Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Finder’s Archives.
In this column, we take some of the lands from Magic: The Gathering and turn them into something you can use for your fantasy games.
The stats given in each entry assumes that you’re using Pathfinder 2 for your games, but they can easily be converted over into any fantasy system. This week we challenge you to a duel in the Barbarian Ring.
Barbarian Ring
The barbarian ring is more a tradition than it is a location. It can be set down anywhere that a group of barbarian tribes gather, as a means to resolve conflict. It consists of four rings, each one inside the other. Whenever barbarian leaders fail to come to an agreement, and only bloodshed can resolve the problem, the barbarian ring is set up.
Lay of the Land
A duel inside the barbarian ring can end in one of two ways. First blood – the first to bleed is the loser. And finally, to the death – the winner here is celebrated as the winner, but the loser is given considerable honor for being willing to die for their beliefs. It is possible to surrender in both cases, but there is no honor in surrender.
The barbarian ring consists of four rings, but to begin with, only the outermost ring is in use. It is for the start of a duel, the first five minutes. If an outcome is not reached in those first five minutes, each contestant is given ten minutes to recuperate, and then the battle resumes within the next ring. These five- and ten-minute intervals continue until the final and innermost ring is reached. Once that ring is reached, each contestant is given thirty minutes to ready themselves, and after that, there is no coming out of the ring.
If a contestant leaves the ring, regardless of how, the outcome is usually bad for the contestant. If the fight is to first blood only, it is considered a surrender, and the loser is treated with disrespect, and often beaten nearly to death. If the battle is to the death, they’re immediately executed.
Dangers
The ring itself is dangerous as is, as the contestants who choose to enter the ring tend to be highly trained. However, one barbarian ring, in particular, is exceptionally deadly. Within this ring is an unnamed champion, who never leaves the ring, instead standing there waiting for any comers. No one knows who this champion is, but barbarian legends say that whoever can defeat the champion will become the living incarnation of the barbarian god of war, and lead the barbarian tribes on to greatness. Most are unsure if the champion is even alive, as he never speaks, nor performs any other activity except waiting and fighting. He takes on all comers, somehow restoring all his wounds between each battle – though not between each individual bout within that one battle.
Kim Frandsen
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