Symbaroum

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Symbaroum is a grimdark Medieval European Fantasy roleplaying game that originated in Sweden in 2014, becoming such a massive hit in its homeland that it was translated from Swedish to English in 2016. The game-line currently encompasses a dozen hardcover books, along with several support products in the form of card sets, maps and more, with a Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition conversion scheduled for release some time in late 2021 to early 2022.

Setting

Symbaroum is set in the lands of Davokar, an ancient and mysterious forest realm that has overgrown the ruins of the fallen Empire of Symbaroum, which perished centuries ago. These lands have long been guarded by the elves of the Iron Pact, who warn that Symbaroum fell to a force of mystical evil called "Corruption", which still lingers in its ruins, and haunted by goblins, ogres and trolls. But, two decades ago, the Ambrians - a human civilization - were forced to flee their ancestral soil due to a devastating war, and they have settled on the borders and outskirt regions of Davokar. And, naturally, they're not about to just sit around and listen to a bunch of pointy-eared demihumans prattling about unspeakable evil and doom waiting for them all... even if the forest is full of monsters...

Races

Humans

Elves

Changelings

Dwarves

Goblins

Ogres

Trolls

Undead

The Mechanics

Dice System and Resolution

Symbaroum uses the standard set of polyhedral dice. Player actions are resolved with a "roll under" mechanic whereby a character's relevant Attribute acts as the target number for a d20 roll. Sometimes a relevant Attribute Modifier is used to adjust the target number. For example, when attacking an enemy, the player would use their Accurate Attribute modified by the enemy's Quick Attribute Modifier as the target for rolling equal to or under.

In general, the Game Master never rolls dice. When monsters attack, the players are the ones who roll to defend.

Archetypes

Symbaroum does not use character classes in the common sense. Instead, there are archetypes falling into one of three categories -- Warrior, Mystic, and Rogue. The archetypes are suggested starting points for a character's build, but a player may customize their character from the ground up and forego the printed archetypes entirely.

Abilities

Beyond the placement of Attribute points and roleplay fluff, Abilities are key facets that set one character apart from another. Abilities come in 3 tiers: Novice, Adept, and Master. They may be leveled up from one tier to the next with Experience, and each tier upgrades the previous or adds another piece to the mechanics of the Ability. Abilities cover things like which Mystical Tradition your character adheres to, various combat maneuvers, which Attributes govern specific rolls, etc.

Unlike Feats in other popular d20 games, Abilities in Symbaroum often ARE the special action you can take rather than simply a modification to a basic action or one provided by your class.

Mystical Traditions

In the Core Rulebook, there are 4 Mystical Traditions a character may adhere to. They are Theurgy, Sorcery, Witchcraft, and Wizardy. And they each have their own list of Powers or spells and Rituals that may be learned and cast more safely if the relevant Ability is taken.

Corruption

Magic in Symbaroum is not something to be wielded lightly. When one imposes their will upon the forces of nature and reality, those forces push back. Magic users accrue Corruption through their actions. The very knowledge of new magic is enough to subtely warp a character, and everytime a Mystical Power is used (everytime a spell is cast) the character accrues Temporary Corruption which clears at the end of the scene. However, Temporary Corruption can result in the character taking on physical manifestations of their corruption, or may become points of Permanent Corruption if too much is accumulated at once. Should a character's total corruption exceed the value of their Resolute stat, they are consumed by it and become an abomination.

Healing

Healing is a slow process in Symbaroum. Without the aid of medicine or magic, characters naturally heal only 1 point of Toughness per day. A typical freshly made character will have between 10 and 15 health.

Death Saving Throws

Much like D&D 5th Edition, a character who has reached 0 Toughness (health) as a result of damage collapses and must make a Death Saving roll on their initiative every turn. However, in Symbaroum, you only get back up on your own if you roll a 1. Rolling a 20 before a 1, or rolling 11-19 three times before rolling a 1 is death.

Optional

The Core Rulebook also offers a number of optional rules such as having attacks that bypass death saving throws entirely, using your Experience to pay for certain rerolls in play, Critical Hits and Critical Failures for attacking and defending, rolling for your Attributes rather than using a standard array or point buy, etc.

5e Conversion

As of May 6th, 2021 a D&D 5e conversion for Symbaroum, called Ruins of Symbaroum, was succesfully Kickstarted.