 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(October 2024) |
Polish role-playing games have been in production since the early 1990s. Now there are several games that have been designed in Poland, as well as many translations.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(October 2024) |
Polish role-playing games have been in production since the early 1990s. Now there are several games that have been designed in Poland, as well as many translations.
Role-playing games were almost non-existent before the fall of communism in the People's Republic of Poland. There were no Polish publishers, no translators, and no distributors. In 1989, the publication of the "Talisman" board game began to increase interest in similar games, and the first unofficial fan translations of Western role-playing games began to appear.
The major change came in 1993 with the publication of Magia i Miecz (Magic and Sword), the first Polish magazine about role-playing games. Soon the Polish market began to fill up with both translations and Polish role-playing games, as well as new role-playing magazines (Złoty Smok, Talizman, Portal). Currently there are several games designed in Poland on the market, as well as many foreign translations.
Among the first Polish role-playing games was Kryształy Czasu (Crystals of Time), first published in parts of Magia i Miecz. This game is now mostly remembered for its cumbersome rules (based on percentile die) and original fantasy world (with orcs being the most civilized of the races). Another early debut was Andrzej Sapkowski's Oko Yrrhedesa, a beginner level RPG, based on Advanced Fighting Fantasy by Steve Jackson.
These early games opened the gate for other Polish domestic publications of role-playing games, such as Neuroshima (post-apocalyptic sci-fi set in United States), Monastyr (dark fantasy, exploring the issues of religion and race) and Dzikie Pola (a historical game, set in the 17th century Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, portrayed as Polish Golden Age). De Profundis , created by Michal Oracz, is a highly innovative micro-RPG derived from the literary horror forms of H. P. Lovecraft that encouraged players to explore horror themes by consciously blurring the lines between daily reality and dark Lovecraftian fantasies, either solo, in group chat, or by post. Another fantasy role-playing game is based on The Witcher fantasy world created by bestselling Polish fantasy author, Andrzej Sapkowski. Crystalicum , set in a mixed fantasy/sci-fi setting, somewhat resembling Spelljammer, debuted in late 2000s. Wolsung, a pulp Steampunk RPG has been released in English a couple of years after its Polish release. All of those games have unique mechanics, with Neuroshima and Monastyr using the custom 3d20 system, Dzikie Pola's system being the inspiration for American The Riddle of Steel , and De Profundis being essentially systemless.
Polish edition of Savage Worlds has resulted in some fan-made publication, and some Polish setting books, starting with Nemezis, a dark space opera.
In recent years the Crowdfunding and self-publishing phenomenon took place in Poland, with polish edition of Apocalypse World being entirely crowdfunded, and lesser-known indie games like Woje Miodomiła, Głębia przestrzeni, Idee fixe, or Iron Space being self-published by the authors.
One of the most popular translated role-playing games is Warhammer Fantasy, which gained a strong following on its first translation, early in 1994, when it became the first role-playing system officially translated into Polish. Another one is Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (second edition of the game). Other popular translated systems include Call of Cthulhu, many of White Wolf Publishing's World of Darkness games such as Werewolf: The Apocalypse, Vampire: the Masquerade and Mage: the Ascension, and other RPGs such as Cyberpunk 2020, Deadlands, Legend of the Five Rings, 7th Sea, Fading Suns, Earthdawn, Shadowrun, Savage Worlds and Castle Falkenstein. Since the early 2000s, Dungeons & Dragons has been available in Polish, and has gained a significant following of its own. The Fourth Edition was released, however due to changes of the licensing, no supplements have been published. [1]
There is a substantial[ vague ] fandom of role-playing gamers in Poland. Among the largest role-playing and science fiction conventions in Poland are Polcon, Falkon and Pyrkon. Although Magia i Miecz is no longer in print, there are various fanzines and ezines, as well as many vibrant message boards and a Usenet group (pl.rec.gry.rpg).[ citation needed ]
Andrzej Sapkowski is a Polish fantasy writer, essayist, translator and a trained economist. He is best known for his six-volume series of books The Witcher, which revolves around the eponymous "witcher," a monster-hunter, Geralt of Rivia. It began with the publication of Last Wish (1990), and was completed with the publication of standalone prequel novel Season of Storms (2013). The saga has been popularized through television, stage, comic books, video games and translated into 37 languages making him the second most-translated Polish science fiction and fantasy writer after Stanisław Lem.
