing you're looking for. And lucky for us, Free League just put out a free quickstart adventure to draw us away from the D&D hype train. Welcome to 'Dragonbane: The Sinking Tower'.
Kickstarted back in 2022, Dragonbane was an ode to Sweden's first and biggest tabletop RPG system, Drakar och Demoner. Launched in celebration of the original game's 40th anniversary, it was another in a long line of old-school-revival (OSR) games that nod to a fierce and deadly heritage. While usually far lighter on rules than most of the best tabletop RPGs today, old-school systems are often far more challenging when it comes to combat.
Take Dolmenwood as an example, or Free League's very own Mork Borg. As OSR games, they're simple, easy to get into and design characters, with heaps of creative freedom, but make a wrong move and you could quickly be dealing with a to a total-party-kill (TPK).
The Dragonbane Kickstarter actually launched along with Riddermound, a free introductory adventure that's super user-friendly for new players. The Sinking Tower adventure turns the heat up a little to further hammer home that old-school lethality with a 'tournament-style' dungeon crawl. It's a quickfire delve into a sinking tower that only emerges and becomes accessible for a limited time. As such, your players will need to get as far as possible, and get out, in just two hours.
The idea of playing a TRPG on an actual timer sounds terrifying to me, as both a GM and a player. Maybe because I tend to play with incredibly cautious friends who spend twenty minutes of real time debating whether to open a door or not. Deliberate for too long in The Sinking Tower, and you'll likely end up underwater.
Dragonbane is, as the Kickstarter notes, "a game with room for laughs at the table and even a pinch of silliness at times – while at the same time offering brutal challenges for the adventurers." If that sounds like something that you might be interested in, you can grab The Sinking Tower on the Free League store, or spend a little dollar to get hold of the official sourcebooks.
For more recommendations, why not check out the best D&D books or best D&D gifts if you're buying for someone special.
