Instead of focusing on believability, authenticity, and realism, as I did when creating Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game, with ReconQuest I focused on making something easy and fun to run. Making the core rule book thinner and cutting the need for the game master to constantly look things up during play became a main priority. Another focus was re-playability and world customization. I wanted to create a tool that would allow game masters to easily use their imagination to craft unique worlds, all built on the same foundation.

ReconQuest has borrowed heavily from Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game, yet it feels and plays very differently. While simplifying the rules for ease of use, I ended up also improving many of the core concepts of my earlier game. Therefore, in spite of being designed to be easier to play, ReconQuest includes many elements that are actually more believable, authentic, and realistic – yet simpler and more fun to use!

Many corrections, modifications, improvements, adjustments, and even replacements were made during play-testing. I am releasing ReconQuest only after feeling confident that everything works perfectly. However, I must emphasize that no attempts were made to make this a balanced game! There are real (and in game terms mechanical) differences between the races, the sexes, and the character roles, and these differences are celebrated, rather than flattened into sameness with equal power and potential.

I have also dared to ignore the modern trends, where game designers assume their players can’t do basic calculations or handle both a system and its sub-systems simultaneously. In ReconQuest, you will roll high, or low, and with one die or another, and you will get used to it – and enjoy the fun of doing so.

To make the learning curve for new players less steep and to help both players and game masters navigate the rules more easily, I have split up ReconQuest into two volumes: the Basic Rules, which you hold here, and the Expert Rules, which I will finish and release at a later stage. The Basic Rules contain everything you need to play the game indefinitely. You will never need anything else, but if you want to expand into domain style play, the Expert Rules will guide you through that.

ReconQuest was inspired not only by my own Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game, but also by older games made by others – especially AD&D (1E as well as 2E) and D&D B/X.

I hope you enjoy this game as much as my players and I do, and appreciate the effort I have put into it. ReconQuest is not just another fantasy RPG, nor yet another retro-clone of D&D, but a unique system and a bold reimagining of the heroic journey, where players are called to reclaim a forgotten land, rediscover ancient traditions, and confront both physical and spiritual threats that have taken root in their ancestral homeland. In ReconQuest, your adventures have meaning.

Take back what was once yours! History. Homeland. Heritage. Honor.

Varg Vikernes

October, 2024

Resources:

Get ReconQuest from here!

Character sheets:

Note that a few changes have been made (to ASDA for Armor and Shields and to adjustments for Morale tests) in ReconQuest, so if you have the original edition, this document will include ALL the changes made, and where different, the PDF below (GM’s Quick Reference Sheets) should be used instead!

GM’s Quick Reference Sheets:

High resolution map of Thulê (Hyperborea):