''GURPS Fantasy'' is a ''Genre Toolkit'' source book which was first designed by Steve Jackson and published by

Steve Jackson Games Steve Jackson Games (SJGames) is a game company, founded in 1980 by Steve Jackson, that creates and publishes role-playing, board, and card games, and (until 2019) the gaming magazine ''Pyramid''. History Founded in 1980, six years after the cr ...

in 1986 for the ''

GURPS The ''Generic Universal RolePlaying System'', or ''GURPS'', is a tabletop role-playing game system designed to allow for play in any game setting. It was created by Steve Jackson Games and first published in 1986 at a time when most such systems w ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

. It presented a magic system for the game as well as background information for the fantasy campaign world of Yrth. A second edition by new writers was published in 1990 as ''GURPS Fantasy: The Magical World of Yrth''. These two editions received mixed reviews in game periodicals including ''

Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

'', '' Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer'', and ''

Games International ''Computer Games Magazine'' was a monthly computer and console gaming print magazine, founded in October 1988 as the United Kingdom publication ''Games International''. During its history, it was known variously as ''Strategy Plus'' (October 19 ...

''. The fourth edition of ''GURPS'' separates the fantasy parts into fantasy and a setting book called '' GURPS Banestorm''.

The first edition of ''GURPS Fantasy'' (1986) delivers the GURPS magic system and the background to the campaign world; with over 300 spells and 20 colleges of magic, the magic system is wide, varied, and detailed. Snatched from Earth the Crusaders still wage war on their ancient enemy, the Saracens, simultaneously contending with a wide range of ravaging monsters. Extensive commentary on the countries of Yrth and plenty of staging tips are included. The first edition is a ''

'' supplement of fantasy rules, with a campaign setting. The rules cover magic (spell-point system) and spells (over 300), character creation, nonhuman races, magical creatures, and monsters. The campaign setting describes the world of Yrth (focusing on the country of Caithness), several other lands of humans and dwarves, plus data on culture and customs. It includes a color map. The original was supplanted by ''GURPS Fantasy'' 2nd edition and ''

GURPS Magic ''GURPS Magic'' is a source book for the ''GURPS'' role-playing game from Steve Jackson Games that provides in depth coverage of magic in the context of ''GURPS''. The first edition was published in 1989. The book expands on the material outlined ...

''. ''GURPS Fantasy'' used the fantasy world of Yrth, which was introduced in ''

Orcslayer ''Orcslayer'' is a sourcebook for ''Steve Jackson's Man to Man'' and later ''GURPS''. Contents ''Orcslayer'' includes nine combat scenarios, each linked by role-playing encounters, in which the player characters deal with the Orcmen invading Cait ...

'' (1985), the single supplement for '' Man to Man''. The magic rules for ''GURPS'' were not included in the original ''

GURPS Basic Set ''GURPS Basic Set'' is a role playing game publication written by Steve Jackson, Sean M. Punch, and David L. Pulver. The first edition ''GURPS Basic Set'' box was published in 1986, a standalone third edition book in 1988, and a hardcover, two- ...

'', but were released in ''GURPS Fantasy'' (1986), which was also the first setting book published for ''GURPS'' and added details to Yrth. The second edition—''GURPS Fantasy: The Magical World of Yrth'', 1990, second edition 1995—is actually a completely new product based on the campaign-setting material in the first edition. The world of Yrth is described in much greater detail; the descriptions of the various kingdoms take 70 pages. The chief religions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism receive much more attention, and there are a lot of guidelines on how to set up an Yrth campaign, such as what elements to include in a game, and what to emphasize and what to play down. A two-color map is included. The magic rules were expanded and re-issued in their own book, ''GURPS Magic'' (first edition 1989, second edition 1994). The background for Yrth was expanded further in ''GURPS Fantasy Second Edition: The Magical World of Yrth'', and the magic rules were moved to be included in the main ''GURPS'' rules set. ''GURPS Fantasy'' for 4e covers creation of many different types of

Fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

settings include ''High'' and ''Low'', ''Dark'' and ''Light'', Swords and Sorcery, and Myth. Example races are provided for all the standard fantasy

Tropes Trope or tropes may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Trope (cinema), a cinematic convention for conveying a concept * Trope (literature), a figure of speech or common literary device * Trope (music), any of a variety of different things ...

as templates. The Yrth setting was moved out entirely to a new book called GURPS Banestorm, released in October 2005. One chapter is spent on describing an example setting called Roma Arcana, based on a fantastical Rome that never completely fell.

