Hyperborea

HYPERBOREA is the pick for groups who want old-school dungeon and wilderness adventure in the mode of Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith: dying-sun science-fantasy, decadent cities, weird sorcery and lethal ruins, run with rules that feel close to first-edition AD&D. It rewards long campaigns with a referee who likes a detailed, flavorful toolkit.

It is a poor fit for groups who want light rules, quick one-shots or modern heroic fantasy. The two hardcovers are big, the procedures are old-school, and the setting leans into pulp sword-and-sorcery conventions that some tables will want to adjust.

What the game is

HYPERBOREA is a tabletop adventure game of "swords, sorcery, and weird science-fantasy" created by Jeffrey Talanian (co-author of Castle Zagyg) and published by North Wind Adventures. Its rules descend from the original 1974 fantasy wargame and early AD&D, and it belongs to the OSR family. The default world is a flat-earth realm hemmed in by the mystical North Wind, lit by a bloated dying red sun, and filled with decaying civilizations, alien beings and hostile monsters. The publisher stresses the setting can also sit "just beyond the North Wind" of any other campaign world.

Publication history and editions

The game first appeared in 2012 as Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea (AS&SH), a boxed set. A second edition in 2017 collected the game in a single hardcover. The current third edition, retitled simply HYPERBOREA, came out in 2022 and splits the game into a 324-page Player's Manual and a Referee's Manual. North Wind has since released a second printing of the Player's Manual that corrects mistakes and clarifies rules, with downloadable errata for first-printing owners.

What you need to play

Players need the Player's Manual, which covers character generation, classes, equipment, sorcery, adventuring and combat, plus appendices on lordship and strongholds and cooperative play. The referee also needs the Referee's Manual for monsters, treasure, the setting gazetteer and running advice. Both are sold as hardcovers from North Wind Adventures and as PDFs on DriveThruRPG. North Wind's resources page offers character sheets and other free downloads.

Adventures and supplements

North Wind supports the line with a steady stream of adventure modules that also expand the setting. Its newest releases are The Vanishing Isles of the Summer King, The Oblation Slab of the Hepatomancer and The Thousand Eyes of Thaumagorga. Because the rules sit close to classic AD&D, many referees also adapt older modules and other OSR adventures, though spell lists, thief skills and combat differ enough that conversion takes some care.

Core rules and play structure

Characters have six attributes. Physical attributes give Tests, a chance from 1 to 5 in 6 to force a door or similar feat, and Extraordinary Feats, a small percentage chance to do something superhuman. Combat uses d20 attack rolls modified by a class-and-level Fighting Ability, variable weapon damage dice, descending armour class and 10-second rounds. There is a single level-based saving throw, with class bonuses against specific threats such as death, transformation, devices, avoidance and sorcery.

Play follows the classic loop: the referee presents dungeons, wilderness and cities; players explore, avoid or fight dangers, and bring home treasure, which drives advancement. The rules expect mapping, careful resource use and negotiation as much as combat.

Characters and advancement

There are four core classes, fighter, magician, cleric and thief, and 22 subclasses across them, from barbarian, berserker and ranger to warlock, cryomancer, druid, bard and assassin. Characters also choose a background and one of the setting's peoples, such as Hyperboreans, Kimmerians, Picts, Atlanteans or Vikings, each with its own flavor. Advancement is level-based, and higher-level play reaches into strongholds, followers and lordship.

Signature mechanics

The subclass list is the game's best-known feature: each fits a sword-and-sorcery archetype and has its own abilities, so a party of four can feel very different from another. Sorcery is flavorful, with distinct magician types such as cryomancers, pyromancers, illusionists and necromancers, and the setting's weird science-fantasy items blur the line between magic and lost technology. Rules for Tests and Extraordinary Feats give physical characters a quick way to attempt bold stunts without a skill list.

What play feels like

A typical session feels like a pulp short story: the party hears of a lost tomb or a sorcerer's tower, travels through dangerous wilderness, and faces strange horrors and stranger people. Fights can be quick and deadly, especially at low level. Players trade between greed and caution, and the most memorable moments often come from weird magic, cursed treasure and alien threats rather than straight combat.

Running the game

The referee carries a medium-to-heavy load. You need to know the rules well enough to adjudicate Tests, saves and spells, to prepare dungeons and wilderness, and to bring the setting's decadent cities and weird threats to life. The Referee's Manual and modules give plenty of material, but this is not a pick-up-and-play game. Referees used to AD&D or OSE will find the procedures familiar. The Player's Manual also includes a name generator, an appendix on lordship and strongholds for high-level play, and an appendix on cooperative gaming. Groups coming from story-led games should expect to spend a session or two learning the old-school assumptions: careful exploration, retreat as a valid choice, and treasure as the main route to advancement.

Campaign fit

HYPERBOREA is a campaign game. Level-based advancement, subclass abilities that grow over time, and strongholds and lordship rules reward ongoing play over months. It can run one-shots with pregenerated characters, but much of its depth goes unused in a single session.

Reception

The game has a strong reputation in OSR circles. Reviewers of the third edition praise its polish, organization, art, depiction of classes and peoples, and the decision to split the rules into two hardcovers; OSR system round-ups often single it out as one of the best-realized sword-and-sorcery games. Caveats include the size of the books, expensive shipping outside North America, and requests for more cultural sensitivity in how some real-world-inspired peoples are presented.

Where it is strongest

• Pulp sword-and-sorcery and weird science-fantasy with a distinctive dying-sun setting
• A deep subclass list that makes parties feel varied
• Close compatibility with classic AD&D-era play and adventures
• High production quality and ongoing module support

Where it can frustrate groups

• Two large books and a lot of procedure for new players and referees
• Old-school lethality and descending armour class will not suit everyone
• Pulp-era tropes and real-world-inspired peoples may need adjusting
• Less suited to one-shots or light, narrative play

Content and safety notes

Expect pulp violence, cosmic and body horror, slavery and decadence in the setting's cities, and cultures inspired by real-world peoples. Discuss with your group how you want to handle these themes and which elements to soften or drop.

Best starting path

Start with the Player's Manual (look for the second printing) and grab the free character sheets from North Wind's resources page. The referee should add the Referee's Manual and one of the recent modules. If your group knows AD&D or OSE, run a short dungeon at level 1 first, then expand into the wider setting.

Research notes

Last checked October 28, 2026. Edition, product and module details from North Wind Adventures; rules details from the Player's Manual description and independent reviews.

• North Wind Adventures: HYPERBOREA
• North Wind store: HYPERBOREA 3E Player's Manual
• North Wind resources and downloads
• DriveThruRPG: HYPERBOREA Player's Manual
• Unsound Methods: Twenty OSR Systems Reviewed (2023)