Beyond the World’s Edge by Robert J. Schwalb is a role playing game supplement published by Schwalb Entertainment for use with Shadow of the Demon Lord. This is a supplement that adds new lands to the Urth setting.
The supplement is available as a 34 page PDF from RPGNow for $8, as a print on demand softcover book for $19.99 or as both PDF and book for $20.99. It is also available as a paperback from sites such as Amazon. The PDF is the version reviewed although it was purchased at a reduced price as part of a special bundle. Two pages are the front and rear covers, one is the front matter, one the Table of Contents and one an ad for the Freeport Companion.
The single page Introduction starts with the author explaining that he never wanted to use many thousands of words constructing a world. Which he admits is an odd statement at the beginning of a setting book. The objective is to give enough information to inspire a GM at the table, rather than dictate. This is helpful for other supplements, as it explains why the Lands in Shadow series supplements always seemed to have more that could be detailed. There is an overview of the lands covered and it’s stated that the Freeport Companion is a useful, although not entirely necessary, addition when using this book, as the companion has rules for running sea voyages. This is followed by a full page that has maps for chapters I to III.
Chapter I: Beyond the Nyxian Ocean is for the ocean to the west of Rûl. These lands are beyond the Shield Mountains and the Endless Steppes of the centaurs, so are difficult to visit. There is an island littered with treasure that is inhabited by a degenerate race, an island chain plagued by weird monsters that come out of the ocean at night, an enormous floating tooth brought to Urth by an insane archmage and a shattered continent in the centre of which is a city that entombs a demon prince.
Chapter II: Beyond the Desolation is the lands to the north of the Desolation. Although travelling through the wastes is not easy, travelling around the coast is more feasible, except for the undead remains of sailors and others who died at sea, and the now-undead sharks that fed on them. There are many small islands to the north, with some that are notable. There is an island where an outpost was built, then lost, one dominated by the Bestia from the Demon Lord’s Companion, giant aggressive apes, and the tomb of the Witch-King. Ys, the homeland of the mages from the Tower Arcane in Caecras, is also in this region.
Chapter III: Beyond the Auroral Ocean is to the west of Rûl and is far easier to get to than the east and much more travelled, especially to the Kingdom of Sails and the Pirate Isles. There is an underwater city of the undines, the Iron Isles, which purchase many slaves from Dis, an island where a Matriarch of the Cult of the New God sent some plague victims to die, a new pirate settlement, a perpetual storm which is a conduit through the Void and was how the Kalasans came to Urth and an island inhabited by sirens. There is also a recently crashed spaceship, which gives access to some technological items.
Chapter IV: Eremeä: The Lost Land is the continent from which the Edenes came, fleeing a disaster. This has its own map and there are many more lands described, it being a continent, albeit a largely uninhabited one. Jungles, villages, cities, wastes, lairs and haunted cities are described.
Beyond the World’s Edge in Review
The PDF is decently bookmarked, but there are some errors in the bookmarks. Several are out of order and one has the wrong name. The Table of Contents is to a similar level of depth and is also hyperlinked. Navigation is decent. The text maintains a two column full colour format and appeared to be free of errors. As well as the maps, there are a variety of colour images which would appear to be custom. Presentation is very good.
There are quite a few new monsters scattered throughout the text in the locations where they are found. This includes a Gig, a Lovecraftian monster, something that has looked as if it would fit well with the setting. The Schwalb Entertainment logo on the cover has also been crossed with the Yellow Sign and some serpent people mentioned in Chapter I are said to have worshipped the King in Yellow. There are also a couple of new items, a laser pistol and a laser rifle, from the crashed spaceship. GMs who don’t want to introduce such technology (and anything else that might be encountered) can easily skip including the ship.
This supplement does only cover places quite briefly, but the reasoning is included in this supplement, which is helpful. However, a GM wanting characters to visit places – especially Eremeä, which is an entire new continent, is going to have a fair bit of work to do. It might be easiest to start with some of the smaller areas closer to Rûl. This book does provide an overview of a lot of interesting places to visit but it also expands the area that can be explored quite drastically. Supplements covering some of the areas in more detail would be welcome, but perhaps unlikely going by the Introduction. Beyond the World’s Edge has a lot of interesting ideas and can be found by clicking here.
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