Yrth (setting)

: ''Note: Although the early editions of GURPS Fantasy contained information on Yrth, in GURPS 4E this is now in a separate book called GURPS Banestorm (2005)'' A basic premise of the setting is that magical ''banestorms'' pick up people and whole villages from other worlds (including Earth) and deposit them on Yrth. As a result, many of the societies and cultures are reminiscent of a Crusades-era Earth, albeit with magic. One significant difference this brings is that, unlike many fantasy settings, Yrth has many of the major Earth faiths as its core religions, including

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

and others. The settings's official timeline syncs up with our own, so that a "normal" campaign would be set in 2005 or 2006. The Banestorm started about 1,000 years ago when a group of "Dark Elves" completed a magical ritual designed to banish all Orcs from Yrth. The spell backfired horribly, and instead brought people from other worlds. Although the majority of Banestorm strikes occurred shortly after the initial backfire, giving the world its fantasy-medieval flavor, occasional flare-ups have occurred since then. For instance, in the 16th century a number of humans were transported to Yrth from France, bringing with them dangerous knowledge of Protestantism, and gunpowder. The latter has since been suppressed due to concerns by the Empire of Megalos about too much technological progress.

Themes of Yrth

Yrth was designed such that each region enables a different flavor of campaign. Araterre, for instance, is a seafaring nation inhabited by the descendants of those brought to Yrth from France in the 16th century. Light or no armor, swashbuckling, and courtly intrigue are the rule of the day. Sahud is the Asian mish-mash country, and would be suitable for a wuxia style game, or even something akin to Legend of the Five Rings. Some countries are almost entirely human-dominated, and others are mixed, while there are still some area completely under the control of Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, or Reptile Men.

Major regions of Yrth

* Al-Haz: Shiite Islamic * Al-Wazif: Sunni Islamic * Araterre: Island nation. 16th Century Catholicism brought into line by Banestorm Church. strong Huguenot "heresy". * Cardiel: Formed from the former Islamic Nation of Al-Kard, which was conquered by Megalos, but lost control of Cardiel. Nominally Catholic, practices tolerance of other religions. * Caithness: Catholic * Megalos: The largest nation of Yrth, Megalos is a human-dominated Christian Empire. Catholic * The Nomad Lands: Pagan * The Oceans * The Orclands: Anti-The Eternal * Sahud: Quasi-Asian nation on the northern coast of Yrth. Buddhist/Shinto * The Great Forest. Elven worhip of the Eternal * The Southwestern Wilderness * Tredroy: City of Three Laws: Tredroy is a city divided between the rule of Cardiel, Al-Haz and Al-Wazif. * Zarak: The Underground Kingdom of the Dwarves. Dwarven Worship of the Eternal

Publication history

''GURPS Fantasy'' was written by Steve Jackson, with a cover by

Denis Loubet Denis Loubet is an artist who has worked on several pen-and-paper role-playing games and video games, including the MMORPG ''Ashen Empires''. Career Loubet designed a set of miniatures called '' Cardboard Heroes'' (1980), a set of full-color card ...

, and was first published by

in 1986 as a 100-page book. The second edition, ''GURPS Fantasy: The Magical World of Yrth'' was written by Kirk Tate and Janet Naylor, with a cover by Kirk Reinert, and was published by Steve Jackson Games in 1990 as a 144-page book. '' GURPS Fantasy II: Adventures in the Mad Lands'' (1993) was designed by

Robin D. Laws Robin D. Laws (born October 14, 1964 in Orillia, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian writer and game designer who lives in Toronto, Canada. He is the author of a number of novels and role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled rolepl ...

with editing by Steve Jackson, and published by Steve Jackson Games as a 128-page softcover book with one 15" × 20" map sheet. It featured illustrations by

John Hartwell John Hartwell (born c. 1965) is an American college athletics administrator, currently serving as the director of athletics at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He previously served as athletic director at Utah State University, a position ...

