MythWatch

* Currently setting up the Pledge Manager. Shipping to Netherlands, Germany and Belgium is enabled. Did you miss this opportunity? You can still order through our website: www.mythwatch.nl. The order of the Rulebook will be send through a downloadlink that will be emailed to you.*

Hi, it's us (Dirk and Gerda) and we made this game. Our aim was to create a roleplaying game that was easy to pick up for beginners but still intriguing if you are a more experienced player. Every landscape, piece of clothing, jewellery and weapons and much more is all historically correct! And this entire game is AI free. Though we created this; we had A LOT of help from historians, scientists, students, playtesters, teachers and in general just nice and amazing people. We are extremely proud to share this with you and hope you want to give this a try!

Once there was a king whose name refused to disappear.

Around the year 700, in the wide coastal lands of Frisia, a ruler rose to power: Redbad. He lived from roughly 670 to 719 AD and united many of the peoples along the southern North Sea coast. From the Flemish shores to beyond the German Weser, and deep into the riverlands of the Netherlands.

To the south, the powerful Frankish realm watched him with suspicion. King Pepin sought to expand his influence, while Redbad had ambitions of his own. Their rivalry sparked conflicts, political maneuvers, and even religious pressure, as Christian missionaries tried to convert the “heathen” Frisians and claim both their land and their souls.

Yet Redbad’s world was more than war. It was a place shaped by water, wolves, and gods. A North Sea culture connected by trade, shared myths, runic inscriptions, and ancient rituals. Here kings were not only rulers, but sacred protectors of holy places.

The first edition of MythWatch brings this era to life. This is a world where myth and history overlap and while it is filled with historic information, it's up to you what story will be told.

MythWatch is designed to make it easier to step into the world of tabletop role‑playing games. The core mechanics are simple and quick to learn. Perfect for anyone who has always wanted to try an RPG but didn’t know where to start. You can customize your characters by picking one 9 Origins in the Rulebook, which include character Talents and Equipment.

At the same time, MythWatch offers plenty of depth for seasoned players. The Core Rulebook includes three optional modules that expand the system and let you tailor the experience to your style. These are:

- Module 'Experience Points' to level up your characters

- Module 'Tactical Combat' to add in combat to your roleplay experience

- Module 'Create your own Origin' where you get all the tools to fully customize your character.

MythWatch is also an ideal way to introduce your family, friends, or colleagues to role‑playing games. The mechanics and historical setting make it easy for newcomers to jump in while giving you the tools to guide them into the hobby we all love!

 

Together with archaeologists and researchers who specialize in early medieval Frisia, we’ve created six Origins. These give your character a distinct 8th‑century Frisian feel. From clothing and skills to daily life and cultural background.

Prefer to play as someone from our own time? Perhaps even yourself? You can! MythWatch includes three modern Origins: the Narrator, the Builder and the Analyst. And if you want something entirely your own, you can fully customize your character to create a Mythmaker that fits your story.

All the Origins contain:

- Background information

- Talents that makes that Origin unique

- Equipment that best and uniquely fits the origin

How is this based on research, you ask? For example: The clothing the shepherd is wearing is a direct recreation of garments found on a bog body from this era. The thief is carrying a totem that will be on display during an upcoming exhibition about Redbad in the Fries Museum (Frisian Museum). The trader is holding a sceatta. These were coins used for trading and were quite small, as you can see pictured. Several sceatta hoards were found and are on display in the Landesmuseum in Emden for example. We have a story for pretty much every item you see in this game, as we made it our mission to be as historically correct as possible and showcase our history and stories.

This project is supported by several museums and research organizations from Germany and the Netherlands.

Namely: Fries Museum, Fryske Akademy, Ostfriesische Landesmuseum Emden, Niedersächsisches Institut für historische Küstenforschung, Ostfriesische Landschaft and Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.

While we developed this game, they conducted extensive new research that sheds fresh light on the legendary King Redbad. Over the next twelve months, they will publish a new book sharing these insights with the world.

We’ve had the rare opportunity to work alongside these experts throughout the entire process that include archaeologists, historians, and specialists in early medieval Frisia. As far as we know this is the only game that was developed alongside historians as they are discovering new things! Their findings are woven directly into the game, shaping everything from the worldbuilding to the characters you can play.

Depicted below is a 'fibula'. This pin was worn to hold cloaks together. On the left you see the fibula as it is show by a museum. On the right how it might have looked on a woman of high standing.

With Age of Redbad we begin in Early Medieval Europe, but this is only the first chapter. MythWatch is built as a system that lets you travel across ages and cultures: imagine walking the roads of the Roman frontier, exploring the deep roots of Irish lore, or witnessing the first encounters in the Americas. Or dive into the mythical creatures of German, Frisian or Slavic folktales, or step into more eras like the French Renaissance or the age of Victorian innovation.

We are very excited to explore new eras and give you both a historic perspective as well as a mythical adventure. With enough support we'll start exploring Frisian Folktales and will ask for ideas on new eras YOU would like to explore!

'We' are a lot of people that have helped with creating this game! But at it's core it is Dirk Jorissen and Gerda Roorda. Dirk has created the core system that MythWatch is built on and has written the Rulebook and the 'Learn by playing' booklet, created the status cards, all the modules/expansions, the 9 Origins and also did some of the artwork. Gerda first coined the idea to connect ttrpgs with history and did a lot of meetings and conversations to make this game happen as well as doing all the production and stuff like writing this crowdfunding page (Hi!). She also wrote the children's version of the 'Learn by Playing' booklet.

In addition to this core team of two, we've relied on Melanie who is both Dirk's partner as well as a critical eye during this whole proces. Students Douwine and Femke created all the visuals you see on this page. Dominique made the design of all the rewards as well as our logo. Diana Spiekhout is conservator at the Fries Museum (Frisian Museum), and we couldn't have made this without her input and all the hours she spent in meetings with us as we drilled down for more information. Our amazing artists also did a great job with a big shout-out to Frederique who created all the images of people like Redbad and the 9 origins. We've spent many, many hours going back and forth on how to get the items, clothing and expressions just right. And of course all the playtester that shaped this final products! And we still haven't metioned people like Hester who do our socials or all the other people at the Dutch and German museums like Jan, Mans, Johan, Han, Christina, Lisa and many more.

This product was made by so many people. Those who love board games, but also those who didn't even know what a roleplaying game was but decided to jump in anyway.