Cubicle 7 Blends D&D 5e and Tragedy In ‘Broken Weave’
Come take a look at Cubicle 7’s new “tragic fantasy” 5E setting, Broken Weave, a fantasy world where everything has gone abysmal.
Late last week, Cubicle 7 put their new “tragic fantasy” campaign setting, Broken Weave up for pre-order, not very far out from the end of their successful Kickstarter Campaign. What is tragic fantasy? And what makes this new campaign setting quite so bleak?
The answer lies in the title. Broken Weave is a dying fantasy world in which the titular weave (of magic) has been broken. As a result, all sorts of terrible things lurk out there in the darkness as the lands crumble and the world forgets what it used to be.
Broken Weave – A 5E Campaign Setting Full of Bleakness and Hope
Like many things, Broken Weave starts with the world going all to hell. The Weave of Magic itself has been broken, and the fabric of the universe is beginning to unravel. Making matters worse, the gods are dead (probably), the moon blew up, and an all-consuming Decay gnaws at the edges of reality.
And that’s all just the start. Broken Weave is a world that has “begun to forget what it was.”
Time and distance have lost their meaning, and the knowledge of how things once were crumbles like ash between your fingers. Those who remain, struggle to survive in a shattered world ruled by Decay, which eats at memory and warps people into monsters, and monsters into nightmares.
So, you know, a bit like imagining what 2026 is going to be like. But, while the world might be broken, it’s up to the players to carry forward the indomitable flame of hope. According to the book’s description, “community and trust” are the twin forces that will remake the world. How that actually plays out will be interesting to see, given that this is a 5E campaign setting, and what 5E does best is turn-based combat on a grid.
First and foremost is the idea of Decay. This is a corrupting force that transforms monsters and PCs alike, twisting them into monstrous new forms with powerful abilities. Humans, Dwarves, Elves, and Halflings all face a unique Curse, which might transform them into an undead monster, or into a crystalline being, frozen in place for all eternity.
Classic monsters might be “Broken” by “applying Decay to them”–this means giving them new abilities and new descriptors to make them all gribbly. A few other mechanics outline the long-term campaign play inherent in the setting:
- Detailed travel mechanics based on our widely successful Uncharted Journeys system. This will make your journeys across the broken world truly unforgettable.
- A system for harvesting the creatures of the broken world and using their remains to craft strange and unique equipment.
- Detailed methods of creating a Settlement for your party to call home and nurture together. This includes key characters, resources, and threats they must face. This system can also generate neighbouring settlements to ally or feud with.
- And when the adventure is over, the book provides rules for Generational Play — system for retiring your heroes and advancing the timeline of your settlement. Watch how your hero’s actions shape your settlement’s growth over generations. Then take on a new adventure as their descendants, shaped by the legacy of past heroes actions and choices.
All of which can be found in Broken Weave, which will be released later this year.
