MISCONCEPTIONS about Scotland’s Pictish history will be corrected in a new Dungeons and Dragons-style project.
Tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) designers and archaeologists are teaming up to create Carved In Stone, with a crowdfunder launched in a bid to secure the necessary cash.
The game is set in 695CE when the Picts defeated the Northumbrians to become the leading political force in what is now Scotland.
The work is the result of a collaboration between Edinburgh-based game design company Dungeons on a Dime and the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland’s Dig It! project.
It aims to offer historically accurate details about that period of history – and tackle myths such as stereotypical naked Pictish warriors covered in blue tattoos.
Brian Tyrrell, director at Dungeons on a Dime, said: “History and archaeology are conversations between the past and present.
“For too long the same perspectives have dominated that conversation, interpreting evidence to reflect their own interests.
“A single book won’t undo decades of trauma, but we hope it can help inspire more people to examine their past critically and find that there was always a place for them in history where they previously thought there was none.”
TTRPGs are collaborative storytelling games in which players take on the role of characters, with one person serving as the storyteller.
All players need is dice and a system of game rules to play, with Carved in Stone acting as a setting book – describing a world for adventures to take place using rules systems such as the famed Dungeons and Dragons.
The team have created concept art and layouts and now need to raise enough funds to produce the book.
The Carved in Stone crowdfunding campaign was launched on Kickstarter with a range of digital, printed and special rewards for supporters, including game designing and fantasy-writing workshops.
If successful, Carved In Stone will be available for purchase with copies donated to School Library Outreach, Glasgow’s school library service, which has provided literacy and education advice on the project.
The text will later be released digitally under a Creative Commons licence which means that anyone will be able to access, use and remix the project for free.
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