An introduction to the world of 'Castle Falkenstein'.

Castle Falkenstein is a role-playing game produced by Mike Pondsmith for Talsorian games. It is set in a pseudo-Victorian world of 1870 onwards, with a few differences to our own, read on..

Putting on the Style.

The spirit of the game is one of panache. Every character is a hero (and so a cut above the rest), many are flawed and all have a personal nemesis with whom they must do battle. Try your hand as a dashing army officer, an adventurous Lady of rank, a mad inventor, a roguish gambler, a wily wizard or some such role. Castle Falkenstein is a world of swashbuckling, high romance, magic and weird Victorian-style technology. History is slightly different and many fictional characters, such as Sherlock Holmes and Captain Nemo exist as people. Yes, it is a little over-the-top but that's its style, so have fun!

Victorian Values.

The values of society are based around Honour, i.e. knowing what the right thing is and doing it regardless of the cost, and Virtue, which is doing things simply because they are right and not expecting any particular reward. These values are not always adhered to but they are the basis of things. Behaving correctly and having good manners are equally important, more so for the upper classes .  Men should attempt act as gentlemen, even if they are roguish by nature, only the worst of villains do not. Women in the Castle Falkenstein world are somewhat more emancipated (see below), especially those with status and panache. Remember it is said 'that the difference between a Lady and a Woman is how she behaves and the difference between a Lady and a Leader in Society is how she misbehaves'.

Magic.

Magic is a major force in the world but those with the Talent are relatively few. Organisations of wizards vie with each other to better their art and evil warlocks are hunted by the magicians of the Knights-Templar and their allies. Colonial advancement has been staid a little by magic-toting tribal shaman and women have a little greater freedom by virtue of their being better inclined towards magic than men ("Stay in your place, Woman! Ribbet, Ribbet," said the overbearing misogynist) .

'Steam Age' technology.

Weird science is the order of the day. All sorts of items, such as calculating engines (computers); steam-powered carriages (cars), landfortresses (tanks) and the latest aero-liners are found with slight variations on 1870s technology. Mad inventors threaten the world with death rays and giant steam automatons, whilst heroic agents with James Bond-style gadgets in their canes and parasols try to save the world.

Of Dragons & Faeries.

In this world, the Faerie races exist. Two factions of Faerie, the friendly Seelie and the destructive Unseelie clash with each other over humankind's' future. Woods and streams abound with dryads and Naiads and dwarfs build steam-powered machines beneath the great mountains of Europe. Dragons spend

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