Talisman: The Magical Quest Game is a fantasy-themed adventure board game for two to six players, originally designed and produced by Games Workshop. The game was first released in 1983 and has gone through three revisions. As of 2024, the fifth edition (2024) is the latest version. The board game sold over 800,000 units by 2000.
The history of role-playing games began when disparate traditions of historical reenactment, improvisational theatre, and parlour games combined with the rulesets of fantasy wargames in the 1970s to give rise to tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs). Multiple TTRPGs were produced between the 1970s and early 1990s. In the 1990s, TTRPGs faced a decline in popularity. Indie role-playing game design communities arose on the internet in the early 2000s and introduced new ideas. In the late 2010s and early 2020s, TTRPGs experienced renewed popularity due to videoconferencing, the rise of actual play, and online marketplaces.
Dzikie Pola is a Polish role-playing game, set in the historical setting of the 17th century Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It had two editions: first in 1997 and second in 2005.
Jacek Lech Komuda is a Polish writer and historian. He specialized in the period of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and History of Poland (1569–1795), and is the author of several novels and short stories of fantasy/historical novel genre. He is a co-author of the Dzikie Pola role-playing game, and script writer for Earth 2160 computer games. He is also an editor of computer game magazine GameStar, and used to contribute to Click! and Komputer Świat GRY magazines.
Science fiction and fantasy in Poland dates to the late 18th century. However, science fiction as a genre in Polish literature truly began to emerge at the end of the 19th century under the influence of Jules Verne's work. During the latter years of the People's Republic of Poland, a very popular genre of science fiction was social science fiction. Later, many other genres gained prominence.
Wydawnictwo MAG, is a publisher that was the first to publish Polish translations of popular American and British role-playing games (RPGs) like Call of Cthulhu and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. In more recent years, it has turned to publication of translations of popular English-language novels.
Magia i Miecz was a Polish magazine dedicated to RPG games. It was the first and longest existing magazine of this type in the country. It was published in 1993–2002 by Wydawnictwo MAG. It was a precursor of RPG in Poland and was influential in propagating and popularizing RPGs in the state. In 2014 the rights for the name was bought by Kuźnia Gier publisher and the magazine as again available for a few years.
Kryształy Czasu was one of the first Polish role-playing games.
Tomasz Kołodziejczak is a Polish science fiction and fantasy writer, screenwriter, publisher and editor of books, comics and role-playing games.
The following is a timeline of tabletop role-playing games. For computer role-playing games see here.
A tabletop role-playing game, also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a classification for a role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their characterization, and the actions succeed or fail according to a set formal system of rules and guidelines, usually involving randomization. Within the rules, players have the freedom to improvise, and their choices shape the direction and outcome of the game.
The Witcher is a series of six fantasy novels and 15 short stories by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The series revolves around the eponymous witcher, Geralt of Rivia. Witchers are monster hunters given superhuman abilities for the purpose of killing dangerous creatures. The Witcher began with a titular 1986 short story that Sapkowski entered into a competition held by Fantastyka magazine, marking his debut as an author. Due to reader demand, Sapkowski wrote 14 more stories before starting a series of novels in 1994. Known as The Witcher Saga, he wrote one book a year until the fifth and final installment in 1999. A standalone prequel novel, Season of Storms, was published in 2013.
Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) is a tabletop role-playing game design framework developed by Meguey Baker and Vincent Baker for the 2010 game Apocalypse World and later adapted for hundreds of other indie role-playing games.
Casus Belli is a French magazine about role-playing games, published in different formats since 1980. It contains news, reviews, interviews, features, and role-playing game materials. The magazine was published by Excelsior Publications until 1999, by Arkana Press in 2000–2006, and by Casus Belli Presse in 2010–2011, and has been published by Black Book Éditions since 2011. Since 2020, it also has the online video companion Casus TV, which is produced in collaboration with Tric Trac.
Under a Blood Red Moon is an adventure module released in June 1993 by White Wolf Publishing for use with either of their tabletop role-playing games Vampire: The Masquerade and Werewolf: The Apocalypse, and is a part of the World of Darkness series. It is set in and around Chicago, and follows the conflict between the local vampire and werewolf communities; players take the roles of werewolves, or vampires belonging to the Camarilla or Sabbat sects.
The Complete Book of Elves is a supplementary sourcebook published by TSR in 1993 for the 2nd edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role playing game.
Jarosław Musiał was a Polish illustrator and comic book artist.