Son of Oak Game Studio, celebrated for their ENnie-award winning City of Mist, has announced an exciting addition to their repertoire: “Legend In The Mist,” a rustic fantasy role-playing game (RPG). Set to be Kickstarted in February 2024, this game is powered by the studio’s signature narrative engine, promising a unique gaming experience.
“Legend In The Mist” diverges from the traditional tactical fantasy RPGs, focusing instead on narrative-driven gameplay with an optional tactical element. A key feature of this game is the use of keywords, or “tags”, instead of conventional stats. These tags, encompassing everything from physical attributes and skills to character backstories and catchphrases, allow players to gain bonuses during rolls. This innovative system enables players to create characters simply by describing them, ensuring every detail can influence gameplay.
The game places a significant emphasis on character story arcs. Players navigate their characters through multiple, sometimes conflicting, motivations. As the game progresses, these themes can transform, allowing players to dramatically alter their characters’ abilities and gameplay style. This approach ensures a dynamic, evolving experience where characters can change classes or resolve major backstory events, seamlessly tying story and gameplay together.
“Legend In The Mist” is more than just an RPG; it’s a new perspective on fantasy role-playing. The Core Book, designed in Son of Oak’s typical Learn-As-You-Play format, includes new character creation tools adapted to the fantasy genre, a starter adventure, and a guide to developing different magic systems. This flexible framework is coupled with ample ready-to-use content, enabling players to immerse themselves in any setting using the tag system.
A notable aspect of the game is its ability to support parties with varying power levels, maintaining balance by giving each character equal narrative power. This feature allows for diverse character groups, from powerful wizards to ordinary villagers, each playing a pivotal role in the story.
The original setting book, “Hearts of Ravensdale,” focuses on creating an old fireside tale atmosphere, termed “rustic fantasy”. It explores a world where magic is a nearly forgotten art, and wizards are rare, legendary figures. This setting offers a unique magic system based on the cultivation of spiritual qualities, allowing players to discover magic alongside their characters.
Son of Oak’s approach to the fantasy genre is further exemplified by the “Hearts of Ravensdale” setting. Here, legendary creatures and eerie forces, known as Creatures of Twilight, are designed to mystify heroes initially. As players delve deeper, they uncover a rich cosmology connecting these mysterious beings.