Fans of classic CRPGs and tabletop adventures are about to get the best of both worlds. A development team made up of several ex-Dragon Age developers have officially announced a Kickstarter for a brand new tabletop fantasy adventure: Raiders of the Serpent Sea.
As described in the game's Kickstarter campaign, Raiders of the Serpent Sea is a Norse Viking-themed adventure. It is set in a brand new setting called Grimnir, and it takes players on a fantastical adventures as prospective raiders traveling the seas and seeking their fortune and glory. The rules are based on Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition, and the adventure book itself is packed with roughly 250 pages of adventure scenarios, characters and artwork.
Raiders of the Serpent Sea is the newest project by the studio Arcanum Worlds. The founders of the studio, James Ohlen and Jesse Sky, were both creative directors at acclaimed studio Bioware. For this project, they are working with another colleague from that same studio: Brent Knowles. Knowles' credited work with Bioware include working on beloved RPGs such as Neverwinter Nights, Jade Empire, Baldur's Gate 2, and Dragon Age: Origins. This will be the second major adventure the studio has created using the 5e OGL, the former being the well-received Odyssey of the Dragonlords.
This adventure isn't just a setting and adventure hooks however. Raiders of the Serpent Sea includes brand new playable races, complex backgrounds, and character archetypes like half-giant Tallfolk, wolfriders, and prophetic bards. In addition, there will be roughly fifteen new stat blocks for creatures inspired by Norse mythology and over 20 new magical items. Finally, the adventure emphasizes imperfect characters as well as giving Game Masters opportunities to pivot their storytelling into more meaningful stretches of roleplaying for their players.
Raiders of the Serpent Sea's Kickstarter campaign will be live until November 20. The backer tiers include digital PDFs of the book and all stretch goals for $24, hardcover physical limited edition books for $59, and at the top is a $163 which includes everything mentioned before, a poster map, a softcover player handbook and a faux leather cover for the adventure book. All of these are expected to arrive to backers in April of 2023.
