Included along with each rulebook we create, there will be a blurb of lore at the end of the booklet, sharing some details about the history and current events transpiring in the Old Kingdom. In this game, the lore is a big part of the ambiance and reasoning behind a lot of the cards (and their abilities). While these blurbs are much shorter than any real attempt at detailed exposition, it still must be enough to give people something to think about as they read the flavor text on the cards. The lore blurb and flavor text together really do help to create a game that is both fun and engaging on multiple levels. I have included the lore blurb from the base set (The Old Kingdom) for you to review. Any feedback you have would be appreciated.

Realm RPCG Base Set – The Old Kingdom

The Old Kingdom: the continent where Realm and millions of other people reside exists on a tidally locked world, where the southern pole always faces the sun, and the northern pole never sees light that isn’t provided by the moons. Two equatorial satellites, one large, dusty-red and the other smaller with a pale grey hue, keep the circadian rhythm of all the people that call this world their home. Across the land, bright veins of light can be seen branching, flickering and changing with each new environment they traverse. Most Humans do not pay the Stream any mind, but a rare few can touch the Stream and unlock its power. The glowing veins of light carry the memories of those who have come before and can provide a glimpse into a future that has yet to unfold. The people who can commune with the Stream are known as Shifters, because they can shift reality into something different using the Stream; they can raise mountains, empower combatants, commune with animals and even hear the thoughts of others. Some Humans in the Spiral enslaved the Bessan Shifters for hundreds of years, gaining their insight but limiting their power. Once, in the distant past, Realm had cities in its control as far as the deep dark of the northern Wastes, but that mighty empire receded to the Spiral in the south long ago. The humans of the Spiral founded a massive metropolis, the City of Realm, using the power of Jeshan Shifters to raise great walls, carve vast tunnels and build towers that scrape the sky. In the Shifter capital of Strayalis, the elders are deeply troubled by the ongoing atrocities committed by Realm towards their kin, and tension towards open conflict continues to mount.

In the center of this expansive continent, a diverse mix of people live across a vast, rolling savannah known as the Traders’ Fold, and the Last Knights of Realm are a Human cavalry militia that serve all those who live there. The Knights, in their well-armed patrols, safeguard smaller towns and villages outside the protection of the larger cities like Cheed and Mirondale. Though they profess to be “Knights of Realm,” they believe the powerful Human nation to the distant south has gone astray from the “old way” that once guided them to glory and unity across the Old Kingdom. The Last Knights’ prominent fortress of Siegecrest stands on the border between darkness and light, between mountains and plains, and the Knights are always watchful of those that dwell in the massive frozen Wastes to the north.

The dim and frigid lands beyond the reach of the sun are home to many terrible creatures, as well as the brave individuals that live their lives in near total darkness. A hearty and muscular people known as the Northrons have resided across the Wastes for thousands of years, and are divided into two factions, the Dax and the Tor. The great Northron cities of An Duulesh and Tor Khaless are constantly at war with each other, but they also raid and hunt in the Traders’ Fold to the south. They prefer to operate under the light of the moons, and only briefly visit the ceaseless twilight of the foothills on the edge of the Wastes. There is one enemy that all fear; they are a proto-human, cannibalistic and deadly underground species that exist only to grow their numbers and feed.  The Anten, as they are known, and their massive underground city of Kyraskii are a constant threat to the survival of those living in the Traders’ Fold or the Wastes. They build long tunnel systems under the land that stretch for hundreds of miles, and their raiding parties emerge from the ground and ambush cities and townships, where they pillage and feast on the people that live there.

Now, a Shifter named Arix the Ascended has taken hold of a powerful relic, a jagged shard of Streamstone used as a weapon, creating a wake of destruction across the eastern Traders’ Fold. The Streamstone he possesses amplifies his Jeshan powers to strengthen himself and change whole landscapes… and he has his sights set on bringing down the Academy of Naruna and burning the Library, an act that would erase most of the history of the world. After, he plans to go south and destroy the Shifter capital of Strayalis and eventually, the City of Realm itself.

The future is uncertain, but heroes will rise from this all-encompassing conflict and lead the resistance against the coming tide of darkness. Form allegiances with the great cities and use the power of the Stream to bring about a better fate than the one seen in the future by the wise Shifters of Vale. Restore balance to the land, and master the factions of Northrons, Anten, Shifters and the Humans of Realm!