Torchbearer: Scholar's Guide

by Thor Olavsrud, Luke Crane

The world is crumbling at the edges, hemmed in on all sides by the savage and pitiless darkness—monsters and other evils that prey upon light and life. Most people huddle behind walls, convincing themselves their civilization will persevere and conquer this land. A brave few have decided to fight against the encroaching darkness and their fate may determine the fate of the world.

The Scholar's Guide contains all the procedural elements necessary to play a game of Torchbearer: How to begin a session, factor the difficulty of tests, apply and alleviate conditions, participate in conflicts, and spend rewards to affect rolls. It contains procedures for the camp and town phases and walks game masters through the process for designing adventures and creating loot. Monsters, game master advice, and a demo adventure, the Dread Crypt of Skogenby, are all contained within. And of course, we provide reference lists for camp events, town events, and sample twists. It's enough to create an entire world.

Genres: Reference

320 pages, Hardcover

Published December 1, 2021

Reviews

[Dylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finishing now part 2/3 of Torchbearer and there is still so much I want to steal from this game, alongside just playing it in its entirety. It felt less readable than the "Dungeoneer's Handbook" for a reason I am not sure of but it is still a great addition to a GM's shelf. It helped provide some guidance also to formatting dungeons in a compelling way, something which I think the DM support for 5e severely lacks.

[Ethan Knierim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way the Torchbearer 2e rules are split up makes sense on paper but both books, in practice, are often needed in tangent. This volume contains rules materials such as combat procedures, the phases of adventure, and a small bestiary. The reason for my high rating is the writing style of the texts. They are written in an engaging manner and have a distinct voice whilst maintaining clarity. Reading through these volumes easily entertains and cements the book's structure to memory.

[Caleb M. Powers · Rating 5 out of 5]

2020: After reading this book and the Dungeoneer's Handbook, I feel like I could run a game of Torchbearer (an awesome feeling to have on a first read-through). The setting details are so evocative and the tables and reference pages seem so helpful; I'm really excited to start a game of this soon.

2023: Excellent game. Excited to actually play this time.