Longwinter - Visitor's Book

Winters are long and beautiful in the high valleys of Brezim.

Longwinter is the two-book RPG sandbox of a mountainous winter country on the cusp between the old and the new, the edge of modernity, the stepping stone of a new age. New mines and industries are opened, light breaks the gloom of ancient ruins, change comes to sweep away the cobwebs of history. But cobwebs do not go easily into the dust.

This winter will be memorable.

This book contains common knowledge and mechanics for all the players: heroes and referees. The Referee’s Book contains tools for running Longwinter at the table. The idea behind splitting Longwinter into two books is to make it easier for the players to share the world, while preserving the challenges and random events for the referee alone.

The setting is profoundly close to that of Witchburner (by the same author and artist).


This gazetteer includes:

~100 pages of content.

over 40 colour illustrations.

a rather pretty map.

rough history from the oldest times to the wars that tumbled the ancient regime and led directly to the current federal arrangement.

powers and major factions, the dominant baronials and the oppressed oldfolk, the terrifying wolffolk and the mysterious old architects.

economy and society, and cultural touchstones in the mountain barony.

three towns and eight villages, characters and curiosities in each.

mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes.

simple modular rules for handling mountainous terrain and the cold weather.

terrain and weather complications.

a buy-and-sell list for would be visitors.

a vignette to set the mood.

and an appendix of inspirational music.

Be aware:

This is a full-fledged mini-setting, but the vast part of the random encounters and events are in the referee book.

The content is mostly system-neutral. It references some 5E or d20-style conventions, but should work with most low-power systems easily.


Finally, thank you for taking time to read all that. I hope you will enjoy Longwinter. It is a bit of a tribute to the mountains and myths I've walked and heard over many years. It has also been a long and challenging project to prepare. Many people helped make it as good as it is. The fault for all errors and typos is my own.