Review: Beyond Corny Gron
Looking to explore some of the less trod paths of European folklore? Beyond Corny Gron, a setting based on the myths and legends of Poland may just be your passport to adventure.
Reviews
One of the more interesting developments of the past few years has been movements like #RPGSEA and #RPGLATAM centre and lift up a more diverse range of voices in the gaming communuity. Recent releases such as Zedeck Siew and Munkao’s Reach of the Roach God have showcased fantasy settings rooted in cultures that have more often than not been neglected in favour of accepted fantasy tropes or otherwise pastiched.
As The Merry Mushmen’s A Folklore Bestiary showed though it’s not just the likes of The Philippines or Brazil have their own unique, untold stories. Closer to home the same is true of Europe itself with the dominance of Northern and Hellenic folklore and mythology obscuring the diverse range of beliefs and stories the continent has to offer too.
Whilst A Folklore Bestiary did a great job taking us on a whistle stop tour of the weirdness to be found in many lesser trod regions, such as the Basque Country, those who would like a deeper, more coherent, dive into one particular area could do a lot worse than check out Beyond Corny Gron, created by Polish writer Kuba Skurzyński. Beginning life as a solo RPG based upon Pelle Nillson’s Dark Fort, Skurzyński has now expanded it into a complete RPG setting based on the folklore, myths and traditions of Poland and its neighbours.
Ostensibly a system neutral setting guide, though clearly meant to be OSR aligned (and they even provide a modified version of Ben Milton’s Knave in the appendices), Beyond Corny Gron transports us to the hinterlands of the Karpakian Valley. A land shut off from the world by great spirit haunted mountain ranges, the first section of the book comprises mainly tables for creating local adventurers and randomly generating everything from the weather and wilderness encounters to cave systems.
If you run the kind of games where much of the setting is made up on the fly this surfeit of tables will be of endless use but the few things that Skurzyński sets in stone, such as the rivals factions in the valley, are so interesting yet briefly outlined you end up wishing those had been expanded upon.
At the heart of the book though, and what we got most from, is the bestiary featuring a bewildering, and beautifully illustrated, array of Biesy (local spirits and devils), more than enough to complicate any adventurers life. It’s here you begin to appreciate the richness of Slavic folklore and how its geographical location has opened it up to both other European traditions and influences from the Ottoman Empire and beyond. There’s probably more here than you’ll ever need here, but it’s all such evocative stuff and the book is so beautifully produced, full of stunning woodcut style illustrations, that it’s simply a pleasure to pick up and read, let alone adventure in.
Whilst the book clearly sits within the spirit of a pronounced section of the OSR, we can’t help but wish that Skurzyński would have provided us with perhaps a few less tables and a bit more specificity, a town to explore, some locals and an adventure would have really lifted Beyond Corny Gron to the next level. Still, the fact that our main complaint is that he’s left us wanting for more is a testament to just how good what’s here is.
Author: Kuba Skurzyński
Art: Ala Wísniewska, Jacek Kuziemski
Published by Nerd Sirens
This feature originally appeared in Wyrd Science Vol.1, Issue 6 (August '24)
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