Interest check: Beyond the Wall and Other Adventures

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Which Scenario Pack seems most interesting?

You may select up to 3 options.

  • The Angered Fae
  • The Hidden Cult
  • The Goblin Infestation
  • The Delivery Quest
  • The Witch's Mistake
  • None of the above (if you have another preference not listed here, write it in the thread below!)
Jul 5, 2025 8:45 am
Every home needs its heroes...

Your small village seems like a haven to you and your friends, but it is not safe.

Dangerous faeries lurk in the forest just outside of town, wicked men and ferocious monsters are a constant threat, and sometimes dark forces find their way into your neighbors’ hearts. You and your companions are young and untested, but ready to protect what matters.


So, having been on the site for a few months now, and with several of the games I've been playing in recently wrapping up, I've been getting the urge to try my hand at GM'ing again. I thought I'd start by running a short, simple adventure using a system near and dear to my heart: Beyond the Wall and Other Adventures.
This will be my first time GM'ing on this site, or any pbp site really. So, fair warning, expect a moderate amount of jank as I work out how to actually run a game here.


First of all, what is BtW?

Beyond the Wall is an OSR-style game. It takes a lot of its rules from early editions of D&D, but updated here and there with some modern sensibilities. It's fairly low-power, low-magic and rules-light. The focus is more on allowing for player improvisation and the DM making on-the-fly rulings, rather than meticulous combat optimization or digging through the rulebook for that one rule that you're sure is in there, somewhere.

Thematically, it draws inspiration from works like those of Ursula K LeGuin and Lloyd Alexander. Players take on the role of a group of childhood friends, the callow youths of a small village. Not quite heroes yet, but full of potential and ready to defend their home when trouble arises.


Character & Village Creation

One of the neat things about BtW is how it handles character creation. Each player picks a 'character handbook' (essentially a predefined character concept, like The Would-Be Knight, The Witch's Prentice or The Goblin's Child. There are a lot of them to pick from), which gives the player their class (warrior, rogue or mage, or in some cases a combination of two classes) and their starting stats. Each playbook then comes with an assortment of 7 tables to roll on. These both modify the character's stats and starts to define their backstory.

So, for example, The Untested Thief might roll that their father is a local merchant (giving them +2 Cha, +1 to Int and Dex, and the Skill of Haggling), that they befriended the village's fishermen as they grew up (+2 Dex and +1 Wis), and that, after a theft gone wrong, they and another PC ended up taking the beating of a lifetime (+2 Con, Skill in Survival, and the other PC gains +1 to Con as well). In this way, each character starts the game with several connections to various people in the village, as well as a shared history with the other PC's.

As the players roll up their characters, the village also takes shape. Each player gets the chance to add a couple of locations and notable NPC's to the village during character creation, if they so choose. In addition, simply picking certain playbooks can alter the village. If a player selects The Nobleman's Wild Daughter, well, then that means there's a noble family living in close proximity to the village, including an estate of some kind. Elves, dwarves and halflings are generally considered strange, rarely seen creatures, but if a player picks something like The Elven Highborn or the Dwarven Rune Caster, well, then in this village they're clearly a little less rare.


Scenario Packs

Scenario Packs are BtW's version of adventure modules. Like the character playbooks, they consist of a central concept and a whole bunch of tables to roll on, from which the GM is then supposed to cohere together the actual adventure. Again, I think it's neat. It means the same Scenario Pack can end up looking wildly different each time it's played.

So, given that this is an interest check thread, I figure I might as well also throw in a poll to see which of a handful of Scenario Packs people might be more or less interested in. If there seems to be enough interest to get a game started, I'll pick one of the more popular Scenario Packs and get a proper recruitment thread started.
[ +- ] Scenario Packs
Jul 5, 2025 8:57 am
I don't think I am capable of turning down a chance to play BtW. So yeah, definitely interested.
Jul 5, 2025 6:21 pm
I only got to play one game of BtW and it died after just two sessions, so I am interested!
Jul 5, 2025 6:26 pm
I so want to play this game, but I just don't have the time right now. Good luck with it. Maybe you'll consider running another scenario in a few months. 😄
Jul 5, 2025 8:21 pm
We started one a few months ago and the gm disappered just when it started to get good. Would love to play another. I believe we were playing the angered fae. I think the hidden cult sounds cool. I was assistant beast keeper.
Last edited July 5, 2025 10:33 pm
Jul 5, 2025 9:02 pm
You’re going to get lots of interest, I have a feeling. BTW is a special game for sure, and a favorite of mine. I’m in if I make the cut!
Jul 5, 2025 10:34 pm
Wonderful, glad to see there's some good interest here! I'll leave this thread open over the weekend to see if anyone else shows up, then I'll set up a game and a proper recruitment thread in the coming week.
Windyridge says:
I so want to play this game, but I just don't have the time right now. Good luck with it. Maybe you'll consider running another scenario in a few months. 😄
A pain I know all too well! If this first game goes well and everyone has fun, I'm sure it won't be the last BtW game I start here. I'll keep you in mind!
Jul 5, 2025 11:53 pm
I'd be interested in giving this a try!
Jul 6, 2025 12:49 am
The character creation was fun. We took it step by step and interwove our stories of growing up together.
Jul 6, 2025 1:12 am
If there's space, there's interest from me!
Jul 7, 2025 7:55 pm
Crap. Am I too late? I love the idea if BtW and its sister games, but I've never gotten to really play them. Would love to be part of this.
Jul 9, 2025 8:55 am
I'm definetly game if there is still room!
Jul 9, 2025 8:35 pm
timplausible says:
Crap. Am I too late? I love the idea if BtW and its sister games, but I've never gotten to really play them. Would love to be part of this.
Not at all, I'm just now putting together the game, and will have a recruitment thread up shortly!

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