This tale begins with a world of dark fantasy and perilous adventure, where the forces of evil have triumphed.
In such a world, those who remain uncorrupted by wickedness must rely upon monsters to fight against the darkness. Witches have ruled the land since the last battles of conquest, but their Grand Coven has been sundered, leaving behind remnants of a once-mighty army. The remnants of the horde include captured citizens of the conquered nations that fought as the Witches’ shock troops.
These are the Accursed—the Witchmarks burned into their flesh and souls transformed these men and women into monstrous forms. Now, unable to return to their former lives, the Accursed wander the land, giving aid to those in need in an attempt to atone for past sins. Some have joined the Order of the Penitent, an organization devoted to ridding the world of the Witches and their evil influence. Others offer their skills as warriors, alchemists, and spies to the highest bidder. Yet others have succumbed to corruption, greed, or insanity.
Light has failed, darkness is ascendant—only those bearing the forms of monsters can stand against the tide of the Witches’ evil. The Accursed are this world’s only hope—they must learn to embrace their curse or to fight against it, and find some way to free themselves forever of their Witchmark.
This is the world of Accursed.
Accursed is a setting for the Savage Worlds RPG. I've created it with my two colleagues, John Dunn and Jason Marker. Between the three of us, we’ve designed games for many properties, including Star Wars: Edge of the Empire, Shadowrun, Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay, and Robotech. We have decades of experience working in the gaming industry and we’re very excited about bringing a new twist on dark fantasy RPGs to life. The three of us are bringing our combined creativity, experience, and passion to the project.
The fast, fun, and furious play of Savage Worlds is a perfect fit for the perils and triumphs of adventure in Accursed.In Accursed, Hammer Horror films meet Hellboy, and Solomon Kane meets Castlevania. The game world allows players to take on the roles of characters with curses; they are Dhampir (Half-vampire charming rogues), Golems (living creatures crafted from unliving materials, similar to Frankenstein’s monster), Vargr (werewolves), Mummies, Mongrels (men with bestial limbs and other body parts grafted onto their bodies), and Revenants (the living dead).
They are investigators, using intuition and deductive skills to discern a witch's plans and ferret out her servants. They are knaves, social engineers using charm and deceit to succeed. They are Enochians, part of a devout order of faith and knowledge. They are alchemists, combining different materials to construct powerful mixtures to achieve a variety of effects. They are white witches, able to harness the magic of witchcraft but forever wary of falling prey to its foul nature. They are witch hunters, powerful warriors with blade and black-powder gun seeking to end the Witches’ threat once and for all.
The Accursed must not only fight evil from without; each character’s witchmark defines his curse and changes over time.
Of course, no discussion of Accursed would be complete without the setting itself – the continent of Morden. Here, the Accursed track man-eating wolves through the dark forests of Valkenholm, assist a caravan of much-needed supplies heading across the trackless deserts of Hyphrates, explore the mystery of the Weeping Colossus along the Repentance Road, and rescue a sacrificial maiden from the windswept moors of Cairn Kainen.
The Witches send out their Banes and their coven-kin to collect tithes and tighten their grip upon the conquered realms. In Steppengrad, the shadow of Baba Yaga looms over every hamlet and village, while the Blood Witch’s foul leech-men stalk forth from the Borderland swamps. Refugees have fled to the Morden’s only hope of freedom—the scattered islands of the Discordian Sea.
There are tons of details about the Accursed RPG that are just waiting to be revealed, so keep an eye on this space to learn more in the near future. We'll be launching a kickstarter for Accursed later this year, so we greatly appreciate your interest!
Experience a new dimension of dark fantasy roleplaying. Become one of the Accursed, and join the resistance. Fight alongside the Order against the minions of the Witches, and cleanse evil from the land of Morden. Wrestle with your own inner demons and conquer the curse that has twisted your body and mind.
This is what it means to be Accursed.
By Ross Watson, John Dunn, and Jason Marker
