Dolmenwood — OSE clone — fairy tale horror in Dolmenwood forest

"The forest whispers. The standing stones hold secrets. Welcome to Dolmenwood."

Diced20 (OSR)

Players3–6

Prep~15 min

Foundry VTTCommunity

Complexity

What is this system

Dolmenwood is a tabletop RPG setting by Necrotic Gnome (2024, Kickstarter), built on Old-School Essentials (B/X). Dark fairy tale horror: players explore the ancient Dolmenwood forest, home to faeries, cursed deadmen, talking beasts, and strange beings. 9 classes: Cleric, Fighter, Thief, Magic-User, Bard, Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Halfling. 6 Kindreds.

Setting

Dolmenwood — a misty ancient forest surrounded by four kingdoms. Within: druidic ruins (standing stones/megaliths), faerie territories (Fairy Land), cursed villages. Every shelter is a mini-dungeon. The world is steeped in fairy tale horror: not whimsical idyll, but threatening magic.

What it looks like at the table

GM: 'You're in the misty forest. A standing stone towers above you. Strange symbols are carved on it.' Player: 'I use my Cleric ability to decipher the symbols.' GM: 'The symbols say: "Do not touch." But you hear whispering from behind the stone — someone is calling you.' Player: 'I follow the whisper.' GM: 'From the mist emerges a small figure — a little man with eyes on his palms...'

Playstyle

Exploration Combat Mystery Fantasy Weird

Key mechanics

Old-School Essentials (B/X)

Classic B/X mechanics: d20 for attacks, d6 for damage, magic through spells. Dolmenwood adds fairy-tale mechanics.

9 Classes + 6 Kindreds

Cleric, Fighter, Thief, Magic-User, Bard, Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Halfling. Kindreds: Human, Elf, Gnome, Goblin, Moss Dwarf, Wulfling.

Shelter Classes

Every forest shelter is a mini-dungeon with unique mechanics, encounter tables, and mysteries.

Fairy Land

Faerie territory with distorted space and time. Rules for travel and faerie encounters.

What people say

I'm really enjoying Dolmenwood and consider it one of the best 'new' fantasy roleplaying games I've played in some time.— James Maliszewski, Grognardia

I have nothing but praise to offer about Dolmenwood, both as a fantasy setting and as a game.— James Maliszewski, Grognardia

Art & materials