How would the introduction to such game look like? Search no further!
---
Barbarians! Civilized men huddle behind tall stone walls, trembling at the thought. The soldiers of civilization tighten their shield walls against the oncoming onslaught. And then they come. Savage men and women, screaming at the top of their lungs, oblivious to fear, frothing at the mouth from rage and lust for war. Wave after wave, they storm shields and fortifications. Many die; the pagan gods bless their souls. But eventually, mail and castle will fail. Then, the flames of barbarism will sweep the land, leaving no stone unturned.
Or so think the civilized men. But beyond this nightmare – the shared nightmare of cultured folk – the reality is not as simple. Proud barbarian tribes plow the harsh land and hunt for deadly game beyond the domains of kings and emperors. Their warriors are plenty; of them, many are raiders and plunderers. But other barbarians are merchants trading with civilization; guides and hunters in far-flung provinces, and, ultimately – mercenaries to bolster the ranks of legions crumbling under the heel of decadent rulers.
Sooner or later, such soldiers of fortune – or, indeed, some of their merchant and wanderer kinfolk – will see the rotten heart of civilization for what it is. Opulence and corruption, avarice and greed. Noblemen who send others to kill and be killed to fulfill their whims. Merchants who could sell their own mother for profit. Crime seeping through every crack in moribund empires. Many will become jaded and disillusioned, seeing that the light of civilization is as dark and cold as the steppes and forests they call home. Others will see an opportunity.
For sometimes, what a rotten kingdom needs are a barbarian boot to kick it, smash its scheming nobles, lay low its selfish emperors, bring freedom – or, indeed, new slave-masters – to the townspeople and peasants.
Sword and sorcery tales speak of cunning thieves, power-hungry sorcerers, and, indeed, barbaric warriors. This game – Barbaric! – lets you play such heroes. Or, more often, anti-heroes. Pit your sword-arm and knowledge of eldritch secrets against ravaging bandits, scheming nobles, diabolic demons, mighty dragons – and, ultimately, the rotten and ugly face of moribund civilization itself.
These rules are, by themselves, an act of barbarism. This is not a finely crafted ruleset, elegantly spun from existing and new material. It is sharp and blunt at the same time, savage and bleeding, sometimes proudly crude. Its writing was not a work of careful sculpture – it was, and still is, an act of butchery. The author took a big axe, then savagely hacked at several existing rulsets, sending blood and guts flying, to create such a savage game.
So, pour your beer, devour your pizza, turn up the volume of your favorite heavy metal album – and prepare to become… Barbaric!