Imagine you are an adventurer: a cunning rogue, a hardened mercenary or a farseer wise in the ways of the stars. Before you lies a world, full of adventure and intrigue, perilous quests and vile fiends, wicked men and evil women. For this world is not like ours: it is still young, untamed and shrouded in mysteries. It is a world of blood and bronze.

To the north you can see the snow-capped ridges of the Zagros Mountains rising like a dragon’s spine, home to savage tribes and ravenous beasts but rich in copper and gems.

Gaze west or south, and you will see vast deserts of raging sands and barren stone where nomad tribes make trade with strange civilizations beyond the edge of the world.

To the southeast, a labyrinthine delta of sudden lakes and shallow canals carries merchants’ rafts and the pirates that prey on them; and beyond are the bogs and disease-ridden marshlands where strange creatures crawl and slither.

At the heart of this world, a barren stretch of hard soil lies circumscribed by twin rivers: the violent and cold Tigris and it is slow and feverish sister Euphrates.

Across this land great cities are strewn, like gems of ancient allure. Of them, Sippar is the adamant. Situated where the eastern steppe meets the great western deserts and the two rivers turn to approach each other before once again continuing on their separate paths, Sippar commands all trade between the wealthy Sumer kingdoms and their western neighbors. Here people gather, seeking refuge from beasts and enemies behind massive walls, or solace from the scorching sun under date-palm canopies and the multi-colored tarps of the bazaars. Here, people bow down in the shade of the ziggurats and tremor in awe of its sacred rulers.

But not you, for you are an adventurer. Driven by an urge for power, by curiosity or avarice, you and your band of likes travel this world, seeking fame, gold and adventure.

This is the game of these adventures.

What is Blood & Bronze?

Blood & Bronze is a game of shared imagination. In this game, you and your friends take on the roles of adventurers, exploring a Bronze Age world in search of power and riches. Using your fantasy, this book and some dice, you embark on mysterious quests, fight savage monsters and unravel the plots of wicked queens and kings. For this savage time is a time of strife, but also a time of wonder. Here, anything you can dream of can happen.