, a map by Laura Eisenhour, and a cover by Rob Prior. ''

Alarums & Excursions ''Alarums and Excursions'' (''A&E'') is an amateur press association (APA) started in June 1975 by Lee Gold; publication continues to the present day. It was one of the first publications to focus solely on role-playing games. History In 1964, B ...

'' led Robin Laws to write ''GURPS Fantasy II'' for Steve Jackson Games in 1992. ''GURPS Fantasy'' for 4e was published in 2004, one of several genre books published by Steve Jackson Games for the new edition.

Reception

Jim Bambra Jim Bambra (born 1956)Jim Bambra: Director Summary
Company Check Ltd is a Briti ...

reviewed ''GURPS Fantasy'' for ''

'' magazine #131 (March 1988). He felt that the book presents the magic system and background to the campaign world "in a highly satisfying way" and that "Best of all, it works!" On the campaign world, he comments: "Rich in background and plundering freely from Earth history and religion, the world of Yrth is easily accessible and nicely presented." Bambra concludes: "Extensive commentary on the countries of Yrth and plenty of staging tips make this a strong contender on the campaign front. ''GURPS Fantasy'' is an impressive product that is well worth a look." J. Michael Caparula reviewed ''GURPS Fantasy'' in '' Space Gamer/Fantasy Gamer'' No. 81. Caparula commented that "''GURPS: Fantasy'' can be seen as 180 degrees apart from something detailed and imposing like '' Harn''. I think I'll look for something in the middle of that spectrum: easy to use, but still interesting and inventive." The July 1990 edition of ''

'' (Issue 16) reviewed the second edition, and commented that it was "a setting that anyone could knock up in a spare weekend." The reviewer concluded that it was designed for "those gamers who are in need of a fantasy world in a hurry."

Rick Swan Rick Swan is a game designer and author who worked for TSR. His work for TSR, mostly for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, appeared from 1989 to 1995. Swan also wrote ''The Complete Guide to Role-Playing Games'' (1990), published by St. Martin's Pre ...

reviewed ''GURPS Fantasy II'' for ''

'' magazine #198 (October 1993). Swan comments in his evaluation: "I suspect that Laws wants us to be intrigued by the contrast between the utopian tribesmen and the chaotic deities. But I was never intrigued as much as I was amused, perhaps because it's hard to get worked up over a deity resembling a giant moose. The nuts and bolts of the relationship between the deities and the tribesmen remain unclear; as that's the crux of the book, it's a significant flaw. Despite the tantalizing possibilities, Laws hedges his bets and never cuts loose. I'd liked to have seen something really mad, like a village of Footless, or a gang war between the Gopher God and Mr. Moose. ''Adventures in the Mad Lands'' boasts an exquisite premise, but it could use a bolder vision."

Reviews

* ''Dragão Brasil'' (Issue 6; September 1995)

Awards

* The first edition of ''GURPS Fantasy'' was a Gamers' Choice award-winner. * At the 1987

Origins Awards The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so (for example) the 1979 a ...

, ''GURPS Fantasy'' was a nominee for Best Roleplaying Supplement of 1986. * At the 2006 Origins Awards, ''GURPS 4e Fantasy'' was a nominee for Best Roleplaying Game of 2005.{{cite web, url=http://www.gamingreport.com/article.php?sid=16417&mode=&order=0, title=Origins Awards 2005 Announcement, access-date=2007-08-24, url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927184348/http://www.gamingreport.com/article.php?sid=16417&mode=&order=0, archivedate=2007-09-27

References

2004 books Fantasy role-playing game supplements GURPS 1st/2nd edition GURPS 3rd edition GURPS 4th edition

Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1986 Yrth