You stand within sight of The Ebon Spire. Your comrades are standing behind you, waiting for you. That Ethernic ruin is the guiding point you need to get your group through the dreaded area. A marking of times long past and the destruction that was brought upon Zyathé. Even at this distance you see the wyvern that make The Spire their home, and from all accounts they will likely be the least of the dangers you and your friends will face. Without words, you walk back a ways and start making camp. This will be the last good night of sleep for probably the next week. And, you know, you will need to keep your wits to guide everyone across this land.
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The Wy'rded World: Cyclopaedia Zyathica Volume 1 is a 5e fantasy setting of the world of Zyathé. The setting uses the core rulebooks and provides a rich, detailed world for players and game masters (GMs) to use in providing a new location for creating memorable stories players will share for a long time to come.
The Wy'rded World: Cyclopaedia Zyathica Volume 1 was written by Alphinious Goo, AJ Martin, Jeremy Harding, Cody Martinm and Mike Shugart and published by Gooey Cube (website). I received a copy of the tome at Saltcon 2020 (website) for review purposes.
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| The Ebon Spire |
The Cyclopaedia's General Structure
This 200+ sourcebook is divided into 8 chapters and appendices. It's good to note this is not just the Wy'rded World (Zyathé), but an entire cosmology for the world. There's depth to the information with ample room to allow every GM the ability to make Zyathé a place to accommodate their personal style of game and the desires of their players.
The Wy'rded World provides you information to be able to utilize the world of Zyathé as a place to create your adventures. There is a rich history of events leading up to the current age. Those events have left numerous ruins—plenty of places for adventuring heroes to test themselves. Along with the historic sites, there is great description for how it is unique from more well-known fantasy game settings.
Players desiring to explore new characters have races particular to Zyathé to choose from. There are similarities to the standard races depicted in the core books. However, there are aspects in each race of Zyathé that make them genuinely different. Each race entry includes racial histories and general traits.
The information provided for GMs and players allows for creating character combinations to provide new insights into personalities and interpersonal interactions. This goes beyond the general history and characters. There is a complete section for the deities ruling above the world and descriptions of the lands comprising it.
Style
The Wy'rded World is written with a strong storytelling aspect (after meeting Alphinous Goo I would expect no less). Beginning with the history that reads like the legends and fables we are used to reading and hearing. I enjoyed just reading the history of the world and allowing it to unfold in my imagination. There is enough information to move you through the times without bogging the reading down with too many details. This leaves creativity for the GM to make this a personal world. Within the framework presented, there is plenty of space to add the decorations you and your party desire.
The artwork has an interesting juxtaposition. Some of the art is detailed while other is open to interpretation. The parts left for the further clarity are the maps of the lands. These areas can be filled out through future publications or by the imagination of the players using the setting.
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| A view of the races |
Overall
I've played roleplaying games and many different settings for over 40 years. Some were presented in sourcebooks, designed to expanding the possibilities for a particular game. Others were specific settings for the mechanics of the game to be used in new and interesting ways. Still others were created from the imagination of the GMs for the group they were gaming with. The Wy'rded World is one of the better fantasy settings I've come across.
I played in the world of Zyathé at Saltcon 2020 (website). The adventure was run by a professional game master, Dax Levine of Dungeon Master Direct (website). Dax was able to prepare several hours of gaming in under 24 hours of being introduced to the adventure (review of session). This attests to how easily this setting can be used. The adventure we played was the first part of The Darkest Dream: Chapter One of the Red Star Rising Campaign. I will be reviewing this material.
The Wy'rded World: Cyclopaedia Zyathica Volume 1 provides a solid base for anyone looking for a new setting to explore in your fantasy 5e roleplaying. Opposite the disclaimer you hear so many times, I say, "Try this at home."
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The past eight days were grueling. Everyone in the party was close to death at one time or another, several more than once. It was only through your joint strength and bonds of friendship that everyone made it through alive. But, none were left unscathed. Now, you can look beyond the area surrounding the Ebon Spire. There will be time for respite and a chance to restock what was used and lost. This past week will be something to talk about in later times—times when you are all sitting comfortably by a fireplace with warm food and good drink.
Hall of the Ride
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