Viking video game Northgard is getting a tabletop RPG based on D&D 5E

Northgard, the strategy video game in which players control a clan of Vikings and grow their settlement, is being turned into a tabletop RPG powered by Dungeons & Dragons 5E, Dicebreaker can reveal.

Northgard: Roleplaying Game will recreate the survival-management elements of developer Shiro Games’ video game using the D&D 5E engine, allowing players to create Viking characters and manage their local village in the wake of various challenges.

The village management aspects of Northgard will be part of a new settlement creation system built on top of D&D 5E’s familiar gameplay, tying into the progression of player characters as they gain fame alongside traditional experience points.

The players will need to defend their village from various threats, including wild animals and more mythical beasts that emerge during the world’s punishing winter seasons. As the settlement grows, players will acquire new powers and be able to construct new buildings, growing their base and attracting potential ally characters.

Tabletop publisher Open Sesame Games is behind the upcoming Northgard: RPG, having previously created the board game based on the video game, Northgard: Uncharted Lands, which released earlier this year following a Kickstarter campaign last summer. Uncharted Lands artist Grosnez returns to illustrate the roleplaying game.

At Essen Spiel 2022, a representative told Dicebreaker that the studio is exploring ways to tie the board game and upcoming tabletop RPG’s gameplay together.

The Northgard tabletop RPG will launch a crowdfunding campaign in Q1 2023, with “at least two” books planned. A release date and price are yet to be announced.