A hanging lamp sways from the ceiling, shining its warm yellow glow back and forth along the damp cement walls like a quivering spotlight. The floor is cold and bare save for a small card table covered with pencil, crumpled papers, and oddly shaped dice. Two men sit on opposite sides, one intent on a hand-drawn map, the other peering above a cardboard screen. The latter man's forehead shines brighter than his eyes as they swivel to and fro, reading aloud from a crumb-coated booklet contained safely from the other man's view.
"Your face twists in disgust as you withdraw a forefinger from the brackish swamp. A tiny bubble flicks up from the surface to caress your hand like a lover's sweet kiss goodbye. The glob stretches at least two miles in all directions, impeding your progress to the stone castle visible through the fog ahead. It appears to be too deep to cross. What will you do?"
The other man's tongue darts out as he opens his mouth, bites his lip, nods quickly, then says, "I want to swim through the swamp."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Wait... no? No, I definitely am. I mean, yes, I don't think I--"
"Roll the dice."
The young man complies, then breaks out in a wide, sugar-coated grin. "I made it across."
The dungeon master's thick bifocals slip forward, riding his greasy nose like a skier on a slope as he examines the dice. Scowling, he eases himself back into his chair, his glasses still dangling like a discarded marionette, then folds his arms and says, "No, you didn't. You step into the swamp and die."
"What! Carl, you can't do that."
"Yes I can."
"But--"
Carl nearly shoves his spectacles through his forehead before the wobbling finger points at his friend. "You shouldn't have stolen my action figure last weekend, dude."
"I did no such thing!" the young man counters, the rest of his face flushing to blend in with his collection of pimples.
"Yes you did! And stop shouting, you're gonna wake up my mom."
Hardcover tabletop RPG book, exclusive to the Two Worlds CE.
This and similar occurrences should sound frighteningly familiar to any fan of tabletop RPGs. For those excited about South Peak Interactive's forthcoming Two Worlds RPG for PC and Xbox 360, yet still yearning for some old-fashioned pen-and-paper shenanigans, the inclusion of a tabletop RPG with the game's Collector's Edition should cause a fair bit of excitement. IGN recently received a copy of the tabletop RPG book and decided to document its secrets for the good of the entire Two Worlds community. For those interested, the entire contents of the Collector's Edition can be found at the article's conclusion.
Before you get too excited, prospective RPG geeks should be warned that the Two Worlds' CE does not include any dice, 20-sided or otherwise. Unless you still have a ratty cardboard box full of them in your mom's basement, you'll want to head out to the store to pick up at least one d20, d8, d6, and a d4.
At the game's outset, players will get to choose from one of three classes: a Mage, a Thief, and a Warrior. The available Races offer a diversity of selections ranging from standards such as Dwaves, Orcs, and Humans to Serpents, Trachidis, and Groms. Serpents receive a healthy serving of Dexterity as part of their special Racial Traits, and seem to be a natural selection for those players who wish to assume the guise of a Thief. Trachidis are insect-like in appearance and receive bonuses to Strength and Dexterity, but suffer losses in the categories of Willpower and Charisma. Finally, the Grom are a physically weaker brand of Orcs, but make up for these weaknesses with a little extra Willpower.
A wide array of skills such as Air Magic, Athletics, Disguise, Persuasion, Stealing, and Water Magic are available to accompany Feats, which players earn as they increase in level. Acting as ability boosters, Feats offer powers such as Burn, Double Blade, Death Strike, Evasion, and Knock Down. There is, of course, a catch: each Feat comes with one or more prerequisites. As always, make sure to carefully plan a character's course of action before making any rash decisions pertaining to Skills and Feats.
Flipping through the hardcover tabletop RPG book got me excited to play Two Worlds. Whether with a pencil, a controller, or a keyboard and mouse, RPG fans have something to be excited about come August 21.
Contents of Two Worlds Collector's Edition for PC and Xbox 360
* 2 bonus cards with 16 digit number codes to unlock exclusive weapons
* A bonus disc containing artwork, in-game shots, videos, wallpaper, music, and more
* Collector Edition Map
* Hardback tabletop RPG 48-page book
Preview: Two Worlds: A Peek Inside the Collector's Edition
Linear Mode
