Legend of Zelda inspired RPG embraces classic video game tropes
Yes, random pots do contain money.
An upcoming tabletop roleplaying game inspired by the likes of the Legend of Zelda series fully embraces retro video game tropes.
Heroes of Cerulea is a tabletop RPG that takes place in a world driven by the battle between good and evil, with the players taking the role of noble warriors destined to save the land. Similarly to the Legend of Zelda video game series, Heroes of Cerulea involves three key figures: the Guardian, the Paragon and the Shadow King – just like the bearers of the three Triforce pieces – who are continually reborn through the history of the land.
However, this time, when the Shadow King once again returns, the Guardian and the Paragon are nowhere to be found. The player characters begin their playthrough of the fantasy RPG to discover this sorry state of affairs, forcing them to take up the mantle of heroism against the Shadow King – being the only thing standing between him and Cerulea. Much like many entries in the Legend of Zelda franchise, players in Heroes of Cerulea will be exploring dungeons, looking for useful items and defeating bosses in order to face the final challenge of the Shadow King.
The gameplay of the upcoming TRPG is heavily influenced by retro games like the original Legend of Zelda, A Link to the Past and Link’s Awakening, with many of its rules following the patterns of those games. For instance, any keys acquired by players will disappear once they’ve been used to open a lock, characters will be able to heal damage by eating food items and they’ll find useful items – such as currency – in random pots and containers in the world.
Every player character will have three main attributes: might, bravery and insight. Each one of these attributes determines how accomplished a character is at performing different actions. For instance, might dictates aspects like attacking and pushing objects, bravery is connected to jumping or defending and insight manages persuasion and shooting. Whenever a player performs one of these actions, they roll an amount of d4 dice equal to the appropriate stat, with the result deciding whether the character is successful. Defeating a monster or boss requires players to deplete their heart total, with bosses presenting an even greater challenge – depending on their move set.
Heroes of Cerulea was created by Lucas Falk, the designer behind Swedish RPG Vindsjäl and co-creator of tabletop roleplaying games Godtale – which is inspired by Norse mythology – and Thespian. Bläckfisk Publishing is the studio responsible for releasing the upcoming Heroes of Cerulea.
The Kickstarter campaign for Heroes of Cerulea is live until October 6th, with a pledge of SEK 299 (£25/$27) getting backers a physical copy of the book in June 2023.