I’m delighted to see that the 5th edition version of Primeval Thule is now widely available as a pdf. I backed the original Kickstarter (for the 13th Age version), but I’m currently playing in a 5th edition Primeval Thule campaign, the one D&D 5E game I play in rather than run. (Meanwhile, I’m running Rise of Tiamat on Wednesdays, my homebrew Onnwal/Greyhawk campaign on alternating Fridays, and Princes of the Apocalypse on Saturdays).
There’s something particularly enjoyable about the concept – Conan meets Cthulhu – and this barbaric land is one I’m very much enjoying exploring. My character, Goran the Slayer, was first a soldier, then a slave and a pit-fighter, but now has escaped and is trying to make his fortune exploring lost ruins while avoiding those who would make him a slave again.
He’s also the most politically-incorrect character I’ve ever played.
I feel very uneasy playing him, even though I’m amongst friends. Goran’s declarations about his love of women are problematic, despite Goran not being completely irredeemable. Goran doesn’t think that women should fall at his feet and worship him. He just knows there are women out there that like to be with him, as he’s an attractive, brawny – and brainy – warrior. But he’s a bit crude in how he expresses himself. In other words, he’s completely different to the other characters I play, but he’s true to the inspirations behind the setting. Well, superficially, at least. I want to see how I can subvert things with him. Conan and Fafhrd don’t have the best reputations in regard to respecting women. Goran is meant to be better than them.
Do I succeed? No idea. I hope to get better at playing him, though!
Our game is currently in recess for the Christmas holidays, but we’ve had a few sessions in which we’ve escaped from a caravan of slavers, rescued more slaves, and escaped from some ruins we fell into. All without good weapons. Goran’s chief weakness is a poor Dexterity, so he’s been very much struggling along with no armour worth speaking of…
More than anything, Primeval Thule is a chance for me to play a larger-than-life character. With any luck, you’ll never meet anyone like Goran the Slayer, despite how much fun he is to play. Instead, just enjoyed the untamed jungles and lost ruins of Thule!